*Present*
"Cas, wait."
Dean quickly jogged after him, when Cas suddenly stopped in his tracks and he nearly ran straight into the back of him as Cas turned around.
"You know, after our last conversation at the prison, I still went there every day for a month! And then every week for a year, but you never accepted my visits. Did they even tell you that I came?" Cas questioned, resting his hands on his hips as he stared at Dean.
"They told me."
Cas just shook his head in disbelief.
"I guess maybe I hoped they didn't. Do you even know that I went when Kelly and I started dating... I told her I was going to see my parents when in fact I was going to see you, but you didn't want to see me?" Cas asked, anger lacing his voice.
"That's the only thing I did want." Dean snapped, before he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. "I never stopped loving you, Cas. Not once."
"Then why didn't you?"
"Because I... I know this doesn't make sense..." Dean trailed off unable to get his thoughts into words.
"It doesn't." Cas responded, turning around to walk away, but Dean quickly grabbed his shoulder and rushed in front of him.
"Cas. Listen to me. I wanted to do something good and I wanted to save you from some of the pain."
"You didn't save me from anything. I lived with the pain everyday of my life, Dean, and I blame you. I blame you for thinking you knew what was best for me, when it was you that was best for me!" Cas shouted, his voice laced with emotion as he stared at Dean.
"I couldn't have you wait for me, man. There was so much you wanted to do with your life-"
"I wanted to do it with you! And I would have waited for as long as it took." Cas responded, shoving Dean in the chest, but he barely moved as he stared at Cas with soft eyes.
"I didn't deserve you, Cas." Dean whispered.
"Oh, deserve me? Jesus, Dean. Don't you understand? When Kelly and I had Claire, and I know this is wrong, but do you know that when we had her, I wanted to tell you." Cas began to say as he took a shaky breath. "And when I lost Jack... I wanted you to hold me." Cas mumbled, unable to stop the tears from falling down his cheeks.
Dean didn't hesitate as he wrapped his arms around him, hugging him tightly. Cas melted into his embrace, burying his face in the crook of Dean's neck.
"And when I was alone at night, I wanted... I wanted you and I cried for you and I hated you and I hated you because..." Cas sobbed, before he pulled away from Dean and looked him in the eyes. "Because I would have chosen you no matter what, and you took that away from me."
"I made a mistake-" Dean started to say.
"Yes, you did. But, see, I still love you." Cas whispered taking a step towards him.
Dean immediately pulled him into a tight hug again, kissing the side of Cas' head as Cas wrapped his arms around his body.
Neither of them moved for the longest moment as they stood beside the cabin and held each other. Neither of them wanting to pull away and end this.
Eventually they did, both of them picking up the empty beer bottles and pizza box from earlier before they made their way into the cabin, silently. Although the outside had been completely overgrown, the inside of the cabin was exactly like how they remembered it.
The sun had long ago disappeared in the sky while they had been outside talking, so while Cas got himself a drink from the kitchen, Dean wandered into the lounge room.
He walked over to the fireplace, making sure that it seemed to be in good condition before he started the fire, knowing that nights got cold all the way out here.
Once he was satisfied that the fire was good enough he stood up and made his way over to the couch where Cas had sat down. But, as he took a step towards the couch, he tripped over the corner of the rug.
He tried to stop himself from falling, but he couldn't and practically landed on top of Cas on the couch. Castiel grunted in surprise, quickly grabbing Dean's shoulders to stop him from falling back off the couch.
"Very graceful." Cas teased, lying under him causing Dean to snort as Cas chuckled, but didn't make any indication that he wanted Dean to get off him.
Dean glanced down at Cas' lips before he lowered himself down onto his forearms until their faces were only inches apart.
Neither of them moved for a second as they stared at each other before Cas raised his hand, cupping the side of Deans face. His thumb traced over the scar along his cheek gently before he grabbed the back of his neck and pulled Dean down towards him, capturing his lips with his.
