Work Text
Dean Winchester had officially fucking had it.It all started three days ago when he moved into his new home. First, he stubbed his toe on the box holding his Star Trek collection, and almost went tumbling down the rickety staircase face first. Then, he almost dropped his massive flat screen tv when he tried to carry it in by himself because one of the front porch steps gave out. And sure, he had gotten the television for free by doing a favor for an antique store owner, but that wasn’t the point. Just when he thought he was in the clear, the next day his ’67 Chevy Impala, his baby started leaking oil. Then, he found out that the master bathroom had a very leaky sink that the real estate agent mysteriously “forgot” to mention, just like she seemed to have forgotten to mention a lot of the issues the house had.Dean thought that the third day into his move would be better. He had every reason to believe it would. He woke up to birds singing and the sun shining, and he had found the Impala’s leaking issue relatively quickly, which provided him with some free time since he had opted out on moving the heavier furniture until his little brother Sam got off work and could help him. Free time meant he could finally do what he had been dying to do since he moved in… start on his garden.The backyard of his new house was what reeled him in. There was a big, open space not far from a gorgeous, old willow tree and small pond that would be absolutely perfect for his garden, and maybe if he wouldn’t have fixated on the yard so much, he would have noticed what a fixer upper the house actually was, but he didn’t care. So, while he finally had some time, he stuffed a BLT in his mouth and grabbed his gardening tools with zero shame.Dean wasn’t entirely sure how the whole gardening thing had started. Well, he wasn’t sure how he actually started enjoying it. It had started when Sam’s girlfriend Eileen had moved into the house that Dean and his brother had been sharing. Eileen had insisted that the house have a garden, and one day Sam sent Dean a text while he was at work telling his older brother to be a gentleman and get his ass off the couch and help her with the yard work. Eileen had rolled her eyes fondly but shoved a bag of Miracle Grow in his arms. The rest was history. Dean started helping Eileen on all the days he had off when Sam wasn’t around. He tried to convince himself that it was just him trying to bond with Sam’s girlfriend now that they were getting serious. In reality…Dean loved it. He loved getting his hands dirty, loved seeing something grow because he was taking care of it. There was something cathartic about it. Dean knew it was probably due to some misplaced feelings since his little brother no longer needed to be taken care of, but hey, it was relaxing. Between being a big, hot shot lawyer, and having a move-in girlfriend that he was two seconds away from proposing to, Sammy didn’t need him anymore anyway. Dean knew when he had overstayed his welcome, and began house searching. He was relieved when he found a place only 20 minutes from Sam and Eileen’s, one that he could miraculously afford since he had been able to save more money since Eileen had moved in. Dean also knew that their “uncle” Bobby paid him a little (a lot) more than most mechanics got paid.But that was besides the point.Dean had had it.When he finally realized that he had the time to start on a garden of his own, his week was supposed to get better. He had made the trip to Lowe’s in record time, even though he had been driving gingerly on the way back to keep dirt from getting in his baby’s backseat. He didn’t have all the things he wanted for the garden, but it was a start. Lowe’s hadn’t had the biggest variety of flowers, and it was nothing too fancy, but the purple coneflowers, black-eyed Susans, dahlias, and peonies would do for now. He even threw in some giant blue hyssops. Eileen had told him that technically those were a part of the mint family, but she insisted that he get some because they attracted honey bees, and bees were the foundation of a flourishing garden.Dean was finally going to get to relax. His car was fixed, his brother was going to help him finish moving in, and he was finally going to get his hands dirty and add some color to the blank canvas that was his backyard. It was going to be perfect.And things really did start out perfect.A couple of hours into gardening, Dean was covered from head to toe in dirt, slightly sunburned, and incredibly exhausted, but things were already looking beautiful. The flowers, and even the mint, were the perfect pop of color not far from the willow tree whose leaves tickled the surface of the pond it was growing next to. It looked like something out of a fucking Bob Ross painting, and Dean couldn’t be prouder. He had definitely earned the gallon of water he was about to chug, and the beer he planned on cracking after. He rehydrated himself and heated up some lasagna right as afternoon began creeping in. He popped the top to an El Sol and decided to take one last look at his garden before Sam came over, and that’s where it all went wrong.Eileen had not been kidding about attracting honey bees. It had only been about 30 minutes and they were all over his flowers. Dean knew pollination was good for growth, but he had never seen this many bees in Eileen’s garden, and he immediately got paranoid that those little bastards were going to steal too much nectar and hurt his plants. There was one in particular that kept flying around and landing on one of his gorgeous red dahlias, and in a fit of annoyance, he tried to bat it away. It immediately flew away from the flower, but not five seconds later, landed on his eyebrow. And then the fucker stung him.That’s how Dean Winchester ended up at a pharmacy with his entire right eye swollen shut, standing in line with a tube of Sting Eze while Sam blew up his phone from Dean’s driveway wondering where in the hell he was.
