It had been two days of silent hell while everyone waited for Sam to wake up again. Celia had assured those who asked that it was normal since he needed the extra rest to fight off the infection and allow his body's immune system to attempt to rebuild itself; healing was an exhausting event. Finally though on the morning of the third day, Sam woke and was more confused about what had been going on that what his brothers thought would be normal. He had no recollection of going to the rent house much less being abducted and thankfully rescued, which left the Musketeers in a quandary of whether to fill in the blanks for their little brother or not. Between the discussions about what to tell the youngest member of the family, and trying to figure out how to straighten out all the misunderstanding's that had been building up, everyone had forgotten one important thing; watch after Sammy.
Sam hated feeling like something inside a Petri dish, but he hated feeling like he was a burden even more. It hadn't taken him long to realize that something had happened and he wasn't allowed in the loop even though it obviously had to do with him in the first place. Sighing, he took full advantage of the lack of babysitters and decided to take a walk in hopes of pulling the random thoughts floating in his head into some sort of order. He had successfully made it down two hallways before a booming voice startled him to an instant stop.
"And just where do you think you're going?"
Turning around Sam smiled slightly. "Hello Sir, I just needed a change in scenery so I thought I'd try taking a walk."
Colonel Erickson did not look pleased with this latest development but could see how the constant observations would get tiring quickly. Nodding, he motioned to a couch at the end of the hall and helped Sam get settled before looking at the young man closely again. "Sam, how are you… really?" he asked, hoping that maybe he could get more information than the others.
"I'm not sure how to answer that, honestly." Sam said hesitantly. He knew that if he had a chance to figure it all out then he'd have the answers, but at the moment everything was still mixed up in his brain and he couldn't seem to figure anything out. "It's all kind of confusing right now."
Seeing the young man before him, Terrance wished he knew what to do or say to make things better for him, but nothing came to mind right at the moment. Nodding, he had to agree with Sam though, things were definitely confusing. It was too long ago that he was certain that Sam and Jenna would enter into a much more serious relationship, but now they weren't seeing each other at all and his little girl was fighting for her life because of a damn disease that he had never dreamed they would have had to worry about. Looking at the young man beside him he suddenly knew how to handle at least one aspect of his life.
"Sam, I know that you have a lot on your mind, and sometimes you need some space to deal with it, but you need to understand that you're not alone anymore. You have people who care about you and want to make sure that you are alright in more ways than just your physical well being. The Musketeers have been worried sick ever since that fiasco at the track." Seeing the questioning gaze he smiled. "Don't worry so much Sam, you know as well as I do that Dean would have reacted the same way if that kid had said that your mother wore combat boots, it's just the way he is; family is worth defending no matter what."
Sam shook his head though before whispering, "What if he really believes it though?"
Placing his hand on the slim shoulder, Terrance knew that this was one subject he would need to be careful. "Do you really believe that Dean would react that way because he believed what was said, or do you believe enough in your brother to understand that he loves you enough to want to clear the world of anyone who might want to hurt you in any way?"
Looking at the Colonel, Sam wasn't sure how to answer that. He knew what he'd like the answer to be, but he couldn't seem to get past the cold fury that had been on his brother's face when he hit the other guy. Suddenly another thought hit him. "Is Jenna ok?"
Terrance smiled and wondered about the situation they all seemed to be in. "She decided to go with the more conventional method. She found out that if the chemo doesn't work then they can try that other experimental treatment, but they wouldn't be able to do anything else if they tried it first." He watched as Sam pondered that for a moment before he asked the question that had been bouncing around in his brain. "You still love her, don't you?"
Startled, Sam looked at the Colonel in shock before nodding. "Yes sir, I do, but I don't trust her… not like I did." With that said he slowly got up off the couch and started to walk away. "Excuse me sir, but I really need to get back, I don't want my brothers worrying about me anymore."
As he watched Sam slowly make his way back the way they came, Terrance smiled and shook his head. "Sorry Sammy, I don't think that's every going to happen."
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"WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE'S GONE?" Dean exclaimed as he towered over the nurse who was trying to explain that she'd been called to an emergency for another patient and hadn't been able to keep an eye on Sam's door.
