"No doubt - endings are hard. But then again... Nothing ever really ends does it?"- Chuck
Welp, this is it, last chapter. Hope you enjoy it and I hope I got the ending right ;) Thanks again for all the feedback, I really appreciate it. Oh and... Merry Day-After-Christmas! :') Happy Holidays!

Chapter 7: Epilogue

Two months later

Two months. Two months of continually calling and annoying the hell out of Dean (not that he minded), of lonely nights and Dean's old tee shirts he left behind that smelled like him. Of studying for his classes to keep his mind off him while listening to Journey, getting complaints from his neighbors that the music was too loud. Two months of missing Dean... His green eyes that shone a certain way for Cas and Cas only. His freckles that traced under his eyes and across his nose. The way his lips felt on his and how his hips moved so easily against him, how his hands would move down his sides feeling like fire igniting under his skin where they passed, never feeling so much love towards another person in his life. His peppered kisses on his neck and across his jawline, hands falling onto his waist and searching under the waistline of his sweatpants, his smile against his mouth every time they kissed... Him. But he was coming, he would be back in his arms where he belonged soon... He'd be whole again.

Cas laid on the bed, twirling a pen in his fingers, eyeing it curiously. His books were spread out on each side of him, papers everywhere, Journey playing quietly on the radio next to his bed. He sighed and turned it off before getting up and walking into the living room, beginning to pace. What if Dean didn't look at him in the same way, what if he didn't kiss him the same way? Cas ran into the room looking through his dresser for a nicer shirt that wasn't Dean's so Dean wouldn't know that he's been wearing his clothes the whole time. He would never hear the end of it.

He must have tossed ten shirts on the floor before realizing how crazy he was and started to put the clothes back in the drawer. Dean wouldn't care what he looked like... Right? Right, what was he thinking?

He went back to pacing, straightening up the apartment a little even though it was already clean, now it was spotless. Out of the two months he's waited, these last hours were the worst. When the knock finally came at the door he almost jumped out of his skin, finding his face flushing already, his heart beating so fast he thought it would jump right out of his chest. He ran to the door, almost tripping over himself, and swung it open desperately to see Dean standing there with bags at his feet, his wide smile wrinkling the corners of his green eyes.

"Castiel." Dean breathed, sending shivers up Cas' spine before he lurched forward, wrapping his arms around him, finally able to feel him again. Dean held him tightly, stuffing his face into his shoulder and breathing him in. Breathing Cas in.

"I love you, I love you, oh God I missed you-" Dean cut Cas off with his lips, picking him up as Cas wrapped his legs around his waist, kissing him hardly, desperately, fisting his hair in his fingers. Dean walked them inside and shut the door behind him with his foot causing Cas to laugh against his lips. Before he knew it his head was hitting the pillow and Dean was pressing down against him, pulling Cas' shirt over his head and throwing it on the floor. His lips trailed feverishly from his mouth to his neck and down onto his bare chest causing Cas to gasp, gripping the pillow behind his head tightly as if it was the only thing anchoring him to this world at this point. It was Dean, Dean's lips against him again, his hips rolling down against him, the sensation seemingly familiar but feeling so new, finding himself arching his back up from the mattress, breathing out weakly as his grip on the pillow tightened and Dean kissed the underside of his jawline hungrily.

"God I missed you..." Cas said breathlessly causing Dean to cover his mouth with his lips again, Cas' quick intake of breath allowing Dean further into his mouth as he rolled them over on the bed, their feet tangling, Cas now pulling Dean's shirt off, straddling him to the mattress before rolling back down and capturing his swollen lips again, wrapping his arms around him as he fell onto his side, molding their bodies together. He laughed against their connected lips when Dean pushed him back down and was back over him within seconds.

"God I love you..." Dean said breathlessly before continuing to mutter Cas' name against their lips like it was the greatest thing in the world, the only thing in the world. Everything was finally perfect again, Dean was here and he would never let him out of his grasp again. Dean was wrong, two months was way too long, he had almost forgotten how good this felt.

