Authors Note: I'm not sure if anyone out there still remember his story, but here it is, finally, the conclusion. :) It was so long since I posted anything so I don't have a Beta Reader anymore so all mistakes are mine and only mine and I apologize in advance.
I would be happy if you told me what you think
CHAPTER THREE
It took a lot longer than Sam expected before things went to hell, over a year, actually. For one year and four months everything was great. Dean called almost every day and showed up every two or three months and it was a lot like heaven to Sam. To be able to see Dean on a regular basis was a luxury he never thought he would have when he left for School. He knew Jess missed Dean like crazy and would prefer for him to stay for good, but she accepted the terms without fuss, which made Sam both love and admire her. He was convinced that not only was she really the one for Dean, she was also strong and tough enough to handle the truth about Dean's real job. Dean did not agree, though, so the Winchester family secret was still untold.
The day the truth finally caught up with them was a sunny Tuesday in May. Sam had just finished his math finals and felt great, because he was pretty sure it had went well – very well. He entered the apartment and found it empty, which surprised him a bit. Jess had her chemistry finals tomorrow and he had expected to find her with her nose in her books, close to hysteria. At least that's how things had been when he left her this morning.
He and Jess shared an apartment since the day eight months ago, when a bad case of the flu had landed Sam in the hospital with pneumonia, scaring both Jess and Dean so badly they thought he needed someone to look after him 24/7. The fact that he hadn't been sick since, not even with a cold, probably proved them right and Sam didn't really mind. He was used to company and felt a lot less lonely and out of place when he didn't have to live alone, plus it was easier to protect Jess from supernatural things if he had her close.
He had just sat down on the couch with a soda in his hand when Jess entered the apartment. Her face was pale and she looked tense, tightly clutching her cell phone in her left hand.
Sam frowned. "Jess? Is something wrong?"
Jess sat down beside him and bit her lip. "I don't know. Maybe. Have you heard from Dean lately?"
"Me? No. Why would I? He never calls me unless you tell him to. You know that."
"Yeah, I know," she sighed deeply. "I guess I was just hoping you had, because I haven't heard from him in a while.
Sam felt fear rise inside. Dean not calling Jess could only mean he was either hurt, in trouble, or – God forbid – dead.
"When did he last call you?" he asked surprised about how calm his voice sounded.
"Four days ago. And I have tried to call him eleven times the past two days, but I'm only getting his voice mail. Do you think he's trying to ditch me?" she asked in a small voice.
Sam firmly shook his head. "No way. He adores you. He would rather die than leave you."
Jess grasped and Sam realized too late that his choice of words weren't the best, even if they might be true. He pulled Jess into a hug.
"I didn't mean it literally. But we better face it, if you haven't heard from him, something has to be wrong. He would never not calling you for four days – or ignore eleven calls from you – if he could help it. Did he tell you what his last job was about?"
Jess pulled away and quickly dried a couple of stray tears, never keen to let other people see her cry. Always the stoic one – just like his big brother.
"He said he was stalking someone that had murdered people in an abandoned building. Said he was pretty sure who it was. Just needed to gather some more evidence before he called the cops."
Sam suppressed a sigh, knowing all too well that Dean had no intention what-so-ever to call the cops and that he probably was dealing with an angry, very violent spirit or maybe a demon, but either way it meant that he could be seriously hurt, or dead. Trying to ignore his own growing fear he asked, "Did he tell you where he was?"
"Yeah, Kingston, New Jersey."
"Okay. Good. Have you called the near by hospitals?"
Jess went pale. "No. You think he's hurt?"
Sam nodded grimly. "Yeah, happens a lot in our line of work."
"But he's never been hurt before."
Sam shrugged. "Maybe he's been lucky lately, but he's been hurt on a regular basis for as long as I can remember."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Jess asked, a mix of anger, fear and confusion burning in her eyes, and Sam realized, a split second too late, that he had slipped.
"Nothing," he replied quickly, hoping to distract her enough to drop the subject. "Why don't you go and look up all the hospitals in the area, so we can call them and see if we can find him. In the mean time, I'll call my father. Maybe he's heard something."
An hour later, Jess had called every hospital but one without any result and Sam stared to feel as desperate as she looked. The phone call to his father hadn't helped at all, because the only thing he'd gotten was his voice mail and Sam couldn't help but wonder if that was how things usually were these days. He knew for sure that Dean and his father rarely hunted together anymore, but he never thought that meant his father was totally absent. Maybe he was wrong.
