Standing Together

Chapter 41

Castiel waits impatiently for the sound of the front door opening. It's the day of Dean's first preseason game, and Castiel can't help but feel a little nervous for him to come back tonight. What if he lost? Does Castiel even want to be in the same house as Dean when he loses a game? How does he handle it?

Finally, he hears the creak of the front door's hinges, and he knows Dean's back. Castiel waits at the kitchen table, drinking a bottle of cold water in an attempt to not fall asleep.

Dean steps into view, an exhausted look on his face. When he sees his fiancé, he gives the boy a small, halfhearted smile. "Hey, Cas."

Castiel cocks his head to one side, squinting his eyes slightly. "You seem upset."

Dean shrugs. "No, not really." He walks over and sits down across from the boy, propping his head up on his hand.

"What was the score?" Castiel asks.

"37-20," Dean says simply.

"And that's good?" Castiel asks, realizing he actually knows absolutely nothing about football.

"Yeah, pretty good," Dean says. "We won — better than last time we played the Eagles, I think."

"You don't seem very happy about it," Castiel observes cautiously.

Dean shrugs. "Long day. I guess I lost the ability to emote along the way."

"Can I get you anything?" Castiel asks, hoping there's at least something he can do to cheer his fiancé up.

"Nope."

Castiel frowns. Well, that's no help. He walks over to the boy and takes his arm, trying to drag him away. Unfortunately for him, even his full body weight can't get Dean out of his chair if he doesn't want to stand up.

"Come on," Castiel insists.

Dean sighs. "I'm going to regret this, aren't I?"

Dean stands up and lets Castiel lead him to their bedroom. Castiel sits Dean on the end of the bed, then sits next to him, legs hanging over the side of the bed.

"Was that it?" Dean asks. "You just wanted to sit on the bed instead of in the kitchen?"

Castiel nods. "Pretty much."

"But why?"

"Because the other side of the table is so far away," Castiel explains. "But here, I can do this." He picks his legs up and curls them up on the couch next to him, leaning his head again Dean's shoulder. "Snuggles."

Dean puts an arm around him. "You know, I think I like this idea."

~~

Castiel groans at the sound of Dean's alarm. That time already? It's too early for this. Can't they just stay here, cuddling in bed?

Unfortunately, Dean doesn't seem to get his telepathic pleas, because he pushes himself into a sitting position, and Castiel loses his human pillow. Dean runs a hand down his face, then looks back at his fiancé with a small smile.

"No nightmare last night?" Dean guesses, seeming sort of proud of him.

"Nope," Castiel replies, and it's a nice realization. He doesn't even remember having a dream at all last night, which is probably a good sign.

"Well, that's nice, huh?" Dean crawls out of bed and kneels down next to him to give him a quick kiss on the forehead. "I'm gonna go make some coffee."

Castiel sighs and sits up. "I guess I'm gonna come with you."

"You do realize you're more than welcome to go back to sleep, right?" Dean says.