Sam snorted in a failed attempt to stop himself from laughing. “Dude, you look like a Klingon and Frankenstein had a baby.” Sam’s voice was pure amusement, his eyes raking over Dean’s horribly disfigured face. Okay, maybe that was being a little dramatic. But the swelling had spread, and he was looking pretty gnarly.“This whole thing is bullshit.” Dean snapped. “I can’t have one nice thing without those sons of bitches ruining it.” Sam was downright cackling now, and Dean vowed to pee in his favorite expensive conditioner the next time he visited. They had finished unloading all of Dean’s furniture from the rented U-Haul a few hours earlier and had been drinking ever since. Sober Sam had showed concern over Dean’s bee sting. He had done plenty of Googling to insure Dean that most of the swelling should be down tomorrow if he kept taking Benadryl and kept applying Sting Eze. Sober Sam was a great internet fueled nurse. But drunk Sam? Drunk Sam thought the whole thing was hilarious.“Oh, come on, Dean. Bee stings really aren’t that bad.”Dean scoffed. “How the fuck would you know? You’ve never been stung by one.”“Yes, I have.” Sam whined. “Remember when I was five? At Bobby’s house?”“Uh, no. I’ve been practically raising you since you were in diapers. I would remember if you got stung by a bee, Sam.”“And I definitely remember it! Bobby yelled at me for playing in an old abandoned car and called me an idiot for not realizing that sometimes bees could use old abandoned car frames for their hives.” Sam was frowning determinedly, and Dean was not having it.“I’m calling bullshit.” Dean growled. “It would have scared the shit out of me because you could have been allergic. I’m telling you, you’ve never been stung by a bee in your life.”“Whatever, Dean. I know I got stung.” Sam crossed his arms petulantly. Dean stood up abruptly, stumbling over to the coffee table that had his keys on it. If Sam wanted to be a brat, fine. But he could be a wrong brat. “What the hell are you doing?” Sam asked as soon as Dean picked up the keys, standing up quickly.“I’m proving you wrong. Get in the car. We’re going to ask Bobby.” Dean tried to ignore how his words slurred.Sam jerked the keys out of his hand without a second thought, ignoring Dean’s shocked protest. “You’re drunk.” He paused a moment as if in thought. “And so am I. Neither of us are driving. I’m crashing on your couch tonight.”“Give me the keys.” Dean ordered. Did Sam really think he was going to come into his house, make fun of his fucked up face, and then steal his keys?Sam just dangled the keys above Dean’s head with a raised eyebrow, and Dean immediately tackled him to the ground. He didn’t care if Sammy’s freakish growth spurt had made him freakishly tall, this meant war. They fought over the keys until Dean accidentally hit his funny bone (it wasn’t funny) on the coffee table, and Sam managed to squirm away. Dean immediately began chasing him, and Sam dashed for the backdoor, barreling out into the backyard so fast he almost tripped. Sam was fast but seemed to have forgotten that Dean’s backyard was fenced in with a privacy fence. He stopped with a panicked look on his face, glanced at Dean just a few feet away, and suddenly chucked Dean’s keys over the fence.“Did you just throw baby’s keys in the fucking neighbor’s yard?” Dean exclaimed in disbelief, stopping so abruptly he almost stumbled on the grass.“You’re drunk, Dean. I’m not letting you drive.” Sam said firmly.“So?! You pocket my keys or stick them down your pants or hide them or something! You don’t just throw them in the neighbor’s yard!”Sam shrugged and smirked. “I guess now you have an excuse to meet the neighbors.”“I don’t want to ‘meet the neighbors.’” Dean spat. “I moved all the way out here to avoid people, not tell them my freak of a brother threw my keys in their yard.”Sam just shrugged again, yawning. “It’s kinda late.” He said, looking thoroughly pleased with himself. “Dark too. You might just want to try and find them in the morning.” He gave Dean a toothy grin and patted him on the shoulder before walking back inside.Sam was very lucky that Dean didn’t hold a pillow over his face that night.
