A/N: As part of a Christmas fic exchange, this story was made for Tumblr user ArchofImagine. She's a brilliant writer and you all should go check her out! Especially her Destiel AU fic "Tiny Vessels". It is pure brilliance. Merry Christmas everyone and enjoy! It took every single ounce out of me to make sure this was finished and... for that reason I can be proud, I suppose.

Castiel loves the lights. They are the only reason he even considers still being out in the cold, wet night. He knows he's late and he'll pay for that later. But right now, the sight was worth it.

It was Christmas Eve and streets upon streets were lit up with festive decorations. It seemed as if each house was more beautiful than the last. It was almost overwhelming and awed tears shone in his eyes. This, this right here, was the best part of Christmas in Cas' opinion. Strolling down the sidewalk and taking in the different displays families put together in their yards. His teeth chattered and he couldn't feel his fingertips any longer (of course he would misplace his gloves on today of all days), but none of that mattered. Not when his heart was warm and light with excitement.

In all of this, however, there was one house in particular that seemed to shine brighter than the rest. Something about the unconventional blue lights dripping from the gutters and the colored lights netted over the icicle drenched branches of the overbearing, dead tree in the front yard was startlingly appealing. It drew him closer from down and across the street, almost like a magnet.

The closer Cas came to the house, the better he could see that the decorations were more expansive than he had first glimpsed. There was a set of lit-up reindeer grazing near the front door and sparkling snowflakes glittered in all of the windows. To top it all off, the lights across the roof twinkled beautifully like a beacon that he was powerless to resist.

This right here was Christmas for Castiel. Twinkling lights and snow that just barely began to fall sticking to his eyelashes. A wistful smile grazed his lips as he took the last few steps along the sidewalk towards the walkway leading up to the house.

And that was when his heart began to deflate.

"No," he whispered to himself, taking a daring step forward onto that poured concrete walkway.

Section by section, the lights were coming down. They still flickered off and on – now a seeming distress call for help. Standing precariously on a ladder above the amassing pile was the man committing the heinous act. His face was beet red, his hands bare and shaking from the cold, and he wore no coat over his tense shoulders. In his current state, the man was the absolute picture of desperation – something Cas was damn near an expert in by now.

"Hey!" Castiel called, his voice cracking softly on the end. Lost in his own, frantic thoughts, the other didn't seem to hear him after first. "H-hey!" he said again and took a few more steps down the path. "What are you doing?"

It was really not his business to ask. He didn't know this man or have any insight into his life. All he knew was that he loved those twinkling lights and would hate to see their beauty disappear.

Grumbling to himself a moment, the man tore down another section of the strand. The movement caused his ladder to teeter dangerously. He desperately grabbed onto the gutter, earning a protesting squeak from his weight. "What?!" he nearly shouted, whipping his head around to look for the source of the intrusion.

Suddenly sheepish, as he was just realizing his rash behavior, Cas lowered his head. He took a step back, looking around at the lightly fallen snow. At his daring footsteps leading up to this house where he most definitely did not belong. "Sorry," he muttered, shaking his head quickly. "I just…. I mean…you're…." He sighed and shrugged, all courage lost. Where had that even come from? Imposing upon strangers wasn't something he normally did.

The man stared harshly down at Castiel, his gaze cutting like daggers. For a moment he was silent, just looking at him. Judging him. Taking in the dirty, old tan trench coat and the way his stubble went untended. And then he opened his mouth again, eyes dropping down to the pile of lights pathetically still flickering away on the ground. "Yeah, yeah, I'm taking them down. So what? What's it to you?"

Shrugging again, Cas scuffed the toe of his dress shoe upon the ground. It was old and scuffed already and the action only added to the grunge. "Well…." He cleared his throat, finding just enough courage left in him to give a small smile and say, "I see no reason for them to come down. They are…beautiful."

