I don't own Sam or Dean or John or the Impala or Bobby or Supernatural…..that's all the CW. So if they would be very kind to let me borrow it all for a bit, I promise to give it back….eventually…..well. Also, I lack an editor, so any mistakes are mine and please kindly overlook them (or let me know). Thanks.

I had been wanting to write a new Supernatural story for a while, and that's actually what I intended 'Far From Home' to be, but 'Far From Home' ended up being a Robin and Batman story. So I had been working on plot points for the Winchesters and it finally gelled together.

Sam is an adorable 9 year old kid and Dean is an awesome 13.

-ff-

Bobby got back to the house after a few hours. The information he got might be helpful, but it was too soon to tell. The house was quiet, but that wasn't uncommon if Sam was holed up reading somewhere.

"Sammy, you read through the library while I was gone?" Bobby dropped the notebooks and papers off at the kitchen table. "Sam?"

It wasn't like the kid to not answer when his name was called. Bobby thought back to remember if he had seen the bike in the yard as he looked through the rooms. He found Sam asleep on the couch, a book held loose in his hand. Sam's hair was stuck to his forehead in damp pieces and his cheeks were flushed. Bobby rested his hand against the boy's forehead and felt the heat of a fever.

"Sammy?" He brushed the boy's hair back.

Sam slowly opened his eyes and looked up at Bobby.

"Not feeling the greatest, kiddo?"

The boy shook his head slightly. "Headache." He rubbed his eyes.

"And a bit of a fever." Bobby rested his hand on Sam's shoulder. "Do you want to stay here or get some rest up in your bed?"

"Stay here." His eyes were already slipping back closed.

Bobby eased off Sam's shoes. "Stay awake for a few minutes so I can get some medicine and juice into you. All right?"

Sam nodded and rubbed a hand across his eyes. He wanted Dean. He hated being sick and he really hated being sick when Dean was gone. He shifted uncomfortably on the couch.

Bobby came back with a glass of apple juice and the bottle of Children's Tylenol. Sam pushed himself up so he was sitting. The kid looked exhausted and his eyes were glassy from the fever. Sam took the medication and drank the juice without much prompting from Bobby.

"Get some sleep." Bobby rested his hand on Sam's head. "You're all right."

"When are my dad and brother getting back?" He slipped down against the couch cushions.

"Tomorrow maybe." Bobby pulled a blanket over the boy. "I'll ask when they call."

"Wake me up when they do." He was already half asleep.

"Course." Bobby stood.

His eyes were closed. "Bobby?"

"Yeah, Sammy."

"Stay? Just for a minute?"

Bobby had a hard time saying no to Sam when the kid was perfectly healthy, so he sure as hell wasn't going to say no to the kid when he was sick. "Let me just get a book so I can get some work done."

He refilled Sam's juice glass with water and grabbed his book. He set the glass on the coffee table, and sat down next to Sam's feet. Sam half sat up, even though Bobby was sure the kid was mostly asleep, and crawled into Bobby's lap. Damn, if that kid didn't manage to make Bobby feel about as tough as a new, spring lamb. If any one asked, Bobby wiped dust from his eye. Something about those damn Winchesters that reminded Bobby just how great it was to have someone fill up some space in his house.

They stayed like that for a couple hours, Sam asleep and Bobby half reading and half running his hand over Sam's hair. The phone rang and he wondered which would be worse, to wake the kid by moving or to have the kid wake up because of the phone. Sam shifted and Bobby took the opportunity to get up. He eased out from under the boy's head and went to get the phone.

"Yeah." Bobby stepped into the kitchen to try and keep from waking Sam.

"Hey, Bobby." Dean said.

"How you doin, kid?"

"Fine, just a little sore. Dad says we're gonna head out within the hour, so we should be back tomorrow afternoon after stopping for the night. How's Sammy?"

Bobby hesitated, he definitely didn't want to be the one to give Dean bad news about his baby brother. "Not feeling the best right now."

