Chapter Text
It was cold outside. Dean took a moment to stare out the window at the too white world. The snow was thick. Somehow, he had managed, with the help of Sam, to get it shoveled off of part of the driveway. At least the family can park there now. The toasty kitchen smelled of Christmas dinner, and its aroma stood in stark contrast to the snow that blanketed everything in its cool embrace just outside the window. Dean took a deep breath and closed his eyes a little to concentrate on the many varied ingredients that he picked up on the inhale, rosemary, shallots, sage. And with it all was the warmth that was pooling up in his heart.
He was happy. Dean opened his eyes to the world again and smiled. He had not been unhappy before, not really. He had not been happy though. He had been content. The world did its thing, and he had occupied space within it. True there had been blips of happiness pocking his world here and there. This feeling of happiness though was more than a blip, more than a scratch on the surface of Dean's contentedness. It seemed like something that just might last if he let it have its way.
His parents were off setting the table in anticipation of all of the family that would soon arrive. Amelia had already gone off to pick up grandpa Henry. Sam was futzing around with the decorations in the living room, and also the gifts under the tree. Dean saw him adding to the already rather large pile that had accumulated there since his parents had arrived. Samuel would likely show up in the next couple of minutes with his cache of grandchildren and other assorted relations. Samuel's entourage never seemed to be in danger of shrinking. Dean wondered if there would be new Campbells to meet this year.
There would also be Cas. Dean felt himself smile again as his mind drifted back to the mess of dark brown hair and eyes that looked on him with so much affection that he was sometimes left dizzy just thinking about them. They found a way to not be apart for more than a few hours at a time. Today, Cas had chosen to spend a little time at his home, packing and getting ready for the trek to his parent's place. Dean had the dinner to prepare and his own packing to attend to, so he did not fight him on his departure.
"Hey there lazy bum." Sam came over to his side and looked out the window. "You gonna pull your weight around here or just stare longingly out the window?"
"Did you smell that dinner cooking?" Dean gave Sam a little shoulder bump as he said it. "Plus, I made your lady friend a special pile of seitan."
"Wow, lady friend huh?"
Dean smirked at him and then they both laughed. "In all seriousness, I'm starting to think that I might be a one hit wonder in the whole vegetarian cooking world. She might be getting a little tired of my seitan cooking ways."
"If she is, she hasn't said so to me. I know that I've enjoyed it." Sam had a glow about him that seemed to carry a lot of what Dean was feeling this holiday season. It was nice to see him happy too. "So, is it BBQ seitan again, or did you do something different with it this time?"
"Totally different." Dean waved him back to the counter where he pulled out a platter that he had carefully arranged. He pulled back the foil that was keeping it all warm and toasty for the big event. "See. It's kinda pretty huh?"
"Smells good too." Sam reached out to pluck a piece from the plate, but Dean slapped at him, and Sam's hand retreated. "Hey, there. I just wanted to test it. Wouldn't want to have it go wrong at the table now would you?"
"You're gonna love it. I tested it out on Cas already. It rocks."
"No fair. He already got to try it?"
"Yep, perk of being my boyfriend. Brothers just get bupkis." Dean laughed as he covered it back up again.
"What's the sauce on it?" Sam's hand was still lingering near the platter as if he was just waiting for Dean to let down his guard.
"Well it is similar to a demi-glace." Dean squeezed down the edges of the foil, sealing in the heat once again while keeping Sam out.
"Isn't that like all meaty?"
"I tweaked the recipe significantly. A regular demi-glace involves a veal broth and some other choice ingredients. I made it with some porcini mushrooms, oil and well, a whole lot of other stuff that you won't care about. I made the stuffing vegetarian too." Dean paused a moment then asked hesitantly, "Uh, she eats butter right?"
"She hasn't given up the dairy products entirely yet. I have a hard time imagining Amelia giving up butter and cheese."
"Oh thank God." Dean moved over to the fridge then. He pulled out a bottled beer for himself and one for Sam. He uncapped each with an opener that was resting on the corner of the counter. He handed one over to Sam who took it with a nod. "I may have put like half a pound of butter in everything."
