Long chapter :) Not many left at all. Maybe one or two more.

Thanks for the following and reviews! Enjoy!

Ch. 10

The brothers are discovered the next morning, prompting the move of Sam into Dean's room. They move a new bed in first, getting the machinery and everything ready before waking him. Through it all he stays asleep, face hidden in the older brother's neck. Older brother himself eventually wakes to see what's going on, smirking to himself.

When the nurses notice he's awake, he's asked a few questions and thoroughly checked. Well… as much as they can check him with Sam up against his side. Through it all, he keeps his arm protectively around his brother's shoulders. When he's asked about their current position, he chuckles. "You try getting trapped in the dark for a few days and see if you might want some company every time you're plunged into darkness again. Besides, he's my little brother. If he feels the need to climb into my bed to feel safe, I'm not going to turn him away."

When the doctor comes in, he's torn between worried and a little awed at their devotion. Even as Sam sleeps, his hand never moves from where it's resting over Dean's wound making it impossible to check it until Dean lets them wake Sam up. "You had enough energy to move over for him?"

Dean nods. "Wasn't hard. And as I told them, I wasn't going to turn him away. Truth is, I was more surprised he was up and walking."

The doctor sighs. "That is worrying. Do you mind if we wake him now?"

Dean inwardly grins, proud to have established that he has chief authority over what happens to Sam. Softly putting his hand on Sam's shoulder, he turns his head to lean and look at Sam's face. "Sammy."

The two nurses in the room and the doctor stare in shock as that's all it takes for Sam to open his eyes, lifting his head a little bit to blink blearily up at Dean. "Hmm?"

"They have a bed set up in here for you now. You want to get up and climb in it?" Dean brushes his brother's bangs from his forehead.

Sam lets his eyes fall closed, laying his head back on Dean's shoulder. "But you're so warm," he murmurs.

Dean chuckles. "C'mon, buddy. It'll be better for you. And they need to check you out. See how your ribs are after the surgery. And I'm sure they'll give you some warm blankets."

One of the nurses leaves to do just that, the other one smiling. "Of course we can."

Sam finally sits up, groaning. "You suck."

Dean chuckles. "And you're a ball of sunshine as ever."

Sam finally opens his eyes again, letting loose a tired but happy smile. "One more thing before I'm confined to my bed." He leans forward, sliding an arm around his brother's shoulders to give him a soft hug.

Dean rolls his eyes but returns it, even burying his face in Sam's shoulder for a minute. He ruffles Sam's hair when he pulls back. "Alright, kiddo. Let them check you over."

Moving to sit up more, Sam lets out a strangled whimper when he moves to sit at the edge of the bed.

Dean touches his hand to his back. "Sammy? You need more pain meds?"

Sam nods, hands gripping the mattress so that his knuckles turn white.

The doctor goes around, injecting it through the IV as Dean soothingly rubs his hand around Sam's back. "You alright?" he asks softly, worry evident. He sits up a little more, his own side burning as he tries to comfort his brother.

"Yeah," Sam bites out tightly.

"Just wait for it to stop hurting. Then be careful. Okay?" The bed is prepared while Sam sits like a statue until the pain starts to wane, Dean rubbing circles across his back the whole time. When he finally lets out a breath, Dean smiles. "You okay now?"

Sam nods. "Getting there."

A nurse comes over to help Sam to his feet, walking him over to his bed with a hand at the top of the gown to hold it closed. "Do you want to change now to save the trouble of doing it later?" she asks thoughtfully. "We're going to keep you for a couple days so we have some clothes for you.

Sam nods. "Yeah. I'll just get it over with.

They bring the clothes in, blue pants and a plain white t-shirt, setting them down on Sam's bed. "You need any help?"

Dean has to grit his teeth to keep from snapping at her. Nurse or not, no one gets to see Sam so vulnerable.

Luckily for him, Sam shakes his head. "I'm okay. It's starting to feel better."

The nurse nods, unhooking the tube from the IV needle, looking over to Dean. "Um…"

Sam waves her off as he grins when Dean rolls his eyes. "It's fine. He practically raised me and it's not the first time I've been less than decent."

