counted stars } { i don't want to wear a tie or a serious expression in the middle of july
[MERRY CHRISTMAS dancinpenguins! Set in counted_stars. likedillinger is used with permission and love, and incaution is used with less permission but still the same amount of love. … I was listening to “I Won’t Grow Up” from Peter Pan as I wrote this and we both know that the boys are oversized five year-olds anyway, so … :D? It took on more of a serious tone than I would have liked, but this is apparently what happens with these boys.]
Neither of them would concede who actually pulled the first prank, but they both knew it was Sam.
Sam would deny it until the day he died, but for once, he was the one who set off the war. He needed to. There was too much tension in the air, too much bad blood between he and his brother, and he needed it to stop.
It was Life Day. From what he could remember it was the Star Wars equivalent to Christmas, and while he never had been big on the holidays, instead of getting on Sam’s case to get him to participate, Dean was sulking around and avoiding him, and he needed it to stop. He was crawling out of his skin, trying to figure out how to get his brother back on his side again. He knew he screwed up. He did. He knew he was holding more secrets than he should. But there were so many things that Dean didn’t need to know. So many things that Sam didn’t want to share, because he knew how Dean would look at him if he did.
It would be worse than this.
Sam always ran away, but Dean was still his big brother, and Dean was still always proud of him, somehow. He couldn’t disappoint him any more than he already had. So he did what any sane little brother would do.
He superglued his hand to his beer bottle.
Again.
“Sam!”
Dean’s voice echoed through the Roadhouse, and Sam couldn’t help the smirk that crossed his face. By the time Dean appeared in his brother’s room, looking very pissed off, and the beer bottle still stuck to his hand. There was an expectant look for a moment, and when Sam gave him an innocent shrug, Dean only seemed to get angrier.
“You really want to start this shit again?”
“Start what?” Sam asked, giving his brother the most innocent face he had. Considering he’s been perfecting it since the age of five, he knew it was pretty good. He also knew that odds were Dean could see right through it because he’s been working on it since he was five, but that didn’t mean he was going to flinch now. “Dude-did someone superglue your beer bottle?”
Dean was giving him one of those glares that could probably kill someone if it he had half the power that Sam had, but he didn’t. Sam was momentarily grateful for that.
“You’re gonna pay for this,” he replied before making his way out of the room and back across the hall. Sam just smirked, before turning back to his datapad again.
Turned out, Coruscant’s version of super glue was awesome.
***
It took a little over a week for things to come to a head. By the end of it, Sam’s hair was pink, Dean had had several embarrassing moments broadcasted over the datapad, and Jo was ready to smack them both. She had never been caught in the crosshairs of a Winchester prank war before, and as far as she was concerned, this was never happening again.
Jo may be short, but Sam wasn’t stupid enough to believe that she couldn’t take him out if she wanted to. He’d seen her kick Dean’s ass more than once.
But instead of just kicking their asses and being done with it, which he appreciated, she just forced them into the back room of the bar, glaring at them through strings of syrup and slime that none of them, for fear of losing the things most precious to them, were going to admit to. They were smarter than that. But they didn’t fight her as she sat them down in two chairs and fixed them with glares that also would kill someone if they met her eyes too hard.
“Now. I don’t know how you two go from not speaking to each other at all to-this-but you are going to fix it, and you are going to fix it now.” She then gave them a thin smile. “Now. I’m going to go get cleaned up. You guys sit tight and figure this out, or I will kick your ass when I get back.”
They both had the looks of little kids who were caught with their hands in the cookie jar. Jo didn’t buy them for a second, and smacked both of them upside their heads on the way out. Sam considered it getting off easy. Once she was out the door, however, it took all of five seconds for both of them to sputter into laughter.
“You are going to pay for that one for a good six months at least.”
“I bet I can get her to come around before that. ‘Specially considering it wasn’t my fault.”
Sam gave his brother a look. “I didn’t do that and you know it.”
“Yeah. She doesn’t know that, though.” Sam’s look only stayed on his face, and Dean frowned. “What?”
Sam just chuckled, shaking his head. It was a pipe dream, but he didn’t feel like calling his brother on that right now. He just wanted things to be okay. “Truce?”
Dean sighed. “Yeah, truce.”
Sam nodded again, before glancing over at him tentatively. “Are we … ?” He let the sentence trail off and hoped that Dean would fill in the blanks. His brother’s face fell slightly for a moment, before his eyes closed and he got up to walk away.
“I don’t know.”
“ … Dean … ”
“You gonna talk?” Sam looked away, and Dean shook his head. “That’s what I thought.”
There was a long silence which was filled by the sound of Dean’s feet walking away before Sam spoke up again. “It’s not something that happened, Dean.”
Dean frowned, and turned to face him again. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Sam took a breath, before turning to face his brother again. “What I’m not telling you-it’s not something that happened to us. It’s something I did. That’s why I can’t.”