"Sam," Jess sounded like she was on the wedge of tears and Sam quickly pulled himself together, "if we don't find him at the last hospital, is that a good or a bad thing?"
Sam swallowed hard. "Probably a very bad thing."
"What do you mean?" Jess asked fearfully.
Sam chewed on his bottom lip, trying to decide what to tell her. The truth or some kind of half truth like Dean usually did? Before he could make a decision something dawned on him. Jess had been calling the hospitals looking for a Dean Winchester but what if he was too out of it to be able to tell them his real name? Or maybe he was going under some kid of alias as they usually did.
"Sam?" Jess's tear filled voice effectively brought him out of his musings.
"I just mean that there are a lot of risks involved with the job he does and the chance something bad have happened to him probably is great. Look, I was thinking…you asked for a Dean Winchester when you called the hospitals, right?"
Jess nodded.
"What if he was unconscious when they brought him in, or using some kind of alias – he often does that when he works. Then he could still be there but no one would know it was him you were looking for."
The hope in Jess's eyes returned and Sam smiled despite himself. Maybe they would find Dean. Maybe things would be okay again. Maybe he didn't have to fill a missing person report and start calling the morgues.
"How about we split the list between us and start calling around again? It will be faster that way."
Jessica smiled gratefully and tore the list in half, handing one piece to Sam.
Sam picked up the phone and started calling again. There were three hospitals on Sam's part of the list and – using his cell phone – he called the first one, praying he would get something but kept coming up empty handed. Taking a deep breath, trying to quell his disappointment, he called the last one and almost cheered with joy when the nurse in the ER told him a John Doe fitting Dean's description had been brought in last night but had yet to regain consciousness.
She refused to give him any further information until he had formally ID Dean and proven he was his brother. She reassured him, though that Dean's life wasn't in danger – at least not right now. Sam hung up and called the local police and got another little piece of the puzzle. Dean had been found next to a small road and the couple who found him thought he had been mugged, but Officer Anderson said it looked more like he had been hit by a car or tossed around some how. The whole thing was very strange the officer said. Sam agreed and offered to fax a photo of Dean for ID, which the cop gratefully accepted.
Sam hung up and grinned happily at Jess, who looked expectantly at him. "You found him?"
"Yeah, I think so. They had a John Doe at the ICU of the Elisabeth hospital, who fitted his description and the local police thinks it was him, too. But I'm gonna fax a picture of him ASAP."
"But didn't they know who he was? Didn't he contact them like he said? I don't understand…" Jessica asked in confusion.
Sam closed his eyes. This just wasn't working anymore. He needed to tell her the truth. She deserved the truth, and if she and Dean would be able to have any further together the truth was the only way to go. So, taking a deep breath, feeling just a tiny bit guilty for doing this without Dean's consent, he told the whole story about their mom, the yellowed eyed demon and the "family business" as Dean and Dad insisted on calling it.
Jess listened patiently the whole time, without asking questions or commenting on anything, and Sam started to believe that he was right. Dean had finally found someone who would believe him and accept things for what they really were. But when he had finished she gave him one worried look and carefully put her hand on his arm.
"Look, Sam. I understand that you're worried about Dean. That he's pretty much the one constant in your life and all that, but don't worry, okay? Everything will be fine. We'll go there so you can be with him and when his better; we'll take him home and care for him. And in the meantime, I'll take care of you. You won't be alone. I promise. So there's no need to be afraid of the dark – I won't let anything get to you, okay?"
Sam just starred at her, not really getting what she was saying. She didn't think he was crazy, right? But her next action confirmed his fears, because when he failed to answer, she pulled him into a tight hug, and stroke his back soothingly.
"It's gonna be okay, Sam. I promise. Dean will be okay. Everything's gonna be fine. You'll see. Why don't you go and lie down while I fax that picture and book some flight tickets?"
"I'm fine," Sam protested, pulling away from her. "I don't need to lie down. I can fax that picture."
"No, Sam," Jess answered in a very calm and very soothing voice, like she was trying to calm a sketchy horse. "You're not fine right now, but everything will be fine eventually. I promise. But for now, you need to let me handle things, okay? Do you have any pills you can take?"
"Jess, please," Sam said pleadingly. "You gotta believe me. I'm not crazy."
"Of course you're not," Jess said in a way too patient tone of voice, telling Sam she considering him as a total nutcase. "But things don't make much sense without Dean, huh?"