"Well, just because she eats butter, doesn't mean that she wants to clog all of her arteries." Sam laughed and took a pull from the bottle.
"I may be exaggerating a bit." They both turned back to the window almost in unison. "Bet it's Cas."
"Bet it's Amelia and grandpa."
"Five bucks," Dean said as he reached out to seal the bet. Sam shook his hand and together they went back to the window to determine the winner.
"Shit, Dean. Did you see him pull up or something?"
"I may have an ear for cars. His is rather distinctive." Dean moved off toward the hall and added, "Amelia and grandpa just pulled in."
"How do you know?"
"Just heard that wimpy little engine in your Rav4. Time to upgrade is all I'm saying." Dean opened the door and sure enough, Amelia and Henry were just getting out of the car parked behind Cas.
Dean lifted a hand in a near salute of a wave to Henry who returned the wave with a grin. Cas was standing near them balancing some sort of a platter in one hand while taking one of the gifts from Henry to carry on his behalf. Dean moved down to the driveway to help. "I'm all packed and ready to go. How about you?" Dean leaned down and kissed Cas on the cheek as he passed and opened the back door of the Rav4.
"I still have some things to pack up. You can help me later since you are now an expert." Dean smiled over the door at him. Then he said to Henry, "So, how's it going gramps?"
"Oh, you know. Same old, same old. Might stay the night if you all don't mind."
"Mind, we got your room all ready for you. Sam even washed the bedding. You know how domestic he is." Dean took the punch to the shoulder that Sam sent his way.
"Plenty more domestic than you." Dean handed Sam some presents to carry from the back seat. "Don't go making me look bad to Amelia. She could still back out."
"Ha, I'm in it for the long haul." Amelia laughed at them both from the other side of the vehicle. Sam stepped back to carry the armful of stuff up to the house. Cas was still lingering with too much to carry. "Here, let me take the present, Cas." Amelia scooped up the item and Cas looked less like he was going to drop everything.
"Thanks," Cas said as she and Sam headed into the house.
"You want your suitcase now or later, grandpa?" Dean had all the remaining gifts piled up neatly in his arms.
"We could come back for it. You look a little overloaded."
Dean raised an eyebrow and said, "Challenge accepted."
He moved back to the trunk and somehow managed to open it without dropping anything. A little shuffle and he was able to jostle the small suitcase from the trunk to the ground beside him. He let it go and closed the trunk. "Now don't you go breaking anything just to impress anybody." Henry gave a nod back at Cas then and smiled too.
"Pretty sure this isn't impressing him. I just like a good challenge." Dean picked up the suitcase and they made their way to the house. "Sounds like the Campbells are almost here."
"You hear that van already?" Henry walked at his side as they mounted the steps. He took Cas' arm a little for stability. Dean noted it and was glad that his room was on the first floor.
"He needs to let me work on it, but he is a stubborn old man. It's gonna be a two day job, maybe more, but I can make it like new. I think that he doesn't want to be without the vehicle that long. Thing has no personality, so you'd think that it wouldn't be a big deal to live without it for a day or two." They made their way down the hall and Dean left the suitcase near Henry's room. He continued down the hall to the living room and the tree.
"Hey Dad." John marched over to him and pulled him into a hug. Dean set the presents under the tree and then turned back to his dad and grandpa. Cas was standing awkwardly off to the side with his giant platter of food.
"Here Cas, let me take that." Cas moved to his side but he didn't relinquish the platter.
"I'll just drop it off in the kitchen. I'll be right back," Cas said.
"Oh, hi Cas." John reached out and shook Cas' hand which made Cas have to balance the platter in one hand. "Guess we didn't scare you off at Thanksgiving." John smiled as he said it so it was not an intimidation tactic.
"Nah, Thanksgiving was lovely. Figured I'd see how you all do Christmas." The smile Cas wore ran up to his eyes. Dean waved a hand toward the kitchen and Cas followed him in that direction with the platter. John could be heard in their wake as he started up a conversation with Henry. They reached the kitchen and Cas set the platter on the counter. The moment that his hands were free Dean leaned into him at the counter. "Guess you missed me."
