We're a Couple of Misfits
Title: We're a Couple of Misfits
Summary: The boys struggle with a move to a new school, but find that they still have everything they need.
Rating: PG
Warnings: None.
Spoilers: None
Word Count: 2,990
Author’s Note: Takes place in 1989. Written for spn_christmas prompt ‘Song Inspired Fic Or Art’. And the song of inspiration was ‘We're A Couple Of Misfits’ from ‘Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer’.
~~~
New month, new school and a whole new world of ‘sucks ass’. Dad had said he’d try to keep them at their old place, at least until Christmas break, but it didn’t work out. It never did.
Sammy didn’t get that it wasn’t Dad’s fault.
Now his little brother was pissed about missing out on performing in a school Christmas play that he’d spent the last month rehearsing for. Sammy still wouldn’t stop singing the songs he’d memorized like maybe Dad would change his mind and take them back across the country.
Dean didn’t get why Sammy wanted to dress up in some stupid play anyway. There wasn’t enough money in the world to get Dean to play dress up, but he got that it had mattered to his brother. He got that nothing he said would make it better.
Sometimes Sammy didn’t get anything. Dean was just glad he didn’t have to.
While he’d been disappointed, it wasn’t missing the play that had made Sammy throw the fit that had really pissed Dad off. It was the fact that Dad said he didn’t even know about the play.
He did, he’d just forgotten. Dad did that a lot because he had more important things to worry about than them.
Dean had lied. He’d told his little brother he was confused, that Sammy had never told Dad about it when he actually had. The night Sammy had been all bubbly, babbling about having gotten a part, Dad had been sitting at the dinning room table across from him.
It was another thing Sammy didn’t get. Just because Dad was sitting there, it didn’t mean he was listening.
Sammy only remembered what he wanted to. He didn’t remember that halfway through that dinner Dad had gotten up and left because he’d needed Sammy to shut up.
Dean knew it was because a family that Dad had been trying to save had died that night.
There was no way for Sammy to care about that because he didn’t know, just like Dad couldn’t care about a play he didn’t remember. The problem was that even though Dean thought it was a stupid play, he’d never tell Sammy that. Dad had.
It was just civilian crap to Dad, but to Sammy it had been all he’d been thinking about for a whole month. That was a really long time for a six year old to think about anything.
While it sound like Dad didn’t care, he did. Dean knew he did. There was just no way to explain it to his little brother. Not without talking about monsters.
For once, Dean was glad when Dad took off. He was tired of trying to make Sammy and Dad get along. All he wanted was for everyone to stop yelling, but even with Dad gone, Sammy was still looking for a fight.
“It’s not fair!”
Dean wanted to bury his head under his pillow. He was trying really hard not to smack Sammy, but this conversation had been going for days and it wasn’t going to change anything.
“It’s part of Dad’s job, you know that. We just gotta suck it up, okay?”
He tried to pretend he was watching television and turned on some little kid cartoon with the hopes of distracting Sammy. It didn’t work.
“It’s not okay! What do you care anyway? It’s easy for you.” Sammy crossed his arms firmly over his chest, a big pout on his lips. “You never do plays or sports or nothing and you don’t have any friends. You don’t even notice when we move.”
Sammy didn’t mean it, didn’t even know what he was saying, but it still felt like a kick to the gut.
Dean grimaced and gave up on the cartoons. He turned off the television before flopping down on the bed with his back to his little brother. After a sigh he muttered under his breath, “I’m sorry it sucks, Sammy.”
~~~
It took a couple of wrong turns down deadened hallways before Dean finally found the classroom number he was looking for. It was never a good idea to look nervous at a new school and usually even if he was uneasy, he hid it. He had enough practice. But right now he felt too awkward to look confident.
Tentatively he poked his head into the room. It wasn’t like the other classrooms.
There was a big piano in the corner, posters all over the walls and no desks. He glanced over the boxes of instruments and shelves of books before he finally saw a teacher sorting papers.
When she saw him she smiled before glancing at the clock on the wall. He was supposed to be in class and not this one, but he had more important things to do than sit around listening to stuff he wasn’t going to understand anyway.
It wasn’t like he was going to get in trouble. He’d commandeered a hall pass and as far as his teacher knew, Dean had just gotten lost on the way to the bathroom.
