SPN fic: Reunion 2 (past Sam/Dean)

[longsufferingly]

Title: Reunion 2.
Author: chash
Fandom: Supernatural
Pairing: Past Sam/Dean.
Rating: PG-13.
Warnings: ...none?
Word Count: ~1700 words.
Summary: Sam's dad is missing.
Notes: Follow-up to (shockingly) Reunion. Which means more of the AU Supernatural with non-related Sam/Dean. I should really start planning my NaNo, but nooo.
Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue.


Dean never wanted to go running back to Sam Winchester.

He tells himself, over and over, that that's not what this is. He didn't come find Sam because he missed him, or because he couldn't live without him, or any of the stupid reasons he could have. He came to find Sam because John is missing, and Sam deserves to know that. If Sam had somehow heard that about mom or Jo or Bobby, Dean would have wanted to know. He would have wanted Sam to tell him.

He can't help taking Sam in in glances; he's asleep in the passenger seat, his huge body awkwardly folded into itself, his face never quite relaxed.

His face never relaxed before either, but Dean thought after six years out of this life, Sam would have adjusted. Would be happier. That was the point, right?

Sam jerks awake and Dean snatches his eyes back to the road. "Dean?" asks Sam, looking bleary and disoriented, and a little panicked, too. Apparently the kid's nightmares never went away.

"Couple more hours til San Diego," says Dean softly.

"Right." Sam stretches, cracks his neck. "Want me to take over?"

"Like I'd let you drive my car."

Sam smiles a little. "Still afraid I'm going to breathe on her wrong?"

"You haven't got the touch, Sam," he says, grinning. He almost calls him Sammy, for the billionth time since they met up again. But he's not going to.

It feels too familiar, like this--him driving, Sam in shotgun, smiling through his ridiculous bangs. Sam still can't keep his feelings off his face, either, and something twists in Dean at how happy Sam is to see him.

It's not Dean's fault Sam left. If Sam has regrets, they're his own fault. Nothing to do with Dean.

"How've you been?" Sam asks quietly.

Dean shrugs. "I hunt the undead, Sam. I'm never exactly good."

"And dad?"

"If you cared so much, you should've asked," Dean says, harshly. Sam and John--they didn't have anyone else. Dean's lucky, for a hunter. His dad's dead, sure, but he has his mom and his sister, and Bobby's as good as family. John too, mostly--John doesn't let people in easily, and Dean's as close as it comes, other than Sam. "Should've called."

"Would he have answered?" asks Sam. "Would you? Hell, you never answer my e-mails."

Dean blinks. "I have e-mail?"

Sam stares at him, apparently trying to see if he's joking, but he really isn't. Dean had no idea he had e-mail. This is news to him.

"I set it up for you," says Sam, staring. "After w--the last time I saw you."

Dean stiffens. "You didn't tell me."

Sam laughs, self-deprecating and sad. "I tried but--I guess you didn't..." he shakes his head. "That explains it."

They lapse into silence. Part of Dean--a lot of Dean--wants to yell at Sam. But he knows if he starts yelling at Sam, he's going to, at some point, start talking about how he feels. And there's no way he's giving Sam that kind of opening.

"It's really good to see you," Sam finally says. "I missed you."

"Seriously, Sam, you're killing me with the sap," says Dean.

"Same old Dean," says Sam, laughing a little.

"Hey, I'm not the one who changed here."

Oops, did that sound bitter?

"I'm still the same old Sammy," Sam says, and Dean's pretty smug that Sam noticed he wasn't getting called by his nickname. Stupid and petty, yes, but Dean doesn't mind being either of those.

"Hope you're still a good hunter, then. Cuz we're gonna need it."

Sam smirks. "Not good enough to handle this on your own?"

"It might've taken out your dad, Sam," Dean points out, and Sam stiffens instantly.

"You really think he's..."

Dean glances over. Sam's curled into himself again, looking worried, and Dean can't just turn off caring about Sam Winchester. God knows he's tried.

"It'd take a lot more than a poltergeist, Sam," he says.

"What if there's a lot more?"

"That's why I need you," says Dean, not thinking about how that sounds until he's already said it.

"Yeah," says Sam. "Okay.

