A/N: Hey, y'all. So, LOVE all the reviews. Y'all made my day! I adore you all. And now, the chapter, as promised - drama, fighting, love, cute kids, etc. Next will cover Benders. I think... o.O
And a very special happy, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to FiveForFighting09! I hope you enjoy this chapter, there's lots of cuteness just for you! Thank you so, so much for your continued support. YOU ROCK! *gives jar of cookies* I hope your birthday is wonderful and tons of fun. Now get reading, girl! :D
Disclaimer: I own only my OCs… and my corner of the sandbox.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Currently Untitled
Thunder Creek, Wyoming
Thursday March 30, 2006
Dean walked into the kitchen, momentarily ignoring his exhaustion as he kicked off his boots and hung his coat on the rack. He trudged to the fridge and bent over to search for the dinner Paige said she'd leave in the fridge. He found lasagna already covered on a plate and waiting to be put in the microwave. He did just that, dragging himself to the nearest kitchen chair and wolfing down his dinner.
"Food?" Sam grunted hopefully as he slowly walked into the kitchen, wincing with each step, his hands clutching his ass.
"Fridge," Dean replied, taking his plate to the sink and scrubbing it off before sticking it in the dish washer. He nursed a beer while he watched Sam dragging himself all over the kitchen to make his dinner. By the time Sam settled himself in the seat across from him, he was moaning and groaning like someone was torturing him.
"You are a sadistic asshole," Sam growled through his clenched teeth, his legs and butt flaring with extreme pain at any moment. He felt like he'd had his entire lower body pulverized by a jackhammer. At the current moment, his brother was definitely not his favorite person in the world. "Where is everyone?"
Dean could hear water running upstairs. "Bath time," he said with a shrug. "Probably have all four of them in there."
"Four? In one tub?"
"It's practically a Jacuzzi, dude," he sighed, dumping out the last half of his beer and dropping the glass in the recycle bin. "I'm going to go change and see if Paige and Ally need any help."
Sam grunted in reply and returned to eating his lasagna.
Dean went up the stairs two at a time, pausing at the top to listen. He glanced left to see his bedroom doors thrown wide open, light spilling out from the open bathroom door onto the rug. He slipped silently into the closet and pulled on clean clothes, a simple white T-shirt and a pair of sweat pants. He'd take a shower as soon as the kids were done. He smiled as he heard the babble of all their voices drifting into the hallway.
"Hey," he called out as he neared the door so he wouldn't startle the two women he could hear inside.
"DADDY!"
"Owen, stay IN the bath!" Paige's voice commanded loudly as he entered the large room. He saw the boys in the tub, surrounded by gigantic amounts of thick, fluffy bubbles in the giant tub.
"Hey, boys," Dean greeted them. "Owen, sit down please." Owen did as he asked, beaming up at his parents and his aunt. He bent down to kiss his wife and then bent down to plant a kiss on Sammy, Owen, Brody, and Levi's heads. "Havin' fun?"
"Ubbles," Sammy cheered, holding up huge handfuls of them.
"Thank god you're here," Ally joked. "Now we have an extra pair of hands to hold them still." As she spoke she handed him the bottle of shampoo. "Sammy is next. Do you mind helping us?"
"Nope, not at all," he said as he knelt beside the tub, scrubbing the soap onto Sammy's scalp. "What'd you and mommy do today, buddy?"
"Ish," Sammy replied, grinning.
"Dishes, huh. Did you wash them?"
Sammy nodded. Paige grinned. "He had a mini-bath," she whispered in Dean's ear, making him smile. She returned her attention to Brody when he slipped under the water and came back up in his mother's hands, giggling with glee, bubbles clinging to his chin like a beard.
"Well, we had a long day today," Dean explained to the room at large, bumping shoulders gently with both his wife and his soon-to-be sister-in-law. "Poor Sam probably won't make it from the kitchen to the couch."
"That bad, huh?" Ally snorted, grinning despite herself. Karma was a bitch, after all.
"Oh, yeah. That bad."
"Let me guess – he fought the movement the entire time."
"Yahtzee."
"Yahtzee!" Sammy cheered, throwing his hands up in the air and pegging his mother and his aunt in the face with a mini bubble snowball. Dean laughed outright, even as they both sent him disgruntled looks and wiped their faces.
"Nice aim, buddy! High five!" he chortled, holding his hand up. Sammy slapped it enthusiastically, as did Owen and Levi. "What about you, Lee? Did you and mommy do anything today?"
"Bucato!" Levi cheered happily, slapping his hands on the water.
"Bucato?" Dean repeated, rolling the strange word around on his tongue. He looked to Ally. "What does that mean?"
"Laundry," she translated, using a cup to rinse her son's hair. "I speak to him in both Spanish and Italian so his vocabulary is a little mixed. Bucato is Italian for laundry. Granted, he only knows simple words, but he understands when I speak to him."
"I didn't know that," he admitted, surprised. "You speak Spanish and Italian?"
Ally grinned. "I'm a woman of many talents, brother dearest."
"Thanks for that lovely mental image." Dean rolled his eyes and rinsed Sammy's hair.
"Mama," Levi crooned, holding his hands up. "Agua! Agua!"
"Not now, bapas," Ally replied, rinsing his hair a second time just in case. "Be patient."
"Agua," he repeated in a whine.
"Not yet, mi amore."
"What's bapas mean?"
"Oh," she replied, frowning. "Nothing, really. It's just… a pet name, I suppose. Bapasitos. My brother called Levi that one day. He liked it, so it just… stuck, I suppose. I'm not sure it means anything."
"Hmm."
Ally smiled. "Don't worry. If he starts blabbing in Spanish or Italian, tell him English, and he'll translate it for you."
"Nice to know." He looked at his wife. "Did you know she speaks Spanish and Italian?"
"Yeah," Paige said as she scrubbed Brody with a soft washcloth. "Her and her brother Jeremy both do. So do their parents. I even know a bit of both, enough to communicate roughly, but not enough for fluent fast conversation. Growing up with them, it kind of rubs off. She picked up a lot of German from us, too. And some Gaelic. It's not spoken much anymore, but my great-grandma spoke only to us in Gaelic. Full-blooded Highlander, that one."
"Highlander?"
"Scotland, honey," Paige clarified for him. "Why else did you think my brother had a kilt in his closet?"
"Uh…because he was a freak?"
She slapped him. "Was not. I have one too, except they call it a pleated skirt, not a kilt. And Ally, by the way, can cook up all sorts of awesomely amazing Italian dishes. Her pistachio ice cream is to die for."
"Ice cream, huh?" Dean said, looking over at the brunette. "Well, then, guess I'm happy to welcome you to the family."
"Oh, please," Ally grinned, tweaking his nose. "I've been a part of the family for years."
"This is true…" he trailed off, smiling, and nudged her with his shoulder again. He accepted the towel she handed him and used it to lift Sammy out of the water and bundle him, using the little duck-fashioned hood to scrub his hair dry. "Come on, buddy. Let's go get you dressed for bedtime."
Sammy kissed his cheek and wrapped his arms around Dean's neck, flashing a cheeky smile at Owen's sulky expression. He snuggled into Dean's shoulder. "Lub you, daddy," he said thickly.
"Love you, too, little man," he replied, tickling his soft tummy and laughing when Sammy started thrashing and laughing hysterically.
The almost-two-year old cooperated and allowed him to quickly change his diaper and dress him in his soccer-themed pajamas. "Where's Frankie?" he asked him, looking around the nursery for his son's beloved stuffed bear. He found him in the crib and picked up his son, settling him on his hip and handing him the teddy bear.
Paige emerged from Brody's room, closing the door behind her. "Hey, boo," she said as she nuzzled Sammy's soft cheek affectionately. She sighed and rolled her shoulders. "So how did the drive go?"
"Good," he replied as they headed back downstairs for the annual Friday night movie before bed. "It was successful and we didn't lose any of the herd, which is always a plus. I'm just tired from working all day."
"I believe you," she said. "Come on, Owen," she called. Her almost-five-year-old ran eagerly out of his room, stuffed dog under his arm.
"Toy Story, mommy?" he said hopefully, reaching up to grab Dean's free hand and hold on tight.
"Maybe, buddy. We have to ask Levi first," Paige said, rubbing his head. Ally appeared with Levi jumping up and down excitedly, babbling non-stop. "Toy Story?" she asked her best friend as they walked in a group down the hall and down the stairs. Dean put Sammy down and let him walk with Owen, who was still holding tight to Dean's hand in an almost absent-minded way.
