"Cas…" the first word on Dean's lips when he woke up in a panic, tears in his eyes and his breath hard. He reaches for his phone, which he now keeps under his pillow next to his knife. He didn't even need to look at it, his eyes closed against the blinding brightness of his screen, he had repeated the action so many times it was habitual now. Within seconds he had the phone pressed to his ear, his free hand pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to calm his heart.

"Dean? What's wrong?" Castiel's voice was filled with concern, but as soon as Dean heard it he already felt better. "Dean?" the urgency in Cas' voice was almost soothing, as Dean took a deep breath and replied shakily,

"Yeah, I'm here…" he could hear Castiel's exhale and felt the beginning of a smile forming on his lips.

"Do you need me? I can be there if you need me." Castiel's voice had lost a bit of its panic now, and the smile on Dean's face grew a little bit.

"No, Cas. I'm fine… it's over." Dean looked over at the clock. Four A.M. It seemed like the nightmares always came around this time of night, terrifying flashes of memories from he ached to forget. It seemed Castiel was always available to take the late night phone calls, and was more than willing to come and comfort him. In the beginning, Dean was awkward calling Castiel. However calling him was the better alternative to telling Sammy everything that happened, and in time these phone calls became a regular occurrence.

"Dean, if you need me to come… I can be there. Whatever's going on here, it's not as important as what's going on with you." Dean knew Castiel was speaking honestly, but asking him to drop everything and physically comfort him seemed too much. "Dean?" Suspicion was seeping into Castiel's voice now, as he recognized Dean's hesitation. "I'm coming now."

"No, Cas. It's fine, seriously. I just," another hesitation as Dean rubbed his eyes and then sat up in bed. "Yeah… maybe you should come."

"Dean." Castiel was standing beside the bed, suddenly, phone still in his hand as he stared as Dean restlessly. Dean hung up his own phone, and shifted over slightly on the bed, Castiel sat awkwardly on the edge, phone still to his ear until Dean reached up and took the phone from his hand, hanging it up and reaching over to put both phones on the bedside table. "What was it this time? How bad?"

"Let's talk about something else, Cas." Dean's hand rose to once again pinch the bridge of his nose and rub his eyes. "Distract me." He lays back on the bed, keeping his hand over his face.

"I'm not very…" Castiel's voice takes on an uncomfortable tone, "I don't know how to make small talk, Dean." Dean peaks out from behind his hand and almost laughs at the extremely uncomfortable look on his face. Castiel looks at him and catches the smile, and his hard mouth twitches into a smile, "why are you laughing?" The face that he didn't know why Dean was laughing, but was laughing along with him just made it better and Dean didn't hold back the chuckle this time.

"It's nothing, you're doing a great job. Keep it up!" Dean knows he's only baiting Castiel, and it works as Cas sighs, frustrated, and says,

"I don't know what I'm doing Dean." Another snicker escapes Dean's lips, and he looks up at Castiel.

"Come here." He says, a grin stretching across his lips.

"What?" Castiel stutters, looking down at Dean. Even in the dark, Dean can see the blush on Castiel's cheeks.

"C'mere." This time Dean pulls Castiel gently down by his shoulder, and Cas extends an arm to catch himself, hovering over Dean's face. "Closer." He leans in a bit closer, and Dean can feel his breath on his face. He closes his eyes and whispers, "Closer." Cas leans in closer, and Dean can't wait. He leans forward, closing the tiny distance, pressing his lips to Castiel's.

"Closer."

One year later

"Cas." The first word out of Dean's lips, as he wakes up. He looks at the clock. Four A.M. He looks up, and sees a figure standing in his room.

"Sorry, Dean. I'm coming back to bed now." Castiel crawls into bed with Dean, his back fitting perfectly against Dean's chest. Dean's arm wraps around Castiel, and he shifts so his free arm is underneath the pillow, and Castiel's head.

"I love you, Cas."