Author's notes: Some trigger warnings for miscarriage in this chapter… Don't want to spoil but I better warn my readers in case someone is sensitive to the subject.
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March 2044 (Castiel is 54, Dean is 56, Eden is 30, Adrian is 27, the twins are 23, Noah is 17 (almost 18), Jayden is 19, Tony is 24 years old).
The school year was slowly reaching its end, meaning that Noah and Jayden would soon be graduating. Exams were approaching and they had already been given multiple projects to do before the exams started.
Noah was working on finishing up a project that he and Jayden were working on for their English class when Isaac knocked on his door. Noah had barely told him "Come in" before his brother burst into his room with a big grin on his face.
"Come on, come on! You're gonna be late for my first episode on TV!" Isaac grinned and jumped over to where Noah was sitting at his desk, and slammed his hands down on Noah's shoulders as he stood behind him.
Noah flinched and his wings jumped in surprise, making them hit right into Isaac's arms as the older brother's hands were still planted on Noah's shoulders. "Jeez, I'll come. Don't worry," he murmured and rolled his eyes.
Isaac just kept grinning and jumping in excitement. He had finally managed to get a role for a single episode on a popular TV show, and the episode was airing tonight. It had been kind of tough for him on the first day on the set because many of the cast and crew had never seen an angel/demon hybrid before and they looked at him like he was some rare animal. He didn't quite like that, but at least not many of them had been hardcore racists.
Noah closed down his laptop and got up to follow his super hyper brother downstairs to watch the episode. He chuckled as he saw Isaac's excitement and he was happy for his brother that he had finally managed to get a role.
When they came downstairs Dean and Castiel were already sitting on the couch. Castiel's legs were bent in front of him while he leaned into Dean whose arm was wrapped around his shoulders, and the two were chatting quietly about something as Isaac and Noah entered the room.
"Did you switch to the right channel?" Isaac asked Dean as he sat down next to him.
Dean rolled his eyes. "Of course I did, otherwise I'd have to listen to your complaints."
"Damn right you would."
Noah chuckled at that and sat down next to Isaac.
"So, refresh my memory…" Dean started. "You played a demon on that show, right…?"
"Yeah, I did," Isaac confirmed. "They actually had to spray some temporary color on my wings since not all my feathers are red, and it's too weird to have a demon character on the show who has different colors in his wings. Fuck, that color was a bitch to clean out though, but Adrian helped me."
Isaac had stayed for a week at Adrian and Natalie's place while shooting the episode since Natalie thought it would be a waste of money for him to rent a hotel room while he was in L.A., and Adrian and Natalie's place was only about half an hour's drive away from the set. Isaac didn't have his own place yet since he was saving up some money first, but he was going to buy his own car very soon.
Noah giggled. "I wish I could have witnessed that."
Isaac smirked. "Natalie actually filmed a video of Adrian helping me clean my wings since she thought it was hilarious how much we argued, so you can always ask her to see it."
Dean laughed. "Oh, I would love to see that."
Castiel chuckled before leaning forward so that he could see Isaac on Dean's other side. "Did you remember to tell Lily, Eden, and Adrian to watch the episode tonight as well?"
"Pss, who do you think I am? I've been bothering them with it all day," Isaac smirked impishly. "I've bothered grandma and grandpa, and uncle Gabe and Sam with it as well."
Dean chortled. "I don't doubt that."
The commercials finally ended then, drawing everyone's attention to the TV.
"Oh, it's starting! Everyone shut up and watch!" Isaac grinned and leaned back into the couch to get comfortable. "You be quiet too, Bella," he told the dog who was lying lazily under the couch table. Bella just opened an eye to stare at him before closing it again, continuing with her nap.
The others chuckled and got settled as the episode started.
The TV show was about criminal investigators, so it had new actors in it all the time. Isaac's character appeared ten minutes into the episode and he had a rather vital role in it as one of the victims. The character he had played was named Martin, and he was a beta demon who was a witty college student who would later almost get killed by the episode's serial killer. Martin had been mischievous through most of his scenes in the episode, which was why one of the reasons why had they cast Isaac for the role. Isaac's character had multiple interactions with others during the episode, including his girlfriend (played by a hot demon chick whom Isaac certainly didn't have a problem with kissing on set for one of the scenes), the investigators, and later the culprit as he got captured.
The scene of Martin's capture and how he was beat by the culprit made Castiel flinch and feel very uncomfortable since it looked so real – it was Isaac he was seeing after all. It made it seem even more like Isaac when the character Martin kept taunting the serial killer and throwing stupid jokes at him to provoke him into making a mistake so he could gain an advantage in the fight. It was a rather funny scene if not for the fact that it was also quite dramatic, but it had ended well for Isaac's character when Martin got to escape after briefly knocking out the distracted serial killer.
When the episode was over Dean finally laughed at Castiel's freaked out face. "Oh c'mon, Cas, it was just acting."
"I'm not sure I like seeing Isaac get beat up," Castiel spoke and scowled at Dean.
Isaac laughed. "I didn't get beat up – it was all just acting. And that scene was pretty damn fun to shoot 'cause I got to make a lot of funny comments and quip remarks – and most of them I improvised by myself to make it funnier – and the guy who played the serial killer couldn't stop laughing sometimes. I have no idea how many times we had to film that," he grinned.
Dean laughed. "Yeah, I remember you told us about that on the phone while you were in L.A." His face softened then and he smiled proudly at Isaac. "It was a good episode and you acted really well. I'm pretty sure all the viewers liked your character a lot."
Castiel smiled. "Yes, it was very good – and very strange to see you on TV. I'm very proud of you, though."
"Yeah, you did great," Noah agreed and smiled at Isaac.
Isaac grinned proudly. "Aww, thanks, guys. You're gonna make me cry."
Dean laughed and wrapped arm around Isaac's shoulder, pulling him into a sideways hug.
"Ugh, dad, I can't breathe," Isaac croaked as Dean squeezed him pretty hard.
The demon laughed before letting go of Isaac. "Now we just need you to earn some more money and get your ass out of this house. You're getting too old to still live at home."
"Are you saying you don't enjoy my company?" Isaac muttered, looking a little insulted.
"No, that's not what Dean is saying," Castiel cut in. "We don't mind you staying here." He gave Dean a firm look when the demon was about to protest.
Dean rolled his eyes. "I'm just saying it's time that you get your own life. We enjoy you staying here and it's lonely when you're gone, but you also need to get a job and find a place of your own."
"I know that. I am looking for more roles, you know," Isaac said. "And I'm going to an audition next week for a role of a recurring guest star. If I'm lucky I'll get it… Otherwise I'll just keep looking. The director of the episode I played on tonight actually put out a good word for me among the casting people in L.A."
Noah was rather stunned to hear that. "He really did that?"
Isaac turned his head to grin at him. "Yep."
Castiel smiled, glad that Isaac had made some important connections and network within the film industry – it was very important if he wanted to have a good career.
