The small family was currently sitting rather awkwardly around the cramped table of their motel room, eating breakfast to the pale light of the rising sun. Utensils clinking against plates and chewing were the only sounds being made by Dean and Sam as the brothers occasionally stole glimpses of their father.

John was just sitting there with a severe cast to his face, obviously deep in thought. Sam and Dean were experienced enough to know not to interrupt their dad when he was in such a state and so they waited patiently for his explanation. The possibility of a new case ran through their minds and kicked in just enough adrenaline to keep them awake for a bit longer.

John was contemplating what his good friend had called about. Caleb was asking for help investigating the news about two men from his community found dead in their beds under suspicious circumstances. "Of course we'll come," John had said. "Just give us two days."

Having created an initial theory based on what little he knew, John became aware of his sons' eyes on him. Focusing on Sam, John sensed that all the anger his youngest son had expressed over his disappearance had now faded. John inwardly cringed at the memory of Sam yelling "we deserve to know...Dean deserves to know!" at him. John knew he would have reacted the same way but, once again, didn't allow his sons' to think he tolerated such behavior. No matter how much he hurt from Sam's outburst, he drew the line at letting them see it. There was nothing his children could say that would get him to reveal the details of his sordid diversion; some things he would just not talk about.

John decided Sam had played with his food long enough and plainly stated the obvious. "You boys are probably wondering about my phone call with Caleb."

"Yes, sir" Dean replied with his mouth full. Sam shot him a look of displeasure which Dean chose to ignore.

John continued without missing a beat. "There's a situation in Henderson...two men have died in their beds with no known cause. I know it's not much to go on yet..." He saw that he had both boys' attention and resumed.

"It might be a succubus, a type of demon that is seen to be a beautiful woman...only visible to the male target while he's in a state of limbo...not yet asleep but not quite awake either. This creature latches on to the victim and absorbs the man's life force while increasing its own strength. These attacks could go on all night for many nights, causing the victim to be tired more and more due to lack of sleep and loss of energy. He eventually dies when the last of his life force has been drained away."

Seeing his dad was finished, Sam had just opened his mouth to speak but Dean was quicker.

"These guys were having sex with monsters?"

"Dean," John replied with mild exasperation while tilting his head meaningfully toward his younger son. He wasn't too surprised at his older son's response—he knew how Dean got when he was tired. So he, also spent, let it go for the most part and decided they would seriously discuss the case after they were all rested.

"Oh, it's okay, Dad. Sammy here knows almost everything there is to know, don't you Sam?"

John merely lifted his eyebrows while Dean grinned in Sam's direction. Dean always enjoyed the opportunities to put his little brother on the spot; they came quite frequently.

Sam, now with his head down, was blushing and said nothing to deny the claim. John brought his hands up to massage his temples.

Sam had perked up as his father shared his theory that it was a certain type of demon that was causing these men to die in their beds. 'This is something new...he called it a succubus' he thought and filed that term away to be further researched. However, he wondered if it could instead be a witch doing this and was about to say so when Dean inserted his own unique take on the matter.

"Sex…With monsters," Dean repeated incredulously when no one else spoke. "Even kissing one! Can you even imagine? Shit!"

Sam jerked his head up and turned toward Dean. 'Did he know?' he worried briefly but then saw the set of his brother's face and figured that he was just talking instinctively. Relieved at that, Sam relaxed and said, "I don't think it sounds that strange...to me anyway. It's not that inconceivable."

'Oh Sammy, now you've done it! You are always so easy!...I'm almost embarrassed' Dean thought. Then his eyes narrowed and he deadpanned, "don't try to hide behind big words, Sammy. Is there something you want to tell us?"

'Oh, God. Maybe he does know! Dean's not stupid, after all. But wait,' Sam reasoned, 'I'm sure if he did know, he would have said so by now.'

A few seconds of silence weighed on them before Dean registered Sam's panic-stricken expression. "I didn't mean with monsters, dumbass," Dean clarified as if such a thing were so ludicrous. "I mean with...you know."

