Sam and Dean didn't think John knew what day it was. He was probably too busy getting covered in ghoul blood to care. They knew what day it was though. Father's Day, and though they were older now - Dean, seventeen, and Sam, fourteen - they'd been stuck with Bobby while John was on this hunt. Dean had volunteered to go with him, but the ghoul family he'd gone to wipe out had started going after the living, so John had deemed the job was too dangerous for Dean. Dean had argued, had said it'd be better to have him along so he could have his back, but John had made his decision.
Bobby hadn't drawn attention to what day it was, but he did as he always did and made them a nice breakfast. It didn't seem like he had anything planned for the day, so Dean just took Sam out on a walk, saying they'd just go into town for awhile.
"What do you think Dad's doing right now?" Sam asked, kicking at a pebble that he'd found in their path.
"Probably blowing some son of a bitch's head off," Dean answered with a shrug. "Don't really matter, does it?"
"Why not?"
"He's not here."
Sam sighed, hanging his head, his hands in his pockets. "I know."
Dean clapped him on the shoulder, and then told him to pick up the pace. It was hot outside, and even after being out there for a few minutes, both boys were sweating.
"Where are we going?" Sam asked.
"The pharmacy."
"But that's far."
"Your legs still work last I checked," Dean teased, ruffling Sam's hair, and Sam playfully smacked his hand away, giving him a small smile.
They walked in silence for a bit before he asked, "Why?"
"Dude, do you always ask so many questions?" Dean shot back.
Sam shrugged again.
It was obvious that he was upset their dad wasn't with them, and Dean was upset too, but it didn't mean that there wasn't someone they couldn't celebrate and give thanks to. Besides, Sam was the one who had thought about it a week ago, had mentioned it in passing. Now Dean was just making sure they followed through.
The walk was about fifteen minutes, but it felt longer in the heat, and once they were inside they were thankful for that the small place was air conditioned. It was a well-kept store, with plenty of aisles that carried things from makeup to candy to medicine to cards. By the time Dean was leading him over to the card section, Sam already knew what they were doing. He'd suspected it, but he hadn't been sure. And still, he was a little nervous that he could be wrong.
"We're gonna get a card for Bobby," Dean told him. "See if you can find any good ones."
Sam was ready to excitedly search the aisle for the perfect card, but still, he had to check. They hadn't done this before. "A Father's Day card?" he asked. Dean nodded.
Sam left his side to start looking at the array of cards they had. Most of them had been cleaned out already, but there were still a few left.
"What about Dad?" he asked.
"What about him?"
"Shouldn't we get one for him too?"
Dean went over to Sam and gently put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, Sammy, do you see Dad here?" The younger Winchester shook his head, his lips already turning down in a pout. "You're right. He's not. Instead he decided that some dumb monster was more important and he dumped us with Bobby. But Bobby's been taking care of us, and he's been taking good care of us for a long time now."
"He doesn't always do what Dad asks him to, though," Sam reasoned.
"I know," Dean said. "It makes me upset sometimes, too, but he's doing what he can."
"Isn't Dad just doing that, too? I mean, he loves us." There was a pause where both boys began to question that last statement, began to think of all the silent nights without him and the lonely days, the cheap motels, and the worn down, oversized clothes, the food that sometimes wasn't always enough to fill their bellies. And Dean, Dean thought of his fits of anger and drunken rages that he'd keep Sam out of, remembered the yelling, the nearly sickening smell of alcohol. But they thought of the hugs, and the lessons to be kept safe, and the times he told them he loved them, and even the times he had tucked them into bed when they were younger, and they thought about how hard he must be trying to keep them safe. Still, that last sentence hung heavy in the air. "Right?"
"He does," Dean insisted.
"Maybe he's just not good at showing it," Sam reasoned.
"Exactly. But, we're here for Bobby."
Sam's eyes grew wet, and so did Dean's. Both boys looked away and began perusing the cards so they wouldn't have to address it.
"Where'd you get the money to get a card anyway?" Sam asked.
"I have my ways," Dean answered, a hint of unease coming off of him.
Sam ignored it. Dean had always been cryptic about where he got his money when Dad forgot to leave them with any, and he'd been getting worse about it since the year before.
"Hey, what about this one?" Sam asked, holding up a card with a cartoon Darth Vader on it. It looked like it was a gag of that scene from The Empire Strikes Back where Darth Vader told Luke he was his father.
"Good find," Dean congratulated.
Bobby had been the one to show them the movie for the first time a few years back, so the card seemed fitting.
After buying the card and a pen, they stopped outside to sign the card. They didn't know what sort of heartfelt message to put, thought maybe things were way too complicated to put into words, so they just put Thanks for being there for us, Bobby. Love, Sam and Dean. Sam added a little heart at the bottom, and then they put it in the envelope.
The younger Winchester proudly carried it on their walk back, and Dean said he was the one who could give him the card if he wanted to, but Sam wanted him to do it, felt it was only fair since he was the one to pay for it.
When they got back to Bobby's, they found him sitting at his desk, looking over some old book.
He hadn't heard them walk in, so Dean cleared his throat to get his attention. Bobby looked up, and smiled at them. "How was your walk, boys?"
"Good," Sam answered, a huge grin on his face as he went over to him, sitting on one of the remaining free spaces on his desk.
Dean walked over, taking out the card in its midnight blue envelope that he'd been hiding behind his back. "We got you something," he told him, handing it over.
Bobby's mouth opened in surprise at seeing the card and looked up at Dean and then to Sam. Both boys were smiling now, and they watched as Bobby gently took the card, as if it was one of the most precious things he'd ever held. He opened the envelope and pulled the card out, laughing softly at the art on the front. He opened it up, read the quick blurb inside and then the little message they'd left for him.
He shook his head in amazement, a wide smile on his face. "You, boys," he said, voice rough with a flood of emotion.
"Happy Father's Day," Dean said.
Sam quickly followed: "Happy Father's Day."
Bobby wiped away a tear, not bothering to hide it from them, and then he told them, "Come here," as he stood and opened his arms to them.
Dean instantly leaned into Bobby's embrace, wrapping his own arm around him, and Sam quickly hopped off the desk to join. Bobby held them close, crying quietly.
"Sam, Dean," he began as he held them, "I know you probably don't get to hear these words often, so I'm gonna say 'em, and you'd better remember 'em 'cause it's important. I love you."
The Winchesters hugged him tighter, and said in near unison, knowing the weight their words held, "Love you, too, Bobby."