Suddenly Isaac's cell phone rang from where he had put it on the couch table, and he leaned forward to see who was calling. He grinned when he saw it was Adrian. "I guess Adrian watched the episode. Be right back," he grinned before getting up from the couch to pick up the call.
The others listened as Isaac spoke to Adrian on the phone and was talking about the episode and his acting.
Dean pulled Castiel closer and squeezed him gently as he had his arm wrapped around his shoulders. "Well, now we have two family members in the movie industry."
"I'm not in the movie industry as such," Castiel pointed out.
"Of course you are; you make their sculptures and other custom-made artwork used in movies and TV shows."
"Well, that's true…"
Noah smiled at their interaction before saying, "I wonder how people will react when they find out that the actor who played Martin on the show is an angel/demon hybrid. I also wonder whether the film people want to try to hide that fact or if they'll be open about it…"
"Good question. We'll just have to wait and see," Dean said.
They spent the rest of the evening talking a bit about the TV episode, and Isaac told them more about what they had done at the set. Eden, Lily, Gabriel, Sam, and Mary and John called too to tell Isaac that they had seen the episode and that he had done an amazing job. Castiel was glad that Isaac had finally started his TV career, but he hoped that his species wouldn't give him too much critique or trouble finding new roles.
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A few days later Noah was sitting in the school's cafeteria with Abby, Christie, Mick, and Lucas, eating lunch with them as usual. They were sitting in their usual corner, mentally blocking out all the noise in the room as people chatted, laughed, and yelled at each other. Jayden was mostly always sitting in the other end of the room with his friends Rick and Chris, but he would often come over to hang out with Noah and his friends sometimes.
"So, do you know yet what you want to study in college, Noah?" Abby asked as the conversation moved towards the topic of exams and graduation.
"Um, I think I want to be a kindergarten teacher," Noah said, smiling sheepishly as the others all looked at him.
"Ooh! I'm sure you'll be a great teacher; you're so good with kids," Christie grinned.
"Thanks." Noah smiled meekly and poked around in his salad a bit. "What are you guys gonna study?"
"I kind of want to become a doctor," Abby announced.
"Um, I want to be an architect," Mick said. "But I'm not sure yet…"
"And I'll take a less fancy route as an elementary school teacher," Christie chuckled. The others laughed at that.
"So you'll maybe go to the same college as me?" Noah asked, beaming at them.
"Yeah, I think I will for sure," Christie smiled.
"Me too, I guess. Unless I change my mind about what I want to study," Mick said.
Abby smiled at them with a sad expression. "Medical school is at a different place though, unless I wanted to be a vet but that's not the case. So I guess we'll be parting ways when high schools ends…"
Christie put a hand on Abby's shoulder. "But we'll still see each other, right?"
Abby grinned. "Of course."
Noah was relieved about that. He didn't want to lose contact with his friends. He still couldn't help but feel a little sad that Abby would likely be going to a different college than him. She was his oldest friend, after all.
Lucas watched them all with a sad smile and folded his wings tighter against his body. "I kind of don't want you all to go… I'll be all alone then." He was two grades below them so when they graduated he'd have another two years left at the school without them there. He didn't like that thought at all.
The others turned to look at him, and Noah gently brushed their wings together; something they had been doing more lately.
"But you have a few people you talk with in classes, right?" Noah asked slowly.
"Yeah… But I'm not that close to them, and I get along better with you guys… I'm sad to see you leave." Lucas looked mostly at Noah when he said that, and a sorrowful expression covered his face.
"But we'll still be friends," Noah promised. "The college isn't all that far away so we can hang out after classes if our schedules fit. And we can maybe have some sleepovers and stuff?"
Lucas' face seemed to brighten up a little. "I'd like that."
"But who's going to help keep the bullies off Lucas when Jayden and Noah are gone?" Christie asked, furrowing her brows at him in worry. "Those stupid alphas are nothing but mean to you."
Lucas swallowed nervously and glanced into his lap, knowing that she was right. He was going to have it very tough socially when his friends left.
Mick frowned over at Lucas. "Didn't you say that some guy had helped you out the other day when someone harassed you? Maybe he can help."
Lucas flinched slightly at that. There had been an incident last week where he had been approached by some beta demons in the corridor on his way to class, but then another beta demon had appeared and had stood up for him. Lucas didn't know the guy, only that he was a freshman and seemed to be good friends with some of the alpha jocks that sometimes harassed him. He didn't trust the beta one bit, and he couldn't understand why the guy had helped him in the first place.
"Yeah… but I don't know or trust him," Lucas murmured.
"And you shouldn't. Gods knows what he's up to," Abby muttered.
The bell rang, indicating that the break was over and it was time to head to class. They all got up from the table and packed away their lunchboxes before leaving the cafeteria. Lucas stuck close to Noah's side and waited with him until most of the crowd was gone so that they wouldn't get pushed around in it.
"I really hope you're right," Lucas said while they waited for the crowd to pass them. "That we'll still be friends and stay in contact…"
Noah turned to look at him and smiled softly. "You're one of my best friends. Of course I don't want to lose contact with you; I will do whatever it takes to still see you from time to time. And for now we still have self-defense classes together."
Noah and Lucas had both started attending self-defense classes at a local studio not far from the school. It was twice a week at 3:30pm, and it was for girls and submissives only. Lucas was extremely clumsy with it since he didn't like having to fight with someone even if it was only for practice, but he was slowly getting better. Noah too was a little insecure about his skills and he hadn't quite learned it yet, but it had gotten better when Jayden had started helping him out in their free time and had volunteered to be his sparring partner for practice. It often ended up with them both laughing though, since Jayden couldn't stop being amused when he saw Noah's frustrated face when things didn't go the way he wanted.
Lucas smiled at Noah's words. "You're one of my best friends too. I guess I'll see you later or tomorrow again, right?"
Noah smiled and nodded his head. "Yeah, see you then."
The crowd slowly dissipated and Noah parted ways with his friends as he headed to class. He knew that Jayden's next class was nearby his own, so he waited for his boyfriend further down the corridor and smiled when he saw him appear.
"Hey," Jayden grinned as he came over to him. He leaned down for a quick kiss and felt Noah smile against his lips before they pulled back.
"Hi," Noah smiled and started walking towards class with him. The corridors were a little less crowded now, but there was still a lot of people in it. "Do you have history now?" he asked as they rounded a corner.
"Ugh yeah, with Mrs. Fuller…" Jayden groaned.
Noah chuckled, feeling a bit sorry for him. "I have algebra, and that's not much fun either."
"Well, your teacher is more interesting than mine."
Noah couldn't disagree with that.
They walked side-by-side down the corridors, and Noah smiled as Jayden grabbed his hand and held it as they walked. Most people left them alone, and Noah was rarely harassed while he was with Jayden. A few of the girls glared at him with hatred though since they were still jealous of him being together with Jayden, but Noah always ignored their glares.
When they were almost at Noah's classroom, he asked, "Did you remember to send our English project to the teacher?"