"Jess, please. It's not like you think. I'm okay. I'm not crazy."
"Of course you're not," Jess replied again. "But you're not exactly acting like yourself right now either, so please, Sam, just do as I tell you and I'm sure things will be all right again when you see Dean again, okay?"
Sam sighed, knowing there was no way for him to convince Jess he wasn't crazy, Boy, did things go from bad to worse within seconds – just because he was an idiot who never listen to his big brother. Yeah, Dean would have a filed day with this one that was for sure.
"Jess, please," he tried one more time. "I know I sound crazy, but I'm not. It's all true. I'm fine. I'm just telling the truth. Ask Dean!"
Jess smiled gently, a look of sadness and compassion on her face. "I will, Sam. As soon as I can, but until then – just relax, please?"
Sam knew he had lost the battle for now and that right now he would only hurt and stress her more by insisting and with another sigh he went into the bedroom to pack his things, leaving Jess to deal with was necessary. What a mess. Dean was going to kill him.
Jessica sat on the plane, watching Sam sleep, trying to figure out how things could go so bad so fast. Her boyfriend was laying in a hospital a million miles away seriously wounded and his precious baby brother had gone insane.
She reached out and tenderly brushed the unruly, all too long, bangs away from Sam's forehead. She hoped the sedative she had slipped into his soda at the airport would keep him asleep for the whole trip. She felt slightly guilty for drugging him like this, but she really didn't think she had a choice. She couldn't risk him freaking out on the plane, so she had stopped by Lisa's place after faxing Dean's picture and begged her to let her have one of her Valium. Lisa had been happy to give her one when she explained that Sam was devastated by his brother's accident and Jess didn't mention that in this case devastated meant insane.
Stroking Sam's cheek she sighed again. Poor Sam. She knew he was fragile health wise and that Dean was constantly worrying about him, but never in her wildest dreams could she imagine he was just as fragile mentally – that he was that close to the edge. She found it pretty scaring that he was so depended of Dean that the threat of losing him caused him to go delusional. But Dean's constantly worrying suddenly made a lot more sense and so did his repeated request to her to look out for Sam. She just wished he had told her the whole truth about Sam's fragile persona, wished he had told her there were other signs besides a fever to look out for.
Poor Dean, he was going to get so upset when he woke up and found out what had happened to Sam. "If he wakes up" a small voice in her head said and she felt her eyes tear up. The doctor they had talked to after Dean had been ID had been positive that Dean would wake up eventually, but he couldn't make any promises and, deep down, Jessica feared that she would lose the best thing that had ever happened to her.
It was funny, when Sam had turned her down that night she really thought it was the end of the world but instead it had been a start of something completely wonderful. Something she never thought she would have. Dean was everything she could wish for. Kind, strong, funny, handsome, thoughtful, protective and loyal and the way he loved and cared for Sam had always touched her. It was obvious to her that their father hadn't been around much and that Dean had practically raised Sam on his own. Sam. God, what was she going to do with Sam if Dean didn't make it? Would Sam even make it without Dean? Would she be able to get him better or would she have to get him admitted? Oh, Dean, she thought as she lost the battle with her tears. I wish you had told me about this. I wish you had told me what's wrong with his head.
Jessica let herself cry for a few minutes, before pulling herself together. Breaking down would do no good to any of them. She needed to be strong, strong for Dean and for Sam. She looked over at Sam's sleeping form again and ran her hand through his hair.
"Don't worry, Sam," she whispered. "No matter what happens I'll take care of you. You will never be alone. I promise."
She sighed yet again when she realized just how hard that would get if Dean really did die and Sam never got any better. But still it wasn't really a hard decision to make because that was what Dean would have wanted.
Jessica quickly made her way through the hospital halls with a slightly dazed Sam in her trail. He had woken up when the plane landed, a bit confused and very tired, but he seemed lucid enough and hadn't mentioned any ghosts or demons since they left California. He had asked her, though, why he was feeling so tired and off and she had suggested he might be coming down with something and he had accepted it without any protests and why wouldn't he? Being sick wasn't exactly a new concept for him, she thought tiredly and wondered for the umpteenth time how Dean did it.
She turned around to make sure Sam was still there and then walked up to the nurse's desk. She introduced herself and Sam and ten minutes later she had learned that Dean had three broken ribs which one had punctured his lung and a broken arm together with an a sorted cuts and bruises and a sever concussion. But the CT-scan showed no sins of bleeding and the doctor was positive he'd wake up soon and Jess felt relief washing over her. Maybe this wasn't so bad. Maybe things would be okay again.
