What Are You Going To Do? (SPN, Sam)

[Wolfwings22]

This is just a quick oneshot I wrote after I found the prompt and knew that I couldn’t resist a good story where Dean is torn between his inexplicable care for the Impala, and his hopelessly sick brother. I hope you all enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Prompt= Dean takes good care of his baby. He likes her kept clean and tidy; he'll get pissed off if Sam's eating a salad in the passenger seat and messy dressing drips onto the seat or a used tea bag is left on the dashboard overnight and makes the whole car smell unnatural for a morning. But when Sam catches a cold, Dean switches to his mode where he takes good care of his brother. And if that means a sea of used tissues all over the place and the sickening cherry scent of cough drops filling the car, then so be it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

    "Hutcshshshs!"

 

    It was the first sneeze that alerted Dean. He jumped ever so slightly before he looked over at his brother, who was dosing in the passenger seat. How he managed to sneeze in his sleep, Dean wasn't sure. But, Sam only ever sneezed when he was catching a cold. That could only mean one thing: Dean was about to have a very sick, clingy, and whiney Sam on his hands.

 

    "HutcshshSH!"

 

    Dean looked over and saw Sam starting to stir. Sam lifted a hand and rubbed it over the side of his face, sighing heavily. "Ub, Deadn?"

 

    A hopelessly stuffy voice. That was another check against Dean. "Yeah, Sammy? Everything alright?"

 

    "Why wouldnd't id be," asked Sam as he pushed a hand against his eyes.

 

    Dean set his jaw while he curled his fingers around the steering wheel tightly. "I don't know. Have you heard yourself lately," he questioned.

 

    Sam looked utterly bewildered as he glanced over at Dean. He lifted a sleeve and rubbed at his nose ever so slightly. "I'b fide, Dean. Jusdt a liddle tired."

 

    Dean could hardly understand his brother at this point. He knew that saying that wouldn't help since Sam could be so sensitive sometimes, especially when he was sick. Instead he slightly turned and felt around the back seat while still trying to stay on the road. He gripped at a box of half used tissues before he threw them in Sam's lap. "Alright, sicky, blow your nose. I can't understand you."

 

    Sam reluctantly picked out a few tissues and clamped it around the lower half of his face. He blew his nose weakly and then threw the wilted tissues on the floor. He leaned back with his mouth partially open and the box of tissues still pressed against his chest.

 

    "Dude, seriously," Dean grumbled as he saw Sam's tissue laying on the floor of the Impala, wilted and bunched up. Dean couldn't help but shiver. "Can't you put them somewhere else?"

 

    Sam didn't answer. He sniffed again as he thrust a fist against the side of his nose. If anyone else would've done that then it wouldn't have meant anything. However, to Dean it meant something else entirely. His brother had a telltale sign that he was getting sick and felt terrible and that was the rub that he did against his nose. They were certainly in for it now.

 

    "Sammy, I'm kind of hungry. Would you like to stop," he asked his little brother.

 

    "HutcshshSh! HutcsHshSh! HutcsHSHSh!"

 

    "Bless you. Was that a yes," Dean pressed as he leaned slightly forward against the steering wheel. It pushed against his chest as his throat seemed to partly close in worry.

 

    Sam pulled out a few more tissues and pressed them against his nose. He blew his nose powerfully, and once he was finished, he threw them back down with the other tissues. That caused Dean's blood to boil, but he didn't say anything. He knew how miserable his brother was, so he ignored the impulsive urge to snap at him because of the mess that he was making.

 

    Dean decided that it was a yes from Sam, or at least as much of a yes as he would get out of him. So, he sought out a place for them to stop. He finally found a little store attached to a gas station. That way he could get something for the Impala as well as something for himself and Sam.

 

    He pulled up and started to pump gas. He then looked over and saw Sam leaning against the Impala dizzyingly. "Oh, hey. I wasn't sure you were alive. You didn't answer me."

 

    Sam winkled his nose. "Throat hurds," Sam croaked.

