Chapter Text
Sam Winchester had a plan. He would answer a call from Krissy, who together with Aiden and Josephin are leading one of the support groups to deal with ex-monsters. He and Dean would spend a few hours on the road, arrive at dusk at Krissy's house, solve what they needed, and they would go back to the Bunker giving a ride to the young hunters. Sam hoped that Cas and the others would carry out their part of the plan as well.
In the past two months, with hunts virtually non-existent, hunters have been trying to rediscover their role in this new world. The younger ones took an important position in this transition, they were locating the new humans and trying to help them process this experience, although there was a lot of resistance because the enmity and the grudge did not disappear as easily as what happened with the non-human condition.
Older hunters, who already live a rare condition within this branch of work in which growing older was more of an exception than a tradition, were also struggling to understand that the world has changed completely, and that it would continue to change. After all, what did that mean? Everyone was trying to find some satisfactory answer.
Sam centralized the articulation work between hunters and allies who were in a position to provide help, and those who needed help, even if they could not understand all their needs. Mia was contributing to the side of the ex-monsters, getting in touch with those who previously lived among humans, without putting them at risk, and bringing anyone who wanted to participate to the teams. Two months in that process, and it still seems far from over, that was just the beginning.
This time, however, Sam asked Dean to accompany him on this specific case, which was just a lame excuse. In fact, they just wanted to get Dean out of the Bunker so that Cas, Claire, Kaia, Jack, Donna, Jody, Patience and Alex can prepare a surprise party to celebrate his birthday. In order not to raise too many suspicions, Claire and Kaia arrived two days before, with the excuse that, in addition to missing them, they wanted a place to stay before continuing their trip across the country, the two are participating in the itinerant groups, while the other Sisters take care of the regional base of Sioux Falls.
After hitting the road, only Dean and Sam at Impala 67, as they hadn't done in a while, decided to stop at a bar to play pool, betting money just for the fun of seeing their opponents' surprised and upset faces. Sam made sure to assure Dean that they didn't have to hurry to get to Krissy. He wanted his brother to enjoy that trip, because he knows that Dean doesn't miss the problems, but he does miss the old days on the road. No matter how much Dean has changed, he hasn't stopped loving what he loved before Chuck lost.
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They return to the road after the first stop. Dean is in a good mood, tapping his fingers lightly on the steering wheel, following the music.
“Hey, Sammy, do you remember when we drove 1,600 km to an Ozzy show, after handling that case in Indiana? It had been a quiet week before we jumped on the next case… ”
"Was it when you were sick after eating those tacos?" Sam smiles at Dean, knowing that the spoiled taco episode is an embarrassing memory for his brother.
"Jerk."
"Bitch"
"But for your information, the taco episode was when we traveled two days for a Jayhawks game."
"Your memory is impressive, Dean."
"For good and for bad."
Dean peeks out the window, the sky is clear and as they are in the middle of nowhere, the stars are shining without the competition from the city lights. A feeling of nostalgia goes through him.
"Hey, is it okay if we stop here a little, Sammy?"
“Okay, Dean. I will send a message to let Krissy know that we will be arriving later.” And Sam smiles at Dean. "But when we get back on the road, I'm going to choose the music."
“You know I don't make the rules, Sam. Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole.”
They park Impala 67, and before they leave, Sam moves Dean's box of tapes, he arches an eyebrow when he finds a mixtape with a tag identifying the top 13 Led Zeppelin songs according to Dean Winchester.
“Do you still record tapes, Dean? That was outdated 15 years ago, even if you try to justify it with the current ‘old school’ and... And why are you tagging your own tapes with your name...?"
"It was a gift..." Dean chokes. "Cas was listening the last time we traveled together..."
"Oh Did you make a mixtape for Cas? " Sam is smiling "But mostly: Do you let Cas choose the song?"
"Well, first, technically it is my music." And then Dean looks to the side with something that Sam can't identify. "Cas was driving the Impala..."
