Sam finds himself in the hallway of the bunker, bare feet slapping quietly on the hard floor. How did he come to be out of bed in the middle of the night? He has no idea, only the sudden need to be near Dean. His rational voice in his head tells him to go back to bed and pretend this didn't happen, but the insistent voice of his heart compels him further down the hall. He stops just outside the door of Dean's room. Now he's unsure what to do next.
The nightmares had been frequent while Dean was gone and have barely abated since Sam found him and changed him back from a demon into his brother again. The process of changing Dean back had been long and painful; injections of blessed blood and dousings in holy water and worrying that he may end up killing Dean rather than saving him. Since Dean's return the dreams have changed from the nightly terror of never seeing his brother again to waking to find Dean standing over him with a hammer with black demon eyes and that wicked smile, ready to bash his skull in. That dream always propels Sam from sleep with a need to see Dean and know that he is still sleeping peacefully in his bed.
Sam shudders as the sweat that he had awoken with dries on his neck causing a chill to run through him. A different chilll follows as he touches the doorknob and quietly turns the knob. The dark of the hallway bleeds into the dark of Dean's bedroom and Sam waits for his eyes to adjust to see the outline of his brother on the bed. Sam slows his breathing and listens for the sound of Dean's deep breaths, signaling to Sam that he is indeed asleep. He slips past the threshold and moves quietly towards Dean. His mind supplies endless varieties of what could happen should he wake his big brother suddenly; a fist to the face, a bullet to the face, a knife to the face, a full-body slam for his efforts. His rational voice again asks why Sam is doing this and his heart tells the voice to shut up. Sam's heart begs Sam to just check, just make sure that Dean is still here.
Sam steps closer to the bed, silently hoping that there are no unseen obstacles such as beer bottles or weapons for him to stumble over. Finally he is beside Dean's bed. And the rational voice pipes up again to ask "okay, smart guy, now what?". Now what indeed? He reviews the series of events that brought him to this precarious moment. Waking from his most recent nightmare of being chased through the bunker by the hammer-wielding demon Dean. Crashing into walls and trailing blood from blows dealt by his big brother. Sam stops his rushing memories and tries to decide what to do next. His heart cries out to touch Dean, to know he is fully human and not plotting his next attack on his younger sibling. But Sam clearly sees Dean is sound asleep. That should be enough to start his exit from the room. And yet Sam remains. As if watching from outside his body he stares at himself reaching out to touch Dean, wondering if he is ready for what could happen. But Dean turns over and speaks softly "It's okay Sammy, I'm right here."
Sam stands stunned. Did Dean just speak or did Sam's mind supply those words? Dean's hand moves under the covers and then appears above them as it reaches towards Sam. Sam glances up to look into those green eyes but is shocked to find them still closed. His brother is still asleep. "Just go back to sleep Sammy, I'm here to keep watch." Dean whispers as his hand moves back to the bed. A tear falls quietly down Sam's check as he feels his heart relax, Dean has spoken to him and assured him. Sam drifts back across the room and slips out of the bedroom. He makes his way back to his bed and is still warmed by Dean's assurances as he puts his head on the pillow. His brother has spoken to his heart from his heart. Sam's heart tells him it's alright to sleep now.