Gabriel waits anxiously at the bar. Is Sam going to come? He knows that threatening him into it probably wasn't his smartest idea, but it's the only way he could get Sam to agree to come. He was never going to risk his brother's life over something so stupid. But what if he backs out? What if Dean found out and won't let him go? He went through way too much trouble to risk losing his chance.

Gabriel glances at the clock. One minute. He's supposed to be here in one minute. Most people would have been here by now. He would have assumed Sam wouldn't risk being late when Dean's life is on the line. He has no idea that Gabriel couldn't care less about Dean and that he just wants to talk to Sam, so shouldn't he be warier of being late than he is?

He taps his foot nervously. Is he getting stood up? Gabriel wouldn't put it past him. It's not like Sam was dying to come. He wouldn't endanger his brother, though. Gabriel knows that much. They just established this with that last trick. Sam has to come. Right?

As soon as the clock strikes seven, Sam sits next to him, a look of existential dread on his face. Not quite the reaction Gabriel was hoping for, but he can work with it. As long as Sam is here, it's okay. He'll make the most of what he gets.

"Hey, Sammy," Gabriel says with a grin. "You came."

"Of course I came," he snaps. "Now let's just get this over with. I'll give you an hour."

"Two," Gabriel counters.

"One and a half," Sam says.

"I think it's hilarious that you're under the impression that you're in a position to request a compromise," Gabriel remarks.

Sam glares at him. "Fine. Two hours, and I'm out of here."

"That's the spirit!" Gabriel says with exaggerated joy. "What's up, Sam? Anything fun happening?"

"Right now? No, not at all."

Gabriel smirks. "I guess we'll just have to make it fun."

Sam rolls his eyes. "Yeah, good luck with that."

Gabriel frowns at his brush off. It's hard not to notice his rigid posture. It's like he's preparing to take off at the first sign of trouble. He probably is, knowing him. He definitely wouldn't believe the Trickster is looking for a social call, but that's really all it is. He's just lonely. No one wants to hang out with the Trickster, and he's getting bored of having to create his own company out of thin air. Bikini babes obeying his every wish gets boring after a few thousand years.

"Hey, relax," Gabriel instructs him.

"I'm at a bar with the Trickster. Yeah, relaxation isn't really in the cards."

"Aw, come on, give me a chance!" Gabriel pleads.

"I gave you a chance," Sam replies simply. "Then you killed Dean. A hundred and three times. I'm not too big on giving you any more chances."

Gabriel's frown deepens. This is so not how he was picturing this going down. "Please?" he says, more of a question of whether that will work than actual begging.

"Your puppy dog eyes aren't gonna work on me," Sam tells him.

"Well, I could never do them as well as you," Gabriel allows, recalling the moment he decided to bring Sam back to that Wednesday. He really wasn't going to, but Sam just looked so sad. He knew Sam was miserable, and even he had stopped enjoying it ages ago, but looking him in the eyes was his breaking point.

"Seriously, man, what do you want?" Sam asks, exasperated.

"I want you to give me a chance," Gabriel repeats. "For the next..." he glances at the clock, "hour and fifty-eight minutes, just try to forget about me killing your brother. Please?"

Sam hesitates, then sighs. "Fine, but only because you said 'please.'"

Gabriel feels his face light up. "I didn't really expect that to work."

Sam just rolls his eyes.

"So, what's new in Hunterville?" Gabriel asks. "Anything interesting?"

Sam shakes his head. "No, not really. Dean's another day closer to Hell, but other than that, it's all pretty much the same."

Gabriel can still see his distrust, but he doesn't really mind. At least Sam is talking now. That's really all he wanted.

"How is Dean, by the way?" Gabriel asks.

Sam shrugs. "Fine. Alive. Doesn't remember anything."

"I figured." Actually, he knew, because he made sure of it. "And how are you holding up?"

"Fine," Sam replies. "I've got Dean back, so that's good."

