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Dean splashes through a puddle and squints down the empty road ahead of him through the rain. Even though he’s soaked through to his bottom layers, the rain isn’t too bad and he kind of likes it actually. The chill reminds him that he’s alive. It reminds him that he’s human now. It’s not like every day doesn’t do that for him, but the rain has a calming effect to it that nothing else does for him – except for Cas, of course. But that’s a whole different kettle of fish right there.
At this time of day – if it can still be counted as day when it’s this late in the evening – Dean could probably walk on the road instead of next to it without being worried. There are rarely any cars heading the opposite way this late. Hell, barely anyone goes this way either – unless it's him or Cas. And most of the time it’s him. Besides, he’s not driving today. Dean didn't take the Impala because Cas needed it some errands in between morning and afternoon mass.
When Dean moved in for good, Cas gave up the Church's car. He gave it back so they could give it to some other parish that needed it more than him. It makes Dean all warm and tingly inside when he thinks about how giving Cas can be. He could have kept it and the Church wouldn't have cared. But Cas was smart and figured there was no point in having two cars when both of them don't really go out a separately at the same time.
At this point, Dean really only leaves the house and the Church to go to town with Cas for shopping or laundry. Sometimes he goes out with Sam when he's in town. Other than that, the only thing that makes him leave their home when he gets an itch under his skin to do something that isn't related to hunting or the Church. Particularly, Dean likes to do something to earn a little extra cash to help pay his share of the bills. He's only a volunteer at the Church, so it's not like he gets a paycheck for helping Cas out when he needs it. And running the Hunter Network with Cas isn't exactly a profitable business.
Well, at least there's Balthazar. Whenever he comes home from a hunt, he's always loaded. Dean sometimes swears that he must have a little grace in him somewhere because no one should be that lucky. Balthazar is amazing at swindling money out of everyone at the bar. Whether it's a card game or pool, he kicks ass at literally everything. Obviously he's actually cheating. Dean just hasn't been able to figure out how yet. But one of these days he'll get the hang of it and then he can do that to earn money instead of the completely civilized way he's been doing it for the last year.
Right now, he pretty much just picks up odd jobs here and there around town. When he needs a break from the Church and the Hunter's Network, Dean takes the Impala if Cas won’t need it or he hikes it into town to find something to do. Sometimes he's helping someone when they’re moving, he'll fix up cars at the local garage, or he mows a couple lawns. Once he was even temporarily hired to bus tables for a week.
Dean basically does whatever he can to earn some money. And a lot of people are willing to throw him a few bucks to do errands for them – especially since he became a familiar face at the Church and he's got Cas's gold star of approval. Same goes for Sam. He does the same thing when he's in town. Sam doesn't hunt like Balthazar does, but he is out there looking for something. Dean just doesn't understand what that something is.
It's like Sam can't hold still. He's not happy just being here like Dean is. There’s something missing for him. Dean has Cas, his little family, and a corner of the world where he's comfortable. He doesn't really need anything more than that. But Sam wants more. And whatever it is that he's looking for has him making his own way out there in the world.
Only Sam and God really know what he gets up to when he leaves town. Sometimes he's gone for one month, and sometimes it's for a hell of a lot longer than that. Sometimes it's too long for Dean's liking. It doesn't matter if he gets a phone call every other day, or that they use that handy dandy Skype program to video chat every so often. He likes having Sam here. He's his brother, even if these bodies they've taken as their own since they Fell aren't actually brothers. It's the same with Cas and Balthazar. They're not family in blood, but Bobby always said that family doesn't end in blood.
Thinking really helps make the long walk from Flanagan back to the Church pass quickly. And now that his thoughts are on his family, Dean can’t help wondering if Sam is going to be home again anytime soon. He was a few states away when they talked the other day, but he didn’t say if he was on his way home or not. Oh well. As much as Dean misses his brother and would like to have him home, he does like having his alone time with Cas. They have their routines and Dean loves the routines.
He is so looking forward to taking a hot shower as soon as he gets home. If he’s lucky, Cas might even join him. They tend to share one more often than not, but Dean always hopes for it. Nothing beats ending a busy day with the scalp massage Cas always gives him any time they shower together. And then after the shower they can put on some comfy clothes, get comfortable on the couch with some snacks, and boot up the Netflix. It took him months to convince Cas to get it and they’ve both enjoyed it a whole hell of a lot.
