Come Together, Sam is injured by other hunters

[Bec]

That was SOOO cute!

[Raven524]

Awwww...so cute! But I wonder how long Sammy will be able to keep the pretense up?

[aislinn]

I would think Dean giving him the bath would be worse than Ellen or Nurse Georgia, but, guess I'm wrong. Sammy's gonna have to snap out of this sometime I hope he kind find a way to do so without his game being discovered. Not to sure how Dean would handle this "betrayal". Excellent update dear, more please?

[supernaturalfreak8]

LOL I busted out laughing when Sam asked Dean to give him a bath...that was too cute. great update!

[spikecasey]

You are too funny. I wonder how much longer Sammy can keep this up. How mad will Dean be when he realizes he has been playing him. Then again, by that time, maybe the relation shop will be so close by then, Dean will really understand. Hmmm......can't wait to find out. Don't be a stranger now.

[Akinom]

What a thrilling story so far!
I'm wondering, what the test results are (especially the ones for Sam's hand-eye-coordination), and how long Sam's act will continue (I confess, I'm hooked on your story!)

Hopefully you update soon!

[Ghadeer]

So great so far!!!! Please update soon!!!! I wanna know what's going to happen!!!!!!!!!

Can't wait!!!!

[maxandkiz]

FireDancr2- Thank you! Yep, Sam and Dean forever! Now if they can just fix things between themselves, everything will be perfect.

Bec- Thanks! Hope you like this one.

Raven524- Thank you! No way he can keep it up long. sooner or later he's going to slip up.

aislinn- Thanks! I agree. Dean finding out would certainly be horrible for everyone.

supernaturalfreak8- Thank you! Can't you just picture Dean's face. Priceless!

spikecasey- Thanks! I like the way you think. Hopefully you're right and by the time Sam's ruse is discovered the boys are close enough that it won't be a big deal.

Akinom- Thank you! You're about to find out the test results. (finally) Hope they don't disappoint.

Ghadeer- Thanks! I've finally got an update ready for you. Not much action though. Hopefully that'll come next.



AN- Thank you for being so patient with me. Writing has been a real struggle lately. Not sure why. But I'm hoping the worst is over and I can going again.





Chapter 8




“I’m full” Sam announced lying back against the bed. He closed his eyes trying to will away the headache that had been forming since he’d woken.

Dean glanced down at the almost full bowl of broth with a sigh. He knew the broth probably didn't taste all that great but Sam needed to eat if he was going to get better. Scooping up another spoonful he held it out to his brother. “Come on, Sammy just a couple more spoonfuls.” Dean urged, “For me.”

Keeping his eyes shut the youngest Winchester shook his head grimacing as the motion increased the throbbing in his skull.

"Sammy? What is it? What's the matter, kiddo?" Dean worriedly asked. He swiftly rolled the tray table out of the way and took a seat beside his little brother.

"Head hurts" Sam rasped curling into his big brother's side.

"Ready for your bath sweetie?" Nurse Georgia called as she shuffled into the room carrying a small yellow basin. Seeing the pained expression on her patient's face she frowned. "What's wrong?" she asked as she bustled over to the far side of the bed.

"He's got a headache." Dean explained as he gently ran his hand up and down Sam's arm.

The nurse checked the monitors before moving to the end of the bed. Picking up Sam's chart she quickly scanned the instructions and then headed for the door. "I'll be right back."

"It's okay Sammy. The nurse is getting you some medicine. Just hang in there buddy." Dean soothed brushing his brother's bangs out of his eyes. Shifting his hand to Sam’s back the oldest Winchester began rubbing circles knowing how much the motion comforted the younger man. “Shhh, Sammy, its okay. I got ya.” Hearing the door open Dean glanced over to see Nurse Georgia walk in carrying a syringe.

“Here we go, honey. This’ll fix you right up.” The nurse said as she shot the medication directly into the catheter in Sam’s elbow. Depositing the used syringe in the red biohazard box Georgia walked down to the end of the bed and grabbed the chart. She scribbled a few notes before replacing the chart and turning to check on her patient. Seeing that the youngest Winchester had drifted off to sleep she smiled. Going over to the tray table she quickly switched the breakfast plate with the yellow basin and rolled it back over to the bed. “Why don’t you folks go down to the cafeteria for breakfast while I give Sam here his bath?” she suggested as she laid out the supplies she would need. “I don’t imagine he’d like the idea of you all being here for that.”

