I am updating because of last night's 200th episode.
I thought it was so cute and all the little references and shot outs to different parts of the fandom, and older parts of the show was a nice touch. So I was hit with some inspiration and decided to post and work on my next chapter.
Thank you again to my beta BlueNeutrino! You're amazing.
"Where the hell are you going?" Castiel asked, looking up from his book and furrowing his brow in confusion.
"Out," Dean responded and walked over to the coffee table to grab his wallet from where he'd left it the night before.
"I can see that," Castiel said flatly. Dean had just walked out of their bedroom fully dressed in jeans, a black t-shirt and a marine blue button-up shirt that he'd left open. "Where to?"
"Bobby's," was his short reply before he grabbed his keys from the dish on the sideboard.
"Are you going to work at the garage?" Cas asked curiously. They both had the day off, so it wasn't uncommon that Dean would go over to Bobby's and help out at his garage.
"Nope," he popped the 'p' and gave Cas a cheeky smirk, which he knew irritated his husband. "Barbecue. Bobby's been on my ass about getting together since we're working the next three weekends. Plus he's convinced Sam to come out."
"Sam's going to be there?" Cas' interest was piqued now. He hadn't seen the younger Winchester since his law school graduation. Dean either went up to visit Sam or talked to him on the phone. Cas enjoyed visiting Sam—he was much more tolerable, but Dean was usually opposed to him going with him during their visits.
"Yep and so are Ellen and Jo. Are you coming or not? Because if you are we need to leave now." Dean checked his watched and groaned. Damn, he was going to be late if he didn't leave now.
Castiel scoffed in disbelief. "Do you really want me there?" He arched an eyebrow and studied Dean's posture, trying to see if his husband was duping.
Dean shrugged. "I don't really care if you come or not. I just really need to go now, so if you're coming, great, let's go. If you're not-" he raised his hands as if say 'whatever' "Do whatever you want."
"You really don't mind if I come?" Castiel repeated, knowing the repetition may piss Dean off since it wasn't an answer, but he was just slightly stunned.
"Isn't that what I just said?" He rolled his eyes and fished his phone out of his pocket. He had a missed text from Sam, which said exactly what he assumed it would say: Make sure Cas is there.
Dean glared down at his phone. It was like Sam didn't trust him to bring his husband. He never uninvited Cas on purpose, just, sometimes they were fighting and were not in the mood to play "happy couple" in front of their family. Sometimes it was Cas who didn't want to go. They never let anyone know the real reason; they always had thought out excuses.
"Look," he sighed, "We need to leave now or we'll be late. I'm goin-"
"I'm coming," Cas cut in and a got up from the couch. He placed his bookmark into his book and closed it, dropping it onto the coffee table.
"Ten minutes, Cas," Dean warned when his husband walked out of the room to get changed.
While Cas was in out of the room Dean sent a reply to Sam, tell him to screw off. But quickly sent another one saying that Cas was coming, mainly to keep Sam pacified.
A minute later Dean's phone buzzed again with another text. "You're going to be late," the text read and Dean rolled his eyes. Instead of responding, he slipped his phone back into his pocket.
Cas came out of their room six minutes later dressed in a grey t-shirt and jeans. Dean had picked up Castiel's shoes and shoved them in his husband's direction.
"Come on," Dean groaned when Cas grabbed the shoes and placed them on the ground in front of him. "We should have been on the road already."
Castiel glanced up at Dean from his hunched position as he finished slipping on his right shoe. Dean looked irritated, but more so about the time, since he checked his watch twice while Cas finished putting on his shoes.
"Dean, it's not even twelve. Calm down." Cas straightened up once he had his shoes on and grabbed his phone from the sideboard before following a grumbling Dean out to the hall and down to the Impala.
"Yeah, and Bobby wants us there for twelve. We have fifteen minutes to make a forty-five minute drive." Dean folded his arms across his chest and glared at the metal doors of the elevator as the spouses rode down to the garage.
"You just know I'm the one who's going to get the blame," he spoke again once they stepped onto the concrete floor. "Apparently living in a traffic filled city isn't enough of an excuse."
Cas glanced out of the corner of his eye and chuckled. "Sam just likes teasing you because you're his older brother. Besides-" Castiel looked over the top of the Impala.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Dean cut Cas off. He stared at the dark-haired man with a serious face. "Do you really feel up to it." He corrected, letting Castiel know he wasn't referring to Cas' tagging along.
