Alright, so this is the end of this story. Thank you to everyone who reviewed/followed/favorited, and to everyone who read this story! I love writing these and there will be another story soon! Hope you guys liked it!
"What happened?" Sam asked, but he didn't sound like he really cared about the answer.
Dean pushed off of the wall and walked over to Sam's bed. Sam had woken up right after George had been taken care of and they had gotten a nurse in there to get the tubes out. All of the coma patients in the ward had come out of it too, and they were all fine and their families were overjoyed. The doctors were all puzzled as to why everyone had suddenly woken up, but they didn't have any way to get real answers. It would just remain a medical mystery to them.
Right after Dean stabbed George, Alec had released him and he'd crumbled to the ground. Alec stayed in the room to take care of the body while Dean ran over to Sam's room. He had to make sure that Sam got out of his dream world, and that killing George actually worked.
Sam had been choking on the tube down his throat and Harper had yelled for a nurse as soon as Dean walked in. She had grabbed Tera when he showed up and disappeared without him even asking her. He was grateful that she did because he had no idea how Sam would react to seeing the demon again. Once she left, and the nurse had taken the tubes out, it was just him and Sam, but Sam didn't really seem like he wanted to talk.
Dean grabbed the chair next to Sam's bed and sat down. He took a deep breath before he said, "Well, it turns out we were huntin' a djinn, but there was more than one. They got us and we've been trapped in our own little dream world for a while now…"
Dean glanced over at Sam and saw that he was just lying there, staring up at the ceiling. He didn't even look over at Dean when he stopped talking.
Dean frowned, but he decided to keep going just in case Sam was listening. "Harper started looking for us…I don't know how she found us, but she did. Alec was the first one to wake up, and then I woke up when Harper took out the doctor. Good thing too," Dean said with a small smile, "because the nurse was another one of 'em and she was about to put Alec under again…"
Dean shot a glance at Sam to see if he found any of this interesting enough to look over, but he didn't. Dean sighed, but then he continued, "The nurse told Alec that one of the interns was one too. I'm tellin' ya man, this place was crawling with djinn…Anyway, we took down the last one and now everyone's awake."
Sam just lay there, unwilling to move, and Dean wondered if he was actually sad that he woke up.
"C'mon Sam, you gotta talk to me," Dean said. Sam didn't even blink and Dean groaned in frustration. He stood up and walked to the door and back to his chair, just so he would have something to do. It took him a second, but he thought he had a way to get Sam's attention. He didn't really want to do this, but he didn't have a better idea. He sat back down in his chair and said, "Tera's here."
Sam's eyes finally widened and he looked over at Dean in alarm. "What?!"
"Yeah, she came here with Harper…but I still don't know why. We had to find the last guy before I could get any answers," Dean replied.
"Oh…" Sam said back. He lay back against his pillow again and looked back at the ceiling.
Dean sat there for a second in silence and then asked softly, "You wanted it to be real didn't you?"
Sam nodded and replied, "I thought it was real…"
They both looked to the door before Dean could answer and saw Alec slip inside. Dean was happy that Alec was back, but he wanted to groan at the same time. He'd just gotten Sam to talk and he didn't know if Sam would clam up or not with Alec walking in.
Alec instantly picked up on the tension in the air and he looked between Sam and Dean and muttered, "I can chill outside…"
"No," Sam said quietly, "I want you to stay."
"Ok," Alec replied easily. He walked further into the room and closed the door behind him. Then he went over and sat on the edge of Sam's bed.
It was quiet in the room until Sam finally started to talk, "Jess was alive," Sam said quietly. "It was…perfect…" Sam looked back to the ceiling and blinked away tears. "I miss her…and you guys were both there…" Dean saw Alec look up in surprise, but he didn't interrupt. "…we just hung out…I wanted it to be real so bad." He let out a sad chuckle, "Jess made us go to the Art Center…it was pretty hilarious…" Sam looked at them both with sad eyes. "I just really wanted it to be real."
