Dean didn't know what had felt worse – holding his brother's dead body in his arms or knowingly driving him to his death. Of course, this time it was Sam's choice, it was probably the only way to beat Satan, but… Dean still couldn't come to terms with the fact that he was letting this happen.

"This thing goes our way and I… Trible Lindy into that box…" Sam started hesitantly. "Y-You know I'm not coming back."

"Yeah, I'm aware," Dean said heavily.

"So you got to promise me something."

"Okay. Yeah. Anything." If his brother had a last request, how could he deny him that? It was something that he would be able to hold onto until he found a way to save him.

"You got to promise not to try to bring me back."

His stomach dropped. "What? No, I didn't sign up for that!"

"Dean-"

"Your Hell is gonna make my tour look like Graceland. You want me just to sit by and do nothing?"

"Once the Cage is shut, you can't go poking at it, Dean. It's too risky."

"No, no, no, no, no. As if I'm just gonna let you rot in there."

"Yeah, you are. You don't have a choice."

Dean couldn't accept that. He had brought Sam back before and he could do it again. Sure, this time would be more difficult, but he didn't care, he needed his brother. "You can't ask me to do this."

"I'm sorry, Dean. You have to."

"So then what am I supposed to do?"

"Settle down. I know you're seeing someone, you're not very subtle." Dean felt his cheeks turn pink – just when he had thought this conversation couldn't take an even worse turn. "You quit the life and you settle down with them. You have barbecues and go to football games. You go live some normal, apple-pie life, Dean. Promise me."

"I-I can't do that." Even aside from letting Sam rot in the pit, the idea of suggesting an apple-pie life to Crowley was laughable, regardless of how Dean felt for him.

"Yes, you can."

"No, Sammy, you don't understand…"

"Are you going to try to tell me you're not seeing someone?"

"I… no, but I can't live that life with them."

"Sure, you can. You're obviously pretty crazy about them to even attempt a relationship. And, I mean, I understand you not telling me about them – you didn't want to mess it up. But things can be different now."

Dean hesitated, processing what Sam had said. "You keep saying 'them'… Is there a reason you're not saying 'her'?"

"Well… you said 'them' too, Dean…"

They were both silent for a few seconds. "How long have you known?" Dean eventually asked.

"I've, um, had my suspicions for a while."

Dean nodded. "Awesome… A while, is that, like, a month, a year…?"

"It's been a few years."

"A few… Come on, Sam, there's no way you could've… I mean, I didn't even…"

"Dean, does it really matter?" Sam asked with a small smile.

Dean sighed. "No, I guess not…"

"So… do I get to know his name?"

Dean really wished that he could tell Sam the truth. After all, this could be one of the last conversations that they would ever be able to have together, if Sam got his way… but he really didn't want it to end in a fight. There was no way that Sam would accept what Dean felt for Crowley. Hell, Dean almost didn't accept it, himself. He just couldn't end things like that.

"I'm sorry, I just… don't think I can tell you."

Sam looked as though he was about to argue, but then seemed to think better of it. It looked like they were in agreement on avoiding a fight. "Fine. Just promise me you'll go to him when this is all over."

Dean only hesitated a second before nodding. "Fine, I promise." He hadn't said anything about a normal life that time, and Dean had no problem going to Crowley, so long as that was all he was agreeing to.

And Dean kept his promise. He drove away from Stull Cemetery, where he had just watched his brother die, said goodbye to Castiel, and called Crowley.

"Dean?" Crowley answered his phone.

"It's finished." He tried to inject some feeling into his voice, but it still came out monotone.

He heard Crowley's sigh of relief. "Good. How are you doing?"

"I need to see you."

"Of course. Where?"

He pulled into the parking lot of a nice hotel, reading off the name to Crowley. A moment later, the demon was in the seat beside him as he shut off the car. He had intended to get out of the car and go into the hotel, but instead he found himself squeezing his eyes shut and resting his forehead against the steering wheel.

"I don't know where to go from here," he muttered.

"Vegas? Isn't that where humans normally go to make mistakes big enough to distract them from their problems?"

Dean actually managed to scoff. "My trips to Vegas normally involve picking up chicks, and it's not like I can do that."

Crowley hesitated. "Yes, you can."

Dean looked up at him in surprise. "What?"

