Saving people, hunting things--the family business

[guzzles]

A brotherly PSL for texting and hunting stories with kickingand 

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[followsuit]

[ And Dean? Dean knew the pitfalls of a clutch and gears and changing all of them at once, the slight adjustment of pressure, the shifting of your foot gently but with enough effort to keep the car going. It was all a lot to take in and instruction and practice were both the only way to go about it.

Just like making mistakes was a necessity. Sometimes, the only way you learned really. Unless you were hunting, in which case mistakes weren't allowed because you ended up dead and then some. But he supposed Sam stalling the car once or twice before he asked for legitimate help was acceptable- let Sam feel the car shake itself to a halt and have him know what it was to just not have a clue.

And so Dena finally shrugged his shoulders and waved his hand, settling back into the seat as if being a co-pilot was the easiest thing in the world. ]

Go for it, kiddo.

[roadtrippingly]

[ Sure, easy peasy. Just sit there and watch how a pro does it, Dean. That's the plan, anyway. Sam's expression shifted to something much more intent, and he turned the key, setting the car to a low, intent rumbling. Their father always kept the car carefully tuned, and she didn't so much as splutter or bang.

He put his foot on the clutch, pushed the car from park up into first gear - not straight into second the way their father always did - then put his foot down on the gas pedal, without lifting off the clutch. The engine revved, Sam realised his mistake and lifted his foot off the clutch too hard and too fast, and the car jumped forward a meters in a grand lurch before the engine stalled.

Sam, furiously embarrassed, flushed and glared at the dash and ignored his brother who he was sure was laughing at him. ]

Shut up. [ He growled, forgetting all about putting the car back into park and turning the key again. ]

[followsuit]

[ The whole thing kind of went how Dean expected it to. Not that he wanted Sammy to fail at his first attempt at driving, but clutches and gears and pedals weren't as easy as one, two, three, and unless you had some kinda direction under your feet, you were bound to fuck up at least once or twice. It was just the way it went. Dean didn't know how else to explain it to Sam without letting him botch it and, well--

He botched it.

The car jumped and jerked and shuddered to a triumphant halt as Sam kind of failed at the whole endeavor and Dean kept his gaze carefully forward for a few seconds until he slid his attention sideways, looking to Sam with interest. He got the proverbial slap to the fact that he expected when he hadn't even cracked a goddamn grin, and so he swung his attention right out the passenger window, smiling broad just to get it out of his system.

Couldn't be perfect at everything. And so Dean cleared his throat and rubbed at his knees, nodding a few times and readjusting himself in his seat. ]

Start her up again. [ No, he wasn't shutting up. But he was the big brother. Shutting up wasn't part of the job. ]

[roadtrippingly]

[ Sam grumbled in frustration, his hands gripping tighter on the wheel for a moment, but Dean was right there. He wasn't going away even though Sam was pretty sure that this would be easier without him sitting there all smug. Sure, he hid his smile in the window, but the thing about glass was it reflected, and Sam saw the grin just as much as he heard it. Dean coughed, and he might as well have said "I'm laughing my ass off at you, Sam."

It wasn't his fault. This was harder than it looked. He had to do all these things in order, but the second he moved on to thinking about the next thing, he didn't get to it fast enough. It had to be natural, fluid, but how was he going to get it without practice? Wasn't like he was allowed to touch the controls of the Impala, uh, ever.

So Sam narrowed his eyes intently at his brother, like he could wish him to disappear if he glared hard enough, and said: ]

Jerk.

[followsuit]

Yeah, and you're a fucker for not asking for help.

[ Dean knew better than to reach across and fluff up Sammy's hair soothingly and so he kept his hands to himself. If anything, he should've stretched out more, gotten himself comfortable, been the biggest prick possible but instead he situated himself in the seat so he was at attention and looked over at Sam carefully. ]

You gonna keep tryin' to do it yourself or you want a few pointers?

[ Because Dean knew how Sam could be, wanting to figure it all out on his own. And they'd be here all night if that was the case, but if he could just get his little brother going them maybe they had a chance in hell as to letting him figure out how to start Baby up. Dean wasn't sure, they'd just have to get past this little grumbly hump between them, but he waited, eyebrows raised, trying to be innocent enough. ]

[roadtrippingly]

[ Soothingly? Sam's feelings were hurt like he'd been punched in the gut, and he pulled his shoulders up around his ears and glowered at the front console, focusing again on his feet, thinking through the actions. ]

Screw off, Dean. I can do it on my own.

[ Dean was right. Sam was determined to figure it out on his own - more now that his brother had been a jerk to him, and he went back to work on the car. Again the Impala reared forward, and this time it went five meters before it stalled, revving fast all the time. Sam was one brake pedal away from doing a rubber-burning race car start right there. Which would have been cool, if that was the skill he was trying to perfect.