Instantly Dean was alert. "What's wrong with him? How sick is he? Fever? Coughing? Puking? Damnit, Bobby, why didn't you tell me sooner."

"Dean." Bobby took a breath. "He was fine until this afternoon. Bit of a fever and a headache, but he's sleeping now. I've given him some medication and made sure he drank some juice."

The phone shifted on Dean's end. "Dad wants to talk to you."

Bobby snuck a glance in at Sam.

"Bobby, how is he?" John still sounded exausted.

"Fever and headache." He paused. "Came on pretty fast though. He was fine this morning, then I went into town for a couple hours and Sam stayed at the house. I got back and he was asleep on the couch, already sick."

"We'll drive straight through, get there early morning."

"Don't go doing anything dangerous. I can handle things here."

"Yeah, but Dean won't let me do anything else. Besides, I need to see my boy, too." He sighed. "Tell Sam we'll call later and we'll be back soon."

"Drive safe, John." Bobby hung up the phone after he heard the dial tone.

He went back into the living room and sat back down. He guided Sam's head back to his lap and pulled the blanket up around the boy's shoulders. Sam still felt a little feverish, but the sleep would help and Bobby didn't mind keeping the kid company.

When the room started to grow dark, Bobby eased out from under Sam's head to get something for dinner. He didn't figure Sam was hungry, but the boy needed to eat even if it was just a little. Sam's eyes blinked open for a moment, but then he just buried his face in the blanket.

Bobby put a sandwich together for himself and warmed up some chicken noodle soup for Sam. He went into the living room with a mug of soup and sat down on the couch next to the boy. He was still asleep, didn't even shift when Bobby sat down.

"Sam. Sammy." Bobby rested his hand on Sam's leg.

He slowly woke and rubbed his hand across his eyes.

Bobby held up the mug. "Soup. I don't figure you're hungry, but you gotta eat just a little."

He sat up and took the mug from Bobby. Sam held it for a few minutes as he tried to wake up. His head still hurt, he was still cold and he wanted nothing more than to sleep for a month. He took a few slow drinks of the soup because he was too tired to fight Bobby on it.

Bobby switched on the television and took the half full mug of soup back from Sam when he noticed the boy was holding it more than eating it. Poor kid looked miserable as he sat on the couch with the blanket wrapped around him. He reminded Bobby of when he was younger, looking closer to age five rather than age nine.

He went into the kitchen to put the rest of Sam's soup in the refrigerator.

"Bobby?"

He looked back in at Sam. "What do you need?"

"When are my dad and Dean getting back?" He rubbed his face on the edge of the blanket.

"Late tonight. They're gonna drive until they get here."

He nodded. "Can I stay here and wait for them?"

"Bet you'll sleep better in bed. No matter where you are, Sam, they're gonna see you as soon as they get in."

Sam leaned his head against the arm of the couch and Bobby ran his hand through the boy's hair. Bobby went back into the kitchen to finish putting everything away before he joined Sam back on the couch. As though the kid was a magnet, he was snuggled right up against Bobby again. He didn't mind one bit. Sam was asleep in under ten minutes, heavy and warm against Bobby's leg.

Bobby never had much experience with kids and even less with sick kids before the Winchesters entered his life. As much as he hated seeing Sam or Dean down with a cold or a flu, being sick tended to make those kids clingier and the sort of adorable that was usually reserved for puppies. Dean less as he got older and his stubbornness meshed with independence, but he'd still end up curled up against whoever was closest. Sam, when he wasn't feeling the best, always ended up in someone's lap, though it was usually Dean. The boy was nothing short of sweet, stuffed up nose, flushed cheeks and holding onto Bobby like there was nobody else he wanted. Even though Bobby knew he was just a substitute.

-ff-

note: Thank you all for the reviews, you are what keeps me writing this. Don't worry, there's danger to come in the next chapter. Sorry for the delay. I was home for a week and literally didn't even turn my computer on and then when I got back, I started a new job. This story has been on my mind, though, I haven't forgotten about you. A few more chapters and it should be done and all the mysteries solved. Thank you all for reading.