“That doesn’t make this better, Sam.”
“No. I know.”
Dean was quiet for a moment, before turning and heading out the door again. “I’ll see you around.”
“Yeah,” Sam sighed. “See you around.”
1039 words
Neither of them would concede who actually pulled the first prank, but they both knew it was Sam.
Sam would deny it until the day he died, but for once, he was the one who set off the war. He needed to. There was too much tension in the air, too much bad blood between he and his brother, and he needed it to stop.
It was Life Day. From what he could remember it was the Star Wars equivalent to Christmas, and while he never had been big on the holidays, instead of getting on Sam’s case to get him to participate, Dean was sulking around and avoiding him, and he needed it to stop. He was crawling out of his skin, trying to figure out how to get his brother back on his side again. He knew he screwed up. He did. He knew he was holding more secrets than he should. But there were so many things that Dean didn’t need to know. So many things that Sam didn’t want to share, because he knew how Dean would look at him if he did.
It would be worse than this.
Sam always ran away, but Dean was still his big brother, and Dean was still always proud of him, somehow. He couldn’t disappoint him any more than he already had. So he did what any sane little brother would do.
He superglued his hand to his beer bottle.
Again.
“Sam!”
Dean’s voice echoed through the Roadhouse, and Sam couldn’t help the smirk that crossed his face. By the time Dean appeared in his brother’s room, looking very pissed off, and the beer bottle still stuck to his hand. There was an expectant look for a moment, and when Sam gave him an innocent shrug, Dean only seemed to get angrier.
“You really want to start this shit again?”
“Start what?” Sam asked, giving his brother the most innocent face he had. Considering he’s been perfecting it since the age of five, he knew it was pretty good. He also knew that odds were Dean could see right through it because he’s been working on it since he was five, but that didn’t mean he was going to flinch now. “Dude-did someone superglue your beer bottle?”
Dean was giving him one of those glares that could probably kill someone if it he had half the power that Sam had, but he didn’t. Sam was momentarily grateful for that.
“You’re gonna pay for this,” he replied before making his way out of the room and back across the hall. Sam just smirked, before turning back to his datapad again.
Turned out, Coruscant’s version of super glue was awesome.
***
It took a little over a week for things to come to a head. By the end of it, Sam’s hair was pink, Dean had had several embarrassing moments broadcasted over the datapad, and Jo was ready to smack them both. She had never been caught in the crosshairs of a Winchester prank war before, and as far as she was concerned, this was never happening again.
Jo may be short, but Sam wasn’t stupid enough to believe that she couldn’t take him out if she wanted to. He’d seen her kick Dean’s ass more than once.
But instead of just kicking their asses and being done with it, which he appreciated, she just forced them into the back room of the bar, glaring at them through strings of syrup and slime that none of them, for fear of losing the things most precious to them, were going to admit to. They were smarter than that. But they didn’t fight her as she sat them down in two chairs and fixed them with glares that also would kill someone if they met her eyes too hard.
“Now. I don’t know how you two go from not speaking to each other at all to-this-but you are going to fix it, and you are going to fix it now.” She then gave them a thin smile. “Now. I’m going to go get cleaned up. You guys sit tight and figure this out, or I will kick your ass when I get back.”
They both had the looks of little kids who were caught with their hands in the cookie jar. Jo didn’t buy them for a second, and smacked both of them upside their heads on the way out. Sam considered it getting off easy. Once she was out the door, however, it took all of five seconds for both of them to sputter into laughter.
“You are going to pay for that one for a good six months at least.”
“I bet I can get her to come around before that. ‘Specially considering it wasn’t my fault.”
Sam gave his brother a look. “I didn’t do that and you know it.”
“Yeah. She doesn’t know that, though.” Sam’s look only stayed on his face, and Dean frowned. “What?”
Sam just chuckled, shaking his head. It was a pipe dream, but he didn’t feel like calling his brother on that right now. He just wanted things to be okay. “Truce?”
Dean sighed. “Yeah, truce.”
Sam nodded again, before glancing over at him tentatively. “Are we … ?” He let the sentence trail off and hoped that Dean would fill in the blanks. His brother’s face fell slightly for a moment, before his eyes closed and he got up to walk away.
“I don’t know.”
“ … Dean … ”
“You gonna talk?” Sam looked away, and Dean shook his head. “That’s what I thought.”
There was a long silence which was filled by the sound of Dean’s feet walking away before Sam spoke up again. “It’s not something that happened, Dean.”
Dean frowned, and turned to face him again. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Sam took a breath, before turning to face his brother again. “What I’m not telling you-it’s not something that happened to us. It’s something I did. That’s why I can’t.”
“That doesn’t make this better, Sam.”
“No. I know.”
Dean was quiet for a moment, before turning and heading out the door again. “I’ll see you around.”
“Yeah,” Sam sighed. “See you around.”
1039 words