Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me through this monster of a story. As I mentioned earlier, I did not expect it to turn into this monster of a fic, but alas it did. I've had a blast writing it. I'm thinking two or three more chapters at most. I have an ending written and I just need to tweak it and make sure all the continuity errors are cleaned up. I realized I made some huge errors with this story, such as getting Sam's birthday wrong, but whatever, it's AU for a reason, right? I will eventually cross post this at AO3, but for now, I'm too lazy. Thanks again to all of my readers and reviewers!
The next day, Dean found himself in the awkward position of introducing his boyfriend to his father figure.
Bobby Singer was Jo's real father and the Winchester brothers' surrogate father. Meeting him, it was easy to see where Jo got her sense of humor and confidence. Unlike her father, Jo was 5'2" and maybe weighed 115 pounds soaking wet, while Bobby was 6 feet of grey hair, perpetual gruffness, and sardonic humor. Dean had known him since he was four, and while knew the man wasn't capable of harming a fly, Bobby had always intimidated him. For this reason, he was more nervous about introducing Castiel to him than he'd been about introducing him to anyone else.
"Bobby's great." Sam assured Castiel. "He'll mess with you a lot, maybe call you names you don't understand, but don't worry, he'll love you."
"Yeah, Cas, don't you worry. Bobby and Ellen are like a second set of parents to us. They might seem a bit rough when you first meet them, but they're just like Jo." Dean said.
"I'm not sure that's encouraging, comparing them to Jo." Sam said, glancing at Dean.
"I wasn't actually nervous about meeting them until you said that." Castiel muttered.
Dean was driving them town to Bobby and Ellen's house, where they were meeting the entire Singer family for brunch. Mary had opted not to come because Bobby was constantly harassing her about filing divorce papers. Dean agreed with him.
"How often do you see the Singers, Sam?" Dean asked, changing the subject.
"Once or twice a week. Ellen actually said she could get me a job at Harvelle's, now that I'm out of the hospital." Sam said cautiously.
Dean didn't respond. Dean was thinking that Ellen would hire Sam at the pub she managed because she knew him and no one else would hire him. Once again, he felt awful.
"That's great, Sammy. What would you be doing?" He said as cheerfully as he could.
"Bussing, maybe serving. I worked at Applebees for awhile, so I think it'd be pretty easy. I need to save some money."
"That's admirable." Castiel spoke up. "I once worked as a barista. I lasted a week. I abhor customer service."
"It's not admirable to be a busboy." Sam said, his voice dry. "It's easy money and there aren't many places I can get a job."
Dean glanced at Castiel in the mirror. He looked embarrassed. Dean caught his eye and winked.
"Are you going to do that the entire time he's here?" Sam asked. "Wink at him when you think I'm not looking?"
"Shut up." Dean said, his face heating up. He took a swig of coffee from his travel mug to hide the blush. He had really forgotten how intuitive and observant his brother was.
"Also, I heard you guys having sex last night. Dean, I could hear you moaning. Seriously, try to keep it down tonight, for my sake, my stomach's sake, and my fragile sanity's sake." Sam said.
Castiel's eyes widened and he turned purple. Dean choked on his coffee and almost had to pull over.
Sam just grinned. Little shit.
When they arrived at the Singer house, Dean still hadn't pulled himself together. He was suddenly imagining Jo and Sam exchanging stories about him and Castiel and laughing at them. He could just imagine it.
I could hear him moaning, Jo! I almost barfed! The little one, he giggled the entire time!
Once I walked in and Dean was TIED UP. He insisted it was a onetime thing and demanded the key I made to his apartment! Oh, and did I tell you about the fishnets and the speedo?
Dean was almost convinced this was going to be the most humiliating brunch he'd ever attended at the Singer house.
Ellen opened the door before he knocked, just like Sam had the day before.
"Lawrence's great son! He has returned!" She cried, wrapping her arms around him in a huge hug. "Bobby! Ash! Get your asses in here! Dean's here! He's brought Sammy and that skinny jailbait kid Jo told us about!"
Yep. Most humiliating brunch ever.
Bobby and Ash came sauntering in. Dean almost died when he saw Ash. He hadn't seen the kid in two years. He was 21 now and had somehow grown a couple of inches in height and packed on an unreasonable amount of muscle since Dean had last seen him. He'd shaved his awful rat tail, put on some muscle, and Dean could almost see him as attractive. He was relieved that Bobby and Ellen looked the same.
