AUTHOR'S NOTE: So, this fic is more of a Dean & Castiel friendship thing than a romantic Sastiel thing since Sam is absent for a lot of it, but I swear it is notT Destiel. There should not even be Destiel undertones. It IS, however, an awesome friendship between the two and Dean is badass and protective. :D
Also, the title will make sense if you read the whole thing. I know "Hey Jude" is Dean's thing but it makes sense for Sam and Castiel.
And I'm so sorry I haven't posted anything in FOREVER. Everything I'm working on is stuff I'm not ready to post yet. And I just haven't had the muse for Morning Gift (still need a new title for that...) but I swear I will finish it! But here's something from me after so long at least. :D
And sorry for any medical and emergency procedure inaccuracies. I'm not in medicine or any emergemcy position. This is based on an episode of Law & Order: SVU my mom was watching and I went with how they did things.
"Don't worry, Sammy," Dean groaned in the general direction of the phone held in Castiel's hand, his own hands gripping the steering wheel. "I'll take good care of Cas."
A sigh filtered through the phone's speaker before Sam spoke. "I know, I know. It's just this is his last appointment-"
"-before his due date and blah, blah, blah," Dean interrupted. "I get it, Sam. You told me that a thousand times."
"Jerk," Sam huffed in agitation.
"Bitch," Dean easily finished with a grin. "Look, Sam, we're almost there. I'll have Cas call you after and fill you in on all those girly details you love so much, okay?"
"Yeah, fine. Cas?"
"I'm here," Castiel said, absently trailing his free hand across his very pregnant middle.
"I'm sorry I couldn't come this time, sweetheart," Sam said, sounding like he was making those puppy eyes of sadness.
"It's alright, Sam. I understand," Castiel assured with a genuine smile his partner couldn't see. "This trial is important. You need to be there. Besides, this appointment is merely one last checkup."
"I know," Sam sighed. Then there was murmuring in the background followed by a slightly muffled "Okay" from Sam before his attention returned to the phone. "I gotta go back in there, Cas. I'll see you later, okay?"
"Okay," Castiel agreed. "I love you, Sam."
"I love you, too, Cas."
After ending the call, Castiel set the phone on the seat between himself and Dean then both hands were rubbing up and down his abdomen as he stared out of the front window.
Dean glanced at him when he caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and frowned in concern. "You okay?"
Castiel nodded but his grimace didn't do anything to help assuage Dean's worries.
"I'm fine," Castiel grunted. "Baby is just very active. I think it likes the motion of your car."
Dean grinned, absently stroking a palm across the steering wheel as if to praise his Baby. "Yeah? Kid's not even born and he's got good taste."
Castiel chuckled and grinned at Dean "You know, it might be a girl."
"Might be," Dean agreed. "But I feel like it's a boy. Why are you and Sam keeping it a surprise anyway? It's your first. Don't you wanna know what you're having?"
"It is because it's our first that we're keeping it a surprise. It's harder to do that with subsequent children. I know I am having a healthy baby and that is all that matters," Castiel said with determined finality, arms wrapping more protectively around his stomach.
"Oh, yeah? You thinking about more, Cas?" Dean teased, grinning at him for a moment before returning his attention to the road.
"I'm not sure," Castiel said thoughtfully. "Sam is not a carrier so it would be me having any more babies. I'm not sure how I feel about getting pregnant again. I am very excited about this baby but being pregnant can be very uncomfortable."
Before Dean could respond, a horn blared from their right followed by the sight of a black SUV coming toward them way too fast then the deafening sound of crunching metal and shattering glass and then everything went dark.
~oOoOo~
Dean slowly returned to consciousness some indeterminable amount of time later. His eyes fluttered open and he groaned slightly when his head throbbed at the point where it was resting against the driver's side window. He must have hit his head when the other driver hit them. Keeping as still as he could for the moment, he took stock of his body and surroundings.
The front window was shattered on one side, glass dusting the dash, the seat, his legs and chest. He felt a few stinging cuts on his face but when he carefully sat straighter in his seat, nothing else hurt. Relief washed over him until he realized he hadn't heard a sound from Castiel yet. Looking to his right, he saw why.