"Wow, you guys are really serious!" Sam now laughs, but pats Dean on the back, warmly. “But when did you give this tape to Cas, a gift from a month of relationship? You two are so sweet… ”
"No!" Dean rolls his eyes, then coughs. "I gave it away a few years ago..."
"Did you make and give Cas a mixtape as a gift years ago?" Sam was a little more surprised now. "Seriously, guys, how come you guys haven't been together before?"
Dean sighs. "Because he and I didn't see anything that was in front of us... He didn't even realize it was a gift at the time... He tried to give it back to me..."
“Ouch” Sam sighs as well “ Yeah, after accompanying you for years, I shouldn't be surprised… And, well, Cas got all those pop culture references from Metatron, but I think that didn't guarantee that he would interpret all the contexts of first…"
"But, come on, Sammy, I didn't stop here to give details of my love life." And Dean gets out of the car, pulling out a bag of beers and food.
They sit on the hood and silently watch the stars. This reminds Dean of years ago, when Baby was the only stable and continuous point in their lives, that old car was the only thing that kept them from feeling homeless.
Dean then opens the bag and takes two sandwiches, handing one to Sam.
“Sandwiches without bacon, Dean? With real salad?” Sam starts making fun of Dean.
"You made Cas worried about my cholesterol, my blood pressure... And sandwich, apparently, is the only thing he can prepare that tastes like real food."
"Dean, without Chuck in the story, we have to be more careful." Sam is more serious now, although the expressions remain calm. "You don't have to eat like you don't have to worry about getting old and still healthy."
"I know, I know..." Dean speaks with his mouth full. "But if you and Cas are going to team up to make me eat grass, I'm going to have to call Eileen to convince you to make a new night with margarita drinks, because you won't be able to resist a bacon breakfast later."
“I think your strategy is going to have to wait at least seven months, Dean. No drinks for Eileen by then.” Sam tries to speak casually, but he is clearly delivering great news.
Dean blinks then chokes and throws a portion of his sandwich away, coughing to recover. The eyes open and he starts to smile.
"No way, Sammy!!"
"We wanted to wait a while to tell, until we confirmed..."
"My baby brother is going to have a baby!" Dean says with great excitement as he gets up and hugs Sam. "Awesome!! Look at you, you're already a grown-up! And with Eileen, she’s amazing! This is awesome.”
"Dean, I've been an adult for several years." Sam continues to hug him.
"You’ll always be my little brother, Sammy!" So they move away a little bit. "Congratulations! You will see, I will be the coolest uncle this child will have, possibly they will like me more… And without wanting to offend, Sam, but I hope they look more like Eileen… ”
"Dean, calm down, calm down" Sam is laughing, Dean is thrilled with joy. “You are anticipating too much. Don't freak out.”
"Ok, ok" Dean breathes "But how are you not freaking out?"
"Ah, I already had my freak out moments, don't get me wrong, and I'll have a few more ahead of me."
"We have to celebrate when we get home."
"Yes, yes. I'm sure we're going to have a lot to celebrate, Dean…”
And Sam realizes that they are entering dangerous territory for the ‘surprise birthday’ factor and that Dean could start commenting that he also has his birthday approaching. So Sam thinks quickly about changing the subject.
"Dean, to prevent me from freaking out now..." Sam starts, with puppy eyes "Can I change the subject?"
Dean continues to smile widely, but nods because he just wants his brother to be comfortable.
"I wanted to say a while ago, but I didn't want to be too invasive." Sam is careful “You seem to be very well with Cas, I know that you are talking to Mia… I know that everything has changed in our lives, but we never talk much about what it has been like for you to be in a relationship, not that I need to know details… What I mean is, I'm proud of you, Dean. I am proud to see you take on your feelings openly, for giving yourself that chance. ”
Dean is taken by surprise, as he was with his low guard. His eyes go to the beer label, and he begins, without realizing it, to tear off small pieces of paper. When he looks up, he manages to smile at Sam affectionately.
