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Sam was glad that he and Castiel finally had some “down time”. Despite all the problems they had faced recently, they managed to defeat the demon ring that had taken Cas’ sister, Anna. She was still in recovery, but Dean had taken to watching over her, which meant that Cas could, in theory, relax. Realistically, Sam knew that he was still worried about his sibling, but he couldn’t understand human emotion enough to help.
He did as Dean suggested, taking Castiel to a bar to drown his sorrows. After all, according to Dean, most humans took pleasure in alcohol. Sam wished he knew more about human culture, but Castiel was Sam’s first charge, he’d had nowhere near the same time on Earth as he brother. Still, he could understand a few things about humans, like the melancholy of mood.
They sat in the bar, two chairs around a small table, each with a beer in hand. The ale tasted of nothing to Sam, but Castiel was downing them one after the other. He was slowly beginning to loosen up, speech slurring and limbs relaxing, as reminders of Anna’s injuries left him head. He laughed loudly at everything Sam did, every slightly tense moment; Sam could take it to stop Cas from being sad.
A man walked passed their table, wearing tight jeans and a plaid shirt, similar to the one his vessel wore. Sam couldn’t stop himself from staring at him, though he didn’t know whether that was a human quirk he’d picked up or his vessel. The man was attractive, so Sam gathered it was a new quirk. He stared after him, well until he had disappeared into the bathroom. What he didn’t realise, was that Cas had been watching him too.
“Were you just checking that guy out?” Cas grinned at Sam the second he turned his attention back to their table. Sam furrowed his brow.
“Checking him out - what does that mean?” He asked. A soft laugh escaped Castiel, and he looked down awkwardly for a second.
“It means that you were… admiring him,” Cas explained. “You know, watching him because you found him attractive.“
"Then I guess I was,” Sam replied, taking another quick look at the bathroom. The man hadn’t come back out yet, so he wanted to watch for when he did.
“Maybe you should follow him in there,” Castiel suggested, though his snicker at the end made Sam believe he was mocking him.
Sam decided Castiel had had one too many drinks, and decided to fly him home. They’d have to come back for the car in the morning, but a drunk Cas would probably be better than Sam, so neither option was good.
Anna recovered quickly, and the siblings were soon back to hunting, much to Sam’s dismay. Though Dean saw no problem with hunting, Sam found it difficult to protect his charge if he was constantly putting himself in danger. Still, when Anna hobbled through the door, newspaper article circled, Sam knew he couldn’t stop Castiel and Anna from chasing after the monster of the week.
That is how he found himself squished into the corner booth of a diner, Castiel pressed against his side and Dean sat across from him. The food wasn’t healthy, drenched in grease in a way that made Sam feel nauseous, but he said nothing. Mostly because their server was another attractive man that Sam didn’t mind checking out. As the waiter- Danny- came over to take their order, Sam flashed him a bright smile.
He could feel Cas staring at him as he ordered, and as soon as Danny left, Cas jabbed his side.
“What is it with you and staring at guys?” He asked, a smile on his face.
“What do you mean staring at guys?” Anna leaned in, staring at Sam just like her older brother. She had an wide grin and bright eyes, like she was excited. Sam couldn’t guess why; he was still struggling to understand human emotion at points.
“We went out the other night, and I caught him checking out some guy,” Cas explained, not allowing Sam to speak for himself. An interested hum came from Anna, who turned to look at Sam instead of her brother. Cas continued to talk, his hand on Sam’s arm. “Is there a reason you were checking out the waiter?”
“I suppose I do find the male form more appealing,” Sam replied with a frown. Why were they all so focused on his attraction?
Danny came back over, a tray full of food in his hand, and they all seemed to drop the subject, even if Anna did still have a wicked smirk on her face.
Cas and Sam were alone in the motel room, researching as usual. Dean and Anna were doing the field work, interviewing the victims, but Cas was leafing through tomes and books looking for any culprit. With a sigh, Cas slammed another book closed, and pushed it across the table to Sam.
“Nothing?” Sam asked, taking a quick look at the book himself. They had no idea what had been killing the students at the local community college.
“Nope,” Cas replied. He rubbed a hand over his face, wiping away the stress of the day. “We need to take a break, do you want a drink?” Cas stood up and stumbled over to the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling a beer out. Sam declined the offer, he didn’t particularly enjoy the taste of beer.
“So Sam,” Cas started as he sat back down at the table. “Do you know what being gay is?” Sam furrowed his brows, but he wasn’t quite sure. It was most likely another human phrase that he hadn’t learnt yet.
“No, I don’t know, why?” Sam replied cautiously. He really had no idea where Cas was going with the conversation.
“It’s uh- It’s where a man is exclusively attracted to other men,” Cas explained. “I thought it might be useful for you to know.”
“You mean homosexuality?” Sam questioned. “Yes I knew about that. Are you trying to ask me if I’m gay? Because I am, by that description.” Cas smiled encouragingly, and patted Sam’s arms.
“You know that’s probably gonna piss off a lot of people, an angel being gay,” he laughed a little.