The problem with spending his whole walk thinking is that Dean kind of gets distracted – especially when any of those thoughts include Cas being naked in any way. But that doesn’t mean that Dean isn’t any less ashamed of himself that he’s actually in sight of the house when he realizes that he’s being followed. Really, though, with the sound of the rain and his own splashing steps, it shouldn’t be a surprise that he misses it. The other footsteps aren’t as loud as his.
Dean’s hand slips under his jacket to grab the hilt of the knife he keeps tucked in the small of his back. He doesn’t give any other hint that he’s going to turn around before he pivots on his heel, tensed and ready to face whoever it is behind him. It can’t be a demon because they’re all trapped in hell, but there are all sorts of vampires and werewolves and other bullshit still walking the planet.
To his relief – and his surprise – there’s no one standing behind him. Dean relaxes for a moment before he thinks to actually look down. Directly in front of him, sitting with its butt in the mud and blinking rain from its eyes, is the dirtiest little dog Dean has ever seen. Its long fur is soaked through and matted with mud. He isn’t even sure what colour or breed the dog is supposed to be.
“Well, hello there.” Dean doesn’t let go of the knife as he crouches down. Can’t hurt to be safe, since there are plenty of skinwalkers out there. “Where did you come from?”
Unsurprisingly, he doesn’t get an answer. The dog just tilts its head. Behind it, its matted mess of a tail thumps in a puddle. It stands up and wags its tail furiously when Dean cautiously holds out his other hand. He wants to check for a collar. Maybe this dirty little puppy belongs to someone. If there’s a reward, that’s one less day he has to go looking for something to do in town. If not, then at least someone will be reunited with their lost dog.
The dog is pretty damn docile and licks at Dean’s fingers when they get close. It headbutts his hand and its tongue hangs out of its mouth at the first careful scratch behind the ear. Without his grace, Dean can’t sense anything anymore. He’s got his gut and that’s not even remotely as accurate as his grace was when it came to reading creatures and their motives. But right now, he’s pretty sure this little puppy is just that; a dog looking for whatever affection where it can get it.
“You might be barking up the wrong tree here, little guy.” Dean keeps scratching, fingers inching down to look for a collar – and he’s not finding one. “I doubt Cas is gonna let either of us in the house looking like this. And I don’t really know his policy on pets.” It’s not exactly something they’ve talked about yet.
He could really say whatever he wants right now. The dog doesn’t seem to care. It’s focused completely on the scratches and this might actually be the highlight of its day. Poor thing. There’s no collar, so there’s the potential that this is a stray – and that means he doesn’t have the first damn clue about what he’s supposed to do.
“You should probably head on home before you get too lost.” It almost hurts to have to stop scratching the dog and stand up. “We’re a long ways from town and it’s almost night time.” He makes shooing motions and tries his best to ignore the way the dog is looking at him with great big puppy eyes. “Go on.”
Dean doesn’t look back for the rest of the walk home, but he doesn’t need to. He knows the dog is following at his heels. The splashes are all he needs to confirm that. Well, shit. Dean makes it all the way up the steps and out of the rain under the overhang above the door before he turns around to check behind him again. Sure enough, the dog is sitting at the bottom of the stairs, mouth open and tongue out again.
“Shit.” With a sigh, he wipes the water off his face and pushes his hair back off his forehead. Would Cas be mad if he brought a dog into the house? He doesn’t know. Should he ask first? They could put the dog in the shed for the night – just to keep it warm and dry, right? But the poor thing is just so dirty. It would probably benefit from a hot bath just as much as Dean would right now.
“Shit.” Sighing again, Dean crouches and holds his hand out to the dog.
As soon as he does that, the dog yips happily and bounds up the steps, leaving muddy footprints behind it. It licks at his fingers again before Dean carefully picks it up from under and behind its front legs. The dog doesn’t have any issue with that and its little tail keeps wagging the whole time. He’s holding it facing away from him and Dean turns it just enough to take a good look at the matted, muddy fur all along its underbelly.
“Okay, I’m – like – ninety-nine percent sure that you’re definitely a girl dog.” He doesn’t see anything expressly dick-like under there, so he’s going to go with that until the dog gets a proper bath – if Cas actually lets her get that far into the house.
