The sound of the mumbling TV flooded Cas' ears as he started to regain consciousness. He leaned further into his hard pillow and grumbled as the the embrace of the warm blanket and couch enveloped him. His mind felt groggy and cozy in a half asleep state. He stretched, smiled, and leaned into his stiff pillow. Lord, was it uncomfortable. It was almost bony, even. Cas' eyes flew open in an instant and he moved away as the memory of the night before washed over his brain.

"Good morning, Cinderella," Dean smirked.

Cas was breathless. "Cinderella?"

"Or, uh, Aura?...Elsa? Ar-" Dean scrunched up his face, and paused, but then gave up with an exhale, "Sleeping Beauty. Good morning, Sleeping Beauty."

"Good morning to you, too," Cas looked back into his lap feeling like his face was going to melt off. Dean smiled and went back to watching Home Alone which had, evidently, been playing on repeat all night. Cas watched Dean's profile the way Dean watched the movie. His hair was messier than usual, and he had the beginning of a five o'clock shadow. He looked much rougher than his usually primed (as Cas now realized it was) self. Dean turned suddenly to him, and Cas tried to move his eyes as surreptitiously as possible.

"What?" Curiosity colored his tone.

"Nothing," Cas' brow furrowed as he paused, "I apologize."

"For what?"

"For falling asleep on you."

"Hey, I'm guilty, too," Dean smiled widely and shamelessly, "You don't need to apologize."

Cas sighed and subtly moved closer to Dean. They sat and watched the movie quietly. Winchester silence again, it seemed. Dean laughed at every single one of the gags, but Cas didn't even chuckle. He found his heart warm and content in his chest as the pair existed together. It pounded a few beat quicker than usual, but not uncomfortably fast.

"When do we have to be in?" Cas broke the silence reluctantly.

"At two," Dean flicked his eyes over the check the wall clock," Which is in half an hour, holy shit." Dean stood up quickly, the blanket falling to floor. "Do you need to shower?"

"I would like to, yes."

"Okay, I'll go first," Dean said as he started walking toward the bathroom door. "Why don't you try and find something edible before I get out?" He called over his shoulder (with his shirt half off, Cas couldn't help but notice) and then shut the door behind him. Cas heard water start to spill onto the shower floor. He stood up from the couch and sauntered over the kitchen table, which he saw was still a mess from the "feast" the night before. Cas picked up the empty soda cans, the half-full bag of potato chips, and the remains of the chicken wings and he deposited them all in the trash can. As he start to root around in the fridge for something to eat, he heard a yowl from the bathroom.

"Fuck!"

"Dean, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Dean called through the door, "Goddamn shower is always so cold."

Cas foraged through the refrigerator for almost a full minute before he settled only drinking a glass of orange juice and grabbing an almost stale blueberry muffin off the counter. His mouth was full when Dean burst out of the bathroom with a towel hastily wrapped around his waist. He just about spit out his muffin in violent surprise. Cas' eyes were riveted instantly to Dean's wet and gleaming muscles, and he had to work to rip them up towards Dean's face as he started to talk.

"Okay," He exhaled sharply, "I can't turn the shower off, because it will get cold again. You can't take too long, or it will get cold again. Now, Cas, go!"

Cas rushed to swallow his muffin as he speed into the bathroom. He pulled his shirt over his head, and dropped his jeans to the floor before stepping into the shower to take one of the quickest showers of his life. He turned the shower off and carefully wrapped a towel around his waist. When he opened the bathroom door, Dean was sitting at the table chewing on a muffin and drinking from the juice Cas had poured.

"Your clean uniform is on my dresser." His mouth was full.

"Thank you," Cas turned to go into Dean's room, and then wished he hadn't.

"Whoa! Cas?" Dean voice was filled with concern. Cas cringed internally before turning again to meet Dean's eyes. They were wide and sincere and made Cas' heart swell up. But, he knew what to do. He had had this conversation a million times before. "Where the hell are all those scars from?"