"That work for you, Lee?" Ally asked, scooping her son up to blow raspberries on his stomach.
"Si, mama!"
"Toy Story sounds great," she sighed, kissing Levi's cheek before setting him back on his feet and letting him run off with Sammy into the living room.
"You can go to bed if you want," Paige said, leaning into Dean's side.
"Well, I am pretty tired," Dean admitted, rubbing his eyes. "But, I can't miss out on annual Thursday movie and ice cream night. That's illegal." He grinned and kissed the top of her head. he drew Ally into his other side and looked her in the eye. "You're amazing, you know that?"
"I try," Ally said, a little taken aback by the show of affection, especially when he planted a kiss on her forehead.
"You deserve better than he's treating you right now."
"Um…" she stammered, not knowing how to form a coherent sentence.
"Sam's in the kitchen if you want to talk to him."
Right then, they heard the growl of an diesel engine growing nearer before it paused in the doorway and died altogether. A few moments later, someone knocked twice on the door. More of a pound, really.
"That'll be Jared," she said, seeking temporary escape so she could sort through what had just happened. She disengaged herself from Dean's embrace and headed to the door, opening it and smiling up at Jared. "Hey, good to see you," she greeted him. "And you, too Rachel. Good to see you." She stepped forward to hug the smaller woman.
"You, too," Rachel replied, squeezing tight before letting go.
"Come in, come in," Ally said, ushering them inside. "I see you couldn't miss the sacred movie night, either?" she teased.
"Never," Jared said with a chuckle.
"UNCLE JARED!" young voices screeched at the sound of his voice.
"Excuse me, ladies." He tipped his hat and strode into the living room to dote upon the children.
Ally grinned. "Good man, that one," she said wistfully, nudging Rachel in the side. "You got lucky."
"And don't I know it," Rachel replied, grinning. "You're looking great, Ally."
"Thanks, you too," she replied, slinging an arm over her friend's shoulders. "So have you two picked a date yet?"
"We're thinking July or August. Sometime warm. He'd love to have the wedding here. It's so beautiful. I didn't think I was going to like living here, but after seeing the summers, I just can't resist. Suffering through the winters is totally worth it."
"Yeah, tell me about it. I was raised in California. This is a far cry from California weather. I honestly didn't know how Paige could stand it. you get used to it, though."
"That you do," Rachel agreed with a wide smile. "So have you and Sam decided on a wedding date yet?"
"Well, Sam's not really one for planning. I was thinking the same, June, July, or August. I know I want to have it here on this property. Laid back type of thing, you know. Barbeque, archway in the grass, pool for the kids, temporary dance floor…" she trailed off, a dreamy look on her face. "It would be perfect."
"I agree completely. What about the babies? Do you know what they are yet?"
"Yep. Sam doesn't want to know, or hasn't decided yet. I'm not really sure, to be honest." Ally frowned at that for a minute. "I found out that it's a boy and a girl, though." She pressed her hand to the top of her belly. "The boy is up here, and," she pressed her hand to the lower half of her growing belly, "the girl is down here."
"Oh, how neat," Rachel breathed. "Even after being a nurse, I still love working in the neonatal wing. Just seeing all those little babies makes you so happy. It's probably the happiest place in the whole hospital."
"And what about you? When are you due?"
"November eighth," she replied, smiling. "I don't know if I want to know the gender. I know Jared won't really mind either way, but he'd love to have a son. He's already started working on a nursery. It's pretty dang cute, actually."
"Yeah, Dean does the same thing," Ally commented. "He disappears in there for an hour or two every day and emerges with wood dust and paint all over him, but has declared it off limits. The only people allowed inside are Brad, Noah, Michael, Elliot, and Jared. They're making everything by hand, that much I know. And the paint on his clothes is always soft blue and brown, so I'm assuming the nursery is going to be pretty dang cute."
"Well, if it's anything like Sammy's, that's a given," Rachel said with a half-smile. "Jared's declared it off-limits as well. He let me see the painting, that that's it. He split the walls in half with a divider that's the same wood as the flooring. He'll wait for the actual overcoat to see what the gender is. But he's almost finished the crib and has started work on the dresser."
"These cowboys… I swear, they are men of many talents."
The two women laughed.
"I feel so blessed, though." Rachel smiled wide and looked down at the ring on her finger. "I couldn't have asked for a better fiancé and father for this baby. He's so amazing. Strong as a bull, and stubborn as hell, but generous to a fault and friendly as can be. And his family has been so welcoming."
"The Newbern's, Knox's, Brent's, and Buchanan's are like that," Ally said as she led Rachel into the kitchen to get some water, ignoring her sulking fiancé, who was still seated at the kitchen table. Rachel smiled and waved hello before returning to conversation with her friend. "Friendly, open, nice people, for the most part."
"I'm kind of afraid to meet them all, honestly," Rachel admitted. "Jared's party is Saturday and so many of them are flying out tonight and tomorrow. Jared said there's probably going to be two hundred people there."
"Not including the town," Ally pointed out. "Don't stress. They all seem to like you. It's about time he settled down, anyway, from what Paige has told me. My family will be here, too. They're just a bunch of crazy Italians. Don't worry, you'll be fine. They won't expect you to remember all of their names anyways. Plus, Jared's brothers all pretty much look like him except for Theo. And all of Michael's brothers look very similar, especially because they all wear their hair the same. There's six boys, and I can't even keep them straight." She patted Rachel's hand. "If it's any consolation, it took me four years to keep both her and my families straight. No one will expect more than that."
"Meaning?"
"My family is extremely confusing," Ally explained as she handed Rachel a glass of water and perched on the barstool. "Mostly, because my dad's brother Mike married my mom's sister Amy, so her kids Jonathan and Jackie are my double first cousins. Then they got divorced, both remarried, and have kids from that, too, as well as kids from their spouses previous marriages."
Rachel thought about it for a while. "That's…weird," she decided.
"Yeah, you're telling me," she joked, smiling. "Paige's family is the same way, sort of. Her parents were married for a while. Her mom became an alcoholic after they lost their son Garrett to a poltergeist. Their daughter Claire survived, barely, because she was born almost two months premature. Paige was hurt really badly, too, and was in the ICU for weeks with deep slashes across her abdomen. It's a miracle, and thanks to John Winchester, that either of them are alive today. But that's another story." She paused to study Rachel's reaction, satisfied the young nurse was taking it all in stride.
She gestured for Ally to continue.
"Well, Wendy's alcoholism got really bad. So bad, in fact, that she was verbally abusing her two eldest children, because she for some sick twisted and unknown reason blamed them for Garrett's death, as well as the death of her younger sister Kim, who got in a car accident and died years before either of them were even born. I remember seeing Uncle Brad, Chris, and Paige around that time. She was nine, I remember because it was around Halloween when it all went down. He had had enough and demanded a divorce.
"That escalated into a custody war. Chris and Paige refused to even talk to their mom, and Claire was a total mommy's girl. She was only six when this all went down, poor thing. She had no idea what was going on. In the end, Claire couldn't bear to be away from her mom, so the settlement was that Brad kept full custody of Chris and Paige, and Wendy had half-custody of Claire. Claire came out to visit and stayed all summer, but stayed with her mother for the rest of the year. I hear she's sober, now, and has cleaned up her act, but still harbors bitterness for Brad."
"Why?" Rachel wondered. "And should we be gossiping like this? I feel like an old hen."
"Relax," Ally said, rolling her eyes. "This is ancient news. Nobody really flaps their ears about it anymore. So, as I was saying, Wendy is bitter of Brad. They divorced in nineteen eighty-nine, and Uncle Brad seemed to be happy again. He moved the family out here, to Great-Grandpa Roy Knox's old ranch, because he just adored Chris and Paige. So they grew up here, for the most part. Brad split his time between Wyoming and our dual-family business in California. He'd spend Monday through Thursday in California and the rest of the week at home in Wyoming with the kids. It worked out because the Newbern and Knox families go way back, as in to like, great-great-great-grandfathers or something, like the Newbern's do with my family. Brad and Wendy had dated through high school, you know, lifelong romance sort of thing. Anyway, Brad's family has a ton of land in this valley, too, them being hunters too and all that, so together they founded Thunder Creek. That was way back in the eighteen hundreds.
