The way you wrap those boys around your finger

--Dear Maria, Count Me In,
All Time Low

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For as long as Sam had known Cas, he'd always felt this comfort around him. He was always wearing his pastel sweatshirts or tshirts, loose and flowing around the lithe body he had. His smile was always enough to raise anyone's spirits, though his sharp tongue could poison if needed.

He had a soft spot for his brothers, and when he came in and saw Gabriel cuddled into Sam's chest, crying softly, he was immediately on the wire.

"Gabe?" Cas crossed the room, sitting on the bed. "What happened?"

Sam looked up at him, eyes apologetic and sad. "Gordon came into the shop."

Cas's eyes widened. "He told you about..." He covered his mouth. "Oh, heavens."

Gabriel raised his head, just enough to lay it against Sam's chest in a way that allowed him to see his brother. "I'm ok," he murmured, voice thick. "Sam kicked him out."

Blushing, Sam looked down as Cas thanked him, the Novak leaning over to comfort Gabriel. "It was the least I could do for him," Sam replied bashfully. "He's already done so much for me."

Whether or not Gabriel knew he was doing it, he nuzzled closer, making a small sound. Sam hoped his hammering heart couldn't be heard, ears going red.

Cas glanced between them. "Anyway, I came up here to tell you that Mom and Dad are home early."

Gabriel's eyes sparkled, the sadness in them leaching away. His voice when he was spoke was starting to sound a little more normal. "They are?"

"Yeah." Cas laughed a bit. "Dad said something about wanting to interview the new boyfriend." He wiggled his eyebrows.

Gabriel flushed. "I don't have one," he denied, sniffling. "Who even said anything?"

The black haired Novak shrugged. "Probably Luci." He shot Sam a sympathetic look. "Sorry, Sam, but it seems you're already up to initiation to the family, friend or boyfriend or whatever the hell you are."

"Don't worry about it," Sam said. "I did say I wanted to meet your parents, didn't I?" He smiled down at Gabriel.

Gabriel scrunched up his nose. "Well, yeah, but this soon?" He shook his head. "I haven't had a chance to properly warn you about them yet."

Cas smiled at them both, standing and folding his arms. "Sam'll be staying for dinner then," he decided coyly. Gabriel went to talk him out of it, but Cas was already backing out of the room, chuckling vindictively beneath his breath.

"Sometimes he scares me," Gabriel commented with a sigh.

Sam nodded. "Definitely."

He noticed that neither of them had moved from their positions much, just stretched out. Gabriel had situated himself so that he was curled in between Sam's legs, head in the middle of his chest. Sam's arms were lazily draped around him, Gabriel's folded against the Winchester as he cuddled.

As the slight stretch of silence they'd fallen into ticked by, Sam became more and more aware of this. His skin buzzed in every place Gabriel was touching him. He loved the feel of the man against him, warm and soft.

Gabriel shifted again, moving his neck to look up at him. Sam's gaze met his and he was content to sit there staring.

The room had gotten hotter. Gabriel's eyes flickered to Sam's lips, whiskey depths conflicted. Sam swallowed thickly, knowing he shouldn't be thinking the thoughts he was.

Luci opening the door saved him. Gabriel's eyes flew to his brother, a smile spreading across his face. "Hey, Luce."

"You gonna come say hi or not?" he chirped, beaming. "Introduce them to Sam, maybe?" He winked.

Gabriel glanced back up at him. "Want to?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah."

He actually wanted to just cuddle with Gabriel while watching dumb movies, but that wasn't exactly an option.

Gabriel swung himself over the side of the bed, rubbing his face to make sure the remnants of his tears were gone. "Alright, Moose, prepare for the worst."

Luci chuckled and left. The younger Novak started out of the room, Sam following on his heels. They stopped in the kitchen, where two people were dressed in fancy clothing.

"You guys haven't even changed yet," commented Gabriel, shaking his head teasingly. "Still in your church clothes."

Becky, as he remembered Gabriel referring to her earlier, laughed. "We just barely got home," she chided. "Cut us a bit of slack."

It clicked in Sam's head. Becky and Chuck had been serving a mission. As in, a church one. He remembered learning about missionaries. Mormons, were they?

Chuck swallowed the pizza he'd been eating and eyed him. "You must be Sam," he said with a smile. "I've heard a lot about you."

Sam smiled back, feeling himself redden. "As have I about you, sir."

"We'll have none of this 'sir' thing." Chuck waved a hand. "Please, call me Chuck, and this is my lovely wife Becky." He winked at Gabriel. "Keep this one around, maybe?"

Sam looked over to see Gabriel flushing red. "Dad," he warned in a hushed voice.

Chuck laughed. "Alright, alright."

Becky elbowed her husband. "What Chuck means to say, dear, is welcome to the family." Her eyes were bright and sincere when she grinned at Sam.

The Winchester nodded. "Thank you, Becky."

She hummed. "Are you staying for dinner?"

He caught Gabriel's expectant, albeit somewhat shy, look, waiting for him to decide. "If you'll have me," he answered.