"We've made it this far without fighting," Cas offered a bored smirk and shrugged his shoulders. "I think we can put on the act for a few more hours." The man pulled the passenger door open and slid into the car.
Dean clicked his tongue and sighed. "Just making sure," he mumbled to himself and slid in behind the wheel.
The first ten minutes was spent in silence. Castiel stayed on his side of the car, looking out of the window, and let the low bass of AC/DC fill the car. Dean sat with a relaxed, one hand loosely gripping the steering wheel and focused on the road.
Cas chanced a glance at Dean. The older man felt so far away, sitting on opposite ends of the seat. He remembered when Dean and he were dating, how he would sit in the middle, right next to Dean. It was only when they first met that Castiel had sat on the far side, but that had quickly changed. And now it had come full circle.
They had just pulled onto the I-495 when Castiel decided to break the silence. "It's a nice day. Very sunny."
Dean snorted. "Really, Cas? Weather?" He glanced over at his husband, who just shrugged. "After being with each other for so long, I would assume you could come up with a more compelling topic of conversation." He quirked an eyebrow and gave a crocked smile.
"Eh." Castiel shrugged again and grinned in amusement at Dean. "It got you talking."
Dean's smirk dropped slowly and he sighed. "Damn it," he mumbled. Cas had used to, and now again, broken their silence with some random comment. It had always been something so stupid, but it had gotten them to laugh and fall into meaningless chatter.
"You've got admit though, it is a very good day for a barbeque."
Dean hummed in agreement. "Jo will be pleased. Save us from having to move it inside. Remember last time?"
The last gathering they had tried to have had ended in a downpour, resulting in everyone relocating to the inside of the Harvelle household. Bobby was supposed to be the one to cook the burgers, but since they had moved inside, Jo refused to cook the burgers on the stove, mainly because it meant she had to help. Instead, they had ordered pizza, which Ellen made Jo go out to collect.
Cas laughed softly at the memory of Jo yelling at Dean when he teasingly demanded her to go get him another beer. Jo had known it was a joke, but not before she gave Dean an earful of 'get off your lazy ass' and the something about not being his maid.
"How's Sam doing?" He asked, redirecting the conversation. "Has he relaxed yet with the studying?"
"Nope, still a nervous wreck. Tried talking to him last night but he wouldn't pick up." Dean may have been exaggerating about his brother's behaviour; Sam was freaking out, but not so much that he wasn't functioning properly. "He'll be calmer today. He won't be bring school work with him, mainly because he annoyed Jo some much last time. I did warn her not bring it up around him, but I think she thought I was joking."
"He's going to pass," Cas said determinedly. "There's no doubt about that."
"You're basically repeating what I'm telling him each day," Dean exclaimed and shook his head. "The little bitch just refuses to listen."
"Oh-" his tone becoming more serious, "-Don't bring it up around him. Please. I don't want this to become some family intervention."
"Do you really think I would do that?" Castiel's voice held an undertone of annoyance. This was the third time Dean had warned him of this in the past couple of months. It was slightly insulting. "I saw what he was like when he was getting ready for graduation. And why would I bring up something you just said Sam's not even going to talk about?" Dean didn't respond and the two fell into silence again.
"Also don't ask about Jess," Dean spoke up, grabbing Castiel's attention. They were pulling off the I-495 east, about 15 minutes away from Bobby's. "I have no clue how he's dealing with the break up, but I'd rather not open up that can of worms."
"Dean," Castiel's tone was critical, "Do you really think I'd be that insensitive? I don't pry. I mean, I don't hide things like you do. The way you and Sam can keep things locked up, I'll never understand." His eyes widened and he tilted his head a little, his look emphasizing his words. "But I wouldn't stick my nose in a situation that is not my business."
"I'm just warning you." Dean's tone was a little softer; he only had Sam's best interst in mind. He just wanted to make sure Cas did too. "We may not share our shit with you—like you and your family with your family therapy sessions." Castiel rolled his eyes at the petulant jab Dean took at his family. He didn't know why, but Dean always seemed to have something against them. "But," Dean continued, not noticing the change in his husband's relaxed expression to one of boredom, "That doesn't mean we like it being brought up."
"I won't, Dean. I wouldn't do that to Sam. To you, I might," Castiel muttered the last part under his breath, too low for Dean to hear.
