Chapter Six

Sam sat looking at the plate of food before him, it wasn't so much that he wasn't hungry, he just didn't know where to start. Nicki had cooked up a feast with what looked like everything she could find in the cupboards. Steak, mashed potato, pasta salad, vegetables, everything.

Undecided he left it up to fate as he ploughed his fork through the mountain of food and shovelled the load into his mouth.

"Like it?"

He nodded to Nicki and raised his eyes in wonder.

"I know, Jason calls it a 'Nicki special' I kinda just put everything I like together and hope it works. Usually does, although there was that one time with the Chinese duck and shepherds pie that didn't go so well."

Sam gulped his food before his stomach could contemplate the concoction. For the past day he'd been at Dean's bedside, helping to keep his brother's temperature down, helping him take the antibiotics, help him to get better. His waking moments few and far between. Doc Jones had assured them he was getting better and sleep was the best thing for him. Dean had obeyed every order, except the one to stay in bed. Sam had found his brother sitting on the edge of the bed, head drooping to his chest, legs dangling to the floor. He'd quietly entered the room, not wanting to wake Grace who was asleep in a chair beside Dean's bed.

"Hey bro, where you going?"

Dean raised his head with what appeared to be a monumental effort.

"Bathroom." He whispered.

"There's a bucket here if you need to puke man."

Dean shook his head and breathed out the word "Pee".

"Ok, but I don't think you'll make it there without help."

Dean looked up dejectedly at Sam, frowned and then relented with a weary nod. He raised his left arm so that Sam could wrap his right arm around his back, his left under his knees as he lifted his brother easily into his arms. Once at the door to the bathroom Dean shook his head and Sam gave in, allowing him to walk into the room and take care of business himself. After a few minutes he heard his name being called and opened the door to find Dean sat on the edge of the bath.

"Done?"

A weary nod.

"Ok, let's get you back to bed man. You need to sleep."

"Don't I know it." Said Dean as Sam lifted him once again and carried him back to the bed. As he placed his brother back down and pulled the covers up Sam noticed Grace looking at him with a smile. She threw the younger man a wink and lifted Dean's head, ignoring his weak protests as she poured cool water down his throat. His fear of throwing up again had meant that keeping him hydrating became a cruel task of holding his head and forcing him to drink.

Dean's fever had broken later that night and they had all finally had a few hours sleep. Safe in the knowledge that Dean was out like a light and comfortably so.

Nicki sparingly buttered a piece of toast and added it to a tray with a glass of water and two small pills. As she made her way to the stairs to the bedrooms she could hear Grace snoring loudly from her bed. She'd taken the last watch over Dean. Calling both Sam and Nicki when his temperature had finally begun to fall. The women had watched as Sam gently pulled the covers over Dean who had smiled his thanks and closed his eyes, head facing his brother, to finally fall into a deep, peaceful sleep.

"Hey handsome." Nicki smiled as she walked into the room. Dean was on his side facing away from the door. He looked over his shoulder at her and tried to hide his misery. He ached all over. He felt better, definitely. Not having to puke every twenty minutes had done wonders for his mood and the fact he had finally slept meant that the suicidal feelings that descend over those denied sleep had finally lifted. But he still ached, he still felt tired and the thought of food still made his stomach turn. Plus there was that lingering headache and the firm knowledge that he stank worse than a dead skunk that hadn't washed in years.

And he was sure he'd broken all his ribs while throwing his entire life's worth of stomach contents out into the various buckets and toilets he'd visited the past few days.

But despite all that he still rallied himself and threw Nicki a Dean Winchester smile-like you-mean-it smile.

"That smile doesn't fool me Winchester. I can see you feel like shit."

"Didn't fool you just a little bit?"

"Would it make you feel better if it had?"

"Yes."

"Liar."

Dean smiled weakly and tried to ignore the smell of the toast as Nicki placed it on the table next to his bed.

"Come on Regan. Sit up."

"Regan?"