*

It pisses Dean off, how quickly they fall back into their routines, how easy it is to forget Sam was ever gone. They're as good a team as they always were, as in-tune as they ever were as they talk to witnesses and get reports, and Dean wants to punch Sam in the face a little, because Sam's got fucking class on Monday and he's planning to go back. Laughing with Dean and still planning to leave him again.

The only difference is the way Sam jerks away from touching him. It used to be Sam's hands were all over Dean--not even in the obvious ways. John Winchester wasn't the touchy-feeliest person, and Sam was a scared kid for most of his life. The first time they met, Dean had patted Sam on the head, and Sam, wide-eyed and surprised and three-fucking-years-old, had latched onto his leg.

It set the tone pretty well for the rest of their relationship.

Now, though, Sam won't touch him, and Dean doesn't know if Sam's stopping himself for his own sake or for Dean's.

Either way, it's pissing Dean the fuck off.

He maintains his snappy annoyance through asking for a room (the girl at the motel practically jumps at the force with which he says "Two queens") and getting ready for bed, but it crumbles when Sam wakes him up screaming.

Sam's in the bed next to his, breathing heavy, sweaty hair falling into his eyes.

"Sam?" he tries. Sam looks at him, not really seeing, and Dean sighs, pulls out of bed to get closer to Sam, shakes his shoulder. "Come on, Sammy."

Sam's eyes focus slowly, and Dean's aware of how close he is.

"Still having those nightmares, huh," Dean says quietly.

"Everyone has nightmares," says Sam. He leans into Dean's hand, and Dean doesn't have the heart to pull away.

"So," says Dean, as lightly as he can, "clowns or midgets?"

"Shut up," says Sam, leaning against Dean's shoulder. It's a little ridiculous, really; he has to bend down so far just to get to it. "I really missed you."

Dean swallows. "You keep saying that."

"I mean it," says Sam. "I never wanted--"

Dean pulls back, goes back to his own bed. "Get some sleep."

"Dean..."

"Seriously, Sam. We've got stuff to do tomorrow."

Dean turns away from Sam and closes his eyes, but he can still see him.

*

"Dean, this doesn't make sense," says Sam. Neither of them has mentioned last night. Sam is on his laptop, his brow furrowed.

"You have to pay to get the porn," says Dean helpfully. "That's just a teaser."

Sam glares at him. Dean smiles innocently.

"This is easy, Dean. The poltergeist? It's straight salt-and-burn. Dad could do this in his sleep."

"So let's got salt and burn the bitch. Maybe we'll find something."

Sam nods. "It's a big city. Maybe he's just...taking a break."

They both know that John Winchester doesn't know the definition of the word "break," but they don't say it.

*

Sam's right--it's the easiest job Dean's worked in weeks, and he realizes uneasily that John was lying to them. There wasn't enough research work here to keep Sam occupied for a whole day, and Sam hasn't been a hunter in years. John wouldn't have needed three days for this, let alone the weeks he's taken.

"What do you think dad was really doing?" asks Sam. Dean's not sure if he should be glad or angry that he and Sam still think the same way.

"I dunno. But we better find him, man."

"Yeah, sounds great. Any ideas?" says Sam. Dean really missed his pissy voice. It's been so long.

Dean looks around the motel room. It's a dive, but it's the kind of dive he and Sam always went to; John goes for Motel 6, always.

"Aframian," says Dean.

"Aframian?" asks Sam.

"That's the name on his last credit card. Call any Motel 6 in the area, ask if they've got an Aframian. That'll be him."

Sam recovers quickly, starts calling around. The third one is a hit, but when Sam calls up to the room, no one picks up.

"So we go over there," says Dean. "Not like it's the first time you've broken into a motel room."

"It's the first time I've broken into dad's," says Sam, but he's getting his stuff.

"That means you're becoming a man," says Dean. "Took you long enough."

"Shut up," says Sam. "Jerk."

"Bitch," grins Dean.

*

The room is lived in, and recently. Sam looks around the walls, taking in the information. Dean was never good with this stuff, the research and patterns. That was always a Winchester thing.

"There's an address here," says Sam. "Circled." He pulls down the sheet of paper and hands it to Dean. "You check that out, I'll see if I can find something here."

Dean nods, notices something on the table next to him. "Sam," he says.

