Chapter Two

It was a pleasant day, the sun was shining and the three hunters and the angel were sitting in the roadhouse. Ever since Jack had Castiel explain to them that they could now live in their universe without much danger of running into Chuck, it had been calm. They still hunted monsters, but the hunts were harmless compared to before. A vampire nest here, a werewolf there. When they weren't on the road, they spent their time eating, taking walks or trips in the car, or simply spending a day lounging in the bunker. Today was also one of those days.

Sam had withdrawn to his room with Eileen, Jack had left a few hours ago and now Dean and Cas were sitting alone in the room Dean had finished all those months ago. The room that was also known as Dean Cave.

The room had a pool table, a record shelf, a mini-bar, and of course a large television with matching television chairs to go with it. It had taken Dean a while to get around to mentioning to Castiel that he would love to watch the Scooby Doo series again. Now that they had time. Castiel hadn't understood why Dean had had such a hard time with it but had found it beyond cute how Dean had blushed at it. With a smile, he had explained to Dean that he had nothing to be ashamed of and that he, Castiel, would watch along.

So now they sat in their chairs and watched the screen. Dean was able to speak along with many scenes, laughing a lot and showing how happy he was to watch the series again. Castiel, on the other hand, often frowned, had many questions, and couldn't understand why Dean found it so funny. After a while, the angel gave up and dedicated himself to his own series, Dean.

He could see how relaxed Dean was. How relieved and happy he looked. No worry lines were visible on his face, the tiredness that had always put a veil over those beautiful green eyes was almost gone. Dean looked several years younger.

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Two episodes later, Castiel still hadn't averted his eyes and continued to study Dean's profile in detail. Just because Dean didn't like Castiel watching him when he slept didn't mean he couldn't either when he was awake. At some point, he noticed that Dean had turned off the TV and he was no longer seeing his profile, but that Dean had also turned to him and was eyeing him.

Since the kiss in the Purgatory, which was almost two weeks ago, nothing else had happened between them, except a slightly longer hug here or a kiss on the cheek there. Why it was like that they both could not have explained later. Maybe it was because they had never really been alone. Sam or Eileen had always been nearby and Castiel knew that Dean could not talk freely under such conditions. But in theory, they were alone now. Sam almost never came into this room, and besides, he and Eileen hadn't been heard from in the bunker for a very long time.

"Dean," Castiel put in, "do you think we could possibly talk about that which is still unspoken?" Castiel looked at Dean and the older Winchester smiled.
"Cas, you have no idea how I feel when you talk like that. That hinting..." Dean was still smiling. "I could listen to you forever," he purred. Castiel snorted, then leaned over to Dean a little more.
"That could be arranged." Dean gasped, and Castiel grinned. Yes, this was the Dean he'd missed. "But first, I want to talk about Purgatory."
"Purgatory?"
"Yes, Purgatory. Or have you forgotten already?" Waiting, Castiel looked Dean in the eye. He swallowed and the angel could see that Dean was retreating further inside. Castiel moved a little closer and placed a hand on Dean's thigh. Then he squeezed once in affirmation.

Dean seemed to shake off the thought that had just plagued him. He placed his hand on Castiel's. Then he looked him in the eye again.
"I haven't forgotten. How could I? After all, it was me who kissed you." Dean spoke softly, yet now looked to the side again. "But you know, there's so much that's changed now. So much I never dared to dream about. I'm sorry, but I just can't do this so fast."
"Dean, I'm not asking you to grasp it quickly. I just want to talk about what it means to you. I just want to know if it means as much to you as it does to me."

"You're such a fool sometimes, Cas." Dean smiled fondly. Then he tugged on Castiel's hand and gestured for him to sit on his lap. Castiel slid over and took a seat on Dean's thighs. Dean put his hands on Castiel's hips and looked at him. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do this. Then when you disappeared at Purgatory, that's when the panic hit. I should have told you all this much sooner, should have admitted my feelings for you much sooner, but I didn't dare, there were always other things to do and I was rarely ever alone. With the thought that I might lose you forever, I just had to tell you. You can't imagine how happy I was when you were sitting there by that tree. Cas, I love you and nothing will ever change that in my lifetime."

Castiel swallowed and held Dean's face with both hands. His eyes glistened a little and his voice trembled a little as he spoke now.
"Dean, you don't know how good it is to hear your words. And I love you too, as long as we're alive, that won't change either." Then he leaned down and kissed him. Like then, it wasn't a demanding kiss, just a placing of lips on top of each other. Dean relaxed and they both exhaled audibly. Then Dean pulled Castiel closer so he could wrap his arms around Castiel's waist. Castiel smiled while taking his lips but not away. He put his arms around Dean's neck and kissed him more forcefully. It went on like that for a while, eventually kissing deepened as well, but they both rowed back a bit so as not to let it get extremely out of hand. As it was right now, it was fine. Everything else they could discuss later.