AN: I hope you enjoy it... sorry it's so short!
Dean looked at Taylor and nodded before asking quietly, "Ok, what things?"
"Do you know that our little brother thinks that you believe what that jerk was saying about him? It's tearing him apart for him to think that the only reason why you reacted that way was because you wanted to shut the kid up to save us from any embarrassment. So, we need to know right here and right now… is that how you really feel?" Taylor demanded, ready to beat Dean into the pavement if he found out that everything he had thought he'd known about his friend had been a lie.
"WHAT… NO!" Dean exclaimed, looking around to each of his friends… his brother's. He felt a moment of intense anger towards them that they could think that of him, but it suddenly diminished when he realized where their doubt was coming from; love. The love they had for Sammy rivaled his own and he suddenly understood where they were coming from. While his love for his little brother was shown by his reaction to take care of a perceived threat, they were doing the same; even if in this case the possible opponent was him. "No… I've never thought that about Sammy – ever! Hell, I wouldn't care if the kid dressed himself in a damn PRIDE flag and marched down Main Street as long as he was happy. Damnit, I need to talk to him… get this straightened out!"
Although relieved, the rest of the Musketeers as well as the Colonel were wary about letting the brothers so close to each other especially with emotions running so raw at the moment, but they also knew that the longer Sammy had to dwell on it the longer it was going to take to straighten everything out. Not sure which way to go on this one, they decided to leave it up to the one person who would know how Sammy felt at the moment.
Stephen pulled out his phone and quickly dialed the familiar number before waiting impatiently for an answer. Finally though, the call was connected and Stephen felt relieved at the voice he heard.
"Hey Stephen, is everything ok?"
"Yeah Buddy, just checking up on you. How are you anyway?"
"Fine. The guys are loading up a DVD at the moment. They wanted to make sure I wasn't by myself while I thought about everything."
"They're good friends kiddo. Hey, I wanted to let you know that it was a misunderstanding, ok? He doesn't think anything like that and wants to tell you in person so you can see for yourself he's not lying." The pause on the other end of the line was palatable, making Stephen worry that maybe he was pushing too hard, too soon.
"I just need a little bit of time to think things over, ok? I need to work on the new house, so I'll probably stay over there for awhile, if that's ok."
Stephen could see the tense faces surrounding him and he knew he needed to make a tough decision. Finally choosing the more unpopular one, he agreed. "Sure kiddo, but on one condition… you call us when you get there no matter what time, and you make sure you take your meds like your supposed to, alright?"
"Yeah, alright. Hey Stephen… thanks."
Putting his phone away he turned his attention back to the others. "Ok, he's planning on working at the new rent house tonight… I call first shift."
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Vic was more than happy to go to Toby's to make sure Sam was alright. It amazed him though about the change in attitude the team seemed to have. He had never kept his preferences a secret and often got harassed by others, but to have the entire track team willing to put their prejudices aside to help their friend was amazing. Then again, Sam did have a knack for bringing out the best in people.
An hour after arriving and being filled in by Toby and the others, he knew that his friend was hurting in a really bad way and wasn't sure how to help. The only thing he could think of was to give him a ride to someplace that he had no idea where it was to begin with. Sensing the need within Sam to get away from all the well intentioned people, he quickly thanked Toby for including him, and took off towards his car.
As they drove, Vic was worried about the silence, but wasn't sure what would be welcome; music, small talk, or the sound of the wind coming in through the windows. Finally though the decision was made for him when Sam pointed to a house on the right.
"That's it, right there. Just pull into the driveway and come in." Sam said with a surprising eagerness that threw Vic back for a moment.
"Uh Sam, I know you need some time to yourself, but don't you think you should ask the owners before inviting someone into their home?"
Sam paused a moment before laughing. It didn't take long to pull the right key out of his bag and open the door for them to unload Vic's car of the groceries they had bought. Motioning for his friend to follow, Sam smiled as he looked around at the work he'd already accomplished. The crown molding was in place in need of a good coat of paint, while the tile in front of the fireplace was cut and placed but not grouted yet. It would only take another day for the house to be ready to rent, but for now he was just happy to have it in order to get away from everyone for awhile. As much as he loved his brothers, he just need some time on his own every now and again.
Looking around, Vic saw a house that had obviously had some work done to it, and wondered about it. "Hey Sam, you said that you and your brothers have a rent house, right… is this it?"
"Actually, this is house number two. The realtor says she already has it rented if I can get it ready in a couple of weeks, but I just need to do a few more things to it and they can move in." Sam said with pride in his voice. This was something he was good at; something that didn't involve risking everything for, didn't have the potential to take his life if he failed miserably. It might not be glamorous, but it was good enough for him.
"That's great Sam, I'm glad to see it's working out. So the Musketeers get free labor, right?" Vic joked as he looked around the house, impressed by the workmanship he saw.
"Actually, I do all the work; they just sign any papers that need it. All in all it works out ok I guess." Sam called out from the kitchen as he put the items in the fridge. He knew Vic was a real friend who wouldn't make fun of him for doing hard labor. As he walked back into the living room though, he was surprised by Vic's question.
"So, do you think you can teach me how to do this?"
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Stephen knew that he wasn't fooling anyone by sitting in the Suburban watching the house his little brother was in. He wasn't meaning to be conspicuous, in fact quite the opposite; he wanted Sammy to know he was there if needed. It didn't take long for his plan to come to fruition when he saw a familiar dark head glance out the window and five seconds later his phone rang.
"Hey Stephen, comfy?"
"Yeah, as a matter of fact, I am. How about you, everything ok?" he asked, smiling at the shadow in the window.
"Yeah, I'm good. Vic's going to help paint the molding and I'm going to do the grout work around the fireplace. I'm hoping the tenants can move in by the middle of the week."
"That's great news Sammy! I know that you haven't been spending as much time as you wanted on it, but I knew you'd finish it quickly."
"Thanks! Hey, uh… is Dean still mad at me?" Sam asked hesitantly, wondering if he'd completely pushed his big brother away. They might have some issues to deal with, but Dean meant everything to him.
Stephen laughed, "Are you kidding me? Who do you think has the next shift? The man's a bulldog I tell you!"
Sam smiled before nodding, "Yeah, he is. Oh, hey… before I forget. We ordered a pizza from that organic restaurant down the street, so don't shoot the delivery guy when he comes to the door, ok?"
"Smartass… I'll try to restrain myself. Now hurry up and get back to work. I want to see you tomorrow, ok?"
"Ok. Hey Stephen… thanks again."
Putting his phone down once again, he leaned his head back against the headrest and continued to watch the house that his littlest brother was in. So intent on the house that he didn't see the movement in the side mirror until the door was already opened and a gun was in his face.
"Get out of the car!" the voice behind the gun demanded, blinding Stephen with the light of a large Maglight aimed at his eyes.
'Damn it.' Stephen thought as he vaguely heard the sound of a car door closing close by, making him wonder just how many of these jokers there were.