There were perks to always being the new kid.
He could always play the ‘I didn’t know where it was’ or ‘I didn’t get a handbook’ cards. There was ‘I didn’t get the textbook yet’, ‘I didn’t know that was last recess bell’ and that sometimes they moved faster than his full records could be transferred so sometimes the teachers didn’t know right away how stupid he was.
“Are you Miss Davis?” Dean asked.
“Yes I am. Can I help you?”
“Yeah...uh...” He felt like such a geek at even the thought of saying what was about to leave his mouth. “I saw a poster thing that said you had an opening in the school play.”
Her face lit up and she set her papers aside. For a moment she looked Dean over and her smile only grew.
Dean shifted his feet awkwardly. He didn’t have any good associations with attention from teachers. Though he had to admit that Miss Davis was kind of hot.
“Yes, we do. We’ve lost several kids from the cast to the flu and everybody is so excited about break that no one is interested in putting in the extra hours to catch-up with rehearsals. Everyone has worked so hard, it would be such a shame to cancel it. If you’re interested, we’re having rehearsals this afternoon.”
Sammy was right. Dean had never tried out for a play or sports.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like them, he didn’t even know if he did or not. Gym was fun, but there was no point in getting involved with a team just to move before the big game and no way he could leave Sammy alone while he went to practice.
“Not me, my brother. He wants to be in a play. So can I bring him after school?”
“That would be wonderful. We’d love to have him.” She gave him another smile and a soft laugh. “Now you better get back to your class.”
~~~
Sammy had thought he liked school, but he didn’t like it anymore. Everybody already had their own friends and they didn’t even care that he was there. He didn’t know where anything was and every subject his new teacher had taught today was either weeks behind or weeks ahead of where he was supposed to be.
He liked his other school, his other teacher and he liked having friends. He liked living in an apartment, not a smelly motel room. He liked having a part in a play that was important no matter what Dad said.
Now there was a fight out front. This school wasn’t even safe.
A crowd of older kids gathered around a boy who was lying on the ground. The other kids were shouting while some teachers hurried towards the group, telling them to stop. No one listened.
While the boy on the ground tried to get up, one of the bigger kids shoved him back before he could stand. The boy’s sneakers skidded on the snow covered ice of the courtyard and he fell back on his butt. Sam gripped the strap of his backpack angrily as he heard the other kids laugh.
If Dean was here he’d go over there and kick those kids' butts. Someday Sammy would be big like his brother and he’d be able to help other kids too.
Sam just couldn’t figure out how Dean never had any friends. Everybody always thought Dean was cool.
“Go back to the trailer park, Winchester!”
Sammy wrinkled his face at the bully’s shout. He’d never met any other Winchesters before, but if there were any others he wouldn’t be surprised if they were getting picked on too.
Carefully he hurried over the snow, but he was too short to really see past the crowd even when he stood on his tiptoes. By the time he was trying to squeeze past the bigger kids the teachers had arrived and everyone who wasn’t in trouble was running for their buses.
“Dean!”
His eyes went wide when he saw his big brother on his hands and knees in the snow. Droplets of blood dripped from Dean’s nose and stained the snow red as a teacher helped him to his feet.
Dean looked worried, not relieved, to see Sammy, which didn’t make any sense. None of this did. Nobody could pick on Dean.
Quickly Dean swiped the blood away with the sleeve of his jacket. “I just slipped.” Dean grabbed his backpack from the ground, brushed away the snow from his pants and waved off the teacher. “Really, I’m fine.”
“You didn’t slip,” Sammy said. “I saw them push you.”
“Shut up, Sammy. You’re too short to see anything.” Dean latched onto Sammy’s arm and pulled him along. “Come on, we’re gonna be late.”
“For what?”
~~~
“This is your brother?” Miss Davis asked.
The music teacher’s smile faltered as she looked down at Sammy. Dean’s eyes narrowed at her evaluating stare. There wasn’t anything wrong with his brother. She ought to be jumping for joy at the chance to have Sammy star in her silly play.
“Yeah, this is Sammy, that a problem?”
“The costume won’t fit,” she explained.
