"You ever been really hungry? I mean, haven't-eaten-in-days hungry?"
–TRAVIS, S4 E4 Metamorphosis.
Dean age 9, Sam age 4, Oakford, Illinois, 'Stay easy' Hotel.
Dean's stomach growled hungrily as he watched Sam bite eagerly into a cheese sandwich. John had taken off to hunt a particularly tricky shape shifter and left the eldest brother in charge for a few weeks. Or so he had hoped.
Sam swallowed his mouthful quickly and dove in for the next bite, oblivious to his brother's loud stomach and pleading eyes. It had been weeks. Dean looked over to his stash on the bed of the murky hotel room; they were down to their last dollar. He had tried over the last two weeks to scrounge together any little bits of cash he could grab. But at his age, there was only so much he could do.
'Where are you dad?' he begged silently. 'We need you...'
John had never been away this long before. He had only ever been a week or two, tops, when he went off on a hunt. But they were nearing in on a month now, and Dean was unsure what to do now. Too young to work or fake a credit card, he fell onto his basic dishonesty of cheating and stealing. Tonight's victory came at a particular risk when the shopkeeper recognized Dean when he attempted to steal another grocery item from the gas station shelves. It was a small town, and there were only so many places to go for food.
Young Sam toyed with his food as he continued to enjoy the meal, although most of it was smeared on his cheeks and hands by this point.
John's voice echoed through Dean's head; 'watch out for Sammy. Take care of your little brother.'
Dean's stomach growled again and he keeled over at the pain of minor starvation. He clenched his teeth together and squinted his eyes tightly as his father's words echoed over and over. 'watch out for Sammy.'
He won't call his dad. He wouldn't. He didn't want to be a failure to his father. He had to be the responsible one. He had to do what was needed so that his dad could work. More than anything, Dean just wanted to prove that he could do it; that he could look after himself and his little brother without the need for dad to hold his hand. But it wasn't for pride...it was because it was his duty.
Dean groaned and staggered over to the kitchen and drank gulps of murky water from the tap. Tasted like iron, but he didn't care.
Sam looked up from his messy lunch and looked intriguingly at his older brother. "Dean?" he said loudly through a mouthful of bread.
Dean turned off the tap and wiped his mouth as he turned around slowly to face his brother. "Hmn? What is it Sam?" he asked feebly.
Sam paused for a moment, as though he'd forgotten what to ask before he opened his mouth widely and stammered through bread again "wh-where's Daddy?"
Dean stepped away from the kitchen and approached his brother at the small dining table in the middle of the room. "He's out. But he'll be back soon. I promise." He smiled meekly to assure his brother.
Sam smiled brightly and bobbed up and down on his seat. Of course he believed Dean. He believed everything his older brother told him. So naive. So innocent.
Sam continued to munch on his bread and cheese again as his brother slumped onto the hard wood chair next to him. Dean lay his forehead down on the cool tabletop and heaved a long sigh, his hands clutching his stomach again for any signs of relief from the pain. 'He'll be home soon.' he told himself. 'Soon'
THREE DAYS LATER"Deeeeean!" Sammy whined. He pushed again at his older brother's chest as he lay on top of the motel bed.
Dean slowly opened his eyes and spoke softly "what?"
"I'm hungry!" Sam pushed at Dean's chest again and pouted with chubby cheeks, waiting for his brother to get up and grab him some food. Little did the young Winchester realize that they had run out of funds two days ago. He didn't understand the bleak situation that they had found themselves in. All he knew was that he was hungry.
Dean knew it too. He hadn't been able to steal any food today. The hotel owner was due any minute to swing by and evacuate them from the room too, as yesterday was the last paid-for day. He didn't know what to do and his energy levels were at an all-time low due to a lack of food over the last four days. 'Dad, where...where are you?' he repeated silently.
"Deeeeeean!" Sam whined again, tugging on his Deans shirt.
The silence was interrupted by three loud bangs on the door. Sam stopped tugging immediately and sat down on the floor between the two single beds, hidden from the front doors viewpoint.
Dean's eyes snapped open and he sat up slowly. His mind whirled as he turned around to look at the wooden door. The locks were still in place as the doorknob rattled.
What should he do? If it was the hotel manager, he could knock them out and buy himself a few extra hours. What if it was the police? Had they tracked him back to this room? Or what if it was...a monster?
Three loud bangs again and Dean swung over the bed and snatched up his shotgun from between the bed and bedside table. Sam sat at Dean's feet as the elder raised the gun to shoulder point. He was so weak, but he had to protect his brother...at any cost!
Suddenly the door burst open and the chain lock snapped clean off the wall. Dean flinched and hesitated as a tall figure stepped swiftly through the door frame. After the shock had worn off, Dean was glad that he had paused.
John stomped into the room with long strides and stood before his two boys. He barely took a moment to notice the state they were in before he spoke gruffly to them. "Get your stuff together, we gotta go now."
There was a hint of urgency in his voice, but no concern in his expression as he turned towards the kitchen and began washing something under the tap.
Dean barely paused as he put his gun on the bed and got his little brother to his feet "Get your bag Sammy" he said calmly.
Sam paused briefly and waited for his brother to give him a quick smile and reassuring nod before he toddled off to grab his things.
Dean fought back the stomach pains and exhaustion in his dad's presence as he gathered his own things. Admittedly, a huge wave of relief had washed over him, and he felt better than he had in a while. But he was still hungrier than he'd ever been in his life.
Dean shoved the last of his clothes into his duffle bag and quickly helped his brother grab the last of his things into a small backpack before the Winchester family marched out the door without a word. They stepped quickly through the rain and John slid into the warm interior of the '67 Impala. Dean helped Sam into the back seat before sliding in next to him, both boys tossing the bags onto the floor as the engine roared to life and john drove them out quickly onto the main road.
Dean pulled his brother closer and held him tightly so he wouldn't slide around as they straightened up on the leather seat.
A few minutes of silence passed before John spoke calmly. "Oh yeah, I got you boys an early lunch."
He lifted a brown take-away bag from the passenger seat beside himself and passed it back to the boys, his eyes glued to the road out of town. Dean eagerly took the bag from his father's hands and opened it up quickly. His mouth watered as he grabbed the first burger and took it out of its wrapping. He stared at it for a few seconds with desire in his eyes... before passing it over to Sam. Dean couldn't help but smile as he watched his little brother cram as much of the burger into his mouth with a happy grin, before he reached back into the bag and grabbed out his own Burger, practically tearing at the wrapper. As he scarfed the sandwich down, a strange feeling washed over him. He felt as though this might be his last meal for a long time. He knew that this was not true...but he could not shake the feeling all the same. And with this though came an important lesson; from now on, Dean would treat every burger like it was his last. After all, it wasn't about the taste (even though this was an AWESOME sandwich!) it was about survival.
-END.