The Benders
"Sam's my responsibility, and he's coming back. I'm bring him back."
As Kathleen looked at the man in front of her, she couldn't help but feel empathy for him. She knew what it was like to look after someone like that. She didn't trust anything Gregory was saying, but she knew that someone he cared about what missing. He had almost a parental look about him, like it was his child that was missing and not a 22 year old man.
For now, she chose to trust her gut as she followed him out of the police station.
Dean stood under the lukewarm shower deep in thought. He could handle monsters; it was humans who he didn't understand. So many victims and for what? A twisted family's version of a sport. A sick feeling made its way into his guts, as he thought of the joy they had gotten from killing people. How he had almost lost his brother and they weren't even going to give him a fair shot to escape.
He sighed and turned off the water, stepping out to inspect the burn in the mirror. It was red and angry and pulsed painfully with each beat of his heart. He pulled on his jeans and opened the bathroom door to retrieve the first aid kit, eyeing Sam as he went towards the bags.
Sam was sleeping on the bed closest to the bathroom obviously exhausted by the events of the last couple days. For a moment Dean froze watching his little brother's chest rise and fall. His breathing began to pick up, causing more pain to surge toward the burn making his eyes water.
It was finally hitting him; how close he had come to losing Sam this time. And it wasn't like losing him to Stanford. It was this black hole of complete loss, and he finally understood how Sam had felt when he took Dean to see Roy LeGrange.
Sam blinked and opened his eyes seeming to sense the change of atmosphere in the room.
"Dean, are you okay?" Sam asked rubbing his eyes.
At his voice, air finally made its way back into Dean's lungs.
"Yeah, I'm okay Sam."
"You sure?"
Dean nodded.
"Yeah, think you can help me bandage this up? I got burn cream in the kit, but I gotta wrap it."
Sam sat up with a wince and stretched reaching for the cream and gauze in the kit.
"Yeah I got it."
Dean smiled softly, letting his brother get to work.
"Are you okay? Any injuries?" Dean asked.
"No, just a little sore."
"Well, if you were normal sized that cage probably wouldn't have sucked so bad."
Sam laughed.
"Shut up."
The cool feeling of the burn cream was instantly relieving, but not nearly as relieving as just having Sam by his side again.
It was a few beers later while watching late night TV that Sam spoke again.
"Do you really think he was trying to escape when Kathleen shot him?" Sam asked.
Dean thought about it for a moment.
"I doubt it. They killed her brother, hunted him like an animal... If I were her? Well..." Dean tailed off.
"Yeah... I was thinking the same thing." Sam admitted.
Dean looked up at Sam's silhouette.
"You were right." Dean said.
Sam looked over at Dean in confusion.
"Right about what?"
"Back then, with Roy... you told me I couldn't be mad cause I would have done the same thing. You were right."
"Yeah... it sucks to think about doesn't it? What we would be willing to do."
"Sammy... when I thought they were going to kill you? I didn't know what to do."
Sam sighed softly.
"Dean... I get it okay? You don't need to say anything else. I'm not going anywhere."
Dean felt like he should say more, but his words seemed to have dried up. He didn't know why, but he felt almost peaceful in the notion that they were here and they were together even if their Dad wasn't.
The pieces of who they had been before Sam left had not mended, they were still raw, bleeding and being held together by stitches in some parts, but they were healing. It would probably be awhile, maybe even a long time until they stayed together without fracturing, but for now, the two brothers could hold onto them, keep each piece close until finally the wounds healed.