ficlet!
For sevenfists, who requested wet!Sam nightswimming. Thanks to ink_stain for whipping it into shape.
Side by Side in Orbit
SPN; gen; 600 words.
The signs hanging from the chain link fence around the pool said things like "No running in pool area" and "Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult" and, more enthusiastically, "Welcome to Panther Junction, Texas, home of Big Bend National Park!".
None of these signs thought of discouraging anyone from breaking in after pool hours, even if the air conditioning units rattling in each of the Rover Inn's rooms where nothing but suggestions of relief in the broadest sense of the term.
The fence rattled when Sam cut the chain on the fence door.
"We could've just jumped it," Dean pointed out, squinting at the pool.
"I like breaking into things," Sam mumbled, distracted by the shimmers of light undulating on the water's surface. It looked too blue to be natural, too clear for something in any way related to the Rover Inn, whose towels bore a remarkable resemblance to sandpaper.
Sam dumped the towels on the first plastic deck chair and looked over at the motel office, mere feet away. He waited a few heartbeats, but the lights stayed off. Sam wasn't sure he'd be able or willing to bolt if the surly retiree who'd handed them their room key earlier caught them.
He toed off his sneakers, and the cement was hot and prickly all the way to the edge of the pool. It was lit up from the bottom and smelled like sunscreen and exhaust and looked a whole lot like nirvana after eight hundred miles with his ass on black leatherette in 102 degree weather. The temperature had only gone down a couple notches since sundown. He could feel the sweat running down his spine in tiny rivulets.
Dean was already stripping down to his boxer briefs, kicking his boots under the chaise. He looked real manly in his underwear with his tube socks still on. It was a mystery to Sam how his brother ever got laid.
Sam took off his watch, bent down to lay it out carefully on the concrete, then jumped in, fully clothed. He could hear Dean's laugh from underwater, heard it distorted and warbled and distant, but heard it all the same. He shook off the shock of cool water and let himself sink in the deep end, which wasn't all that deep. If he stood up, feet touching the bottom and arms up, his fingertips would only be inches from the surface. It was like being somewhere else entirely for a moment, his senses readjusting to the glare of the lights, the lick of the water, the sting of chlorine. The burn in his lungs, from holding his breath. He let it build up a little longer, then pushed up.
Emerging, he shook his hair out of his eyes and grinned at Dean, who'd finally gotten rid of the socks. His toes were curling around the lip of the pool, like a four year old, his big ape arms dangling at his sides.
Sam treaded water, feeling weightless, lighthearted. It'd been a hard couple of weeks; smiling felt good. "C'mon. It's all clear: no pool monsters, I promise."
Side by Side in Orbit
SPN; gen; 600 words.
The signs hanging from the chain link fence around the pool said things like "No running in pool area" and "Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult" and, more enthusiastically, "Welcome to Panther Junction, Texas, home of Big Bend National Park!".
None of these signs thought of discouraging anyone from breaking in after pool hours, even if the air conditioning units rattling in each of the Rover Inn's rooms where nothing but suggestions of relief in the broadest sense of the term.
The fence rattled when Sam cut the chain on the fence door.
"We could've just jumped it," Dean pointed out, squinting at the pool.
"I like breaking into things," Sam mumbled, distracted by the shimmers of light undulating on the water's surface. It looked too blue to be natural, too clear for something in any way related to the Rover Inn, whose towels bore a remarkable resemblance to sandpaper.
Sam dumped the towels on the first plastic deck chair and looked over at the motel office, mere feet away. He waited a few heartbeats, but the lights stayed off. Sam wasn't sure he'd be able or willing to bolt if the surly retiree who'd handed them their room key earlier caught them.
He toed off his sneakers, and the cement was hot and prickly all the way to the edge of the pool. It was lit up from the bottom and smelled like sunscreen and exhaust and looked a whole lot like nirvana after eight hundred miles with his ass on black leatherette in 102 degree weather. The temperature had only gone down a couple notches since sundown. He could feel the sweat running down his spine in tiny rivulets.
Dean was already stripping down to his boxer briefs, kicking his boots under the chaise. He looked real manly in his underwear with his tube socks still on. It was a mystery to Sam how his brother ever got laid.
Sam took off his watch, bent down to lay it out carefully on the concrete, then jumped in, fully clothed. He could hear Dean's laugh from underwater, heard it distorted and warbled and distant, but heard it all the same. He shook off the shock of cool water and let himself sink in the deep end, which wasn't all that deep. If he stood up, feet touching the bottom and arms up, his fingertips would only be inches from the surface. It was like being somewhere else entirely for a moment, his senses readjusting to the glare of the lights, the lick of the water, the sting of chlorine. The burn in his lungs, from holding his breath. He let it build up a little longer, then pushed up.
Emerging, he shook his hair out of his eyes and grinned at Dean, who'd finally gotten rid of the socks. His toes were curling around the lip of the pool, like a four year old, his big ape arms dangling at his sides.
Sam treaded water, feeling weightless, lighthearted. It'd been a hard couple of weeks; smiling felt good. "C'mon. It's all clear: no pool monsters, I promise."