Takes place sometime in Season 8 (not canon). Dean and Cas are back from Purgatory and Sam is back out of his stay-out-of-hunting funk. They're a team again, but what's going to happen when Sam learns of the nature of Dean and Cas's relationship? Established Destiel. Rated M for language, violence, and male/male sexual situations. This is sometime between my Teaching An Angel To Be Human story and my Unexpected Expectation story.

Ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo

"You're back on a dry spell?" Sam asked, as the two brothers headed out of the bar they'd visited.

"What?" Dean asked.

"That girl. She was interested and you blew her off." Sam explained, pointing back in the direction of the bar unnecessarily.

"Not my type." Dean replied simply.

"I didn't even know you had a type besides female and hot." Sam said, suddenly surprised.

"Dude, I have a type. Everybody does." Dean was sure of himself when he said this.

"Oh really. Tell me, what's your type? Since you're suddenly so deep." Sam waved his and as if offering Dean the floor.

"Not just to sleep with?" Dean asked, and when Sam nodded, they were on the same page, which struck a nerve with Sam. The two rarely talked about Dean's feelings on love and partners.

"I don't know. Flawed I guess. So I would still know what was real and what wasn't. Someone that could hang with this shitty lifestyle, would have my back without me having to worry too much about their safety. Not being worried about being cheated on would be nice. Ya know? I would like the feeling of trust there, someone devoted to me. Strong, but soft. Smart, without being a bitch about it. Funny without trying to be. And I'm a sucker for blue eyes, smooth skin…dark hair…perfect lips." Dean finished, biting his lower lip.

Sam laughed. "Dean, you just described Cas."

"Sure Sammy, perfect lips? Should I have thrown 'nice ass' in there for ya too?" Dean replied, laying the sarcasm on heavily. "Wait- why the hell are you looking at his lips?"

"I wasn't. It seems like you were." Sam said casually, "talking about them being perfect."

"No, you just said he had perfect lips." Dean argued, losing ground.

"I did not. I was saying that the other stuff you were saying sounded like you were describing Cas. Forget the lip thing. You're the one that said he had a nice ass." Sam was looking smug with himself.

"No. I was being you, Sammy. It's called imitation." Dean excused, face flushing.

"I didn't say anything about his ass. Just lips." Though his ass is gorgeous, Sam thought, remembering having stared at it before his brother and close friend went to Purgatory.

"Which led to my question, Sam. Why are his lips on your mind at all?" Dean demanded again.

"Calm down. I'm not trying to steal the last slice of Angel Pie on Earth." Sam laughed, patting Dean's back playfully.

"Bitch."

"Jerk." Sam replied. It had been a long time since they'd resorted to this. It brought back old times.

"You know that's not what-"

"I know. Relax your sphincter. Your perfect version of a *scoff* girlfriend sounds very hot." Sam assured. Even then, he never saw it coming. Let's just say Sammy was slow.

Ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo

They didn't even notice when Sam opened the door to enter the room, but to their defense he could move around very quietly if he wanted to. Not that he wanted to sneak up on what he was about to see. Had he known, he would have knocked and waited patiently until his brother opened the door to let him in. When he tested the knob, the motel room door wasn't locked, so it seemed safe enough. He couldn't have been more wrong.

They'd been so busy ever since joining forced again once Dean and Cas made it out of Purgatory together. Sam ignored how human his friend appeared to be upon seeing him again, and how weird things happened to be between all of them. It was slowly going back to normal, so anything that happened in the past stopped mattering to Sam. The group was on the road again, doing one of their cases that usually only Dean and Sam did together, but Cas found himself more in need of the company of his friends, so he tagged along. There'd been poltergeist activity in North Carolina, and the more-human-than-not angel got to see first hand the action the Winchesters saw on a 'normal' case. It was enthralling.

Now the team was taking a break, stopped off at a motel like usual. Sam left Dean to do research, which he told himself was an awful idea. Dean never did research right. He was so lazy about it, but Sam felt the grumbling in his stomach tug more prominently than any desire to do research. Since his brother wasn't hungry (weird), Sam had the green light on leaving to get food.

