( TICK-TOCK )
HOSPITAL
[ ☼ ]
Dean is getting a coffee from a machine. He walks over to Sam, who is still leaning on the wall outside Bobby's room. "What did that guy want?" Sam asks.
"Uh, nothing. Just some insurance mook." Dean glances at Elena. "Dick Roman was out there."
"What? What happened?" Sam asks.
"Nothing...For now. It was just a friggin' staring contest. That was about it." Dean says.
"What's the update?" Elena asks.
"The swelling's down a little. They took him off sedation. Apparently, he—he started fighting his tube." Sam says. "So they pulled them out, and he's breathing on his own."
"That's good, right? Is that good?" Dean asks.
"Yeah. Well, Doctor said best-case scenario."
"All right, so when they gonna take the bullet out?" Asks Dean.
"Dean, t-they're not even – they're not even gonna try that, not yet." Sam says.
"What does that mean?" Dean says.
"The word's "abrading," I think." Sam says.
"English."
"Cutting out the dead brain tissue." Sam says.
"I don't know, Alex. I-I don't know." A Man and Woman in the middle of a conversation stop near Sam and Dean.
"That's if the Doctor even thinks it's worth the risk." Sam says.
"You know, I, uh... You're working..."
"I don't know."
"I'm – I'm..."
"Can I talk to you?" Sam, Elena and Dean walk away from the Man and Woman.
"What? Talk about what?" Dean asks.
"You know what." Sam says.
"No, we're not gonna have that conversation." Dean says.
"Well, we need to." Sam says.
"He's not gonna die." Dean says.
"He might."
"Sam." Elena says.
"Guy, listen—we need to brace ourselves." Says Sam.
"Why?" Dean asks.
"Because it's real."
"What do you want to do? You want to hug and – and say we made it through it when Dad died? We've been through enough." Dean says.
BOBBY'S HOUSE
[ ☼ ]
Rufus is putting ingredients into a bowl on Bobby's desk. Bobby opens a closet, which seems to be empty. "We still need gold ore, hemlock, and mace." Bobby says.
"Mm. So, pretty basic, then, huh?" Rufus asks. As Bobby walks through the house, the light goes out in the windows as he passes. He opens a kitchen drawer, which is full of odds and ends.
Looking over his shoulder, he sees a younger version of himself talking on the phone in the main room. "No, we didn't shoot rifles, as a matter of fact. We threw a ball around. He's a kid, John. They both are. They're entitled. Yeah, I know I ain't their dad." The Younger Bobby hangs up and throws the phone down. Bobby looks down at the kitchen drawer, which is now empty.
"What the hell?" Bobby opens the refrigerator and takes out a half-full jar of blood. Bobby is finishing painting a symbol on the wooden floor in front of his desk. He joins Rufus behind the desk and picks up the cross. "O theristes, kaleo se Kai deo."
Rufus lights a match and drops it into the bowl. There is a flash of fire and the Reaper appears. "Cute. Got to admit – first time anyone's pulled one on me while actually unconscious." The Reaper says.
"Well, get comfy." Bobby says.
"Not so fast."
"Yeah? Sorry. Other business." Bobby says.
"I'm trying to help you, Bobby. You're going to die. Think you can stop it by pinning me like a bug?" The Reaper asks.
"Well—" Bobby starts.
"You've seen the dark coming—people disappearing, things going blank. Look around. Cell by cell..." Bobby looks around at photographs on the bookshelves.
While Bobby's face in the photographs is clear, the faces of the other people are blurry and indistinct. "that bullet's killing your brain. You're running out of places to hide. So, understand – this trap won't hold forever, because this room won't hold, because you are going to die."
"You think." Bobby says.
"Come with me. Be done. You've earned it. Or fight me. Stay here. And you know the drill."
"I don't know, Bobby. I mean, you really want to get stuck, turn into some ghost?" Rufus asks.
"I know what I'm doing, Rufus." Bobby says.
