From the doorway, Dean focused his gaze on his brother.
Sam's shoulders which had once seemed so wide and powerful, resulted somehow drooping and curved, as if they too could feel the oncoming end for the Winchesters.
Dean had been battling with his feelings for months now, ever since Chuck had shown his true face, instinctively realizing that for his sibling and himself there was little time left before whatever fate was in store for them revealed itself.
From the set of Sam's shoulders, his brother felt It too.
"Stop staring at my back, Dean," Sam said without turning his head, so attuned to his big brother's proximity that he no longer needed to set eyes on him to know he was nearby. "I'm a big boy now, I don't need a guardian angel hovering over me."
Dean would usually have replied with some flippant remark, but this time he just didn't feel up to it.
Deep within his soul, he understood he was going to be torn from his brother, condemned to be alone for eternity, and perhaps that was what he deserved, but for the moment Sam was still here and Dean needed to hold that one precious person close.
Moving forward he draped himself over Sam's back, his arms circling the younger man's torso, his chin resting on the thick chestnut hair.
:
There were grey strands in them now Dean noted, a testament to the passing of the years, and Dean couldn't help but think back to when they were both young, so full of life and energy, happily living life on the road, having nothing but each other.
"Dean, " Sam's voice was low, barely audible but brimming with emotion. "Please…don't make this any harder. What I'm feeling is already unbearable. I can't…."
At the words, Dean's arms tightened their hold, the warmth of Sam's body comforting him as nothing else could.
Whatever happened, he'd always have the memories, always be able to recall the peace and serenity holding his brother had always given him.
He turned his head so as to lay his cheek on Sam's hair. He'd never put his feelings into words, emotions to Dean were on a par with monsters and more difficult to kill, but that time had arrived.
Dean needed his sibling to know how he felt as well as just sensing it.
:
"I love you, Sam, though I don't believe only four letters can express my feelings to the full."
Sam made to interrupt but Dean shushed him. "Let me finish, dude. What I feel for you goes deeper, Sammy, it's branded into my very soul. I could live with losing everyone and everything, and I have, but I could never cope with losing you."
He didn't need to feel the drop of moisture that slithered onto his hand to know Sam was crying, the tremors which threaded through his muscles were plenty evocative of what the younger Winchester was feeling.
"Dean, I..."
Dean shushed his brother again. "You don't have to say anything, Sammy, just let me have this."
:
However, having Dean draped over him like a shield didn't sit well with the younger man. Sam freed himself from his brother's hold but only to get to his feet and pull Dean back into his arms
"Dean, what you said just now, you know it's the same for me. You're seared into my heart and soul for eternity. Whatever happens, that can never change."
Dean buried his head in Sam's neck, tears welling up to mirror those of his sibling, the emotion too overpowering for a man who'd always tried to hold them in check.
"We're so fucked up, Sammy."
"Yeah, we are, Dean, so let's take it a step further."
:
Before Dean realized what was happening, Sam had pulled back a little, lifted Dean's chin, and grazed his brother's lips with his own.
At the touch, a new unheralded sensation took hold of them both. The eyes might be mirrors to the soul but it was through the oral orifice that said souls left their earthly bodies.
Although they weren't aware, in that brief instant, a tiny sliver of each brother's soul had broken away and slipped through the parted lips into the opposite body.
For a long, silent, electrifying moment, the two stood gazing at each other before, overcome with an overwhelming need, their lips met again. It was as natural as it was unnatural but it blew both men's minds
Whatever was coming for them, they would always have this, have the memories of something unique, every bit as unique as the Winchester brothers themselves.
The end.