Disclaimer: We do not own Supernatural.
*This chapter written by LadyWallace.
Not Right Now
Chapter Twelve
As the days passed Dean got better and better, having to use the crutches less and less. Sam and Bobby watched as he recovered, the younger Winchester feeling better than he had in a long time—since their father died. Just seeing Dean working through this, and not giving up put a warm joy in his heart that he hadn't known he could even feel anymore with everything that had happened to them. It made him think that everything might possibly be okay again, not just for Dean but for both of them.
They went back to the hospital for x-rays and the doctor was glad to announce that Dean had suffered no lasting damage and that a complete recovery would be certain as long as he continued his therapy and worked to build up his muscles again.
The news seemed to be the defining moment for Dean. It was like now he knew there was actually a light at the end of the tunnel it only made him work harder. He still got discouraged at how quickly he became exhausted, and he was slightly self-conscious about how skinny his legs had gotten from the loss of muscle mass, but he was in a much better mood, knowing that he actually would be able to get back into the game and help Sam hunt again. He wasn't going to leave his little brother alone. Not now.
The day Sam's cast came off was the day Dean got up for the first time and showered and dressed himself without help. They got ice cream and told themselves they were celebrating for each other. The week after, Dean sometimes forgot his crutches beside his bed or the couch throughout the day. He had to lean on things or Sam's shoulder a bit still, but he was able to mostly get around the apartment without the crutches if he wasn't going too far.
"He's doing good," Bobby told Sam one night after Dean had gone to bed, exhausted after a particularly rigorous day at therapy.
"I knew he could when he finally put himself to the task," Sam said, proud of his big brother.
Bobby rested a hand on Sam's shoulder. "You know it's all because of you, Sam. You boys are so stubborn, but you'd move heaven and earth not to let the other down. I knew Dean would come around with your help eventually."
"Yeah, even if I had to break my wrist to do it," Sam chuckled. "It was worth it though."
Bobby shook his head. "Idjits," he said fondly.
A few days later, Sam asked Dean if he wanted to go to the store with him and to his surprise, Dean agreed.
Sam packed the crutches even though Dean didn't seem to want them. He was doing better with walking longer distances, but he still got tired pretty quickly and Sam wanted to make sure he would have them if he needed them.
"I don't need those, Sam," Dean insisted, of course, once they got to the parking lot and he pulled himself out of the car.
"I'm going to bring them just in case," Sam insisted, inviting no argument. "It will be a lot of walking."
Dean grumbled and rolled his eyes, but he let Sam pack them into the cart. They went slow, and Dean kept one hand on the cart to stay steady, but Sam was just glad to see his brother interested to be out in public again. He had been such a recluse lately, which had worried him. Dean wasn't a socialite by any means, but he had always been interested in hanging out in bars to pick up women and he had never liked being cooped up which he had been doing to himself on purpose for the past few months. Sam knew this was just another step in his recovery that was a reason to be happy about. The fact that he was also interested in food enough again to pick stuff out was a bonus. Sam hadn't liked seeing how skinny Dean had gotten, not just from his inactivity, but from his lack of appetite for the longest time. He was just starting to get back to a healthy weight and color.
Of course, Dean was still on the road to recovery, and he tired out before they finished shopping, just as Sam had predicted. His legs were trembling and he almost collapsed before Sam grabbed his elbow to steady him.
"You good?" Sam asked, waiting for Dean to tell him what he needed instead of saying it for him. This was something Sam had learned in the latter stages of Dean's recovery. It seemed to make everything go smoother.
Dean caught his breath, then shrugged. "Maybe I'll just use the crutches for a couple minutes."
Sam silently pulled them from the cart and stood close as Dean steadied himself. They finished the shopping with Dean using the crutches and when they went up to pay, Dean self-consciously cast a look at the pretty blond cashier. He was shocked to see her smiling at him, not in a way that she pitied him for being on crutches, but in the way girls used to look at him. Dean gave her one of his best smiles back and winked at her.
When Sam paid, she handed Dean the receipt though Sam had to take it so Dean could use the crutches.
