Chapter 3

Dean stomped down the stairs to find his father and have a few words with him. He was upset about the way John had treated his youngest son and was going to tell him so. Even if he wasn't that close to his brother, he still felt responsible for him and would protect him from anyone and anything.

"I brought dinner," John grunted as he looked in the fridge for a beer.

"I hope you're happy Dad," Dean sneered as he stood his full height staring him down as his eyes flashed dark in anger.

"What are you talking about?" John snarked back at him as he pulled containers from the bag and divided them between them. His nostrils flared and he scowled at his oldest son waiting for him to continue.

"You don't even know do you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about Dean. Care to enlighten me why you're so pissed?"

"Sammy's gone. You kicked him out just because he wanted to go off to college. How could you be so callus?"

John had the decency to glance down at his food with a guilty look on his face. He should have known that Dean would defend Sam.

"Well, he made the choice, so don't be blaming me for it," John snarled. "He's the one that left."

"You know most parents would be proud of their kid if they got a free ride to Stanford. Stanford, one of the best colleges around. You know Dad, just because you can't get over this obsession for revenge because of Mom's death doesn't mean me and Sammy have to follow in your footsteps. I figure I'm too far gone to get out but Sammy's not. He deserves a chance at having a better life than we have. He can make something of himself."

"So, does that mean you're hanging around or are you deserting me too?"

Dean clenched his jaw and sighed heavily as he closed his eyes for a moment to keep from saying something he would regret later.

"No, I'm not going anywhere," Dean finally muttered as he looked at his father and saw the years had not been good to him. He still felt responsible for his well-being and knew he couldn't let him work on his own. Bounty hunting was a dangerous job, and it was advisable to have backup. He sat down at the table and pulled his food toward him to see what John had gotten. His heart was heavy, and he couldn't help but worry about Sammy being that far away and on his own.

He knew how snotty and snippy his father could be and remembered the times after his mother's death that he had to put John to bed because he was too drunk to do it himself. There was a hardness and complete change in his personality after the death. He only had one goal and that was to destroy everyone in the chain that was involved with Mary's death. Being a former cop, John was able to access records and find things out that would allow him to do that, even if it was against what his boss told him. They didn't want him involved in the investigation of his wife's murder.

When he started down that road, John pulled his sons in with him. He trained them to take care of themselves and to be able to defend themselves. John had been in the Marines and used the training he received, passing it along to his sons. He knew they needed to be tough skinned and hardnosed to make it in this world. He tried to wean out the naïve, trusting, characteristics the boys had and mold them to be more like him. He succeeded with his oldest, but his youngest fought him every step of the way. But Sam, he had his Mom's gentleness and personality and didn't like the family business.

Spn

Dean came down the next morning and went to the kitchen to fix some breakfast before heading to his part-time job at the garage. He didn't see his father anywhere and figured he was off looking for another case. He thought his father worked too hard and took too many risks, but he was hardheaded and stubborn and wouldn't listen to anything Dean told him. He poured coffee in a travel mug and grabbed a yogurt from the fridge to eat on his way to work.

The stoplight seemed to last forever as he sat in traffic. He turned on the radio and nodded to the music as he ran his hand over the steering wheel and across the leather seat thinking about when the car was given to him by his father on his sixteenth birthday. He thought back to that time and smiled to himself because his father had actually opened up for a few minutes and talked about his Mom. He knew part of it was because John was a little drunk at the time, but that didn't matter to Dean. It was like getting two gifts that day, a revelation about his Mom that he thought he would never have and the Impala.

John had bought it when he got out of the Marines and not long after that met Mary. He knew from the moment he saw her, he was going to marry her. They courted for six months before they got engaged and the following year, they were married. Two years later their first son was born and less than four years later their second son was born. They made a home in Lawrence, Kansas and lived happily there until that dreadful night when John was working the night shift, and the two killers broke into their home, taking her life.

The traffic was slow, but he finally got to the garage and parked off to the side of the building. He got out and headed inside throwing his hand up to Norm who was elbow deep in a car engine. Chad was manning the front desk, and Jay was working on another car. After changing into work overalls, Dean headed to a bay and to the car he had been working on the day before.

"How are you doing today Dean?" Norm spoke to him in a pleasant voice.

"Fine Norm, how about yourself? Hey Jay," Dean replied. "How's that new grandbaby doing Norm?"

"Morning Dean," Jay called to him.

"Oh, she's an angel and such a good little one. My missus is already spoiling her."

"You've done it now bro. Norm has plenty of pictures," Jay laughed as Dean rolled his eyes at him.

"I hear you. Babies do bring joy."

"Did you figure out what was wrong with the car?"

"I think so. I'll know in a few minutes." Dean reached over and turned on a radio to fill the bays with music as he started back to work on the car. He hummed happily along with the music as he worked.

The day went by quickly and Dean got ready to go home biding Jay and Chad goodbye as Norm closed the garage. He was going to stop by the store to pick up some groceries before heading home. He didn't know if John would be there or not and decided to text him to see what he was doing.

Twenty minutes later Dean's phone chimed with a text, and he pulled it out to read it. John had finally answered him and said he would be home for dinner, and he had a case for them. Dean huffed out a long breath and continued his shopping, but his mind wandered to his little brother. He couldn't help worrying about him and hoped he would call him soon to let him know how he was doing.

After finishing the shopping, Dean headed home and put away his purchases so he could start making dinner. He had it almost ready when the front door opened, and John walked in.

"Dinner will be ready shortly if you want to wash up," Dean called to him. He got out the dishes and silverware to set the table as he kept an eye on his cooking food. He got out two beers and set them on the table before pulling a pan from the oven and popping in some rolls.

"Smells good son," John greeted him as he took a seat at the table and picked up his beer to sip. He watched Dean move around the kitchen and couldn't help the feeling of melancholy that came over him. Even after all these years, he still missed his Mary. Dean looked so much like his mom that sometimes it hurt to look at him. His chest would tighten, and it would be hard to breathe until it passed.

"Okay, let's eat while it's hot," Dean announced as he put the food on the table. He took a seat across from his father and began to fill his plate.

They ate in silence and when they were finished, Dean cleaned up and sat back down to go over the notes John had for their next case.

A/N: I hope everyone had a nice Christmas and will have a great New Year. Dean is loyal and can't leave his father, but he misses his brother. Thank you for coming on this ride with me. I do like reviews/comments. NC