I promised to post a one shot in apology for taking so long for updating Little Shippers. Here it is! It's a Bowling!AU cause it's bowling season and I got the urge to write about it. That and there's, like, no bowling fics, which makes me sad.
The sound of wooden pins crashing against each other sooths the soul.
At least, that's what Dean's always thought. Hence the reason he's been at the local bowling alley for the past four or so hours.
Today was complete shit. First off, he woke up late, so he got stuck in rush hour traffic that caused him to be late for work. Then there seemed to be a higher number of jackass customers than normal. Don't even get him started on the goose egg from a hood falling on his head earlier that morning. He couldn't even get to the alley without having to deal with asshole drivers while, once again, in traffic.
Dean has lost track of how many games he's played, but they keep renewing, so it couldn't be too many. He may still be a bit stiff and agitated, but way less than he was when he got there.
He had just gotten a third strike in a row for his current game when he noticed a man setting up at the lane next to him. The man had shaggy black hair that fell into his face as he tied his bowling shoes. His light blue polo and black pants meant that he works at the alley.
Dean felt more relaxed now, enough to even feel like starting up a conversation with the stranger. "Evening. Just get off your shift, I'm guessing?"
The stranger looked up, piercing Dean with the bluest eyes he's ever seen. "I guess you can say that," the man responded in a deep, gravely voice.
Dean hummed, turning to do another throw. Nine down, the eight pin wobbling slightly before standing up straight once more. He gave an annoyed huff for his luck.
He turned back to the man, who had just set his ball down on the rack. "I see you around here a lot, but I didn't know you bowled," Dean admitted, his ball popping out of the returner.
"Only after closing when it's nice and peaceful," the man answered before throwing his first ball. A nine, tenth pin still standing.
Dean looked around in confusion. Turns out, nobody else inhabited the alley. The arcade dark without the lights from games, the lights over the farther lanes off, and the only lanes on and with pins being the two the men stood at. "Oh shit, I'm so sorry! You probably want to close up and head home! Why didn't you say something!"
"You seemed to need the stress relief, so I've been renewing your games for the past couple hours," the man explained, taking out a second ball. Unlike his other one, which shone a metallic sky blue with black angel wings, this one had a smoky red color with silvery-white wings.
Dean waited for the man to throw the red ball left handed and pick up the spare before saying, "Crap, I didn't even notice… How-how much do I owe you?" he reached into his bag to grab his wallet.
"Oh, no, it's fine. You owe me nothing," the other man dismissed as he stepped down from the approach, now a bit shorter than Dean.
"Wha- b-but your boss! I don't want to get you in trouble!" Dean argued.
"I have no boss" The man said it like it should be common knowledge, not even skipping a beat.
Dean blinked a few times, "...what?"
The man pointed towards the plaque of ownership that hung behind the shoes counter. It was kind of hard to read from where they were, but he's seen it so many times, Dean remembers that it says how Mr. C. Novak is the owner, blah blah blah. The man then flashed his worker lanyard. On it was an awkward picture of him and his name, Castiel Novak.
"Holy shit…" Dean breathed out.
Castiel turned back to the lanes, throwing a strike before the practice timer ran out. "It's fine, really. How about a little friendly competition to shake things loose?" Cas asked as he stepped back down from the approach to address Dean.
"Oh, uh, alright." Dean restarted his game to make them even. He offered his hand, introducing himself with an, "I'm Dean, by the way."
Castiel shook his hand then stepped up to the approach to bowl.
"Hey, you might own the place, but I bet I can beat you," Dean teased.
Cas just glanced over his shoulder. "We'll see about that…"
A strike.
The two decided to do a best three out of five. Cas won the first game, then Dean won the next two before Castiel won the fourth, a good amount of teasing and flirting being thrown around during each. They were currently tied, in both the match and the game. Neither of them pulled any punches during the fifth game, only having two frames each without a strike.
Dean let Cas bowl his tenth frame first, coming out as a strike and a nine. Now it was Dean's turn. He had to have a strike and a spare or higher to win, a strike and nine to tie.
Stepping up to the approach, Dean looked back to Cas, who stood leaning against the kiosk with a smug little grin. Dean damned the man's sexy looks as he stepped up to his address to throw.
A strike, so far so good. He took a deep breath before throwing the next ball.
Castiel broke out laughing, Dean just let out a long groan. A seven-ten split, just what he needed, the hardest split to pick up.
"How about a wager," Cas spoke up while Dean was waiting for his ball to be returned, "you win, all your games tonight and for the rest of the month are free."
"And if you win?"
"Your games tonight are still free, but you can buy me dinner. What do you say? Deal?" Cas reached out a hand to shake on it.
"Deal." Dean accepted the bet, letting go of the man's hand when his ball rolled onto the rack.
Breathe in. Breathe out. One step. Two steps three steps, pull back, four steps, fifth step and release.
The green galaxy ball spun perfectly, hitting the seven pin and sending it sailing over towards the ten pin…missing by a hair and clattering around the pin.
Dean stepped down from the approach into the pit. A tied game.
"So what now?" Castiel asked.
Dean paused a moment, "how about I keep that free month of bowling, and then take you out for dinner."
Cas took a step closer, bringing them almost nose to nose. "I can deal with that."
A few glances at lips, then Dean gently took Castiel's chin, angling his head up for their lips to meet.
It started with them just testing the waters, but escalated into grabbing onto the back of necks and zero space between bodies.
Cas was the first one to pull away, panting for air. "I," Dean swooped in to steal another kiss and Cas had to pull back once more, "I have an apartment upstairs."
"Sounds good to me," Dean breathed, eyes heavily lidded. "We need to pack up our bowling balls or just leave them?"
"We can get them later," Cas dismissed before grabbing Dean's hand and dragging him behind the counter and into the employee area.
Dean looked forward to the upcoming tension relief he really needed.
Okay... should I add a lemon? I kinda set it up as an open ending for you all to draw your own conclusions, but if there's enough of you that want it, I can try my hand at a lemon second chapter.