Pre-series

Socks

Sam is freezing and it's all Dean's fault.

They were back up. They were not supposed to get hurt. They were supposed to be the last line of defense of their dad, who never, ever, in 18 years of monster hunting had once let anything through him long enough to need a last line of defense. Ever.

But Dean thought he heard something and went charging ahead with no care for his own safety and Sam followed him, because what else does Sam do besides following his stupid brother around? And then his stupid brother tripped on that stupid tree serving as a stupid bridge and fell on the stupid river. And then he had to hit his stupid head. And Sam had to jump in the stupid freezing river in stupid December weather in stupid Colorado to save his stupid ass.

Of course, the stupid ass lived, because Dean may be 4 years older, but Sam's taller and a better swimmer and knows how to not hit his head on the way down a river.

And now, Sam is dying.

"You're not dying", Dean reminds him, but, oh god, it feels like he is.

It's unfair. Dean's the one that fell in the stupid river in the first place, why the hell is Sam the one left with the stupid cold? The sunovabitch is not even sneezing.

"You don't eat enough protein. You get weak. Easy to get sick", his brother pats him on the leg from his side of the couch.

Shuddup, Dean. Just shut your stupid mouth and go away. That's what Sam wants to say. What he says, thought, is something like a half a moan and half a grumble and Dean chuckles.

"Come on, big guy, lay down. You'll feel better".

He doesn't want to listen to what Dean says, it'sallhisfaultanyway, but he does lay down because his head is pounding and down sounds good. He shoves his feet on his brother's lap and Dean jumps a little.

"Geez, Sammy, your feet are freezing".

Yes, they are. Sam is freezing. It's so frigging cold and this stupid motel has no heater and it's frigging December is stupid Colorado and Dean is so stupid and he just wants to kick his stupid brother and what the hell is his stupid brother doing?

Dean is taking off his socks.

"Well, on the up side, I think your fever is gone."

Dean is taking off own his socks and now Dean is putting his socks on Sam's feet.

Like… it's the most normal thing in the world, he doesn't even acknoledges it.

"What?" he asks when he notices Sam staring.

"Do you even have like an ounce of care for your own well-being?"

"What?", Dean is confused. Sam wants to kick his ass.

"Really? It's fucking freezing and you are taking off your socks now. It was fucking freezing yesterday and you went charging on that river? Are you, like… trying to freeze to death?"

Dean is silent for half a second.

"Geez, grumpy, just wanted to get you warmer, forget about it…"

Dean tries to snatch his socks off his brother's feet, but Sam kicks him away. He's hit with this profound wave of… affection for his stupid brother. He doesn't know what to do with it, so he just grumbles some more.

"I'm not jumping after you next time…"

Dean chuckles again. "Yeah, you are."

"No, I'm not."

Sam is. He totally is. 'Cause he's just… stupid.