Castiel fidgets on the deck, brushing spray off his shoulders and out of his eyes.
“I haven’t seen you this worried about your uniform in three years, Cas.” Gabriel elbows him good-naturedly, and Castiel tries to smile, but his stomach is a tiny ball, anxious and uncertain but shot through with stubborn hope.
“Jerry never seemed to care how I kept my uniform, Gabe,” he replies. They stand side by side, their eyes scanning the New York City skyline. Home, after jumping out of a airplane into northern France, fighting their way through Europe, and then helping liberate everyone that the Nazis had captured.
It had been a massive undertaking, and Castiel had been first in line to serve his country. It had not been a unanimous decision, and now all he can think about is all the unanswered letters he’s sent, and the look on Sam’s face when he’d gotten on the train that day.
“That must be some girl you got waitin’”. Gabriel grins and breathes deep. This is his hometown, and there will be a whole family waiting for him. Castiel has seen photos and been read letters.
“Sam’s coming in from Kansas,” Castiel replies, his eyes still on the approaching shore. He sees no need to correct his friend. That Sam is a man is something Gabriel knows, but something they never talk about around the others. He’s very understanding, and Castiel is grateful. Others would be less forgiving.
“Look, Cas, I know I said this before, but if something happens-”
“He’ll be here.”
“If something happens, my family would love to meet you, feed you dinner, and hear all about the hero their son has been following through Europe. You’re practically family now.”
Castiel ducks his head and grins. Gabriel wrote often to his brothers, sister, and father, telling them as much as he could, regaling them with the often unflattering stories of sharing a foxhole. Castiel wants to meet them too, and he hopes there will be time for that later, but it’s not his top priority.
He wrote to Sam once a week, lying in a foxhole writing by moonlight or sitting in the relative comfort of a tent or an abandoned house. Mail was unpredictable and troops were always moving, but he’d seen others get responses. That he never heard back from Sam had not stopped him in his writing. If anything it made the letters more honest and open, since he was certain that they no longer had an audience.
The ship brakes and turns, slowly coming in to the dock. There are dignitaries and cars, and a good-sized crowd in the park. Bunting and flags decorate the gangplanks and fences. Girls are wearing their Sunday best, and the men are in suits and uniforms. They’re still too far away to see, but that doesn’t stop Castiel from scanning the crowd, looking for someone standing tall among the others. He used to tease Sam about his height, but now he’d give anything to see that he was there.
Their company makes its way off the boat, chatting and waving, duffel bags slung over their shoulders. Gabriel walks straight into a huge group of people, hugging and crying. Castiel nods to his superior officer, then heads down towards land and the crowd. His heart is in his throat as he steps one way, then another, jostled by overeager comrades who just want to see their loved ones again. Not everyone is here to greet someone in particular; lots of people come to greet every ship, wanting every soldier to feel welcome. Castiel is offered flowers, and pretty girls offer to kiss him. He takes a rose, but laughs nervously and declines the offer of a kiss.
He smooths a hand over his tie yet again, and plucks off his hat. The sun is shining in full force, and a brass band is playing further up the park. It’s a proper celebration, but as Castiel moves through the crowd he wants nothing more than to find a secluded spot and cry.
Sam isn’t anywhere to be seen.
He swallows back tears and turns to where Gabriel’s family had been. The young redhead is Anna, he remembers. She always sent pressed flowers with her notes. The tall blondes are Luke and Mike. They’d served in Italy and North Africa, and come home sooner. Gabriel was the last one home, and now they swarmed around him, patting him on the back and hugging him as they weren’t sure he was real.
Castiel stands and watches them. He’ll go to them, he thinks. Soon. Just not yet. He’s not ready to face the question that he knows will be in Gabriel’s eyes when he appears so soon after disembarking.
“Cas?”
Castiel’s eyes fall closed and he shakes his head. He’s so desperate for Sam to be here that he’s hearing things. He runs his hand over his face and turns away from Gabriel’s family.
Sam is standing a few feet away. He’s wearing a suit and tie, and possibly the shiniest shoes Castiel has ever seen him in. He cut his hair, and he looks tan and strong. He is exactly as beautiful as Castiel remembers.
He’s holding a pile of envelopes, tied in a bundle with string. He looks down at them, then closes the distance between them, holding the pile out to Castiel.
