"This is it!" Charlie announced. Dean turned his eyes to her in amusement. "We are going to graduate soon! Winchester and Bradbury, students of Lawrence moving on to the Big Apple to be actors!"
Dean laughed in mirth, putting an arm around Charlie's shoulders.
"I can see it now," he teased. "Our names in bright shining lights."
Charlie gave Dean a toothy smile.
"I'm so excited! I can't believe New York accepted our applications."
Dean shook his head, a little bewildered about it himself.
"Me neither."
Dean met Charlie Bradbury their freshman year of high school. They were both in the same Theatre class, and they were both above average when it came to acting. They hit it off pretty well and started partnering up for theatre projects on a whim. They got A's all across the board for creativity and being able to make their characters come to life on stage.
Their theatre teacher begged them to audition for the school musical.
All four years of high school Dean and Charlie were either the lead love interests of the musical or the side love interests. They loved being onstage, and neither of them minded playing love interests. They were good at it, and it helped to already be best friends with the person you were going to have to do a kissing scene with.
Many people in school thought Charlie and Dean were dating, but in the end that would be a conflict of interests, considering they were both closeted gays.
It wasn't that either of them was ashamed of being gay. Not coming out just benefited them both. Dean's dad would kick Dean out if he knew he was gay, considering his dad was homophobic. Charlie's parents were great and accepting, but her extended family wasn't so much so. So they both decided to keep their sexualities to themselves and each other.
They were content with that.
"We are on the verge of the rest of our lives here," Charlie said eagerly. She went off, starting to say more, but Dean missed her words. His eyes wandered away from her and his hearing faded out as his eyes landed on the one person Dean loved more than Charlie.
Castiel Novak.
Castiel was the most beautiful boy Dean had ever laid his eyes on. They ended up in all their science classes together in high school and they were both a good pair in Physics class. They could have been a good pair in Earth Science, Biology and Chemistry too but Dean had always been too nervous to talk to him. Up until senior year, when Castiel seemed to get fed up with them accidently meeting each other's eyes and smiling nervously.
He had walked into the Physics classroom on the first day of Senior year, stopped in the doorway, scanned the room located Dean and stomped over. He slammed his binders down on the side of the table Dean wasn't occupying to stare down the unfortunate teen who had already been seated by Dean (Kevin Tran) with a growl.
"Move."
That's all Castiel had to say. Kevin had scrambled away, leaving Dean to face his crush alone.
"I'm sitting here this year. Every day all year," Castiel said firmly. "I won't bother with sitting as far away from you as possible, or giving up because you sat as far away from me as possible. This year we aren't playing games Winchester. I'm sick of playing this game."
Dean had blinked, staring wide eyed at Castiel.
"Okay."
Castiel had smiled his triumph, and plopped down in the seat next to Dean.
"Castiel Novak, the boy you've been unabashedly checking out for three years. Openly gay," Castiel had introduced formerly. Dean had laughed out loud and smiled.
"Dean Winchester, the boy that you wish has been checking you out for three years," Dean replied back.
After that moment, the two had a nice friendship. They flirted on and off, but easily became each other's friend-when-other-friends-weren't-available. Castiel was probably the best love interest Dean had ever had. He was nice, and patient. One of Dean's fondest memories included Castiel slipping him his phone number with a flirty bat of his lips.
"For when you come out of the closet and are looking for a boyfriend."
"Hello Dean."
Dean's eyes widened as he realized that the object of his desires was currently standing directly in front of him, with an amused smile on his lips. Dean relaxed after a long moment and a bump of the shoulders from Charlie.
"Hey Cas! Ready for graduation?"
Castiel sighed and shook his head.
"No Dean, I most certainly am not."
Castiel was valedictorian and alongside Dean and Charlie was the schools Vice President. Despite being complete drama nerds Dean and Charlie had been elected school co-presidents. Their campaign was killer but that also meant that Dean, Charlie, and Castiel all had some major duties to work out before graduation. Including speeches and a small performance.
Which Charlie and Dean had not yet figured out what to do.
"Dean and I would at least have a plan on our song performance, but he got lost in your eyes and stopped listening when I made my song proposal," Charlie stated. Dean looked over at her with wide eyes, Castiel momentarily forgotten.
"What song proposal?"
Charlie's eyes brightened.
"I was thinking, and I know you aren't a big fan of his music but Adam Young has a song on his Owl City project called The Verge. He sings it with this guy called Aloe Blacc and it's all about starting life and what you are going to do now."
Dean saw the meaning of it swimming in her eyes. This song would be a great way for them to come out.
Charlie and Dean had long decided that they were going to come out at graduation, but neither of them really knew how. The rest of the conversation was said mainly with their eyes. Kind of like the characters in How I Met Your Mother communicated sometimes.
"How are we going to do it?"