Jayden frowned at him. "No… It's first due tomorrow, after all."
Noah stopped walking, forcing Jayden to stop as well and look at him. Their hands slipped out of each other's hold as they turned to stare into each other's eyes. Noah frowned at his boyfriend in confusion before slowly saying, "No… She changed it for today at 12pm. You didn't know that?"
"What?!" Jayden exclaimed. "When did she do that?"
"Um, Friday last week. You didn't know…?"
"No, because you're usually the one that keeps an eye out for changed deadlines in the project schedule. Why on earth didn't you tell me?" Jayden asked, his tone getting slightly snappy now.
"I'm sorry, I was just pretty sure that I did… So you didn't hand it in then?" Slight panic spread through Noah's chest now. He was very strict about keeping deadlines, and if he missed one he couldn't help but feel stressed and panicked out about it since he didn't want it to affect his grades or to get into trouble with the teacher.
"Well, you didn't," Jayden spoke dryly, his tail flicking in annoyance behind him. "And no, I didn't hand it in since I was sure it was first due tomorrow, and I still have to finish up the conclusion and structure the project – I was gonna do that tonight."
They always divided the work between them. They wrote most of the analysis itself while sitting together and discussing it, but the introduction, conclusion, etc. were split between them so they could do it while being alone, and Jayden was usually the one that put it all together at the end.
"But we need to send it in as soon as possible. The deadline was already two minutes ago," Noah said urgently.
"Well, that's not possible, okay? It'll take me at least an hour to write the final parts and structure it before I can send it in, and it would have been quite helpful to know the actual due time!" Jayden snapped accusingly. His words came out rather harsh since he couldn't help but feel angry and frustrated with Noah right now, and his tail was showing clear signs of that.
"I said I was sorry!" Noah snapped back. "And I told you we should have stayed an hour extra to work on it in the library yesterday to make sure most of the work was done, but you didn't want to."
"I couldn't! I had to go pick up Laura since my parents were busy, I told you that!" Jayden growled and let out a deep groan of frustration. He was clearly just as stressed about being late with the project as Noah was. "Fine. I'll skip my history class and go finish the project in the library, and then I pray that the teacher will still accept the project even though it's late."
"Jayden, I—"
Jayden cut him off by growling in frustration, and then he was pushing his way past Noah to head for the library, hitting Noah's wing slightly as he walked past him and stalked off down the corridor.
Noah stood there for a few moments, feeling tears prickle in his eyes and his stomach flip and knot unpleasantly inside him. He hated fights and conflicts, especially with the people he loved. Guilt made his throat feel tight and his jaw tremble, and it spread through his body in unpleasant waves. If only he had remembered to tell Jayden about the change of deadline then this wouldn't have happened and Jayden wouldn't be mad at him right now. He felt angry too, though. And frustrated. It shouldn't just be Noah's responsibility to check for changes in the deadline – Jayden should have checked it too. It was wrong of him to blame everything entirely on Noah.
He let out a frustrated growl before walking over to his classroom, ignoring the students that stared at him like he was weird when they had seen him standing in the corridor and staring into the air like a retard for a few moments after Jayden had left.
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Noah spent his algebra class being in a foul mood because of his fight with Jayden. Emotions of sadness, frustration, guilt, and annoyance kept bugging him, and he just wished that today's classes would be over already so that he could go talk to Jayden. He didn't want them to stay mad at each other, but it was probably best for him to first contact Jayden after school had ended for today – just in case the alpha was still upset with him. Waiting would give them both time to calm down again.
Noah was so distracted by his thoughts and emotions that he didn't pay attention to half of the things the teacher was saying, and he couldn't concentrate on the problem they were given during class either.
Amanda and Chanel both noticed that something was off with Noah, and he briefly explained what had happened when they asked him about it. There wasn't much they could do about it, but he was glad he had friends who cared about him being upset.
After algebra Noah had art class, and finally after that he was off for the day.
Everyone in art class was packing their stuff and leaving the room, and Noah finally took a look at his phone which he had put in his school bag earlier. The teacher was very strict about students using their cell phones in class and she always ordered them to pack their phones away, so Noah hadn't looked it since his algebra class had ended. He was half surprised to see that he had received a text message from Jayden.
Jayden: I finished up the project now and sent it to the teacher. met her in the corridor earlier and she said it was ok that the project is a little late. we were lucky. meet me in the library when class ends?
Noah swallowed as he read the last part. He was relieved that the teacher wasn't too mad about them handing in their project a bit late, but he hoped that he and Jayden wouldn't have another fight about it when they met up the library soon.
He finally packed the rest of his stuff and left class, venturing into the busy corridors outside where people kept walking into him or sneering at him in disgust when they noticed him. Noah kept his head down and pushed his way through, hoping that no one was going to grab him or otherwise try to get his attention so that they could tease or humiliate him.
Noah was relieved when he managed to make it to the library safe, and he was glad to be out of the crowded and noisy corridors. He knew where to find Jayden – there was always a certain spot that they sat at when it was available, so he made his way over there.
And surely enough; Jayden was sitting by the usual table and was looking at some stuff on his laptop. He looked up when he noticed Noah approaching, and Noah cautiously looked at his boyfriend's suddenly gentle face before sitting down next to him.
"Hey," Jayden smiled, somewhat awkwardly.
Noah put his shoulder bag on the ground next to him and shifted in his seat to get comfortable, not quite meeting Jayden's eyes. "Hi," he replied.
Jayden slowly reached out and put a hand on Noah's thigh. "Look, I'm sorry for getting angry and snappy with you earlier. I really don't like fighting with you, but it just made me so angry and annoyed that you've known about the change in deadlines for almost a week and didn't tell me."
Noah glanced at him. "I'm sorry. I thought that you knew. Maybe I shouldn't be the only one keeping an eye on the deadlines? It's as much your responsibility as it's mine."
"I know, you're right. It's just… I'm so used to you always having everything in order and making sure that we keep the deadline for our projects and that our work lives up to the criteria set by the teacher – you're kind of a nerd when it comes to that," Jayden said, his voice fond when he said the last part. "I guess I just got too used to it and I keep thinking 'Oh, I don't need to worry about that; Noah's got it covered', but I guess that's kinda dangerous to think, huh?" He let out a small chuckle at that.
A smile tugged at Noah's lips. "Yeah, that's indeed kinda dangerous, because I didn't have it completely covered this time. And I'm still sorry for not telling you about it…"
"It's fine. Can't be helped now," Jayden spoke and reached down to grab Noah's hand. He shifted so that he was facing Noah more. "And I shouldn't have pushed into you like that when I left; I'm really sorry about that."
The look Jayden was giving him reminded Noah a bit of a guilty puppy, and he chuckled softly at it. "It's okay. I just don't want us to be mad at each other anymore. I hate fighting with you, even though you can make me feel pretty annoyed with you sometimes."
Jayden laughed softly at that. "Yeah, you too, but that's extremely rare. Thank god."
