Dean rubbed his eyes with his forefinger and his thumb, a hesitant sigh leaving his throat as he listened to the excuses his boss had. No matter how far in advance he asked to get off work, he never budged, which Dean found absolutely ridiculous. His boss had no problems giving the teenagers that worked there a day or two off per month, but he couldn't get off work for one damn day?

Dean only caught the last little bit of the excuse, but it was enough to know it was the dumbest one yet, "You're saying I can't get off for Sam's birthday next week because you don't want to make Harley work?" Dean reiterated, nearly snarling when his boss stumbled over his words to try and make the excuse better. Dean just hung up, nearly slamming his phone on the table as he looked to his little brother, who ate applesauce without any indication of knowing something was wrong.

Hopefully, Sam wouldn't hold it against him.

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Dean swears, between Castiel and Sam, he never got to keep his thoughts to himself. He had thought he was doing a good job hiding his frustration from the two of them but obviously not, because Castiel cornered him in the kitchen of Castiel's house when he was dropping off Sam.

"Sam has been worried about you. He says you're upset," Castiel stated, his eyes narrowed as Dean shifted his gaze to the side, not wanting to meet the scrutiny of that icy blue stare.

"There's nothing wrong, Castiel. Sam thinks I'm upset if I don't make whipped cream once a week and have a fight with him," Dean countered, though he knew it was a losing battle when Castiel's expression didn't change.

"You had the whipped cream fight Tuesday," Castiel commented, as if that was a solid argument against what Dean had just said, "Is it because Sam's birthday is approaching?"

Dean flinched, too late to catch it, and he let his head lower when he realized he wasn't going to talk his way out of this one, "I can't get off for his birthday, okay? They're making me work late, so he won't even be awake when I get back," Dean finally spat out, his hands reaching behind him to grip the counter and giving Castiel a look, "Now can I go, or are you going to interrogate me some more?"

"You can go, but I would advise you to calm down before you say goodbye to Sam," Castiel cautioned, stepping to the side to let Dean pass by. Dean gave him a small glance, as close to an apology as he was going to give the man before he walked into the living room, managing to school his face into a happy one as he hugged Sam goodbye for the day.

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Dean didn't reach Castiel's house until nine at night on Sam's birthday, his feet dragging as he dreaded going through that front door. He already knew that Sam would be upset when he woke up the next morning, if he didn't wake up that night to throw a fit. He did a soft knock, not loud enough to wake his brother, but to just let Castiel know he was coming in before stepping through the door, a yawn leaving his lips as he headed into the kitchen where Castiel should be drinking his nightly tea.

Instead, he found Castiel and Sam sitting at the table, different foods, all Sam's favorites, spread out in front of them. A cake sat in the middle, decorated in green and not yet touched. Both of them looked up when Dean walked in, Sam's face lighting like a Christmas tree before he was reaching for Dean with both hands.

"De! De! Birthday dinner!" Sam chirped excitedly, ignoring Dean's look of confusion as his older brother picked him up. Sam wrapped his arms tightly around Dean's neck and Dean looked to Castiel, his brows furrowing at the patient look on the man's face.

"You did this?" Dean asked, his heart beating just a little faster as Castiel smiled the smallest bit. 

"Sam deserves to have his brother at his birthday party," Castiel explained, motioning to the seat on the other side of Sam's highchair. Dean nodded, still a little dumbstruck to really say anything as he set Sam back down into his chair, sitting himself and looking at all the food.

"It must have taken you forever to make all this," Dean finally managed to get out, his eyes flickering to Sam as the little boy giggled.

"Daddy let me help him!" Sam said brightly, not noticing the way both the men tensed and looked at each other. Castiel's face was beginning to turn a shade of pink and he cleared his throat before he spoke.

"Sam, I am not your father," Castiel explained, but Sam shook his head, looking at the both of them with a bright smile.

"You're my daddies," Sam declared happily before making grabbing motions towards the grilled cheese. Dean took a deep breath before letting it out in a sigh, giving Castiel an awkward smile before grabbing it for the toddler.

"I'll explain it to him tomorrow," Dean promised, earning a slight nod from Castiel before he scooped some of the macaroni and cheese onto his plate, taking a bite and wrinkling his nose.

"I must admit. I am not the best cook," Castiel commented in his blunt way, making Dean bark with laughter at the slightly disgusted look on his face. When he picked up the spoon for the macaroni and cheese, Dean's lips twisted into a grimace when he saw a familiar clump of fluff in it.

"I don't think it was you. Looks like Sam snuck in some marshmallows into the mac and cheese again," Dean replied, a giggle erupting from Sam answering his suspicions for him. Castiel looked at the macaroni and cheese closely before turning his gaze to Dean with a slightly horrified expression.

"Who puts marshmallows in macaroni and cheese?"

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Dean held sleeping Sam in his arms as Castiel carefully wiped the last of the cake from the poor toddler's face. He had fallen asleep halfway through eating it, instead using it as a pillow and getting it everywhere. It made Dean feel a little more tired, knowing that he was going to have to give the kid a bath the next morning before work.

"It made me happy to feel like a father again," Castiel stated out of the blue, his voice soft as if he was scared of the consequences of saying those words out loud. Dean looked at him, his gaze softening at the utterly broken expression on Castiel's face, shifting Sam just a little bit so he could squeeze the older man's shoulder.

"You're the closest thing Sam's ever had to a father," Dean replied, giving Castiel a reassuring smile that had Castiel's shoulders relaxing, despite the troubled look on his face.

"Dean, would you like to come over on your next day off?" Castiel asked, and Dean had never heard a more lonely phrase in his life. It clicked right then that he never heard Castiel talk about his family beyond his kid, or ever had anyone over. He was alone, just like they were.

"Of course. Sam would riot if I didn't," Dean answered, giving himself a mental pat on his back when Castiel's eyes filled with relief. 

Maybe, just maybe, they were helping Castiel as much he was helping them.

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Well, sorry for the few days off XD I had my birthday Sunday and we went to the beach for Memorial Day for three hours of nothing but just swimming and attacking each other! Probably one of the best weekends I've had in a long while. Hope you guys have a great night/day!