The following morning, Cas was all ready to face Raphael. In the back of his mind he was worrying over his first dream, and the danger his love put Dean susceptible to. He straightened his tie, and slipped his angel blade into the pocket in his coats interior. Dean and Sam were in the other room, no doubt making the same preparations for the battle

When the angel walked out of the bedroom, he was surprised to see the two brothers lounging on the couch, teasing each other and drinking coffee leisurely. Dean turned his head when he heard Cas enter the room, and jumped off the couch joyfully to greet the angel with a kiss.

"Shouldn't you guys be getting ready?" Castiel asked, looking at the TV which was playing cartoons, and then back at Dean who was smiling.

"Well, Sammy and I decided we may as well take an extra day off. We're in Chiacgo, it's a beautiful city, and it may very well be our last day on Earth. Why not make the most of it?" Dean said, nudging Cas with his elbow, trying to convince him of the idea. "We figured Raphael probably knows we're here, and I doubt he'll be going anywhere without finding us first."

Cas' face look puzzled as he considered the idea. In his gut he felt the urgency of defeating Raphael, mostly to protect Dean. But the human was right, anyone of them could die tomorrow, and Castiel would not pass up an opportunity to spend an extra 24 hours with his favorite human.

"Alright," Cas concurred, allowing a slight smile on his lips. Dean beamed at the acceptance, and kissed his mouth.

"That's my boy," he said, before running over to the coffee table to retrieve Sam's laptop. He opened the lid and started typing excitedly.

"So, I was thinking we could just walk around the city, you know, look for some fun places to go." The expression on Dean's face was akin to a 15 year old girl, getting ready for her first date. He tapped his foot happily, and started singing "Ramble On" by Led Zeppelin in an exaggerated voice. Cas marveled at the happiness of his hunter. With all Dean had been through, it was lovely to see him with so much positivity. He decided to push his worries to the rear of his mind, and allow himself to enjoy the day.

Sam reached into his duffle bag and pulled out a small camera, and slung the lanyard around his neck.

"You ready to go?" the younger hunter asked, and was answered by enthusiastic nods.


The trio loaded the back of the impala up with a cooler of beer and stopped at a local fast food joint to pick up some burgers. Dean refused to let Sam eat, for what could be his last meal, rabbit food. They drove the impala further into town and parked close to a park. They sat under an old oak tree and sipped at the beer. Dean teased Sam about his obsession with morning jogs, and Sam threw fries at his brother to retaliate.

Cas basked in the sunlight, watching Dean laugh and smile with adoration. The sun reflected off his light brown hair, and made his tanned skin glow. His eyes shone with an exuberance that made the angel's heart beat wildly in his chest. The hunter caught the glance of his blue eyes, and pulled himself closer, leaning his head on the angel's solid shoulder. Sam smiled at their recently established openness, and pulled his camera up.

"Say cheese!" Sam said as Dean yanked Cas' face over and pressed his lips on his cheek. In the picture, Castiel's eyes were crinkled around the edges, focused slightly off to the side, as his lips pulled back in a wide smile. Dean's lips were resting upon Cas' accentuated cheekbone, his arms wrapped firmly around his neck.

"We're definitely gonna have to frame that one." Dean chuckled as he viewed the picture on the camera, kissing Cas on the cheek once more.

A dark gray cloud passed in front of the sun, creating an overcast sky. Cas felt a drop of rain splash on his nose, before thousands more came dribbling down. The branches of the oak tree did not entirely protect them from the downpour, so they threw their jackets over their head and ran across the street to take shelter under the front of a store.

Dean turned to face Castiel, and held his hand. His hair was even shinier when wet, and fell to just above his blue eyes. Dewy drops of rain stuck to the stubble on his chin, and dripped down his neck. His white button down shirt now stuck to his skin, and showed the outlines of his muscular back. He looked at Dean with so much love and intensity that the human's mind began to wonder.

Sammy had walked two shops down to a pharmacy where he planned to print the pictures they took. An idea manifested in Dean's mind and he raced to catch up.

"I'll be right back Cas!" he called through a crowd of people, who had gathered to escape the rain as well.

Sam stood at the photo printing station, flipping through the pictures, deciding which ones to keep. He saw Dean enter the store, and snuck off to the back isles. He chose three pictures to print; the one of Dean and Cas, one of Dean and himself, and one of all three of them that a stranger had kindly taken. He smiled down at the pictures as he realized their motley crew had become a family.

Dean walked over with a plastic bag, and a receipt in his hand. He patted Sam on the back, clutching the bag protectively to his side.

"Ready to head back to the motel?" he said, sounding in a rush.

"Um, sure." Sam said, allowing Dean to lead them out of the store.

The three of them packed their belongings back into the trunk. The rain had softened, but it was still too damp and cloudy to continue their day outside. Cas climbed in the backseat, rubbing a hand through his hair in order to somewhat dry it off.

Dean set his plastic bag down in the front seat while he slipped the receipt into his back pocket and swung the car keys around his finger.

"What did you buy anyway?" Sam asked, grabbing the bag from the front seat, but his arm was caught by Dean. The older hunter's eyes were stern as he tried to pull the bag back. The younger brother shook off his grasp and continued to open the bag to Dean's dismay.

Sam's eyes widened, and he blushed before throwing the plastic bag back on the driver's seat. Dean rolled his eyes at his brother's reaction and put the keys in the ignition.

"I tried to tell you, Sammy."

Castiel's brow furrowed in confusion as Sam looked between Dean and Cas uncomfortably and cleared his throat.

"Look's like I'll be heading to the bar tonight then."