"You sure about this?" Dean whispered against his lips.
Cas didn't bother responding with words as he continued to kiss Dean eagerly. His hands moving away from the mans face as he reached for the buttons of Dean's shirt and began undoing them. That was all the encouragement Dean needed.
-
That night they both curled up in the spare bedroom together. Cas curled up against Dean's side with his head resting over his bare chest as his fingers slowly traced over the scars across Deans chest.
"Would you do one thing for me?" Cas asked softly, his voice a mere whisper as he spoke.
Dean hummed indicating that he heard him as he glanced down at Cas against him before the other man continued.
"Would you forgive yourself? You're a good man, Dean. Believe it."
Dean didn't say anything as Cas' words tumbled around in his head, but he knew Cas didn't expect him to say anything. Dean laid awake staring at the ceiling of the bedroom as Cas' heartbeat and breathing fell into a steady rhythm.
He glanced down at Cas asleep in his arms and smiled softly at the man he loved, but he knew this couldn't last.
Cas had a family. He had a whole life back in Iowa and Dean couldn't pull him away from that. He wouldn't pull Cas away from that, no matter how much he wanted to. No matter how badly he just wanted to keep Cas to himself and never leave this cabin, he couldn't do that.
Cas had a wife, he had a daughter, he had a house and whole life. Although it wasn't quite the future Cas had probably pictured, it was still his life. He knew Cas, he knew the man wouldn't be able to leave that behind and Dean wouldn't make him.
Cas was leaving tomorrow and they'll probably never see each other again, Dean knew that. But, he'd be damned if he wasted his last day with the man he loved.
-
Dean woke up early the next morning, silently slipping out of Cas' arms, careful not to wake the sleeping man. He pulled on his jeans and flannel flannel from yesterday before before he grabbed the keys to the Mustang and quickly ducked down the street to grab some eggs and bacon.
By the time Cas wandered out the bedroom, Dean had already set the table with plates loaded of food and was in the middle of filling up two glasses of orange juice before he heard Cas footsteps.
He glanced over his shoulder as Cas rubbed his tired eyes with a bright smile appearing on his face.
"This feels like déjà vu. Remember the first time we stayed here?" Cas asked as he sat down in his usual seat at the table.
"Like it was yesterday." Dean replied with a soft smile, thinking back to that weekend.
It was their first weekend away together. It was just the two of them. Dean worked In Bobby's garden while Cas tried to help, but was mainly watching Dean work and get all sweaty.
It was the first night they had slept together and the first time Cas had seen all his scars. It was the night that they had first said 'I love you' to each other and then Dean had cooked them bacon and eggs the following morning, like he was doing right now.
This cabin had so many good memories inside it, he didn't want to leave. He didn't want Cas to leave.
They both sat and ate breakfast quietly and worked together on the dishes before they migrated outside and sat on the porch swing together.
It was warm outside, but the cool morning breeze was nice as the birds chirped in the trees around the cabin.
Cas wrapped his arm over Dean's shoulders as they leant back and enjoyed the beautiful peaceful morning. Dean, trying to soak it all in, knowing it won't last forever.
"Happy?" Cas asked quietly, silently running his fingers through Dean's hair as they stared out at the overgrown garden.
"Yeah." Dean sighed, leaning into Cas a bit more, wanting to savour this moment before Cas' phone began to ring.
Dean quickly pulled away from Cas, giving him room to fish his phone out of his pocket as he looked at the screen to see who it was before he stood up from the porch swing.
"Sorry, it's my daughter." Cas apologised, glancing over at Dean who nodded as Cas answered the phone and held it to his ear. "Hey, Claire. Yeah, I'm doing okay. How are you?"
"Are her parents going?- I just don't want you to go somewhere where they're aren't any adults around. -Alright, good, just ask your mom. – I miss you too. I'll see you when you get home, I love you, bye." Cas said into the phone before he hung up and tucked the device back in his pocket.