"Dude with some of what you were puking the last few days I was convinced we'd have to perform an exorcism."

"Please don't tell me there was a cross involved."

"Hell no, for that I would have gladly put you out of your misery." Nicki helped Dean to sit upright. Noting in his movements and with his left arm held protectively across his stomach that all was not well in Dean Land.

"You in pain Dean?"

"It's ok."

Dean pulled the covers up to his chest and reluctantly took the offered toast. He looked over the bread at Nicki, silently requesting a reprieve from the meal.

"Just a little bit , a few bites and I'll tell Grace you ate it all."

"Really?"

"Yes, but you'd owe me."

"Don't like the sound of that."

"Yeah well you shouldn't. The payback involves a rat problem we have at the back of the attic."

"Sam can get that for you."

"Funny, he said you'd be able to deal with it."

Dean took a bite of the toast, willing his mind to ignore his stomachs desire to rip itself from his body and run screaming through the streets. After four bites his will was beginning to fail and he handed the last bits back to Nicki.

"Not bad."

"Tell Grace I ate it all?"

"Get that rat?"

"At least tell Grace I ate half of it."

"Fair enough. You did well considering."

"Considering what?" Dean shuffled back down into the bed and pulled the covers around him as Nicki tucked him in.

"Considering you haven't eaten in three days."

"What day is it?"

"Wednesday lunchtime. You got here Sunday morning."

"Where's Sam?" Asked Dean sleepily from beneath the covers.

"Eating his way through two lunches and a brunch. I think he's decided to keep you strong by eating your share."

Dean rolled onto his left side and hugged his knees up, hoping the position would earn him a break from the pain across his stomach. His muscles were on fire and he was sure after the work out he'd just endured he'd never have to do another sit up in his life to maintain his six pack.

Nicki frowned but chose silence over interrogation as she gathered the breakfast things and left Dean to sleep. She laughed as she walked back into the kitchen, Sam was piling more food from the stove onto his plate like a child piling presents into their lap at Christmas.

"Please don't tell me you're still not full!"

"Dean blames it on my height."

"One day you'll just balloon and then you'll be in trouble."

"Oh really?"

"I'll get some slim fast ready for the day you roll in here and get wedged in the door."

"Mighty considerate of you. How is he?"

"He ate half the toast so that's not bad. But you can tell he still feels like crap."

"I think he's in pain."

"His stomach?"

Sam nodded as he tucked into his third plateful.

"Who's in pain?"

Nicki and Sam both turned as Grace came into the room, looking refreshed and more awake than she'd felt since the boys had arrived.

Nicki smiled and kissed her Aunt in welcome, Grace in turn bent to kiss Sam between his mouthfuls of food.

"Who's in pain honey?"

"Dean, I think his stomach still hurts."

"Well, the poor man has probably managed to pull every muscle in his entire body. But I have something to take that away."

Sam frowned as Grace threw Nicki a knowing wink.

"Am I missing something?"

"No Sam honey, nothing a man would pick up on. You just eat your food."

Sam frowned again but decided women-speak was best left to the women. He shovelled another fork load of food into his mouth. Part of the excitement at being at Grace's, not just the love and warmth that enveloped him here, was the fact that while they stayed they ate proper meals. With vegetables and meat, healthy food, not fried or heated in a mini-mart.

Nicki added the rest of her concoction to Sam's plate and began washing up while ignoring Grace's attempts to take over.

"Sam honey? I think you should get out today, go with Nicki to the diner and have a few hours outside in the fresh air."

"There's fresh air in the diner?"

"Don't be cheeky, you know what I mean." Laughed Grace as she clipped the younger man around the ear.

"Yeah Sam come with me, you can stop in at the apartment on the way and say Hi to Jason."

"Nicki I'm not getting that rat for you."

"Well who else can I ask? Jason just goes deathly pale at the mention of it, Dean's sick and Grace…"

Grace frowned at her nice and threw her arms in the air while huffing and breathing heavily. Sam laughed as she stomped around the kitchen.