"Never... Leave me again." Cas got out in gasps between Dean's kisses. Dean moaned against his mouth, digging his dull nails into Cas' back and pulling him on top of himself, rolling onto his back as Cas' hands trailed frantically down Dean's sides, stopping low on his hipbones to pull him even closer up against him by his belt loops.

"Never."

And he never did, hardly able to stay away from Cas for more than a hour, unable to keep his hands off of him whenever they were together. And that first night... Well, it was worth the wait.

Jo was walking to class one day, it was Friday... Finally. She was holding three text books in her frail arms which were giving her a bit of a struggle. The normal chaos of what is high school raging on around her, some people bumping into her and not taking the time to apologize as she dropped all her books, staggering sideways on impact and cursing them under her breath. The crowd quickly cleared and all the doors slammed shut just as the bell rang throughout the school.

Great... Late again. Jo frustratingly moved the hair out of her eyes before bending down to pick up her books. Right when she was about to grab the one on top, large hands cupped over hers causing her to jump and pull back quickly, tripping over her hurt ankle. She shivered as she felt warm, familiar, arms wrap around her to stop her fall. She would have ran, thinking it was most likely one of those jerks that usually roamed the hall after the bell, but she knew those arms. She slowly lifted her head, her blond curls falling nicely around her cheeks, to meet bright hazel eyes humorously watching her reaction. For a moment her breath caught in her throat, body staying frozen in place, unable to move. When she opened her mouth to speak nothing came out at first. Sam's eyes softened suddenly as he reached for her hands that she found were halfway reaching out to him.

"Sammy." She whispered, her voice echoing in her head, sounding foreign and far away. She would have cried, feeling the tears burning behind her eyelids as Sam began gently rubbing her fingers, smoothing over each one lovingly, eyes shining as a small smile spread across his face. That was the moment everything came flooding back. Once Jo saw that smile. Sam's dimples cutting into his cheeks beautifully, his hazel eyes reflecting the affection found in his smile. It all rushed to the reality that he was here with her, standing in front of her with her fingers intertwined with his, smiling like an idiot.

And she was falling in love with Sam Winchester all over again.

She flung herself at him, small arms wrapping around his waist, squishing her face against his chest as he pulled her in closer, kissing the soft curls on top of her head. Jo pulled back to look at him again, not believing he was actually there, her awed expression making Sam laugh and lean in to kiss her. Finally getting to taste those strawberry flavored lips, fisting his hand in those soft blond curls before she pulled back again, leaving his lips trailing after her. She quickly stood up, pulling him with her.

"How did you even get in here? God, I'm late to class... How are you here? You're here, you're standing in front of me." She rambled, reaching out to touch his chest to prove her theory. Sam chuckled at how she was acting before reaching to grab her hand which was still against his chest, lacing his fingers through hers.

"It's a long story, I'll tell it too you on the way." He said calmly, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. She looked dazedly from him to the closed classroom door and back to him again.

"On the way?"

"Have you ever skipped before?" Jo almost choked on air causing Sam to laugh at her again before pulling at her hand suggestively.

"Sammy, I can't. I'm already in trouble with Ellen and I-" she was cut off by Sam's lips against hers, widening the kiss within seconds, completely inhaling her. She gave in this time, missing his touch and the way his hair curled in her fingers, standing up on her toes to rest her hand along the base of his neck, brushing under his long hair, to pull him down closer. She didn't realize just how much she'd missed him until now as he pushed her up against the lockers gently, lips like fire against hers.

When she finally pulled back she smiled up at him, lips swollen and hair falling into her eyes causing Sam to brush the curls around her ear.

"You're cheating." She said simply, out of breath, causing Sam to raise his eyebrows at her questionably.

"You know there's no way I can say no to you after that." She said, breathing a laugh before picking up her bag from he floor and hanging it on her shoulder, Sam already had the books back in his arms from where she had dropped them earlier. Jo smiled, dimpling her pale cheeks as she held out her arm to him just as the bell rang and everyone was out the doors, crowding the halls instantly, on their way to their next class.

Were we really out here that long? Jo thought before grabbing Sam's hand and dragging him through the chaos, the two of them running down the hallway and out the doors of the school unnoticeably, not stopping until they reached his truck.