Dean stood up from the chair and walked over to him. Resting his forearms along the railing of the porch as he stared out at the garden.
"Sorry, about that. It was Claire wanting to know if she could go to a party."
"Nah, it's okay." Dean quickly replied as the two of them stood there in silence.
"Dean..." Cas began to say before trailing off.
Dean knew what Cas wanted to say. But, he didn't want to hear it. They still had the whole day to be together, right? Why ruin it?
"Dean, I need to say something-"
Dean quickly shook his head. "no, don't."
Cas sighed from beside him, but Dean refused to look at him. Because he knew the second he'd look into those piercing blue eyes, he'd break.
"You don't have to say anything, but I need to say something because if I don't say it now, I'm scared I won't be able to later." Cas began to say before pausing.
Dean could feel Cas watching him, but he just couldn't do it. He managed to force himself to nod, but he kept his head down as tears burned in the back of his eyes.
"I forgive you for shutting me out all those years ago. I forgive you for not seeing me all the times I visited the prison. I know you were only trying to do what was best for me and I forgive you, but I need you to forgive yourself." Cas said, his voice so soft and caring, Dean didn't deserve it.
"Forgive myself for what? There's a lot of crap I've done, Cas."
"Forgive yourself for everything. Please." Cas begged, but Dean was already shaking his head.
"I can't."
"You can."
Now the tears he had been trying so had to keep at bay were trickling down his cheeks as he lowered his head even more.
"I can't forgive myself for Sammy's death, for moms, for my dad hurting you and Bobby, for... for Lee, for Jo having to raise a kid on her own, for shutting you out... I-I can't, Cas. I just can't."
Now he was full on sobbing and he hated himself for it. He didn't get to cry about this. He didn't get to feel sorry for himself.
"You think all of that was your fault?"
"I know it is. There's no forgiving, no forgetting. Because it is all right here." Dean said, tapping the side of his head before he glanced up at Cas for the first time.
Those big blue eyes were staring right back at him in pure shock.
Well, guess Cas didn't know how much trauma he still had as a thirty something year old man.
"I know you won't believe me, but none of that was your fault, Dean. You were just a kid, we all were." Cas said before he gently rested his hand on Dean's back.
Dean wanted to tell Cas that he was never a kid. That living the life he did with a family that he had, he couldn't be a kid.
Being around Cas and Bobby way back when was the only time Dean could relax enough to try and be a kid. But, even back then he was always cautious and looking over his shoulder.
Dean couldn't bring himself to say anything as he looked back down at his arms against the railing, Cas' hand still firmly on his back.
"Knowing you has been the best part of my life." Cas whispered, breaking the silence. "And... and the things we shared together, they have changed me. You have changed me, Dean."
No.
Oh, no. He was not doing this, not now. He couldn't do this now.
"Why does this sound like a goodbye?"
"Because it is." Cas admitted causing Dean to push himself off the railing as he faced Cas, to find tears rising in the mans eyes.
Dean opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.
What were you meant to say to someone who you had loved for over 20 years, but you couldn't have them? How were you meant to deal with losing the love of your life after only just getting them back? There weren't words for it. There was nothing he could say because he knew no matter how much he begged and pleaded, he couldn't have Castiel.
Cas lifted his hand, resting it on Deans upper arm, "I love you."
"Don't do this, Cas." Dean said, his voice hoarse as he shook his head.
"Dean... I have to... I-I have a family, I can't..." Cas trailed off unable to finish that sentence as Dean closed his eyes taking a deep shaky breath.
Shit.
He knew this was coming. He knew this was the only way this could end, but it didn't make it hurt any less.
"I know." Dean sighed opening his eyes to find tears falling down Cas' cheeks.
"I'm sorry, Dean."
Dean wanted to tell him not to apologise, it wasn't Cas' fault that he had moved on with his life while Dean hadn't. It was Dean who had pushed him away and shut him out way back when and right now Dean regretted it more than anything. But, at the same time, he would do it all over again if it meant that Cas got to move on and live his life.
