John felt out of place and unwanted. Bobby was with him, he'd spoken to John all afternoon. Bobby looked like he was trying to remain calm, anger boiling just below his calm facade. They took the last two remaining seats as Ellen, Jo, Jess, and Cas stood to get dinner on the table. The silence in the Roadhouse was eerie, and Dean walked over to the sound system, turning on some rock music quietly in the background. The familiar sounds calmed his nerves slightly and when he sat back down, he wished Cas hadn't gone to help in the kitchen. John was glancing around as if he thought someone was missing, and when his eyes landed the empty seat next to Dean where that other man had been seated, they nearly bugged out of his head. Bobby elbowed him hard enough to bruise and he cast his eyes to the table. So, Castiel was a boy. Dean swung both ways. John was unsure what to make of this, so he didn't linger on it. Jess was a pretty little thing, he hadn't known Sam had found someone too. There was a lot he didn't know. When dinner was on the table, everyone began picking at their food, ignoring the questions tucked silently beneath everyone's tongues. 

Sam was the first to break the silence. "John, this is my girlfriend, Jessica Moore. Jess, this is my... father, John Winchester." Jess reached tentatively across the table to shake his hand. John smiled a bit at her, shaking her hand gently, her grip firm and daunting, daring him to hurt Sam one more time. "Dean set us up, Jess works as a waitress at one of the restaurants downtown. She's going to med school, she's going to become a nurse." 

"That's wonderful, congratulations you two." Sam looked at Dean, pressing him to introduce Castiel officially. Sighing, he set his fork down and gestured to John. 

"Dad, this is Castiel, my boyfriend. Cas is an English professor at the University, and he co-owns a popular bakery in town with his brother. We've been together almost a year now, and we have an apartment together." John assessed the man sitting next to his eldest son. He had an array of messy brown hair, and bright blue eyes. He sat up proudly, and when he looked at Dean, the warmth that melted his icy blues was obvious. Dean had a look John had never seen when he looked at the other man, green eyes softening and brimming with so much love it made John look away. He used to look at Mary the very same way. 

"You two make a very great couple." John smiled proudly at Dean, causing Dean to stiffen at the unexpected gesture. He coughed awkwardly and thanked his father. "I suppose I should explain a few things." He set his own fork down and folded his hands on the table. "I did things very poorly when I left. I let you all down, especially you two boys. When I left... I was in a dark place, and believe me when I say I'm not looking to excuse my actions. I just... couldn't pretend like I was in any place to take care of you both, I knew I wasn't going to do it right, not without your mother. I still shouldn't have left the way I did. Bobby and Ellen did right by you though, you both are successful, and I've never been more proud of any one else in my life. The past several years... I've been driving. Aimlessly, at first, but over the past while, I've been visiting special places. The places Mary and I'd been, the first beach we took you boys to, the museums and parks, and any places that Mary and I visited before you two came along. I started... trying. To heal, I guess, to do right by your mother. I know that I messed up, and I know I shouldn't expect that you two will want anything to do with me, but I just...want to open up the option to you. That I'm here, if you'll have me. That I'm ready now, to know you, to understand you both, and if you can find it in you to get to know me all over again, I'd be honored." John sat back, inhaling deeply and looking between his boys. A heavy silence settled in the room. Ellen and Bobby were looking at John, and Cas and Jess were looking at their lovers. Dean cleared his throat and looked at Sammy, who sighed and nodded, albeit a tad reluctantly. 

"I think... I think it'll take a lot of work, a lot of time, but I think we're willing to... Try to adjust to having you around." John laughed in relief, face and body relaxing as he looked up brightly. 

"Thank you boys, so much, I swear, this time is different. This time, I want to be present, I want to know you." Dean offered up a smile, chuckling softly and finishing his meal. The banter at the table was more relaxed, Sam talked to John about his law practice, the success he found, and Dean talked about working with Bobby and running the Roadhouse with Ellen. John listened with earnest, soaking up every bit of information his family put forward about the years he'd been absent. Each new word opened up new stories to be told, things to be explained, and John was ecstatic to take it all in, learn what he could in this small span of a few hours. He had so much more to go. 