“No offense Nurse Georgia but I promised Sammy I’d give him his bath.” Dean told the motherly nurse. Noticing the nurse’s quizzical expression he shrugged his shoulders. “He didn’t want a girl bathing him.”

“Well, then it’s a good thing he’s asleep. He won’t be embarrassed that way.” Nurse Georgia replied as she pulled a clean gown out of the closet.

“Uhh, maybe you didn’t hear me. I’m giving Sammy his bath.” Dean reiterated.

“I heard what you said child. But I also know that you only promised to appease your brother and that you really don’t want to do that.” Georgia softly said. Raising her hand as Dean opened his mouth to object the nurse grinned. “How about a compromise? You take care of washing your brother’s face, hair, and arms while I wash the more, umm, sensitive areas. That way you’re still keeping your promise without having to see your brother in all his glory.”

Dean ran a hand through his hair thinking over the nurse’s offer. It sounded like a great idea but what if Sammy woke up before they finished? The kid had enough to deal with already and he was sure finding out his big brother lied to him would crush Sam. On the other hand if the kid slept through the bath, he’d never know Dean didn’t keep his word. Weighing the pros and cons the oldest Winchester quickly found the pros were the clear cut winners. Not only would Sam get his bath and his peace of mind but Dean would make it through the bathing without having to see certain parts of his little brother’s anatomy. Smiling over at Nurse Georgia Dean nodded. “You’ve got a deal.” He agreed.

“Think that’s our cue to leave.” Bobby muttered nudging Ellen’s arm. “Come on, I’ll buy you some breakfast at that diner across the street.”

“You’re on” Ellen replied. She stood and followed the older hunter to the door. “Be back in a little bit with your breakfast.” she called over her shoulder before walking out the door.

SPN

A short while later Ellen and Bobby returned to find Dean conked out on the recliner beside Sam’s bed. They silently made their way into the room. Ellen placed the take out box she was carrying on the tray table and then walked over to the couch by the far wall. Taking a seat on the lumpy sofa Ellen looked over all the monitor readings before focusing on the youngest Winchester. “He looks so young.” She quietly noted.

“Yeah, the boy always has looked like a little kid when he’s sleeping.” Bobby told her. Hearing the creak of the door he glanced over to the doorway fingering the knife hidden by his coat. Seeing Dr. Walters walk in he relaxed dropping his hand into his lap. “Morning doc” he greeted as he reached over and swatted the oldest Winchester’s arm. “Wake up Dean. The doctor’s here.”

“Huh?” Dean mumbled as he startled awake. Noticing the arrival of Sam’s physician the young man sat up straighter in his chair all traces of sleepiness gone. “Hey doc” he greeted. “Do you have Sammy’s test results yet? What do they say? Is Sam going to be okay?”

“Calm down Dean. Give the man a chance to speak.” Ellen gently scolded. She scooted over to one side of the small sofa to give the doctor room to sit. Nervous about the youngest Winchester’s prognosis she reached out and grabbed hold of Bobby’s hand surprising the older hunter.

Dr. Walters took the offered seat. Setting his patient’s folder in his lap he shifted slightly so he could face all three family members. Taking a deep breath he launched into his explanation making sure to direct his attention to the young man’s older brother. “First let me apologize for keeping you folks waiting. I wanted to have all the test results back before I came to talk with you. That said let me say that Sam’s recovery is going quite well. The MRI and CAT scan both showed vast improvements from the previous scans. There are still some areas of concern though. The scans picked up damage to three parts of Sam’s brain; the Cerebellum, the Hippocampus and the Thalamus. As you know the cerebellum…”

“Doc, no offense but do you think you could explain without all the medical mumbo jumbo?” Dean impatiently asked. “I mean, I wanna know everything about my brother’s condition but I don’t have a clue about parts of the brain and stuff like that. You need to talk regular English cause you kinda lost me when you started talking about bells and hippos.”

“Of course, of course, sorry about that. I tend to get a bit carried away some times.” the doctor replied. “Now as I was saying there are three different areas of damage. The cere, I mean two of the damaged parts deal with muscle control and movement. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now the problems Sam’s been having when he tries to grasp something.”

“Yeah, we have” Bobby said. “Sammy’s arm kinda goes anywhere but where he wants them to.”

“Yeah and Sammy gets really upset when it happens.” Dean added. “He doesn’t know what’s wrong and I think that scares him.”

