Work Text:
I stared back at what could only be described as the scariest thing I’d ever seen in my life.
“Dean, you’re not seriously going to try and stuff that whole thing into your mouth, are you?” I asked.
Dean brought the monster sandwich away from his face just long enough to say, “Hey, the waitress said it was free if I did,” before he began to stuff his face, or attempted to anyway. It was hard for me to avoid vomiting just at the sight of it.
“Yeah, but we’re not so tight on money that you have choke yourself on a burger monstrosity,” I pitched in, unable to quite look away and yet desperate to.
It didn’t take long for Dean to cram as much of his meal into his mouth as was humanly possible. Of course, since when was he ever willing to stop something once he’d started it? Eventually, Dean managed to get the whole thing past his teeth. He then squeezed his lips around his teeth and began to chew. One, followed by another, line of juice/saliva began running down his chin. I watched in horror as Dean slowly but surely swallowed the entire burger without opening his mouth again. He gave me a cocky smirk as he wiped his face. I rolled my eyes and pushed my plate away from me.
“Yep, not hungry anymore,” I said. “Check please,” I called to our waitress. She came over and picked up my plate but paused when she saw the absence of Dean’s Hulk sandwich.
She smiled. “My, my. Looks like someone’s earned their meal. I’ll just strike that off the bill,” she said with a bit of a southern drawl and walked off with our plates.
“Looks like you’re payin’ Sammy,” Dean beamed proudly.
I scoffed. “Yeah, great, congrats, Dean,” I said sarcastically. I pulled out my wallet and slapped a few bucks down on the table.
About an hour later, the two of us were back in the Impala. It was late at night and we still had a few more hours before we’d reach the bunker. I was about to fall asleep just staring out into the eerie atmosphere. The only thing keeping me awake was Dean’s music coming through the speakers of his prized ‘Baby.’ And yet, as loud as the music was, we both still flinched when we heard a low growling noise coming from the driver’s seat. I glanced at Dean.
“Dean—,”
“Shut up,” Dean said bluntly, cutting me off.
“Told you you shouldn’t have eaten that thing whole,” I mumbled, facing the window again.
“Still shut up,” Dean grumbled, looking at me briefly. After another, albeit quieter growl, he started rubbing his stomach.
“What’s wrong with Dean?”
The two of us jumped at the sound of a new, but thankfully familiar voice.
“Dammit Cas!” Dean yelled, swerving back to his lane.
I cleared my throat. “He ate too much too quickly,” I answered, seeing as Dean wasn’t about to.
Dean glared at me again like he was upset I had told our angel friend about the cause of his tummy aches. He glanced at Cas too before sighing out, “We took care of that vamp thing in Houston.”
“Yeah, and thanks for telling us about it,” I added.
“But it seems like it would have been pretty easy to take care of yourself, Cas. Why didn’t you?” Dean asked gruffly.
I tensed up and side-stared at Cas, hoping he’d remember to keep a secret.
“I was. . . busy. . .” Cas offered.
“Yeah, with what?” Dean prompted.
This time I full on stared at Castiel in the backseat, trying to communicate to him telepathically to make something up.
“Uh. . .” Cas faltered. Dean raised an eyebrow at him in the mirror. Before Dean could press further, Cas disappeared with a flap of his wings.
“What the hell was that all about?” Dean asked me. Unfortunately, I chose this time to visibly relax.
“What?” Dean shot at me and I reluctantly froze up again.
“What?” Dean said again.
“How am I supposed to know, Dean? Maybe he broke something in the bunker and just didn’t wanna tell us about it.”
Dean scoffed and gave a tilted nod. “Yeah, maybe.” He paused. “It better not have been anything of mine.”
I chuckled lightly and inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
Not long after dodging that bullet, the we finally arrived at the bunker. Without looking too conspicuous, I slowed my pace just enough after getting out of the car that Dean
walked in ahead of me. He didn’t seem to notice and unlocked the door and pushed inside, probably desperate for a drink. The second I stepped inside and Dean reached the first step, we heard Kevin and Cas yell, “SURPRISE!” from downstairs.
