You see I was working on my Febuwhump stories and then suddenly wrote this out of nowhere. It doesn't fit with any of the prompts and I'd be hard pressed to call it whump. So here we are!
~TH~
It's probably not my best ever writing but I wrote it in like three hours when I was supposed to be doing other things.
I was inspired after re-reading "Love Reminds Us" by Ridley.
"Dad I can't." Dean regretted it as soon as the words left his mouth.
John spun on him, anger gleaming in his eyes. Sam looked up from where he was reading a book on the couch, a look of shock at Dean's insubordination. "What do you mean you can't."
The eighteen year old shrunk back. "I-I have to pass this English test. It's tomorrow and we've gone hunting every night this week."
"Since when do you care about your grades?" John rolled his eyes.
"Since I'm failing and need to bring my grade up if I want to play baseball next month. I've already made the team but they won't let me play if I'm not passing all my classes."
"We don't have time for this, Dean."
"Oh yes, Heaven forbid your son's spend their time on something other than hunting." Sam piped in before returning to his book.
John ignored him. "We don't have time for all this crap and we certainly don't have time for baseball! We might have to move soon."
"But- but you promised we could stay-" And Dean felt all of ten. The look his father shot him confirmed that he sounded like a whining baby.
"Y'know I expect this kind of behavior from your brother but not from you! It just confirms that you need to go on this hunt!"
"Dad, please. Just let me pass this test-"
John's response was unexpected. He pulled out his wallet, pulling out the bills from his last hustle. He slammed down two hundred dollars on the kitchen table. "Drop out, and you can have that." He pointed to the money.
Dean's eyes widened slightly. "Wait, are you serious? You want me to drop out?!"
Sam was once again watching the scene go down, his book forgotten.
"You'll be lucky if you graduate anyway. Just take the money and put us both out of our misery."
"But what about college!" Sam stood from his place on the couch. The fourteen year old had been obsessed with college since the summer before where Mac had given Dean half a dozen college applications to fill out. Dean hadn't even filled out one. But he did keep the baseball scholarship tucked in the bottom of his bag where he was sure no one would find it.
"Your brother isn't going to college. He knows that, I know that, everyone knows that! Dean's a hunter and you are too! The sooner you get that into your thick skull-!"
"It's fine!" Dean cut in. "I'll go on the hunt. Let's just go."
John sent his youngest a final glare before nodding and heading out the door.
~SPN~
Everything hurt. Everything hurt and the lights were too bright and Dean wasn't exactly sure what he was writing. The hunt hadn't been as simple as John had believed it to be and they had arrived back just in time for Dean to stumble into the shower and wake Sam up for school. He certainly hadn't had time to study.
The bell rang and Dean blinked down at his test. He'd done maybe half of it. And he was pretty sure he'd gotten most of those wrong anyway. He turned in his paper without making eye contact with the teacher.
He tried not to think about the test or the implications. He had done a pretty good job at succeeding until lunch when the teacher called him into her room. Dean made the propper show of rolling his eyes at the guy he was sitting with, then followed her back to his English classroom.
"You failed your test. Pretty significantly in fact." She started, very straightforward.
Dean shrugged, "Guess English isn't my thing."
"You do realize that this was your final chance of bringing your grade up before the baseball season starts."
He shrugged again.
The teacher ran her eyes over him and frowned. Dean could just imagine what she was seeing. Maybe it was his black eye. Or possibly the split lip. He had to keep from messing with his sleeve to ensure that the bruises from the poltergeist were covered on his arms.
"Dean," She started, with those cursed compassionate eyes he'd seen far too many times in his life. "If there's something going on, some problem at home, just tell me and we can work this out. I can get you help."
He couldn't help but bristle. "Nothing's wrong. I don't need help. I'm fine. The only thing wrong with me is this stupid school and it's nosy teachers."
The teacher had no chance to respond before he stormed out of the room.
~SPN~
John was sitting at the table when the boys got home. The two hundred dollars were still sitting on the edge of the table. Dean went over, picked up the money and slammed down the school's withdrawal notice.
John nodded with approval.
"No way!" Sam shouted. "You did not!"
"Your brother did what needed to be done, son."
"What- He dropped out of highschool! He's officially a highschool dropout!"
In that statement, Dean heard every teacher whispering behind his back. Every counselor lamenting his fate when they thought the door was closed. "And your point." Dean hissed.
Sam shook his head, barking a laugh. "I always knew you were a pushover but this- this takes it to a whole new level."
Dean flinched when Sam's bedroom door closed.
"Don't worry about him." John smiled. "You made the right choice. Made two hundred dollars out of it too." He winked.
Dean nodded but he had a feeling no one else would agree with his decision. He wasn't even sure that he agreed with it himself.