"Our deal was contingent upon Sam being clean of demon blood. In order to be a vessel for Lucifer, he had to start drinking it again. Therefore, the deal is broken."

"You have got to be kidding me. The deal was to get rid of his addiction – it wasn't his addiction that made him start drinking it again. And you, King of the Crossroads, are just letting me out of my deal for that?"

"Yes." Crowley fixed him with a determined gaze. "The deal is off, Dean. And before you ask; no, I wouldn't do this for anyone else, but you already knew that. I've torn up your contract, there's no going back."

"Alright, so answer me this. Are you doing this because you care so much for me that you can't bear to keep me in an unfair deal? Or is it because you care so much for me that you don't want to be around me?"

"Both." He pushed his door open. "Goodbye, Dean."

Dean jumped out of the car and sprinted around, reaching the other side just as Crowley shut the door. "Don't you dare disappear on me now," he growled. "I just lost everything, and now you're leaving too?"

"I'm a demon, I'm not a very good support system."

"I don't care! You talked me into letting Sam do this, you owe me!"

"And I gave you your freedom. I think that should be sufficient."

"Well, it's not."

"Well, I'm sorry, Dean. I'm not sure if you realize this, but I'm not exactly relationship material."

"Neither am I! Why can't we try?" A day ago the idea of a relationship with Crowley had seemed ridiculous to him, but now that he was faced with the demon leaving, he realized that it was exactly what he wanted.

Crowley blinked in surprise. "Wait… you actually do want a relationship?"

"What did you think I wanted?"

"I don't know… nothing that serious. That's why I said it – I thought it was a joke."

"Hilarious," Dean snapped, glaring at the demon.

Crowley sighed. "Dean, I… I don't know. Are you seeing something I don't? Because I can't imagine how a relationship between us can possibly end well."

"And that means it's not even worth a shot?" Dean took a step forward, resting his hands on Crowley's waist. "Crowley, I-"

"Please, don't say it."

"I love you."

Crowley grimaced as he turned his face away from Dean. "Thanks so much."

"Hey, you wanted me to say it once."

"Yeah, and then I thought better of it."

"Well, now you can't pretend you don't know the truth."

"And how exactly do you imagine that that will change anything?"

"For one, you haven't left yet."

Dean could practically see Crowley internally fighting for the determination to leave, but he still remained where he was. Dean smirked. "See."

"Okay, so I don't want to leave. That still doesn't mean that this is a good idea. Even aside from how stupid of a choice it would be on my part, you can't honestly think it would be a good idea for you to date a demon. It would be holding you back from who you are."

"Oh yeah, cause dating the freakin' King of the Crossroads would have no bene…" Dean trailed off, his expression suddenly far away.

"Dean?"

Dean's focus returned to Crowley, his lips turned up in a hopeful smile. "Okay, fine, forget dating, I want to make another deal."

"You are unbelievable! You're so desperate that you're trying to buy me now?"

"Nope, I just found something I want. Bring Sam back."

"Bring…? Dean, he's in the cage!"

"So? There has to be a way, right?"

Crowley groaned, running a hand over his face. "Maybe… if I'm very lucky."

"Then same terms as before. Bring Sam back and you get me."

Crowley's lips quirked up. "You know, I don't normally accept deals where the person I'm dealing with likes the price they're paying."

"You want to renegotiate?"

"No." He lifted his hand, running his fingers through Dean's hair. "At least this way I can pretend it's for a purpose, right?"

"It's a win-win," Dean agreed.

"That it is."

"So it's a deal, then?"

"It's a deal." He pulled Dean's head down until their lips met, and Dean returned the kiss far more enthusiastically than he had when they had made their first deal. "I suppose I'd better get to work," Crowley said as he pulled away, taking a step back.

"How likely is it that you can get him out?"

"I'm not sure… I have an idea, and if it works out the way I'm thinking it will, I can get him out. If not, the deal will be cancelled, of course."

"You're coming back either way."

Crowley sighed. "Why do I feel like I'm the one under your control?"

Dean gave a small smirk and shrugged. "Should I go ahead and get a room?"

"If you'd like. But Dean, this is going to take more than just a few hours to work out. I'll be in touch within a week."

Dean nodded. "Right. Well, it's not like I have anywhere else to go. No point in trying to explain this to Bobby unless it works."

"Alright then, I'll see you back here within a week, with or without Sam."

"Good luck."