Speaking of Cas – he decides to open the door right then. There’s a towel over his arm and, even though his hand is hidden, Dean can tell just from the way he’s holding his arm that there’s a weapon in his hand. It’s probably a gun. Cas isn’t surprised to see Dean, but he is surprised to see what he’s holding. Both of his eyebrows go right up his forehead and he spends an absurdly long time just blinking and looking between Dean and the dog.
There’s only one thing Dean can think to say right now. “She followed me home.”
Cas looks down at the towel he’s holding and he takes a gun – hah! Dean was right! – out from under it. He puts that aside and crouches to spread the towel out on the floor. “I had this ready for you, but I suppose she can use it – though, are you sure she’s just a dog?”
“Pretty sure.” Dean shrugs and puts the dog down on the towel. “We can take her to the basement and run a couple tests to make sure she’s not a skinwalker.” There are plenty of non-invasive tests that won’t hurt her unless she’s not actually a dog.
“After a bath.” He folds the edges of the towel up over the dog. “She’s rather filthy and I don’t want to track it all over the basement.” Cas looks up and there’s a soft smile on his lips that makes Dean’s heart do a back flip. “You dry her a little bit. I’ll run the bath a bit and get you a towel to dry off too.”
Without thinking, Dean leans forward. There’s a moment where surprise flickers across Cas’s face and then his smile gets wider and he’s leaning in to meet him. This is definitely the best part of coming home; the welcome home kiss. Every time he gets to kiss Cas, something hot runs through Dean’s chest almost like he has his grace back again. Of course he doesn’t, and there’s no way kissing him lets Dean feel the contents of the vial hanging against the front of Cas’s t-shirt.
Cas pulls back after a moment and his smile is just as wide and soft as before. “Are you satisfied?”
“No.” He’s been living here a year and he’s kissed Cas every day, and Dean knows without a shadow of a doubt that he will never be satisfied with just kissing him. If he could spend the rest of this mortal life kissing him and touching him, then maybe Dean will be satisfied then. But that’s a long way off. “But it’ll do.”
With a laugh, Cas turns away. “I’ll be right back.”
And he keeps true to his word. By the time he’s back with an armful of towels, Dean has already peeled out of most of his clothing right there in front of the door. Cas finishes up with drying most of the dog while Dean takes care of his hair and wraps the towel around his waist so he can drop his damp underwear. It’s too uncomfortable for him to want to keep wearing them while they’re washing the dog.
That is actually way easier than Dean thought it would be. Most shows and movies have lead him to believe that it’s rarely a walk in the park when throwing an animal in the bath. But not only does this possible stray sit pretty while they wipe her down with the towels, she’s actually excited to get put in the tub once they carry her upstairs. Dean’s never seen anyone look that happy to get a bath. Her tail doesn’t hold still the entire time and she’s panting happily while sitting nice and pretty in the water.
Once the muck is washed off and Cas has attacked her with a comb, Dean isn’t really surprised to see that she’s all sorts of pretty. Her fur is reddish-brown over her long, furry ears and short muzzle. There are big patches of it across her haunches and down her tail. Once the mud is gone, Dean can't believe that there was actually white fur underneath all of it. All the matted fur hid just how long her fur really was and she's actually a very beautiful dog once she's all clean.
“Wow.” Dean whistles and reaches down to scratch her under the chin. “Who knew that such a pretty girl was hiding under all the mud, huh?”
“I think she's some breed of Cocker Spaniel.” Cas brushes down her ears once more before he puts it away. “You should take a shower and warm up now. I'll bring her downstairs, test her, and take some pictures. We can make up some posters and you can take the Impala into town tomorrow to put them up to see if anyone lost her.”
Wait, hold up. “Shouldn't we take her to the pound or something if she's really a dog?”
“No. I don't trust most animal shelters.” He shakes his head and picks the dog up as he stands, cradling her to his chest in a way that makes Dean's heart go all wibbly-wobbly. “Half of them put the animals to sleep if they're not adopted within a month. It's ridiculous and she'll be safer here until her family comes to get her.”
Dean chews on his bottom lip while Cas maneuvers his way around him to get out of the bathroom. Finally, he can't hold it in any longer. “But what if no one comes to get her?”
That makes Cas freeze. He stops in the doorway, his back to Dean. “We'll deal with that if we come to it.” Cas doesn't even turn around to look at him, but Dean can hear something different in his voice. Even if he doesn't say it, Cas has probably already decided what's going to happen if no one comes to claim the little Spaniel – if that's what she is.
