Dean awoke that morning to the sound of a cat crying at the closed bedroom door. He rolled over to find Sasha asleep, and since the damn thing wouldn’t shut up, he decided to take care of it himself. He climbed out of bed with a tired yawn and made his way out of the bedroom, keeping the door behind him closed. “Dude, shut up. She’s trying to sleep, alright?” He muttered to the one cat as he walked to the kitchen in search of cat food. It took a few tries, but eventually, he found the right cabinet and grabbed two cans of cat food to open.
It wasn’t until he was emptying the can into one of the bowls that he noticed a band on his left-hand ring finger. He paused for a moment and searched his memory for what might have happened, and it took a second to recall, but there was no way that could even be accurate. No, he would never have done such a thing. Sure, he liked Sasha, she was beautiful, sweet, made him smile, and more, but they barely knew each other. “This can’t be right,” Dean muttered to the cats, who didn’t stop meowing until he set the bowls down on the floor.
Once they were settled, he went back to the bedroom and climbed into the bed carefully, in search of her hand. He slipped beneath the covers and took her hand in his own, finding that she too had a ring on her left-hand ring finger. “We’re married?”
She’d been curled up and sleeping soundly on her side facing him, a look of absolute contentment on her face as she dreamt. Sasha stayed asleep as he got up and fed the cats but finally stirred a little as he climbed back into the bed and took her hand. “Mm,” she murmured, nestling a bit into her pillow and finally letting her eyes drift open drowsily. “Morning, hands-”
But her words seemed to almost fall on deaf ears and she followed his gaze down to her hand. Uh, wait. There was a brief moment of confusion at what she was seeing, but then the sleepy feeling lifted quickly and she stared at her hand for a moment before looking back up at him, the realization of what they’d done the night before hitting her like a truck. A lot of whirlwind emotions had happened over the last few days for whatever reason, but unexpectedly they’d decided to elope and now here they were, husband and wife.
Shit.
The realization made her face flush and she gently pulled her hand back, a look of embarrassment crossing her features as she slid her left arm under the pillow and hugged it to her a bit tighter, though she stayed facing him. Finally she lifted her eyes back up to him. “Hi.”
"Good morning, my beautiful wife." Dean looked down at her with a raised brow, and he couldn't help but smile still. Wife. He had a wife. He was fucking married. It was mind-boggling, and he didn't understand how he could have let that happen. Had they been incredibly drunk last night? No, he didn't have a hangover or anything like that.
"So, I guess we're kind of married now?" Married to someone he barely knew. It was like Sam and Becky, only Sasha hadn't slipped him a love potion, and she was completely normal. Married, he was married, and he was sitting on the bed, looking down at his wife. This definitely ranked high on his list of what the fuck moments.
Dean moved to lean back against the headboard and ran both hands through his hair with a sigh. "What are we going to do about this?"
It was going to take a few minutes for the weight of the situation to really settle in, but she couldn’t deny that hearing herself referred to as ‘wife’ made an unexpectedly warm feeling fill her stomach in what was undoubtedly a good way. Had she ever thought something like this would happen, let alone the way it happened? Not necessarily. But as she’d told him before, this place was full of surprises.
“Not sure there’s any ‘kind of’ about it, husband,” she added with a hint of a laugh as she cuddled the pillow, the memory of the night before flooding her and playing over and over. They hadn’t been drunk, but something had made them both step far out of their comfort zones and do this. “Pretty sure the marriage license is on the coffee table in the sitting room…”
Sasha was quiet for a moment before glancing up at him, her mouth opening as if she was going to say something and then closing again. She loosened her hold on the pillow and shifted closer to him, curling up against his side and letting her head rest against his chest.
Marriage license, there was a marriage license in the living room. She called him her husband, and he had to admit it felt nice, but this wasn't going to work. How could it possibly work when they barely knew one another? Yet, at the same time, Dean was surprisingly chill about it all.
When she moved to curl up against him, he placed his arm around her and held her close, his fingers running idly through her hair. "Oh, I fed the cats. Stupid thing was crying at the door and would just not go away. I don't know how you deal with that shit." He groaned dramatically and shook his head. "It makes me miss Miracle, only he wasn't such a pain in the ass, and he was useful." He held her a little tighter at the mention of the dog and kissed the top of her head. "He's a dog we adopted back home."
There was something about it that felt okay to Sasha. Up and marrying the guy she’d been sleeping with for the last month was not something she’d ever intended on doing, but it didn’t freak her out completely like maybe it should have. It definitely should have, actually. Right?