An impish smirk formed on Noah's lips. "So you don't mind it when I call you Connor then? Since I don't do that 'extremely rarely'."
Jayden gave him a sharp but not too serious scowl. "Now you're pushing it."
Noah laughed at that, especially when he heard the fond tone in Jayden's warning.
Jayden just grinned before tugging at Noah's arm, forcing him closer to his body. He pressed his lips against Noah's while the submissive was distracted by confusion, and he chuckled against him when Noah let out a surprised sound before kissing him back. Jayden hummed as their lips touched and moved together, and he reached up his hand to grasp Noah's messy black hair tightly. Noah parted his lips to let out a gasp at that, which Jayden quickly took advantage of and pushed his tongue into his boyfriend's mouth to deepen the kiss.
Noah immediately tried to pull away when he heard footsteps and girls talking nearby, but Jayden kept him in place and continued to kiss him, making Noah blush furiously when he sensed people watching them now. The girls giggled and whispered something at each other before walking away, and Noah pulled back when Jayden finally released him.
"What are you doing?! They were watching us," Noah accused, glancing around in paranoia and shrunk in on himself a little.
Jayden laughed fondly at him, and he appreciated the sight of Noah's ruffled hair and his kiss-swollen lips combined with the pink flush of embarrassment on his cheeks. "So what? Let them watch."
Noah stared at him like he was mad. "That's…"
Jayden chuckled. "You're so cute when you're shy and embarrassed. Did I ever tell you that?"
Noah blushed harder and smacked Jayden on the arm. "Shut up."
The alpha grinned, and they shifted in their seats so that they looked more normal again and not like they had just been kissing in the corner.
Jayden started clicking around on his laptop and closed down some websites he had been looking at. Noah glanced at the screen and saw that the alpha had been looking at some school's website. It was time for them to start applying for colleges now since high school was ending very soon. Noah didn't like that. He didn't want to be torn apart from his friends, and he most certainly didn't want to be torn apart from Jayden.
"Have you decided yet what you'd like to study?" Noah asked cautiously, almost fearing the answer. He couldn't bear the thought of Jayden wanting to study something that the local college or other schools did not support.
Jayden sat back in his chair and let out a small sigh. "Well, I've been thinking a lot of about becoming a chef and study cooking and so on." He glanced at Noah from the corner of his eye. "But the college doesn't have that. I'd have to go to a culinary school to study it."
Noah swallowed, his throat feeling a bit tight all of sudden. He stared into his lap and fidgeted his hands in it. "So… We are not going to go to college together then?" He hated how small his voice came out when saying that, but he just couldn't help it.
Jayden looked at him when he sensed the sudden mood change in Noah and heard the misery in his voice. "Hey," he said softly and reached out to put a comforting hand on the submissive's thigh. "The culinary school is actually only a few blocks away from the college, so if I go there we won't be far apart."
Noah glanced at him from under his lashes. "Are you sure?"
Jayden smiled patiently. "Yes, I'm sure."
"…And that's what you really want? To be a chef?"
The alpha pulled back a little and nodded. "Yeah, I think so. I'm good at cooking and I enjoy it. I can't really see myself in another job."
"Well, if it's what you want then you should apply to the school. Just… Please don't find forget about me or find someone else. If you did that, I…" Noah's voice broke, and he trembled as he fought to hold back the suddenly urge to cry.
"Whoa, hey," Jayden said softly and turned to face him more, trying to seek out Noah's eyes to make eye contact with him. "I'm not going to forget you, and I'm most certainly not gonna find someone else, okay?"
"But—"
"No buts," Jayden cut him off firmly. "Come here," he said, patting his lap and smiling at Noah.
Noah's eyes widened. "What? No! Not in here— Jayden!" he yelped when the alpha laughed and practically dragged him over on his lap when Noah protested. Noah blushed as he found himself straddling Jayden's lap in the middle of the library with his boyfriend's hands placed possessively on his hips. Noah's wings spread out to gain his balance on Jayden's lap, and they gave a nervous flap as the alpha stared at his face.
"I'm not ever gonna find someone else, okay?" Jayden spoke, looking at Noah's face the whole time and waited patiently for him to meet his eyes properly. They were more or less eye level with each other now, and Jayden curled his tail possessively around Noah's leg while the submissive was straddling his lap. "There's no one else out there for me but you, so don't worry about losing me to someone else or that I'll forget you. I couldn't forget you even if I tried."
Noah was still blushing, but he raised his gaze to meet Jayden's eyes now. He was pleased when he saw sincerity in the alpha's eyes and he knew he was telling him the truth. "I'm not gonna find someone else either," he said after a few moments.
Jayden grinned and his hands tightened somewhat on Noah's hips. "I hope not. I wouldn't wanna live then." He purred and leaned in to nuzzle Noah's jaw lovingly, closing his eyes and breathing in his scent.
Noah smiled and bared his neck somewhat to him. "Me neither."
The alpha's feathers puffed out slightly at that in a possessive gesture, and small, pleased growl rumbled in his chest.
"And you can let me go now, before the librarian sees us," Noah chuckled and squirmed a bit.
"You really don't like getting caught, huh? Is that bad to be seen with me?" Jayden murmured teasingly against Noah's jaw, placing a small kiss on the soft skin there. His right hand caught some of Noah's feathers and he touched them gently, feeling the submissive shift a bit in his lap in response.
"No… I'm just shy. And if I keep sitting here with you touching me, I'm afraid my panties will get very uncomfortable to be in soon…" Noah murmured, blushing as he whispered the words.
Jayden laughed and pulled back. "Now, that's a nice ego boost for me," he grinned.
"Shut up," Noah mumbled, trying to hide his flushed face as he finally got off of Jayden's lap and sat back down in his chair.
Jayden just grinned at him and let him get settled in the chair next to him.
"So what about you?" Jayden asked all of sudden. "Are you still thinking of becoming a kindergarten teacher?"
"Yes, it's the only job that I find really appealing to me."
Jayden smiled. "That's good. I'm sure you'll be a great teacher; you're good with children and they seem to like you very much."
Noah smiled sheepishly at him. "Thanks. But promise me that we'll still see each other a lot after high school ends?"
"Yes, I promise," Jayden smiled, somewhat amused by how Noah was so afraid that they wouldn't see each other anymore when high school ended. "I'm probably gonna keep living at home with my parents since it's cheaper and easier for me. Besides, I don't think Laura is quite ready to have me move out yet," he added with a small chuckle.
Noah smiled fondly at that. "Yeah… She's very attached to you."
"Sometimes quite literally… She's 8 years old now and she still likes to lie down on the floor and wrap her arms around my leg, refusing to let go while I drag her around the house with her attached to me. I'm amazed she keeps holding on even when I tickle her in the face with my feathers…"
Noah laughed out loud at that. "Just don't cut her face with them."
Jayden chuckled. "I won't; I usually soften some of them a bit so I won't hurt her. Though I don't really let anyone but you see them when they're completely softened."