Dean took a step back and just gaped at the scene in front of him. There were streamers and balloons strewn throughout the library and main room and a small, cheap string of letters suspended from two opposite walls that read, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY.”
“What. . . what is this?” Dean asked slowly and so that the three of us could barely understand him.
“It’s your birthday party, Dean,” I explained with a clasp on my older brother’s shoulders to get him moving down the stairs towards our friends. I smiled widely and followed him down.
“How. . . why?” Dean stuttered out, still quite taken aback.
“Well, none of us have anything better to celebrate, and your birthday just happened to be convenient,” I told him with a small chuckle.
“That’s why I told you about the vamp case. To get you out of the bunker so the Prophet and I could decorate,” Cas continued. A bright smile crossed his face as he embraced his friend in a celebratory hug that was returned in a daze.
“We could have just asked you to go out and get something, but we figured you’d prefer to go out on a hunt on your birthday,” Kevin finished awkwardly.
“But, why—”
“Because we’re your family—” Kevin interrupted.
“So shut up and eat some birthday pie,” I interjected, shoving Dean into a chair and pushing an entire pie in front of him. He was surprised to see there were mismatched candles
and chocolate chips that messily spelled out “Happy Birthday, Dean.”
It looked like he was about to cry. A tear slowly traced its way down his toned cheek. Castiel reached out and gently wiped it away. Dean looked up at him for a moment and they locked eyes. Cas was smiling down at his best friend, seeming like he couldn’t be happier. The ghost of a smile appeared on Dean’s lips as he looked between the rest of us.
“Whose idea was this?” he said quietly.
“The party was collaborative,” Kevin chipped in, amusedly watching the scene before him.
Kevin and I waited patiently for Cas to tell him who came up with the best part (obviously the pie), but said angel was too busy peering into Dean’s eyes again.
I cleared my throat. “Uh, the pie was Cas’s idea.”
“Of course,” Dean murmured, a full smile finally reaching his face. The light in the room brightened and everyone was soon in full party mode, if by party mode you mean Dean’s tracks were blasting from the library while we all munched on cookies (we weren’t about to ask Dean to share his precious pie) and drank his favorite beer. It stayed like this for a good hour, the four of us chatting away about nonsense, mostly just sharing memories. When the conversation started to die down, I announced, “Alright, guys, I say it’s time we do presents before we all end up under the table.”
“Wait, presents?” Dean asked, a shocked smile shaping his face.
“Yup. Wouldn’t be a proper birthday party without gifts,” I said as I ran towards the kitchen.
I came back to see Kevin nearly asleep in his seat. Dean and Cas, however, were still in full conversation. I approached slowly, enjoying every moment the two shared together tonight.
“Alright, here we go,” I cheered as I dropped down a shopping bag and box wrapped in cut-up brown bags.
I pushed the box forward. “This one first.”
Dean shrugged excitedly, failing to conceal his giddiness in getting gifts from his brother and friends.
He opened the box to find a portable cassette player. He hugged me and muttered out a thank-you before moving to the bag. The moment Kevin and I had been waiting for. Or at
least I had.
Dean pulled the bag over. Half of the bag’s contents were car-care products. Oblivious to my mischievous smile, Dean dug back into the bag and pulled out a small stack of four
or five porno-mags. Dean grinned and began inspecting the titles. Kevin and I exchanged looks while Cas looked on with that slightly curious face he always wore around Dean and porn magazines.
Dean eventually got to the magazine the two of us had intentionally kept on the bottom of the pile. His eyes widened when he saw the title and he quickly shoved it under the others as the Prophet and I tried not to burst out laughing. Cas just looked bewildered at everyone’s behavior.
“What is this?” Dean inquired quietly, his face turning redder by the second.
The two of us were too close to popping to answer him at first, but eventually I managed a quick, “We thought you should . . . take a look.”
