Disclaimer: Supernatural and all its characters belong to Kripke and the CW. I own nothing.
Previously on Supernatural- Determined to show the others that he wasn't some baby that needed protecting, Sam struggled out of his family's arms. "I'm fi'e" he croaked shrugging off their helping hands. He managed to take one step before everything turned black and he knew no more.
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The impala raced into the hotel parking lot aiming for the room at the end. Sliding into the space in front of the last room in the row the black beauty growled to a stop. John quickly climbed out of the front passenger seat slamming the door. Noticing that the engine was still running he ducked down to look through the open window. "You not coming in, Bobby?" he asked.
"Not yet. Got an errand to run first." The old hunter replied. "You and Dean get Sam in the room and start cleaning the kid up. I'm headed to the local hospital to see if I can't liberate some medical supplies. We're gonna need a lot more than what's in our first aid kits to take care of him."
"Alright, just be careful Bobby. People are more wary of strangers in a small town." John warned before walking the few steps to the back of the classic Chevy and opening the door. He carefully grabbed his younger son around the waist holding him steady as Dean slid out of the seat. Between the two men they managed to pull Sam out of the car and carry him into their room.
Depositing the injured young man on the bed furthest from the door Dean headed into the bathroom for the supplies they would need while John began removing the boy's bloody clothes. In minutes he had his son stripped down to his birthday suit and laying on his stomach. Taking in the damage done by the enraged spirit the father cursed. He wished he could bring Mrs. Pool back just so he could kill her again himself…slowly. Hearing a soft whimper he glanced down to see a pair of unfocused hazel eyes staring up at him. "Hey Sammy" he whispered carding a hand through his boy's unruly locks.
"D'd?" Sam slurred as he began to squirm. "H'rts d'd."
"I know baby, I know" John replied, "Dean and I are gonna get you all fixed up and then we'll give you something for the pain, okay? You've just gotta hang in there a little longer for me. Can you do that, son?"
Sam stared at his father for a moment before nodding and shutting his eyes with a sigh.
"No sleeping Sammy. Open your eyes. I need you to stay awake for me." John instructed letting out a relieved breath when his son blinked up at him. "That's good Sam. You're doing great, kiddo."
Sam frowned at his dad's praise. He hadn't done a good job. He'd screwed up and gotten himself hurt again. Needing to set his father straight the littlest Winchester whispered, "N't go'd. sc'wed up g'in. s'rry d'd."
"Sam, what are you talking about?" John asked waving off Dean who had just come back into the room. "Son, you didn't screw up. You helped take down Mrs. Pool's spirit and you found the missing boys. You did a great job buddy."
"No" Sam argued shaking his head. "N't me d'd. Jo'y. He s'ved me. He…"
"Hey, hey calm down Sammy" John ordered as his youngest grew more and more agitated. "Calm down, you're okay now. Everything's okay."
Seeing his father's attempts to calm his little brother down getting nowhere Dean hurried into the room. Setting the supplies on the nightstand he took a seat on the bed beside his dad and cupped Sam's cheek gaining the boy's attention. "Calm down kiddo. Come on breath with me. In…out…in…out" he softly instructed. He kept coaching until Sam's breathing had slowed to a more normal pace. "Good Sammy" he praised. "Dad and I are gonna start cleaning your back now, kiddo. Okay?" Getting a slight nod Dean reached over to the nightstand and picked up a clean rag soaking it in the warm water he had brought as their dad did the same. Together they gently cleaned the blood off their youngest wincing at every hitched breath or moan of pain. Once that part was done the older brother reached for the peroxide. Hating the fact that he was about to cause his little brother more pain he uncapped the bottle. The roar of the impala's engine had him putting the bottle and cap down and hurrying to the room door. Throwing it open Dean rushed out to car and helped Bobby bring in an armload of supplies.