"So, to get back on topic. There was a woman back in California who was close to my family. My dad, Tony, introduced her to Uncle Brad. She'd been divorced for a few years and had a son and a daughter with her ex-husband, who, coincidentally, was also some sort of addict. Anyway, they became really good friends, and as they say, the rest was history. They got married in nineteen ninety-one, when Paige and I were eleven, Chris was thirteen, Claire was eight, and my little brother Jeremy was eight. Her name is Deborah Jean White, now Deborah Jean Newbern.
"Uncle Brad and Aunt Debbie are super happy together, all mushy and that sort of thing. She stays at home in California, for the most part, now that Paige is grown. Together they had three kids – their son Gunner Trace, or as we tease him, GT, was born in 1992 and is now thirteen, I think; their daughter, Lilly Cassandra, who was born in 1993 and is now twelve; and their youngest son, Garrett Aidan, named for the child Brad and Wendy lost, was born in 1995 and is now ten. Brad continues to run J & J Enterprises along with my father, Tony, and lives in Malibu with his wife and youngest kids," Ally finished.
"So… Paige has how many siblings?" Rachel wondered, struggling to wrap her mind around the concept.
"Chris, Garrett Keith, and Claire are full blooded siblings. Garrett died soon after he was born. Gunner, Lilly, and Garrett Aidan are her half-siblings, because their mom is Debbie. And her step-siblings are Travis and Carolyn, who are the children from Debbie's first marriage. Deb severed all ties with her ex-husband and her two kids now have the Newbern surname. So she's got seven, but since the baby Garrett died, she's got six."
"How utterly confusing."
"Don't even get me started on the step- and half- cousins," she threatened. "If you'd like to have a scope of just how big this family is, consider this. Wendy Knox came from a family of four, and had four children. Her mother, Sharon, came from a family of six. And Wendy's great-grandmother Lita came from nine, and her husband Roy came from a family of eleven. And that's just one branch of Paige's family tree."
"So is that where Jared fits in, then?"
"Yes," Ally said, nodding. "Good. Sharon has three sisters and three brothers. The middle brother, Peter, is Jared's father."
"I'll remember this eventually."
"Good luck with that."
They were quiet for a minute, sipping their water. Rachel was looking discreetly between Sam and Ally, wondering at the stony silence the couple was displaying and also the fact that Allyson wasn't wearing her engagement ring.
"So, uh, have you decided what to name the twins yet, then?" she hedged, noting how Sam's head snapped up in her peripheral vision and his fork stilled halfway to his face.
"No, not yet," Ally said absently, trailing her finger around and around the lip of her glass. "It's up in the air at the moment. I've got a few in mind. Levi's even helping." She smiled suddenly at the mention of the almost-two-year old. "He's so excited to be a big brother. All he talks about is how he gets to be like his cousins. He wants a little brother so badly."
"What does he want to name them?" she asked, lips curving into a smile at the possibilities.
Ally grinned. "Well, he really, really likes Woody, because then he'll be like the character in Toy Story, which is, you know, his favorite movie," she said. "He'll tell you that matter-of-fact, too, if you ask." She glanced at the clock and frowned. "LEVI! Time to take your medicine!"
"Medicine?" Rachel parroted as Levi came charging into the kitchen, detouring towards Sam the second he saw him with an excited cry of "DADDY!" Rachel excused herself and left to search for her fiancé.
"Hey, you," Sam greeted the boy, scooping him up one armed to nuzzle his cheek. "Mmm, you smell good."
Levi daintily sniffed Sam's shirt and promptly giggled. "Smeh horsey," he announced, wrinkling his nose.
"Well, you smell like flowers," he countered, nuzzling his cheek again.
"Noooooo!" Levi protested, horrified, eyes wide as he stared up at his father.
"Just kidding. You smell like baby oil."
Levi puckered his lips, brown furrowing in thought. Ally lifted him out of Sam's arms and set him gently on the counter, kissing the wrinkle between his brows and rubbing noses with him. His forehead was cool now.
"What's wrong with him?" Sam asked quietly from right behind her. She jumped and spun around, having not heard his approach.
"He had a bit of a fever around lunchtime," Ally said as soon as she recovered. "I gave him some Tylenol a few hours ago, and was going to give him some more now. Hopefully he'll be fine by tomorrow. He's been coughing and wheezing a lot, too." She measured out the amount with the little cup and watched to make sure Levi took all of the grape-flavored liquid.
"Yum," Levi grinned, holding the cup up. "Movie?" he asked hopefully.
"Yep," Ally assured him, lifting him down off the counter. "We'll be right in, buddy."
Levi raced off to the living room again to join the rest of his family. Ally paused in the doorway to look at Sam, standing silently where she'd left him. "You coming?" she asked softly, eyes scrutinizing his expressionless face. His eyes were filled with pain, and she found her feet taking her across the kitchen until she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "Still with us, Sam?"
His arms constricted around her, resting his cheek on the top of her head and exhaling slowly, letting the tension flow out of him completely. "Yeah, I'm still here," he promised.
"Good."
The living room lights dimmed just as they entered. There was one couch and two loveseats angled around the giant television. Dean and Paige were curled up together on one of the loveseats, her cheek resting on his chest, his arm around her waist. Jared and Rachel were similarly cozy in the other loveseat, while all four of the kids were piled onto the giant couch, curled up in their warm cocoon on blankets and fluffy pillows.
Ally sat down on the unoccupied part of the couch, reaching over to ruffle Sammy's hair and laughing when her nephew stuck his tongue out at her. She glanced over to make eye contact with Paige, who rolled her eyes in reaction to her son's antics. Dean's eyes were closed, his head resting on the fluffy pillow he was leaning on.
"Daddy, do I still get my surprise tomorrow?" Owen asked suddenly as the opening credits for Toy Story started.
"Yes, Owen," Dean replied, not opening his eyes.
Satisfied, the kids settled back to watch one of their all-time favorite movies.
xxx
Paige blinked and jerked awake, startled, squinting up at Dean, who was leaning over her. She glanced around to find Sam passed out on the couch and the kids not in sight.
"Hey, you fell asleep," he whispered as she sat up. "The movie's over. I put the kids to bed."
"Oh," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me," he ordered softly as he bent down to kiss her. "They're my kids too, you know."
"I do know, actually," she retorted, getting slowly to her feet. "I happen to remember your helping me create them. And then having to carry them around for nine months and squeeze something the size of a watermelon out something the size of a grapefruit. Fun times." She rubbed her eyes. "What time is it?"
"Eleven fifteen."
"Wow."
"I know. I'm exhausted." He puckered his lips. "I think it's my bedtime."
She snorted and followed him up the stairs. Already in her pajamas, it was simple for her to just curl up on her side of the bed while he disappeared into first the closet and then the bathroom. He emerged ten minutes later, water dripping down the contours of his bare chest. She recognized the fatigue coming off him in waves, and by the time he settled into bed beside her, he could barely keep his eyes open.
"You okay?" he mumbled, reaching out for her in the darkness. His warm fingers brushed her hips, pulling her gently back against him. "Did the boys behave today?"
"The boys were great," she replied, absently tracing patterns on the arm he'd wrapped around her. "We just hung out outside and played games and went to Jay's for lunch with Jared and Rachel."
"Sounds fun."
"It was. We missed you today, though."
"Likewise. Long drive without you to keep me company."
Paige smiled at that and shifted into a more comfortable position, evening out her breathing. "Go to sleep, Dean," she told him quietly, closing her eyes.
"Doctor's appointment?"
"Tomorrow at one."
Warm lips pressed tenderly against the nape of her neck. "G'night, love," he said, and before she could even reply his breathing evened out and his entire body relaxed into sleep, just like that.
She followed him into oblivion.
Thunder Creek, Wyoming
Friday March 31, 2006 – 3:23 am
"I need you to stay in here and be very quiet, okay?"
"Momma, what's goin on?" he pleaded, holding tight to his baby brother as his mother settled him gently in the corner of the closet. "I'm scared."
"Don't be, sweetheart," his mother soothed, running a hand through his hair. "You just keep Nicky quiet, okay? Can you do that for momma?"
He nodded, pulling his baby brother half into his lap. "Where you goin?" he whispered, holding tight to her hand, not wanting the door to close.
"It's going to be dark, sweetheart," she whispered back, bending down to kiss both he and his brother on the top of the head. "Mommy's going to go downstairs, okay? You just say in here and be real quiet. The quiet game. Whoever says quietest the longest wins."
"Okay," he whispered brokenly, not understanding why his heart was pounding.
Her hands settled on his face, grip almost painfully tight, her thumbs swiping across his cheeks as if memorizing his face. "I love you, baby."
The door clicked shut behind her, and he was alone in the closet with his baby brother.
