Upside Down and Sideways, Chapter 5, 6, & 7

[mamapranayama]

Title: Upside Down and Sideways
Genre: Gen
Category: Angst, whump
Rated: T

Summary: Set just after ELAC. Dean's world has been turned on it's head- He's alive while his Dad is dead and Sam just won't leave him alone. Consumed by rage and grief, his anger has consequences that neither he nor Sam can foresee. Limp!Sam, Angry/protective/hurt!Dean, ultra-awesome/curmudgeonly!Bobby
( Upside Down and Sideways: Chapter 1 )
( Chapter 2 )
( Chapter 3 )
( Chapter 4 )
Chapter 5

Sam had been lightly sleeping when Dean came back into his room, but not asleep enough to ignore the shadow of his brother looming over him. Dragging himself from the comforts of his slumber, he woke to see him scowling down at him. What had done this time? He'd been asleep for cripes sake.

"What?" Sam asked.

"So what exactly did the doctors tell you after the car crash, Sam?"

"What?" He asked confused.

"The car crash, Sam. The car crash." Dean repeated as he glared, veins popping out on his forehead. "That doctor seems to think that you may have had more than just a couple of black eyes from it. What did the doctors tell you when we went to the hospital that night? Did you even let them check you out?"

"Dean...C'mon. You and Dad were hurt badly. What was I supposed to do? Just sit there? It wasn't gonna happen. So what?"

"So what? Sam, I saw the way that demon was beating you. No way you walked away from that and the crash without some serious head damage. The doctor here seems to think that one concussion on top of another is a bad thing and I tend to agree with him. Don't you think you could have at least told me?" Dean's voice hitched up another notch and Sam was sure that the whoever was in the room next door had to be getting an earful.

"Will you calm down? It's not like that was the first time I ever got hurt and it's not like you wouldn't have done the same thing-" Sam came back emphatically, his own voice raising.

"Don't turn this around on me, Sam. It's not the same and you know it!"

"It's not? Don't tell me that if it had been me laying near death, hooked up to life-support that you would have just stayed in bed and hoped for the best!" Sam argued back, ignoring the blossoming headache that threatened to make his head explode.

Hearing the boys argue again from outside the door, Bobby hurried inside and put his foot down.

"That's enough! Both of you. Now you best simmer down, the last thing we need is the entire hospital listening in on your little squabble, so you two idjits better shut it down right now!"

Dean felt the wind go out from his sails. Why was all he could feel right now was anger. Anger at himself for not paying closer attention to his brother's injuries after their dad died and anger at Sam for getting hurt and scaring him into thinking that he might lose him and lose anything that left of his family.

Shaking his head, Dean took a seat with a heavy sigh and ran a hand through his hair. Sam gave him a look that said that words weren't necessary after that and Dean returned it, locking eyes with his little brother. They were both sorry.

OOOOO

Dean snored.

Sam couldn't sleep anymore as the sound droned on, reverberating against the walls. His head and chest hurt, but at least the cadence of the throbbing had settled down some and even his breathing was feeling easier. Morning light was filtering in through the blinds of the window across the small room and played shadows and highlights across the sleeping face of his brother. Dean's feet were propped up on the end of his bed, while the rest of his body looked uncomfortably stuffed into a hard chair. He seemed so peaceful for once, so innocent, young and unmarked by the life that had scarred him on the inside that Sam just wished it could be like this all of the time for his brother.

Bobby too sat in another chair, asleep with his head cocked back and mouth open, his dirty trucker's hat fallen to the floor behind him. Sam had to chuckle a little at the sight. It wasn't often that those two guys let their guard down like this and he was surprising pleased by it all. He would have been content to let them sleep on, but Dean's snoring was more than just a little hard to take with the headache he was putting up with.

With a kick of his feet, Sam knocked against dean's boots and gave them a shove. As they fell, Dean snapped awake with a loud snort, his eyes darting across the room wildly, until they settled on the grinning face of his brother.

"Damn, what's you do that for?" He asked rubbing the sleep from his eyes before twisting his neck around to get out the kinks.

"You were keeping the whole floor up with your snoring." Sam complained.

"I don't snore."

Sam snorted. "Only like a freight train."

"Shut up, Bitch."

"Why don't you make me, Jerk?"