"Maybe." Dean had his hands pressed to the counter on either side of him and kissed him just behind his ear, trailing down his jaw to his neck. Cas moved his hands to Dean's waist. "Yeah, actually. There's no maybes about this. I missed you."
"You know I was only gone for a few hours, right?" Cas laughed a low rumble like the beginnings of thunder in winter. Dean leaned back and looked at him up close.
"Guess I'm just more devoted than you." Dean's lip curled up into a smirk.
"I'll prove you wrong later." Cas matched his look and then leaned forward into a kiss. They were interrupted by the sound of what must have been a crowd of epic size stampeding up onto the front porch. There was first the sound of stomping and then the sound of so many voices competing for attention. It was all one voice, the Campbell voice, loud and deep with no discernible words in the noise of it.
Dean stepped back from Cas reluctantly, letting his hands move first up to Cas' arms to trail down and away to his own sides before he turned his attentions to the entryway that would soon be filled. He saw his mom and dad moving as a unit through the room past them. Mary said as she went. "Hey Cas." Then to Dean she said, "Start moving the food out to the dining room table. They sound like they'll need something to quell the noisy chatter a bit."
"Aye aye, captain." Dean laughed at her and gave her a little salute. Soon enough the front door was opened and the noise that was slightly muffled past the door became more of a storm as the entire family seemed to tumble into the room at once. Dean caught glimpses of them all as he moved from the kitchen to the dining room and back. Cas trailed him with hands full each time. They made short work of it. During the final trip, Samuel made his way into the space to survey the food offerings. "Hey there," Dean said as he arranged the final plate near the head of the table. "Your hoard all ready to dive in?"
"Our hoard, Dean. They're your family too ya know." Samuel came over and gave him a hug that ended in a loud back slapping thing that Dean mimicked but not as hard. Samuel stepped back and threw a glance at Cas. "So you came back, huh?"
"Funny how everyone is shocked by this. I'm starting to think that Dean must scare people off with regularity." He stepped forward and shook Samuel's hand. Cas looked to Dean and said, "You have a bad track record I should know about."
"Yeah, I'm just awful. You should run while you can." Dean rolled his eyes as he said it and stepped to Cas' side. He looked back at Samuel and added, "I imagine you'll see a lot more of Cas at these things."
One of the Campbell spawn came into the room like some sort of firecracker that was set to burst. Samuel caught her as she was about to dive past him and scooped her up with squeals and smiles. "Now you know better than to be running in the house like this. You wouldn't want Santa to take back the presents now, would you?"
She immediately calmed. She looked like she was maybe three if Dean was judging based solely on size. Her long blonde hair was all frizzy and tangled. Her dress was twisted to the side as though she had been spending her morning wrestling woodland creatures for fun. "Santa wouldn't take back presents he already delivered. He wouldn't have time." Her statement was so matter of fact, that Dean had to cover his mouth to hide the grin that was there. Cas just turned to the window to hide his response.
Samuel set her down and said, "Best not tempt fate little one. Now go find your cousins. Tell them that we'll be eating now." He looked up to Dean and said, "We are eating now, right?"
"Yeah." The little girl blasted out of the room, limbs flailing about at her sides as she went. "She wasn't here at Thanksgiving. Is that Maggie's kid?"
Samuel let out a hum of acknowledgement, then he found words. "Maggie's back in rehab. She's been staying with Matt and his wife. They got the four of their own though, so it has been a pretty packed house adding just the one more. They're use to it though. Plus, Maggie's gonna be out soon. At least that's the hope."
"'Fraid I don't know that one's name." Dean started to move a chair out for Samuel as the others started to trickle in.
"Oh, she's Sarah." Samuel took a seat, and Dean pointed across from him so that Cas would know where to sit. Dean moved to his side, and the table slowly filled up. John took the head of the table and Mary sat next to him and Samuel. Henry sat on John's other side. The Campbell's filled in the rest of the table on Samuel's side. Sam and Amelia claimed spots next to Dean. Bobby, Ellen, and Jo took up the last spots for the Winchester side. There was a children's table set up next to theirs.
