Okay, first off I want to send out a huge THANK YOU to everybody who's read this story! Wow, I'm shocked at how many people like it and I hope that I continue to do it justice. Enjoy!

Sam woke up in the middle of the night after having yet another nightmare.

Sam slumped to the floor and watched as Frank stormed out of the room. No doubt to go get drunk again. Sam sighed, looks like he was in for a long night. His entire body ached, he felt broken inside and he just wanted it all to end. He didn't care how and was hoping that the next time Frank beat him, he wouldn't wake up. Sam had been sitting on the dirty, cigarette and beer bottle littered floor waiting for Frank to come back when he felt a surge of anger fill him. He realized he didn't want to 'entertain' Frank tonight… or any other night for that matter.

Wincing as he stood on bruised and shaky legs, Sam slowly started to make the trek towards the front door. He knew this was his only chance. Frank would be back in a few hours, drunk as ever and ready for some fun. He stumbled and fell several times as he made his way through the house. Leaning heavily on the door he tried to figure out which way the bar was. Making a guess, he started going left.

He'd been walking for a while and he felt as if he'd collapse if even the tiniest gust of wind were to push him over. Just when he was about to give up, he saw a row of stores up ahead. Setting, his sights on the one closest to him, he started walking towards them, determined to find someway out of his hellish life. Walking into the shop, a bell dinged signaling his arrival. But instead of Dean walking into the front office, Frank smiled sadistically at him. "You'll never escape from me."

Sam sat up, shaking and sweating. He could still feel Frank's hands on him and smell the whiskey on his breath. Sam took a few deep breathes before he lay back in his bed staring up at the ceiling. After an hour of tossing and turning, he realized that there was no way he was going back to sleep so he got up and wrapped the blanket Dean had given him around himself and walked to Dean's room. He stood outside the closed bedroom door for a little while until his fear of Frank returning overcame him and he pushed open the door. "Dean." He whispered. "Dean, wake up."

"Sam, what are you doing?" Dean asked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"I um… I had a nightmare." Sam replied quietly, feeling ashamed and weak.

Dean lay in his bed for a moment before pulling back the covers and scooting over to make room for Sam. Sam stared at Dean, stunned, that was not the reaction he was expecting. He was expecting Dean to tell him to go back to his bed and be a man, not offer to share his bed.

Sam's thoughts immediately turned dark as he realized that Dean was just like the others and had probably always wanted to get him in bed but there was also a small part of him that said Dean was different and wouldn't do that. He was also confused about the idea of someone actually giving him comfort. Sure, Dean had hugged him once before but he doubted that there would be a repeat performance of that, especially now that Dean knew just how disgusting he was. He walked over to the bed and gratefully yet fearfully slid in underneath the covers. Not wanting to push his luck or have Dean think he was perverted or something, Sam stayed to the edge of the bed.

Dean tucked the covers in around Sam and then rolled over onto the other side of the bed. "Night" He mumbled before falling asleep.

Sam was a bit shocked when Dean didn't pull him to him or try anything and eventually drifted off to sleep.

Dean was slightly confused the next morning when he woke and felt something heavy on his chest. Opening his eyes, he saw a brown mop of hair on his chest and a hand clutching his shirt. He quickly recalled the night's events and stayed still; allowing Sam to sleep in peace, something the kid obviously wasn't very used to. He put a gentle hand on Sam's back and lay back against the pillows going over what he'd have to do that day.

Watching Sam sleep and seeing how young and innocent Sam looked, renewed Dean's resolve to help him. He made a silent promise that he'd do whatever it took to get Sam the help he needed.

It was a while later when Sam started to stir. He began to panic when he felt a hand on his back and began to cry. He had been wrong in his assessment of Dean and was wondering why it didn't hurt. Maybe Dean hadn't done anything yet and was just waiting for him to wake up to get started.

"Hey, hey, Sam, shh, shh," Dean cooed wrapping his arms around Sam, not realizing that he was contributing to Sam's line of thinking. "Shh, you're safe here. Nobody's going to hurt you okay, I promised remember."