Dean had been staring at his fence for at least 15 minutes. He had two options. The first option was to go knock on the neighbor’s door. It would be awkward, especially as a first introduction, but maybe Dean could pull it off as quirky and endearing. His second option was to climb over the fence, grab his keys, and haul ass. It would completely avoid the whole unnecessary, awkward human interaction, and he would be able to avoid getting invited into someone’s home for lemon squares, or whatever neighborly people did.It only took about 20 more seconds for Dean to decide to hop the fence. In the process of hauling himself over, he nearly lost his footing and fell and made some internal, self-deprecating joke about needing to be ten years younger, but he somehow managed to get himself on the other side and land on his feet. It didn’t take him long to find his keys. The sun managed to beam off his keyring at just the right angle to catch his eyes, and he reached down and grabbed them. He dusted them off even though there was nothing on them and prepared himself to hop back over the fence when he saw it. The reason his entire move had been ruined.On the other side of his neighbor’s yard, barely visible from where he was standing, there were beehives. More than a dozen of them. Right in the middle of the hives was someone in a beekeeper suit. Across the broad shoulders of the beekeeper in swooping lettering the words “Castiel’s Honey” were embroidered. There was even a cute little fucking bee embroidered right under that.So, this person was the reason why Dean’s garden was completely infested with a bunch of bees who were dicks. Dean started making his way towards the hives to tell his neighbor to keep the bees in his yard when he stopped himself. Not one of his brightest ideas. He didn’t have a suit and he was pretty sure it was impossible to force bees to stay anywhere because they were wild animals. Dean just huffed a frustrated sigh and hauled himself back over the fence into his yard. Later that day, Dean’s paranoia got the best of him and he texted Eileen to ask her if the bees could hurt his flowers. She sent a bunch of laughing emojis that Dean frowned at, but then FaceTimed him. Since he was sitting at the dinner table (definitely not eating Spaghetti-O’s straight from a can), he propped his phone up against his cheap fake fruit centerpiece. He wasn’t good at signing yet, and he knew very little, but he was trying. He was pretty sure Sam was going to marry this woman, and while she was incredible at reading lips, he felt like he should at least learn a little sign language.Eileen was smiling when he finally got his phone settled. “You good?” She asked and signed at the same time. He knew she was doing this for his benefit because he was trying to learn. She very rarely signed to Sam unless they were having some super-secret convo where they didn’t use words at all.“Yeah, I’m good.” Dean replied. He only signed ‘yes’ though.“Would you stop worrying about the bees?” Eileen said teasingly. “They only take what they need from the flowers. They won’t take enough to harm them. It’s the natural balance of things, they know what they’re doing.” Dean had already lost track of her hands.“Yeah, but there’s a lot of them, Eileen. Way more than you ever had in your garden. And one freakin’ stung me!”“God, are you still bitching about that, Dean?” Sam’s voice came from somewhere else in the room, but he slid into frame just long enough to kiss Eileen on the forehead and give Dean a quick wave. From the look of his undone tie, he had just gotten off work.Dean opened his mouth to throw some poorly constructed insult at his brother, but Eileen interrupted him. “Did you find all the flowers you were looking for?” Dean recognized the sign for flower, and he smiled.“Uh, well, Lowe’s had more than I thought they would. But they didn’t have everything. I think I’m going to have to buy most of them as seeds instead of half-grown flowers. Which I’m okay with. I just didn’t know if it was too late in the season to start with seeds.” He shrugged.“It depends on the plant. Some take months to fully mature, but some will be fine. You should go to the Farmer’s Market tomorrow. They sell plenty of seeds there. Really delicious organic vegetables too.” She looked almost dreamy while elaborating on all the things the market had to offer, and Dean bit back a laugh. She really was the perfect girl for Sam.Dean agreed to check out the market when Sam appeared back on screen. “You wanna come over for dinner?” He asked earnestly.“The whole point of me moving out was so that I wouldn’t be up your ass anymore, Sam.” The words had no bite, but Dean still felt guilty saying them.Sam frowned. “I’m just worried about you, Dean. You didn’t even really hangout with anyone when you lived here, in town. Now you’re practically out in the middle of nowhere and you haven’t even introduced yourself to your neighbors-““I’m fine.” Dean growled. “And I just hung out with Garth the other day.”“Yeah, at work. Doesn’t it get lonely not seeing anyone outside of work and your brother?”“I’ve gotta go, Sammy.” Dean replied dismissively, trying to fix the scowl on his face. “Bye, Eileen. Keep Bigfoot in check for me.” He ended the call before either of them could reply. He stuffed his phone in his pocket and aggressively grabbed his half-eaten Spaghetti-O’s and tossed them in the garbage. He wasn’t lonely. Maybe a little bored. But that’s what he had hobbies for, right?Dean went to bed early and told himself it was so that he could get up and get to the Farmer’s Market before it got too busy.
