SURPRISE! Here's another chapter! I really appreciate all of the feedback from you guys about this story and I'm so glad you're enjoying it!

Sam and Gabriel were having an engagement party.

Mostly, Dean was absolutely ecstatic for his baby brother. Naturally, Sam had been practically screaming in excitement when he'd woken up to find that his soulmate was Gabriel, and how could Dean not be happy for him? He'd found his soulmate, they were in love, and now they were getting married.

Of course, there was still a small, bitter part of Dean who was jealous of what his brother had. Dean was older and he'd found his soulmate first, but Sam was the one getting married. Sam was the one with the happily-ever-after, and Dean was stuck in a situation that he'd brought on himself.

Still, he'd have to tap into that happy feeling for the party, especially since Castiel would be there. Sam and Gabe had discussed having two separate parties for their own friends and brothers, but they'd decided that it would be best to just have one big party. They'd hoped that Dean and Castiel would simply avoid each other, and Dean was certainly planning for that. He didn't even want to see Cas—it would hurt too much.

The party was at Gabriel's apartment, which Sam had moved into a few days after the new year. The house felt empty now that his brother was gone, and Dean was glad that he'd get to spend the evening with Sam and his friends from the garage. There would be plenty of distractions—and alcohol—to soothe his nerves. He could do this.

The fact that he spent an hour and a half getting ready had nothing to do with Castiel.

Castiel himself was already at Gabriel's apartment, helping the two lovebirds set up for their party. Gabe had always been the messier of the two of them, and Castiel found himself puttering around the apartment, folding throw blankets and tucking books back onto shelves. He'd never understood how anyone could stand having things out of place, but it had never seemed to bother his brother.

Just as he'd finished picking up the living room, the newly engaged couple came chuckling out of the kitchen. "I'm really glad we had this catered," Gabe said, a grin on his face as he snaked his arm around his fiancé's hips. "I don't want you finding out how terrible I am at cooking just yet."

Sam laughed, too, and Castiel simply smirked and shook his head. "I tried to teach him," Cas said. "He's utterly hopeless. I hope that you're a good cook, Sam."

"Nowhere near as good as Dean," Sam answered easily, frowning when Castiel visibly winced. "Oh, uh. Sorry, Cas."

"No, it's okay," Castiel responded, waving his hand dismissively. "You're engaged to my brother, and I can't expect you not to talk about your brother, especially given how close the two of you are."

A slightly awkward pause fell over the three of them, and Castiel bit his lip. "I'm going to go start putting the food out," he said suddenly, heading for the kitchen. "Guests should be arriving fairly soon."

Castiel swore under his breath as he set out chafing dishes full of various kinds of foods on the kitchen counters. He stacked plates and napkins on the island and set out flatware. Maybe he could spend the whole night hiding in the kitchen and he wouldn't even have to see Dean.

An hour later, the party was in full swing. Gabriel's college friends were there, as well as the other interns and some of the lawyers from the firm. Sam's college friends had come as well, and so had Dean's friends from the garage—most of them were people that the Winchesters had known for years, and they were like a family to Sam. The only person who was still missing was Dean.

Sam watched the door like a hawk, constantly looking over shoulders to see whether his brother had walked in. Castiel, on the other hand, was skulking in the corner of the living room nursing a vodka soda and trying very hard not to look at the door at all. He'd found that the kitchen was the most popular place to be, and so he'd decided that this corner of the living room was his best bet to stay out of sight.

When Dean finally arrived, Sam shouted a greeting to him and immediately made his way through the small crowd of people in the apartment. "I was starting to think you weren't coming," Sam said, grinning, as he held out a cold beer to his older brother. Dean took it and immediately drained half of it, eyes automatically scanning the room. "He's in the corner," Sam said, gesturing over his shoulder. "There's food in the kitchen."

Dean nodded, ruffled Sam's hair (much to his annoyance), and made his way over to Bobby and Benny. That was his safe place—if he talked to his friends all night, he probably wouldn't even see Castiel.

Castiel could see Dean from where he stood in the corner. He was envious of how unaffected the other man looked—maybe he'd moved on and found some other man whose soulmate rejected him. Just looking at Dean made Cas's stomach hurt, and he turned back to staring into his drink.

Just then, the door to the apartment opened and everyone fell silent. Castiel looked up from the melting ice in his glass and nearly dropped his drink on the floor.

Charles Novak was standing in the doorway.