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The decision to move out of the Men of Letters’ headquarters had been a no-brainer. Space and privacy were limited as it was, what with the Winchesters, Cas, Kevin, and Crowley calling it home (however temporary or permanent), and when you tossed in an ex-archangel in the mix of the rag-tag group, the company became a crowd. Too many bumping shoulders and too-thin walls led to heightened tension and irate words snapped across the breakfast table in the mornings, and yeah, as much as he loved his brother and the others, Sam was pretty much over it.
So, late one evening in the library, Sam went to work looking for someplace new to call home. Of course, not even that could be private.
“Craigslist? Bored of Gabriel already and looking for a new lay?” Dean said, peering over Sam’s shoulder.
Sam exhaled a long breath, searching for what little patience he had remaining. To say that Dean wasn’t Gabriel’s biggest fan would be an understatement. He begrudgingly tolerated his presence for the sake of Sam, since Sam hadn’t been so happy with someone since forever, but that didn’t mean he had to like Gabriel and his trolling ways. If Sam thought that the headquarters’ fights were bad when Crowley moved in, it had nothing on the chaos that arrived with the whirlwind of energy and sass encompassed in Gabriel.
“Shut up. I’m…I’m looking for a place for sale. Or for rent.”
If he hadn’t just dropped such a big bombshell, Sam would have laughed at Dean’s owlishly large eyes and dropped jaw. Dean gawked at Sam for a good five seconds before leaning in to properly look at the screen and verify that Sam was on the housing part of Craigslist rather than the personal ads.
“Shit, Sammy. Way to give a guy some warning,” Dean said as he pulled back.
“Dude, it’s not like I’m packing my bags and moving out tomorrow. I just wanted to see what’s available.”
Dean shrugged, his brow furrowed. “Yeah, yeah, spare me the excuses. Are you sure about this?”
“Yeah. I mean, don’t you ever think about it? I love it here, but it’s crowded, man. I’m tired of waking up to fights or having to wonder if I’m going to come home to people walking around naked.” That last one should have been common sense, but two incidents later, Sam appeared to be wrong on that; fights in the bunker were always a guarantee, but wearing pants during said fights appeared to be optional.
Honestly, Sam wasn’t sure how Dean would take this news. There was a reason why he wanted to keep this private until he thought it over some more and conducted proper research. The headquarters, for all of its quirks and food fights, had become like home, after all. The last thing Sam wanted was for Dean to think that the life that Dean worked so hard to provide Sam wasn’t good enough for him.
A tense silence passed before Dean grunted and gave a slight nod of his head. “Alright. Have you talked to Gabriel about this?”
The sharp pang of guilt returned. “No.”
“Talked to Gabriel about what?”
Sam spun in his seat so fast he expected to get whiplash. Lured by the sound of his name, Gabriel stood in the doorway of the library, his placid expression not quite meeting the wariness in his eyes. Dean cleared his throat and clapped Sam on the shoulder.
“Yeah, well, good luck with that,” Dean said before taking his leave, passing by Gabriel with a quick glance. But Gabriel never looked away from Sam, golden gaze unblinking.
Sometimes it was easy to forget that Gabriel had once been one of the most powerful creatures in heaven; right now was not one of those times. Even though he looked adorably silly with his messy hair and pajamas that were a little too baggy on him, sheer power radiated from his form as he closed the distance between Sam and himself in purposeful strides, the force of his stare unrelenting and fiery, as if seeing right through Sam. A shiver curled down Sam’s spine.
“What’s going on?” Gabriel asked, and the lack of anger or accusations in his tone relieved Sam. Sam’s tongue swiped his bottom lip as he thought of how to best word this.
“Well, uh. I was thinking of moving out of here.”
Okay, maybe not the best choice of words. Something cold and dark flashed in Gabriel’s eyes, lips curling into a mocking smile.
“That’s how it’s going to be, huh. Well, be sure to send me a postcard,” Gabriel said coolly.
Had Gabriel still been an angel, this would be about the time that he fluttered away to God knows where to brood and sulk for a day or two; Sam was thankful for the small miracle that this was impossible now. But he could still storm off, which meant that Sam only had a small timeframe to say something to avoid that, as he knew from experience that trying to grab a hold of Gabriel to make him stay would only make things worse.
“I want you to come with me,” Sam blurted out at once. The stiff edges of Gabriel’s shoulders loosened just a fraction as he furrowed his brow in question. The little physical changes gave Sam the message that Gabriel was willing to hear him out, and Sam took advantage of that.
“I like it here a lot, don’t get me wrong. It’s just. I want a place of my own, y’know? Of our own.” A flush crept over Sam’s face at the admission, and he wondered if this was all too forward and a mistake. While he and Gabriel had been together for a while now, Sam might have misinterpreted the depth of Gabriel’s feelings for him. Maybe Gabriel would find this stupid and would laugh in Sam’s face.
If Gabriel thought so, he didn’t show it. Instead, the last of his guard dropped, a soft fondness in his eyes. “Yeah?”
A small, nervous smile found its way to Sam’s lips. “Yeah. If you want to, of course. If you want to stay here, I’ll stay too.”
As long as I’m with you.
Gabriel laughed again, a quiet, hollow sound. “You really wanna make an honest man out of me, Sammy?”
