A/N: Thanks again to all those who are reading and following along with this! All the reviews and alerts have been incredible!
Summary: Dean can't seem to get used to the quiet of Lisa's. He constantly awakes at the slightest sound…One night this works to his advantage.
Chapter 3 – On the Road Again
For once Metallica was doing little to calm Dean's frayed nerves as the Impala sped down the rain slick roads separating them from Bobby's. However the slumped form of his brother in the seat next him, that managed to calm the anxiety over Lisa's abduction by at least a fraction.
Sam's arm wrapped around his abused ribs in an attempt to shield them from further torment. His slightly bruised faced leaned against the cool window, but still turned towards Dean. Damn it feels good to have him back. Despite the chaos and absolute terror surrounding the situation, Dean couldn't help but smile at his brother.
A glance in the review mirror had the smile faltering slightly. An exhausted Ben lay curled in on himself across the backseat. Dean had explained more or less everything that had played out the night before to the poor kid earlier that morning, leaving out the fact that Dean had been forced to choose Sam over the boy's mom. Although Dean knew Ben would have understood at least some, the anger over that decision would have easily won out over any understanding Ben would have been able to muster. So instead Dean opted to explain how the demon had taken Lisa. Ben had reacted exactly how Dean had expected. He shook his bruised head, despite any discomfort the action brought him. And when Dean crouched down to comfort him, Ben fought against Dean's attempt in every way possible. He pounded his small fists against Dean's strong chest seeking an escape from Dean's protective hold and screamed until his vocal chords gave out. Sobs quickly overtook the exhausted boy and he gave in to Dean's hold, utterly exhausted. After the initial breakdown, Ben had remained quiet and pliant, only focusing on what the hunters wanted to do to get his mom back.
Dean couldn't help but notice the tear stains against Ben's too pale cheeks. His heart broke all over again. He knew what it was like, to lay across that leather seat, desperately trying to hide the tears, and wanting no one other than the mom that could not come to comfort her little boy. Dean could only hope that for Ben, this would just be temporary.
Sam stirred restlessly next to him and drew him out of his darker thoughts. "Waking up princess?" Sam grunted, either as a response to Dean or the pain that was most likely coursing through his body. "Is that supposed to be a yes?"
Sam finally forced his eyes open to look at Dean. "Maybe." Sam shifted a little in the passenger seat and had to bite his lip to keep from crying out against the pain. "Starting to think I should have just gone back to sleep," Sam gasped out while trying to reign in the pain.
"You could swap places with me," a higher pitched voice said from the backseat. Dean turned to see Ben's rumpled head peering over the seat at the brothers. "There's more room. You can stretch out if you wanted to." That was the most Ben had spoke since the trip had began that morning.
Sam smiled back at Ben's offer. Although Sam loved being back in the passenger seat of the Impala, it was currently hell on his aching abdomen. "You sure you won't mind, Ben?" A quick and short shake of the head was the only response offered before Ben flopped back in the seat and stared off out the window as if willing his mom to appear on the side of the road. "Thanks."
"I'm stopping for gas at the next exit," Dean interrupted. "You two can swap then." Sam and Ben silently nodded.
A little over twenty minutes later, the Impala pulled into a small gas station. Dean slid out of the car to pump gas. After setting the nozzle in place, he leaned back in, "Need anything from the store in there?"
Sam spoke first. "Coffee would be great. And um, maybe some more pain reliever, if they have it."
"Sure thing," Dean responded. "How about you squirt?"
For a second, Dean thought that Ben was going to just ignore him or was just shying back away from him again. But the boy surprised him by finally speaking up in a very soft voice, "Can I have something to eat? I didn't feel like eating breakfast earlier."
"Course buddy. What do you want?"
"Maybe some chips, if that's ok." Ben looked up at Dean briefly before staring back down at his feet.
"Ok, I'll be right back." Dean headed toward the building to pay for the gas and get the requested items.
Sam's car door slowly creaked open, supporting the bulk of his weight. Although twisting toward the open door left him panting in pain, Sam wasn't doing too bad…Until he attempted to straighten his body up and move. Instantly, pain shot across his damaged torso, sending Sam back down onto the seat. "Damn…Son of a Bitch that hurts. Damn it all…" Sam's eyes squeezed shut against the pain, and muttered curses continued to flow.
Sam didn't even notice the creaking of the back door's hinges or the soft padding of sneakers against the concrete. Once Sam finally reigned in his pain, he opened his eyes to a very concerned Ben directly in front of him. The boy's hand rubbed soothing circles against Sam's knee.