“The damage isn’t permanent, is it? I mean Sam’s not always going to have muscle problems? He will get better, won’t he?” Ellen hesitantly inquired.

“With a lot of therapy and hard work Sam should be able to regain control of his limbs.” Dr. Walters assured them. “It’s not going to be easy or fast but I have every confidence that Sam will learn to control his movements.”

“What about the other part?” Bobby questioned. “You said three areas were damaged. What’s the third one?”

“The other part of the brain that shows damage is the Hippocampus. It’s the part of the brain that deals with memory.” The doctor explained.

“So that’s why Sammy’s acting like a little kid.” Dean concluded.

“I don’t think so. At least not completely.” Dr. Walters stated shaking his head. “There is only an extremely small area of damage; not enough to cause all Sam’s memory problems. We think certain short term memories, such as the bar fight that caused his injuries, were affected. His long term memory, however, should be intact.”

“Well then, why is he acting like an overgrown five year old?” Bobby irritatedly growled.

“We believe Sam is suffering from a form of amnesia.” Dr. Walters explained. “Dr. Edwards, one of the neurologists on staff, performed several cognitive tests on Sam to determine his mental state. Her tests concluded that your brother is functioning at the age of a six or seven year old child. We believe Sam’s mental state is a mixture of the head injury he received and the amnesia.”

“So we just need to find a way to make him remember?” Dean asked running a hand through his hair. “How do we do that?”

“Familiar places and people sometimes help. And talking about different memories or looking through old photo albums probably wouldn’t hurt. You never know what might trigger a memory.” The doctor suggested. “But I’m afraid it’s mostly up to Sam. Some amnesia patients come out of it fairly quickly while others never regain their memories.”

“You mean Sam might stay a six year old for the rest of his life?” Ellen gasped.

“It’s possible.” Dr. Walters honestly stated. “But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now, you need to concentrate on Sam’s physical well being. He’s going to need all the support he can get the next few months.”

“Don’t think you have to worry about that doc. Between Dean and Ellen Sam’s bound to be mother henned to death.” Bobby joked.

“Like you’re any better.” Dean huffed glaring at the older man. Turning back to the doctor he said, “One more question, doc. How long will Sam have to stay here?”

“Well, he’ll need to stay here at least another two weeks. Then he’ll be transferred to a rehabilitation center until…”

“No” Dean adamantly stated. “Sammy is coming home with us. He’s not going to any center.”

“Dean, I don’t think you understand the situation. Even after Sam’s well enough to leave the hospital with his mobility issues he’ll be confined to a wheel chair.” Dr. Walters clarified. “He won’t be able to do even the simplest of tasks by himself. He’ll…”

“Now wait just a damn minute!” Bobby gruffly barked. “Are you saying people in wheelchairs are helpless?!”

“No, no sir. People in wheelchairs are more than capable of leading full lives.” the doctor quickly agreed. Mentally kicking himself for the blunder he ran a hand across his face before clarifying his position. “But Sam’s case is different. His muscle control problems are going to make even the easiest of tasks almost impossible. He’ll have to be dressed and fed and bathed just like a newborn.”

“Not a problem, doc.” Dean assured the physician. “Been there, done that.”

“That may be, but there’s one very important difference this time; your newborn is a six ft. four bundle of frustration and anger.” Dr. Walters reminded. “If you thought the little temper tantrums he threw when he was two were bad, just wait.”

“Listen doc, I hear what you’re saying but I’m not changing my mind about this. Sammy is coming home when he’s released from here.” Dean firmly said.

Shaking his head at the stubborn young man in front of him Dr. Walters sighed. “Alright” he conceded. “But if you change your mind, just let one of the nurses know and I’ll get you some brochures of the rehab facilities near your home.” Standing the doctor shook the eldest Winchester’s hand. “Do you have any other questions before I go?” he asked.
“Can I have some chicken nuggets?” a weak voice whispered from behind them.
“Sorry Sammy” the doctor replied smiling down at his patient. “No chicken nuggets today. But if you’re a good boy and eat all your lunch and supper, I’ll see to it that the nurses bring you some ice cream.”
“With chocolate syrup?” Sam excitedly asked giving the older man his best puppy dog expression.

“Sure, why not?” Dr. Walters said patting his patient’s blanket covered leg. “I’ve gotta go now Sammy but I’ll be back to check on you later, okay?”

“Okay” Sam replied giving the man a dimpled grin. He watched the physician leave the room and then turned to his big brother. “Dean” he called.

