Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Sam! Come on, lets go!” Jessica yelled for her boyfriend to hurry up and get ready. She was so excited to finally meet Sam's family.

They had been dating for over a year now, meeting during an English literature class. Sam had just finished his pre-law classes and had been accepted to continue his studies with a full scholarship at Stanford Law School. Jessica herself was studying to become an obstetrician-gynecologist, specializing in Omega health care.

As the tall Alpha exited the door to their house she meet him halfway to help with his bags. “Finally, what took you so long?” she asked as she put the final bags in the trunk.

“Jess, I am not sure this is such a good idea” Sam told her as he stood next to her besides the car. Jess sighed for what felt like the 100th time.

“Sam please we have been over this, I am sure your brother will be happy to see you again” Jess tried to reassure the agitated male as she got into the car. Sam followed her with a sigh of his own, there would be no way for him to get the stubborn Beta to change her mind now.

With Sam being grumpy in the passenger seat, Jess thought about what she knew of Sam's family as she drove towards the airport.

Over the year Sam has told her bits and pieces about his life before Stanford. The death of his mother before he could even remember her, the absent father who also passed away before he started college and the older brother.

Talking about Dean seemed to be a really sore topic with Sam. What little information she had been able to pull from him was limited. Sam would sometimes tell her small anecdotes from when he was younger and he would play together with Dean.

Those seemed like happy memories but as for his later years the good memories of Dean seemed to be fewer and further apart. As Jess has understood it, after their fathers passing Dean had to ensure they had enough money to pay the bills and therefore he was always working, leaving Sam to his own devices.

This new dynamic seemed to have left Sam feeling lonely and forgotten, even though he won't admit it, Jess knows he misses his brother.

This trip will be good for Sam she is sure of it.

------*------
The two of them flew from San Fransisco to the Kansas City airport where they rented a car for the last leg of the journey to Lawrence.

As they came closer to their destination Sam grew increasingly agitated. They stopped outside a small house just on the outskirts of the city but Sam made no move to get out of the car.

“Come on honey, let's go meet your brother” Jess urged as she got out of the car. Sam took a few deep breaths before following her.

He still had the key from when he was living there. However Sam thought it would be strange to just open the door and march in so instead they rang the doorbell and waited outside.

After a few moments of silence they could hear some movement on the other side. The door opened to reveal a tall man, not as tall as Sam, with green eyes and short dark blond hair.

As Dean realized who was outside his door his eyes widened in disbelief.

“Sammy?” he questioned in a whisper like he was afraid if he spoke louder they would disappear.

“Wh-- What....Come in, come in” Dean stumbled over his words as he opened the door wider and urged them inside the house still seeming to be in shock at seeing Sam here.

Dean urged them to sit on the couch in the living room and then he hurried off into the kitchen mumbling about getting something to drink. Jess and Sam were left observing their surroundings.

The room hasn't changed much since Sam left, the TV has been upgraded and there are some new movies in the shelf under it. The bookshelf agains the left wall contained the same family photos and memorabilia from their childhood.

Suddenly Jess elbowed him hard in his side.

“Ow! What did you do that for?” he whispered harshly.

“Isn't that a picture from your graduation ceremony?” she whispered back pointing at a picture on the window sill.

Sam got up to take a closer look at the picture. He picked it up from its place next to the window only to discover that Jess was right. The picture was taken from the back of the crowd the zoom making it a bit grainy but you could clearly make out Sam accepting his pre-law degree on stage.

Sam was struck with disbelief, the fact that Dean had this photo had to mean that he had been at the ceremony.

At that moment Dean re-entered the living room with refreshments.

“Coffee is ready, if you want something else I also have fruit juice, soda or water, no tea though sorry” He explained while he set up the cups on the sofa table.

“Dean” Sam called his brothers attention to him. “Did you come to my graduation?”
Dean noticed Sam holding the picture frame and suddenly looked sheepish and embarrassed.

“Eh yeah, I did” Dean answered watching Sam hesitantly while bringing the empty food-tray up in-front of him as barrier. “Are you mad?”

Dean's question had Sam almost recoiling. Mad? Why would he be mad? His brothers timid body language didn't suit his normally buoyant personality. In fact, being able to take a hard look at his brother he looks quite different from what he remembers.