The nurse chuckles, pulling the curtain as she leaves the room. "I'll be back in five minutes, okay?" They hear the door close.

Sam groans as he leans back against the bed, sliding the gown off of his shoulders. He snorts when Dean looks away. "Really?"

"Nothing wrong with giving you privacy," Dean grumbles.

"Should I remind you-"

"No." Dean cuts him off sharply.

Sam frowns as he pulls on the shirt, hissing when lifting his arms hurts his ribs. Then he stands up to let the gown fall to his feet and pull on his pants. He lets out a small whine when he bends over. He's just glad the pain isn't as bad as it was earlier. When he's standing again, he can see Dean's hands in fists in his lap, head still turned away. He rolls his eyes. "I'm done."

Dean relaxes as Sam makes it up onto the bed. His eyes move up Sam's body. When his eyes meet his brother's, he gives him a soft smile. "You okay?"

Sam stares at him pointedly.

Dean doesn't take the bait. "So, did Dad see you?"

"Dean."

"Sam. Don't."

"But…"

"That's not something we even remotely need to talk about."

Sam's eyes harden. "Yes, it is."

Dean doesn't back down. "No, it's not. Especially not right now."

"Dean, not everything can wait 'till later."

"Sure it can." He lets his head fall back against the pillow, his eyes falling closed.

Sam glares, but grunts his way through the pain of moving himself up the bed to get comfortable.

The nurse comes in and hooks him back up to everything, calling the doctor in to look Sam over. When he's satisfied with the condition of Sam's ribs, he leaves them be. Then the room is silent again. Dean keeps his eyes closed and finally relaxes now that he knows that Sam's going to be okay.

Sam tries to find a way to get Dean to open up to him again. Sure, he's not totally back to how he was before they were trapped, but he's still starting to close up and not want to talk things out or let them be as he was down there. Sam misses that. He's still awake when Dean falls asleep, sighing when he notices the familiar breathing pattern. At least Dean is getting some rest.

John shows up not too long after that, looking a hundred times better than he did yesterday. He chuckles when he walks into the room. "I underestimated you. You got yourself moved in here quickly."

Sam grins at his dad. "Hey. You look better."

John nods, going over to stand next to Dean. "He still out?" he asks worriedly.

Sam chuckles. "Nah. He was up earlier, talking and being his usual jerk self."

"Shut up, bitch," Dean grumbles, opening his eyes. He looks to John. "Hey."

"Hey. How're you feeling?"

Dean huffs. "Better. Nothing too bad."

"So… you guys feel like sharing anything?" He pulls up a chair, relaxing back into it since his boys are okay and ready to hear the story.

Dean chuckles. "Well, the wendigo is dead."

John grins. "That so?"

Dean nods, smiling proudly. "Yup. Sammy got 'im"

Sam smiles even though he's still frustrated with Dean, preening when John looks to him with a proud look. "We ran into him maybe two days before you found us. That's what broke my ribs. Slammed right into me."

"Threw me into the wall and knocked me out," Dean cuts in. "Hit my head on a beam, I guess."

John nods. "So that's what that bruise is."

Sam's eyes snap to him. "What?"

"Perfectly straight bruise from his shoulder to about halfway down his back. Nice color of blue," John tells him wryly.

Sam glares at Dean. "I knew you were hiding things."

Dean rolls his eyes. "It's just a bruise."

"Which I'm sure hurt like hell and could have been worse!"

"Hey. Let's not get into that, you two. You both made it out, that's all that matters."

Sam looks away, glaring at the wall and misses Dean's slightly hurt look at being dismissed like that.

"Anything else interesting?"

Dean shakes his head, getting back on track. "Nothing exciting. Just a really long, dark, wet trip. It sucked, but we made it."

John nods, knowing about wanting to just put things behind him. "Well, I hate to do this to you guys, but Bobby called. Needs some help with something going down. I figured if you guys were okay, I'd go help him. So… how are you guys feeling?"

Dean waves him off. "We'll be fine in a few days. I know they won't let Sam out for a while but we can meet you at Bobby's when we get out."

John nods. "You sure?"

Dean looks over to Sam, faltering for just a second when he sees his little brother is still looking away. "Yeah. You go help him. He probably needs it if he's calling you."

