Welcome Home Sammy
When Dean finally came back into the motel room, Sam pretended to be engrossed in his laptop and not look like he'd been spying and failing miserably to eavesdrop on Dean's private phone conversation.
Dean had been acting strangely ever since they'd gone back on the road after Jess's death. He was always taking his phone calls outside and sending mysterious texts to someone. Also, his heart just didn't seem into hunting like it used to when they were younger. All Dean ever talked about was being a hunter like their dad. Now, he just seemed to be going with the motions.
Sam couldn't put his finger on it, but Dean had changed. A lot. He figured that maybe he had a girlfriend somewhere and didn't want Sam to know about it for some reason.
Dean snorted as he closed the door behind him and spotted Sam exactly where he left him. "What are you lookin at so hard on that thing? Good porn or somethin?"
Sam rolled his eyes. "It's called research dude. Maybe you should try it some time.", he replied snarkily, closing his laptop shut. They had been on this case for a few days and still hadn't found anything worthwhile to explain the phenomenon.
"Hey, I do research.", Dean defended.
Sam gave him a look. "Finding the prettiest girl in town to question or calling Bobby to pick up your slack is not the definition of 'research'"
Dean pursed his lips and plopped down on his bed, arms coming to rest behind his head. "Whatever bitch.", he said with a yawn. Dean's phone began buzzing in his pocket. He took it out and looked at the number with a frown before sending off what appeared to be a text message and pocketing it once more. Sam raised an eyebrow, suddenly tired of all the secrecy.
"You know, if you have a girlfriend, you can just tell me. You don't have to keep sneaking off to have phone sex or whatever.", Sam said casually.
Dean turned his head to look at Sam with an odd look on his face. "I don't have a girlfriend. So just mind your business okay?"
Sam held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, whatever you say.", he said, not buying his brother's words for one minute.
Dean grumbled something unintelligible and turned over; attempting a nap before they went on an overnight stakeout.
Sam figured he should try to do the same and sighed; closing his eyes. When his alarm went off, he awoke to find himself alone in the room. He could hear Dean moving around in the bathroom. His voice was low and slightly muffled, but Sam could still hear the anxiousness. He was obviously speaking to someone on the phone. Again.
Sam sat up quickly; frowning. Something was wrong.
Dean exited the room and immediately told him to start packing up, looking frazzled and upset..
Sam scrambled up and ran his hands through his hair. "What's going on? Why are we leaving? Is it dad?", he fired off in rapid succession. They hadn't finished the hunt. They couldn't just leave the people in the town vulnerable. That was against the Hunter's code of ethics. Not that many followed them anymore.
"Just pack your shit Sam!", Dean snapped. "I have to get back home. I don't have time to explain."
"Home?", Sam questioned with no answer from Dean.
Dean didn't have a home as far as Sam knew other than a longstanding membership with crappy motel chains. However the tension in the room was enough to make him go ahead with Dean's request and paxk all of his belongings into hia duffle bag. Before he knew it, they were in the Impala flying down the road.
Dean's eyes were fixed firmly in front of him, his knuckles clenching the wheel so tightly that Sam thought they would break. They'd been on the road for over an hour; driving in complete silence.
"So, are you going to tell me where we're going and why the hell we left in the middle of a hunt?"
Dean just blinked and pushed the gas a little faster. "Seriously Dean. I need to know what's going on. You've been acting off lately, keeping secrets, and being a dick. More than usual, I mean. I'm your brother man. Just tell me why you're so upset."
Sam could tell that Dean's defenses were cracking when he sighed heavily. "My son is sick, alright? And he's been asking for me. Are you happy now?"
Sam's jaw dropped.
Son? What the fuck? He must have said it aloud because Dean snorted to himself in amusement. "Yeah Sammy, I'm a dad. Crazy, ain't it?"
"How?", Sam asked in a strangled voice.
"If you need me to explain to you how, then I think you need to get out a little more college boy."
Sam huffed. You couldn't blame a guy for being shocked. It's not everyday that you find out that your older brother has a secret love child. While he was more than excited at the prospect of having a little nephew to love and spoil, he needed to know everything.
