POV: Dean
January 21, 2004
New Years Eve and Day had been perfect. Spending it with Cas was the best decision. I really couldn’t imagine life without Cas now and that was a big deal to me. I’d considered not coming to California with him but ultimately I did. The flight out here was probably the worst experience of my life and it was solid that I hated planes.
But we’d visited Sam’s college and gotten to see the area he’d been calling home for a few years. We had visited the ocean which was really nice as well. I liked the ocean. He’d shown me the tourist places that everyone wanted to see. But today was Cas’ meeting with the producer and the others. I didn’t have to come with him; he had said many times that I could sleep late or enjoy the beach or whatever I wanted to do today. But what I wanted was to be here for him. I couldn’t sit in on the meeting, but I wasn’t far from the door.
I’d been sitting here idly reading for the better part of three hours, occasionally hearing a voice rise but nothing I could make out. When the door opened the producers or others must have exited first because I didn’t recognize them. I did recognize his lawyer, his manager Samantha and his publicist Ashley. I couldn’t make out their facial expressions as good or bad, but when he walked out it didn’t look promising.
I got up and met him halfway. “Sunshine, you okay?”
“I just want to get away from here for a while.”
“Would you like to get some lunch and then hit the beach again?”
“Sure.”
There was a place not far from the hotel where the meeting had been held and that’s where we went for lunch. It was walking distance to the beach and this place, so that worked well. I was expecting that Cas would be happy after this meeting but this wasn’t happy, this was subdued.
“Did you hear from the engineer?”
“Not yet.”
“What is taking so long?”
“The blueprints weren’t right, so he had to have someone make sure it would be safe for a second storey.”
He seemed stressed and nervous and I didn’t like him in that state of mind. Once we’d cleared our burgers and fries I made it a point to walk slowly to the beach and then select a spot in the shade of the pier and where others were far away. I simply patted the sandy spot between my thighs and he settled down right there. Leaning back against me and I put my arms around him.
“Alright, talk. Your team didn’t look any different but you do. What did they want?”
“They want sole rights.”
“To?”
“Everything.”
“Pretend I’m just some dumb kid here. Define everything for me.”
“They want to make the book series into a television show instead of a movie. I would get credit for creating the characters and this world, but that would be the end of my involvement.”
“That doesn’t make much sense since you have other books in mind for the series.”
He shifted so he could look at me. “That’s just it Dean, I wouldn’t be able to write them. I would no longer own those characters; they would belong to the network.”
“So, by agreeing to this you're giving up your right to continue writing books about them?”
“Yes. The money is very good and there is a percentage of income I would have from them. But, they’re mine and I didn’t think they would want to take that completely away. I wouldn’t even get a say in the show, so they could change them however they wanted.”
I tightened my grip some; he’d been so excited about this prospect and looking forward to seeing what he would be involved in and how things would go. This was not how he wanted it to go and I knew it wasn’t.
“Do you want to sell them?”
“Not really but the income revenue alone would be worth it.”
“Castiel.”
His brows creased. “I’m talking six figures a year Dean.”
“Okay, so you make a ton of money on a show that you have no say in. What if they change your characters and it ruins your reputation in the process? These are your characters and people know that. Even if you say you didn’t do it, they may assume you did.”
“I know but…”
I laid my finger over his lips. “No buts. Sit here and consider it for a bit. Weigh your options.”
He adjusted to be more comfortable and leaned back. The steady sound of the waves crashing was hypnotic and relaxing. It was great to be away from the stress of jobs and writing for a bit. I did keep and eye on the sun though, because neither of us needed a sunburn.
“When do you have to let them know?”
He sighed. “Tomorrow, there is another meeting at ten.”
“Anything you want to talk about now?”
“I’m not sure where to begin.”
I tightened my grip some. “Okay, do you have plenty more ideas for Supernatural books?”
“Yes. A lot of different things could be done with them and I do have ideas for another series as well.”
“So, do you really want to give up those characters? Do you feel like this network would do them right?”
He sighed heavily and leaned back more. “I don’t believe the network would. They’re already talking about changing the orientation of Jensen, they don’t want him to be bisexual in the show or the movie if they do it. But, Charlie loved the idea and I haven’t had any issues with readers.”
“I particularly like that Jensen is bisexual. Not a lot of books have characters like that.”
“A lot of people like it and Alastair pointedly said that would change.”
I kissed his neck lightly. “Sunshine, it doesn’t sound like you want to give them up yet.”
“But the money…”
“Castiel, I’m not worried about the money. Why are you?”
“It would be a big help for both of us, we wouldn’t need a loan or anything.”
“The loan, the money, none of that matters to me if you’re unhappy. It sounds like they’d take your hard work and throw it out the door for their own purposes. If you don’t want that to happen, don’t sign the papers. Did your lawyer, manager, or publisher have thoughts?”
