2 - Lucien, stop hitting on the newcomer!

Luckily enough for Dean - who had pocketed both those business card with the full intention to burn them down as soon as possible - and for Castiel, who was now the unfortunate center of attention, a car soon pulled by next to the house, in the garage this time. That could only mean one thing.
"I'm home", a tired voice declared from the entrance door.
Chuck was back from work!

Castiel's face actually lit up, and he laid his glass on the table to go greet his father, much to Rachel's annoyance, who sighed and didn't even turn around at the sound.
"Hi... dad," Castiel said a bit awkwardly, when he had rushed out of the room to greet him. Well. To his credit, everyone else was suffocating him, but he didn't expect to find his father looking so tired it actually made him feel bad.

Chuck was indeed looking tired, but he did lighten up when he caught sight of Castiel. "Cas! I... it's so nice to see you!" He sounded so sincerely glad that he forgot about his tiredness for a minute, and opened his arms to hug him. "You look well - I am glad", he murmured, patting his back a bit. It was a relief that his younger son was there.

Castiel actually hugged Chuck a bit tight, relieved to have found his father. Truth be told, he would have wished he could spend more time with him. "You seem tired- You don't overwork yourself, do you?" Well. Like father, like son, in the end.

Chuck briefly let go of him, and let out an embarrassed laugh. "Ah... well, you know. I've always a lot to do", he simply said. "But, what about you, instead? Are your studies going well? ... you don't overstudy yourself either, do you?", he asked, worriedly. Yeah, yeah. Like father, like son.

Castiel let out an awkward smile. "Well- Actually, I was. But I toned it down a bit, thanks to a friend's advice. Not my studies, I mean! Just- the work part." He completely let go of his father. "Actually, I brought that friend over for the week- his name is Dean. I'll introduce you later, if you want to rest a bit first." Yes, he also just remembered he had abandoned Dean alone in that room with his worst family members.

Chuck threw him a sorry smile. "Eh, I doubt I'll be able to get any rest before Michael and Raphael go back to their hotel. You know your mother - she'll surely be mad enough already because I arrived later than expected." He sighed loudly, then registered what Castiel had said about a friend he brought over. He made a happy face, about to say how glad he was that his son had gotten so close to a person - before paling a bit. "You... left him in the other room with your mom?" Welp. That poor guy.

"... You're right. I should go back and help him- please take your time, dad. I'll try to soothe mom's temper a bit." he rushed back to the living room, where Rachel had hooked her arm around Dean's and patted his biceps with appreciative comments. Suffocating him already by invading his personal boundaries.

Chuck gestured for Castiel not to worry much about him and go help his friend out as he laid down his coat and bags in their respective places. Psychologically readying himself for the usual evening of passive-aggressive comments Rachel would have probably thrown at him.
... maybe it was better if he kept the suit.

Dean looked like someone who was having a very hard time not to quip something on the lines of "Offer me a drink first!", instead trying so hard to keep his politeness on it seemed almost unnatural. He was letting Rachel do whatever she wanted, hoping hard she'd lose interest, and looked at Castiel entering the room as if he was his guardian angel. So much relief on his face!

Rachel was indeed well-known in the family to be less harsh towards her husband if he wore his suit. Otherwise she would complain about him looking like a homeless man.

Castiel walked straight to Dean, to save him, and even offered a smile to his mother. "Mom, I think your appetizers are almost ready?"
"Dear Lord, I forgot them into the oven! Thank you, Cassie," she said, tapping her son's cheek gently, before she finally let go of Dean to rush back to the kitchen.
"Sorry," Castiel whispered to his friend.

"Are you kidding? You probably just saved my life. I owe you one", Dean murmured back to Castiel. He could still feel Rachel's weirdly strong grasp on his arm, which made him shiver.
Chuck gingerly made his way to the living room, greeting everyone with a warm smile. Even though people who knew him well enough could tell it was a bit forced. "Aah, I am glad you all could make it. Rachel phoned me this morning to tell me. Sorry I couldn't make it earlier!" He looked around waiting for his sons and their fiancées to greet him. And for Cas to introduce that friend of his!

Castiel smiled fondly to Dean, and waited for Chuck to greet everyone else, so he could introduce him formally to Dean. "Dad, this is my best friend, Dean- Dean, this is my father." He seemed so genuinely happy about them meeting that Raphael's suspicions only rose higher.

