Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural; if I did this fic would totally be happening on the show
Dean couldn't believe what he was seeing. From his peripheral vision he could see that his dad's mouth was hanging open and his eyes were bulging. Any other time Dean would have been laughing at his expression if it weren't for the fact that Dean was pretty sure he was making the same face at the moment. The reason that both of them were making stupid faces was because of his little brother, Sammy.
Dean and his father had come to a town in California because somebody or something (most likely a ghost), was killing strippers. All the strippers had worked in the only strip joint in town and had all had burns and broken bones that were similar to ones when people fell off buildings. Dean was excited when he heard it was a case involving strippers. His dad had given him a look when he saw Dean's face, "Behave yourself Dean, the case comes first everything else comes second. Understood?"
Dean had promptly answered with a "Yessir" and they got in their respective cars and had done a 9 hours' drive from where they were to the town. They checked into the local motel and started going around town asking questions about the recent kills that started happening two months ago. They went to the police station first and, after interviewing useless policemen, they went to the morgue. They didn't find anything new to the case just that the EMF was going crazy which confirmed Dean's suspicions of it being a ghost.
So their next stop was the actual strip club that the strippers had worked in. While they were driving to the strip club Dean started thinking about Sam. It had been over 4 months since Sam had left for Stanford. Dean could still remember that day so clearly and he knew he would never forget it even if he forgot everything else. His dad and Sam had gotten in to the worst fight they had ever had. Things were thrown, words were said and then Sammy left; Dean had been drunk for two weeks after Sam had gone. The town they were in was only a little over an hour drive from Palo Alto, maybe Dean could go check up on Sam after this case was done. Make sure the kid was okay and wasn't being harassed. Dean knew Sam was a big boy and could take care of himself but, it was hard to shake off a lifetime of worrying about Sam in just 4 months.
When they go to the club Dean stopped thinking about Sam and started thinking about the case and (maybe) some hot strippers. That thought probably had shown on his face because his father said, "Get your mind out of the gutter Dean, we're on a case. Besides have you seen the sign?"
Dean followed his dad's line of vision and saw a big neon sign flashing "Ladies Night".
"Oh, c'mon, seriously? How is that fair?" He saw that his dad was chuckling and could actually see the amusement in his eyes. Dean hadn't seen his father smile since Sam left and if his dad was laughing because of his discomfort, Dean didn't mind. Still, "Yea, keep laughing dad. You're going in there with me to see half naked, dancing men having dollar bills shoved down their panties." Dean went into the building and had stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the stage.
Which is how both his dad and Dean ended up in a strip club on ladies night with their mouth hanging open because the youngest member of their small family was up on the stage, his long legs wrapped around the pole, dancing to a bunch of horny, lonely middle aged women and, was that a freaking drag queen?
Sam got off the pole and walked to the edge of the stage (in stilettos, no fucking less) and started dancing. While Dean just kept staring (he couldn't move a limb to go up there) he saw the drag queen shoving dollars down his little brother's leather thong and saw that Sam put a face that showed that he was uncomfortable with having another man's hand shoved down his underwear. That face was what made Dean start shoving through the crowd to get to his little brother.
When he got up there the first thing he did was shove his little brother behind him and cover him as well as Dean could with his body.
"Okay, nothing to see here move along," he started pushing Sam backstage and met some resistance.
"Dean? What the hell are you doing?" He just kept shoving Sam to get behind the curtains while he heard a bunch of 'boos' and 'no fairs'. Apparently walking in two inch stilettos was hard because Sam lost his balance a little and Dean used that opportunity to shove Sam until he was away from the crowd's eyes. Once they were back stage Dean started looking for something to cover Sam in.
"Dean, what the hell are you doing?" Sam asked again. Dean turned to his little brother who had the guts to look pissed off as if Dean had done something bad. That just got Dean pissed off and he got in Sam's face.
"What the hell am I doing? I should be the one asking that question, Sam. What the hell are you doing? You're supposed to be in school, not stripping to a bunch of horny women old enough to be your mother!" Dean could see that Sam was blushing; his whole body was a light pink which just reminded Dean that he still needed to cover Sam up. He found a robe and was about to put it on Sam when Dean saw that he was going to get back on stage.