“Yeah, kiddo” Dean answered taking a seat on the bed beside his sibling. “What is it?”

“I’m hungry”

[Bec]

I don't know Sammy, you are getting in deeper and deeper. Dean's not going to be happy with you.

Great job, thanks so much for the update!

[Ghadeer]

Oh Finally a new update!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks hun!!!

Waiting for more!!!

[supernaturalfreak8]

I wonder when Sammy is gonna come back to normal and tell Dean the reason why he's been acting this way...since we all know that he's fine when it comes to his memory. Great update!

[Akinom]

Great update!

Dean kept his promise but ditched the embarassing part...

How much of the diagnosis did Sam hear? Does he know of his diagnosed amnesia?

Poor Sam really has coordination issues (and I was hoping that was part of his act...)


Can't wait for the next one!

[FireDancr2]

Awesome, an update!

A compromise with the nurse on Sammy's bath, but not good news for his physical recovery. Poor Sammy.

Yea Dean for sticking to his decision of taking Sam home with him, but I hope he doesn't change his mind when he finds out that Sam's tricking him.

Very nicely done!
Beth

[maxandkiz]

Bec- Thank you! You're right about that. Dean's going to hit the roof when he finds out.

Ghadeer- Thanks! Sorry about the long wait. This one is getting harder to write.(with what's going on on the show.) but it will be finished.

supernaturalfreak8- Thank you! He'll have to spill sooner or later cause he can't keep pretending forever. He's bound to slip up sometime.

Akinom- Thanks! Yep, the coordination problems are real. Good thing he has his family there with him. He's going to need them in the coming days.

FireDancr2- Thank you! Me too. I don't think Sam would make it without Dean's support. After all he's pretending to be little because he thinks its what his brother wants.



Not too sure about this one.



Chapter 9




Sam stared anxiously at his hospital room door. Any minute now his physical therapist Tony was going to come strolling in and another round of torture would begin. It wasn’t the man himself that had the hunter dreading the sessions. The youngest Winchester actually liked the burly older man. Despite his intimidating build Tony was of the nicest most patient people Sam had ever met. He was like one of those great sports coaches you hear so much about; he could inspire you to give one hundred ten percent without yelling or berating you. Tony was most definitely not the problem. And neither was the work. After all Sam was used to tough workouts. He’d spent way too much time in John Winchester boot camp to let a little one hour therapy session bother him. No, hard work wasn’t what was bothering the young man. What Sam feared was failure. He had hated that feeling when he was a kid doing his best to impress his dad, the great John Winchester, and it wasn’t any easier to take now. He’d been in therapy for almost a week and so far he had done nothing but fail. He hadn’t managed to control his arm movements even a little bit. They still went anywhere but where he wanted them to go. Not to mention the fact that he had a hard time keeping a grasp on objects that Tony put in his hand. Seems the only thing Sam could manage to do lately was fail. In fact he’d screwed up so badly that Dean couldn’t even stand to be in the room with him anymore. As soon as it had gotten close to time for his session his big brother had made up some lame excuse and high tailed it out of the room. Not that Sam blamed him; if he could walk, he’d have taken off too. But he couldn’t walk; heck he couldn’t even crawl for that matter. He had been reduced to sitting in bed while other people went about taking care of his every need. He couldn’t do even the simplest of tasks like feeding himself. And while he was thrilled to be rid of the catheter having Dean, and one time Ellen, help him take care of business was beyond mortifying. Maybe his dad had been right all those years ago when he…

“You okay, Sammy?” a gruff voice called startling the injured man out of his thoughts.

Jumping Sam turned looking over at Bobby in surprise. He’d forgotten the older hunter was there. “Yes sir” he quietly replied dropping his gaze to his blanket covered lap.

Huffing Bobby wheeled over to the bed. He had known this was coming as soon as Dean stepped out the door. Getting as close to the bed as he could he locked the brakes on his chair before pulling himself onto the bed beside the younger man. Reaching over the salvage owner firmly grasped the littlest Winchester’s chin and tilted the boy’s head up until they were face to face. “Come on champ. Tell Uncle Bobby what’s wrong.” He coaxed.

Sam sighed. He really didn’t want to talk about what was bothering him but it looked like he didn’t have a choice. The older hunter wasn’t about to let it drop. Not wanting to see the expression on his surrogate father’s face he closed his eyes before whispering, “Dean’s dis-mad at me.”

