Dean knew that what he had put Sam through was unfair, he knew it was hypocritical, but he didn't care. That wasn't to say that he didn't care about Sam, didn't hurt like hell to know that he would feel that kind of pain, but Dean had never regretted his decision to bring his brother back from the dead. Despite all the times he had lectured people they met along their journey that what's dead should stay dead, he never could apply that principle to his brother. Even as the hellhounds ripped him apart, Dean Winchester would gladly have agreed to the same deal he made, as long as it gave him Sam back.
Saving Sam from the fire--first in his nursery and then in his apartment--made Dean responsible for Sam. He worried over him, took care of him. Remembering something he had said before he was killed, Dean smiled, thinking how it was more true now than ever.
Killing that guy, killing Meg - I didn't hesitate, I didn't even flinch. For you or Dad, the things I'm willing to do or kill, it scares me sometimes.
He glared at the large clock on the wall. Though he realized it had only been minutes since he talked with Sam on the message board, it felt like hours, and it had literally been a lifetime since he had seen his brother face to face.
Come on, damn it, Sam. You don't have to drive the Impala like a maniac, just get here. I need to make sure you're alright.
It might seem strange to some that Dean, the one fresh from hell, was worried about Sam, but it wasn't really that odd. Dean knew how it felt to watch his brother die in his arms, he knew what agony it was to think that you might have to go through the rest of your life without your brother.
Catching a blur of motion out of the corner of his eyes, Dean turned and sprung to his feet, rushing toward Sam. Though he normally frowned on anything that could be seen as a display of emotion, particularly when they were in public and someone could see, he hugged Sam back just as hard. He knew that he was out of hell the moment he wasn't there anymore, but this, being with his brother again, made the enormity of his escape come crashing down on him. He was free and Sam was alive. No matter what was going on in this strange city, they had that, and for the moment that was more than enough.
He slapped Sam's back hard, though he still didn't release him, didn't even register the strength of his brother's hug. "Damn glad to see you, Sammy."