AN: I hope this doesn't disappoint, see you all soon!

Dean sat in the back of a security vehicle wishing more than anything that he could turn back the clock, not to stop himself from standing up for Sammy, but to keep himself from hurting his little brother. He couldn't get the look that Sammy had given him out of his head, and now that he had time, wondered about it. What had he done to hurt his brother so badly?

Looking at his watch he saw that the meet should have already started, and he wondered why he wasn't hearing the normal commotion that would normally take place during something like this. Confused, frustrated, and more than a little upset, Dean wanted to kick his way out of the SUV and head back to his brothers if for no other reason than to make things right with the youngest of them. As he sat there brooding over what happened, a horrifying thought occurred to him; what if he went to jail?

Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he quickly speed dialed the Colonel's cell phone and silently prayed that he wasn't going to get too much of an earful. As soon as the call was answered, he knew immediately that sometimes God's answer is 'NO!'

"Dean, what the hell have you done now?" the Colonel yelled over the phone, not bothering with pleasantries. "Do you have any idea what you've just caused? My God man, couldn't you have reined in your temper for just a few minutes?"

Stunned, Dean took a deep breath before answering. "I'm sorry sir, but the kid was…"

"From what I'm getting, the kid was a pain that was going to be tossed out of the meet anyway due to his lack of sportsmanship. Now though, they're debating whether to let Pembridge participate at all… including Sam! Do you have any idea how long that boy has worked to become at least moderately accepted into that school? How long he's trained to work in synch with his teammates so if one isn't able to participate in an event he can step up in addition to his own? Damn it Dean, there are colleges there… any chance of getting one of them to convince the kid he could go on a scholarship could just have blown up in our faces!"

Listening, Dean wondered if that was the reason for the look on his brother's face, but instinctively knew it wasn't. Now more confused, he had no idea how to fix this mess and was about speak when the Colonel cut him off.

"I'm almost there. I can't say that I can get you off the hook, and damn it, I don't know if I want to even try, but I will tell you this; after we get Sam calmed down, he's coming to stay with me tonight and I don't care what I have to do to make it happen." With those parting words, the Colonel hung up the phone leaving Dean to wonder just how everything had got so screwed up.

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"What do you mean they have to withdraw? They didn't do anything wrong, why punish the kids for something an adult did?" Stephen argued with an official. He turned slightly to watch Sammy and knew that things were going downhill fast when Celia looked at him with tears in her eyes. Turning back to the other man, he requested five minutes to try and figure out a solution to their problem, once granted, he raced over to his little brother and saw that the kid was sitting still with a blank look on his face.

"He won't say anything to anybody." Celia said quietly, noticing that Sam's teammates were making a point to stay close by.

Stephen knew that Taylor had already put in a call to the Colonel while Joseph was in a deep discussion with Coach Sanders, leaving Sammy to him. "Hey kiddo, c'mon, it's not that bad…"

"He hit that kid Stephen!" Sam began quietly. "He was just mouthing off and Dean just hit him… why?"

Shocked, Stephen had to wonder if maybe the kid had got hit in the head without them knowing about it. "Why? Why? Come on Sammy… I may not agree with Dean's methods but he was just looking out for you. The kid was spreading lies about you and that wasn't going to help anyone."

"No, you don't get it. What he said was no big deal to me, but what Dean did was. Is that what he thinks of me? Is that how he feels when I'm not around to ruin his fun?" Sam asked, wondering why he even had to explain himself. "Stephen, what that guy said was just talk, but what Dean did gave power to it. If people weren't talking about me before, they will now… especially if I'm not allowed to participate. Has everything that you guys told me just been a lie so I didn't eat a bullet?"

"Oh God Sammy… NO! We love you little brother, I thought you knew that. We just can't stand by and watch someone harass you like that, that's all." Stephen assured the younger brother, wishing more than anything that he had been able to pull Dean back before that hit connected.

Before Sam could say anything else, Coach Sanders, Joseph, and the even official made their way towards him with dour looks on their faces. Taking a deep breath, Coach Sanders started the conversation.

"Sam, it's in the rules; any unorderly conduct caused by anyone in the audience risks automatic forfeiture for the team they represent. When your brother hit that kid, it basically put us on the ropes. We have come to an agreement though, and I'm hoping that you understand but…"

"Coach, I'll head home… don't make the guys miss this… not because of me." Sam stated as he saw the unease build within his coach.

"Oh hell no!" Toby shouted gathering the rest of the team together. "If Sam doesn't run, we don't run… right?"

"RIGHT!" the collective yell automatically sounded, causing Joseph to relax, but the official to become even more surly.