"I'm sorry Sam," Dean said softly, patting Sam on the shoulder to comfort him.
Sam gave him a small smile and then tried to shift the focus from himself and asked, "What about you guys? What was in yours?"
Alec looked to Dean to answer so he shrugged and said, "We were kids, all three of us, and we just went to school and played baseball. Mom and Dad were both alive and we just lived a normal life…"
Sam let out a small chuckle and said, "Your dream was to go to school?"
"Not to go to school," Dean said with a light laugh. "It was more playing baseball and just us being kids."
"Sounds fun," Alec threw in with a smile.
"What was yours?" Sam asked Alec after a moment.
Alec rubbed the back of his neck, and then said, "Um…well, we were just hunters…we pretty much did the same thing that we do now, but we lived with Bobby."
"Really?" Dean asked in amusement. That was just their everyday life and Dean was surprised that had been Alec's dream world.
Alec couldn't help his small smile; he ran his hand through his hair and then rubbed the back of his neck again and looked at the floor. "Yeah…" he said with a shrug as he glanced back up at Sam and Dean. "…hanging with you guys…oh jeez…" Alec ran his hand through his hair again and then said in a rush, "hanging with you guys has been the best part of my life, ok?"
Sam and Dean both shot him smiles, and then Dean halfway stood up and ruffled Alec's hair. Alec batted his hand away, but he had a smile on his face too.
"You guys are the worst," Alec said after a moment. "Always makin' me bear my soul and whatnot…what happened to 'no chick-flick moments'?"
Dean chuckled and teased, "That's what you get for bein' the youngest…"
"And that rule just conveniently applies to Dean when he doesn't want to talk about something," Sam threw in. Dean glared at him, but he shot back a wide smile.
"Anyway…" Alec drew out to try and change the subject. "Can we get outta here? I hate hospitals…"
Dean laughed a little and stood up, "Yeah, we'll leave as soon as Sam's ready."
Sam grabbed his stuff from the Impala as soon as Dean turned off the engine and made his way to the motel room. Alec had jumped out and checked them in, and then pointed Dean where to go. Alec was already walking inside their room when Dean parked the car.
He was still feeling a little disoriented by being pulled out of his dream world. He'd been so sure that being with Jess had been real. He'd wanted her to be alive so badly and there were so many memories that came with his dream. It had been so realistic, and he hadn't wanted to leave.
He should have known it wasn't real; it was too good to be true. But he'd wanted it to be real so badly that he started to actually believe it. Being pulled from the dream had been devastating. To wake up in reality and not have Jess anymore…
He was just going to have to try and forget about his dream world and get back to the real one. His brothers needed him, and no matter how much he missed Jess, he couldn't dwell on the past. He would remember her and enjoy the time in the dream, but he'd have to put that away so he could focus on the job and keep his family safe.
Sam slowly followed Dean through the door to their room when he suddenly froze. Harper was in the room, but so was Tera. He'd forgotten that Dean had told him she was here and it was a shock to see her again.
He instantly dropped his bag and started for the demon, but Alec was suddenly in his way, holding him back.
"Sam!" Alec yelled, trying to get his attention. Alec pushed against his chest to try and get him to back off.
"Move Alec!" Sam yelled back. He couldn't figure out why Alec was protecting the demon instead of helping him take her down. He started to draw his arm back to make Alec move, but Dean grabbed his arm before he could do anything.
"Easy Sam," Dean said, forcing him to take a step back.
"You can't attack Tera because then you'll hurt Harper," Alec explained in a rush.
Sam deflated a little and stopped fighting against his brothers. He looked at Alec in confusion, and then shot a look over at Harper. She had stood when he'd come in, but she hadn't made any move to actually stop him.
"Don't you think I've already gone after her?" Alec asked quietly when Sam didn't say anything.
Sam scanned Alec's face and saw determination, guilt, and fury all at once. Sam should have known that Alec would have reacted to seeing Tera again, and that if what he said was true, then he had probably accidently hurt Harper. Sam shot a quick look at Harper and saw some bruises on her cheek. He didn't know for sure, but he thought that they could have been from Alec.