      Castiel and Dean pushed back their vacation until October. They'd celebrate their one year anniversary as soon as they got back. Castiel had booked the time off from the university, and Dean had the go ahead from Ellen and Bobby to go celebrate. They spent the months of August and September around town, working and falling into a simple routine. John spent some time with the boys, learning them all over again. He liked Jess and Cas, the way they adored his sons, made them better men by knowing them. He ate Sunday dinners at the Roadhouse with the family, and Thursday nights, when the younger staff ran the Roadhouse, they all ate a big hearty dinner at Ellen's, Charlie and Gabe included. 

      They were putting the last suitcase into the back of the Impala, excitement running high between the two men as they slid into their respectful seats. They were destined to make their first stop at Indian Cave State Park in Nebraska. They left at 6 in the morning, chasing the sunrise together as they laughed too loud and sang off key ( in Cas' case) to Metallica, or Led Zeppelin. When they arrived, they pulled on two backpacks (recently bought, since neither of them had ever properly hiked a day in their lives), parked the Impala in the lot and paid before following a group up into the caves. 

"I've never seen anything like this... It's so cool!" Cas was leaning in, looking at the natural formations in the rock. Dean smiled at his dorky boyfriend and chuckled in agreement. When they hit the road again, they were off to Yellowstone National Park. They spent the night in a motel, and were tourists the next day.  After several days, they arrived at Niagara Falls. 

"My God Cas, I've never seen anything like this." Dean had on a horribly ugly yellow rain poncho and was leaning on the railing. Cas barely heard him over the roaring of the waves below them. The sheer force of the water as it rushed downwards and crashed into the rocks, the way it was unrelenting and so powerful made Dean and Cas both stir. They'd been having a lovely vacation, and Niagara Falls had been high on both their to-see lists. They snapped a selfie and Dean kept the camera, taking candid shots of his lover. Cas pulled out his own every once in awhile, snapping photos of Dean exploring, or staring up at the bright sky as the sun beat down on them on one of their many hikes. He had enough photos of the scenery and his lover to fill several photo albums, he was sure. But he couldn't stop himself, his life, everything was perfect, and he wanted to document this special trip- every second of it. A couple weeks in, they were laying on a motel bed, watching stupid infomercials and cuddling. Dean was on the phone with Sam, chatting about everything and anything- they hadn't been this far apart for this long since Stanford, Cas learned. 

"I guess we'll be heading home soon , hmm?" Cas asked idly, fingertips tracing his boyfriend's bare features. 

"Soon. Real life is unfortunately waiting for us back home. We have to start getting ready for the holidays, too. Are your brother's coming down again?" Dean ran his fingers through Cas' mop of messy hair softly. 

"I'm not sure. I feel like they're going to Anna's, not Gabe, but Mike and Luci." Dean nodded softly. They'd swung through Florida and spent a couple nights with Anna, visiting little Sarai, who was up and walking now. She still couldn't talk, but she gurgled and laughed a lot louder. She loved Cas, and even Dean now. They were settled up in Alabama, and had only a week left to get home. They didn't mind, their life back home was just as ideal as this, as long as they were together. 

      "Cas, we should swing by Sam's office before heading home. He told me earlier he'd be there late, and I want to see him first." Cas felt like there was something Dean wasn't letting on, but he shrugged it off and smiled. They'd idly been making their way home, stopping at various places to hike or diners that claimed to have 'the best pie.' Dean preferred Cas'. They were close to Kansas city now, and Cas had the window open, hair blowing around in his face, aviators perched on his nose. To Dean, he was the picture of perfection. 