She gazed over at Sam, who stood a few feet away, nervously chewing on his fingernails, looking slightly lost.
"Come on, Sam," she said gently. "Let's go and see him."
"Yeah, sure." He walked up to her and put his hand on her arm. "You okay?"
Jess smiled fondly at him. Even insane, Sam was thoughtful and sweet and she decided that had to be a good sign. The walked down the hall and entered Dean's hospital room and Jessica felt her heart clench when she saw her precious Dean in the hospital bed, looking all small and fragile. There were several bruises on his face and various medical equipment surrounding him.
She sat down beside him on the bed and took his hand, mindful about the iv attached to it, using her other hand to stroke his hair she whispered that she loved him, hoping he would hear her and wake up. Sam sat down on the other side and put a hand on Dean's arm starting a silent rant about the stupidity of taking down supernatural things without back-up and Jessica felt like crying, wishing there was something she could to spare Dean from having to deal with his brothers insanity.
It was Dean's senses that woke him up, or rather the incompatibility between them. He could hear Sam's soft voice whispering words of both comfort and anger. That, and the pain in his body, clued him into that he had landed himself in the hospital again and that Sam was pissed about it. Nothing new there. Dean had been though this a million times and he would know Sam voice anywhere. It was the touch that confused him. Someone was caressing his arm and it sure as hell wasn't Sam. Dean knew that for sure. Not that it would be totally unthinkable – with Sam being a girl and everything. But this wasn't Sam's hand because Sam's hands were big as plates and the hand on his arm was small and very soft – a woman's hand. It probably wasn't a nurse either. They usually didn't caress their patients – no matter how much Dean wanted them to. So who could it be? Dean curiosity finally won out and made him able to beat the fog in his brain and fight his way back to full consciousness. He opened his eyes and tried to focus on the person sitting by his bed and when his vision cleared he met a couple of bright blue eyes. Jessica. Jessica was sitting by his hospital bed. Shit! This just couldn't be good. Not good at all. No wonder Sam was pissed.
"Dean?" Jessica's voice was soft with a calm and comforting touch that he was sure he hadn't hear before – at least not aimed at him. He tried to answer but all me managed was something between a moan and a whimper.
Sam's large hand immediately appeared on his shoulder and then his face hovered close to Dean's, blocking the view of Jessica. Sam was even paler than Jessica and Dean wondered how long they had been there.
"It's okay, Dean. You're safe now."
Realizing that he wouldn't be able to answer unless someone gave him some water, Dean tried to give Sam a small smile instead and it seemed to work because he stopped looking like someone had killed his puppy and smiled. The tears in his eyes telling Dean exactly how worried he had been and Dean started to wonder exactly how badly he was hurt.
A mental check over of his body told him he his head hurt like hell and that it was hard to breathe. So a concussion then – and some broken ribs. Not too bad considering. Sam was still hovering and Dean gave him another smile, hoping that it would convince him to sit down and stop blocking the view of the woman he loved.
As if she could read his mind, Jessica said. "Sam. Maybe we should tell someone he's awake."
Sam looked thorn, giving Dean another worried look. Dean tried again to say something reassuringly but just like earlier it ended up sounding like a moan. It had the desired effect, though, because Sam – thinking that Dean was in pain – bolted out of the room to get the nurse, finally leaving Dean alone with Jessica.
Meeting her eyes he opened his mouth to – once again – try to say something, but Jessica stopped him with a shake of her head, tenderly running her fingers through his hair.
"Sssh, don't try to talk. You have been unconscious for quiet awhile now and I'm sure your throat is dry as the desert. I don't know if you can have anything to drink right now, but I'll ask the nurse as soon as she arrives, okay? Just rest for now. Both Sam and I are all right and everything is gonna be just fine."
Dean felt his heart rate increasing. Jessica was lying to him. He knew it as sure as he knew his own name. Still slightly hazy and after being unconscious for God know how long, he still knew a lie when he heard one. It was the slight catch in her voice and the way she couldn't quit meet his eyes that gave her away. She and Sam were not okay. Something was wrong. The question was what and with whom. He bore his eyes into Jessica, trying to intimidate her the only way he could in his current stat and the heart monitor started to scream when his heart rate picked up another notch from the effort. Jessica looked horrified.
"Calm down, Dean. Try to relax. Everything is fine."