It took a few moments but once Sam realized that Dean wasn't trying to do anything to him, he felt embarrassed and ashamed for his reaction.

"You okay?" Dean asked after Sam seemed to have calmed down.

Sam nodded and pulled away from Dean.

Dean let him roll away and decided it was time to get up. "Um… I'm going to take a shower. You can sleep some more if you want or…" Dean said sounding somewhat awkward.

Sam nodded but got out of bed anyway.

After Dean had his shower, he decided that there were some things that they had to get done. "Hey Sam, I wanna talk to you." Dean said sitting down at the kitchen table.

Sam looked up nervously. You've blown it, what the hell were you thinking last night. You should have sucked it up like a man, oh wait, you're not a man. You're a little wimpy pussy and now you have to go bye-bye Sam berated himself.

"Sam, I… I um…" Dean started not sure how to have this conversation because while he'd taken Sam in, that didn't mean he was in charge of him or anything like that. "Sam, I think you should go to the hospital." Dean blurted out.

"Why?" Sam asked, his hands starting to shake. So far, he'd been able to hide it from Dean but he knew that as soon as he was examined, his last little secret would be out and Dean would know the horrible things Sam had done.

Dean saw how nervous he was making Sam and it made him wonder what else this kid had gone through and what else he was hiding. "Just to get you looked at, to make sure you're okay. I mean no offense but by the looks of you and from what I've seen, when was the last time you went to the doctors or anything like that?"

Sam shook his head. "I… I don't remember." Sam admitted quietly. "I guess before I met Frank."

"Frank? Is he the…" Dean asked.

Sam nodded.

"So, what do you say?" Dean asked. "It's okay if you don't want to or something but…"

Sam was quiet for a few minutes. "Why are you helping me so much?" He asked. He'd been mistreated for so long and so badly that he refused to believe that Dean was doing it just to be nice. There had to be a hidden agenda somewhere.

"Just the way I was raised." Dean replied looking longingly at a picture of his parents on the counter. He'd been taught growing up that if you were lucky enough to have what you needed then it was your responsibility to help other people succeed too. Though he hadn't ever been mean to or done anything horrible to anyone, he hadn't listened to his mother until it was too late. He could only hope he was making her proud now.

Dean called the local hospital and was able to get an appointment for Sam later that afternoon. Sam was bouncing his knees nervously and resisting the urge to get up and run while he still could. Dean sat next to Sam, pretending to read a Car and Driver magazine but was really watching Sam. He noticed how anytime someone walked a little too close to where they were sitting, Sam would move closer to Dean. He didn't know if Sam was aware of it or not but there was a part of him that liked that. He'd never been needed like that before and he was starting to think that his mother had been right. Helping others did feel good.

After what seemed like hours, a petite and friendly nurse named Teresa called Sam's name. Dean would have asked Sam what he wanted to do but the answer was in Sam's eyes and the way he hesitated. "C'mon," He smiled reassuringly before standing and waiting for Sam.

Sam was sitting on the little medical bench and Dean was in the chair against the opposite wall. "Dean, can I talk to you for a few minutes?" Leigh asked after she had examined Sam and found the bruises covering the majority of Sam's body.

"Yeah sure" Dean replied following her outside.

"Who is that guy and what the hell happened to him? He looks like he went twelve rounds with a block of cement and lost." She asked.

"His names Sam, I don't really know him but you have to help him." Dean replied. "He showed up at my shop about a little over a week ago all beat up and bloody. I tried to take care of him then but he took off. He showed up the next day and then some guy came looking for him."

"You need to find that guy, Dean. He's probably the kid's family." Leigh interrupted.

"No, I can't let Sam near him. I promised him." Dean answered.

"Dean, Sam's a minor. His family is probably worried sick about him." She argued.

"Honestly, I don't think so and that guy, he was bad news." Dean answered.

"Why? How could you know that?" She asked.

