Supernatural does not belong to me, although I wish it did. I am simply playing in Kirpke's sandbox for a bit. All rights and ownership are the property of Kripke and the CW network. I am not making any money from this; it is for my own personal pleasure.

Synopsis: Set at the start of Season One, Dean had been in a wheelchair since his father disappeared more than a year ago and he finally has to tell Sam… There'd been an accident that night and Dean had paid a very high price….one he still doesn't understand. The story will have some hunts from season one and possibly into season two…the brothers will continue their search for their father…there will be alterations to the hunts to accommodate Dean's new situation. I have every intention of returning Dean to good health before this ends…but getting there is going to be bumpy.

Please keep in mind that I do not have a Beta, so any and all grammatical errors are my own. Not Slash. Brotherly love and Angst only…

Please Review: They make me feel guilty and write faster...obviously. Because these chapters are nearly falling out of my head. Thank you to any 'guest reviewers' since I can't PM you guys..

Chapter 11

There's always a Catch

Sam waited for the doctor as he told the cops the story of how they'd found the kids and then of course how Dean had gotten 'electrocuted' when an old transformer had blown and he'd been too close. The men told him again how sorry they were that his brother had been hurt, but that it was good thing they'd been in the neighborhood and heard the kids screaming. He nodded and then his blue-green eyes flickered up as the doctor in charge of Dean's case motioned to him from the end of the long white hall. "Excuse me." Sam said as he turned from the officers and immediately headed toward the man, staring at a clip board…whatever he was looking at, he didn't like it.

"Mr. Birkowitz?" He asked.

Sam nodded, "Doc, how's my brother?" his eyes were begging the medical professional to give him some good news…but the man inhaled before launching into the prognoses for Dean. And that small intake of air nearly broke Sam's composure…he'd heard that before…it was the air that was needed to launch into a long detailed reason as to 'why' his brother wasn't okay.

"His heart…it was damaged…we can keep him comfortable. But I'm afraid there's nothing we can do. " The doctor looked honestly sorry as he gave Sam the devastating news. Sam couldn't breathe at first, his airway closed off and he just stared at the doctor, waiting for him to tell Sam that it wasn't true...that his older brother wasn't dying...that it was all some lame joke.

"How long?" Sam asked quietly. His heart was starting to stutter inside his chest at the thought of losing Dean…permanently.

The man shook his head. "A few weeks…a month at most….I'm truly am sorry. But we can't work miracles." And the worst thing was that Sam actually believed the man...he believed that the doctor was truly sorry for these two boys...that had saved innocent kids only to have their lives irrevocably changed as a result of that unselfish act. Life really wasn't fair...the man thought as he turned to leave.

Sam nodded and furrowed his eyebrow at the comment. The doctor walked away as Sam headed to his brother's room. When Sam rounded the corner, the first thing he noticed was that Dean looked like 'death warmed over' to be entirely honest…his brother looked like absolute crap. There were dark bruises beneath his eyes and his skin was extremely pale, making his freckles stand out in stark relief against the white pallor of his face. Dean's eyes flitted up and latched onto his little brother's worried blue-green gaze as he tried to smile slightly. He carefully set down the remote after flipping off the tv and glanced back to Sam's worried eyes.

"Have you even slept? You look worse than me." Dean said, the exhaustion that he was feeling evident in his voice...along with an increasing concern for his baby brother overall health.

"I talked to your doctor. They told me there's nothing they can do..." Sam said quietly. His body was hunched over and he looked far older than his 22 years, he was definitely carrying the weight of his brother's impending death like a ball and chain hanging from his shoulders and weighing him down.

"Yeah...I know...You ever actually watched daytime tv? That little fabric softener teddy bear…I swear I'm gonna hunt that little bitch down…" Dean was trying his best to make it normal between them...but he only seemed to be making it worse...if Sam's face was anything to judge by. Dean was breathing shallowly and his head was a bit fuzzy as he tried to ignore the pain radiating from his chest and focus on Sam.

"Dean…" Sam started but Dean held up a hand to stall off whatever comment Sam had been about to make, he tried to ignore the slight shake of the limb as he looked Sam square in the eye.

"Look, what can I say Sammy…it's a dangerous gig and I drew the short straw…at least this way we don't have to worry about my legs anymore…and you better take care of my car or I swear I'll haunt your ass." Dean was trying really hard to keep the exhaustion out of his voice as he teased his little brother. The same little brother that he was going to leave alone and unprotected really soon…and that thought actually hurt worse than knowing that he was going to die. He'd never wanted Sam to know what it was like to be truly alone...he would have done anything to protect Sam from that.

"I don't think that's funny." Sam said evenly. His face not even cracking a smile, everything in his little brother's stance was pained. Just being in the same room as all the devices that were monitoring his big brother's vitals was difficult. And every bit of his worry was emanating from him like pheromones...and there was not a god-damned thing that Dean could do to change that. So he did what he always did...he covered it with jokes.