Dean immediately stood up and immediately offered his hand to him. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir", he said respectfully.
Chuck saw the glee in Castiel's eyes as he introduced Dean, and he honestly got some suspicions too. But most of all, he loved to see his son that happy, so he didn't really dwell on that. He smiled and energically shook the hand that was being offered to him. "Please, there's no need to be that formal! Call me Chuck", he simply said with a smile. He glanced at Castiel. "Another aspiring doctor, or?"

"No, we met while I was doing a side-job," Castiel explained, a bit awkwardly. "In a bar. Dean actually still works there, but we kept in touch. And we've been sharing the apartment and costs for a while, now."

"Tell your son he should find himself a lovely wife soon," Rachel almost shouted, before she grinned, handing over baked appetizers to her guests.

Dean shot Rachel a dashing smile and grabbed a couple of the appetizers. "They smell great! I can see right away they are homemade." Well, throwing a couple of compliments maybe could sweeten her down. Eve if he doubted that. He offered one of the appetizers he had grabbed to Cas.

Chuck let out a nervous laugh, scratching his head. "Honey, not everyone is lucky with finding the right person quickly - and he's still so young! I think he has time, no?" He masterfully changed topic right away. "We should concentrate on Michael and Amelia's wedding! Did you pick a place already?"

Rachel would have been tamed down, safe for Chuck's intervention. She remained a bit bitter and kept the appetizers away from him while she listened to Michael and Amelia's boring details about their wedding plans.
Feeling bad for his father, Castiel offered half of his own appetizer to him, discreetly.

Dean did catch Castiel's gaze sometimes, while Michael was blabbering about his wedding, and either rolled his eyes theatrically or mockingly imitated a gun with his fingers to gesture as if he wanted to shoot himself. Discreetly, of course!

Chuck let out a small sigh and silently thanked Castiel for taking pity on him, accepting the half-appetizer. He tried to gently get his wife's attention, to smoothen her feathers before dinner, with questions like 'How was your day, dear' and pointing out how pretty she looked that evening.
A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.

Dean's presence and jokes actually soothed Castiel, who had to sometimes repress a laugh. He was so glad his friend was there that night!

Rachel did soften after a while, but let's be real, it was also because Chuck was still wearing his suit, and looking very important. After a good while, she gave in, and actually sat by his side, although her tone was bitter. "Your best friend Robert called," she said reluctantly.

I'm going to leave them on hold for a second before I get Lucifer to come down! uvu

Chuck felt relieved when Rachel finally settled down next to him and stopped pouting - but got a bit alarmed when she named his lawyer and best friend. "He told you if he needed anything? Weird, he didn't look for me on my cellphone. Nor at my workplace, actually."

"Well, he wanted my autorisation to stop by on Sunday noon. Because apparently I'm a tyrant who's not letting you live your life," Rachel replied, on a cold and resentful tone.

Chuck sighed. "You know he didn't mean it like that - he just knows that Sunday we usually have lunch all together. He probably didn't want to intrude", he said gently, trying to reach for her hand. Still trying to soothe her. Even though yes, she was a tyrant. She totally was.

Rachel hesitated whether or not to be mad at Chuck, but... she let him touch her hand, and even relaxed a bit, after a while. "But this was to be a family week," she sighed dramatically. "You know how much family matters to me." Yet she would more gladly invite her brother Zachariah rather than her brother-in-law, Mark (Metatron) over.

"Of course I know, dear", Chuck said with another sigh. "It will just be for Sunday noon - it's probably something work-related that he wants to discuss with me, as usual. And I already warned at the office that I'll be home earlier each day of this week - okay?" He rubbed her hand a bit, grinly thinking that unfortunately Zachariah was part of that family, yes.

Rachel sighed, but let him touch her hand for a bit more, before she ran her own on his beard. "You should shave a bit. You look like a homeless man," she complained. Although, truth be told, he tone was finally more gentle.

Chuck forced himself not to roll his eyes at that comment, instead just letting out a tired smile. "You think so? Everyone always says it makes me look younger - that it is good for my public image." And he actually liked it that way.

In the mean time, someone had sneaked downstairs, and like a shadow, had positioned themselves right behind Michael.