A/N: This is my first ever fan fiction. I welcome any and all constructive criticism. There was no real point or prompt, just something that kinda came out. Hope you enjoy it!
Post 7x17 The Born-Again Identity - On a scenic stretch of highway, late afternoon/early evening
Clicks of a ratchet emanate through the beat-up junker's windows, as Sam slowly becomes aware of the world. He rises up warily and sees the car's hood up and Dean hunched over the engine. Sam wonders about the passage of time; how long did I sleep, how long have we been stopped? Questions assail his newly quieter mind as he climbs out of the backseat and retrieves the cooler from the trunk without a word. Looking at his watch, after he places the cooler on the ground beside the front tire, reveals that half a day has passed since they left the asylum.
He pulls out two bottles, opens them using the bumper and holds one out to Dean. "Anything I can help you with?" Dean shakes his head, and takes the beer while nodding his thanks, but he sets it on the engine block. "I want my car back," sighs Dean, as he returns to work. Sam simply nods as he sits on top of the cooler and leans back on the fender, thinking 'JUST the car?' as he takes a long swig. He listens to Dean's movements and studies his surroundings almost searching for the hallucinations he knows are gone. Just a few long droughts has him tipping an empty bottle, and as he continues to listen and observe, he begins dozing off and hits the back of his head on the hood with a thud. Sam immediately rubs the back of his head and hears Dean's soft chuckle as he continues his ministrations on the engine. Sam smiles through the ache because he KNOWS this is real and thanks to Castiel, his mental ordeal is really over.