Dean never thought he would be this person. He was currently carrying a reusable canvas bag that was crammed full of seeds and vegetables, and he hadn’t even made it half way through the market yet. He was debating on going back to the Impala to empty the bag and start over, but figured he was probably going overboard and could just come back next weekend. Right as he was about to leave, something caught his eye. A rickety, wooden sign up ahead had “Castiel’s Honey” painted messily in yellow and black letters. The market was too crowded to see the booth or its owner, but Dean knew that it had to be his neighbor. Who the fuck else would have the name Castiel? Dean politely excused himself through the crowd to give his neighbor a piece of his mind about his god damn bees but stopped short right in front of the booth.He wasn’t sure what he was expecting. Maybe someone Bobby’s age with a beard that had flowers in it or something? But the guy sitting at the booth was probably only a couple of years older than Dean and was… he was hot. Like really hot. He had the whole messy, bird’s nest hair thing and totally pulled in off. Despite his dorky “Bee the change” shirt, Dean could tell he had broad shoulders and muscular arms and-And the fucking psychopath was feeding a bee honey out of the palm of his hand.He finally noticed Dean was staring at him with his jaw on the floor, and he met Dean’s gaze with warm, oceanic blue eyes. “Hello.” He said in a deep voice that immediately made Dean feel like he never actually hit puberty. “Can I help you?”Dean forced himself to snap out of it. Yeah, the weirdo was hot, but his bees were still being a menace. “Uh, yeah. Are you Castiel?”The psychopath beekeeper smiled. It was a nice smile that didn’t show on his lips as much as it showed in his big, blue eyes. He waved his hand and the bee flew away without so much as buzzing angrily. “I am. Are you interested in my honey?”Now was not the time for sexual innuendos, but it didn’t stop Dean’s brain anyway. He shook his head. “Actually, I’m your neighbor.” He said dumbly, unable to take his eyes off Castiel. Wasn’t he supposed to be cursing the guy out or something?“Oh!” Castiel exclaimed in surprise. He squinted and tilted his head slightly. “You’re the one with the really loud car.”Suddenly all the inappropriate thoughts about the guys disappeared from Dean’s mind. Insulting Baby? That was the last straw. “And you’re the one with the asshole bees.” Dean snapped, grinding his teeth.“….excuse me?”Dean pointed to his eyebrow that was still slightly swollen. It wasn’t really noticeable unless directly pointed out, but Dean still knew it was there. “They’re infesting my garden and one of those buzzing dicks stung me.”Castiel frowned. “Honey bees don’t buzz.” He said seriously.“Well it still stung me!”Castiel stood up abruptly. There were various bees flying about his jars and booth, but none of them paid him any mind as he went around the table and got up in Dean’s personal space. Dean should’ve had the normal reaction to take a step back, but instead he stood there, frozen, as Castiel gently cupped his face, his thumb smoothing over Dean’s injured eyebrow. It was way too close and way too intimate and Dean forgot how to breathe. “Most of the swelling is gone. You must be taking care of it.” He dropped his hand but didn’t step away. “You know, it’s kinda funny. One of the best natural remedies for a bee sting is honey. Would you like to buy some?”“Wh-what?” Dean spluttered. This dude was trying to sell him honey that his dumb bees had made from stealing ingredients from his garden? “No, I don’t want to buy any of your honey.”“Well, can you move out of the way for us people that want to?” Dean and Castiel turned to both look at a petite, very irritated looking woman. She tossed a lock of brunette hair over her should to punctuate her point.Castiel gave Dean an apologetic look and returned to his booth.Dean just scoffed, hiking his canvas tote further up his shoulder, sending Castiel one last glare before making the trek back to the Impala.
Sam dropped his fork in his salad plate with a loud clatter so that he could pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration. “No, you can’t sue your neighbor because you feel like you should be compensated for the money he’s making off of his bees’ honey.” He groaned.“But they’re using my flowers to make the honey!” Dean whined around a mouthful of burger. He and Sam had decided to grab lunch at Benny’s Cajun restaurant. Dean had taken off enough work for the move and had to head back to work the next day, and he figured seeing Benny would shut Sam up about socializing for a while.Dean swallowed roughly and took a sip of his drink before continuing. “I was talking to Eileen and she said that the rumor in the Farmer’s Market community-“ Sam rolled his eyes. “-is that the guy has never had that much honey or sold that much in one given weekend. I get that they’re his bees. But I feel like I’ve made an investment and I’m not getting any pay out. It’s my flowers producing the nectar. It’s my ass being stung. Aren’t you supposed to be a hot shot lawyer? Can’t you do something about this?”Sam balled up his used napkin and tossed it in his abandoned lunch. “No, I can’t. Any judge in their right mind would see how insane you would have to be to try and sue your neighbor over something so petulant.”“The neighbor must be good lookin’.” Dean jumped, not even noticing that Benny had come to refill their drinks. It was way below his pay grade, but he always took care of their refills when they came in.Sam’s eyes suddenly lit up. “And what makes you say that, Benny?”Benny laughed. “Just thinkin’ back to high school when Dean had a crush on Cassie, and he used any excuse in the book to be rude to her.” He turned to top off Dean’s glass and shot him a wink. “Our boy here never did grow out of pulling someone’s hair on the playground to show he likes ‘em.”“So, that’s it, huh? The neighbors hot?” Sam crooned teasingly, his eyes full of mirth.Dean scowled. “He’s okay. But that’s not the point. The point is, he owes me.”“Whatever you say, Dean.” Sam replied, hiding a knowing smirk behind his glass of water.
