A/N: In 5.16 (Dark Side of the Moon), one of Sam's best memories was the time when he ran off to Flagstaff and had a dog named Bones. That's how I got the idea for this fic. The title has been taken from the song Two Steps Behind by Def Leppard. (\m/) Enjoy reading!
Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural and neither do I intend to do so 'cause if I did, I'd definitely screw up!
Whatever you do, I'll be two steps behind you
Wherever you go, and I'll be there to remind you
That it only takes a minute of your precious time
To turn around
I'll be two steps behind you
'Here you go, Bonesy. Have your dinner,' Sam put the bowl in front of Bones, his dog. He'd bought some cheap quality dog food from the nearby store with the money he'd stolen from Dean's wallet. He sat beside Bones on the frayed sofa and gulped down his cereal with milk.
It was the first time in his life that Sam felt like a grown man. He was on his own, independent. Even Dean wasn't here to watch over him this time. Sam was staying at the Roadside Palace Motel in Flagstaff. It wasn't exactly a palace what with the ragged furniture, horrible bathrooms, almost-stale food and shady customers. But it was the best Sam could afford.
He didn't mind all that, though. He was in his own wonderful universe where room 204 of Roadside Palace Motel was his kingdom and he was the almighty king with his friend Bones to provide company in all his adventurous endeavors.
Two days ago, Sam Winchester had got into a fight with his big brother, Dean Winchester. It wasn't really a big issue but for some reason they were both tired of each other. They'd been holed up in a tiny motel in Sedona, Arizona for more than two weeks. Their dad, John Winchester was out hunting a nasty shape shifter that had been causing havoc for quite some time now.
Neither of the brothers could remember the actual reason for the fight, but it is assured that the reason, whatever it may be, was rather petty. The Winchester brothers seldom fought but when they did, it was no less than the Armageddon. But, at the end of the day, they somehow managed to make peace after every fight and went back to their usual selves with Dean constantly watching over Sam and being a 'jerk', and Sam reading his big fat books and being a 'bitch'.
'Why don't you ever listen to a thing I say?' Dean bellowed at his little brother.
'I do, Dean! I always do but have you ever even tried to listen to what I have to say?' Sam questioned.
'You're just a kid!' Dean shot back.
'Why do you have to always treat me like one?' Sam said.
'It's 'cause you are, dammit! Sammy, please I don't wanna fight. Stop it,' Dean said tiredly.
'I will when you will,' with this, Sam slammed the bedroom door on Dean's face.
Dean opened his mouth to say something but then closed it again. He felt furious and decided that this time it'd be Sammy who'd have to break the ice. For a second, he thought of changing his mind and breaking the ice already, after all Sammy was still a kid. But then, he thought, 'No, not this time. Sam has to talk first.'
As Dean replayed their fight for the hundredth time in his mind, he felt like the world's worst big brother. If only he'd have spoken first then all this wouldn't have happened. Sammy would've still been by his side. Dean cussed himself for acting so immature that time.
After Sam had closed the door on his face, Dean had decided to take an afternoon nap. He was sure that when he woke up, Sam would be sitting by his side with his trademark puppy-dog face and Dean would just pat him on the head and it'd all be over. But, that wasn't how it happened this time. When Dean woke up, he saw the door of their bedroom wide open. Dean thought that Sam must've gone to the kitchen to get something to eat. But Sam wasn't in the kitchen, neither was he in the bathroom, nor was he loitering outside the motel. Sam was nowhere to be found.
After searching all the probable places that Sam could be at and finding a big, steamy pile of nothing, Dean decided, with much dread, to call Dad. He dialed Dad's number and waited to get an earful from him for being so impossibly careless.
'Hello, Dad?'
'Dean? What's the matter? Are you alright?' the moment John heard his son's voice, he knew something was wrong.
'Yeah, Dad. Nothing's wrong with me, but-'Dean was interrupted by his father before he could even complete his sentence.
'But what?'
'Uh, Dad, actually Sammy, he-'
'What happened to Sam?' John panicked from the other end of the line.
'I and Sam had a fight and then he locked the door to our room and I thought he'd come out later and so I took a nap but when I woke up he wasn't there,' Dean told the whole thing in a single breath.
'What do you mean by 'he wasn't there'? Where is Sam?'
'I don't know, Dad. He's just gone, I think,' Dean braced himself for the big blow.
'YOU DON'T KNOW?' How could you be so irresponsible, Dean? You're supposed to protect your brother, remember?' John spoke in a pained voice. His son had disappointed him.
'I know Dad but I just-'
'No excuses, Dean. You were supposed to look after Sam, that's your only job. And you screwed it up. What am I gonna do with you? When will you grow up, son?' Dean's dad said with exasperation.
There was a lump in Dean's throat that made it difficult for him to talk. He tried to swallow it away, but it wouldn't go. 'I'll find him Dad. I will,' Dean said, the lump in his throat still intact.
