AN: I was watching Jeremy Kyle and this popped into my head. I like Jeremy Kyle, shut up. Let me know what you think!
"I've helped raise your kid for 8 years – is he mine?"
The tagline flashed across the screen in front of Dean, and he steadily inhaled and exhaled before standing up. He strode over to the stage entrance, in time to hear Gabriel say: "And next on our show – a man who has helped his ex-girlfriend raise 'their' child for 8 years since he was born, but now has doubts about whether the child is his….Dean Winchester!"
Dean walked on stage nervously to the applause of the audience, over to where Gabriel was perched on the edge of an armchair. His roommate's cousin gave him a wink and a nod.
"Dean-o! How are you?"
"Hey, Gabriel," Dean said as he slumped into the chair next to the diminutive man. "You know, I'm here"
As the audience chortled, Gabriel turned back to them, adding, "I forgot to mention, Dean here is my cousin's roommate, but you'll get to meet my baby cuz later! Now, Dean," he said, voice taking on a more serious note, "Lisa was your high school girlfriend, yes?"
At the coaxing tone in Gabriel's voice, Dean leaned forward in his seat to share his story.
"Yeah, I mean…we were together in high school. And I thought we were in love, you know? And one day she tells me she's pregnant. We were both pretty freaked out, but she wanted to keep the baby, so I said I'd be there for her."
He paused as the audience let out sympathetic noises, and cleared his throat.
"Yeah, well, when our son – Ben – was four, we broke up. We still get along, mostly, we just don't work as a couple. She kicked me out, and I promised I'd stick around for Ben's sake. But a few times when we were together…..she said some stuff."
"What kind of stuff?" Gabriel prompted.
"Well….she'd say stuff like I wasn't the real father, she wished we'd never stay together….she was drunk when she said it, though, so I didn't take much notice. But the other day, she was dropping Ben off, and we got into a huge argument and she ended up saying she was glad I wasn't Ben's dad, because then he'd have even less chance of being like me."
The audience gasped.
"And I just wanna know the truth, you know? But I wish she hadn't said that stuff in front of Ben. I'm just glad Cas was there to cover his ears when she was saying the worst of it."
"Cas is Castiel, my cousin, by the way!" Gabriel told the audience. "So, you say she's said numerous times you aren't the father, but now she's saying it sober? Wow. And after these DNA results, what will you do?"
Dean gave a helpless shrug.
"I dunno, man. I'll wanna be a part of his life no matter what, I love that kid. I don't want to get back with Lisa, this isn't about that at all. I actually like her new boyfriend, he's cool. I just want to be able to be a part of Ben's life."
On cue, the audience aww'ed again. Gabriel stood up.
"And now, the woman at the centre of it all, Miss Lisa Braedon!"
There was a mix of cheers and boos as Lisa stalked on stage, before scowling at Dean and flopping into the armchair the furthest away from him.
"Hey, Lis," Dean said awkwardly.
"Shut up, Dean."
"Hey! Don't be rude!" Gabriel pouted. Lisa rolled her eyes. "Do you want to give us our side of the story?"
She shrugged.
"I never said that Dean was Ben's father, he just seemed like the most likely candidate."
"We were an exclusive couple!" Dean yelled, half rising from his chair before a warning look from a tall, long haired man in the audience made him sit down. "The hell, Lisa?"
"Lisa, you can't just say stuff like that, especially not to my big brother," the man in the audience called out. Gabriel looked over to him.
"Well if it isn't Sammy! Wanna join us up here? Ladies and gentlemen, Dean's baby brother and my future husband, Sam Winchester!"
Sam blushed as he walked to where Dean sat.
"We aren't even dating, Gabriel!"
"One day, Samsquatch, one day."
"Can we get back to the subject of my big brother's paternity, please?"
"Of course! Lisa, are you admitting to cheating on Dean when you two were together?"
Lisa made a non-committal noise in her throat, and Dean sank lower into his chair.
"It doesn't matter. I don't want him around my kid anymore."
"And why not?"
"Well, he's doing his roommate, isn't he?"
Everyone in the studio gaped at her.
"And I don't want my kid around a bunch of faggots."
The audience erupted, and the security looked as if they were having second thoughts about restraining Dean, Sam, and even Gabriel.
"In case you didn't realise, Lisa, I am one of those….'faggots'," Gabriel said, his tone icy. "And if you are going to use language like that, ever, I would suggest you do it where absolutely no one can hear you, because there won't always be someone to stop you from getting punched in the face."
"Yeah, and I'm not sleeping with Cas!" Dean protested.
She folded her arm. "Whatever."
Gabriel seemed to regain control of himself, and straightened his tie. "Let's bring Cassie out here!"
There was yet another cheer from the audience as a quiet-looking young man made his way on stage, sitting down next to Dean. He patted Dean's arm reassuringly, and Dean gave him a small smile.
"Hey, Cas."
"Hello, Dean."
Gabriel rolled his eyes.
"She might have a point about you two, you know."
Castiel glared daggers at the host, who shifted on his feet.
"Anyway, Cassie, what do you have to say about all this?"
Castiel spoke slowly, weighing each word.
"Well, Dean and I have been friends since before he dated Lisa. I supported them wholeheartedly, and was there to help them out with babysitting duties and stuff like that. When Lisa and Dean broke up, he moved in with me, and we both cared for Ben when Dean had him over for the weekend. Dean never really had any doubts until the event in question, when Lisa accused us of sleeping together and told him that she was glad that Ben wasn't his son, because then he wouldn't be a…" his voice trailed off, and he whispered to Gabriel, "am I allowed to say it on television?"
