Roman released Seth from his hold and gave him a little shove that got him that much closer to Dean's table. The guys he was hanging out with were probably some of his friends from work, it'd explain why they looked familiar. He'd probably been introduced to them a couple of times throughout the years.

"Hi," Seth said lamely, not knowing what else to say when his throat was locked up tight and he had at least four big, strong men staring him down.

"Need me to get rid of him?" One of them asked Dean, who looked a mess. Like he hadn't slept in days and was on his third or fourth glass of whatever it his he'd been drinking.

"No, it's fine. I can handle this myself." Dean said before gesturing for the guys on his right to exit the booth and let him out. The three of them each gave him a comforting pat on the back before sliding back into their seats. "What the hell do you want from me, Seth?"

Seth turned to glance behind him, just then realizing that Roman had ditched him and he was now alone with his ex. Well, not exactly alone, there was still a table of guys staring him down. "I- I wanted to.." he ran a hand through his long mane of hair that ended just below his shoulders, lightly tugging at the strands. "Could- could we maybe talk?"

Dean stared him down for a long moment, looking conflicted and just all around grumpy. He liked using anger and annoyance to cover up hurt. "I thought that's what we were doing, talking,"

"I meant outside, Dean."

"And what if I don't want to hear your lame excuses? I'm sure you don't have anything nice to say to me. Probably just gonna yell at me about how 'needy' and 'unstable' I am."

Seth squeezed his eyes shut, willing the tears slowly building up to go away as he thought back on that night. Thought back on all the terrible things he'd said and done to the one he loves.

"Kevin misses you,"

"Yeah, well he's just a fucking dog. What does he know?"

"He knows that I miss you, too. I'm- I'm really sorry, Dean. And- and I- we need to talk."

"Oh, so you think coming over here and saying sorry is gonna get you anywhere? Well it's not, alright? You hurt me, Seth. Things were good, things were great, but then you had to go and stab a knife right through my back and right through my heart."

"I know, Dean. I know I hurt you, I know I don't deserve a minute of your time. I have to live with the mistakes I made and it's eating away at me, man. I-I can't eat, I can barley sleep. If you don't want to talk to me, at least let me explain myself. Explain why I ruined the only good thing I had going for me."

Dean looked thoughtful for a moment before turning to face his buddies at the table. One of them, the blond one, was slowly rising from his seat, looking about ready to tear Seth a new one if Dean so much as gave the order. "Stand down, Chris. Me and my buddy Seth are gonna go get some air, maybe talk for a bit. If I don't come back, probably just means I went home." The auburn haired man then pulled out his wallet, tossing a twenty dollar bill atop the table before walking ahead of Seth and heading out the door. He didn't bother holding it open for him and it would've hit him in the face if not for his cat-like reflexes.

"Talk," Dean muttered as he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket and continued walking along the sidewalk outside the bar. Seth wasn't sure where he was being led to, but he followed anyway, speeding up to fall into step beside the taller man.

Since he'd already up and confessed his sins to Roman and truly did miss Dean, the man everyone called a lunatic, he decided to be upfront with him and just lay all his cards out on the table. "You know how I never talk about or contact my parents? Well, there's a reason for that. When I was in sixth grade-"

"Hold on a second," Dean slurred, stopping in his tracks to look at Seth incredulously. "You said you were gonna talk to me, explain why you kicked me out of your fucking house, took custody of our furry son, and ruined my life. Not tell me some random story about you from sixth fucking grade."

"I am going to explain myself, Dean. This is just the premise; my back story."

"Fine, I'll hear you out. So long as you get down to the nitty gritty and give me some real answers." Dean then continued walking in a semi-straight line, heading in the direction of what Seth would assume is Taco Bell or some other 'restaurant' that's open 24 hours. He knew how hungry Dean got after a night of drinking.