Sam leaned past Amelia and said to Dean, "Hey man, it all looks pretty great."
"Thanks." Dean's eyes darted to the front of the table in a last ditch attempt at assessing the spread of food. It all looked pretty amazing. He felt Cas' hand settle onto his leg beneath the table. He turned to him and smiled. "I'm glad you're here."
"Me too." He returned the smile with a little squeeze to Dean's leg.
John spoke up from the front of the table. "Well, I don't know about all of you, but this looks like some sort of food miracle. I'd like to say first to my son, Dean, wow. You have certainly outdone yourself this year." Dean felt the flush warm his cheeks at his father's praise.
"You might want to hold off on the praise. It might not be all that good." Dean's voice carried an air of good humor.
Sam chimed in, "Now, don't you go implying that this isn't all awesome. Amelia and I snuck some choice bites here and there last night."
Amelia interrupted, "And this morning."
Sam laughed, "And this morning." He reached over behind Amelia and gave Dean's shoulder a squeeze. "If you weren't already set to be my best man at the wedding, I'd totally make you the caterer."
John raised a glass of wine and said, "I guess that I just wanted to propose a toast before we dive in. To Dean. You are, without a doubt, the best cook I know. I say this knowing full well that your mom is just moments from slugging me for handing her title over to you." He looked to her but she was all aglow with holiday happiness. John continued, "You and Sam have gone out of your ways to welcome in all of us for two holidays. You are the kind of kids a father can be proud of. And I am quite proud of you both. Thank you for doing all of this, and for giving our families a place to come together today." He raised his glass and said, "To Dean and Sam." The glasses clinked with hearty cheers and repeated words of gratitude shared all around.
Henry spoke next, "Don't suppose anyone has an appropriate Christmas prayer to offer up over this fine meal so I'll just start digging in."
He was halfway to scooping some green bean casserole onto his plate when Samuel spoke up. "Now you get your hands away from that food, you bloody heathen. We will most definitely have a Christmas prayer before we eat."
"What, you have one ready, old man?" Henry adopted the tone that he had every time he poked at the angry bear that was Samuel. This was a holiday tradition much like Turkey at Thanksgiving, Henry and Samuel would have a verbal scuffle over the Christmas prayer while all waited just inches from food that could be eaten.
"I most certainly do have a prayer. I can't believe that year after year you try to get to the food without a proper bit of thanks offered up to God for all that he has given you this year." Samuel let his gaze run over the varied faces at the table. He was amping up his tent revival preacher tone, and since it was Christmas, everyone allowed it. Some of the Campbells rested their chins on their hands as the speech developed.
Dean leaned over to Cas and whispered, "This happens every year." He leaned back in his seat then and noticed that Samuel was looking right at him. "Sorry grandpa. Please continue."
Samuel nodded and then did in fact continue. Dean let out a little sigh of relief that a direct lecture on respect had been averted. Instead Samuel talked about family and sacrifice. He talked about the blessings that comes from caring for others more than just yourself. He dipped toward the end into talk of God and sacrifice, of the birth of Christ. Then he dipped his head and closed his eyes. Everyone followed suit. Dean cast a glance at Cas past his own dipped head. His eyes were closed and his face seemed to be a picture of solemnity. His lips curled out just a little, and his hands were now folded in front of him in a posture of prayer.
"Heavenly Father, we thank you for this food which we are about to receive and for all the joys and even the sorrows that this year has brought to us." There was a noise of giggling stifled that came from the children's table. Samuel paused pointedly at that moment and the noise stopped. He continued, "We thank you for presenting us with your only son. We can never be worthy of such a gift, but tonight we thank you for it just the same. We thank you for it as we eat from the bountiful food that you have created, and we will thank you again later as we exchange gifts much like the shepherds and wise men did so long ago. Heavenly Father thank you for the blessings that this night has brought to us. Thank you for family, new and old. Thank you for our children and all of the promise that they hold. Thank you for the joy of togetherness that we all feel today. It is what carries us when times are hard. Thank you Lord for all of these things, and for all that is to come in this new year. In your name we pray, Amen."