"You know what I meant, jerk. I mean, how old is he? What's his name? And I thought you said you didn't have a girlfriend?"
"His name is Maxwell Dean Winchester. He's three. And I don't have a girlfriend."
"Where's his mom? Is that who you've been talking to all this time? Did you two break up or was it like a one night stand kind of deal?"
Dean rubbed at his temple with his free hand. "No, we didn't break up. We got married. Two years ago.", he said, pulling his chain from inside of his shirt where a simple gold wedding band was hanging off of it.
Just when Sam thought his shock couldn't possibly get any worse, he was now at a complete loss for words. How did he not notice that before now? Dean had undressed in front of him plenty of times. "You have a wife.", Sam breathed out in disbelief.
"Husband.", Dean corrected. "His name is Cas. He's amazing Sammy and I love them both more than anything on this goddamn earth so if you have a problem with that, you can get the hell out of my car. I don't need you in my life either."
Whoa.
Sam frowned. Especially when it looked like Dean was hastily wiping a stray tear from his eyes. Where did that outburst come from? Did Dean think that he would judge him for being gay or marrying a carrier? Is that why he never said anything? He would never do that. He wasn't anything like their dad.
Oh.
Now it made sense why Dean and their father had parted ways and the older man had virtually disappeared. He didn't approve of Dean's sexual preference.
"Dean...I don't care. Seriously. As long as you're happy, none of that matters. I'll admit that I am kind of surprised because you were always such a ladies man."
Dean let out the breath he had been holding in while waiting for Sam's reaction to his news.
"I had to be Sam. John Winchester's son couldn't be a fag, now could he?", Dean told him, voice full of animosity and bitterness.
His words made Sam wince. Their dad was very traditional and had some very strong opinions that he had no problem voicing. He'd always expected so much from Dean and Sam could only imagine how difficult it was for Dean to listen to his dad's homophobic rants against gay men and carriers while knowing that he was gay the entire time.
"Well, I can't wait to meet my brother in law and my nephew.", Sam said. "Come on. Tell me all about Cas. He has to be pretty awesome if he got the great Dean Winchester to get all emotional.", Sam teased.
Dean smiled brightly as he began talking about his family. "Cas is a teacher. He's like crazy smart, but he loves kids so he went into elementary education. He's with the third graders this year.", Dean began.
Soon, Sam knew everything about Cas and their love story.
Dean told him that Cas was the youngest in a family of seven and that his real name was Castiel Novak Winchester. Cas was the one who picked out the name Maxwell for their son which Sam had already guessed. He was willing to bet good money that Dean probably fought to name him Bentley or something similar. Apparently Maxwell had been Cas' s grandfather's name.
Dean also told him how they first met at a bar in Chicago where Dean was undercover during a hunt and Cas's crazy brother Gabe had talked him into going to a single's mixer.
It was love at first sight and they'd been hot and heavy from the beginning. Cas had gotten pregnant a few months after they met and Dean passed out cold on the floor when he heard the news. Dean never left after that. He gave up hunting, got a job at a local garage and they both moved into Cas's house. They got married when Max was a few months old in a backyard barbecue wedding. The rest, was history.
Sam couldn't help the wave of hurt that washed over him from not being invited, but he knew it was because of the way he left things when he went to college. He hadn't exactly tried to contact Dean either over the past couple of years. He'd been too busy focusing on himself and trying to pretend like he was just a normal, college student to care how his brother was faring. He regretted that now.
During their talk, they had managed to travel quite a distance without either of them really noticing and were finally at their destination. They pulled up into the driveway of a typical suburban home. Sam didn't know what he expected, but it wasn't this. Dean was living more of an apple pie life than either of them could have ever imagined.
"This is it.", Dean announced; climbing out of the car in a hurry and storming towards the door.
Sam was slower to move; still getting out of the car after Dean had already made it inside. Another car was there, a black Honda CRV. As he walked towards the open house door, Sam glanced in the car's backseat; seeing a blue car seat situated in the backseat. It was like he had been dropped into the Twilight zone.