"Yeah, sure. I wouldn't mind seeing him either." They drove for another hour or so and pulled up just outside of Sam's law building. The lights inside were still on, as it was only 3 in the afternoon, but Sam knew no one that worked there was there other than Sam. He slipped out of the car, patting his pocket secretly before opening Cas' door for him. He lead him inside, and into the elevator. He pressed the button for the roof, keeping Cas distracted with kisses so he wouldn't see. When the doors opened, he slowly backed away from Cas and out onto the roof. The sky was clear, and a soft breeze rustled past them. The roof was decorated with soft white and red roses, wrapped up in a garland above them. The scene was beautiful, sunlight filtering through the flowers above their heads, petals raining down softly around them as Dean pulled Cas out into the open. Birds chirped softly in the distance, the only noise save for their breathing. Cas covered his mouth, looking around him slowly, spinning in a circle. Tomorrow was their anniversary, he wondered what Dean was up to with this little surprise. When he rounded back to his lover, Dean was down on a single knee, apple green eyes gazing up at him in adoration. 

"Castiel James Novak, tomorrow it will be a year since you graced my life with your presence. I'd always believed that I didn't deserve love, that the world would never give me happiness, and when you walked into my shop, and harassed me," Castiel blurted out a soft laugh through his finger tips. Dean smiled and continued. "I knew I was wrong. You brought life into my world, brightness and hope. You are, and always will be, my guardian angel. I'm blessed to know you, to love and be loved by you, and I want you to be mine, officially. I want you to wear this ring, to marry me, and make me yours forever, the way it should be. When I imagined my future before you, I imagined dusty cars and my old condo, dinners at the Roadhouse with people who loved me, but no one for me to be in love with. Now that I know you, my future still holds those stupid Sunday dinners, and grubby days at the shop, but now... now I have someone to come home to, someone to share those dinners with, this life with. And I know I could never have lived that life before you, I know now, that this life, with you, is all I'll ever want and need. So please, Castiel, make my life complete, and marry me." The tears were pouring out of both of their eyes now as Castiel nodded exuberantly, holding his left hand out. Dean slowly slid a silver band with an emerald in the center onto his ring finger, kissing it softly before standing and pulling Castiel tight against him. An uproar of cheers and applause rose up behind him. Castiel turned sharply, seeing everyone he loved come out from behind them. They'd been hidden behind the elevator until Castiel was turned away. Sam stood to the side enough to video tape, and he looked ecstatic. Ellen and Bobby, leaning close to each other, were clapping, Ellen's eyes pouring like open taps. John stood with Jess, Ash, Jo and Gabe, and when Cas looked to the side a bit more, his eyes opened wide. Applauding and smiling widely were Michael, Luci, Anna, and William, holding a bubbling Sarai. Charlie was whooping, fist pumping into the air and he laughed at the sight. Everyone he loved was there, cheering for him and his happiness. He greeted them all, one by one, and took a laughing, gleeful Sarai in his arms. They had set up finger foods and drinks, and they celebrated Dean and Cas' anniversary, their homecoming, and engagement all at once, in the very place Cas and Dean had shared their first Valentine's Day, one of their happiest nights. When they had a moment, Cas pulled Dean to the side as everyone spoke and danced around them to the music Sam had put on. 

"I'm so beyond happy Dean Winchester. But I cannot believe you beat me to it." He pressed a passionate kiss to Dean, who looked confused. "I was going to propose tomorrow, dammit. And you went and beat me to it. I should've known." He pulled a small black box out of his coat pocket and smiled warmly at his fiance. "If I get to wear a ring, so do you. I had a whole speech planned out, about how you saved me, how you brought a whole new dynamic to my boring life and taught me how to live and love, how to care and be cared for. But I guess most of it can wait till our vows now." He smiled wider and Dean fought back tears, smiling back as Cas slid a small black band with a sapphire stone in the middle on Dean's own ring finger. They shared a passionate, loving kiss before returning to their party, sporting their shiny new rings, and the brightest eyes and smiles anyone had ever seen.