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Sam found Dean playing a game on his phone and whistled to get his attention. “Hey. Got you something.”
Dean set down his phone and took the purple popsicle Sam held out to him with a confused expression. “Don’t you think we’re a little old for these, Sammy?”
“You do know what today is, right?”
“Saturday?”
Sam rolled his eyes. “I mean, the date.”
“Yeah, it’s July fourth. What’s that got to do with popsicles?”
Sam let his head drop. He’d hoped Dean would remember it as fondly as he did. “Nothing. Never mind. Just got feeling a little nostalgic is all. Enjoy your popsicle. The rest of the box is in the freezer, help yourself.” He headed off to the garage to enjoy his popsicle the way he always had as a kid – sitting on the trunk of the Impala. If he closed his eyes, he could remember that day perfectly.
John had gone off in the middle of the night. First Sam heard John had left was when he woke up at ten o’clock. John never let him sleep that late. At first, he’d thought Dean had gone with John. Dean wasn’t there, Dean usually got him up early anyway, and then there was the rumble of the Impala. He loved that rumble. That rumble meant safety and home.
Dean wouldn’t tell him where he’d been, but he distracted Sam anyway. He’d brought home hot dogs and a big bag of potato chips for lunch. With the microwave it didn’t take long to cook the hot dogs, and Dean had even stolen some condiment packets from somewhere. “What did I forget, Dean? You’re never like this!”
Dean gave him a huge grin, lighting up the room. “It’s the Fourth of July, Sammy! Dad’s not here, so we can actually celebrate!”
“Don’t call me Sammy.” But Sam’s grin answered Dean’s, and it got bigger when Dean winked. “One more surprise. This one took a bit more planning.” He opened the cooler and pulled out two popsicles. “Purple or red?”
“Red!” Sam took the red popsicle Dean offered him and ran out to sit on the trunk of the Impala. It was hot, like a summer in west Texas always was, but there was a gentle west breeze that cooled it off enough to be comfortable.
The car shifted as Dean leaned against the side of the car, sucking his popsicle. “Dad said not to expect him home for a week, which means he’ll either be back tomorrow or sometime next month. What do you wanna do tonight?”
“It’s the Fourth of July, Dean! We gotta watch the fireworks!” Sam turned to watch Dean eat his popsicle. Something about the way he licked at it made Sam’s stomach feel all funny, but Sam loved the feeling.
Dean smirked a little when he caught Sam staring, and somehow got even more exciting to watch. “Watch the fireworks, huh? What if I told you I had a better idea?”
“What could be better?” Sam stuck his popsicle in his mouth. He needed the coolness. The breeze wasn’t doing enough to cool him off anymore.
Dean raised his eyebrows at him. “Do you trust me?”
What the hell kind of question was that? “Duh.”
“Then just wait and let me show you tonight, okay?" Sam squirmed a little, but Dean and his surprises were usually fun. "You’re gonna love it, I swear.”
Sam was jarred out of the memory by the Impala shifting. He opened his eyes to see Dean leaning against the side of the car. “I got no excuse for not realizing that July fourth is the Fourth of July, Sammy. 1996?”
“Yeah. Only time we ever really got to celebrate, and boy, did we.”
Dean started slurping at his popsicle. “Dad woulda killed us if he ever knew what happened that day.”
“I know. Anyway, I saw the popsicles at the store, and realized what day it was… thought it’d be fun to relive some childhood memories.” Sam never took his eyes off Dean and his popsicle.
Dean snorted, briefly interrupting his show. “I think we’re a little old to go burning down fields, and anyway, we gotta live in the area now.”
“Yeah, no, I’m kind of over fireworks anyway. We see enough bright lights and hear enough loud bangs for a lifetime for work, I think. And you know there’s no way I’m eating four hot dogs with stolen condiment packets.”
“I was thinking I’d cook some hamburgers. You’ll eat one if I cook you one, right?”
“Yeah, of course.”
Dean pulled his popsicle out of his mouth with an obscene smack. “Anything else you wanna do for the holiday, or just relax?”
Sam started sucking on his own popsicle. “You know, when I was thirteen I didn’t know what the hell I wanted, but I knew I wanted something from you. You were driving me crazy with that popsicle.”
“Yeah, I knew that. Couple days later it hit me what the hell I’d been doing and I started running off with every girl I could get. Back then I was still kinda in denial about who I am, not to mention you were my brother and thirteen.”
“Good thing we’ve changed two of the three, then. Do you trust me?”
“Duh.”
“Then when we’re done here, let me show you all the dreams you and that popsicle inspired over the next couple months. You’re gonna love it, I swear.”