"Alright then," Seth gnawed on his lip for a good minute before getting back on track. "My parents began fighting a lot when I was in sixth grade, were always screaming at each other while I sat alone in my bedroom. Pressing a pillow against my ears while I cried and wondered why mommy and daddy didn't love each other anymore. They got a divorce, the whole process being very nasty and.. and all around difficult to watch, and to be stuck in the middle of. They got joint custody of me and I got to enjoy being switched from home-to-home each and every fucking week until I was eighteen and sick of their shit. Obviously I told you about what happened after that, how I got a scholarship and went off to college to make something of myself. What I didn't tell you was that I had to witness my family fall apart and it left a lot of emotional scarring. I have trust issues, I'm absolutely terrified of commitment, hence why I didn't want you to move in with me. And I'm terrified of getting married, having a kid and making them watch as their family falls apart and their parents begin to fight, spew words of hate at one another and eventually get a divorce. No kid should have to go through that. No child of mine should ever have to be sent from one home to another for half their fucking life, Dean. And I'm sorry. I am so sorry I didn't have the balls to tell you all of this when I should've."

There was a long, uncomfortable, terrifying moment of silence that Dean eventually broke.

"Why... Why didn't you ever tell me about your parents? Thought you trusted me."

It hurt Seth to see him like this. To see Dean close in on himself and look down at the ground as he walked down the empty street that may as well be called boulevard of broken dreams. He wanted to reach out and touch him, hold his hand, kiss him, pull him into a hug- anything to make him feel better and smile. But he couldn't. Ruined any chance of being able to do that two months ago. So he mimicked Dean by shoving his hands deep inside his jacket pockets and looking down at the filthy pavement littered with garbage, wads of chewed up gum, probably some piss, too, and a payphone that'd been ripped from the wall. The actual phone itself broken in half and dangling from its mangled cord.

"Maybe.. maybe because I didn't want to accept what happened and how crappy my childhood was post-fifth grade. I should've told you. I may have some trust issues but I should've realized you'd understand where I was coming from. Even if you... even if you never truly had a family of your own."

"Ever thought that might've been why I was so afraid of losing you? And you're right, I would've understood if you'd just sat me down and explained everything to me. I may've had a crap childhood, a crap life, been switched from house to house but always managed to make my way back to the same place every time. I grew up sharing a room with twelve, fifteen other boys, Seth. Each and every one of them always getting chosen by the couples who came looking to adopt because they were all so young, so cute. And I was the old dog no one wanted, the one who was destined to grow out of the system and die alone in the street. Yeah, I had it bad. Never had a family, but you were all I needed and more. I would've fucking understood and been there for you, Seth. I would've given you time and asked again when you were ready. But you blew up in my face and said some pretty fucking awful things to me. Told me to never contact you again after I packed up all my things and some of yours, too. I walked out that door feeling like I just got stabbed in the heart. You threw away everything we worked so hard to build that night. And it felt like I was bleeding out as I drove home crying. Nearly crashed a couple of times. The only friend I had was Jack Daniels, and boy did he comfort me. Made me pass out real quick once I'd drunk half the bottle."

Speechless and on the verge of tears, Seth stayed quiet and allowed Dean's pained words to really sink in and take effect on him. Behind each and every word the auburn haired man spoke there was a story. There was raw emotion and.. and it's exactly what he needed to hear. He needed Dean to put him in his place and remind him of how much pain and suffering he'd caused him over the course of the last two months.

"I'm sorry," he blurted out without thinking, causing Dean to turn and look at him, an adorably puzzled look on his face. "That you had to go through all of that. Especially at such a young age."

Dean chose not to reply, instead lengthening his strides and quickening his pace. He was once again a few steps ahead of Seth. The latter still had no idea where they were going, and decided to ask.

"Dean, where are we going?"

"Taco Bell," Dean mumbled. "I hear they're open 24 hours and I've got the munchies."

Just as Seth had suspected earlier on in their walk, Dean was in the mood for Mexican. He didn't know if things were even remotely okay between them as they rounded a corner and the fast food restaurant came into view. He didn't know if things were ever going to be okay. Things definitely never would be if Dean didn't forgive him. Or at least accept his apology.

