I'm already working on another fic right now, but this one had been nagging at me, and I just really wanted to write Dean as a little kid. If you guys like it, I'll keep going, albeit slower than I'd like. Otherwise, enjoy this short little fic!

When Dean was little, he had an imaginary friend. He had this big blue box that was smaller on the outside, and could go anywhere, (even to the future!) His dad insisted it wasn't true, and that he had to stop making stuff up, but Dean knew he had to be real.

Throughout his life, Dean would see this imaginary friend a great deal of times, but the first time he met him, Dean was just four years old.

He called himself the Doctor, but Dean had never met a doctor as nice as this one, and he had seen plenty of doctors, recently. He was going to have a little brother soon, and that meant Mommy had to talk to doctors all the time. They would say hi to Dean, and ask him about how excited he was for his little brother, but this doctor was different. He wanted to know about Dean.

Dean had gone grocery shopping with his mom that day. They were just going to get some stuff for dinner, but not long after entering the store, Dean was already getting bored. He was wandering around aimlessly, as little boys do. As he did so, his bright green eyes were drawn to a nearby shelf of superhero toys. His chubby fingers grasped at a Batman action figure that was just out of reach. He turned to ask his mom for help, but she wasn't behind him anymore. "Mommy?" He spun around the aisle, his eyes tearing up as he realized that she wasn't anywhere he could see. "Mommy!"

To a small child, losing your mother in a crowded place was one of the scariest things that you could imagine. Dean was about to break down right there, until a seemingly random adult took notice of the lost little boy. Neither man nor child had any idea what this chance encounter would eventually lead to.

"Well, hello there!" Dean turned to the friendly voice that seemed to be addressing him. "What's wrong? Are you looking for your mum?"

Dean looked up at the man. He wore a striped brown suit and bright red shoes. His hair was sticking up everywhere, and he talked funny. Dean knew he wasn't supposed to talk to strangers, but this was an emergency. He nodded slowly, wiping away the tears from his eyes.

The man smiled brightly. "It's okay. I'll help you find her." He held out his hand, but Dean hesitated. "Don't worry, you can trust me. I'm the Doctor."

Dean took the Doctor's hand and let him lead him through the store. He kept his head down, peering through his hair to look for his mom. The Doctor asked him about his mother- what did she look like, what was her name? Dean answered, but said nothing more. He was scared, and right now all he wanted was his mother.

"You have any siblings?" The Doctor asked the boy, hoping to keep his mind on something else.

That seemed to do the trick. Dean instantly brightened up a bit more, and held his head up a little higher. "Not yet. I'm gonna be a big brother," He grinned, proudly.

The Doctor couldn't help the smile that found its way to his face. "How exciting! Is it a boy or girl?"

"A boy," Dean replied. "When he's older, I'm gonna show 'em how to play catch and ev'rything!"

The Doctor smiled, but something hit him in that moment. He could sense something about this boy, something he hadn't sensed about anyone in a long, long time. He was going to be somebody one day- that was for sure. The Doctor knew all too well, however, that sometimes great people had to first be broken, and he didn't want to see this little boy go through that.

The Doctor listened to Dean ramble on about his little brother almost incoherently for a while. He glanced around, and noticed they were in the middle of the candy aisle. "Do you want anything?" He asked.

Dean looked up again, stopping his story for a moment to answer. "Mommy said I can't get any candy today." He explained.

"Don't worry, she doesn't have to know." The Doctor put his finger to his lips, promising not to tattle. "Go ahead—anything you want, I'll get you."

Dean thought that over for a moment, seeing how this was a big decision for him. He finally decided on a red lollipop from the top shelf. The Doctor grabbed it and pulled off the wrapper. He handed it to Dean, who accepted it gratefully. The Doctor was going to say something else, when he spotted something out of the corner of his eye.

"Is that her?" The Doctor pointed up to the counters, where a blonde, pregnant woman was talking frantically to a cashier.

Dean's head shot up, his eyes searching wildly. "Yes!" Dean exclaimed, dropping the lollipop onto the cold store floor, forgetting about it completely. "Mommy!" He barreled down the aisle and to the cash register.

His mother spun around, her eyes landing on her young son. "Dean! Sweetie! Thank God," Mary picked him up, as hard as it was for her to do at the moment, and hugged him tightly. "Don't you go wandering off like that again! You had me so worried!"

Dean glanced over at the candy aisle, but the Doctor was already gone. The red lollipop was still lying deserted on the floor.

Later, Dean would tell his mom all about the nice man who helped him find her, but despite his protests, she would hold that she never saw anyone in the aisle with him.

Dean soon forgot about his supposed imaginary friend- especially once the baby came. Sammy was so cute and small, and he made his mother happier than Dean had ever seen her. With all the commotion, Dean left the memory behind.

It would be a whole eight months before he saw the Doctor again.