They drove for about ten more minutes before Dean pulled up to Bobby's house. His green Chevelle was parked in the driveway with a red Mustang parked behind. On the side of the road Sam's black Dodge Charger was parked.
"Damn it," Dean swore and pulled up behind Sam's car. "Everyone's already here." He shifted into 'park', using a little too much force.
"Dean, it's only half after twelve. I highly doubt Bobby will care." Castiel made a move to grab Dean's hand, but thought better of it and pulled back.
"It's not Bobby; it's Sam. He texted me to tell me we better be on time. Now he's going to be all smug when he sees us enter." Dean took a deep breath and ran his hand along his forehead. "All right," Dean said, his tone more serious now, "Remember, no bitching at each other. We save it until the ride. We don't need to give them anything to talk about."
Castiel made a bored face and refrained from rolling his eyes. He felt like a child being scolded by his parents. Instead of making some retort, he unbuckled his seat belt and leaned over the middle seat, bringing himself closer to Dean.
"Don't worry, baby," he reassured with a taunting smirk, cutting Dean off. He slid over and captured Dean's lips in a heated kiss.
Dean stiffened for a moment before eagerly responding, just as Castiel pulled back. "I know how to act." The man gave his husband a flirty wink and pushed open his door to climb out.
Dean quickly composed himself and opened his door, clambering out of the car much like Cas did. He walked around the impala and to the sidewalk where Castiel was standing, waiting.
They didn't hold hands or wrap their arms around each other, but they did stay close together as they walked to the back of the house, where voices could be heard chattering.
"Well, look who finally made it," a smug voice announced as the couple walked into the backyard. Jo was coming out of the back door, carrying a case of beer. "Got to admit, we were starting to get worried about you two." She gave Cas and Dean a smug smile, matching the tone of her words, along with a teasing wink. "But then again, I might've finally been able to enjoy myself."
"Oh, come on, Harvelle," Dean protested with a joking tone, "You know you'd die without me. I'm the entertainment."
Jo rolled her eyes and followed Dean and Cas over to where Ellen and Sam where talking by a table of snacks. "You think too highly of yourself, Winchester. No one should be that conceited."
"Aww, come on," Dean cooed, "you know yo-"
"About time you got here," Sam greeted when he noticed his brother and Cas coming towards them. "I have a longer drive and yet I still beat you."
"Yeah, yeah." Dean brushed past Sam and grabbed a beer from the cooler. He used his ring on his right hand—the only ring he wore—to open the cap. "Don't be so proud about it. It's not like we're eating yet." Dean glanced around the yard seeing that the only food were chips and a few other snacks.
"No, but at least I'm not the last one here." Sam smiled proudly. "And it's great to see Cas here." He turned and faced where Cas was standing on the deck, talking to Jo and Ellen.
"Well-" Dean raised his hands as if he was presenting something. "It's not like I was going to leave him behind. He didn't have anything planned anyway."
Sam arched an eyebrow and snorted. Even though Cas and Dean never acknowledged the state of their marriage, he wasn't stupid. He may not be able to read people like his brother and brother-in-law, but Dean was his brother. He could read him better than anyone could. And he knew what the couple presented wasn't the truth. No one else; Ellen, Jo, Bobby or even Cas' family knew the true extent. If any of them knew something, they never shared it
"Yeah." He nodded and smiled. "Well, it's good to see him." Sam had always like Cas; he always thought the man was the best thing that ever happened to his brother, but Dean couldn't seem to see that anymore.
Dean didn't say anything for a moment. Just continued to glance from Cas to his brother, trying to figure out if there were some ulterior motives behind this conversation.
"You know," Sam spoke up, sounding almost distant as he watched Cas, he turned back to face Dean. His face was almost unreadable. "You're lucky you still have Cas. You still have someone to talk to."
"Ugh, come on, Sammy," Dean groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, if you're about to ridicule m-"
"No, shut up," he snapped, a little more aggressively than he had meant. His closed his eyes for a moment, trying to calm himself.
Dean stared wide-eyed at his brother, shocked by the sudden outburst. He wasn't sure how this conversation escalated or even if it did. He had even made a complaint about Cas.
"Sorry," Sam mumbled and sighed heavily. "Look, it's just you always seem like you'd rather be anywhere than with Cas. Jo, Bobby and Ellen may not see it but I do. I am tired of having to watch you and your husband put on the act that you do. Just stop. You still have someone Dean. Me, well you know what happened. I fucking graduated law school, probably the greatest accomplishment of my life, and I lose the woman I was most excited to share it with." Sam frowned and looked down at the grass.