Castiel was unconscious, face turned toward Dean. He had glass shards covering his belly and chest and cuts dotting his face, too. Behind Castiel, Dean could see the smashed front end of the SUV that had hit them. It was smushed right up into the front right side of the Impala. Because Dean's car was smaller, it'd caved like nothing and Castiel's side of the front was collapsed in, pinning his legs in from knees down.
"Cas?" Dean called, carefully edging across the seat toward his friend. He didn't dare touch him in case Castiel was hurt somehow, but the fact that he hadn't regained consciousness made worry flare up in Dean's chest.
A knock on the driver's side window jolted Dean out of his assessment of his friend and he turned to see a female officer with short dark hair looking in on them in concern. Instantly recognizing her as a family friend, Dean attempted to push the door open but it wouldn't budge. He tried rolling down the window but that wouldn't move either.
"Baby, forgive me," he muttered then took a deep breath and slammed his elbow into the window. The officer, recognizing what he was trying to do, backed away as he did it a few more times. On the third try, the window shattered and the officer's face reappeared.
"Dean," she breathed in relief. "I was on my way into work when I saw what happened. Imagine my shock when I saw your car being smashed into. I already called it in. Emergency personnel should be here soon. Are you guys okay?"
"Jody," Dean breathed in relief. "It's freakin' awesome to see you. I'm fine. But Cas is..." He trailed off and glanced at his friend, still unconscious beside him. "He hasn't woken up. And his legs are pinned." The static of a walkie caught his attention and he turned to see Jody lifting hers to her mouth.
"Dispatch, advise fire department one of the victims is a pregnant carrier and is pinned," she said into it. When she received a confirmation, she lowered it and peered into the car at Castiel with worry before returning her attention to Dean. "They're on their way, honey. Are you hurt?"
"Just my head where I hit the window. I don't think it was hard enough to cause any damage," he admitted then tensed when Jody's hand came toward his face. She prodded gently at the blooming bruise before shaking her head.
"You'll have a nice bump and some bruising but you seem alert and your pupils aren't dilated. Having a thick skull came in handy, huh?" she teased.
The wailing of sirens filled the distance and quickly increased in volume, catching their attention. As emergency vehicles arrived, Jody straightened and took a few steps away from the Impala. Dean tuned her out for now, returning his attention to Castiel who still hadn't come around.
Unable to ignore his brain's insistence that Castiel may not just be unconscious, Dean carefully pressed shaking fingers against his neck. An involuntary sob of relief bubbled up from his throat when he felt a pulse.
"Dean?" Jody called peering back into the window, having been alerted by the sound. "Everything okay?"
"Cas is still out but he's alive," Dean confirmed.
A fireman approached and she turned her attention to him for a moment before turning back to the car. "The SUV is making it impossible to get Cas out from that side. And we already know your door is jammed. Which means we can't get either of you out that way. I'm really sorry, Dean, but they want to cut the roof of your baby off."
Dean swallowed hard, eyes flicking over the carnage of shattered glass and bent metal around them, Castiel pinned beside him, the windowless door he knew was jammed beside him. They were going to destroy his baby even further. But… that would be okay because they'd get Castiel out and make sure he and the baby were okay. And Dean could always rebuild the Impala. He'd done it before though never to that extent.
Swallowing hard, he nodded. "Do it," he said even though it hadn't been a matter of needing his permission to continue. The firemen would do what they had to do to get them out whether Dean gave his permission or not. "Get Cas out."
Jody nodded and turned to call out to a few people. While she spoke with a few firemen, a black man younger than Dean appeared at Castiel's side of the car, gaining Dean's attention. He could see an EMT badge on the kid's chest and bicep.
"Hi," the EMT said softly, giving Dean a small, disarming smile. "My name's Jake. I'm gonna help your friend but I can't get to him to do it. I'll walk you through what we need to do, okay?"
Dean nodded and shifted in his seat so he was facing Castiel and Jake more fully.
"Okay, first, I want you to place your hands on either side of his head and keep it steady," Jake directed, his tone remaining calm and patient and though Dean wouldn't admit it, it helped calm him a bit.