Entering the motel room again, he could literally have almost felt his mouth drop open and his jaw hit the floor. Directly in front of where he now stood was his brother and Cas, in bed, together. Dean was on his back with the angel laying on top of him, propped up on his elbows, gently lowering enough to press his lips against Dean's. His brother responded to it, closing his eyes and tilting his head upward into their kiss. It was likely that the two were naked under the blanket and sheet that covered them, they were definitely naked from the waist up. Dean's arms were around Cas's torso, hands flattened against his shoulder blades, guiding the angel's grinding movement.

Sam must have made a noise in his throat, must have taken a loud footstep backward, must have done something to get their attention, because very slowly, blue eyes scanned over to where he stood, obviously looking shocked and foolish.

"Sam," Cas almost whispered.

That would be a trigger word for Dean, who quickly snapped out of his momentary bliss, eyes wide and panicked, locked on his brother.

"Sam!" Dean almost shouted, attempting to sit up, which sent Castiel sprawling to the floor and out of Sam's view with an oof type sound, dragging the sheet down with him, having it caught around him. He was back up in a moment, gripping the sheet to wrap around his waist in an attempt to cover his nakedness. Dean already took the comforter to cover himself and both men were now standing awkwardly in the motel room. Dean stepped forward to try calming Sam, but the younger brother's eyes widened even more, putting up one hand to signal his brother not to come any closer.

"What the Hell, Dean?" Sam asked, very confused and slightly overwhelmed.

"It's not what you think, man." Dean started, opening his mouth to say more but Cas interrupted his thoughts.

"How is it not what he thinks? He probably thinks we were about to make love." He asked gruffly, hand clutching his sheet to keep it up.

"Okay, it's exactly what you think." Dean corrected, embarrassed, reddening in the face.

"Dean…really. This is kind of disrespectful, even for you. Are you drunk?" Sam started. He had the wrong idea, but what was he supposed to think? His brother never told him about having any kind of relationship with Cas. Naturally, he assumed he'd walked in during one of Dean's fleeting one nighters.

"I love him, Sam." Castiel started to explain, which shocked the younger brother even more.

"Great, Dean. Did you know that part before getting him into bed with you? He's not a toy, dude." Sam couldn't help it. He still saw Cas as an angel of the Lord, and therefore innocent and easy to take advantage of. "Really, fine time to experiment with your sexual preferences. You couldn't have done this to somebody you're not going to hurt?"

"Sammy-" Dean started. He really had no idea what to say. Yes he planned on telling his brother about he and Cas at some point. This was not the right time for him to find out that they were together. He'd wanted to break it to Sam gently.

"Sam, please. I know what I'm doing." Cas assured.

"Cas, don't be stupid. You know him. You've seen what he's like. Answer me, Dean, are you drunk?" Sam asked, motioning at his brother when he said this.

"Calm down. You don't understand. Please, let me explain." Cas tried again, earning a scoff from Sam, and then silence.

"Dean and I, well, this relationship isn't new. We've been 'seeing' one another for some time now. We first expressed our love for one another years ago, back when Bobby was mourning over Karen's second death. We'd kissed after that carnival we went to, the first night I drove the Impala, but at that point Dean was intoxicated, so I asked him to wait until his head was clear. I've been bound to him since the very day I brought him up from Hell. Our profound bond is more than just words. Slowly, we started to become each other's other half. We're in love, Sam."

"Really? All this time, and you didn't tell me?" Sam started, feeling left out, still letting the shock of the situation seep into his brain.

"I did, once. But that was before your soul was restored and you forgot everything. Dean wasn't comfortable telling anybody about us. Especially you, Sam. He was worried about how you'd react. He thought maybe your opinion of him would change. I'm very sorry. Truly, I am. I wanted to tell you. We wanted to tell you."

"Is that true?" Sam asked, softening slightly, eyeing his brother who was now looking down at the carpet in shame. His cheeks were still flushed and his eyes held that deep look they always did when he felt that he was about to be horribly disciplined. He didn't speak, but when Sam addressed him, he nodded.

"Dude, I can't help but be surprised. I mean, he always liked women before. This would be like him suddenly liking something more than pie. A cucumber, for example." Sam motioned at Cas when he said 'cucumber' and the angel double-checked his sheet without meaning to, just to make sure it still covered all.

Dean tried not to laugh at the semi-accurate depiction there, and Sam continued his speech.