"Yeah, yeah, you're thinking you can help those boys. But how many spirits you meet in their right mind? Some hunter's gonna cut you down."
"Whose side are you on?" Bobby asks Rufus.
"Bobby... You've helped. You got handed a small, unremarkable life, and you did something with it. Most men like you die of liver disease, watching "Barney Miller" reruns. You've done enough. Believe me." The Reaper says.
"I don't care." Bobby says.
"Why?"
"Because they're my boys." Bobby sees Young Bobby standing nearby. "All right. The only way out is through." Bobby turns to Young Bobby. "So lead the way." He looks at Rufus. "Nice seeing you again, old friend." And then to the Reaper. "Thanks for the chat." Young Bobby walks away and Bobby follows him.
Bobby's Mother is on her knees cleaning up the plate that Bobby's Father knocked to the floor. "It's fine. It'll just take a second." She says.
Bobby's Father pours another glass of whiskey. "You just gonna sit there? Get a broom or somethin'." He says to Young Bobby as he leaves the room. Bobby's Father stands up. "You know why he's like that? Because you let him do whatever he wants."
"It's okay. See? I'm almost done. You just relax a-and have another drink." The Mother says. Bobby sighs.
"Don't tell me what to do." The Father says and Young Bobby is watching from the doorway.
"No. Wait. Wait." Bobby's Father strikes Bobby's Mother across the face, knocking her down. When she looks up, there is blood at the corner of her mouth. "I– no! Why do you always provoke him?"
"Because he's a bad kid – that's why." The Father says.
"Well, that's a load of crap. Who the hell were you to say?" Bobby asks
"I'm your father. And you show your father respect."
"The day he deserves it, you drunken..." Bobby starts.
"Shhh..." His Mother says.
"...bully." Bobby finishes. "Punching women and kids—is that what they call fatherhood in your day?"
"Oh, you deserved it. Believe me. You were nothing but ungrateful." The Father says
"I was a kid! Kids ain't supposed to be grateful! They're supposed to eat your food and break your heart, you selfish dick!" Bobby yells. "You died, and I was still so afraid I'd turn into you I never even had kids of my own."
"Good. You break everything you touch." The Father says as Bobby's Mother starts to cry.
"Uh-huh. Well, as fate would have it, I adopted two boys and even a nice young girl, and they grew up great. They grew up heroes. So you can go to hell!"
HOSPITAL
[ ☼ ]
The Nurse and a second nurse are walking towards Bobby's room. "Keep the head of the bed up for transport. IV can run off the pump. Just run a TKVO. We'll have to wait for respiratory." The Nurse says.
"Wait, wait, wait, wait. What's happening?" Sam asks.
"He's showing signs of responsiveness. We're taking him up for surgery. If you want to see him, I'd squeeze in there quick." She says as Sam, Elena and Dean walk towards Bobby's room.
BOBBY'S HOUSE
[ ☾]
Bobby's Mother is still on the floor and there is now blood coming from her nose as well as her mouth. "I'm sorry. I said that I'm – I'm sorry." She says.
"Yeah, yeah, you say that every time." The Father says.
"Please just stop."
Bobby's Father begins shouting. "No! This time, you listen!" He yells.
"Stop it." Young Bobby is standing in the doorway with a rifle. As his parents watch, he cocks the rifle. Bobby's Father laughs.
"You're kidding, right? You're not half enough man to use that thing. You leave the adults to sort this out... and I will deal with you later." Bobby's Father grabs Bobby's Mother by her hair and drags her partway to her feet.
"Ohh! Aah! Bobby, just go. Do what he says. Just go."
"No." Young Bobby points the rifle at his father. "Leave her alone." Young Bobby shoots his father in the head.
"Aah!" She yells as Bobby's Father falls to the ground dead. "Bobby, what did you do? God is gonna punish you."
"Hey." Bobby walks over to Young Bobby. "You did what you had to do. This is where you learn that... they pretty much never say thanks when you save 'em. Now go get a shovel. Bury the old man out behind the woodshed." Young Bobby leaves.
