As the two men returned to Bobby's place, Dean reflected on the past week. Earlier on, Dean had felt crushed by the departure of his father and brother. Dean relied on and trusted very few people and to have the two most important people, in his life, leave had been devastating. In fact, the young hunter had been surprised by how badly he had felt after their departure. By no means could any one call Dean Winchester a drama queen or a softy. However, Dean's heart and soul suffered a demoralizing blow, when his family left him. To some extent, he felt as though he would have handled things better had they died, instead of deserting him and moving on with their lives. It wasn't that he wished that his family was dead. By no means, was that something he would ever want! However, had they died, he would have more easily accepted the fact that they could no longer have a role in his life and would have accepted the fact that he was left alone to continue hunting. But, that wasn't how things had worked out. The two people who Dean cared the most about had simply left him. Sam had decided that he no longer wanted to hunt and that the academic life was for him, with plans to go on and become a lawyer. And his father… well, that was a different story. His father had decided that he didn't want his eldest son to hunt with him any more and felt that his eldest son should go hunt by himself. However, John's decision seemed somewhat contrary to how he had trained the boys. True, John had taught them to be independent and how to look out for themselves. But at the same time, John had also taught the importance of teamwork and family. John had stressed being able to trust your family to have your back and had stressed the importance of family. Had his father forgotten that lesson?!
Dean stared out the passenger window of the vehicle that Bobby was driving. His mind and heart were at odds with themselves and each other. Logically, Dean understood Sam wanting to get out of hunting and at the same time, Dean was proud of his brother's accomplishment at being accepted by Stanford. Dean had helped raise Sam and was happy to see his brother succeed in something other than hunting. However, Dean couldn't understand Sam's willingness to leave hunting and no longer be there to watch Dean's back. Dean was also heart-broken over the fact that, since leaving for college, Sam had made no attempts to contact Dean. It was as though Sam was ashamed of where he had come from and no longer wanted to be connected to his family. Now with regards to their father… Dean sighed. Not only had one loved one turned Dean's world upside down; but, his father had also decided that Dean's life wasn't bad enough and had also decided to leave Dean. This wasn't the first time that John had left to hunt on his own. But, this was the first time that Dean was left alone while John hunted. In the past, Sam had been there to keep Dean company; but, that was no longer the case and John knew that, before he left. Dean understood John wanting to hunt on his own, after all, it wasn't the first time that John had done that. Dean also felt some pride that John trusted Dean to be fully capable of soldiering on on his own and that John had expressed no doubts about Dean's ability to carry on by himself. However, Dean couldn't understand John's sudden decision to leave Dean so soon after Sam's departure. The eldest son was also saddened by the fact that his father didn't want him to continue hunting by his side and that his father had put some very real distance between himself and his son.
Dean looked at his reflection in the window and noticed the sadness in his eyes. Dean stared at the eyes that stared back and forced them to turn cold and indifferent. He knew he was in a tail-spin and needed to pull himself together. He couldn't afford to wallow in self-pity and needed to get back to hunting. Self-pity wouldn't improve his situation and wouldn't make his father or brother return to him. No! Dean needed to carry on like a good solider and needed to continue hunting and killing the supernatural. The supernatural had caused enough grief for his family and Dean planned on doing his best to stop the supernatural from wrecking any more families.
Thankfully, Dean had been able to turn to Bobby for help. A simple call was all that it took for Dean to have a place to sleep and some good company. Bobby had let Dean take over the garage and had even supplied Dean with the tools and parts that he needed. Dean wasn't just thankful for the physical tools and parts needed to work on the Impala's engine. Dean was also thankful for the emotional tools and parts that Bobby had provided. Bobby had provided Dean with a place where Dean felt safe. Bobby had also given Dean the space he needed to clear his head and address his emotions, without making Dean feel as though he was less of a man for needing some time to process his family's departure. Bobby had also been supportive and willing to listen. Dean really hadn't said much, while staying with Bobby. But, the young man knew that Bobby was there and that Bobby had picked up on Dean's nonverbal communication. Bobby had kept an eye on Dean and made certain that Dean was taken care of. Bobby had even made certain that Dean ate and that the young man didn't miss a meal. Dean hadn't had much of an appetite; but, once Bobby made a meal and the aroma of the prepared food captured Dean's nose, his hunger appeared and he found himself comforted by Bobby's cooking. Bobby had also provided Dean with a sense of security, which Dean had lost after his father and brother left him. In fact, Dean hadn't realized just how much his family's exodus had affected him, until after he arrived at Bobby's, was able to take stock of things and see how all the small things that Bobby did impacted him.
As Dean continued to look into the eyes that looked back at him, he saw resolve appear. He knew what he needed to do and that it was time to move on. His family had left him; but, his life had not come to an end. There were still more supernatural things that needed to be hunted down and killed. The recent hunt with Bobby had proven that Dean was still a capable and efficient hunter. He hadn't lost his abilities along with his family. His father and brother could still once again become active in his life. But for now, Dean knew that he could carry on on his own. He knew that he was fully capable of forging on and continuing the hunt. Perhaps one day, he would come across his father while on a hunt and the two of them could hunt together again. And maybe some day, Sam would get a craving for a good hunt and would give Dean a call. But, Dean wasn't going to sit around and wait to see when those things might happen. And, he wasn't going to day dream about stuff that might never happen. Instead, he was going to put his baby back together and hit the road. With Bobby's help, Dean had been able to take care of himself and put himself back together. Now, it was time to start thinking about the future and to stop looking back at the past. Dean knew what decisions his family had made and the actions they had taken. And since they weren't around for him to see what they were doing, he knew that it was a waste of time to wonder what they were up to. He needed to look ahead and to make decisions about what he was going to do and where he was headed. He was going to carry on the family business and was going to continue hunting the supernatural. As Dean finalized his decision about his future, he began to feel more confident and more prepared to face whatever the future had in store for him.