He nodded and carefully wrapped an arm around Castiel to brace his hand against the other side of Castiel's neck, gingerly straightening his head. As he did, Castiel's eyes fluttered and he moaned faintly.
"Cas?" he called softly. He couldn't help a grin when Castiel's eyes fluttered open, blue eyes flicking back and forth to take in their surroundings.
"Dean?" he whimpered.
"I got you, Cas. Try not to move. They're gonna get us out," Dean soothed.
Castiel whimpered again, pressing his lips into a thin line. "Please hurry. My water broke."
Dean and Jake both looked down toward Castiel's thighs, seeing a wet patch where his thighs were pressed together. Panic speared through Dean's chest but when he glanced at Jake, the EMT was calm as he carefully pushed a neck brace through the window.
"Fit this around his neck," he calmly instructed. "Chin goes there," he added, nodding toward the curved dip.
Keeping one hand braced against Castiel's neck, Dean used the other to slip the brace into place. As he did, Castiel whimpered and moaned, squeezing his eyes tightly shut.
"Sorry, sorry," Dean kept muttering, feeling sick that he could be hurting Castiel trying to save him.
"Not you," Castiel groaned. "Contraction."
Once the brace was in place, Dean cautiously moved his hands away a few inches, glancing at Jake.
"Good," he praised. "Keep your hands on him though."
Dean nodded and replaced his hands against Castiel's neck then noticed the other man was no longer whimpering and moaning. He glanced at his eyes to find they had closed again.
"Cas?" he called, gently tapping against Castiel's cheek in an attempt to get a response, that feeling of panic spiking. "Cas?" Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a new color mixing with the amniotic fluid on Castiel's pants. Red. "Hey," he called toward Jake then nodded toward Castiel's thighs. "He's bleeding."
Jake leaned into the car as best as he could to look, too. "He's dehydrated," he muttered before turning away from the car to call out to another EMT. "I need an IV kit!"
"How are you going to get one in?" Dean growled, masking the overwhelming panic he was having a harder and harder time suppressing. "You can't get in and I don't know what the hell I'm doing!"
"I'll talk you through it," Jake calmly said. "It'll be okay. Find the biggest vein in his arm."
Dean swallowed back the urge to scream at Jake for assuming he could do this when Dean's brain was screaming at him not to fuck up and hurt Castiel further. He pushed up the sleeve of Castiel's shirt and carefully pressed his fingers against the pale skin. After a few seconds he shook his head, a sharp, jerky motion.
"I can't find it!" he snarled.
"Easy," Jake soothed. "It's okay. He's too dehydrated then. Just look for the blue."
Dean glared down at Castiel's arm as he pressed his thumbs across the skin there. Then he saw blue streaked through the milky white and kept his thumb there to mark his place. "I got it," he called.
"Take the needle," Jake said, passing said needle through the window, "and stick it in parallel to his arm towards you. When you see a flash of blood, you'll know you're in."
With a shaking hand, Dean took the needle and flipped it around in his hand, positioning it over Castiel's arm. He took a deep breath then carefully pierced the flesh with the needle. When he saw the red, he stopped.
"I'm in," he said.
"Hold the needle but pull out the top and then you're gonna tape it in place," Jake instructed, taking the other piece from Dean and handing him a strip of medical tape. When Dean had done so, he passed in a bag and tubing. "The end of the tubing just pushes into the end of the needle and then you're going to squeeze the bag."
Dean took the items and held the bag in one hand while the other fumbled to insert the tubing. It took him a couple tries to line it up but once he got it, he began to rhythmically squeeze the bag. He kept his eyes on Castiel's face as he did, waiting for him to wake up again. The longer Dean squeezed the bag and Castiel remained unconscious, the more the sick feeling of panic ate at him.
"Come on, Cas," he growled. He squeezed the bag several more times then saw Castiel's eyes flutter open. Relief washed away the panicky feeling as blue eyes met his once more. "He's back," he breathed in relief, not sure if he was assuring himself or telling Jake.
"Nice job," Jake praised then stepped away from the car for a moment.
He was replaced by a fireman on Dean's side of the car.
"Sir," the fireman called, waiting for Dean to twist enough to see him. "We're going to take the roof of the car off now. There'll be noise but you're not in any danger."
