AN: By semi-popular demand: Sam and Gabriel's story. I had a little something else in mind, and then Gabriel took on a life of his own. Thanks for still paying attention to this thing!

.-.-.-.-.
Guardian Angel
.-.-.-.-.

Sam set the unconscious agent onto the hospital bed and stepped back. Dean and Castiel were in the room next door. Dean was high as a kite and unable to keep his hands to himself, and Castiel was doing his best to keep Dean entertained and distracted enough to keep him from picking at his bandages. He would have just left them like that, but Castiel had asked him to take Gabriel with him and keep an eye on the agent.

'You may need to search him,' Castiel suggested as Sam picked Gabriel up. 'Thoroughly.'

'You like 'em short. That one's gotta be better'n Ruby. Strip 'im to his skivvies and do a cavity search,' Dean added with a giggle. 'Tha's a good idea… Wanna play T… T… Airplane strip search? Mmm…' He sucked on Castiel's fingers while moaning.

Sam sighed as he stared down at Gabriel. Asleep, the agent looked sweet and innocent. It was a drastic change from the playful smile. Now that Dean was safe and no one was threatening him, he could take the moment to appreciate how the man looked. Soft, golden hair, lightly tanned skin, perfectly manicured nails… The agent definitely took care of himself. A far cry from Castiel's mussed hair, five o'clock shadow, and ragged nails. There was something else… He could have sworn he'd seen the man before. He shrugged the thought away, believing that he had probably seen the agent in the background on occasion.

He may as well take Castiel's advice and search Gabriel. Not one pocket held a single weapon. He did, however, find a bag of Skittles, a half-eaten candy bar, and plenty of the small suckers hospitals handed out to children. A quick pat-down revealed some suspicious lumps hidden by the baggy scrubs.

He removed Gabriel's lab coat and pushed up his top and stared slack-jawed at the sight. He had been expecting the holster and guns, but not the handful of small explosives and detonator taped to Gabriel's stomach. He ran a finger over a scar that rested near Gabriel's heart. After removing the weapons and setting them aside, he turned Gabriel over and checked his back. Another small gun and a couple spare magazines greeted him, each carrying the delicate wings marking them as Angel Corp property.

Even Gabriel had a set of wings tattooed onto the small of his back. Sam grimaced at the thought that Gabriel and Castiel were probably no more than property to the agency.

He turned Gabriel back over and began removing his shoes. As he removed the first shoe, a small blade shot out from the toe, startling him. He turned the shoe over in his hand, giving it a disbelieving stare. He wondered if the other one had a phone in it. He tossed it aside and carefully removed the second before pulling Gabriel's pants off.

'Seriously?!'

Gabriel's legs were covered in tape and holsters. From what little skin that showed, Sam could tell the other agent must have waxed his legs. Piece by piece, Sam removed knives, guns, bullets, darts, small needles, a spoon, more lollipops, a small, fully stuffed envelope…

He opened the envelope and peeked inside. He frowned as he tugged out a photograph. It took him a moment to realize who it was. It was a photo of him sitting on a bench, eating lunch in front of the agency's main building. He turned it over to find very precise handwriting declaring what he was eating. He dumped the rest of the photographs onto the bed and stared at countless pictures of himself. Most were of him in public spaces, but there were a few where he was changing. One was of him pulling his shirt over his head. Little hearts were drawn around him and an arrow pointed at his abs.

He had his own stalker-angel. He didn't know what to think. He turned over another photo to find a badly written poem on the back.

Roses are red, violets are blue, bubblegum is pink, Samuel's hair is amazing.

Each picture had either a description of what was going on or another bad attempt at poetry.

He didn't know if he should be upset, flattered, or embarrassed for Gabriel. He recalled what Dean had told him about what Bobby had said about the Angel Corp agents. He couldn't bring himself to be angry at Gabriel. The way Dean had made it sound, and from the way Castiel acted, the agents didn't really understand what was and was not socially acceptable or expected.

With that thought, he tugged down Gabriel's boxers to get to the rest of the tape and weapons. Gabriel's pubic hair was very neatly groomed. Sam shook his head and smiled as he removed the last holster that rested about his hips. He replaced Gabriel's clothes and settled on the chair next to the door. He pulled out his phone and pulled up a book.

An hour had passed before Gabriel finally stirred. Sam looked up as Gabriel groaned and rolled over. In an instant, Gabriel shot up, frantically patting himself. He patted his legs then pulled his right pant leg over his knee, making a panicked whine. 'No… Where is it?!'

