Epilogue
Sometimes when he rolls over and sees the man in bed next to him, he remembers all those late night talks in dark motel rooms. He thinks about how their reality now is more than Dean could have ever hoped for. He counts the freckles like he used to. Now he counts wrinkles too. Laugh lines. Grey hairs. He's still the most beautiful thing Castiel has ever seen. Besides their son, that is. Who is grown now, with a wife and making a family of his own. His hand reached out to caress the sleeping man's cheek. The green eyes opened and smiled at him. Yes, they both had more than they could have ever hoped for.
Dean.
Dean Winchester worked long hours at a garage, and took fix it jobs to make ends meet. He bought them a house. He saved and saved. When his boss retired and sold the garage, Dean bought it. He specialized in restoring classic muscle cars. He took Kale camping every summer. After Bobby passed, he'd found a mangy mutt roaming the salvage yard. He took it home and named him Bobby. He still sleeps at the end of the bed, and goes to the garage with Dean every day. When Kale was 14, Dean came clean about his past. He watched his son graduate high school, and then college. Years of manual labor destroyed his joints, his bow legged walk is supplemented with artificial knees and hips. His liver took a beating from 35 years of drinking his problems away. But like a Winchester, he's still going strong. But every morning he sees Castiel beside him, he knows he couldn't have done any of it without him. Their silver wedding bands are battered with age, but their love is as steadfast as the day they put them on for the first time. It wasn't the life Dean expected, but it was everything and more than he'd hope for.
Castiel.
Castiel Winchester taught high school for 10 years before deciding to get his doctorate. With Dean and Kale by his side he became a history professor. He wrote several books discussing biblical lore and biblical translations. Every time he was named a controversial author, he and Dean would giggle together on the couch about the irony of doubting a fallen angel. When Dean came clean to Kale about hunting, Castiel came clean about his angelic past. He watched his son grow and flourish. He looked like Dean and Marya, but he took after Castiel's intellectual pursuits. Dean and Cas would lay in bed many a night discussing nature vs. nurture. Eventually it was decided their bond was written into Dean's very DNA, and a bit of Cas had passed to the boy. He experienced the very human miracle of aging. He never got tired of being human, never regretted his decision an ounce. Sometimes he'd wonder what would have happened if he'd stayed an angel, but then Dean would smile at him, or Kale would draw him a picture, and he realized Heaven would have been Hell compared to this.
Kale.
Kale Winchester grew up with his two fathers. He did well in school, and explored hobbies of painting and drawing. When his fathers came clean about their pasts, he also learned of Bobby and Sam's roles in hunting. He went to college, and became a folklore historian and a certified cryptozoologist. He set up shop helping hunters keep the world free of monsters. He wrote and illustrated a book using his father's monster journal and distributed it to hunters. He married another child bred of hunters named Marceline. They're expecting their first child. He still lives near his parents and visits them often.
The end.
Final author's note: Thank you all so much for reading and sticking it out through the emotional rollercoaster this fic ended up being. I hope you are satisfied.