#*claire

18 Months Later

Tomarang

[CLAIRE] Sweetheart, are you okay? You've been quiet all morning.

[NATE] Yes, love! *nervously clears throat* Just a lot on my mind.

[CLAIRE] What's on your mind?

[NATE] *gets down on one knee and pulls ring box out of his pocket* Just wondering if you'd say yes to me asking you something.

[CLAIRE] Oh my god!

[NATE] Claire Margaret Haines, I love you so much. To know you is already such a joy, but to love you and to be loved by you? I learn from you, and am always encouraged by you. And I want to experience all of what life has to throw at us by your side.

[NATE] Will you marry me, my love?

[CLAIRE] Yes, oh my god yes!

[CLAIRE] | love you so, so much. *bends down to kiss Nate*

[NATE] My sweet girl *puts ring on Claire's finger*

[CLAIRE] Oh, it's perfect.

[CLAIRE] The most amazing man is going to be my husband. How did I get so lucky, Ballard?

[NATE] I love you, Haines *laces his fingers between Claire's* or should I say, soon to be Mrs. Ballard?

[NATE] Or should I say, soon-to-be Mrs. Ballard?

Claire still has her phone up to her ear when she lets him in, rolling her eyes to mask her smile. “Jesus. Could’ve at least told me you were gonna do that.”

“I apologize,” Cas says, and then urgently, “Where’s the kitchen?”

Claire points and closes the door behind him. “That way.”

He follows her directions and finds Jody leaning against the counter, arms crossed. Donna sits behind her at the kitchen table, sporting a playful smile.

“Well! Cas, long time no see,” Jody says, coming towards him to envelop him in a hug. “Claire mentioned you visiting, but I didn’t think it’d be so soon.”

Claire brushes past them, muttering, “Neither did I,” before taking a seat at the table next to Donna. 

“Sorry for bursting in on you like this,” Cas says once Jody lets go. “I just need to use your kitchen.”

Jody and Donna exchange a look. 

“Someone in trouble?” Donna asks, suddenly serious, “We have some spell ingredients, but not many. What’s—"

“No, nothing like that,” Cas hurries to say, “It’s Jack’s birthday today. I need to bake him a cake.”

There’s another stretch of silence, and then Claire’s laughter covered up by a hand to her mouth. Donna gently smacks her shoulder.

“Sorry,” she says, “but you? Eldritch terror...baking a cake? Why can’t Sam and Dean do it? Oh god, that thought might actually be funnier.”

Cas sighs as Donna mumbles to reprimand Claire, and takes a seat beside Jody on the island. 

“You’re right, it’s just...Sam and Dean are both competing to make Jack a cake for his birthday today, and I felt I should do the same, but I...I’ve never done this before. I need help.”

Jody smiles, despite Claire’s fading laugh, and rests a hand on his shoulder. “Well, Cas. You came to the right place. Come on.” 

She grabs the keys from a hook next to one of the kitchen cabinets, and swipes her coat from the chair next to Cas. 

“Where are we going?” he asks, standing and following nonetheless. Claire flicks his shoulder as she passes to head for the front door. 

“Grocery store, genius,” she says, and before he knows it, the four of them are cramped in Donna’s much too small car, with Cas wondering how they manage it with Patience and Alex and Kaia as well.

“Where are they, anyway?” he asks once they make it to the store parking lot. 

“Alex is working, Patience is out with friends, and Kaia’s home sleeping,” Claire explains. “What about Jack?”

“With Garth until the cakes are done,” Cas says easily. He’d been their first choice for babysitter, not wanting to bother Jody and Donna when they had all the girls on their hands, but... “Maybe next time, he can hang out with you? I’d like for him to get to know you better,” Cas tries, pushing around the shopping cart as Jody points out ingredients and Donna sets them in the cart, “he really looks up to you.”

Claire scoffs. “He barely knows me. Besides, there’s nothing to look up to. Except height-wise, I guees.”

Cas smiles fondly at her, reminded of Dean telling him something similar plenty of times. “Sure there is, but I won’t push it. You’re welcome at the Bunker always, just...incase you were wondering.”

She grins, but hides it well. “Thanks.”

The trip goes by quickly, after they decide on how Cas wants to decorate the cake, and they all make it back to Jody’s in one piece. 

The actual mixing of ingredients if easy enough (though Claire ends up brushing flour out of Cas’ hair), but the waiting periods are atrocious. Cas spends them by catching up with Claire and Kaia, when she eventually wakes, and it seems like no time at all once the timer beeps. 

They pull it out of the oven, wait impatiently again for it to cool, and by that time Patience is home from visiting friends. The six of them work on the frosting and decorations (although Cas insists on doing the lettering himself), and Alex’s steady hand arrives just in time to slide the cake into a box so that it’s safe and preserved for Jack’s birthday tomorrow. 

By the time it’s all done, Cas is thoroughly enjoying himself, and the company the girls all provided him with. He bids them goodbye, each with a powerful hug that makes him smile, but Claire stops him just before he’s out the door.

“You’re forgetting this,” she says, handing him a yellow envelope. It has ‘Jack’ written across the front in boxy blue lettering that he knows to be Claire’s. Cas takes it, and Claire pushes her hands into the back pockets of her jeans.

“Snagged it while we were at the store...we uh, we all signed it,” she says. “I’m...looking forward to coming over, if the offer still stands.”

Cas nods, a grateful smile spreading across his lips. “Always.” 

Claire rolls her eyes, but nudges Cas’ shoulder in good humor. “Good. Now go win that contest, you goober.”

Of the three, Cas’ cake is the most put together, but that isn’t saying much. Dean’s at least stands up by itself (unlike last year’s), but he’d tried for three different flavors and way too many sprinkles, so it’d tasted a little like mush. Sam’s was decorated beautifully with blue and yellow, but caved in a bit in the middle. He’d tried a “healthy” recipe that unfortunately was flavorless, but Jack ate them both with a toothy grin on his face. 

Cas’ was a labor of love, a product of multiple hands with perhaps too much decoration going on and way too many colors, but it was edible at least, and they end up eating that one more so than the others.

“So who wins?” Dean asks Jack, shoveling Cas’ cake in his mouth with only a slightly annoyed look on his face.

Jack spreads his arms wide and says, “Everyone! I love them all!” before loudly blowing his party popper.

The three of them hug their kid, press kisses to the top of his head and say, “We love you too, buddy.”