Seeing Sam in better spirits and markedly improved color to his cheeks, Dean was in a better mood himself and was looking forward to seeing his brother get out of this place. The thought of having to spend another night in that accursed chair, was not one he was prepared to entertain.

Dean stretched as he got up and walked over to Bobby, picking up his fallen cap and slapping it across the man's chest playfully to wake him up.

"Time to rise and shine, old man."

Bobby grumbled with his eyes closed. "Boy, do that again and I'll be tearing your ass a new one, got it?" He snatched his hat back from Dean and put it back onto the top of his head where it belonged, before looking over to the bed where Sam was sitting up and basking in the older man's plight with a beaming smile. It had been a while since Bobby had seen that smile and even Dean seemed to be in a better mood.

"Guess sleeping Beauty over here is feeling better." Bobby pointed out.

"I am and I'm ready to get out here." Sam agreed.

It didn't take Dean long to hunt down that Dr. Chen once again and demand Sam's walking papers and prescriptions and less than a couple of hours later, Dean shoved the bottles of antibiotics and painkillers into his pocket while wheeling Sam out of the hospital entrance.

Though he felt silly sitting in the chair when he was perfectly capable of walking, Sam decided not to fight the ride as he was still quite a bit exhausted and shaky on his feet.

Bobby had pulled his old truck up to the curb and Dean helped Sam out of the chair, despite the dirty looks Sam sent his way.

"Thanks, but I think I can make it , Dean." Sam grumbled.

"C'mon, Cinderella. Your carriage awaits to take you to the ball." He grinned evilly, opening the rusty door for him.

"You're definitely not prince charming, so what does that make Bobby?" Sam asked.

"He's the rat that got turned into a coachman."

Bobby growled from the driver's seat. "Will you just get in here already!" Sam settled into the passenger side seat while Dean was stuck with the middle seat. It was close quarters and all were feeling the cramp, each of them wishing that Bobby had gone for the extended cab.

In spite of being squished into his seat and pressed up against the window, it didn't take Sam long to feel the effects of endless miles of boring scenery and painkilling narcotics Dean made him take on threat of an ass-kicking, drifting off into a deep slumber as they drove north.

It was nearly noon as they reached the half-way point to Bobby's house and both of the older men was in desperate need of some gas, coffee and something to eat as they had both slept poorly the other night and not one of them had had any breakfast. So, pulling off into the parking lot of a busy convenience store and gas station, Bobby parked the truck by a pump and hopped out to fill it up. Sam was still fast asleep, softly snoring as his mouth hung open.

"And he says I snore." Dean huffed as he slid out to to the driver's side door and out, letting his little brother get some of the rest he really needed.

"Hey, get me some coffee and one of those taquito things while you're in there will ya, Dean?" Bobby asked as he pulled out his credit card to pay at the pump.

"Sure thing." Dean called behind him as he entered the store.

Bobby swiped his card several times, but the damn machine didn't seem to be reading his card. He cursed out loud at the thing. Shaking his head, Bobby grabbed the pump handle and chose the regular gas before filling the truck's gas tank until it was filled to the top. Realizing he would have to go into the store to pay, he stole a glance at Sam still resting with his head against the passenger side window. He looked so peaceful that Bobby was loath to wake him. It would only take a couple of minutes and the boy would be safe if he left him there to sleep.

Dean was still inside filling two cups of coffee while juggling a bag of MandM's and a taquito when Bobby walked in to pay for the gas.

"Hey, better make sure you get some water and something actually nutritious for your brother, Dean." Bobby called out

"Yeah, yeah." Dean griped, trying to figure out how he was going to carry all this crap at once with only two hands.. The line had several people in front of him and Bobby swore inside of his head again at how inconvenient this convenience store was.

While both men were pre-occupied with their purchases an blue old, little Ford Festiva pulled up to the pump beside the truck.

OOOOO

Alicia thought back to the night before as she pulled up to the gas station. After draining her bank account of every penny she owned, Alicia started putting her plan into action. Time was of the essence as she had heard that Sam would most likely be discharged in the morning.

She quickly left the hospital and picked up a local paper. Scanning the used vehicle listings, she found an ad for an old '89 Ford Festiva that she could afford. Just before nightfall, she took a cab to the man that was selling the car, she didn't bother to haggle with the price nor ask for a test drive, she just didn't have the time. It was an ugly, rusty shade of blue, but as long as it ran, she didn't care.

