What I Always Do For You (SPN, Dean)

[Wolfwings22]

It’s been a little bit since I wrote anything, but I found this story in my drafts from a while ago and decided to edit it and post it. I think that we could all use some escapism at the moment (I know that I definitely can) so I hoped this short Drabble might be enjoyable. I hope you all enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Sam falls asleep in the Impala. Sick!Dean stifles all his sneezes because he doesn't want to wake Sam, but stifling only makes him sneeze more. So Dean stops at the side of the road so he can get out and let his sneezes out. And then... well, it turns out that he is in the middle of a field of some plants he's allergic to, so he's going to sneeze his head off whether gets back in the car or not.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Sleep was a truly precious thing. No one knew that better than the Winchesters. For two people that averaged four hours of sleep a night between them on a good night, sleep was something that both of them treated as a luxury. Even though sleep could sometimes evade them, Dean always made sure to get at least get one or two hours a night. Hunting without sleep was a surefire way to get someone killed. Hunting while sick was another good way to end someone’s life unintentionally. Unfortunately for Dean, that was the territory that he found himself in.

 

    Ever since Sam had arrived back from Stanford, nightmares had plagued him. He was lucky if he got an hour of uninterrupted sleep each night, which meant that Dean was lucky to get one hour of uninterrupted sleep a night. If Sam was up, Dean was up. The only thing that seemed to help lull Sam to sleep was sleeping in the passenger seat or in the back of the Impala. The gentle rumble and low volume of Dean's metallic cassettes were enough to remind Sam of simpler times and soothe him to sleep. Dean would do anything in his power to make sure that Sam stayed asleep too, which meant no stops and to take it easy on the breaks. He also tried to keep the noise level down to the best of his ability.

 

    The only problem was that it was impossible for Dean to do now when he was sick.

 

    Dean knew it was a bad idea to talk to those witnesses to the skinwalker in the hospital in upstate Michigan. They had needed to walk past several rooms of those suffering from the seasonal flu to find the people they were looking for. Dean hadn't worn a mask and hadn't washed his hands when he was finished like Sam had. Now he was paying the price with a hopelessly stuffy nose and grating cough that tickled the back of his throat. He could already feel the beginnings of a low grade fever clutching at his bones. Dean couldn't keep driving like this for much longer while also trying to stifle his sneezes and swallowing his coughs so not to wake Sam. He cursed the fact that Sam was a light sleeper.

 

    "Hrchxxxxh! Hrchxxxh! Hrchxxxh!"

 

    Dean released his nose from the death grip he had forced it into to clamp his nostrils shut. The force of his stifled sneeze reverberated back into his sinuses and through his skull. The faint throbbing from a dull headache began to roar at full force. That's what Dean got for stifling his sneezes. However, if it helped Sam, so be it.

 

    "Hrchxxxh! Hrchxxxxh! Hrchxxxxh!"

 

    Another problem with stifling was that it only made Dean need to sneeze that much more. This was the third sneezing fit in about twenty minutes and he wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up.

 

    'I'm doing this for Sam's sake,' Dean thought with a wiry glance over at his snoring brother. Sam had turned on his side with his head tipped toward Dean's direction and mouth partially gaped open. Although he appeared to be in a deep sleep, Dean had a feeling that any little sound would bring him back to reality.

 

    Another fierce itch worked it's way down Dean's reddened nose. He took his finger with his ring and rubbed it hard against his nose to attempt to quell the fiery tickle. The desperate need to sneeze overwhelmed Dean once more and he was forced to clamp his entire hand over his nose to suppress the sound.

 

    "Hrxhxxxh! Hrchxxxh! Hrhxxxh! Hrchxxxh! Hrchxxxh!"

 

    The fit left him lightheaded and seeing stars. There was a reason that he knew he wasn't supposed to do that. Dean rarely stifled his sneezes, only on hunts where he was forced to be quiet. He was fairly out of practice from having to constantly worry about Sam. When Dean caught hunts by himself, he could come back to the motel and sneeze or cough all he wanted to without fear of reproach. He did the same when he was hunting with John was well. His father would often pass out after a hunt and Dean could make as much noise as he wanted without waking him. The same couldn't be said of Sam.

 

    "HrhcsHSSH!"

 

    Dean immediately stiffened at the sneeze that had snuck up on him so quickly that he couldn't even attempt to cover, let alone force his nostrils shut to stifle. Dean instantly glanced over at Sam and saw him stir and turn on his side with his back to Dean. His body went limp once more and the snores continued.