Dean released some of the tension from his shoulders when he was sure she wasn’t going to insult his brother. While Dean was used to getting the crap beat out of him, he wasn’t used to having to walk away from the fight a loser.
It left him on edge. He could hear Dad’s disapproval in his ears. He knew tomorrow was just going to worse than today. For him anyway, it’d be better for Sammy if he could help it.
Miss Davis crouched down to talk to Sammy. “What grade are you in, sweetie?”
Dean’s eyes scanned to the other kids who were practicing their lines. They were all his age or older.
Before Sammy could answer Miss Davis, Dean jumped back in. “How old do you gotta be to be in the play?”
She smiled to Dean but her eyes stayed on Sammy, who as far as Dean could tell, was actually physically incapable of lying. And somehow every adult on the planet knew it.
“I’m in the first grade,” Sammy proudly announced.
Dean rolled his eyes, both because Sammy was going to screw this up and just because sometimes his little brother was a total dork.
“I’m sorry, most of the kids are a lot older,” Miss Davis said.
He watched Sammy’s face fall and that disappointment in his little brother’s eyes spurred Dean into action. Sammy wanted to be in a play, he’d get to be in a play, but he’d have to let Dean work the negotiations.
“How about you go check out some of the books, Sammy.”
His little brother followed his eyes to the bookshelf at the other side of the room. While Sammy looked suspicious, Dean gave him his patented ‘trust me’ look and Sammy nodded before scurrying off.
“Can’t you just wrap him up as a Christmas present and set him on the stage or something?” Dean asked Miss Davis. “Seriously he’ll do like anything and this is one of the only things he’s ever asked for.”
Maybe he should’ve kept his brother at his side. Sammy could do that pleading look with the big sad eyes that everybody, including himself, always fell for. But he didn’t want Sammy to know that Miss Davis hadn't just given him the part.
“Well, I’m sure we could find something for him to do, we’re short several students now. We still need a lead that is closer to your age and tonight is our last night to decide whether or not we can still do the play.”
She was playing hard to get and he knew what it would take to close the deal, he just wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t rather shoot himself. One glance at Sammy’s hopeful smile from across the room sealed his conviction.
“Okay, here’s the deal,” Dean said. “If you don’t think I suck too bad, I’ll do it, but my brother gets a part too, and a good one. Or no deal.”
Dean crossed his arms over his chest to emphasize that it was his final offer. With a warm smile again spreading across her lips, Miss Davis held her hand out to Dean. “It’s a deal. I just need your parents to sign these permission slips and it’ll be official.”
“No problem,” Dean replied as he took the papers from her. “Dad loves plays.”
~~~
“I’m gonna be in a play!”
Sammy’s singsong chant echoed through the school’s bathroom. Even though he didn’t have to go potty he was perched on the toilet seat in the stall. He wore his new elf costume and sat reading his new songbook while anxiously waiting for Dean to let him come out.
His nose wrinkled as he looked at the chipped up paint and grungy floor tiles. This place was actually really gross and the walls were scribbled with funny notes.
He read a prominent one written over the toilet paper holder. It didn’t make any sense. “Why would someone want to kiss Mark’s donkey?”
“So they didn’t have to kiss your face,” Dean called back. “Stop looking at the wall and read your book.”
There was no reason for Dean to be so grumpy. They were going to star in the school play together.
“Can’t I come out yet?” Sammy asked.
“Dude, you are gonna owe me for the rest of your freaking life.”
There wasn’t anything that he wouldn’t give Dean, but right now he just wanted to see if Dean’s costume fit. When Dean didn’t answer, Sammy hopped off the toilet and crouched down on the floor, he peeked out from below the stall to see Dean’s fluffy white tail and black booties.
“Fine,” Dean grumbled. Sam hopped back up like he hadn’t been looking. “But just one word and I’m gonna toss you in the toilet.”
Sammy threw open the stall door to find Dean in front of the mirror dressed in a reindeer costume with antlers and everything. It was a perfect fit. After an excited hop Sammy saw the permission slips sitting on top of one of Dean’s books on the floor.
They hadn’t even left the school and the papers were already filled out and signed. When Dean looked down he quickly shoved the forms into his bag.
“You’re not even going to tell Dad, are you?”
