Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural, or the characters.

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! I truly appreciate each and every one.

And I would just like to say thanks to Etha M.R for giving me the idea to add another complication, it's not quite what you suggested, but hopefully you'll like it.

Hope you enjoy this chapter!

One month later, the treatment has been going well, until-

Sam and Dean are sitting in Dr Strathfield's office, having yet another appointment with her, when she tells Dean. "Your cell counts are dangerously low, Dean. A cold could be fatal; we need to admit you until they improve."

Dean, who is still fighting the side effects of the treatment, and hating every minute of it, snaps. "NO! No way! I'm not spending another damn day in that place!" Why are we even still trying?! I'm never going to beat this. I should just give up now. I just want it all to stop!

"Dean." Sam murmurs softly as he turns to face his brother, he then says. "Please Dean, please think about this." He pauses, and then adds. "I know you're tired, but please, please don't do this."

The pleading tone in Sam's voice is impossible to ignore, but Dean adamantly tells him. "I'm not doing this, Sam, I'm undoing it; I never should've started in the first place." He pauses for a moment. "Now, let's go."

Sam stays seated, as Dr Strathfield implores Dean to listen to reason. "Once your counts are back up you can go back home, and then you will only have five weeks of treatment to go. You can do this, Dean, you've come so far, and you will most likely only be in hospital for a few days."

"No. Come on, Sam." Dean says as he stands up, and starts walking towards the door.

Sam sighs, and glances at Dr Strathfield worriedly as he stands up, and follows Dean out the door.

A few weeks later, Sam and Dean are still in town, but they haven't been back to the hospital. Dean is driving, with Sam riding beside him, towards a local diner for breakfast, when Dean suddenly doubles over in pain, and throws up all over himself and the car, completely forgetting that he's driving.

As they're careening towards a post, Sam grabs the wheel, and steers away from the tree as he pulls on the handbrake, bringing the car to a skidding halt.

After sitting there, shocked for some time, Sam climbs out of the car, and goes over to the driver's side. "Dean, what's wrong man? Talk to me." Sam says worriedly as he opens the door, and looks at his ailing brother.

Dean weakly looks up at Sam, and cries. "Hurts, Sammy, goddamn it hurts!"

"It's gonna be fine, Dean. We've got some pain meds at the motel, shift over, I'll drive back there." Sam says as he sits down beside Dean, and puts his jacket over the putrid mess on the carpet as he moves behind the wheel.

When they get back to their motel several minutes later, Sam helps Dean into his bed, and quickly gives him a couple of pain pills before helping him out of his clothes, and under the blankets.

As soon as the pain pills kick in, and Dean can lift himself out of bed, he goes over to Sam, and says. "Please tell me that was just a really freaky dream."

Sam looks up at his brother, and sympathetically says. "I'm sorry, Dean. It wasn't."

"Oh god. Oh no. Damn it, Sammy, I'm so sorry. I could've killed you."

Sam stands up, and places a comforting hand on Dean's shoulder as he says. "It's not your fault, Dean. You're not well." He pauses before cautiously saying. "The cancer's getting worse, you're getting sicker. Please go back to Doctor Strathfield."

Dean, so wracked with guilt over risking his brother's life, tells him. "I never should've let it happen. I'm so sorry, I'll go see Doctor Strathfield first thing tomorrow."

"Thank you, Dean." Sam murmurs weakly, relieved.

By sheer luck, Dr Strathfield has a cancellation the next morning, and Dean and Sam accept the appointment. The relief on Dr Strathfield's face is clear when she sees Dean and Sam enter her office. "It's good to see you back, Dean. How have you been feeling?"

"Not so great." Dean admits quietly, and then adds. "I want to restart the treatment."

After talking to them for a while, Dr Strathfield orders a number of tests for Dean, and rushes them so that she will have the results that afternoon.

That afternoon, Sam and Dean are back in Dr Strathfield's office, and she has his test results in front of her on the desk. "Okay Dean, I won't keep you in suspense any longer."

"Thanks." Dean says quickly, almost shaking with fear.

Wasting no more time, Dr Strathfield tells Dean. "Your cell counts are almost back to normal, that's to be expected given the time that's passed since your last treatment. That said, I am amazed that you managed to avoid infections while your counts were low." She pauses, and her expression turns grim as she says. "Unfortunately the scan revealed a tumour in your liver, but there were no signs of other tumours, so hopefully we've caught it in time. I think that with an operation to remove the tumour, and probably another six weeks of immunotherapy you have a good chance of survival."

Dean glances at Sam, unable to suppress a shudder as he remember what could have happened, and on that thought he tells her. "Whatever you think is best."

Two weeks later, Dean has had the operation and has restarted treatment. But between the side effects of the immunotherapy, and the still healing surgical incision, Dean is barely even able to walk to the bathroom, so much to Dean's frustration and embarrassment, Sam has to practically carry him to the bathroom, and then Dean has to use all his energy not to need Sam's help any further.

Their system has been working, until Dean that evening, when he is just so weak, that he can't even hold himself up, and just as he's finishing, Dean simply can't support his own weight any more, and he falls bonelessly to the ground, hitting his head on the towel rail on his graceless descent.

TBC...

Thanks for reading!

Only one more chapter to go, so please let me know what you think, and if you want to see anything happen.