John chuckles. "Yeah, you're right about that." He stands, patting Dean's shoulder before turning to leave. "You boys be good. Let me know when you're leaving for Bobby's. I'll leave the impala for you."

"Yes sir." Dean watches him leave after setting the keys to the impala on Dean's bag before looking at Sam. "If you're going to be a little bitch to me just because I'm not giving you what you want, you could at least say goodbye to dad." He glares when Sam doesn't reply, still looking the other way out the window. He sighs, gingerly pushing himself out of his bed. "Fine."

He returns later with two sandwiches from the cafeteria, given to him for free when another nurse had come up and bragged about the tough few days they've had. It may have been charity food, but it was just a nurse cafeteria lady being nice. And Sam was most likely hungry. So who was he to refuse? Setting them on the tray by Sam's bed, he lets his brother ignore him as he climbs back into his own. "Goodnight."

The nurses are confused in the morning at how the brothers seem terse with each other. But they know that everyone has a bad day. And these two might have a lot to deal with after only having each other for the past few days and having to return to the real world so suddenly. The story of the two brothers stuck in an old mine has passed through the hospital by both staff and the local newspaper. Luckily, it's a small town so that paired with fake names shouldn't follow them very far when they leave.

Sam had eaten the sandwich last night after his stomach started growling, grumbling a reluctant "Thanks" at his brother. Dean hadn't replied. That carried over into the morning, causing them to both be frustrated with each other to the point of anger. Sam angry for Dean avoiding everything and not telling him when he's hurt, and Dean angry at Sam for not understanding why he kept his pain from him and why he won't approach "the problem".

Both of them are angry for the loss of comfort with each other. After being trapped down there, the comfort level they were used to was upped to a new level. Now that they're back… neither like how many people are always around and how self conscious they are in the bright lights of the hospital. In summary? It's a sucky day.

The next day, the nurses tell Sam that he should be okay to take a shower if he feels up to it. Seeing as how he hasn't had a wash since the one they gave him before surgery, he jumps (figuratively) at the opportunity. When the nurse tells him that someone should help him in case his ribs give him trouble, he freezes.

Dean's head snaps around, eyes narrowed at the back of the nurse. She's blocking Sam, so he knows his brother can't see him. But he also knows that Sam is self-conscious. And the fact that someone seeing his brother so vulnerable makes his teeth grind, it isn't hard to make his own opinion known. "I'll do it."

The nurse turns to him, frowning. "Do you think you're well enough? If you're not, it really should be a nurse that-"

"Look, no offense, but I trust myself a lot more than I trust anyone here."

The nurse hears what he means loud and clear. She nods. "Okay. Just make sure he doesn't strain himself." She leaves.

"I don't need you babying me, Dean," Sam grumbles.

Dean rolls his eyes, standing from his bed. "I'm not babying you. Besides, you can't honestly tell me that you'd rather a complete stranger stands in the bathroom with you while you shower," he growls.

The nurse comes back not a minute later with shampoo and soap from the hospital. "You can use these. I'll grab a towel for you on the way. Do you have clothes with you?"

Dean nods.

Sam stands slowly to go to where their dad had dropped off their bags before leaving for Bobby's. He digs around for a bit before pulling some out and turning to them.

The nurse leads the way, Sam following carefully behind and Dean at the rear in case Sam starts hurting more. He can already tell that Sam is bending over a little to lessen the pain. "You sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Dean."

Dean sighs. "Sam. You need to let me know if-"

Sam spins on him right as the nurse stops at the door to the shower room. "I don't need to tell you anything, Dean! If you have to come in and sit to make sure I don't hurt myself, fine. But you don't need to keep asking if I'm okay and then ignore me whenever I say we need to talk!" He spins around, going into the room and letting the door fall closed behind him.

Dean winces, scratching the back of his neck with a sigh. He gives the nurse a tight smile and takes the towel, leaning against the side of the door as she leaves. He waits until he hears the water start and the shower curtain is pulled before opening the door and slipping in. He locks it behind him and sets the towel on the toilet seat.

