Thank you everyone for the reviews! I'm so glad to see you all are liking Jess. I have to admit, she was supposed to have met an unfortunate end several times already in this 'verse but turns out I've gotten a tad protective of her ;)
And now...let's abuse Dean some more, shall we?
Sam woke early the next morning, the rays of sunlight just beginning to peek through the bedroom window. He rolled his head on the pillow. Saw Jess still asleep, long blond hair spilling across her back. He smiled at the sight of her, ran a hand lightly over her arm. She sighed, moved into his touch then settled back into her dreams.
Sam pulled back the covers, careful not to disturb Jess as he rose. He stretched, muscles still stiff from days of driving, and stumbled towards the bathroom. As he brushed his teeth, his mind ran over the decision he'd come to last night. Over the discussion he needed to have.
Though still unsure of exactly how he was going to ease into the topic, Sam was convinced he was making the right choice in telling Jess about his family.
And speaking of…
Covering a yawn, Sam made his way downstairs to check on Dean. He didn't really think his brother would be up yet, it was still early and Dean had never really been a morning person, but Sam wanted to talk to him. Wanted to thank him for the little diversion he'd pulled last night. Sam had needed those nighttime hours to think, to get things straight in his head. This whole situation with Dean had just happened so fast…two years of normal and suddenly the worlds he knew had collided. Sam hadn't been prepared for it at first, but at least now he felt a little more stable. A little more in control.
He padded softly into the living room, not wanting to wake his brother if he was still out. Dean had always been a light sleeper, and Sam didn't even want to think about his reaction time after a couple years of hunting solo.
As he moved closer, he could see Dean still huddled on the couch, his back to Sam.
Sam's brow furrowed.
Something about the scene before him seemed…off.
Seemed wrong.
Careful not to advance to quickly, Sam moved closer to the couch
"Dean?" He said softly, putting a hand out. He made certain not to touch his brother before Dean was fully awake. Sam knew the speed with which his brother could react when threatened, the deadly force he could summon in an instant. Sneaking up on Dean was never a smart move.
"Dean," Sam repeated a little more forcefully.
Gently, he ghosted a hand over his brother's shoulder. Stopped when he felt the heat radiating through the thin cotton T-shirt, when he saw the sweat on his brother's neck.
Caution forgotten, Sam gripped Dean's arm and rolled his brother towards him.
"Dean," he said, shaking his brother gently.
When he got no response, Sam started to worry. "Come on, man, wake up."
After a moment, Dean blinked slowly, his eyes having trouble focusing on the face looming above him.
"S'mmy?"
"Yeah," Sam said, letting out a breath. "Yeah, it's okay. It's just me."
Dean pushed weakly at his brother. "Dude…personal sp-"
"-ace," Sam finished. "I got it." He let go of Dean's shoulders but didn't move away.
Dean rubbed his eyes. "S'goin on?"
"I came down to talk to you…you weren't waking up."
"Huh." Dean wiped his face, pushed the blanket down to his knees. "Musta been more wiped than I thought." He grimaced. "Hot in here."
"No. It's not… "Sam said quietly. He put a hand on Dean's cheek. " You have a fever."
"Dude..." Dean muttered, batting his brother's hand away.
Sam stuffed his hands in his pockets. He stood beside the couch, face lined with concern.
"What's going on, Dean?"
Dean shrugged. "Must just be a bug or somethin'. Stupid brat kid sneezed all over me at that gas station in Wyoming."
"Don't lie to me," Sam said, clenching his fists. "Are you sick again?" He swallowed. "Is it your heart?"
"Sam, relax. You were there. You heard the doctor. My heart's fine."
"But…"
"Trust me. I know the difference."
"Then what's going on, Dean?"
Dean hesitated. "I don't know," he admitted. "I've just been feeling kind of…off."
Sam's heart dropped. "What do you mean 'off'?
"I don't know, man," Dean replied tiredly. "Different. Strange."
"For how long."
Dean played with a stray thread off the edge of the blanket. "Since we stopped the reaper."
"Okay…and you didn't mention this, because…?"
"I was just… tired."
Sam huffed. "You just came off a heart attack, Dean. You don't think it might be good to let me know you felt off?"
"Hey. Not exactly a regular at the True Believer's tent here, dude. I don't know how this stuff works. Thought it was a side effect of the whole healing fiesta thing."
Sam bit his lip. "Okay. You said it doesn't feel like your heart. You said you felt strange, though. Strange how?"
Dean cleared his throat. "Headaches."
Sam's mouth tightened. "What else."
"I don't know, this uh, tingling."
"Tingling?"
"Yeah. Not often, just..once in awhile. In my arms. Legs."
"Alright, that's it. We're getting you checked out."
"Sam…"
"Dean. You almost died a week ago. I'm not taking any chances here."
