When Dean first started dating Castiel, Sam thought nothing of it. Castiel was good for Dean, and Sam got along with him really well anyway. Dean and Castiel had been hanging out for ages and it only made sense that it would swing that direction. Nothing really changed; Castiel still came over for dinner all the time, they would have serious study sessions in the kitchen, Dean would take Castiel to the movies. The only difference is that Sam often caught them making out in the driveway or the hallways at school and once made the mistake of going into Dean's room.

That wasn't the biggest difference. The biggest difference was now, suddenly, Castiel had an older brother who felt the need to infiltrate the Winchesters home.

Gabriel was nothing like his brother, for so many reasons.

Gabriel was loud.

When they first met, Sam answered the door. Gabriel charged in, shouting something about finding his little brother and skinning "that damn Winchester" for taking Castiel. Worried, naturally, Sam followed the shouts and arrived in time for Dean to give a manly shriek and for Castiel to yell.

"Gabriel I told you I was going to be studying!"

"You didn't tell me it was with this guy!"

"This guy is my boyfriend, thanks," Castiel snapped back.

"WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN?" Gabriel roared.

Sam was still small, but he wasn't that small, not anymore. He was just big enough to take down Gabriel and pull him as far away from the den as possible. Though it was a struggle with Gabriel kicking and screaming the entire way.

"Let me go!" Gabriel shouted, "I'm going to kill that Winchester! I will and you can't stop me! Let me go!"

Sam pulled him all the way out to the front porch and stood between Gabriel and the door.

"Out of the way," Gabriel said, "I got murder to commit."

"I'm Sam Winchester. I'm Dean's little brother," Sam introduced himself.

That got his attention.

"Your Dean's baby bro?" Gabriel looked up at Sam, "How old are you?"

"I just turned fourteen," Sam shrugged.

"Well, I'm Gabriel Milton, Castiel's big brother," Gabriel stuck his hand out, "And I swear if your brother steps out of bounds I'm going to kill him."

"I don't think he's the one you need to worry about," Sam blushed and looked down, "I wasn't like, spying or anything, but I accidentally walked in and… well."

"Well what?"

"Your brother has some kinky fantasies…"

"Ha!" Gabriel punched the air, "Maybe we are related after all!"

Sam gave a small laugh.

"Say, kid," Gabriel tucked his hands in his pockets, "Are you any good at video games?"

"I suppose, why?"

"Well if your brother is dating my brother, then there are only millions of stories we can dish to each other," Gabriel winked, "What do you say? Care for some Call of Duty?"

"Sure," Sam grinned and followed Gabriel out to his mustang.

Gabriel ate nothing but junk food.

"You know you're going to get sick," Sam scolded, "The human body physically can't contain that much sugar and live."

"Watch me," Gabriel smirked as he tossed another handful of Skittles into his mouth. They were sitting on the hood of his mustang in the hot summer sun, parked in an abandoned field watching the clouds go by. "Come on Sammy, live a little! You're starting high school! Let's get sick by eating too much candy."

"Easy for you to say," Sam gave a glare, "You just graduated, you don't have school to worry about once summer's over."

"You're right about that," Gabriel laughed, "Can't you just have a junk food spree with me on one day? We'll kick Cassy out and spend all day in the basement playing video games and watching move and eating pizza and popcorn and soda and ice cream and all the candy under the sun. Just one day, please?"

"Your birthday is next week, isn't it?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, what of it?"

"I'll come over then," Sam promised, "And you can feed me all the junk food you want."

It was both the worst and best night of his life.

Gabriel felt the need to insult everything and everyone.

"That movie was shiiit," Gabriel complained as they left the theater, "God Sam, haven't you read the books?"

"No," Sam shook his head, knowing instantly it was the wrong thing to do.

"That is heresy Sam Winchester," Gabriel snapped, "You always read the book before going to the movie! Especially something as moving as the Hunger Games!"

"I didn't have time," Sam mumbled.

"Didn't have time? Are you that thick in the head? How does Cas put up with you? Really?"

"Sorry," Sam looked down, overwhelming feelings of shame crashing over him.

