Random Thoughts In A Bar.
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Dean
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Dean halted for a moment as he exited the men's room, eyes quickly searching out his brother; relaxing instantly as he saw him
immobile in the same position as he had left him. Yeah, there he was, sitting at the counter nursing a beer, shoulders curved in a
little on themselves, trying to make his large frame as unthreatening as possible.
Dean knew that Sam had never really liked hanging around in bars, preferring to drink his beer in the quiet of a motel room, in
front of his lap-top or watching some crappy movie on TV but since Sam had gotten his soul back, the brothers tended to gravitate
towards each other even more than before, fearful that the slightest inattention would end up with the loss of the other.
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Boy, Dean thought ironically to himself, if they had, as Lisa once called it "the most unhealthy tangled up crazy thing" of a
relationship before, it had upped it's intensity to red-alert levels now.
Sam had started to follow him wherever he went, volunteering now one excuse, now another but Dean was more than happy to
let his brother tail along like a giant shadow, equally content to keep his re-souled little brother in his sights.
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He lingered in the door-way another moment, scrutinizing the room. He noticed the appreciative glances that the women threw
Sam's way. His little brother was a handsome kid and Sam could have the girls dancing to his tune like the Pied Piper if he'd
wanted, but he seemed oblivious to their interested glances.
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Dean shook his head wryly.
He knew the kind of girls Sammy liked; classy brunettes; intelligent well-versed women, the kind that they rarely encountered in
their daily lives. He remembered Sarah and Madison; Sam had been instantly attracted to them; both fitting his
stereotype down to a tee.
His heart still clenched for the death that Sam had been forced to mete out to Madison. He sometimes wondered about Sarah, if
she had settled down, maybe had a couple of kids. He had liked her on the spot. She would have been so right for Sam but their
lives had gone from bad to worse, as fate had piled more and more crap on their shoulders until they had been practically
submerged by it.
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Somehow they had survived it all.
He had Sam back and that was the only thing that mattered. Sam was his kid. Dean had raised him, wiped his tears, soothed his
hurts and fed him so many Lucky Charms that he should have grown up to be a leprechaun and not the Jolly Green Giant!
He sauntered over towards the bar and took his place at his brother's side
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Sam.
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Sam's eyes had surreptitiously followed his brother as he made his way to the toilets. He was well aware that danger could be
awaiting them in even the most crowded places such as this, and for the Winchesters a simple trip to the men's room could be
tantamount to taking your life in your hands; ghouls, shape shifters, demons, any sort of supernatural goon could be lying in wait
behind a closed door.
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He remained on edge until he saw his brother's reflection in the bar-room mirror, coming back over towards him.
He was aware that Dean still regarded him as a kid, someone to protect and to care for, but Sam knew that it was no longer the
case. He could look after himself and Dean too if need be, but somehow knowing that his big brother was still looking out for him
made him feel safe and loved. To Sam, Dean was home; father, mother, brother and best friend all rolled into one and he regularly
thanked the absent God for the gift of his brother
In a life full of danger and pain, Dean was his one constant and without any false modesty he knew that he was Dean's. They
were each other's anchor in this sea of tempest and storm that they navigated blindly; with no idea of what would be their final
port of call.
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Sam had hoped, before he had thrown himself into the Cage, that Dean would have found a semblance of normality with Lisa but
as soon as his brother had seen him, he had thrown it all to the four winds to come back and stand at his side. Although Sam had
genuinely wanted his brother to have a good life, he would be lying to himself if he said that he wasn't happy that Dean had
chosen to come back to him.
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What a pair they were!
The truth was that they just couldn't live without the other by their side, and although Sam hadn't heard Lisa's description of their
"tangled-up" relationship, he would have had to agree with every word she said.
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"Everything okay, Sammy-boy? You didn't miss me did you?" Dean snarked as he took his place next to his brother, bumping
shoulders. "Nah, Dean. I didn't even notice that you were gone," was the calm reply.
It was a blatant lie and they both knew it, but they didn't need words to understand one another; sometimes words were
overrated.
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XXXX The enD XXXX