Chapter Text
The sound of nose blowing woke up Dean from what could've been considered a pretty pleasant slumber. It wouldn't have bothered him if it hadn't happened every morning that week. In fact, it happened all day everyday since they rolled into some rural town in the northern tip of Indiana. It was beautiful in the fall with changing leaves and crisp air. There were apple trees everywhere and pumpkin patches were everywhere. It was enough to put anyone in the fall spirit.
"HtchsSHew! HrhchsHSew! HcrhcshSHew!"
Except for Sam.
He had been struggling with severe allergies to basically everything that anything to do with fall. Dean wasn't quite sure if it was the pollen or maybe some specific tree or plant, but Sam's nose certainly disagreed with it. He had been clogged down with congestion for the entire week on the hunt that they were on and spent most of his time fighting the itch that had taken permanent residence in his nose. Sam spent more time sneezing and blowing his nose than he did talking. It was really starting to get under Dean's skin and worried him at the same time. Dean feared that he was going to have to do this hunt on his own.
"HtchsSHew! HtchsSHew! HrchsHsHew!"
Dean propped himself up with his front arms outstretched. He rolled onto his back and threw the covers off of himself before rushing to sit up. His arms stretched over his head in a long stretch. "Leave some hot water for me, Sam," Dean called to let his brother know that he was awake.
The sound of the shower turning on greeted Dean's request. The elder Winchester rolled his eyes at his brother's antics.
Even though Dean had been around Sam for his entire life and had seen much grosser, Sam still had something about blowing his nose in front of his brother. He would always disappear into the bathroom and run the water or tell Dean to go on ahead before even attempting to preform the act. It didn't matter how many times Dean tried to reassure Sam that he didn't care, it didn't seem to matter. Dean had practically given up on it and decided it was best to just let his brother figure things out on his own.
While Sam showered and did whatever he needed to do, Dean quickly changed into some jeans and another flannel, pulling at the sleeves and tussling his hair, trying to bide time until Sam finished so that he could get into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Sam was usually fairly quick in the shower, but when his allergies were acting up, it was anyone's guess how long he'd be.
Almost ten minutes later, Sam shuffled out of the bathroom with a wall of steam around him.
"Alright, Sammy. Time to....." Dean trailed off when he got a good look at his little brother.
His usual good-natured and energetic brother looked listless and defeated instead of energized. He had deep bags under his furiously bloodshot eyes that were still irritated from Sam's frantic rubbing against them, adding to their usual sore quality. Discharge had collected in the corners of his eyes and hardened, making it difficult for Sam to keep his eyes open. His nose was ruby red and still actively running even as Sam attempted to mop up the byproducts with the cuff of his flannel shirt he wore. His breathing was labored and caught in his chest every couple of breaths, eliciting a sharp cough that nearly bent him at the waist. His entire face seemed almost puffy, adding to his miserable looking appearance.
"Sam," Dean began, unsure of exactly what else to say. He wasn't sure whether or not to point out Sam's appearance of it that would be considered rude. "You okay?"
Sam thought for a moment and let out a breathy cough over his shoulder since he couldn't bring up his arm quick enough. "Sobethig feels wrog."
"Yeah, I'd say something's wrong." Dean jumped to his feet and came towards Sam. He grasped him by the elbow and drew him forward, forcing him to sit down on the side of the bed.
Sam blinked his eyes furiously. "Feels fuddy." Sam trailed off desperately as a sneezy expression washed over his features. He had enough warning to force his sleeve covered wrist under his nostrils. "Huh'HrchsSHew! Huh'HrcshSHew! Huh'HrcSHSShew!"
Dean took the tissue box from the nightstand that Sam had nearly cleaned out the night prior on Sam's lap. "Here, use those instead of your sleeve." He doubled back to the first aid kit that Dean had been insistent that they bring in the night prior when Sam awoke the morning before with his eyes almost swollen shut. They hadn't known then that it was probably the outside air that was giving Sam trouble and had quickly shut all the windows instead of allowing a fresh breeze to travel through.
Sam took out a couple tissues and pressed them against his still streaming nose. He didn't dare blow with Dean less than a foot away going through the first aid kit as though their lives depended on it. Dean grasped a small bottle of eye drops that Sam had been using around the clock to soothe his irritated eyes. Dean had been thinking of a clever jab to call Sam after all the time that he spent with his head tipped back and eye held open as he dribbled a few drops into his already watery gaze. However, it was anything but a joke at the moment.
Dean sat down beside Sam and tipped his brother's head back. Sam attempted to resist, but Dean was much stronger and more determined. "Lean back," Dean ordered sternly. "I can't help you if you're fighting me."
A groan rolled in the back of Sam's sore throat as Dean leaned over him. His palm pressed just below Sam's cheekbones and that sent Sam reeling back, puffy eyes wider than Dean ever realized they could get.
"What, what," Dean asked, quickly righting the bottle of eye drops so that he didn't loose any drops. They were much more expensive than Dean ever realized and each drop was precious.
