Ello!! So I'm usually violently opposed to hospitals in my stories but I couldn't really see a way around it in this particular incident O.o Hopefully its not too bad though!!

The low whir and hum of machines was the first thing that drug Sam from the depths of unconsciousness. He laid still, keeping his eyes closed and just listening for a few minutes. A TV had been turned on somewhere, the news report almost too quiet to hear, and there was a soft beeping noise somewhere above him. He was confused; it was like waking up in a strange house and having that moment of panic where you forget how you'd gotten there. He was laying down and obviously had been ofr a while, judging by the stiffness in his back and shoulders. His fingers clenched involuntarily and a dull pain radiated form his wrist. Oh…the hunt…the diner…Dean…Sam opened his eyes slowly, blinking up to the white paneled ceiling above him. Hospital…damn…

"Well good morning, sunshine." A voice greeted from somewhere to his right.

Sam turned his head slowly, wincing at the stiffness in his neck. Dean sat by his bedside in a plastic hospital chair, arms crossed over his chest. He was still wearing the same clothes from that night but the baseball cap was gone, replaced by a thick layer of gauze that covered the gash in his head. An ugly bruise could be seen forming beneath the bandage but it had been cleaned and covered so that was a plus. "Nice of you to join us." Dean quipped but the relief was evident in his voice. He had dark circles under his eyes like he hadn't slept in a few days and the shadow a stubble across his jaw line. He leaned a little closer to the bed, looking Sam up and down carefully. "How do you feel?"

Sam blinked, pondering the question for a minute. He was wiped out, tired and sore, but other than that he felt peachy. "I'm alright." He said, his voice cracking a little as he spoke. He tried to clear his throat, the dryness in the back making it feel like sandpaper, but that only made it worse. He coughed faintly, wincing as the sensation just intensified. A glass of water appeared next to him and Sam took it, downing the contents quickly. He took a deep breath and sighed, closing his eyes for a second. "Thanks…"

"No problem." Dean said, taking the glass and setting it on the bedside table. There was a five second silence before he tore into Sam. "Sammy, what the fuck where you thinking?!" He demanded, eyes narrowing on his little brother as he spoke. "You slice through a vein or two during a hunt and you didn't think to tell me?!"

Sam looked down at the cotton bedspread and shrugged uselessly. "I didn't think it was that bad…I mean everything happened so fast and-"

"Yeah, well what about after the bitch was gone and you were slowly bleeding to death inside your jacket?! That wasn't happening very fast."

"Dean, I didn't want-"

"What Sam?" Dean snapped, his voice raising a little. "You didn't want to mention it even though you knew it was serious?! You didn't want to admit that that ghost bitch had gotten a lucky hit?!" Dean anger was rising; he tended to curse more the angrier he got.

"No, I just-"

"You just what?!"

Sam sighed, scrubbing his uninjured hand across his face. "I didn't want to worry you, alright?!" He could be snappy too if he wanted. Dean wanted answers so bad but he wasn't staying quiet long enough for Sam to provide them. It was a large scale pain in the ass. "I didn't want to say anything because I knew if I did we'd have to go to a hospital and we'd have to call Dad…" He sighed heavily and looked away, not able to meet his older brother's gaze for a the moment. "Dean, this was our first solo hunt…I knew it meant a lot to you , man, and I didn't want to be the one to mess that up…" He laughed humorlessly and picked at the bedspread. "I mean, did you really think Dad was going to let us go off alone again if I ended up in the hospital…?"

Dean was silent for a minute, his green eyes clouded with a variety of emotions. Finally, he sighed and leaned back in the chair. "Sam…You're my little brother, worrying kinda comes with the territory. And as far as not wanting to tell me because of Dad, well…"He pointed to the bandage across his forehead and shrugged. "Sorry kiddo, but we were going to be in the same boat regardless." There was a pregnant pause before he continued. "Besides, hiding and injury from your older brother hardly ever works. Especially when it leaves you damn near bleeding to death in a diner bathroom stall…"

Sam frowned and shook his head. "Come on man, I wasn't that bad…"

"Not that-?!" Dean nearly shouted, cutting himself off before he could finish the sentence. He looked toward the door as if expecting someone to come in before looking back at the bed. "Sammy…"He said and Sam immediately felt a chill go through him at the seriousness in his brother's voice. "You coded on the way to the hospital…It took them two minutes to get you back…"

Sam felt like he'd just swallowed a ball of lead. He blinked several times, looking between the bandages on his wrists to the machines to Dean. "I…I coded…? You mean I died…?!"

Dean didn't say anything but the look in his eyes said everything he wouldn't. There was sadness, guilt, and most of all failure. He'd failed to protect Sam and his negligence had nearly gotten him killed.

"Dean…I…"Sam tried but nothing came to mind. What could he say? I'm sorry for almost dying and making you watch seemed somewhat inappropriate. For lack of anything better to say, Sam simply reached out and grabbed his brother's hand, squeezing it hard.

Dean returned the squeeze and then leaned forward, gathering Sam into a tight hug. He held on for a long time, concentrating on the rhythm of Sam's heartbeat against his shoulder and the way he breathed. He never wanted to be that close to losing his brother again; the very idea was too horrible to think about. Finally, he let go, blinking rapidly to hide the sting of tears that had suddenly appeared in his eyes.

Sam smiled softly and leaned back against the pillows, looking toward the window briefly. It was mid-morning, probably around 10 am. "So what did you tell the doctors?" He asked, knowing they usually had to make up some pretty strange excuses to explain their even stranger injuries.

Dean smiled briefly and glanced up to the TV. "I told them we were making some repairs to our roof and you slipped."

"They bought that?"

"No, they thought you did it yourself. Self-inflicted injuries. They wanted to put you on suicide watch."

Sam chuckled. "What did you tell them?"

"I told them that if I ever caught you trying to commit suicide I'd kill you myself."

Sam laughed again. "And then what did they say?"

Dean smirked and glanced toward the door. "They wanted to post a security guard in front of your door in case I decided to go through with my promise."

Sam looked at the door, his eyes widening slightly. "Is there really a guard out there?"

"Nah." Dean shrugged and crossed his arms back over his chest. "It was just an idea." He smirked and leaned back, looking toward the window as well. "I did have to call Dad."

Sam winced internally, fearing that had happened. "What did he say?"

"Well, he was pretty pissed but he was glad everything went alright, more or less. He said we shouldn't torch the house next time though…"

Sam smiled and looked at the bedspread again.. "Yeah, that might have been overkill…"

"It was worth it and you know it." Dean laughed. He leaned forward and patted Sam's leg. "Look, no more hiding things alright? If we're going to be doing this full time we need to watch each other's backs, got it?"

Sam smiled and nodded. "Got it."

"Good. I'd hate to have to really go through with that threat."

"You wouldn't kill me. You love me."

"You're a pain in the ass."

"Jerk."

"Bitch."

Yay!! Hope you all liked it!! Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story!! :D