"Are you drunk dialing me, Cas?" Dean asked , really worried for the man at the other end of the line.

"Wh-what? Why do you think I'm drunk? That's... mean!" Castiel mumbled, unintelligently.

"Because, you're clearly in a bar- I heard you ordering gin and tonic-and you are speaking whackier than you normally do. Also, I think, you just happened to tell me that I'm the best man you've met in all of your thousands of years, and that if you had to choose between me and your wings...you'd pick me." Dean rolled his eyes.

"Well since I've already lost my wings...I CAN'T LOSE YOU TOO!" Cas said shouting now, as Dean pulled his phone away from his ear a little too late. Ow...Damn you, Cas.

"Okay, Cas...no screaming, okay? Just tell me where you are. I'll try to get someone to get you. Oka- " Dean said as he heard a loud thump. " Cas? Hello? Castiel!" Dean said seriously.

After a few moments and various sounds of general commotion ,a voice finally said, "Uh...hello? I believe this man was talking to you...Well, he's tripped over and passed out, now."

Cas, Dean sighed.

"Uh..yes..hi. Umm, can you tell me where you are? As in... the place? My friend there sounds pretty out of it, I'll probably have to send someone to pick him up." Dean said, a little relieved now.

"Oh...this is the Nirvana-" the man said before Dean interrupted.

"As in Nirvana in Topeka?The bar and nightclub, with the fancy hamburgers?" Dean enquired.

"Uh..oh..yes." the man replied.

So Cas has been in town this whole time and hasn't even called? Way to go on the whole family thing, Cas. Way to go.

"Umm, hey listen. Can you maybe just look after him for a bit? I'll be there in about twenty minutes. Please?" Dean asked the man.

"Look. I got drinks to serve! Is it okay if I drop him off in one of the empty rooms at the back? It's almost closing time, anyway. My shift's ending." the man said.

"Ah. That's okay. Thanks a lot, man." Dean said as he hung up. He checked his watch. 12.45 am.

Sam was already asleep. They'd hunted and killed a witch today who -in the process had burnt a part of Sam's arm. After getting back to the Bunker, Dean had tended to his wounds and the big baby had dozed off. There was no point of waking Sam up, just to tell him to keep sleeping as he went and brought a drunk Castiel back here. Also, Zeke wouldn't have been too thrilled with that. He sighed as he grabbed his keys, gun and cell phone as he walked out of the door.

Five minutes onto the street, Dean realised how long it had been since he'd seen Cas. Probably, two months or so. The last time he'd seen Cas was when they'd cracked a case in the town where he worked.Work? He's an angel of the Lord...he shouldn't have to work in a store!

Ever since Metatron had locked the angels out of heaven, Castiel and so many others were being hunted down meticulously. The fallen angels-now in their human vessels- were desperate to get back to heaven, but were still in hiding. Some -like Cas- who had no grace, were reduced to powerless beings- humans. The best method to survive was camouflage. Blending in.

Dean felt horrible about not being able to help Castiel. Ezekiel had asked Dean to make Cas leave. Every part of him had wanted Cas to stay, but Sam-who was really weak- had to get better and only Zeke could do that. Dean had spent sleepless nights, wondering how Cas was. If he was okay. If he was being troubled by the other members of the winged team. He wanted to help Cas some way, but he was bound. Bound by the fact that Zeke thought Cas would be a threat. And Zeke was possessing Sam- something Dean had begun to regret.

"You can't stay." Dean had said to Cas. For a moment, Castiel looked like he'd been slapped hard across his face. And for a moment, Dean felt as if he deserved to be slapped hard across his face. Cas had been there for Dean ,in times when even Sam hadn't. He'd supported Dean through thick and thin. And Dean had deserted him at a time he was needed the most. The guilt of which was weighing down on him, every single moment.

The street was silent, and the only thing Dean could hear was the sound that the Impala's dashboard was making. As he hummed some Zepplin, he decided he had to let Castiel stay the night. No matter what Zeke thought. Frankly, giving in to Zeke's demands every time wasn't acceptable. Zeke needed Sam's body to heal, just as much as Sam needed his Grace to recover. Cas was family and enough was enough.

He reached the bar and pulled into the parking lot. The waiter on the phone had said that he would drop Cas off in one of the rooms at the back. Dean scanned the place until he found him one of the pantry rooms, sitting on the floor ,leaning against one of the cabinets.

There he was, snoring. Dean smiled instantaneously. A decent amount of shaking seemed to wake Cas up.

"Dean?!" he asked, his mouth wide awake.

"Hey..buddy. Let's get you home,okay?" Dean wrinkled his nose as he tried picking Cas up. The guy was still high and smelled like vomit."What are you doing in town and why didn't you call me?"

"You..said I couldn't stay...I didn't want to bother you." Cas yawned as he fell asleep.

Dean's face fell, as he felt disgusted at himself. Cas had done exactly what Dean had told him. He had stayed away. It felt as if someone had punched him.

All of a sudden, Dean felt a sudden gush of wind.

"What do you think you are doing, Dean?" Zeke's commanding voice asked,from behind.

Damn it , Dean thought as he put Cas back on the ground.

"Zeke. Listen to me. I know you said, that Cas is a threat to you. But, think about it. He doesn't have his Grace anymore. He's human. How could he possibly-" Dean asked before Zeke cut him off.

"Do you want Sam to be recover or not? Because if I choose to, I can damage all his reparations." Zeke threatened Dean, holding a blade to Sam's stomach.

Dean froze. His eyes widened as he realised what was happening. Zeke had Dean in the palm of his hand, because if there was one person that Dean cared more about than man lying on the ground, was his brother. Everyone and everything else was irrelevant. Even the man lying on the ground. Even though Dean cared for him. Even though he loved him as much as he'd loved John. Though seeing Cas like this was hurting Dean, the pain of losing his brother was greater than anything he'd known-and he just wouldn't be able to bear it again.

"Zeke!" Dean bellowed, now clutching at Zeke's collar.

"Don't forget. You'll just end up hurting Sam!" Zeke said smirking."Castiel stays away!" he added.

Dean dropped his hands. He knew, that no matter what, he couldn't risk Sam's life. He hated himself for what he was about to do. His insides were churning as he said the words, "Okay...okay."

Zeke smirked one last last time before collapsing to the floor.

Sam ,woke up from his slumber arbitrarily before falling back in. Unable to think, Dean helped Sam up as he gave Cas one last look, until he couldn't take it anymore,and walked out of there.

As he put Sam in the Impala, a man came up to him and asked ,"Excuse me...uh? Did you maybe see a man around here? He said he was going to pick up one of his friends who had passed out. I looked everywhere..and we're about to close.."

Dean's stomach knotted. He simply shook his head in response.

He drove out of there as fast as he could, and when he was miles ahead of everything that had just happened, tears slipped down his face,rapidly.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Sometimes, we don't have a choice. Sometimes, no matter how much you hate it, you have to let a few things go.

This isn't a Destiel or a Wincest story. It's about Dean's constant battle with the repercussions of the choices he makes.

We all make bad calls. It's okay. We'll get through.

So, this one's for all my bad decisions. And yours. We all need a little empathy some time. Empathy,not sympathy. Because we learn, grow and understand from our mistakes.

Here's me being sentimental. (Going through some stuff, but writing makes me feel good .)

So read on, review and PM me.

Also, Taraneh- Thank you so much for your kind words! My sister almost fainted when she read your review. She said,"All this for..YOU?!" Stay awesome! I'll try not to disappoint!

Hugs,kisses and world peace,y'all.