Three times.Dean had gotten stung three more times in the past week. He had easily become a regular at the pharmacy, and he had to deal with Garth spouting off home remedies for bee stings everyday at work while he was under the hood or body of a car. Luckily, no more of the stings had been on his face, just his arms and hands.He wanted to go to Castiel’s house and complain, but that meant actually talking to the guy, and Dean wasn’t interested. He had tried to complain to Eileen since Sam and Benny were still making fun of him, but then she chastised him about being rude and revealed that Castiel was a “total sweetheart”. He apparently knew sign language on top of various other languages, held charity events at the Farmer’s Market every month, and kissed babies and helped old ladies across the street or something. Dean had managed to avoid the (sweet) weirdo since his trip to the Farmer’s Market. Thank god for the privacy fence.But that all changed when Dean went to check his mail. Regardless of the privacy fence, and the decent distance between their homes, Dean and Cas’ driveways and mailboxes weren’t far from each other. Dean could see Cas at his own mailbox in his peripheral but ignored him up until the exact moment when a gruff voice said “Hello, Dean.”Dean flinched. He had never given Castiel his name. He looked at his neighbor with raised, accusatory eyebrows. Castiel smiled and took the first envelope off his stack of mail. He handed it to Dean and when he looked down at it, he realized it has his name and address. Maybe the guy wasn’t a serial killer beekeeper after all. “Uh, thanks, Cas.” He said, trying to ignore the heat rising to his cheeks. When he looked back up, Cas had a confused look and a tilted head that Dean just absolutely refused to find adorable. He blushed harder, hoping that the impromptu nickname was okay. Maybe Benny had been right. Maybe Dean had a little crush on his attractive, strange (but somehow charming) neighbor. Sue him. He barely knew the guy, but it had been way too long since he had last gotten laid, and he had a thing for the baby blues. And it wasn’t like he was a dick; his bees just were. Dean shot him a dazzling, charming smile, and reached for his own mailbox without taking his eyes off Cas. He had no idea if Cas was into dudes, but a little flirting would probably give him an answer. His smile immediately fell when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his left hand as soon as it met his mailbox.“Son of a bitch!” Dean yelled as a now dead honeybee fell from his hand. Dean ripped the stinger out of his palm unceremoniously and didn’t want to think about how he was used to it by now.“Oh no!” Cas exclaimed to Dean’s right. He made his way over to Dean quickly, dropping his mail, and Dean secretly hoped he was going to be a little touchy feely like he had been the last time he had seen Dean’s sting, but instead he ignored Dean completely in favor of bending down and picking up the dead bee. He frowned at is sadly, cradling it in his hand as if it were still alive.Dean felt some of that petty annoyance he had experienced before return at full force. “Oh yeah, I’m fine. Totally ignore me for the dead bee, dude.”Cas shot him a dirty look, and it wasn’t one of the ones Dean enjoyed being on the receiving end of. “When they sting someone or something, it rips their stinger out along with their entrails. Can you imagine how traumatizing that has to be?”Dean worried his bottom lip. He wanted to make a joke about it being traumatizing to be constantly stung, but he had a feeling that Cas wouldn’t find it funny. He didn’t know what to say.Sighing, Cas took the toe of his shoe and created a little hole in the dirt. He bent down and gently placed the bee in it before covering the hole. Dean once again was trying really hard not to think about how the guy was starting to seem more cute than weird, and Dean was having a really hard time being mad at him. Cas stood up and furrowed his eyes apologetically. “Are you okay?”Shrugging, Dean looked down at the sting. It was already starting to swell. “Do you ever get stung?”“Not anymore.” Cas replied wryly. “I think they sort of… trust me now, trust that I’m not a danger to the hive.”“Yeah, because I’m so dangerous, right?” Dean scoffed.Cas smirked. “Who knows? You could be.” He then winked, or at least tried to. It was awkward and unpracticed, but it had Dean grinning like an idiot anyway. Cas picked his mail up off the ground. “I’ll see you around, Dean.” Dean was just pulling his broccoli and cheddar stuffed chicken out of the oven when his doorbell rang. He gently placed the pan on a cooling rack, and tossed his oven mitts on the counter, wondering who was paying him a visit. He expected Sam, Eileen, or maybe Bobby, and was surprised to find Cas on the other side, gently cradling a giant jar of honey. The honey had a black and yellow ribbon around it with a perfect little bow tied right under the lid. As soon as their eyes met, Cas blushed slightly, and Dean grinned.“I…I felt bad. About you getting stung. And I wasn’t lying when I said honey was good for bee stings, so I brought you some.” Cas awkwardly held out the jar, only making Dean grin harder.“Thanks, Cas.” Dean said softly, taking the jar. Cas just nodded, continuing to stand in his doorway awkwardly. Dean decided now was just as good as any time to start toeing the line and see if Cas liked guys. Dammit. Why did Sam and Benny always have to be right. “Hey, so uh, I just got done cooking dinner. And I’m kinda used to cooking for two or three people so I definitely have too much. You can stay, if you want.”Cas’ eyes got wide. “I was actually just planning on making a sandwich, but whatever you’re cooking smells lovely.”“Then you should stay.” Dean replied sincerely. Dean was fully expecting the whole dinner to be awkward and forced, but it wasn’t. Not in the least bit. Dean learned that Cas loved his job (clearly), came from a big family, and had done a lot of traveling in the past. He also learned that Cas lived alone, was single (score!), and that his hatred towards him earlier was completely underserved. Eileen had been completely right for calling Dean out on his bullshit.