"The usual?" He asked as they neared the building, Dean nodding slightly and holding the door open for him this time. Well, that sure was progress. A lot less bitter and angry than he was when they left the bar, that's for sure. Seth got in line to order the food they always got when they used to go on dates there together while Dean sat at a table, fiddling around with a salt shaker and spilling some on the table. He obviously didn't clean it up, just looked around the room to make sure no one was looking before sliding the mess off of the clean, white surface and onto the floor for someone to sweep up later.

Seth had watched the whole thing unfold, smiling sadly to himself as the guy ahead of him in line finished up and exited the building. He was quick to shuffle forward, being met with the sight of an exhausted looking cashier who simply blinked at him until he nervously ordered his food.

He soon had their food and drinks, bringing them over to the table Dean had claimed and setting down the tray in the middle of it. He didn't receive any sort of thanks, hadn't exactly expected to get one either.

Dean was five bites into his second hard shell taco when he decided it was a good time to start talking again. "So... how's Kevin doing? He really miss me or were you just pullin' my leg earlier?"

Seth set down his burrito, deciding to be the one with manners and not talk with his mouth full. "He always lays on your side of the bed, keeping it warm for you and staying up late to see if you'll come home. I always have to be the one to try and explain to him, a small, furry dog, that his daddy will probably never be coming home. He seems to understand me and usually whimpers before walking over to lay on top of my chest. I also wasn't lying when I said I missed you, too. God, do I fucking miss you, Dean." It pained him just a little bit every time he heard or spoke Dean's name.

After taking a long sip of his drink - every soda flavor mixed together except for diet and ice tea -, Dean crossed his arms in front of his chest as he leaned back in his seat. "Tell Kevin I miss him, too, huh."

"That's what you chose to take from that, huh?"

"Yup," Dean burped. He's always using jokes, sarcasm, anger, and everything else in the damn book to dismiss his feelings and deflect. And, yeah, Seth gets that he feels depressed, broken, betrayed, empty.. but doing this to himself, pushing him away but keeping him close at the same time- it's going to slowly and painfully kill him. He can clearly see how much life it's already taken out of him in two months. Imagine what it could do to him in a six months, a year, two.. He didn't even want to imagine how badly it would all effect Dean come three years.

No, he couldn't let that happen. This ends right here right now.

"Dean, can you please try to take this seriously? I'm trying to fix things and you're deflecting and.. and doing that thing you always do when you don't like the conversation and you want to change the subject."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Seth. I was just replying to what you'd said earlier. Telling you how much I missed Kevin. Our dog." Dean then uncrossed his arms, resting them atop the table and leaning forward. "By the way, when am I going to see him? You kinda didn't make that an option for me."

"Whenever you want, I guess."

Feeling bold as brass, Seth laid his hand atop the table beside Dean's. He didn't attempt to move it closer, kinda left it up to his ex to choose whether or not he wanted to make physical contact with him.

Dean stared him down for a good minute, looking a bit irritated at first until his expression morphed into one of sadness then.. acceptance. He grabbed his tacos and and stuffed them into his jacket pocket, glad they had a paper sleeve covering them as to not ruin the thing.

"If we're gonna talk, let's get outta here." He grabbed his drink off the table and didn't wait for Seth to catch up before exiting the restaurant. The brunet had to scramble to throw away their trash, grab his drink and half-eaten food and follow him out only to find out he was waiting right outside the door for him.

"You scared me," Seth said, not knowing whether he was afraid that he'd left without him or if he just spooked him by standing there.

"Yeah, well I wasn't planning on going far," his ex muttered, beginning to walk again. "'Cause believe it or not, I'm actually ready to listen and maybe talk things out with you."

"That's all I'm askin' for," Seth checked their surroundings in the dark streets, moving closer to Dean when he saw a hunched over man stumble out of an alleyway to his left. Just to be safe, and to help lead him away, Seth placed a hand on the other's back and made sure to keep an eye on his six o'clock.

