What I Need by Jacqueline Albright-Beckett was recced to me very recently and I absolutely inhaled it. It's a medical AU featuring surgeon Cas and surgical tech Dean. The medical setting is spot-on, but the heart of the story is these two characters slowly getting to know and love each other. There is no massive angsty breakup to be found here - just excellent writing and character development.

The Sawdust Men by linoresearch is one of two fics by this writer I absolutely adore - the other one being an epic Jane Eyre AU, with Cas in the role of Jane Eyre. This one is set at a Gulag-style labor camp, where Dean is brought in as a guard and Cas is a political prisoner. Expect angst and violence accordingly, but what really stuck with me about this story is how sweet and tender Dean and Cas' romance is, even in circumstances that shouldn't allow for it.

Every Dog Has Its Day by aileenrose is really just a stand-in for my recommendation that you read every aileenrose fic ever. No matter the premise, they're always wonderful and just pull you right in. This one in particular stuck with me - Cas is a homeless veteran, and Dean meets him when Cas darts into the road to save a stray dog. Okay, and maybe just one more: in Love, Take Your Toll, Cas is a lonely toll collector and Dean is a driver who just keeps finding excuses to pass by his booth.