“It's good to hear that, Sammy. It's really good to hear that from you. I feel that I am proud of us too, of all of us, for what we have achieved… It was not easy to get here”
"Dean, you know I always wanted you to be happy, no matter what or how."
“Yeah, Sammy, I know… I always knew, the hard part was believing that I deserved it, after all the shit I did too… And even before all the Apocalypses and the damn supernatural crap increase in proportion in our lives… I didn't feel I was worth it, I felt there was something wrong with me... ”
“Dean… This has to do with our father, doesn't it? I know that we don’t talk much about these things...”
“I never thought there was any use talking, Sammy. What was done was done... But I kept it all .. Do you remember that case with Shtriga? Remember what I told you about our father?”
"How could I forget, Dean? You were just a kid, we were just kids..."
“I remember the way he looked at me differently that day, and then, even though I tried hard, even though I tried so hard to be like him… I knew I wasn't, and I couldn't be exactly like him… But even so, every time I felt something that I thought would deviate from the John Winchester way, I hated myself more… And over time, the way Chuck manipulated our lives, all the shit that came after, seemed to mix with it, I would never be free, neither of our father, nor of Chuck…”
Sam is fully present there, and when Dean looks at him, all Sam can show on his face is solidarity.
"Dean, I'm sorry..."
"Sam, you went through a lot of similar shit too..."
"But I had you to protect me, Dean." Sam smiles softly. “Even when you were being a stupid older brother, while I was growing up I never doubted that you were there for me, that you accepted me better than our father… And when I left you to go to Stanford, I know it wasn't clear that I would also be there for you."
“Okay, Sammy. It's over.” Dean sighs and lets out a bittersweet smile “We've been through so many things together... When I look back, I remember when it was just you and me, alone in those motel rooms, during school breaks… I wouldn't have been able to get through all that without you, Sammy… And the only time I really doubted was… The Woman in White's case, do you remember? I must have stood outside your dorm for hours... because I didn't... I didn't know what... What you would say. I thought you would tell me to... to get lost or get dead. And I don't know what I would've done... if I didn't have you. Because I was so scared. I was scared, 'cause when it all came down to it, at that time, it was you and me.”
Sam and Dean hug each other again, both eyes watering.
"You know, Sam, I can't hate our father." Dean runs a hand over his eyes. "I hope he and mom are in their Heaven, and are well together, but... But, and I feel bad saying that... But I will understand if he isn’t in any of my best memories..."
“I can understand that, Dean. I also don’t have much to remember in that sense… Do you remember anything?”
Dean cringes, his posture vulnerable, his gaze reaches elsewhere than Sam.
"I vaguely remember... I... I was about 3 years old and he still hadn't left us... One day we went to the park, our mother was still pregnant with you, I think... And when we were leaving, before him put me in my seat, he sat in the driver's seat with me on his lap and put my hands on the steering wheel... I remember that, because when we were kids I used to repeat that image in my head over and over... that feeling... trying to believe that somehow he was still that father who entrusted me with the wheel of his car... and that I could excuse him for everything.”
"Dean, you never told me these things." Sam puts a hand on his brother's shoulder.
"Apparently I'm getting old and I can't keep chick flick moments away anymore.”
"Even if you're not getting older, Dean, it's okay to talk about these things if you want to."
Dean takes a sip of beer. They remain silent for a while.
“And what's the deal with Krissy? You didn't go into details...”
Sam clears his throat before speaking.
"It's a simple thing, but I thought you might like to hit the road a little bit and see Krissy again as well."
"Yeah, that girl keeps kicking ass."
"For sure... And Dean, I wanted to talk to you about Bunker later..."
“Spill it out, Sam. Enjoy that I'm in the mood for dialogue.”
"I was thinking of making the Bunker officially, the headquarters for these new operations and cases."
“And what does it mean to make the Bunker an official headquarters? Several unknown ex-hunters and ex-monsters wandering around again?” Dean narrows his eyes.
