Dean was there when I woke up, as he promised. He was asleep, his head lying on the side of my bed, still holding my hand. As soon as I moved, he let go and left the room.
Weeks passed. The periods of consciousness were becoming longer and more frequent. The pain was subsiding as well. But none of my memories returned. I didn't even know my name. The hospital had me registered as Jane Doe, which was so clichéd it was ridiculous. In a fit of boredom, Sam suggested using a random baby name generator so they wouldn't have to call me Jane. After laughing for an hour or so, we came up with Summer. I thought it was a stripper name but Sam said that the room was warmer to him when I smiled. How could I argue with that?
I spent most of my waking time with Sam. He scoured the internet for information about me while systematically trying to awaken some memory from my past. I found out from him that he and Dean were following a lead on Kevin's whereabouts just outside of Douglas, Minnesota, when they found me, unconscious, in an empty barn that had a person sized hole in its rotten roof. I had suffered massive internal injuries and was covered in splinters and scratches but no broken bones, which was strange to say the least. The surgeons removed my spleen and repaired my lacerated liver but my recovery was going well. Neither of them had any idea how I had come to be in their universe.
Dean kept his distance after that night. He would come and sit with me in the evenings, sleeping in the chair by my bed. He rarely talked to me. He would just sit and watch TV or stare out the window, lost in his own thoughts. I could feel the tension rolling off of him in waves. What had happened after our first meeting to cause such hostility? When I finally got the courage to ask Sam about it, all he did was shrug and make his "sturgeon face", which was helpful.
Talking to Sam was a strange experience. I knew pretty much everything about him but he knew nothing about me. So I asked random questions that left him completely stunned most of the time. One afternoon, I started asking about Lilith and setting Lucifer free. Sam was engrossed in his laptop, of course, researching a case he and Dean were working on.
"Sam, may I ask you a question?" I began. I always started a conversation about his past this way.
Looking up from the computer, he replied, as always, "Sure."
"Something just occurred to me. Do you remember the voice mail Dean left you right before Ruby slaughtered Nurse Baby Blood?"
He visibly winced but nodded.
"I know this is a sensitive subject but I think there's something you don't know. Dean did leave you a message, but it wasn't that one."
His eyes widened and he tilted his head to the side, a gesture I knew was a mixture of shock and curiosity. "What?"
"Dean left you a message apologizing for what he said to you. Zachariah changed the message to goad you into killing Lilith. They manipulated you from the jump."
Sam's lips tightened into a thin line and his eyes filled with pain. Of course he knew he was controlled, but he had no idea that Dean tried to mend fences. He lowered his head for a few minutes, staring at the floor. When he raised his head again, there were tear streaks on his cheeks and relief in his eyes. He stood, took two quick strides and kissed me on the forehead with gratitude.
"You will never know how much that means to me to hear what you just said. I would call you an angel but I wouldn't want to insult you." he smiled, "I promise you, no matter what happens, I am going to do everything I can to find out what happened to you."
The statement rang as true as anything Sam Winchester ever says. I didn't doubt for a second that he meant every word.