Cas disappears down the hall and Dean can hear his footsteps on the stairs. It's leaving him with a great big question mark bouncing around inside of his brain, wondering what Cas's decision is going to be. It's not like he wants the dog to stay – but he doesn't not want her to stay.
Shit. Now Dean's conflicted and he doesn't like it.
*
The vet hands him a leash that looks like it's seen better days and the same can be said for the collar it's attached to. “She's a Spaniel alright. A Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, to be exact.” She crouches to give the dog a good scratch behind the ears. “I checked her out, got her up to date on her shots, and she's in perfect health. You can tell Father Collins that there's nothing to worry about, and that this was all on the house.”
“Thanks!” Dean can't hold back his grin. The charity of some of the people in this town is truly astounding sometimes. He's fully aware of just how damn expensive vet bills can run for some pets – the internet filled him in on all of that last night.
With a smile, she waves him off. “Don't worry about it. I'm happy to hear that the Father is taking in animals now too. If he needs anything, I'm happy to help. And just so you know, your little lady here doesn't have a chip or a tattoo.” She sighs and looks at the notice Dean put up in their lobby. “I've got the sneaking suspicion that she was someone's dog and they never brought her in to us, then decided to up and abandon her one day.”
That makes Dean's smile drop and he looks down at the happy little puppy staring up at him. Who could abandon someone as sweet as her? They're lucky he doesn't know them – if they exist. And they're even luckier that they're not something supernatural. He wouldn't hesitate to gank an asshole like that. First for being a monster, and second for ditching such a sweetheart. Like, really. She was nothing but awesome last night – including sleeping quietly through the night on the blanket Cas laid out in a corner of their bedroom.
Seriously, Dean can't even wrap his head around it. He's not even a dog person but he's pretty sure this little puppy is well on her way to owning his soul. Well, actually, at this point Dean isn't one hundred percent sure that he has a soul – since he was technically an angel who just severed their grace. He’s not sure, but oh well. It’s not very high on his list of things to worry about. He has a life, bills, responsibilities, and a relationship to maintain. Those are way more important things to focus on rather than wondering if he has a soul or not.
“Well, we’re just gonna keep on hoping that someone is missing you.” Dean pats the dog on the head before he gives the vet a grin. “Thanks for everything! We’ll see you Sunday?”
“Of course!” She returns his smile and waves him out as he leaves, the dog trotting happily at his side.
Now the rest of Dean’s day is going to be devoted to putting up posters around town. He has a backpack full of posters and a roll of tape to put them up all over the fucking place. And while he’s at it, Dean’s definitely planning on stopping at the closest thing to a pet store this town has and getting some kind of food and other shit for the dog. If she’s going to be staying with them, she might as well be comfortable, right? Logic. That’s how humans do it. And he’s totally a human now, so it’s definitely a thing he does.
*
A month. It’s been a fucking month and no one has even so much as sent an email about this dog. It makes Dean pretty damn annoyed. There has been nothing but good times for them while the dog has been here. Dean honestly loves having her around. He didn’t expect to end up liking her so much but he really has. She keeps him company when Cas is busy with the Church, or he’s gardening or something. That’s Cas’s hobby right there. Personally, Dean doesn’t really enjoy digging around in the dirt. But with the dog here, he can play with her while Cas tends his flowers.
Plus, she keeps the end of the bed warm and doesn’t mind that Dean tries to wiggle his feet under her in the middle of the night when they’re feeling cold. Cas was the first one to let her up onto the bed when she started whining on the floor after he’d woken everyone up with one of his nightmares. Her little legs make it basically impossible for her to jump up onto the bed, so every night since then Dean has just been picking her up and putting her near Cas’s feet before they all get comfortable. The best thing is that Cas always gives her a pat on the head and tells her goodnight too before he lays down – which means he doesn’t mind having the dog at the end of the bed.
And she’s not just a good foot warmer at night. She’s also great snuggle material while watching TV when Cas is busy doing paperwork or something. There’s plenty else for him to do around the house, but after a year of living together, Dean and Cas have their chore schedule figured out completely. They don’t need to even really talk to know who does what. Dean does a lot of the cleaning around the house so Cas doesn’t have to worry about doing it on top of having to deal with everything regarding the Church.
