Dean bobbed his head to the music and leaned down to turn it up. He stole a glance at his sleeping brother in the back seat and smiled slightly.

"Dean," his father warned.

"What," Dean said with a smile. "He can't hear it."

John gave Dean a glare as he turned the radio down.

"I can," John said, mock venom in his voice.

Dean rolled his eyes and cast another glance at the back seat. Sam was leaned back, his head resting against the window. A small pool of drool trailed down his chin from his slightly parted lips. It almost felt like things were back to normal. They were back on the road, and the Impala felt more like home than ever.

Sam had been morose and quiet during the days that followed his second abduction. Through a great deal of coercing, they had managed to get the gist of what happened. Dean smiled. He was proud of his baby brother. Sam had handled himself better than anyone could have hoped for. Better than he probably would have been able to do before he'd become deaf, in fact.

Dean's face darkened briefly as he remembered back to a few nights ago. Sam had made him swear never to tell anyone about the new "gifts" Sam seemed to have gained. He had told Dean about the almost psychic-type feelings he would get when people entered a room. Dean had put on a show of not being the least bit concerned, but inside he was freaked out. He had agreed that it was a good thing to keep his new-found abilities a secret from everyone else, but tried to convince him that he should tell Dad. Sam had been adamant that he didn't want their father to know about it. Not yet. Dean had reluctantly agreed to keep his brother's secret.

As Dean had thought about it more and more, he had to admit to himself that he did feel a little bit glad that Sam had gained the freaky powers. Dean was terrified that his brother's loss of hearing left him vulnerable. There was a small amount of comfort in knowing he had a slight advantage.

When they had left Pastor Jim's yesterday, John had taken Dean aside and asked him for the hundredth time if he was doing the right thing by taking Sam on the road with them. Dean had been unnerved by his father's uncharacteristic lack of confidence. He had watched as Sam suddenly looked to them, seeming to know he was the topic of conversation. Dean had smiled at his father and reassured him that, yes, his little brother would be okay.

End.

Hope you liked it. I'm planning to continue this story line... someday!