It really wasn't his fault. He was busy studying for his sophomore English test over Shakespeare and iambic pentameter and all that stuff. And he had a book to read for his history class and why did Gabriel make him feel so small for something he couldn't even control?

"Look, I'll consider keeping you around," Gabriel was saying, "If next time I pick the movie. Clearly your choices aren't worth it."

"Clearly," Sam smirked.

"Let's get some pie and ice cream though," Gabriel pulled on Sam's sleeve, "Sound good, kid?"

It sounded wonderful.

Gabriel never took anything seriously.

Sam had a growth spurt right before his junior year. That summer he shot up like a weed. Dean and Castiel had gone off to college, somewhere on the west coast, and were still going steady. Gabriel moaned about not being able to keep tabs on Cas, but now that he was eighteen, there was really no point.

Still he complained, and he complained loudly to Sam. Especially while Sam was working.

McDonald's wasn't the greatest place to be working, but he was working somewhere at least and getting the money. Sam's greatest mistake was telling Gabriel where he worked.

"Hey kiddo," Gabriel waltzed in, "You know what I like, I'll be in the corner."

He tossed his money down on the counter and walked to the back in his usual spot. Growling, Sam turned around and shouted "Candy Man!" and threw the money into the cash register.

Gabriel's order was always the same and he always came on Sam's shift to order it. He'd come so often that everyone else had learned the code "Candy Man" to be Gabriel's order. Extra large fry, Big Mac, two milkshakes and a bag of cookies.

"Your order, sir," Sam said sarcastically, setting the tray down at Gabriel's table, "And you're lucky we aren't busy right now."

"You'd make an exception for me," Gabriel winked.

Sam rolled his eyes and went back to work. He rarely paid attention to Gabriel when he was working, focusing on making change and calming mothers and mopping floors. Gabriel had never been a problem before.

"Hey Sam!" Andy, a coworker, shouted, "Candy Man left you a message!"

He didn't even noticed Gabriel had left. But sure enough, in that corner table on the paper tray, was a drawing done in ketchup. Two stick figures, one tall and the other short, with a tiny heart between the two.

"Oh I'm going to kill him," Sam swore.

"I think it's kinda sweet," Ava came up next to him, "Maybe he likes you."

"Sure, and maybe Andy will be president," Sam said, "No offense."

"None taken, man," Andy grinned, "But I think he does like you."

"And what gives you that idea?"

Andy pulled out a small key that was under the trash. Written on the Big Mac wrapper was "Got an apartment. Here's the key." and the address.

"Oh," Sam took the key in his hands.

He could work with that.

Gabriel thought the best option of life is to prank everybody.

Castiel and Dean came home for Christmas and it was the best present Sam could have ever asked for. Dean was filled with all kinds of excitement about his classes and he and Castiel were struggling to cook for themselves and wake up on time and he thanked Mary profusely for doing his dirty laundry for eighteen years.

Gabriel came up with a fabulous prank to pull involving Sam. Unfortunately he refused to tell Sam about it.

It's Christmas afternoon and the four of them are walking down the street, Castiel and Dean hand in hand. Sam's grown another few inches and towers over all of them and Dean hates it.

Suddenly, out of the blue, Gabriel stopped the group and turned to Sam.

"Sam, I can't keep lying to them," he said, very seriously.

"Lying about what?" Sam tilted his head.

"Us!" Gabriel gestured radically, "I can't deny my feelings for you! And if I must I will take you here, in the street, to prove it!"

"What?" Sam felt his face heat up and he took three steps back.

"Sammy!" Dean shouted, "Gabriel what are you on about?"

"Oh me and Sammy are in love, Dean, in love I say!" Gabriel crowed.

"He's lying," Castiel said, putting a soothing hand on Dean's shoulder, "Look at your brother, he's as shocked as we."

Sam was more that shocked. He was floored. His heart did a weird stutter at the word "love" and it hasn't stopped. The way Gabriel just looked at him, with eyes like melted caramel, sparkling with mirth, sent heat all over his body. His fingers were tingling, his mouth dry. He didn't have words.

"I um," Sam managed, "I think we should get some hot chocolate, yeah?"