"What?"

He holds up the journal. "Recognize this?"

"Shit," says Sam.

"He never goes anywhere without this thing."

"Seriously, Dean, check that address. I'll check his research, see...what he was hunting."

Dean clasps Sam's arm, quick and sure. "He'll be fine, Sam."

"Yeah," Sam agrees. "I'll just--get going, Dean."

"Yeah," says Dean.

The address isn't too far, and Dean doesn't know the city well enough to tell what kind of area it is, or what he'll find there, but he cranks up the Metallica and tries not to think about Sam. It's a familiar place to be--he's spent the last two years not thinking about Sam.

The cassette runs into static once, twice, and outside, Dean can see streetlights flickering. He's turning the car around before he even knows it, before he can think about it, flooring it back to the motel and running in to find John Winchester on the ceiling, flames bursting around him, and Sam covering his face with his arms, screaming.

It's all he can do to drag the kid out of there before the whole place goes up in smoke.


Bonus feature!


afterelton.com: Thanks so much for taking the time to do this interview with us today.

Jensen Ackles: Hey, it's my pleasure.

AE: The show's been getting a lot of attention for having homosexual protagonists, especially given that there are only two recurring cast members confirmed. Did that influence your decision to audition for the part?

JA: Honestly, I think it's kind of sad. Not that we've got two guys in--well, I guess you can't call it a relationship, but two guys with a romantic history. I think that's great. But I think it's sad that--I'm going to sound biased here, but I think it's a great pilot that sets up a lot of awesome stories, and we're not really getting any attention for that. We're getting attention because me and Jared [Padalecki, who plays Sam Winchester] might make out on primetime.

AE: Are you going to make out?

JA: [laughs] No spoilers, guys.

AE: Back to more serious matters, I completely agree with you. This is a really interesting pilot and I'm curious about where it's going. But I think it's unavoidable that Supernatural is going to be pidgeonholed as "gay TV."

JA: And to a certain extent, we should be. This show, it's all about the relationship between these two guys. I mean, that's the heart of the show. But--you can't and shouldn't group Supernatural with something like Will and Grace or Queer as Folk They're completely different--and I don't mean anything against those shows. But having gay characters doesn't put us all in the same genre.

AE: Do you think--and you don't have to answer this--that that publicity was part of what motivated them to make Sam and Dean gay?

JA: To be totally honest with you, that's on the network. Originally--I asked Eric [Kripke, the show's creator], and he okayed me to tell you guys this--originally, Sam and Dean weren't gay. They were supposed to be brothers, and the network wouldn't pick it up.

AE: Brothers? Really?

JA: Yeah. The network said they weren't going to pick up a show without a strong romantic story. They thought it wouldn't be successful. Eric spent a while trying to work in a serious long-time girlfriend for Dean or Sam, and finally Sera [Gamble, one of the show's writers] just said, look, the story is all about Sam and Dean. If there's going to be a romance, it has to be then.

AE: So they went with that.

JA: They went with that, and now I have a job.

AE: A lot of actors might be reluctant to take on something like this--we mentioned Supernatural getting pidgeonholed as "gay TV." Are you worried about getting pidgeonholed as a gay actor?

JA: I'm pretty much always worried I'm going to end up as "that guy from that one thing." And honestly, I'd rather be Dean Harvelle forever than Eric Brady [Ackles' character on Days of Our Lives].

AE: What drew you to the part?

JA: Actually, Jared was the one who suggested I go for it. He was reading for Sam and said, hey, I think you'd be great for Dean.

AE: So the two of you knew each other before the show?

JA: We're both CW actors, it's not a huge network. We met at a party a few years ago and hit it off. When he moved up here [Ackles and Padalecki were both filming in Vancouver last year], we started hanging out more.

AE: So the two of you are close?

JA: He's one of my best friends, yeah.

AE: I know you said no spoilers, but can you give us any idea how soon we'll find out the details of Dean and Sam's previous relationship?

JA: I really can't. I know the details, of course, but Eric plays this stuff pretty close to the chest--we don't know what kind of timeline we're working on any better than you do.

AE: And you really won't tell us if you make out with Jared?

JA: [laughs] Well, you know. He's pretty irresistible.