"Sorry Ben." Sam had never really been one to cuss in front of kids, no matter what the reason behind the curse.
Ben finally managed the first real smile of the day. "No big deal. Don't forget, Dean's been living with us for four months. Pretty sure I've heard worse."
Sam let out a strangled laugh. "Yeah, I'd say so." Sam finally felt more ready to attempt the move to the backseat again. "Let's try this again. Care to help me?" With a little help from Ben, Sam finally succeeded in laying across the backseat.
"Here," Ben extended his wadded up hoodie for Sam to use for a pillow.
"Thanks kiddo." Sam gladly took the item and was soon about as comfortable as possible.
Dean quickly returned, handing out food and pain reliever as requested. It wasn't long before Sam's slight snores echoed through the Impala accompanied by the munching of chips. Dean didn't even bother turning Metallica back on.
As the Impala crossed the South Dakota border Dean noticed Ben nervously looking out the window at the night darkened landscape. The silence from the passenger seat had Dean figuring the boy had finally crashed for the night. "How you holding up over there?"
Ben anxiously shifted a little. "What's Bobby like?"
Dean laughed a little before answering, "Bobby is…well…you ever hear that saying 'a dog's bark is worse than his bite?'" Ben nodded. "Then you know what Bobby's like. He looks, talks, and acts rough, but he's pretty soft under all that." Dean thought for a second before adding, "Just don't let him know I told you that."
Expected a laugh or smile at least from Ben, he surprised Dean by continuing with questions. "Will he help?"
"He's the best damn hunter out there, well, besides me of course!"
Ben did smile a bit at that before returning to the somber face he'd sported for the majority of the day. "Do you think…I mean…Will he like me?"
The pure innocence of the question threw Dean at first. At times it was easy to forget that Ben was still a little boy. "Damn straight he will! Hell, he loves me! So you should pass inspection."
Ben seemed to think everything over for a few moments. "Well, if he loves you, then I guess he'll pretty much adore me then." Dean didn't fail to notice the shakiness to the joke or the fact that Ben still looked very unsure about meeting Bobby.
Instead of teasing back, Dean ruffled the boy's hair. "You got that right buddy."
"Dean?"
Dean glanced back to see Sam awake, but still laying down on the seat. "Sorry, Sammy. Didn't mean to wake you."
"It's 'k." Sam's voice was thick with sleep, making Dean wonder how much of this conversation Sam would remember later. "Did you…Does Bobby know?"
"Know what?"
"About me. That I'm, you know, back upstairs."
Dean flinched at the mention of Hell.
"Damn, no he doesn't. I tried explaining what happened with the demon quickly, and he just told me 'to get my ass to his place' before hanging up on me. You know how he can be."
"Yeah, I do," Sam smiled. "But this is going to be pretty interesting when he sees me walking, well hobbling, up his porch."
"Don't worry too much." Dean could pretty much imagine how Bobby would react. It wasn't like this would be his first time dealing with the brothers returning from the dead.
A little later in the evening the Impala crossed through the Singer Salvage gate. Dean could see the grumbling hunter already coming down the porch steps and making his way towards the car. Sam still lay in the back, hidden from Bobby's view.
Ben looked anxiously at Dean, who only winked in response and climbed out the Impala. "Hey, Bobby…Long time no see."
Bobby quickly crossed the last bit of distance separating him from Dean and promptly smacked Dean across the back of the head. Dean squawked out, "What the hell?"
"That was for staying gone for four damn months ya idgit." Before Dean could even respond, Bobby grabbed Dean around the shoulder to pull him into a huge hug. "But damn if it isn't good to see you boy!"
Dean returned the hug with full force. The two hunters only broke the embrace when a very nervous looking Ben crawled out from the passenger seat.
Bobby took a look at the boy. Damn if he doesn't look like Dean when he was little. Ben stopped a few feet away from Bobby, looking down at his feet. Bobby crouched down to Ben's eye level and gently pulled the boy's sad face up to meet his. "How ya doin' kiddo?" Ben attempted a weak, sad smile. "Yeah, I know it bud. But we're gonna get her back to ya real soon. Promise." That had Ben smiling a little more in earnest. But the smile still didn't fully reach his eyes.
The moment was finally broken again by the creaking of the Impala's doors. Bobby couldn't figure out who else would be with Dean and Ben. Dean hadn't mention having any other hunters or friends coming along. Soon familiar boots and even more familiar long legs unfolded from beloved car. "Sam?"