Oh, Brother!
Mary was nervous. More nervous than when she had told John, considering the relationship with her husband had been strained as of late; work had him stressed as he tried to pick up more hours and as a result he'd been drinking more. But what would her little boy think? He was her heart, and she couldn't bear to disappoint him, no matter how much John claimed she was spoiling him. She'd never had the life she'd been able to give to Dean: stability, safety, and imaginary monsters. And her little angel deserved every bit of it. He was funny, so very smart for his age, oh so adorable, and endlessly filled with love. But what would he think of his parents now? Would he think that they loved him less? Would he be jealous or throw a classic Dean Winchester tantrum? She rubbed her tummy that was just beginning to swell.
John rested his hand on her shoulder. "You ready?" he asked as they prepared to face their toddler.
Dean would tell anyone who listened (or rather, anyone within earshot) that he was three years old, but he could count all the way to twenty if he tried really, really hard. He knew all his colors, so knew that his Mommy had blue eyes, his Daddy had brown, and he had green. Sometimes Mommy wasn't happy with Daddy though, and she yelled at him, and he yelled at her, and then he left for awhile. It was during times like that he'd sit on his mother's lap and just look in his mother's eyes and whisper to her how her eyes were the prettiest blue he'd ever seen, how pretty he thought she was. His parents were in front of him now. They were smiling, but Dean wasn't quite sure if they were pretend-smiling or not, which he noticed adults tended to do a lot.
"Wha's wrong?" he asked in a worried little voice.
"Nothing sweetie," said his mother, smiling for real this time at his adorable worried face.
They bent down to his level. "We have something to tell you, Dean," said his father.
"And we want you to know that we will always love you just the same, no matter what," his mother interjected.
He looked back and forth between them, unsure what to think. His father smiled and ruffled his hair. Dean liked when he did that, it meant he was happy.
They were stalling with the news, however, so he threw his hands up and exclaimed, "Jus' hurry up and say it already!" Dean had never been one for patience.
They chuckled at him. "Well sweetie," continued his mother, "Mommy and Daddy are going to have a baby. You're going to have a baby brother or sister."
Dean's jaw dropped and he stuck his tongue out. One hand crossed over his heart, then the other. He started bouncing around in delight. Oh this was the best news ever! "I'm be big brother?" he practically shrieked. "I'm gonna have baby brother! Baby brother! Baby brother! Baby brother!" he chanted in bliss as he hopped around the room, his hands still clutching his heart.
"Guess he's not jealous," Mary laughed as their son did laps around the room.
"Dean, you might have a baby sister, we don't know yet," John tried to explain.
"Where is he? Where is he?" he asked, planting himself in front of his parents again, expecting them to pull his new brother from behind their backs.
His mother smiled and laughed. Dean liked when she did that, and he liked that he could make his mother do that. "It's not going to be for awhile sweetie, and you might have a baby sister, not a baby brother."
His brow furrowed in confusion. "But where is he?" he asked, refusing to acknowledge the chance of anything but a brother.
"Well," John said, trying to figure out the words to say it. "The baby's in Mommy's tummy right now growing."
"YOU ATE MY BROTHER?" shouted Dean, shocked that his perfect mother could do such a horrible thing.
Both his parents were practically on the floor laughing by now. Dean didn't understand, this wasn't funny! They told him he was going to have a brother, but his mother ate him instead!?
"No! Dean, sweetie," Mary tried to explain as she wiped tears of laughter away. "The baby's really, really small right now, and the safest place to grow is in Mommy's tummy. So you can't meet him yet, but in a few months when the baby's bigger he or she can come out of Mommy and meet you."
"A few months!?" exclaimed Dean. This was getting more stressful by the second. He fell to the floor in fake exhaustion. He didn't know how long a few months was, but it seemed like a really long time. His parents were trying hard to suppress giggles, and Dean still couldn't figure out why. He just laid there and thought for a moment. "So..." he began slowly as he lifted his head up, trying to put the pieces together. "Did I come from Mommy's tummy too?"
"Yes, you did," said John, proud of how fast Dean had caught on.
"Bu'... how did I ge' dere? How did he ge' dere," he mused, finally standing up and pointing at his mother's tummy.
Mary and John exchanged glances of Oh, God, our kid's too smart. What do we say to that?
"Well," Mary started slowly. When did my little boy grow up? "Sometimes, the love a Mommy and a Daddy have for each other is so strong, that a baby is made."
They might as well have told him it would be Christmas every day, his face lit up so bright. "So even though you figh' you still love each other!" He might not be able to meet his brother today, but at least he knew his parents loved one another enough to make him a brother.
His parents shifted awkwardly at the veiled accusation that Dean had noticed them fighting. John took his wife's hand, and gave her a look that let her know that he would try harder to be a better father, a better husband. Mary squeezed his hand in reply.
She smiled and stood up reaching for Dean's hand, who readily took it. "Dean, baby, I think the meatloaf's almost done. Can you help Mommy set the table?"
"Yeah!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide with excitement as he bounded towards the kitchen, mother in tow.
This had been the best day ever! His mom had made a delicious meatloaf, his parents still loved each other, and that love meant that he was going to have a baby brother.