December 10th: Gabriel, Crowley
Gabriel.
"Who the fuck does he think he is?" Jimmy said for what was possibly the thousandth time, slamming the door to the Roadhouse as he marched through them. "Does he think that this is funny? Does he actually have no idea what the fuck is going on?"
"Whoa, Jim-bob." Gabriel followed a few paces behind him, eyebrow raised. "Calm down. I'm not entirely sure that the situation calls for all this -"
"Oh, yes. It does." Jimmy perched on a bar stool, scowling as he gestured to Ash for a shot of whiskey.
"Girl troubles?" Ash asked sympathetically, sliding the glass across the counter.
"I wish," the younger Novak grumbled. "More like brother troubles." He reached for the shot and downed it in one, nodding for another one as Gabriel sat next to him.
"So, what does this mean? Is the plan off?"
Jimmy almost choked on his second shot, staring at his brother incredulously. "Off? Is the - Off? No, it's not off! It's never going to be off! Dean and my brother are admitting that they still love each other whether they like it or not!"
"Okay, okay, chill out!" Sheesh. Jimmy had an ever larger stick in his ass than Castiel did. "Just saying. Doesn't exactly make things easy now that Lisa Braeden's involved."
"Yeah, well, she better get uninvolved." Jimmy was on his forth shot by now, throwing the glass aside and reaching for the fifth that Ash wordlessly passed to him. "I refuse to let my brother become heartbroken let again - I REFUSE -" He cut himself off by slamming his palm down onto the bar counter.
"I feel ya, buddy." Ash shook his head. "I've been tryin' to get Jo interested in this friend of mine for years, and she just hasn't taken the hint." He pushed a bottle of beer towards Gabriel, who gratefully opened it and took a long gulp. He was going to need it once Jimmy had finished.
"What do we do now?"
"Well, I don't know about you, Gabe, but I'm drinking until I get another good idea."
"Yeah, I don't think that's such a wise move, Jimmy. I don't particularly want to have to haul you away from another farmyard."
"I think you guys are just making that bit up, to be honest. I have no memory of it."
"You were too intoxicated to remember it. But that's not the point. The point is that we still have no idea what we're going to do about Dean and Cas."
"Actually, gentlemen -" A voice cut across their conversation before the younger Novak could respond; both glanced to see a man in a dark suit leaning against the bar a few metres down from them "I think I might be able to offer you some assistance there."
Jimmy looked miffed at being interrupted. "Who the hell are you?"
The man chuckled, holding out a hand. "Allow me to introduce myself. Crowley. Business executive."
"Uh hu," Jimmy replied, unconvinced.
"Crowley..." Gabriel frowned. "Aren't you that douchebag part-time mechanic that my brother-in-law has been constantly complaining about for the past three months?"
Crowley paused for a moment, before dropping his outstretched hand that neither brother was going to accept. "Business executive, part-time mechanic...What's the difference, really?"
"I can think of a few differences."
"Going by the snarky attitude, I guess you must be James."
"It's Jimmy."
"James, Jimmy, it all means the same thing. But, that's not important right now. What is important is how much use that I could be to you in your little matchmaking endeavours." A smirk crossed his face. "For a price, of course." The two brothers exchanged a look before glancing back to Crowley.
"Alright," Gabriel said after a moment. "We're listening."
Crowley.
"This is ridiculous," Jimmy grumbled.
"You were the ones who agreed to the deal," Crowley replied simply, grinning at the sight of the two Novaks in greasy overalls, the ones that he refused to wear. "I'd talk to Squirrel if you agreed to fix up the cars for a day."
"You know that Jim-Bob and I know next to nothing about fixing up cars, right?"
"I don't care how well the job is done. Just as long as it gets done. Plus, I can guarantee that you two chuckleheads will know more than I do."
"Why did you even apply for a job here, then?"
"I didn't. Bobby offered me employment here."
"Yeah, right." Gabriel let out a snort. "Bobby would never willingly employ someone who was as crap at mechanics as you."
"Okay. Maybe it wasn't quite as honest as that. Bobby owed me a favour from our college days and three months ago, I came to collect."
"What sort of favour?"
"To make a long story short, our college days were a little wild, and I came into possession of a very incriminating photograph. In order to keep it hidden, Bobby offered me a part-time placement here at the garage."
"That's fighting dirty, Crowley."
"Yeah. Hardly professional."
"Who said anything about me being a professional?" Crowley replied, snorting as he headed in the direction of the office, where Dean was busy sorting through some paperwork that Bobby had left for him.
"Squirrel," he greeted.
"King of Hell," Dean replied. "Aren't you supposed to be fixin' up the cars out back?"
"Trust me, I've got my best team on it."
"Hm."
Crowley leant against the desk, watching him organise for a few moments before speaking again. "I was like you once, Squirrel."
"I doubt that, but go on."
"I was young. I was popular. I was a hit with the ladies - Don't pull that face! I saw the fun in relationships, to have that one person ruin your life forever more. And there was one in particular. My best friend. We met in college and grew very fond of each other, I myself too fond, perhaps."
"My heart bleeds for you," Dean snorted, but there didn't seem to be as much bite behind the words as there might have been if Castiel Novak had remained in his Pontiac exile.
"Your mocking does nothing except fuel my story, Squirrel. Anyway, as I was saying, it wasn't long until I realised my mistake. Growing too fond of anyone is incredibly dangerous, I've learnt. Can lead to all sorts of nasty things. All sorts of feelings."
"Sometimes feelin's are more trouble than they're worth," Dean cut in.
"Exactly! Certainly true in my case." He shifted so that he was closer to the Winchester. "Contrary to what you might see now, Winchester, I wasn't exactly the most outspoken child in my college class. Which is why I never told my dear friend about my festering affections. I had to watch her fall in love with the star quarterback from high school and marry him in a registry office. Now they've got three kids together."
"So?"
"So, Squirrel, I wish I'd had the courage to tell her how I'd felt before it was too late. Maybe she wouldn't have returned the affections, but I wouldn't have sat there in pain whilst I watched her promise to love and honour someone else. Dean." The sound of his real name made Dean look up, his hands pausing entirely. "Don't make the same mistake I did." He nodded once to affirm his words, before pushing off the desk and strolling out of the office, smirking as he felt Dean's eyes boring into his back.
Some people will believe anything.