A small blush covered Noah's cheeks and he couldn't help but smile at Jayden's words. He liked that there was a part of Jayden that only he got to see. A part that was private but not sexual.
"Talking of feathers… Yours look kinda ruffled. I guess I should help you groom them a bit soon?" Jayden spoke and reached out to gently correct some of Noah's most ruffled feathers.
Noah watched as Jayden touched his wings, and he couldn't help but twitch them a bit in response to feeling his boyfriend touching them. It felt nice, and he liked how Jayden always looked at his wings like they were the most gorgeous things in the world. "Yeah, I guess you should…"
They groomed each other's feathers regularly, but always only very lightly. Jayden never got too close to Noah's oil glands since Noah wasn't ready yet to be bonded and mated to him. It would completely change their relationship and take it to a whole new level of intimacy, belonging, and physical and mental connection, and they both weren't ready for that yet.
Jayden corrected a few more feathers and ran his hand through them in a loving gesture before pulling back, smiling when he saw Noah shiver at the sensation.
They turned their attention towards getting their homework done before they were being picked up later.
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Dean, Castiel, and Noah came home that afternoon at 4:40pm. When they reached the front door and opened it, Isaac popped up with a loud "Boo!" that made both Castiel and Noah flinch in surprise since they hadn't expected that at all. Isaac cracked up when he saw their shocked faces, though Dean had only jumped a bit and his reaction wasn't nearly as funny as Cas' and Noah's.
"Isaac!" Castiel growled, blushing at how stupid he must have looked to his son.
"That wasn't funny," Noah groused and scowled at his brother as he entered the house with his parents.
"Yeah it was! Your faces were hilarious!" Isaac laughed. "Except for dad's – he barely flinched."
"I'm not that easily spooked," Dean smirked and closed the door behind him.
Bella barked and panted up at them happily since she was glad to see them, and Castiel petted her a bit as he took off his shoes.
Isaac rolled his eyes at Dean. "You're such a bore." He stepped back to let them have more space in the entrance to take off their shoes and jackets, and he grinned as he looked at Noah and Castiel. "You should have seen your faces," he laughed. "Next time I'm gonna film it."
"Don't you dare," Castiel warned him with a small growl, hating when Isaac pulled one of his stupid pranks on him. "You should film more useful things instead."
"Hey, one day when you're old you're gonna look at those videos and laugh at them."
Dean chuckled. "He's got a good point."
Castiel sighed and slumped in his wings in defeat before going into the living room with Bella following after him.
Isaac looked at Dean who was shrugging out of his jacket now. "Papa is really camera shy, isn't he? He always wants to be the one to hold the camera and take pictures of us when we make photos, like he's trying to avoid being in them."
Dean chuckled at that. "Yep, he's scared of his own beauty. Just like Noah here." He grinned at Noah and reached out to ruffle his son's hair, laughing as the boy shied away from his hand. Noah also tried to avoid the camera as much as he could, and he hated having his picture taken without others in it as well because he felt better when blending in with the other people on the photo than to be alone in it.
"Stop it, dad," Noah whined, trying to correct his hair again, but it was nearly impossible for it not to look messy.
Isaac laughed and Dean grinned at him before going into the living room.
Castiel was in the kitchen, looking through the fridge and freezer to find something they could eat for dinner tonight, and Dean smiled before walking over to him. The demon walked up behind Cas so that he was standing right behind him before wrapping his arms around his angel's body in an embrace. Castiel's soft, white wings were trapped between Dean and his arms, and Dean loved how soft the feathers felt against his bare arms.
"Dean… What are you doing?" Castiel spoke, and Dean could practically hear the eye-roll his in his voice.
"Nothing… Just showing you some love," the demon smirked, placing a kiss behind Castiel's ear.
Castiel shuddered at that, and he squirmed a bit when Dean holding him restricted him from looking through the fridge properly. He used his wings to gently push Dean back when he felt they had been standing like that for long enough, but when he pushed them against Dean's stomach with a little force, the demon let out a pained noise before pulling back and letting him go.
Castiel immediately turned around to look at him in shock. "I'm sorry!" he blurted, afraid he had somehow managed to hurt Dean. He looked at his mate in worry, but the pain quickly disappeared from Dean's face.
"It's okay. It wasn't your fault."
"What happened? Why are you hurting?" Castiel demanded, looking Dean up and down in worry.
Isaac and Noah were having some conversation in the living room and playing a bit with Bella, so they weren't paying much attention to what Dean and Cas were up to at the moment.
Dean hesitated a bit before saying, "It's nothing, Cas. Just… One of the mechanics at work was walking around with some big spare part, and when we met each other in a doorway I accidentally walked into that spare part and got some bruises on my stomach. It was a bit sharp so it feels kinda sore when something touches the bruise… It'll go away soon though."
"Let me see," Castiel spoke, reaching out to pull Dean's shirt up. Dean half tried to pull away first since he didn't want Cas to baby him too much over such a small injury, but Castiel stubbornly reached out again and moved Dean's shirt up to see. He cringed a bit when he saw some bruising and a cut on Dean's tanned skin, but it didn't look too bad. He could understand why Dean felt sore, though.
"See? I told you it's nothing," Dean chuckled when he saw Cas looking at the bruise.
Castiel let go of Dean's shirt again and put it back into place. "I know, but you should be more careful."
"And you should stop worrying so much. I'm a big, tough alpha; such a small thing won't knock me out," Dean spoke, not bothering to keep the cockiness out of his voice.
Castiel rolled his eyes and turned back to the fridge. "Alphas," he huffed. Dean just laughed behind him and brushed his tail against his leg before heading off to shower.
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It was almost 6pm when the doorbell suddenly rang.
Castiel was just about to get started with dinner, which would be some pasta and sauce leftover from the freezer, and Dean, Isaac, and Noah were watching some TV together on the couch. Isaac kept trying to annoy Noah and Dean which led to Noah constantly kicking him on the legs to make him stop, but Isaac just laughed at him and seemed more encouraged to continue. Dean just watched his sons with amusement, and laughed when Noah shrieked and pulled his leg back fast when Isaac tried to grab it so that he could tickle his feet.
They all frowned when they heard the doorbell ring since they weren't expecting guests.
"I'll get it," Castiel said before Dean could rise from the couch. He made his way over to the entrance hall to answer the door, walking around Bella who was splayed out on the middle of the living room floor.
"Okay," Dean replied, wondering who was at the door.
Castiel briefly looked through the door spy like he always did to see who it was, and he was surprised to see Lily standing on the other side of the door. He immediately opened the door for her, but the joy of seeing his daughter again quickly disappeared when he saw Lily's tear-covered face and how she was hugging her arms and wings around herself.
"Lily?" Castiel spoke, baffled and worried. Before he could do or say more Lily suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him.
"Papa," Lily cried, sobbing against Castiel while she held him tight.