He closed the front door behind him and looked around. The house was warm and cozy and smelled faintly of a home cooked meal. Sam couldn't remember, but he had the feeling that this was exactly how their home had been before the fire. Before everything had been stolen from them.
He followed the sound of voices up the stairs where he passed several hanging photos of Dean and a man who he assumed was Cas. He stopped to inspect one in particular where Dean was standing behind Cas with his arms wrapped lovingly around the younger man with messy, ink back hair and bright blue eyes that sparkled with happiness. They both had huge smiles on their faces. Sam had never seen Dean look so carefree before.
He continued on his descent, passing a large photo of a diapered baby boy with a tie around his neck and one chubby foot planted on top of a birthday cake with the number one on top.
Max.
He had Castiel's blue eyes, but everything else about him was so clearly Dean that it made him laugh. Sam finally reached the landing and spotted an open door to the left. He quietly approached, stopping at the door when he saw Dean sitting on a race car bed with a toddler sized bundle in his arms. "I'm here bud. Daddy's home.", he was whispering to the child, kissing his sweaty hair.
Sam's hands found his way into his pockets and he turned away for a second; feeling like he was intruding on Dean's private moment with his son. He moved to walk downstairs and wait for Dean there when he slammed into something, or rather, someone. He began apologizing profusely when he saw it was Cas. He was even smaller in person. Especially against Sam's 6'3 frame.
Sam didn't know if should introduce himself or what. He still wasn't sure how much Cas knew about their family and if he was even aware that Dean had a brother.
"It's quite alright, Samuel. No harm done.", Cas spoke.
Sam raised an eyebrow, surprised at the deep baritone quality of Cas's voice. Okay, so Cas did know who he was. "It's just Sam.", he corrected automatically. "Or Sammy. Anything but Samuel."
"Ah yes. I remember now. Dean told me you hated your full name."
Cas's eyes crinkled at the edge when he smiled and Sam could see how Dean could have fallen for the man in front of him. There was just something about him. He was comforting and familiar yet there was a hint of sass and power layered underneath his small frame.
"Hey babe. I see you met the giant. Better known as Sam.", Dean teased; coming into the hall with Max in his arms.
The boy's head was resting on Dean's shoulder and he did look a little down. He probably the flu or some other common childhood illness. Thankfully, it didn't seem to be anything as life threatening as Sam had originally thought with the way Dean had rushed them out of town.
It just proved how much Dean had changed. He was willing to drop everything just to come home and see his kid.
"I did.", Cas replied; looking Sam over critically. "He's not nearly as 'goofy' looking as you described Dean."
Sam glared at Dean. Dean shrugged unapologetically. "Yeah, well he's not that bad I guess. Still not as hot as I am though.", Dean replied smugly.
Sam wanted to punch him in the arm.
"Of course not.", Cas replied indulgently, giving Dean a kiss on the lips before sharing an exasperated look with Sam and rolling his eyes at Dean's antics. Sam loved his new brother already.
"We should introduce him to Gabe.", Cas whispered in Dean's ear, or attempted to whisper because Sam could still hear him.
Dean paled at the suggestion looking like he was going to throw up. "No way Cas. Your slut of a brother is not getting his hands on mine. Sammy is straight anyway."
"Dean.", Cas hissed, gesturing to the now wide eyed Max who had perked up after hearing his father saying bad words.
"Sorry.", Dean grumbled. "Anyway, Sammy this is my little monster Max. Max, this is your uncle Sam. Remember the one we talked about?"
"Your brudder?". Max questioned. His small voice was weak and congested. It tugged at Sam's heartstrings.
Dean nodded. "Yup, that's him."
"Hi uncle Sam.", the boy shyly greeted with a wave of his little fingers.
"Hey Max.", Sam replied softly, staring at the little boy in wonder. He really was Dean's twin. If their dad wasn't so stubborn, he would have gotten a kick out of the mini Dean in front of him. Sam could already tell that he was a great kid.