'What are you looking for?' Sam asked, remembering where he had found the envelope.

Gabriel gasped, and he slowly looked over his shoulder. He blushed brightly and pushed his pant leg back down. 'N-nothing!' He hopped off the bed and stumbled as he turned to face Sam. 'My stuff. You took my stuff!' he shouted accusingly, pointing at Sam.

Sam frowned. He could recall a similar situation, but he was certain he had never seen Gabriel before the other day. He set his phone on his chair as he stood.

'S-stay there. Don't… Don't come closer,' Gabriel said, crouching behind the bed. He stared up at Sam with wide eyes. He felt naked. He had nothing to protect himself with. He looked about the room, and his eyes fell on the small pile of his belongings sitting next to Sam's chair. Poking out just near the top was what he wanted most. Maybe Sam would give it back without any fuss? Did he look at it? He didn't seem angry… The subjects of his collections were usually very upset when they found out about his pictures.

He was eighteen when he obsessed over a young agent known as 'Kali.' It was great. They had passion. And then she found his collection of photos of her. He thought it better that she thought he was dead.

Gabriel bit his lip as the thought of his photo collection popped in his mind. He was really regretting his plan for getting Castiel laid. He had never thought it would have backfired like this. He sunk to the floor as Sam came a little closer. 'Stay there! Stop…stop coming closer! Leave me alone!'

Sam frowned at Gabriel as he stopped moving. 'Are you okay?' he asked. 'Gabriel?' His brows rose in surprise as Gabriel's cheeks flushed brightly before he hid his face behind the bed.

Gabriel gripped the edge of the bed tightly. Sam's voice was amazing on its own, but hearing Sam say his name was better than he had thought it would be. As much as he wanted Sam to throw him over the hospital bed and have his wicked way with him, Gabriel knew his chances were nonexistent. Sam didn't remember the first time they had actually met. Castiel may have had a chance with Dean, but those two had mutual attraction going on. Dean and Castiel had history. Him and Sam? Maybe Sam thought he was attractive, but… He had punched him and pointed a gun at him! That was no way to start a relationship. Normal people didn't do that. He knew that much from watching TV shows and movies.

Why couldn't one of his fellow angels have been there instead? He had nothing on him. The only way that was possible was if Sam had stripped him down completely. Gabriel pressed his forehead into the side of the mattress and groaned miserably. He felt so vulnerable and turned on. He gasped when a hand touched his own. He glanced up at Sam. 'Can I go?'

'So…are you assigned to me?' Sam asked.

Gabriel shook his head and looked down. He had submitted his application to be Sam's guardian several times over, but each time Chuck had just stared at him evenly before stamping it and handing it back. It was the only reason Chuck owned a stamp that read 'DENIED.'

Sam frowned, and his eyes flicked to where the envelope sat, nestled in the small pile of Gabriel's belongings. If Gabriel wasn't assigned to him, then why did the agent have so many pictures of him? 'Um… Gabriel?'

Gabriel forced a smile as he looked up at Sam. 'Yeah?'

'Why…' Sam trailed off, uncertain of how he should broach the subject. 'Never mind.'

Gabriel anxiously tapped his fingers on the bed. 'Can I…can I get my stuff back?' he asked.

Sam stood and backed away. He watched as Gabriel scuttled around the bed, not once letting go of it. As Gabriel reached the other side of the bed, he eyed the distance to the pile. He clutched his scrubs and hugged them tightly around himself before quickly hopping over to the pile. He crouched next to it and snatched up the envelope then stuffed it into his front pocket. He picked up a gun next then stood, looking much more confident than before.

'Right! So, you're going to sit there and be a good boy,' Gabriel declared. 'I'm going to check on Cas.'

'He's with Dean,' Sam replied with an amused smile.

Gabriel blinked at Sam. 'Oh? Uh…they're doing all right?' Sam nodded, and Gabriel frowned uncertainly. 'Are you sure? He's not just faking it?'

'No, last I saw, he was stroking Dean's hair to keep him still.'

'Okay… That's…good?' Gabriel chewed on his lip as he stuck his gun in the back of his pants. It didn't seem like Sam was lying. His memories were a little fuzzy on the moments before Castiel had shot him. He stepped up to the bed and grabbed a pillow. He removed the pillow sham and went back to his pile. Looking over his shoulder at Sam, he stuffed everything into the sham. He quickly looked away and stood.