"Don't worry," he whispered against his brother's downy hair. "I got you. It's gonna be okay."
Time passed. The closet was dark and so, so scary. There was only a beam of light for underneath the door, and it was an itty bitty sliver. He knew his brother was asleep, but he stayed awake, eyes glued on the space beneath the door, waiting for his mommy to come back and tell him that he won and could have ice cream with Nanny Sally after dinner.
But she never came. Instead, something crashed against the door with slamming force, rattling the air and making both of them whimper in terror. Two more strikes, and the door flew open to reveal a tall man dressed in a business suit, his yellow eyes gleaming evily.
"Well, now, why are you two hiding? It's time to come out and play!"
Owen snapped awake, his chest heaving, his heart pounding a frantic beat inside his chest. He glanced quickly around his room, arms constricting so tightly around his teddy bear Coco – a gift from Dean – that the bear's head was distorted. Everything was normal. The closet was closed, and his soccer-themed room had nothing out of the ordinary. His rug was exactly as it had been before, his toys were piled neatly in bins, his dresser stood as a silent vigil beside the door with his soccer nightlight beside it, giving a very soft yellow glow to his surroundings.
He rolled right out of bed, his feet getting tangled in the bedspread so that he tumbled face-first to the floor, only Coco keeping him from banging his nose. He kicked himself free frantically, flashing back to the dream, and stumbled to his door, yanking it open.
And promptly closing it again.
The hallway was pitch black.
He glanced to the top of his dresser, where the plastic thing said 3:23. He wasn't sure what that meant, but guessed it was early cuz he couldn't hear his mommy in the kitchen downstairs and knew she probably wouldn't be up for a long time still. He took a few shuddering breaths.
Daddy and mommy were at the end of the hall. Maybe, if he asked super nice, they'd let him crawl up in bed with them. But the hallway was long and super dark and maybe if the yellow eyed guy grabbed him he wouldn't be able to scream loud enough and then he'd have Brody easily.
Dean would want him to be strong. His daddy would want him to be strong, because that's who Dean was now. So he carefully eased the door open, judged the distance down the shadowed hallway, and made a mad dash down the hall, fumbling with the handle a minute before sprinting across the room to the bed. He clamored up onto the chest thing at the foot of bed, but his foot slipped and he knocked one of the items off, which made a metallic thud as it hit the floor.
There was a sudden movement and a flash of silver. "Who's there?" a cold, menacing voice demanded.
"D-Daddy?" he squeaked, and the silver glint disappeared. A light clicked on, blinding him, and he squinted against it, clutching harder at Coco. His eyes focused in an instant, to find his daddy laying with the covers at his waist, propped up on one elbow and peering at him with a confused expression. His mommy was also looking at him, concern wrinkling her brow. He noticed that they were nestled together so that mommy's back was resting against daddy's tummy, and her belly was peeking out from her shirt. He longed to burrow into the warm space between them and feel safe again.
"Owen, baby, are you okay?" Dean asked gently, seeing the obvious terror the four year old was displaying and the tear tracks down his cheeks. "What happened?"
"Nightmare," Owen hiccupped, trying to keep his hands from shaking.
Dean lifted the blankets up and put some distance between him and his wife as Paige rolled over and held her arms out.
"Come on, baby," she encouraged, and he bolted across the bed, stumbling in his haste, a strong hand reaching out to brace against his chest and steady him before he wiped out on Paige's stomach.
"Easy, dude," Dean murmured as Owen burrowed into Paige's arms, curled into a super-tight ball to compensate for the lack of room her baby bump presented and shaking so hard his teeth clacked together. Dean clicked the light off again and pulled the comforter back up to cover the three of them, settling himself as close as physically possible to the warmth of his wife and child. His hand reached out, resting on their baby, before moving to rest instead on Owen's back and rub soothing circles.
"Y-Yellowed eyed guy was going to hurt Brody," he sniffed, snuggling into his mommy's embrace and relaxing further when his daddy's hand started rubbing his back.
"Nobody is going to hurt Brody, Owen," Dean promised quietly, rubbing a hand quickly through the boy's hair.
"Just go back to sleep," Paige soothed, kissing his forehead. "The monsters won't bother you as long as daddy and mommy are here."
"Daddy?" Owen whispered after a long and peaceful silence.
"Hmm?" a sleepy grumble inquired, his arm stretching across the small space to rest at his wife's back, effectively trapping the boy protectively and securely between them. He kissed the top of Owen's head and his wife's forehead.
"Is today Friday?"
"Yeah, Owen. And you get your surprise later. So go to sleep now."
"Okay."
Dean waited for Owen's breathing to calm and level out before he, too, allowed himself to sleep with the comfortable weight of his knife beneath his pillow and his family by his side.
xxx
Paige awoke at her normal time of five forty-five to find them in the same position as they'd been a few hours ago. She smiled and quietly watched her husband and son sleep, faces relaxed and breathing deep as they slumbered in blissful abandon. Here, like this, Dean's face looked so much younger than normal, to his true age of twenty-seven. His eyelashes were a dark sweep against his pale cheeks, dark circles smudged under his eyes.
Owen was sleeping with his body wedged between the two of theirs. Dean's arm was slung across both her and their son, his relaxed hand resting on the small of her back. Owen's left arm was curled upwards so that his loose fist rested under his chin, fingers brushing his cheek, and his right arm was resting on his stomach, his little hand a warm weight on her baby bump. Owen's head was tucked under Dean's chin, his cheek pressed against the base of Dean's throat. He looked better than he had last night – poor little guy had been as white as a ghost – his cheeks a normal pink color. And together the both of them looked so sweet and relaxed and innocent that she really wished she had a camera in hand to capture the image.
The four year old might not be theirs by blood, but he had blonde hair slightly lighter than Sammy's, and hazel eyes similar to Dean's, just with blue and brown mixed with the green, instead of brown and gold. His face promised to be rugged in adulthood, already represented by the slant of his eyebrows, the line of his strong nose, and the chiseled cut of his jaw. She suspected that his full lips would be the subject of many a daydream later on in life, much like Dean. And besides all that, now that he was in her life, she couldn't imagine it without him.
All she could hope for was that he wouldn't freak when the social worker who'd contacted her early yesterday afternoon came for their first scheduled visit next Tuesday. Although, in all honesty, it was a little late for him to be going anywhere else – he already called them "mommy" and "daddy", and referred to Sammy as "little brother" and Sam and Ally as "aunt" and "uncle", heck, even referred to Jared and Rachel as such, as well as Noah and Michael. And Brody had become Brody, and in Owen's mind he was now Owen and not Matthew anymore.
There was a familiar sensation on the back of her neck and she looked up to find Dean's eyes open and watching her.
"Like what you see?" he murmured jokingly, half-smirking.
"Wouldn't have married it if I didn't," she replied, just as softly. Their faces were only a few inches apart so she wasn't surprised when his lips moved with hers in a gentle kiss.
"Don' t you have a surprise for a certain someone today?"
"Mmm, I do," he admitted. He carefully eased away from Owen and stood, stretching so that his joints popped and relieved all the tension in his still-exhausted body. She watched with appreciation as his muscles rippled in all their glory, partly for her benefit, she was sure. "I'm gonna go take a shower. I'm meeting Jared at the barn at six fifteen to get the surprise started." He winked and disappeared into the bathroom, the shower starting moments later. He finished with that and emerged fully dressed, bent down to kiss her again and more thoroughly now that his teeth were clean, and straightened, settling his black Stetson on his head.
"I'm going to go milk the cows and get the eggs," he told her before disappearing out the door.
She lay in comfortable warmth for a few minutes while the clock neared six. "Mommy?" Owen said sleepily, rubbing his eyes and looking up at her.
"Good morning, sweetheart," she replied, kissing his forehead. "No more nightmares?"
He shook his head solemnly, tucking his face under her chin.
"Want to come help me make breakfast?"
Owen brightened slightly at that, though he was still far from being awake. She compromised by giving him a piggy back ride, his chin resting on her shoulder and arms hanging down over her shoulders.
"Where we going?" he wondered as she veered left and away from the stairs.
"To get Aunt Ally and Uncle Sam out of bed," she replied, reaching out to open the door. Ally was already putting her hair up in an easy ponytail and shrugging on a tank top big enough to compensate for her belly.