Just as he was about to reach up for another handful of the lights, the man halted. A frown creased his brow and his hand slowly fell. He looked down at the funny little man standing on his walkway. At the dopey smile on his lips and the overall disheveled state of him. Who was he to come up here and say something like that? Who was he to cause him to question the vehicle for his anger? He looked back out at the Christmas lights in his yard and let out a harsh breath through his nose.

"I'm sorry for intruding," Castiel said quietly, turning to leave. "But they are beautiful, the lights. You should know that they took my breath away before you take them down…."

Quick desperate steps down the ladder were heard behind him, but Cas didn't halt his escape. He had already said too much. It was time to leave now before this man truly realized how strange he was.

"Hey, wait a second!" The man took quick steps to catch up to him, grabbing onto his shoulder just as they reached the edge of the yard. "Just…wait…."

Raising a brow, Cas looked down at the hand upon his shoulder. It was warm and…slightly comforting in a way he hadn't expected. "Yes?" he croaked out, not for a moment looking anywhere but at the strong hand.

"How do you feel about cookies?"

The question was…abrupt, to say the least. Abrupt and quite out of nowhere. Head tilting to the side, he turned around finally. The hand slid from his shoulder heavily, but he paid it nearly no mind. It was easy to forget when his eyes locked with the brilliant pair before him. In closer proximity, there was a lot he seemed to have missed about this man. First and foremost were these eyes. They were absinthe green, but so much more than that. So close, he could clearly see the gold and blue flecks hidden within the overall color. They were…stunning. Breathtaking. And the way the lights glimmered in them was nothing short of magic. "I love them," he whispered, completely forgetting the question that had been asked of him.

It was silent for nearly a minute after Castiel's answer. The other's eyes flickered over his own, a quirk of something lingering in the corner of his lips. Like he wanted to smile, but wasn't sure if he should. Or could.

"Awesome," he finally said and nodded towards the house. "Come on in. I…made enough for two…."

Questioning intent wasn't something Cas even considered. His brain was too fuzzy with thoughts of those green eyes and the head of hair that was in between everything on the color spectrum. The hair that he was dying to run his fingers through…. He just followed the man blindly up to his house, curious what it would feel like to join their icy fingers.

"I'm Dean, by the way," the man said, closing the door once Cas was inside. He braced himself against it for a moment, taking a deeper look at what he was doing. Why he was doing what he was doing.

"Castiel."

They smiled awkwardly at one another, Dean leaning against the door with a weary sag to his shoulders and Cas standing in the middle of the entrance hallway, looking more and more out of place as the seconds went by. "Well…uh," Dean started, pushing away from the door, "make yourself comfortable. Sit. Stand. Dance around like a maniac…." He chuckled as if he'd said something truly humorous, but quieted when he noticed Castiel's lack of emotional response. "Right," he corrected, sucking on his teeth for a moment before nodding towards the kitchen. "I'll just…be a minute."

Once alone, Cas felt a little more comfortable to meander. He turned around, looking into the living room before taking a few steps in. The first thing he noticed was the tree. Just like the outside lights, it was absolutely stunning. His mouth fell slightly agape as he drew closer to it, hand extended as if he wanted to touch it but was afraid to. From top to bottom, the tree was adorned in soft white lights that made the green needles seem to naturally glow. Nestled in perfectly around the lights were red and silver baubles intermixed with classic candy canes. It was like something out of a magazine, complete with a crystal star upon the top.

"Not the angel type?" he asked when he heard Dean come back. He turned with a curious smile and took the steaming mug offered to him. Curiously, he sniffed the contents and was pleased with the Irished coffee scent. His fingers curled happily around the ceramic and took a deep drink.

Setting the heaping plate of, once again, perfectly decorated cookies upon the coffee table, Dean looked up at the top of the tree. A bitter twinkle came to his eyes, making the green seem to dull and darken ever so slightly. "Something about sticking a tree branch up a lady's skirt seems…a bit rude to me…."