In all the excitement of Castiel waking up then losing consciousness again then waking up and having to help the EMT care for him, Dean had forgotten they needed to take apart his baby. He gave the fireman a sharp nod in response then returned his attention to Castiel in time to see a second fireman at his window.
"Take this coat," he said, passing Dean the item through the window. "Cover his face. We're gonna knock out the last of the glass so we can take the roof off. We don't wanna cut you two up any further."
Dean nodded and carefully draped the coat over Castiel who was still whimpering and moaning through contractions. He heard the shattering of the last of the glass on his car then the groaning of metal being cut through. Then the roof was being lifted away and sunlight bathed the two of them.
Castiel's hand slithered onto Dean's thigh and gripped tightly as he whimpered in distress. "Dean," he moaned.
"I'm here, Cas," he said, pulling the coat away and tossing it toward the backseat without any care for where it landed. The fireman it belonged to could retrieve it later. When he glanced back at Castiel, he had tears in his eyes.
"Dean," he whimpered. "They're too fast. It hurts."
"You're doing great, Cas," Dean soothed, gently brushing a tear and some blood from a cut off his cheek.
"I want Sam," Castiel whimpered, the sound ending on a sob.
"We'll get him, just try to stay calm and breathe," Dean assured then twisted around to look for Jody. "Jody!" he called when he saw her a few feet away.
She jogged over, offering him a reassuring, if tight, smile. "You guys'll be out in a sec," she said.
"Did anyone call Sam and tell him what's going on?" he asked, ignoring her attempt to placate him.
"I tried but no answer," she said, pitching her voice so only Dean could hear while Castiel moaned louder through another wave of pain, his hand gripping Dean's thigh tighter but Dean hardly noticed it. If it helped Castiel, the pregnant male could grab him as hard as he wanted.
"He's in the middle of a trial and probably won't answer his cell. Call them directly and ask for him. They'll get in there and get him," Dean said. He wasn't sure exactly how it worked when a lawyer in the middle of a trial was needed for a family emergency but he refused to believe they wouldn't get Sam out of there to Castiel.
"Got it," Jody said, stepping away to go make her call.
"Hey," Dean called toward Jake. "Contractions are coming way too fast. Isn't there anything you can do to slow them down? They have drugs for that, don't they?"
Jake shook his head, his expression apologetic. "There are but we don't carry them with us. I'm sorry but there's nothing we can do."
Dean growled in frustration.
"Dean!"
He turned when Jody called his name, seeing her jogging up toward the car, her cell extended to him. "They got Sam. He wants to talk to you."
Dean took the phone, pressed speaker, and held it between them. "Sammy?"
"Dean!" Sam cried, sounding relieved. "Jody told me what happened. How's Cas?"
Castiel chose that moment to moan again.
"Cas?" Sam called. "Sweetheart, I'm here."
"Sam," Castiel whimpered. "The baby's coming. I want you here."
"I know, sweetheart," Sam soothed. "I'm going to meet you guys at the hospital. Dean's taking good care of you though, right?"
"Y-Yes," Castiel whimpered, offering a small smile toward the phone. "Dean's taking really good care of me. I am thankful he is with me."
"Good," Sam said through a huff of amusement and Dean guessed he was probably smiling. "I love you, Cas."
"I love you, too, Sam."
Dean ended the call and Castiel sobbed once, the sob followed by a panicked whine.
"Dean! The baby… the baby's moving down! My legs!" he whined and Dean saw his legs twitch as he tried to move them.
"Hey, easy, Cas," Dean soothed, shifting so Castiel was forced to look at him. "Just stay calm and breathe. They're almost ready to get your legs out. Just hold on a little longer, okay?"
Castiel's eyes locked onto Dean's as he sobbed, his hand fumbling for Dean's. Dean grasped both of Castiel's hands in both of his and squeezed hard.
"Focus on me, Cas, okay? Squeeze my hands and don't let go. Ignore the noise," he said as the firemen started up their equipment to free Castiel's legs. "Ignore the noise and just listen to me and breathe. They're gonna get you out in a sec."