"Something like." Sam straightens his stance on the hood, grabbing another beer. "I thought, with me and Eileen having a child... And you and Cas seem to be doing well, with this humanity thing and everything... You know, maybe we can separate personal life from work for the first time, something like that. We could let Bunker go back to the original function for which it was created, and there are many people who need a place to stay during the transition, who have no one. They could stay there while they go through this, with Mia overseeing each case with her team.”
"Um, do you look like you've thought about it a lot?" Dean arches an eyebrow in a low voice. "Are you thinking of moving to the suburbs and having almost the normal apple-pie life you wanted?"
"Not that much." Sam smiles slightly. “I think I'm beyond wanting that… But we also need to find our place in this new world, we can still help a lot of people, Dean, with something they need. Both the hunter community and a good part of the monster communities, have always existed based on the survival of each day, at least that we have in common… There is so much trauma, loss and forgetfulness in our reality… We may not be able to solve everything, but we have something to offer these people, because we know what it's like to be alone and how to find people to count on is important. We are all human and at the same time there is a large part of our life that we cannot deny, hide or erase that was part of the supernatural world. ”
"Sammy, you were certainly born to lead." Dean opens a smile.
"I don't think it's true." Sam looks embarrassed. "But, uh, I can understand both sides, you know?"
Dean is a little confused.
"I know it's not quite the same." Sam continues. “But, I grew up with demon blood in me, and then, when my powers appeared and I started to sink deeper and deeper into that… There were times when I didn't know who I was anymore, because at one point I was that being not exactly human and in another I was me, without visions, without exorcisms with my mind... None of those moments was easy, but after all I was still accepted by you... I think we can avoid a lot of pain if we just help these people with what is possible, Dean.”
"Got it, Sam" Dean nodded seriously. "Do you think this will work?"
"I really don't know, Dean." Sam lowers his shoulders. "From what I've seen so far, we're doing well with the plans we have, I think it's worth a try... If it's okay with you?"
"Sammy, if you think we can handle it, I trust you." Dean raises the beer offering to toast it with Sam. "And I also need to adjust ... From my own experience, Mia's work shows results."
“Dean, I was also thinking about expanding our library with hunter reports. In fact, that was an idea I had with Eileen.”
"And what is the reason for that?"
“Dean, we have a giant list of hunters who died in hunting, or who had different stories than ours, but are not recognized. Kevin, our Charlie, Ellen, Jo, Ash, Bobby, Rufus, Asa Fox, and even our grandparents... How many of them cannot be remembered for what they lived because everything in the life of a hunter is a big secret? Even for us, if we die, our legacy will be for the ‘normal world’ two criminals who played Houdini with death and for others we have the record from Chuck’s point of view and the inscriptions on our table. I think we can start sharing, within our community, the stories of other characters, using the Bunker as a safe place both for those who are still here and who need to move on, and for the memory of those who tried to fight for this world as well. I think we can give meaning to so much trauma caused by Chuck's stories, at least.”
"Well, Sam, you are the smartest in the family, so go ahead..."
“Dean, come on, you're a Tolstoy, you said yourself... With stupid tendencies now and then, but still a Tolstoy. "
"I think we will have to move then... Do you know that I checked that 'Ketch inheritance'?"
"You mentioned it before, he really managed to hide a lot of things from the British Men of Letters while he resided here, didn't he?"
"Undoubtedly a damn rogue bastard until he dies." Dean changes his voice to a more subtle tone. “ I've been thinking… There is a house, I mean, a kind of house, not very big, three bedrooms, I guess... Near a lake… It looks like a nice place to fish… With space for Miracle to run and I think Cas would like to be close to nature or whatever, he could start a garden… ”
"Dean, were you seeing houses before this conversation?"
"What? I never had to plan for an almost ‘normal’ future. Mia thought it would be interesting if I knew how to explain places other than the Bunker that I could enjoy…”
Sam then opens up a big smile again.
