BROKEN

Author's note: I am so so sorry for the long wait, guys. No apologizes are good enough for letting you wait this long, so I just hope I can make it up to you by bringing you the last chapter of the story. Thanks to every one of you who has paid attention to my story. I appreciate all the support, so thank you so much!

-Elisa.

_ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _

Bobby nervously paced the room back and forth - alternating between looking at the unconscious Winchester on the hospital bed and staring out of the glass panes at the ICU hallway in hopes of catching a glimpse of the second Winchester as well. If everything happened as planned, Dean would be back in a minute loaded with the supplies that they would need to take care of Sam after leaving the hospital - which, among other stuff, included the much-needed pain medicine.

The older hunter still didn't know how and if they would be able to get Sam out of the hospital without anyone noticing – especially since the ICU was always manned and the staff did regular check-up on the patients - and Bobby also kept expecting to see a bunch of cops show up at any moment to arrest them. Officer Harris might have been really frigging bad at his job, since he had willingly blurted out everything to the hunters without a second thought to it, but Bobby had no doubts that the cop was right about the proofs the investigators had found at Charles Goodwin's house. He also figured that it would only be a matter of time before Harris would return to the hospital with back up. Besides, the police already knew about Sam's real identity, which meant that it wouldn't be long before they figured out who Dean was as well - and then all hell would definitely break loose!

"You hang in there, Sam." Bobby muttered and tenderly adjusted the blanket covering the youngest brother – then startled as Dean suddenly returned to the room.

"How is he? Has he been awake?" Dean asked even before the door had completely shut behind him.

"No, he hasn't as much as fluttered an eyelash since you left." Bobby answered.

"Well, he'll come around soon enough." Dean said with an optimism that made the older hunter raise an eyebrow.

"I take it that the hunt for supplies went well?" Bobby said and Dean smiled wryly.

"Easy peasey." Dean said and pulled his jacket a bit aside to reveal some syringes and a row of morphine ampules that stuck up from his inner pockets. "It's amazing how far a little bit of flirtation with the nurses can get you."

"I bet." Bobby said with an eye roll. "The car loaded?"

"Yeah, Baby's all Sam-friendly and ready to go." Dean said and glanced at his wristwatch. "If we're lucky, we'll be able to sneak Sam out of here before Dr. Garrison's shift starts."

"You still sure about this?" Bobby wanted to know as Dean got started on removing all of the IV-lines and all the other things from Sam that the younger brother was attached to. "You heard the doctor Dean; even if the surgery was a success and Sam does heal fully, the kid still has a long road ahead of him. We might not be able to give him the necessary rehabilitation that he needs."

"What other option do we have, Bobby?" Dean asked, carefully slid an IV-needle out of Sam's wrist and quickly put pressure on the wound before wrapping gauze around it. "I'm not letting anyone touch my brother – especially not that son of a bitch to Harris! Besides, I'm gonna take care of Sammy. I'll get him back on his feet in no time. You just wait and see."

Knowing that it would be pointless to argue with Dean when Sam was concerned, Bobby fell silent and instead kept an eye out for possible trouble while Dean finished preparing Sam for their escape. Pulling the Venetian blinds a bit to the side, Bobby peaked down the hallway and cursed as he saw the approaching staff.

"Dean, time's up." Bobby announced. "They're doing rounds."

"Already?" Dean asked and grabbed a sheet he'd found in one of the cabinets. "They're early!

"No shit." Bobby said, let go of the blinds and turned around to face the anxious older brother. "I'll handle it. You get Sam out of here – I'll catch up with you in the basement."

Bobby hurried out of the room before Dean had a chance to reply. The older Winchester brother nodded his gratitude to his surrogate father as the older man passed by the glass panes outside the room, and Dean then turned his attention back to his little brother.

"Alright Sammy, let's go." Dean said with determination and draped the sheet over his unconscious brother to make him look like a corpse, before undoing the brakes on the bed and rolling it towards the exit.

Opening the door halfway, Dean sneaked a glance outside just in time to see Bobby collapsing in front of the nursing staff who immediately sprang into action – giving Dean the opportunity he needed to roll Sam discreetly out of the room and towards the elevators.

"Nice job, Bobby." Dean mumbled as he pushed the elevator button and then impatiently waited for the lift to arrive while glancing nervously over his shoulder.