“I almost bought this house when I first moved here.” Cas suddenly admitted, pushing his empty plate away from him. He had been incredibly impressed by the food, and Dean couldn’t be prouder.“What made you decide to choose the one next door?” Dean asked, taking a sip of his wine. Yes, he had pulled out the wine that Garth had given him as a house warming gift. It just seemed… appropriate. If he was trying to impress Cas now that he knew he wasn’t a dick, well, that was his business.“Mine has a much bigger yard.” Cas laughed. “I needed the extra land for beekeeping. Though, I really am sorry that I missed out on the beautiful pond and weeping willow. The last time I saw it, the yard was gorgeous.”“Oh, you should see it now.” Dean replied before he could stop himself. “My garden was exactly what the backyard needed, it’s been the perfect pop of color.” Dean flushed and tried to subtly change the subject. “Uh, but yeah, the backyard was what sold me. It’s definitely in better shape than the actual house is. It’s like every time I turn around, something else is wrong. A broken sink, a rickety floorboard, a leaking roof…”Cas nodded empathetically, taking the bait. “I do believe this house is very old. A lot older than mine. What brought you out to the middle of nowhere?”Dean shrugged. “I was living in town, with my brother. But then his girlfriend moved in too. Which wasn’t a problem!” Dean defended himself without needing to. “She was a great roommate and all, it’s just that things are getting serious between them, and I didn’t want to be a burden. I make pretty decent money at the garage, Sam makes great money as a lawyer, and Eileen makes pretty good money as an ASL teacher at the elementary school. With the three of us living together, I was able to save money pretty quickly. I didn’t want to be too far away from my brother, and this house is only about twenty minutes away.” Dean made a face towards himself. “God. I sound pathetic.”Cas immediately shook his head, disagreeing. “You don’t sound pathetic. It’s a good thing you and your brother are so close, many siblings don’t have that. I get along with few of mine, and the ones that I do get along with, like Gabriel… it took years for us to end up on the same page.” Dean felt himself smiling despite himself. “I’m also sure you weren’t a burden on you brother, or his girlfriend.” Cas added. “You’ve brought them up quite a bit this afternoon. I’m sure they love you just as much as you love them.”Dean opened his mouth but stopped himself from speaking. He traced his finger around the rim of his glass, thinking. He wanted what he was about to say to come out right, and he wasn’t exactly sure how to say it. “I uh….I was kind of a dick to you when I met you at the Farmer’s Market.” When Dean looked up from his glass, Cas was staring at him with a raised eyebrow. “I was kinda pissed about being stung, but I think I’ve been angrier about the whole move. My mom died-“ he stopped himself swallowing. Cas didn’t need his full life story the first time they hung out. He wasn’t trying to scare him off. “My family life hasn’t always been the best. For a long time, Sam and I were all each other had. It just feels kinda weird knowing that he doesn’t need me anymore. I guess I’ve been having a hard time dealing with that.”“He’s your little brother. He’ll always need you.” Cas reassured him. Cas leaned back in his chair, getting more comfortable. Dean wanted to bring up that his bed was a lot comfier than his dinning room chairs, but he stopped himself. “This house is rather large.” Cas stated nervously. “I’m sure it gets lonely at times. Are you and your significant other planning on moving in together as well?”Dean snorted. “No, thank god. I don’t want to move anyone else in this house with all the issues it’s having. It’s a safety hazard at this point.” Cas tilted his head slightly, and Dean’s eyes grew wide. He realized Cas was trying to find out if he was dating someone. “I’m uh, actually not dating anyone.” Cas was now looking at him thoughtfully, and Dean decided to sprinkle a little extra information on top. “No women have really caught my interest lately. Or men.” Cas smiled, and that’s when Dean realized he was fucked. It wasn’t just a smile that made his eyes sparkle, it was a smile that lit up his whole face. Castiel was smart and kind and thoughtful. He was funny despite being awkward and had listened to Dean rant about the Impala for almost fifteen minutes even though he clearly didn’t care about cars. He was passionate and open minded and liked Dean’s cooking. He was somehow both handsome and beautiful, and yet he was sitting across from Dean smiling at him like Dean was the one that was special. Dean was so fucked.“Can I see your garden?” Cas abruptly asked, looking at Dean encouragingly.Dean’s eyes dropped to his empty plate nervously. “Ah, I was hoping you had maybe missed that part.” Dean didn’t give a shit that gardening was classified as girlie and didn’t give a shit what other people thought. But he was always hesitant about revealing this part of himself. He knew Cas wouldn’t judge him. Having a soft spot for insects and selling honey at a Farmer’s Market wasn’t exactly the manliest pastime. Cas kept staring at him expectantly. What did he have to lose anyway? “Ugh, sure, I guess. But if you have anything bad to say, I’m pushing you in the pond.” Dean said, getting up and pushing his chair in before bringing their plates to the sink.