Dean yawned and sat up on the couch with a luxurious stretch. God, that had been a glorious nap.
He checked his watch and frowned. It was already after 6 p.m.
Cas wasn't usually this late. The bank closed precisely at 5 p.m. every evening and it only took him fifteen minutes to ride his bike back to the house. So unless there was some important after-hours work meeting, Cas was spending his time wandering around the local park to decompress from the day.
Poor Cas. The banking world really wasn't the place for a nature sprite. But after Dean had been laid off from work, they really needed the money and the bank teller position was one of the few decently paying jobs Cas had been able to find. Dean resolved that once he found a new mechanic job, he was going to encourage his boyfriend to quit and focus on his garden.
Until then, he was going to do the best he could to make Cas' miserable workday just a little more bearable. Starting with making dinner.
Dean hummed to himself as he got out all the ingredients he needed for turkey meatloaf. He wasn't a real big turkey guy, but Sam had oh so helpfully brought over a week's worth of healthy food to stretch their budget and as much as Dean hated to admit it, they couldn't really afford to toss any of the crap Sam brought. He would just have to suck it up and eat it.
He had just gotten everything into the mixing bowl when he heard the
front door slam.
"Hey, babe," Dean called out. "How was your day?"
Cas didn't answer right away. Instead, Dean was treated to a chorus of crashing, clanging, and buzzing sounds.
Dean stepped away from the counter and peered down the hallway. "Babe? You alright?"
Another thump and a heavy sigh.
"Yes, Dean. My apologies. I just picked up a few things from the hardware store."
"The hardware store, huh? Doing some work in the garden this weekend?" Dean smiled as he returned to the meatloaf. It was good to see Cas spending time with his beloved plants again.
"Yes. And I'm really looking forward to it." The buzzing got louder as Cas' voice got closer. "Especially after Mr. Jenkins' visit today."
"Oh shit."
Dean frowned down at his mixing bowl. Maybe he could turn the meatloaf mixture into burgers somehow. Cas loved burgers. And after dealing with Mr. Jenkins' shit, he deserved his favorite meal.
"I can't believe Becky hasn't banned that asshole yet," Dean muttered, aggressively stirring the meat mixture.
Mr. Jenkins was always a problem. He frequently made inappropriate and sexually suggestive comments, cursed out tellers and called them idiots if they weren't fast enough for his liking, and threatened to get people fired for the most ridiculously minor issues. Cas had come home angry and upset multiple times and Dean hated that his boyfriend had to put up with all the abuse.
"It's alright. Mr. Jenkins was actually perfectly pleasant today."
"What? Seriously?"
"Oh yes. I was surprised, too. But very glad he seems to have seen the error of his ways. Dean, where are you? I need to show you the present Mr. Jenkins gave me."
"In the kitchen, getting dinner ready."
Cas poked his head into the kitchen. "Hello, Dean."
"Hey there. Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes." Dean leaned in to press a kiss to Cas' cheek.
Usually Cas arrived home with his dress shirt rumpled, his tie askew, and his hair standing up like he had spent all day pulling on it frustration. But Cas looked just as put together now as he had when he had left the house in the morning.
Cas' blue eyes crinkled up as he smiled. "I'm very happy to see you, too, Dean."
"And I'm so glad that asshole finally stopped harassing you. I'm sure whatever he gave you isn't nearly enough to make up for all the shit he put you through, but I'm glad he's finally come to his senses." He looped his arms around Cas' waist to pull him into a hug.
Cas took a step back and held up a hand. "Wait. I have to show you Mr. Jenkins' present." He opened his trench coat.
In the lining of his coat were countless bees, covering almost every square inch of fabric.
"Holy shit," Dean said. "That's...that's a lot of bees."
"I know," Cas said happily. "It's about a hive's worth. Isn't that exciting? We'll have our own honey and I can sell some of the extra at the farmer's market. It's a dream come true. And it's all thanks to Mr. Jenkins."
Dean blinked. "Mr. Jenkins gave you all these bees?"
Cas bobbed his head. "He pulled into the drive-through, announced he had a present for me, and then released all of them into the check deposit tube. It's a shame he drove away before I could thank him, but he's probably ashamed and embarrassed by his previous poor behavior."
Dean hesitated. "Cas, I have to ask. Does Mr. Jenkins know you're a nature sprite?"
"Of course he does. Why else would he have given me such a lovely gift?"
Dean sighed. "Right, of course. Silly me."
"I bought everything we need to construct a hive," Cas said. "I found a blueprint online." He held his phone in front of Dean's face. "It looks easy enough. You want to help me with it?"
"I'll take a look after dinner," Dean promised. He steered Cas towards the back door. "Put your little friends outside for now. You remember our rule, right?"
"No wild animals in the house," Cas said with a sigh. "Yes, I remember. But I think since they've been raised to accept human interaction and I'm keeping them in a man-made hive, they could be considered more like pets than-"
"Bees stay outside. That's final."
"Oh, alright." Cas slipped out the back door and laid his trenchcoat out on the railing of their deck. Surprisingly, all the bees stayed put.
"The bees would like to inform you that they consider this a very temporary arrangement," Cas said as he stepped back inside. "It'll get cold when the sun goes down and they don't like the cold."
"Well, you can tell them that I'm a master mechanic and a carpenter and it'll take me fifteen minutes max to make them a kick-ass hive. So they can calm their little bee butts down and wait until we've had dinner."
"Okay." Cas reached for the door.
"No, no, no. You sit down and start on your dandelion salad."
God, he was going to kill Sam if he brought them more weird shit next week. What kind of person ate dandelions?
"Ooh, that sounds delicious," Cas said delightedly.
Other than Cas, of course. But nature sprites ate even plants that were poisonous to normal humans, so Dean didn't exactly trust his palette.
Dean stood by the oven, smiling fondly as Cas chattered on about his plans for the bees in between bites of salad. It had been so long since he had seen his boyfriend truly happy. It would probably break his heart when Mr. Jenkins started harassing him again, but for now, the bees were a very good thing.