"They are nothing, Dean," Cas said flatly and avoided his eyes, "We are late." Cas turned quickly into the bedroom and shut the door behind him. He leaned his head back against the door let out a pent up breath in a nervous sigh. Dean would have to know. He would need to. Cas had really been trying not to think about them since he had left and since Dean had found him. Cas moved to the dresser and pulled on his shorts and shirt, and smoothed them out in the mirror. He would tell Dean later, he decided. He paused in front of the door and tried to make his facial expression look as casual as possible. It came out as a sort of constipated scowl. Cas shook out cheeks and lips, and tried to keep his mind blank as he pushed the door open.

"If we hurry, we can still make it on time," Cas mumbled as he walked passed Dean-who had been waiting outside the bedroom door- and tried to make it out the front door.

"Cas, wait," Dean commanded as he grabbed Cas' wrist and wrested his around to look into his eyes. Cas saw that they were scorching like hellfire. His tone was elevated and serious and served only to further boil Cas' blood, sending his heart into a heated overdrive. Dean continued through clenched teeth: "Those scars aren't nothing. And I'm pretty sure I saw a fresh bruise, too. Are you okay?"

"Dean, I am fine," Cas exhaled, trying to steady his nerves and his racing heart. "I am okay, now. Can we go? We are late."

Dean narrowed his eyes and searched deep into Cas' soul. Cas held his breath. After a few seconds, Dean widened his eyes and nodded, seeming convinced, and moved to pull on his coat. Cas released a quiet sigh of relief. Dean led the way down the street in Winchester silence and soon the two were nearing the Cafe. Cas was lost in his head deciding how he would handle telling Dean more about the source of his scars when the two walked through the door. Cas' mind was so tangled up with confusing lies, harsh truths, Dean's wide smile, round face full of concern, and the sound of a relentless belt ripping against his vulnerable flesh that he was barely even cognizant to who was ogling behind the counter.

"Cassie! What the fuck are you doing here?"

Cas' head whipped up in an instant when he heard.

His eyes flung around the cafe to hone in on the source of the voice. He found a pair of eyes twinkling at him, a mess of black hair, and a familiar smirk burning into his eyes.

"Gabe?"

"Cas," Gabe greeted his brother from across the restaurant floor with an aggrandized smile, "Come give you favorite brother a hug."

"Whoa, wait," Dean said slowly, "That's your brother Gabriel?"

Cas nodded to Dean and then started toward the counter.

"And this is your little brother Castiel?"

Gabe nodded at Dean.

"The one who wet the bed until he was fourteen? I didn't put that together."

Gabe laughed and nodded again.

"Gabe, you told him that?" Cas blushed as he reached his brother.

"Only the best information gets shared, little brother," Gabe scooped Cas up into a bear hug and squeezed him. Once Cas was finally released from Gabe's grasp he felt the air rush back into his lungs like they were a vacuum. Dean had moved behind the counter with the two of them, and was arranging the display case as always- he worked silently, trying to give the brothers a moment to reconnect. Cas' eyes flicked over to admire Dean's bent figure but he quickly moved them back to study Gabe's face as their bodies parted. If Gabe had seen Cas' stray eyes, he had ignored them. As Cas scrutinized Gabe's face, he saw that he looked older...more mature. More visible laugh line encircled his playful eyes than when they had lived together three years ago.

"You look a lot more worn than when I last saw you," Gabe said suddenly, sounding serious as he examined Cas' face.

"I suppose I am," Cas sighed, "You look happier."

"I suppose I am," A wide smile broke across his face, the seriousness gone as he continued, "Anyway, how the hell did you end up in this rathole of a place? Did Mommy and Daddy finally kick you out for liking boys?"

Cas blushed again (no one could embarrass him like Gabe had always been able to) and looked to Dean to gauge his response. He hadn't even flinched.

"Gabe," Cas quietly chastised, trying to smother his blush.

"What?" Gabe followed Cas' eyes to look at Dean confusedly, "Is that supposed to be a dirty secret? New flash, this man," Gabe poked a finger at Dean, "Has a lot of sex with a lot of men. And that's fine. I like to fondle a lot of boobies. And that's fine. You are attracted to men. And that's fine! Calm down, Cas. We're all friends here."