"You've been together all this time?"

Cas nodded, before explaining, "Yes, in a sense. We have had our bouts, like when he left me for Lisa," the angel glared over at the older brother momentarily, before turning back to Sam and continuing, "but more often than not, we have been together."

"Is that why you were so mad over Lydia that time?" Sam asked, remembering the fight that Dean and Castiel had after Sam accidentally mentioned it. They said they were fighting over something else, but the way they looked at each other said otherwise. It was another violent night, and the two of them went at it like drunk Irish men, fist fighting and tearing the motel room apart.

Cas nodded, breaking his gaze from Sam's. He'd forgiven Dean for that, but it still hurt to think about, more than it hurt to think about Lisa.

Dean stood there for a moment, thinking about how unlike his nightmares this had been. He'd had dreams about what it would be like if Sam were to find out about his hidden sexuality, and these dreams were always frightening and violent.

"On and off, for three years. And I thought Dean had commitment problems. You should feel pretty special, man. He never stays that long with anybody." Sam started, trying not to laugh out of confusion. This whole conversation was bittersweet.

"Cas, I gotta ask though, you said you're in love. Are you sure that you're…" Sam started, moving his hands in a circular motion as if trying to turbine the right words into his brain.

"In love with him?" Cas offered. Sam nodded.

"Yes. I know what it means. He is everything to me."

"Then don't hurt him, man. I can see that he trusts you. And if he loves you, that would be the first time he's loved anyone. He needs somebody. And if you've kept him interested in you this long, something must be right there. But don't get hurt either. What I mean to say is, Dean, are you sure about this? I know its none of my business, but neither of you deserve to suffer. I mean, you've been through enough."

"Sammy, this thing doesn't seem like I want to stop. I mean, I could *tap* that." Dean was really trying the best that he could. He was nervous, and nothing was coming out right. He wanted to say, "Yes, Sam. I love him. I want to be with him until I die." But something about his manly nature wouldn't let that come out. He had to maintain at least some form of dignity, standing in the middle of the room, almost nude.

"Like, forever?" Sam asked, the excitement not hidden in his voice.

"No, that would cause chafing." Dean answered smartly.

The two brothers laughed for a moment, and then Dean went back to being unsure of himself, not knowing where to go in the conversation.

"Please tell him that you're not mad at him. He truly needs that." Cas pleaded gently, motioning to the man he loved, who was still looking down, humiliated at what he'd been caught doing. He loved Castiel, more than anything, but years and years of judgment and abuse by his father, the man that brainwashed his life, was enough to send him into fits of shame. He thought maybe John managed to make up Sam's mind for him many years ago.

"Dean. You're my brother. I want you to be happy, man. I'm not mad. I'm not grossed out. I mean, I didn't want to walk in on you two, but I never wanted to walk in on you with girls either. I'm totally surprised, but I shouldn't be, now that I think about all you and Cas's awkward eye-sex moments. There were so many hints."

Dean chuckled, then stopped and sniffed for a moment, placing a hand on his hip like he did when he was hiding a wave of emotion.

That part was true, the signs were pretty obvious. Everybody made cracks about Dean and Cas, and the bond that they shared. Esther, Crowley, Balthazar, Hell everybody talked about it. Meg was 100% sure of herself when she mentioned their relationship not being platonic. Even Bobby joked about it when he was alive. It had been one of the first things that Uriel said that wasn't related to how much he hated humans. Everybody could see it except Sam.

Dean had almost been caught with Cas on more than one occasion. They'd narrowly escaped kissing in front of various friends, and only a short time ago, Sam nearly found them showering together. He'd come into the bathroom to shave while his brother showered, which wasn't unknown to them. Living together almost constantly, it just came with the territory. Dean just had to make sure that Cas was quiet and remained motionless until Sam left, as he'd been unable to fly away.

"Honestly, I can't imagine somebody you'd fit with better than him." Sam smiled. So, my brother is in love with a man…kind of. An angel-man. He's happy. They love each other. I could get used to it.

"So…" Cas started. "Dean, Sam. I am sorry that it happened this way. So how about we put our clothes back on and get down to business. Or Sam could go take a shower… and Dean and I could hurry up and-"

"Cas!" Dean exclaimed.

"Sorry. I'm too human anymore."