Sam rode with his brother in the ambulance and watched as the paramedic tended to him, "Who hit you?" Dean's eyes moved to Sam and back to the paramedic, he didn't mean to do that but it just happened without Dean realizing it, "I fell."

Dean was on oxygen as they brought him into the emergency room but when Sam tried to follow him in they stopped him, "Sorry you can't come in here." The nurse blocked the door, "What do you mean, I can't see him? That's my brother now move it!"

"You can make this easy and sit in the waiting room or hard and I can call security." Sam backed down, he figured Dean would ask for him so he retreated to the waiting area where he took a seat by the window and waited.

…

Dean was stabilized and much more alert after the oxygen, he felt better than he had in awhile. A hospital social worker came in and sat by the bed with a clipboard, introduced herself and started asking him questions, "Hi Dean my name is Kate and I'm a hospital social worker, I just want to ask you a few questions, you had some injuries consistent with abuse and I need to know if your partner struck you…do you feel like you're in danger?"

"No, not at all I'm fine, Sammy and I just got into it like we always do and I lost this time, no big deal. When can I get out of here?"

They had no insurance, being a hunter didn't come with a health plan and before Deans heart problems there wasn't a need for it. Any cuts they could sew up and the rest had to heal on its own or suffer just like when they were kids.

"So the man that came with you didn't do this? The ambulance driver was under the impression he was the one that hurt you."

"Yeah but you don't get it, I hit him back…look I have to go. I don't have any money to pay for this so I'm sure they are gonna boot my ass out anyway."

She tapped her pen on the board and sighed, she knew he took a beating. Dean had a busted lip, an eye that was quickly turning into a shiner and a bruise on his face but if he didn't want to talk she couldn't make him.

"Dean the doctor is going to come in and talk with you and then you can figure out all the details, I'm going to leave my card and if you need anything call me alright?"

Dean wouldn't look at her so Kate set her card on the nightstand and left.

….

Sam saw her leave and hurried over to talk to Kate, "Hey I'm his brother Sam, what did he say…is Dean alright?" She looked up at the giant, sweet looking young man and wondered how someone with that much pain and concern on his face could have beaten someone so ill, "I'm sorry I can't talk to you."

She hesitated, this was the hard part of her job, keeping her mouth shut and letting things just happen. In a perfect world she would have yelled at Sam for hitting him, told him that his brother was very sick and he was a bastard for doing that but she didn't. Kate did what she was always forced to do and walked away.

…..

Sam watched the door and the nurses' station across from it waiting for them to leave or be distracted so he could go inside. The doctor had gone in and Dean still hadn't asked for him. Sam felt a guilt so heavy he wanted to die thinking he was the cause for Dean collapsing, if Sam had know the truth it would have been that much worse.

…

After the usual questions the doctor went over Dean carefully, he actually sat down to talk to him, "Dean you're a very sick man, are you aware how far along you are?"

Dean gave him a grim, humorless smile, "No shit…I'm dying and I know it. Purgatory will do that to a guy, it's not a nice place by a long shot. Look I don't have money for treatment and there's no fixing my ticker anyway so I don't know what we have to talk about."

The doctor ignored the purgatory comment chalking it up to confusion, "There are treatments to keep you stable, prevent more damage and buy you some time. You can have oxygen at night, have some available when you need it…a nebulizer and some…"

"Just stop it! I know where this ends and it's not good, you're giving me band aids for something that needs a miracle."

Doctor Kurt thought Dean was certainly a different sort of case, most people responded to treatment and if managed could go on for years but Dean's rapid decline in someone so young was strange to say the least.

"I need to run tests on you and do an assessment."

"I don't have money, this isn't happening, just send me on my way."

"The man you came in with is your brother, maybe I could speak with him and we could come up with a treatment plan together."

Dean swung his legs over the side and stood but wobbled a bit, "No, you're making me upset and I'm sure you don't want me in here so just let me go."

The doctor knew the young man was determined to go and he couldn't stop him so he left Dean with some information and numbers he could call for help.

…..

Sam saw the doctor leave and ran in the room shutting the door behind him, a nurse knocked telling Sam to open up but Sam leaned his weight against it, Dean yelled it was ok and she stopped.

"Dean I'm so sorry I didn't mean to hurt you like this. You have to stay if you don't feel well, what did they say?"

"I'm five by five Sammy, right as rain don't worry about it."

Sam had been crying, his nose was red and his cheeks flushed, clear Sammy signs of bawling, "Geez Samantha stop acting like a girl and get me my boots."

Sam made Dean sit while he put his socks and boots on for him but Dean did the rest. Sam insisted on pushing the wheelchair out the door as the nurse followed, he called them a cab and they headed back to the motel.

On the way back Sam did something he hadn't since they were kids, he took Dean's hand and held it tight. Dean was afraid to acknowledge it and scare his brother off so he just held on enjoying the physical touch from someone that spent his life avoiding it.

…

Sam paid another week on the motel and went to get groceries and pick up a pizza. Dean lay in bed drinking a beer and watching TV trying not to think about anything.

There was a knock on the door and Dean saw it was Benny, he let him in and handed him a beer, "Dean I was worried about you," he touched the busted lip, "your face is beat up, what happened?"

Dean shrugged and kept watching the fishing program, "Sam and I got into it, he won. I went to hospital."

Benny was furious with Sam but didn't show it, he knew it would just make things worse, "Have you thought about what I said?"

"I really didn't have time Benny, I walked in on my baby boy in bed with some bar whore and from there I didn't have time to think. I'll get around to it, hang in there."

Sam bumped the door open and dropped the groceries on the table, he spotted Benny and normally would have been perturbed but in light of what he thought he did the hunter was embarrassed thinking Dean had said Sam put him in the hospital. He went out to get the pizza and surprisingly asked Benny to stay and eat with them.

"Thanks anyway Sam, I just stopped by to say hello to Dean." He brushed past him and vanished into the night.

….

Sam sat there picking all the toppings off the pizza until there was only cheese; he got it loaded with all of Dean's favorites. It always drove Dean nuts when Sam did that but tonight he found it endearing, "There won't be anything left when you get done."

"I don't care, I'm not real hungry,what about you Dean, you're still on your first slice."

"I'm not real hungry anymore…Sammy if I just up and died what would you do?"

Sam frowned down at the congealed mess on his paper plate, "Shut up Dean, don't say that."

It was a real question Sam had asked himself a million times and the answers varied from starting over with a new life, trying to bring Dean back from the dead or just kill himself by going on a dangerous hunt and let some creature kill him.

"Hey…look me in the eye and tell me, I'm serious."

Sam wiped his eyes and focused on his brother, "I don't know, what aren't you telling me?"

Dean polished off his beer and sat back, "What if I was dying and there was a way to save me but it made me…I don't know…still me but sort of a monster."

"What a damn choice! Is this a hypothetical question or…"

"Forget it." Dean got up and put on his jacket and headed for the door but Sam blocked him, "Come on Sam let me go."

Sam reached out to touch Dean's bruised face but his brother flinched, "I can't be hurt anymore just let me go and don't make me kick your ass Sam."

Sam stood his ground knowing his brother had no other choice but to stay, "No, you're going to talk to me so you might as well get comfortable and start being honest."

Dean looked up at the ceiling as he felt tears gathering, "Only if you're honest with me."

TBC