The family echoed him in unison with their own amen. Henry spoke up then with his hand already around the serving spoon, "So this heathen is ready to eat now. Dig in." Samuel gave him a scowl from across the table and Henry added, "You too sourpus."
"Henry Winchester, I'll never understand how you managed to raise such a respectful son. I can only imagine that your advanced age has caused some of your mental faculties to diminish a bit." Samuel reached out and scooped some potatoes onto his plate. This seemed to be the cue that the rest of the Campbells needed to dive into the food. The clank and scrape of foods ravenously pulled to plates was a type of music.
"Well now Samuel, we are nearly the same age, but you're always quick to point out the mere six months of extra living that I have over you. I almost think that you resent not being the eldest family member at the table." Henry speared a hunk of meat for his plate and brought it over with a thunk. "I know deep down you like my ornery ways. You even wish you could be more like me, I reckon."
"Oh, thank the heavens above that I don't have any of your characteristics." Samuel huffed out as he passed a bowl down the line.
Amelia decided to interrupt the banter, having already sampled the seitan that Dean had made sure to place right in front of her seat. "Dean, this." She pointed enthusiastically at her plate. Her mouth was busy chewing a little as she spoke.
"You find the seitan tolerable?" Dean smiled over at her.
"Seriously Dean. We need to have seitan present at every holiday feast. Amazing doesn't begin to describe it." Amelia was spearing another piece as she spoke.
Samuel spoke up then, "I'm beginning to think that you keep making this seitan stuff because you might be a heathen too." Samuel pointed his fork at Dean then, making his point with furrowed brows.
Henry said, "Let me try some of this heathen food, Dean." Henry lifted his plate and held it out to Dean.
"Sure thing, gramps." Dean plucked up a piece and set it on Henry's plate. He turned his gaze onto Samuel then and asked, "Wanna try some seitan? I made sure to roast the hell out of it." Dean tried to temper his expression, but it was obvious by his smirk that he was pleased with his pun. Half the table groaned.
"Dean stop tormenting your grandpa," Mary said with an eye roll.
"I'm not. I'm being a good host. Plus grandpa knows me." He turned his attention to Samuel and caught a glint of affection in his squint.
"Fine, I'll try your heathen food." Dean had to process Samuel's words for a moment before he understood, then Samuel lifted up his plate like Henry and held it out to him. "Come on. I ain't getting any younger here."
"Coming right up, grandpa." Dean pulled a small slice out, running it through the demi glace, then set it on his plate. He really wanted him to like it, but he was trying not to show it.
Samuel took a bite and let the food slowly get chewed. He didn't look at Dean. He seemed to be contemplating the flavors. The nuances of the dish would require some consideration. Dean down played the effort that went into its creation. The sauce took hours and a list of ingredients as long as his arm.
The first effort happened at Cas' place. He had been distracted, but in all of the best ways. He had Cas cut up the herbs. He had watched as Cas' careful fingers pulled the tiny leaves of thyme from their branches. He had held it together all the way until Cas had started sampling the ingredients, slipping little things here and there past his lips. Dean had thought that it would be his duty and privilege to press Cas into every counter and wall in existence. That certainly slowed the cooking process, but neither of them had complained.
Samuel interrupted Dean's happy thoughts. "This should not be called seitan." Dean stared at him waiting for the condemnation that he thought would follow. "It is too heavenly for such a name."
Dean felt Cas' hand fall onto his leg as if he knew the strain he had felt in that moment between tasting and praise. Dean swallowed and dipped his head. "Thanks."
They ate and drank and each in their turn sang the praises of the meal. At some point the giant platter that Cas had brought, made the full circle back to the head of the table. It had three of the twice baked potatoes on it. The rest had been presumably been eaten with great enthusiasm by the rest of the table's occupants. Dean took one to add to his plate and passed the rest on to Cas and the head of the table. Henry took one and then John and Mary took the last two. Dean ate his and basked in the memories of that first night spent with Cas. He threw a glance at Cas who was watching him eat and said, "You gonna watch me eat the whole time or are you gonna eat your own food?"