Cas woke up with Dean curled up against his side, arms wrapped around his waist comfortably. They had fallen asleep while Cas was studying last night, Dean always tries to help but has a short attention span. Cas' glasses were still on his nose but they were turned crooked, books were spread out across his lap and next to his side, random papers scattered on the floor. Dean had his head nestled under Cas' chin, his chest slowly rising and falling, arm wrapped around Cas' stomach. Castiel smiled to himself before kissing the top of his head softly and untangling himself from Dean, carful not to wake him up before trailing to the bathroom to take a shower.

The warm water felt nice on his skin, the cold weather lately was really getting to him. He always said he loved the winter, he just wished it wasn't so cold... Dean used this advantage over him all the time, like a couple nights ago... It was really getting old but it's not like Cas minded at all.

Two nights ago Cas had walked into his room, holding his sweater tightly around himself as he fell onto the bed. Dean had laughed, in the middle of taking his shirt off over his head, before crawling onto the bed, hovering over him.

Cas closed his eyes contently, breathing in Dean's scent as he leaned down closer.

"I'm tired." He said softly, opening his bright blue eyes to look at Dean above him. As if he hadn't heard him, Dean began to try pulling Cas' sweater off. Cas held it down with his hand stubbornly.

"And I'm cold..." He said, his voice sounding slurred.

"I'll keep you warm then." Dean whispered against his ear. Cas gave up and moved his arms over his head as Dean pulled the sweater off, the cold air of the room not able to reach his bare chest because Dean was already pressed down against him, resting his hands on either side of Cas' head. His touch felt like fire igniting under his skin as Dean slowly bent down to brush his lips over Cas' neck and up to the corner of his mouth.

"Dean, baby. I love you... But I'm tired." Cas said, squirming against him, trying to get comfortable knowing Dean wasn't going to listen to him.

"I love you too." Dean breathed against his cheek before pulling his bottom lip between his, kissing him as gently as he'd ever kissed him before, hips slowly rolling down against him causing his whole body to feel like it was on fire. Cas gave in, slowly kissing him back, moving his arms from his sides to wrap lazily around Dean's back. Dean pressed down harder at the touch causing Cas to gasp, allowing him access to widen the kiss.

"Dean..." Cas breathed against his mouth.

"Yeah?" Dean replied shortly, not letting him pull back from the kiss for more than a few seconds.

"I'm tired." Cas finally got out as he used all his strength to roll them over, now hovering over Dean who smiled at him tiredly. He was about to kiss Cas again but Cas put his finger down against his lips smiling.

"I said I'm tired Dean Winchester." He joked, sitting up to where he was straddling Dean against the bed. Dean hummed softly, tracing his fingers up Cas' side.

"Please." He whined causing Cas to roll his eyes before slowly laying back down against him, feeling Dean's body quiver as he moved above him. Cas nestled his head under Dean's chin, wrapping his arms under Dean's and around his shoulders, breathing deeply against Dean's chest before closing his eyes contently.

"I love you, Castiel." Dean said, his voice slurred. Cas felt warm fingers tenderly tracing through his hair making him sigh happily and hold Dean tighter.

"It's Cas." Cas breathed against his neck before kissing it gently. Dean groaned quietly in response, kissing the top of Cas' head softly.

"I love you too." Cas whispered before finally drifting into sleep.

Cas smiled to himself, squinting his eyes closed against the warm water pouring down onto his face when he heard a knock at the door. He practically slipped getting out of the shower, knowing Dean could sleep through anything and everything, running into the room with a towel around his waist shivering, quickly going through his dresser to find clothes.

"Just a minute!" He called from the room (not expecting any company today) as he threw a shirt on over his wet chest and jeans over his boxers, not taking the time to zip or buckle them, running out into the living room. When he finally got to the door he swung it open to find Jo and Sam were standing there, Jo cuddled up against Sam's side, hiding her face against the cold fall weather. Cas froze for a second, not believing they were actually there before Jo detached herself from Sammy to run over and hug him, standing up on her toes to reach her small arms around his shoulders.