Fine my ass, Dean thought angrily, trying to breath through the increasing pain in his side. In that moment, Sam appeared in the doorway with both a doctor and a nurse in tow. Jessica's eyes darted to Sam and then quickly back to Dean giving him the answer he was looking for. Something was wrong with Sam. That information did nothing to calm him down, though and his heart rate increased yet again, causing the medical staff to swarm around him, doing the last thing Dean wanted them to right now – knocking him out.
The next time he woke up the room was quiet and semi-dark, indicating that he'd out for quite awhile. Jessica was still by his side, holding his hand, like a faithful solider. Dean let his eyes dart around the room, searching for Sam, but he was nowhere in sight.
"Jessica," he said hoarsely, happy to find that his voice seemed to work better this time, "where's Sam?"
"Dean!" Jessica's head jerked up and she stood up, stroking his hair soothing.
"You're awake," her voice held both joy and relief, "just take it easy, okay? Everything is fine."
"Sam," he demanded. Jessica smiled reassuringly.
"He's fine. Dean. He's sleeping over there."
She pointed to the right and then Dean finally saw the bed in the corner. A bed with a Sam sized lump in it and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"What's wrong with him?" he asked harshly, then broke into a coughing fit as his sore throat protested against the abuse.
Jess quickly poured some water in to a mug before lifting his head off the pillow, helping him to drink, very happy for the distraction if the expression on her face was anything to go by.
"Jessica," he said again as soon as he the coughing eased. "What's wrong Sam?"
"What makes you think something is wrong?"
"Jessica. I might not have known you for very long, but I love you and I know when some one I love lies to me. So, please, Jessica tell me what's wrong with Sam."
"Dean…" Jessica trailed off and took a deep breath before trying again. "Oh, Dean. I'm so sorry to tell you this. I wish you have told me the truth about Sam. Then I might have been able to do something to prevent this."
"The truth about what?"
"About how fragile he is mentally."
Dean frowned. What the hell was she talking about? Sure Sam was a bit of a freak, but he usually acted sane.
"What do you mean? Sam's never had any mental problems."
"No?"
"No."
Jessica closed her eyes briefly and Dean felt his worry increase.
"Well, he has now."
Dean just couldn't believe what he was hearing and if it had been anyone else but Jessica he had been furious by now, accusing them for lying. But this was Jessica and Jessica didn't lie especially about something as serious as this. Not when Sam was involved. She knew how important Sam was to Dean and she would never say something like this if it wasn't true. His gaze went to Sam, wandering over his sleeping form and he felt his eyes tear up. His poor little brother. He had always known Sam was sensitive and kind of fragile mentally – a girl as he used to say, but he never actually thought he was going to lose it completely. Obviously he was wrong, blinking away his tears he turned to Jessica and asked; "What kind of mental problem?"
Jess sighed and looked so sad and weary that Dean just wanted to hug her and tell her everything would be alright, but for once he couldn't, because if Sam really was insane nothing would ever be alright again. "I think he's psychotic."
Dean closed his eyes. It was a lot worse than he expected. "What makes you think that?"
"When he learned that you where at the hospital he just flipped out. Starting to tell me some story about how you weren't a P.I , that your real job was to hunt and kill supernatural things. How your mom had been killed by a demon – a fire demon – and how you had chased that demon and other supernatural things all your life." Jessica took a deep breath and licked her lips before she continued, "and then I drugged him so that he slept most of the way here."
"You drugged him?" Dean asked in disbelief.
Jessica wrenched her hands." I'm sorry; Dean. I really am. You know I love Sam but I didn't have a choice. I couldn't risk him babbling about demons on the plane. He could have gotten us thrown off! And when he woke up he seemed better – didn't talk crazy anymore, but as soon as he spotted you he started all over again. I'm sorry, Dean. Really, really sorry!"
Sam. Only Sam. Only Sam would be stupid enough to tell people the truth and being declared as insane when he was at it. Only Sam. For a moment Dean just starred at Jessica, trying to decide if he should laugh or just crawl out of the bed and kill Sam right away. In the end he did neither because Jessica looked so sad and upset and he wasn't mad at Sam – not really. He knew it had come to this sooner or later. Jessica was way too nice and he loved her way to much to keep her in the dark for much longer. He just wished Sam had let him do the talking, or at least been there as a back up so that his adorable little brother didn't end up in the loony bin.
"Jessica," he said gently, "Sam's not crazy. He's an idiot, but he's not crazy."
