A sharp knocking on the front door rouses Dean to consciousness and he gradually opens his eyes halfway. Their bedroom window faces east but the chipboard covering the panes blocks most of the light into the room. He reaches over to the makeshift bedside table - a chair in between the beds - and picks up his watch. Squinting, it takes him a couple of seconds before he can make out the time.
Sam feels Dean move and, in response, turns onto his side and wraps his arm around Dean's to stop him escaping. "Don't get up," he murmurs into the pillow.
Dean smiles as he looks at Sam sharing his pillow. "I was just finding out what the time was."
"What is the time? And was someone knocking on the front door?" Comes the muffled enquiry.
"Seven forty, and yes."
A few moments later: "Dean! Sam! Get your asses down here!"
Sam groans in protest but they follow orders and get up.
Walking into the kitchen minutes later, they see Bobby with two people.
"Boys, meet Paul and Leanne Singleton. This is Sam and Dean Winchester," Bobby says, introducing them all.
"Pleased to meet you," Leanne says, while Paul steps forward to shake their hands.
"Likewise," Dean answers. As he looks between Bobby and Paul, he asks, "So, do you want to fill us in on what kind of trouble you've been having?"
Dean listens to Paul while he makes his way to the coffee pot. Reaching for a mug, he holds it up to Sam and raises his eyebrows. Sam's nod has Dean reaching for another.
After a brief run-down, Paul adds, "I was obviously getting too close, asking too many questions, so she decided to give me something else to focus on."
"Like?" Sam asks.
"Well, it started with Leanne's mystery illness, and then money started disappearing from our account. One day, I was driving Leanne to the doctor, and something just took control of the car; I couldn't steer. We ended up in a ditch, just ten feet away from a concrete bridge pylon." Paul takes Leanne's hand in his as he continues, but in a softer voice. "And then yesterday, we got home and found our dog on the front step, dead, with two effigies leaning against the door, both burnt."
Dean and Sam are silent for a couple of moments.
"How long has this been going on?" Sam asks, looking at Paul.
"About a month. These things weren't happening all the time; sometimes we'd go a week without anything happening. And then, when I realised who was behind it, I went to see her and said that if she left us alone, I'd leave her alone. But she said it was too late to bargain now. I don't even know what kind of spell it is, so I don't know how to reverse it." He looks across the room. "That's when I called Bobby."
"Alright," Bobby jumps in, looking at Paul and Leanne, "we'll have breakfast and then I'll leave you in capable hands while I have a word to her."
Bobby returns to the house within two hours, finding four expectant faces waiting in the library.
"How did it go?" Dean is the first to ask.
"Well, I got the info we needed, and without losing any bodily fluids, so I'd say it was a success."
"How do we reverse this?" Paul asks.
Moving around behind his desk, Bobby's view of Paul becomes obscured by Dean. "Get your ass off my desk," he says shortly. He doesn't see the brief quirk of Dean's mouth. Bobby then continues. "She said that if you and Leanne are within a certain distance of each other - a thousand miles to be exact - you'll continue to have bad luck. Not only that, but the luck will worsen until one of you dies, by which time the spell will have been fulfilled and will automatically disolve. Alternatively, if you two are further than a thousand miles from each other, the spell is broken. So, we need to separate you."
There is silence for a few moments as they absorb the information.
All eyes drift to the Singletons as Paul and Leanne look at each other. Their expressions show a resigned acceptance, prepared to do what it takes.
With a sigh, Paul makes the decision. "How do you want to do this, Bobby?"
"I want Dean to get Leanne out of here and not stop until they're over a thousand miles away," he says, his eyes settling on Dean. He then shifts his attention back to Leanne and Paul. "Paul, I want you to stay here until this thing's over, so we can keep an eye on you. How 'bout you both go home, pack a bag, and meet us back here by..." He looks at his watch and then back to Leanne. "Three. Dean'll get you on the road this afternoon."
Dean stays quiet until after Paul and Leanne leave. "You planning on keeping Sam here with you?" He asks, already knowing the answer.
"Yeah."
"Mind telling me why?" Dean asks reasonably.
Bobby lets his frustration show. "Well, apart from the fact that you are two of the best hunters I know, and it makes sense to have one of you at either end of this thing, I think you could both do with a little time apart."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Sam asks, trying not to get defensive.
Bobby takes a breath. "It means that you need the time to put your..." he searches for the right word, and comes up empty... "relationship into perspective."
In the second it takes for Sam to open his mouth, fully intending to defend that relationship, Dean has turned him by the shoulders and is leading him towards the door.
"Dean," Sam says, a little annoyed at being ushered outside, but not resisting.
Dean doesn't respond. He knows that Sam will turn right around if he doesn't push his little brother all the way to the salvage yard next door, so he does just that.
Sam stops as he rounds the first car and leans heavily against the passenger door, sighing in frustration.
"Just give him time, Sam," Dean says softly, and a little sadly, leaning back against the car and gently pushing into Sam's arm. It wasn't a screaming argument, and the conversation was over before it began, but it left an impression.
Raising his head, he looks at Dean and decides not to pursue it. He takes a breath and exhales noisily. "Yeah, okay," he responds finally, trying to let it go. They are silent with their thoughts for a moment before Sam sighs again. "I guess we should get on the laptop and figure out where you're heading, so you know exactly when you're over the thousand-mile marker."
Dean nods. "Yeah, that'll help." He looks at Sam with sympathy. "C'mon," he says with a tilt of the head.
