The following night saw Dean and Castiel in a local bar, having a quiet night alone at Sam's insistence. He'd argued that they needed their alone time now more than ever, had insisted that the twins Dina and Elijah were fine under his watchful eye, aided by Elisha and Bobby. Finally, Dean and Castiel had caved under the pressure, had headed out to the bar, where they were slowly drinking companionably.
Dean was alone when the woman approached him, waiting for Castiel to return with the next order and hoping that the angel would bring back something decent to drink. The last time he'd ordered, he'd returned with two Strawberry Daiquiris and a "Sex on the Beach" cocktail. Dean had groaned loudly into the remnants of his beer at that, but had drank them anyway to avoid hurting Castiel's feelings.
He looked up when he became aware of a presence nearby, mildly annoyed to see it was a lady and not Castiel like he'd hoped. She smiled, he didn't, but she didn't seem deterred. She sat without being invited, still smiling with her too bright lips, heavy mascara weighing her eyelashes down in a supposedly seductive and flirtatious look.
"So, you wanna drink back at my place, sugar?" purred the lady's seductive voice into Dean's ear, winking slowly at him.
Dean flinched away, wondering why Castiel was taking so long in getting the drinks, wishing he was back by his side instead of the garish lady beside him.
"No, sweetheart, I don't," Dean replied, stiffly, pulling away and giving her the cold shoulder.
"You're coming dangerously close to hurting my feelings here. You sure you don't want to reconsider?" purred the lady stroking Dean's face once more and suffering the same treatment. "You're such a handsome man."
"I said no, lady. I'm married," Dean finally said, showing her his ring and getting up to stalk away angrily from her.
She watched him leave, surprised that he'd pushed away her advances, before turning her attentions to someone else. Dean was soon forgotten, much to his relief when he cast an angry look over his shoulder.
"What was all that about?" Castiel asked, when Dean caught up with him, having witnessed Dean's little exchange with the red painted lady, two beer bottles crowding his fingers.
"Some little harlot trying to hit on the wrong man, is all," Dean sighed, looking weary and older than his years, as he steered Castiel from the bar and away from troubling encounters with would be sirens trying to steal loyal husbands. "Thanks, Cas."
This last was in response to the beer Castiel handed him, which the hunter downed in three steady gulps, as the angel sipped more demurely at his own beer.
"So what did you say to her?" Castiel finally asked, when their beers had been consumed and it looked as though Dean himself wasn't about to continue.
"I told her I was married and walked away," the hunter replied with a lopsided smile at his husband. "I showed her my ring and everything."
Castiel gave Dean a pleased grin, but remained silent, settling beneath the shelter of Dean's embracing arm, long fingers stroking against Dean's wedding band gently, wondrously. The angel was lost in thought, knowing what Dean had been like before he'd settled down with Castiel himself. The angel wasn't stupid; he knew that once upon a time, Dean would have jumped at the chance to spend time with ladies with dubious intent. It seemed as though Dean had finally grown up, had finally found happiness with Castiel and their ever growing family.
"C'mon, let's go, shall we? I'm tired of this place," Dean murmured into Castiel's ear gently, receiving one of Castiel's slow, deliberate nods in return.
Dean leant in, pressed a kiss to Castiel's warm cheek, one hand wrapped possessively around the angel's shoulders. Dean smiled gently, eyes fixed on Castiel's now flat abdomen, shaking his head in disbelief that he'd managed to produce life with his lover. His smile grew broader at the thought that Castiel had finally tamed him, finally made him settle down and not want anyone else. Even the prospect of sleeping with anyone else made him feel ill these days. Marriage, he decided, was good for him, as was Castiel himself.
"Cas, are you happy?" Dean suddenly asked, eyes darting up to Castiel's face, stopping on the darkened sidewalk and forcing Castiel to stop beside him. "I mean, really happy?"
"Of course I am, Dean. I have you," Castiel replied immediately. "We have children and we're married. What else could I want?"
"Nothing, Cas; no reason," Dean replied before he turned his head away.
"Why?" Castiel asked, tilting his head to regard Dean with such close scrutiny, it seemed to the hunter that the angel was trying to read him, trying to judge him.
Once upon a time, that feat would have bothered him, but no longer. He didn't mind the intrusion or the second guessing; it seemed that in the crazy world they lived within, it was nice to have someone who knew him so well, better than his own brother did, and less likely to pass judgment or to argue.
"Are you not happy, Dean? What can I do to help?" Castiel asked, waiting patiently by as Dean regarded him, face purposefully devoid of expression.
"You know what, Cas? You can't do anything to make me any happier," Dean replied and Castiel grinned.
The expression, although coming a little easier to the angel these days, was still a shock to Dean's system; he still remembered the days when Castiel was emotionless, expressionless, hard to read and a scary dude all round. These days, Castiel seemed the opposite, more human, even more relaxed and beautiful whenever he was around Dean. The hunter remembered the time when Castiel classed him as his only friend and, while Castiel now could class both Sam and Bobby as his friends, it seemed as though he could only let his guard truly down whenever he spent time with Dean.
"Let's just go home, huh?" Dean murmured, claiming a willing kiss from Castiel's pliant mouth.
"I like that idea, Dean," Castiel agreed readily enough, lips still curled in a warm smile of satisfaction, allowing Dean to lead him to the Impala and onwards towards Bobby's house.
Neither Dean nor Castiel truly knew what the future held, nor when Gabriel would return for Sam to honor his end of their deal. Like everything else, they knew they would have to wait, and take it as it came ....
-fini- (until the next instalment in this 'verse! ;D )