"You can't do it," Alec whispered. Alec confirmed his suspicions just by saying that. His eyes showed all the guilt he felt for doing that and he didn't want Sam to do the same thing. To feel the same way he did.
Sam nodded, silently telling Alec that he understood and that he wouldn't go after the demon. Alec nodded too, and then took a small step back.
"Alright Harper," Dean said after a minute. "It's time to talk."
Harper waited until the three of them sat down before she started talking. She told them how she trapped Tera, but didn't have any way to kill her. How she had gone down to Georgia and they got a witch to bind them together, and then the same witch did a location spell to find them.
"Harper, why did you do that?!" Dean said, standing up after she finished talking.
"Weren't you listening?" Harper asked back, standing up to face off against him. "I couldn't find you! I had no way to kill her! What? Did you want me to just let her go?!"
"No!" Dean instantly replied.
"Ok, then what should I have done, Dean?" Harper asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Dean clenched his jaw and didn't reply. "I did what I had to do," Harper said, her tone softer than before. "And I'll deal with it…"
"Harper…" Dean said on a sigh.
"If you're that worried about me, then find a way to kill this demon," Harper said.
"Hey! I'm sitting right here," Tera suddenly threw in. Sam had almost forgotten that she was there; she'd actually been quiet while Harper had told them what happened.
"Shut up," All of them said at once.
Sam watched as Dean ran his hand through his hair, and then sat back down on the bed. Harper moved to sit next to him and put her hand on his arm.
"I'm not going to apologize for doing this," Harper said. "I am sorry that it had to be Tera, but I'm not sorry that I found you guys or that this demon is trapped."
"Harper, that demon is gonna get you killed," Dean said quietly.
Harper shook her head no, "Dean, if I die, so does she…"
It was quiet in the room for a few minutes. This was a shock to Sam, but he couldn't really think of a better way to make sure a demon didn't destroy everything. Demon on a leash seemed like an ok solution. The only problem would be the part where Harper got hurt when Tera did.
"Can you break the binding?" Dean suddenly asked.
"Yeah," Harper replied. "The witch that did it said that she could undo it."
"Then, we'll do some research," Sam suddenly threw in. He wanted to help in any way he could and he was good at research. If there was a way to kill this demon, then he would find it.
"Yeah," Alec agreed. "And we can get Bobby on it too."
"We'll find a way to kill her, alright?" Sam asked quietly.
Harper gave him a small smile and said, "Alright…thanks guys…"
"We'll find a way out of this," Dean promised, putting his arm around Harper's shoulders and planting a kiss on her temple.
"I'm still right here," Tera suddenly said.
"Shut up."
"I still don't like this," Dean muttered to Harper. They were standing outside of the motel and Alec was trying not to eavesdrop, but it wasn't working. He was sitting in the car, but he could still hear them. Sam was sitting in the front, but the windows were down so Sam could probably hear them too.
"I know," Harper replied, "But it's not up to you."
Dean smiled, "I know…Be careful ok?"
Harper smiled, "I will be. You be careful too…and answer your phone." She lightly pushed Dean's shoulder after she said that and Dean's smile widened.
Dean gave her a quick kiss and then said, "Bobby's expectin' ya in a couple days. If you aren't there by then, I'm huntin' that bitch down."
Harper smirked, "I wouldn't have it any other way." She kissed him, and then patted his chest before she started walking towards her car where Tera was waiting. She waved at Sam and Alec and they waved back when she walked by their car. Dean came in a few seconds later and they pulled out of the parking lot just after that.
It was quiet in the car for a few miles; Alec didn't really know what to say. It was weird; he was known for his constant chatter, but now he just couldn't. They'd all been through a lot, and he knew Sam and Dean had been hit harder by this than he was. Especially Sam. He still wasn't saying much and Alec wished he knew some way to help him.