Sam knew that voice, that self-deprecating, bitter bite to it that covered Gabriel’s eternal anger and animosity. It would never go away, just as Sam would never forget everything that Gabriel had done to him and Dean over the years. But it was just another issue that they were working on, day-by-day. And like all the other issues, Sam was learning his way around this one as well.
“Pretty sure that’s impossible. But, yeah, I’d like to give us a chance at making a life with each other,” Sam admitted.
Gabriel gave a low hum in thought, tilting his head a bit as he mulled over the offer. Sam swallowed, his heart pounding against his ribs with such ferocity that he swore Gabriel could hear it. But Gabriel simply smiled with a low chuckle as he climbed into Sam’s lap, arms resting on Sam’s shoulders.
“I’d like that,” he breathed against Sam’s lips. Sam could only smile in relief before Gabriel leaned in, catching their lips in a hard kiss that expressed all of the sentimental words that were left unsaid. Winding an arm around Gabriel’s waist, Sam stroked the bare flesh of Gabriel’s hip that peeked out from his drooping pants, and Gabriel purred his appreciation in the kiss, fingers tangling in Sam’s hair and tugging until Sam choked on a moan.
“Really guys?”
They broke apart in a flash to see Kevin standing at the door, shaking his head and averting his eyes as he promptly turned back around, but not before calling out, “You have a room, you know.”
Gabriel huffed as he idly twirled his fingers in Sam’s hair. “Yeah, we’re getting our own place ASAP.”
Sam agreed.
~~
Over the course of the next week, Sam spent his free time researching potential places to live. In an ideal world, he wanted to find an inexpensive but safe place to live that wasn’t too far from his work as an administrative assistant and from the headquarters. Options were limited, but he managed to find a few places that seemed decent enough. Of course, whenever he showed those to Gabriel, he simply crinkled his nose and shrugged with a dismissive “eh”. Ever the helpful partner, Gabriel didn’t elaborate on why the places didn’t strike his fancy; he simply expressed his disapproval before flittering off to entertain himself.
Sam began to wonder if Gabriel even wanted to move at all.
Tired of being the only one working, Sam forced Gabriel to sit down with him long enough to peruse available places and find a place that they both liked. It took quite a bit of scrolling before Gabriel’s face lit up.
“Click that one.”
He pointed at one of the ads featuring an old-fashioned bungalow that clearly had seen better years, though, as Sam was loathe to admit while he clicked through the photos, had a quirky charm to it. And when he turned to Gabriel and saw his smile like Christmas had come early, he knew Gabriel was sold on it.
They went to check out the property later in the week, meeting the owner and taking a tour. The walls were in desperate need of a repainting and the rooms needed several major renovations, but Gabriel was smitten with the old-world charm, twirling about in the rooms and jabbering away with the owner a mile a minute. When the tour was over and Gabriel looked up at Sam with his face brighter than Sam had seen him in some time, well, how could he say no?
Which was how they became the proud owners of a creaky, but well-loved, 1960’s bungalow.
~~
Moving in didn’t prove to be a problem, given that they owned so few possessions between the two of them. Which illuminated an actual problem: they owned practically nothing.
Money was tight, but Sam had become an expert at thrifty shopping over the years, knowing where to find good deals and how to strike a bargain. Gabriel bounced around at Sam’s heels throughout the various furniture and department stores, pointing out things that he thought would make a good addition to their little nest.
As it turned out, Gabriel had tacky taste.
Which was how, amongst practical things like dishes and towels and food, they ended up taking home a gaudy, fake chandelier, a metallic tree, and a sofa that probably belonged in the same era as their house.
~~
The rest of that evening was spent setting up and organizing their new furniture, bickering about the placement of the furnishings.
“Gabriel, seriously, we do not need to put the tree in the living room.”
“Why? It adds character!”
“Any place with you in it has more than enough character.”
They compromised and put it in the dining room.
~~
By the time night fell, all Sam wanted to do was pass out and sleep for the next eighteen hours straight. But when Gabriel crawled atop him, wiggled his brows and asked, “Wanna christen the new sheets?”
Well, he figured as he rolled them over and he wrapped his large frame around his smaller lover, he could manage that.
~~
They gradually settled into their new routine over the course of the next few weeks. Sam toiled away at his boring office job from 9-5, which brought in an adequate amount of money, but he still encouraged Gabriel to get a job, both for the extra funds and to keep him entertained. Gabriel found occasional work as a freelance writer and website designer, and the fact that Gabriel could code practically CSS in his sleep was all sorts of sexy.
But it wasn’t all work and schedules. It was also coming home to Gabriel every day and having dinner together, just the two of them. It was cuddling on that stupid, old sofa and watching movies late at night, making their own commentary and laughing into the wee hours of the morning. It was waking up together and sharing coffee in bed as the sun rose. It was just being together, and Sam wouldn’t trade that for the world.
~~
Sam woke up on a Saturday to Gabriel running slow circles over his chest, slowly easing him out of sleep. Huffing, Sam burrowed further into the sheets, pressing his face in the crook of Gabriel’s neck to hide from the inevitable sunlight.
“C’mon, Sam, they’ll be here soon.”
‘They’ being Dean and Cas, who were coming over for a little housewarming barbecue on Dean’s insistence that they finally see the new place. Sam grunted, kissing Gabriel’s neck before settling against his smaller frame.
“I know. Five more minutes?”
Gabriel chuckled, pressing a kiss to Sam’s hair while pulling him closer. “Of course.”
Which was how Sam had finally, at last, come home.