12
Nice long chapter for ya'll to make up for my absence of late. Another one could even come after this, you never know. Depends on reviews. But anyways. Not much Dean in this one, just a lot of emotions and questions and realisations to be made. Enjoy :D
Staring down at the swirling patterns in the off grey linoleum Sam bent down for the tenth time to pick up the pamphlet that had just slipped free of his fingertips, this had been his only form of entertainment for the past two hours; the only thing keeping Sam from going stir crazy with worry. He was alone in the waiting room; Bobby had left ten minutes ago to speak with Linda's parents. They hadn't been given news on Dean yet, only Linda. Sam swallowed convulsively, he was worried about Dean.
'Mr Singer?' Sam's head shot up, an elderly doctor was looking around the room as he called the name once more. Standing up Sam nodded in his direction, trying to look like more than just a scared seventeen year old. This all would have been a little better to Sam, if only he knew what had happened.
But Linda had come screaming in to the lounge room for help, all party celebrations coming to a sudden halt. 'Is Dean okay?' Sam asked quickly, grasping the doctors extended hand in a shake,
'Mr Singer my names Dr Brody, is your father around?' The doctor asked, giving the soft sad eyes to Sam which sent a stab of fear right through Sam because they were never a good thing. Doctors were cold and detached, not warm and sad.
'He's talking with some other people; can I see my brother now please?' He wasn't about to give up on this. 'Please?' He put on his own sad puppy dog eyes.
'Uh of course. I do have to warn you though, your brothers got a few things hooked up right now- mainly around his head though, your brother keeps suffering seizures due to swelling around his brain.' Sam nodded mutely, eyes wide with shock. 'Thankfully he's breathing on his own, how long that's going to last though…'
'What does that mean?' Sam asked quickly, casting a look at the doctor.
'Your brother is developing an infection, when he came in his clothes were cold and damp. His file states he has suffered from pneumonia before, which means he is susceptible to chest infections, and if he was outside in the snow in a t-shirt for an extended period it's inevitable.' Stopping, Sam put his head in his hands and moaned. 'Perhaps we should wait for your father.'
'No, it's okay. Just that's so much like my brother, can't do things by halves.'
'Do you know what happened to your brother-?'
'Sam sorry, and no I really don't. I wish I did though; we were just celebrating his birthday. Turned twenty one and he got in to college, we were all having a good time.' Doctor Brody just nodded. 'Then Linda came running in and I don't know, here we are.' They had stopped outside Dean's room and Sam was suddenly anxious to go inside.
'Look Sam maybe you should hold off from going in there, your brother is still unconscious and unresponsive, he won't know the difference whether you're in there or not.' Doctor Brody's hand was paused on the door knob; Sam felt like he was being treated like an equal for the first time tonight, he appreciated it a lot.
'I need to go in, he needs me to go in.' Sam smiled tightly and followed the doctor inside the room. Dean was sitting up in the bed, propped up pillows and the mattress. His eyes were closed lightly, a cannula sitting snugly under his nose, dwarfed by all the chords running from his forehead monitoring his erratic brain waves. Bruises were blossoming across the bare skin; the sheet was sitting around his waist revealing the strapping and discolouration in full high definition to Sam who winced in return. There was an obvious indentation of a boot on Dean's forearm; Sam felt his eyes drawn to it.
'It's obvious someone attacked your brother Sam, with your father's permission we will get to the bottom of this along with the police.' Sam just nodded, too tired to deny the police involvement. Something told him this wasn't in their field.
Doctor Brody busied himself around Dean, adjusting leads and taking notes from the readouts. He had Sam help support Dean while he listened to his older brothers wheezing chest, Sam wasn't a doctor and could tell his breathing didn't sound very good. 'We have him on broad spectrum intravenous antibiotics at the moment, but if he doesn't show some promising signs that they are working then we will change to something more direct.' Sam nodded mutely. 'Otherwise we will just be monitoring this head wound and hoping he wakes up soon, an orderly will be through within the hour to take Dean for a brain scan that will happen a lot tonight I am afraid.'
'Is his skull damaged?' Sam asked worriedly, brow creasing in concern for his brother. 'Or his brain?'