"Nice for you to come back, fucker." Ash said, grinning at him. "Hey, Sam."
"Don't call him, fucker, Ash. That's rude." Ellen said, as if referring to Cas as 'jailbait' was tactful.
"Anyway, he's an idjit, you know that. Dean-o, good to see you, boy!" Bobby said. He came over and gave Dean what could be described as a "bear hug."
"Oh man, it is good to see you guys. Jesus, Ash. You grew like a foot." Dean said, recovering from the barrage of hugs.
"A lot can happen in TWO YEARS." Ash said, emphasizing the second part of the sentence.
"Yeah, you're not a little punk anymore, are you buddy? Hey, did you ever get to second base with Rhonda Hurley?" Dean jeered, grinning at him.
Now Ash was purple. The boys of Lawrence all knew what Rhonda Hurley, Lawrence's legendary cougar (who was actually Dean's age) made them do.
"Enough! I don't want to hear about my brother doing such things!" Jo said, sauntering into the room.
She grinned at them. The Singer family all had the same smirk. Dean hadn't realized how much he'd missed the collective sneer.
"Now, who is this fine specimen?" Ellen asked, referring to Castiel. "Jo, this your new boyfriend?"
Jo just continued grinning. Always cool under pressure when it came to her mother's veiled, yet good natured, homophobia.
"Guys, this is my buddy, Cas. He's spending the holidays with us in Lawrence." Dean said.
Castiel looked terrified, but what else was new? Even Dean could admit the Singer family was a little bit too much at first, even though they always ended up making you feel welcome.
"Nice to meet you, Cas!" Ellen said jovially. She patted him on the shoulder heartily.
"I'm Bobby Singer, this here is my lovely wife Ellen, and the one with the idiotic tattoo on his bicep is our son Ash. I believe you've had the misfortune of meeting Jo already." Bobby said, reaching out and shaking his hand. Bobby nodded to Dean. "You keeping this idjit in line?"
"Idjit?" Cas squeaked. "Is that a colloquial way to say idiot?"
Bobby just burst out laughing and clasped Castiel's shoulder. "I'm gonna like you!" He crowed.
Ellen herded them into the kitchen where an absolute feast of waffles, eggs, bacon, sausage, and fruit. They sat around the Singers' huge dinner table and Dean knew, without a doubt, that he was home.
Brunch wasn't as embarrassing as Dean thought it would be. No references were made to Jo's preference for girls or Dean's current preference for Castiel. No one mentioned schizophrenia or Sam's recent brush with the psych ward. Bobby and Ellen didn't ask why Castiel was in Lawrence, which made it apparent to Dean that Jo had said something to them about it, thus proving yet again, that she was smarter than him. They talked, laughed, and told stories for two hours. Castiel was actually fitting in with Dean's surrogate family and Sam seemed happier than Dean had seen him in a long time. Dean wished silently that his mother was there too, but as long as John Winchester was still in her life, there wasn't room for her in the Singer house. Aside from that, things were going swimmingly, or so Dean thought.
Bobby was telling Castiel yet another yarn from the Winchester/Singer children's youth.
"You see, Cas, I used to own a salvage yard before I opened up the auto body shop. I had cars everywhere and naturally these kids turned one of my old trucks into a fort. They used to say it was perfect because it was by the creek, which they referred to as 'mud river.' For years, I didn't pay it any mind, cuz hell, they were kids! But they kept going down there, into that damn truck as teenagers! One day I went down there to check on 'em and you will never believe what I found!" Bobby said.
Dean and Jo made the same face across the table at each other. They'd heard this story so many times that it was no longer embarrassing.
"What did you find?" Castiel asked, genuinely fascinated.
"These damn idjits had been stealing my beer! For years! I find these four morons, drunk as skunks, including my 12 year old son! Jo and Dean are makin' out and he has her goddamn purple bra on his head! Sam and Ash are passed out on each other, and you can only imagine what I thought!" Bobby crowed.
"Ash still goes out there you know. He wants time alone with my purple bra." Jo interjected.
"Jo! Sick!" Ash said. "You know I only go out there to smoke—" Ash stopped before he finished the sentence, realizing he had just outed himself.
Everyone burst out laughing, including Castiel. Bobby smacked Ash on the side of the head.
"These kids are soulmates." Ellen said. "And not in a 'coupley' way. They've been friends since before they could walk and they're still thick as thieves now. Sam 'n Dean, well, I see 'em as my own!"