~SPN~
Sam's obsession with school only grew after Dean dropped out. He took every opportunity to talk about his classes and everything happening. Dean did his best to ignore him.
Dean had gotten a job at the same repair shop as his dad. At least no one there seemed to care what he was doing or gave him speeches about wasted potential.
But now they were heading to Jim's. Dad was working on a case in Kentucky and had decided they could use the time at the Farm. It was cheaper. Sam looked at Dean like his dropping out was the sole reason for them moving.
Dean didn't understand his brother's reaction. Sam had to realize that this was his only option. His dad had made very clear baseball wasn't happening. And his test just confirmed it. Between his dad's training regiment and the hunts he probably wouldn't have been able to bring up his grade. Why waste all that time when he might not pass anyway?
And as for baseball… yeah he was bummed. It sucked he wouldn't get his last season. But that wasn't a fight worth having. It didn't matter with the way his grades were. And the dropping out hadn't shocked anyone. Even his guidance counselor didn't look overly surprised. There was a brief speech about making sure this was the best thing but it was half hearted at best. Everyone knew this was coming. Why disappoint them.
But Mac and Jim… they wouldn't understand. Mac was the champion of education and Jim had always harped on the importance of his studies. Damian was the wild card. Dean remembered Caleb in his senior year trying to convince those around him that dropping out was for the best. In the end he had finished school, largely because he didn't want to set a bad example for Dean. Well there went that. He was dropping out anyway, no example needed.
They pulled into the Farm and Dean noticed Caleb's jeep as well as Mac's rental of choice. All hope of them not being there went out the window. Dean took his time getting out of the car and gathering his things. He hoped to avoid the topic for as long as possible. Dean knew they'd be going in tomorrow to register Sam for school. Dean hoped to see if he could register for the GED while in town. He'd managed to look up some of the laws on a library computer. Thanks to his dad's generous donation, he had more than enough to pay for the test. He was supposed to have been withdrawn for ninety days but he thought he could probably get around it by saying he'd just moved here. Same with the address. He'd just have it sent to the farm and attempt to intercept any mail that happened to come in. He knew he should probably take a course or something to get him ready, but he knew exactly how well that would go down. He'd just have to hope that he wasn't as stupid as people seemed to think that he was.
Dean followed his family inside, carrying both his and Sam's bag. They were greeted by Jim cooking in the kitchen, humming lightly. He smiled when he saw them. "Welcome home boys."
"Yeah for what, two weeks until Dad gets a new case?"
"Sam!" Dean reprimanded, shoving the boys duffel into his arms. "Go take your stuff upstairs."
Jim was unphased by Sam's poor attitude. It had become the norm as of late. "Your room is ready upstairs, and I believe Caleb is up there as well."
Sam didn't answer, huffing up the stairs like he had been tasked with a great burden. Mac then appeared from the Hunter's Tomb. "I was wondering when you all would arrive."
Dean knew he should probably take his own bag upstairs but the idea of having to be in the same room as Sam just then didn't sound overly appealing. But Sam must have just dropped his stuff off because he was already coming back down the stairs, Caleb close behind.
"Look what the cat dragged in." Caleb grinned.
Dean just rolled his eyes. "Good to see you too, Damian."
"Well, dinner is almost ready." Jim said, returning to his stove. "Then we can discuss the game plan for tomorrow. I've already called the school so they should be expecting us."
Dean involuntarily tensed at the mention of school. Caleb's eyes darkened. "You good there, Deuce?"
"Dean's just relieved he doesn't have to worry about it." Sam spit out. With the way Sam treated the situation, you'd think Dean had abandoned a group of starving orphans when he dropped out.
"Sam." Dean growled.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Caleb eyed the brothers and Dean made sure to pull up his mental walls.
"Dean doesn't have to worry about school anymore, right Dean?"
"Just shut up, Sam."
"What seems to be the problem?" Mac frowned, his eyebrows showing his confusion and concern.
"My big brother here dropped out of high school." Sam supplied with far too much glee at the uncomfortable position he'd put his brother in.
The young hunter tried to remain casual but could feel the heat rising in his cheeks.
"Dean, is this true?" Macland asked, taking a step forward.
Dean opened his mouth but it was John who spoke. "He's eighteen, he had the right to drop out."
"And you support this?!" Mac gasped in disbelief.
Sam laughed, "Endorsed it? Dad bribed him to do it!"
"Enough Sam." Dean growled. He'd been hoping for more time. Hoping to bring it up in a way that wasn't like releasing a rampaging bull in the middle of a china shop.
"So you're allowed to ruin your life but I'm not allowed to talk about it?"
"Will you just get off my case! It's done. It's over. Drop it!"
"He wasn't going to pass anyway." John added. "It's saving time and money."
