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“Yeah, You left. Your brother and me, we needed you. You walked away, Sam!” John got closer to Sam, yelling in his face. Sam stood his ground, Dean was ready to pull them apart if fist were thrown. Oh no, it wasn’t that Dean din’t want them to fight, sure it could have been at a better moment but Dean knew John deserved everything Sam was about to say. Both of them were rightfully pissed at John for keeping information from them, for disappearing and appearing on them again and many other things. “You walked away!” John’s hand came up to grip at Sam’s jacket. “Alright stop it” he put a hand on Sam’s shoulder and another at John’s chest, he could practically feel Sam’s anger vibrating around his body. “You're the one who said don't come back Dad, you closed that door not me! You were just pissed off that you couldn't control me anymore!” Sam practically towered over their dad, a small grin appeared on Dean’s face, but it quickly disappeared once he saw John’s hand turned to fist as he started letting go of Sam’s jacket. “Listen, stop it! stop it! Stop it!! That's enough!!” His hand moved from Sam’s shoulder to his chest, feeling his rapid heartbeat as he successfully separated them enough for Dean to slip in front of Sam, always the protector. John started walking towards Sam again but Dean quickly put his hand out “That means you” something flickered over John’s eyes as Dean turned his back to check on Sam, who was still staring darkly at John. The road was quiet for a second, no noise but crickets and distance cars in the dark night.
“So you’re picking his side?”
Dean swirled around and glared at John, who he glared right back at him “I’ve been picking his side for a long time” Dean almost reassured him of that fact before John’s anger continued “Why?! When all he did was abandoned us!” He said it with such certainty that if it had been anybody else, they may have believed John. But it was just the three of them parked on the road and Dean had had enough. “You know what-“ “Dean-“ Sam went to grip at Dean’s arm, now becoming the moderator between his father and brother like Dean normally is. “No- if his going to keep using that as his excuse then he has every right to know” Dean shooed Sam’s hand away, stepping in front of John like John had been a moment prior with Sam. “Know what?…” there was venom in John’s voice, the type that made people stand frozen in shock or run away, Dean just stood his ground. “You want to know why I din’t run off after Sam when he left? Why I din’t intervene until you said what you said?” Dean’s voice had gone down to a dangerous soft tone. “Is because I knew long before that Sam was leaving” something flickered in John’s face. “What?” he sounded surprised. “I know because I was the one who helped him get into Stanford in the first place” Dean relished the look that came over John’s face. “And when you started drinking and I told you I needed fresh air; I got in the car, picked up Sam and drove him to Stanford myself” Dean still remembered that night, the tears on Sam’s face no matter how much Dean assured him everything was okay and that he was proud of him. “I helped him settle into his dorm, I helped him get his schedule and once I knew he was set, I promised him to call. And you know what I did?” Dean asked, his own hands coming to grip at John’s own jacket. “I did exactly that. I called him whenever I could and he called me, throughout those four years I visited him more times that I can count when I told you I was going in a hunt” Angered was settling into Dean’s tone. “I’ve met all of Sam’s friend and have hung out with them in those visits, I knew about Jess long before you did and met her way before that night” His voice broke a little at the mention of Jess, Dean had considered her his friend, she was the perfect woman for Sam and he still thinks about her constantly.
“Do you know how guilty I honestly felt going to Sam that night and asking for help? Because I promised him I would never ask him to come back hunting and I had kept my promise until that day, and bless his bleeding heart he said yes” Dean heard Sam shuffle his feet on the pavement, Dean hadn’t mentioned that to him. “I did this knowing fully well he had that interview on Monday and I was dead set on bringing him back in time for it” Anger was returning to John’s face as Dean’s voice got louder. “So no John! Sam din’t abandoned us, YOU ABANDONED US! ” Dean din’t see the punch coming until after it made contact with his jaw. He heard Sam say something behind him as he started coming closer. Dean just stared at John, watching as the regret etched its way on his face. John had never hit them before on purpose, maybe tried while he was drunk but never sober. “Dean-“ “Save it” Dean began, his voice now being the one coated in venom. “We are going to finish this hunt; and once we do, you are going to get in your truck and leave” There was no room for argument, if John din’t leave then Sam and Dean would. “Sam get in the car” Dean turned back to his brother, who was glaring at John. “Sammy..” Sam looked at Dean, biting at his tongue when he saw the now forming bruise and made his way around the car, opening the door with a squeak and shutting it behind him as he got in the passenger side. Dean turned back to look at John. “I meant everything I said” and with that, Dean made his way to the Impala, opening the drivers side door and shutting it behind him, turning on the ignition and began his drive, not caring to see if John followed or not.