Cas had made something of himself during the last 20 years. He had a job, a wife, a daughter, he had the whole white picket fence life that he always wanted. Dean couldn't take that away from him and Cas sure as hell shouldn't apologise for it either.
"We should probably get going back to Bobby's house, you still have a long drive back to your place from there." Dean said as he wiped the tears from his eyes before walking back into the cabin.
"Dean-"
"It's okay. We still got a couple hours together, right? Let's enjoy them." He responded over his shoulder.
Neither of them really said anything after that as they grabbed their stuff and locked up the cabin before piling back into the Mustang.
Dean could feel Cas looking over at him from the passenger seat, but he kept his head forward and focused on the road as he drove.
The silence between them had turned awkward and tense again, but Dean didn't want to open his mouth to say anything because he wasn't entirely sure he would be able to control himself. He wanted to tell Cas that he should stay. He wanted to beg him not to leave, but he knew that wasn't fair. He couldn't say that, so he just didn't say anything.
"Dean..." Cas started to say, breaking the long silence. "Are you mad at me?"
That caught Dean's attention real quick as his head snapped in Cas' direction before he remembered that he was actually driving and quickly looked back at the road.
"Mad? Why would I be mad at you?" He asked in confusion.
"We've been driving for 30 minutes and you haven't said a word to me. You haven't even turned the radio on." Cas pointed out.
Have they really been driving for 30 minutes already? Surely not.
"I'm not mad, I'm just thinking." Dean replied, glancing back over at Cas who was already looking at him with sad eyes.
"Thinking about what?"
Dean shrugged his shoulders, focusing back on the road.
"I don't want our last moments together to be like this-" Cas began to say before Dean cut him off.
"Tell me about your daughter." Dean quickly said and he could see the confusion forming on Cas' face out the corner of his eye. "Claire, right? Tell me about her."
Cas didn't say anything for a moment like he still trying to process the question before he started to chuckle.
"She actually reminds me of you in some ways." Cas admitted glancing over at him.
"Beautiful and badass?" Dean asked with a grin causing Cas to roll his eyes.
"More like stubborn and sometimes stupid." Cas answered and Dean couldn't stop himself from laughing at that. "But, I suppose beautiful and badass as well."
Cas smiled before continuing. "She's in her final year of high school, but has no idea what she wants to do when it's over."
"Most kids don't at that age. She'll work it out."
"I suppose you're right... we were her age when I was making you fill out those college applications." Cas replied and Dean smiled sadly at the memory.
"That feels like an entire life time ago, doesn't it?"
Cas hummed in agreement, but didn't say anything else as Dean glanced over at him.
"What is it?" He asked, but Cas just shook his head.
"We were so young back then... we were literally my daughters age and I can't even imagine her going through or doing anything even remotely like what we did."
"Yeah, well we didn't have the best childhoods." Dean muttered, sparing a quick glance at Cas who was now staring out the side window, deep in thought. "Your daughter is lucky you've given her a better childhood then what we got."
"You don't even know what kind of childhood I've given her." Cas pointed out.
"Maybe. But, I can tell how much you love her, how much you care about her. That's more than you and I ever got." Dean answered, glancing over at him. "She's a lucky kid to have a father like you."
"Thank you, Dean." Cas replied sincerely as Dean leant over and turned the radio on.
He flicked through the stations until Eye of the Tiger came on as he started tapping the steering wheel to the beat.
The rest of the drive was a mixture of horrible singing and small talk, but neither of them seemed to mind.
Eventually, they got back to their hometown as Dean slowed the Mustang down and drove down the quite town streets.
Cas had gone quiet the moment they passed the 'Welcome' sign just out of town and Dean had long ago stopped singing, despite AC/DC now playing softly in the background.