He grunted in frustration and tried again, focusing this time on just stopping the car from stalling, and that meant it stalled even faster, not sure what he should do once the sputter started sounding, and not wanting to push on the throttle if he didn't know where he was going to go. ]

I can't--I can't do it! [ He yelped, after the third try almost ended up with the nose of the car buried in the sidewalk at the other end of the car park. ]

[followsuit]

[ Alright, so now the attacks were getting, well- heated, and Dean rolled his eyes up towards the ceiling of the Impala, annoyance only just starting to ripple off him. Dean could only hold it back for so long, the urge to shove Sam aside and forcibly teach him how to do it crawling under his skin. But he contained his urge to grab Sammy's damn shoes and practically stuffed his hands under his thighs, waiting out Sam and his childishness.

And like, expected, he didn't have a clue what he was doing.

Admittedly, Dean was halfway worried they'd end up stalled halfway back out in the middle of the road while Sam had his tantrum, not entirely sure how to fix this without Sam getting offended one way or another, but he was still the big brother here. He still knew what he was doing, and if Sam wanted to learn, then he better start listening up. At least when it came to this. ]

Yeah, you can do it if you'd just lemme tell you how. Jesus, Sam- just- you wanna take half my advice, maybe?

[ Dean finally wrenched himself around in the seat a little, exasperated and trying to make a point. ]

[roadtrippingly]

[ Sam didn't immediately surrender to the inevitable, even if he was halfway there. He knew he was frustrated, and he was going to shout at his brother given even half a chance. That wouldn't solve anything, but at least it would make him feel better.

On the other hand, when Dean actually offered to help him do things, it didn't all go to shit. It made Sam feel like someone cared, for a start, and given that their father rarely taught Sam to do anything he couldn't get Dean to show him instead, it stood to reason that Sam trusted Dean's instruction that much more.

Their dad wouldn't even had let him behind the wheel. Dean had. Dean had, and he was here risking his neck in the car beside him just so that Sam could learn how.

Sure, Sam was hormonal and frustrated, selfish, and just a little Winchester arrogant, but he was also a secret genius. He could figure out that keeping Dean sweet on him now and again would help him in the future.

So he let his shoulders sink, and looked dolefully at his brother, swallowing his pride. ]

Okay. How?

[followsuit]

[ It took what felt like half a damn hour for Sam to cave in. Granted, Dean didn't really expect anything less from it, halfway expecting Sam not to at all. His little brother was almost more stubborn than him when it came to his independent streaks, his need to do everything on his own, and yet all Dean wanted to do was help. He wasn't truly here to make fun or command he do better - they were here to learn. Dean wouldn't be doing this if he didn't want Sam to get something out of it, and so when Sam finally sank into himself, Dean breathed an air of relief.

Finally. ]

Once you get it outta first gear, everything's a breeze, okay- You gotta know that first of all.

[ Scooching over in his seat as far as he could go, Dean squirreled around until he could attempt to see the pedals, trying to think of the best way to explain how to go about this. ]

What we gotta work on is how press on the accelerator. Cause you got the clutch down, right? You can't let it go all at once, you gotta ease it up just as you ease on the gas.

[roadtrippingly]

Show me.

[ He insisted, before squirming away, climbing over Dean's lap and pushing him out of the other seat. Dean had to get into the driving seat now, mostly because they were stuck in the corner of the lot, and Sam didn't even trust himself going forward, going backward was going to be gross and hard.

But Dean could turn the car around, show him how he was supposed to be doing it, and then set the car up for Sam and budge back over.

One way or another, he was going to drive the car around the lot in circles before they were done today. He needed to. He was afraid of never learning to drive, and the way he was protected from these new skills, apart from hand to hand fighting stuff and guns, obviously. ]

Come on, show me.

[followsuit]

[ Dean had to refrain from cracking up as Sam scrambled across the seats, pushing him out of his spot and into the driver's. Sam had managed to cram them into an uncomfortable corner, which meant that Dean had to use his driving prowess to get them out of the spot without scraping a centimeter of paint off the Impala. Their dad would notice if even a hair was out of place, but Dean was trying not to let that fact overwhelm him - he was here to teach Sam how to drive, not to freak out about what their dad would think if he fucked it all up.

Getting comfortable in the seat, moving it to the right position and adjusting the mirror, Dean glanced around himself, checking everything before he looked back over to Sam. ]

Just- watch my feet, okay?

[ Really, Sam needed to keep an eye on everything, but that wasn't helpful in the slightest to say.

Putting the car in reverse, Dean pulled the car out of the spot that Sam had crammed it into before he twisted it around on a dime, driving it back to a more tolerable position. Dean wanted it somewhere safe enough that Sam could experiment without breaking anything, but something not too easy as to keep him from actually learning. ]

[roadtrippingly]

[ Sam did pay a lot more attention to Dean's feet this time, although he was watching a lot more than that. It still seemed pretty hairy reversing away from the curb they'd nudged up against, particularly in a car as large as the Impala.

Often, when they drove past other cars on the road, Sam wondered if they wouldn't be more comfortable in an SUV. It would probably cost less in gas as well. But the big back seat and even more spacious trunk...

And if not a big car, then what about a Winnebago? They could pretend if was a home, and they wouldn't even have to pay motel bills. Plus there would be more room for their dad's weapons stash. Sam couldn't help but think that they just hadn't thought it through.

He waited until the car was still, then nodded at Dean. ]

Okay, I think I got it. I don't have to reverse, though, right?