Castiel moaned long and low, squeezing Dean's hands hard. "They're stronger. The baby's so low; there's so much pressure. I want out, I want out," he whined.
Dean bit his lip at his friend's distress and glared toward the firemen. "Hey! Can we hurry this up! He needs out of here now!"
"We're almost done," one of the firemen assured over the noise of their machinery. "We'll have him out in two seconds, I swear."
Dean nodded and focused back on Castiel who was panting hard through the discomfort.
"Almost done, Cas. Almost done," he murmured, stroking his thumbs back and forth across Castiel's knuckles which where white with the grip he had on Dean's hands.
As the equipment pushed the collapsed chunk of car off of Castiel's legs, he moaned long and low, legs twitching with the desire to move. He muttered "ow" a few times but his grip on Dean's hands didn't lessen and his eyes didn't waver.
"We got him," one of the firemen said, gaining Dean's attention. "But we need you to exit the vehicle so we can get the spinal board in."
"Dean," Castiel whimpered. "Don't leave me."
"I'm not going anywhere, Cas," Dean said firmly, glaring at the firemen and EMT who had come up with said board. "I'm not moving. I'm out of your way but I'm not letting go of him."
The two glanced at each other then, realizing Dean wasn't going to listen, stepped up to the car. They carefully slid the board behind Castiel while Dean released one of his hands to shift off to the side. He kept a firm grip on Castiel's other hand as they carefully lifted him up on the board and strapped him in.
"You're going to have to let go of him for a second so we can move him," Jake calmly told Dean. "But you can ride in the ambulance with us."
While Dean didn't like listening to orders and refused to leave his family, especially when sick or injured, Jake's calming demeanor had soothed him through this whole ordeal and Dean couldn't help feeling a bit of respect for the young man. So if Jake was telling him he had to let go of Castiel's hand, Dean found himself reluctantly letting go. Castiel whimpered at the loss but as Dean carefully jumped to the pavement from what was left of his baby, he called out to Castiel, letting him know Dean was right there and that he wasn't going anywhere.
"Dean," Jody called, jogging back over to him as Castiel was moved from the car. "I've got officers holding traffic from here to the hospital. I'll get Bobby to come collect your car for you, too."
Dean nodded his thanks and glanced at the other car, the SUV that had hit them. "What about the other driver?" he asked, turning back to Jody. He hadn't thought about the well-being of the person that had hit them through all the commotion.
"Drunk teenager taking his moms' car out for a joyride," Jody snarled in disgust. "Barely a scratch on the kid."
"Seriously?! He causes it and my baby gets destroyed and Cas is in freaking labor and he walks away from this with a scratch?!"
"I know, Dean," Jody soothed. "But Cas'll be okay."
"Hey, we're ready to go!" Jake called.
"Go," Jody encouraged with a nod toward the ambulance.
Dean nodded his thanks and jogged toward the ambulance, swiftly sliding inside and back toward Castiel who was moaning and whimpering. Once the doors were shut, Jake knocked on the wall between them and the cab.
"Go," he called then turned his attention to Castiel. "Just hold on, okay? We're ten minutes away."
"I can't," Castiel sobbed. "The baby is coming now!"
Immediately, Jake started undoing the straps that held Castiel to the spinal board and working his pants away. He muttered an expletive Dean was sure only he had heard, Castiel lost in another wave of pain and moaning through his sobs.
"He's fully dilated. Baby's crowning," Jake said, looking at Dean. "Get behind him and let him push against you."
Dean nodded and carefully helped Castiel sit up and slipped behind him, settling the slightly smaller male against his chest. "I got you, Cas," he soothed, slipping his hands into Castiel's for the other man to squeeze.
Castiel moaned and let his knees fall open, gripping Dean's hands tightly. "I can't hold it," he whined. "I gotta push!"
"Go ahead," Jake said calmly, placing his gloved hands against Castiel's knees and gently encouraging him to spread them a little wider. "I've got you."
Castiel whimpered, grasped at the back of his thighs, then bore down hard, a cry tearing from his lips. He focused again and pushed with a bit more control, his face scrunched up in determination. It only took a few pushes like that before the head was fully delivered. Castiel sobbed once with relief, leaning back against Dean who squeezed his hands firmly.