Dean spared a quick glance at Cas who was just staring out the passenger window, deep in thought. He wanted to tell Cas that it was okay, but at the same time he wanted to beg him to stay, so he said nothing.
He turned the Mustang into Bobby's driveway before parking it beside Cas' BMW that was still sitting in front of the garage.
For a moment, neither of them moved. Neither of them even said anything as they stated at Bobby's house through the windscreen.
With a sigh, Dean pulled the keys out the ignition which seemed to be enough to snap Cas into action as he opened his door and climbed out.
Dean followed, stepping out the car with a stretch before he glanced back at Cas, who was now standing beside his BMW, just staring at the car blankly.
"What is it?" Dean asked, worry etched into his tone as he looked at Cas.
Cas didn't move, didn't even acknowledge what Dean had just said as he stared at his car, frozen.
Dean frowned, taking a step towards him about to ask what was wrong before Cas lifted his head, bright blue eyes locking with his.
"I-I don't want to leave." He whispered and Dean's heart broke as tears started to rise in Cas' eyes. "I don't want to leave you."
"Cas..."
Dean had no idea how to finish that sentence, so he didn't.
"Maybe... maybe I can stay here. I can talk to Kelly, we could work something and-"
Cas didn't get to finish what he was trying to say before his phone buzzed. Dean watched as he pulled his phone out and his face crumpled as the tears in his eyes finally fell.
"Claire's asking when I'll be home..." Cas trailed off as he stared at his phone that was now shaking in his hands.
"Cas-"
"We can't do this, can we?" Castiel whispered, but he already knew the answer to that. "Shit." Cas sighed, shoving his phone back into his pocket as he rubbed his face with his hands.
Dean smiled sadly at him, "we were never going to work."
"But, I want us to... Dean, I can't lose you again. There has to be a way." Cas insisted and Dean hated himself as he shook his head.
If Cas had said this back at the cabin, Dean would have agreed with him. He wanted to agree with him now because he didn't want to lose Cas either, but during the drive back, Dean had a lot of time to think. He may have been pretending to be happy while singing, but he was in deep thought the entire way and he couldn't let Cas ruin the life he had built for him. He just couldn't.
"I know you, Cas. I know your heart. You have a wife and you have a daughter that you love very much. You won't give up easy. These past few days have been so good... A chance to see you and to talk to you. To heal the past... to love you again." Dean started to say as he walked around the car towards him.
He reached for Cas' hands, squeezing them gently before Cas sighed and pulled away as he turned around, taking a deep shaky breath.
Dean followed, gently touching Cas' shoulder before he wrapped his arms around the other mans stomach from behind and rested his chin on his shoulder. Cas sighed, resting his hands over Dean's arms as he leant back into Deans chest.
"No matter what happens, Cas, I want you to know how grateful I am..." Dean trailed off, his voice breaking at the end as he took a second to compose himself. "'Cause at the end of it all, I get to say I know what it's like to have loved someone. Truly love someone because I've loved you."
Silent tears fell from his eyes as he held Cas. He didn't want to say goodbye, but he knew it had to be done. He couldn't pull Cas away from his family.
"I-I have to go back." Cas stuttered, his voice sounding as wrecked as Dean was feeling right now as he took in a deep shaky breath. "I don't know how I'm gonna say goodbye to you." Cas whispered, turning his body around until he was facing Dean.
"I'll always be here." Dean replied softly as he lifted his hand and rested it against the side of Cas' cheek, wiping away the tears with his thumb. "And I'll always love you."
Dean pressed his lips to his one last time and Cas kissed him back before they pulled each other into a tight hug.
Neither of them wanted to let the other go, but Dean knew if he didn't, he would try and take back everything he just said and that wouldn't be fair.
He gave himself a few seconds to compose himself before he reluctantly pulled away and wiped the tears from his eyes.
Dean knew he needed to be the strong one right now as he looked at Cas, taking in his red and watery eyes. Dean put on his strongest smile as he patted Cas on the shoulder.
