Getting married in Slaughter Beach, Delaware sounded appropriate enough, that even in Dean's opinion it was all worth the hassle to book the Firehall, and let Charlie and Jody go nuts with the planning for the reception. It was worth it to show up at the County Clerk's office in Sussex, with birth certificates of one Dean Winchester and a certain Castiel Singer, and fork out the $80 to get the marriage license application process rolling.
It was even worth the nauseating nervousness building in Dean's chest, and the inexplicable way he was sweating bullets for the next four days before they actually got their hands on the license, and hell if it wasn't worth the blisters forming on his heels by the squeaky new, but fuckin' bitchin' black-and-white oxford shoes.
Dean gnawed his lip briefly before lifting his eyes from said shoes, when the sound of footsteps followed the click of a door closing. This time, it wasn't the click of Charlie's heels that approached him, coming to check for the umpteenth time if Dean needed a ginger ale to 'soothe his poor, poor tummy'. This time, it was Sam. Sammy, with a fond smile on his face, and mischief lighting his eyes, as he took in Dean's appearance and nodded approvingly. "It's time."
Sam opened the door to the main area, and visibly swallowed down the haha-very-fucking-funny quip about blushing brides, opting instead to clap a hand to Dean's shoulder and giving it a firm squeeze. The smile on Sam's face seemed almost watery when he held Dean's eye and nodded; "I'm proud of you."
With that, Sam ushered Dean out of the cupboard of a room, and they made their way to the makeshift aisle.
The people here were few, but they were family. They were familiar, and they were important, and they had been part of everything that had made this moment possible, and Dean was working his way towards seriously frigging emotional, when Mrs. Tran waved at him from her seat beside Jody, and a seat that was empty, save for the bulky ring announcing Kevin's presence. Ms. Moseley's smile from the other side of the aisle rivaled that of the Mona Lisa.
The slight creak of the front door had Dean pivoting towards the sound, and the man Charlie was herding inside was something Dean had never seen before in his life.
It was Cas, Dean's brain assured him, but somehow it didn't take…
The fitted pinstriped suit did things to Dean's libido that were best left for later in the night, the white fedora with its front snapped down only fueling the fire, and the '40s gangster style knot of his blood-red tie adding a fine detail to the intricate fantasy they had enthusiastically agreed upon, but it didn't feel right.
Not, when Cas's eyes were so narrow as if suspecting unforeseen shenanigans, that nervous tell of licking his lips, knuckles white from fisting his hands to stop himself from God knows what, and his eyes flicking anywhere but Dean, only stealing looks that seemed he would perish without, and it could all be chalked up to being nervous, sure, but it didn't change the fact that it was all wrong.
Dean had seen Cas play God. He'd met Emmanuel, he'd carried the sorrow of having fucked things up in the true Winchester way when Cas had been lost in La-La-Land after shouldering Sam's burden of Lucifer. He'd seen the shell of a fallen angel turn himself into a man, and he counted his stars that he never had to meet the twisted junkie of the future in reality, but there had always been one constant – Dean had always recognized Cas for who he was; The man Dean loved. And there was one thing that all of them had in common.
With a couple brisk steps Dean stood in front of his fiancé and lift a hand to cup his jaw, raising Cas's head to see him properly.
Cas tried for a smile, but the tentative curve of his lip ended with a dry swallow. "I missed you," Cas whispered, this time the smile forming effortlessly as Dean's other hand raised to Cas's tie, tugging it loose hastily. "Yeah, man. I dunno 'bout all this tradition crap and bad luck, but we better not rock the boat, just in case," Dean grinned, lifting the tie from Cas, while there was a distinctly confused frown forming on his brow. "Dean, do you have any idea how long I spent tying that?"
"About thirty seconds before Charlie did it for you?" Dean unknotted the fabric and looped it over Cas's neck again, a smug smirk making his face glow as Cas shuffled his feet and grinned back. "You know me too well."
"Nah, just enough to call you out on your bullshit." Dean shrugged. " Why d'you think we're getting married?"
Cas had relaxed under Dean's ministrations, but the confusion remained. "Because you love me, and my 'bullshit' as you like to put it," Castiel stated, complete with air quotes. While trying to see what Dean was doing to the tie, Cas was effectively blocking Dean's fingers from moving with his chin, so Dean flicked his nose lightly to get his head up straight again.
"Yeah, and you love me," Dean finished fussing with the tie and caught Charlie's eye, whooping a 'Look alive!' before snatching and sending Cas's fedora flying to her direction.
Dean took back a step small enough that his hand remained on Cas's chest, smoothing it down while he inspected Cas from head to toe. Cas squinted, and Dean squinted back feigning mockery, then, finally, found the last piece of the puzzle and reached a hand to Cas's neatly combed and parted hair.
When Cas's eyes closed and he let out a small, involuntary sigh, Dean sank both his hands into the gelled strands and tousled them gently, yet thoroughly.
Dean let his hands fall down, and the relief overcoming him was almost dizzying. "There you are," Dean sighed, pleased with his handiwork, all traces of his nerves having flown out the window now that his Cas looked more like… Well… His Cas.
"Here I am," Cas affirmed, glancing down to see his tie hanging backwards, and looking to all the world like Dean hung the moon.
Simultaneously, Dean and Cas moved towards each other, to kiss one another as they very well deserved to be kissed for being so worth everything and awesome, respectively, but the loud clearing of a throat stopped them in their tracks.
"Guys? Don't you think you should drop by him first, huh?" Sam smirked, and nodded towards the Justice of the Peace standing at the end of the aisle and trying increasingly hard not to look impatient.
Cas tilted his head and raised a brow at Dean, who winked and pursed his lips, and smacked a kiss in the air in front of Cas's, making him chuckle and gather Dean's hand in his.
Gleefully, they began to walk, and Dean glanced at Castiel with no small amount of awe, as he could hear the humming under Cas's breath, the familiar tune out of key, as always, but the words as always, echoed by Dean's own heart; Here I am, will you send me an angel, here I am, in the land of the morning star...