The Dean he remembers stood tall and proud. He had strong muscles from working manual jobs and although Sam remembers him often being tired that was nothing compared to the Dean in-front of him now.

Dean seemed to have lost weight, his once prominent muscles were smaller and he didn't have the same air of confidence that he used to.

Realizing his brother was waiting for an answer from him Sam hurriedly explained.

“No, I am not mad at you Dean.. but why didn't you tell me you were coming?”

Dean's shoulders relaxed minutely as he responded with a shrug. “You told me you never wanted to see me again”

At Dean's admission Jess gave Sam a dirty look, how could he have said that to his brother. Sam floundered for a response, during their last argument many things had been said in the heat of the moment.

“Dean I..” Sam started but was unable to find the right words to explain himself.

“Let's not talk about that right now, please have something to drink” Dean averted the conversation and started to pour the coffee into the cups.

Sam trotted back to his seat next to Jess on the couch.

“So who is this young lady you have brought with you?”

Dean's question made Sam realize that he hadn't introduced Jess when they entered the house.

“Oh right, Dean this is Jessica Moore my girlfriend. Jessica this is my brother Dean” Sam hurriedly introduced the two. Dean leaned forwards from his seat in the single living room chair to shake Jessicas hand.

“It's so nice to finally meet you Dean” Jess said as she shook his hand with a smile.

The somewhat tense atmosphere was held at bay as the three of them engaged in small talk. Dean wanted to know everything about Stanford, their studies and what has happened during the years that they have been apart.

At one point Jess excused herself to go to the bathroom. She didn't mean to snoop but while she was washing her hands she noticed two orange pill bottles standing on the side of the counter. After a closer look at the bottles she discovered that they contain pills with low dosages of estrogen and progesterone. The other bottle contained anti-depressants, the combination seemed very out of place in the home of a single male.

Unless that male was an Omega who was having difficulties getting pregnant then the estrogen and progesterone would make sense but not the anti-depressants.

Was Dean an Omega? As far as she could remember Sam had not mentioned Dean's second gender and from just meeting him it was impossible to tell, Dean as most people used scent blockers. She would need to ask Sam about it later.

Leaving the bathroom she re-joined the brothers in the living room. The conversation seemed to have shifted to what Dean had been doing the last few years.

Dean was just telling Sam that he was now working as a mechanic, restoring classic cars on the side. After some more small talk Dean asked them if they have any dinner plan and if they were staying the night.

“We don't have any plans and we thought we would just find a room at a motel close by” Sam explained.

“I won't allow it” Dean exclaimed.

“You have a perfectly good room here, there is room for Jessica in there as well. I will go out and buy some groceries and then I can get dinner started. How does hamburgers sound?”

Not really waiting for a response, Dean hurriedly started to gather the cups and plates on the sofa table before putting them in the kitchen. Then he gathered his keys and was out the door before Sam or Jess could protest.

“Huh, that was a bit weird” Sam muttered. Jess elbowed him in the side again. “There is nothing weird about it, he is happy to see you and he wants you to stay close”

After a short pause she asked “Sam, you never told me what Dean's second gender is”

Sam furrowed his eyebrows “He's an Omega, why?”

So that did fit with her theory regarding the hormone medicine, but something was still not adding up. “Just wondered” She said with a shrug.

To kill some time before Dean would be back Sam decided to show her his old room and as they entered he was surprised to see it was exactly as he had left it.

All of his old clothes and books were still where he had left them, his old essays still in his desk drawer, old knickknacks and posters on the walls.

“You used to like Britney Spears?!” Jess exclaimed as she saw one of the posters, barely able to contain her laughter. Sam blushed scarlet.

“What? She was cute” he tried to defend himself. Dean also used to make fun of him for liking her, proclaiming that Led Zeppelin was much better.

They entertained themselves in Sam's room looking through drawers and old books until Dean returned with several grocery bags.

“Over did it with the shopping?” Sam asked as he eyed all of the bags.

“Well I wasn't sure what you prefer now so I got a bit of everything” he responded while putting the items away in their designated place.

Dean went all out with dinner, creating a feast of homemade burgers with different condiments and toppings to choose from. Dessert was a homemade apple pie and Sam must admit Dean's cooking had improved a lot since he used to live here.