"I'm so sorry, I…"
Stephen was more than little upset himself, but knew that getting the hospital staff all worked up wasn't going to help anybody. Placing a hand on Dean's shoulder, he tried to convey a calm he really didn't feel himself. "Dean, you need to calm down. I'm sure that Sammy didn't get far. Let's take a walk around the area and see if we can find him."
Dean knew that the nurse in front of him had done everything she could, but he couldn't help but feel angry towards her for not knowing just how special Sammy really was. Nodding, he was about to move towards the door when Celia rushed in looking flushed and excited.
"Great news guys…wait, where's Sam?" she asked, suddenly concerned as she saw the near panic on Dean and Stephen's faces. Turning to the nurse on duty she saw the tears building and couldn't help but feel herself start to panic.
"I'm so sorry Dr. Grey, I had to go see to another patient and I wasn't at the desk. They came in and…"
Confused, Celia looked for answers in the only place she could find them. "Well, what happened? Where's Sam, and why is one of my nurses apologizing for only God knows what?"
"Celia, Sammy's gone. We went to get some coffee to hash out a few things and when we got back our little brother is gone and no one can tell us what happened." Stephen said while trying to subtly keep Dean in place. He had no idea how much longer he'd be able to hold the other man back, but he was determined to make sure no one left until they explained what had happened, then they'd go and find their missing Sammy.
As Celia reached towards the phone to call security, they heard light footstep walking towards the room. It didn't take long until Sam appeared in the doorway shocked to see so many people in his room.
"Sammy! Are you alright, where'd you go, sit down kiddo." Dean said as he and Stephen ushered their brother into the room and back towards the bed.
"Sorry, I just needed to go for a walk. I didn't think I was gone that long." Sam said hesitantly. Looking around he saw just how upset he'd made everyone and suddenly he wished he could disappear. "I really am sorry."
Letting out a long breath, Dean knew that the dejected look on his little brother's face was because of what had happened earlier between them. Taking Sammy's face in his hands he made Sammy look at him. "We were worried, not mad Sammy, ok? I'm sorry that we scared you, but you have to admit that lately you haven't exactly had the best luck when you're on your own."
Sam smirked before looking between Dean and Stephen. "Sorry, I just needed to think about some things."
"Yeah well, we need to talk about a few things." Dean said as he looked at Celia and the nurse hoping they both would take the hint. Seeing that both women knew they needed privacy, he waited only until the door closed again before beginning. "Sammy, that day during your track meet, I lost my temper but not at you. I couldn't believe that anyone would think, much less say, those things about you. I don't think that you're anything but my little brother who I would do anything for, I love you little brother. I always have, I always will. You've got enough going on without you thinking that you're unwanted, and we're going to be right here beside you through it all, got it?"
Although there wasn't an immediate response, both Dean and Stephen knew that progress was made and that made them feel a lot better about the situation until the younger boy finally spoke.
"How can you say that Dean after what happened with Mandy? I'm just as bad as Dad said… I hit her Dean." Sam said brokenly, trying hard not to let his emotions get the better of him but feeling too tired to successfully hide them.
"Hey kiddo, listen to me. Mandy told us what happened, we also talked to Paul and he told us what happened. You didn't do anything wrong, you thought you were defending yourself. She doesn't blame you. In fact she was more upset that she scared you by not speaking up when walking into the apartment." Stephen said quietly as he approached the other side of the bed. "We all know you're a good kid Sammy, the trouble is you don't believe it just yet."
Sam looked up and wondered why they were being so nice. He had hit Taylor's girlfriend. If someone hit Jenna he'd tear them apart and…
"I told Jenna I didn't trust her." Sam said quietly, shocking the other two men slightly. They both knew he had been hurt by what she had said, and had wondered how they'd interact at school, but for him to actually say something to her like that showed just how hurt he actually was. "I love her, but I don't trust her and it hurts. I know it sounds stupid, but it hurts more than you thinking I'm gay, or even the thought that I'm some sort of monster, and now she's dying and I don't know what to do."