 

    Dean leaned slightly forward since he couldn't hear Sam over the small amount of music playing around them. "What," he questioned.

 

    Sam lifted a hand and rubbed along the outside of his throat, nodding slowly in discomfort. Dean waved his hand sharply. "Alright, I get it. No need to repeat it. Okay, let's get you something for that. Just give me a minute."

 

    Dean finished filling up the Impala before he set it back in and walked over to join Sam. The two brothers made their way into the store and the little bell dinged above them to signal their arrival. Sam jumped almost ten feet in the air and Dean turned to face him.

 

    "Dude, it's the bell. It's us. No need to get all jumpy," sighed Dean as he pulled Sam along.

 

    Sam brushed him off and headed down one of the isles. He sniffled as he trudged along, slowly reaching forward for some cough drops. His throat was so sore that it felt like every word scraped the insides of his throat and down into the lungs. He felt beyond terrible, not that he would never admit that to Dean.

 

    "Sammy, find what you need," Dean asked as he came up behind his brother.

 

    He grunted when he saw cherry cough drops in his hands. "Really? Those taste horrible and they don't smell too good either," he muttered.

 

    Sam looked at him blankly. "I can't smell or taste anything right now," he pointed out with a sort of glazed expression on his face.

 

    It only took Dean a moment to think about what was going on. Dean stretched out a hand and rested it on Sam's forehead. He sighed heavily when Sam pushed him off. "Just as I thought, a fever. I'll be back. Get whatever the hell flavor cough drops you want. Just keep those wrappers to yourself!”

 

    Sam looked puzzled, but he didn't argue. He carried the cough drops tight against his chest and stopped and picked up some Gatorade to drink on the way to the cash register. He wandered back over to Dean, who had a basket filled with anything Sam could possibly want or need. Sam didn't even know what all of it was.

 

    "Okay, let's get going," suggested Dean as he hurried up and paid for what they needed and then pulled Sam along since he was still trailing slowly.

 

    The two walked back to the Impala where Sam opened the bag of cough drops and unraveled one, popping it in his mouth. He threw the wrapped next to the tissues and, sure enough, the scent of artificial cherry filled the Impala. Dean wrinkled his nose and didn't say anything.

 

    "Okay, before we go at least take something," Dean requested as he grabbed one of the liquid medicines that he had bought at the store.

 

    Sam tried to push it away when Dean tried to hand it to him. "Dean—"

 

    "Just take it, alright? If you do, then I won't bother you for the rest of the night," he told him as he started to pour the liquid medicine into the cup and offered it to Sam.

 

    Sam reluctantly took it and started to drink down the medicine quickly. Once he was finished he set the cup down on the seats. Dean watched a few drops of the bright radioactive green colored gunk drip onto his seats. He held his breath as he leaned forward, sighing heavily.

 

    "Okay, we ready," he asked as he set the medicine in one of the cup holders and sighed loudly.

 

    Sam nodded slowly with his mouth ajar. It was going to be a long ride.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

    The rest of the drive was rather uneventful and that was fine with Dean. He was just relieved that Sam slept the entire way with only a few congested snores sounding from his brother's side of the car. Dean was well aware that Sam's face was currently crushed against the inclined seat, nose running freely against the upholstery. However, it didn't bother him as much as it should've. When Sam was sick, that took priority over everything else, even Dean's usual affection for his beloved Impala.

 

    Dean drove throughout the night, only stopping for gas and to check Sam's fever to make sure it wasn't rising to dangerous levels. Once he deemed his brother alright for travel, Dean would climb back into the driver's seat and pull the car back onto the long stretch of road with his music turned down low so that he didn't wake Sam. It wasn't the most interesting journey that Dean had ever been on, but it was okay for the time being. Towards the end Dean grew tired and he was relieved when he saw the faded sign that invited the pair into the small Nebraskan town.

