FIC - Making Ends Meet
Title: Making Ends Meet
Characters: Sam, Dean (gen)
Rating: R for curse words
W/C: ~1150
Summary: for this prompt at spn_rambleon by downjune: Sam and Dean have a frank talk about money problems and how they're going to make rent/feed themselves/gas up the car. Can be pre-series or during.
So this was really it, the first time John had left them on their own for quite this long. He’d said he’d be back in a month, which Dean knew meant at least six weeks, maybe longer.
That was the whole reason for being left behind in the first place. Dean wasn’t in school anymore but Sam was, and no matter John’s cavalier attitude toward education, there was no way he could justify taking the boy out of school for so long at this age. Hell, even if he could, Sam would have kicked up a storm the likes of which none of them had seen before.
Which meant Dean was responsible for his thirteen year old brother for the foreseeable future. And that was fine. There were countless tasks Dean was perfectly capable of carrying out when it came to taking care of Sam; cooking, grocery shopping, making sure he got his lazy ass out of bed in time for school, doing laundry.
The issue this time around was that though John had paid the rent, Dean had no expectation that he’d be back in time to pay it again at the end of the month. Also, he’d left them some cash, but it was apparent from day one that it wasn’t going to be enough. Not enough to make sure they were both properly fed, pay for Sam’s never-ending school-related expenses (I need six empty plastic bottles and a box of rubber bands and some wooden skewers for this project), cover the power bill that would be coming in a couple of weeks.
Dean was going to have to get a regular job. Hustling pool at the one bar in this tiny town wouldn’t do since they’d be there more than a week or so. He’d do the best he could to find something that fit somewhat into Sam’s school hours, but if he worked full-time, it meant leaving Sam alone for at least a couple of hours a day. Dean was obviously not crazy about that idea, but it was better than the possibility of them getting evicted or not having enough to eat.
Honestly, he would have given anything to not have this conversation with his little brother. Though Sam was far from innocent, having been exposed to more horror by this time than any kid his age should have, Dean still felt that lingering urge to protect him from reality, to let him just be a damn kid for a little while longer.
It was necessary, though. With his heart heavy in his chest, he sat down with Sam over bowls of Ramen before the first week alone was finished, and started in on that talk that he really didn’t want to have.
“Sammy, you know Dad’s gonna be gone a while, right?”
“Yeah, a month, he said. He paid the rent for a month, so he’ll be back before then.” Sam’s tone of voice gave away his true feelings. It was clear that he knew how unlikely that was. Maybe he was young, but he sure as hell wasn’t unobservant.
“Okay, but you know, if anything happens, if he gets held up or whatever…shit, Sam, I’m sorry, the truth is even if he doesn’t get held up, we don’t have enough money to last through the end of the month. I’m going out tomorrow to see if I can get a job.”
Sam’s hand froze between his bowl of noodles and his mouth. “What kind of job?” Suspicion laced his words.
“Just a normal job. Maybe at the grocery store or a diner, a car shop if I can. Anyway, it probably means you’re gonna have to take the bus to and from school, I won’t be able to drive you if I’m working. I’m real sorry, Sam.”
“Dude, lots of kids take the bus to school. I’ll be fine. Jeez, I’m not five” was Sam’s response, trademark eyeroll included.
“I know, yeah, but we kind of planned on me taking you to school and driving you home, and now that’s not very likely.”
“It’s all right, Dean. I’ll manage. I can just do homework until you get back from…wherever.” He looked a little nervous now, though, and Dean hated having to continue.
“Look, I know the rent is paid, but there’s lots of other stuff. Groceries, the light bill, whatever you need for school, putting gas in the car…man, I hate this. I don’t want you to even have to think about that kind of shit at your age. I don’t have any other choice, though. I want to make sure you understand why I’m gonna have to leave you alone some of the time, make sure you know it’s only because I have to, not because I want to.”
And then he got the look. Sam’s chin tilted up, eyes determined and expression dead-set.
“Not just you, Dean. I can do things, too. I know I’m not old enough to get a real job, but I can maybe tutor some of the sixth-graders, or, like, I don’t know, wash people’s cars? Walk dogs or mow lawns?”
“Fucking forget it, Sammy. You already have a job. It’s going to school and getting your homework done and studying. That’s your job, and you’re good at it, and it’s what you’re gonna keep doing.”
“Dean! You’re being stupid about this. If I can help, if there’s anything…” Sam was clearly working up to something else he had to say, so Dean just kept quiet for a moment. “I’m just saying it doesn’t have to just be you. What’s wrong with me helping? As long as I don’t let it interfere with my school work, can’t you just let me do something?”
And fuck the entire world, it was the puppy-dog eyes, the pleading in his voice, the unadulterated need to keep them as they were, partners, brothers, getting through whatever was ahead of them together. If only Dean could see into the future and know that it was never going to go away.
“All right, Sam. All right. Ask about the tutoring thing. Nothing else. But if you can do it in your free period or on the weekend when you’re absolutely certain that you can still get your own school work done, okay.”
Dean didn’t think he’d ever seen Sam look quite so triumphant. “Thanks, Dean. We’re gonna be fine, I trust you. You always take care of me.”
Sure. Yeah. He did. He hadn’t had to do it like this before, but Sammy’s unwavering trust in his ability to keep it up under these difficult circumstances only made him more certain that he had no choice but to live up to that expectation.