After buying the car and paying for it with half of the cash she had, she took off for her next stop. She would need protection for her Sam, and while she had never even held one before, she knew she needed a gun. With only a couple hundred dollars left to her name, her options were limited, so she settled on a small .22 handgun she could easily carry in her purse. Next on her to-do list was a trip to the seedier part of town.

Even though she knew that Dean was a danger to Sam, she was uncertain how the younger man would react to him wanting to take him away from him. She had no choice, but she would need something to knock him out until she could get him back to her Grandmother's house where she could keep him safe and to herself.

Having right amount of ketamine would knock a person out for hours. This she knew from all countless surgeries and medications her Grandmother took when she fell ill. She just needed to find someone selling it, either that or she would have to steal some, but she was no criminal master-mind and trying something like that was too risky.

She waited inside her car parked just outside a sleazy motel. She was scared to death of the place, afraid of getting mugged or worse, but when she saw a man leaning against a shiny, decked out Lincoln, she knew that she had found who she was looking for. She had learned from a bartender earlier that evening when she stopped at a local watering hole for dinner and a few shots of liquid courage that there where several drug pushers that conducted their business out side of a run-down motel, he even gave her a name of one of them and a description of him so she would know which one he was as it was obvious to him that she was no cop.

Her heart pounded in her chest as she approached the man and he eyed her suspiciously, but all questions stilled as she pulled out her money and paid for a couple of bottles of ketamine.

Now that she had all that she needed she hurried back to the hospital. It was running past midnight and she hoped that Sam was still in the room he had been placed in earlier. It was with a small sigh of relief when she walked around the corner of the floor Sam's room was and stopped short just before his door and snuck a quick glance inside. Sam was asleep while his brother and the other, older man played cards.

"We need to talk, Dean." The older man began. Dean threw down his hand and glared.

"You and Sam have some kind of conspiracy going on to get me all blubbery and weepy-eyed? Cause it ain't gonna work, Dr. Phil."

"It's not about that, you ass. It's about that damn temper of yours. You and Sam were loud enough to wake the goddamn dead. I know you're angry. Hell, I've been there, done that. But you need to rein it in, not just for Sam's sake, but for yourself. It's eatin' you up from the inside out and if you're not careful it will swallow you whole."

"I don't need an after school special moment right now, Bobby." Dean sighed, seeming tired to Alicia's eyes, but deep down, she knew that the anger was still there, simmering just on the brink of boiling. Even this older man appeared to be concerned by Dean's flare-ups. It only confirmed her feelings that Dean was a danger to Sam.

Set on her course of action now, she knew there was no turning back. If only she had stayed for a few moments more she would have seen the conflict on Dean's face, the weariness and the fear of nearly losing his brother. She would have seen the gentle way he swept Sam's hair away from his eyes and checked over his vital signs just to be certain that he was okay before he settled down in a hard, uncomfortable chair to spend the rest of the night by his side.

OOOOO

Now was her chance. She knew that sooner or later the truck was going to need to stop and when it pulled off to the gas station, she pulled off too and parked where she hoped she wouldn't be noticed. Thankful that the highway had been rather full of traffic, they probably hadn't noticed her following them as she always stayed a few cars away from them. Even though the traffic had been a bonus, it had also bee a hindrance and she almost lost them a couple of times, but now that they had stopped, she easily caught up to them.

She saw Dean leave the cab of the truck with the older man, Bobby getting out first to pump some gas. She checked her own gas meter. She still had at least half a tank, but she didn't want to risk being seen by the guys. She would have to wait until they left to refill and then have to break some speed limits to catch up to them again. She didn't know where their final destination lay, but she was determined to follow them until they got there. Then she could make her move.

However, when the two men left the vehicle, she saw that Sam stayed inside of the truck, asleep and when Bobby made a few obscene curses towards the pump and left Sam all alone in the truck, she was immediately seized by the thought that now would be as good a time as any to do what she needed to do. Feeling for the little syringe she had pre-loaded with the anesthetic in her purse, she pulled it out and shoved it into her coat pocket. She didn't have much time and she had to be quick. It hadn't been a part of her original plan to get Sam now, but as the opportunity to get him away from the other two men while he was asleep alone came along, she knew she would have to take it.