"Not that I want to start talking about your love life, but you and Cas are so married!"
"Jesus, Sam!" And Dean laughs. “The worst thing is that I can't even disagree with you! I like to think that our mom would be happy about it, our Bobby too, but our dad… Although he liked the last guy I had an interest in before Cas… ”
And with that Sam spits out all the beer he had just put in his mouth.
“Who, Dean? I met? I realized that you flirted with some guys, especially when you were drunk, but I didn't think you had advanced on anything else...” Sam's eyes are open with surprise and interest.
“Oh.” Dean raises his hands as if to say ‘calm down, Sam!’ His face flushed from saying something without thinking straight (literally?). So Dean lets out all the words fast. “No.. No, you haven't met him. It was at the time that you were in college... It was nothing serious, we hunted together a few times, our dad praised his fighting skills, I tried to stay close, we went out together to drink in a bar with karaoke, and we... but, um, you know… Well... And that's when I was more sure that I might not be as straight as I thought I was…
"And what happened to him, Dean?"
“Um... one day our dad, huh, he caught us wasted on a hunt. Nothing had really happened, but he was so mad, we thought he was going to have an aneurysm, and I thought he realized what had been going on in my mind, about Lee… So, I could only remember that look that he gave me when I was a kid, and it hit me so hard that I started to distance myself from Lee, we had one last hunt, cultists in Arizona, which also didn't help... I didn't hear from him for almost 15 years after that…”
"15 years?"
"Yes, Sam... But like everything in our life up to that point, it ended up ugly, with the shit being thrown in my face and another death on the scoreboard."
"I'm sorry, Dean."
"How do we get from one subject to the next like that now?" Dean sighs “I thought we were just going to sit here, watching the stars. In silence. As in the old days...”
"The old days have changed, Dean."
"In fact. No Chuck, no strings attached, I guess...”
"And we're doing well so far, I suppose..." Sam ponders.
"Sometimes I think that Amara has to do with that too. " Dean looks at Sam directly, they take a moment to process this.
“Do you think she would also try to control our lives? So that we are… happy?”
"I don't think so, Sam." Dean looks serious, but calm. “My theory is that she is favoring us, clearing the way, you know? I don't know if this is true, I don't know what her real intention would be… Jack said that she wants to leave us free to make our choices and that's it, but I've been thinking. Wouldn't it be easier for her to just take that power and go? Disappear and leave the whole world on its own without noticing what Chuck did or left broken? After all, it was not she who wrote those books, she was also involved in his plot, but she is finally free... Why does she still care? Why not let go of this or other worlds that she did not create on her own?”
"These are good questions, Dean."
"She healed the monsters, she gave us Cas and Jack back, she even gave Cas the chance to become human if he wanted to..." Dean is quiet for a minute. “This is still interference, but I don't feel it is invasive, right? I don't feel that she is forcing us to anything, it is as if she left the picture clean so that we can see beyond the talk of fate, suffering and monsters that Chuck played on us for so many years... But this is just a theory, not going to lead to nothing by thinking about it too much. "
"You're right, Dean, what Amara's main intentions are, we have no control over them... But, if we can trust Jack and Cas' word, we will have to trust Amara too..."
"Unless we come face to face with our lives being written again in some random place..." Dean swallows along with the last sip of beer in his hand.
“Yeah, but this time our ‘adventures’ would be a lot less epic.” Sam laughs with a little nervousness.
"Who knows…"
Sam's cell phone flashes with a message. Cas is asking if they have arrived yet and whether the road trip was a good one. Sam realizes that he and Dean spent more time than planned talking and standing in the same place. They put things away and go back to Impala.
"And how are the preparations for my party, Sam?" Dean has a smug smile.
"Damn it, Dean!" Sam mumbles. "It was supposed to be a surprise... How did you know?"
"Cas sucks at keeping secrets, he doesn't talk, but he disguises badly... And he doesn't clear his internet search history... But I let him believe I had no idea."