"Where do you think you're going baby brother?" Sam flinched a little and then turned to glare at Dean.
"I'm going back out there to finish my job." Hearing Sam say that he was going to finish his job got Dean more pissed off than anything else.
"Like hell you are," he said while grabbing Sam by the shoulders and pushing him back into the room. He managed to at least get the robe on Sam like he would a blanket because Sam was being a stubborn jackass.
"Dean, seriously, I need this job. It pays good money and I don't have to do much. Now let me go!"
"Like hell I am and if you needed money so badly you could've gotten a job in a fucking coffee shop!" Dean yelled back at Sam. Sam just shook his head and then suddenly slump his shoulders. The fight had left Sam if only for a minute and Dean decided to adjust the robe. Sam actually let Dean put it on him this time without any resistance.
Suddenly the curtain opened and in came a balding, middle aged man with a beer gut looking mad. Dean instinctively got in front of Sam and turned to match the man's anger with his own.
"Winchester, what are you doing? Get on that stage right now or you're fired." Dean felt Sam flinch behind him and start moving. Dean was just about to tell the douche bag off when his dad came in carrying a duffel bag that Dean recognized as Sam's and his dad looked downright livid.
Behind him Dean heard Sam say, "Oh, crap, I am so dead."
For some reason Dean got a sweet satisfaction of Sam being scared, he almost laughed at Sam's tone, almost.
"His dad turned to the owner (Dean refused to think of him as Sam's boss) and gave him a look that had the jerk flinching away from his dad.
"Sam quits, I suggest you don't get involved in this or I am going to have to take matter into my own hands and you wouldn't like that. Also, if I find out that you let Sam work in here again…" John left the threat hanging there and the man just nodded and left.
John then turned to his sons and stared at his youngest. Sam seemed to be cowering a little behind his brother and was shaking a little. Good, that meant that he knew John was mad at him and he could let Sam stew a little bit and not talk to him yet.
He went up to his youngest and wrapped his hand around Sam's bicep and started pulling him out of the club. Sam was just following behind him without arguing or talking back for once. Dean was on Sam's other side glaring at anyone who even dared to look at Sam.
Once they were outside John pushed Sam towards the Impala, opened the door and gruffly told Sam to get in. By this time Sam had gotten out of his stupor, straightened up and looked their dad in the eye and said, "No."
John turned to look at his youngest son, "What did you say to me?"
"I said no, N-O, no. You're not the boss of me and can do what I want and I don't want to get in the damn car."
Dean could see that John's vein in his forehead was throbbing with anger and he decided to step in before Sam got seriously injured and ended up in the hospital in critical conditions.
"Dad, don't worry, I'll get Sam in the car," snorting behind him, "and we will meet you up in the motel." John looked that he wanted to argue but, he also knew that Sam was most likely to listen to Dean then him. Still, he showed Sam his duffel bag and said, "If you want this back you better do as your brother says, get in that car and go with us the motel." Sam looked pissed but, he didn't say anything and just stared at his father while he walked towards his truck, got in and drove off leaving him alone with his brother.
"Get in the car Sam."
"No," he said stubbornly.
"Sam, I don't have time for this. Get in the fucking car, NOW!"
Sam just turned around and started walking away from Dean which pissed him off to no end. Dean got Sam's shoulders and started pushing him towards the car. For Sam being so tall he was still filling in. He was scrawny and though he did have muscles they weren't enough to stop his older, stronger, buffer brother from pushing him towards the car.
"I can call a taxi home."
Dean just snorted at him, "Dad has your duffel which most likely has all your money so there's no way you can call a taxi, now get in the car."
Sam just raised his chin defiantly, "I have money down in my underwear, that should be enough and even if it wasn't I'd rather walk home than go anywhere with you."