“Like you’re gonna bust on me?” Dean shrugged. “You wanna do the play or not?”
With a hesitant nod, Sammy looked closer at his brother. “Did you bribe Miss Davis to get me into the play?”
“Don’t be stupid. There’s no way she wouldn’t have taken you.” Sammy wondered if Dean knew how bad of a liar he was. He just stared at his brother until he cracked. “I didn’t bribe her...I just blackmailed her.”
When Dean smiled, Sammy couldn’t help but smile back even though he was worried. Miss Davis could change her mind or Dad could find out and they’d both be busted.
Mostly he was just worried about Dean.
The nasty florescent lights in the bathroom caught the skin of Dean’s face when he pushed back the costume’s hood. Dean’s cheek was red. Even though he swore the other kids hadn’t touched him, Dean had obviously been punched and probably worse.
“Are those kids gonna beat you up again?” Dean looked startled by the question and opened his mouth to answer with what Sam just knew was going to be another lie. “Tell me the truth, Dean.”
“They’ll probably try, but it’ll be the last time. I got it under control.” Sammy’s frown only deepened at Dean’s words and his brother sighed, somehow managing to look serious even while wearing the Rudolph costume. ”You really think every time we switch schools everyone just instantly thinks I’m cool?”
“Uh...yeah. They’re stupid if they don’t. You’re like the coolest person there ever was.”
Dean smiled sheepishly before holding his head higher and straightening his posture. “By next week, after I kick their butts, they’ll think so too. They’ll leave us both alone.”
“What if we move again?”
“You know the drill. Same crap, different school. It’ll be okay. You know I'll take care of you and I know you got my back.”
“We’re never gonna fit in anywhere, are we?”
“Who cares, squirt?” Dean pulled the tip of Sammy’s elf hat down over his eyes. Snatching it off his head, Sammy playfully swatted at Dean with it. Reaching over, Dean ruffled Sam’s rumpled bangs. “We fit in right here.”
Sammy glanced around the icky bathroom, grimacing as he looked back up at his brother. There were a lot of other places he’d rather belong. “In the school bathroom?”
“Anywhere - as long as it’s you and me.”
Summary: The boys struggle with a move to a new school, but find that they still have everything they need.
Rating: PG
Warnings: None.
Spoilers: None
Word Count: 2,990
Author’s Note: Takes place in 1989. Written for spn_christmas prompt ‘Song Inspired Fic Or Art’. And the song of inspiration was ‘We're A Couple Of Misfits’ from ‘Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer’.
~~~
New month, new school and a whole new world of ‘sucks ass’. Dad had said he’d try to keep them at their old place, at least until Christmas break, but it didn’t work out. It never did.
Sammy didn’t get that it wasn’t Dad’s fault.
Now his little brother was pissed about missing out on performing in a school Christmas play that he’d spent the last month rehearsing for. Sammy still wouldn’t stop singing the songs he’d memorized like maybe Dad would change his mind and take them back across the country.
Dean didn’t get why Sammy wanted to dress up in some stupid play anyway. There wasn’t enough money in the world to get Dean to play dress up, but he got that it had mattered to his brother. He got that nothing he said would make it better.
Sometimes Sammy didn’t get anything. Dean was just glad he didn’t have to.
While he’d been disappointed, it wasn’t missing the play that had made Sammy throw the fit that had really pissed Dad off. It was the fact that Dad said he didn’t even know about the play.
He did, he’d just forgotten. Dad did that a lot because he had more important things to worry about than them.
Dean had lied. He’d told his little brother he was confused, that Sammy had never told Dad about it when he actually had. The night Sammy had been all bubbly, babbling about having gotten a part, Dad had been sitting at the dinning room table across from him.
It was another thing Sammy didn’t get. Just because Dad was sitting there, it didn’t mean he was listening.
Sammy only remembered what he wanted to. He didn’t remember that halfway through that dinner Dad had gotten up and left because he’d needed Sammy to shut up.
Dean knew it was because a family that Dad had been trying to save had died that night.
There was no way for Sammy to care about that because he didn’t know, just like Dad couldn’t care about a play he didn’t remember. The problem was that even though Dean thought it was a stupid play, he’d never tell Sammy that. Dad had.