Dean remained silent. He was a little baffled. He didn't think they were that obvious, but he also didn't think Sam paid that much attention to his love life or lack thereof. His normally quiet brother usually kept his opinion about Cas and him to himself. It was more like Sam had final reached the end of his tether and just needed to vent. Even though Sam's break up with Jess was amicable, Dean wasn't expecting his brother to just bounce back. Sam let out a heavy breath and pushed his hand though his hair, the strands easily falling back into place. "Look," Dean began, "I didn't know yo-"
"So how's work?" Sam asked, cutting Dean off. He didn't want to go into any more detail about his break up. He'd already said too much and now he was regretting it. It kind of startled Dean how calm and level his brother's voice quickly became, when he had sounded like he had been about to cry only seconds ago.
"The same since I last talked to you, three days ago. You know, when you actually answered my call." Dean took a sip of his beer and glanced at Sam, who nodded. Thankfully Dean had taken the hint and went along with the new conversation
"Jeez, Dean. I am about to write the test that will determine my career. You could be a little more empathetic and not bitch just because I didn't answer your call."
The older Winchester made an annoyed noise in the back of his throat just scoffed and took another pull from his drink. Maybe he was being unfair to Sam. He was constantly on his brother's case about taking a day of two off from studying, and maybe he should back off.
"I thought you were against talking about school." Dean smirked when Sam growled and narrowed his eyes.
"You're a jerk. You know that, right?" Dean chuckled and patted Sam on the shoulder.
"You remind me all the time, bitch." Sam muttered something under his breath that sounded like 'typical', but he didn't seem pissed anymore; they were back to their usual antics.
Jo and Castiel laughed at something Ellen had said, but both brothers kept to themselves.
"I guess I should go say 'hi' to Bobby." Dean glanced around the large yard for the crusty, bearded man, probably brooding over the fact that it was his turn to cook. "Where is he?" Dean looked back at Sam after noticing the man who helped raise them was nowhere to be seen.
Sam looked up from his feet and checked around the yard like Dean had. "He was here—he's probably in the kitchen," Sam suggested and walked to sliding glass door.
"You gonna bring Cas?" Sam stopped in the doorway, blocking Dean's way. Both brothers turned to look at the other man, but he was still talking with Ellen and Jo, his back turned to them.
"Nah, he can do it later," Dean decided and pushed his brother through the door so he could enter the house.
The door led them to the open kitchen and dining room, where Bobby was grumbling to himself and placing freshly stacked burger patties into the fridge. The kitchen was a decent size, but looked too big for Bobby if Dean was being honest. In fact, the whole house was too big for the man. Why he bought it fifteen years ago, he would never know. The sophisticated style didn't even suit the rough around the edges man. Ellen had shared with them once that Bobby's wife always wanted to live in a large family-home, but they couldn't afford it once she got sick. Sam and Dean figured this was a way to honour her memory.
There was an oak round table with four matching chairs off on the left. To the right was a long granite counter top with oak cupboards coming from the wall. In the counter top along the wall adjacent to the first counter was the sink, with a large window above looking out onto the backyard and two cupboards on each side. There was third counter that ran along the wall next to the sink, with four matching cupboards hanging against the wall. The stove was place in the middle of the last counter, splitting it in half. At the end of that counter was the larger stainless steel fridge.
"Hey Bobby," Sam stepped around the counter and over to the fridge. "Need any help?" Dean followed closely and leaned against the sink, arms folded across his chest.
Bobby moved back and stood up straight. He glanced at Sam as he closed the door. "Nope," he snapped, "All done." He then turned and his eyes fell on Dean.
"About time you got here, boy," the man said boorishly. He walked across the kitchen and picked up his beer on the counter.
"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Dean complained. Sam let out a choked out laugh, and he shot him a less-than-impressed look.
"Because," the older man groused, "I said to be here by noon, not thirty minutes after." Dean looked down at his watch and rolled his eyes. Like a half hour would make a difference; Bobby wasn't even going to start the cooking the food until three.
"And where is the other one? Sam said both of you were coming." Bobby took a sip of his beer and narrowed his eyes at Dean, as if he was suspecting the younger man of hiding something. As if on cue, Castiel walked through the patio door.
"Hello, Bobby. How are you?" Castiel walked around the counter and stopped right next to Bobby.