“I can’t imagine that being a problem.” Cas replied sincerely. Castiel was in complete awe over Dean’s garden, and Dean was pretty sure he was just a little in love.Cas knew all the different flower types and loved how Dean had arranged them. When Dean confessed that he planted the mint to attract bees, he was pretty sure by the look that Cas gave him that maybe Cas was just a little in love with him too. Once Cas was done looking at the flowers (and greeting the bees that were of course on the flowers), they wandered over to the pond to sit at the bench underneath the willow tree. Frogs were croaking and crickets were chirping, both enjoying the gentle breeze. Dragonflies danced across the ponds surface collecting water, only to stop on the lily pads to rest. The whole thing was picturesque and perfect, and Dean was… he was happy. It wasn’t like he had been particularly unhappy before but spending the afternoon with Cas made him realize that maybe Sam was right. Maybe he had been a little lonely. He had spent most of his life focusing on Sam. Making sure Sam had enough to eat. Getting Sam through school. Making sure Sam’s relationship worked out. Now, Sam was grown up. He had a successful career and a beautiful relationship, and he was happy. Maybe Dean needed to start taking the time to make sure he was happy too.He was so distracted that the feeling of Cas’ warm, solid hand on his own made him jump. Dean’s hand was swollen from the earlier bee sting, and Cas was gently rubbing his fingers over it. “Let’s go inside.” Cas suggested. Dean swallowed and tried not to take that the wrong way. “I can show you how to treat the sting using honey.”Dean agreed and didn’t mention the bottles of Sting Eze he had stocked up on. When they got inside, he hopped up on the kitchen counter, and actually listened when Cas explained the antibacterial properties of honey. Cas held Dean’s hand in his while he applied the honey to the sting, and Dean tried really hard to breathe with Cas in his personal space, his gorgeous blue eyes looking up at Dean as he explained ways to prevent future stings. Dean bit his lip to stop himself from asking Cas out on a date. The timing wasn’t right, they just met each other, Cas was just being nice because he felt bad-“You only need to leave the band aid on for an hour.” Cas said, interrupting his thoughts and smoothing his thumb over the band aid on his hand. “It’ll help with the pain and itching, and also help heal it faster.” Dean just nodded. They were standing so close. Cas was practically between his thighs since he was sitting on the counter, and their faces were leaned in much closer than absolutely necessary. Dean was starting to think that maybe he hadn’t just waited too long for sex, that maybe he wasn’t just lonely. There was this magnetic pull between them that was overwhelming his senses, and he was pretty sure Cas felt it too. “Dean?” Cas asked uncertainly.“Yeah, Cas?” Dean croaked, having to drag his eyes away from Cas’ lips.“Would you go on a date with me tomorrow night?”
Four Years Later
Dean woke up and stretched in bed, a little annoyed that the sunlight peaking through the window woke him up until he rolled over. That same ray of light was falling over Cas, making his dark hair shine and his skin golden. He smiled, unable to resist the urge to lean in and capture his boyfriend’s lips. Cas responded with a grumpy noise of acknowledgement and swatted Dean away in his sleep. Dean pouted and flopped back down on his pillows, closing his eyes again.This had been his mornings for a little over a year and a half. Dean had tried to continue fixing up his house, but he was starting to sink way too much money into it and the house was continuing to fall apart. Cas had insisted that Dean move in with him, which Dean had been more than okay with, regardless of how Cas was the furthest thing from a morning person. Dean had been at a total loss for what to do about his house until he spoke to Sam and Sam explained that he definitely had a case against the realtor for not giving an accurate depiction of the actual quality of the home.Sam and Dean won the lawsuit, and Dean immediately tore down the house, along with the privacy fence separating his yard from Cas’. Now they shared Cas’ huge house, with a combined massive yard. Dean’s garden was easily twice as big, and he had also started a vegetable garden too. Cas’ bees were loving every second of it.At first Dean was concerned that he and Cas were moving too fast but being in love with Cas was so easy that it was one of the few things that made sense to him. Cas was it for Dean, and he knew Cas felt the same way about him. They had even had The Talk™ when Dean had mentioned the size of Cas’ home- their home- and Cas had fully admitted that he wanted marriage and children to be in his future.Dean had wasted no time and bought a ring the very next day.Dean had almost drifted back off to sleep when he felt Cas roll over and kiss him on the cheek. “Mmmm.” Dean acknowledged sleepily, not opening his eyes. Cas let out that husky, early morning chuckle that made him weak in the knees and Dean smiled, opening his eyes. “Good morning, sunshine.”“Good morning, Dean.” Cas hummed, leaning in to steal a kiss that Dean didn’t hesitate to deepen. “Hmm. ‘good’ morning indeed.” Cas muttered against his lips. Dean grinned like the little shit he was and moved his hips just enough to let Cas know exactly which direction he hoped this was going.Cas smiled against his lips and slid further down the bed, pulling Dean’s boxer briefs off in one quick, practiced movement before removing his own. Dean decided to refrain from commenting on the fact that they had little bees on them. Cas spread Dean’s thighs, fitting between them perfectly as he began to kiss a trail down Dean’s chest and stomach. Dean’s hands were already fisting in their silk sheets, his cock straining for attention. He would take a hundred more bee stings, a million more, if it meant that he got to keep this forever, if it meant that he always got to wake up to the completely insatiable love of his life.Cas wasted no time swallowing him down, the early morning blowjob lazy and slow. Not that Dean was complaining, because it still had him curling his fingers in Cas’ hair, gasping his name when his tongue swirled around the head just right. Cas was looking up at him with gorgeous blue eyes full of wonder, just like he always did. He always looked at Dean like he had landed some sort of prize that he never wanted to let go of. It used to make Dean want to squirm, now he just basked in it because he knew it wasn’t an act, it was exactly how Cas really saw him.When Dean realized that Cas had no intention of