"I ate plenty. Plus, I wanted to see if you liked the potatoes as much this time as the last time." Cas stabbed a mound of stuffing and brought it to his lips. Dean watched it pass into Cas' mouth and redirected his attention to his own eating to distract himself.
"It's amazing. Just like last time." Dean smiled around the bite as he felt Cas' foot snake up around his ankle. He took another bite and smiled over at Cas. "So are we leaving at some ungodly hour of the morning tomorrow?"
The rest of the table was all engaged in the noisy hum of eating and talking. Cas cocked his head to the side and replied, "I did say that they have early present opening customs right?"
"Yeah."
"Well they start around 8:00 am and they live a few hours away. We really need to leave here around 5:00 if we don't want to incur the ire of my mom."
"Ire, huh?"
"Sorry. She gets worried when I travel. Then she gets upset when I am late, thinking that I am dead in a proverbial ditch somewhere. Plus she is excited to meet you. I haven't exactly been big on sharing in the past. Haven't had much to share with them to be honest." Castiel smiled into a final bite of food before setting down his fork in satisfaction.
Henry leaned over and asked, "So you're dragging Dean off to meet your family next?"
"Yeah, figured that they should meet him since he keeps sticking around."
"Hey, you said that like it's a bad thing." While Dean was saying it, a lump of something beamed him in the back of the head.
Amelia said, "Oh," as she jumped back a little when the biscuit fell onto her plate. Dean turned and saw Jo grinning from the other end of the table.
"That's what happens when you put me this close to the children's table." Jo added a little wave to the words.
"Next year we should just put you right there in the middle of the children's table." Dean picked the biscuit up off of Amelia's plate and set it on his own. He slid back from his seat and wandered over to Jo. Others started to get up to take their plates to the sink as if Dean's movement was a signal for the end of the eating. He got to Jo and wrapped her up in a hug that found his arms tight around her upper body. "You were just feeling neglected, weren't you?" He said it in that tone that one uses for the very young or sometimes the most adorable of animals. She tried to shrug out of the embrace, but Dean just kept holding on. He brought up his knuckles to her head and rubbed them along her scalp, fluffing up her hair significantly.
Bobby said, "Now you two, stop rough housing."
"My house, my rules," Dean laughed out.
Henry called down to the other end of the table, "Respect your elders, you whipper snapper."
Dean looked up and laughed at him. He pressed a kiss into Jo's messed up hair and said, "Merry Christmas, kinda-cousin."
He let her go and she stood up. She hugged him back. "Same to you." He stepped back from her, but something about her look said, I'll get you later. He smiled and gave her a little nod as he made his way back to his end of the table to clear away the dishes.
There would be present opening next, and then desserts, if they could stomach them. The family had started settling in around the tree which was bright with blue Christmas lights and large silver velvet bows. Amelia and Sam had decorated it, as a sort of married couple practice run.
Dean was cleaning up a little when Cas came up behind him and wrapped his arms around Dean's waist. Dean could see out to the family around the tree, happy and warm looking under the holiday lights. He felt the warmth at his back. He leaned his head to the side. "Best Christmas I've ever had."
Cas murmured into his ear. "You haven't even opened presents yet."
"I could say so many cheesy things right now Cas." Instead he turned to Cas and kissed him lightly at first then a little deeper. He slid his hand up under the edge of Cas' shirt, feeling the warm skin there and the twitch of his flesh as he ran his fingernails along a ticklish spot.
"Eww." The voice came from low and near them. Dean let Cas go and looked behind them at the tiny child giving them the stink eye.
"Really, blocked by a three year old." Dean rolled his eyes and pressed his head down into Cas' shoulder.
Cas pushed him back and came down into a crouch by the kid. "What's your name?"
She scrunched up her nose at him and said, "Sarah." Cas held out his hand to her and she shook it timidly.
"Nice to meet you." Cas smiled at her.
She let go of his hand and said, "Kissing is gross." Then she bolted out of the room to the rest of the family.
Cas stood up again and kissed Dean quickly before heading into the living room. "So gross, Dean." He laughed as he went.
