"Tears shed for another person are not a sign of weakness. They are a sign of a pure heart."
Chapter 1: Dean's New Baby Brother
Dean's beautiful, leafy green eyes lit up as he looked over the hospital bed at his new baby brother. He didn't quite understand how the baby got there in the first place. Mary looked over at her son and smiled as she saw him gazing at the new baby.
"Do you want to come up here and see him?" Mary asked.
John had run out to go get a late breakfast, and had left Dean with his mother. Dean nodded shyly and climbed up onto the bed using as much strength as he could to haul himself up. To a four year old, the small hospital bed seemed like a mountain. Dean sat next to his mom and looked down at the baby. He had fuzzy brown hair and Dean looked down at his closed eyes.
"What's his name?" Dean asked looking up at her with those sparkling green eyes of his.
"Samuel" she replied. As if on cue, Sam opened his eyes to reveal a light blue color.
"Where'd he got those colored eyes?" Dean asked. "You don't have blue eyes and Daddy doesn't." Mary had light blonde hair and green eyes like Dean's.
"Most babies are born with blue eyes Dean" she said simply.
"Why?" Dean asked.
"Well, I don't know for sure" she answered. Dean turned from his mom and looked down at Sam.
"Wanna play Sammy?" Dean asked as he let the baby grip his little finger. Sam didn't reply of course, but simply let out a yawn. "How can he be tired we haven't even started to play yet" Dean complained.
"He's just a baby Dean, he gets tired a lot, she explained, "He's too small to play yet."
"Aw" Dean said, "Then why's he even here?"
"He'll grow" Mary said as she stifled a laugh.
"Why can't he grow faster?" Dean mumbled.
"You just will have to be patient" his mom said gently as she looked over at him.
"What's patient?" Dean asked as he wiggled his finger a little, Sam's small hand gripping it.
"It means you have to wait" Mary replied.
"How long?" Dean asked, clearly not understanding the concept.
"A while" Mary answered. Sam's eyes were beginning to close and Dean felt the grip loosen.
"Like a day?" Dean asked. Mary laughed and shook her head. One of Dean's most well-known idiosyncrasies was asking questions about everything.
"It'll be at least a year before he can even walk" Mary explained.
"A year?" Dean questioned curiosity raging like a storm inside of him.
"365 days" Mary elaborated.
"Oh" Dean said as he began to count on his fingers, surly it couldn't be that long. Dean got to about 12 before he threw his hands down in frustration. "That's too long" he sighed.
"What'd we just talk about?" Mary asked raising her eyebrows at him. "Be…" she hinted.
"Patient" Dean finished with a sigh.
"Good" Mary replied. John entered a few minutes later and looked over at Dean. He had light brown eyes and brown hair that was a little darker than Sam's.
"Come on Dean, let your mother rest" John said in his gruff voice. Dean got down immediately and ran over to him.
"It's fine John" Mary said as she tried to hide the yawn that was escaping from her mouth.
"When are they releasing you?" John asked as he closed the door behind him.
"Tomorrow" Mary replied. John walked past Dean and over to Mary, he kissed her on the forehead and looked down at the baby.
"Can I see him?" he asked. Mary nodded and handed him the baby. John smiled down at the sleeping Sam as he held him in his big arms and Dean went and sat on the chair that had been put in the hospital room for guests. John took the seat across from Dean and smiled as he talked to Sam. Dean's stomach suddenly growled, he grabbed it and grew embarrassed.
"I'm sorry" Dean said, he hadn't wanted to make his dad take him to get food after he had just gotten back and had finally gotten to hold Sam.
"Don't apologize honey" Dean's mom spoke up as she awoke out of her light sleep. "John go take him to get some lunch" she stated. John sighed and then gave the baby back to Mary. Dean felt bad for making his father leave and John turned to him.
"Come on Dean" his father stated. Dean jumped up and followed him. John led him outside towards the black 1967 impala. Dean always loved riding in that car. He always thought of it like a racecar because of how fast it could go. He loved riding especially when it was just him and his dad. When they just rode together, John would go extremely fast and Dean would look out the window and feel like he was flying. Mary had yelled at John a few times about that already, now he would be able to get away with it. Dean got into the back and buckled in. John started the car and the engine roared to life.