 

    Dean let out a breath of relief. That had been too close for comfort. He had finally reached the point where stifling wasn't an option. He knew that he needed to get somewhere where he could unleash the ticklish sneezes as well as blow his nose as noisily as he wanted. The good news for Dean was that they were on a long dirt road with only fields on either side of them. They hadn't seen another car in miles and it would be easy to pull off and give his body the release he craved.

 

    "Hchxxxxh! Hchxxxh! Hchxxxxh!"

 

    That clinched it for Dean. He kept one hand shoved against the lower half of his face, thumb crushing both of his nostrils shut in a death grip, while turning the steering wheel with the palm of his other hand. He pressed lightly on the gas, careful not to wake up Sam while also not wanting to harm his beloved Impala.

 

    The tires skidded on the dusty earth and brought the car to a gradual halt while Dean's eyes fluttered and right side of his mouth was twisted in a scowl in his usual pre-sneeze expression. He fought the tickle with a fiery passion until he was able to fling the driver's side door open and stumble forward. He closed the door gently behind him before trudging forward so that his sneezes wouldn't reach Sam's sensitive ears from inside the Impala.

 

    "HrhcsSHsH! HrchsSHsH! HrchsSHsH! HrchsSHsH!" Dean's breath quickened with each sneeze and his nose began to flood. Although colds usually gave him a stuffy nose instead of a runny one, it was clear to Dean that this was going to be an exception to the rule. That proved unfortunate because Dean hadn't thought about grabbing tissues at their last motel stay and he certainly didn't keep them in the limited space he had in his duffle or the Impala. He would always tease Sam for wanting them and now he would do absolutely anything to blow his nose into something soft that wasn't the collar of his shirt.

 

    Dean tipped his head back, still feeling the itch spread across every inch of his face; it was as though his entire body craved the release as much as just his nose did. Tears prickled at the corners of his eyes even as Dean raised the collar of his shirt over his face to contain the outburst he feared was upon him. "HrchsSH! HrchsSH!"

 

    Dean paused and let out a harsh cough. That only served to force the tickle back through his enflamed sinuses that were already beyond sensitive. The need to sneeze continued to plague him and Dean wasn't quite sure why. Sure, he had stifled his sneezes in the car for the past hour and that would've provoked a response from his body at some point, but not quite this intense for some wimpy cold. He should be able to sneeze twice and be done with it. Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be the case.

 

    "HrchsSH! HrchsHS! HRchsSHS! Ugh." Dean rubbed his nose through his shirt, feeling the moisture seep through the soft fibers of the over washed t-shirt. He emerged a moment later, still sniffly with nose running. The worst part was that the fit of sneezes hadn't done anything to soothe the need—if anything it made Dean need to sneeze more.

 

    A groan rose in Dean's throat while he pressed his tongue to the roof of his mouth. A moment later he ducked forward into the crook of his arm. "Hih.....HrChsSHSH! Huh.....hih.......HrcSHshsH! HrchsSH!" His throat throbbed after each grating sound that tore through him like a storm without warning.

 

    "Bless you!"

 

    Dean stiffened when he heard the voice behind him. He was quick to rub the undersides of his nostrils against his wrist so harshly that he swore he was going to tear it off. Once he was sure that there were no bats in the cave, he turned to face Sam, scuffing his boots against the dry earth.

 

    His younger brother stood with hair tussled and bags so heavy under his eyes that he looked like a raccoon. His hands were shoved into the front pocket of his Stanford sweatshirt, making himself appear smaller than he was. "What are you doing," Sam questioned with his head tilted just a millimeter to show that he was genuinely curious.

 

    Dean gave a slight shrug. "Uh, just exploring the road ahead of us, Sammy. Needed a break from behind the wheel."

 

    Sam knew that wasn't true. Dean and him were used to days and days spent in the Impala either driving or sleeping. It was more comfortable to them than any motel ever would be. Dean would never choose to walk around in the middle of nowhere instead of driving. That meant that he was obviously trying to deflect the real reason that he was out there.

 

    "Do you want me to drive," Sam offered already knowing the answer Dean was sure to give him.

 

    Dean brought his eyebrows together until they were knit high on his forehead. "Hell no! I don't trust you to drive my Baby."

 

    Sam rolled his eyes. Sure, he was tired, but not that tired. "Very funny. But seriously, Dean, what are you—"

 

    "HrcsSHsHsh! HrchsHSSH! HrchsSHS!" Dean pitched over his shoulder, pausing with his chest inflating and deflating manically, out of his control. "HrCchsHsSH! HrchSHshSH!"

 

    "Bless you. Geez, Dean, cover your mouth," Sam harped.

