The two men were staring at each other for few moments as Dean took in the man's whole appearance – tall, lean body, beautiful, pianist worthy hands, light stubble, sensuous lips, hair he was itching to run his fingers through, and of course those eyes. Dean gasped slightly and the whole picture shifted, his brain apparently waking up from the shock induced coma, screaming at him to move. "You look like a creep, staring like that," it stated, attempting to be supportive.
It made Dean take a deep breath. "Hey, man. I'm Dean."
He decided he should stick to the facts he was certain of. "You can do this," was his First Thought. "You're an outgoing, confident guy," provided the Second Thought. The Third Thought just snorted skeptically at the first and the second.
The other man seemed to shake up from his own reverie "Nice to meet you."
And at the sound of that voice Dean's Fourth Thought dropped onto the floor and sobbed uncontrollably.
"I'm Castiel. Were you looking for me?"
"Probably my whole life," Dean noted to himself, already admitting defeat because, obviously, the man in front of him had magical powers; one of which was the ability to turn Dean into a freaking Carrie Bradshaw, given his current inner monologues. The other was making Dean fantasize about white fences, dogs, babies and matching cardigans.
"Yeah, I think you were waiting for us? That whole baby crib business. Sarah said we're supposed to come here today."
At that, he remembered about the fact that his sister-in-law came here with him, and he felt a little bit guilty about not giving a shit about her.
"Sarah is waiting in the truck. Could you maybe come and open the gate? I don't want to keep the scary pregnant lady waiting." He smiled tentatively, trying desperately to hold onto any aspect of his existence that would make sense. It was not easy under the scrutinizing gaze the other man was focusing on him.
Cas' eyes filled with understanding of the situation. "Oh, of course. Sarah." And then it seemed they got sadder and left Dean's face to study something next to his ear. "You're here with Sarah Winchester," he acknowledged.
"Yup. She wanted to add some painting onto the headboard, and you know how it is. We're all just her loyal servants when it comes to baby stuff." He made an attempt to share a conniving glance with Castiel, but it was futile since the man was no longer looking directly at him.
"Well, we should not make her wait long then. I'll open the gate so you can drive up here."
As they were heading towards the main gate Dean tried to gather his thoughts. He could take his time since Cas didn't seem like a chatty guy. The silence wasn't strained though, he could even call in companionable.
So it's not like he had some gay freak-out since he'd dated both men and women in his past. It was more the person himself who got him so shaken up. He felt like some lame rom-com character who saw his freaking soul-mate from the other side of a crowded room, and that was really disconcerting. Hopefully it was just low blood pressure or something.
The truth was Dean was way past the point of the one-night stands and he was looking for something lasting, especially since he could see how great of a relationship Sam and Sarah had. He tried to build that as well with Lisa, but he realized he was just lying to himself. Lisa was a great girl, just not for Dean. As the time passed, and this was almost six years ago, the man realized he was more in love with the life Lisa brought with her than with the girl herself.
She had a son, a three-year-old at the time, Ben, and Dean took to fatherhood like fish to water. So he spent three great years as a stand-in father to the boy. Even when they broke up, on amazingly good terms as they both came to the conclusion they wanted more from the relationship, everybody was happy to keep the status quo. So even six years later Dean attended small league games, birthdays of both Ben and Lisa, and even an occasional parent-teacher conference. It helped a lot that Dean's family loved Ben; his mother and aunts were always more than happy to babysit him if necessary.
When the break-up happened he decided to buy a house right down the street from the Braedens, which was only convenient that his parents lived in the neighborhood as well. Luckily, Lisa knew that Dean was as important to Ben as the boy to his self-appointed father, and she took rather kindly to them continuing their relationship. That obviously wasn't easy for her love life, and she had her fair share of relationships that went south afterward because there weren't a lot of men who could deal with their girlfriend's ex having a bond with her son. Dean used to feel guilty about sneaking into their lives, but it ended quickly after Lisa's intervention. She was also relieved that her son had at least one father-figure in his life and there was no regret on her part. But even though Lisa was his most accomplished relationship, he hadn't felt as intimate with her during their courtship as he was starting to feel with the man he was currently walking side by side with.
Dean took a moment to pray to his guardian angel in the hopes Cas would reveal himself as being a selfish douche, because that would be only way for the green-eyed man to live through this.
The sight of the truck tore him from his thoughts, noticing Cas was already opening the door and helping Sarah out.
"Thanks, Castiel, I was starting to think Dean forgot about me. I see you've met each other already?" she said, looking fondly at both men.
Dean nodded, feeling silly he could ever let himself forget the name. Now it seemed so obvious that standing beside him was Castiel... Well, Cas, because he was already hell bent on calling him that... among other names.
"Yes, Dean has found me. I was just busying myself with a project I'm helping with. Please come inside, and we can take a look at the pieces you wanted me to work on." He turned his eyes on Dean. "Maybe you could drive up to the barn and unload the crib there while Sarah and I go on foot?"