'There is a fracture unfortunately, and the brain is swollen and bruised which may affect a few cognitive and memory sensors for a little while but they should go back to normal when the swelling goes down.' Brody jotted a few more things on Dean's chart. 'Right now Dean just needs to wake up, if he doesn't do that then we will be a bit more concerned and may need to go in for surgery to release the pressure. But your brother seems like a trooper, I am sure he will wake up and be just fine.' The doctor smiled and walked out of the room after clapping Sam on the shoulder and leaving him alone with his brother's uneven heartbeat.
Half an hour later, as Sam was slowly drifting to sleep with his head on Dean's arm Bobby walked in to the room looking ashen and upset. Shooting upright Sam asked him what was wrong; pulling the other chair in the room up beside his own so Bobby could sink in to it with a resigned sigh.
'By the end of the night Linda could be on a locked ward.' Bobby answered shortly.
'What?!' Sam yelped. 'Why what happened?' Sam didn't understand.
'Turns out this was something Demon Sam. Linda's raving about yellow eyes and being thrown round without anything touching her, saying she saw the same thing happen to Dean. She's pretty god damn adamant that what attacked them wasn't human.' Bobby sighed and ran a hand through his hair, letting the baseball cap slip off his head for a moment. 'They are saying post-traumatic stress syndrome.' He paused on the next words. 'From losing the baby….'
The room fell in to silence. Sam had cried when Bobby had first told him Linda had lost the baby. He wasn't sure who he was crying for, himself the baby or Dean but he sobbed all the same, right on Bobby's shoulder. Dean would have been a daddy and damn good one at that and now it was gone. Sam shook his head and looked to Dean, still blissfully unaware his child was dead before it even got a chance to live. He was going to be torn up. 'Can't you go in there and talk to her Bobby?'
'I tried kid, but she wouldn't listen to me. Wouldn't lie either, she just wants someone to believe her.'
'I wish we knew what happened.' Sam whispered.
'I'm going to have to call yer daddy Sam, Dean's in a bad way. This is one of those terms we settled on for contact, I'll just be outside the door okay?' Sam nodded as Bobby reluctantly pulled himself from the chair and stopped just outside Dean's room, dialling John's number. For the first time Bobby could ever remember the man answered on the first ring.
'Bobby what's happened?' His voice was curt and urgent, not giving way for nonsense.
'Dean's in the hospital, just hanging on to life and judging by the way you just answered this phone I think you have some explaining to do. Sioux Fall General now and you better put your foot down to get here John Winchester.' Bobby growled, desperate for answers.
John sighed heavily. 'I'll be there in ten minutes.' The line went dead and Bobby was even more on edge. He couldn't help the hint of fear that jumped through his chest, had John and Dean had another spat? But he pushed it away quickly. Whatever was going on here, he was going to get to the bottom of it.
'Your fathers on his way, ten minutes max.' He offered Sam who looked up at him through watery eyes. 'You okay kid?' Bobby put a hand on his shoulder, comfortingly.
'Aren't you Mr Singer's father?' Doctor Brody had just walked in behind Bobby and was giving the two men a quizzical look.
'Surrogate. Boys practically grew up mine, had em in my custody for the past three and a half years now doctor. Good as my own blood since a falling out with their real father.' He kept the details simple, not wanting to overshare in the boy's privacy. Brody simply nodded disinterestedly as he picked up Dean's chart.
'Well he would want to get here quicker than that, Dean is about to go for a scan in five minutes.' The doctor walked round Dean's bed and lifted his eyelids and shone a small penlight in them. 'One of his pupils is still a little blown, but the other is responsive. He also hasn't had a fit for twenty minutes which is promising, and his brain waves are beginning to normalise.'
A smile lit up Sam's face. 'That's good right? That means he should wake up soon yeah?'
Doctor Brody smiled tightly. 'I didn't mean to get your hopes up Sam; it just means your brother is improving. We still don't know if the swelling has gone down, or if he will wake up. Now Mr Singer could I please talk with you outside the room for a moment?' Bobby nodded and stood up, he pat Sam on the head quickly and followed the doctor from the room with a low groan of protest from his old joints. He didn't miss these regular bed side vigils around the boys.
'What can I do for you doc?' Bobby cut to business.
'I need to know whether you want me to contact the police and lodge a formal complaint on Dean's behalf, if need be have someone outside the room in case the person who attacked your son tries to come back.' Bobby's eyes went wide, he hadn't considered the thought that this Demon might come back.