The three of them enjoyed their meal, both Sam and Jess complementing Dean on the food. Dean tried to brush it of as nothing special but they could see him preen slightly at the praise.

Bellies full Jess and Sam offered to clean up in the kitchen and after some persuasion Dean reluctantly let them.

As Dean was relaxing on the couch the two of them noticed a new smell wafting through the small house. It was a a smokey and bitter scent which makes their noses twitch, hidden underneath it is the sweet scent commonly associated with Omegas.

Sam looked confused but Jess quickly realised Dean must have forgotten to re-apply his scent blockers. Ones scent can reveal so much about a person without verbal communication. That is one of the reasons scent blockers became so popular, it gave people the opportunity to interact on a level plane-field.

However the tones of Deans scent worried her. Jess and Sam finished the dishes and put away the leftover food. It was getting late so Dean had produced extra pillows and blankets for them to use. Then he retreated to his own bedroom for the night telling them goodnight with a smile.

The bitter smell followed him into his bedroom. When they were alone in Sam's old room Sam gave Jess a questioning look.

“What was that?”

Only having had basic biology in high-school Sam hadn't had the opportunity to learn about how different emotions will affect a persons natural scent. Jess on the other hand had read all about it and had experienced it first hand when the class had a practical lesson having to scent different samples and identifying the emotion.

“That Sam, was Deans natural scent”

Sam looked confused. “Shouldn't Omegas smell sweet?”

“Yes, they should smell sweet” She confirmed “but certain emotions or mental states could change a person's scent”

Almost as if he was afraid to ask Sam continued “And what emotion causes a burnt and bitter smell?”

Jess went to sit down on the bed pulling Sam down besides her. “A burnt and bitter smell is most commonly associated with negative emotions, such as grief, sadness or depression.”

Sam sat speechless for a few moments as he digested the new information.
“Why would Dean be depressed?” Sam asked, not really expecting an answer. However Jess had her suspicions and decided to share her thoughts with Sam.

“Sam I know this might be difficult to hear but I think it might have something to do with your relationship to Dean”

Sam gave her a confused look, clearing her throat Jess continued to explain her theory.

“After your Mother died your Dad wasn't around much right? and being the older brother Dean was taking care of you a lot” Sam nodded in confirmation.

“Well I suspect due to that his relationship with you evolved from a brotherly bond to a caretaker bond” Sam waited for her to continue. “However when your father also passed away Dean wasn't only a caretaker, his Omega instincts kicked in and changed the bond to a parental bond”

Jess finished her explanation, looking at Sam for a response.

Sam wasn't sure what to do or what to think but had to ask. “So what you are saying is that the Omega in Dean thinks that he is my parental figure?” Jess nodded. “That I am his son?” Jess nodded again watching Sam carefully.

Sam rubbed his hands over his face, running his fingers through his hair. “And that leads to the depression how?”

“I can't say for certain but I suspect that it is connected to the way you guys were separated when you got accepted to college”

Sam exhaled “Yeah, we didn't exactly part peacefully”.

“I am sure the separation was difficult for the both of you, Dean however has taken a greater hit emotionally and I think physically” As she was explaining this to Sam, she remembered something else she had read about Omegas and sudden separation from their children.

“I think Dean might be experiencing a form of postpartum depression. That would fit the medication he is on” Sam was looking at her, lost for words. “Wait, what medication?”

Jess had de decency to blush “When I went to the bathroom earlier I noticed some bottles on the counter. I didn't mean to snoop but I saw anti-depressants and hormones given to Omegas who are trying to increase their chances of conceiving but they can also be used to aid hormone production incase of in-balance”

Sam took a minute to digest the information. “So what can I do to help? I can do something right?”
He sounded almost desperate.

“To stabilize the hormones of an Omega they usually need to be in contact with their family or mate.” Jess made it sound so simple but Sam wasn't sure where to begin with that. “So I need to?”

“Allow him back into your life would be a start and I would recommend marking him with your own scent to reenforce the bond that has faded” That Sam thought he could handle but there wasn't anything they could do tonight.

So with thoughts of Dean floating around in his head he and Jess prepared for bed. Tomorrow he would start to work on helping Dean.
***

Sam and Jess woke up the next morning to the smell of bacon wafting into the room. Looking at his phone Sam notes it is 8 am Jess snuggles up to him mumbling against his shoulder. “Mornin'”

“Good morning, looks like Dean has started breakfast” Sam answered as he stretched his arms above his head.