It was just civilian crap to Dad, but to Sammy it had been all he’d been thinking about for a whole month. That was a really long time for a six year old to think about anything.
While it sound like Dad didn’t care, he did. Dean knew he did. There was just no way to explain it to his little brother. Not without talking about monsters.
For once, Dean was glad when Dad took off. He was tired of trying to make Sammy and Dad get along. All he wanted was for everyone to stop yelling, but even with Dad gone, Sammy was still looking for a fight.
“It’s not fair!”
Dean wanted to bury his head under his pillow. He was trying really hard not to smack Sammy, but this conversation had been going for days and it wasn’t going to change anything.
“It’s part of Dad’s job, you know that. We just gotta suck it up, okay?”
He tried to pretend he was watching television and turned on some little kid cartoon with the hopes of distracting Sammy. It didn’t work.
“It’s not okay! What do you care anyway? It’s easy for you.” Sammy crossed his arms firmly over his chest, a big pout on his lips. “You never do plays or sports or nothing and you don’t have any friends. You don’t even notice when we move.”
Sammy didn’t mean it, didn’t even know what he was saying, but it still felt like a kick to the gut.
Dean grimaced and gave up on the cartoons. He turned off the television before flopping down on the bed with his back to his little brother. After a sigh he muttered under his breath, “I’m sorry it sucks, Sammy.”
~~~
It took a couple of wrong turns down deadened hallways before Dean finally found the classroom number he was looking for. It was never a good idea to look nervous at a new school and usually even if he was uneasy, he hid it. He had enough practice. But right now he felt too awkward to look confident.
Tentatively he poked his head into the room. It wasn’t like the other classrooms.
There was a big piano in the corner, posters all over the walls and no desks. He glanced over the boxes of instruments and shelves of books before he finally saw a teacher sorting papers.
When she saw him she smiled before glancing at the clock on the wall. He was supposed to be in class and not this one, but he had more important things to do than sit around listening to stuff he wasn’t going to understand anyway.
It wasn’t like he was going to get in trouble. He’d commandeered a hall pass and as far as his teacher knew, Dean had just gotten lost on the way to the bathroom.
There were perks to always being the new kid.
He could always play the ‘I didn’t know where it was’ or ‘I didn’t get a handbook’ cards. There was ‘I didn’t get the textbook yet’, ‘I didn’t know that was last recess bell’ and that sometimes they moved faster than his full records could be transferred so sometimes the teachers didn’t know right away how stupid he was.
“Are you Miss Davis?” Dean asked.
“Yes I am. Can I help you?”
“Yeah...uh...” He felt like such a geek at even the thought of saying what was about to leave his mouth. “I saw a poster thing that said you had an opening in the school play.”
Her face lit up and she set her papers aside. For a moment she looked Dean over and her smile only grew.
Dean shifted his feet awkwardly. He didn’t have any good associations with attention from teachers. Though he had to admit that Miss Davis was kind of hot.
“Yes, we do. We’ve lost several kids from the cast to the flu and everybody is so excited about break that no one is interested in putting in the extra hours to catch-up with rehearsals. Everyone has worked so hard, it would be such a shame to cancel it. If you’re interested, we’re having rehearsals this afternoon.”
Sammy was right. Dean had never tried out for a play or sports.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like them, he didn’t even know if he did or not. Gym was fun, but there was no point in getting involved with a team just to move before the big game and no way he could leave Sammy alone while he went to practice.
“Not me, my brother. He wants to be in a play. So can I bring him after school?”
“That would be wonderful. We’d love to have him.” She gave him another smile and a soft laugh. “Now you better get back to your class.”
~~~
Sammy had thought he liked school, but he didn’t like it anymore. Everybody already had their own friends and they didn’t even care that he was there. He didn’t know where anything was and every subject his new teacher had taught today was either weeks behind or weeks ahead of where he was supposed to be.
He liked his other school, his other teacher and he liked having friends. He liked living in an apartment, not a smelly motel room. He liked having a part in a play that was important no matter what Dad said.
Now there was a fight out front. This school wasn’t even safe.
A crowd of older kids gathered around a boy who was lying on the ground. The other kids were shouting while some teachers hurried towards the group, telling them to stop. No one listened.
