Standing Together

Chapter 147

An hour later, everyone is done roasting their marshmallows, their s'mores complete, and the fire is slowly burning out. People had been running in and out of the house for a while, grabbing things people wanted — chairs, drinks, a little table — until everything anyone could possibly need was already there.

Now, Dean and Castiel are lying together on a blanket, with two more blankets on top to keep warm on this chilly winter day. They're not far from the fire pit, sharing the dryness of the driveway and the warmth of the flames. No one speaks, which would ordinarily be uncomfortable, but not today. Not right now.

Castiel rolls over, resting his head on Dean's chest and pulling the blanket tighter. Dean puts an arm around him, his gaze still on the stars. They've never seemed as bright as they do right now. Everything is just perfect.

And then Alex starts crying, and that kind of ruins the mood.

"Hey, sweetie, what's wrong?" Lucifer coos.

Castiel subtly rotates himself so he can see them. If they're going to ruin the perfect atmosphere it took so long to create, Castiel might as well get the inside scoop.

Alex hugs her blanket, not that it seems to be doing much good over her warm mittens and thick winter jacket. All she says is, "Cold."

"You're cold?" Lucifer repeats. "Do you wanna go inside?"

Alex shakes her head.

"Why not?" Lucifer asks, perplexed. "It's so warm inside."

"No!" Alex says stubbornly.

"Do you want hot chocolate?" Lucifer asks.

Alex hesitates, then nods, the tears slowly stopping their flow.

"Okay, I'll go make you some hot chocolate." He presses a kiss to his daughter's forehead. "You go stay with Mommy, okay?"

Alex walks the two feet it takes to get to her mother and sits down by her seat. Claire, who's sitting in a camping chair with a heavy blanket, lifts her daughter up and plops her on her lap. Alex just giggles.

"Hey, baby," Claire whispers, hugging her close and wrapping her in a blanket in the process. "Just hang tight, okay?"

Alex leans back against her mother and closes her eyes. Castiel can't help but smile. She's the cutest thing he's ever seen. But, when it becomes clear that she's not going to do anything more, he shifts into a more comfortable position to be in while snuggling with his fiancé.

"So," Castiel says quietly, trying not to disturb anyone else, "how are you enjoying your birthday?"

"It's been phenomenal," Dean whispers back. "Especially this part."

"That's what I wanted to hear," Castiel says with a small smile.

"Although," Dean adds, "I'm still not entirely comfortable with the fact that I'm 27. It just seems so much older than 26."

"So what if you're an old man?" Castiel says teasingly. "You're still my favorite old man."

"Oh, Cas, I am honored," Dean says sarcastically. "Thank you very much."

"It could be worse, though," Castiel adds. "Michael and Lucifer are turning 30 this year."

"Oh my god," Dean whispers. "That's, like, actually old."

"See?" Castiel says. "You've still got three years until you're actually old."

"And then you're only gonna be kind of old," Dean remarks. "We're never gonna be in the same plane of oldness again."

"I don't know, Dean," Adam says, much louder than they had been — apparently he doesn't see a point in being quiet when everyone's going to hear it anyway. "You're both pretty old in my eyes."

"Oh, shut up," Dean says, but Castiel can feel him laugh.

"Hey!" Lucifer says sternly, having apparently just reappeared. "There are children present!"

"Children?" Samandriel repeats. "As in plural? Are you calling me and Samandriel children, too?"

"I'm calling you, Samandriel, Dean, and Alex children, actually," Lucifer says.

"What about me?" Castiel asks, honestly a little offended to have been ignored.

"Oh, no, you're an adult," Lucifer says. "You and Claire can be the adults."

"So what does that make you?" Dean asks.

"That, my friend, is an excellent question," Lucifer replies. He must be handing the hot chocolate to Alex, because he says a very quiet, "Here you go, sweetie."

"Thank you," Alex says, and Castiel's heart melts.

"For the record," Samandriel says, "Dean just called you old while you were gone."

"That is patently untrue," Dean says, "and I would appreciate it if you would stop spreading lies about me on my birthday."

"Castiel mentioned him, and you specifically said that he's 'actually old,'" Adam reminds him. "Your words, not mine."

"Okay, first of all," Lucifer says, "29 is not old. Second of all, it's not my fault that everyone here except Claire and Castiel is a child."

"We are aware that Claire is younger than everyone here except Alex, right?" Castiel asks.

"Yeah, what's your point?" Lucifer asks.

Castiel chuckles. "Never mind, then. Carry on."