“The lawyer wasn’t really concerned, but her job was to make sure I wasn’t getting screwed legally. Ashley wasn’t happy. And Samantha was pretty indifferent but she didn’t let me know either way.”
“Ashley’s been with you for how long?”
“She’s always been my contact with the publisher.”
“Did she say anything specific?”
He shifted a bit. “She doesn’t like that they mentioned the changes. She’s positive that once I sign they’ll be stripped of everything I did and they’ll be changed.”
“Is that what you want?”
“No.”
“I say you decline their offer.”
“What if I never get another offer like this Dean? I could ruin myself by denying this.”
I chuckled and then kissed his neck again. “You won’t. I’m sure your lawyer and manager will agree.”
“What if…”
I put my hand over his mouth.
“No what if’s. If selling them and the network changing things will make you unhappy then don’t do it. I wouldn’t sell the garage if I thought it would make me unhappy. We don’t need to be rich to be happy. We’re happy now and we’re far from millionaires. Who knows, your newer thoughts for a series may be better suited to be a movie or show and another network may pay more later on for characters people love.”
His eyes glanced down at my hand and then around us and I moved it, not that he minded much.
“I don’t see you ever selling the garage. You love that place.”
“And you love your characters.”
“I don’t think you would like Alistair anyway.”
I tilted my head.“Oh?”
“He was…flirty.”
I narrowed my gaze at him. “Maybe I should attend tomorrow’s meeting.”
“Not required Dean, you know who I’d come to anyway.”
I smiled and kissed his cheek. “I know exactly who you’d come to.”
“It’s getting warm here, even if it is relaxing. Maybe we should head back.”
“Sure you don’t want to explore?”
His hand moved and his finger traced a spot of open skin where the buttons weren’t buttoned.
“Oh, I do want to explore but the object of my exploration isn’t a where but a who.”
I leaned in and kissed him. “I like that idea.”
Of course the best plans are never the ones we want to happen; we’d barely made it back to the hotel when the engineer called me.
“Mr. Winchester?”
“I’m here and so is Mr. Novak.”
“That’s good then. I’ve got some good news and some bad news.”
“Bad news first,” Cas said.
“The second floor was never permitted and honestly it’s a miracle it never collapsed. It is one of the reasons the kitchen area fell through, the floor boards under it weren’t adequate enough and the fire just tore through them. The whole place would have collapsed had they not gotten there in time.”
“Good thing Benny was there then. Does that mean we can’t add a second floor?”
“Actually, no. It was zoned properly and you can convert the building to a home. As for a second floor, which is the good news, you can add a floor above with the proper structure. Obviously you’ll need a plan of attack first and then you can see what you need structure wise. It would be wise to not use the bottom as a garage in my opinion, unless you have to.”
“We were actually considering not using it for a repair garage but having a space for our cars.”
“That would be fine. Do you have any contractors in mind?”
“We do and we have someone we can work with to design as well,” Cas said.
“Okay, call me if you have problems but the report has been filed and you’ll have a copy at your workplace when you return.”
“Thank you,” we said.
He hung up and it was some good news finally. I did go ahead and call the contractor because it meant the entire second story had to be taken off and they would need time for that. I let Benny know that they would be there the next day, so he wouldn’t freak out. By the time we’d gotten through all of that, it was dinner time for sure.
“Pizza?” Cas asked.
“We’re in California and you want pizza?”
“Yeah.”
“Fine, you order.”
I sat back on the bed while he ordered us a pizza with drinks and some kind of dessert. He was more familiar with the area than I was, so that was a plus.
“I know we got interrupted but are you really okay moving in with me and giving up your place?”
He laid his phone down and sat down.
“I am. The last few weeks have been pretty good. I love waking up to you each morning even if you are grumpy as hell at times.”
“You’re not so thrilled that early.”
“I know, but I’m sure I want to. Are you sure you want me there? Because you’ll be stuck with me if not.”
I patted my lap. “I’m sure, so much so why don’t you move right up here.”
“Pizza, Dean.”
“At least fifteen minutes.”
Well, him crawling up the bed wasn’t what I expected but fuck I was quite glad when he settled down in my lap, those thighs tight against mine. I put my arms around him and pulled him a little closer.
“I want to wake up to you, Cas. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of waking up to you.”
His downcast eyes and shy smile was too perfect not to kiss. As much as I wanted to rip clothes off, I knew I couldn’t because he would have to answer the door. But I could totally kiss him until his face was flushed red and he was breathing shallow before there was a knock.
“So rude.”
He did get the door though and I’m sure the delivery man was confused by his flushed appearance when he saw him. I laughed from the bed as well, the idea of spending the rest of my life with him was very appealing. I got up and joined him in the little kitchenette area to eat, no need to get pizza on the bed. Even if I had to adjust beforehand.
“Have you made a decision?” I asked.