Without much forethought, she put her little car into gear and pulled it up next to the truck. She didn't even bother turn her car off as she grabbed her purse and dashed out of it, quickly jumping into the truck. Glad to see that the keys were still in the ignition, she turned the engine over and slammed it into drive, peeling out of the parking lot in spectacular fashion.

OOOOO

Dean got in line right behind Bobby and gave a groan at the length of it and how the old man at the register seemed to have only one speed: slow.

"Oh man, this is gonna take forever...hey where's Sam?"

"Still sleeping. Thought it best not to wake him. He needs his rest."

Dean glanced out the shop's window. Sam's head was still resting against the side of the window, dead to the world. He gave a little lopsided grin, glad that he had Sam back and ready to take him home where he could fix him up and getting him back into fighting shape.

"Well, I'll be damned..." He heard Bobby mutter.

A TV was one behind the old cashier and Dean's attention was pulled from the window see what was on that had Bobby shaking his head and grinning. A news report was on highlighting the bus crash.

....A drunk driver is reported to be responsible for the crash that claimed three lives, but thanks to the heroic efforts of an unidentified man, described as being in his early twenties, most of the bus passengers were able to make it to safety... A woman reporter stated as she stood next to the highway where the accident had occurred. The image on the screen shifted to a burly looking man recounting the details of the crash to the reporter.

"If it hadn't been for that guy breaking the window open, I don't think any of us would have made it out..."

"You think that was Sam?" Dean asked Bobby.

"Sure sounds like it." Bobby agreed. "Who else would it be?"

Dean shook his head. "Why didn't he say anything?"

"I don't think he remembers."

Dean turned his head back to the sight of Sam sleeping in the car. He felt a swelling of pride erupt within him. His little brother would always do whatever it took to save innocent lives, even it it cost him his own. It was just his nature.

He saw the little, blue car pull up next to it on the opposite side of the pump. He didn't think too much of it. It was a busy gas station after all, but there did seem something familiar about the driver of the car, but he couldn't place her. Shrugging, he turned back to the news report just as Bobby moved up in line and began to pay the cashier.

That was when they heard unmistakable sound of the truck engine roaring to life. He turned just in time to see the old pickup burn rubber and fly out of the parking lot.

"Sam!"

"What in tarnation?..." Bobby swore, forgetting his change and charging out of the store, Dean beat him outside just as the tail of the truck disappeared into traffic, taking Sam with it.

Dean began to ran after the speeding truck, but it was an effort all in vain. The truck was gone and with it his brother. Sam couldn't have been driving it, he had been dead to the world, fast asleep in the passenger seat when Dean had glanced at him only moments before the truck took off. He felt a coldness overtake him. Someone had taken Sam, but why?

His mind raced, trying to grasp what had occurred and what he needed to do next. Bobby was in motion, calling his name, but he ignored him and turned his attention to a man standing next to a pay phone watching the scene.

"Hey!" Dean yelled at the guy as he ran up to him, snatching the receiver from his hand and hanging it up.

"What gives, man?" the guy snapped in annoyance and anger. "Who do you think you are?"

"That truck that just pulled away-did you see who was driving it?"

"Why should I care...I was on the phone with my mother!"

Dean could have snapped that guys head off, but instead grabbed the man's flannel collar and nearly took him off of his feet, slamming him into the wall of the shop and bracing him with his forearm.

"Did you see the driver or not!" Dean shouted ferally

"Dean-" Bobby tried to intervene, but the irate, younger man was oblivious to his attempts to cool him down.

"Dude...dude...chill..." The man at the phone raised his hands in fear. "Okay...it was some girl...she came from that blue car over there and just jumped in the truck."

"And you just stood here and watched?"

"What was I supposed to do?"

"Dean...c'mon." Bobby grabbed his arm.

"No, Bobby..." Dean shrugged him off, his gaze boring into the man in his clutches. He needed more info. "The girl. What did she look like?"

"Uh....uh..." The man stammered. Dean increased the pressure of his hold. "Okay, okay...I don't know.. she was short, brown hair, had glasses on..."

Bells went off in Dean's head and he let go of the guy as it hit him like a ton of bricks. It was the girl he had seen from the shop window and he suddenly remembered where he had seen her before. The hospital.

