Birthday Troubles
January 28, 1986
8:00 a.m.
John Winchester stepped into bedroom of his eldest son Dean at the apartment they were renting for the year. John had decided to hole up on the coast of Florida for the year, letting his sons get a break from traveling for the time being. John had been paying attention to the local papers lately, and knew what would be the perfect gift for Dean's seventh birthday.
Dean lay in the bed, covers tangled all around his body, dead to the world. John sat on the side of the bed, placing his hand on Dean's small shoulder.
"Dean?" said John. Dean moaned in his sleep, turning over, but not opening his eyes. "Dean, wake up."
Dean opened his sleepy eyes, looking up at his father. "Dad…"
"Hey, buddy," said John. "I've got a birthday surprise for you."
Dean frowned. "My birthday was four days ago."
John nodded. "Oh, yeah, that's right. Never mind." He began to get to his feet.
"Well…" began Dean, and John paused at the edge of the bed. "It's okay…I mean, if you want to still give it to me. I mean, four days isn't a lot."
John smiled, nodding. "I see. Well, how would you like to go see the space shuttle launch?"
Dean's eyes widened as his jaw dropped. The next second, he jumped out from under the covers and darted off the bed, rushing to the door. John sat on the bed in shock, wondering what he did. He listened to Dean's little footsteps run down the hall, and then a door opened. John listened as Dean's voice carried down the hall.
"Sammy!" Dean said. "Sammy! We're gonna go see a space ship!"
"Yay!" little Sam yelled. "Space sip!"
John smiled as he got up from the bed, heading for Sam's bedroom. He found the two of them bouncing on Sam's small bed. Sammy had a serious case of bed-head going on.
"Alright, boys," said John. "Come on, we gotta get ready. It's a half hour away and we gotta leave in two and a half hours. Come on, baths and breakfast all around."
Sam and Dean quickly rushed towards the door, heading for the bathroom down the hall. John bent down and hooked his arm around Sam's little body, stopping him as he tried to run after Dean.
"Not you, Sammy," said John. "Dean's gonna have the first bath. You can help me cook breakfast."
John knew that was gonna get Sam to forget about the space shuttle for the moment. Sam's favorite activity since he was two was helping Daddy cook in the kitchen.
Sam's face brightened. "Yeah! Hep you cook!"
John let Sam go, and he rushed down the hallway towards the kitchen. John entered the kitchen to see Sam dragging a chair across the floor towards the counter. John walked over towards the counter, stepping up next to Sam as he climbed onto the chair and leaned against the counter.
"So, what should we make?" asked John.
"Um…" Sam muttered, putting a small finger to his lips and frowning in concentration. He looked unbelievably adorable. Sam smiled. "Pancakes!"
John laughed. "Pancakes, it is."
John set about making their breakfast, letting Sam help when he could. As John was getting the last of the pancakes onto the table, Dean ran into the room, his hair wet.
"Wow, thanks, Dad," said Dean as he climbed into a chair.
"I hepped!" Sam said, smiling at Dean.
"Good job, Sammy," said Dean, grabbing a fork.
John picked Sam up and set him into a chair, pushing it up to the table. He put some pancakes onto Dean's plate, letting Dean cut them and begin eating. John placed two pancakes onto Sam's plate and cut them into small pieces. He gave Sam his small fork and placed the sippy cup full of chocolate milk onto the table. John made up his own plate and began eating.
Soon, the breakfast was finished, and John pulled Sam out of the chair, setting him on the floor.
"Dean, can you clear the table for me?" asked John.
"Yes, sir," said Dean as he finished his meal.
Dean jumped up and grabbed his dishes, reaching up to set them in the sink. John picked Sam up and carried him in to the bathroom, getting him ready for a bath.
After getting them ready and fed and changed, John walked into the living room.
"Ready, boys?" asked John.
Dean and Sam jumped up from the couch, racing out the door into the hallway. John locked the door, turning to see the boys rushing towards the staircase.
"Wait for me, boys," John called.
They both stopped at the top of the stairs, waiting impatiently for their father. John came up behind them and followed them down the stairs and out the door towards the parking lot. John unlocked the Impala and buckled Sam into his seat in the backseat. Dean climbed into the car beside Sam, and John got into the driver's seat, heading for the coast.
*******************************************************SN**********************************************************
John pulled up to the Kennedy Space Center observation area in Cape Canaveral, Florida. He parked the car and got the boys out.
"Sammy, you keep a hold of Dean's hand, okay?" John ordered as he set Sam onto the ground.
Sam turned and sought Dean's hand as Dean came around the car's trunk towards him. John locked the car and turned towards his sons.
"Keep an eye on Sam, okay?" John told Dean. "You boys stick close to me, you got that?"
Dean nodded, his eyes fixed on John's face in rapt attention. "Yes, sir. I'll look after Sammy."
"Okay, let's go, boys," said John, following them towards the crowd of people waiting to watch to shuttle launch.
He managed to squeeze his way through the crowd towards the front fence so his boys could see.
