Chapter 6:

Dean was quiet the next morning, he wasn't even talking to Caleb, he just sat in the corner of the living room staring at the wall and the adults in the room were starting to get worried. Dean was a quiet kid, but when he began to act like this, everyone worried that one day, he wouldn't come out of it. Caleb had tried to talk to the kid, but he was in a different place, and he wasn't hearing a word. Caleb knew nobody could get Dean out of this state so he went upstairs to wake up Sam and give him bath. He didn't mind watching Sam, and he knew that John was too concerned with Dean to deal with the baby at the moment, so Caleb picked Sam up and brought the yawning baby to the bathroom.

"I know you want to sleep Sam, but if you keep sleeping now, you won't sleep later, and you are going to annoy the hell out of me. You know how grumpy you get when you take a nap? I am the same way when whiny babies keep me up all night." Sam's answer was to stick his tongue out at the teenager, which made Caleb laugh. "You are one strange kid." Caleb ran the water and put Sam in the tub, being careful to hold him up and to keep the temperature just right.

"Laleb." Sam said, and then made some other noises that Caleb was pretty sure were supposed to be words, but he wasn't positive, he could speak to a silent Dean, but he definitely didn't speak baby.

"I don't know what you are saying Runt, but I need to ask you for a favour." Sam was watching Caleb carefully like he knew what Caleb was going to ask. "It's about Dean, you know your annoying older brother." Sam smiled.

"De!" Sam said.

"Yeah him, see I knew you were smart. Well, he isn't doing very good right now, and I am gonna need your help. He has gone to his quiet place again, and I know you don't like when he is there anymore then I do…" Caleb took the baby out of the tub and sat down on the floor with Sam wrapped in a towel. "Don't tell him I said anything, but I kinda love that kid, and I want him to get better, but I can't help him when he is like this, only you can." Sam placed his head against Caleb's and watched the teen. "When we go downstairs I need to you help pull him out of his quiet place, you think you can Sam, you think you can help your big brother?" Sam mumbled something incoherently, and Caleb sighed and placed him on the floor on a towel so he could put his diaper on him. Then there was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Caleb yelled and picked Sam back up. Pastor Jim opened the door and peeked his head around the door. "Oh hey Jim, what's up?"

"Nothing I was just wondering what was taking you so long up here, then I noticed Sam wasn't in his crib anymore, so I just wanted to make sure everything was okay."

"Yeah, everything's fine I was just giving Sam a bath before I brought him downstairs." Jim smiled.

"You know, you don't have to do stuff like that when John's here. You aren't responsible for them.

"John has enough to worry about right now, and yeah I feel responsible for them. I don't mind helping out. Just don't tell anyone else I said that." Jim laughed.

"Your secret is safe with me son. So are you coming downstairs anytime soon?"

"Yeah we will be down in a minute, I am just gonna get him some clothes, and then I am gonna change into something that isn't soaked in water."

"Alright." Jim walked back down the stairs and Caleb got Sam changed and put some on some jeans and a t-shirt. When he walked down the stairs he heard John talking to his Dad and Pastor Jim and he stood in the hallway to listen to the conversation.

"It's been a long time since he has been like this." John said watching his son. "He is practically catatonic." If Dean knew the adults were talking about him he didn't move a muscle in their direction.

"He has been like this before John, he always comes out of it." Jim said.

"Yeah I know Jim, but I am worried that one day he won't, I just don't want him to be like this all the time. I mean I will take him never saying another word again as long as he stops doing this."

"I think he is just ignoring us, maybe you two seeing him talk to Sammy last night, has made him uncomfortable." Mac said. Caleb felt anger welling up in him; Deuce was going to be fine, why didn't they believe that as much as Caleb did?

"He isn't ignoring us." Caleb said walking into the room with Sam in his arms. "He is in his quiet place, just leave him alone."

"Yes Caleb we know, but we don't even know what his quiet place is, or why he keeps going there."

"It's where he feels safe, where his mom is, before everything got destroyed. Sometimes he needs to pretend like nothing has happened, it makes him less afraid. Doesn't the kid deserve to feel safe every once in a while? He isn't ignoring us on purpose, he just gets lost in there sometimes, and can't find his way out by himself." John sighed, feeling like a moron for asking for so much advice from a teenaged boy, but Caleb seemed to know his sons better then he did most days.

"Do you know how to bring him out of it? Can you bring him out of it?"

"No I can't, none of us can." Caleb answered. He put Sam down on the floor, holding him up for a second while he got his balance on his pudgy legs. "Go see Dean Sammy, I think he needs his brother right now." Sam looked at the people in the room with a frown, and then smiled when he saw his brother sitting in the far corner in the living room. The baby waddled awkwardly into the living room, before falling down on his knees with a thud and crawling the rest of the way. He hadn't quite gotten ahold of the whole walking thing yet, but he was learning.

"Only Sam can bring him out of it."

"How do you know that Caleb." Mackland asked.

"Cause Deuce told me, he doesn't hear anything when he gets like this, he is a completely different place then us. He can't hear anything except for Sammy. I noticed before when Deuce would go to his quiet place, Sammy would cry or something and he would snap out of it. Just watch." The adults turned towards the living room and watched as their youngest sat down in front of his brother. Sam put his hands on Dean's face and looked into his eyes, smiling the entire time.

"De." The child said softly, like he knew that somehow his brother wasn't all right, it took a minute, but eventually Dean blinked and looked down at the baby and gave him a sad smile. Dean took a deep breath and put his hand on the side of Sam's chubby face.

"Hey Sammy." Dean said. John choked back some tears; it had been so long since he had heard his son's voice. In fact, it had been almost a year, and he couldn't imagine a more wonderful sound. Dean sounded pretty much the same, except for a slight strain on his voice from the months of silence. Dean pulled Sam into his lap, and the baby buried his face in his brother's neck. Dean ran his hand through Sam's soft hair, and sighed. Dean turned his head towards the kitchen and saw everyone watching him and tears began to run down his cheeks. His breath sped up in panic, had everyone just heard him? What should he do now? He looked towards Caleb looking for some kind of an answer and the teen gave him a quick smile.

"They are gonna make me talk all the time aren't they?" Caleb heard the soft, panicky voice in his head, and shook his head.

"No they won't Deuce, no one is going to make you do anything you don't want to do." If Caleb was anywhere else, that would have been awkward because it sounded like he was talking to himself, but everyone standing in the room knew he could talk to Dean in his head. Dean nodded, and his breathing slowed back to a normal pace. He then stood up carrying Sam with him and walked into the kitchen handing Sam back to Caleb, who gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder and looked over at his Dad. He walked towards John and stood closely in front of him. John picked up his oldest son, and hugged him close, something he probably didn't do nearly as much as he should.

"Are you okay Dean?" Dean didn't want this anymore, he didn't want to be afraid, and more importantly he didn't want Sammy to grow up afraid. Dean sniffled, wiped some tears from his face, and looked his father in the eyes.

"Daddy, I am trying to brave." John let his walls fall for a minute, and let some tears slip from his eyes. He locked eyes with Caleb for a second, who gave him a smile that said he knew Dean was going to be all right.

"Dean, listen to me, you are the bravest kid I know." Dean smiled, and hugged his father tight.

"I love you Daddy."

"I love you too Dean." Caleb put Sam in John's other arm, and the other men in the room watched as a family, people that were their family, started to heal together, instead of healing on their own, and there wasn't a dry eye in the room.

Should this be the end of this story? Or would you like me to continue Dean's road to recovery, because obviously it can't end as easily as all of this.