Becky beamed. "Of course we will!"

Luci went over to his mom, sniffling dramatically. "They grow up so fast, Mom!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around her.

She rolled her eyes. "Has he been this overly dramatic the entire time?"

"You don't know the half of it," muttered Cas, walking into the room. "Gabe's the only one that's actually remained basically intact."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Intact?"

Cas motioned to himself. "I was a shy kid when they left. Then, I meet your brother." He snorted. "I'm just as sarcastic as he is now."

"Maybe you should invite him over, Cas," Chuck suggested. "I need to meet him, too."

Sam and Gabriel shared a look. Dean wasn't someone you just brought home to meet your parents. He had terrible table manners and a kind of... off sense of humor.

Cas seemed to share these thoughts, as he shook his head. "Oh no," he chimed. "You can meet Dean after I coach him."

Becky frowned. "Coach him?"

"Deano's a special breed," Luci piped. "Met him at a party once." He scrunched up his face. "I think."

***

Gabriel finally had to drag Sam back to his room to get him away from his parents. The Winchester had been grinning and having fun with them, but Gabriel had gotten just a tad bit jealous.

"Your parents are so cool," he commented, sitting on the bed.

Gabriel nodded quickly. "They are," he rushed, cringing as his words were bitter.

Sam blinked up at him, and Gabriel couldn't help but shy away from the confused look. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine." The Novak sat on the other end of the bed.

"You don't really seem like it," Sam murmured, tilting his head. "Something wrong?"

"Just wanted a bit of Moose time," he answered.

Sam scooted over so that he could gently bring Gabriel back towards his chest into a hug. "I like Kitty time," he said. "I have classes, though."

Gabriel's mood dropped even more. "Classes?" he echoed dejectedly.

"Afraid so." The Winchester puffed out a breath. "I don't wanna go."

"Then don't," Gabriel piped, beaming suddenly. "Stay here."

Sam clicked his tongue. "Sorry, but classes are, apparently, important. According to my dad, at least."

Gabriel frowned. "I don't think I like your dad," he muttered.

"You might change your mind when you actually meet him." Sam let go of the Novak and stood up.

"Doubt it." Gabriel sighed, looking over at him as he started towards the door. "Want me to walk you out?"

Sam shook his head, hand on the knob. As he opened it, he replied, "No, I'll be fine. Take a nap maybe?" He shot him a look. "For me?"

Gabriel pursed his lips. "Only because it's you."

"Thanks, Kitty." Sam smiled at him. "I'll text you later."

The Novak nodded and Sam exited the room, closing the door softly behind him. He bounced down the stairs and bid the family goodbye. The concrete of the sidewalk was beneath his feet when he heard his name being called.

He turned to see Cas closing the front door behind him with a pastel sweaterpaw. "Yeah, Cas?"

"I don't mean to keep you long," the man apologized. "I just wanted to say that Dean told me about your past." He fiddled with the hem of his sweater. "It means a lot to me that you guys trust me enough to share it."

Sam put his hands in his pockets awkwardly. "Dean's the one who decided to tell you," he said.

"Still." Cas tilted his head. "I know he values your opinion. He would have asked for your opinion, and gotten a yes out of you, before telling me. So, thank you."

Sam couldn't do anything than nod. Cas cleared his throat, knowing he had pushed the two of them into uncomfortable territory. "Bye, Sam. I'll watch Gabe for you," he said, waving, backing towards the house.

"Thanks," Sam told him, smiling and giving a wave back. He took up the walk to his car again and hopped in, starting up the engine.

As he drove, he couldn't help but let his thoughts roam. The day had been a whirlwind.

Gordon had really pissed him off, for one. If he ever saw that guy again, it would be too soon. Not to mention he'd be a dead body within a few minutes.

And then there was the Mormon thing. Sam wasn't sure how that all went, but he did know that Becky and Chuck were awesome. He was strangely happy knowing that he got to meet them.

Maybe he'd learn more about the family the more he spent with Gabriel. Platonically, that is. As much as Sam wanted more, he refused to do anything that might upset the Novak. If there was ever any relationship there, Gabriel would be the one in charge. Sam would never push.

But he couldn't scurry around him, either. Sam was just going to have tread a bit more carefully since he knew. That didn't mean he had to treat him any different.

Occupied with his thoughts, he didn't notice that he'd stopped at a red light, or that it had turned green and people were honking at him. Shaking himself, he flipped them off in the mirror and pushed on the gas.

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Status: Unedited

Guess who's back? For those of you that were around for the me leaving for a little while note that's now deleted, you know what I'm meaning. If you're new and never saw the note, continue on.

Anyways, I think we're gonna start getting some of Sammy's past now. Gabe's gonna start working through his issues, we're gonna find out Dean's selective mute cause, and whatever else is gonna happen is gonna happen.

Oh and hey, that chick from the Italian place is showing up. Maybe next chapter.

Thanks for coming back to read my update! I love y'all.

--Gabe 😘😘