 

    Dean snorted back the congestion, baring his teeth ever so slightly. "Shuddup!"

 

    Sam glanced around, quickly realizing exactly where they were standing. "Um, Dean, you do realize where we are right," he pressed.

 

    "Dno, why would I?"

 

    "Look around."

 

    Dean blinked moisture from his itchy eyes and followed Sam's hand as his little brother motioned to the fields. A stone of cold dread settled in the depths of his stomach as he recognized the tall green plants with long stalks that held more pollen than Dean's poor nose could handle on a good day.

 

    "Dabit."

 

    "You can say that again. Why would you stop here if you knew this was a ragweed infested area?" Sam gave his head a grave shake.

   

    Heat rose high on Dean's cheeks all the way up to his ears. Although it was something that he and Sam had learned to deal with throughout the years, Dean still hated giving any attention to the severe reactions that would plague him in the fall and spring. There were more times than either brother could count when Dean would keep them both up at night, sneezing helplessly and blowing his nose into anything he could place in front of him. They could usually deal with it if Dean took Benadryl regularly and didn't spent much time outside. Leaving the safety of his car to walk between two fields filled with blooming ragweed was not the best way to go about dealing with it.

 

    "Didn't dknow," Dean answered gruffly, knuckled fingers rubbing harshly at the side of his gaping nostrils. "Tryig to be quiedt."

 

    "Quiet? What for?"

 

    Dean's eyes bore into Sam, watery and intense at the same time. "You were sleebig. Didn't wandt to wake you."

 

    Realization began to dawn on Sam. "Wait, were you sneezing in the car?"

 

    This was way more information that Dean wanted to share with Sam. Illness of any kind was something that Dean fought through with minimal moaning and complaining. The fact that he was essentially telling Sam exactly what had been going on with him was baffling to say the least.

 

    "Ub, a bidt, yeah."

 

    Sam began to pat the pockets of his jeans until he withdrew a handful of folded napkins. "Here. I can't understand you, man."

 

    Dean swiped them out of Sam's hands out of necessity rather than being touched by Sam's concern. He brought them up to his rapidly twitching nose and pitched into them with a tired sounding sneeze that sounded as though it had been dragged out from his very soul. That was when Sam knew that Dean had to have been at this for a while.

 

    Dean blew his nose into the napkins and folded them delicately into squares for future use. This could be all that they could have for a couple hours and Dean had to make them last.

 

    Sam took in Dean's slightly ashen skin and sweat that clung to his upper lip. It was fairly warm in Idaho, but not enough to make Dean sweat so quickly. "You sick?"

 

    Dean thought about lying to Sam, but was sure that would get him nowhere. He took his hand and teetered it back and forth slowly. "So-so."

 

    "That's a yes. Why didn't you say anything?"

 

    'Oh, because every instinct that I have told me that it wouldn't do any good,' Dean thought darkly. "Didn't want to worry you."

 

    Sam shrugged. He certainly didn't miss Dean's self-sacrificing tendencies while he was away at college. "Well, do you think it's time to get back on the road before your throat closes due to an allergic reaction?"

 

    Dean opened his mouth to answer only to fall forward with almost no warning. "HrchsSH! HrHshsSH!"

 

    Sam jumped back since Dena hadn't had time to cover. "Dude!" Sam grimaced while Dean ran his sleeve from halfway down his forehead to his wrist under his tingling nose. "Just get back in the car." Sam turned heel and marched back to the Impala, muttering the entire way.

 

    "Your welcome," Dean called half-heartedly after his brother. Sam didn't know the hell Dean had went through in the past hour to let him get a few precious moments of sleep, and it didn't seem to matter to him. That was alright by Dean. It wouldn't change anything. He was still going to look after and do whatever he could for his brother. He didn't care what cold he had to fight through or allergens he had to avoid. It was all worth it to care for his brother.

 

The End

[SneezeKitties]

woah.....oh my gosh!! I don't know what to say, this was just....WOW!!! 

I think we can all agree that if Sam was asleep in the car, Dean would absolutely stifle his sneezes. And Sam at the end! I can just imagine him now forcing Dean to let him drive, and then whatever illness Dean has take over him, and Sam then in his own loving way takes care of him.....🥰Holy moly, imma need to read this again, but I LOVED this!!! Thank you for posting it!! 

[Elyze]

This has all of my favourite things 😁 There's Dean with a cold and stifling and allergies ontop of illness (might be even better than just allergies) and even some stuffy talk.

✔️✔️✔️✔️✔️🤤

[anna]

Asfgjgkllb this was so good!!