When the elevator finally pinged its arrival, Dean let out the breath he'd been holding and began to roll Sam inside the lift, but then hesitated as he noticed that the elevator cabin wasn't empty. An elderly woman in a floral dress - and with what Dean could only describe as a big-ass hat on her head – moved a bit to the side to make room for him, and Dean then reluctantly pushed the hospital bed with Sam inside.

Dean shot the woman a strained smile before pushing the button to the parking space. The older brother caught a glimpse of Bobby being led to a chair and forced to drink some soda while mumbling something about low blood sugar, before the elevator doors closed – effectively blocking Dean's sight of Bobby.

"I'm here visiting my son." The woman announced conversationally as the elevator slowly moved downwards. "He broke his leg in a skiing accident."

Dean hummed out some sort of response while keeping his eyes at the floor numbers as they passed them – 8th floor, 7th floor, 6th floor..

"Of course, that's what to expect." The woman continued, not seeming to notice the half-hearted attempt of a conversation from Dean's side. "He's never really been much of a skier."

5th floor, 4th floor..

"Is that a dead body?" The woman asked and nodded towards Sam.

"Yes." Dean answered.

"To tell you the truth, this is not the first time I've been close to a corpse." The woman revealed and leaned a bit closer as if to share a secret. "My first husband died overnight. Massive heart attack, nothing anyone could have done."

3rd floor..

"And that wasn't even the first time I've.." The woman began, then suddenly screamed which startled the older brother.

"What?" Dean asked, turning to look at the now pale elderly woman who had put a hand before her mouth and pointed towards the hospital bed with wide eyes.

"The sh-sheet m-m-moved!" She stuttered out.

"No, no, that's impossible." Dean said with a short laugh. "You should ease off the happy pills, lady."

"But I swear – the sheet moved!" The woman continued in a high-pitched voice and squashed herself up against the elevator wall, as far away from Sam as she could get.

"Listen.." Dean started but was cut off by a weak croak from the sheet-covered bed next to him.

"Dean." Sam's voice called and the woman started screaming on the top of her lungs.

The elevator pinged at the basement floor and, even before the doors were fully open, the woman – still screaming – squashed herself through the doors and ran away.

"You have one hell of a timing, Sammy." Dean said and peeled back the sheet from Sam's face to look at his now awake little brother.

"Dean." Sam repeated, squinting a bit against the light and blinked up at Dean with disorientated eyes.

"Sammy -" Dean began.

"What the hell?" A voice said before Dean could let his brother in on the situation.

Dean drew his gun and spun around in one quick motion – then found himself pointing his weapon at Sam's doctor who stared back at the older Winchester with shock and horror on his face.

"Step back, nice and slowly." Dean said, one hand clenched around the handle of the gun and the other hand closed around the rail of Sam's bed.

"What are you doing?" The doctor demanded to know as he slowly began to step backwards with his hands raised in defense. Dean followed him at the same pace – exiting the elevator with Sam in tow. "You're not leaving, are you? But your brother isn't recovered yet. He just came out of surgery!"

"Quiet!" Dean growled at the doctor.

"This is madness." The doctor whispered.

"Dean." Sam called again, his immobilized position preventing him from seeing his brother. "What's going on?"

"It's okay, Sammy." Dean said. "Everything's okay. I'm just getting you out of the hospital, alright?"

"Don't be ridiculous." The doctor said. "Sam needs help, he needs care. You've done nothing but the best for your brother so far. Why change it now?"

"You wouldn't understand." Dean huffed. "I'm doing this for Sam."

"Then prove it." The doctor said. "If you really want what's best for Sam, you turn around and bring him back inside."

Dean hesitated for a moment, wondering for a brief moment if he was causing Sam more harm than good by doing this, but then remembered Officer Harris' promise of locking his brother away.

"Sorry doc, I'm running out of time here." Dean said.

Before the doctor could comprehend what Dean was apologizing for, the older Winchester brother raised the bottom of his gun and let it connect with the side of Dr. Garrison's head – effectively knocking the physician out cold. Dean felt genuinely sorry and guilty for causing harm to the doctor who had done so much for Sam this past month, but Dean did what he had to do to protect his little brother. Always had done, always would.

"Dean?" Sam called out.

"It's okay, Sam." Dean said and shot the unconscious doctor a regretful look before tucking his gun away.