"Coach Sanders, the decision stands. Either Winchester leaves or you forfeit each event. The choice is yours."

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Terrance knew that after everything Sam had been through, this was just going to be another blow, and he had no idea on how to soften it for him. Sighing, he pulled into the parking lot and immediately caught sight of the security SUV currently housing a member of what he calls his family. Although he had wanted to wait about this particular confrontation, he knew that he needed to get it done and over with so they could deal with more important issues.

Showing his ID to one of the security guards, he let himself inside the back of the vehicle and looked Dean over, wishing that someone could fill him in on what was going on inside the young man's head.

"Colonel, look…"

Holding up his hand, Terrance shook his head. "Dean, just be quiet for a moment, ok? Right now we have a situation that needs to be handled delicately otherwise you could spend a lot of time in jail, and how do you think Sam would feel about that?" Seeing the despondent look on Dean's face, he nodded in understanding. "Look, I'll try to get you out of here, but I can't make any guarantees. As far as Sam staying with me, I still think it's a good idea, but let's let him decide."

Dean sat there and wondered what would happen if Sammy didn't stay with them anymore. The thought clenched his heart and turned his insides cold at the thought. He knew that he needed to make everything right, to explain to his little brother how much he loved him and the thought of anyone hurting him sent him over the edge quicker than anything.

Movement from the stadium entrance made Dean take a second look, causing his concern to skyrocket. Pointing towards the crowd leaving the meet, he saw the Colonel's expression turn from mild concern to something… more.

Getting out of the vehicle, Terrance was met by a uniformed guard. "Sir, I wanted to let you know that under the agreement that has been reached, Mr. Winchester is free to go with the understanding that he's not allowed back on the premises. Since the other person involved is eighteen, then it makes things less complicated and no charges will be filed."

Nodding, Terrance motioned Dean out of the SUV and they both rushed towards Sam and his teammates. Dean reached Sammy first and hoped to get a moment alone with him but Toby's voice stopped him short.

"They were going to make Sam leave, so we're boycotting the meet. No one treats one of us like that! Now if you'll excuse us, we're heading to my place to cool down, I'll bring him home later."

Stunned, Dean could only stare at the backs of Pembridge Academy's track team noting that his little brother didn't look his way even once. Feeling as if he'd been kicked, he looked towards the others and wasn't happy with what he saw. Celia and Stephen looked as if their puppy had been run over, Joseph looked as if he could take on a whole battalion, but it was Taylor who actually made him worry, especially when he spoke seven words that made him feel that his life had just taken a huge wrong step.

"We need to get some things straight."

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Toby knew that Sam wouldn't be in the mood to talk, but that was too damn bad! After getting everyone settled, he set out to find the youngest of the Musketeer clan and wasn't disappointed to find him outside… alone… staring off into space. He'd already put in a call to Vic and was leaving it up to the rest of the guys to let him in, so he had more than enough time to kill to pull his friend out of the funk he'd fallen into.

Walking up next to Sam was always a little tricky; it was as if he could sense you coming a mile away; a little nerve wracking, but not too bad. Add to it though that there was only one side you could approach him and things often got more complicated. Making sure that Sam knew he was there, Toby waited until his friend shifted before he started talking.

"Sam, I know what you're thinking, and you're wrong. Dean doesn't think any of that. The guy's just hyped up on so much testosterone I bet he didn't even know what he did until that guy was on the ground."

Sam was listening to his friend talk about Dean as if he was talking about a stranger and that was a bit unnerving to him. He knew that his brother was a hot head; it was something that he'd always counted on. But this was different. His brother hit someone just because they were talking bad about him, as if to shut them up. It made him wonder just how Dean saw him now. Was he some pathetic loser that needed his big brother to deal with the school bully? Or worse, did he really think that his little brother was homosexual with more than one kink and he didn't want it advertised, so he saved himself the embarrassment? Too many questions ran through his head, and those hadn't even touched what his friends did for him.

"Toby, you know it would have been alright if you guys stayed. What that moron said, it wasn't a big deal and the meet wasn't that important to me… but it was to you. Why did you guys stand by me like that… don't you know that college scouts were there looking for the next greatest athlete?" Sam asked, not remembering anything Toby had just told him.

Smirking, Toby shook his head before letting out a deep breath. "Sam, you're our friend. We might not have grown up the way you did, but we do understand loyalty. One of our friends was being asked to walk away from a situation he didn't cause, and we weren't going to let him do it alone." Seeing the surprise on Sam's face, Toby smiled. "You know what, how about we go inside, and we'll let the guys decide."

It didn't take long for the consensus to be announced; if one fell, they all fell…together.