"What? I don't want to go back there."

"Come on Dean, you might learn something."

"Nothing important." He shoved his fists into his jacket pockets and scowled at the ground (he knew better than to do so directly at his father).

"You don't have an option. Besides, someone needs to keep an eye on Sammy."

Sam ignored the fact he was being used to appease Dean's foul mood. The teen continued to stand with slumped shoulders but cast his eyes back at his younger brother.

"Fine."

"Good, you're already enrolled, you start tomorrow."

"Great."

High school. Dean would take monsters and mayhem any day of the week over sitting through eight hours of meaningless information and opportunities for humiliation. He caught the smile on Sam's face and felt a burn of anger—maybe even jealously—it didn't seem to matter how many times they stopped and started school, Sam always picked up the work quickly and got good marks. Dean had used to like being the badass new kid, but he'd outgrown that, now he just found it tiresome to go through the whole process when he knew it would never serve him any purpose—and he didn't like feeling like an idiot too much either.

"This case might take a while, you boys take care of each other okay?"

John gave Sam's shoulder a squeeze, then lifted his eyes to Dean as if to say suck it up. Dean watched him leave without so much as a goodbye.

"Great," he said as soon as they were alone. "I should be on the case with him."

"Sorry," Sam said quietly, knowing their father usually left Dean behind when he wanted Sam protected.

"Don't, it ain't your fault, I think Dad's actually worried about my education," he scoffed and sat heavily on the edge of the bed. "You think he'd know if I didn't go?"

"What? There's no way you're staying here and watching porn all day while I have to go to a new school."

"Fine then I'll just watch porn while you're here." Dean reached for the remote emphatically.

"DEAN! Gross, you're so disgusting."

"Come on, don't tell me you've never watched while Dad and I were off hunting."

"I haven't!"

"Sheesh, I started when I was-"

"Dean I don't want to know!"

"Fine." He dropped the remote. "Watch yer cartoons or whatever, I'm gonna relax before I have to deal with all that shit." He dug in his pocket and dropped a coin into the box next to the bed labelled "magic fingers." Sam watched him shut his eyes as the bed buzzed to life. He took the remote and searched around until he found the news.

It was going to be a long few days with just him and his brother.

"Where are your books?" Sam asked as they walked the stretch of highway between their motel room and the school John had enrolled them in.

Dean glanced at the backpack Sam had, full of books other things for school.

"What do you mean? It's the first day. Where did you get all of that anyway?"

"I always take this to school." Sam eyed him. "Man, you've been on alot of hunts lately, when was the last time you went to school?"

"I don't know, before Christmas I think."

"Sheesh, well let me know if you need help." Dean whacked his brother in the arm but when he walked into class and stared at the complex formulas on the chalk board he felt a little less anger toward his kid brother. He sat in dumb silence the whole class, watching kids his age transform numbers into things he didn't even recognize. Normally he'd shove his hands in his pocket and make eyes at the prettiest girl in the class but he couldn't help but be struck by how far behind he was in education.

"It doesn't matter," he muttered to himself as he put a lock on his new locker. "Stupid shit ain't gonna help me kill monsters."

"Problems?" Sam was right next to him. He half jumped in surprise. He wasn't used to being in the same school as his brother, but John had lied on Sam's form to bump him up a grade so he and Dean would be together. Dean knew John wanted them close—he was hunting a pack of skin walkers and they could be very dangerous. They could also sneak in anywhere so it was best the boys remain close.

"Nah I'm fine," Dean lied. "What about you squirt? How's your first day of high school treating you?"

"Shh, Dean it's not supposed to be my first day, remember."

"Yeah, yeah, cool it, I know." But he glanced around. No one was close enough to have heard. "Lunch?"

"Actually I'm meeting a girl from my class." Sam looked to the floor.

"What? You've only been here like three hours."

"Yeah well I'm just taking a page out of your book aren't I?" Sam defended and hoisted his bag up onto his shoulder. "See you at the bell, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever." Dean slammed his locker shut more forcefully than intended. He wanted to be happy that his brother was having a good time but he couldn't. He sat sourly through afternoon classes, wondering who in the Hell Plato was and why he should care. Several students shot him sideways glances, curious about his sudden arrival at their school but not enough to ask him. So he went the whole day without speaking to a single one of them. At the bell he breezed out the class and stormed down the front steps. Sam knew enough not to ask him about his first day when he met up with him. They walked on in silence, back along the hot blacktop of the highway toward their cheap motel. Dean cooked them macaroni and beans, his signature dish. Sam watched him and ate in silence.

"What?" Dean finally asked after seeing his little brother's eyes dart up to him several times.

"Nothing it's just...did you have a bad day?" Normally it was Dean asking Sam this question, when he came home with a frown or worse, a black eye or two.

"What? No, why would you say that?"

"Well you don't look very happy."

"I just wish I was hunting is all."

"Are you sure that's all?"

"Come off it will you?" But Sam just stared at him with those all too knowing eyes. "Okay fine, I had a bad day."

"What happened?"

"Nothing happened, I just...I don't have a friggin' clue what any of the teachers are talking about."

"Oh."

"Do you? You friggin' skipped a grade so you must be as lost as me."

"Well I..."

"Shit."

"Sorry. It's probably not as hard in grade nine."

"No, you're just smarter than me." Dean shoved his half eaten meal over the table.

"Dean, you're smart too."

"Oh come on, we both know that's not true. But seriously Sammy, how do you do it? I mean, you've been moved around schools just as much as me. How come you can get by and I can't?"

"I just..." Sam stopped himself and it was clear he was hesitant to say what he really thought.

"Spit it out."

"Well, I just didn't think you cared Dean. I mean, you've never really tried have you? You don't care because all you want to do is hunt."

Dean watched him, nodding slowly. "Yeah, that's true but...wait you're basically saying you do care."

"Well yeah I do."

"Why, you think you're going to college or something?"

At this Sam set down his utensils as well. Dean stared at him hard.

"Sammy that ain't an option for us."

"Why not, Dean?"

"Because we're hunters."

"No, you and Dad are, I'm the one you leave behind to do the research. And I'm good at it, Dean! I can hunt down any information and I remember it too! I could go to university, become a lawyer or something."

"A lawyer? What the Hell good would that be? You want to squabble over money or who gets the kids when Dad and I are out there hunting?"

Sam stood. Dean expected him to back down like usual but he saw no sigh of it in hard, brown eyes.

"There's more to life than hunting the thing that killed mom. I've known it for a long time. But Dean, don't forget you were the one who started this conversation. You're upset because you've fallen behind, and the only reason you'd care is if you feel the same way—you want options too—you want a chance to be something more." He gathered up their partially eaten meals. "I'll do the dishes."

Dean watched him go into the kitchen and begin filling the sink. He wanted to shout, to curse, to lay into his little brother, but nothing came, and he ended up just standing there, staring at the one person who knew him better than he knew himself.

In the next (and concluding) chapter, Sam and Dean continue to find their place in high school, but as hunters they find it will be hard to hold onto youthful pleasures.

Thanks for the reviews thus far,

Riza