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Castiel may have been adamant that Angels didn't sleep, not just didn't need to but actually couldn't, but if Sam'd had a camera right then he could have provided some pretty convincing evidence to the contrary.
The sun spilling through the cheap motel blinds had woken him earlier than usual. As he'd blinked the sleep from his eyes he'd become aware of the pleasant but unfamiliar sensation of someone sleeping on him; a head on his shoulder, a warm body curled up against his side.
He'd turned his head carefully to avoid waking his unexpected bed partner and had ended up with his nose in soft and familiar chestnut hair. That Gabriel was on top of the covers was comforting but only in a 'made the situation fractionally less unnerving' kind of way.
He blinked down at Gabriel's sleeping form and wondered whether he should be relieved or worried.
On one hand, at least some random person or supernatural entity hadn't broken into their room in the middle of the night and fallen asleep on him (and didn't it suck that he lived a life where that could actually be a legitimate possibility). On the other hand, it was Gabriel. Yeah, the Archangel was guarding his dreams now, which gave him a reason to watch Sam sleep in the same creepy way Cas did Dean. But usually, by the time Sam woke, Gabriel was slouched in a chair with his feet up on the table, eating pancakes with chocolate sauce. He was comfortably predictable that way.
This was different.
His thoughts were interrupted by Gabriel making a soft sleepy noise and turning his face towards Sam. When their eyes met Gabriel froze and Sam raised his eyebrows.
"Have a nice nap?" He asked, vindictively calm.
Gabriel made a face at him that was uncomfortably familiar and Sam was certain that a) Gabriel had picked up that look from him and b) if Gabriel ever made it in front of Dean his brother would happily call the Archangel out on making a bitchface. Almost as soon as it appeared, though, Gabriel replaced it with his trademark Trickster smirk.
"You make a good pillow. It's probably something to do with you being freakishly tall." Sam frowned down at him; noticing that Gabriel wasn't making any move to stop using Sam as a pillow and also that Sam kinda didn't want him to. He shoved that thought away quickly. No need to encourage the mind-reading Archangel.
"Were you actually asleep?" Sam asked, hoping to distract himself from the disturbing thoughts he was having about what it would feel like to have Gabriel under the covers with him. "Cas said Angels didn't do that."
Gabriel flashed him a real grin that made Sam horribly certain he'd heard his thoughts anyway, before the smirk came back. "I've been on Earth a lot longer than Castiel, after a while you pick up the habits. I knew a Demon once who slept through the entire 14th Century. Now that's what I call going native."
Sam blinked at him, perplexed, he never could tell if Gabriel was being serious when he said things like that. After thinking about it for a moment he decided that it was too early in the morning to care.
"You can go back to sleep if you want," Gabriel was still looking up at him but somehow he managed not to meet Sam's eyes as he said that and if Sam didn't know better he'd actually think he sounded nervous, "I'll still be here to keep Lucy out of your dreams."
"Even in your sleep?"
"Of course." The indignant arrogance of the pronouncement made Sam smile. He made a split second decision to just go with the flow of whatever the hell this was.
"Then I think it's too early for either of us to be up." He declared and closed his eyes on the sight of Gabriel's face lighting up.
He fell asleep with a smile on his face. When he woke up Gabriel was once again slouched in a chair with his feet up on the table, eating pancakes with chocolate sauce.