His mind back on the subject of kissing human girls, Sam's eyes widened slightly more and the blush returned to his face.

"Sam! Did you…?" Dean choked out.

Sam instantly realized Dean wasn't talking about a simple kiss, he was inferring much more. "No! Of course not! Why would you think that?"

"At your age? I never did." Dean felt his little brother denied the accusation too quickly and so added,"...until now."

Sam faced back downward, eyes shifting left to right, distressed with the focus on him—especially with his dad there. He longed to just disappear.

Suddenly, John brought his hands down and wondered 'did the table just get smaller?' With a sigh, he pushed himself out of his chair and proceeded to gather up the dirty clothes—mostly Dean's—scattered about the room.

The room was quiet but for the sounds of his father moving about. 'How does Dean do it?...every time!' Sam wondered, looking at his brother in amazement.

Dean had intended his insinuations merely as a joke. He was sure Sam was still a virgin but seeing he had just hit a nerve, he was starting to become concerned. 'Who was she?...I hope he used protection...' Needing to find something to do, he stood up and started collecting the plates off the table.

Sam could sense his dad was listening in by the way he kept himself relatively close by. "Well you don't have to worry."

"Come on, Sammy. Of course I do—you're my little brother who needs me to guide you through the magical journey. I've just been waiting for the signs from you." Dean paused just then, some memory fighting its way to the surface and his face fell as he recalled it out loud. "There has been nothing since that time in Lincoln...you asked me on the phone about how to talk to girls."

Again Sam's mind jumped back to the subject of his anxiety. It was uncanny that his brother was zeroing on the same thing.

Dean was referring to the time about a month prior when they were hunting a kitsune in Lincoln. Dean and their dad were out on the case while Sam stayed behind helping with research. One day Sam was at the local library when he spotted this cute girl and wanted to get to know her. He was on the phone with Dean at the time and asked for advice. What should have been a simple first encounter turned into a nightmare. The implications of it were frequently warring in his mind—sometimes wondering if he made too much of it while other times thinking he wasn't doing enough.

John paused. The mention of Lincoln triggered in him the vision he had of the dead kitsune lying there in a house. It had been killed and there was no sign of a struggle. Upon making the discovery, the hunt was concluded in his mind but the results of it remained a mystery perhaps never to be answered. John shook his head; for now he would continue to satisfy himself with the belief that another hunter was involved, wishing to remain anonymous.

Still sitting at the table, Sam's shoulders grew tense with the eyes of his brother on him. He kept his gaze downward to hide the emotions that threatened to be seen on his face. He was not willing to breathe a single word of that experience, especially after so much time had gone by. It would be like opening Pandora's box.

'Huh, maybe he did have sex with someone and he won't talk about it...same as Dad'. Dean didn't mean to bring up Lincoln but that time of his life was never far from his mind. That hunt was a point of contention for him for other reasons and now it seemed to have one more. He loved his little brother so much that anything that hurt Sam hurt him. "I'm just wondering what happened, that's all" Dean added gently while standing in the kitchen area.

It seemed from Dean's soft tone of voice that he didn't suspect Sam's situation. Sam started to relax but still, however, couldn't face Dean just yet. Sam wished Dean didn't care so much, it made lying to him harder.

"Sam?"

Sam looked up to see Dean had moved closer to him and then quickly turned away. "I'm fine. Just tired right now, you know?" he said in a strained voice.

Dean shot a worried glance over to his dad who was now sitting on a bed. John wasn't going to get involved just yet; he wasn't ready to address his sudden awareness of Sam's ascension into manhood. He would wait until the time was right—in the car where he was most comfortable, when he could focus his eyes on the road ahead.

John cleared his throat just then and said, "okay, boys, enough talk...back to business. Let's turn in for a few hours before moving on."

"Yes, sir" Dean and Sam replied simultaneously, Sam's reply with a quiet sigh of relief at the end.

'Thanks, Dad.' thought Sam as he stood up and made his way to the bed.