Castiel moved his arms up to hug her back, and his heart clenched in worry when he sensed how distraught she was. He ran his hand up and down her back to soothe her and let her cry and sob into his shoulder. "Lily, was it? What's wrong?" he asked, swallowing the lump of worry in his throat.
Dean, Noah, and Isaac immediately came out to see what was wrong when they heard Lily's broken voice and her sobs from the living room.
Dean came over and put his hand on Lily's arm carefully. "What's wrong?" he asked, alerted by the way his daughter was crying heartbrokenly against Castiel. "Did Tony do something?" he demanded.
"No," Lily croaked and shook her head against Castiel. "I…" She sobbed and sniffled before leaning back a little so that Castiel could see her face, and she saw Isaac and Noah stare her in worry. Her green eyes swelled up with news tears and her lip was quivering as she spoke. "I… I lost it. I lost the baby." Her voice broke before she broke out crying again and buried her face in Castiel's shoulder while holding him tight.
There was complete silence for a second as everyone tried to interpret what she meant by those words, but once they understood it everyone's wings slumped behind them in shock.
Lily had been pregnant, but had suffered a miscarriage.
"Oh Lily…" Castiel held her tighter and shushed her gently to comfort her. His eyes swelled up with tears as he understood what had her crying so much, and he felt so helpless as his daughter just continued to cry, sob, and hold on to him.
Noah took a small step back in shock, and his eyes too began tearing up when the situation all but slapped him in the face. He watched as Lily cried and was absolutely devastated about losing her baby, and it made him even sadder.
Dean and Isaac were shocked too and they didn't know what to say. They just stood there and didn't know what to do or say to help make Lily feel better.
None of them had known that Lily had been pregnant, and she and Tony hadn't told them about trying to have a baby already. They had all assumed that they wanted to wait until the summer at least.
Castiel shushed Lily gently and rubbed her back for comfort. He slowly began leading her into the living room towards the couch, and Lily wouldn't let go of him as he led her there. Isaac took care of Bella when the dog barked and got slightly in Castiel and Lily's way, and Dean quietly closed and locked the door before following them into the living room.
Lily was still crying and her cheeks were wet with salty tears. There were a few traces on her face of make-up that had gotten messed up from her crying, but most of it had been wiped away earlier. She let Castiel guide her over to the couch to sit down, and once they were seated she leaned into him and buried her face in his shirt.
"Shh. It wasn't your fault, Lily," Castiel told her, holding her tightly and letting her cry it out against him. He gently rocked their bodies like he used to do when comforting the kids when they were little, and the gesture seemed to help calm Lily down a bit.
"B-But it died," Lily sobbed and trembled against him.
Castiel fought back his own tears and tried to stay strong to comfort and reassure his daughter. "It still wasn't your fault. Such things happen, and it has got nothing to do with you. Sometimes our bodies reject a fetus if there are complications with it. It is no one's fault – and definitely not yours."
Dean quietly sat down behind Lily so that she was sitting between them on the couch while leaning into Castiel. He wanted to reach out to touch her back and comfort her, but her wings were slightly in the way, so instead he moved his tail over and put it on top of Lily's which was resting on the couch behind her. Her tail twitched in response and curled slightly around his, as if saying thank you.
Isaac and Noah stood next to the couch, not really knowing what to do with themselves. Noah wiped away the few tears that appeared in his eyes while Isaac just stood there really quietly and watched the scene without saying a word. His tail and wings twitched a bit, as if he was trying to hold back his emotions. Seeing his twin cry like that and hearing about what had happened clearly upset him.
"I know," Lily sobbed in reply to Castiel's words. She pulled back a little so that she could look at Castiel, and wiped away some tears from her eyes. "T-The doctor said my body likely rejected it because the baby wasn't healthy…"
"Did you just come here from the hospital?" Dean asked softly.
Lily nodded, keeping her head down and didn't look any of them in the eyes. Her wings wrapped closer around herself as she sniffled and shook from having cried. "I-It happened at work. I just started bleeding all of sudden during one of our rehearsals. One of my colleagues drove me to the hospital, and Tony met with me there soon afterwards. After the doctors took care of me and spoke to me, Tony drove me here. I didn't want to be alone… Tony has a really important project at work at the moment and has to work overtime today, so he had to drive off again right after dropping me off here. He said he'll come back later when he's off work." She sobbed again, feeling new tears roll down her cheeks as she was once again reminded of the terrible thing that had happened.
Castiel wrapped his arm around her shoulder and murmured comforting words at her which relaxed her.
Noah sniffled softly, feeling so sorry for Lily at the moment. He blinked when Isaac suddenly walked over to the kitchen, but his brother soon returned with a pack of tissues for Lily.
"Here," Isaac said, his voice small and slightly croaky as he reached out the tissues towards Lily.
Lily blinked up at Isaac when he offered her the pack of tissues, and she looked him in the eyes as she accepted it from him. "Thank you," she said before opening the pack and took out a tissue to wipe her eyes and nose with.
They were all slightly surprised to see Isaac so quiet. It wasn't like him, but given the circumstances it wasn't too surprising.
"How is Tony holding up?" Dean asked after Lily had wiped her tears away and blown her nose.
"H-He's sad too. We cried together at the hospital, but he was really good at comforting and supporting me," Lily replied, her voice still shaky from crying.
Dean was relieved that Tony hadn't started blaming this on Lily. Some guys did and it was wrong and absolutely not acceptable if it hadn't been the girl's own fault. At least Tony wasn't one of those guys, and Dean was glad that he had helped and comforted Lily before driving her to the house. He couldn't deny that he had been pretty suspicious at first when he realized that Tony wasn't there with them right now to offer support and comfort, but he felt more relaxed now that he knew that Tony was simply forced to head back to work and finish his marketing project on time. He knew it likely wasn't easy for Tony to focus on that project now, after what had happened, and he felt kind of sorry for him.
Lily let a broken chuckle before lifting her head to look at Castiel. A sad smile covered her face as she said, "And I was already looking forward to telling you about the baby… The test had shown positive yesterday. I was 6 weeks in…" She sobbed again and clenched the used piece of tissue in her fist.
Castiel rubbed her arm soothingly. "I'm sorry…"
Lily sniffled and wiped away more tears before leaning against Castiel again. She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed contently when his wing wrapped around while they leaned back into the couch. Her papa's warmth and comforting touch calmed her down and made her feel better.
Dean put a hand on Lily's thigh and rubbed soothing circles into her pants. He could tell that these weren't the pants she had been wearing to work that day since Lily was very picky about what she would wear at school and at work, and these pants weren't the kind she would normally wear at such places. Tony had probably driven back to their apartment to get her some clean pants after her other ones got dirty with blood.
There was a sad, depressing mood in the room now after hearing about Lily's miscarriage. It was sad and tragic and it affected them all. Even Bella was pretty quiet, but she came over and started poking her nose against Lily's legs and whined softly as if she was unhappy that Lily was so upset. Lily chuckled fondly at the dog and rubbed Bella's head a bit, feeling a bit better as she watched Bella begin to pant happily at the attention.