“Every time I tried to send one, it came back,” he says, and in his face Castiel can see mirrored the same pain and fear that he feels in his own. “I thought... I thought I’d at least come here and give them to you.”
He shoves the letters against Castiel’s chest and turns to go, but Castiel catches his hand. It’s a bold move, but he doesn’t care.
“I thought of you every day,” Castiel says, looking up into Sam’s eyes. “It kept me alive in France, when we were surrounded. I wanted to live so I could see your face again and tell you I love you.”
No one around them is listening. They’re too caught up in their own reunions to notice two lost souls finding each other again.
Sam pulls him into a firm embrace. To onlookers they could be friends or brothers. Castiel wants nothing more than to kiss away the hot tears he feels rolling down Sam’s cheeks, but that will have to wait.
“Did you get my letters?” Castiel asks. Sam nods and Castiel can feel his smile.
“I got a hotel room,” Sam says. “I don’t know if... I mean if you don’t want...”
“I want,” Castiel answers. “I love you,” he whispers, giving Sam a final squeeze before letting go.
“I love you, too, Cas. Welcome home.”
They start to leave when Gabriel comes running up to them. “Cas! Is this him? He came?”
Castiel flinches at the implication that he’d told someone he was afraid Sam might not come, but Sam just smiles and extends his hand.
“Well, if you’re not Gabriel then I don’t know who is.”
Gabriel shakes his hand enthusiastically, then points a thumb back over his shoulder. “You two want to come with us, get some dinner? My dad’s making a roast, and there’s champagne.”
Sam looks from Gabriel to Castiel for an answer. Castiel smiles and shakes his head. “What about tomorrow? We’re, umm, staying in tonight.”
He can feel the blush on his face, but Gabriel just nods. “You have our address. Just knock on the door. You are both always welcome.”
He waves and runs off, back to his family. Sam walks beside Castiel out of the park and hails a cab. He gives the driver the address, and the driver informs them that returning soldiers ride free in his cab. Castiel doesn’t know much about New York City, but “uptown” sounds fancy. He hopes Sam hasn’t spent too much money.
As soon as the cab pulls away from the curb, Sam sets his hand on the seat beside Castiel’s thigh, and Castiel covers it with his own. Sam is warm and real and here, already more than Castiel had dared to hope for.
Re: Castiel/Sam: Homecoming (Team Lucifer/Sam)
“I haven’t seen you this worried about your uniform in three years, Cas.” Gabriel elbows him good-naturedly, and Castiel tries to smile, but his stomach is a tiny ball, anxious and uncertain but shot through with stubborn hope.
“Jerry never seemed to care how I kept my uniform, Gabe,” he replies. They stand side by side, their eyes scanning the New York City skyline. Home, after jumping out of a airplane into northern France, fighting their way through Europe, and then helping liberate everyone that the Nazis had captured.
It had been a massive undertaking, and Castiel had been first in line to serve his country. It had not been a unanimous decision, and now all he can think about is all the unanswered letters he’s sent, and the look on Sam’s face when he’d gotten on the train that day.
“That must be some girl you got waitin’”. Gabriel grins and breathes deep. This is his hometown, and there will be a whole family waiting for him. Castiel has seen photos and been read letters.
“Sam’s coming in from Kansas,” Castiel replies, his eyes still on the approaching shore. He sees no need to correct his friend. That Sam is a man is something Gabriel knows, but something they never talk about around the others. He’s very understanding, and Castiel is grateful. Others would be less forgiving.
“Look, Cas, I know I said this before, but if something happens-”
“He’ll be here.”
“If something happens, my family would love to meet you, feed you dinner, and hear all about the hero their son has been following through Europe. You’re practically family now.”
Castiel ducks his head and grins. Gabriel wrote often to his brothers, sister, and father, telling them as much as he could, regaling them with the often unflattering stories of sharing a foxhole. Castiel wants to meet them too, and he hopes there will be time for that later, but it’s not his top priority.
He wrote to Sam once a week, lying in a foxhole writing by moonlight or sitting in the relative comfort of a tent or an abandoned house. Mail was unpredictable and troops were always moving, but he’d seen others get responses. That he never heard back from Sam had not stopped him in his writing. If anything it made the letters more honest and open, since he was certain that they no longer had an audience.