Gabriel can't help but feel a pang of disappointment at that. The whole point of killing Dean was to make Sam realize that he needs to stop caring so much. Obviously bringing Dean back was a bad call on his part, but the least Sam could do is attempt to keep a bit of distance between him and his brother. Gabriel has barely even thought of his family since he ditched Heaven, and it's going well for him. Granted, the moment Gabriel even speaks to another angel, the real Loki and his sons are probably going to strike him down, but that's not an important detail.

"Thank you, by the way," Sam says. "I'm not sure why I'm thanking you for bringing back someone you killed yourself, but..."

Gabriel shrugs, swatting his hand in a "don't mention it" motion. "Hey, drinks?"

"I'd rather not," Sam protests.

Gabriel hits him on the shoulder playfully. "Aw, come on, Sam. Just one. On me."

Sam hesitates, and Gabriel knows it's because he doesn't trust him. Sam doesn't want to be drunk around him, and Gabriel can't blame him. He shouldn't let his guard down, especially around a "monster." He just waits for a response, hoping that Sam will trust him enough to have one drink. Maybe he'll loosen up after that, just a little bit.

"Alright," Sam agrees reluctantly. He glances at the clock, clearly wishing time would move faster. Gabriel wishes the opposite. He wants Sam to trust him, and he's beginning to think two hours may not be enough. Everything Sam has done has been after Gabriel asked him repeatedly, and, after threatening his brother, Gabriel can only assume he's listening just so he doesn't provoke him.

Gabriel orders something random for them both, and Sam's eyes don't leave the drinks from the second the bartender grabs the cups. He's probably afraid Gabriel is going to have someone poison it. When they get their drinks, Sam watches him, waiting for him to take a sip before deciding it's safe.

Gabriel rolls his eyes and drinks half of it immediately. Sam seems to take that as confirmation that it's okay to drink, so he takes a small sip.

"No, no one spiked the drink," Gabriel assures him.

"I never said I thought that they did," Sam replies, taking another small sip for emphasis.

"You don't need to say it," Gabriel says. "It's written all over your face. Seriously, Sam, loosen up. If I wanted to hang out with someone like this, I would have sat in front of a security guard." He would expect this treatment from someone like Kali -- after a millennia-long on-again-off-again fling and more drama than he can remember, there's no doubt in his mind that she wouldn't trust him -- but what he's done to Sam is nothing compared to how much he annoys the gods so it shouldn't be this hard to make a friend.

"It's not too late to change your mind," Sam tells him. "It's only seven; there are plenty of security guards still on duty, just waiting for you."

"But I want to talk to you," Gabriel says.

"Why?"

Gabriel shrugs. "Why not?

"Because we hate each other," Sam hisses. "You've been nothing but a pain in the ass to us since we met you. Why the sudden change of heart?"

Gabriel isn't sure how to respond. He has a reputation to uphold, after all. He's a party guy. His whole life is wine, women, and song. How is he supposed to admit that he's bored and lonely and would do anything for a real friend without destroying this reputation he's so carefully built up? Even if he can't tell Sam the truth about his past or his identity, just knowing that Sam has seen some serious shit and would believe every crazy story he could tell is comforting. But Sam still undoubtedly wants him dead, which means he can't say any of this. Not until Sam is at least a little more comfortable around him.

"Call it a midlife crisis," Gabriel replies vaguely. It really is a crisis, at least to him. He's the Trickster. He's a literal angel, and a pagan god in disguise. He's not supposed to get bored.

"Does that mean you're going to stop tricking us?" Sam asks hopefully.

"Maybe," Gabriel replies, but he really means no. Maybe he'll give the brothers a bit of a break, but he's not done with them. Not yet. Besides, it doesn't look like Sam is warming up to him. Tricking him is probably going to be the only way he gets to talk to him after this.

"I'll take that as a 'no,'" Sam says.

"Good call. But hey, it could be worse. At least you're not the one in the wormhole."

Sam chuckles. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He pauses, then asks, "Did you really drop someone in a wormhole?"

Gabriel nods. "That I did."

"Why?"

"Because he didn't believe I could," he replies simply.

"That's it?" Sam asks incredulously. "You did it as an I-told-you-so?"

Gabriel nods. "Mm, basically, yeah."