Coughing to clear his throat Bobby looked around. 'Listen doc I appreciate the help here but the police will not be necessary. I dealt with the perpetrator at the house; he shouldn't be coming back or causing any more trouble.' He hoped.
'Very well I can't force the matter on you, I suggest you and Sam head home for some rest soon. Dean won't be waking up anytime soon I am afraid.' The doctor watched Mr Singer's face collapse as he looked back inside the room. Many cases had come through Brody's life as a doctor and he saw people succumb to head injuries quicker then they recovered, but it never got any easier to break this news to a family member. 'Stay till visiting hours end in half an hour, then I expect you both to take care of yourselves. I am going to check on Dean's young lady friend; whilst she is awake she isn't exactly in her right mind at the moment.' Bobby just nodded and headed back in to the room.
Brody stood outside the room for a moment, watching the two sit around his patient and mumble to each other quietly. 'Are you my son's doctor?' The gruff voice broke through his reverie and Brody's head shot up to meet the bearded pale face of an older man, he looked a lot like Dean and he was stricken by the resemblance of this haggard man.
'If you are referring to Mr Singer then yes I am, you must be his father- blood father.' He corrected, the older man's eyes swam for a moment before they clouded back over with stern determination.
'How is he?' John wasted no time; he needed to be in that room to hear what had happened.
'Your son has sustained serious head injury Mr-.' Brody waited for the older man's name.
'John Winchester.'
'Dean has a serious head injury Mr Winchester; he has suffered several grand mal seizures from swelling around his brain which could still require surgery to relieve the swelling against the brain. Not to mention the bruising and broken ribs, someone had a serious issue with your son Mr Winchester. This was no everyday brawl, whoever did this intended to maim and possibly end your son's life.'
'No they didn't want to end his life, this was a lesson. A warning.' John mumbled. Doctor Brody wasn't sure if he had been meant to hear it at all. 'Has he woken up?' He shook his head at the older man. 'When do you expect he will wake up?'
'Mr Winchester were you listening to anything I just told you? There is a possibility he may not wake up at all.'
John turned on the doctor and slammed him against the wall, holding him there by the scruff of his shirt collars and white lab coat. 'My son is not some text book statistic; he has come out of worse than this. A head injury is nothing, now you patch him up and get him back on his feet as soon as possible!'
'John!' Brody sagged in relief when Bobby took a hold of the violent man's shoulder and pulled him away. 'What the hell do you think you are doing Johnny, I didn't allow you in here to accost the man keeping your son alive, don't you make me change my mind coz I will.' Bobby hissed close to John's ear as the doctor nodded his thanks and backed away.
John shrugged out of Bobby's hold and trudged in to Dean's room, Sam looked up at him with a small smile of hello on his face before he turned back to holding Dean's hand and whispering to his comatose brother.
'Tell me what happened Bobby.' He demanded.
'I think you owe us an explanation first John, why are you in town and the truth.' Bobby said, keeping his voice and even and low.
'I came to the house.' Bobby opened his mouth to say something but John cut him off. 'I know I'm not supposed to be here, but a Demon said something…. Told me Azazel had plans for my sons, that they had strayed off the chosen path and he was going to right that.' John had walked over to Dean's side as he walked and was now stopped at his side looking down at the bruising all over his son's body. Sam's face was pale and stricken in his peripheral; he spotted tears run down his cheeks.
Sinking back in to his seat Bobby ran a hand down his craggy beard. 'Demons lie John, but I guess this once they were right. It had yellow eyes John; I've never seen that before.' Bobby watched his fellow hunter go rigid at those words and eyed him wearily. 'Something you not sharing with us?'
Anger coursed through John's veins. Because taking Mary wasn't enough, or eluding him at every turn of a corner that John hoped would bring him closer to vengeance Azazel had threatened his son's life, beaten him within an inch of it. And John had run away like a burned child because his son didn't want him there, he could have ended this if he only could have been there; protected his son!
'Is this Dean Singer?' They all whipped around at the sound, causing the young orderly to look like a stunned deer in the headlights as he motioned to Dean. 'Am I interrupting something, I need to take Dean for a scan.' He skittered forward and starting removing the leads from Dean's forehead.
'You have the right one.' Bobby assured the orderly, moving out of his way. 'How long will the scan take?' Bobby asked.
'Shouldn't be more than half an hour, it's just a quick CT.'