Just because they're not exactly happy with each other right now, doesn't mean that Dean is going to leave him alone where he could get hurt. So he sits on the floor of the bathroom, head resting back against the wall as he listens to the patter of water on the shower floor. He doesn't talk. Sam doesn't talk. But Dean has made sure he's nearby.

Even though he's putting off the talk between him and Sam, that doesn't mean he's not going to hide the possessiveness he's always had towards his brother. Since Sam doesn't mind the attention, he'll be damned if he lets some nurse take care of him if he could do it himself. Sam is his. His to take care of. His to protect. And especially now, the thought of someone being in here while Sam showers grates on his nerves.

Right after that thought, Sam suddenly lets out a hoarse noise, followed by a thump.

Despite his own healing side, Dean jumps up and has the curtain pulled back in a second. He's just in time to catch Sam, gently lowering his body to the floor of the shower as it gives way even more from where it was leaning against the side. "Sammy."

He pays no mind to his clothes getting soaked, his attention all focused on Sam. "Sam. C'mon, buddy. Don't do this to me. I thought you were okay." He lets himself fall to a sitting position on the floor, leaning Sam back against him and reaching up to tilt his face back. "Hey." He smiles a little when Sam opens his eyes.

Sam lets his eyes fall closed again. "Hey."

"You okay?" Dean asks shakily when he sees how pale his brother is. "Sammy."

"Jus' reached up too high. Meds wearin' off. Pain was too much I guess. Got dizzy." He lets his head fall over to rest on Dean's chest.

Dean notices for the first time that there is still soap in Sam's hair. "Alright. C'mon. Let's get you rinsed off, huh? You gonna be alright?"

Sam groans. "Maybe."

Dean tries to keep his eyes out of awkward territory, sliding his own soaked shirt over his head and throwing it behind him to the floor before letting Sam fall back against him. He angles the two of them under the water, taking over washing and rinsing Sam's hair. He smiles softly when Sam hums appreciatively, making sure to massage his scalp a little more. When the soap is gone he turns off the water and reaches behind himself to get the towel.

It's with almost painstakingly gentle movements that he dries Sam's face, neck, chest, arms, and finally drops the towel over his brother's waist. Sliding it under and pulling it around, he tucks it in so that it's wrapped around Sam's waist. "Okay. You ready? Think you can stand?" He wipes the wet strands of Sam's hair away from his eyes.

Sam nods, eyes opening again. He groans as he tries to sit up, letting Dean practically lift him to his feet. He can't straighten up though, letting out a pained whine when he tries.

"Think you can walk?"

Sam bites his lip, shaking his head as his eyes squeeze closed. "Hurts," he barely breathes. His hand is gripping Dean's arm hard enough to bruise.

"Alright. It's okay. I've gotchya." He takes Sam's face in his hands and kisses his forehead. "We're gonna do this slowly. Okay? I'm gonna help you pull on your boxers and sweatpants and we'll go back to the room and wait for the medicine to kick in before you try for your shirt. Okay?"

Sam nods, teeth sinking into his bottom lip again as another wave of pain hits.

Dean gently taps his chin until he stops. "Hey. Don't do that." He gives Sam an encouraging smile as he kneels down. "Alright. Left leg. Right." He slides Sam's boxers up under the towel before pulling it off and helping him into his sweatpants.

"You know," Sam breathes, "you could have just taken the towel off. Nothing you haven't-"

"Not now, Sam."

Sam sighs.

Sliding the sweatpants up is decidedly easier now that the towel isn't in the way. Then Dean stands back up and leans over. "Lean over a little more, buddy."

Sam lets out a high pitched groan as he does so, leaning over to Dean's specifications.

"I know, I know. On three. Ready? One…" he lifts Sam into his arms bridal style, grimacing when Sam lets out a sharp cry. He kisses the top of Sam's head. "Sorry little brother." He holds Sam tightly to him as he reaches out only a finger from under Sam's legs to push the handle of the door down, lock clicking out on it's own.

A nurse walking by stops suddenly when she looks over to see them, going to help.

Dean shakes his head. "I've got him. Can you just get his shirt please?"

"Of course." She steps around them, grabbing the folded shirt on the sink and turning to follow them down the hallway.

