AN: Sorry that there was a bit of a wait on this chapter, things got a bit busy and I haven't had much writing time. Stick with me, new chapters should start coming out sooner and sooner, just don't give up on me, kay?

((Then: "Come on Sam, I think that's enough excitement for one day," he said, and Sam looked at him square in the eyes as both of them flickered coal black and his soft smile was replaced with a self satisfied smirk. Just as quickly as it happened though, it was gone, and one who didn't know any better would say that it had been a trick of the drugs. "Let's get you back to your room," he said gently.

But Sam knew better, and all he could think as he slumped, once again back into unconsciousness was, So close.

xxxx

The usual Winchester policy as of late? No hospitals. Period. But this was an emergency, Sam wasn't moving, wasn't responding, wasn't waking up.

Dean had lost everybody he'd ever had... yes everybody, at least at one point or another. He'd traded his soul to hang on to his last remaining family member. But now if something happened, well, he had nothing left to trade.))

((NOW:))

There was a light streaming through the windows. The light was impaired a bit, seeing as there were bars over them. The familiar scene, Sam was beginning to become accustomed to, but he was getting sick of waking up in that hospital, hoping beyond hope that this had all been some sort of nightmare.

The distinct buzz of the door opening alerted Sam to the presence of another person. It was Karen again, and this time, she had a couple of men with her.

"If you've come to stick me with that needle again, you might wanna be careful or I might become immune," Sam snarked, his usual defense mechanism surfacing: When all else fails, act like Dean.

"Sam?" came her melodic voice, unaffected by Sam's mood, as she and the men she brought stepped into the room, "You have a visitor. Are you up for that?"

Sam frowned and sat up even more, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. At this action, the two men stepped forward as if feeling threatened, and Sam cocked an eyebrow but said nothing. He turned his attention back to Karen. "A visitor?" he repeated, "Who is it?"

"It's your mother and father," she replied, "They're here to see you."

Sam was taken aback at the news. His mother and father were alive but Dean wasn't? How screwed up was this alternate reality? "Yes, yeah, I want to see them," he replied.

The men came forward and without warning cuffed his hands behind his back and began leading him down the hall. Sam looked to each of them with a glare. Weren't cuffs a little... overboard for some loony in the bin? Sam contimplated this as he shook at the cuffs a little but knew that if he had any chance of actually staying awake today, making it through the whole day, that he'd have to behave. He felt like a puppy in obedience school.

He was led into a room, much like the one he stayed in, white painted walls that began to hurt your eyes if you looked at them for too long and a solitary window on the far wall. In the center of the room though, was his mom and dad sitting at a table, holding hands.

His mom was beautiful, exactly how he'd remembered from pictures. The only thing that was missing was that smile she wore in the pictures Sam had seen. Now Mary's eyes stayed on the floor, while John looked up at him as if it were the first time he'd ever seen him.

In a sense, it kind of was.

Sam was placed into the chair directly across from them. He looked up at his escorts expectantly, shaking the handcuffs a little bit as if to say he wanted them off. "You mind?" he asked shortly.

All he got was a slight shake of the head and Sam rolled his eyes angrily, before directing them towards his parents. The men who'd led him here left and Sam heard the door lock into place behind them.

The three sat in silence for a while as Sam looked down at his hands, the table, the walls, anywhere but his parents eyes. John was the first to break the silence.

"It's been a while, son," John commented, his voice sounding nothing like the firm, hard, John Winchester Sam remembered. There was also something different about the man sitting before him. Foreign, almost cold, Sam didn't recognize him.

Sam looked up and gave a humorless laugh, "You have no idea."

John looked a bit confused, and Mary finally looked up and into Sam's eyes. Sam swallowed and tried everything to look into hers as well. It was hard though, because there was such a deep pain in them that it hurt him to see it.

"We've missed you, Sammy," came Mary's soft voice as John placed his other hand over his wife's.

Sam glanced down towards the floor again and shook his head with another hollow laugh. "I don't even know you," he said, frowning.

Mary looked slightly startled at the admission and Sam's face set into a stony glare. "You don't know me, either," Sam said, leaning forward, clasping his cuffed hands together on the table, "You're dead. And you-" he said looking to John, "Are in hell."

Both of them looked shocked this time, and Sam watched as a tear slid down Mary's face. Something inside of him snapped and he stood up from the table, turning away, trying desperately to stow the anger that was boiling inside of him.

"Sammy, no, we aren't dead, your mind created that," John said, patiently, "But I'm alive. I'm here."

Subconsciously, Sam's mind was drawing up memories, from a time where John had actually been with him. And with Dean. He remembered his father's exact words, how they had cut him deep. Those words held truth. This man's words meant nothing, this man, who certainly was not his father, was the liar.

"I want to stop losing people we love..."

"No," Sam replied, empty, void of emotion, "The demon killed you. I found you on the hospital floor after you made the deal with the demon, I remember."

"There's no such thing. You don't hunt monsters, you never did, you were in school, Sam, for almost a year before it happened."

"I want you to go to school..."

"Before what happened?" Sam demanded, "What about Dean? What about my brother what happened to him?"

"Dean is dead," Mary whispered.

"I want Dean to have a home."

"Dean is not dead!" Sam yelled, suddenly turning around, his eyes burning with unrelenting anger, "You are, you're dead!"

Another tear slipped down Mary's cheek and she shook her head.

"I want Mary alive..."

John pulled his wife into a protective hug, seeing the wild look on his son's face, "If you would let go, Sammy, let go of these fantasies that you're hiding behind this could all be over." John stood up, crossing the room to place a hand on Sam's shoulder. Sam tensed another the foreign touch, as if John hadn't been doing the same thing Sam's entire life. But this was different. This wasn't John.

"I just want this to be over."

"Just let go," John said again, his hand squeezing Sam's shoulder, and suddenly it felt a little more familiar. But this couldn't be, wasn't John. Or was it?

"We don't blame you," Mary added, and Sam looked at her confused, "For your brother's death."

AN: Cue dramatic music now!! Okay, so I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It was a bit short compared to the others, I know, but I want the pace of the story to match up with the chapters so bear with it and like I said, chapters should be coming out sooner and sooner.

I hope you enjoyed!!

MetallicarLove14