A/N: Thanks for the wonderful reviews! As well as the favorites and the follows. Like I said before, I do have the rest of this story penned out, so it is just a matter of me getting the motivation to type and edit them.
Enjoy!
The next two days were spent in a stalemate between John and Sam, mostly through a careful limiting of the number of times their paths crossed. When they did end up in Dean's room together and couldn't think of an excuse to leave, Jess and Dean did their best to keep the conversation light; Dean fulfilling his old role of mediator and Jess slipping in to help him. It was clear to everyone in the room that neither John or Sam were comfortable with the situation, but they had been dealing with it well enough. That all ended on the afternoon of the third day.
Dean was finally allowed to get out of bed under the eyes of Linda and Dr. Fuller. Almost as if they knew that Dean would not want an audience to his pain and difficulties, the doctor kindly asked Jess, Sam and John to leave. Surprisingly, nothing happened while they were kicked out of the room. But, while they were waiting, Jess told Sam that she had to run out and call her family.
When John and Sam reentered Dean's room after sharing a silent cup of coffee, Dean's exhausted state was obvious. His face was pale and the only cheeky thing he could say when they walked in was that a 20-something nurse was going to give him a sponge bath later so they had better not stay long. They made light conversation, but it only took Dean ten minutes to succumb to the painkillers they had given him and pass out.
John honestly didn't know what to say to his youngest. However, there was an urge to break through the silence as it became stifling. John decided on asking the obvious question, "Where'd the girl go?"
"Her name's Jessica," Sam corrected, his voice irritated.
John remembered her name, had remembered it from when Dean first told him, but he didn't want Sam to figure out just how much he absorbed information about him.
"Fine," John conceded, "Where'd Jessica go?"
"She went to call her family," Sam tried to bite his tongue, but he couldn't help but slide in, "Unlike us, they actually call each other."
"Last time I checked, Sam, you weren't taking any calls from us," John responded, once again responding to Sam's bait.
"You never tried!" Sam cried out indignantly. He had thought many times about what he would do if his dad called, hundreds of times actually. Would he answer or would he just ignore him like he did with Dean? But, he never really needed to worry about it, because John never called.
"No," John agreed, "but your brother did." He motioned to the sleeping Dean. The world may think he only cared about Dean as a soldier, but he had a fiercely protective side when it came to his oldest and that came out in his next tirade. "Do you honestly think I never noticed him trying to get a hold of you? For months after you left he would take any spare minute he had and when he came back, even he couldn't hide the disappointment he felt. You yell at me for abandoning him, but you should look in a mirror before you start throwing that judgment around."
Sam fought his anger, but failed, "I may not have answered, but I came here when Caleb called."
John smiled, no warmth present in his next words, "Yeah? And just how long after Caleb called did you leave?" John knew he had struck a nerve when Sam clenched his jaw shut and a vein became visible.
"No comeback?" John prodded. "Can't admit it to yourself that you actually thought about leaving your brother here to fend for himself?" John asked, throwing some of his own self-loathing into the question.
"I still came," Sam finally ground out, "Before you did."
"Why does everything have to be a competition between us?" John sighed out tiredly. "Yes, you still came, and don't you think that might be a problem in the future with Jessica?"
"What do you mean?" Sam asked wearily, unsure about this sudden shift back to Jess.
John shook his head, "You were raised to be a hunter, your family is full of hunters, it's in your blood and nothing is going to change that. If you want to keep her safe, the only thing you can do is leave." John had noticed the way she and Sam interacted, could tell that they were close and given time, the boy would probably ask her to marry him. Hell, she even seemed to get the Dean stamp of approval. But, his attempts to keep things away from Sam would only go so far. Eventually, something would come for Sam and if Jess was caught in the crossfire, she would be killed, or worse, get Sam killed trying to save her.
"I don't care what you think, I'm not leaving her," Sam put his foot down. However, his dad's words were playing on the worst of Sam's fears.
"You claim to care about her, but she doesn't even know the real you. If you told her the truth then she would be running for the hills. Either because she thought you were insane or because she was scared out of her mind," John predicted.
Glad to finally have a way to prove his dad wrong, Sam spoke before he thought about the ramifications of his hastily spoken words, "No, she wouldn't, because she already knows."
John's disbelief turned to anger within two seconds, "What the hell have you done?"
Sam tilted his chin up defiantly, "I told her everything and she's still here. You are wrong and I'm not leaving her."
John opened and closed his mouth, unable to form coherent thoughts. About to strangle his youngest for stupidity, John shoved his chair back and stormed out of the room before he could act on his desires.
"You could scare the paint off of the side of a house with that face of yours."
Sam snapped out of his thoughts long enough to consider the first words Dean had spoken, alerting him to the fact that he had come out of his drug induced sleep. "That doesn't make any sense."
"Sure it does," Dean's told him, his voice rough with sleep. "Because...wait, I may be drugged out of my mind, but you aren't going to distract me that easily. Now, what has put the look on your face?"
Sam fidgeted guiltily.
"Sammy?" Dean half ordered.