'Well, you better. I'll be back by tomorrow evening,'
'Yeah, bye Dad,' Dean said and then realized that his Dad had already hung up.
Sam was having the time of his life. After busting himself out of the motel room in Sedona, Sam had wandered off to explore the town when he met a nice group of hippies. Sure, they were super weird and had a strange way of speaking but they were nice enough to give Sam a lift without any question. He'd procured a map that helped him to give them the directions to Flagstaff. The hippies dropped him right in the heart of the town that made it easier for him to look for a place to stay.
That's when Sam met Bones. Bones was lying on a park bench with a sullen face, when he saw Sam for the first time. The doggy came running at Sam and started licking him like he was a long lost friend. Sam noticed a collar on the dog's neck that had the word 'Bones' stitched on it. He figured the dog was lost and alone just like him and decided to adopt him in the spur of the moment.
Getting a room was easier than Sammy had expected. The guy in the reception counter of the Roadside Palace Motel didn't even bother to check whether he had a guardian or not and readily handed him the keys to his room.
Room 204 at the Roadside Palace Motel in Flagstaff, Arizona was now buzzing with the noise from the 19th century television set propped on a wooden table half eaten by termites. Sam was propped up on the sofa, watching his favourite show. Bones, his dog, was fast asleep on the torn rug below. On the table in front of him, there was a glass of lemonade and a half-eaten chocolate bar.
'Dean hates this show, you know? He thinks it's for nerds,' Sam said to Bones. The dog looked up at him with his beady eyes.
'But he's not so bad, you know? He always looks after me and shares his chocolates with me,' Sam said, eyeing the chocolate on the table. Bones barked in agreement.
Bobby drew up in front of El Rey Motel in Sedona. Dean had called up a day ago and told him to come there as soon as he could. When in need, Dean and Sam always looked up to Bobby Singer, another hunter of all things evil and supernatural. Dean had called up Bobby, all panicky and scared and told him about the series of events that led to Sam's disappearance.
'Thank goodness you're here Bobby.' Dean said with a sigh of relief.
'Alright, now what do we got here?' Bobby asked.
'Well, I did a little digging here and there and everything points to Flagstaff.'
'Flagstaff? You sure, kiddo?'
'It's Sam we're talking about, Bobby. I'm sure as hell.'
'Alright, we'll take my car and go there in an hour.'
'Thanks so much for helping out, Bobby.'
'You don't gotta thank me for nothin', get it idjit?'
Dean smiled at the mention of the word 'idjit'. Bobby was truly more than a friend to Sam and Dean, he was family. When they were young and their Dad had to go away really far, he'd leave the boys with Bobby.
'Now you care to tell me why exactly all this happened?' Bobby asked, interrupting Dean's train of thoughts.
'It was a really stupid thing, Bobby. We fought and then when I woke up from my nap, Sammy had run away. It's all my fault; I shouldn't have let the kid run away like that. What if something happens to him? Dad's already pissed at me for being so immature and irresponsible. Hell, I'm pissed at myself for not being able to look after Sam. If anything happens to Sam, I'll not be able to live with it Bobby. I, I'll die,' Dean could feel the familiar lump in his throat returning.
'Dean, Dean, listen to me. It's not your fault, it isn't. We all make mistakes, right? It's alright, boy. We'll find him. Fit and healthy.' Bobby said, trying to calm Dean down.
'But I'm not supposed to make mistakes. I'm supposed to take care of that kid, that's my job.'
Bobby didn't know what to say. Dean was right; he was supposed to look after his brother. But the idjit was a kid, too. And it pained Bobby to see a kid being worried sick about his brother. Bobby knew it for a fact that Sam and Dean were inseparable, even if neither would admit it. One couldn't do without the other. He just hoped to God that wherever Sam was, he was okay.
Sam sat on the dining table, having his dinner. He was having cereal with milk. The same thing that he'd had for breakfast. And lunch as well. 'If Dean was here, he'd arrange for something else to eat instead of the same cereal,' Sam thought. He eyed Bones who was happily gobbling down his doggy-food and even licking off whatever fell on the floor. This brought about a smile on Sam's dimpled face.
After dinner, he decided to call it a day. Sam had been watching television all day and he was bored of it. Even Bonesy seemed to be really sleepy. But in spite of being so tired and sleepy, Sam couldn't sleep. His eyes kept darting to the single bed on his left that was empty. Dean always slept on the bed that was on the left side of the room, usually near the window. Sam wondered why.
He'd been fine the night before but now Sam just couldn't sleep. He was afraid he'd have one of those terrible nightmares. And this time, Dean wouldn't be around to reassure him by telling Sam that the nightmares he saw would never be real. Dean would never let them be.
Sam's surroundings grew quieter as the honking of cars outside on the road became lesser as the night progressed. Bones' short and rhythmic breaths were the only thing audible in the room. Sam had just drifted off to sleep whilst deliberating about whether he ought to go back to Sedona or not when there was a sharp and loud knock on the front door that immediately woke Sam up.