"Look, Sammy, there it is!" Dean called, pointing through the fence towards the launch pad.
Upon the launch pad stood the space shuttle Challenger, waiting for blast-off. Sam jumped on his feet to see the shuttle over the bushes in front of the fence. Dean noticed his little brother's struggle and bent down a little. He grabbed Sam under the armpits and lifted him into his arms, holding him between his body and the fence. He lifted his right leg so Sam could sit on it. Sam grabbed onto the fence and leaned back against Dean's chest, smiling.
"Space sip!" Sam chanted. "Space sip!"
"Yeah, Sammy, that's a space ship," said Dean, his face just as excited as Sam's.
"What shuttle is it, Dad?" asked Dean.
John knelt down behind his boys, leaning towards Dean's ear. "That is the space shuttle Challenger. You know what makes it so special?"
"What?" asked Dean.
"There's a teacher onboard today," said John. "The first one. Her name is Christa McAuliffe. She's going to teach her class in space."
"Wow," said Dean. "I wish my teacher would teach from space."
John laughed. "Don't we all."
John looked up at the launch pad, looking at the space shuttle.
"How long, Dad?" asked Dean.
John looked up at the countdown clock in front of the observation area. "Ten minutes."
"Awesome," said Dean, smiling hugely.
Dean and Sam talked back and forth the whole ten minutes, waiting impatiently for the shuttle to launch. They heard the shuttle's engine as it warmed up, preparing for launch. The shuttle's engine lit, billowing smoke out from under the launch pad to the sides and into the air.
"One minute, boys," said John.
"You hear that, Sammy?" said Dean. "One minute."
"Yay!" said Sammy. "Daddy, watch it! Watch the space sip!"
"Okay, Sammy," said John with a laugh. He looked up at the clock again. "Thirty seconds."
As the clock hit twenty seconds, the crowd began chanting along with the clock. When it hit ten seconds, Dean began counting also in Sam's ear.
"Ten," Dean began. "Nine, eight, seven, six—"
Sam joined in, only able to count to five so far.
"Five, four, three, two, one!" the boys counted down.
The shuttle lifted from the pad, rising into the sky.
"Look at it go, Sammy!" said Dean, pointing at the shuttle.
"Look, Daddy!" Sam yelled. "It fwying!"
John smiled as he and his boys watched the shuttle climb further and further into the sky. Dean pointed up at it, holding Sam steady on his knee.
"Look at it!" said Dean. "Watch it go, Sammy!"
John watched as the shuttle got smaller and smaller, disappearing into the sky. The three of them and the crowd watched the shuttle for a little over a minute. Suddenly, before John's eyes, the trail of fire behind the shuttle expanded, seeming to shoot up into the capsule. The fireball stretched out, enveloping the shuttle as smoke and fire flew. John froze as the crowd shouted in alarm.
"Daddy!" Sam shouted, flinching back against Dean.
The shuttle continued to explode, shooting up further into the sky as the giant fireball expanded and consumed the fuel capsule. The boosters shot off in different directions, trailing smoke.
"What's happening, Dad?" asked Dean, clutching his arms around Sam.
John could not speak as he stared in shock at the exploding Challenger. The shuttle hit its peak and began falling slowly back towards earth. The crowd stared in numb shock as the shuttle fell towards the earth, disappearing over the horizon.
"Dean!" Sam shouted, turning towards his brother and digging into his chest. "Wha' happen?"
"I don't know, Sammy," Dean comforted, holding his little brother. "It'll be okay. I promise. It'll be okay."
John reached forward, turning Dean towards him. "It's okay, boys. It's gonna be okay."
"What happened?" asked Dean in a whisper, afraid to let Sam hear him.
"I'm not sure, Dean," said John in a whisper also. "It looks like it blew up."
Dean's eyes widened as he clutched at Sam tighter. "Why?"
"I don't know, Dean," said John. "I don't know."
John looked up from the launch pad, following the trail of smoke up into the sky as it became a giant cloud and then trailed back to earth.
"Come on, boys," said John, putting his hands on Dean's shoulders. "Let's get out of here."
Dean put Sam on the ground and grabbed hold of his hand, placing his other hand in John's. John led his boys back to the Impala, buckling them in and taking off.
John hated the fact that he'd just exposed his boys to yet another disaster. They'd already seen too much, and John knew that they would have much more in their lives to witness. He partly hated that he was raising his sons as hunters, but he knew that he needed to keep them safe. And by trying to bring a little happiness into their lives, he'd just invited more pain.
"Dad, why did that have to happen?" asked Dean.
"I'm not sure, Dean," said John. "Sometimes, bad things just happen."
"Like Mom?" asked Dean.
John's heart clenched at his small voice. John looked in his rearview mirror to see that Dean was holding Sam in his arms, and Sam was fast asleep. John shook his head.
"No, Dean," said John. "Not like Mom. Not this time."
"Then why?" asked Dean.
John stared at the road, wishing he could make it better. "I wish I knew, son."