Sam just laughs at the ridiculousness of that logic. He takes another sip of his drink without prompting, and Gabriel feels a pang of hope. It looks like he's passed the "you spiked my drink" thing. And, arguably more important, he's laughing. He's making conversation of his own relatively-free will. Maybe things are going well. He just needs to keep with topics of conversation that a hunter won't find off-putting -- so, maybe ixnay on the more deadly pranks.

"I still like the slow dancing alien more, but that's just me," Gabriel says.

Sam laughs again, revealing his smile that Gabriel immediately decides he loves. "That was good, I won't deny it."

"How 'bout you? You ever play any relationship-crushing pranks on Deano?"

"Yeah, we had a prank war a few years ago," Sam tells him, much to his surprise. Gabriel didn't picture him as the pranking type.

"How did that go?" Gabriel asks, genuinely interested to find out.

"Ugh, it was horrible," Sam replies. "Dean put itching powder in my clothes."

"You got him back for that, right?"

Sam nods. "I superglued his hand to his beer."

Gabriel raises an eyebrow. "That's it? That's, like, second-grade level. You've got to think bigger, Sam!" He gestures wildly to emphasize the word.

"Not all of us have magical powers," Sam reminds him.

"You don't need magical powers if you use your imagination!" Gabriel says cheerfully, making a rainbow with his hands.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"It's SpongeBob," Gabriel says slowly.

"I never watched SpongeBob," Sam tells him. "Frankly, I'm surprised you did. Don't you have better things to do with your life?"

"Okay, first of all, SpongeBob is the best," Gabriel says, thinking of his SpongeBob trick from a few days ago. Dammit, that doesn't count! He just turned back the clock for Sam, and now all his tricks from the last six months are gone! Damn, time travel is bullshit.

"Seriously, you're vouching for a kids show?" Sam says with a laugh.

"No, I'm vouching for the best show!" Gabriel protests.

"Yeah, sure," Sam says sarcastically.

"It is!" Gabriel insists.

"Whatever you say."

"Fine, what do you think is the best show?" Gabriel challenges.

"I don't have a favorite show," Sam admits.

"Well, there's your problem!"

"Better no favorite show than," he pretends to gag as he says, "SpongeBob."

"Ugh, please, that's not my favorite show," Gabriel says as though it's the most ridiculous thing he's ever heard, even though that's what he's been implying. He really isn't the biggest fan of the show, but it's his brand of weird so it's fun to check it out when he needs motivation.

"What? But you just said --" Sam shakes his head, evidently deciding not to ask. "Then what is your favorite?"

"Dr. Sexy, M.D." Gabriel says immediately, just so he can laugh at Sam's reaction. "Naw, I'm just playing. I don't have a favorite, either. It's usually just whatever inspires a new trick."

"But you just said--"

Gabriel chuckles. "I know what I said. I just like messing with you. I am the Trickster, after all."

The two of them have an interesting discussion. They stay on the topic of Gabriel's tricks for a while, which doesn't bother him in the slightest. He's more than proud of the tricks he's come up with, and the fact that Sam seems to enjoy them is just a bonus. This is exactly why he could never befriend a normal person: they'd think he's making things up, which, while it could still probably get a laugh out of them, wouldn't be the same.

After a while, the conversation slowly begins to shift. They start talking more about Sam, and though there are no deep and meaningful confessions, he doesn't seem like he's trying to hide anything. At the beginning of the night, there wasn't a chance in hell that Sam would talk about himself like this. He was trying so hard to just make it through the night with no damage done. Now it seems like he couldn't be any less worried about what Gabriel's ulterior motives could be. He's just enjoying himself.

It doesn't feel like they talk for a long time. In fact, it feels like no more than 20 minutes later when Sam's eyes skate over the clock, though seemingly not on purpose. Gabriel doesn't think anything of it until the hunter does a double-take, then pulls out his phone to confirm it.

"Shoot, Dean's gotta be wondering where I am," Sam mutters.

"What?" Gabriel glances at the clock only to see that it's well past ten already. "Oh, wow. When did that happen?"