The older man nodded to greeted the dark-haired man. "Good to see you. Now that the food is all done, I'm going outside until Ellen busts my balls to get the burgers going." Bobby grunted and let the house, leaving the other three men standing in the kitchen.
"I guess we should follow," Sam suggested. "You know Ellen is not going to single out Bobby."
Dean and Cas mumbled in agreement and followed Bobby back outside. Dean had just stepped out of the door when someone called his name, or rather yelled.
"Dean, get your ass over here," Jo called from her spot besides the cooler. "We haven't caught up yet and your husband mentioned things I want details to." Jo gave Dean a cocky smile she held out her arms in an open embrace. Dean glanced at Sam, who just shrugged and smirked before he walked off to talk to Bobby.
"You're talking to Cas, why do you need details from me?" Dean groaned before walking over to the woman, who standing next to Castiel again. Just as he stopped, his was pulled in to a tight in brace.
"Because I want to talk to both of you, dude." Jo glanced from Dean to Cas with a large giddy smile. "So first, how have you been? I haven't seen you two love-birds in a long time."
"It's been less than a month, Jo," Dean snorted, ignoring her last comments. "You remember? I was graced with your charming presences at Sam's graduation."
"A lot happens in a month, Winchester," she offered. "And while you're off enjoying yourself in the big city I'm still stuck at home, busting my ass to find a job."
Jo had just graduated from Queen's College for Business Administration. And while she searched for work, she was back living with Ellen, bartending at her mom's restaurant to pay off her student loans.
"Sure, getting kicked and verbally abused on a daily bases is 'living the dream'." Dean shuffled backwards, unaware that he was moving closer to Castiel until their shoulders bumped together. Instead of pulling away, which was normally their initial reaction, both of them stayed still.
Jo huffed and shook her head. "Anyway," she drawled, "Cas here just mentioned to me that you two are finally thinking about taking a vacation together. And I want details."
Dean nearly chocked on his beer and turned to Cas, glaring. What the hell had the man told her?
"Punta Cana, wasn't it?" Jo asked, looking to Cas for confirmation, who nodded. "When is that going to be?"
"December," Castiel answered without skipping a beat. He ignored Dean's glare and focused on Jo as he answered her question.
"Well, I got to say; it's about damn time you two take time off. It's been—It was your honeymoon, right? When you last got away."
"Uh, yeah," Dean stutters, trying to snap at Cas. It wasn't a lie, the trip to the Dominican, but what Cas had omitted was the fact that he was the only one going. Gabriel had bought the trip—a family trip and was practically dragging Castiel there. Dean was supposed to go, but he was working on convincing Gabriel to let him out of the plans. The last thing he wanted, beside the plane ride, was to take a vacation and spend more time than necessary with his husband.
"Well, I'm glad. This must be something special if you're willing to get on a plane for nine hours." Dean made a noise of disagreement, but neither Cas nor Jo seemed to notice. "You two don't show enough affection with each other," Jo continued and nudged Dean in the side. "Hell, I think I kiss my own mom more than I've seen you two kiss." It was a dig—a very subtle dig, but an insult nevertheless.
"I'm going to get another drink," Cas excused himself and went back inside the house, despite the full cooler just a couple of steps from them.
That bastard, Dean seethed in his head. He was pissed. Everyone was assuming he was going to Hawaii. How would they explain why he didn't go because he was sure as hell that he would not be taking that trip.
"So," She said, looking very giddy, "Are you excited-"
"Jo," Ellen's sharp voice cut in, calling from the barbecue. "Come over here and help."
"I'm taking to Dean; one minute," she replied and Dean gave Jo a knowing smirk: she wasn't getting out of helping.
"Jo, I need your help now," Ellen called back, ignoring her daughter's excuse, which caused Jo to sigh and roll her yes.
"Okay." She finally nodded to her mom and turned back to Cas and Dean. "I'll talk to you later," Jo promised and Dean nodded, glancing over at Ellen, who was tearing open a package of hot dogs and laying them onto a plate.
"You told her?" Dean groaned, stalking up to Cas from behind, who had just popped a chip into his mouth.
"I was just making conversation, Dean. It just sort of slipped out and I forgot that you weren't going until it was too late," Castiel defended himself
"Yeah, well now we have to figure out an excuse why I'm not going. You know damn well I am not stepping foot into a plane, nor will I spend a week with that goblin you call a brother." Dean wasn't really pissed at Cas, surprisingly. He didn't know why, but he felt more annoyed than anything.
