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“Help me,” Hael said, plopping down in the seat across from Gabriel. “I know you occasionally have dealings with the Hatfields, and you haven’t been kicked out of the family, so tell me how to do it. I don’t want to lose my family, but I need to know.”
Gabriel took a sip of coffee to help control the need to laugh. His cousin was not going to like the answer one bit. “Tell me why, first. Are we talking something small but important, like you got put in a group project with one at school, are we talking big and important like you’re pregnant, or are we talking something big but stupid like you have a huge crush on someone but don’t want to talk to them without knowing you have the family blessing?”
“Hey!” Hael crossed her arms and pouted. “I’m a good girl, I’ll have you know, there is no way I’m pregnant! And I’m not stupid, either.”
Gabriel put his drink down and leaned forward, watching Raphael out of the corner of his eye as his brother turned away from them. “I’m gonna tell you a little family secret here, Hael. A lot of the firstborns in this family weren’t premature like we keep saying, they were just good girls and boys covering up that their reputation was somewhat inflated. And, by the way, the whole thing is bullshit. Being a virgin and being a good girl are not synonyms. They’re a Venn diagram. As for where you and stupid fall on that Venn diagram… well… talk to cousin Gabe, tell me what’s on your mind.”
Hael continued glaring, but eventually, her need for help won out over the injured pride. “So there’s this boy. He’s a great guy, we met in my sociology class where we had to do a group project together, and we’ve become friends. I want more, and I think he does too.”
Gabriel snorted. It wasn’t coincidence that those were the two examples he’d picked. “Hael, I know that part. You’re in here several days a week meeting up with a guy who I don’t recognize personally but he’s definitely Hatfield genetic stock, and the way you two are looking at each other when you think the other’s not looking… the two of you are obviously falling in love. Not gonna call you stupid for that, and not knowing the dude, I won’t question your taste in men either, but the answer’s not gonna be what you’re hoping, kiddo.”
Hael let out a long sigh. She glared over at Raphael, who picked up a coffee pot and headed over to them. “You and Raphael haven’t told on me, have you?” she asked when he got there.
“Of course not, cousin.” Raphael put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze as he refilled her coffee. “You’re an adult quite capable of managing your own affairs, in every sense of the word. While I don’t approve of your choice, I am certainly not going to be Michael about it. You have the right to choose.”
“So where does that leave us? Come on, you deal with both Hatfields and Winchesters and haven’t gotten kicked out of the family, so there has to be a way!” Hael insisted. “Well, Gabriel does. Raphael doesn’t deal with much of anyone but customers who behave themselves.”
“It’s not what you’re hoping for, kiddo,” Gabriel repeated. “You see, when I was about your age… I fell in love with Callie Kalispell. The family didn’t approve, and when I realized the choice was them or her, I chose Callie. We took off to Montana, lived there for years until we ran up against issues we couldn’t resolve, and I came home. I was gone… what, fifteen years?”
“Seventeen,” Raphael corrected. “Seventeen years, three months, four days.”
“Thank you for that incredibly precise reminder,” Gabriel said. “So there you go. And the most important thing: when you come back after seventeen years…”
“Three months, and four days,” Hael added, earning a soft snort from Raphael.
“Yes. And remember, if you only wait three days or take an extra day to get here, this advice may become invalid.” Gabriel waited for the giggles to subside. “When I came back, Pops and Michael and the others expected me to have my tail between my legs and beg their forgiveness. I told them I was just here for a soft landing spot and if they weren’t gonna make it easy on me to come home I was headed right back out. I meant it, too. They didn’t believe me, not until I left again. Luckily for everyone, that time, Raphael hunted me down and told me to come back home. That time, it stuck.”
Raphael reached out and put a hand on Hael’s shoulder. “Gabriel and I both wish you the best of luck with your young Hatfield, but it will be difficult to get the family to accept it. You may find yourself like Gabriel, or like Castiel, having to choose.”
“And like with Castiel, we’ll keep in contact no matter what unless you tell us otherwise,” Gabriel added. “I told Raphael to stay back when I went off with Callie, partly because I didn’t want him cut off from the family for my sake and partly because Kali didn’t like him. No regrets. I missed my brother, but I had some good years – and if Raphael had stayed in contact, I might not have come home. Which would have made it harder for Cassie to walk out, because I wouldn’t have been there to encourage him, and I wouldn’t be here to talk to you now.”
Raphael nodded. “It’s a choice you’ll have to make, and then live with, Hael. We can give you advice, but in the end, it’s up to you.”
“And Tom,” Hael added. “Tom’s family will be just as tricky to deal with, I expect, and if he chooses them over me, I wouldn’t blame him too much for that.” She paused. “I should talk to Castiel, too, shouldn’t I. Apologize for being such a dick to him about getting involved with a Winchester.”
“Yes, you should,” Raphael agreed. “And I should get back to work. When will Tom be here?”
“Any minute now. I don’t have much time to think about it, but…” Hael’s face lit up as she glanced toward the window.
Gabriel followed her eyes to where Tom Hatfield was about to walk in. It looked like Hael didn’t need much time, as she met him at the door with a long hug and didn’t pull away or protest at all when he went in for the kiss.