After dragging the doctor to a hide behind a row of parked cars, Dean quickly returned to Sam's side to calm down the now distressed younger brother, before rolling Sam towards the spot where the Impala was parked, packed and ready to hit the road.

Dean had transformed the backseat of the car into one big hospital bed - having used a couple of mattresses and a bunch of blankets, that he had managed to sneak out on a rare strike of luck, to assure his little brother's comfort. Sam was still kept immobilized with the neck brace firmly in place - and now with the addition of a back brace that the doctor had ordained for the younger Winchester right after Sam's surgery to limit the motion of his spine. Dean knew it wouldn't be enough to prevent Sam from feeling the bumps during the ride and the movements from the car, but he hoped that it would at least keep the kid somewhat relaxed and free of further damage until they could reach Sioux Falls.

Bobby had suggested (or insisted rather) that the brothers hauled up at his house during Sam's recovery, and Dean was more than happy to indulge in the older hunter's request for once. They couldn't afford staying at anything fancier than a motel anyway, and Sam needed to stay at something better than a dirty old motel room while getting through his recovery.

"Alright, listen up." Dean told his brother as they reached the car, and then hovered above Sam's face to keep eye contact with the kid. "I need to get you into the car, okay? But it's not gonna be easy. You gotta brace yourself for it, okay Sam?"

"'kay." Sam said and, although the younger brother was still a bit groggy and confused, Dean found trust in the green eyes he knew so well.

"Okay." Dean repeated and rubbed a hand back and forth on Sam's chest in a comforting gesture before moving on with business.

The older Winchester brother opened up both backseat doors of the car and then wondered for a brief moment how he would be able to get Sam inside the car without hurting him too much, when approaching footsteps caught his attention. Dean immediately stepped in front of Sam's bed to protect his brother for any possible danger and let his hand rest against the handle of the gun tucked away in the back of his jeans – then slowly let go of it again as Bobby showed up around the corner.

"Dean, we gotta move." Bobby said a little out of breath.

"Help me with Sam." Dean said and Bobby quickly closed the distance between them.

"How are you doing, son?" Bobby wanted to know as he looked down at the youngest brother.

"M'okay." Sam announced although his facial color told Bobby otherwise, and the older hunter exchanged a look with Dean.

"He says he's okay, Bobby. Let's get on with it." Dean said, knowing that they were running out of time and wanting to get Sam into the safety of the car as soon as possible – and then get the hell out of dodge!

Rolling the bed as close to the car as possible, Dean climbed into the opening of the backseat before sliding his arms underneath Sam's armpits and crossing his arms around Sam's chest – securing the upper part of the younger brother's body against his chest while Bobby released the straps that was keeping Sam tied to the bed. Sam grunted because of the tight hold Dean had of him, and Dean muttered an apology into Sam's curly brown locks but didn't let go of his brother nonetheless.

"I hope you're ready for this." Bobby said and exchanged a look with Dean who nodded in return, before the older hunter took a hold of Sam's legs.

"On three." Dean said. "One, two.."

"..three!" Bobby counted in unison.

As they both lifted Sam up and Dean slid backwards into the car – bringing Sam with him – the youngest Winchester started screaming in pain.

"Shit, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, almost there." Dean grunted out - then felt alarmed as Sam's screams ended as suddenly as they'd started. "Sammy?"

"I think he passed out." Bobby said in a voice strained with effort and let out a heavy breath as Sam was finally situated on the mattresses on the backseat.

Having crawled out of the opposite backseat door for Sam's entire frame to fit into the car, Dean stuck his head back inside and did a quick assess of his little brother. Sam was pale and his skin clammy to the touch, but Dean found solace in the fact that Sam's pulse was at least steady – although a little rapid – and his breathing was strong and even.

Dean brushed Sam's damp bangs out of his eyes before he grabbed one of the syringes from his jacket, and quickly filled it up with morphine from an ampule. He then tapped on the syringe a couple of times, stuck the needle into Sam's skin and expertly injected the morphine into a vein.

"Shh." Dean gently shushed his brother and brushed a hand through Sam's hair, when the younger man let out a soft whimper in the process.

Dean froze when the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance and he snapped his head towards Bobby who stared back at Dean with wide eyes.

"That ain't no ambulance." Bobby concluded before grabbing a roll of duct tape.