"I see what you mean."

"Please Sam, I promise you have a look in the attic and I'll spot you a cup of the best coffee in town."

Grace cleared her throat loudly from the pantry.

"Second best coffee in town." Said Nicki quickly.

XXXXXXXXXX

Grace found the small pot of cream she was looking for and quietly made her way into Dean's room, he was still on his side, curled up in a ball facing away from the door. Sam had agreed to accompany Nicki to the diner, reluctantly also agreeing to take a look at her rat problem in the process. She was alone in the house with Dean and hoped he'd allow her to take away the ache that was threatening to bring back his misery.

"Dean honey?"

A gentle moan met her as she ran her fingers through the tufts of hair that escaped the cocoon he'd made from the covers.

"Dean baby come on, roll over."

"Grace?" His pale face met her as she plied the covers from around him. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going to take the ache away baby. I'm guessing your stomach is in knots right now?"

"It's ok."

"Dean Winchester shut your pie hole and do as you're told." Grace's stern glare faltered as his face broke into a wide grin.

"Pie hole?"

"Just roll over will you."

"I'm ok here."

"Hurts to straighten?"

Dean nodded slowly and cast his eyes down in, wait, was that embarrassment? He always drove Grace to distraction with the different elements of his personality that he chose to hide, to alter, to censor to the public. She feared that even Sam wasn't privy to all the sides of Dean Winchester.

"Ok Dean, I'll work around you."

"What are you going to do?"

"Trust me?"

Dean nodded and smiled, aware of the blush that was creeping across his face. Why did this woman make him feel like he deserved the attention? He was breaking a rule, a big rule and each time they came here it was harder to walk away. He was growing attached to her. He was falling in love with her. He was starting to see her as a mother in his life. All the things his father had frowned upon. All the things he had drilled into his boys that they should resist. Never get so close that you can't walk away. There was sense in that. In the life they lead. But it was getting harder to walk away without his heart aching for the next visit. It wasn't that he wanted to live here, move in, settle down. No. It wasn't that. It was the feeling that there was somewhere he could go whenever he needed to relax, to feel loved. It was having someplace to go where he could lay his heart to rest and allow his mind to play. Having somewhere, having someone, having a home.

Grace smiled as he relaxed his grip around his midsection, allowing her to pull his arm from his stomach and pull his t-shirt up higher, exposing his skin to the cool room. He frowned as she opened a pot of cream, but he didn't voice any concerns. He allowed her to look after him, and for that she loved him more.

The first feeling that hit Dean was the cool cream as Grace rubbed a small amount into his skin. Small circles softly absorbed into his muscles. Next was the smell, relaxing and calming. Instantly easing the ache through the aroma alone. Grace rubbed small circles into his belly and side, Dean shifted slightly to allow her easier access to his abdomen, shifted again to allow her to rub the cooling cream into his ribs and side. Before she knew it he had rolled onto his back enabling her to lift his shirt up past his chest and use more than a generous amount of the cream, moulding it in her hands before massaging it into his belly, across his skin and into his muscles, her hands slid down his side across both hips. Sitting further forward on the edge of the bed, Grace ran her hands up from his bellybutton , across his ribs and up over his chest. The smell soothing him and the touch of her hands, the love that flowed from her finger tips helping to ease the ache in his body.

"Mmm w't's that?"

"Well baby, it's something women have known about for a long time now. Camomile and Lavender Soothing Lotion."

"Why do women know about it?"

Grace smiled as she massaged more of the cream into his belly, a slow realisation came over his face, followed by raised eyebrows as he settled further into the mattress and shifted to the side to allow Grace even more access to his abused body.

---------------------------------------------------

Belly Rubbing for my friend Kay . Hope you liked it babe! xxxxxxx

To everyone : I really can't thank you enough for your support and reviews. Sorry if i haven't got back to you yet, but please know how much they are appreciated!

I have officially worn out my Playthings dvd! LOL!