The ship brakes and turns, slowly coming in to the dock. There are dignitaries and cars, and a good-sized crowd in the park. Bunting and flags decorate the gangplanks and fences. Girls are wearing their Sunday best, and the men are in suits and uniforms. They’re still too far away to see, but that doesn’t stop Castiel from scanning the crowd, looking for someone standing tall among the others. He used to tease Sam about his height, but now he’d give anything to see that he was there.
Their company makes its way off the boat, chatting and waving, duffel bags slung over their shoulders. Gabriel walks straight into a huge group of people, hugging and crying. Castiel nods to his superior officer, then heads down towards land and the crowd. His heart is in his throat as he steps one way, then another, jostled by overeager comrades who just want to see their loved ones again. Not everyone is here to greet someone in particular; lots of people come to greet every ship, wanting every soldier to feel welcome. Castiel is offered flowers, and pretty girls offer to kiss him. He takes a rose, but laughs nervously and declines the offer of a kiss.
He smooths a hand over his tie yet again, and plucks off his hat. The sun is shining in full force, and a brass band is playing further up the park. It’s a proper celebration, but as Castiel moves through the crowd he wants nothing more than to find a secluded spot and cry.
Sam isn’t anywhere to be seen.
He swallows back tears and turns to where Gabriel’s family had been. The young redhead is Anna, he remembers. She always sent pressed flowers with her notes. The tall blondes are Luke and Mike. They’d served in Italy and North Africa, and come home sooner. Gabriel was the last one home, and now they swarmed around him, patting him on the back and hugging him as they weren’t sure he was real.
Castiel stands and watches them. He’ll go to them, he thinks. Soon. Just not yet. He’s not ready to face the question that he knows will be in Gabriel’s eyes when he appears so soon after disembarking.
“Cas?”
Castiel’s eyes fall closed and he shakes his head. He’s so desperate for Sam to be here that he’s hearing things. He runs his hand over his face and turns away from Gabriel’s family.
Sam is standing a few feet away. He’s wearing a suit and tie, and possibly the shiniest shoes Castiel has ever seen him in. He cut his hair, and he looks tan and strong. He is exactly as beautiful as Castiel remembers.
He’s holding a pile of envelopes, tied in a bundle with string. He looks down at them, then closes the distance between them, holding the pile out to Castiel.
“Every time I tried to send one, it came back,” he says, and in his face Castiel can see mirrored the same pain and fear that he feels in his own. “I thought... I thought I’d at least come here and give them to you.”
He shoves the letters against Castiel’s chest and turns to go, but Castiel catches his hand. It’s a bold move, but he doesn’t care.
“I thought of you every day,” Castiel says, looking up into Sam’s eyes. “It kept me alive in France, when we were surrounded. I wanted to live so I could see your face again and tell you I love you.”
No one around them is listening. They’re too caught up in their own reunions to notice two lost souls finding each other again.
Sam pulls him into a firm embrace. To onlookers they could be friends or brothers. Castiel wants nothing more than to kiss away the hot tears he feels rolling down Sam’s cheeks, but that will have to wait.
“Did you get my letters?” Castiel asks. Sam nods and Castiel can feel his smile.
“I got a hotel room,” Sam says. “I don’t know if... I mean if you don’t want...”
“I want,” Castiel answers. “I love you,” he whispers, giving Sam a final squeeze before letting go.
“I love you, too, Cas. Welcome home.”
They start to leave when Gabriel comes running up to them. “Cas! Is this him? He came?”
Castiel flinches at the implication that he’d told someone he was afraid Sam might not come, but Sam just smiles and extends his hand.
“Well, if you’re not Gabriel then I don’t know who is.”
Gabriel shakes his hand enthusiastically, then points a thumb back over his shoulder. “You two want to come with us, get some dinner? My dad’s making a roast, and there’s champagne.”
Sam looks from Gabriel to Castiel for an answer. Castiel smiles and shakes his head. “What about tomorrow? We’re, umm, staying in tonight.”
He can feel the blush on his face, but Gabriel just nods. “You have our address. Just knock on the door. You are both always welcome.”
He waves and runs off, back to his family. Sam walks beside Castiel out of the park and hails a cab. He gives the driver the address, and the driver informs them that returning soldiers ride free in his cab. Castiel doesn’t know much about New York City, but “uptown” sounds fancy. He hopes Sam hasn’t spent too much money.
As soon as the cab pulls away from the curb, Sam sets his hand on the seat beside Castiel’s thigh, and Castiel covers it with his own. Sam is warm and real and here, already more than Castiel had dared to hope for.