"You got the only genetic case of bullet in the brain I've ever seen." The Reaper says. Bright light appears in the kitchen window. "Not so fast, Singer." Bobby hurries to the kitchen door, opens it and looks out into the bright light.
BOBBY'S ROOM
IN THE HOSPITAL
[ ☼ ]
Sam, Elena and Dean are at Bobby's bedside. "Sorry. We need to get moving." The Nurse says.
"Right. Yeah." Sam looks at Dean, and then down at Bobby. "Hey, um... Bobby, um, hey..." Sam takes Bobby's hand. "Just... thanks... for everything." He lets go of Bobby's hand and gives it a pat.
"All right. Please step back." Says the Nurse.
"Yeah." Dean says. Bobby raises his hand and opens his eyes.
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, stop. His eyes are open." Elena says.
"Bobby?" Dean says.
"Hey." Sam puts a hand on Bobby's shoulder. Bobby removes the respirator covering his mouth and nose. Sam takes Bobby's hands.
"What – don't talk. Don't talk. A pen – I –" Dean grabs the pen and chart at the end of the bed. "Here. Here, here, here." He hands the pen to Sam, who hands it to Bobby. "What is it?"
Bobby writes "45489" (one number less than he wrote on the piece of paper earlier) on Sam's hand while breathing heavily with the effort. He smiles slightly at Sam, Elena and Dean, who lean closer to him.
"Idjits." Bobby's head falls back onto the pillow and his eyes close. The monitor he is attached to starts to beep.
"Bobby? Hey!" Dean yells. The monitor shows flat lines.
"Call a code—trauma room." The Nurse says. Sam, Elena and Dean are standing outside Bobby's room as medical staff hurry towards the room and attempt to revive Bobby. We see a long close-up of Dean's face.
BOBBY'S HOUSE
[ ☾]
Bobby is walking through the house. "You microbrewing in there, or what? Come on – we got a lot of Chuck Norris to get through. Let's go." Dean says. Bobby opens the refrigerator and takes out two beers.
"Nice move, waking up like that." The Realer says.
"Motivation's a mother." Bobby says.
"You know why it's dark out there, don't you? This house – it's your last island, everything else melted by that bullet—gone. This is your last chance to come with me and move on. For your own good, Bobby, let go. They'll be okay without you."
"Last memory, huh?" Bobby asks and The Reaper nods. "Glad I saved the best for last." Bobby walks away. Dean, who is holding a remote, sits down on the two-person couch next to Sam, who is eating popcorn. Elena sits in a single plush chair.
"All right, scoot, jerkface. Show your elders some respect." Dean says.
"You scoot, ass-hat." Sam flips a piece of popcorn at Dean. Bobby walks in and hands the beers to Sam. "Mm." Sam sets one of the beers on the table in front of Dean.
Dean is taking more snacks out of a plastic bag. "Did we get licorice?" He asks. Bobby sits down and watches Sam and Dean.
Sam speaks with a mouth full of popcorn. "No, we did not get licorice. We got good snacks. Licorice is disgusting." He says. Bobby is smiling slightly.
"Hey, licorice isn't that bad." Elena says.
Sam turns to her. "Says the girl who eats ranch dressing on her pizza." He says.
"I'm sorry. I didn't quite understand that, uh, Mr. Peanut-Butter-and-Banana Sandwiches?" Dean says.
"You know what? I stand by that sandwich. Nobody likes licorice. I-it's – it's made of dirt." Sam says.
"It is a classic movie food. It's right up there with popcorn." Elena says.
"Popcorn? Really?" Sam asks.
"Yes." Dean and Elena say at the same time.
"You're out of your mind." Sam says as he, Elena and Dean are fading.
"What – it's like little chewy pieces of heaven." Dean says as they disappear.
"Oh, chewy pieces of heaven if you're a girl."
"Well, Bobby? Stay or go—what's it gonna be?" The Reaper's watch is open and ticking.