Walking into their room - having bypassed the library for the moment - Dean pulls off his shoes. "I'm gonna have a quick shower. Then we can find out where I'm going."
Thirty minutes and a couple of grilled cheese sandwiches later, Dean has settled on his destination. He lays back on Sam's - their - bed and closes his eyes. After about a minute of silence, Dean opens his eyes and looks up at Sam, sitting next to him. "What?" He asks, frowning slightly as he sees Sam deep in thought.
Sam looks down. "If Bobby can't learn to accept us..." He trails off, realising he doesn't know how to end that sentence. He doesn't want to acknowledge the possibility. His gaze drops from Dean's and he focuses, instead, on Dean's hands, clasped over his stomach.
"It's a lot for anyone to take in, Sam, especially someone who's essentially been a father to us both. He'll be okay." Don't make it a lie, Bobby, he adds to himself. Dean moves to lie across the bed, resting his head on Sam's thigh. "Promise me you won't give Bobby a hard time while I'm gone. It won't help."
Sam slides his hand across Dean's chest, over the soft, well-worn fabric of his top, and nods. "Yeah," he answers softly.
Dean closes his eyes again, enjoying Sam's touch.
"Hey, don't go to sleep on me; they'll be here soon."
Sighing, Dean opens his eyes and, after a moment, sits up. Then, turning to Sam, he moves slowly to straddle his brother's legs. "I guess we should say our goodbyes now, then." Watching Sam's half-hearted smile, he pins Sam's forearms as he leans in for a long, slow kiss. Moments later, as Dean releases one of Sam's arms to cradle the back of his head, Sam moves and, suddenly, their arms are wrapped around each other.
Sam pulls Dean closer and groans as that results in a rocking motion against each other. Soon after, he reluctantly breaks the kiss and looks into Dean's unfocused eyes. The sight makes him smile. "How are your stitches?" He asks in a whisper.
It takes Dean a second to respond. "I'll say it again, Sammy...what stitches?" He follows the comment with a lazy smile.
Sam's smile matches Dean's before he lightly places his hand over the padding. "Honestly."
"Honestly, they're fine. This," he adds, resting his hand over Sam's, "is minor compared to all the other injuries we've had. I don't even know if it makes it into the top ten."
"Yeah, I know," Sam answers with a small smile.
"I know you know." Then, with a growing smirk, he teases, "You're only worried about them 'cause you wanna do naughty things to me." At Sam's huff of amusement, Dean moves his hand and slides it up Sam's arm, caressing the hard muscles up to Sam's shoulder. From there, it is a short move to the back of his neck as he pulls his little brother to him.
Sam lets himself be pulled closer and their lips meet again. His hands move around Dean, to rest against his shoulder blades, drawing him against his chest, before sliding down to the curve of Dean's lower back. Sam always thought that a woman's lower back was sexy but he quickly realises that Dean leaves them all for dead. The power and the strength, along with the beautiful lines of his brother's body under his hands, has Sam increasing the pressure of his caress down to Dean's waistband, and he moans into the kiss as Dean arches his back.
Dean playfully sucks Sam's bottom lip as he breaks the kiss, and sits back. "C'mon, Sammy, we should get down there," he says with an apologetic smile.
Adjusting their clothes and deeming their lips not too kiss-swollen, Dean picks up his bag and they make their way downstairs.
Presentable as they are, Sam still stands a step behind Dean to hide his obvious arousal.
Dean drops his bag by the front door. He feels Sam behind him and, while they are still out of sight of Bobby, turns on the spot and crowds Sam against the wall. He pushes his palm against the bulge of Sam's crotch and looks into his eyes. "Better stay behind me for a few minutes, Sammy," he says in a whisper. "You could do some damage with that thing."
Sam smiles. "I intend to, but not before you get back."
With a smug smirk, Dean turns and walks into the library, dropping the smile immediately. Approaching Bobby behind the desk, he announces, "I'm gonna take Leanne as far as Flagstaff. That's thirteen hundred miles."
Bobby looks up. "That should do it," he confirms. "You packed?"
"Yeah," he says, just as they hear a car approaching. He turns his head to the window, although he can't see out. "Okay, may as well get this show on the road."
Bobby follows Dean and Sam out of the door and they meet Paul and Leanne by the Impala. Dean opens the trunk and throws his bag in, and then takes Leanne's bag from Paul. He gives the couple a moment to say goodbye, and then approaches them both. "You about ready to go?" He asks Leanne.
"Yeah, I'm ready."
"Okay. Just to let you both know," he starts, speaking to both but looking at Leanne, "the purpose of this road trip is to get you as far apart as possible, as quickly as possible, so we'll be driving all day. We're going to Flagstaff and should be there in forty-eight hours."
Leanne nods and Paul touches her arm to get her attention. "I want you to call me when you've stopped for the night, okay?"
"Promise," she says, cupping his cheek in her hand. Then, with a quick kiss, she steps back and walks around to the passenger door.
"That goes for you, too," Bobby says to Dean.
"Yeah," Dean acknowledges. He gets in the car and Sam comes to lean against the open window. "I'll call you after I talk to Bobby," he says confidentially.
Sam nods and stands up. "See you in a few days." With a tap to the roof, he moves back to Bobby's side.
Dean starts his baby up and, when Leanne gets in and shuts the door, he throws another look at Sam and Bobby, before easing the car over the gravel and out through the gate.