Sorry it's taken so long to update this, I've been super busy with school and exams and such. Also the finale, like wow! I'm still recovering! This is a bit of a shorter chapter and there will probably only be one more chapter after this.

CHAPTER 3

It was two hours later and there still wasn't any word on Sam, Dean was sick with worry and he was about to kick up a fuss if someone didn't come and tell him something soon. He didn't want to think about what could be taking them so long. The only thing that was consoling him right now was that he knew that if the worst had happened he would have been told about it. Just then he was bought out of his musings when the door opened and an elderly doctor walked in, "Family of Sam Wesson?" In a second Dean was out of his seat and bombarding the doctor with questions, "How's Sam? He's okay right? Please tell me he's okay."

"I'm Doctor Brent; I've been looking after your brother."

"So he's not… he's still alive isn't he?"

"Yes," the doctor quickly said, "and he's doing as well as can be expected for now, would you like to follow me and we can talk about this somewhere more private." Dean followed, relieved that his brother was fighting but he still felt uneasy and he could tell he wasn't going to like what he was about to hear. He was led into the doctor's office and took a seat opposite the doctor, "What's wrong with my brother doc? What took you so damn long?"

"Mr Wesson, when Sam was bought in here, he was in acute respiratory distress meaning he couldn't get enough oxygen into his lungs. Now we've stabilised him but we've had to put him on a ventilator to as he wasn't able to breathe on his own. We're running a series of test to try and determine what caused this and we have an idea of what it might be. We need a bit more help figuring out what caused this and I was wondering if there's any chance that Sam could have been exposed to any rodents recently?"

Dean was a bit taken aback by this question but answered nevertheless, "Umm yeah… a couple weeks back we stayed in this pretty grotty place; could have been some rats there."

"Okay that pretty much confirms it, we'll finish running the tests in the lab but at this point I think your brother is suffering from Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome or HPS."

The doctor had said it with such a grim expression that Dean was petrified, he had no clue what it was but it sounded serious. "What is that? You can cure it right?"

"It's not quite that simple I'm afraid. It's an extremely severe disease that's attacking his respiratory system. At this point he's in the ICU and we've got him on oxygen therapy, but I'm sorry to say that there is no cure for this. There is a possibility that with careful monitoring, Sam's body will be able to heal itself but we'll just have to see how it goes."

Dean could feel himself shaking but he couldn't stop, his brother was in the ICU for god's sake and it was all his fault. He shouldn't have left Sam to clean that house by himself; he left him and now his baby brother was fighting for his life. "Can I see him?" Dean stuttered out.

"Of course, you'll have to wear protective gear before you go in though." The doctor said as he motioned for Dean to follow him down the hallway.

Dean looked stupid, he knew decked out in full body protective suit and face mask that he must, but he didn't care as long as he could see Sammy.

Doctor Brent stopped outside Room 132, "Okay now it's going to be a bit of a shock, there will be lots of tubes and wires and he is slightly feverish but try and talk to him, you never know, he might be able to hear you," he finished speaking as he opened the door.

Dean walked in and was taken aback by how many wires there were coming from Sam's body, it made him look so small and fragile. He felt like throwing up but that wouldn't help anyone, instead he buried his fear and stepped lightly over to Sam's bed and sat down next to him.

"Hey little brother, I'm here now." He waited a few moments for any sign of recognition but received none, "You should wake up Sammy, they've got me all dressed up in plastic, you'd love to see it." He still couldn't get over how weird it was to see Sam so still, so silent; with the only sound showing that he was actually alive being the constant whooshing of the vent. Dean felt a tear slide down his face, he wiped it away and continued, "You've got to get better Sam, I need to tell you that I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left you behind to clean up, I should have helped, hell I should have made sure we had a proper place to stay rather than some shit hole. The doctors say you can get better, so you got to fight for me Sammy. Besides who else am I going to talk to about all the hot nurses?" Dean finished speaking and rested his head next to Sam's arm feeling the heat radiating off him, he was exhausted and he knew there was nothing to do but wait so that when Sam finally did decide to wake up and get better, Dean would be right here waiting for him.