"What are you doing, Bobby? Let's roll!" Dean exclaimed and closed the backseat door before hurrying to the other side of the car – just in time to see Bobby using the duct tape to strap Sam to the mattress. "What..?"

"I know how you drive, boy." Bobby said. "This way there's a chance Sam might not fly through a window!"

As the sirens got louder and louder, Bobby finished taping Sam in place and hastily closed the car door – then turned to Dean who had turned on the car and was now waiting impatiently behind the wheels.

"Go!" Bobby said. "I'll catch up with you in my truck."

"Don't get arrested." Dean said and put the car in reverse.

"I could say the same to you." Bobby huffed. "Go, ya idjit!"

Dean stepped on the gas and speeded out of the parking space – leaving behind a cloud of dust that made the older hunter cough.

"Damn Winchesters!" Bobby muttered before he hurried towards his truck to catch up with the boys he loved more than he cared to admit.

_ SPN _

If getting Sam into the car had been tough, it was nothing compared to the struggle it was to get him out of the car again and into Bobby's house in Sioux Falls. After arguing for a while on how to move Sam without causing the youngest too much harm, Dean had dozed Sam with another round of morphine, while Bobby had collected an old army field stretcher that they had used to bring the youngest Winchester brother inside. The living room had then been turned into what Dean referred to as Sam's recovery zone, which was exactly where Sam woke up when he finally came to again.

Getting out of the morphine haze that had cocooned him and kept him comfortable until now, Sam slowly blinked his eyes open and smacked his dry lips a couple of times while staring groggily at the ceiling above him. It was dark but an orange glow, from what Sam could imagine came from a fireplace, lit up the room a bit and revealed a pattern on the ceiling above him. As the pattern gradually came into focus, Sam recognized it as the remains of a devil's trap that had been broken by a large crack in the ceiling. The crack was partially fixed but Sam could tell that the ceiling still needed a loving hand, and it was in the middle of this line of thoughts that the younger Winchester brother realized where he was - Bobby's house.

Sam only had a vague memory of the escape from the hospital – short flashes of Dean threatening Dr. Garrison, the parking space, and Dean and Bobby getting Sam into the Impala. Sam remembered the pain though - the pain had been awful - but he also remembered Dean apologizing to him.. and then nothing.

Speaking of Dean.. Sam tried to turn his head to look for his brother but was restricted by the neck brace that he'd happily forgotten existed for a couple of blissful moments. Sam cleared his throat and was about to call for his brother when his ears picked up on the sound of soft snores coming from a place nearby on his left side.

There was no mistake of who those snores belonged to - Sam would recognize his brother's snores anywhere - and not because they were particularly loud or anything like that but after all, he had spent the bigger part of 23 years listening to those sounds.

The youngest Winchester moved his eyes towards the sound of Dean's snores and – passing by the bag of fluids that was attached to an IV line in his arm, Sam was just able to make out Dean's resting form on Bobby's old living room couch. Dean's legs were crossed at the ankles but his hands were closed around what looked like a stack of papers, which made Sam frown. Had Dean fallen asleep reading? What the heck? If that stack of papers wasn't some sort of coverless edition of the BustyAsianBeaties magazine, then Sam would seriously start to wonder if Dean was okay.

Smacking his lips once more, Sam realized how thirsty he was. He once again turned his eyes towards Dean but, knowing how worn and sleep deprived the older brother had been throughout Sam's hospitalization, the youngest Winchester couldn't bring himself to wake up Dean – not even if that meant he had to remain thirsty for a little while longer.

Trying to make himself more comfortable on his bed, Sam tried to move a bit which he soon realized was a big mistake. Pain shot through his back immediately and Sam couldn't hold back a yelp of pain that he hoped hadn't woken up his brother.

"Sam?" Dean asked in a sleepy voice.

No such luck.

"Sammy, you okay?" Dean asked and showed up in Sam's line of vision in the blink of an eye.

"Yeah, just forgot that moving was a big no-no." Sam grunted out. "Sorry for waking you."

"I wasn't sleeping." Dean protested and Sam huffed out a laugh.

"Dude, you snored." Sam said.

"You're delirious." Dean said with a shake of his head. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay – as long as I don't move." Sam answered. "Or breathe too deeply."

"Right." Dean said with a concerned frown line between his eyes - then left for a few seconds before returning with a glass of water with a straw that he placed by Sam's lips. "Drink. Slow sips."

