Hell of A Cold

[27jj]

A/N: I think, but I'm not totally sure, that there's actually another story (not Supernatural) on this board with this exact same title. *facepalm* Whoops. Sorry if there is.

A/N 2: The sneezes aren't spelled out, since I wrote this for something else-- the ohsam comment-fic meme on livejournal. (Prompt is at the end).

A/N 3: If anyone is interested, I have another sick-with-a-cold!Sam fic over at fanfiction.net that doesn't have spelled out sneezes or anything here: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5884198/1/365_Days

Okay. On with the fic.

***

One year.

That’s how long it takes.

Dean doesn’t even know if Sam is real at first. There’s holy water splashing, salt throwing, knife wielding, and finally hugging and crying when it turns out Sam is really Sam.

“I don’t know how I got out, Dean,” Sam whispers, snot and tears running down his face. He looks toward Lisa’s house, can see her and Ben peeking through the curtains, watching the reunion

that’s taking place in their driveway.

Dean brings Sam inside, lets Lisa have a turn hugging him before he’s got Sam around the shoulders again and is leading him to the couch.

They sit without talking for a while, the sounds of sniffles the only thing interrupting the silence.

When Sam is no longer crying, he’s still trembling, curling in on himself and wrapping his giant arms around himself, and that’s when Dean realizes there’s something wrong. Besides the whole, my-brother-just-got-out-of-hell-something, that is.

“You just need some sleep,” Dean says, answering a question no one asked, as he guides Sam to the spare bedroom down the hall. Lisa and Ben stay in the kitchen.

He gets Sam out of his clothes, ignores Sam’s protests that he’s fine, doesn’t need sleep, and tucks him under a heap of blankets. When he starts to leave, Sam makes a small sound, pulls a hand out from under the blankets and reaches hesitantly toward Dean.

“Stay?”

Dean stays.

While Sam sleeps, Dean studies him. He’s imagined this moment for a long time.

***

The coughing starts almost immediately, and then it occurs to Dean that maybe this isn’t the start.

“You’ve been sick a while?” He asks quietly as he hands Sam a glass of water, and Sam nods, shivering.

“Can’t believe I didn’t notice at first,” Dean says quietly. Sam snorts.

“Not that big of a deal,” he says, but that’s before he’s coughing again, and sneezing all over the place, and Dean makes him use toilet paper to blow his nose because there’s no Kleenex in the spare bedroom.

“We’ll get you some stuff tomorrow,” Dean tells him, before he remembers they aren’t in a motel room and that Lisa probably has a whole medicine cabinet full of cold medicine and cough syrup.

He wouldn’t know. He’s never had to use it.

***

Sam is running a fever the next day. Lisa prepares a tray with orange juice and tissues and a thermometer and leaves it on the dresser before she goes to work.

“Ben’s at school. He has practice afterward, but I’ll pick him up. Let me know if you need anything.” She gives Dean a quick kiss and Sam a quick smile before she’s gone.

When Sam isn’t sleeping, he’s sneezing or coughing. When he’s not sneezing or coughing, he’s blowing his nose and shivering. Mostly he tries to do all of it at the same time, which sounds painful.

“Drink some juice,” Dean tells Sam when he’s awake, like Sam Winchester alive and drinking orange juice is the most normal thing on the planet.

“Get some sleep,” he orders when Sam gets tired and uncomfortable, and Sam sneezes and shivers and coughs, but closes his eyes.

“I missed you,” Dean murmurs when Sam’s asleep.

***

Sam’s miserable for the next five days, and it’s the worst cold he’s ever had. It keeps him in bed most of the time.

He’s always cold, too, and Dean keeps bringing him blankets until there’s no more blankets left in the house, but nothing seems to help. He finally remembers something he’s been keeping in the trunk of the Impala, out of sight but never quite out of mind.

“I’ll be right back, Sam,” he says, and Sam sneezes four times and then Dean is back.

“Is that…is that mine?” Sam asks when he sees what Dean’s holding out to him. “You saved it?”

“Course I saved it,’ Dean answers gruffly. “Put it on.”

Sam takes the sweatshirt from Dean, his sweatshirt, his sweatshirt that Dean had saved, and he suddenly doesn’t feel that crappy.

It even smells like Dean, and a little like the Impala.

“Thanks.”

***

Three days.

That’s how much longer it takes until Sam is fully recovered, but Dean doesn’t care about time anymore.

He’s just glad to have his brother back.

***

Prompt: Sam has the cold from hell (literally) when he and Dean are reunited.

[BlueRandom]

Ahh, this is kind of sad!! Poor Sam! And Jared's cry-face is just so pathetic, too ... Very hug/cuddles-inducing writing!

I love how you wrote this, and how Dean is really practical, but caring.

And the sweatshirt thing? So damn cute.

[obsessed]

I love so many things about this! I love how he just got back, and he's all angsty and crying and adorable.

Dean taking care of him is just so asdl;fkasjdfd and the brotherly love is so cutecutecute and sweeeeet.

I lovelovelove this. <3<3<3

[ayslin]

Dean brings Sam inside, lets Lisa have a turn hugging him before he’s got Sam around the shoulders again and is leading him to the couch.

'lets Lisa have a turn' - I love that phrase.

“Not that big of a deal,” he says, but that’s before he’s coughing again, and sneezing all over the place, and Dean makes him use toilet paper to blow his nose because there’s no Kleenex in the spare bedroom.

“We’ll get you some stuff tomorrow,” Dean tells him, before he remembers they aren’t in a motel room and that Lisa probably has a whole medicine cabinet full of cold medicine and cough syrup.