This time, Castiel did give a small snort into his coffee in response. Shyly, he looked down at the floor, a goofy smile on his lips. This man certainly had a sense of humor and loved using it. "Very rude," he responded.

"Do you live around here?" Slowly, the air around them was beginning to relax. It was comfortable in a way, even though they had never met one another before. "I don't think I've seen you around."

Shaking his head, Castiel stepped away from the tree and closer to Dean. "No. I've just been walking around looking at the lights. I like to look at the lights…." He studied his mug, a wave of memories from long ago crossing his mind. Memories that were actually happy in nature but caused his heart to ache for days long past. His finger traced over the Lawrence Chesty Lion upon the mug, willing those wandering thoughts away. To distract himself, he raised his eyes and looked at the mug Dean was bringing to his lips. It bore a Stanford University emblem which somehow didn't seem to fit with the rugged-looking man before him. The one who had callused hands and wore flannel. "Did you go there?"

With a frown, Dean held his mug up higher to get a better look. "Stanford?" He snorted, setting the mug down before crossing his arms over his chest. "Nah, never even finished high school. My kid brother, though…. Sammy's smart; real smart. Studying to be a lawyer." He picked up the plate of cookies, offering some to Cas who greedily took a few. "So...you live on the other side of town? Out of town? What?"

Was Castiel's presence around here really so odd that it had to be questioned? Or could Dean tell…? "Not exactly…." He finished his first cookie before eagerly starting on his next. This would be his dinner and he sure wasn't going to waste it. "I, uh…spend most of my nights at the homeless shelter," he admitted, voice low from shame. His eyes flicked to the clock across the room and he pursed his lips. "Not tonight, however…. It's sure to be a full night, being a holiday and all, and I won't be back in time to receive a bed. But, no matter! Luckily a dry corner isn't too hard to find in Lawrence."

To say that Dean's expression read as shock would be a grave understatement. But that wouldn't completely encompass his feelings. There was also a mixture of pity, sadness, and slight fear in those mesmerizing eyes. Everything summed up together told Cas that maybe he should've kept some details back. Maybe that wasn't something he should just…come right out and say.

"Perhaps I should be going," he said quietly, setting aside his mug and sticking the rest of his cookies safely in the pocket of his trench. "Thank you for the cookies and…. And your house is beautiful. The decorations, the lights…. It's all amazing." If Dean would step just a bit to the side, Castiel could make a clean getaway. He could leave with kind memories still intact. But since the man was standing in the way…things weren't going to be so easy. "Excuse me," he mumbled softly, stepping up to Dean, hoping he would take the hint and move out of the way.

But he didn't. Dean just continued to stand there, blocking Cas' exit until their feet were mere inches apart. Cas hung his head, avoiding eye-contact. Avoiding having to see the undoubtable disgust in those beautiful green pools. It had been nice here while it had lasted – just for those few moments. It was how he wanted to remember things as he tried to fight the cold tonight.

Castiel almost didn't see it coming. His gaze was trained on the carpet and he was slightly lost in thought. But from the corner of his eye, he saw the hand come up just in time to flinch away from it. Not in enough time, however, to avoid the contact altogether. Rather forcefully, Dean grabbed his chin and yanked until their eyes met. Stunning green hit vivid blue and in that moment it felt like time had frozen. Seconds crept along like minutes and escape was forgotten.

"Do you really think this is all…'beautiful'?"

Feeling just as breathless as Dean sounded, Castiel managed a simple nod. An instant later, breathing didn't even matter anymore. He was more preoccupied with processing the lips crushed to his own in what seemed like a desperate act of passion. For a moment, Cas merely stood there, struck by the boldness of the kiss. But it didn't take long for him to throw caution and worry to the wind and allow himself to enjoy it.

A soft moan rumbled in the back of his throat as his eyes slid shut. His arms slipped around the other man's neck, no longer denying himself the pleasure of carding his fingers through Dean's hair.