 

    Dean located the first and possibly only motel in the tiny town and pulled in. He allowed the car to run for a few moments while he looked his brother up and down. It was difficult to see much in the dim light that streamed from the motel sigh above them, but Dean was still able to see the ashen quality of his brother's face and the burning of his skin. The best thing that Dean felt he could do to help his brother was get him somewhere comfortable and warm to sleep. As much as Dean loved the Impala and knew that Sam felt the same, staying cramped in the passenger side of the car wasn't the best idea.

   

    The eldest Winchester reached over and tapped his fingers slightly against Sam's shoulder to wake him. "Sam? Sammy, you have to wake up now."

 

    Sam awoke with a cough and congested snort. His head lifted from it's position craned to the side and his eyes flashed in pain. Dean could tell that Sam's neck was bothering him thanks to the position he had fallen asleep in by the way that he favored it. "What," Sam mumbled with a string of deep sounding coughs rising from his chest.

 

    Dean narrowed his eyes. "We're here. You doing alright?"

 

    Sam's head fell forward into his shoulders as he gave it a timid shake. "Liddle code," he answered, nose wrinkling with a desperate itch. He pulled a couple tissues from the box, but he couldn't get them up to his face in time, and instead was forced forward and sneezed openly against the dash. "HrCHsHSHS! HrhcsHchsSH! Hrchshcshhs!"

 

    "The dash, man." Dean immediately clamped his mouth shut before he could say anything else on the matter. Sam couldn't help it that he was sick and gross at the moment. "You know what, never mind. Just hang tight while I get a room, alright?"

 

    Sam was barely aware of Dean climbing out of the car and closing the door behind him. Dean left it running so that Sam could still have the warm air blowing on him. Sam snuggled down into the seat with his eyes starting to close while he snuffled into the tissues that he hadn't been able to sneeze into. He was nearly asleep when the Impala was rocked again when Dean climbed back in.

 

    "Got us a room. It's not much, but it's not like they're busy." Dean backed the car out of the parking space and drove slowly to the other side of the parking lot so that Sam didn't have to walk far to their room. Dean was worried that Sam may just crumple once he stepped out of the safety and warmth of the Impala.

 

    Once Dean pulled in front of their room, Sam leaned over to the side. "HrhcshsH! HrchsSH!"

 

    "Bless you." Dean stole a look to his brother in time to see Sam run a bundle of tissues under his nose and then drop them by his side. They stuck to the side of the seat, making Dean shudder. "You okay?"

 

    Sam waved Dean off. "Fide."

 

    "Uh huh. Well, you can head in and I'll get our stuff." Dean handed Sam the only room key that the lady at the reception desk had given him.

 

    Sam took a moment before reaching out and pulling the room key from Dean's grasp. He pushed himself into a full upright position and swung the door open. Dean watched as Sam closed the door behind him and shuffled halfheartedly toward the room, coughs echoing around him with every step he took.

 

    Dean waited until Sam disappeared inside the room before he started to survey the damage that had been done to his Baby. He could see cough drop wrappers, used tissues, droplets of cold/cough medicine, and unrecognizable liquid that was on part of the upholstery. This would've usually set Dean over the edge with the week that both brothers had gone through, but Dean was able to quickly remind himself how miserable Sam probably was. He hadn't meant to germ up their ride and asking Sam to clean it when he felt better wasn't going to help matters.

 

    "Don't worry, Baby. I'll fix you up." Dean ran his palm slowly over the dash as he pushed the door open. He climbed out and headed to the back to grab his and Sam's duffle. He passed by the passenger side and looked in to see that it looked even worse from this angle. There Dean could see where Sam had been laying and his sweat was smeared on the seat.

 

    Dean let out a breath that he didn't even know he was holding. "It can be fixed. It can be fixed." He let out the tension in his fingers while he turned his attention to the door of the motel room. As much as Dean didn't want to think about it, his Baby could wait while he dealt with his brother.

 

    "I'll come back for you." Dean trailed his hand down the side of his car.

 

    Sam always came first and that wasn't about to change now, even if it meant his Baby may be a little worse for wear.

 

The End

[Seeker]

This is lovely ...just gotta...go find a fan...