The brother's get a lot of glances their way, both shirtless with bruises and cuts along their body. The long bruise on Dean's back is almost a florescent green under the light now that the purple has faded. From behind him, the nurse following can see the hand that Sam has thrown around Dean's neck to hold onto is gripping him tight enough to sink his finger nails into his skin and draw blood. Dean never seems to notice.

Getting back to their room, she feels like she's intruding as she watches the older gently lay his younger brother down on the bed as slowly as possible while he murmurs unintelligibly in reply to the quiet whimpers. He leans over until Sam is laying on his pillows before gently prying his fingers from his back. He brushes the hair from his face as their assigned nurse comes in to get him some pills.

Dean takes them, murmuring to Sam as he gives them to him and holds a cup of water to his lips a second later. He moves to sit on the edge of the bed, but thinks better of it when he remembers his own pants are soaked. Pulling up a chair, he runs a finger over the stitches in Sam's side from the surgery.

"Should I re-dress these?" he asks the other nurse.

She looks at it. "Hmmm… Maybe. Just to be safe."

Dean nods. Then looks to Sam. "Let me know when you're feeling better, okay buddy?"

Sam nods, not even opening his eyes.

Dean stands again, turning to the nurse still standing in the doorway. "Hey. Thanks." He takes Sam's shirt, looking down to chuckle.

The nurse tilts her head. "What's funny?"

He grins up at her, holding up the shirt. "He had grabbed a shirt for his shower. Should have known the little shit would have taken my favorite."

She looks to see that it's a Metallica shirt, smiling when she sees that it's old and worn, most likely comfortable and soft. She smiles up at him, putting a hand to his arm. "I was the one who looked after Sam when the pneumonia had started to get the better of him and the one who found him in your bed the other night." She holds out her other hand. "Tami."

He chuckles. "That's right." He shakes her hand. "Thanks for looking out for him."

"You ever need anything, let me know. Seems I have a soft spot for you guys."

Dean almost blushes, looking over at Sam. "Yeah, puppy dog eyes over there seems to do that to people."

She laughs. "You can work them pretty good too. I've seen how you are with your brother." She shrugs when he looks to her. "I have. Never seen someone so devoted to another person in my life. And I want you to know that it doesn't go unnoticed." She reaches up to pull him down into her arms.

Dean closes his arms gently around here, slightly shocked.

When she lets go, she winks at him. "You remind me of my son. Before he died." She puts a finger to Dean's heart. "Don't you stop showing what's in here. Because that's what people will always remember. And what seems to be keeping you two alive."

Dean nods once.

"I heard that argument earlier before his shower. Now, I may just be a random, middle aged nurse, but I know a few things about that. Don't avoid the issue if you don't want to lose him. Your brother obviously adores you. Don't ruin that over a petty argument."

Dean smiles softly. "You sound like I'd imagine my mother would if she were here right now."

Tami smiles knowingly. "All mothers see when children are hanging by a thread."

Dean sighs, looking down. "Is Sammy going to be okay?" He looks up through his eyelashes, eyes shining in worry. "I know the doctor said he'd get better, but every day seems like he's hurting more and more. The wiring…"

Tami interrupts. "The wiring is very minimal. It's just enough to keep the bone in place. That's not what hurts. Your brother has been telling us to lower the medicine dosage"

Dean's eyes flash. "What?"

She reaches out to grip his arm. "He wants to know his limitations. Like many of our other patients, he's trying to see how soon he can get back on his feet. Don't get mad at him. Okay? He just waited too long to ask for more today. But I think… he's trying to impress you."

Dean rolls his eyes. "Of course he is." He chuckles though, a soft smile sneaking onto his lips before he can stop it.

"I've told Jenna over there to up his dosage a little. You're brother should stop hurting in a bit. She'll be monitoring him and keep him from lowering his medication too much again to keep you from having a heart attack." She winks at him.

Dean chuckles. "Thanks."

"Go back to your brother. He wants you."

Sure enough, when Dean turns around, Sam's half-lidded eyes are on him. When he sees Dean looking at him, he moves his arm over to hold out his hand. Dean looks back to her. "Thanks."

She waves him off as she leaves. "I'll see you two later."