"You're doing great, Cas," he murmured into his friend's ear.
"Okay, hang on a minute," Jake said, doing something between Castiel's legs that Dean couldn't see. "Just breathe a minute… that's it… okay, push."
Castiel whimpered then took a breath and pushed long and hard, a drawn out cry pulling from his throat. When he eased up and leaned against Dean, panting, his cry was replaced with the cries of a baby. Jake lifted the baby up and settled it into Castiel's arms, smiling warmly.
Castiel grinned through the tears slipping down his cheeks as he cradled his baby close to his chest. He trailed his fingers down the baby's cheek and touched the baby's little hand.
"Beautiful," he murmured.
Then the alarms Jake and the other EMT had hooked Castiel to began beeping their warnings. Dean jerked his gaze to the monitor and saw one of the numbers rapidly decreasing. When he leaned forward to look at Castiel, his eyes were closed again.
"Cas?" he called. "Cas?! What's happening?"
"B.P.'s dropping. He's coding," Jake said, immediately taking the baby and passing it to Dean who had slipped away from Castiel to let Jake work. "Keep the baby warm."
Dean nodded and numbly tucked the baby close as he watched the EMTs work on his unconscious friend, the monitors sounding like they were blaring under water in the background.
~oOoOo~
Sam pushed through the doors of the maternity ward, heart racing. When he spotted his brother pacing across the hall, several doors down, he broke into a jog, worry for his partner and child sending a spear of adrenaline through him.
"Dean!" he called as he neared but he didn't wait for his brother's response. As he neared, he caught a glimpse of his partner in the room behind Dean and pushed past him. He slowed as he entered the room, eyes wide as they landed on his partner.
"Cas," he breathed.
In the bed, Castiel grinned at him, their baby nestled in his arms. The pink and blue blanket and white cap didn't make it obvious whether they had a son or a daughter. Cuts dotted Castiel's face but he appeared fine otherwise.
"Sam," Castiel said, reaching an arm out to the taller man.
Sam closed the distance between them in a few long strides and settled on the edge of the bed, carefully wrapping his arms around his partner and child. "You're okay," he murmured into Castiel's dark hair before burying his nose into it.
"I'm fine," Castiel assured, his own words muffled in Sam's chest. He pulled away enough to speak clearly. "Dean took care of me. Just like he said he would."
Sam's dropped his hold on his mate to hover his hands over the sleeping infant, eyes flicking between it and Castiel's bright blue eyes. "And the baby?"
"The baby is perfect. It's a girl," he whispered as though he were sharing a secret.
"A daughter," Sam sighed happily, grinning hard enough to bring out his dimples. "May I?"
Castiel nodded and gently settled their daughter into Sam's arms. "I know we had a name picked out for a boy and a girl, but… I want to name her after Dean somehow. I can't express how grateful I am to have had your brother through that. He was like my hero today. My rock in a turbulent sea of pain and fear. I was so terrified, Sam, and Dean helped me through it all when I didn't have you."
Sam's smile fell and he dropped his gaze from Castiel to the baby in his arms. "I'm sorry I wasn't there."
"Sam, no." He reached out and gently tilted Sam's face back up. "I know you would have been there if you could. And even having Dean, I still wanted you. My point is just that Dean is her uncle and I know he will make a great one. And he was a big part of her life already by helping me through her birth."
Sam sucked his lower lip between his teeth in thought, seeing the love for him in Castiel's eyes. This didn't mean Dean meant more than Sam. How could he even think that? He's the one Castiel chose. He's the one that has a baby with Castiel, a beautiful baby he held in his arms right now.
"Okay," he said. "That sounds like a nice idea. But Dean is nit feminine and the only female variant I can think of is Deanna but that was our grandmother."
With a huff, Castiel slumped against the pillows. He hummed thoughtfully, staring at their daughter. "What about something Dean loves? Like a band or something."
Sam huffed a laugh and shook his head. "Dean's favorite songs are 'Ramble On' and 'Traveling Riverside Blues' by Led Zeppelin so I assume they're his favorite band. Still not very feminine."
"Zeppelin!" Castiel said with a grin.