“What is it?” Cas asked, reaching for the magazine. Dean snatched it away and looked at Cas as though he were covered in fleas.
“Uh, uh, nothing, Cas, uh, I’m— I’m going to bed.”
“Okay. . .” Cas said, not pressing any further.
Dean stood and began shuffling towards the hall that led to the bedrooms. Sadly for him, he had to pass Castiel on the way there. At the last second, I stuck my foot in front of
Dean, and in his hastiness, he noticed just too late and tripped, allowing the magazines to sprawl across the floor. Right in front of Cas.
“Cas, don’t—”
But it was too late. The angel picked up the secret magazine and instantly his face matched Dean’s.
“I—I don’t understand,” he tried, looking to Dean for an explanation.
“Yeah, go on, Dean. Tell him,” I pressed, my unusual quirky smile playing at my lips.
“Tell me what? Dean?” the confused baby-face asked innocently. Honestly, of all of the angels in the world, why did he have to fall for the most oblivious of the pack?
“Cas, uh, can I talk to you in private?” Without giving him a chance to respond, Dean strode shakily to his bedroom. Cas spared a last questioning glance at us, but we just
motioned for him to follow, which he did.
“Stay there,” Dean demanded as his head popped back around the corner to give the two of us a warning glare. Then the two lovebirds disappeared around the corner. We gave
them a few seconds before I said, “Alright, let’s give them some time and start cleaning up.”
In Dean’s bedroom, Dean walked towards his bed and Cas followed close behind him, closing the door as he entered.
“Cas, I . . . I’ve been meaning . . . I’ve been meaning to tell you something,” Dean started, trying to get a hold on himself.
“You know you can tell me anything, Dean,” Cas said innocently.
“I know that, Cas. And I’m really grateful, really, I am—”
“But you want me to leave,” Cas finished and he turned his back to Dean, ready to walk out the door dejectedly.
“No, wait, Cas, that’s . . . that’s not it . . .” Dean paused when he noticed Cas’ gaze go from his eyes down to his arm. He realized he’d grabbed Cas’ arm in desperation, but he also realized, with a start, that he wasn’t exactly ready to let go, either. Their gaze met again and Cas slowly moved to face Dean again. This time, though, they were only inches apart. Their breaths coalesced midway between them.
Cas placed the hand of his free arm on Dean’s bicep. He had expected the hunter to flinch away from him, and was pleased when his touch seemed to have the opposite effect.
“Then what is it, Dean?” Cas asked slowly.
“I . . . I think I . . .” Dean tried but his breath hitched in his throat. He smiled lightly at his angel’s curious expression.
“I think . . .” Dean swallowed.
“Dean?”
“What Cas?” he answered gently.
“I think I love you too.”
Both men’s smiles widened at the comment. Without hesitation, the two closed the distance between their lips. Unsurprisingly, their lips moved together, as though they had
never meant to move apart. Cas cupped Dean’s face as they deepened the kiss. Dean’s own hands moved to Cas’ ass through his jacket.
To the rest of the world, the kiss seemed to last forever, but to the two of them, it couldn’t have been any shorter. They finally broke away, eyes still closed as their foreheads
came together and they panted almost synchronously.
“Hold . . . hold on a sec . . .” Dean panted out and he made his way quickly and unsteadily back to the main room. He stooped down and picked up the magazine Cas had left on the table. He turned and headed back towards the hall, but not before I called, “Happy birthday, Dean!” from the doorway of the kitchen.
“Thanks, Sammy!” Dean hollered as he picked up the pace back to the bedroom.
Cas was sitting patiently on the bed. He looked up eagerly when he heard the door open and close. Dean simply held up the magazine to answer Cas’ unspoken question. The angel’s face broke out into a wide, genuinely happy grin as he rushed forward and once again embraced his favorite human in a tender kiss, the magazine falling to the bed, all but forgotten.
Happy birthday, indeed, Dean. Happy birthday indeed.