Summary: Dean and Sam are sick of the fights. Got the idea after reading an S.E. Hinton book of the same title. Very short one-shot.
Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural, or the characters, or anything else affiliated with Supernatural and I do not own the title.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
We're fighting again, Dean thinks as he and Sam drive along, arguing about Castiel or Sam's abilities again, or God knows what else. He hates this. He can't stand it really. He isn't even paying attention anymore. He isn't up for fighting. Just once, let it all stop. He just wants everything to stop, and let him catch his breath.
He wonders when this happened. When he and Sam became like this…so distant from each other. He used to be able to read his little brother like a book. But now, he can't wrap his head around what Sam is thinking most of the time. He wonders if Sam hates the fights as much as him. He can't help but remember their dad. Sammy always fought with Dad. What if he wants to fight with Dean now?
Dean shakes these crazy thoughts away, wishing the bad things could go away as easily as his thoughts. Except his thoughts don't go away easily at all. He can't stop thinking about Hell. He's going crazy…finally losing it.
He looks at Sam, and Sam is saying something, but Dean can only see his five-year-old kid brother begging him to let him sleep in his bed because he had a nightmare. Sam looks back at him and they lock eyes and Dean knows Sam isn't up to fighting either. He wonders if Sam is picturing him as the older brother he used to drive nuts by following him everywhere.
Sam isn't. Sam's looking at Dean and thinking about how he doesn't want to be mad at Dean. He wants them to get along like they used to. He's seeing his big brother, his protector, the guy that raised him and took care of him when Dad wouldn't. He's seeing the guy that gave up his life for him.
Sam can barely remember why this fight started. He thinks about how much he loves Dean and everything he'd do for him. He thinks about those long terrible days he went through when Dean was gone. He had been miserable. He doesn't want to fight with Dean. He wants to hide in a hotel room with Dean until the world goes back to normal, until everything is fine again, until Lilith is dead and the world won't end…until their Sam and Dean again. Until their brothers again.
There's a long silence. Sam breaks it. "When did this happen Dean? Huh? We used to be able to read each other's minds. Now we're fighting and nothing's going right. Everything's changing Dean, and I don't know why. We're brothers. We used to be so close, but now…we can barely talk without starting a fight. We used to get along…"
Dean sighs and shrugs a little. "Well Sammy, that was then, and this is now."