While the boy on the ground tried to get up, one of the bigger kids shoved him back before he could stand. The boy’s sneakers skidded on the snow covered ice of the courtyard and he fell back on his butt. Sam gripped the strap of his backpack angrily as he heard the other kids laugh.
If Dean was here he’d go over there and kick those kids' butts. Someday Sammy would be big like his brother and he’d be able to help other kids too.
Sam just couldn’t figure out how Dean never had any friends. Everybody always thought Dean was cool.
“Go back to the trailer park, Winchester!”
Sammy wrinkled his face at the bully’s shout. He’d never met any other Winchesters before, but if there were any others he wouldn’t be surprised if they were getting picked on too.
Carefully he hurried over the snow, but he was too short to really see past the crowd even when he stood on his tiptoes. By the time he was trying to squeeze past the bigger kids the teachers had arrived and everyone who wasn’t in trouble was running for their buses.
“Dean!”
His eyes went wide when he saw his big brother on his hands and knees in the snow. Droplets of blood dripped from Dean’s nose and stained the snow red as a teacher helped him to his feet.
Dean looked worried, not relieved, to see Sammy, which didn’t make any sense. None of this did. Nobody could pick on Dean.
Quickly Dean swiped the blood away with the sleeve of his jacket. “I just slipped.” Dean grabbed his backpack from the ground, brushed away the snow from his pants and waved off the teacher. “Really, I’m fine.”
“You didn’t slip,” Sammy said. “I saw them push you.”
“Shut up, Sammy. You’re too short to see anything.” Dean latched onto Sammy’s arm and pulled him along. “Come on, we’re gonna be late.”
“For what?”
~~~
“This is your brother?” Miss Davis asked.
The music teacher’s smile faltered as she looked down at Sammy. Dean’s eyes narrowed at her evaluating stare. There wasn’t anything wrong with his brother. She ought to be jumping for joy at the chance to have Sammy star in her silly play.
“Yeah, this is Sammy, that a problem?”
“The costume won’t fit,” she explained.
Dean released some of the tension from his shoulders when he was sure she wasn’t going to insult his brother. While Dean was used to getting the crap beat out of him, he wasn’t used to having to walk away from the fight a loser.
It left him on edge. He could hear Dad’s disapproval in his ears. He knew tomorrow was just going to worse than today. For him anyway, it’d be better for Sammy if he could help it.
Miss Davis crouched down to talk to Sammy. “What grade are you in, sweetie?”
Dean’s eyes scanned to the other kids who were practicing their lines. They were all his age or older.
Before Sammy could answer Miss Davis, Dean jumped back in. “How old do you gotta be to be in the play?”
She smiled to Dean but her eyes stayed on Sammy, who as far as Dean could tell, was actually physically incapable of lying. And somehow every adult on the planet knew it.
“I’m in the first grade,” Sammy proudly announced.
Dean rolled his eyes, both because Sammy was going to screw this up and just because sometimes his little brother was a total dork.
“I’m sorry, most of the kids are a lot older,” Miss Davis said.
He watched Sammy’s face fall and that disappointment in his little brother’s eyes spurred Dean into action. Sammy wanted to be in a play, he’d get to be in a play, but he’d have to let Dean work the negotiations.
“How about you go check out some of the books, Sammy.”
His little brother followed his eyes to the bookshelf at the other side of the room. While Sammy looked suspicious, Dean gave him his patented ‘trust me’ look and Sammy nodded before scurrying off.
“Can’t you just wrap him up as a Christmas present and set him on the stage or something?” Dean asked Miss Davis. “Seriously he’ll do like anything and this is one of the only things he’s ever asked for.”
Maybe he should’ve kept his brother at his side. Sammy could do that pleading look with the big sad eyes that everybody, including himself, always fell for. But he didn’t want Sammy to know that Miss Davis hadn't just given him the part.
“Well, I’m sure we could find something for him to do, we’re short several students now. We still need a lead that is closer to your age and tonight is our last night to decide whether or not we can still do the play.”
She was playing hard to get and he knew what it would take to close the deal, he just wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t rather shoot himself. One glance at Sammy’s hopeful smile from across the room sealed his conviction.
