My (not so) crazy headcanon
I started watching SPN in 2015 (I was 15 yo). From that year on, every year, I watched the new seasons. Supernatural helped me through highschool and the first part of the pandemic. Then I watched it again and again and again while I was struggling with university (just like now).
Since I was 15 my favourite character is always have been and will always be Gabriel. So you can imagine my absolutely mental breakdown I had when I saw him die in S13. So my headcanon that now, at 26 yo, I still strongly believe in, is that he didn't really died. It was his last trick, to fool everyone: the angels, the demons, the winchesters and even god himself. It was his last trick to be finally free from a family who didn't love him the same way he loved them, free from the brothers who, at the end, he grew fond of.
Don't get me wrong, I love how he sacrificed for them, but I am to fond of Gabriel to believe he is dead lol.