Things work between them and having the dog there hasn’t changed a thing. But there is something that needs to change, and it has nothing to do with Cas – thankfully. Cas is as perfect as he always has been, even with the occasional nightmares and his grumpy mornings. Dean’s problem, right now, is with the dog and the fact that she doesn’t has a name. After a month, Dean is completely sick of just calling her ‘dog’. She needs a proper name – but is that even allowed? Can he name a dog that doesn’t belong to them?
It doesn’t take him long to decide that yes, he can absolutely name the dog. Even if someone comes for her eventually, that doesn’t mean he can’t take care of her for now. It’s not fair to her that she doesn’t have a name even though she has a home here.
Dean watches her eat her kibble out of one of their bowls set up in the corner of the kitchen by the pantry. Since she wasn’t supposed to stay here for long, they didn’t bother getting proper doggy dishes. Her long ears touch the floor when she eats. The fur on her ears is kind of wavy and Dean almost laughs into his coffee when it kind of reminds him of Charlie’s hair. Her hair was obviously way more red and a whole hell of a lot longer, but even if he considers their personalities – the dog does kind of remind him of her too.
Well, that’s decided then. Dean puts his coffee down and pushes away from the table a bit. “Charlie.”
The dog lifts her head and glances at him at the same time Cas looks up from his newspaper, his eyebrow raised. Dean ignores that curious look to stay focused entirely on the dog. “Charlie. Come!”
She’s starts panting happily, tongue lolling out. Even though she has a bowl half full of kibble, Charlie trots over to lick at his fingers when he leans down to pick her up. Dean scratches her under the chin and behind her ears when he turns to Cas, expecting anything from a frown to an eyeroll to – well – anything, really. He honestly doesn’t know how Cas is going to react to the fact that he’s more or less decided that the dog is his now. Sort of. He’ll give her up if anyone comes to claim her, but until then she’s his.
Relief floods through him when he finds that is Cas looks like he’s fighting back a smile. Cas puts his coffee down and sits back in his chair. “You named the dog.”
Dean looks down at Charlie. “I might’ve.” The name fits and he likes it and she responded to it – kind of. She might’ve come over just because he said words and she likes him.
“You named her Charlie.” Cas’s smile is winning, but it’s showing more in his eyes than anything. It’s one of Dean’s favourites on him.
“Yeah.” He nods and lifts one of her ears to flop it a bit in Cas’s direction. “See? Her ears are like –”
A snort cuts him off and Cas shakes his head. “Yes, Dean, I understand.” He reaches over to scratch her under the chin. “Hopefully Charlie won’t mind that we’ve named a dog after her.”
And that means Cas likes it! Dean’s smile could not get any bigger than it is right now. “I think she’d love it.” Okay, he lied. His smile definitely gets wider when Cas nods in agreement.
Dean’s face damn near splits in half when Cas stands up and takes their mugs to the sink. “You should take Charlie in to town today. I’ll give you a list of everything we need for ourselves and for her.” He takes the notepad and pen stuck to the front of the fridge and sits down next to Dean again. “We should also get her chipped and licensed. I’ll call the vet to make an appointment for that, and I think the pet store etches dog tags too, so you should get her name and our contact information on one.”
That makes Dean’s brain trip over itself while happiness decides to somersault through him. Is Cas saying what Dean thinks he’s saying? Because it really sounds like he’s saying that they’re going to be keeping Charlie for good. Are they really officially adopting the dog? For serious? Wow, Dean might cry. He’s so happy that he has to put Charlie down so he can pull Cas into an awkward side-chair hug. And a thank-you kiss, because that is absolutely necessary.
Cas shoves Dean back with a laugh and a smile that damn near makes his eyes twinkle. “Yes, yes, you’re happy. I get it. You’re welcome.”
Laughing, Dean slips off his chair to kneel on the floor and give Charlie a proper scratch down. “You hear that, girl? The Padre here says that you’re a part of the family now. How awesome is that?”
He can’t wait for when he’ll finally be able to introduce her to Sam and Balthazar. Telling them about her over phone calls just don’t do her enough justice.
*
Dean is halfway through an afternoon nap on the couch when Charlie loses her shit. He sits up with a yawn and rubs at his eyes. She only gets like this when someone is coming up the front walk. Dogs must have hearing as good as angels because Dean is positive that those are the only two beings in the universe who would know that someone is coming up the fucking walk from the other side of the damn house.
“Charlie, quiet!” He yawns again and stretches. The doorbell is probably going to ring at any moment – except that it doesn’t. Instead, there’s a rustling at the door and then it swings open – which means it’s only one of two people. Dean grins and calls out; “Which one are you?”