“Okay, here’s the deal,” Dean said. “If you don’t think I suck too bad, I’ll do it, but my brother gets a part too, and a good one. Or no deal.”
Dean crossed his arms over his chest to emphasize that it was his final offer. With a warm smile again spreading across her lips, Miss Davis held her hand out to Dean. “It’s a deal. I just need your parents to sign these permission slips and it’ll be official.”
“No problem,” Dean replied as he took the papers from her. “Dad loves plays.”
~~~
“I’m gonna be in a play!”
Sammy’s singsong chant echoed through the school’s bathroom. Even though he didn’t have to go potty he was perched on the toilet seat in the stall. He wore his new elf costume and sat reading his new songbook while anxiously waiting for Dean to let him come out.
His nose wrinkled as he looked at the chipped up paint and grungy floor tiles. This place was actually really gross and the walls were scribbled with funny notes.
He read a prominent one written over the toilet paper holder. It didn’t make any sense. “Why would someone want to kiss Mark’s donkey?”
“So they didn’t have to kiss your face,” Dean called back. “Stop looking at the wall and read your book.”
There was no reason for Dean to be so grumpy. They were going to star in the school play together.
“Can’t I come out yet?” Sammy asked.
“Dude, you are gonna owe me for the rest of your freaking life.”
There wasn’t anything that he wouldn’t give Dean, but right now he just wanted to see if Dean’s costume fit. When Dean didn’t answer, Sammy hopped off the toilet and crouched down on the floor, he peeked out from below the stall to see Dean’s fluffy white tail and black booties.
“Fine,” Dean grumbled. Sam hopped back up like he hadn’t been looking. “But just one word and I’m gonna toss you in the toilet.”
Sammy threw open the stall door to find Dean in front of the mirror dressed in a reindeer costume with antlers and everything. It was a perfect fit. After an excited hop Sammy saw the permission slips sitting on top of one of Dean’s books on the floor.
They hadn’t even left the school and the papers were already filled out and signed. When Dean looked down he quickly shoved the forms into his bag.
“You’re not even going to tell Dad, are you?”
“Like you’re gonna bust on me?” Dean shrugged. “You wanna do the play or not?”
With a hesitant nod, Sammy looked closer at his brother. “Did you bribe Miss Davis to get me into the play?”
“Don’t be stupid. There’s no way she wouldn’t have taken you.” Sammy wondered if Dean knew how bad of a liar he was. He just stared at his brother until he cracked. “I didn’t bribe her...I just blackmailed her.”
When Dean smiled, Sammy couldn’t help but smile back even though he was worried. Miss Davis could change her mind or Dad could find out and they’d both be busted.
Mostly he was just worried about Dean.
The nasty florescent lights in the bathroom caught the skin of Dean’s face when he pushed back the costume’s hood. Dean’s cheek was red. Even though he swore the other kids hadn’t touched him, Dean had obviously been punched and probably worse.
“Are those kids gonna beat you up again?” Dean looked startled by the question and opened his mouth to answer with what Sam just knew was going to be another lie. “Tell me the truth, Dean.”
“They’ll probably try, but it’ll be the last time. I got it under control.” Sammy’s frown only deepened at Dean’s words and his brother sighed, somehow managing to look serious even while wearing the Rudolph costume. ”You really think every time we switch schools everyone just instantly thinks I’m cool?”
“Uh...yeah. They’re stupid if they don’t. You’re like the coolest person there ever was.”
Dean smiled sheepishly before holding his head higher and straightening his posture. “By next week, after I kick their butts, they’ll think so too. They’ll leave us both alone.”
“What if we move again?”
“You know the drill. Same crap, different school. It’ll be okay. You know I'll take care of you and I know you got my back.”
“We’re never gonna fit in anywhere, are we?”
“Who cares, squirt?” Dean pulled the tip of Sammy’s elf hat down over his eyes. Snatching it off his head, Sammy playfully swatted at Dean with it. Reaching over, Dean ruffled Sam’s rumpled bangs. “We fit in right here.”
Sammy glanced around the icky bathroom, grimacing as he looked back up at his brother. There were a lot of other places he’d rather belong. “In the school bathroom?”
“Anywhere - as long as it’s you and me.”