"Goodbye, Dean." Cas whispered, a fresh wave of tears rising in his eyes.
Dean could feel his own eyes burning, but he refused to let the tears fall as he smiled through the pain instead.
"See ya, Cas."
He watched as Castiel climbed into his BMW, their eyes locking through the window for a moment before Cas started to car and drove off.
Dean stared at the black car until it turned onto the main road, off of Bobby's property and as soon as it was out of sighed, Dean's legs buckled from underneath him and he dropped to the ground on his hands and knees.
Ugly sobs wracked through his body as he slammed his fists into the dirt and screamed. His screams eventually turning into dry reaching, his breakfast coming back up until there was nothing left in his stomach.
He leant his back against the wheel of the Mustang, struggling to breath as he buried his face into his hands and completely broke down.
-
The second Cas drove out of town, he had to pull over onto the side of the road. His vision too blurry from tears to even see where he was driving as he cried.
He wasn't sure how long he was stopped on the side of the road for, but he had given himself a headache from crying and by the time he got home, it was dark.
That was one of the hardest things Cas has had to do, driving out the driveway while Dean stood watching from the carpark. The amount of times he felt like just turning around and going back and never leaving, but he knew he couldn't do that, no matter how much he wanted to.
"Hello?" Cas called out, walking through the front door of his house.
He pulled his suitcase along behind him as he glanced around the empty hallway. He knew Claire wouldn't be home yet, but he thought Kelly was since her car was still in the driveway.
Cas went straight to the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water before he went up the bedroom to start unpacking his clothes which was when he spotted Kelly in the bathroom straightening her hair.
"Hey, I'm home." He greeted, throwing the suitcase on the bed.
Kelly glanced over at him before looking back at the mirror to continue doing her hair.
"You just get back?" She asked, putting the straighten down and started began brushing her hair.
"Yeah."
"How was it?" She asked, although by the tone of her voice, it was clear that she didn't really care and had better things to do.
"Nice... Sad." Cas answered truthfully.
Kelly just hummed not really listening as they stood in silence for a moment before Kelly glanced over at him.
"How's your mom?"
"She missed us at Easter." He responded and Kelly nodded, before she went back to doing her hair. "Want me to go get dinner started?" Cas asked, but she shook her head.
"I won't be here for dinner, I'm going out with the girls tonight. Feel free to heat up the left over spaghetti in the fridge though." She suggested with a smile and Cas just nodded, not saying anything else as he walked out the room.
He pulled his phone out and shot off a quick text message to Gabriel to see if he was home and wanted to come over.
Not even a minute later, his brother replied.
'Be there in 10. I got the beer'.
By the time Kelly had left for her girls night, Gabriel was already sitting out the back under the veranda nursing his second beer.
"I caught up with Dean Winchester while I was there." Cas said, breaking the silence.
He glanced over at his brother who was sitting on the chair beside him. Gabriel nodded waiting for Cas to continue and he sighed, shaking his head at himself before he told his brother what happened between him and Dean while he was back in town.
"I always knew the two of you were more than friends. Can't believe it took you this long to finally tell me, I'm only your favourite brother and best friend and all." Gabe responded causing Cas' eyes to wide in shock as he stared at Gabriel who still had that smug grin on his face.
"You knew?"
"You're kidding right? You two were always making heart eyes at each other. Lee, Jo and I used to have a bet about how long it would take you two to man up and announce your relationship. She said a few months, I said a year, but Lee said Dean wouldn't do it until his family was either gone or you guys moved away. He knew Dean didn't want to put you in any danger... I guess Lee won that bet, I still owe him a beer for that." Gabriel explained with a small shrug as he took a sip of his drink.
"I'm sorry I never told you-" Cas began to apologise, but Gabriel shook his head.
"Enough of that shit. Don't go apologising for that. I wasn't always the best brother back then, I could be a real asshole. Hell, I still am and back then... well, it wasn't really an option to be anything but straight, especially in our town. I get why you never said anything." Gabriel responded and Cas nodded in agreement.