Characters: Sam, Dean (gen)
Rating: R for curse words
W/C: ~1150
Summary: for this prompt at spn_rambleon by downjune: Sam and Dean have a frank talk about money problems and how they're going to make rent/feed themselves/gas up the car. Can be pre-series or during.
So this was really it, the first time John had left them on their own for quite this long. He’d said he’d be back in a month, which Dean knew meant at least six weeks, maybe longer.
That was the whole reason for being left behind in the first place. Dean wasn’t in school anymore but Sam was, and no matter John’s cavalier attitude toward education, there was no way he could justify taking the boy out of school for so long at this age. Hell, even if he could, Sam would have kicked up a storm the likes of which none of them had seen before.
Which meant Dean was responsible for his thirteen year old brother for the foreseeable future. And that was fine. There were countless tasks Dean was perfectly capable of carrying out when it came to taking care of Sam; cooking, grocery shopping, making sure he got his lazy ass out of bed in time for school, doing laundry.
The issue this time around was that though John had paid the rent, Dean had no expectation that he’d be back in time to pay it again at the end of the month. Also, he’d left them some cash, but it was apparent from day one that it wasn’t going to be enough. Not enough to make sure they were both properly fed, pay for Sam’s never-ending school-related expenses (I need six empty plastic bottles and a box of rubber bands and some wooden skewers for this project), cover the power bill that would be coming in a couple of weeks.
Dean was going to have to get a regular job. Hustling pool at the one bar in this tiny town wouldn’t do since they’d be there more than a week or so. He’d do the best he could to find something that fit somewhat into Sam’s school hours, but if he worked full-time, it meant leaving Sam alone for at least a couple of hours a day. Dean was obviously not crazy about that idea, but it was better than the possibility of them getting evicted or not having enough to eat.
Honestly, he would have given anything to not have this conversation with his little brother. Though Sam was far from innocent, having been exposed to more horror by this time than any kid his age should have, Dean still felt that lingering urge to protect him from reality, to let him just be a damn kid for a little while longer.
It was necessary, though. With his heart heavy in his chest, he sat down with Sam over bowls of Ramen before the first week alone was finished, and started in on that talk that he really didn’t want to have.
“Sammy, you know Dad’s gonna be gone a while, right?”
“Yeah, a month, he said. He paid the rent for a month, so he’ll be back before then.” Sam’s tone of voice gave away his true feelings. It was clear that he knew how unlikely that was. Maybe he was young, but he sure as hell wasn’t unobservant.
“Okay, but you know, if anything happens, if he gets held up or whatever…shit, Sam, I’m sorry, the truth is even if he doesn’t get held up, we don’t have enough money to last through the end of the month. I’m going out tomorrow to see if I can get a job.”
Sam’s hand froze between his bowl of noodles and his mouth. “What kind of job?” Suspicion laced his words.
“Just a normal job. Maybe at the grocery store or a diner, a car shop if I can. Anyway, it probably means you’re gonna have to take the bus to and from school, I won’t be able to drive you if I’m working. I’m real sorry, Sam.”
“Dude, lots of kids take the bus to school. I’ll be fine. Jeez, I’m not five” was Sam’s response, trademark eyeroll included.
“I know, yeah, but we kind of planned on me taking you to school and driving you home, and now that’s not very likely.”
“It’s all right, Dean. I’ll manage. I can just do homework until you get back from…wherever.” He looked a little nervous now, though, and Dean hated having to continue.
“Look, I know the rent is paid, but there’s lots of other stuff. Groceries, the light bill, whatever you need for school, putting gas in the car…man, I hate this. I don’t want you to even have to think about that kind of shit at your age. I don’t have any other choice, though. I want to make sure you understand why I’m gonna have to leave you alone some of the time, make sure you know it’s only because I have to, not because I want to.”
And then he got the look. Sam’s chin tilted up, eyes determined and expression dead-set.
“Not just you, Dean. I can do things, too. I know I’m not old enough to get a real job, but I can maybe tutor some of the sixth-graders, or, like, I don’t know, wash people’s cars? Walk dogs or mow lawns?”
“Fucking forget it, Sammy. You already have a job. It’s going to school and getting your homework done and studying. That’s your job, and you’re good at it, and it’s what you’re gonna keep doing.”
“Dean! You’re being stupid about this. If I can help, if there’s anything…” Sam was clearly working up to something else he had to say, so Dean just kept quiet for a moment. “I’m just saying it doesn’t have to just be you. What’s wrong with me helping? As long as I don’t let it interfere with my school work, can’t you just let me do something?”
And fuck the entire world, it was the puppy-dog eyes, the pleading in his voice, the unadulterated need to keep them as they were, partners, brothers, getting through whatever was ahead of them together. If only Dean could see into the future and know that it was never going to go away.
“All right, Sam. All right. Ask about the tutoring thing. Nothing else. But if you can do it in your free period or on the weekend when you’re absolutely certain that you can still get your own school work done, okay.”
Dean didn’t think he’d ever seen Sam look quite so triumphant. “Thanks, Dean. We’re gonna be fine, I trust you. You always take care of me.”
Sure. Yeah. He did. He hadn’t had to do it like this before, but Sammy’s unwavering trust in his ability to keep it up under these difficult circumstances only made him more certain that he had no choice but to live up to that expectation.