"Morning," she greeted them, smiling. "Sam's on the couch," she said by means of explanation for Sam's obvious absence. Together, the three of them headed downstairs to the kitchen, where Paige sat Owen up on the island and the two women started mulling about in the kitchen. Dean appeared with a pail of Milk and a pail of eggs, setting them on the table before pecking Ally on the cheek, kissing his wife for a third time, planting a kiss on the top of Owen's head, and grabbing his work gloves off the rack beside the door.
"I'm off to feed the circus," he said, tipping his hat. "I'll be in soon. Don't forget it's Friday, so Ty and Chuck are eating breakfast with us, too."
Paige kissed him again, just long enough for the feel of his lips to make her toes curl. "It's been a tradition since I was eleven, Dean," she sighed, patting his cheek. "Now off you go to feed my horses."
Dean gave her a slap on the butt and grinned cheekily before hurrying out the door before she could retaliate.
"That man…" Paige muttered as the grabbed the pail of milk and eggs.
"Is a sarcastic smart-a …amateur," Ally finished lamely as she remembered Owen was sitting on the Island quietly grading cheese.
Paige snorted. "Nice," she said, elbowing her friend. The pair worked in familiar quiet, occasionally chattering while they went about making the usual food.
Sam appeared in the kitchen doorway, rubbing his eyes sleepily. "G'morning," he greeted them sleepily. "Where's Dean?"
"Feeding the horses," Paige replied, cracking eggs into the pan. "So how sore are you?"
Sam smiled, though his expression was more of a grimace of pain. "I don't want to talk about it."
"Ouch."
"Tell me about it." Sam sighed and moved across the kitchen to hold his fiancé's face in his hands, bend down, and proceed to attack her lips with his.
"Yuck," Owen mumbled, making a face and looking away. He looked up at his mom. "Why are you guys always kissing each other? It's yucky."
"That's what you do when you love somebody, buddy," Paige said, tweaking his nose. "So are you ready for your surprise today?"
Owen nodded, excitement creeping forth. "Is it gonna be awesome?" he wondered.
"With your dad, awesomeness is pretty much guaranteed," she assured him, lifting him down. "Why don't you go get dressed so you're ready to go after breakfast?"
That was enough to send Owen racing off up stairs. Right then, Ally and Sam pulled apart, Sam smirking cockily and heading for the coffee pot, Ally looking stunned.
"So, uh, how was that lovely wakeup call?" she wondered, tone dry and eyebrow raised. "Enough tongue action for you?"
"Hello, hypocrite much?" Ally replied, voice just as dry as she recovered her wits. "And good morning to you, too, Sam."
Sam made a noncommittal grunting noise from his perch at the table, absently flipping through the newspaper searching for an interesting story.
"Can you go get the kids up and ready?" Ally called over her shoulder.
Sam set his coffee cup down, story forgotten. Any chance to redeem himself, he'd take in stride. "Sure," he said instantly, standing despite the extreme pain the moment caused. He hadn't been this sore since the Navy-SEAL type training his dad had put him through at age fifteen. He bounded up the stairs two at a time to do just that.
"You're sending the mushroom head to get three kids ready?"
Paige and Ally both jumped, whirling around to find Connie seated in the space Owen had just vacated, a pinch of graded cheese making its way to her mouth.
"Well, good morning, Connie," Paige said dryly. "Phone call?"
Connie shrugged. "When you can teleport anywhere, what in the heck is the point of a phone? Waste of time, really." She smiled. "So, you never did tell me what you wanted me to do with the target you asked me to find."
"Ah, about that," she said, turning the heat off the scrambled eggs and moving them back a burner, sprinkling them with shredded cheese and covering the pan. "Sam's in the need of a serious wake-up call. Think you could work your… charm… and get his mind convinced he needs to come here for a visit? And before you ask, I think we both know how he'll react to being teleported everywhere."
"Badly," Connie amended, nodding in agreement. "Can do. And my reward?"
"Free breakfast."
"Sweet. But I'll pass. There's something I have to do." And Connie disappeared as suddenly as she'd come.
"We need to put a bell on her or something," Ally grumbled. "And what was that about?"
"I asked her to find John. She did."
"What about John?" Sam said as he re-entered the kitchen with a grinning Levi on one hip and half-asleep Brody on the other.
"Oh, nothing, just my Marine cousin," Ally covered smoothly. "Jonathan. He's coming today. I'm super-excited, I haven't seen him in almost a year and a half, he's been in Iraq with his unit."
"Oh, cool," he commented before diverting all his attention to the kids.
"Nice save," Paige mouthed, grinning.
Ally winked, and the two of them returned to cooking.
Paige glanced down when she felt a hand tugging at her pants to find Brody standing there, using them as leverage to stay standing. "Hey, bubba," she greeted him, bending over to kiss the top of his head. When she straightened again, however, she noticed something dismaying.
"What?" Ally said as soon as she saw her best friend's face. She mimicked what Paige was doing and suddenly was dismayed as well, the both of them standing facing each other looking down at their feet.
Dean entered to find the scene and hurried over to his wife's side. "What's wrong?" he demanded, looking between the two pouting women.
"Aww," Paige sighed, lower lip jutting out. She looked up at Dean, to find his gaze slightly panicky. She pointed to the ground in explanation. "I can't see my toes." He relaxed visibly, rolled his eyes, and laughed.
"Me, either," Ally mumbled, hands on her hips. "Why'd I have to get pregnant with twins, anywhoo? I'm going to be twice your size by month eight."
"That's why chicks pregnant with twins get bed rest. Have fun with that."
"Why do you always have to be so bitchy…"
"Shut up, you know you love it," Paige bantered back, rolling her eyes.
"Oh, it's really cute. Until someone gets a concussion."
"That was that one time, Allyson, and just because Jeremy doesn't duck fast enough does not make it my fault."
"It was too!"
"You swung a guitar at his head!" Paige protested, laughing. "How's that my fault?"
"He chucked a toaster oven at me! What was I supposed to do, throw the fridge?"
Sam and Dean looked back and forth between their partners, trying to keep up with the conversation. "You got any idea, Sammy?" he wondered.
"Not a bit. What the hell are they talking about?"
"Heck," he corrected. "And I have no clue."
Breakfast was a busy affair, as usual, especially with Ty and Chuck joining it. Owen was dressed up in full cowboy regalia in preparation for his surprise, which Dean personally thought was adorable. He was proudly wearing John Bradley's old ropers and the brand-new brown leather Stetson they'd bought for him after the dinner in town a few nights back.
Dean was excited to see Owen's reaction. Ty and Chuck excused themselves as a truck pulled up out front and Jared's voice was heard through the open window. "Ready, buddy?" he said, looking down at Owen and settling the Stetson on his head. "Comin', Sam?"
"Yeah, yeah. Riding lessons. Woo." Sam put his plate in the sink as the women herded the younger kids upstairs for clothing and diaper changes.
Owen stayed close to Dean's side as he opened the door to the porch and descended the steps.
"Hey, bud," Jared greeting him, holding up a hand that Owen slapped a hard high-five at. He crouched in front of him and flicked the end of his hat. "Ready?"
The four year old nodded excitedly and followed his daddy, Uncle Sam, Uncle Jared, Ty, and Chuck around the big truck and towards the arena. There were three horses tethered inside the massive ring. He recognized Sergeant easily.
"There's my horse, Sergeant," Dean said, pointing, as he opened the gate. All three horses looked over at them, ears pricked for the promise of exercise and treats afterwards. "That big palomino is the horse Uncle Sam's going to be riding, Donas. And this paint pony, here, is named Patch."
"Patch?" Owen repeated as he was led over to the docile looking brown-and-white splotched pony. He held his hand up, which Patch sniffed and snuffed at, before nuzzling his hair and whickering softly.
"He's yours," Dean said, beaming down at him.
Owen's eyes flew wide, a huge grin spreading across his face. "Mine?" he gasped, looking up at the docile paint with awe and love. "Really, daddy?"
"Really," he promised. "But since he's yours, you have to take care of him. Ride him, lunge him, turn him out, feed him, clean his stall, all of it. This is the gift mommy and I got you for your birthday."
"But my birthday's not for a few weeks."
"Well, it's close enough. Consider Patch an early gift." His heart warmed at the happiness the almost-five-year-old was radiating. "So, do you want to ride him?"
Owen nodded excitedly.
Dean reached over and untied the reigns from the fence, leading Patch into the center of the ring. "Alright, first, you have to put the reigns over his head, like this." He demonstrated, and had Owen repeat the motion. "This is the stirrup, where your feet go. Don't ever take your feet out of these." He waited for the nod before moving on. "Now, to mount, you put your left foot in the stirrup, grab the saddle horn and the seat, and swing up onto his back. Patch is too tall for you to do that now, though, so we'll use the fence."