"I'm fine, Seth. I'm not some little thing that needs protecting from some drunkard who smells of piss. Had enough experience dealing with that in a couple of my temporary homes. If you could even call 'em that."

"I'm sorry," Seth whispered, retracting his hand and keeping it to himself. As they were passing up an overflowing trashcan, Dean precariously balanced his half empty drink cup atop the crap and Seth hung back a few feet to do the same thing, since he really didn't feel like eating drinking anything at the moment. He kept the burrito that was in his jacket pocket thinking he could reheat it and eat it later as some sort of midnight snack. "I don't really know what else to say but sorry. I made a mistake, Dean. I never should've kicked you out." After only a seconds hesitation, he said the other thing that was on his mind. "I lied to you because I was scared. It's no excuse, I'm owning up to my mistakes fully. I take all the blame for what I did, and I do want you to move in with me. I do see myself marrying you and raising kids with you in the future. And.. and Kevin is ours. I'll understand fully if you don't want to.. if you don't feel it's right to forgive me and take me back. I get it, Dean. I get it."

They soon passed by another alleyway, noticing another drunk man stumbling around, talking to himself. The dark, narrow passage smelled strongly of piss and other such bodily fluids. Dean thought nothing of it until he took note of a shiny object on the ground and what looked to be another man lying beside it. He didn't hesitate before taking Seth's hand and speeding away without looking too suspicious.

"What the h-" Seth began, quickly getting cut off by Dean.

"Thought I saw a dead body," he explained, breathing heavily as his heart rate came down from its high and slowly went back to a healthy seventy-five beats per minute. He might've counted. "Didn't want to risk the guy hurting you if he was some sorta psycho killer."

"My hero," Seth joked, giving his ex's hand a firm squeeze, all the while feeling dazed and a little confused. If Dean hadn't noticed and pulled him away... that could've put the both of them in potential danger. Meaning there's a chance Dean could've gotten hurt. "Now let's get the hell outta here before we die."

"Way ahead of you." Dean muttered, pulling him along as he took quick steps in the direction of the bar where Seth had parked his car a couple of hours ago.

They soon made it inside the vehicle, immediately locking it behind them and checking twice to ensure no one would be breaking in anytime soon. Or at all.

Since Seth had a high alcohol tolerance and he'd eaten and drank fluids, he elected to drop Dean off at his own apartment before taking himself home to cry into a tub of Ben & Jerry's. Specifically Rocky Road.
He was sad to know Dean didn't forgive him, but he also wasn't expecting to be. He knew he didn't deserve to be anyw-

"I don't think I forgive you just yet, but I can't do this without you- the whole living thing. I've tried it, tried that shit for two months and- and I just can't do it anymore, Seth. I tried so hard to hate you, to convince myself I didn't love you and Kev, the closest thing I ever had to a family. But every time I tried to forget about you two I found myself driving past your house at three in the morning, wondering if I should stop and knock on the door or just.. do the right thing and never contact you again. I got out of my car one or two nights or five nights, walked up to your living room window and saw you watching TV with Roman a couple of times, saw you snoring with Kevin laying on top of you the other couple. I know that sounds really creepy, but it's supposed to be romantic. What I'm trying to say is.." Dean closed his eyes, trying to find the right words to say as Seth removed the keys from the engine since he hadn't left the parking spot yet and he needed to focus all of his attention on him. As if at the same time, they unbuckled and turned to fully face each other. "Is that I still love you and want to move in with you if you'll have me."

"Yeah, I'd like that. I'd like that a lot, Dean." Seth leaned in closer until there was only a hair's breadth of space separating them.

"Either you kiss me right fucking now or so help me God, I will-"

The brunet closed to distance, sliding deft fingers into the other's auburn curls as their lips slid together in a way that felt oh-so natural and familiar. He felt a hand slide up his arm to tangle in his long locks of hair, tugging on them slightly to pull him in closer and deepen the slow and steady kiss.