Gabriel clapped him on the shoulder. "Sure!"
"…..a fucking faggot. I was covering Ben's ears by this point, so hopefully he didn't hear too much, but Dean was, obviously, very upset. Lisa took Ben home, and I had to care for Dean the rest of the weekend. He was broken hearted, he loves Ben."
Castiel and Dean's chairs were right next to one another, and Castiel was subconsciously rubbing small circles into the skin of Dean's arm as he spoke, Dean visibly relaxing as he did so. A few people in the audience were nudging one another and pointing at the two surreptitiously, making cute faces as they did so. Gabriel winked at them, and then gestured for the DNA and lie detector results to be brought over.
"Right. First things first. We asked Dean Winchester, at Lisa's insistence: 'Have you ever have sexual contact with Castiel Novak?' He answered 'No'. Wanna know why?"
"I was telling the truth," Dean said, sounding bored.
"He was telling the truth!" Gabriel said, tossing the card in the air before adding, "You guys totally should, though."
"Gabriel!"
"Alright! Next, we asked Lisa Braedon: 'During the course of your relationship with Dean Winchester, did you ever have sexual intercourse with a man other than him, who may potentially be the father of your child?' You answered, 'No'. Why?"
"Because I was telling the truth," Lisa said, glaring at him.
"You're a liar, aren't you Lisa? This test says you were lying."
Dean closed his eyes, and Sam and Castiel hugged him from where they sat either side of him. Lisa stared directly ahead, refusing to react. Gabriel shrugged, and pulled out the next card.
"DNA results! We tested to see whether or not Benjamin Braedon was in fact Dean Winchester's son, and…..oh."
There was a silence.
"Dean, I am so sorry. You are not Ben's father."
Dean stood up and left the stage, as Lisa rose and called after him, "And you're never seeing him ever again!" Castiel and Sam ran after him, and Gabriel glared at Lisa.
"Get off my stage. Balthazar will sort out you and Dean in the AfterCare part now. I never want to see you again."
Lisa stormed offstage. Meanwhile, Dean was in tears backstage, curled with his head in Castiel's lap. Castiel looked at Sam helplessly.
"Should we get him home?"
A man with a v-necked grey sweatshirt that matched his eyes and blonde hair walked up to them.
"Hello, gents. I'm Balthazar, and I'm here just to help make arrangements for Dean and Lisa. I understand she doesn't want Ben to have anything more to do with Dean, but I feel it would be best for this to be explained to Ben. If Dean could write a confidential letter of some sorts to Ben, which I personally ensure will get to him, then it will be a step forward for everyone."
Dean and Castiel entered their apartment, and Dean flopped onto his bed. Castiel sat on the opposite side that wasn't occupied by Dean, and pretty soon Dean had his head in Castiel's lap, with Castiel absent-mindedly carding his fingers through Dean's hair. Dean sighed.
"What am I gonna do, Cas?"
Castiel's hand stilled as he thought, before resuming it's comforting rhythm. "You are going to write a letter to Ben. And then he is going to read it. Who knows? One day you two may become friends."
Dean sat up and looked at his best friend.
"You're awesome, Cas, you know that? You're just here, putting up with all my shit, and you aren't even complaining. I just…I owe you, man."
Castiel smiled.
"You owe me nothing, Dean. I am here for you, just as you are here for me. What are best friends for?"
Dean wrapped him in an unexpected hug.
"Thanks," he breathed. Castiel patted his back uncertainly.
"You're welcome, Dean." They pulled apart after a couple of minutes, but Castiel noticed Dean's hesitation.
"What is it, Dean?" Dean refused to look at him.
"I sometimes wonder if Lisa was right about us."
Castiel didn't trust himself to speak.
"I mean, I know you're straight, but around you I feel…..I dunno. I can't explain it. Like with the Ben thing, I should feel more upset, but because you're here, I just feel like everything's gonna be fine, you know? Like nothing bad can happen. And I don't feel like that around anyone else, and it's kind of freaking me out, man."
They stared at one another, and Castiel slowly brought his hand up to graze Dean's cheek with his thumb.
"I know exactly what you mean," he whispered, before slowly pulling Dean's face to his own and kissing him. Dean melted instantly, and opened his mouth to deepen the kiss. Hesitantly, Castiel brushed his tongue against the opening of Dean's mouth, and Dean eagerly met it with his own, lovingly licking his way into his best friend's mouth as the pair of them let out low groans. Both of Castiel's hands were placed at the back of Dean's neck, holding him close, and Dean drew him in with his arms locking around Castiel's waist.
They leisurely pulled apart, and gazed at each other before Dean gave a small laugh.
"That was new."
"Agreed."
"Wanna go to sleep?"
"Sure."
They fell asleep on Dean's bed, fully clothed, curled into one another.
8 years later, there was a knock on the door of Dean and Castiel's four bedroom home.
"Dean, can you get that? I'm kind of…." Castiel gestured towards himself, covered head to toe in paint as Claire and Mary Winchester giggled. Dean laughed and stood up from the sofa, leaving his husband and adopted twin daughters in the living room as he made his way to answer the front door.
A teenage boy stood on the porch. Dean hadn't seen him in almost a decade, but he would know that face anywhere.
"Ben?"
"Hi Dean. Can I come in?" Benjamin Braedon said, holding up an ancient scrap of paper. Dean recognised the handwriting on it. It was his own, after all.
FIN
AN: Leaving it open ended, both so you guys can draw your own conclusions, and I might come back to this 'verse.
Also I actually like Lisa in the show, but she just got bitchier the more I wrote and I kind of regret that. So sorry.
Reviews are very much appreciated!