'So, I'll see you later?' Sam said. He kept from laughing as Gabriel jumped and turned, a sucker sticking out of his mouth.

'Sure…uh… You wouldn't mind?' Gabriel shifted from foot to foot. Sam wanted to see him again? He gave a slight grin and stepped forward. He wouldn't need to submit an application if Sam actually wanted to see him.

Sam gave a shrug. He probably shouldn't be inviting Gabriel into his life like this, but he found the way the man would switch from overly confident to absolutely uncertain and lost endearing. 'Just…don't show up unannounced.'

Gabriel nodded happily. 'I can do that!'

.-.-.-.-.

A payphone rang as Sam passed it. He sighed and made his way to the ringing phone. He took a breath before answering it. 'Hello, Gabriel.'

'Sammy! You get a choice between brats and uh…ooh! A pretzel! I'll just bring both.'

Sam shook his head fondly. For the past three months, Gabriel had kept his word and called each time before showing up with food. 'That sounds great.'

By the time he reached his hotel room, Gabriel was already inside, meticulously arranging the table. He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms as he watched. Gabriel was wearing what Sam had come to know as his normal attire of loose jeans and a green coat. He laughed quietly as Gabriel lined up the placemats with a small ruler.

Gabriel straightened and held the ruler behind his back, blushing lightly. 'Oh, you're early!'

'I ran,' Sam replied.

'Well, it couldn't've been a full sprint. I have you clocked at…uh… I have food,' Gabriel trailed off, pointing to the small kitchenette. He grabbed a large paper bag from the counter and pulled out several boxes. 'Have a seat!'

Sam sat at the small table and propped his elbows on the table. He smirked at the indignant grunt that came from behind him. 'Something wrong?' he asked innocently.

'No,' Gabriel quickly denied as he set a plate with a bratwurst and pretzel in front of Sam, centering it on the placemat. He did the same with a second plate on the other side of the table. 'No, no, no, no… Um…' He eyed Sam's elbows momentarily before drifting back to the counter. He returned and set a couple beers on the table, turning the labels to face the chairs.

He sat at the empty seat with his hands in his lap. 'Sam… Can you uh… How was your day?'

Sam picked up a bratwurst while keeping one elbow propped on the table. 'Well, I've just been assigned to be Jo's backup until Dean's fully recovered,' he replied. He took a bite and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

Gabriel cringed. 'So…you and Jo… You guys are close?'

'Close as you can get.'

Gabriel sagged. 'Oh. That's good.'

Sam kept from laughing and took pity on Gabriel. 'We sorta grew up together. She's like a little sister.'

Gabriel brightened up considerably.

'What have you been up to lately?' Sam asked.

'Yesterday, I infiltrated a TV station!' Gabriel said excitedly. 'If you watch the next episode of Woodland Tree Team, I'm Captain Coyote. I got to dance around with all the other critters. Then I took photos of the cast in compromising positions.'

'Sounds like you had fun,' Sam commented.

'Surveillance and blackmail are the best gigs!'

'Surveillance, huh?' Sam had been trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to get Gabriel to confess to having his personal collection of Sam-centric photos. 'Take any good pictures lately?'

Gabriel grinned happily. 'Oh, I'll say!'

'What of?' Sam asked as he went back to having both elbows on the table.

Gabriel's grin faltered. 'Um…the Tree Team double teaming? Sam…could you…er…'

'What do you do with the pictures?'

'Er…depends… If we were hired to get them, we give the pictures to the client,' Gabriel replied. He shifted in his seat. 'Do you…um…'

'You don't keep any of them?'

'We keep the negatives. Look, Sam… How should I put this?' Gabriel's dropped to a mumble.

'What about me and Dean? Any pictures of us?'

Gabriel's mouth snapped shut, and he laughed nervously, blushing. 'No, of course not. Why would we have anything like that?!'

'Well, we keep photos of everyone we get involved with. Clients, targets…associates… Helps keep track of everyone and everything,' Sam explained. 'Don't wanna accidentally think that someone's an enemy. I've got a picture of you in my file as a known contact.'

'Just one?'

'That's all that's needed.'

'Oh… What about different angles? Wouldn't that be uh…helpful?'

'If you ask Dean, then yes,' Sam said, rolling his eyes. 'His file's turning into a photo album of him and Cas. He's…taken up scrapbooking.'

'So…that's not weird?' Gabriel asked in a careful tone.

'Depends.'

'On what?'

'Why's it matter?'