"Yeah, just disgusting." He grabbed Cas' hand as they made their way into the living room. They found an unoccupied Lazyboy recliner and Dean sat on the arm of it while Cas settled into the actual seat. The children tore through paper and ribbons the moment that the adults handed them out. Dean smiled at the chaos of it all. Cas did too. Mary came around with a tray full of cider. Dean asked if the cider was of the courageous variety. Mary rolled her eyes. Apparently this was the season of the eye roll.
Presents were passed around to Dean and Cas. Cas looked down at the tag on his and saw that it was from Mary and John. He tipped his head to the side and said, "Really?"
"Of course. Open it." Mary smiled over at him.
He opened it and found a dark blue scarf and knit cap. "They're gorgeous."
Mary said, "I've been doing a bit of knitting lately. Started throwing this one together right after Thanksgiving."
"You are too kind, Mary Winchester."
"Hey, I helped," John added.
"My apologies, Mr. Winchester. Thank you."
John rolled his eyes now and said, "It's John. Mr. Winchester is my dad."
Henry said, "Oh, please don't call me that. We are all on a first name basis here. Family doesn't require titles."
Cas blushed and leaned into Dean a little. "He's saying I'm family?"
"Sounds like it." Dean kissed the top of his head and opened his own present. Cas wrapped the scarf around his neck and put on the hat. He looked cute, Dean thought. His hair puffed out around the bottom edges of the hat in little brown puffs. Dean's present was a collection of records.
John was watching Dean open it and said, "I think I found the ones you were missing. A little Creedance, a little Seger, and a little old school Cash seemed appropriate."
"These are great, dad. You've been thumbing through my collection, huh? No other way you could have known that I was missing these." Dean smoothed his hand over the cover of the Johnny Cash album with reverence.
"Maybe got a little help from Sammy there." John nodded over to Sam who was opening something that Amelia had handed to him. John said, "That is from your mom and I both, Sam. It's for Amelia too."
"Thanks, guys." Amelia reached over and helped Sam rip through the rest of it. She pulled out an envelope and they opened that next.
"You said you two wanted to honeymoon in Mexico, right?" Mary grinned.
"Oh, mom, this is too much. No, really." Sam got up and Amelia followed him as he marched over to them with what appeared to be tickets in hand.
Dean piped up, "Hey, I want to go to Mexico." His tone was a mock whine.
"Find someone willing to marry you and we'll talk." John threw a pointed look at Cas. Then Dean looked at Cas with a raised brow.
"We could totally get a trip to Mexico, Cas. Whatcha say?"
Cas laughed and said, "I've heard of people marrying for health insurance, but a marriage of convenience for a trip to Mexico seems a bit extreme." Dean just laughed at him.
By the end of the present opening chaos, the children were playing with all of the noisiest toys while the adults added batteries to things not yet experimented with. Sam was running around the room with one of the tiny Campbell kids on his shoulders. The kid was wearing a superhero cape and he called out, "Faster moose, faster." Everyone laughed at the spectacle of it all as Sam leapt over the pile of discarded boxes and toys, rushing off to the hall to run through the house. Some of the other children followed behind him in a chorus of me next, me next.
Dean got up and roamed out of the room. Cas followed him. "Looking for a little quiet?" Dean asked him as he took his hand.
"Maybe a little." Dean leaned down and pressed his forehead to Cas' and let their noses touch. "Come with me." Cas leaned back and took his hand and pulled him toward the front door.
"Should I grab a coat?"
"Maybe. It is pretty cold out there." Dean reached over and grabbed a bulky grey peacoat.
They stepped out into the winter wonderland of the front yard, and Cas made his way to his car. "I hope you aren't worried about meeting my family tomorrow. I realize that I haven't done a good job of describing them to you. They'll really love you."
"Is that why you dragged me out into the cold? I'm not worried. Worst case scenario, they think I'm not good enough for their son and then you dump me on principle. No worries."
"Oh God, Dean. You are worried."
"No, I was joking. Are you worried?" Dean pulled him close and let his fingers fiddle with the little tufts of hair that poked out around the edges of the knit cap.