'Thank you.' They watched Dean get wheeled from the room, IV's and tubes positioned around his bed as he was taken away from them. When the hunters were alone again the room was shrouded in silence as they stared down at the floor. 'I'm going to see Linda again, try and talk her in to changing her mind about what she saw.' Bobby turned to Sam. 'I promised her an update on Dean anyways; did you want to come see her?'
Looking up at his surrogate father Sam felt tears well in his eyes and looked away. 'What do I say Bobby? Should I apologise or something, it's not fair.' He leant forward and rested his face on Bobby's shoulder, crying. 'I know it ain't fair son but we didn't know, best we can do is just offer our support.'
'What happened?' John asked, confused and out of the loop.
'Yer son was gonna be a daddy, till that Demon tossed Linda through the air and she landed on something that took that away from them both.' The entire colour left John's face and for a moment Bobby was convinced the man was going to pass out on them but he kept his composure and nodded stiffly, accepting the news.
SPNSPNSPN
If it wasn't for the way she twitched every now and then, Sam would have sworn Linda was a corpse the way she was lying there with her eyes open and blank; staring at something they couldn't see on the ceiling. It was unnerving and Sam just wanted to run away from that horrible look and the clammy feeling of Linda's small hand inside his as he squeezed it comfortingly. Nobody knew what to say, they had filled her in on Dean after she had asked but now she had gone still and nonresponsive.
Doctors had come in shortly after they had; liquids had been inserted in to Linda's IV line and the fight had left her battered body. If it weren't for the livid bruises around her swollen neck you wouldn't have known Linda was injured beneath the heavy blankets cloaking her. They looked painful and raw, causing her voice to be a hoarse croak whenever she spoke. Her parents were across the bed, staring down at their daughter sadly. Sam watched as Linda's mum wiped a stray tear from her own cheek.
Bobby was close with Linda's dad and the two men were standing across the room talking, introducing John as an uncle to avoid suspicion or confusion. Linda had been shocked to see John there, remembering the incident three years ago all too clearly, but then the doctors had administered their drugs and everything was okay again.
Swallowing thickly Sam let go of Linda's hand and announced he was going to check on Dean, see if he was back in his room. He kept finding himself looking down at Linda's stomach and seeing it swollen and pronounced with the life of a child. Dean's child, he would have been an uncle. Uncle Sammy. He could have lived with that.
Outside the room he wiped away the tears and headed for Dean's with hope that he was back from the scan. Bobby said they had to leave when visiting hours were over so they only had fifteen more minutes. That was all he would need to try and will Dean to wake up and be okay, though he dreaded his brothers reaction to the news the baby was lost. He had risked his own life to let Linda get help first to save the baby.
'Sam why are you wandering the halls like a lost puppy?' Doctor Brody took up stride beside the youngster and looked at him quizzically.
'Oh I was just heading over to see if Dean was back from his scan yet.' Sam answered.
'Well I think I shall join you, he should be back by now. He had a mild seizure during the scan I hear so I would like to look him over again.' Sam just nodded, fear flickering across his features.
'Could he be left with permanent damage from this, like seizures for the rest of his life?' Sam asked softly, afraid of the answer.
'That is a real possibility I am afraid.' Brody answered voice soft. 'But Epilepsy is a very easily treated thing these days; there are a lot of medications that we can use to maintain a normal life again.' Sam just nodded. 'Try not to stress too much about this Sam, we are doing our best for your brother. Right now he just needs rest and hope, if the swelling goes down alone he should heal up well. I think what we need to worry about when he does- if he does- wake up is his reaction to the emotional wounds of losing an unborn child.'
Sam stopped walking and looked at the doctor with wide, watery eyes. 'It's going to kill him.' He whispered. Brody didn't doubt those words at all.
'We will help him through that too.' The doctor offered.
Sam shook his head though. 'Only one thing will fix this, and it can't be found in a medical journal.' Sam silently resigned himself over to the fact that this would untimely welcome them back in to the hunting world. Dean was not going to stand down and let this go, he would take on an agenda as violent and furious as his father's to avenge the loss of his unborn child. Sam knew he would and it sent a stab of pain and remorse through him.