Gabriel made a frustrated noise. 'Well… If I had, hypothetically, a small, very small…'

Sam crossed his arms on the table and leaned forward.

Gabriel let out an annoyed growl. 'Will you stop that?!'

'Huh?' Sam leaned back in surprise.

'Get your elbows off the table!'

'Does this annoy you?' Sam asked sweetly.

'Yes! Oh, my, God! You're worse than Balthazar!' Gabriel shouted. 'At least he uses a napkin!'

Sam smiled as he removed his arms from the table. 'Better?'

Gabriel eyed Sam in suspicion. 'Yes. Thank you.'

'Now, as you were saying?'

Gabriel frowned, keeping a close eye on Sam's arms. 'Yes, well…pictures.' He picked up his beer and took a long swig. If Dean was collecting photos of Castiel, then it couldn't be that strange. 'I collect them?'

'What sort of pictures?'

Gabriel bit his lip and rubbed his neck. He liked Sam, and he figured Sam liked him as well. The taller man would smile at him, laugh at his jokes, and offer to get dessert. Even Chuck was tolerating his relationship with Sam. That was a good sign, right?

'You don't happen to have a knife on you, do you?' he asked.

Sam shook his head and frowned in confusion as Gabriel held his beer like a shield.

'I may have a few pictures of you…' Gabriel slowly lowered his beer when Sam only raised an amused brow. 'When I say "a few," I mean 1628.'

'That's more than a few,' Sam pointed out. He wondered where Gabriel kept them. There were about twenty in the envelope. 'When did you start…collecting them?'

Gabriel set his beer on the table. So far, so good. He gave a tentative smile. 'Uh… Five years ago? It was your twenty-first birthday, and Dean took you drinking. They called in some extra angels to keep you guys safe, and that's when I first saw you,' he said fondly. He looked down when Sam's eyes widened in surprise. 'I was assigned to be your waiter.'

Sam had absolutely no recollection of his birthday party, just a name: Trixie. Dean had said he had really liked Trixie. There had been pinching and kissing. Dean had been vague, at best. Apparently, Trixie had been dragged away by the bouncer before they got too involved. 'Uh…what happened?'

Gabriel's eyes flicked up. Sam didn't look angry. Not yet, at least. 'I brought you some drinks and appetizers. You were really amused by my nametag, and uh…you were very friendly. At first, it was just part of the job, but…then you pulled me on your lap and kissed me. And it was…it was really nice.'

'Trixie?' Sam asked weakly.

Gabriel looked up and smiled widely. 'You remember me?'

Sam slowly shook his head. 'Sorry… I just know what Dean told me.'

Gabriel pouted as he slouched forward. 'Oh…'

That certainly explained why Sam thought he had seen Gabriel before, and why Gabriel had become fixated on him. 'He said we really hit it off…'

'It's why I kept applying to be assigned to you,' Gabriel said dejectedly. 'But I'm "needed elsewhere",' he said in a snotty voice, making air quotes.

'But you're allowed to do…this?' Sam asked, gesturing to the table.

'I haven't been told to stop. What I do in my spare time is my business. As long as I get my assignments done, I can do whatever.' Gabriel chewed on his lower lip as he stared at Sam. 'Is this…is this okay? Do you want me to stop?'

Sam leaned back in his chair and stared at Gabriel. He watched as Gabriel fidgeted under his gaze, straightening his placemat and utensils. His mind supplied an image of Gabriel constantly replacing drinks onto coasters and shaking a finger at him. Until Sam grabbed his hand and wrapped his mouth around the accusing finger.

He shifted his gaze to Gabriel's hands, busy with turning the beer bottle to face forward. He reached out and took Gabriel's hand in his.

Gabriel gasped and watched, transfixed, as Sam pulled his hand toward his mouth. He didn't breath, afraid he would startle Sam. A soft moan escaped his lips as Sam slowly licked his finger. He had to get up and move around the table as Sam pulled him closer. His breath came in short rasps as Sam pulled him onto his lap. His voice waivered as he tried to speak. 'S-Sam…?'

'Shh.' Sam pulled Gabriel forward and lightly kissed his lips. 'I think I do remember a little…'

Gabriel yelped as Sam squeezed his ass. Ginning widely, he giggled and leaned forward to kiss Sam. He clutched tightly to Sam's shirt as he felt them start to tip over. Sam grunted beneath him as they hit the floor. 'Sorry,' he said with a breathless laugh.

Sam shook his head and laughed before reaching up to pull Gabriel back down.