-
'Dean,
Over the years I've come to know Cas pretty well. He's got a lot of good inside him. A lot of pain too about the past, about you.
I got you together here because I don't want either of you living with regret. You two were meant to love each other. You needed a chance to remember that. I'm not saying you're gonna be together. I don't know that. And if it doesn't work out, you'll miss him so much you'll barely be able to move. You'll feel you have no purpose, no reason to go on. But there's nothing to do, but wait. Wait and it'll get clear to you. You'll get on with your life and gifts will come into it.
I was lost when Karen died. Then one day, this kid walks into my garage. I want you to know the gift you were to me. I thank you for it.
Bobby.'
Dean sat on the porch swing reading Bobby's letter that he had forgotten was tucked in the pocket of his jacket.
Silent tears fell down his cheeks as he read Bobby's last words to him before he looked back up towards the overgrown garden.
While he waited for Garth to come by and pick up the Mustang, he spent the next hour working on the garden. By the time a silver pick-up truck pulled into the driveway, Dean had all the weeds ripped up, giving the remaining tulips room to breath.
"Guessing you're Dean?" A male voice questioned and Daryl glanced over his shoulder to find a man with short dark hair walking towards him.
Dean nodded as he walked out the garage, sparing a glance at the truck parked in the driveway with a woman sitting inside.
"Garth Fitzgerald. That lovely lady is my wife, Bess. Nice to meet you." The man- Garth -greeted as he held his out towards him.
"Dean Winchester." He replied, shaking them and hand. "Sorry about all the messing around with your car."
"No, don't apologise. Thank you for fixing her for me and I'm sorry to hear about your friend. I didn't know him well, but he was a good man." Garth said sincerely and Dean nodded before he walked over to the Mustang that was parked beside his Impala.
"Wow. Just wow." Garth said in owe as he walked around his Mustang, running his fingers along the side wall. "She looks amazing, how much do I owe you?"
"Nah, nothing. I was just doing it as a favour for Bobby. It's fine." Dean quickly replied causing Garth to frown.
"I can't just not pay you for it. I got cash in my car, let me-"
"I'm not going to take your money. Keep it, in a few years it's gonna need a new timing belt anyway. Save it for that." Dean insisted and a second later, Garth was wrapping him up in a tight hug.
Dean stood there frozen, not expecting that kind of reaction.
"Thank you so much." He said as Dean awkwardly hugged him back.
"Umm, yeah, no problem pal." He replied as Garth let go of him with a bright smile. "Keys are in it, drive safely."
Dean watched as Garth excitedly climbed into the vintage car, giving him a wave before he reversed out the yard and drove off, his wife in the truck following behind him.
Once they left, Dean climbed into his Impala and drove to the towns cemetery, stopping along the side of the road to pick a couple bundles of flowers.
He pulled up to the cemetery, relieved that there weren't any people around as he climbed out and walked through the rusty gate.
He went to his mothers and Sam's grave first, replacing the old flowers he had put there a couple days ago before he walked around to Lee's grave and did the same.
He stood in front of his best friends grave for a while, staring at the gravestone that he could sketch blindfolded by the amount times he's looked at it before the sound of footsteps suddenly caught his attention.
"I knew you were back."
There was no mistaking that woman's voice as Dean turned around to find Jo Harvelle walking towards him.
She still looked exactly the same as she did all those years ago. She looked little more mature and her hair was cut shorter, but it was still her.
"I saw the flowers on Lee's grave the other day." She explained, but Dean was still trying to process the fact that she was here and actually talking to him, after what he did all those years ago.
"Jo." Was all Dean could manage to say as his voice got stuck in his throat and Jo's eyes softened.
He hadn't spoken to her since that day. Hadn't seen her since the court hearing of his sentencing where she had to give her statement of what she witnessed. They never had the chance to speak until now.