Come Whatever
Disclaimer: I own nothing but Kate!
A/N: Welcome to my collection of Winchester sibling one shots! Some will be fluffy, some sad, some sweet; it's just going to be random small scenes that don't really have a place in my AU multi-chapter fic, The Ties That Bind. If you have a prompt or a scene you'd like to see, feel free to review or PM me and I'll write it up for you!
Enjoy!
A First Time for Everything
The first time Dean stole food to feed Sammy and Kate, he cried for an hour behind the convenience store before taking it back to the hotel room.
It wasn't as if he'd had much of a choice; Dad had been gone far longer than he'd expected, almost a week this time; and Dean had already learned what happened if he asked adults for help when it came to feeding his siblings. Dad had been called back from a hunt to conduct an interview with Child Protective Services the first time they'd run out of food and Dean had asked his teacher to borrow some money.
He never asked an adult for help again, and made sure both Katie and Sam knew not to, as well.
But both Dean's younger siblings had eaten the last of the food for breakfast that morning. He'd skipped that meal altogether; but crouched on the cement behind the store, a package of jerky and a can of soup clutched in his small fist, Dean was pretty sure he'd never been less hungry.
All the twelve-year-old could think was Mom would be so disappointed.
The first time Kate stole money to help Dean feed Sammy, she decided she was a coward of the worst kind.
The bullies had had it coming, she supposed. Every stinkin' day, the three of them—bigger boys, mean and intimidating—cornered her and demanded her lunch money. It wasn't as if she had much of a choice; she could've easily taken all three of them, even if she was pretty small and skinny for her age. But Dad had been called back from a hunt to have a meeting with the principle the last time she'd gotten in a fight and badly sprained a kid's wrist, despite the fact she was the one with a shiner and several witnesses that agreed the taller boy had swung first.
She never got in a schoolyard brawl again, and made sure Dean and Sammy knew not to, as well.
But when the boys took the last three dollars she had—and it was Dean's lunch money, at that, he had insisted she eat that day—and had Kate bent over while the biggest, meanest one punched her in the stomach and the other two held her up; it was all too easy to slip two fingers into the bully's pocket and grab his small leather wallet. She almost cried—in both relief and despair—when she opened it later, sequestered in the girl's restroom, and found a crisp $20.00 bill in the cash pocket. A $20.00 that would feed them for a few days, she guessed; a $20.00 she had earned by pickpocketing, not even stealing outright or winning it fair and square.
All the thirteen-year-old could think was Dean will be so disappointed.
Sammy never did steal to feed his family, not until he was old enough to hustle pool with his brother.
When he was a sophomore in high school, he was assigned a project—to come up with an idea that would earn him $100.00 in a month, and then write a report on how he would manage the funds. Sam had a vested interest in the project, and quickly determined that he could bring in the allotted amount within a few days by offering tutoring and technical support for the newfangled computers everybody was getting their hands on these days, that he seemed to understand almost instinctively. Dad had been called back from a hunt when he turned in the paper; the teacher praising him enthusiastically for raising such a creative, bright boy.
Sam had never done his very best on a project again, though he never told Kate and Dean as much.
But the idea had settled in his mind; and the first time Sam came back to the hotel room with a wad of cash to hand his brother, enough to feed them well for the rest of the week at least, he smiled at Dean and Kate's shocked faces. "You don't have to lift stuff from the corner store ever again," he said. And in that moment, when his siblings looked like Christmas had come early and their world had imploded around them all at once, Sam decided he despised nothing so much as the lifestyle their father had dragged them into as kids. Decided there was nothing sadder than his older siblings having to lose their innocence in an attempt to salvage his, nothing that made him more furious than the idea that Winchesters didn't get 'normal' things like consistent meals, proud parents, a stable home.
He decided then he was getting out of this life as soon as was humanly possible. He would get a scholarship to some top-of-the-line college, get perfect grades, get a job that would ensure neither he nor his siblings ever went hungry again. The family business could screw itself, Sam was out.
And all the fifteen-year-old could think was Dad will be so disappointed.