Title: Photophobia
Summary: Later Sam will remember the way Dean winced, and he'll understand.
Rating: T
Spoilers: Vague for "Dean Man's Blood"
Pairings: None
Warnings: Character death
Category: Angst, Deathfic
Word Count: 320
Disclaimer: Not mine; not getting paid; I'm just playing with them.
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The vampires have had Dean for almost nine hours by the time Sam manages to find their nest. Part of Sam is terrified that he'll find his brother already cold and drained, but he sternly forces himself to cling to hope. Maybe, just maybe, they haven't gotten around to feeding on him yet.
Sam sneaks in during broad daylight, gripping his machete tight, and he almost passes out from relief when he sees Dean tied to a post, a little pale but still definitely alive. Dean's awake, staring blankly at the ceiling, and when he sees Sam his eyes flash with surprise and then desperate hope. Sam creeps up and unties his brother as silently as possible, and it almost seems too good to be true when they escape without waking the sleeping vampires.
They walk out into the bright sunlight, and Dean blinks and winces a little at the sudden change. "Man, it's good to see you," he says with a grin that doesn't quite reach his shadowed eyes. "I thought I was dead meat in there."
"Did they feed off you?" Sam asks, feeling sick at the thought.
Dean shakes his head. "No, they had others—a guy and a girl." He shudders a little, and looks away, but not before Sam sees the haunted expression in his eyes. "It...wasn't pretty."
They've reached the Impala now, and Sam retrieves Dean's Colt and hands it to him, then heads around to the passenger side. Dean stands still and holds the gun, running his fingers almost lovingly over the smooth metal.
"Sammy," Dean says, and the tone in his voice sends a shiver down Sam's spine. He stops, hand on the passenger-door handle, and looks up.
"What, Dean?"
"I'm sorry," Dean says, and puts the gun to his own temple and pulls the trigger.
Later, Sam will remember the way Dean winced when they stepped into sunlight, and he'll understand.
-end-
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A/N: I have no idea how long it takes to turn vampire, but for this story I'm assuming there's a period of time where people are still human / can still be killed by conventional means.