"Oh come on…it's a little funny." Dean quipped. He was trying here…he really was. The last thing that he'd wanted was to leave Sam…and especially not like this. Not because of some botched hunt that neither of them could have prepared for. Of course if he was honest with himself...there was no way to prepare for losing your brother…Dean knew that if he lost Sam…well he probably wouldn't make it two days. But Sam was stronger than him…always had been. He'd never needed Dean the same way that Dean had needed him. Dean had talked their father into checking on Sam at Stanford a lot more than he would ever reveal to his brother…because that was his secret to keep…his weakness to bare. The knowledge that he needed to know that Sam was out there somewhere…and that he was happy and healthy.

"No…it's not." Sam said as the anger started seeping into his voice at just how quickly Dean was willing to throw in the towel. Hell, they'd just gotten back to together…they were just starting to be brother's again. Sam wasn't ready to give that up, he wanted to know that Dean was back to normal and that he could have a quasi-normal life. Because at some point…Sam wanted the option to go back to school, but he couldn't do that until he knew that Dean was whole again. Hell, he wouldn't even consider it until then.

"There's nothing I can say Sam…I'm gonna die and there's not a damn thing you can do about it." He watched the words slam into his little brother and the way that Sam's blue-green eyes narrowed in anguish, cut Dean deeply. He had wanted to try and sugar-coat it for Sam...make it easier somehow…but he just didn't have the energy. He was so tired, his eyelids wanted to slip closed and send him racing after the sandman…but the simple fact that Sam was standing there looking for all the world like Dean had just shot him in the fucking heart made him keep his green eyes open.

"Watch me…" Sam said as he stared at his brother.

XXXX

Sam was sitting in the crappy little motel several hours later; he'd been trying to call any one of his father's friends for help. Anyone in the hunting community that might be able to help them…so far…nothing…nada…zilch. He sighed as he picked up his phone and dialed the one person that he didn't really want to give this news to.

"Hello?" Came Bobby's grizzled voice immediately, there was a slight pause on Sam's end and Bobby forged ahead in true Singer fashion, demanding information. "Sam…what's happened?"

Sam inhaled before launching into the tale of the raw-head…Bobby was quiet while Sam explained that the hunt that their father had sent them on had led to catastrophic medical problems for Dean. He didn't sugar coat what the doctor had told him, mostly because Bobby knew him well enough to see right through it. When he finally did finish he sank onto the bed and felt a kind of numbness seeping into his very bones. "Bobby…I don't know how to help him. I've called everyone…and no one has any clue how to help Dean."

"Why is it whenever you two get into anything you always wind up covered in muck?" Bobby shot out as he scrubbed his hand down his face and leaned back in his chair. He heard Sam's sharp intake of breath and he mentally kicked himself. "Look Sam, just go get that idget brother of yours out of there and then you two come see me…we'll figure this out, son." He needed these two idiot boys to understand that whenever they needed anything…time to heal or just a place to crash for the night…that they could and should come to him.

Sam agreed slowly and he was just hanging up when a soft knock on the door caught his attention. He looked down at their father's journal…the one he'd been searching for a solution in...a look of disgust working its way onto his face. Sam closed the book closed his eyes for a moment, taking in slow breath of air to steady his nerves before he slowly climbed to his feet and padded over to the green door. He nearly had a coronary when he saw his brother seated on the other side of the door. Dean looked tired, but not nearly as awful as when Sam had left him a couple of hours ago. "Dean!" he said loudly. "What are you doing here?" His brother was sitting in the chair looking like 'the-cat-that-ate-the-canary'. He was wearing one of Sam's grey hoodies, one that he'd apparently forgotten at the hospital…he'd noticed that fun little fact when he got outside…where it was damn cold…and his brother's expression was a bit sheepish as he tried to smile at Sam.

Dean managed to smile and not smirk at Sam as he rolled through the open door… "Checked myself out…" His brother immediately rolled to the bed nearest the door and pulled his tired body onto the mattress, positioning his legs and then pushing his wheelchair back a bit as he settled onto the flowered bedspread.

Sam was speechless…which was an accomplishment…because his little brother always had something to say. Dean watched as the news of him checking himself out of the hospital resonated with Sam…his brother wasn't happy about it. His eyebrows were scrunched together and he was staring at Dean like he'd grown a second head or something.

"Alright look Sam…the doctor came in after you left he ran some additional tests, because my heart rate was elevated and the blood pressure spiked…but when he came back with the results…he was seriously confused, because the tests said that there was nothing wrong with me…He ran an EKG…three of them actually and there was no sign that my heart had ever been injured…not on any of those tests." Dean was still trying to wrap his own head around the doctors stunning news. All he'd known was that suddenly he'd felt better…the ache in his chest had receded and he was less tired after he'd woken up…his hands didn't have the blue tint of poor blood circulation anymore…and his breathing was so much easier. He'd known that something had happened…he just wasn't sure exactly what or when it had happened. But as soon as the doctor left his room, he'd been changing…intent on getting out of that place seriously fast…like 'toot-sweet' fast…and he had. Grabbed a cab and wound up at the hotel where he knew Sam had gotten a room for the night. He was gratified to see that Sam had gotten two beds and a ground floor room...at least his little brother hadn't forgotten him so quickly.

