I changed my username because I'm on AO3 now! And someones-big-sister wasn't available on AO3 and I wanted to have the same name so now I'm coffeeaddict13, which is honestly very fitting for me. At some point, I will be uploading all my stories on AO3, but obviously because I've been writing so long, it's gonna take me a while lol.

Also: Apparently you now need to have email opt-in ON in order to receive story alerts so make sure that's activated if you're still following this story!

On with the show!


Mary frowned as the call went to voicemail again. "Hiya it's Sam-"

She hung up the hotel phone and set it back on the receiver. John exited the restroom, rubbing a towel on his wet hair. "Still no answer?"

"No," Mary sighed, finally allowing herself to give up. She was starting to get a headache from wearing her hair up so she started to take it down. They had come back to the hotel from the service a couple of hours ago and taken a nap. Since they woke, she had been trying to reach Sam to check-in.

"Wanna take a shower and go get dinner?" John suggested, flipping on the tv. Sucky hotel tv only had news, old movies, or documentaries. He flipped through a couple of channels until he landed on a ghost-hunting program for background noise.

Mary rolled her eyes at her husband's choice of entertainment. "Did you leave me any hot water?" she teased. John grinned guiltily at her. "I think I want to stay here in case Sam calls," she admitted.

John sighed and hung his head. "He's probably out with his friends," he mumbled.

Mary scoffed. "Yeah right, like he's in the mood to be with his friends."

"Well then, he's probably passed out at Brady's!" John suggested, collapsing on the bed next to his wife. "Either way, he's probably not going to call anytime soon."

Mary surprised herself nodding in agreement. Sam was fine, right? He was probably just going to stay in and remain low for a while.

"What's wrong?" John asked, catching his wife zoning out with her thoughts.

"I don't know how to help him, John."

"All those parenting books you read while pregnant and none of them covered this?" John joked.

"I'm serious!"

"So am I!"

Mary ran her hands through her hair. "Can we just pack him up and take him back home with us?"

"Mary."

"I don't want to leave him! I'd feel so much better if he came with us."

John grabbed her hand. "Honey, I would too, but his life is out here. His school, his job, his friends. He wouldn't have any of that support back home," he said, trying to be as sympathetic as he could.

Something was still bothering Mary. "Maybe we could stop by one last time? Just to check on him in person?"

John sighed. "Sure," he said, giving in. "If it'll help you feel better."


The cab dropped them off outside the apartment fifteen minutes away from the hotel. John rang the doorbell outside the apartment. No one answered. Thinking maybe it was broken, John knocked instead.

"That's weird," he commented when no one answered the second time. "Maybe they did go out."

Something inside Mary said otherwise. "Can you tell if anyone's inside?"

"They're not here, Mary."

Mary brushed past her husband and knocked on the door a third time.

"Mary-"

"Damn it, John! He's inside and something is wrong! I know it!"

John stared at her in disbelief. "How can you possibly know that?"

"I just do!"

As if on cue, a very distressed and anxious Brady swung open the door. "Good, you're here!" he said, "He is, like, freaking out."

Mary and John ran past him inside the apartment. They found Sam walking around the bedroom in the apartment. He was whispering to himself and it looked like he had been crying recently.

"Sammy?" Mary called. "What's going on?"

"I can't- I don't- I- She-" Sam continued muttering total nonsense while pacing. Fresh tears kept falling down his face but he made no attempt to wipe them away.

"What happened?" John asked Brady.

"I thought he was asleep," Brady said defensively. "I was watching tv when I started hearing noises so I came to check. He started screaming and throwing shit. I thought he had finally calmed down when he started doing this. Then you two showed up."

John and Mary exchanged a look.

"Should I call 911?" Brady continued to ask, his fear rising in his voice. Sure he had seen his fair share of Sam's breakdowns. There was that one particularly difficult class last semester and the time he and Jess got in a major fight that came immediately to mind. But Sam usually cried it out on his couch, had a beer or two, then bounced right back the next morning. This was uncharted territory.

"Maybe not yet," Mary assured him. Brady seemed to relax a little after that. Sam's stories of Mary often reminded him of his mom.

Sam continued pacing and mumbling. John stepped into the bedroom and placed his hand on Sam's shoulder. This warranted Sam's immediate reaction to collapse on the floor just absolutely wailing. "JESS!"

John did his best to try to catch his adult child. He scooped Sam up in his arms, who then clung to John for what felt like his dear life. Mary kneeled down next to them, shushing Sam and brushing his hair out of his face. Brady continued to awkwardly watch from the doorway. He wasn't sure if he should go or stay for Sam.

Sam continued to sob into his dad's shoulder. John instinctively started to rock him, like when he was little and upset at Dean for being a shitheaded big brother. John and Mary exchanged another look. There was no way they were going to fly out the next morning and leave Sam like this.

"Brady," Mary asked, collecting her own emotions. "Where's your landline?"


coffeeaddict13