Sam caught the corner of the table to steady himself. The dizziness was a bitch. He tried to cheer himself by wryly musing that he had all the side effects of being intoxicated without having to consume the liquor. Unfortunately he also was without the pleasant buzz from a few choice drinks.

He bent double as another round of coughing brought him to his knees. Geez, he had to get up, get back to his spot in the library before Dean came back. He wasn't reading. The words were swimming on the pages as his eyes burned.

Righting himself Sam took it slowly, small steps. He hated feeling weak. Hated that Dean thought he couldn't complete the trials. He would and he could. He could do this, for everyone who ever fell to one of Hell's bitches, for Dean. His brother deserved a future, even if he didn't see one for himself. Sam was no longer so naïve to presume that Dean could have the normal life that Sam craved for himself, but he knew Dean could have a life, a good life, and Sam would to anything to give it to him.

Two head-breaking pulses of his migraine and Sam closed his eyes. Maybe if he rested his head for a while. He made a pillow of his arms and laid his forehead on top.

He heard his brother's boots coming along the walkway and down the steps to join him. If he could only lift his head he would welcome him home.

"Sammy? Sammy? Geez Sammy, what are you doing still at the table? I thought you were taking a nap before we head." Dean hurried over and pressed his hand to Sam's forehead.

"Couldn't sleep." Sam responded.

"You are burning up, man. There is no way I am loading your giant body into Baby in that condition. We will go tomorrow."

"I'm good Dean." Sam lied. "Give me an hour and a strong coffee."

"No freaking way. Did you eat? You didn't, did you? If I go to the kitchen your half of the lasagne will still be there."

"Dean, I wasn't hungry." Sam whined, giving puppy dog expression #9

Dean huffed and pulled out a chair for himself. "Will you have some juice? There is still some to be finished off in the fridge, and an energy bar? I'll cook us something nice tomorrow. Feed you up before we go. OK Sammy?"

"OK." Sam took the offered granola bar and peeled back the wrapping, "So, what took you so long? I thought you were getting supplies."

"I was, for the journey." Dean got that only-detectable-by-Sam-(and Cas) shifty look in his eyes.

Sam huffed.

"For you, for Baby." Dean protested.

"What is her name?" Sam chanced, wondering what Dean would say.

"Pauline, you know that Sam."

Dean flinched as Sam nearly choked on the bar only to recover and actually slap his knee he was laughing so hard. Dean smiled back his eyebrows raised in querulous wonder.

"Pauline!" Sam roared out between chuckles, "For someone who spent his teenage years hiding his conquests from Dad, you suck man."

"What the hell?" Dean looked pissed now.

"Paula last week, Pauline now, what will it be when we get back? Paulette, Pauleeca, Paulasina, Paulita, Paulianna…" Sam collapsed his head onto the table.

"Sam, have you lost it?" Dean asked.

"Hey Dean, who have you been meeting up with? Really?" Sam asked perfectly serious and meeting his brother's eye.

Dean bit his lip.

"Come on man. Humor me here." Sam asked in a soft easy tone. He didn't want to spook Dean now.

Dean couldn't look at him, "Paul."

There a moment of complete stillness in the bunker. Sam couldn't believe his brother had admitted that he had a new 'male friend'. Dean was holding his breath. He raised his head and looked at his younger brother.

Sam was smiling, not his smug smile or that terrible cruel parody that Robo-sam contorted his face into. He was smiling like he did when they got through a brutal hunt unscathed, or when someone gave him a salad that was organic and had arugula in it.

"Where'd you meet him?"

Dean blinked at such a normal question in a reasonable tone of voice. "Over in Concordia, a few weeks back, after… after the last trial."

"You like him?" Sam asked tentatively, still trying to prevent a Dean freak out, or clam up.

"Yeah, Sammy." Dean scrubbed his jaw, "He is… He's nice."

"Good in bed?"

Dean leapt out of the chair, "Geez, Sammy, you don't ask that."

"Meh." Sam shrugged. "Figure he must be, for you to go back. You say goodbye this evening?"

Dean calmed down, but he didn't sit. Instead he ran a hand along the spines of some of the books. "Yeah, he was disappointed I was going. But that's our lives. He'll deal or he won't." It was Dean's turn to huff and shrug his shoulders.

Sam could see the way Dean hurt, imposing even a little sadness on his new friend. He quirked a smile for his big brother, "You sure picked a good time to start a relationship."

"Freaking hell. I'm not in a relationship. Sam! Seriously. Paul and I, we have a thing"

"Mmm-hmm," Sam nodded indulging his brother. "So the most important question…"

Dean swallowed hard and looked like he was about to panic at whatever he imagined Sam was going to say.

"… He buy you pie?"

Dean laughed wearily, "Yes Sammy. He bought me pie."

"Good. I don't have to find him and give him a 'talk' on how to treat my brother then." Sam grinned at how easy it was to wind Dean up, "Now Bitch, I will have my lasagne heated up."

Dean just shook his head in an exaggerated fashion, "Coming right up Princess."

Sam watched Dean retreat to the kitchen and clapped himself on the back for his victory. Now he could spend their Impala time probing his brother for more solid details on this new man who had tried to stake a claim on Dean's heart.