"I may have told dad that Jess knows," he answered vaguely.
"That Jess knows what?" Dean asked, being purposefully dense. "Because I know you aren't stupid enough to let dad in on the fact that you let your girlfriend in on the big family secret."
Sam didn't respond, but his facial expressions gave him away.
"Sammy!" Dean shouted in exasperation. "How thick can you get?"
Sam got defensive, "Technically, she didn't believe me until you said something, so you have a part in this as well!"
Dean gave him a droll look, "So, how'd he take it?"
It was Sam's turn to return Dean's look, "How do you think? I haven't seen him in two hours. I sent Jess back to the hotel so she wouldn't be here when he got back."
"Are you sure you should be here?" Dean asked seriously. "Or will it just start more fighting between you guys?"
Before Sam answered, the deep voice of their father cut in, "There won't be fighting, only listening."
"I don't have to..." Sam began, but was cut off again by John.
"Shut up, that wasn't an option, that was an order. Do you have any idea how stupid it was telling your girlfriend about us? How dangerous? What happens if you break up with her and she decides to give the cops an anonymous tip about how to find a trunk full of weapons? What if someone decides to start asking her questions about you and she doesn't think to hold back?"
"She's not stupid," Sam interjected. "She wouldn't do that."
"No, she's isn't and that makes it worse. By telling her, you have put us and her in more danger. There is a reason we keep what we do a secret."
Dean had remained quiet for the beginning part of John's lecture, because as much as he liked Jess, he agreed with many of the points his dad was making. But, he couldn't just throw Sam to the wolves, so he spoke up. "Dad, it wasn't just Sammy's fault, I could have convinced her that he was lying and I didn't."
"Damn it, Dean!" John turned on him. "What the hell were you thinking?"
"I.."
"You weren't, that's what you were doing," John answered for him.
Sam couldn't take it, it was too similar to all the times that their dad had yelled at Dean for something that Sam had done wrong, running away, staying out past curfew, reading instead of working on his hand to hand. "It's not Dean's fault! There isn't even a fault at all."
"Yes, it is! Your brother has a chance to fix your screw-up and he didn't take it."
"Leave him out of this!" Sam hollered back.
"Guys, I'm sitting right here," Dean mentioned loudly, trying to get the attention back on him. But, as usual, they were too wrapped up in their argument to notice.
They continued to bicker back and forth until Sam finally acknowledged Dean, just not in a way Dean wanted. "Don't you have anything to say about this?"
"What do you want me to say?" Dean asked in confusion.
"Dean knows he should have convinced Jessica that there is no such thing as hunters and monsters, he knows I'm right." John's phone went off and he checked the id, "I have to get this. You need to fix this, Sam." With that, John left the room, lifting the phone to his ear as he left.
"Is that really what you think?" Sam asked Dean incredulously when he didn't refute John.
Dean could see where this conversation was going and he didn't like it one bit. "Sammy," he pleaded, "just drop it."
"I can't believe this!" Sam exclaimed. "You had no problem with Jess knowing until dad came along. Then, he tells you that you messed up and you just accept the blame. It's like we're kids all over again."
"What do you want from me?" Dean asked, his tone defensive. "Dad's right, Jess shouldn't know about us."
"No, you only think that because that's what he told you to think!" Sam claimed.
"Well, he happens to be right," Dean defended. "I can't help that."
"Ah!" Sam shouted non-sensically. "I can't take it. I can't sit around and watch you be the ever faithful son, especially when you know deep down that he is wrong!"
"So, what? You're just going to go back to Stanford?" Dean asked, already preparing himself.
"Yeah. Unless, for once, you can stand up to him and tell him he's wrong, " Sam gave Dean the ultimatum.
"Sammy," Dean sighed out, "don't make me choose between the two of you."
"I'm not," Sam argued.
"Yes, you are!" Dean countered, finally reaching his own breaking point. "One way or the other, one of you is leaving and you are making me decide who it will be."
"Fine! I'm making you decide. With him it is just more orders, but at least this way you would be able to make your own decisions."
It sure as hell didn't feel like he would be free to make his own decisions either way. Sammy may think that he offered freedom, but being around forced Dean into a corner just as much as being with his dad did. Sam would expect him to stop hunting, to be a different person, to follow the rules that he set down. And the sad part, Dean would probably try to conform to them, just in order to keep Sam happy. But, was it all worth it if he got to be around his brother. These past few days had been amazing...
He'll leave you again.
A small voice popped into his head.
He'll drop you the moment he is back at college. Then who will you have?
Isn't an absent father better than nothing? Better than no one?
Dean fought through the sudden lightness of breath. Catching hold of his focal point, Dean's adams apple bobbed as he pushed out, "Dad's right, Sam. Being with Jess is dangerous and you should end it."
Silence...Sam didn't breathe as he took Dean's verdict in. Then, his anger rushed in, masking the empty feeling he suddenly had. "Fine." He said simply. "I hope you enjoy traveling around alone. The next time you end up in the hospital, don't bother calling me." Without a glance at Dean, afraid that he would change his mind if he did, Sam stormed over to the door and left. Only once Sam was out of the room did Dean let his head fall back and the tears escape.