"Because when… when he showed up at the shop, Sam was… Sam was terrified." Dean explained.

"Yeah, the guy was probably Sam's father and they probably had an argument and Sam ran away." She said.

"Did those bruises look like they were from a small family dispute or more like someone using Sam as their own personal punching bag?" Dean asked, getting angry. He'd told Sam that he would protect him and he was going to damn-well keep that promise.

"Okay, yeah the bruises look bad but Dean, like I said Sam's a minor…" She replied.

"Are you going to help him or not?" Dean asked impatiently.

"You know I will." Leigh replied, sounding a little offended. "I just want to know why you are. I mean, c'mon Dean, I've known you since grade school. Since when does bad boy Dean Winchester take in stray kids?" She asked with a smirk.

"It just felt like the right thing to do. I mean, what, was I gonna tell him no you can't stay here. Go back to your drunken father." Dean answered. "I also think it's something my mom would have done."

Leigh nodded and let the subject go. She knew Dean's parents were a touchy subject for him.

"Leigh, there's something else." Dean said quietly.

"What?" She asked. "Dean what?"

"I think you should do a rape test." Dean suggested.

"You think he was…" Leigh asked.

Dean nodded. "The guy molested him in the shop right in front of me before I threw him out. Only god knows what else he did."

"Alright, alright." She said preparing to go back into the room.

Dean followed her in and then walked over to Sam. "How're you doing?" He asked.

Sam shrugged and Dean patted his arm reassuringly.

"Sam, there's something I want to ask you and I want you to be honest with me, alright." Leigh said coming over and standing with Sam and Dean.

Sam nodded.

"First off, do you mind if Dean's here or do you want him to leave?" She asked respecting her patients' privacy.

Sam looked at Dean. "Stay… please." He said in a shaky voice.

"Not going anywhere kid." Dean replied, gently squeezing Sam's shoulder.

She looked at Dean before venturing to ask Sam. "Sam, the bruises, how did you get them?" She asked in a professional yet caring voice.

Sam looked at Dean, ashamed that more people knew his secret now.

Dean nodded to Sam, indicating that he could tell her the truth.

"Frank… my boss, he… he had a temper. I guess I wasn't good enough for him." Sam replied.

More like he wasn't good enough for you Dean thought.

"Sam, did Frank beat you often?" She asked writing some things down.

Sam nodded and a few tears fell down his face. Even though this was what he had prayed for, for so long, he felt as if he didn't want or deserve it. Seeing Sam start to cry, Dean squeezed his shoulder again and vowed to get vengeance.

"Sam, did Frank ever sexually hurt you?" She asked.

Sam nodded before bringing his hands up to his face and crying harder. Dean put his arms around Sam and held him close. Sam clutched at Dean's shirt, trying to find some amount of safety and comfort when he felt like his world was being blown away.

Dean rubbed Sam's back and ran a hand through his wavy hair, trying to bring some comfort to the distraught kid. He looked over at Leigh, silently asking her for help.

She nodded, she'd have to make some calls but she thought she'd be able to help Sam or at least help Dean help him.

"Sam, I believe you but there's this test…" Sam nodded, knowing what she was asking him for.

Leigh walked over to a small closet and grabbed a large hospital gown. "Why don't you put this on and then we'll get started." She said before leaving to give them some privacy.

"You okay?" Dean asked when Sam made no move to leave Dean's arms.

Sam shook his head no.

Dean nodded; he didn't expect Sam to be okay. Hell, he wasn't so sure he was okay himself.

Reluctantly Sam walked over to the exam table and picked up the gown. Dean turned around and waited until Sam was decent. "I'll go get her." He said after Sam had lain down on the table.

Leigh and Dean came back into the room a few minutes later. Leigh walked over to the end of the bed by Sam's feet while Dean situated himself at Sam's head. "Sam, I'm going to start now. This might hurt a bit okay." She said sympathetically. She always hated it when she had to do these types of exams, luckily for her, they were rare.

Sam nodded and clenched his eyes shut and felt his whole body tense as Leigh started the exam.