He had heard Bobby talking with John, listened to what they were saying. The Demon would get his wish; they would be back on track in the hunting world. Only Sam didn't want to, he understood why Dean would want to go back, and he knew he would, but Sam didn't think he could. He'd made plans, had a future just like Dean was starting to make for himself… maybe he could talk sense in to Dean and make him stay.
Doctor Brody's pager trilled as a code was called over the speaker. 'Sam you need to go back to Linda's room and stay with your father until I send a nurse for you.' Doctor Brody didn't wait for an answer and took off at a run.
Knowing he should do what he was told; Sam looked back towards Linda room and shook his head following the doctor at a run, skidding to a stop out of breath on Dean's floor. His room was surrounded by nurses and doctors; he could hear Brody's clear voice shout clear over the noise of blearing monitors.
'We have sinus rhythm. Wait, he's seizing. I need twenty milligrams of Diazepam now! He's vomiting; turn him on his side now!' Sam stood in the background as he followed the shouted orders of Doctor Brody as they struggled to keep his brother alive. 'Decreased breath sounds in the left lung, manual CPR must have punctured a lung. May have to intubate, call ahead to theatre may have to go in. Temperatures forty degrees, we need cooling blankets now!' The crowd surrounding Dean parted for a moment and Sam caught site of his brother for the first time, turned on his side with a suction tube down his throat to remove vomit and a mask over his opened mouth to supply him with much needed air while Brody cut in to his exposed rib cage and inserted another tube in to his brother's abused body.
Sam turned and vomited in a bin when bloody, watery pus filled liquid spewed from the tube in his brother's chest. 'Someone take him to the guest room please, I also need his father Bobby Singer to be paged and brought here immediately.'
Sam allowed himself to be led away and pulled his phone out as they walked, a warm hand rubbing soothing circles on his back. 'Bobby, you need to come down to Dean's room. Something's happened.' Sam sat down in the chair he was placed in, accepted the water and rinsed his mouth out with it. The nurse placed a kidney bowl in his hands and he spat out the water before taking a small sip to test his stomachs limits.
'Do you need something for the nausea?' The nurse was something to marvel, Dean would be all charming smiles and good looks for this woman with her blonde locks and tan skin, green eyes to rival his own as they probed Sam enquiringly.
'No I should be okay, thank you.' He whispered, embarrassed now. 'Will my brother be alright?' The nurse gave him a sympathetic, sad smile before nodding a little too eagerly.
'The doctors will take care of him; sometimes a patient needs to get worse before their bodies can allow them to get better. I think that's what's happened with your brother.' Sam had heard that before; things need to get worse before they get better. It made sense.
'Thanks.' He leaned back in the chair just as Bobby and John hurried in to the room followed by Doctor Brody whose white lab coat and pale blue shirt were covered in vomit and the bloody pus from the tube. Sam winced and looked away.
'I apologise for being blunt, but I am afraid with the mixture of swelling around your sons brain and the added effects of the fever he has developed and the continuing seizures we will need to operate to relive the pressure. We will have to drill a small hole in your sons skull for the swelling to gain room to happen and take away all the pressure.' Sam's hand shot out and wrapped around Bobby's sweaty one, clasping it tight enough to make the older man wince in pain.
'Mr Singer as you are Dean's legal guardian right now it is down to you to sign the release form so we can operate on him as soon as possible. I need to alert you to the fact this could go wrong, and Dean might not pull through but this is a last resort. Without this Dean could pass in the next hour.' Bobby held his hand out for the form, lips thin and pressed tight against another as he scribbled his signature on the line.
'A chance is better than no chance, do what you have to do to save him.' Bobby shoved the board back at the doctor and turned away, Sam's hand slipped from his as he reached up for signature move, cap slipping backwards as his hands pulled through hair.
'Every damn time Winchester, whenever you are around these kids bad shit happens. I won't take it anymore. You see Dean through this and then you leave again.' John just stood mutely against the wall, looking dangerously close to cry as Bobby wrapped Sam in his arms and let the youngest Winchester cry heavily in to his shoulders.
No matter what this Demon wanted, what he had plans for? Things were not going to go his way; Bobby would make damn sure of that.
TBC
Dun Dun Dunnnnn! Will Dean make it through the surgery? Will he wake up? What will he do about losing the baby? Will he go back to hunting? Will Azazel get his wish and have Sammy back where he wants him? What about John, will he stay or do as Bobby says? Stay tuned for the next chapter and you will find out :D