“Dean’s not mad at you, Sammy.” Bobby adamantly stated. “Why the h-heck would you think that?”

“’Cause he left” Sam softly replied opening his eyes revealing the saddest eyes Bobby had ever seen. “I can’t make my arms work and that makes him mad so he left. He doesn’t want to see his stupid little brother me…”

“Samuel Winchester, you are not stupid!” Bobby growled lightly swatting the boy’s shoulder, “And I don’t ever want to hear you use that word that again! Do you understand me?”

“Yes sir” Sam squeaked.

“Morning Sammy!” Tony cheerfully called as he stepped into the room. Freezing as he noticed that he had walked in on what was clearly a private moment between his patient and the boy’s uncle he rubbed the back of his neck clearly uncomfortable. “Oh, I’m sorry. It’s a bad time, isn’t it? I’ll, umm, go down to the nurses’ station for a while. Just call for me when you’re through.”

“It’s okay Tony come on in.” Bobby beckoned as he lifted himself back into his wheelchair. “I was just explaining to Sammy here that he isn’t stupid because he doesn’t have muscle control yet. That he’ll get it; he just has to give the physical therapy time to work.”

“He’s right, stretch.” The six ft. six therapist agreed as he made his way over to the bed. “You have to give yourself time. It’s kind of like learning to ride a bike; it’s tough at first but eventually you get the hang of it.”

“No its not” Sam petulantly argued. “Learning to ride was easy.”

“Oh really?” Bobby scoffed. “Do you even remember when Dean taught you to ride?”

“Yeah” Sam replied lips curling up at the memory. “We were staying at Pastor Jim’s house for a few days ‘cause daddy had to work. Caleb found a bike for me at a yard sale but it didn’t have no training wheels and I didn’t know how to ride one of those. So Caleb and Dean took me out in the driveway and taught me how to ride.”

Tony grinned at his young patient. This was the most he’d heard the kid talk all week. Knowing he needed to have Sam finish the story to make his point he asked, “And what happened the first time you tried to ride?”

“I fell.” Sam simply said.

“And?” Tony prodded.

“And Dean picked me up, brushed me off, and told me to try again.” Sam filled in. “I fell and fell till Pastor Jim called us in for lunch. I didn’t want to try anymore ‘cause my knees and hands were all scrapped up and my behind was sore from falling on it but Dean said it’d hurt Caleb’s feelings if I didn’t keep trying and I didn’t wanna do that so I went back out. I fell a bunch of times. And daddy came home and tried to help but he wasn’t a good helper. Dean said he didn’t think daddy knew how to ride a bike.” Hearing a muffled laugh Sam turned to look at Bobby. He knew exactly what the older man was thinking about. Smiling as the image of John Winchester and the bicycle of doom flashed through his mind he giggled.

“What’s so funny, Sammy?” Bobby asked. He crossed his fingers hoping that Sam was remembering the time John tried to ride a bike because that would mean his memories were coming back.

Thinking fast Sam gave the hunter a dimpled smile. “Daddy said he’d show me how to ride. He got on my bike and tried to make it go but he fell in a sticker bush and got stickers in his butt!”

Tony chuckled. “Sounds like your brother was right, Sammy.” He said. “Did your dad ever learn how to ride?” Getting a shake of Sam’s head in response he asked, “What about you? Did you get the hang of it?”

“Uh huh” Sam proudly announced. “Dean and Caleb ran beside me and held onto the seat to keep me from falling and then they let go but I didn’t know it and I just keep going and going and then I turned around at the bottom of the driveway and they were standing by the porch watching me.”

“So it took a while but you learned to ride without training wheels, right?” Tony summed up grinning as Sammy’s eyes widened in understanding as his patient caught on to the point he was trying to make.

Sam fought the urge to roll his eyes. He couldn’t believe he fell for that one. But a small rational part of him told him the physical therapist was right; that he only needed to give himself time and he’d get control back. The bigger, more emotional side wasn’t so sure though. Needing assurance that he really would get control back the youngest Winchester looked up at the older man and quietly asked, “Are you sure I can do it, Tony?”

“I’m positive little man. A few weeks from now you’ll be back to throwing a ball with that brother of yours.” Tony assured ruffling the younger man’s hair. “Now what do you say we get started?”

“Okay” Sam replied nodding his head. “Let’s do it.”

[Bec]

Aw thank you for the update. I was missing this story.