He wiped away the grease from his lips and nodded. “I’m declining.”
“I think that’s the right decision.”
“I sent Samantha and Ashley a message, they agreed.”
I swallowed a large bite and looked at him. “You’ll have to include a home office with the plans; someplace you can be uninterrupted while writing.”
“We’ll see. I can pretty much write anywhere, Dean.”
“I know but you do need a better space. I mean, if Sam’s home and the guys are over, you wouldn’t have peace and quiet.”
He tilted his head. “I’d probably be with you and the guys instead of writing. Someone would need to keep you all sane and from destroying things.”
“Truth.”
He wiggled his brow. “I can’t embarrass you if I’m hiding.”
“Haha, good luck, baby.”
He just smiled and we finished eating, packing the leftovers up. He kicked off his suit jacket but then just climbed into the bed. I watched him and shook my head. He’d chosen the middle of the bed and was very comfortable looking. I couldn’t resist climbing up on the foot and crawling up to him.
“If I looked half as good as you doing that, I’m shocked you had any control.”
“I knew pizza was coming.”
I settled into his lap, the mattress assisting with me sinking some.
“I guess you don’t want to watch a movie?” I asked.
“Not right now, no.”
Okay, I wouldn’t mind a make out session at all. It was nice being here with him in general, the way his hands felt against my skin, his lips on mine, the general feeling of his body against mine. Later that night as we lay there together, Cas already asleep at my side, I wondered what it would be like to wake up without him and that was a painful thought. I settled in and eventually drifted off.
January 22, 2004
We were up entirely too early to be back at the meeting but unlike yesterday, I didn’t choose to sit in the hallway. Castiel didn’t even bat an eye when I held the door for them and followed them inside. I chose the seat beside him and we waited for the network to arrive with their representatives.
“Are you sure about this decision?” Ashley asked.
“Yes,” he said.
She nodded. “The publisher will be happy. They were worried about losing the book series.”
I smiled, of course they would. His books may not be multi-million dollar sellers but they sold enough to make him valuable to the company. I could see how nervous he was so I laid my hand over his.
“It’s okay.”
He smiled at me and turned his hand to intertwine our fingers; if he wanted to hold my hand, I wouldn’t complain. When the others arrived I really didn’t like them, just by looks alone and the way they carried themselves. Their greetings were forced and the smiles fake. I hate fake people.
They reiterated the deal and hearing them talk it did sound good, but then they did the whole thing about changing the characters.
“Why do you want to change the orientation of one of the characters?” I asked.
“I’m sorry, you are?”
I smiled. “Dean Winchester.”
“And you are?”
“He’s my boyfriend. I’d also like an answer to that question.”
“We would like the character to be more accepted as a whole.”
It was hard to hear that love wasn’t accepted in their opinion but his hand tightened in mine and I glanced over at him. His expression wasn’t anger or disappointment though. I couldn’t describe it correctly.
“Thank you for the generous offer for the characters and the world I created. However, I’m going to have to decline the offer. My reasons are my own but I would prefer to keep these characters to myself.”
They definitely didn’t look happy about that news but none of us cared really. They tried to up the amount they would pay but he still shook his head.
When they finally left, the other two smiled.
“I’m glad you chose to keep them,” Ashley said.
“Jensen and Jared deserved more than to be treated like that.”
I chuckled. “I agree as a reader.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Dean.” Ashley said.
“You as well.”
“So, can I schedule that promo tour now, Cas?”
“Yes, Ashley. Unless you want to wait because the next book is ready for editors.”
“Oh..tempting. I’ll see.”
I wasn’t sure I liked the idea of a promo tour, because I was sure that required planes and more traveling. Something I couldn’t always do. But I would have to accept that as part of his job. He and the two of them talked briefly about some things and then we headed back to the hotel.
“Promo tour?” I asked.
“She usually schedules me here and New York. Other places if the demand is high enough. You wouldn’t have to come with me unless you wanted to and could.”
“That whole being gone scares me.”
He pulled me against him. “I would never run away for long and I have a phone. She may wait though.”
“I know, it just worries me. It’s allowed.”
We left the building and went back to the hotel to change. Once there we changed into swim shorts and hit the beach for a while. We were leaving in a few days and well, the beach was something we didn’t see daily. It was good to be away. We did speak about what we wanted in a house, because if we were given free rein, then we may as well make it the best we could at the moment.
We also discussed the idea of buying elsewhere or close by, but reality was the zoning was right and it would put me closer to work. So, it made more sense to just renovate the garage and move on. We discussed what we wanted, where, and how. If we were going to be living together at least it would be something we both wanted.
The rest of our vacation in California went well. We spent time at the beach, saw more places, visited more restaurants, and we saw Sammy again before we came home. I had a great birthday in California, even if it was just Sam, Cas and I. It was a good time since coming home meant stress with work and construction and loan companies.