“I don’t even know what time it is,” she mumbled, her eyes shutting again as his fingers moved through her hair. What was so wrong about this? “They usually won’t start yelling until it gets to be after half-nine. They’re utterly spoiled.” There was a pause and a quiet, relaxed sigh escaped her. “Thank you for feeding them.” Honestly, she could have fallen right back asleep where she was if his question of ‘what are we going to do about this?’ wasn’t on a loop in her mind. She wasn’t sure she wanted to do anything about it, if she were being honest with herself.
Her head tilted back then, enough so that she could sort of look up at him, or what she could see of him, a sleepy smile on her lips. “Maybe Miracle will live up to his name and show up soon.”
“Yeah, maybe he will. That would be nice, actually.” Miracle had been more his than Sam’s, and due to his untimely demise, Dean hadn’t spent much time with the dog at all. “Jack kind of gave him to us after he brought everyone back from wherever they went.” He explained with a tired sigh, finding himself at such ease with her. It was an entirely different situation in Vallo, and he didn’t have to worry so much about being hunted down by a demon or anyone coming after Sasha. While there were still plenty of potential threats in Vallo, there were also plenty of capable individuals to take care of it all. It was no longer a weight he had to carry on his shoulders, and it made him feel more comfortable and confident about being in a relationship.
It was a bittersweet feeling, though, as he knew they could never leave Vallo and go elsewhere. Nor did they know how long they would have together. This made him wonder if maybe it was just something he should let happen instead of fighting it like usual. Sasha didn’t seem to mind in the slightest bit, but it was still very much a complicated situation. What about Sam? Where would they live? What about the stupid cats? Maybe it was better just to forget the whole thing. “How about I make some coffee and breakfast for us?”
She knew that if either of them ended up leaving this place, there was only a small chance they’d wind up in another world like this one and not back home where they were either dead or going to die. It really was a bittersweet thing to think about and not something she really cared to do right then, even if it was a discussion they needed to have.
Breathing out another sigh, she shifted again and pulled herself up and over him, straddling his waist as she reached for the throw that was on top of them. She wrapped it around her shoulders and smiled down at him before laying down, her chest against his, face tucked against his throat. “Coffee and breakfast can wait a minute, yeah?” she mumbled, settling into him comfortably. Sasha was quiet for a long moment before finally speaking again, her voice soft. “What do you want to do? About this, I mean,” she added, sort of lifting her left hand and gesturing vaguely to show that she meant the ring on her finger.
He had thought that maybe she planned to table the discussion, but there it was, and he didn’t have an answer. “Well, I don’t really know. I mean, we can just...pretend it didn’t happen? We could get it annulled, maybe, somehow? I mean, it seems ridiculous to go through a divorce process, so I hope we wouldn’t have to go that route.” His fingers continued to play idly in her hair while his other hand smoothed up and down over her back. Dean was used to having sex, but something like this, being so soft and tender, that didn’t happen much, and he was enjoying it.
“Maybe we just give it some time, like a day or two? Is that even allowed, or does an annulment have to happen in a certain time frame?” Why had he been so weird the past few days? As he continued to think about it, he had behaved quite oddly for himself, and there was no explanation for any of it.
Sasha listened quietly as he listed off what options he could think of and couldn’t help but frown to herself. She wasn’t sure what they should do, but she did know that she was loving the feeling of his fingers in her hair and his hand moving along her back. It was comforting and it made her feel safe. He made her feel safe.
“I’m not sure what the legal process for an annulment is here. I can’t imagine the laws are the same where either of us is from.” Pause. “I’m not even sure what the law for it is in London, honestly. It’s not something that ever comes up, you know?” She breathed out a slow, warm breath against his neck before lifting her head enough to look down at him, nudging her nose against his chin before pressing a soft kiss to his lips. “We could give it time though, I think?” I hope. “Or file for an annulment. I don’t… know, ugh.” She dropped her head and tucked it against his neck again. “Whatever you want to do?”
She fit so perfectly against him and in his arms, but whatever he had been feeling yesterday was long gone. To an extent, anyway. He still cared for her, maybe even more so than a week ago, but he couldn’t bring himself to a definitive answer. Dean wasn’t used to settling down, but he was definitely capable of it; he knew that much. While he had numerous one night stands and random sexual relationships under his belt, what he really wanted was consistency. The sex was just a filler for the loneliness he couldn’t fight on his own. He had always wanted to settle down with someone, but after Cassie had dumped him for what he did for a living, and then the debacle with Lisa, he had all but given up on love.
“I don’t know what I want to do. I guess we should think about it.” Whatever marriage they had would dissolve the second they left Vallo, obviously, but that wasn’t something he really wanted to think about much. He was surprised though, that she seemed to be leaving the decision up to him. “We’ll sit on it for a few days and see how we feel.”
The problem for Sasha was that she had genuinely fallen for Dean over the course of the week, the fact that his feelings were exaggerated by some outside force hadn’t even really crossed her mind. Sure, he was acting different, but she’d become so enamored with him in such a short amount of time that falling had been… well, unfortunately easier than it should have been.