"He's not?"
"No."
"But…"
"Jessica," Dean cut her off, "I want you to listen to me. And before you jump to any conclusions, I know I hit my head, but I'm not confused and Sam's not crazy. What he told you is true, all of it, and believe me, I know how crazy that sounds. That's the reason we usually don't tell people. Last time I did, I lost my girlfriend and almost ended up in the loony bin myself."
"So everything he told me is true? Ghosts are real?"
"Yeah."
"So you're telling me that pretty much everything evil and bad and scary I've ever heard about is real and out there, ready to kill me at any given time?"
The look in Jessica's eyes where still one of disbelief, but underneath lurked the, to Dean all too familiar, look of fear that all the people who learned how scary life really was developed.
"Yeah."
She started at him for the longest time and Dean shifted in the bed, feeling both uneasy and sad. He knew this was it. This was when she told him she was sorry, but there was no way she could stay with him now. As she took a breath and opened her mouth, he braced himself for the unenviable, knowing the rejection would hurt like hell. But when she continued he realized she wasn't done processing yet.
"So that's why you're always so worried about Sam? You're worried something will come for him?"
Dean nodded. "Yeah. Me and Dad both think that what the thing that killed Mom really wanted was Sam. Dad have tried to find it ever since but, so far, no luck."
"And in the mean time he kills every evil thing he can get his hands on?"
"Pretty much."
"As revenge?"
Dean had to think about that one for a second. "I guess so, in a way. But he also want to keep other people safe and prevent them from losing their lives - or a loved one, like we did."
"So he went out saving the world, leaving you and Sam to fend for yourself. Leaving you to raise Sam?"
"It wasn't like that. Dad cared about us. Made sure we safe and had everything we needed."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"I don't believe you."
Dean narrowed his eyes. "Why not? What kind of bullshit have Sam been feeding you?"
"Sam hasn't told me anything about his childhood. But I'm not an idiot. Anyone can see that he turns to you like a to a father. You're the only one he listens to, the only one he talks about. The only one who's opinion he cares about and the only one who's approval he wants. You raised him. It's as simple as that."
"Okay, so maybe I did. But Dad didn't force me. I gladly did. It was my job!"
"Yeah? And who's job was it to take care of you?"
"I didn't need anyone to take care of me. I was big enough to take care of myself."
"Were you?"
Dean closed his eyes briefly. He stared to feel exhausted and he rally didn't want to fight with Jessica over this. He did it enough with Sam.
"Look, Jessica, I don't want to fight with you about this. I know it's hard to get. Hell, I don't expect you to. But you need to understand none of us had any choice. Dad did what he had to and so did I."
Jessica seemed to notice his exhaustion and the fight in her died down and was replaced with love and concern as she said, "Okay."
Dean wasn't stupid, though. He knew this would come up again but she was ready to leave it for now and that was fine with him. There was another silence leasing Dean to worry what would happen now. He was pretty sure the silence meant that Jessica was trying to figure out how to proceed and he was pretty sure her decision was going to break his heart. But when she finally started talking, nothing of what she had to say came even close to that.
"And you're doing it, too. Hunting bad things?"
Dean nodded.
"Why?"
"What do you mean why?"
"Why would you do it? It's dangerous."
"I know. But I'm helping other people and one day we will find the thing that killed Mom and when we do, I want to be ready."
"But what about Sam?"
"What about him?"
"Who's gonna take care of him if you get killed?"
Dean rubbed his face. "Jessica…"
"No, Dean. What about Sam and what about me? What are we supposed to do if something kills you? Huh?"
Dean gave her his cockiest smile. "I kind of hope I have managed to kill them all by then."
"DEAN!"
Dean sighed. " I don't know, okay? All I know is that I need to do this. It's the only way I can think of to keep you safe - to keep us all safe! "
Again, Jess just looked at him for the longest time and then she asked, "So what do I need to know to survive?"
Dean stared at her in disbelief. "What?"
"You heard me," she said some what impatiently. "What do I do to survive? I need you to teach me. I need to know so I can help you keep Sam safe."
Dean smiled in awe. Maybe Jessica really would survive in their world after all.
But it wasn't until six months later, when he received the phone call about the fire and raced to Port Alto fearing the worst only to find her sitting in a chair, knife in hand, her face full with grim and sweat, guarding a sleeping Sam, that he knew for sure that she was just tough enough, strong enough and fearless enough to survive a life at his side.