"Gonna pick the music Dean?" John asked as he pulled out a cardboard box from under the seat. It was the usual routine whenever the two rode together.
"Yes sir" Dean replied excitedly as he leaned over and reached for the box. He pulled it onto his lap and thumbed through the variety of tapes. He knew there were words scrawled over the labels but he couldn't read them and chose one at random. He passed the box back up and handed his dad the tape he had selected.
"Survivor" John read out, "Nice choice" he said with a smile.
He put the cassette in and Eye of the Tiger began to play. The music was loud but Dean was used to hearing it, ever since he had learned to walk his dad had blasted rock music everywhere they went. At first he hadn't liked the constant booming in his ears but now he had grown into it. The two headed down the road and Dean laughed as he sang along with his dad who was screaming it out at the top of his lungs. They pulled into the parking lot of "The Burger Stand," a well-known burger place in Lawrence Kansas. Dean hopped out of the car and followed his dad inside. A bell rung as the two stepped inside. There were a few other families inside the diner. The floor was polished tile, with black and white squares criss crossing everywhere. There were several booths scattered around here and there that were cushioned seats painted red. There was a bar sticking out from the counter where people would order. There were bar stools leaning against it, they were covered in the same red cushion as the other booths. Dean climbed up on the seat excitedly and spun in the swiveling chair. John began to order, he ordered a bacon cheeseburger for Dean and a BLT for himself. Dean had been scared to try burgers at first but had decided to try them when he saw that was what his dad constantly ordered. He had liked them instantly. John had let him take a bite of his BLT one day and Dean had almost spit it out. He didn't like the red fruit that had been on it or the leafy green stuff. The only thing that he had enjoyed was the bacon. Since then, Dean was ordered a bacon cheeseburger every time the family went out to eat. John took a seat in the stool beside Dean and waited for the food to be slid across the polished wood over to them. John looked over at Dean, spinning in the chair and smiled.
"What do you think of your new little brother?" he asked.
"I wish he could play with me" Dean said as he stopped spinning and instead sufficed for kicking his legs back and forth.
"He'll be old enough before you know it" John encouraged. Dean nodded simply and John looked over at him and then at the diner, like something was missing.
"What's wrong daddy?" Dean asked.
"It's kinda quiet in here don't you think?" he asked.
"Yeah" Dean answered, besides the people that were engrossed in idle conversation; it was more quiet than usual. John glanced over at the juke box and saw it was off. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a shiny silver quarter. He nudged Dean and nodded in the direction of the black and silver colored box.
"Wanna go pick a song?" John asked. Dean's eyes lit up in wonder, his dad had always chosen the songs to hear from the box, and now he was letting Dean decide. Dean nodded and John pressed the quarter into his tiny hand. "Make it a good one" he said with a wink.
Dean climbed down the seat and ran as fast as his short little legs could carry him. He looked through the glass and then down at a panel that had two buttons on it. One was a black sized arrow pointing in one direction and the other pointed in the opposite direction. Dean slid the coin in and the box lit up. Amazing neon colored lights passed through the thick white border that wound itself all around the juke box. Dean touched an arrow and a plastic card with small words written on it automatically flipped over. Music began to play and Dean continued to push the button, enjoying hearing the sound and watching the cards flip. Finally he heard one that he knew his dad had listened to before, and knew it was the right choice. Back in Black started playing through the speakers. People seemed to get more comfortable now and talking became more frequent as voices got louder. Dean climbed back up onto the stool and John ruffled his short sand blonde hair as he sat down.
"Nice choice" he said approvingly.
Their food was slid over to them and Dean grabbed it in his hands instantly. He did this same routine every time, waiting for his dad to take a bite before he did the same. He finished the burger in a few famished bites and then began to eat his fries. He finished about ten minutes later and he licked his fingers before he washed it all down with his milkshake. Dean looked over at his dad empty glass and saw that he had left the bright red cherry at the bottom. Dean picked his out of the remains of his shake and glanced over at John.
"Why aren't you eating that?" Dean asked.
"I don't like cherries much" John replied. Dean looked at the cherry he was holding by the stem and dropped it into his empty glass.
"I don't either" Dean said. John gave a small smile in his sons direction and then wrapped the foil from his sandwich into a ball, tossing it into the trashcan that was quite a ways away from where he sat.