Dean laughed and looked fondly at Gabe, "Goddammit, I've missed you."

"They always do," Gabe smirked, "It guess it's just my irresistible charm."

Dean let out a throaty chuckle. "What you call 'irresistible charm,' I call a refreshing dose of asshole."

"Call it what you want, I always make my commisions," Gabe sneered. Cas let out a delighted laugh and Gabe rolled his eyes, but then suddenly honed his eyes onto his brother. "Oh Cas, Crowley told me he wanted to see you in the penthouse when you got in."

Cas had been entranced in the exchange between Gabe and Dean and was surprised when Gabe suddenly dragged him out of silence. "Oh," He cleared his throat, "For what?"

"I don't fuckin' know, go ask him yourself."

"A-all right. I'll be right back down," Cas looked to Dean who smiled encouragingly before he started to walk over to the elevator. As before the door to the corridor closed he heard Gabe shout from the counter: "Don't let Crowley make you do anything you don't want to!"

Cas walked up to the machine and pressed the up button. He started to rock back and forth on his heels as he waited. He bit down and chewed on his bottom lip, his nervous urges taking over. It was comforting for his brother-whom he had considered for all intensive purposes lost- to suddenly show up in this new life of his. At the same time, it brought up a lot of ugly stuff from his past. Cas shrunk back from the mention of their parents. Too many developments had occurred in one day and he didn't know how to process them. And, then, the elevator door dinged open.


"Don't let Crowley do anything you don't want to!" Gabe called right before the door to the hallway closed, and then (once Cas was out of earshot) he continued in the same breath, "What the fuck do you think you're doing, Winchester?"

Dean blinked. "Moving the fresh blueberry muffins to the front of the display."

"No, dipshit, with my little brother," Gabe glared at Dean, suddenly malicious, "Taking his ass in without even telling me, I oughta punch you in the jaw right here and now."

"Whoa, what? Gabe," Dean held his hand up to his head in retaliation to Gabe raising his fists, "How was I supposed to know he was your brother?"

"I talk all the time about my favorite little brother Castiel, about how he's the only family I even miss back home," Gabe narrowed his eyes as his voice got more and more venomous, "How many fuckin' Castiels do you there are in this world?"

"I don't kno-"

"I swear to God, Winchester, if you hurt him I will skin you alive and furnish my apartment with your tan, freckled pelt."

"Gabe, calm down," Dean drawled out.

"No, Dean," Gabe was shouting now, "Cas is too simple and has gone through too much shit to have a player like you in his life! I've known you for long enough to know what you're trying to do with him, Winchester. Have you tried to fuck him, yet?"

"Gabe," Dean was calm, trying to reign in Gabe's temper.

"What?"

"I'm not playing your brother," Dean said quietly, "I really like him. I do. I'm trying to help him out."

Gabe narrowed his eyes and studied Dean. He looked into his eyes and saw the sincerity there and his anger deflated inside him like a balloon. He pushed his lip out in a scowl and replied, "Okay, but be careful. Because I think he really likes you, too. And he isn't wishy washy like you are, he will go all in if you let him."


Cas held his breath as the elevator ascended up the building. What could Crowley want to speak to him privately about? Was he already going to be fired? He could not have done anything that horrifyingly awful yet...had he? Cas felt his heart quicken in his chest. First Dean and he fell asleep together (which was a total violation if Cas had ever seen one), then Dean found his scars, and then Gabe was suddenly back in his life...too many things were happening. It was too much for Cas to handle-

"Are you coming in, or am I going to have to shout?" Crowley voice from the penthouse woke Cas up out a daze. He had been standing silently in the open-doored elevator for a few seconds it seemed. He shook his quickly to clear it and walked into the penthouse.

"There we go," Crowley crooned and then motioned grandly to a chair set up across from his seat on blood red couch, "Why don't you take a seat?"

Cas mechanically walked over and sat down. He looked into Crowley's eyes trying to stifle his nervousness. His voice came out raspy. "What is it, sir?"

"Well, my boy," Crowley smiled devilishly, "What would you say to receiving an...income supplement?"