Tossing the medical equipment onto the empty bed Bobby took a moment to check over Sam's injuries. Shaking his head at the damage he turned and snatched up the IV bag, tubing, and kit. He wanted to get some pain meds in the youngster before they dealt with the wounds. The kid had been hurt more than enough and he wasn't about to allow anyone to cause the boy any more pain. "Johnny, take that God awful picture off the wall. Dean, I need you to hold your brother's arm for me so I can get this IV started." He ordered. He ripped open the alcohol wipe packet and withdrew the tiny saturated towel. Grabbing Sam's hand tightly he ran the wipe across the back of the boy's hand before picking up the needle and carefully inserting it into the vein. "Sorry Sam" he mumbled as he taped the IV line in place. Standing he hung the bag on the exposed nail and started the drip. Rifling through the pilfered supplies once more he pulled out a vial and syringe. After filling the syringe with the medicine, the hunter injected it into the IV line smiling as Sam's body slowly relaxed. "Don't worry. I didn't give him anything too strong. Just something to take the edge off a little." Bobby assured the others. "He's been through enough without having to endure the pain of being stitched back together."
"Alright now that Sam's taken care of let's get this over with." John muttered picking up the peroxide and one of the suture kits. Sitting back down next to his son he took a deep breath and got to work.
A couple hours later the three men had their youngest member stitched, bandaged, and tucked into bed. Deciding he needed some time alone with his baby boy John sent Bobby and an unhappy Dean off to sleep in the adjoining room with the promise to wake his eldest in a few hours to switch. Sitting in a motel chair by the bed John couldn't help but remember the small child Sam had been. He hated that the loving and happy boy of the past had turned into this haunted young man before him. Little Sammy had never once questioned his father's love for him. He didn't need to; he knew his dad loved him more than life itself. But somewhere along the way adult Sam had lost that assurance. The man before him actually thought that he was a disappointment to his father; a screw up as the kid had put it. John knew that was all his doing but he didn't know how to make things right. Somehow he didn't think mere words would do the trick this time. It was gonna take a lot more than that to get through to Sammy. Running a weary hand down his face the Winchester patriarch decided that if words didn't work, he'd just have to go back to treating Sam the way he used to treat Sammy. Granted it'd probably freak the kid out at first but hopefully with time Sam would come to realize that his old man still loved him more than anything. Hearing a slight rustling from the bed he decided it was time to put his plan into action. Taking a seat on the edge of the bed John watched as hazy eyes opened and stared up at him. "Hey Sammy. How're you feeling?" he asked brushing a wayward strand of hair out of Sam's eyes.
"D'd?" Sam slurred blinking to clear his cloudy vision. "H'rts d'd"
"I know buddy, I know" John whispered. Glancing at the clock he sighed. "It's too early to give you anything else for pain, Sam. Try to get some more sleep, okay?"
Sam nodded in understanding and tried to stifle a whimper as a sudden pain shot across his back.
Seeing his son in pain was all it took to spur John into action. Kicking off his boots he picked up the covers and slid into bed beside his youngest. Forgetting that his son was now a grown man he gently pulled Sam closer to him resting the boy's head on his shoulder. "Shh baby, it's okay. Daddy's got ya" he soothed running a hand up and down Sam's arm. "I'm here. You're okay. Shhh"
A few hours later
Dean fumed as he walked the short distance from Bobby's room to theirs. He couldn't believe his dad had broken his promise and not come to get him. "Good thing I set the alarm on my phone." He muttered as he unlocked the door to the room Sam and his dad were currently sharing. Opening the door he tiptoed in freezing at the sight before him. His dad was in the bed cuddling his hurt little brother! Their old man hadn't done that since Sammy was seven and sick with the flu. Getting over the initial shock Dean slowly shut the door and walked over to the bed. After checking on his brother and assuring himself that the younger boy was resting comfortably, Dean dropped into the chair beside the bed. He settled into the chair and focused his attention on his sleeping family. It was his turn to watch out for them now.