Dean pulled into himself. "It was one class, Dad." He felt the need to defend himself in front of the other hunters despite the fact that he'd been thinking the same thing. "I could have brought it up."
"School has never been your thing, Ace. This was the best course of action."
"Jonathan!" Mac exclaimed. "How could you endorse this? What about college?"
"Dean's place isn't at college. He's a hunter and he doesn't need some fancy degree getting in his way. I need him here. Hunting with me and taking care of Sam. That's his place. Not some overpriced college filling his head with useless facts!"
"What happened to setting a good example?" Caleb crossed his arms. Dean wasn't sure exactly what the older boy was thinking. He wasn't sure he wanted to. "Remember that whole spiel you gave me about sticking with it to be an example to your kids."
"That." John matched his posture. "Was at your father's request. And I don't think Dean's dropping out is going to have an effect on Sam. Except maybe to make him graduate top of his class out of spite."
"Can we just drop it? Please." Dean hoped he didn't sound as pitiful as he imagined. "Talking about it isn't going to change it. Dad's right. He needed me on hunts and school was getting in the way."
"Most parents make school a priority." Sam muttered.
"Well this parent prioritizes saving the world to flunking out in a classroom."
The silence that followed was only broken when Jim softly said, "Let's eat."
They gathered around the table in a thick silence. Jim said grace and they started to eat. Dean kept his eyes on his plate, forcing in the food that held no real appeal. The pastor began involving the table with small talk and the tense silence slowly broke away into the normal chatter.
Dean noticed Caleb staring at him but ignored it. He wasn't in the mood for his best friend's condemnation. He'd gotten everyone's message loud and clear.
He was the first to excuse himself, making his way quickly to the room he and Sam shared. He collapsed on the bed, staring up at the ceiling and allowing the traitorous thoughts to come. Thoughts that he had tried to drown out since he was a kid. Thoughts about being normal and having a normal family that did normal things. He wondered briefly how different things would be if his mom hadn't died. Would they still be in Kansas, baseball contract signed with a big party planned for after his graduation?
He needed to stop. If he didn't he was going to start crying or something else incredibly girly.
A knock at the door had him sitting up. Great. Here came the lectures.
"It's me." Caleb said.
He plopped back down on the bed. "Door's unlocked."
"You left dinner pretty quick. Pastor Jim hadn't even brought the pie out."
"I doubt you're here to talk about pie so just get it over with." He answered, eyes trained on the ceiling above him.
Caleb sighed, sitting on Sam's bed. "I'm not mad at you."
"Well that's a relief." He rolled his eyes.
"But I do want to know why."
"You heard Dad's spiel."
"That's Johnny's reasoning. I want to know yours."
Dean turned to look at him. "Dude, he offered me two hundred bucks to stop going to school. How is that not the dream."
"What about baseball?"
Dean looked away. "I wasn't going to play anyway. You have to be passing to play."
"And you weren't passing."
"No. Thought Dad made that pretty clear."
"He shouldn't have called you out like that."
"But he was right. I couldn't bring up my English grade. I should have taken his offer before I embarrassed myself with that test."
Caleb frowned, "So, you didn't take the chance immediately."
"What does it matter, Damian? I dropped out. No one's surprised. I'm pretty sure the counselor already had the forms in my file."
"And college?"
"We both knew that was never going to happen."
"You can still go if you want. You could go back to school. Or even get your GED-"
"Will you just stop! I get it, okay?! It was stupid. I ruined my future. It doesn't matter, Caleb. The only thing I'll ever be is a hunter. It's the only thing in the cards. And if I recall, you wanted to drop out just as bad and if your dad would have let you, you would have."
"But I didn't. And I graduated from Auburn and started my own company."
"Great. You can add that to your list along with a trust fund and a supportive parent."
"You're not going to change your mind."
"No. I'm not."
"Fine. But answer me this. And I'll know if you're lying."
"Whatever."
"If your dad didn't tell you to drop out, would you have?"
Dean didn't answer, staring at the ceiling. Then he sighed. "I had to drop out just as much as you had to graduate."
Caleb frowned, but nodded. "I'll ask Mac to spare you the speech."
"Thanks." His mouth twitched slightly.
"And if you're really good, I might even save you a piece of pie."
"You're all heart, Damian."
"Don't insult me." He grunted as he rose from the bed. "Now. I'd get back to fake sleeping before brainboy decides to come up and ruin the peace and quiet."
Dean didn't answer as Caleb left, shutting the door behind him.
~TH~
Be sure to let me know what you think!
And be on the lookout for... a lot of stories come February. I really am hoping to post one every day and while not all are brotherhood, a lot are.
I live and breathe comments, so I would greatly appreciate feedback :)
God bless,
Jamie