As soon as he was in the saddle, Owen sat wide-eyed, feet in the stirrups, reigns clutched in both hands.
"One hand, buddy," Dean instructed, showing Owen how to grip it. "To get him to turn left, you pull the reigns over so that they touch the right side of his neck." He did so, and Patch sidestepped to the left. "It's the opposite if you want to go right." He did so again, and Patch sidestepped right this time, ears flicking back and forth as he listened to Owen's commands. "Now, Patch is sturdy, buddy. He won't ever bolt or rear or try to buck, so you can learn on him and maybe compete with him. He's a good horse."
Owen was grinning now, more comfortable in his position. He could hear his siblings and cousin the outside playpen, and spotted his mommy and Aunt Ally on the fence line. Jared and Ty and Chuck were sitting on the fence watching as Sam mounted, followed by Dean, who was pleased to see Owen was waiting for further instructions and Patch was waiting calmly for a command.
"Just wait there, okay?" he called, and Owen nodded, reaching forward to gently pat Patch's neck. "Okay, Sam. I want you to do four laps of fast walking to warm him up, and then do some trotting and then I'll adjust all your seating issues."
Sam didn't argue, just nudged his horse awkwardly to circles around the arena.
Dean nudged Sergeant to a trot and halted him beside Patch. "Okay, buddy. Now just give him a super-light tap with your heels." Owen obeyed, and Patch moved forward into a smooth and steady walk. "Just get a feel for it."
Owen nodded again, looking up at him. "Daddy, this is awesome," he declared, grinning hugely.
He nodded agreement. "That it is, son," he said, patting him on the shoulder. He watched Owen as he rode. He was relaxed and comfortable, completely trusting in the fact that he was right beside him in case something, anything, went wrong. He sat up straight and tall, arm held out so that his elbow rested on the saddle horn, mimicking the pose he was in currently. His heels were down slightly and his legs snug against Patch's sides.
He knew another natural when he saw one.
Jared was saying the same thing to Paige as they passed by. He heard the telltale clicking that meant Ally and Paige both had their cameras out, but was having too much fun to care.
"Can I trot, daddy?" Owen asked hopefully, squinting up at him.
"Let's wait for Uncle Sam." They halted their horses until Sam came around the turn, Donas going at a steady trot, just as Dean had instructed. He was wincing each time his butt hit the saddle, his savaged muscles still tight with tension and soreness.
"And…now," Dean said, tapping his heels to Sergeant's sides twice and setting him off at a smooth and comfortable trot, keeping a watchful eye on Owen as Patch did the same. He bounced up and down like any other rider would, his hips relaxed and absorbing the movement and momentum instead of sitting still and stiff like Sam currently was.
"See that, Owen," he said, pointing to Sam. "That is how you don't want to ride."
Owen giggled, finding that the trot was a lot of fun and not too bouncy to sit.
"Sam, for the millionth time, relax your hips, let them move with the movement of the horse. Lower your hand, too, you're pulling on his bit, that's why he's prancing every fifth step."
Sam struggled to do as Dean instructed.
"Hey, Jared, want to take over for me with Sam?" Dean called. Jared nodded and jumped down off the fence, having Ty help him lower the trailer ramp so that he could offload his giant chestnut gelding Scout. The gelding was already tacked up, making it easy for Jared to just swing into the saddle and head into the ring, Ty closing the gate behind him.
"I'll take the back half with Sam," Jared said as he trotted by Dean. "I'll just have him do circles and work on saddle position and hand position and stuff like that."
Dean nodded agreement. "Pull Patch in a big circle now, buddy," he ordered Owen. Owen did as he asked, using Dean and Sergeant as a focal point, as they were halted in the center of where the circle needed to be.
"Can I canter, daddy?" Owen called as he passed by on another loop.
"Go for it, bud, but be sure to grip with your knees and down into your seat so you don't fall, okay? Give him a cluck to get him going."
Owen clucked expertly, and Patch was gliding around the arena in a smooth canter, the boy on his back laughing joyfully, free hand thrown wide to catch the breeze. Dean grinned at the freedom in the scene and the budding love between the boy and his horse.
Sam watched his nephew and felt a bit of jealousy rise… the kid was a dang natural, while he looked like a crash-car dummy strapped to the saddle, and Dean and Jared were friggin experts who didn't even need reigns or a saddle, really.
Dean dismounted and led Sergeant over to the fence, removing his saddle and blanket and setting them on the fence. "Time for some bareback work, buddy," he sighed, using the fence as a mounting block to settle himself on the stallion's broad, warm back. He nudged Sergeant to a canter and did circles with Owen, while the onlookers watched in awe at the grace and horsemanship being displayed by the two cowboys and the young boy.
"You proud, Paige?" Ally asked, grinning hugely. "Who'd have thought that boy had amazing horse sense?"
"Well, I guess he gets it from his daddy," Paige said with a warm grin, watching her husband and eldest son working together. "Dean will be hard pressed to keep him out of the barn, now. If he's anything like me, Owen's going to want to sleep in the barn with him tonight."
xxx
At one, Paige and Dean left for her appointment, leaving Sam and Owen in the capable hands of Jared, Ty, and Chuck. It was a short drive, where they chatted about how easily Owen had taken to horses, and about how they hoped Sammy and Brody would be the same, because horses were amazing animals whose friendships lasted a lifetime.
By the time they actually got into the room, both of them were a little jittery, and not without reason.
Paige fidgeted on the table, partly because she had learned to hate hospitals in the last year, and partly because she was terrified what the tests were going to show. Dean was sitting beside her, his hand wrapped around hers, offering reassurance. The both of them were terrified… this was the test that would tell them in greater detail if their unborn son had suffered any damage as a fetus from Paige's ordeal.
Dean's heart was pounding unevenly and he felt hot all over. If he hadn't learned to control his emotions, his hands would be shaking. Sure, he might be terrified on the inside, but he wasn't about to show that to her, because she was already pale. He stroked his thumb down her wrist, resting it on where he knew her pulse was. It was racing even faster than his, which he knew wasn't good for Jace.
He pulled her into his side and kissed her forehead. "Relax, love," he whispered, rubbing his hand up and down her arm.
"I'm scared, Dean," she whispered back, hiding her face in his neck.
"There's no reason to be scared until we know for sure," he said, trying to reassure them both. All the same, he closed his eyes and inhaled deeply to try and relax. "Besides, Amy said the tests we did before came out normal. So we've got nothing to be worried about."
Paige bit her lip and took a shuddering breath. "Dean… there's so much that could go wrong…"
"Don't think about it," he insisted. "I think Brody's sick."
"Me, too. He felt hot when I put him to bed last night, but he seemed a little better this morning. I gave him some Tylenol. I think he got it from Levi. He hasn't been feeling well lately, either. Did I hear him crying or was I imagining things?"
"He started crying at three fifteen. I got up and found him coughing up a storm. I gave him some of that cough medicine and held him until he fell back asleep," Dean told her. "He asked for you more than once. He said momma. I heard him, loud and clear. He called me dada, too."
"Did he really?"
Dean nodded and smiled. "Sometimes I feel like I'm dreaming. That was one of those moments."
She groaned and leaned her forehead against his temple. "You're distracting me," she accused.
"Damn straight. Seriously, though, honey. Take a deep breath."
"I already did. It didn't help."
"Well, why– "
The door swung open and Amy entered, her hair tied back in a bun and lab coat rumpled. "Hey, lovebirds," she said as she pulled her stool over. She smiled to reassure their wary expressions. "Well, I've got some good news and some bad news."
Dean's heart plummeted straight to his toes. He felt cold all over and unconsciously pulled his wife into his side. He watched while Amy pulled X-Rays and ultrasound pictures out of a file and started clipping them to the light board. His sister-in-law remained strangely quiet through the process.
Paige wasn't too surprised. There'd been a feeling of dread in her being for a few weeks now, since the nightmares had escalated. It was a slight comfort to be so tightly held against her husband's side. She looked down when she felt heat on her stomach to find Dean's broad, long-fingered hand resting protectively over their unborn son. She rested both her hands atop his.
"What's the verdict, Ame?" she said.
Amy re-claimed her seat and tucked her clipboard under her arm. "Well, to start, I'm sorry to say that the ultrasound of the baby shows abnormalities in the heart area that weren't there at the last ultrasound."
"Abnormalities?" Dean repeated in a croak. His mouth was as dry as cotton balls and his throat felt like sandpaper.