The two of them got out of bed and put on some casual clothes before going to to meet Dean in the kitchen, before leaving the room Sam reached for his scent blockers.

“No, don't put those on” Jess interjected grabbing the spray bottle from Sam's hand. Sam gave he a confused look. “Why not?”

“You want to help Dean right?” Sam nodded.

“Well, he has to be able to smell you for his Omega instincts to realize you are back” Jess explained as a matter of fact. “The more of your scent that you can rub around the house the better”

Sam nodded in understanding and hoped he would be able to pull this off without Dean getting suspicious. The two of them went out to the kitchen area and was greeted with at feast of breakfast foods. Same as with dinner the previous night Dean had really gone all out with breakfast. Bacon and eggs, cut fruit and freshly baked bread.

Both Jess and Sam were speechless, as college students they rarely have a full breakfast mostly sticking to coffee and a slice of toast.

“Good morning! Please go ahead and eat” Dean greeted with a smile as he noticed them come in. His natural scent was hidden by scent blockers so there was no telling what he was really feeling but he looked well rested and happy.

The three of them enjoyed breakfast over small talk. Sam noticed that Dean was scenting the air and becomes aware that Sam wasn't wearing his scent blockers. Sam wondered if Dean would comment on it but his brother just went back to eating.

The breakfast was coming to an end and Dean asked them when they had to get back to school. The question seemed casual but Dean was watching the both of them carefully.

“We have to be back by Monday unfortunantly” Dean looked slightly saddened by the news that they wouldn't be staying longer. So Jess quickly added “but hopefully we could come back for thanksgiving? It's only 2 months away” Dean seemed to perk up at the suggestion.

“That would be awesome!” Dean smiled at both of them.

Together they planned the days activities, deciding on going for a “sightseeing” tour of the town. Both to show Jess the town that they grew up in most of their lives but also to show Sam the changes which he had missed. They had fun reminiscing and telling Jess stories from when they were growing up.

As they were driving along Sam was trying to rub as much of his scent as he could in the car, luckily Dean was too occupied with driving and talking to Jess in the front to notice.

They had a light lunch in town and in the afternoon they came back to the house. All of them were tired but instead of calming down Dean started to plan for dinner and asked Sam what he would like to eat.

Sam had to think about it for a minute but eventually remembered a lasagna that Dean used to make while he still lived there that he used to like.

“Why don't you make lasagna?” Sam suggested. Dean nodded and turned to the kitchen to look if he had what he needed to make it. After rummaging around he came back to the living room.

“I need to go to the shop to pick up a few things, you guys can just relax here” Dean said as he prepared to go out the door. Suddenly Jess jumped up from the couch.

“I will go with you!” Dean stopped midd-step and looked to Sam as if asking if it was ok for her to come with him. Sam couldn't do much but shrug his shoulders. So both of them were going, before Jess closed the door behind her she turned to Sam.

“You know what you need to do, cover as much as possible”

Sam was left in the empty house. It felt a bit weird to be scent marking his brothers house but he knew that this would help Dean get better.

He started in the living room by covering the couch, the curtains, and pillows since their scent sticks better to fabrics. Next he moved along to the linen closet, knowing that as soon as the items are washed they will lose the scent but at least it will stay for awhile.

It was with some hesitation that Sam moved towards his brothers bedroom but he knew that this would be the most important place to mark. Entering the room he caught a whiff of the scent that he and Jess noticed coming from Dean the night before. The most prominent was the smokey and bitter smell of burnt wood and sour milk. Underneath those were the sweeter scents that Sam remembers from when Dean first presented, green apple with a hint of toffee.

Trying not to feel like a creep Sam rubbed as much scent as possible on the bed and the bed cover. He also opened the closet to cover some of Dean's clothes focusing on his jackets the most. As he exited the room he could hear the rumble of the Impala outside.

Sam went back into the living room hoping that the scent marking wouldn't be too obvious to Dean. Jess and Dean stepped inside carrying a grocery bag each.

“Overdid it with the shopping again?” Sam commented as they walked into the kitchen.

