Honey Apple Pie

Chapter Eight

 Dean began staying at the bakery after close more and more often, until Sam started getting rides home with one of his colleagues, rather than waiting for Dean to pick him up.

Cas got more fluent in ASL with Dean's help, and Dean avoided burning himself again while Cas taught him to bake.

On a rare lunchtime that all of them, including Sam, were in the bakery, Cas was showing Dean how to pipe buttercream frosting, when the bell rang and Alfie said, 'Gabriel, you're back!' and then he gasped slightly and said, 'Aunt Emily?'

Cas's head snapped up and he exclaimed, 'What?' He accidentally squeezed the piping bag too hard and it burst, splattering frosting all over him and Dean. 'Sorry, Dean,' he said, handing him a cloth.

He then looked over at the door, and there she was, casting her judgmental gaze over the shop.

'It's nice to see you, Samandriel,' she said.

Alfie flinched and Cas immediately bristled.

'You know he doesn't like to be called that,' Cas said through gritted teeth.

'I'll call him by the name his parents gave him,' she said snippily.

They glared at each other for a moment, then Cas said, 'Alfie, you can go.'

'Thank you,' Alfie whispered, whipping off his apron and flitting out of the door.

Sam and Dean remained where they were, frozen in place by the icy silence that had suddenly filled the bakery.

Cas switched his gaze to Gabriel. 'Why would you bring her here?' he all but spat.

'You said if she had something to say, she should come here and say it herself, so here she is.'

'I didn't mean it!' Cas spluttered. 'I didn't think she'd actually come either.'

'Come on, Cas, don't be like that,' Gabriel said reproachfully. 'She's our mom.'

'She's not a mother, she's a reptile,' Cas hissed.

'Well now you're being dramatic.'

'Gabriel, for the love of-'

'I will not be spoken about as if I'm not here,' Emily interrupted. 'Castiel-'

'Don't speak to me,' he growled.

'Cas-'

'Get out of my bakery.'

Neither of them moved.

'I said get out. Now!' He threw his own cloth on the ground in fury.

Gabriel sighed and put his arm around Emily's shoulder. 'Come on, Mom, let's go.'

'I will not!'

'I'm not giving you a choice here.'

'Fine.'

They both walked out again, leaving Cas standing in the middle of the room, shaking.

After a moment, Sam and Dean slowly approached him.

'Cas?' Sam said quietly. 'Are you okay?'

Cas sniffed slightly. 'I'm sorry, guys, I have to close a little early today.'

'Yeah, yeah, of course. Come on, Dean.'

Dean lingered a little at the door, casting a concerned look over Cas, but Cas refused to meet his eye, so he left with Sam.

Cas locked the door behind them and sunk down behind the counter. He didn't even attempt to identify any of the swirling emotions washing over him, he just curled into a ball and sobbed. Eventually, they subsided enough for him to force himself up and leave the bakery. If he was going to break down, he might as well be at home.