Amy stood and gestured at two ultrasound pictures. "This here is a normal heart at the beginning of the third trimester," she explained, circling the heart with her index finger. "And this here is Jace's heart. If you see here, you'll notice his heart is actually smaller than it's supposed to be at this point. I'm afraid that it might be some sort of heart disease. Given all that you've been through, Paige, I'm wary to run invasive tests, but as of now…" she trailed off, shrugging. "I just don't know, hon. I don't know, not for sure."
"So what are you saying?"
"He very well may grow out of it in the womb. As far as I can tell, I would guess it's a very mild case of congenital heart disease."
"Congenital heart disease?" Dean repeated, voice rough and uneven. He held his wife closer, icy fingers of dread spreading through his body.
Amy nodded and tucked her clipboard under her elbow. "Congenital heart disease is thought to happen because of incomplete or abnormal development of the fetus's heart during the earliest weeks of pregnancy. It's possible – rare and unlikely, but possible – for him to grow out of it before he's even born," she explained.
Paige breathed a shaky sigh of part relief, part helplessness. "Rare?"
"It all depends on him, now," the doctor said gravely.
"So…the good news?" Dean croaked.
"Paige's tests all came back normal. Everything's healed up nicely. I'm confident that there's going to be no further complications." Amy looked her square in the eye. "But honey, you're blood pressure is higher than it should be. Not in the danger zone, but higher than it was at last week's checkup. Have you been having nightmares again?"
"I…" she trailed off, wincing at Dean's pained expression. "Yes," she admitted. "They usually happen the second or third night Dean's away."
"Screaming and thrashing?"
"Sometimes. Noah stayed with me last time, so they weren't as bad."
"You need to find a way to lessen the effects of those, Paige," Amy said seriously, eyes sad. "It's not good for you, and it's not good for Jace, either."
"I'm working on it."
"Okay. Well, you two are free to go."
And the two parents left, reeling from the news that their baby was possibly sick. Dean decided on the stop that he was going to talk the baby to death, to convince him that it was against the rules to be sick. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn't.
But he was going to demand healthiness from his unborn son.
He just prayed Jace wasn't as stubborn as he was.
xxx
Paige's assumption was correct. Owen begged and pleaded all afternoon until, finally, they agreed to set up a cot for him in the corner of Patch's stall and keep a dim lantern hanging so he wasn't in complete blackness.
"Are you sure about this, Dean?" Paige demanded, worried about her baby sleeping out here all by himself.
Dean kissed her. "Paige, quit worrying so much. Patch isn't going to let anything happen to him. Besides, you know as well as me that this will bond them together strongly." He pulled her into his side as Zeus and Percy trotted by, curling into balls on the mats at the front of Patch's stall, so that they were between the cot and the door. "Look, hon. He even has his two bodyguards."
Owen race up, dressed in pajamas and holding tight to Coco, a huge grin on his face as he raced up to pat Patch's shoulder.
"Okay, honey, Ty and Chuck sleep in the rooms up in the loft if you need anything, okay?" Paige said, kissing his cheek. "You have a fun sleepover." She rubbed the paint's forehead. "And you keep watch over my boy, okay?"
Patch snorted softly and nuzzled her cheek as if to reassure her that Owen would be fine.
"Goodnight," Owen said cheerfully, crawling under his blankets. "And thank you. This is the best present I've ever gotten."
"Love you buddy," Dean said, kissing the top of his head and patting Patch's neck.
"Love you, too."
They headed back inside, leaving Owen in the barn to sleep with Patch, to find Ally in the kitchen with Levi, Sam's voice carrying from the living room, where he was talking to Elliot and Jared. Sammy and Brody were there, as was little Abby. They were, from the sounds of it, discussing the party set to happen tomorrow. The knowledge of Jace's heart problem was a heavy presence in the room.
Levi was pouting and holding his hands up, chanting, "Agua, agua!"
"Levi Joseph, some patience, please," Ally said as she opened the fridge. She grabbed the milk and a sippy cup and started pouring it.
"I thought milk was leche," Dean pointed out, confused.
"It is," she replied as she screwed the top of the sippy cup on. "He calls water and milk both agua. I've tried telling him that milk is leche, but he insists on calling it agua." She handed her son the filled sippy cup. "Leche, Levi," she said clearly, still holding onto it.
"Agua," Levi stubbornly persisted.
Ally sighed and shrugged. "He'll get it eventually," she said, releasing the sippy cup and watching him race off into the living room. She followed after him, leaving Paige and Dean standing in the kitchen.
"I'll be in the other room if you need anything," she said quietly, following her best friend. Someone knocked on the front door, and he automatically headed towards it.
"Got it," he called so no one else would get up. He strolled to the door, whistling Metallica as the thoughts of the doctor meeting whirled around in his head. Unlatching the door, he turned the knob and pulled it open.
And almost had a goddamn heart attack.
"D-Dad?" he stammered, eyes going wide to find his father standing calmly on the porch steps, hands stuffed deep in the pocket of his leather jacket and a warm smile on his face.
"Dean," John replied, dipping his head slightly.
Dean moved across the space to hug him, startled but pleased when John hugged him back. "Where have you been?"
"That's for another time, son," the weathered hunter replied softly. "Brad told me what Sam's been up to. I need to talk to him. Right now. I don't have a lot of time."
"Dad, let me help you," Dean pleaded helplessly. "Let us help you. This demon, we can kill it together, we – a "
John was already shaking his head. "Like I told you over the phone a while back, Dean, it's too dangerous. This thing… it's more evil than I ever even imagined. And there's a bigger picture here, Dean. There's some huge plan going down, something monumental, and I think we're stuck in the middle. But until I find out the particulars, I don't want my boys stuck in the crossfire. This is my fight." He held his shoulders. "You're my son, Dean, and I'm so proud of you for all the hunting you've been doing with your brother. But trust me, you need to spend as much time as you can, here with your family. Okay?"
Dean nodded, understanding. He knew better than anyone that if his dad wanted him out of it, it was for a damn good reason. Not because he viewed him as weak or incompetent or a failure, but because he knew something that they didn't and planned to keep it that way for their protection. It was the same reason that none of his own children currently knew about demons or spirits or any of that – he wanted them to retain that innocence for as long as physically possible. Longer than he had, anyway. Four was far too young to be shoved into all this shit.
"I understand," he said, tucking his hands in his pockets.
"I knew you would," his father replied, expression relieved. He rubbed his stubbled chin. "May I come in?"
"Sure, of course." Dean stepped aside. "Sam," he called. "There's someone here to see you."
Sam came in, afraid it might be one of his college friends bringing grave news, and stood shell-shocked when he saw his father. "Dad?" he said, incredulous.
"Can we step outside for a moment, Sam? We need to talk," John said without preamble.
He looked to Dean, who nodded ever so slightly. "Uh, sure," he said, following his dad out the front door and into the yard.
"Congratulations on your engagement," John began as soon as he was seated on the porch steps, elbows on his knees. Sam sat beside him, a million questions going through his head. "I know you have a million questions to ask me right now, but I explained in part to Dean. I don't have a lot of time, but I do need to talk to you about something in particular."
Sam seemed surprised at this turn of conversation, but didn't argue. "How did you…?"
"Brad," he said, shrugging easily. "He's one of my normal contacts."
"I saw his name in the journal."
"I used to bring you boys by here a lot while you were growing up. Remember Roy?"
"Of course I remember Roy," Sam said, smiling at the memory of the kind ex-hunter. "We stayed here tons." And then it dawned on him and he spun around to look up at the towering ranch house. "Oh," he realized. "So that's why it looked so familiar. I never put two and two together in my head."
John nodded. "The Newbern, Knox, and Baraldi families have been good to us. I expect you to return the favor."
"I will, dad, don't worry."
"Ally is a special girl. That's why I'm here."
"You…want to talk about my sex life?" Sam repeated, eyebrows raised. "Look, dad, uh…"
"Not your sex life," John cut him off, rolling his eyes. "I'm here to talk about something else. Can you guess?"
Sam frowned at him. He'd never seen this side of his dad before, and it was sort of starting to freak him out. He lifted his shoulders into a shrug and waited for his dad to elaborate.
"Revenge."
He cringed inwardly at the word and shifted uncomfortably. It all made sense now. He should've known that Brad knew everything about these parts, and of the hunting grapevine in general.