quickening the pace or bringing him any closer to finishing, he let go of Cas’ hair long enough to reach for the night stand, blindly fishing around in the drawer for the lube without looking away from Cas. He felt Cas’ lips stretch around his cock in something that resembled a smile as he tossed the bottle closer to Cas, and Cas grabbed it before it could even bounce on the bed.Cas slowly worked Dean open, his breath hitching at the touch of the cool lube. Dean was struggling to decide between grinding down on Cas’ fingers, or pushing up into his mouth. He was back to clinging onto Cas’ hair for dear life, not to direct his mouth, but to have something to hold on to. His thighs were already shaking, small, pleasured noises escaping his lips as Cas worked his fingers inside him and swallowed around his length. “C’mere.” He grunted, pulling Cas’ hair to encourage him upward. Cas’ mouth slid off of his cock slowly, and he awkwardly climbed his way up Dean’s body to bring their lips together. Dean moaned against his lips as Cas continued to pump his fingers in and out of him, curling them at just the right moment to send waves of pleasure through his body. “I’m ready.” He breathed.Cas sank back on his knees, resting on his ankles as he slowly removed his fingers. He kissed each of Dean’s thighs as he lubed up his own cock, pressing it gently against Dean’s entrance. Dean squirmed impatiently, but Cas just leaned down to kiss him on the lips once again. “I love you.” Dean leaned forward to capture his lips again before he pulled away. Those three words had been terrifying at first. Dean had all these hang ups, had heard ‘I love you’ from so few people and said it back to even fewer. But when he heard Cas say it, Cas always said it with such sincerity, such conviction, that there wasn’t a doubt in Dean’s mind that they were true.“I love you too.”Cas pushed in agonizingly slowly, and Dean held on for dear life. The intensity of it combined with the way Cas was looking at him was almost too much. He wrapped his legs around Cas’ waist, pulling him in closer. A needy sound escaped Cas’ lips and Cas lost all his composure, bracing himself on his arms on both sides of Dean as he began thrusting deep inside his boyfriend. This was Dean’s favorite part of sex with Cas. It wasn’t the mind-blowing orgasms (those were pretty great too), but it was how it was like Cas was physically unable to stop touching him, stop kissing him.Dean, forever the impatient one, slid one of his hands between them and began working his cock in matched rhythm of Cas’ thrusts. He was spilling between them in no time, Cas’ name on his lips until the very moment that Cas kissed the name away. Cas wasn’t far behind him and came with his lips pressed against Dean’s.Dean was so in love that he was seeing stars, and it had nothing to do with the constellations in Cas’ eyes.
Dean wasn’t sure how this became his life. Weekdays consisted of working at Bobby’s garage until five, then coming home, and spending time with Cas. Most of the time it was them taking care of the hives and gardens. Sometimes they went on dates, sometimes they just curled up on the couch watching Netflix and eating peanut butter and honey sandwiches. More often than not it resulted in a joint shower where they ended up having to clean themselves off more than once as the water ran cold. On weekends, they woke up early to set up Cas’ booth at the Farmer’s Market. Dean now had his own both right next to Cas’, and their two favorite reoccurring customers were Sam and Eileen.Dean had planned out the proposal in a million different ways, a million different times. None of them ever felt right. The result was Dean keeping the ring in his pocket at all times. He figured that maybe when the moment came, he would just know. There wouldn’t need to be reservations or planning, it would just feel right. That moment came a lot sooner than later.It wasn’t a day that was particularly special or different than any other day. No yard work needed to be done, there was a pleasant breeze coasting across the pond, and Cas was leaned against Dean’s side on the bench underneath the willow. They were even drinking honest to god homemade lemonade. It was some of the most domestic bullshit that Dean had ever seen in his life, and he absolutely loved it. He absolutely loved Cas. It was at that moment that he realized that there was no perfect moment to propose to Cas, because all the moments they shared together felt perfect. Sure, sometimes they fought. They shoved each other and screamed and shouted and slammed doors hard enough to shake the house. But even those moments were perfectly imperfect. Dean didn’t want his life any other way.“Hey, Cas?” Dean said, nudging him.“Dean, can we not relax for five whole minutes without you talking?”Dean grinned. “No, not really. Seriously, sit up. I have a question.”Cas sighed, but sat up and stopped leaning against Dean. He stretched and threw his arm around the back of the bench and looked at Dean expectantly. “Go on.”Dean didn’t even have to think twice about getting off the bench to drop down on one knee. He pulled out the little black box, feeling all the blood rush to his face. “You’ve always been the one that’s good with words but bear with me here.” Cas’ eyes were wide, and he was leaning forward, always gravitating towards Dean like the universe was trying to prove they were meant to be together. “I know we’ve talked about our futures before. And I can’t imagine a future without you in it. You are my future, Cas. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” Dean opened the black box. The bottom of the box held the ring in a white cushion, but the top of the inside of the box had Dean’s messy scrawl in the words “bee mine?” with a little, poorly drawn cartoon bee underneath it. “Get it?” Dean asked excitedly. “’bee’ mine? Since we met ‘cause of bees?”Cas just stared at him for a second before bursting into a fit of laughter, tears of happiness making his blue eyes sparkle. He leaned forward, kissing Dean like his life depended on it. “I've always been yours. Of course I’ll marry you.”