After a while Lily had calmed down enough to get up from the couch, and she used one of the last tissues in the package to wipe her face clean of the last few tears that had rolled down her cheeks. She smiled gratefully at Dean when her father reached out and put a comforting hand on her back, and she didn't mind that his arm was touching her wing.
Noah came forward to hug Lily then, since he hadn't been able to do so earlier. His sister smiled and hugged him back, and they took comfort in each other's embrace.
Castiel watched them quietly and felt Dean step a little closer to him as they stood behind Lily. The demon brushed his wing against his, and Castiel was grateful for the gesture since he was still quite upset about what had happened.
"I'm so sorry for you… I hope you'll feel better soon," Noah murmured into Lily's shoulder as they hugged.
Lily smiled sadly. "Thank you. Me too…"
They pulled back and Lily gave him a small smile before she looked at Isaac who still hadn't really said a word. Her twin fidgeted a bit before he stepped forward and hugged her all of sudden, and Lily was half surprised by how tight he was holding her.
"Don't be sad. I hate it when you're sad," Isaac murmured into Lily's neck, his hands rubbing her back in slow, soothing motions.
Lily sniffled a bit but smiled. "Don't be sad either." She half expected Isaac to protest and say that he wasn't sad, but he didn't. He just squeezed her a bit tighter before letting go and pulling away.
Isaac stared at the ground and twisted his tail behind him. "The world is fucked up, and I hate it sometimes…" he muttered bitterly. "And I think papa should make that pasta now. Pasta is good. It cheers people up, and we could really need some cheering up in here. It feels like the Dementors from Harry Potter just came in and sucked all the juice from us." He grimaced a bit when he noticed how wrong that came out. "Well, in a non-perverted way, of course. It's not like they sucked us off, and Lily doesn't have a dick to suck off anyway… Well, never mind. You know what I mean." He grinned a bit as he said the last part.
Lily couldn't help but laugh a bit at that since it was so typically Isaac to say such silly things, and Dean couldn't help but laugh at it too.
"Isaac," Castiel sighed and shook his head helplessly while Noah groaned next to him.
"What? It came out wrong," Isaac explained, somewhat defensively.
Lily giggled a bit as Castiel rolled his eyes at that. She smiled at her papa and said, "I'd like to help you with the pasta, if you don't mind?"
Castiel was a little taken aback by the offer since he didn't think that Lily would be in the mood for cooking right now. It was a positive thing, though.
"Of course I don't mind," he told her with a soft smile.
Lily returned the smile, and they walked over to the kitchen together to get started.
The others were glad that Lily seemed to feel a bit better now, even though they all knew that she was still upset and sad.
The mood lightened up a bit, and Isaac went over to the kitchen to observe what Lily and Castiel were doing. He purposefully got a bit in their way to annoy them, and he laughed when Lily pushed him away with an annoyed grunt when he refused to move away from the cupboard she was trying to get into. It was his way of trying to cheer her up, and Lily both hated him and was grateful to him when it actually worked. When it got too much, Castiel ordered Isaac to move his butt over to the living room instead, and the beta laughed at his papa's stern but annoyed face as he glared him down until he moved away.
Noah and Dean watched them in amusement and made sure that Isaac didn't go back to the kitchen to annoy Cas and Lily further.
Lily and Castiel chatted a bit while cooking, although Lily was a bit more quiet than usual. Castiel was patient with her and tried to talk about something less sad to cheer her up. They discussed Isaac's TV episode a bit and Lily was quite proud that her brother had finally had his first appearance on TV. His character had received nice comments on the social media forums, so that was a bonus victory for him (although the fact that he was an angel/demon hybrid was still unknown to most fans of the show).
When dinner was ready they all sat down and enjoyed their meal while Bella was eating her own food in the small corridor. It felt like the old days again, if not for everyone still feeling the sadness in them after the events that had happened to Lily on that day.
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At 8:45pm Tony finally arrived at the house after he had finished his marketing project at work. He immediately pulled Lily into a tight hug when he met her in the living room, and the others watched as the two young mates embraced each other.
Tony pulled back after a few moments to look at Lily's face in worry. He cupped her cheek gently and asked, "Are you okay? Are you feeling better?"
Lily nodded briefly. "Yeah, I feel better. I was being spoiled here all evening," she chuckled weakly.
Tony seemed relieved to hear that, and he sighed and rested their foreheads together while closing his eyes. "Good. I was so worried about you all night…"
Lily just smiled and brushed her tail against his leg reassuringly.
Castiel gave them a small smile and looked at Tony when he pulled away from Lily a few moments later. "Did you have dinner yet? We have some pasta leftovers if you like?"
Tony smiled. "I didn't have dinner yet; I came here as soon as I could. And pasta sounds good, thanks."
"I will go warm it up for you then. I believe it has gotten cold by now," Castiel announced and moved over to the kitchen to pour up some pasta for Tony and heat for him.
"Thanks," Tony smiled gratefully.
"Papa makes the best damn pasta and pasta sauce in the world. It really chases away the Dementors," Isaac grinned.
Tony frowned at him in confusion. "What?"
The others laughed, and Lily chuckled as she put her hand on Tony's chest. "Never mind him. It was just a reference to something he said earlier."
"Oh. Something silly, I suppose."
"Hey!" Isaac protested, not liking to be called silly.
Tony ignored Isaac's protest and focused his attention on Lily. He grabbed a hold of her hand and held it as he looked her into the eyes. "I'm really glad you're doing better… I hope you aren't still upset about that asshole doctor's comments," he murmured, his voice bitter as he mentioned the doctor.
Dean frowned. "What asshole doctor?"
Lily lowered her head and stared at the floor as if in shame, and Tony rubbed his thumb over her hand before he looked over at Dean to explain it. "One of the doctors that were in the room when Lily was at the hospital made some stupid comment about how angel/demon hybrids aren't meant to exist, much less breed, and that the miscarriage was nature telling us that Lily is genetically wrong." His jaw clenched and a grim expression covered his face as he recited the story.
Dean's eyebrows shot up in shock, and Noah and Isaac were quite shocked as well. Castiel had heard it from the kitchen and he was just as stunned as the others that a doctor would say such a thing to a young female who had just lost her unborn baby.
"What?! The bastard actually said that to you?" Dean growled. His feathers puffed out and sharpened as rage travelled through his body. Bella took a few steps back in alert behind him.
"Fuck, what an asshole!" Isaac growled.
"That's what I told him," Tony said, clenching his jaw. "I also told him to get the fuck out of the room, and he didn't take that very kindly either. Thankfully the female doctor helped us kick him out and apologized for his behavior, even though it wasn't her fault."
"I would have smashed that guy's teeth in and sent them in a cigar box to his mother if he had said that to my face," Dean growled and clenched his fists.
