Chapter 68

After spending a few minutes with Sam as he held the baby, Jessie got up from the bed to have a quick shower, while Bobby and Dean cleaned up the room. And when she was clean and redressed, they allowed her to go to her own bedroom so she could catch a bit of sleep while the baby did the same.

When she awoke a couple of hours later, Jessie opened her eyes to find Sam sitting beside the bed with the baby in his arms. He looked so proud and content, it made her the happiest she had been in her entire life. He smiled at her as he saw she was awake, then came to sit down on the bed beside her.

"How's he been?" she asked as she sat up in bed.

"He's been restless, but I guess that's to be expected," he replied.

She felt a twinge of guilt at his response, but she tried to push it out of her mind. He seemed to be healthy and relatively calm. She had to hope that his withdrawal was not as severe as hers had been, although she wondered if he was just too weak to be upset at the moment. She could only hope they had gotten incredibly lucky and he was not suffering.

Sam handed the baby over to his wife gently, smiling brightly. "So when are you gonna tell us his name?" he asked.

She smiled as she cradled her son in her arms. "When everyone is here," she explained.

It was some time before Bobby and Dean came up to see how everyone was doing. They had wanted to give the new family time to themselves.

Sam and Jessie both smiled in amusement when they handed the baby over to Dean to hold. He seemed more terrified holding him than he was when he was hunting.

Bobby, on the other hand, held the baby like he had done it many times before.

When the baby began to get upset, Bobby handed him back to his mother, who took him with a bright smile. She fixed the blanket that was swaddled around him, which seemed to calm him down slightly.

Everyone was quiet for a few moments, until Dean's impatience finally got the better of him.

"So are you gonna tell us his name or what?"

"Dean!" Sam admonished.

Jessie chuckled, but stayed silent for a few moments just to annoy him. When she was ready to speak, she glanced at her husband with a smile, before returning her gaze to her child.

"I've decided to call him Robert Samuel Winchester, or Bobby for short," she said with a bright grin.

Everyone turned their heads towards Bobby, who was grinning so widely.

"I don't know what to say, Jess," he said somewhat breathlessly. "I'm honoured."

She nodded her head in acknowledgement. "I know that things have been rough the past few months, and the past few days especially. But you've always been there for me and tried to do what's right for me. I can't think of a better person to name my child after."

He beamed proudly, happy tears beginning to form in his eyes. "That's what adopted dad's are for."

Jessie could tell he was uncomfortable, not that she blamed him. He was not one to talk about emotions very often and this was about as emotional as you could get. But she didn't want him to downplay his contribution to her life like he seemed to be doing. And although she was irritated by the decisions he had made of late, she wasn't angry with him. He had done what he thought was best for her. She was just glad that it had turned out better than she could have expected.

"Seriously Bobby, you deserve it," she said with a smile. "You've done so much for me. And all I've done is fight with you and make your life more difficult. I can't thank you enough for everything you've done."

He approached the bed with a smile. Leaning down he gave her a hug, which she returned with one arm, since the other was holding her child. But before he pulled away, he very quietly whispered, "I love you, kid," in her ear.

Happy tears began to form in Jessie's eyes as he pulled away. She was the happiest she had ever been in her life. She had been worried when they had caught her drinking demon blood that that would be it for her. They wouldn't want anything to do with her. But she should've known that, at the very least, Bobby would never let her down. She didn't understand how she deserved someone as wonderful as him. But she was glad she had him in her life.

The room was silent for many minutes as they stood around just watching the baby, who was mostly making babbling sounds as he stared at his mother. But it wasn't long before he began to get upset again, screaming with displeasure. It was then that Bobby and Dean left, so the couple could deal with him.

After the baby was fed, he settled down slightly. He seemed restless again, but he wasn't screaming. It was the best Jessie could hope for. She did her best to rock him gently, hoping he would fall asleep. She needed him to be calm if only for a few minutes.

"Sam," Jessie called as she patted the bed so he would sit down beside her. "We need to have a talk."

He sat down on the bed, gazing at her with apprehension. "What about?"

She swallowed hard, returning his gaze with one of regret. "I just want apologize for everything I've done. I know you're disappointed in me. But..." she trailed off for a moment, suddenly finding the words difficult to say. "What I did the other day, was, uh, was mean. I shouldn't have made Bobby tell you that story. I don't even know what possessed me to do it."

He smiled in support, lying his hand on hers. "Possessed is probably the perfect word for that, Jess. I know what it's like. To barely be in control of yourself. To lash out in anger and pain. I don't blame you for that."

She smiled in relief, tears beginning to form in the corner of her eyes. "Still, it was my choice to drink demon blood. So whatever I did is still my fault. And I'm sorry."

He smiled and nodded supportively. "I'm not gonna say I'm not disappointed, because then I would be lying. But I'm not angry with you. I, of all people, can understand why you did what you did. I don't agree, but I get it."

"Thank you," she said with a smile, a wave of relief washing over her.

"But I do have a question."

"Oh?" she replied with curiosity.

"Dean told me the story about Bela Talbot, you remember that, right?" He waited until she nodded before going on. "That story sounds almost exactly like the one you told us about my dad."

"Oh, well," she began to stammer. "That was embellished a little."

"So you lied?"

"Not exactly," she replied with a sigh. "Bela did screw me over once. And yes, she almost got me killed. But I told Dean that story so he wouldn't feel bad that I killed her instead of him. I guess I took some inspiration from what your dad did to me. It happened just before that, so..." she trailed off, unsure what else to say.

Sam was somewhat satisfied with her answer. He didn't like that she lied, but he had a feeling it was somewhat closer to the truth than she was letting on. But since it wasn't important and there were other things to worry about, he decided to let it drop. At least for now. He could always revisit it again in the future.

