A/N: This story is a follow-up to my earlier story, "Understanding That Reference." It's not really necessary to read that first, but it might help with context.

Castiel smiled at the faint sounds of the child giggling on the far side of the library. Glancing in the direction of the noise, he saw that the dog sitting beside the little girl was licking her face, nearly making her drop the book in her hands. Dean, crouching next to them, was attempting to make the dog back off, but it was clear that nobody involved in the situation was all that bothered, including the chuckling mother watching the scene.

Since the infamous (but ultimately gratifying) introduction of the library's "Tales for Tails" program, Dean had become a regular volunteer, along with the dogs' primary handler, Gilda. He wasn't a dog person, per se, but he had his reasons for sticking with it. For one thing, helping out Gilda was a way of thanking her for her part in the plan that had assisted him in finally finding the courage to meet Cas in person. Another reason was that being involved allowed him to, as he put it, see his hot librarian in action.

Toward that end, Castiel resisted the urge to stand still and watch the children's program (along with his handsome boyfriend), and instead kept to his regular duties behind the reference desk. He couldn't be faulted for doing his job with a slight flush and smile, though, feeling Dean's hungry eyes on him as he worked. Cas had arranged to have his coffee breaks coincide with the dogs' departure, which would be in only a few minutes. Scanning across the desktop in front of him, Cas hustled to wrap up the list of book holds he was processing before putting up the sign directing patrons to the other desk for service. Seeing no sign of Dean in the children's room, he took a detour through the staff lounge to grab two cups of coffee, then headed out to the concrete patio behind the library.

Dean was leaning back on a bench, cool in the shade of overhanging trees. Castiel felt warm pleasure as he approached him, until he noticed that Dean looked tense around his eyes. He had looked up and smiled a bit when he saw Cas coming, but it wasn't a very convincing mask. "Dean," Cas said with a frown, "are you okay? What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm good," Dean said, lifting his chin to grab a kiss as he took the offered drink. Sipping it cautiously, he winced a little; the library's coffee machine was ancient and produced coffee that was perhaps somewhat thicker in consistency than it was intended to be, but it was also a tank of a machine, made in days when appliances were designed to last. No matter what abuse was heaped upon it, it refused to die, and Castiel was unable to justify the expense of a new one.

"You don't look good," Castiel replied skeptically, tracing a hand over Dean's cheek. Dean lifted an eyebrow in mock offense, and Cas rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean. Of course, you look good; you always look more than merely good. But right now you're a little more tragic hero than action hero. Something upset you. What happened?"

Dean sighed. "It's nothing. It's stupid." Cas didn't say anything, just sat beside him on the bench and waited patiently. He knew that being emotionally open was sometimes difficult for Dean, particularly when he felt like "real men" shouldn't be affected by whatever was bothering him. It was part of the shield he had built around himself to keep others from seeing how vulnerable he frequently felt. Cas had reasoned that the tactic was similar to the old "Chinese finger cuffs" prank; if he tried to force Dean to open up, Dean would only try harder to divert and distract. Relaxing and being patient was the only way to foster communication.

"Really, I'm okay. Just…" Dean closed his eyes and grimaced. "That last kid. She read this book, and…um. You know I wasn't really a reader when I was a kid, right? That was all Sam. Mom says she tried to read to me, same as she did for him, but apparently I would only sit still for books about cars or trucks."

"There's nothing wrong with that," Castiel reassured him.

"Yeah, I know. But now a lot of these stories are new to me, so I'm sitting there listening like the dogs are. 'Tales for Tails and Grown-Ass Men.'" He winked, but he still looked uncomfortable. Cas tilted his head, encouraging him to continue, and Dean turned back to frown into his coffee. "The girl picked this book…and you can't laugh, here. I swear, I'll leave."

"Dean."

"Well, it was called 'The Giving Tree,' and I just –"

Castiel couldn't repress his groan. "Oh, God, no."

"It was terrible! What the hell, man? This tree just let the kid that it loved fucking chop it up, cut off its arms, carve into it..."

"That book is horrible, Dean. It's a classic, and people love it, but I am so sorry you had to hear it."

Dean looked positively traumatized, and Cas took the coffee out of his hand, placing it safely on the retaining wall behind them before his arm waving could endanger them both with scalding splashes. "Cas, the tree was nothing but a stump by the end! And the kid in the book never even hesitated, just took and took until there was nothing left to take! And there's this little girl in front of me, just smiling as she read it, and all I can think is that she's learning that this is perfectly fucking fine, that that's what love is, just sacrificing everything you are so somebody else can be happy."

"I think the part that kills me the most is the end, when you think that there might be a chance at redemption," Cas said sympathetically. "The tree is down to nothing, and it tries to tell the boy how worthless it is now that it has nothing left to give, that he should go, and some part of me always begs for the boy to finally thank the tree and tell it that he loves it for more than just what it can do for him, but what does he do? Just uses it one more time."

"I swear, I wanted to rip that book out of her hands. Tell her not to buy into that garbage, that she should never let anybody turn her into that tree. Don't be the tree! God!" Dean shuddered and buried his head in the dip between Castiel's neck and shoulder, breathing deeply. "That's a kid's book? Shit."

"Just wait until somebody reads 'I'll Love You Forever.'" Cas wrapped his arm around Dean's shoulders and squeezed gently. "Believe me, your reaction isn't stupid. There are some books that should probably come with warning labels. I once read a picture book about a Japanese zoo, and I didn't realize until it was far too late that it was set in the second World War, and the zookeepers wound up euthanizing all the elephants before they could be killed by Allied forces. I sobbed for an hour."

"What the hell, man. Sadistic freaking writers."

"I'm sorry you were disturbed by that, Dean. But I love that you were, though. The fact that a story like that upset you, and that you are the kind of man that would be so distressed by it, is one of the many reasons why I love you so much." Dean lifted his head to look up into Castiel's face and smiled weakly; Cas kissed him softly, then pulled back to continue. "You are thoughtful, sensitive, and compassionate. You are so generous with yourself, and I will never stop being grateful that I have the chance to make sure you are cared for in return."

"Cas," Dean murmured, kissing him again, more firmly. They held each other tightly for a few more minutes, before Castiel had to go back to work.

"Tonight, I'll take you out for dinner," Cas suggested as they walked back into the library. "Afterwards, I have a few ideas about how to take your mind off unsettling picture books."

"Oh, yeah?" Dean's grin was much more genuine now. "Gonna console me, keep me from having bad dreams about it?"

"Maybe I'll tell you a bedtime story," Cas teased. "But only good little boys get special treats. Will you be good for me, Dean?"

"Always," he affirmed, eyes changing from playful to something warmer and full of promise.

A/N: We just a conversation a few days ago at our library's children's desk, during which all the youth librarians confessed to having a picture or book or two that bother us. "Rainbow Fish" is another one - like, you're only accepted if you buy friendship and lessen yourself? Jeez.

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