"Well we better be headed back" John said as he picked up his tray, dumped the rest of the trash into it and held the heavy door open so Dean could come through it. Dean balled up the tin foil and got up close to the trash can, tossing it just light enough for it to miss. Dean's cheeks flushed with embarrassment as his father looked over at him. He ran over to the foil ball and threw it into the trashcan. He went back to get his tray, trying to dump the rest of the trash like John had done. He struggled as he tried to reach the top and the tray fell into the trash can.
"Dean" John said with a sigh as he went over and reached inside, grabbing the tray and putting it on top of the trash can. Dean ran to the door and pushed hard, determined to make it up to his dad, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't get it open. John came behind him, and pushed with one hand, the door swung open and the two walked to the car. Dean sat in the back seat and buckled himself in. He remained quiet for a while before John prompted him to speak.
"Dean, what's wrong?" he asked.
"I'm too small to do anything" Dean said quietly as he looked down at the car floor.
"You'll be big enough one day" John said as he looked at him through the car mirror. Dean nodded small and the two arrived back at the hospital. John opened the door to Mary's room and Dean ran inside. Mary sat up and opened her arms as Dean jumped into them. Sam was asleep in the basinet that Sam had been placed in when he was born.
"Where's Sammy?" Dean asked.
Mary pointed, "Right over there" Mary answered. Dean hopped up and ran over to the bed. John walked over to Mary and kissed her sweetly. "You doing okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'll be ready to leave by tomorrow" Mary answered, resting her dark green eyes on John. He nodded and took her hand in his as he looked over at Dean. Dean was standing on his tip toes peering over into the bed, his fingers were turning red as he tried to hold himself up. John walked over to Dean and Dean let go of the side. John picked up the sleeping Sam and went over to the window seat.
"Come here Dean" he said. Dean walked over to his dad and John patted the seat. Dean climbed up and John put a pillow under his arm so it wouldn't get tired, he then handed the baby to Dean.
"Be very careful" Mary spoke up from the bed. The baby's head rested against Dean's arm as he cradled him. John sat down on the end of Mary's bed and he began to talk to her, occasionally glancing over at Dean to make sure everything was fine. But there was no need, Dean held his little brother securely, never taking his eyes off of him. He looked at him as intently as if he took his eyes off of him, Sam would disappear. Sam opened his eyes a moment later, looking up at Dean. He gave him a toothless smile and Dean smiled back.
"Hey Sammy" he said softly as if the slightest sound would shatter Sam's ear drums. Sam lifted up one of his arms and began to wave it in the air. Dean held out his hand and Sam focused his eyes up at it. He gripped Dean's finger and Dean moved his finger up and down. After a while Dean had fallen asleep and he woke up instinctively as he felt Sam get taken out of his arms. He looked up and squinted against the darkness.
"It's just me Dean." Dean recognized the voice of his mother and relaxed.
"Is it time to go home?" Dean asked as he rubbed his eyes groggily.
"Almost, its only three in the morning" she said as she laid Sam in the basinet.
"Okay" Dean answered. His eyelids began to droop shut and he fell uncomfortably against the window behind the window seat. Mary looked over at her sleepy little boy and scooped him up in her arms, letting his head fall against her shoulder. John was asleep on one of the guest chairs, his head tilted back and drool running down his chin as he snored lightly. Mary had suggested the boys go home for the night but John had protested, saying he didn't want to leave after she had just given birth the night before. Mary lay Dean down on the other side of the bed, taking off his shoes and small grey jacket before she slid in beside him.
"Goodnight my angel" she whispered as she kissed his forehead.
Morning came quickly after that, and Dean was excited to get to bring the new baby home. John checked Mary out at the front desk and helped carry her things to the car. Dean carried a diaper bag she had received in both hands towards the black impala. John opened the trunk and Dean threw the bag inside. Mary held Sam in her arms as they drove home. 30 minutes later they had arrived. Dean carried the bag inside and grabbed the front of his mom's shirt and tugged it.
"Come on I wanna show Sammy his new room" Dean stated. John closed the front door behind him and Dean charged up the wood stairs. Mary followed, Sam was wide awake and she held his head and butt supportively. Sam's room was painted a light blue, fluffy white clouds were painted into the walls as well. There was a small dresser and a white crib over in the corner against the wall. "Welcome home little brother" Dean said as he looked up at Sam.