They were quiet for some time, both parents admiring the child they had created together. That was until he began to wail once again.

"We really need to take him to the hospital as soon as possible," Jessie said when she was done changing his diaper. "I need to know he's healthy."

Sam nodded in agreement. "I'll go talk with Bobby."

Jessie nodded then climbed out of bed while deftly holding onto her newborn son. She went over to the dresser where there were baby clothes and chose something clean and warm for him to wear. Even though it was May, there was still a chill in the air.

And although he was screaming and flailing around, she managed to get him dressed, then swaddled him in a blanket again. It helped to soothe him slightly, but he was still upset. She felt so badly that there was nothing she could do to help alleviate his pain. She knew it was her fault. And while she was still in pain as well, she knew she would be fine, eventually. She understood what was going on. He did not. It made her feel so incredibly guilty she wanted to throw up. But she held it together for his sake.

As Jessie walked down the stairs, she could hear raised voices coming from the kitchen. One was Bobby's, but the other was a female voice she didn't recognize. She was unsure why, but suddenly she felt dread and panic run through her. She tightened the grip on her son as she felt her legs get weaker and closed her eyes so she could try and get a grip on the panic. It took a few moments, but when she opened her eyes she felt the panic ebb away. She still had a feeling of dread, though.

When she finally made it into the kitchen, it was very crowded and all eyes turned towards her. She immediately noticed Castiel and two people she didn't recognize. One was a female, the other male. She had to assume that they were angels and this is why she felt dread. Her eyes searched for Sam as she absentmindedly held her son tighter against her chest. He came to stand beside her, wrapping his arm around her protectively.

"What's going on?" Jessie asked in fear.

Bobby opened his mouth to respond, but Castiel beat him to it.

"We've come to see the baby."

She tightened her grip on her son again, feeling Sam do the same for her.

"You can see him from here," she replied defiantly.

Castiel walked closer, gazing at her son with a smile. She suddenly felt dread and panic running through her once more, causing her to back up slightly as he approached. He stopped a couple of feet away from her as he noticed her apprehension.

"He's beautiful," Castiel said as he reached his hand out towards him.

"Thank you," Jessie stammered as she froze in fear.

"May I hold him?"

Jessie swallowed hard in fear, glancing around at Sam, Bobby and Dean, hoping they would step in. But neither of them said a word or even conveyed in their eyes what she should do. She didn't think she had a choice, so she very slowly offered her son to him.

The angel took her son from her gently, cradling him in his arm. He began to look over him, moving aside the blanket slightly, then laid his hand on his forehead for just a quick moment. His eyes opened widely as he did, but his expression turned impassive once again just as quickly.

"He looks so much like you," he said as he gazed at Jessie.

"Castiel!" the female angel bellowed suddenly. "Let's just take the child and be gone."

"What?!" Jessie yelled loudly.

The three men also yelled the same, while also shuffling closer to Jessie.

Castiel turned to glare at the woman. "Delilah, that's enough."

Delilah tried to speak, but he cut her off.

"The baby will be fine with his parents. There's nothing to worry about," he replied before turning to hand the baby back to his mother. "Go back to heaven and I'll be there shortly."

She looked at him angrily, but nodded in agreement before disappearing. The other angel following quickly after her.

"I'm sorry about that," he said with a smile. "I should probably explain."

"You think?" Jessie said as she tucked the blanket around her son again.

The angel glanced around at each of them before he returned his gaze towards Jessie once more.

"Why don't you hand your son over to Sam?" he suggested.

She gazed at him with apprehension and curiosity for a few moments before handing her son over to Sam. And as she expected, the moment she had let go of him, Castiel stepped forward, placing his hand on her forehead.

She closed her eyes the moment he touched her, knowing she wouldn't feel so nauseous if she did so. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself on the same beach he had taken her once before. It was still as beautiful as she remembered.

"I'm sorry I have to do this again, but I needed to speak to you privately."

She swallowed hard, suddenly feeling like she was about to panic again.

"Relax," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder for support. "Everything is fine."

"It didn't sound fine," she replied, pulling away from his hand.

"Well, I told you how heaven works now and while that's still true, I have a little more sway than some of the other angels," he began to explain. "Many of the angels want to take your son and raise him in heaven. But I'm against that."

"What does that mean for me and my son?" she asked with trepidation.

"As long as you make me a promise, and keep it, then I will do everything in my power to make sure the angels only watch from afar."

"A promise?"

He suddenly looked serious, which made Jessie feel incredibly anxious.

"Promise me you will not give your child anymore demon blood and I will continue to vouch for him."

She felt a fresh wave of fear wash over her. He knew. How did he know?

"I promise," she replied with conviction.

"I hope you do. If the other angels had known what you had been doing, I would not have been able to stop them from taking him."

It was an easy promise to make. She had never had any plans to give her son demon blood once he was born. Although she now wondered if Crowley had different plans. Regardless, she had no intention on touching it ever again. For herself or her son.

After Castiel was sure she understood her promise, he took her back to Bobby's house, bid everyone farewell then disappeared.

The moment her eyes glimpsed her son, she reached her arms out to take him from his father, who seemed hesitant, but didn't say anything as he passed him to her.

She cradled her son against herself, feeling much more calmly once she had. The men had no idea how close they had been to losing him to the angels. She knew she needed to tell them, but she didn't want to. She was feeling fear and shame very strongly at the moment. However, she couldn't avoid it forever. They needed to know. And there was no way they weren't going to ask.

"I'll explain everything in the car on the way to the hospital, okay?" she said matter-of-factly.

The men traded curious glances with each other, shrugging their shoulders as they did so, but kept silent. All of them knew her well enough not to push if she was willing to explain. They just had to have patience. Instead, they passed knowing looks to each other then began to get ready to head to the hospital.