Came to me out of the blue. Seriously, this interrupted my angst writing, dammit.
"Dude, what are you doing?"
Cas jumped, hands flying behind his back as he spun, looking guilty as he held something behind his back. Sam was of absolutely no help, sitting at the table with Cas and raised eyebrows, amusement all over his face. Dean was not amused at all. He pointedly raised his own eyebrows, crossing his arms. Cas shook his head, shuffling and not saying anything.
Dean huffed. "Fine. Don't tell me. Whatever," he said, feeling a bit hurt and left out. Cas' guilty look increased tenfold, but he didn't stop Dean from walking away.
…
"Dean?"
He jerked awake, nearly colliding with Cas' head. Luckily for both of them, Cas had clearly anticipated this, and pulled away. Dean stared at him through glossy eyes, eyelids thick with sleep. He glanced behind his lover to look at the clock and promptly groaned, dropping back onto the pillow. He flung his arm over his eyes. "Cas, I love you, but I swear to god, this had better be good. It's nearly three in the morning, man."
"It is good," Cas said, bouncing slightly. The bed shook with his movements. Dean cracked open one eye to see him, and couldn't help the smile from blooming at the childlike joy on the angel's face.
"What, then?" Dean asked.
"Get dressed," Cas commanded. Dean's happiness fizzled away abruptly, and he stared at his lover, flabbergasted. "We're going out."
"At this hour?!" Dean sat up anyway, eyes still wide but unable to stop himself from complying as Cas got even more excited. "Dude, nothing is open, no one but us is even going to be awake!"
Cas stopped. "Actually-"
Dean was absolutely certain he was about to tell Dean about the other side of the planet. Sure enough, "There are always people awake in London at this hour…"
"Babe," Dean interrupted, placing his hand over Cas' wrist. "I meant in our general vicinity."
"Of course."
Dean chuckled, rolling his eyes. He pulled his jeans on and then grabbed the shirt he'd been wearing yesterday. He figured that since he'd gotten up at one and went to bed at seven it was still clean enough.
"Come on, Dean!" Cas hissed, his bouncing starting up again.
"What's got you so cheered up, huh, angel?"
Cas grinned, taking Dean's hand as soon as he had his shoes on. The next thing Dean knew, they were in the middle of the woods, in no place he recognized. Surprised but not alarmed, he looked around. He found Cas standing a little beyond the tree line, staring up at the stars. As if feeling Dean's gaze, the angel turned around and beckoned him closer.
Dean followed the nonverbal call.
He linked their fingers and stared upward, too. It was cold, so Dean moved closer to his lover, smiling to himself when Cas wrapped his arms around him and curled close.
There were no words exchanged until Dean saw the rising sun.
Now certain they were nowhere near Kansas, he turned to question Cas, but the angel hushed him before he could get a word out, pointing.
Dean followed his gaze, and felt his eyes widen as he sucked in a sharp breath.
"I know you, Dean," Cas whispered, kissing him on the cheek. Dean ignored this in favor of watching the huge amounts of birds emerge from the trees, darkening the sky all over again. Their cries were captivating. Dean couldn't tear his eyes away from the sunrise and the birds, the vision so familiar it almost hurt. This was shockingly similar to the picture his mom had had on her bedside table, with her and her family merely black shadows like the birds.
Cas pulled away. Dean noticed this distantly, but as Cas' shape left his line of sight, he looked around. He found him on one knee.
Dean pulled in a sharp breath, feeling the burn of tears in the back of his eyes as Cas opened a ring box.
"Sam helped me make it," Cas said, looking at the band. "He was very fond of the idea."
"Dude. I don't care about Sam right now," Dean scolded, voice choked. Cas grinned at him sheepishly.
"I. I, ah, am not completely familiar with this human mating ritual in particular… the Internet had so many different phrases and methods I wasn't sure which one was correct," Cas rambled, and Dean began to laugh, the tears spilling over. Cas looked alarmed. "Dean?"
"Good grief, Cas. Yes, I'll marry you," he said through his laughter and tears.
Cas lit up, standing swiftly, pulling the ring from the box. He dropped the container but neither of them cared, really, and all Dean could see was the flash of silver as the ring slid onto his finger. Cas beamed and pulled him close, sealing their engagement with a kiss that Dean was sure he'd never forget.