After a moment, Dean sighed. "Fine."
"Good." Sam replied. "I'm gonna go see if I can find someone open this early. Make us an appointment."
"Hey." Dean grabbed his brother's arm as he went to walk away. He cleared his throat. "Just a, uh…clinic."
"No." Sam pulled his arm loose. "A real doctor, Dean. In a real office."
Dean shook his head. "We can't keep jackin' up the insurance cards, man. You know the rules, emergencies only."
"I don't play by those rules anymore," Sam said, raising his chin slightly. "And don't worry about insurance alright, I'll pay for the visit. Just get dressed. We can pick up some food on the way."
He didn't let his brother object. "Just save us both the hassle and shut up."
Dean showed his palms in surrender.
Sam watched with concern as Dean pushed himself up, muttering something under his breath. Thought he heard something that sounded suspiciously like 'bossy' and 'Sasquatch.' Sam smiled despite himself.
Although moving slowly, Dean seemed steady, so Sam left him to get cleaned up.
He crept quietly through the bedroom, in search of his laptop.
"Morning." Jess smiled at him sleepily.
"Morning," he said distractedly, as he bent to look under the bed. "Jess, you seen my backpack?"
"Um, I think you left it in the kitchen. Why? You're not doing work today are you?"
He avoided her eyes. "No I... need to look up a number."
"A number?"
"For a, uh. Doctor."
Worry flitted across her face. "What's wrong?"
"It's Dean. He's had a …setback." He glanced in the closet. "You sure you saw it in the kitchen? I coulda sworn I brought it up here…"
"Setback? What kind of setback?"
"I'm not sure."
"Sam."
"Maybe it's in the car…"
"Sam." Jess was sitting up, a look of utter determination on her face. "Talk to me."
"Jess, I'm sorry. Look, I promise, we'll talk about everything." He said quickly. "Later."
Instantly he regretted the words.
"Okay." She threw back the covers. "That's it."
Jess had had enough.
She'd play the caring supportive girlfriend card for as long as he needed. The supportively silent part? That had its limits. She'd given him space, hadn't pushed him on the details of Dean's mystery disease while Dean was sick. Knowing the only thing on his mind was to get Dean help. She knew it had to do with Dean's heart but was never offered more information from Sam, hadn't felt comfortable asking Dean. And then he'd taken off on her. To search out some mystery specialist…cure… whatever it was.
She'd expected Sam to confide in her once it was over, once Dean was better. Or supposedly better. So to hear about this setback, to have him push her away now felt like he was hiding things from her. Purposefully keeping her in the dark. And that Jess wouldn't have.
"Sam, I know you're dealing with a lot right now, but I think I've been pretty good about this." She counted on her fingers. "Your long lost brother shows up here in the middle of the night, dying, but you won't tell me why. Then he's somehow all better and you won't tell me how. Now this 'setback.' What the hell is going on?"
"It's…complicated Jess."
"How is this complicated? Don't keep things from me, Sam."
He wanted to tell her, wanted to tell her everything. But not now. Not rushed. Not in some half-assed explanation that would more than likely just freak her out or have her worried for his mental health. That would probably happen anyway. But he didn't want to have this discussion now, with his mind elsewhere. With his mind on Dean.
"Sam, I care about you," she said quietly. "I care about Dean. Don't shut me out."
Sam sighed. One look at her face and he knew he wasn't getting out of there without giving her some sort of explanation. So he settled for a piece of the truth. Call it a teaser to their big discussion. The one he was going to have once the doctor told him his big brother was fine.
"It's just…the means we used to save Dean, they were a little….unorthodox."
"Unorthodox? Like acupuncture? Herbs? I mean I know a little about holistic medicine, Sam. I'm not saying I believe in them all, but if they helped Dean then-"
"A faith healer."
She shook her head. "What?"
"A faith healer. We took Dean to see a faith healer."
Jess's brow furrowed. "Wait…like, some guy who…heals people out of a tent?"
Sam huffed. "Yeah. Somethin' like that."
"Dean let you take him to a faith healer?" She asked incredulously
"Well, I mean I didn't tell actually tell him we were going to a faith healer, but…okay, so not the point. Jess, look this guy, he was the real deal…"
"Sam, I'm being serious here..."
"So am I. Look, I know how it sounds alright, but I'm telling you the truth. We went to see this guy, Roy Legrange. He healed Dean. We went to the hospital. They checked him out. Did tests, scans. Everything came back perfect. He was completely healthy."
"Then why…"
"Something's happened. Something wrong."
"What?"
"I don't know…" Sam admitted. "I don't think he knows. But I'm going to find out."
-tbc
Three day weekend kids! Hopefully I can grab the muse before he goes off to play beach volleyball and squeeze out another chapter or two :)