"I better get him back in bed. His temperature broke before you arrived, but I want him to get some rest tonight. We've had a rough few days.", Cas explained.
Sam didn't miss the look of guilt on Dean's face.
"It was lovely to meet you Samuel...Sam", Cas said, correcting himself with a smile before taking Max from Dean's arms.
"Nice to meet you too Cas."
Sam watched as Dean kissed Cas once more before gesturing to Sam to follow him downstairs and into the kitchen so they could talk.
Sam grabbed the beer that was slid in front of him and took a swig.
"I'm guessing you still have questions.", Dean asked as he warmed up leftovers for them in the microwave. Sam didn't know what it was but Dean said Cas had cooked it and it smelled heavenly.
Sam didn't deny it. He did have questions. "Why? I mean, why did you come find me after all this time?"
Dean's shoulders tensed. "I got a tip from one of dad's old friends, Rufus. He told me that there was a string of incidents just like what happened to mom and that whatever it was, was headed your way. Could have been a coincidence, could not. Either way I knew I had to check it out. Make sure you were okay. I used the dad thing as an excuse to get you out of town for a few days while I figured things out. Guess I got there just in time.", Dean explained.
Sam swallowed thickly. 'Not in time to save Jess', he thought to himself. The wound of loss was still raw and fresh. He didn't know if he would ever get over it. As long as he had hunting to take his mind off of it, he was fine. But now, with no clear move in mind, he was lost.
"Does Cas know?"
"About hunting? Yeah, he knows everything. He was the one supportive of me going to find you in the first place. He knows about how we grew up and that we were all each other had for a long time."
"Why didn't you just come back here after everything? Why go back on the road?" Sam couldn't figure out why Dean had resumed hunting when he had so much more to live for and so much to lose.
"Because you needed me.", Dean said simply. "You needed hunting. You needed something. You were hurting man. You're still my little brother. I had to take care of you. Cas understands. He was holding down the fort until I could bring you back with me. But then-"
"Max got sick.", Sam finished for him.
Dean nodded, taking a swig of his own beer while Sam mulled over everything he'd been told. There was still a niggling thought at the back of his mind as to why he would have been the target of the supernatural fire that consumed his mother and then Jess, but he pushed it aside.
"Are you going back?", Sam asked quietly.
Dean looked at him with a hardened expression. "No. I'm not. I don't belong out there anymore. If you want to go, I'll do whatever I can to help you, but I have a family. I risked enough leaving the first time. Maybe you can hook back up with dad, I don't know."
Sam thought it over. He could always find his dad and hunt with him, but was that really what he wanted out of life? Dean was right. Hunting filled the hole in his heart for a short time, but it wouldn't work forever. All hunting ever did was tear them all apart. He wouldn't let loss consume him like it had done to their father. If Dean could walk away from hunting and everything he was angry about to find happiness, then Sam could too.
He was done.
Done for good.
"I think-Can I stay with you guys for a while?... Just until I get myself back on my feet and maybe get back to school?", Sam asked with a hopeful expression.
He knew that Jess would have wanted him to go back and finish no matter what. To pass the bar and become a lawyer like he dreamed. She would want him to live.
Dean gave him a wide grin. "Hell yeah you can. I meant what I said Sam. When I came to find you, I came to bring you home. We have a room in the basement that you can have all to yourself. There's a kitchen, bathroom, and everything down there so you don't have to worry about bringing your little dates around us. Just keep it down with the ladies, alright? There's a kid in the house."
Sam laughed at that. So things hadn't changed completely. Dean's mind was still halfway in the gutter. "Thanks Dean.", he said sincerely. Dean always had his back. He knew that now more than ever.
Dean reached over and ruffled his hair like he used to do when they were younger. "Welcome home Sammy."
It was the first time he ever heard those words and damn, did it feel good. He'd finally gotten his "normal". They both did.
"Yeah...home.", he said with a smile.
Fin
Tell me what you think! I love you all, but please don't bug me about updating my other stories. I know you're waiting, but I can't force myself to write certain things. Believe me, I've tried.