As Sam left the hospital, he fought back the sudden onslaught of tears that had appeared, he saw the object of his anger. Instead of hurling abuses at him, Sam merely passed by John, his bitterness staining his words as he lashed out, "I hope you're happy. I'll be back in Palo Alto by tomorrow and you have your perfect soldier back." Without so much as a goodbye, Sam was gone, leaving a stunned John to figure out what happened.
"We're leaving," Sam ordered when he got to the hotel room.
"What?" Jess asked him confused. "Going where?"
"Home," Sam informed. "We're going home. Now."
"Sam, what happened?" Jess didn't understand, she knew that something was up by the way Sam had sent her away, but things didn't seem this bad.
"Jess!" Sam exclaimed, before calming slightly. "Dean made his decision, now we are going home."
"Okay," Jess agreed, trying to pacify him. "But, I have to go back to the hospital, my phone is there from earlier."
Jess made the walk to Dean's room, knowing that this was the last time. She had tried to convince Sam to stay, told him that his brother really did need him here, but Sam was adamant about leaving.
As she entered the room, Jess took note of Dean's dejected stare at the ugly picture in front of his bed. "Hey, Dean." She greeted slowly, almost as if she was dealing with a wounded animal she was afraid would bolt.
"Jess," he returned, without his usual flirty tone or warmth. He realized that it wasn't her fault, but a small part of him couldn't help but place some of the blame on her for the recent Winchester family drama. Or that could just be that he was jealous of the fact that Jess got to go home with Sammy.
Not used to this side of Dean, Jess pointed towards her cell and mumbled. "I...just needed to grab this."
Once it was in her hand, she turned to face Dean properly. "Look, Dean. I can't pretend to understand your family or what happened today, but I do know that Sam loves you and only wants the best for you."
She kept going even as she heard Dean's scoff of disbelief, "I am pretty sure that he is going to isolate himself again, but I wanted you to know that you can call me anytime. I'm not a Winchester, so I do not have to be involved in picking sides. You are a good man and if you need anything, even if it is just a friendly voice, please call."
"Don't you think your boyfriend will have a problem with that?" Dean spoke at length.
Jess smiled at him, glad to have gotten him to talk. "Sam doesn't own me, his family issues are his own. I can talk to whomever I want. And I hope you do call, I have a feeling that we could be good friends."
Dean bit the side of his cheek, the conversation getting a bit too...girly for his comfort. Dean covered up his discomfort by sending Jess a smile and, "Just admit it, you just want me."
Jess's laughter trickled around the room. "Fine, you've caught me. I had no idea I was being that transparent." Feeling like her job was completed once Dean joined in with a chuckle, Jess leaned down and carefully gave Dean a hug. She waited until he relaxed before she whispered in his ear, "Please be careful, Dean. I don't want to get another call from Caleb saying you're in the hospital."
Dean swallowed hard, once again his eyes betraying him as they tried to tear. Jess couldn't be aware of how much that simple request meant. To have someone openly express their concern for his well being, to offer a no-strings attached offer to be a listening ear...Well, Caleb and Bobby had done their best, but truth was, they were just as bad with emotions as he was. He knew deep down that they would do just about anything for him, but knowing it and hearing it were two entirely different things. And here was Jess, only knowing him for a little over two weeks, part of which he was unconscious for, showing him that concern that his dad and Sam always seemed to forget about.
"Careful now," Dean's deep voice rumbled into her ear, "or I will actually start to think that you prefer me." However, his flirty quip was ruined by the way his uncasted arm tightened slightly, pulling her in closer and the way his breath shuddered slightly.
Dean enjoyed the feeling of warmth for a moment longer, he never took comfort from women. The last person he remembered had been his mother. Women were there to scratch an itch, he was meant to be mysterious and strong, not broken and in need of a hug. But, as Jess wrapped her arms around him, he remembered just how much a woman could comfort on an entirely plutonic level. Finally, he released his arm from around her, allowing her to pull back slightly.
"Take care of Sammy?" He asked. Even if the kid caused him a world of pain, Dean had to make sure that he would be okay.
"Always," Jess promised seriously, aware that Dean needed her reassurance that Sam would not be alone. "And you take care of yourself. I'm serious, call me anytime you need, for whatever reason."
Dean nodded softly, unable to break past his usual hold on his emotions to thank Jess properly. She seemed to understand as she leaned forward again and gave him a quick peck on his stubble graced cheek and withdrew with a gentle smile.
"I'll see you later," she told him, walking towards the door. As a parting comment she said, "And I programmed my number into your phone, so there's no excuse for you to not let me know that you're safe."
Dean smiled at her non-veiled hint. "Sounds good."
"Bye, Dean," she said with a final wave, reluctant to actually leave.
"Bye, Jess," Dean returned, giving her his own small wave of his hand as she left his room.
Please don't hate me! I really tried to get Sam and John to stay there together for longer, but when I considered their personalities and their decisions in the show, I couldn't force Sam to stay put. Let me know what you guys think though.