Work Text:
When Dean and Castiel were told their baby’s due date was Father’s Day, numerous jokes were made about how it would be ‘the best Father’s Day ever.’ When they found out they were expecting twins the tagline turned into ‘oh my gosh, it is a Father’s Day miracle!’
They didn’t actually expect their surrogate to go into labor at 8pm the night before Father’s Day. Regardless, 12 hours later they were handed two healthy, screaming bundles of brand-spanking-new human life and their lives were forever changed.
Happy Father’s Day, indeed.
The first few hours were deceptively easy. The twins - Mary and Nova - seemed to enjoy the car ride home, making a few cooing noises from the backseat. Castiel sat between their carefully constructed and installed carseats, holding their carriers steady in case of any bumps in the road (an unnecessary precaution since there was no way in hell Dean was driving above 20 miles per hour ever again and all the other drivers on the road could suck it, thank you very much).
Once they got the twins inside, a whole bunch of ‘firsts’ ensued. The twins’ first time napping in their bassinets (“Dean, make sure Mary has her blanket. She is going to get cold, Dean.” “Yeah, Cas, I got it.”). The first time feeding the twins their special baby formula as instructed by the nurse (“Dean, the nurse said to hold the bottle at a 45 degree angle -” “I got this Cas.” “But Dean that is much closer to a 90 degree angle than a -” “I got this, Cas.”). The first diaper changes (“I don’t got this, Cas.”). As the day continued, things got progressively more chaotic as the new dads learned what it truly meant to have not just one but two newborn babies.
All hell broke lose around 7pm when Nova truly discovered the power of her itty bitty (but oh so powerful) baby lungs and started wailing like a banshee. Mary subsequently joined in because even though she was only younger by five minutes she already wanted to follow in her big sister’s footsteps.
“Please, please, please stop crying, baby girl.” Dean begged Nova as he cradled her in his arms. “Maybe if you stop crying your sister will too.”
“I don’t think that is how it works, Dean.” Castiel was forlorn, bouncing the equally unhappy Mary in his arms.
“Well, wadda ya say we give it a shot anyway, Nova? Wanna try settin’ a good example and teach Mary how to be quiet?” Nova’s screams only increased in volume. “I’ll take that as a no.” Dean sighed in defeat.
“Maybe you should sing to them.” Castiel suggested. “I’ve read in several parenting books that music can be very soothing to babies.”
“Dude, I am not singing to them.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t sing, Cas.”
“Of course you do.” Cas narrowed his eyes in frustration at Dean. “You have a lovely singing voice. I hear you in the shower every morning.”
“Oh my god, Cas, it is not happening. You want someone to sing so badly why don’t you do it?” Dean challenged.
Castiel shrugged, acquiescing, and took a deep breath before starting with, “Twinkle twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are…”
Unfortunately, Castiel’s singing, which could only be described as sounding like a chorus of tone deaf cats, prompted the twins to cry louder.
“Okay, okay stop, Cas, stop. I’ll do it. I’ll sing. Just. Stop.” Dean gasped, his eyes wide in panic as Nova’s face turned a new shade of red with the effort of her tantrum. “Dear lord, okay. You little rugrats better appreciate this.” Dean grumbled before sighing heavily and starting in with “My gift is my song, and this one’s for you…”
It was magic. Absolute magic. As soon as Dean’s voice hit Nova’s ears, her eyes went wide in wonder and she stared at her dad’s face, utterly enthralled. Luckily, her cries started to subside the more Dean sang.
“And you can tell everybody this is your song. It may be quite simple but…”
By the chorus of Dean’s rendition of ‘Your Song’ Nova had entirely quieted down, and Mary quickly followed suit. By the end of the song, the twins had drifted off to sleep in their fathers’ arms, peacefully breathing in their slumber.
After very carefully placing the twins back in their bassinets so they could sleep, Castiel smiled at Dean knowingly. Dean rolled his eyes at his husband’s smug look.
“Alright, just get it out already.” Dean whispered, not daring to risk waking the sleeping newborns.
“I knew it would work.” Castiel whispered back. “You have such a lovely voice, Dean. I knew they would love hearing you.”
“Yeah, well anything would’ve worked after your train wreck of a lullaby.” Dean scoffed. “I’ve heard you sing, by the way, and you’ve never sounded like that before…” Dean trailed off, and Castiel watched as comprehension (and a hint of betrayal) flashed across his partner’s face. Dean whipped around and pointed an accusing finger at his blue-eyed counterpart. “You bastard. You sang badly on purpose, didn’t you?” Castiel’s smirk was answer enough. “You did. I can’t believe you.”
“I am sure I have no idea what you mean.” Castiel played innocent.
“Wow. It has been less than 24 hours and you’re already the manipulative parent. How’s that make you feel?” Dean joked.
“It makes me feel stellar seeing as we have two perfect sleeping babies right now as a result.” Castiel looked fondly at Nova and Mary.
“Yeah,” Dean followed Castiel’s gaze. “They are pretty perfect, aren’t they?”
Castiel nodded, leaning his head onto Dean’s shoulder. “Happy Father’s Day, Dean.”
Dean felt his breath catch in his throat a bit as it finally hit him. Father. He was a father. They were fathers.
And he couldn’t be happier.
Dean turned his head and kissed his husband’s forehead. “Yeah. Happy Father’s Day, Cas.”