"What are you two doing here?!" Cas asked as Jo pulled back and Sam almost knocked him over with a bear hug. He'd grown again, Cas' face only reaching his shoulder now...

"That's a long story that Sammy here will have to tell you." Jo said from behind Sam, blond curls bouncing as she walked around them and into the apartment, Sam pulling away and following her to the couch. Cas turned around, shouting over his head that he was getting Dean up, and practically ran into the room to find Dean already out of bed and on his way to the bathroom. Cas ran over to him, grabbing his arm and trying to guide him out the door, but Dean didn't move.

"Cas? What are you doing?" He asked, sleep visible in his eyes before he looked down and noticed Cas' jeans were still undone. Cas blushed as Dean laughed, reaching down to slowly zip them up, his touch causing Cas to bite his lip, his whole body quivering. When Dean's fingers moved up from to zipper to mess with the button Cas composed himself enough to try explaining everything.

"Sam and Jo are here. They just... Showed up. I don't know how but I'll bet you we'll be getting calls from two worried mothers in a little while and- Oh!" Cas practically shrieked as Dean had finished buttoning his pants and had pulled him up against him by his belt loops, fingers tight on his waist. Cas laughed it off before kissing his cheek gently.

"Dean... As I just said, our siblings? Yeah, they're in the other room, just to let you know." Dean laughed, leaning in to kiss Cas shortly before pulling back again and smiling, his green eyes bright and shining the way they alway did when looking at Cas.

"I know, I just didn't have a chance to say good morning." Dean mused, making Cas smile wider and reach up to cup Dean's face in his hands, kissing him once more before pushing off of his chest playfully and grabbing his hand to lead him into the living room where Sam and Jo were lounging on the couch. Sam was the first to get up, walking over to his older brother to pull him into a hug, now slightly taller them him. Dean laughed lightly into his brother's shoulder, clapping him on the back, his smile wrinkling the corners of his eyes. When he finally pulled back Jo was already coming out from around Sam's back and standing up on her toes to reach up and kiss Dean's cheek, laughing when she fell back onto the balls of her feet to see his expression.

"Whatever happened to you not liking me? I would say hate but it's more of an off and on annoying relationship kinda-"

"Summer happened." Jo said, cutting him off before wrapping her arm around Sam's, leaning up to kiss his cheek also. Dean just eyed her curiously but decided not to think too hard about it as he felt Cas' arms around his waist, his chest resting up against Dean's back.

"So, how did you manage to skip school, drive to Denver, pick up my baby sister and drive all the way here? You take after your brother... Too much." Cas said, his warm breath against Dean's ear making him smile and elbow him playfully when he mentioned him.

"Hey, if I remember correctly you always joined me." Dean defended, he was right... Cas sighed in defeat before twisting Dean around in his arms to playfully push him away. Dean scowled at him before sitting down on the couch, pulling Cas' arm to where he fell down on top of him, Dean taking this as an opportunity to tickle his stomach.

"Dean... I hate you." Cas gasped between laughter causing Dean to stop and kiss his forehead.

"You know that's far from true." Dean said smiling. "You're head over heels for me." Both of them laughed as Cas tried to get in a comfortable position on Dean's lap, Dean's arms now wrapping around his waist to hold him against him. He leaned back to kiss Dean's cheek, whispering in his ear as he did.

"Always have, always will, it's a curse really."

Sammy just smiled, for the first time he really didn't care, he was just glad his family was back together and everyone was happy. He sat down next to his brothers, leaning against Dean's shoulder as Jo sat down next to him, curling against his side and kissing his cheek. He smiled down at her, at Jo... His Jo, her eyes shining, blond curls falling perfectly around her heart shaped face as always.

I love you. She mouthed while playing with the hem of his jacket, leaning up to kiss him gently. He would never get over the sensation of her strawberry flavored lips against his. When she pulled back he smiled and mouthed Always causing her to light up and her cheeks to turn bright red as she leaned in to kiss him again.

Sam had remembered Cas trying to explain this to him before, he just didn't believe him at first.

But he was right. This was... Perfection. This is where he belonged.

This was his home.