“The one you like.” Sam calls back. “And hello little girl! You must be Charlie! Dean’s told me all about you.” The barking cuts out almost immediately and Dean knows that silence. It’s the sound of Charlie getting a good full body scratch. She’s probably on her back already, legs kicked up in the air to bare her belly.
Another door opens and Dean bets dollars to donuts that it’s the one to Cas’s office. “Welcome home, Sam.” Bingo! Damn, Dean’s good. “You beat Balthazar by a week. I just got off the phone with him and he said he’ll be by next week. How was your trip this time?”
“It was amazing!” He laughs and there are footsteps coming up the hall. They both come around the corner and into the living room, Charlie bouncing around their feet until Sam sits down to in the middle of the floor to scratch her again.
Dean doesn’t feel like getting up and he stretches back out on the couch. The only thing he does is lift his legs so Cas can sit down too and he can rest his feet in his lap. As Sam launches into his story, Dean only half pays attention. Sam’s been gone for almost four months this time, so it’s going to be a long story. In fact, it’s always a long story and it starts with Sam talking about all the various jobs he’s been doing on his travels. Sometimes he’ll stop somewhere and work long enough to get a couple paychecks. A few weeks to a month. Odd jobs here and there, like what Dean does in town.
“And you won’t guess who I ran into while I was working as a cleaner at a hospital.”
That catches Dean’s interest and he glances over. “Who?”
Sam looks up from where Charlie is laid out across his lap to get her belly scratched. “I saw Meg.”
Unsurprisingly, Cas sits forward with wide eyes. The hand he has resting on Dean’s leg tightens into an almost painful grip. “What was she doing there?”
“From what I could tell, she was working.” Sam shrugs and Charlie yips at him when his hands stop scratching. He sighs with a smile and goes back to work. “I think she was part of a nursing program or something. It was my last day and I didn’t really stick around for a conversation.”
Cas relaxes back slowly and Dean slides down the couch just enough to reach down touch his arm. He’s never going to forgive Meg for what she did to him and Balthazar, but at least they know where she is – sort of. They don’t have to keep tabs on her, but it would probably be a good idea. Dean will look into doing it later. Right now, he thinks a topic change is in order. Anything that could distract Cas from spending too much time thinking about what he should and shouldn’t have done where Meg is involved.
“So, Sammy. What brings you home this time?” Dean twists to look over at Sam. “You missed our wonderful company or did you run out of cash and you were close enough that coming home was the best option for you? I could’ve just dumped money in your account, y’know.”
That earns him a pinch on the leg, but Cas rolls his eyes and there’s a smile hidden in the corners of his mouth. “Ignore him, Sam. You don’t need a reason to come home. You’re always welcome here. Don’t ever forget that this is your home too.”
Sam laughs and grins at the both of them. “I know, Cas. But I did come home for a reason.” He looks down at Charlie, like he’s suddenly just so shy. Bullshit. “I – um – I think I found what I was looking for.”
If there was anything he could’ve said that would get Dean to sit up, it would be that. He swings his legs off of Cas’s lap and off the couch so he’s upright and leaning forward on the couch. Dean doesn’t have the first clue why he’s feeling so damn excited, but he’s been wondering for a whole year about why the hell Sam can’t sit still and this is it. Now he’s finally going to get an actual answer.
When Sam looks up again, there’s a light burning in his eyes that he hasn’t had since he was full of grace. “I’ve had this – this itch under my skin ever since we fell. I wanted to get out there and see things from a human’s perspective. I wanted to have my own experiences and see people and humanity like I should have if I had been born down here.” He’s stopped scratching Charlie and his hands are trembling fists on his knees. “I fell to live.”
What the hell is that supposed to mean? Dean frowns and sits back again to cross his arms. “So, what did you find, then? You found the will to live?”
Cas elbows him in the side at the same time that Sam rolls his eyes. “No, Dean. I found a purpose. And I came home because now I want to go to school.”
He has got to be joking. Sam may be a mortal now with no grace in his veins, but he used to be an angel once. Somewhere in that hairy head of his, he’s got memories going back a millennia. And in those memories are all the things that he’s learned from observing humanity. What could he possibly learn at a school that he doesn’t already know? That takes time and money! Doesn’t he know that?
“Why would you do that when we could just do it the easy way?” Dean gestures at his laptop sitting on the coffee table. “We could just forge whatever documents you need.”