Little Sam was scared out of his wits. He didn't know what to do. By then even Bones was up and softly barking. He could sense that Sam was afraid of something and jumped up. Sam slowly got down from his bed, uncertain of what to do next. Bones was at his heel in a second, as if trying to protect Sam from the unknown danger. For a second, that reminded Sam of Dean. Instantly that thought changed to panic and fear when the knocking resumed after a short pause.
'Bones stay inside, okay? Don't come out.' Sam warned the dog, as he edged near the main door. The dog made a sound as if trying to protest against Sam's decision but was silenced when Sam lifted his finger and pointed it at the bedroom.
The knocking continued and this time a voice, a familiar voice said, 'Sam? You in there? It's me, Bobby. Open the door, will you?'
Sam ran towards the door as fast as his legs would allow and unbolted the door within a millisecond. He opened the door with a huge smile on his face and saw Bobby and Dean standing with faces that weren't all smiles.
'What the hell is wrong with you, Sam?' Dean pounced on his little brother. Before Sam could think up a reply, Bobby came and stood in front of the two brothers. 'First, let's get you boys home. Then we'll talk, okay?'
Both the brothers were forced to say 'okay' when Bobby gave them one of his stern looks. Dean had left the room and gone to the reception counter to clear the bills and was forced to answer some questions about his kid brother. The owners had finally noticed that a kid was staying in their motel with a dog that had been reported missing.
Bobby was about to leave when Sam brought Bones out of the bedroom and said, 'What about him? We can't just leave him here, Bobby.'
Bobby smiled at the boy and said, 'We won't. I've called the police; they'll be here any moment now.'
'Are they gonna take him to jail or something?' Sam asked with fright.
'No, they'll take him back to the family where he belongs. He was a missing dog, ya'know. A kid, just like you, must've been sitting on his porch stairs waiting for his doggy to come home.'
'Okay, then.' Sam said. He had intended on taking Bones back with him but now that he heard that Bones already belonged to somebody else, it'd be wrong to take him away just like that.
Sam knelt down and patted Bones for one last time. The dog licked Sam on his cheek as a final goodbye. Bones was whining, he didn't want Sam to leave. 'I'll miss you too, Bonesy. But I gotta leave. Be good, boy.' With this, he parted from Bones, his friend and companion of two days. Sam would never forget him and the time he'd spent at Roadside Palace Motel in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Sam and Dean were sitting on the backseat of Bobby's car. There was an awkward silence and no one spoke a word. Sam thought Dean would be the first one to speak, he thought Dean would yell and scream at him for running away and then smile and pat him on the head, just like he always did. But when he didn't do all those things, Sam realized how upset Dean must be.
'I'm sorry, Dean. I didn't mean to cause so much trouble.'
No answer from Dean. He just kept looking out the car window.
'I know I did a stupid thing but I, I promise, I'll never do this again. Never.'
Again, no answer. This time Bobby turned around and said, 'C'mon now, talk to him already, Dean.' But Dean didn't listen.
If there was one thing Sam couldn't live with, it was Dean not responding to him. He felt miserable. All Sam wanted right now was to make it up to his big brother and get him to talk to him somehow.
'I'll always find you, you know,' Dean said, breaking the over-stretched silence.
'What?' Sam said. He was a little taken aback by Dean's voice. He was hearing it after days and it felt good.
'I said that I'll always find you. You can run away wherever you want but you can't you can't hide from your brother,' Dean said this in the most serious tone that he could and yet this brought a huge smile on Sam's face. He was glad that his brother was finally talking to him. It was reassuring and comforting to know that Dean would find him no matter where he went. Even though Sam had the most amazing time with Bones, he had to admit that he missed his brother as hell.
'So, how'd you find me anyway?' Sam asked, trying to make conversation.
'It was a piece of cake, really. I mean, it's you we're talking about, Sammy. You're about as predictable as the sun that rises every morning.' Dean said matter-of-factly. 'But what I didn't get is why you did it in the first place.' He added.
'I didn't mean to make upset or anything, Dean. I just, I just wanted you to know that I can take care of myself and be on my own without any trouble.'
'You did a hell of a job, didn't you? You got me and Dad and Bobby worried sick.'
'Well, I didn't mean to, Dean. I really didn't. I'm so sorry,' Sam's throat felt lumpy and his voice seemed shaky.
Dean sensed that his brother was a having a hard time. Dean knew that Sam felt guilty for his actions and if Dean didn't intervene now, the bitch would curse himself for the rest of his life. He turned to face Sam and smiled. 'Alright, enough with the apology crap. No chick-flick moments, remember bitch?'
'Shut up, jerk.' Sam replied almost instantly and his face upturned into a smile that lasted until his eyes finally drooped and he fell asleep in the car.