Gabriel and Sam didn't make any grand spectacle of their wedding, although, Sam did manage to convince Gabriel to invite (most) of his siblings, Lucifer included. In turn, Sam called Dean up and, after interrupting every single one of his younger brother's apologies, he agreed to attend.

They'd married in the local courthouse, and, under Meg's insistence, went out for lunch afterwards. Nothing big, yet, it was meaningful nonetheless, just to have family around after so long, surprisingly without hard feelings.

Things went smoothly enough in their lives after that. Sam held his neuroses in check for the most part until an innocent comment from Gabriel set him off one day.

Sam stood at their sink, elbows deep in soapy water mumbling to himself as he counted out the correct number of strokes. "Gotta get them clean," he said, "Gabriel said the dishes were dirty. Can't let them stay dirty." The pile next to him had just been started.

"Sam?" Gabriel had just gotten home from his shift and was surprised that Sam wasn't hanging around in the front room, like he usually was at this hour. After hanging up the jacket of his uniform, he wandered into the kitchen.

Sam looked up, startled. "I- I-," he stammered, "Y- you're home. I- I'm," the wet plate in his hand crashed to the floor, and he immediately dropped to his knees, "Oh god, I- I- I'm so s- sorry. You said you needed them cleaned and it, she did the same things and I-" He reached for the broken shard, intent on cleaning them up.

Gabriel knelt down beside Sam and caught his wrist, brows furrowed in slight confusion and concern, "Sam, what are you talking about?"

"You said the dishes need to be cleaned," Sam tried to explain as tears leaked from his eyes, and he began to hyperventilate, "You said they needed to be cleaned, and Ruby would say the same thing, and I would do it exactly the same way every time because that's how they needed to be done."

"S-Sam, I didn't say that so you would feel obligated to do them, I..." Gabriel sighed softly, reaching up to wipe away a tear with his thumb; then, he cupped Sam's face, "I muttered it to myself, Sam, so I would remember to do them. I...I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." He shook his head, gathering the taller man to his person, "I-I'm so sorry..."

Sam shook his head, "It's not you." he said, jaw clenched. "It's not you, Gabriel. T-The drugs, they did this to me. She did this to me." He leaned into Gabriel's hand. "I just can't stop it," he shivered, "I want to and I can't."

Gabriel nodded, pressing closer to Sam, his arms strong, "I know, Sam, I know, but there are little things I can do to help...I want to help you, that's what I'm here for after all. You will get through this, I promise, we will get through this."

"How can you be so sure?" Sam sat back on his legs and pulled Gabriel into a hug. "How can you be sure," he repeated, pressing his face into Gabriel's neck.

Gabriel rubbed Sam back, his lips pressed to the shell of the brunet's ear, "Well, I mean...there's no way to ever be sure of these things, but, we're here, aren't we? We've beat the odds before, and I believe we can do it again."

Sam's laugh felt shattered and broken to his ears, "You say that now. You say that when it's just the dishes. What's going to happen if this gets worse?"

"We'll deal with it as it comes at us, okay? I promise, no matter what, I'll always be right here," Gabriel pressed a kiss to Sam's cheek, "we're going to be just fine."

Sam took several deep breaths and forced himself to relax. "I trust you," he said softly, "I trust you to stick with me through this." Then he laughed with true humor this time, "You came looking for me, of course you're going to stick by me." He sat silent for a moment before, "I love you, you know."

Gabriel grinned, the smile evident in his voice, "You're stuck with me, Sammy. I love you too, a whole hell of a lot!"

Gabriel stayed true to his words. Though they fought, like any couple, they stayed together. Sam's episodes decreased as the years went on, until they finally disappeared altogether, and he and Gabriel could finally put their pasts behind them.