Dean was hopping into the truck just like that, the question totally avoiding his brain and going straight to his legs. "Yeah, let's get this show on the road." He smiled a little and winked towards Cas, failing to notice the furrowed brows in response.
"So…" The three of them were standing in front of the barn yet again, crib already unloaded, and Cas inspecting it as Sarah started to explain what she was looking for. "I wanted to have some nature details on the headboard, 'cause there's already a dark wood ceiling pole. I thought about some forest-like accents in general. What do you think, Dean?" She turned to the taller man.
Dean understood why she asked him. He was the one making the furniture and she wanted to be respectful about his work, but he really didn't mind her doing it her own way.
"Nah, it's your show now. Do whatever you'd like."
"That's such a lame-ass excuse. You know, you could provide some opinion to help me," she huffed a little and rolled her eyes in an international 'men are unhelpful' expression.
"If I may interject," Castiel started quietly. "I think it's the best idea. I could make some leaf details on the headboard and something imitating rumbling ivy on a wall where it will be standing." He then turned his gaze to Dean, who was mostly quiet. "We could meet sometime next week and I'll take a look at the nursery and the pieces you want me to work on."
"Y-Yeah. That would work for me." Dean tried to sound neutral since Sarah was watching him like a hawk, and he didn't want her to gain some blackmail material. At the end of the day she was Team Sam after all. "We could have you scout the place first, then I'll show you the rest of the set and we'll go over some projects. How does that sound?"
"Sounds like a plan." Cas smiled in agreement. "Monday morning sound good to you?"
"Whatever works for you," Sarah chimed in. "I know you have your regular work as well, and I wouldn't want to get on your wife's hit-list," she added sneakily.
She was met with a confused gaze and a short laughter, and obviously his laughter was set to a frequency that made Dean's body shiver. "What makes you think I have a spouse?" came the curious response.
"I don't know," she answered quickly, and almost without hesitation she added, "Why wouldn't you?"
Cas' eyes fucking glimmered with mirth, and at that point Dean was basically whimpering at the sight. "Well, I won't be able to get married for another few months."
"August first?" Sarah asked knowingly.
"August first," came a wonderful response, and Dean was about to become a deeply religious man. "But I think we will be able to finish it before the date." Cas graced them with another soft smile. "Of course only if we start soon."
"It's a date then," Dean blurted, and even through the haze that was blocking his mind he could hear the over-eagerness in his own voice. "Smooth, Winchester."
"You can leave the crib over here. It would be more convenient since we're gonna work on it over here anyway."
Dean let a relieved sigh at that. Obviously Cas once again decided to graciously turn a blind eye on the fact that he was forced into the company of a fidgeting moron. He was starting to think maybe he could even look at himself in the mirror before this decade ends as he was helping Sarah get in the truck.
He was about to jump into the driver's seat when Cas decided to turn directly to him, probably for the first time.
"Dean..." he started, and, God, no one had ever said his name more intimately than he managed to do. The man in question turned his head and, yet again, he noticed Cas was avoiding looking at him, choosing to inspect his shoes instead.
What Dean would give to see that gaze directed onto him.
"...Could I maybe count on you retrieving me on Monday? I currently share a vehicle with my siblings and it's my brother's turn then..."
He looked at Dean quickly and then almost immediately turned his gaze down. "Of course, if it's not an inconvenience," he mumbled so quietly Dean almost missed it under the sound of freaking bells in his mind. He really needed to check with his doctor because it looked like he had a tumor.
"Nah, man." Dean grinned. "I'll come by in the morning and take you myself. It'll be my pleasure," he blurted out before his mind could put a filter on his mouth
"In that case, I'll see you then," Cas said after a small pause before he quickly turned around and walked towards the barn, Dean shooting him one last look and climbing into the car.
"So, you and Castiel..." Sarah started with a knowing smirk.
"Oh, for the love of—Sarah!" Dean sighed exasperatedly as he turned the ignition on.
"What? I'm not saying anything. I'm just honored I could see Dean Winchester working his famous charm," she said with a shit-eating grin. "I have to tell you, it cleared some stuff up for me. Like, for example, why you've been going through a dry-spell recently. I mean, with those moves..."
"You're one to talk!" Dean barked in response. "Don't forget I was there when Sam asked you out for the first time. I kept wondering who would agree to go on a date with a tangled mass of limbs and hair."
They laughed at that and spent the rest of the drive trading pleasantries, but Monday could not come soon enough for Dean.
Next chapter will be the day from Cas' POV. A little look at his family etc. I'll post in within this week, so please, stay tuned.
And thank you for all the comments, follows and favorites.
Ps. August 1th is the set date when same-sex marriage will become legal in Minnesota.
I was just looking for a place within States with same-sex marriage law and a museum with a decent decorative arts department. That's how they came to live in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Obviously, I'm not American and English is my third language, but I wanted it to be written this way. So if anyone got any inside into the place, opinion would be appreciated.