"Let's go, Bobby!" Dean grabbed the older man's shirt, giving him a little tug before he took off at a sprint to the old, blue Festiva still parked by the pump. It was still running as Dean jumped into the driver's seat. As soon as Bobby was in the passenger seat, Dean slammed the gear selector into drive and peeled out of the parking lot, ignoring the angry horns of driver's he cut off along the way.

Dean cursed to himself. Why hadn't he recognized her before? She was the freaky girl he had bumped into next to Sam's room. It was probably no coincidence that she had been there, who knows how long she had sat outside the room. But, who was she? His mind raced almost as fast as the car. What of she was a demon, or vampire or God knows what else? He had to catch them now!

Bobby held on tight to what he called the 'oh-shit!' handle just above the door as Dean swerved and dodged the cars, honking the horn at anyone that got in his way. The car rattled and shook, protesting the speed Dean was pushing it to.

"C'mon...c'mon." Dean growled at the car as the steering wheel shook in his hand from the unbalanced tires. They were just pushing 80 miles per hour and it felt as though the car might tear itself apart from the velocity.

"Dean!" Bobby warned, seeing the heat indicator pushing past the red. Smoke and steam poured from the hood, but Dean could just make out the tail of Bobby's truck and wasn't about to stop. He jerked the car sharply again, narrowly avoid a little old lady in a Honda Civic giving him the finger as he flew past.

Pressing the accelerator completely to the floor, the car gave another shutter, but refused to go any faster. The truck was still ahead by several car lengths and starting to pull further away.

Suddenly the was a jarring snap and the car rattled from deep inside the engine.

"Crap!...No No No No!" Dean shouted, slamming the steering wheel with his fists.

"Sounds like we broke a belt." Bobby shouted above the noise of the engine. Dean stomped on the accelerator again, but it refused to perform it's job and instead the car began to slow.

"No! You piece of shit..GO!" It was no use. No matter how much Dean yelled at the car, it had been pushed too far. Overheated and broken, it whined and rattled as Dean was forced to pull it over to the shoulder to avoid becoming roadkill from the other cars flying by. He could only watch in despair as Bobby's truck pulled further and further from view until it disappeared over the horizon.

OOOOO

The familiar rumble of the engine wasn't enough to wake Sam at first. He was vaguely aware of them taking off again, which had been expected, but something wasn't right-he wasn't being squished against the window by Dean's body as they moved and it was way too quiet inside the cab.

Something had to be amiss if Dean wasn't cursing his position in the middle seat.

Feeling a sudden stab of pain in his thigh, Sam jerked his eyes open and darted his eyes all about, thinking at first that Dean had pinched him for some reason he was about to curse him out. But Dean wasn't there, neither was Bobby, instead he was greeted by the sight of a young girl driving the truck beside him, gripping the steering wheel so tight her knuckles were white.

"What the hell?!" Sam yelled in a daze of confusion and panic. The girl turned her head, a wild look in her eyes. He recognized her face right off, he had met her at the hospital- Was Alicia he name? He fought to recall, finding it strange how fuzzy everything everything felt in his head. But what the hell was she doing here, driving Bobby's truck and where were Dean and Bobby?

"Alicia?" He asked. "What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry, Sam." was all she replied as she kept an eye on the road and punched the accelerator. He went for the door handle, but it was locked and seeing as how the scenery was rushing by in such a blur, they were traveling too fast for him to jump out. He made a move to grab for her, but was taken by a wave of overwhelming dizziness flooding over him. His limbs were growing so heavy that reaching her had become nearly impossible. Straining against his seat-belt in an effort to reach her, it held him fast and he was becoming so tired so fast that it took his brain several moments to realize that she must have drugged him. That explained the pinch he felt, but that realization was coming in a little too late now as the world about him began to waver and darken.

"Whadd ya do?" He slurred his words, his tongue felt too fat in his mouth for speech to continue. His head bobbed as he fought the effects of whatever it was she had injected him with, but it was too much for him to overcome. On their own volition and against his will, his eyelids drooped shut and the last thing he heard was her repeating: "I'm sorry, Sam. I have to keep you safe...."

TBC.....

( Chapter 6 )
( chapter 7 )
( Chapter 8 )
( Chapter 9 )
( Chapter 10 )
( Chapter 11 and Epilogue )