Every single moment during the rest of that night felt one hundred percent right to Cas. The gentle graze of their tongues when Dean deepened the kiss. When his hands slipped down the back of Dean's neck to the hem of his shirt, desperate to feel another human being again. Dean taking action and pressing Cas up against a wall, kissing him so hard he practically became part of the drywall. The bites and licks and sucks that made their skin feel like it was on fire.

They may have started the night as complete strangers, but they certainly didn't end it that way. By the time they settled down into the pillows, still lazily entangled and barely covered by the sheets, it felt like they had known one another for years.

XxX

Dean woke the next morning to the undeniable scent of bacon filling his home. He groaned softly, stretching out of his usual curled up position and rubbed at his eyes. The night before felt like a blur, but he did know a few things for sure. He was waking up alone. There was an unmistakable ache to his backside that he could easily identify by now. And today was Christmas.

With all of this in mind, he wasted no time in getting dressed. He followed the salty scent down the stairs and towards the kitchen. For a moment, he hesitated just outside, not sure what he was going to find. Cautiously, he stepped in with his breath held. "Benny?"

As the man at the stove turned around, Dean let that breath out in a rush of relief. A smile spread between them as the other took in the sight of him. "No, my name's Castiel," he reminded gently before turning back to the stove.

"I know that," Dean laughed nervously, padding over to the man in his socked feet. Once he reached him, he was unsure of what was appropriate, considering their night spent together. They knew literally nothing about one another. And yet…they knew one another completely. "Uh…Benny is…my boyfriend," he said, almost under his breath, as he settled for kissing Cas on the cheek. "Just thought maybe…."

"Boyfriend?" Eyes wide, Cas turned away from his multiple tasks at the stove. He looked like he'd seen a ghost and his skin had lost all color. "I should go," he said quickly, looking down at himself only dressed in…. Were those Dean's boxers? "I didn't know you…. I should go!"

Dean knew that look. He'd both given and received that look many times. Cas was going to bolt and for some reason that created a pit in his stomach. "Please stay," he said quickly, latching onto the man's arms in quite a desperate move.

"But your boyfr-"

"Left. Benny left." Dean shrugged like it was just that simple. It really wasn't. He and Benny had…a complicated relationship, to say the least. It was fueled mostly by sex, but they both seemed to want more. Unfortunately, more didn't seem to work for them. The lights, the tree, the cookies – that had all been for Benny. Dean spent all day working on it, feeling rather proud of what he had accomplished. He had wanted their first Christmas together to be perfect. To be like something out of a Hallmark card.

And Benny? He found it all to be a waste of time and money. He didn't appreciate it. He didn't care. Apparently he didn't really like Christmas. He didn't like the decorations or the presents or the holiday cheer. So he wrote it off, Dean's hurt took the form of anger, and he told him to leave and never come back. The hurtful part was that Benny actually packed up most of his things into a suitcase and left.

Dean was alone. Sam was staying with his girlfriend Jess' family for the holidays. His parents had both passed. Benny had been the last person he could rely on to be there with him today. But now he was gone, too.

And then this strange man showed up and made him question everything. This man who loved all of his gestures and woke up early to make breakfast. This man who didn't have a home of his own. This man who just might need him just as much as Dean did. This man that would likely have nowhere to go if he left.

"So stay."

Searching Dean's sparkling absinthe eyes, Castiel thought over the proposal. He didn't know this man. He didn't know what he might be like aside from the short amount of time they had spent together. But there was food here, tantalizing him as it sizzled at his back. The house was warm. The bed was memory foam. Dean made great cookies. He'd had the best sex of his life last night. And…this house was decorated with twinkling lights that he could look at any time he wanted.

Why shouldn't he stay?

With a soft nod, he leaned up slightly on his toes, fists bunching in the man's AC/DC shirt, and stole a chaste kiss. "Okay. I'll stay."