Ok, so here it is, the alternate version of my previous chapter, Silence. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it! :)
PERMANENT
Dean stood in the too-quiet room. He was all alone. Sam wasn't ready to come in yet. He could hear with minute clarity the frenzy of activity going on just outside the door. The unmistakable sound of a gurney's squeaky wheels as it was pushed down the hospital corridor, people rushing about, talking too loud, doctor's chatting, nurses giggling, normal people doing their jobs, going about their lives. He found it a strange contrast to the almost unbearable heavy silence that seemed to settle like a thick fog all around him . As if the rest of the world didn't know about this room. As if they didn't know he was there, as if it was just him. Just Dean and the figure lying in the bed to his right. He looked to the floor, then up to the ceiling, then to his left, anywhere that kept his gaze from drifting over to the hospital bed containing the only person in his entire life (except Sammy and his Father) that he would willingly lay down his life for. Given the chance, he would change all of this in a heartbeat. He would gladly be the one lying in that bed hooked up to countless machines if that meant that Bobby would be ok. He didn't want to look to his right, but he knew he had to.
Not yet though.
He carefully sat down on the only chair by the bed, registering the cold metallic hardness of it as he did so, and wondered if that was a cruel metaphor for what his life might become. Hard, cold, without the reassuring, comforting presence of yet another person he held dear. He couldn't let himself think like that though. Bobby was invincible. He always had been. Dean had been with him in countless near-death situations where Bobby had fearlessly battled with whatever ghost, ghoul or witch they happened to be ganking at the time. He had seen him rushing into dangerous places to save innocent people almost his entire life, not to mention the various Winchester quarrels he had had to break up, which, if it involved all three of them, was about the scariest thing anyone could witness. There was nothing that scared him, nothing he couldn't overcome. If anyone could pull through this, it was him. He had to be ok. He just had to be.
Dean pulled in a slow, deep breath. He knew the time had come.
He slowly inched his emerald green eyes upwards, trying to prepare himself in those last few seconds for what he was about to see, even though he knew it was a futile attempt. What he saw when his eyes finally completed their journey and rested upon the still figure lying in front of him touched his tortured, weary soul in a place he didn't even know existed. His heart started thumping against his chest, as despair and overwhelming pain wrapped around it. He felt the hot sting of tears starting to form at the back of his eyes, as the wave of emotions he was currently feeling threatened to overwhelm him. He wouldn't let them, even in his comatose state, he wouldn't let Bobby see how weak he was. He had to be strong, had to be strong for Bobby if he had any hope of getting through this. But it hurt to see his surrogate father like this. Pale, weak, vulnerable. It hurt so bad Dean knew he had to do something to distract himself, otherwise he would just fall apart in that damn chair. His gaze drifted across the old hunter's body, noticing the tiny pinprick of blood where the IV needle had punctured Bobby's hand. He suddenly realized that it wasn't, in fact, wholly silent in the room. He could hear the steady, rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor. Letting him know that Bobby, even though he was as quiet and still as Dean had ever seen him, was still alive and kicking. He winced as he looked upon the nasal canulla attached to Bobby's face and realised that there was a silver lining to all this, at least he was breathing on his own. Kind of.
Bobby suddenly shifted slightly in the bed, letting out a small huff of frustration. Dean's head shot up, his thoughts interrupted, his gaze locked onto the other hunter, as hope suddenly kindled in his soul. His whole face lit up with a gigantic grin as suddenly there they were, two eyes staring back at him with a hint of frustration, confusion and amusement in them.
"What're you so goddamn pleased about, boy?"
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There you go guys! Hope you like it, and let me know what you think! :D I may have more up my sleeve for this story, it all depends on how this Friday's episode goes down though. (Hopefully it won't end with me heartbroken and crying my eyes out) Anyways, if I decide not to carry on with this, im sure there will be plenty more Supernatural and other non spn-related fics coming your way!