"Dude, see, you still have it," Sam told his brother with a grin as he showed Dean the phone number scrawled at the bottom of the receipt under Megan. "What did I tell you?"
Dean snatched the paper from him with a grin and stuffed it in his pocket. "Hm, I guess I do. Either that or Megan just likes men who need a little tender loving care."
Sam huffed a laugh and rolled his eyes as he helped Dean into the car and loaded the groceries, but he felt so happy for his brother. He knew that one of Dean's concerns were that no woman would want him in his current state, but being proved wrong was just another step to full recovery. Sam found he had begun to keep a mental list to be checked off. There was really just one thing left, which he hoped could be rectified soon.
The next day at therapy, which they were going to only twice a week now, Sam's question was answered without him even having to ask Joanna.
"Now that you're able to fully move your legs, you'll be able to do more things than before, even if you still have to rest during longer walks," the therapist told Dean with a smile. "In fact, I would say you can probably start getting used to driving again."
This news hit Dean like a ray of sunshine; Sam almost saw it light up his face. He couldn't help but grin for his brother's sake. Sam knew how hard it had been for Dean to have to ride in his baby every day without being able to sit behind the wheel. In fact, on more than one occasion, he had gone outside with Sam to do tune-ups, and order him around as he washed the Impala, saying he wasn't doing it right. Normally it would have annoyed Sam, but he had suffered through it, knowing that it was all Dean could control about his beloved car at that moment, and he could at least do that.
They planned to do some driving practice that afternoon.
Dean almost tripped himself up in his excitement to get to his baby. Sam followed behind, feeling almost awkward as Dean slid behind the wheel and stroked the dashboard.
"Hey, Baby," he whispered with a ridiculously happy grin on his face, his eyes bright with emotion. "Did you miss me?"
Sam handed him the keys as he slid into the passenger seat, watching as his brother turned the engine over, eyes closed and smiling as the engine rumbled familiarly as if greeting Dean back into the driver's seat.
"I missed you too, Baby," he said.
"You want me to leave you two alone?" Sam had to ask with a smirk.
Dean shot him a look, but he was still grinning, too happy to be annoyed by his little brother at the moment. "Let's try this." He looked down to make sure his foot was on the right pedal and then put the car into drive, easing his foot off the break as if he were just learning to drive. The Impala glided forward and Dean switched his foot to the gas, rolling out of the parking space to the back of the apartment complex where there was an empty lot to drive in. It felt like coming home, and Dean suddenly felt like everything he had been through, all the hardships that he had endured since his injury were worth it.
After a few circuits he stopped, cutting the engine, full of emotion he didn't want to admit to, but couldn't deny.
"Dean, you good?" Sam asked after a few seconds as he sat there in silence.
Dean turned to his little brother, a small smile on his lips. "Sam, thank you."
"For what?" Sam asked, genuinely surprised.
Dean rolled his eyes and sighed, but he continued on. "If it hadn't been for you, I would have died out on that mountain or soon after. I really didn't have any will to live when it first happened, Sam, I didn't have any fight in me." He swallowed hard. "But you fought for me, and somehow you pulled me out of the hole I was falling into. I don't know how you did it, Sam, hell, I know how stubborn I can be, but you did, and I just wanted to thank you, because you believed in me when I didn't and I know for a fact that I wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for you."
"You're my brother, Dean," Sam said, his eyes watery after Dean's speech. "There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do for you."
"Same here," Dean told him sincerely, then hearing the sniffing, reached out and grabbed Sam's jacket, pulling him hard against his chest. "Just, thanks for not giving up on me."
"Thanks for not giving up," Sam whispered back and squeezed Dean tightly, suddenly so grateful that he could do so. That he still had his brother with him. He didn't know what he would have done if he had lost him.
Dean ran a hand through Sam's hair, before pushing him back again. "Come on. I wanna take my baby out on the open road," Dean told him, turning the car back on and flipping the radio stations until he found a classic rock one, then he put the Impala into gear and drove out of the parking lot.
"Where are we going?" Sam asked with an amused smile, relieved at finally seeing his brother back to normal, like nothing had happened.
"Anywhere we want, Sammy," Dean told him with his usual careless grin. "Anywhere we want."
The End