Sam did as he was told and relished the cold liquid that soothed his dry mouth and throat.

"What were you reading?" Sam asked when Dean removed the straw again and put the glass of water away.

Dean glanced at the files he'd stolen from the hospital that contained everything about Sam's case, and then shook his head.

"How about we focus on the more important issue; how are your arms and legs?" Dean said and grabbed Sam's right hand before using the tip of a finger to slide across Sam's palm and along each finger to stimulate Sam's nerves. "You feel this?"

"Yeah." Sam said.

Dean then did the same thing with Sam's left hand, and Sam was pleasantly surprised to realize that his left hand no longer felt like it was asleep.

"I can feel it, Dean." Sam reported with a relieved smile.

"And it doesn't feel weird or anything?" Dean wanted to know.

"No, it feels normal." Sam revealed and Dean nodded before moving on to Sam's feet.

To both brothers' relief, Sam's right foot was still functioning as well as it had always done. The bigger question was whether Sam's left foot was functioning too. Dean took a hold of Sam's ankle and tested the nerves the same way he'd done since he started the assessing, keeping his eyes locked with Sam's.

"Sammy?" Dean asked. "Can you feel this?"

Sam closed his eyes and hesitated, then swallowed hard and when he opened his eyes back up again, Dean saw tears in his little brother's eyes, which made Dean's heart hammer away inside his chest.

"Sammy?" Dean asked again.

"I feel it." Sam all but whispered and let out a sob. "I'm really okay, Dean."

The oldest Winchester let go of Sam's foot and walked up to the head of the bed again before smiling down at his younger brother.

"You really are, little brother." Dean said – then surprised the hell out of Sam as he placed a kiss on the top of Sam's head. "You really are."

_ SPN _

Bobby Singer didn't believe in miracles. He really didn't. However, the more time he spent with the Winchesters through the following few months, the closer and closer he came to believe that he'd actually witnessed one after all.

Sam's recovery and rehabilitation took time and were sadly far from as easy as a walk in the park. But despite the occasional meltdowns Sam had had throughout the time he'd spent on complete bed rest - and especially throughout the many exercises Dean had put him through afterwards which had been the cause of a lot of shouting and tears – Dean had never given up on Sam. He'd stayed by his brother's side and Sam had repaid the commitment by working harder than most people were capable of – making far more progress faster than patients with these kinda injuries normally did.

Sam's first steps after his accident had been like a blast from the past. He had taken his first steps towards his encouraging big brother who had been ready to catch Sam should he fall over, and it had been a complete copy of toddler Sam's first steps that also happened to have been towards Dean. Bobby had been tactful enough not to comment on it, but the older hunter hadn't failed to notice that the whole ordeal had brought tears to Dean's eyes at the time.

Exactly three months and five days after Sam fell from the balcony on the werewolf hunt, the youngest Winchester was yet again walking around like had the accident never happened. Sam's body was still a little stiff though but Dean knew that it would only be a matter of time – and a continuation of the exercises he did with his little brother every day – before Sam would be his old self again.

"You boys be careful, alright?" Bobby said as he leaned inside the open passenger window of the Impala where the brothers were ready to hit the road. "No more falling from balconies."

"No more." Sam agreed with a wry smile and Bobby gave the kid's shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"We'll take it easy for a while." Dean promised and turned on the engine of the car that came to life with a roar.

"Alright, then what are you waiting for, ya idjit?" Bobby asked and stepped back. "Get out of here so a poor man can get his house back. I ain't getting younger by the second."

"Or any less grumpy.." Dean muttered to Sam before waving at Bobby and steering the car out of Singer Auto and back on the road.

"Thanks man." Sam said after a little while of silence.

"For what?" Dean asked, alternating between looking at Sam and at the road ahead of him.

"For everything." Sam said in a soft voice. "I mean, if it hadn't been for you I wouldn't even be walking and talking now, so yeah.."

"You're actually sitting and talking right now." Dean said and snorted when Sam shot him a glare.

"You know what I mean, Dean." Sam said.

"I do." Dean admitted and cleared his throat. "You're welcome."

The brothers looked at each other for a few moments before Dean turned his attention back to the road and cranked up the music. Sam continued to look at Dean for a few extra moments, then smiled and looked out of the window again.

There was nothing more that needed to be said between them. Everything else, they already knew.

_ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _ SPN _

THE END.