"It sounds like they had a wonderful childhood together." Castiel said.
"Yep. These idjits make life worth living." Bobby said affectionately. "Hell, we're family! Even when one of us disappears for two years!"
"Where'd you grow up, honey?" Ellen asked.
"Boston." Castiel said, staring into his coffee.
"Ugh, I hate the east coast! No offense, Cas, but it's so damn pretentious! I'll take Kansas any day." Bobby said.
Castiel didn't answer, so Dean answered for him.
"He agrees with you." Dean said, smiling at Bobby. He reached under the table and took Castiel's hand. "We're Pacific Northwest kinda guys now."
"Portland's cool." Ash said. "I visited Jo during sibs weekend her sophomore year and we spent some time there."
"You got any siblings?" Ellen asked.
Castiel just shook his head. He was quiet for the rest of the meal. Dean couldn't find time to ask why.
After bear hugs from Bobby and Ellen and half-made plans with Jo and Ash, Dean, Castiel and Sam were finally driving back to Mary Winchester's house. Castiel was sullen in the backseat and Dean still couldn't ask why. So he brought up the white elephant that had been in the room. The white elephant that looked like a certain blonde matronly figure in his life.
"I wish Mom could have come." Dean muttered.
"You know how Bobby is around her, Dean. It wouldn't have been comfortable for her or for us if she had come." Sam said, shaking his head.
"She needs to just finish it." He muttered.
"She'll do it when she's ready. Dad hasn't come around in weeks. He came to see me in the hospital, you know." Sam said.
Dean glanced back at Cas. "Cas, you okay if we discuss this? Sammy knows that you know about… these things."
Castiel just nodded gloomily.
"How was it?" Dean asked bitterly.
"I don't know, man. I wasn't all there. He came the day the day before they let me out. He lectured me about taking my meds, even though that wasn't… the reason for it. He gave me some movies and some car magazines, even though that's your thing, and then he left." Sam said.
"God, I fucking hate him." Dean hissed. "He doesn't even know you, Sammy."
"I know, Dean. He sucks. He's still our father though and for some reason, mom still loves him. We have to respect that. They're adults." Sam said.
"They don't act like it when they're around each other. If mom would just cut him loose, I swear, she'd be so much happier."
"I know." Sam said simply. "Do you ever talk to him?"
"It's been a year." Dean muttered.
"Jesus. Has he called you?"
"No."
"At least we have Ellen and Bobby, you know? The Singers and Mom. Dean, they're our real family. God help me, I love mom more than anyone in the world, but we'd be up shit creek without the Singers, you know." Sam said.
Dean just nodded. It was true. The Singer family had done more for him and Sam than most people realized. They'd taken him and Sam in when they were nothing more than children and their parents had left on some kind of trip that always ended up lasting a week longer than they claimed it would. When Dean was 14 and they were gone for 3 weeks, the Singers had found out and called Child Protective Services and then taken the Winchesters in yet again while the matter was sorted out. They had taken Dean and Sam shopping for school clothes when their family couldn't afford it, because Mary's eccentric, rich father dad was cutting them off again because she wouldn't leave her husband. Once, John Winchester had been drunk and Bobby had to fight him in order to keep him from taking Sam on a drunken joyride. Dean had told Bobby four years ago, the last time he was home for an extended period time, about the occasional abuse his mother suffered at the hands of his father. After that, the Singers' relationship with Mary had never been the same, but they wanted the best for her, just like Dean and Sam did. What it came down to was that John and Mary Winchester had the definition of a "toxic relationship" and Dean had wanted it over for years.
They got back to the house and it was quiet. Dean found a note from his mother saying she was going grocery shopping in order to "feed all her boys" and Dean was slightly relieved that she wasn't sitting at home, dwelling, and waiting on their return.
"I'm going to take a nap." Sam said, yawning.
"You alright, Sammy?" He asked.
"Side effects." He muttered. "I'll talk to you guys later."
Sam trampled up the stairs like the moose he was and Dean smiled. His brother was doing so well. He was doing better than Dean ever thought possible. He seemed like himself and maybe he had been all along. Dean had always thought that schizophrenia had taken his brother, but in the past 24 hours alone, Dean had realized that it more likely that it was just another part of him, a personality quirk that could be overlooked and accepted. Dean wished it hadn't taken him roughly seven years to start seeing Sam as a person again.