“While shopping we got talking about tomorrow's breakfast and decided we would make pancakes” Jess told him as they were putting the groceries away. Dean chimed in “Yeah, I remembered how you liked blueberry pancakes”

Sam felt a happy flutter in his stomach that Dean would remember such a trivial thing.

Jess and Sam were forbidden from entering the kitchen while Dean prepared dinner so they sat in the living room watching movies while they waited. From the kitchen they could hear Dean humming along to the music he was playing in there.

“I think Dean is in a better mood already” Jess whispered to Sam. Even though they couldn't confirm it without Dean removing his scent blockers. Sam smiled and gave Jess a peck on the cheek, happy that he was finally able to do something for Dean after all the heartache he has caused him.

Dean joined them shortly in-front of the TV while the lasagna was finishing in the oven together with what smelled like garlic bread.

They enjoyed another amazing dinner together and once again by the end of the meal Jess and Sam noticed that Dean's scent blockers were wearing off but this time the sweet Omega scent was slightly more prominent.

Jess and Sam offered to wash up and then all of them said good night and went to bed. Laying in bed Sam whispered to Jess “It seems the scent marking is working”

“Yes, but it will take much longer to completely restore his hormone-levels to normal” She replied.

“You will have to include him in your everyday life from now on and try to meet as much as possible” She cautioned him as she made herself more comfortable before drifting off to sleep.

Sam laid awake a bit longer thinking about all those years ago, their huge fight and Sam leaving soon after.

During that time Sam thought about contacting Dean several times because he missed him but every time he chickened out. First he was afraid Dean would try to guilt him into quitting college and move back home. The months passed by and eventually he was at the point where he was just embarrassed and convinced himself that Dean would be better off without him, free to live his own life for once.

However he now realize that that had been a big mistake. Dean had been miserable without him reaching the point of depression, but even so he still cared enough to come see Sam receive his diploma. Dean didn't even hesitate to invite Sam back into his home after all these years.

Sam owed Dean for even having the possibility to finish high-school and even apply to college. Dean himself dropped out of high-school when their Dad stopped paying the bills so he could make sure Sam had food and a place to call home.

Sure, due to Dean's busy schedule Sam was often spending most of his time at home alone and rarely saw Dean for more than a few fleeting minutes each day. But Dean still managed to ensure Sam had packed lunches to bring to school, homemade food to heat up for dinner, clean clothes and a clean house. Although his teenage-self was unable to appreciate it at the time, once he started living at college he noticed how much effort it took to do all of those things while also studying.

Sam was determined to help Dean get better and to make sure he shows Dean how much he appreciate everything he has done. With those thoughts swirling around his brain Sam eventually fell asleep.

The next morning Jess and Sam once again woke up to the amazing smell of breakfast cooking.
The two of them entered the kitchen to see Dean flipping pancakes onto an ever growing pile. There were three different kinds, plain, blueberry and chocolate chip with various toppings such as bacon, maple syrup and butter.

The tree of them sat down to enjoy breakfast until Sam and Jess needed to prepare before heading of to the airport. As they packed up the car Dean joined them outside.

“It was so great to finally meet you Dean” Jess said as she invited Dean in for a hug. Dean looked slightly unsure of what to do but accepted the hug nonetheless. “It was great meeting you too Jess”

Jess went around the car to sit in the passenger seat while Sam and Dean said their goodbyes.
Both brother were unsure of how to do this, Dean was watching Sam waiting for him to take the initiative.

“Eh..it was really great seeing you again Dean” Sam started of “We should do this again soon” he finished lamely.

“Do you still have the same phone number” Dean asked out of the blue. Sam nodded “Yeah, I never changed it”

“Great! me neither, so call me once you are back at campus?” Sam nodded again.

With a boost of confidence Sam enveloped Dean in a hug. “Thank you for everything Dean” he mumbled into his brothers shoulder, hoping his brother would understand that he wasn't just thanking him for the weekend. After some hesitation he felt Dean return the hug just as fiercely.

As they pulled apart Sam noticed that there was a glassy sheen to Dean's green eyes and he seemed to be unable to form any words but instead smiled at Sam teary eyed.

Sam hurriedly stepped into the car and the two of them waved as they drove towards the airport.

Sam was already looking forwards to the next time he will see his brother.