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“Cas helped, of course.”
Bobby looks at Dean, grinning a half smile, and something in Dean’s hurt thuds, pounds, his eyes widening. He hadn’t even allowed himself to even hope that Cas was going to come back — he’d looked through all the books the first time around, and there was nothing new in the two years since, and Dean was just drinking through the fact that Cas was gone, again, and there was nothing Dean could do about it.
And Jack? Dean’d — well. Jack gave his final words as God and disappeared before Dean could even ask him. Dean wasn’t even sure if Jack could bring Cas back, so this is — the knot of pain in his chest from seeing Sam’s face crumple in front of him softens, just a little bit, at the stray tendrils of hope.
“Cas?”
Bobby shrugs, and something in it makes Dean relax, the easy familiarity Dean had never had with Apocalypse World Bobby settling into his bones again.
“Popped up a few minutes before you did,” Bobby gestures at the replica of Baby, gleaming like Dean had just given her a wash, the original license plate sparkling under the artificial Heaven-sun. “Didn’t know what he wanted, but I know he pulled some strings to get you here instead of straight in Baby herself.”
Dean blinks.
“If you leave now, you might catch him before Sam gets here.”
He doesn’t even want to get started on the technicalities of that (how does time even work in heaven?) but he still nods, swallowing the knot in his throat. “I’m sorry, Bobby, I just—”
“You’re running a little late, ya idjit,” is all Bobby says and then Dean’s sprinting down the steps, ignoring the way Bobby laughs fondly in the background, reaching out for the keys that he somehow knew would be in his pocket. Baby’s doors open seamlessly and soon he’s tearing down the road, some AC/DC song blaring through the speaker even though there’s no tape in the deck.
He isn’t sure how long he’s been driving, but the same song is playing again, the wall of trees on both sides of Heaven suddenly blending, fading until there’s only one every few feet, until they’re gone entirely, and suddenly Dean’s standing in an empty onion field, Baby missing and rain falling directly into his eyes.
It’s overcast and it’s hard to see anything, but then there’s shuffling, some footsteps behind him, and Dean can almost taste his anticipation. He turns around, and then he only catchs a flash of blue eyes but that’s all he needs as he runs forward, almost tackling Cas.
“You— the Empty— how,” Dean breathes, cradling Cas’s face in his hands. Cas himself is smiling serenely, and some part of Dean’s head comments on how ‘the last time I saw that smile Cas was dyingdyingdying’ but Dean ignores it in favor of the thin sheen of tears that cover both their eyes.
“Jack brought me back once because he cared so much,” Cas says, and God it’s better than any drug to hear him talk again. “You did, the second time.”
“I—”
“The Empty, Dean, it’s gone now.” The words rush out of Cas’s mouth as he leans forward, pressing his forehead against Dean’s, both their eyes squeezed shut. “I don’t know what you did, what Jack did, but I woke up and the Empty — it was gone, Dean. Amara — she was standing there, and everyone — she let us go. You woke me up and you woke up Amara and she let me go, Dean, she let me go.”
Dean is sobbing and Cas is crying and Dean isn’t sure which one of them moves forward first but either way suddenly they’re pressed together, kissing, slowly and steady, tears intermingling with the rain falling from the sky until Dean can’t tell what’s Cas’s and what’s his. Cas’s hands move again until they’re resting on either side of Dean’s face and Dean runs his fingers against the curls plastered at the nape of Cas’s neck, both of them breathing softly and just being, kissing like they have all the time in the world because they do, now.
They seperate, eventually — ten minutes or ten years later, Dean can’t tell, because time in Heaven is weird and once, finally, Dean’s grateful for that. They’re still pressed together, though, grinning like idiots and then Dean just chuckles, softly. “I love you too, Cas.”
Cas smiles, and he puts out a hand and Dean takes it, intertwining their fingers and relishing the warmth of skin, the fact that Cas is there, now. “Let’s go home.”