"That is a good idea," Castiel agreed, "I fear Dean might kill Gabriel given the chance."

Castiel pulled Dean away, shouts of "four year difference!" echoing in the neighborhood.

"Well, we got them good, didn't we kiddo?" Gabriel laughed, elbowing Sam.

"Yeah, sure did," Sam stuck his hands in his pockets and started walking.

"Hey, what gives?" Gabriel jogged up to him, "Didn't you think it was funny?"

"Didn't you think you should have asked me?" Sam shot back.

"Kinda would have ruined the whole thing, don't you think?"

"You can't just shout things out like that, Gabriel," Sam said, "I get you like pranking people, I do, but you can't involve me in one and not let me know. It's not fair."

"Geeze, calm down kid," Gabriel said, "It was a joke."

"Yeah, that's the problem," Sam sighed, "I'm gonna head the other way, you tell Dean where I went."

"Where are you gonna go?" Gabriel shouted at Sam's retreated back, "Everything's closed on Christmas!"

Sam didn't bother answering, just tightened his fingers around the key to Gabriel's apartment.

Gabriel stole Sam's heart.

Sam would like to say he was brave that Christmas evening. That he went to Gabriel's apartment and as soon as he walked through the door he just laid it all on the floor. But he chickened out and instead curled on the couch with a tub of ice cream on his lap, watching the door for any sign of Gabriel.

He was halfway through the second season of Doctor Who when Gabriel showed up, covered in snow with patches of red on his cheeks. He didn't notice Sam at first, just undid his scarf (one of Sam's old ones) and slid out of his boots and jacket. He slicked his hair back and caught sight of the teenager on his couch.

"Sam!" Gabriel spluttered, "How'd you get in?"

"You did give me a key," Sam muttered.

"Oh, yeah," Gabriel said, "Well what are you doing here? Thought you went home."

"Didn't feel like it," Sam slouched further into the cushions.

"You okay?" Gabriel asked, "And are you eating my secret stash of Ben&Jerry's?"

"Sorry," Sam set the ice cream onto the floor.

Gabriel's shoulders wilted and he came up next to Sam, sitting gingerly on the couch and tentatively reaching out.

"Something's wrong, isn't it?" Gabriel asked.

Sam nodded.

"And it was my fault?"

He nodded again.

"Hey, I'm sorry," Gabriel's hand closed around Sam's thigh, "For whatever douchebag thing I did, I'm sorry."

"Not your fault," Sam muttered.

"Come on, kid," Gabriel's hand tightened, "Tell me what's wrong so I can fix it at least."

"Can't fix it."

Gabriel stood up and walked to the kitchen. Sam missed the warmth on his leg. Instead he curled around a throw pillow and swung his legs up on the couch, trying as hard as he could not to cry.

It only made sense. Gabriel was twenty with a job and a house. He had a sense of humor and a way to make you feel like the sun. He had a smile that could melt butter. There was no reason for him to look twice at little Sam, sixteen and working at McDonald's to try and get to college. Nothing but a bratty high school kid who is trying too hard.

He sniffled and pushed his face into the pillow. He was doing fine up until that prank Gabriel pulled. It was so close to fantasy, so close to what he dreamed of, but not close enough.

Warm fingers ran through his hair and the smell of hot tea surrounded him. Sam peered around the pillow and came face to face with Gabriel. His eyes were so close. Sam could feel his soft breath on his lips. Noses were almost brushing.

"Hi," Gabriel smiled.

"Hi," Sam gave a watery smile back.

"Come on Sam," Gabriel trailed his hand down Sam's cheek, "You gotta do better than that."

"I don't think I can," Sam sniffed back another round of tears.

"I think you can," Gabriel set the tea on the ground and leaned forward.

In that split second Sam's mind went a thousand miles. This couldn't really be happening, but it was. And if it was then he needed to do something. He couldn't just give Gabriel the wrong impression. But he'd never kissed anyone before. What if he screwed it up somehow? After all, Gabriel wasn't exactly chaste and he'd probably kissed lots of people and they were probably all better than Sam. But Sam wanted it. God, he wanted it so badly.

They met somewhere in the middle and Gabriel tasted like cotton candy.