Dean had been able to talk to Sam and kind of get him out of his funk. But Dean had been through that before and he knew Sam better than Alec did. He was going to work on it though; he was going to get to know his brothers better.
"If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world"
"Dammit Alec," Dean muttered, leaning over Sam to open the glove compartment. "I'm going to change this stupid ringtone…"
"I'll just change it back," Alec said with a smile, holding out his hand for his phone. Dean shot him a quick glare, but handed over his phone a second later. "Yeah?" Alec immediately answered without looking at who was calling. There was silence on the other end so Alec asked, "Hello?"
"Alec?" It was Max, and she sounded surprised that he'd actually answered.
"Yeah…" Alec replied slowly.
"Where have you been?!" Max nearly shouted. Alec held the phone away from his ear and frowned. He shot Sam and Dean a quick look and shrugged, and then went back to Max.
"Umm…we were on a hunt…" Alec said over Max's yelling.
"Start talkin'," Max demanded.
"Long story short, I've kinda been in a coma for over a month," Alec replied, running his hand through his hair and rubbing the back of his neck. He thought it would be best to just get it over with, especially since Sam and Dean were right there.
"You were in a coma!? For a month?!" Max shouted. It was quiet for a minute, and Alec didn't really know what to say. Max finally spoke again, but her voice a lot softer this time, "You ok?"
"Yeah, I'm good," Alec easily replied.
"Ok, so, I've been thinking," Max started.
"Uh oh, that's never a good sign," Alec teased.
"Shut up," Max replied, but Alec could hear the smile in her voice. "I've been thinking that…you should take me on a hunt…"
"Really?" Alec asked, his smile starting to widen.
"I don't think I'll believe that ghosts and whatever are real until I actually see it for myself…" Max said.
Alec knew he was grinning like an idiot, but he didn't care. "Awesome! We're gonna do a couple hunts on the way back to Seattle, but then maybe we can find a hunt to take you on."
Max laughed and Alec thought he'd never heard anything so sweet before. "Ok. So…You should be here…" She trailed off, waiting for Alec to answer.
"Probably in a couple weeks," Alec replied. "It depends on how fast we can finish up these other hunts, but we should be there soon…As long as we don't get caught up in another coma situation…" Alec said with a chuckle.
"Yes, please don't fall into anymore comas," Max agreed.
"I'll see ya soon," Alec said. Max said bye to him, and then he hung up to find that Sam and Dean were both shooting glances at him. "Umm…Max wants to hunt with us when we get back to Seattle…If that's ok?"
Dean looked at Sam and smiled, "Yeah, that should work," Dean said casually.
Sam nodded in agreement, "Yeah, I think we could fit that into the schedule…"
Alec smiled, "Just be careful, cause she's gonna try and boss you two around."
Dean laughed, "Let her try."
"This is gonna be fun," Sam muttered with a smile.
Alec couldn't help his smile. They would do a few more hunts, and then they would show Max that this was real. He couldn't wait to see her face when she saw a ghost for the first time.
"Hey, give me your phone real quick," Dean suddenly said. He held his hand out for the phone and waited for Alec to give it to him.
"Why?" Alec asked suspiciously. He pulled his phone closer to his chest just to make sure that Dean couldn't get it. He was never good at sharing.
"Cause I want to chuck it out the window," Dean said with a smile.
"You think I can't put this ringtone on another phone?" Alec asked incredulously.
"I'm gonna find a way to get you back for that ringtone y'know?" Dean said, and Alec knew he meant it. But he wasn't afraid to play this game.
"Dean…" Sam warned; hoping this wouldn't escalate too far. But he wouldn't be able to stop this once it started.
"Just because I lived in captivity for most of my life, doesn't mean I can't get you back for whatever prank you have in mind," Alec cautioned his older brother. Dean had no idea what he was getting into. Sam sighed, but he was laughing a little too.
Dean just shook his head and muttered, "If I hear that ringtone one more time, it's on."
"Bring it," Alec said with a smile.
The End