"But maybe he is right?" Lily murmured quietly, still staring at the floor. "I mean, I've heard that it's not completely uncommon for an angel or a demon that is expecting an angel/demon hybrid child to have a miscarriage, or for the angel/demon hybrid offspring to have miscarriages either, so maybe he's not completely wrong…"
Isaac stared at her with wide eyes. "Whoa, you can't be serious."
"Hey, don't say that," Dean spoke in a firm voice while looking at Lily. "Many people have miscarriages or disabled children, and it isn't limited to one species only – both humans, demons, angels, and hybrids have that. There's no real proof that hybrids are more prone to having genetic defects or more miscarriages than others, and some people just make up such stories to discourage angel/demon relationships, that's all. You're perfectly healthy, and you and Tony can have perfectly healthy kids too, like Eden and Adrian do."
Tony placed his hands on Lily's hips and looked at her with a gentle face. "He's right, you know…"
Lily sighed and nodded. "I know. I'm sorry. I'm just so upset right now…"
Tony placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "I know. I am too."
Dean smiled at them and brushed his tail against Lily's. "Just don't say that ever again. You're perfect the way you are, and so are your siblings."
Lily smiled and turned her head to look at him. "I know. Thanks."
Castiel smiled at them from the kitchen while getting Tony's dinner ready. He was proud of Dean that he had managed to get that awful thought out of Lily's head again and that Lily was a little happier now.
Isaac grinned cockily at them. "I'm more perfect than all of you, though."
Lily reached out and shoved him back harshly. "Shut up, you arrogant jerk."
Isaac just laughed at that, especially when he saw his twin glare at him the way she always did when she was annoyed with him.
Noah chuckled at his siblings and hoped that they would never change.
Castiel was finally done preparing the meal for Tony, who was quite eager to get some food into his stomach and taste the angel's delicious cooking. Lily sat down with him and the two held hands and talked quietly by the dining table while the others stayed in the living room to give them some space.
Dean and Castiel sat down on the couch to watch some TV with Isaac and Noah, and Castiel leaned into Dean as they sat there. They were both still sad about Lily losing her baby like that, so Dean wrapped his arm around Cas' waist and held him close to comfort them both.
Isaac was starting to get back to his usual loud self and kept making perverted jokes over the things being said or done on the TV show they were watching, making Dean, Castiel, and Noah groan and laugh at him and his dirty imagination. Lily and Tony listened to him from the dining table sometimes and couldn't stop chuckling and snickering at it either, and the mood soon turned a little more cheerful, although today's events still roamed over them like a dark cloud.
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Lily and Tony drove home at 10:30pm, and Lily hugged all of them goodbye and thanked them for their support. She was going to take the day off tomorrow to recover mentally, although she was feeling a bit better now.
After Lily and Tony had left, the others prepared to go to bed. Bella had already retreated to her basket where she was snoring lightly, and Castiel smiled at the sleeping dog before heading upstairs to bed.
Castiel stripped off his clothes before lying down on the soft, king-sized bed. The sheets smelled fresh and clean, and he wrapped his blanket around himself before staring up at the ceiling, waiting for Dean to finish up in the bathroom.
A lot of thoughts swirled around inside Castiel's head as he lay there and stared at the turned off ceiling fan. He had never had a miscarriage himself, and for that he was grateful, and he couldn't imagine how it must feel for Lily to have gone through that. He hated seeing his children sad and hurt and not being able to do anything about it other than offer them comfort and reassurance. It made him feel so helpless.
Dean entered the bedroom a few minutes later and started stripping out of his clothes for bed. Castiel kept his eyes on the ceiling, and eventually he felt the bed shift as Dean lay down next to him.
"Hey," Dean spoke softly and rolled over on his side to face Cas while pulling the blankets over himself. He winced a bit when the bruises on his stomach hurt as he shifted, but he ignored the pain and focused his attention on Cas. "Are you okay?"
"I'm alright," Castiel answered, slowly shifting his gaze from the ceiling to Dean instead. "I just still feel rather sad for Lily…"
"I know, me too," Dean said with a helpless sigh.
Castiel rolled over on his side to face Dean and stared at the demon's face as they lay next to each other. "I could not imagine how I would feel if it had happened to me. Our children are the most important things in the world for me next to you, and losing one – either before or after birth – is not something I even want to imagine."
Dean reached out to grab the angel's hand, squeezing it firmly. "I know, me too. We're lucky that it hasn't happened to us."
"It does make me worry a bit…" Castiel shifted a bit on the bed before continuing. "Charlie told us that the medical authorities and government is keeping an eye on angel/demon breeding and the offspring, which means that they are likely getting statistics on the numbers of births, miscarriages, and other things involving the hybrids' medical history. I hope they won't use bad statistics as some argument against angel/demon relationships…"
A low growl rumbled in Dean's chest. "I wouldn't put it past them to do that, so I hope those statistics aren't any different from other species'."
"Mm," Castiel hummed in agreement before shifting his gaze to Dean's stomach. He couldn't see Dean's skin since his blanket covered him, but he remembered how sore-looking his bruises had looked earlier, and he couldn't help but feel a bit worried. "Does it still hurt?" he asked.
"It aches a bit, but I mostly only feel it when I move abruptly or if something touches it."
"You're so clumsy…" the angel muttered.
"Hey, as if you aren't. I can't count the number of times where you've somehow cut yourself on the tools you use for those sculptures at your work."
Castiel chuckled a bit at that. "That's true. But those cuts are nothing compared to your nasty bruise…"
"It'll go away, unless you keep talking about it and fuel it with more energy."
The angel laughed and shifted a little closer to Dean. "I'm sorry that I do not like you being hurt."
Dean chuckled and let go of his hand to run a hand through Cas' feathers under the blanket. "That's okay. You're cute when you're worried."
Castiel snorted at that, but smiled when Dean's hand grabbed his own again and entwined their fingers.
They squeezed hands and lay there in silence for a while, just enjoying their closeness and slowly feeling tiredness overcome them.
Castiel's eyes were about to flutter shut when a loud noise from the hallway caught his full attention. When he heard the muffled sound of Isaac yelling out a series of curses followed by a loud "I'm alright!", he chuckled in relief.
"I think Isaac banged his foot against something in the hallway," Dean chuckled, feeling a little sorry for his son.
"Probably," Castiel murmured, chuckling softly before letting go of Dean's hand and inched closer to him instead. "Let's sleep now. I'm tired."
"Mm, I agree," Dean hummed and wrapped his arms around the angel to pull him closer. He was careful not to make his bruises hurt.
They smiled and wrapped their wings around each other under the blanket, falling asleep within minutes.
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Author's notes: Ugh, I'm so sorry for making you wait this long lately. I thought my beta was going to have more time now that she has summer break, but it seems she's got a summer job that she works on three days a week so that slows her down a bit. I will always do my best to update as fast as I can, though!
I hope you guys aren't too mad at me for doing such a horrible thing to Lily… But I promise she and Tony will have a healthy baby at some point!
Anyway, thanks for reading and sorry for the wait! Please leave a review :)