"No," Sam laughed. "It's not really a common name for a kid."
Castiel snorted. "Neither is Castiel."
Sam bit his lip then nodded. "Okay, fair point. You thinking first or middle name?"
"Middle," Castiel snorted in amusement. "I know what it's like to have an odd first name. But at least mine has a normal nickname."
"So what would her first name be?" Sam asked, shifting around with their daughter to sit beside Castiel. The smaller man immediately pressed into his side and smiled affectionately at the baby.
After a moment of thoughtful silence, Castiel huffed. "No idea."
"I've got another suggestion that might mean a little more to Dean than just using his favorite band," Sam admitted softly. When Castiel tilted his head up to look at him curiously, Sam ducked his head and huffed a nervous breath. "When we were kids and I was sick or scared or whatever, Dean would sing 'Hey Jude' to me. He said Mom used to sing it to him. That song is meaningful to Dean. I think he would appreciate it more if we used that."
Castiel nodded against Sam's shoulder and lifted a hand to trail down the baby's cheek. "Jude. It is perfect.
~oOoOo~
"So," Dean drawled, clapping Sam on the back. "Sammy's a daddy."
Sam smiled wide enough that his dimples popped, looking down at Jude through the nursery window. She was close enough to the window that the name tag at the end of her cot wasn't visible unless they pressed their noses to the glass. But they knew it was her. Castiel was asleep in his room and Sam didn't want to wake him. Plus, he still couldn't get enough of his daughter. So he and Dean had come to the nursery. There was something so peaceful about watching the baby sleep.
"Yeah," he said. "So… we haven't told you her name yet."
Dean snorted in amusement and grinned at his brother. "What did you pick? Something really girly like Samantha?"
Sam blushed and ducked his head. "She's… not named after me," he mumbled.
"Yeah? You name her after Cas? Like, Cassandra or Cassie?" Dean asked, his teasing tone replaced with genuine curiosity. He'd only been messing with Sam but Sam seemed like what he'd said hit close to the truth…
"She's kind of named after you, Dean," Sam finally admitted, meeting his brother's wide eyes. "Well, not exactly. Her name's not Deanna or anything. We named her after something that meant a lot to you because Castiel wanted to thank you for what you did today-"
"C'mon, that was nothin'," Dean said, waving a hand. "S'not like I was gonna leave Cas in that car."
"I know. But he's so thankful that you were with him when I couldn't be. And he – and I do, too – knows you're going to be a great uncle. And he wanted to do something to thank you," Sam said. "So… We named her Jude."
Dean's eyes widened and flicked between his niece and his brother. "You named her Jude? Like, as in 'Hey Jude'?"
Sam nodded. "Yes. You told me how Mom used to sing you that song and then you sang it to me. You say your favorite song is a tie between two Led Zeppelin songs but I know 'Hey Jude' is just as important. So..." He trailed off with a shrug, Dean's silence making him nervous. "Say something," he finally pleaded.
Instead, Dean pulled him into a firm hug, clapping him against the back a few times. "Thanks, Sammy. That means a lot to me that you two think so highly of me. I swear I'm gonna be the best damn uncle Judy's ever had."
Sam groaned in annoyance but couldn't help grinning against Dean's shoulder. "You're already nicknaming her Judy?"
"Hell, yeah!" Dean cheered as he pulled away from Sam and grinned down at Jude.
"You know, when we were thinking of things you love since we couldn't use your name very well, Cas wanted to call her Zeppelin after your favorite band."
Dean barked a laugh and shook his head fondly. "I'm glad you picked Jude. I can't think of a nickname for Zeppelin."
"That was going to be her middle name. But we didn't know what to do for a first name to go with it," Sam explained.
"Do you have a middle name for Jude?"
"No."
"Zeppelin!"
"No!" Sam laughed. "We are not naming her Jude Zeppelin."
"Why not? It sounds nice! C'mon, let's go ask Cas," Dean said, turning away and heading back toward Castiel's room.
"Dean, he's sleeping!" Sam called, jogging after him. "And he won't like it either!"
Behind them, Jude slept on, unaware of the intensity of the love her little family was filled with and that they already had for her.