"What nonsense, Dean..."
“Oh come on, he and I are an open book for each other! The guy said he saw my soul, Sam!" Dean smiles pretending to be astonished "I had to hold on to that advantage."
"Dean, we made all this effort to get you away from the Bunker..."
“Sammy, thanks for the road trip. I really missed our time together. Bitch. ”
"Jerk."
And they laugh, with Dean putting the key and turning on the Impala.
“And we can keep it a secret that you know that I know that Cas doesn't know that I know… And we can make these trips before my birthday every year! Next year we can go to Vegas and… ”
"Dean, less!"
“What is it, Sam? You can go to Vegas and have fun respectfully. After all, I am a family man! ”
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The return trip did not expose so many emotions. Krissy, Aiden and Josephin stayed in the back seat, updating them on a few occurrences, explaining what Tik Tok was to Dean, or just complaining about the music he played. After the first stop at a restaurant, for them to go to the bathroom, Sam asked to take the wheel, following the plan that had already been discovered. He then drove to an open area near the Bunker, where all the invited friends were already waiting.
They had taken some of Bunker's own tables there, on the larger one, there was a lot of food and a cake with Rice Krispie treats, which Alex, Jody and Jack helped to prepare. Castiel bought green balloons, because they reminded him of Dean, and some blue ones, because they were cute, with luck, he managed to keep they tied to the floor by a line, floating. There was a considerable amount of gifts on another table.
As he gets out of the car, Dean pretends to be surprised, almost crossing the line of what is a convincing pretense, and exchanges a look with Sam, who rolls his eyes, but says nothing about having been discovered before. Dean realizes that they are having a barbecue, with Garth helping to serve the meat.
He gets a little lost when he realizes how many familiar faces are there: Garth, Bess and the children playing with Miracle; Charlie and Steve (Bobby had decided to go back to his world), Jody, Donna, Patience, Alex, Claire, Kaia, Mia, Cesar and Jesse, and even Max Banes, with whom they had resumed contact after helping him save the soul itself... And Eileen and Sam... And Cas and Jack... And Dean goes towards the table with food, after having greeted a part of the friends he saw.
Donna comes over and hands Dean a gift, a rectangular box. Then, she whispers to him.
"It's Dr. Sexy M.D's 15 full seasons. I know, those cowboy boots, right?"
And Dean agrees. "So sexy." he says, and he can laugh about it.
After two full plates, Dean steps back a little and supports his back against a tree. He watches Cas from a distance, he is holding baby Castiel and playing with him all silly.
“Hey, old man. 42 years old, huh?” Claire teases him, approaching him.
"I'm not too old, kid." Dean strikes back.
Claire rolls her eyes and then follows the direction where Dean's gaze points.
"Sometimes it's strange, you know, to see him as human as that."
Dean turns to face her.
"Claire... I know it's hard..."
"No, no... I mean... I miss my dad, I miss my mom, but considering everything we've lived... Even though I wish none of this had happened, I'm grateful for what I have now, Dean."
"I know that feeling." Dean then puts his arm around her shoulders, in a half hug.
"You have become soft."
"Look who's talking." He smiles.
Claire gives Castiel her gaze again.
"After all, if he hadn't insisted on me when I thought I had nothing good saved for my life, I would not have found a new family."
"Yeah, he has that effect on people."
"You are so into him." Claire gives a wry smile.
"Sorry, have you seen how you look at Kaia, young lady?"
And Claire punches Dean in the shoulder.
“I know it took you all this time to be together with him, together… But when did you fall in love with him, Dean? When did you know? Because before I only remember the arrogant, insensitive Castiel and... Okay, and badass too, but it couldn't have been just that, because now he's all silly and lovable...”
