Rejected

18: The Wheel of Life

Gabriel could smell the fall in the air. It smelled like wind, candy corn, corn husks, wet straw, and cotton candy (or candy floss, if you're into that). The five boys had payed for their tickets into the fair and were aimlessly wandering around.

Instead of being sad, Gabriel decided he was simply going to enjoy his time with Sam until destiny brutally ripped them apart.

So that's what he did. Gabe grabbed Sam's hand, running off toward the promise of a sugar high. Sam tried to keep up, weaving in and out of patrons giving him dirty looks. They stopped at some vendor and bought candy, of course, what else. Gabriel got six bags of circus peanuts (those orange, gummy, peanut-shaped things) and Sam got some sour gummy worms.

While they munched on their candy, Sam and Gabriel walked around, looking for something fun to do (in Sam's case), or some trouble to cause (in Gabriel's case).

Only once did Sam take Gabriel's hand in fear. It was when the two passed a fun house, with those distorted mirrors and things. There was a clown collecting tickets at the front.

"Scared of clowns, Sammy?" Gabriel had asked.

"Yeah. Since I was a kid." Sam had answered, eyeing the clown nervously.

"Don't worry," Gabe had assured him, "I'll protect you."

It was at this moment that the author realized she had no idea what you do at a carnival, because she had never been to one. She decided to just wing it. She seems like she's done that a lot throughout this book.

The two wandered a bit farther into the carnival, towards the promise of shiny lights coming off some rides. Sam was looking for Dean and Cas, since he had promised Lucifer on the way over that he would keep them from 'making love and-slash-or groping each other in public view'. So far he hadn't seen two young men groping each other or outright fucking.

Gabriel was ready to ride some rides. He dragged Sam, much against the taller boy's will, up to the line for The Intimidation. It was a roller coaster, one that was very fast and quite tall.

"Gabe, do we have to?" Sam asked, taking in the huge mess of twisty steel track painted dark red.

Gabriel hesitated for a fraction of a second before saying, "yes."

"Why?" Sam asked as the pair moved forward in line.

"I've rode this before, Sammy. It's not as bad as it looks." Gabriel said, not answering Sam's question.

"Have you rode it with six bags of candy in your stomach?"

"Not exactly..." The two moved up again. "But I promise, it'll be fun."

Sam looked up at the coaster again. "But-"

"I'll make you a deal, Sammy. If you go on this with me, I'll go on some less intense ride with you."

"It's not that it's intense..." Sam trailed off, seeing Gabriel's raised eyebrow. "Ugh, fine. Deal."

"Great." The two made their way up to the front of the line, and boarded the car. The cars fit four people, so the people behind Gabe and Sam got in with them.

But Gabriel and Sam are unobservant idiots, so they didn't realize that the people behind them in line were none other than Castiel Novak and Dean Winchester. And they weren't fucking or groping each other, if anyone was keeping track.

"Oh, hey guys." Dean said as they strapped themselves in.

"Hey." Gabriel answered for the both of them.