"Must you always insult Gabriel?" Castiel asked, sounding bored as he picked up a chip and popped it into his mouth. "Anyway, they all seem to think there isn't anything interesting going in our relationship and that it's about time something happened. Which," Castiel turned and glanced behind his shoulder where Jo and Sam were watching them, "you'd think that they would understand that is because we've been married for eight years." Dean cocked an eyebrow questioningly. Castiel's choice of words was almost ironic.
"Aww," Jo cooed from her spot by the barbecues. "You two are just so adorable." Jo winked teasingly while Sam snickered next to her.
The couple rolled their eyes and stepped away from each other. Jo chuckled when Dean glanced at Cas awkwardly, looking like he wanted to say something but decided not to. He walked over to her, switching places with Sam, who made his way over to Cas.
"Hey, Cas." Sam placed his beer on the table and picked up a chip from the bowl Castiel was snacking from. "How are you?"
"Hello Sam. I'm doing well. How are you?" Sam chuckled; Cas was still as formal as ever. He found it slightly entertaining that his brother, who could be blunt and crass at times, found Cas, who was almost the complete opposite. Though, he could see some of his brother had started to rub off on Cas. But, he guessed it was the whole opposites attract.
"I'm fine." Sam pursed his lips and picked up his bottle again. He startled fiddling with the bottle, sliding his fingers up and down the length.
Castiel noticed the younger Winchester's motions. Something was bothering Sam; his face was serious and staring down at the table. "
Sam? Is everything ok-"
"You shouldn't have to put up with that," Sam rushed out. Cas slowly lifted his head and raised his eyebrow. "Uh, I don't really know what yo-" Playing dumb was probably not a good idea with Sam, especially since Dean always complained what a shitty actor he was.
"Look," Sam sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He turned his body to face Cas directly. "I know Dean can be difficult, but you can always talk to me, if you need to."
"Oh, Sam, I-" Cas began to protest. He appreciated the offer, he really did, but it was an uncomfortable idea to complaining about his husband to Sam. He didn't want to younger Winchester to know exactly what their marriage was like.
"I mean it, Cas," he cut in. "Dean may be my brother, and I love him, but he is also an ass."
Sam's face was sincere and gentle. He wanted Cas to come to him with any issues. He didn't want his brother-in-law to feel like he had to suffer with Dean because he didn't want cause any issues if he talked about it.
Castiel nodded and touched Sam's forearm. "Thank you Sam. I really appreciate it." He didn't know if he would actually take Sam up on his offer, the idea was still so strange, but it was worth accepting it just to see the smile spread across the younger man's face.
Dean walked over to Cas a few minutes after Sam had gone into the house. He went right up to Cas, leaving less than an inch of space between them.
"Jo is on about us showing affection again," Dean grumbled and pulled the chip from Castiel's hand, Damn, for a women being against Dean glanced back at him and the Cas.
"And why is she doing that?" Castiel reached into the bowl and pulled out another chip, which Dean took again. "Jeez, would you like me to feed you?" he muttered sarcastically when Dean snatched a few more chips from the handful Cas had grabbed.
"I don't know, something about how 'adorable' we were when we first got married," Dean explained, and then took a sip of his beer. "Then she added something about being a stuffy, old married couple. So I was thinking…" A mischievous gleam was in his eyes as he stepped closer to Cas, easily closing the distance between them. Castiel stared up at Dean with wide eyes.
Dean placed his hands on Castiel's waist and pulled the man the remaining inch between them so he was now pressed against him. Castiel let out a gasp and before he could protest, Dean's lips were claiming his. Castiel let out another gasp, this time in pleasure, before he was eagerly reciprocating, completely forgetting their current surroundings for a few moments. Despite the desire to bite each other's heads off, the one thing they could not deny was the-still intense chemistry between them.
Jo and Sam made a noise of protest when Dean pushed Castiel against the table.
"Aww, come on boys," Bobby called from his spot behind Sam and Jo. "Nobody wants to see that before they eat!" Dean raised his hand, flipping off their audience. He pulled back a second later, breathless and chuckling at the content look on his husband's face.
"Give them a show; probably will shut them up for a bit," Dean whispered, shrugging like he really didn't care if Castiel agreed with him or not.
