Why didn't he check the caller ID.
That's all he could think about as he said her name with a slight break in his voice.
He could practically hear the smile on the other end.
"You answered."
He nodded. "Yeah."
She spoke softly, and he could've sworn he heard exhaustion and desperation behind her voice.
"It's been a while. I've tried calling you a lot."
He sighed. "I know Mom. I'm sorry. I wasn't ready to talk."
Then the question came that he was dreading.
"Can I see you?"
He wanted to decline the offer so badly it hurt, but the tone of her voice made him think twice. She sounded like she had given up.
"Okay."
The sigh of relief he heard on the other end broke his heart.
He talked once more before hanging up, not being able to handle any more. "I'll text you."
He slammed the phone down on his desk and the FBI agents all looked over from the war room, clearly trying to profile my behavior.
One of them called me over and asked me what I thought.
I shrugged. "I don't know if I'm the best person to ask."
"Look, kid. I know this job is just a joke to you, but this case isn't. People are dying and all of us are burnt out. We need some fresh eyes and you're the best we got."
I glared at him. "It's not a joke. I just want something more out of life than filing paperwork."
"Well, here's your chance."
Dean sighed and turned his head to the board.
He immediately pointed to one of the tattoos on the guy's wrist.
"I know that tattoo," he said thoughtfully.
The whole room turned in shock at how quick I had found something.
"How? Every shop we've been to didn't recognize it."
Dean looked at the guy. "Did you go to the one on Main Street?"
They looked around at each other, confused.
Morgan spoke up. "There wasn't one on Main Street on our list."
"Yeah, it's a little underground, but it's there."
"Can you take us?"
He checked his phone before looking up and answering. "Yeah, alright. Let's go."
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She never got that text. To be completely honest, she didn't even expect him to agree to meet, but when he did, she believed wholeheartedly that he was going to try again.
But nothing ever came through.
She looked up, slightly startled, when the doctor came back with a half asleep, shaky Sammy in her arms.
Mary smiled and gently helped the doctor transfer him to his mother's arms. He weakly wrapped his arms around her neck and his half open eyes finally drooped closed.
"Thank you," Mary whispered to the doctor.
Maddie smiled and nodded. "He's good to go, make sure he gets another treatment in four hours."
Mary nodded and waved before walking slowly to the front to check out and in no time, Sam was in his car seat and Mary was driving home, praying for a text to appear in that time.
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Dean eyes flitted to his phone every few seconds and the FBI agent beside him, Morgan, finally picked it up and held it up, raising his eyebrows when Dean tried to snatch it from him.
"What are you waiting for?" He spoke.
The two agents in the back, Hotchner and JJ, glanced towards the front with interest.
Dean sighed. "I was on the phone with my mom earlier. I was supposed to text her, but now I'm not so sure I want to see her and now I'm freaking out because..."
"I don't know."
Morgan looked confused. "Why wouldn't you see her?"
Dean sighed once again. "I haven't seen her in about five years, since I left for college."
"Why not?"
"Because my dad didn't support my decision, he wanted me to take over his garage, and she took his side, like she always did. They completely cut me off, but she still tries calling and texting every so often. I've never answered until I accidentally did earlier."
"Accidentally?"
"I didn't check the caller ID."
Morgan nodded but didn't say anything else. They finally pulled up to the building and Dean got out, leading them inside.
"Okay, you," he said, pointing at Morgan, "are getting a tattoo."
Morgan went to argue.
"They'll never talk to the FBI and you're the only one besides me that could pull one off."
He nodded hesitantly and they all followed him in, having no idea what they were getting themselves into.
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Sam woke up when Mary was getting him out of the car.
John came out and took him straight out to the car where he was working, and Mary shot him a disapproving look.
"Come on, Mare. It's been forever since he's helped me out."
"John, he just got back from the doctor. You know how tired the treatment makes him. He needs to sleep before his next round."
"Just for a little while."
Mary gave up, heading inside and beginning to make lunch, as the appointment had taken up their entire morning.
Just as she flipped Sam's grilled cheese, she heard a chime from her phone and rushed over, grinning much too widely at a text from Dean.
She made sure to take the sandwich off the grill and turn it off before running outside and shoving the phone at John.
He stopped what he was doing and picked Sammy up from the edge of the hood, carrying him over to the curb where Mary was practically jumping up and down.
He struggled to read the text as she was so excited that she couldn't concentrate long enough to keep her hand still.
"Mary? What is it? I can't read that."
"Dean's agreed to meet with me," she exclaimed happily.
He frowned slightly.
"Who's De?" Sam spoke up.
Mary smiled sadly at his raspy voice from the medication.
She ruffled his hair and took him into her arms.
"I'm going."
John opened his mouth to argue but she simply held up a hand and he stopped in his tracks.
"I don't want to get in an argument about it. I'm going, that's that."
"Fine. But you're not bringing Sammy."
She frowned. "John, they deserve to know each other."
"I don't want Dean putting ideas into Sam's head."
Mary shook her head. "Whatever John. You better take care of him then. He needs his medicine, don't forget."
"You're going now?" John said with disbelief on his face.
"Yes, he said he's far away, so to come whenever I can, and I can now."
"Mary, you can't just take off."
"I'm not just taking off, John. I'm telling you and it's not like I'm abandoning Sam. But if you don't think you can do what you need to for him then I'll take him with me."
"No. I can watch him. He's not meeting Dean."
Mary sighed. "Fine. I'm going to try and be on the road by 3."
He nodded and went back to his car, now in a bad mood.
Sammy was half asleep on his mother's shoulder and she carried him to the couch, setting him down and giving him his lunch as she put some cartoons on for him.
She left him to eat and watch TV as she went upstairs to pack some things.
She debated going against John and taking Sam but knew that he would never forgive her and would probably take Sam away forever.
She walked back downstairs and smiled at Sam's sleeping form but frowned at his wheezing and carried him upstairs to connect him to the breathing machine he uses when he sleeps.
Once he was all set up and connected to the machine, she quietly stepped out and brought her bag downstairs, making sure to grab a few things to eat and some cash.
She walked outside to John and prayed this didn't end in a fight.
"Alright. I'm leaving. He's sleeping upstairs. Make sure you set him up with his nebulizer in about an hour, and at night he needs to be connected to the machine or he will not be able to breathe well at all tomorrow morning."
"Mary, I've got this. Go see Dean. But don't say a word about Sam. I can't lose him too."
She nodded and kissed him goodbye before she left for the five day drive ahead of her.
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She never made it.
Three days into the trip, John stopped getting messages. He knew it was unlike her, but he figured maybe she was just busy and didn't check her phone.
He finally sucked it up on the fourth day and called Dean.
"Hello?"
"Dean?"
"Dad?"
He was clearly annoyed by his tone of voice so John didn't push too much.
"Has your mother gotten there yet?"
Dean could hear the worry in his voice and he let it deep into his.
"No, I figured she just left."
John then received a call and had to put Dean on hold for a second.
The news he got next nearly destroyed him.
They found Mary's car flipped. She didn't make it.