Leigh looked at Dean for help when Sam tensed up. She knew it was hard but she needed Sam relaxed for this. Dean stood there for a minute, unsure of how he could help but when he saw the tears making their way down Sam's cheeks, he brushed his thumb over them, effectively wiping them away. "Sam, shh, it's gonna be okay." Dean attempted. "Shh, shh, I'm here kid."

Sam felt Dean's hand on his cheek and even though Dean's hands were rough and callus, they brought him at least a small amount of comfort, enough for him to start to relax. He reached his own hand up and wrapped it around Dean's wrist.

Dean took Sam's hand in his and squeezed, letting him know that he was there.

Leigh finished the exam and concluded that Sam had indeed been raped, multiple times and brutally. He had severe scarring that testified to a lifetime of abuse.

After the test was finished, Leigh arranged for Sam to have his own room. She wanted him to spend the night. She knew Dean wasn't the one who had done this to him but she wanted to keep an eye on him. Dean walked beside the bed as they transferred Sam up to the floor. "It's been a long day, why don't you try to get some sleep." Dean suggested as he stood next to Sam's bed. It was only two in the afternoon.

Sam looked hesitant and Dean knew he was scared.

"I'll still be here when you wake up." Dean promised cupping Sam's cheek in his hand. "Now close your eyes." Dean gently ran his thumb over Sam's cheek, lulling him to sleep.

There was a soft knock on the door a few hours later. Dean straightened up and helped Sam fall back asleep before acknowledging the doctor and the two strangers standing beside her.

"I put a rush on his test results." Dr. Leigh said holding up a vanilla folder.

"Let's talk outside." Dean said, wanting Sam to get as much sleep as possible. "What'd they say?" Dean asked, indicating the folder in her hand, keeping a weary eye on the other woman and the police officer. He knew the lady was more than likely a social worker and there was no way anyone was taking Sam away from him.

"Well, the AIDS and the STD tests both came back negative which is a good thing but like I told you earlier there's extensive evidence of sexual abuse." Dr. Leigh explained.

"What do I do? How do I help him?" Dean asked, unknowingly impressing the woman and surprising Dr. Leigh. This was not the Dean Winchester she knew.

"I'm so sorry, I wish I had answers for you but I don't." She said sadly before turning to the woman standing next to her. "Dean, this is Linda. She's a social worker and she'll be able to help you out in that area."

Dean acknowledged Linda with a nod before starting in on her. "I'm not going to let anyone hurt that kid anymore."

"I can tell and I believe that you have Sam's best interests at heart." Linda replied. "I'm on your side but…"

"But what?" Dean asked nervously.

"Dean, there's this place that the state is going to want to send Sam to." Linda explained.

"Like I said, no one's going to take him away from me." Dean said protectively. "I promised I'd protect him."

"Nobody would be taking him away from you. It's a treatment center for kids and teens that have been traumatized." She answered. "You could come every day to see him if you wanted. Plus, it's not forever only for an evaluation and a short stay."

"I'll think about it." Dean replied having no intention of actually saying yes.

She smiled kindly. "Please, consider it. I only want to help Sam."

Dean nodded and then turned to walk back into Sam's room but was stopped when the police officer grabbed his arm. "We need to talk." He said.

Dean nodded, knowing he was right. He wanted this Frank guy caught so he was no longer a threat to the kid. He just doubted that Sam would speak to the officer. "I know but I don't think he's gonna talk. Not yet at least, I'll call you in a few days." He took the man's card and then walked into Sam's room surprised to find Sam awake. "Hey kiddo, how ya feeling?" He asked.

"Tired, I guess." Sam replied, still talking in a hushed tone of voice. "And sore."

"Yeah, I bet." Dean replied, sympathy in his voice. "Sam, you don't have to worry anymore alright because I'm going to take care of you okay."

Sam nodded and for once he actually believed that line.

Once again THANKS! And I hoped you liked Ch. 3. Let me know what you thought of it please :)