Thank you jjackles for both of your reviews!

Warning: Same old, same old. Profanity, violence, and suggestive scenes (not necessarily in this chapter).

Disclaimer: Don't own 'em and...uh...ignore any noises you may hear from the back of my car...

Now, I did plan to space the updating out more, but I just couldn't resist posting another chapter. This one includes a very angsty Sam and Dean's attempt to comfort him.

Hope you enjoy!


Chapter Three: Picking-up Strangers

"Come on, Sam! Last night went well. We toasted that ghost!"

Sam nodded but didn't look at his brother. Instead, he continued to stare intently at his hands, which were folded in his lap. Dean was beginning to get worried. Sam hadn't said a word since they hit the road that morning. He just kept staring at his damn hands.

The brothers had slept in the Impala the previous night and left early that morning. Dean was driving (of course) and Sam was sitting next to him.

"Oh, come on! What the hell do I have to say to get that look off your face?"

Sam didn't reply. He didn't know what to say. So many thoughts and feelings were running through his head at once that it was hard to focus on any one at a time. But beneath it all was a sense of foreboding. He felt like things were beginning to slip and soon would spin out of control. But why? He couldn't find a cause for these feelings, they were just there.

"Sam! Hey! Snap out of it!" Dean pleaded his concern for his baby brother overriding his desire to lock up his feelings, "You're scaring me, man!"

Sam suddenly felt anger, burying everything else. But the anger was only a surface emotion, underneath it was fear. "You're scared?" Sam said, his voice wavering, "You're scared, Dean?"

Dean was taken aback. He had hoped for something, but anger was honestly the last thing he'd expected. He sat there speechless, watching his brother's body shake as Sam continued to direct his gaze into his lap.

"If you think you're scared, then you have no idea what being scared is, Dean!"

"What the hell are you going on about, Sam?"

Sam raised his head to look at Dean. The older Winchester was shocked to see tears in the younger's eyes.

"Scared is when you see a house burst into flames when your brother is still inside. Scared is when no matter how hard you try you can't get to your brother and you know it might already be too late," Sam said, choking back a sob, "If you knew what scared was you wouldn't have put me through that, Dean! What the hell were you thinking?"

Dean watched as Sam's chest hitched once...hitched twice...and his brother's frame shook with heart-wrenching sobs.

Dean put one arm around his brother (keeping his other hand on the wheel) in an attempt to comfort him. Sam shook his arm off but Dean was insistent and the second time managed to pull his brother into an awkward embrace.

"Come on, Sammy. It'll take a lot more than some fire to get rid of me!"

Dean had hoped for a smile, hell, any response would have been nice. But he got none. Sam wouldn't look at Dean; he just kept staring straight ahead at the road. But that was okay. It might actually make things easier.

"Sam, listen, I'm not going anywhere any time soon," Dean said, "I'm not gonna' leave you. I'm sorry I scared you last night. I didn't mean to. I certainly didn't mean to hurt you! I just-"

Dean stopped, looking at his brother's face. Sam's eyes were open wide and he was staring at the road ahead in something like horror. Sam's mouth was working but no sound was coming out.

"Sam?"

No reply. Sam just kept staring, looking like an animal caught in a trap who just heard the footsteps of the hunter approaching.

"Sam!"

Dean shook him, now desperate to find out what the hell was going on. He tried in vain to see what Sam was looking at that made him so afraid.

Sam visibly snapped out of it. He turned to look at Dean and shouted "Dean, stop!"

"Sam, wha-"

"DEAN! STOP THE CAR!"

Responding to his younger brother's distress, Dean pulled over on the side of the road. Sam started looking around wildly.

Dean sighed, "Now will you please tell me what the hell is going on?"

Sam looked at Dean in slight confusion before resuming his frantic search of the area surrounding the car, "You mean you didn't...you didn't see...it..."

"See what, Sam?"

Sam's brow creased, "Nothing. It's...just...nothing."

"It's not nothing," Dean insisted, "Please man! I need you to tell me what's going on!"

"I don't know...I mean...Dean I can't talk about it!"

"Sam, I need to know!"

"Dean...I can't think...not clearly...hurts to think about it..."

Sam gave Dean a pleading look, one he hadn't seen since they were kids. It was the look that said Dean, please don't make me do this!

Dean sighed and started up the Impala. Sam gave him a grateful look. Dean looked back solemnly.

If you need time, Sammy, you can have it. But I'm not gonna' let it drop. We're going to talk about this and you're going to tell me what the hell is going on with you.

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They hadn't gotten much farther when Dean pulled over again. Sam snapped out of his private thoughts.

"Dean?"

"Huh?" Dean responded, unbuckling his seatbelt.

"Why are we stopping?"

"Just sit tight, Sammy."

Dean got out of the car. Sam's sense of foreboding grew. Suddenly he knew that this was their last chance. Last chance to turn away. Last chance to stop this thing before things would be set in motion and nothing they could do would stop it until it reached the end. Whatever this thing was.

"Dean!" Sam called. But his brother was gone. He looked around for him. That was when he saw the hitchhikers.


Oh! Hitchhikers! Mysterious!

'Till next time!

...A voice whispers from behind you..."Pssst...reviews make me happy!"