Aw. Sammy's back and Dean slips right back in their old life. Oh, boys. ::smishes them::

“Ben’s at school. He has practice afterward, but I’ll pick him up. Let me know if you need anything.” She gives Dean a quick kiss and Sam a quick smile before she’s gone.

I love the relationship you have between Dean and Lisa. And how that bleeds into how Lisa treats Sam. It's awesome.

“I missed you,” Dean murmurs when Sam’s asleep.

...wibble.

“Is that…is that mine?” Sam asks when he sees what Dean’s holding out to him. “You saved it?”

“Course I saved it,’ Dean answers gruffly. “Put it on.”

Sam takes the sweatshirt from Dean, his sweatshirt, his sweatshirt that Dean had saved, and he suddenly doesn’t feel that crappy.

It even smells like Dean, and a little like the Impala.

“Thanks.”

Dean! Sam!

Aw! Awesome job. Just hurty enough to make the comfort really hit the spot. Sigh. I luuurved it.

[iluvsneezes]

Aww, that was such a sweet story!

[27jj]

Ahh, this is kind of sad!! Poor Sam! And Jared's cry-face is just so pathetic, too ... Very hug/cuddles-inducing writing!

I love how you wrote this, and how Dean is really practical, but caring.

And the sweatshirt thing? So damn cute.

Awww thank you. I love Jared's cry-face. Especially in the episode Heart. But that is a different story:)

Thank you so very much!!!!!!!

I love so many things about this! I love how he just got back, and he's all angsty and crying and adorable.

Dean taking care of him is just so asdl;fkasjdfd and the brotherly love is so cutecutecute and sweeeeet.

I lovelovelove this. <3<3<3

=D Thank you! I lovelovelove your feedback!!

Dean brings Sam inside, lets Lisa have a turn hugging him before he’s got Sam around the shoulders again and is leading him to the couch.

'lets Lisa have a turn' - I love that phrase.

“Not that big of a deal,” he says, but that’s before he’s coughing again, and sneezing all over the place, and Dean makes him use toilet paper to blow his nose because there’s no Kleenex in the spare bedroom.

“We’ll get you some stuff tomorrow,” Dean tells him, before he remembers they aren’t in a motel room and that Lisa probably has a whole medicine cabinet full of cold medicine and cough syrup.

Aw. Sammy's back and Dean slips right back in their old life. Oh, boys. ::smishes them::

“Ben’s at school. He has practice afterward, but I’ll pick him up. Let me know if you need anything.” She gives Dean a quick kiss and Sam a quick smile before she’s gone.

I love the relationship you have between Dean and Lisa. And how that bleeds into how Lisa treats Sam. It's awesome.

“I missed you,” Dean murmurs when Sam’s asleep.

...wibble.

“Is that…is that mine?” Sam asks when he sees what Dean’s holding out to him. “You saved it?”

“Course I saved it,’ Dean answers gruffly. “Put it on.”

Sam takes the sweatshirt from Dean, his sweatshirt, his sweatshirt that Dean had saved, and he suddenly doesn’t feel that crappy.

It even smells like Dean, and a little like the Impala.

“Thanks.”

Dean! Sam!

Aw! Awesome job. Just hurty enough to make the comfort really hit the spot. Sigh. I luuurved it.

It always means so much when you take the time to take certain lines out:) Thank you tons!!

Aww, that was such a sweet story!

Thank you for reading! Glad you liked it:)

[Strong_and_Wild]

I was in tears by the end. Excellent writing : D it was just so special.

[27jj]

I was in tears by the end. Excellent writing : D it was just so special.

Thank you so much:)

[everest]

Awww! So sweet! I love how it's somewhat of a happy event, but somehow still sad. I gotta say, now that I've read this I'll be comparing it to the reunion they air on the show, and I'm kind of doubting I'll love it as much as I loved this! Nothing beats a sick Sammy, especially yours.

[27jj]

Awww! So sweet! I love how it's somewhat of a happy event, but somehow still sad. I gotta say, now that I've read this I'll be comparing it to the reunion they air on the show, and I'm kind of doubting I'll love it as much as I loved this! Nothing beats a sick Sammy, especially yours.

Thank you:) And I completely agree, nothing beats a sick Sammy:) Oh, if only the reunion could be like this...

[Raining Strawberry]

Awww, this is so sweeeeet! I love how caring Dean is. And the sweatshirt part...

[swann_ee_song]

This is brilliant and touching without any of the cliched schmoopiness.

[27jj]

Awww, this is so sweeeeet! I love how caring Dean is. And the sweatshirt part...

Thanks:) I'm really glad you liked the sweatshirt part, that was one of my favorites!

This is brilliant and touching without any of the cliched schmoopiness.

Awww thank you!!

[scarlett_ohara2]

Ahhhhggghhhhhhhhh, THE SWEATSHIRT!!!!

I love how it smelled like Dean now, even though once upon a time it belonged to Sam. Awwww.

[Dopey]

love sam and dean! they are priceless! and so mooshy! very well written!

[27jj]

Ahhhhggghhhhhhhhh, THE SWEATSHIRT!!!!

I love how it smelled like Dean now, even though once upon a time it belonged to Sam. Awwww.

Thank you!!! So glad y'all liked the sweatshirt part:)

love sam and dean! they are priceless! and so mooshy! very well written!

Thank you so much for reading:)

[sneezysammy345]

Awwww. I love this fic. Adorable. You write them so well. Every time I watch Swan Song, I bawl my eyes out. I KNOW what's going to happen, and I still bawl my eyes out. I don't get it, but there you go. Awesome Fic.