Cas let out a little puff of steam. "I'm worried that they'll make you feel awkward. They are not as warm and fuzzy as your family. It's so comfortable here. I mean, your mom knit me a hat. How can my family even remotely stack up against that?"
"It isn't a competition. I'm sure I will love meeting them, and all of the fun conservative theories that they offer up will be so much entertainment." Dean felt Cas stiffen up a little, so he added, "They have a great son, so I already like them if that helps."
Cas relaxed again. He stepped away from Dean and opened his car door. "That helps."
"We going somewhere, 'cause if so we should let someone know, so they don't miss us."
"No. I have something for you." Cas dipped into the car and then came back out. He had a tiny box in his hands with a little hand tied ribbon on the top. "Here."
"What is it?" Dean cupped the tiny box in his hands.
"The world may never know." Now Cas was rolling his eyes at him. "Open it."
Inside was a key. "Cool. A key. I always wanted one." Dean's lip rolled up into a smirk.
"Wow, jerk." Cas slipped his arms around Dean's waist then. "See if I ever give you something nice like a key to my apartment in the future."
"Oh, oh," Dean stammered. "Oh, that's like kinda huge. This is to your place?"
"Yeah, I want you to be able to come and go at your leisure." Cas grinned up at him. "I'm gonna get pretty busy again after the holiday break ends. It'll just be for a few more months, but the thought of you just randomly being in my home sometimes when I get off work or finish up a class, is literally every good thing."
"Wow. This is way better than what I got you. I need to go get a key made for you like right now. You think the hardware store is open on Christmas?"
"No, likely not. You don't even lock your house up, though, so it'll hardly matter if I have a key."
"It's the principle of the thing, Cas. I want you to feel at home here too." He leaned in and kissed him. "Best boyfriend ever."
"What did you get me?" Dean looked off away from Cas for a moment. "You said that the key was better than what you got for me, but I don't recall getting a present from you."
"It's cheesy now. The key was way better." Cas reached up and turned his face toward him.
"I really must know now." Dean stepped back and took his hand.
"Come on. Back inside." They walked hand in hand back into the house. Sam was still the galloping moose. Dean pulled Cas up the stairs to his room. Once inside he pushed the door closed behind them. "We could just skip this part." Dean waggled his eyebrows a little and motioned toward his bed.
"Seriously, what did you get me?" Cas punched him in the shoulder lightly.
Dean shrugged and walked over to his nightstand. There was a present sitting there. "I didn't want to give it to you with all of my family around. I get enough ribbing from them without adding any ammunition to the situation." He picked up the present and handed it to Cas. The ribbon was red and pointy. The paper was a bright green.
Cas gently removed the wrapping like he was trying to preserve it. He popped the box top off once he had removed the paper. Inside was a leather bracelet with a silver hanging medallion. The medallion said, Always. "Oh, Dean. This is…"
Dean ran a hand back up into his hair. "Yeah, I know, cheesy."
Cas put the box on the bed next to him and launched up into Dean's arms. He kissed him hard. Dean was surprised at first then went with it. When Cas let up he said, "I'm lucky you found me. I'm lucky you wanted this." He kissed him again, trailing his kiss down to Dean's neck. He had Dean pressed to the door now.
"If I'd known how much you were going to like it I would have bought you ten of them." Dean felt Cas' hands pressed to his hips and wondered how long they could stay in here before the family noticed the absence. "I think I was always looking for you. I guess I wanted you to know that." Cas stopped kissing him and stared at him like he was memorizing the moment, and the intimate details of Dean's features. "You make me happy, Cas."
"I'll wear it everyday." He dropped his hands to Dean's and threaded their fingers together. "I hope that it will always feel like this, you and me."
"Me too, Cas. Me too." Dean leaned into his forehead again and stared at all of his features up close, the little lines at the corners of his eyes, the way that his lips were just a little chapped. They could hear the merry shouts of Sam and the children drifting up the stairs. They could hear the beginnings of a Christmas carol being played on the piano. It was cold outside, but his world was warm. Dean smiled into the moment, and the future that he felt was in his arms and always would be.