Dean never thought about it so directly, he only knew it when he knew it, and until the moment when he could confess what he wanted, previous feelings were always repressed... He remembers the first time he met Cas, entering that barn... All the fears and uncertainties he carried, ever since he walked out of his own grave, exploding on the surface. And Cas knew how to make a awesome, cool and impressive fucking entrance, which made Dean fear that being even more and react defensively... But today, the memory is accompanied by one more comment, as if he had removed the fear, the anger and insecurity and discovered another piece of his mind that was impressed by that guy a la Constantine , and he didn't know what, but surely something had been touched right there.
"I can't say, honestly." Dean answers simply. “But he can be a weird, dorky, little guy, devastatingly handsome and a badass. So I won.”
Cas, as if feeling that he was the subject of the conversation, turned the body over to them, staring and tilting his head at Dean. Dean smiles and blinks.
“Yes, you won, old man. And take care of him, okay?”
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Dean had already attended birthday parties, some before the age of four, which he did not remember, and some when he was with Lisa. With those exceptions, none while growing up or after adulthood, and none organized by his family and friends to honor him. He remembers being in the corner of the parties he witnessed, seeing strangers having fun, interacting, talking banalities. He was unable to appropriate it, but he tried as hard as he could, for Lisa and Ben. Deep down, Dean felt for a long time a stranger to everything that could be considered a ‘normal life’, and every little joy that came from that seemed distant and incompatible. He was not good at this, he would only cause pain and bloodstain any beautiful family photo he was in... These thoughts punched him in the face and broke his body when he had to give up Lisa and Ben, because, until recently, he believed that what happened proved definitively that Dean Winchester could not live a beautiful, non-violent and calm life.
‘Dean Winchester was wrong’ he thinks now, for good , as he hears his family wishing him congratulations, with Patience taking some pictures and Cas close by hugging him. Everyone has fun and tells jokes, talking banalities... But in the case of this family, banalities involve telling about the time that fairies were a national threat or when a werewolf once had to remove all teeth, or when vampires pretended to be vampires to attract people who wanted to be attracted to vampires. It is the normality that Dean knows and wants to share with others.
Sam asks everyone's attention, and Dean teases him about wanting to give a speech.
“I just wanted to thank you all for being here with us. And I want to thank my older brother, the man who raised me and never gave up on this world. To the brother, father and friend that he is. Happy birthday, Dean. I love you so much, my big brother.”
Dean Winchester hasn't really cried in public since he was 4, when he lost a toy on the playground. Dean Winchester did not cry in front of the others, or did not usually cry, that had been who he was for almost four decades. But now Dean Winchester is in front of his brother, his friends, the best friend and love of his life, the whole family he found along this tortuous (and ultimately affectionate) path, crying. Dean Winchester is crying with a big grin as he thinks he's being silly about it, but it doesn't matter. Dean is satisfied, he is happy and he is being who he wants to be. After all, the world has changed just as well as they have…
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THIS IS NOT AN EPILOGUE OR A SNEAK PEEK
"Cas, what do you want?" asks Dean with a sleepy voice and half-open eyes.
Cas moves on the bed, with one arm over Dean's chest, with his leg also invading his personal space. Cas is not good with limits.
“A cat, Dean. I think we have to adopt a cat.” Cas keeps his eyes closed, more asleep than awake.
"Cas, we have a dog... And I was talking about breakfast... What do you want for breakfast?"
Dean now opens his eyes, stretching an arm, the one that is not around Cas' waist, to get his cell phone and check the time, but first he comes across an anonymous postcard he received a few days ago with the only phrase ‘I think that we can get what we deserve in the end’ .
"Another species, Dean... The cat can live with Miracle..." Cas speaks with his face now sunk in the blanket next to Dean's neck. "PB&J, Dean."
“You don't make any sense in the morning, you know? We need to get up.” Dean speaks and smiles kissing Cas' forehead.
"No, Dean."
They remain in bed, ignoring the alarm clock. Later, they will have to hear a speech from Sam complaining that they were late to meet them at the beach... Well, you can already imagine how this will continue, right?