Dean climbed into the bed with Sammy and held him close while Stephen called Taylor and Joseph at the apartment. They had known their little brother was hurting, but this was a little more than what they were expecting and they all hoped they could keep their promise and help him through it.
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The dinner trays had been gathered and more rounds were performed before Celia had a chance to get back to check on Sam. She was right outside the door when she stopped to listen to the voices inside and she was able to distinguish all four of the Musketeer's making the absence of Sam's voice all that more noticeable. Knowing that being a normal teenager was hard enough, she couldn't imagine having to deal with the issues that this particular young man had already endured, and was still affected by today.
It had been a tough afternoon, but she was hoping that after sharing her news with the men inside that the rest of the day would go a lot smoothly. Smiling, she looked down at Sam's chart again and reread the note attached inside knowing that with this new information she would most likely become a hero in a certain person's eyes.
Pushing the door open she smiled brightly as she looked at everyone. "I have some great news Sam. How would you like to go home tonight?" she asked as she watched him look at her questioningly. "No, I'm not kidding. Not only did your latest workup show remarkable improvement, but I got a note here apologizing for a clerical error. Apparently the lab had to rerun a certain test due to a technician's faulty testing procedure making it look as if your viral loads had increased more than they had." Seeing the hope in the other men's eyes she held up her hand. "I'm not saying they're not elevated, it's just not enough for me to be so concerned that I'd switch his normal meds."
Stephen rushed over and swung Celia around in a circle while the other men cheered him along. After everyone calmed down enough they looked at Sam who had been watching them closely.
"Hey Sammy, that's great news!" Taylor said as he ruffled a hand through Sammy's hair.
Seeing his little brother this quiet always made Dean nervous, but it wasn't until his Sammy actually spoke that they all realized just how hard he had taken the previous news.
"So, the cocktail I'm on is still working? I don't have to go to something stronger?" he asked while the unspoken I'm not dying quicker than what we thought hung heavy in the air.
"Yes Sam, they're working like they're supposed to. You still need to lower your stress level otherwise you can get sick again, but all in all, I'd say you're doing pretty good." Celia told him with as much confidence as she could. There was no way she was going to allow him to doubt this.
"So, I can go home?" Sam asked then turned to the others. "Can I come home?"
All four men rushed to assure the youngest brother, "Hell yeah you're coming home!"
Before the paperwork was signed, Taylor had already called Mandy and had her pick up some food from the pizza place that Sammy liked while Dean called the Colonel to let him know what was going on. Stephen took a moment with Celia to make sure that nothing else was going on with his little brother and make a lunch date with her the next day. Joseph sat next to Sammy and wrapped his arm around the kid while they waited for everyone to get ready. It wouldn't take too long before their family was back home, kicking back and enjoying their time together.
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Vic was already tired, but knew he couldn't blow Jenna's call off. It hadn't taken to long to drive to her house, but once he got there it seemed to take forever to motivate himself to go inside. He knew what it was about, but he had no idea what to do about it, or even how to deal with it.
Leaning his head back against his headrest he thought about the last couple of weeks and how things had changed. Jenna had pulled a complete Diva trip ripping Sam's heart out of his chest in the process. The confrontation in the lunchroom with the admission that Sam couldn't trust her anymore had given the gossipmonger's of the school more fodder to devour, as if they didn't have enough already. Now his friend's illness on top of his already precarious health just seemed too much to deal with. So why was it that he was hurrying to his friend Jenna's side when she called upset about who knows what when he had the distinct feeling that he was needed elsewhere.
Sighing, he got out of his car and headed towards the front door hating himself for the thoughts that had been passing through his brain. It wasn't really his business if his two best friends were torn apart because of a knee jerk reaction on Jenna's part. Admittedly he loved them both, but the drama had gotten too much for even him to take.
It didn't take long for the housekeeper to let him in mentioning that Jenna was in her room. Looking at the clock he wondered if she was tired or just listening to her radio. It wasn't until he opened her door that he suddenly understood what was wrong and his heart broke. There in front of the vanity sat Jenna crying as she brushed her hair and watched as the clumps clung to the brush.