The motel room couch was barely big enough for three grown men, but they made it work—more out of habit than comfort. A half-empty pizza box rested on the coffee table, next to a few beer bottles and Sam’s laptop, which had been forgotten the moment Dean and Kai’s argument started heating up.

Dean leaned forward, eyebrows raised, gesturing wildly with a slice of greasy pepperoni pizza in hand. “I’m sorry, but if you seriously think Fear Street even touches The Thing, then your brain’s been melted by TikTok.”

Kai scoffed, shoving Dean’s knee with his own. “The Thing? Dude, that’s ancient. You’re just mad because Fear Street had better pacing and a storyline that didn’t rely on rubber monsters.”

Dean put a hand dramatically to his chest. “Rubber monsters? You wound me, man.” He turned to Sam, who had been quiet this whole time, curled up in the corner of the couch with an amused expression, watching his boyfriend and his brother go at it for the hundredth time. “Sammy, back me up here. Practical effects. Iconic soundtrack. Creeping paranoia. The Thing is a damn masterpiece!”

Sam chuckled, eyes flicking toward Kai with a small smirk. “I’m not getting in the middle of this.”

“Coward,” Dean muttered.

Kai turned slightly, looping his arm around Sam’s shoulder and leaning into him with a grin. “He knows I’m right. He’s just protecting your fragile ego.”

Sam laughed softly, hand slipping to rest on Kai’s thigh, thumb brushing lazily. His touch was subtle, comforting. Familiar. “You two have had this same argument for six years. And spoiler alert—neither of you are ever gonna change your mind.”

Dean snorted. “Yeah, well, it’s not about changing minds. It’s about making sure this idiot knows he’s wrong every single time.”

Kai raised his brows. “Says the guy who thinks Jeepers Creepers 2 was underrated.”

“Okay, now we’re fighting,” Dean shot back.

Sam shook his head, letting out a quiet laugh and leaning his head against Kai’s shoulder for a moment. In a life where loss came easily and love was always at risk, this—this—was the kind of moment he held onto. Normal. Chaotic. Safe.

He’d fallen for Kai without meaning to. Without wanting to. But Kai had stayed. Through everything. He was the one Sam didn’t lose.

Dean rolled his eyes at the couple curled up beside him, but there was a quiet fondness in his smile. He wouldn’t say it out loud—but watching his baby brother fall in love, be happy for once? It was one hell of a plot twist.

Even if Kai’s taste in horror movies was, objectively, trash.