Sam had really hurt Dean when he said that but, instead of showing it he punched Sam in the guts, pushed him in the car and, while he was gasping for air, put the seat belt on him and got in the car and drove off. By the time Sam got his breath back Dean was already halfway to the motel; it wasn't very far from the strip club, only about a 10 minutes' drive.
When he pulled up in the motel parking lot, he parked right by his dad's truck in front of their room. Both Sam and Dean could see John was pacing by the way his shadow was moving on the window. Neither Sam nor Dean made any move to get out of the car even though they knew their dad had heard the Impala and was waiting for them in the motel room.
"Why would you do this, Sam? You're supposed to be in school not dancing naked to a bunch of strangers in a room."
Sam just shrugged his shoulders, "I needed the job, it is, was, a good paying job."
"I thought you got a full ride to Stanford. Why would you need the job and, even if you did why, not get a regular job."
Sam turned towards Dean and said in a pleading voice, "Dean, please understand. I still need to eat and to buy supplies, clothes and bunch of other things. That job paid nine dollars an hour and the tips are good. I only come once a night and make close to five hundred dollars and since I don't have classes on Thursdays I don't have to worry with it interfering with my schedule and study time."
"How long have you been stripping?"
"About 3 months now, why?" Dean just started shaking his head. His baby brother had been stripping for almost the whole time he had been away. Dean hadn't even thought about Sam needing money to eat and for other essentials. He had been too pissed off at him to really think about that.
"Dean, you have to believe me, I was going to quit in a few months when I had some money saved. I already have over $5000. I've also been doing the odd jobs here and there so that when I have enough saved up I could also have some other source of income. Please, just try to understand, please."
Dammit, Sam was looking at him with his puppy eyes that always got Dean in trouble.
"Sam, I don't want you doing that anymore. I'll send you money monthly but, I just can't stand knowing you're stripping or doing something else that is dangerous."
Sam snorted at that, "It's just stripping Dean. It's not as if I am in a street corner selling myself to the highest bidder." Dean flinched when Sam said that, his mind trying to go away from that image in his head.
"What are you and dad doing here anyway?" Dean knew Sam was changing the subject and he let him.
"Dad and I got a case here. Something is killing strippers from that club and we decided to investigate. Which, just shows that I am right about stripping being dangerous."
Sam just stared at him and started laughing, laughing, "What's so funny Sam," 'cuz Dean certainly couldn't see the humor in this situation.
"I already took care of that spirit yesterday. That's what's funny. It was a stripper that used to work there and got herself 'accidentally' thrown off a building by the strippers she was killing." Hearing that explanation didn't make Dean feel any better about his little brother's safety.
"You were hunting, alone? Without any backup? Are you stupid? You know better than to hunt on your own."
Sam just rolled his eyes at Dean with made him grit his teeth in frustration towards his little brother. "I'm serious, Sam. What if you've had gotten hurt?"
"Well I didn't get hurt, now did I? Besides it was just a simple salt and burn, really basic."
Dean just shook his head for like what felt like the hundredth time, "I thought you were done with hunting for good."
"I am but, I can't ignore something that's this close to me. It doesn't feel right." He shrugged his shoulders again and stared straight ahead.
"Sam, I don't want you doing reckless stuff like that. If you really have to do a case call me first, okay? I'll come and help. I should've been keeping tabs on you instead of just leaving you on your own." He said the last part to himself but, Sam heard him and glared at him. "I am not a little kid, Dean. I can take care of myself."
"You're my little brother, Sammy. It doesn't matter how old you get I am always going to protect you, so deal with it." Sam just smiled at Dean and they stayed seated for another few minutes in a comfortable silence when suddenly the motel door opened.
"Samuel Winchester, you better get in here right now. Hiding out there isn't going to do you any good." John went back into the room and left the door to the motel door open. Sam just groaned and put his head on the dashboard.
"Dad is going to tear me a new one."
Dean just laughed and got out of the car, "You should've thought about that before you decided to become a stripper, Sammy." Sam glared at his brother and followed behind Dean like a whipped puppy. Still Dean would protect Sam even if it meant getting between him and his dad. After all, he had promised Sam that he would always take care of him.