But then again, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d actually had a proper romantic relationship with a man. Hook ups, flings, short term dating. Yes. But that had been the gist of her experiences as an adult. Knowing that Vallo was a second chance she’d never have at home pushed her to do things she might not have normally. Including, apparently, proposing marriage to someone after suddenly finding herself willing to do just about anything.
His words were about as good as she could’ve hoped for and she lifted her head again to look down at him, eyes searching his face for any sign of uncertainty. “You’re sure?” she asked, her voice hushed.
Why was it all up to him? Did that mean she truly loved him? Or, was she still under some spell? Love. He had said he loved her, and now he couldn’t even think about saying such a thing. But, maybe he was just afraid to let himself have those feelings. He cared a great deal for Sasha, that much was obvious, and he didn’t want to break her heart either. But, how realistic was this? “Yeah, I’m sure,” Dean nodded in agreement, certain of that much at least. They might have rushed into the whole marriage thing, but that didn’t mean they had to be just as hasty the other way around.
It had come to him so easily yesterday, and now, the thought alone terrified him. What had been different about yesterday, and the day before? Why the fuck was he so afraid in the first place? He had nothing to lose, who cared if it meant being vulnerable? Did he really want to stay guarded for the rest of his stay in Vallo? “Do you want me to make us some breakfast?”
At least there was that and she didn’t get any impression that he was saying it just to be kind. He seemed certain. The urge she’d felt the day before to conquer the world, so to speak, no longer felt as settled in her bones as it had but something of it still flickered in the fact that she was willing to do this, as illogical or insane as it may have been.
Sasha moved her hands up between them so she could gently cradle either side of his face, thumbs brushing over his cheeks affectionately before she leaned back down to kiss him again. It was a soft kiss, but it lingered for a few seconds before she broke it and gave him a small nod. “Breakfast would be nice.” Though a part of her didn’t really want to move. She kissed him again and then shifted her weight to move off of him and settle her feet onto the floor, the throw still draped around her shoulders.
His eyes closed and focused on the feel of her hands against his face. It was a sensation rarely felt, and one he was growing to crave. The way she held his face in her hands made him feel like he was on top of the world and he loved it. "Pancakes? French toast? Eggs, waffles? Bacon is a given."
Dean watched as she moved from the bed, graceful and regal. "You are so beautiful." He mused aloud and moved to get off the bed himself. He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, his lips brushing along her neck. "Slight problem though, I'm not sure I can let you go."
There was something just so perfectly sweet in the way he responded to her touch and it made her want to do it over and over. It was as if the sensation were unfamiliar to him, as odd as that seemed to her.
“Hm. I think I have pancake mix? Should have eggs and milk, too.” Silly. She was feeling one thing and felt like the conversation was completely off in the other direction.
When he commented on her appearance, she felt her cheeks grow warm with a slight blush. “Thank you, love,” she replied quietly as she wiped the sleep from her eyes. She’d just been about to reach for her glasses when his arms wrapped around her and she smiled, even giggling a little to herself as she leaned back and nestled into him a bit. “You’re welcome to not let me go for as long as you like, you know.”
"Oh, am I really now?" He grinned lazily and rested his chin against her shoulders, his hands moving to sweep up and down her arms, simply enjoying her warmth and the way she made him feel. It was still confusing as fuck, how he felt and how she made him feel, but maybe after coffee and bacon he would have a clearer head.
"I would love to ravage you all over again, but I really need coffee." He pressed a kiss to her ear and hugged her tight before rising to stand straight. His arms dropped from her waist and he stretched his arms up overhead, groaning as his bones cracked. "You know, if only you didn't age in this place. That would be just awesome." He commented with a sigh and moved to walk out of the bedroom. "Coffee, pancakes and bacon, coming right up!"
There was so much about this situation that was confusing to say the least, and yet it didn’t exactly feel wrong either, which is what she was choosing to focus on. Sasha trusted her own instincts and despite whatever weird thing had happened this week, her instincts weren’t throwing up any red flags about this.
A happy sort of shiver rushed down her spine at the kiss to her ear and she smiled, eyes closing briefly when he hugged her. “Maybe we went a little crazy last night, but at least the wedding night sex was…” She laughed and jokingly made a gesture to show that it had blown her mind, turning her head over her shoulder to look back at him as he stretched.
“Sounds perfect, love. I’ll be out in a moment.” She watched him head toward the kitchen and let out a sigh as she finally reached for her glasses, unable to help thinking that being here is the only way either of them will get the chance to age now. She tossed the throw back onto the bed and pulled on a hoodie from the floor before heading out of the bedroom to follow him.