"Are they sure? How is that even possible Dean…I mean I saw the scene…I know you were electrocuted…" Sam said as he sank down on the bed next to Dean. Watching his brother with guarded eyes…he was wondering with this new-found vision thing of his…why the hell hadn't he seen any of this? Was it because Dean was going to be healed somehow…or did he only get flashes of possible futures? He didn't know and that was maddening.

Dean rolled his eyes and sighed…he would have to convince his brother that he really was okay. He 'd figured that he would, because if the roles were reversed…well he wouldn't exactly be believing Sam easily either… "I brought the medical chart for you to look at yourself…Dr. Winchester…besides I wasn't gonna die in a hospital where the nurses aren't even hot." That garnered him 'bitch-face' number five...which was Dean's all-time favorite 'bitch-face'.

Sam grabbed the paperwork from Dean's hands and glanced through it. He furrowed his eyebrows as he read the reports, reaching up and scratching his chin, the same way he had when they were kids and he was figuring out something…truthfully, it was why Dean called him Watson…but there was just no explanation…not for any of this…one minute Dean was sick and dying and the next minute he wasn't… "What the hell?" Sam said in dismay.

Dean shrugged his shoulders, "I have no clue Sammy." He was every bit as concerned about this 'rapid recovery' as Sam was…because in his experience 'you never get something for nothing' and with this recovery…he was sure as hell getting something. His little brother was still wearing a look of disbelief, "Look Sam…I don't have any answers either…but I sure as hell want them. So let's just look into it…who did you contact about this?" Dean continued, playing devil's advocate.

Sam's eyes shot up to his big brother's wary green gaze. "I called several of the numbers in dad's journal…left a bunch of messages…and then I called Bobby…and before you get pissed about that…he told us to call if anything else happened…and I was just hanging up with him when you knocked on the door, so it couldn't have been anything he did." Sam really wished that it could have been Bobby…but there was just no way…he hadn't had enough time to set anything into motion. And Sam knew that the older hunter hadn't known about Dean's condition. Bobby was a lot of things…but a great actor? Nope...the old man certainly wasn't one of those; he wore his feelings plastered on his face.

Dean huffed and then shook his head in rising irritation. "Fine. But if it wasn't' you and it wasn't Bobby…then who…dad maybe?" He knew that even mentioning their father was going to set off his little brother, but this totally had supernatural written all over it. Sam's eyes narrowed dangerously and he pulled his lips back over his teeth in a sneer.

"Dad….really Dean? You think that man gives two shits about us? Seriously?" Sam said through his clenched teeth, his eyes flashing dangerously. There was no way that he was letting their father anywhere near his older brother...not until he and John had a 'talk'.

"Well don't get your panties in a bunch Samantha…I'm just guessing here." Dean shot out quickly, his own voice now edged with frustration and rimmed with anger. Sam's phone beeped with an incoming text message, causing him to throw an extremely irate look at the tiny silver device. It was totally interrupting their brotherly 'bonding' moment here.

"That phone definitely wasn't involved in this...so…you should check that Sam." Dean said as he closed his eyes and laid back tiredly against the pillows. Because while he was feeling a lot better, he was still physically exhausted.

"Don't tell me what to do Dean." Sam bit out as he opened the phone and accepted the message. Dean opened his eyes and shot Sam a one fingered solute before closing and opening them again slowly, watching his brother read the message. Sam read the text and then re-read the message just to be sure that he hadn't missed something...and then the phone slipped from his numb fingers…his eyes snapping up to Dean's like he'd just seen a ghost. Dean saw the instant change in Sam's demeanor, big brother alarms going off all over the place.

"What?" Dean asked as he reached for the phone that Sam had just dropped onto the bed before he had stood up and started pacing back and forth like caged animal. Dean looked at the message and then sucked in a breath as his eyes flickered up to Sam's… "Well I'll be damned…" He whispered. Shock and confusion working into every nerve in his suddenly alert body.

*This is the only freebie…be more careful.*

The text had come from an unknown number…and now they knew that someone was watching them…and that was just creepy as hell.

"What the hell…" Sam said as he scrubbed his hand through his hair and stared at Dean in confusion and frustration.

Dean just raised confused and slightly panicked eyes to Sam's…. "I got no clue Sam."

TBC…

Author's Note: Yup so definitely a clue…just not one the boys understand yet. They will be trying to track this lead though…because it's obvious that someone out there is keeping tabs on them…but to what end?

Please Review: They help to focus me…thanks to anyone that has taken the time thus far.