Sam raised a hand and gingerly touched where Dean had pressed down. His hand darted forward as he hissed in pain. "Ugh, hurdts.”
Dean titled his head. "Hurts? That's new, isn't it? Did it always hurt?" He knew that Sam's allergies were pretty severe but he was pretty sure that his face shouldn't hurt because of it. What sort of allergies could do that?
Sam thought for a moment, eyes darting back and forth from his hands to Dean's face and then back down to his lap. "Ub, dno, nodt really." He gave a hearty sniffle.
That wasn't giving Dean much to go on. He was going to need a little bit more to go on if he wanted his brother to help him. "Can you give me a little more? Try to explain it?"
"S'heavy," mumbled Sam as he raised his palm to rub it against his tear duct. Dean swatted his hand away and Sam's fingers dropped to hover over right under his cheekbones. "Righdt here."
"Heavy? Like painful?"
Sam scrunched his brow while he took a moment to process what Dean was saying. "Yeah." He quickly swiped the back of his head against his forehead. "Uncomfortable too."
Dean's thoughts ran wild through his mind. He reached down and pushed Sam's hand back and felt his little brother’s forehead. It was warmer than usual which signaled that Sam may have a fever. That was certainly much different than allergies. "Are you getting sick do you think?"
"Doesn't feel like a cold. I'm not coughing." He suddenly pitched away from his brother and brought the bundle of tissues back up to his face to sneeze into them fiercely. "HrchsshHSew! HrchsSHew! HrchSHew! HrchsSHhsSHew!" There was a few frantic breaths between each sneeze that still left his body with ticklish misery. It seemed that no matter how many times Sam sneezed, there were already more waiting to show themselves.
Dean pulled out the remaining four tissues from the box and shoved them into Sam's hands. "Just hang tight. I'm going to find another box because you're going to need them." He jumped to his feet and headed over to the bathroom quickly. He was on a one man mission and nothing was going to distract him. Although, thinking about what was wrong with Sam was certainly a puzzle. Could it be possible that Sam caught a cold on top of his allergies? That was just unlucky if that was the case.
Dean pulled open the closet attached to the bathroom and couldn't find any tissues, or really anything that could be considered close to them. He closed it in a huff and stormed back over to Sam, realizing with a frustrated pang that Sam had already used the four tissues that Dean had forced into his hand.
"Seriously, Sam? I just gave you those less than a minute ago," Dean exclaimed in exasperation.
Sam looked up bashfully, eyes red rimmed and streaming. "Did you find ady bore?"
"No I didn't, but I'm sure they have some behind the front desk." Dean patted Sam's shoulder roughly and gave it a firm squeeze. "Think you'll be okay without me for a couple minutes?"
"I'b dnot dyig, Deadn. Jusdt allergies. HrchsHSHew! HrchsHSSHew! HrchsHSHew!" Sam let out a few itchy coughs into the folds of the tissues as he tried to rub at his nose through them.
Dean gave Sam a thumbs up. "Be back in a second. Blow your nose while I'm gone." He jogged forward out of the room, making sure to take his wallet and room key just in case he needed to verify who he was. He crossed the parking lot in no time flat, feet striking the ground softly as he avoided the potholes that were now filled with water from the rain a couple hours ago. That made Sam's allergies all the worse and Dean wondered if that was why he was having such a severe reaction now.
He pushed the thought from his head as he emerged into the office at the front of the motel. He looked around at the dingy decorations that were coated with dust. It hadn't been cleaned in a while, but at least the rooms were clean, so Dean didn't have any room to complain.
"Can I help you, sir?"
Dean looked up to the college aged women standing behind the counter. She had curly black hair and long eyelashes. She wore no makeup and seemed a little shyer, but that was fine by Dean. It wasn't like he was ever going to see her again.
"Um, yeah. I was wondering if you had anymore tissues. My brother has been having really bad allergies and we're out," Dean explained, leaning over the counter a little more than what was needed to keep him upright.
She turned and grabbed something under the counter. She brought two large boxes of tissues out for Dean. "Here. My boyfriend has really bad allergies too and this time of year can be the worst for seasonal allergies."
"Thanks." Dean brought the boxes closer to him. "Do you know when it's going to get better? It's really making him miserable."
A look of sympathy passed over the women's face. "Not for some time. Fall just started around here. The more he stays indoors the better he'll be. I know my boyfriend used to work outside and he woke up one morning with a sinus infection because of it.”
Alarm bells started going off inside Dean's head. He snapped his head upwards and stared at the women. "You said a sinus infection?"
The women nodded. "Oh yes. Allergies can turn into a sinus infection if they're severe enough and go on without help. It's pretty common here too because of how cold it gets in the fall. Why do you ask?”
"No reason. Thank you." Dean tucked the tissue boxes against his chest and bustled out of the office without so much of a look back. He now knew what he had to go off of and he finally hoped he had enough information to make Sam's life just a little easier.