“The easy way is also the illegal way, Dean.” Sam shakes his head and his smile falls into a frown. “I need proper documentation for what I want to do. If anyone looks into my background, it needs to be iron clad and legal or everything I want could be totally messed up.”
By this point, Charlie has wandered to the back of the house and started barking. Cas pats Dean’s knee and uses it to push himself to his feet. Looks like he’ll be taking this round of letting her out to pee. And that means that Dean is going to owe him. He’ll clean the yard of her shit tonight before it gets dark. That should be good. They share responsibilities and Dean likes to keep things balanced – especially since Cas tends to be the one to let her out most of the time. It’s only because he’s always the first one on his feet.
As soon as the spot is free on the couch, Sam steals it and drops into Cas’s place. “There are so many people out there who need help, Dean. I want to go to school to learn how to be a counselor. I want to learn how to help people, and then I want to learn how to manage my own business.”
“Seriously?”
Cas comes back into the living room and leans against the back of the couch, right between Dean and Sam. “What kind of business are you interested in owning?”
“I want to open a counselling center in the city.” That fire is burning in Sam’s voice again and he looks so fucking alive while he talks about it. “We could have volunteers who could help on the easier cases, and legitimately trained counselors for the more difficult ones. Supply extra counselors to schools, or prisons, or anywhere that needs them. As long as we’re helping people, I’ll be happy.”
Y’know, that actually makes a whole bunch of sense. Sam has always been about helping people. No matter where they were or what they were doing, he wanted to everyone. And this – this feels right for him. Cas hugs Sam from behind over the back of the couch, practically strangling him for a moment. Has Cas ever looked more proud of someone before? Dean would bet that he hasn’t.
“That’s a wonderful dream, Sam.” Cas even ruffles his hair and Dean almost wants to laugh – if only because it’s like a giddy endorphin rush whenever he sees his little family being happy. “I’m so proud of you.”
“We’re both proud of you.” Dean pats Sam on the shoulder and gives it a squeeze. “Whatever you need to get this shit done, we’ll help you.”
Whatever they have to do – research, studying, saving up a shit load of money – it doesn’t matter. Sam’s smile in this moment is going to make it all worthwhile. Dean hasn’t seen him this happy since Jasiel died. Not even stopping the whole goddamn apocalypse made Sam smile like this. If this is what Sam wants to do, then by God, Dean’s going to make sure that his dream becomes a reality.
“Y’know what, guys?” Dean stands up and gives them both a grin. “I think this calls for some celebratory hamburgers. I’m going to fire up the barbeque and break out the backyard furniture.” That amounts to a couple plastic chairs and a folding card table. They haven’t gotten around to getting an actual deck out back yet, but when they do, Dean’s going to go all out on some proper patio furniture.
“Oh man, that sounds awesome!” Sam stands up too and Dean takes the opportunity to give him a tight hug because he really is proud of him. “Thanks, Dean.”
“You know how else you can thank me?” He shoves Sam out of the hug with a laugh. “Go take a shower. Your road stink is going to make all the food go bad. Poor Charlie’s nose must’ve been so assaulted.”
Cas makes a shooing motion at Sam when he looks to him for confirmation. “I don’t think you smell that bad, but you can take the time to shower and put your things away. Dean and I will take care of supper.”
“Thanks, guys.” Sam flashes them both another bright smile before he ducks back into the hall to get the bag he probably left by the front door. When he passes by again on his way to the stairs, he blows them both kisses with a laugh. “You’re the best!”
“We know!” Dean calls after him.
He’s totally all set to go to the kitchen when arms around his waist bring him to a full stop. Cas pulls him back into a hug, his cheek resting against the back of Dean’s neck. A soft, happy sigh puffs across his skin and it sends a pleasant shiver right down his spine. “I like when our brothers are home. Even if Balthazar claims he’s allergic to our so-called ‘domestic bliss’.”
Dean leans back into him and covers Cas’s arms with his own. “Yeah, I like it too.”
Domestic bliss, huh? A year and a half ago, Dean would never have believed that this was in the cards for him. God himself could have told him that and he probably wouldn’t have believed Him. But that’s what the last year has been. Dean has never been this happy before. Nothing in heaven could compare to what he’s had living here on Earth with Cas, Sam, and Balthazar.
Domestic bliss.
Yeah, Dean likes the sound of that.
END