"There is a part in the song where they talk about how they are going to be true to themselves. I figure we add a music rift and during the rift invite our crushes up and kiss them on stage."
Dean's eyes lit up and he whooped aloud, lifting Charlie up in his arms, twirling her around and kissing her loudly, obnoxiously on the lips.
"Charlie you are a genius!"
Charlie giggled.
"Hey save it for later Romeo, we have a performance to plan out."
Dean chuckled and briefly registered Castiel, who looked a bit out of it. Dean could really place his finger on the emotion written all over Castiel's face. Anger?
"See you at graduation Cas!"
Castiel's expression softened a little bit.
"Until later Dean," he replied, but it was a little stiff and rigid. Dean didn't have much time to ponder it as Charlie and him ran off to choreograph and practice.
Once it came time for Graduation Dean realized just how nervous he was. It was about time for Charlie and him to perform their song, and it was painstakingly slow and aggravating, but Dean had long since developed ways to manage his nerves. His eyes landed on Castiel – he had always come to Dean's performances. Every single one. So when Dean got nervous that had been the way he cooled down – and he watched Castiel, counting each inhale and exhale he made as he stood on stage, giving his speech.
"And now, Dean and Charlie will be performing for the graduates of this year."
He smiled, and gestured for Dean and Charlie to enter the stage. Dean was still focusing on Castiel's breaths, and would have missed their entrance if Charlie hadn't shoved him up on stage. Dean smiled the moment he was on stage.
"Thanks Cas," he said.
Him and Charlie spent a moment getting their things together and then they began to sing.
Their dance was easy enough. They crossed each other rhythmically, clapped to the beat, brandished their robes when they sang "dressed to nines" and finally they made it to the bridge of the song.
"From now on, there's no looking back. Full steam ahead on this one-way track. From this day forward I will make a promise; to be true to myself and always be honest. For the rest of my life I will do what's right."
They paused as their music rift started and they both targeted their crushes. Charlie rushed offstage to grab the girl of her dreams, Dorothy. Dean was able to grab Castiel easily. He was on the right of the stage, giving Charlie and Dean a squinty eyed look. Dean grabbed his wrist and tugged Castiel's wrist so that they were center stage next to Charlie and Dorothy. Charlie and Dean shared a look and then sang:
"From this day forward, I will make a promise; to be true to myself and always be honest," they sang again. At the same time, they pulled their respected crushes close. Dean zoned out everything else and focused instead on Castiel, who look dazed and confused but also happy that they were this close. Dean smiled brightly at him and pressed their lips together. Castiel didn't react for a minute, but a smile soon slipped onto his lips and he kissed back. The beat returned back to the one that it was supposed to be at and Dean and Charlie both turned back to the crowd. Part were excited, whooping and hollering, part were surprised into silence, another part looked downright disgusted.
As Dean wrapped his arm around Castiel's waist, he couldn't really bring himself to care.
"I will do what's right. When I step out on the verge of the rest of our lives tonight. Top of the world and we're dressed to the nines tonight. Edge of the earth and we're touching the sky tonight. Out on the verge of the rest of our lives!"
The song ended and the crowd broke out into a polite applause, during which Dean snuck a kiss to Castiel. Castiel disbanded the kiss with a skeptical look.
"What is this?" He asked. Dean smiled at him.
"Charlie and I are coming out to everyone."
Dean smiled and pointed into the crowd where his father was sitting. (He was a little surprised his dad even bothered showing up but there he was with Sam.)
"That's my homophobic dad," he said gleefully, giving his dad a cheery wave. Castiel's eyes widened in understanding.
"And you are my very gay high school crush," Dean said. Castiel smiled warmly and gazed at Dean.
"I had hoped so, but I began to doubt it after a while. You and Charlie always acted very… Friendly."
"Friendly?" Dean asked clueless.
"The conversations with the eyes, whirling her around and kissing her on the lips with a goofy smile."
Dean, flushed in realization.
"I guess that is a little friendly." Then after a moment he added: "You were jealous."
Castiel huffed indignantly.
"I was not."
"You were!" Dean said triumphantly. "I was trying to figure out the emotion that crossed your face sometimes and now I know it!"
Castiel scowled, and Dean thought it was a pretty cute look on him.
"Looking back you were jealous a lot weren't you? I can't believe you thought I didn't like you. I stared at you in science class for four years straight. Dude I did an art project on your eyes and a PowerPoint about my favorite person: You."
Castiel grumbled, and grabbed Dean by his shirt collar.
"Shut up and kiss me more."
Dean did with a large smile on his face.
Out on the verge of the rest of our lives.
Author's Note:
This work was inspired by Owl City's song The Verge and it will be the start of a series of works not connected to one another other than by the fact they will all be inspired by each song in Owl City's album Mobile Orchestra.