Chapter 4

As morning approached Dean knew he would have to wake his brother up soon to give him his next dose of pain medication and clean his wounds. He knew that Sam had been in his fathers care when the beating had accrued, but he still felt guilty for not being there. Sam was his responsibility not Johns, if Dean didn't put Sam first who would?

Dean had made himself comfortable in Sam's small twin size bed. Careful not to wake the sleeping child. Dean pulled Sam up and laid his head upon Deans chest. Dean felt a wave of comfort wash over him as he watched Sam sleep. Their was just something so innocent and pure about Sam. As he listened to Sam's deep breathing, he found it increasingly difficult to stay awake. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

-0-

The first thing Sam was aware of was the warmth he felt. It wasn't like a blanket, it was more of a warmth within, mixed with a feeling of comfort. Sam slowly began to open his eyes, only to find the act incredibly difficult. He attempted to shift upwards only to be rewarded with a sharp pain that radiated down his right side. He hurt, like really hurt, the kind of hurt that would make most men scream in agony. Sam bit his lip in an attempt to muffle the whimper that threatened to escape his lips.

As if attuned to his brothers distress, Dean opened his eyes and immediately looked down at the bundle in his arms. Sam was pale and a thin sheet of sweat covered his face and arms. Carefully he shifted his body to get a better look at Sam, while trying not to move Sam.

"Hey buddy, how you feelin?" Dean knew that was a stupid question, the boy looked miserable, but seeing his little brother in distress made his thoughts run a million miles per hour.

"Alright, stay right here, try not to move. I'm gonna go get you some of your pain medication. I'll be right back." Dean stood and walked over to the kitchen to retrieve the medication Sam had been prescribed. We worked quickly reading the labels, and getting the exact dosage needed. Meanwhile, Sam lay in hid bed, as much as he tried not to move the pain made him squirm. But with each movement came even more pain. It was a vicious cycle. All Sam truly wanted was his Dean, he just needed Dean their to hold him and tell him everything would be alright. Where did Dean go? Wasn't he just here? Did I imagine that? The pain seemed to be messing with Sam's thoughts, everything just seemed confusing. But before he could even finish that thought, Dean walked through the door caring a handful of pills and a tall glass of water.

Sam felt so weak as Dean held him up and patiently waited for Sam to swallow each pill. It took about ten minutes in total for Sam to swallow the various medication. As Dean laid his head back down, he felt the medication begin to work. His limbs felt heavy and slowly the pain began to recede.

Dean saw his brother begin to relax, and thanked God, for that. He took this opportunity to begin the process of cleaning Sam's wounds. He had only heard of the injuries from his father, this would give him the opportunity to actually have a look himself. He decided to start with stripping Sam of his shirt, gently he pulled the shirt over Sam's head and off his arms. Sam still had his eyes opened, but looked dazed. Once Sam's shirt was completely off, it took everything with Dean to not get in the impala and run down the sons of bitches that did this. Sam's entire upper body was a patchwork of purple and pinks. The shoulder that was dislocated was the worst. Even though the injury was barely a day old, the joint looked incredibly swollen and painful. Other than keep an eye on it, their really wasn't much. Next he moved on to the gauze that was taped down to his side. With steady hands he peeled the tape back, careful not to pull at the sensitive skin around the wound. Even with gently hands, Sam whimpered at Deans ministrations. A lone tear raced down Sam's red cheek. "Shh, sorry buddy, you're alright Deans here." With his free hand Dean carded his hand through Sam's hair and continued on. The would beneath looked red and angry. No wonder it caused the kid so much pain. He then went about cleaning the area and applying ointment. Sam's ribs were also bandaged, but there really wasn't anything he could do about them either. It frustrated Dean to no end to know that his baby brother was hurt, and even though he applied first aid, he just wished he could do more.

John stood in the doorway as Dean cleaned and comforted Sam, he felt so much pride as he watched Dean tend to Sam. Even though he still felt so much guilt for Sam being hurt in the first place. At least he still had Dean.

TBC! Okay so super short chapter, but I'm really excited with this story! I hope all of you are enjoying it as well!

Again thank you so much for the reviews and thank you for following this story! I might update tonight or tomorrow, but it will be soon :)

I hope everyone out there had fun shopping on black friday! I know I did!

-penelopegraceful