Seth was the first to pull away, breathing heavily as they rested their foreheads against the other's and just let themselves be. Allowed themselves be in the moment and appreciate being together for the first time in two agonizingly painful months.

"Let's go home, Dean. I'm sure Kevin'll be ecstatic his other dad's here to stay."

Dean broke into a smile, pressing another kiss to Seth's warm and soft lips. "You sure you're alright to drive without killing us?"

"Wouldn't have suggested it if I couldn't."

"Y'know, we should really call in that body I found."

"Mm, well maybe you should get on that, hon." Seth teased, trying not to blush bright red and die right on the spot when Dean leaned back in for one last kiss, catching his bottom lip between his teeth and holding for a second before tantalizingly slowly releasing it from his hold.

Dean then moved his lips to rest beside Seth's ear, blowing warm puffs of air into it as he spoke. "Oh believe me, babe, I will."

Seth was left breathless and slightly turned on. A quiet, nearly silent, groan escaping past his parted lips. When the time was right, they were going to to have some incredible make-up sex. On every available surface in the house. Their house.

"Jeez, Seth. Wait until we get home and say hello to our furry son, would ya?"

He didn't give in and reply, didn't want to give Dean the satisfaction of knowing just how much his words effected him. But after three and a half-ish years of being together, he knew full-well how much his dirty talk both frustrated and aroused him. He slipped the keys back into the ignition and drove away as Dean pulled out his phone and made a quick call to the local police department.

It was no more than twenty minutes later when they arrived at the house, quickly shedding their jackets and making sure to take their tacos and burrito out of the pockets before hanging them up on the coat rack.

The sound of Kevin barking could probably be heard from fucking Mars as soon as their little yorkie smelled Dean and he began a slow approach toward his cage.
He got down on his knees in front of it, listening to the loud, happy sounds the dog was making as he unlatched the door and picked him up.

"Hey there little guy," he smiled, chuckling when Kevin began licking his face. "I missed you."

Seth got down on his knees beside him, sitting on his feet and wrapping an arm around Dean's back while his free hand scratched behind their yorkie's ear. He looked ecstatic to finally have his parents back together again. Two months has got to be a like two years to a dog.

He only wished he could've had it this good. That his parents could've pulled their heads out of their asses and looked at what they were doing to each other and their son. If they'd just gone to couples counseling when they first realized something wasn't going right in their relationship.. maybe, just maybe they could've made things work and they'd still all be one big happy family. But that's only a guess, and what's really important is the here and now. His real family is important. The one that's been with him for nearly four whole years. The one that's been there with him through thick and thin, in sickness and in health. Rich or poor, he knows Dean and Kevin will always be there for him.

"You guys are my family," Seth said without being fully aware his mouth had decided to move on its own accord. "You and Kevin both. And.. and I'm so, so unbelievably sorry I put you through the wringer, Dean. I'm sorry and I'm going to be for the rest of my life."

Still holding their furry son close to his chest, Dean turned his head to face his significant other, his boyfriend. "I accept your apology, Seth. Just- if you keep kicking the crap outta yourself over this, I'm going to kick you. Got that?"

"Yeah, I think I got it." The brunet pressed a kiss to the mess of curls that lay atop his partner's head.

"Good, now kiss me you big doof. We got a lot of cute coupley crap to catch up on. Might as well start now."

"That's a.. that's a good idea." Seth whispered, leaning in closer as Dean set Kevin down on the floor and pulled him in by fist full's of his Henley, bringing him into a kiss as Seth lightly pushed him to the floor. Having Dean lay beneath him as he straddled him and pressed soft, sweet, kisses to his warm and wet lips.. It all felt so familiar yet so, so new.

"Wanna get started on that make-up sex?" The man beneath him asked as their jeans started to become rather uncomfortable and their clothed lengths brushed up against one another's.

"Thought you'd never ask."