Sam shrugs. "Time flies when you're having fun, apparently."

"Did you?" Gabriel asks hopefully. "Have fun, I mean?"

Sam nods slowly, as if still thinking about it as he confirms it. "I did, actually. I wasn't expecting to, but I did."

Gabriel smiles in relief. He was afraid Sam was going to absolutely despise hanging out with him. It's what he expected, of course, but he didn't want to hear it. He's beyond glad to know that Sam enjoyed it as much as he did. His hopes rose when he realized how late it was, proving Sam wasn't counting down the seconds, but he wanted the confirmation, and he got it.

"I'm glad," Gabriel replies. "Do you have to go now, or...?"

"Yeah, don't want Dean to come looking for me."

Gabriel tries to hide his disappointment. He was hoping Sam would stay around a bit longer, and it sucks to know that he might have if Dean hadn't gotten in the way. Though, now that he thinks about it, that also could be his go-to excuse every time he wants to get out of something, because it's no secret that Gabriel knows they're close. He organized an entire trick around, after all, and that was his leverage to get Sam to show up. Maybe Sam's just trying to excuse himself without Gabriel fighting back.

"That's fine," Gabriel says, hoping that Sam can't hear his disappointment. He has to admit, he may be the best actor he's ever met, having been acting for millenia, but it still worries him occasionally that his facade may slip.

"But if this is really all you had planned and you're not about to kidnap me or whatever, call me later," Sam adds, much to Gabriel's surprise. "I really did enjoy the break. I wouldn't mind doing this again."

That puts the smile back on his face. "Will do."

Sam pulls out his phone again. "What's your number?"

Gabriel makes one up, creating the cellphone for that phone number in his pocket. He's never had anyone to call before so he's never needed a phone. He can't complain that this is no longer the case.

After typing in his phone number, Sam looks at him in disbelief. "I can't believe I never asked your name," he says.

There's no way Gabriel is telling him the truth. He's not telling Sam he's a pagan god, he can't tell Sam he's an angel if he values his life, and telling the hunter that he can't give up his name is definitely not going to fly.

"You know me," Gabriel replies. "I'm the Trickster."

"That's it?" Sam says incredulously. "Come on, what do your friends call you?"

Pfft, what friends?

"What, the Trickster isn't good enough for you?" Gabriel asks teasingly.

"Maybe you should rethink that statement," Sam says. "Wasn't the whole deal that Dean can't know where I am? If he saw a text under your name, he'd kill us both."

"Makes sense," Gabriel says. "We don't want to upset the little Deanosaur, now, do we?" He holds out his hand for the phone. "Here, I'll do it."

Sam hands him the cellphone without hesitation, which surprises him. Considering Gabriel is famous for messing with things, the fact that Sam so willingly handed it over doesn't make a lot of sense. Sure, Gabriel wanted to win Sam's trust, but Sam is smarter than this. Gabriel types something and hands the phone back.

"'That awesome guy,'" Sam reads aloud, then looks at Gabriel in disbelief. "Seriously?"

Gabriel smirks. "It's true."

Sam types something else and shows the phone to Gabriel.

"'That annoying guy,'" Sam replies confidently. Gabriel tries to take his phone back, but Sam yanks it away. "A much more accurate description, if you ask me,"

"No way!" Gabriel protests.

Sam gives him his own number, which becomes the first and only one in his new cellphone. Gabriel types in the name -- "Mr. Samman" -- and shows it to him. "Mr. Samman, bring me a dream!"

"What? No way!" Sam says, but he can't get Gabriel's phone, either.

"Now we're even," Gabriel says with a grin.

Sam rolls his eyes, but it's clear he's amused by it. "I've got to go, but call me later, annoying guy."

"Will do, Mr. Samman," Gabriel replies.

You know that saying, "I hate to see you go, but I love to see you walk away"? That perfectly describes what he's feeling right now. He obviously wishes Sam could stay, but he can't complain about how tonight went, either. Sam seems happy -- happier than Gabriel has ever seen him, though that doesn't set the bar very high. He can't wait to get to do this again.