"The food's almost ready," Bobby snapped again. "I don't need to see any more of that. For God's sake, keep it PG." Dean laughed and pulled away from Cas, putting some distance between them, but not as much as earlier.
'Just for show,' Castiel thought, reminding himself to not get too into it.
"Oh, come now, Bobby," Ellen chastised as she walked out of the house, "it's not that big of a deal. Just finish the food so we can all eat." Ellen patted Dean on the back as she walked by them, winking.
Bobby grumbled to himself and went back to attending to the burgers, which were almost ready.
"I don't know if it worked," Castiel said in a low voice, glancing at Sam and Jo, the latter smiling impishly at them.
Castiel had his head resting against Dean's shoulder. He was starting to feel tired and about ready to head home. After a good helping of food and catching up, it was now inching closer to nine. How they managed to last that long, Cas would never know.
Now, everyone was sat around the large patio table making light small talk. Dean was in the middle of a discussion with Bobby about scheduling days when he could help out at the garage when he snaked his arm around Castiel's shoulders, lightly rubbing his hand up and down Castiel's right bicep. It was a rare intimate display for them, and oddly, Castiel was enjoying it. He sighed and burrowed his head further against Dean's neck, inhaling his fresh and spicy sent, coupled with the scent of the muggy air.
"I have every other weekend off, normally," Dean was saying when he felt Castiel's hair tickle against his jaw. Instead of the urge to push his husband away, like he usually felt, he only wanted to keep him close. Maybe it was the show of being the loving couple that they used to be that allowed them that temporary lapse into the past.
"Saturdays are the best. Any other day just call. Chances are I'll need more help during the week than weekend," Bobby explained, while sipping his beer.
Jo and Sam were discussing something about school. More like bitching as Jo growled the word "fucking" about three times in less than a minute.
Ellen sat quietly, ignoring her daughter. She visibly wasn't impressed with Jo's choice of words, but remained silent. She was just listening to Bobby and Dean talk, smiling at the affectionate display Dean and Cas were putting on.
"Well," Ellen spoke up, "I could always use the help on weekends. What do you say, Dean? Feel like busting table for old times' sake?"
"No way!" Dean protested and chuckled. The movement of Dean's shoulders bumped against Castiel's face. "I did enough tables for you. If I remember correctly, I didn't even offer. Came in for a burger, and ended up working six hours serving grouchy, middle-aged men."
Besides working for Bobby during his high school and college years, he also "worked" (work being a lose turn, since Ellen wouldn't take 'no' for an answer) at The Roadhouse. It had been irritating at the time, but Dean had some great times working for the woman who, like Bobby, had helped raise him while his dad went on one of his many benders.
Castiel chuckled at Dean's adamant refusal to work at The Roadhouse again. From what he remembered, it wasn't that bad. He enjoyed Dean waiting on him when he came in with his brothers on days that Dean just happened to be working.
Dean squeezed Castiel's shoulder, but it was a gentle and firm squeeze, not one intended to cause the man pain.
No one seemed to question the show of affection between the two men. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to the friends and family of the couple. No one wondered why they were putting on an act because no one knew it was an act. As far as Bobby, Jo and Ellen were aware, Dean and Cas had been happily married for eight almost nine years. The only one who may have caught on was Sam, but Dean was almost certain his brother would never say anything.
"Well, it's just an offer," Ellen shrugged. "Personally, I'd rather you than Ash. He's a good guy, but fuck, he can talk—a little too much."
Ash had been working Ellen's restaurant for about three years now. He was a couple of years younger than Dean, having gone to school with Jo. He was a good guy, but he was quirky and sometimes that would be off-putting to the customers.
By nine thirty, Dean and Cas were back in the Impala, driving home. There were a couple of differences with this drive than the one going to Bobby's. Instead of the ongoing bickering, they sat in comfortable silence. Cas' head was resting against the window, only a step away from losing consciousness. So much so, that he was only vaguely aware of Dean removing his hand from the steering wheel and reaching over to him, gently running his hand through the man's dark tufts of hair.
Castiel hummed and closed his eyes. "Feels good," he mumbled.
Dean's hand froze for a second, realizing exactly what he was doing, but Cas wasn't complaining, so he continued to comb his hand through his hair.
Both men were content with the low rumble of the Impala to fill the silence. It was nice. It was nostalgic. It was like old times, back when they first met.
This chapter was probably the most difficult to write. I actually rewrote it completely. I'm still don't love it, but it's a lot better than the original version.