"I've lived over half my life trying to avenge your mother's death," John began, staring off over the rolling plains. "Her death tore me apart inside. I became obsessed with finding her killer, and with hunting everything I possibly could along the way." He looked over at his son, his eyes swirling with sadness, loneliness, and pain. "I've saved people, yes. I failed to save others. I've killed the bad guys and given people new hope. But in the long run, Sam, I did something I'd never wanted to do, ever."
"That being?" he said bitterly, looking away from his father's conflicted expression.
"I hurt the people I love," he said gently. "I hurt you, I hurt Dean… I hurt Bobby, and Ellen, and Jo, Caleb… all of my friends along the years, my brothers, whom I fought with side-by-side. I let my pride get in the way of everything else. I let the revenge consume me. The only moments of peace I have are the dreams I occasionally have of your mother, before all of this shit happened."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Dean acts like me, dresses like me, listens to the same music, drives my old car. He fights like me, he walks like me, he talks like me. But do you know who he reminds me of the most?"
"No."
"Your mother. Your brother is a rare person, Sam. He would go to hell and back do help the people he cares about. All he wants is a family, to be surrounded by people who love and care for him. And I can see it in his eyes every day how much he misses Mary. The two of them… they were so close. From the second he was born, he became the most precious thing in her world. She loved him freely and without abandon, and in so doing, taught Dean how to love. Your brother… he's like a candle flame. He'll burn you if you get too close, but being around him infuses you with a never-ending wave of heat and warmth. His love is solid, steady, unwavering; his loyalty is complete and he gives it without asking anything in return.
"And, I'm ashamed to say, there are times when I've abused this knowledge to suit my own ends. That was wrong. Dean is like your mother, plain and simple. But you, Sam – you're like me," he finished, rubbing his hands on his pants. "I look at you, and I see myself twenty-two years ago, right after your mother died. Angry, pissed at the world, itching to kill, for revenge. And that, son… that is what tore me apart bit by bit, until there was nothing left of the man I used to be."
Sam looked at him, frowning. His father never got touchy-feely, really. He was all hard-ass marine. But now… he'd never seen this side of his father before. "I…"
"Don't try to deny it, Sam, I'll see right through it. You have a second chance here. I had one of those, once, and I screwed it up royally, something that I regret to this day. But you… you have that beautiful woman in there, who bore you a son and loves you despite the fact you once left her, and who is blessing you with more children. She loves you, Sam. It's about time you woke up and started returning that love. If Jess was anything like your mother, she would have been ecstatic to see you move on, being happy in honor of her memory, because that's what she would have wanted."
"You didn't even know her," Sam said angrily, looking away.
"I know enough about her, Sam. You loved her. I get that. But sometimes… you just have to let her go. It took me twenty years to let go of your mom. Don't make the same mistake." He nodded over his shoulder. "Your brother loves you, his family loves you. Ally loves you, and so does your son. Is that not enough for you?"
"I…" Sam trailed off, burying his face in his hands. "I don't know what to do, dad. All these visions and stuff, it just…. I feel like I'm becoming someone else entirely."
"Stop that feeling, then, before it consumes you. Keep your humanity. Love that woman with everything you have left, Sam, and trust me – it will heal you." He stood and brushed off his pant legs. "At least think about it. Can you promise me that?"
"I'll think about it," he sighed, rubbing his forehead as he struggled to comprehend the advice John had just dumped on him.
"Now, there is one more thing I'd like to do."
"And what is that?" he mumbled sarcastically, standing and brushing himself off as well.
"Would you and your brother be against me officially meeting my grandsons and daughters-in-law?"
Sam blinked, surprised. "Of course not," he said instantly. "Why don't you come inside and sit down, and we can show you all the photo albums. Believe me, it's not quite the same, but… it's close enough."
"I'd like that, Sam," John said, his eyes suddenly watering. He followed Sam into the house, where Dean was standing guard in the hallway, waiting to see if their faces were bloody or not.
"Everything okay?" Dean asked anxiously, looking between their haggard faces. It was clear to him they'd just had the deepest of all deep conversations. Not butting in, he put a hand on both of their shoulders. "Feel better now?"
John smacked him gently upside the head. "Is it okay with you if I meet my grandsons?" he wondered.
"That has got to be the stupidest thing I've ever heard you say, Dad," Dean said, laughing. "Of course. They're in the living room. Come on."
The room was scattered with people, many of them faces he recognized. He shook hands and smiled at both the girls.
Paige and Ally returned the smile, stepping forward to hug him tightly, saying "Hey, Uncle John," in perfect unison.
"Uncle John?" Dean repeated, shocked.
"We saw him constantly while we were kids," Ally explained. "He was always coming by for information, both to my house and to this house."
Paige picked up Sammy and settled him on her hip. "Sammy, do you know who this is?" she said, pointing to John.
"Hi, gampa," Sammy said, smiling shyly.
"He knows who I am?"
"Yeah, we've shown him pictures and he saw you last time you visited, remember?"
John held his hands out and Paige passed the baby along. He felt emotion surge unbidden through him at the feel of such a little boy in his arms again. He squeezed him gently and kissed the top of his head. Love flowed through him and towards this precious little blonde-haired, green-eyed angel. "Hey, Sammy," he said roughly.
Sammy grinned, his eyes sparkling.
He was hooked from that second onward – because those were Mary's eyes. Dean's eyes. And they sparkled with the same strength that his wife and his son had shown him on a daily basis. And when a second weight settled in his other arm, he laughed outright.
"Well, hi there," he said, rubbing noses with the brown-eyed toddler, noting his mop of dark hair. His face was almost a carbon-copy of Sam's at that age. "You look just like your daddy. What's your name?"
"Levi," the boy replied shyly. "Are you gampa?"
"I'm your grandpa John."
"Daddy?"
John nodded. "I'm your daddy's daddy," he confirmed.
"And this, Dad," Dean said, a new baby in his arms and his hand resting on the shoulder of a blonde kid who looked to be about four and who was dressed in pajamas, "is Owen and Brody, our other sons."
"Adopted?" he mouthed, sitting down on the couch.
Dean nodded and passed the baby along as well, while Owen raced over to jump up beside him, his expression excited at the prospect of another grandpa.
"I'll go get those photo albums," Sam promised, disappearing.
This, John decided, was heaven.
All that was missing was Mary.
xxx
Later that night
John left about an hour after arriving with pictures of his grandkids tucked into his wallet, waving goodbye as he again disappeared, not to be seen or heard from again for quite a few more months.
Dean and Paige were upstairs getting the kids ready for bed and Sam and Ally were curled into a porch swing softly talking about their twins while Levi played with the dogs on the lawn in front of them, already in his pajamas.
"Shut up," Ally laughed, lightly smacking him. "That was the lamest movie ever."
"How can you dis any of the Superman film and cartoon shows? He's awesome!" Sam protested, shocked. "Christopher Reeve was amazing!"
"Those movies are totally corny," she insisted. "And the flying scenes are so fake."
"It's from forever ago, hon, what did you expect? Expert CGI effects, or him to be pulled through actual skyscrapers?"
"Duh. Like Jurassic Park."
"Jurassic Park!" he exclaimed with a bark of laughter. "LAME!"
"It is not!" Ally protested, expression fierce.
"Dude, you could totally tell those dinosaurs were robots."
"Could not!"
"Could to."
"Well, what about Jaws, then, huh?" she snapped.
Sam laughed outright, stomping his feet against the ground and throwing his head back as the laughter consumed him. "Same thing!" he wheezed, wiping a tear from his face. "Oh, man, you have horrible taste in movies!"
"You shut up, or you're sleeping on the couch!" Ally threatened.
"Oh, uh-huh," Sam said smugly, unfazed by her threat. "What movie are you going to point out next?"
There was a strange wheezing noise and the dogs started barking frantically, racing up the steps and biting Sam's pant legs, trying to pull him down.
"Zeus, get off!" Sam shouted, trying to dislodge from the dog to no avail; he was dragged straight off the swing and down the stairs. It was then that he noticed. "LEVI!" he screamed in unison with Ally.
His son was laying in the grass, clutching his throat, his face turning blue while a horrible choking-rattling-wheezing noise came from his throat. His eyes rolled back and his entire body went lax.
He wasn't breathing.
E/N: Woo! A dramatic cliffhanger! Well, there you have it, folks. Like I said above, next will cover Benders and maybe Nightmare… not sure yet, I'll decide when I get there. Hope you enjoyed. :)
If y'all give me 5 reviews again… I can have the next posted in four days!
As always,
REVIEWS = LOVE
(And the more I love you, the faster I post! :D)
