Castiel stared at the mirror in the bathroom, his mind still reeling with so many emotions he felt his head would burst.

"You can't stay."

Even thinking about it made his chest ache in a way that had nothing to do with the fact that he had nearly died such a short time ago. He scrubbed his hands over his face, a long sigh sliding from between his lips.

Thankfully Dean had said that Cas could stay the night, get some good rest, and take a shower, and "get yourself ready", before he was to leave. As if he could get ready to go out on his own again. Clearly he had not been doing great before.

Now he was staring at the half-fogged mirror, already missing a place he hadn't yet left. He liked this bunker, not only because it was orderly and neat and had wonderful water pressure, but because it had distinct notes of the Winchesters. It was very quickly becoming their home.

The tightness in his chest pinched in a way that made him breathless and Castiel had to take a moment to catch his breath.

If Dean asked him to leave, of course, he would go.

A small knock on the bathroom door made Cas drag his gaze from the mirror. He pulled the door open, surprised to see Dean standing with his hands shoved in his pockets.

"You could have at least put a shirt on." The Hunter fidgeted in the doorway, looking anywhere but at Cas.

Looking down at himself Cas twisted to grab his shirt and pull it on over his shoulders. "What do you need Dean?"

Dean didn't answer, his eyes seemingly caught on a space somewhere near Castiel's navel.

"Uh Cas, when did you get a tat?" There was an unfamiliar emotion tingeing Dean's voice.

Cas chuckled, his fingers absently brushing the still-healing skin. "It's a warding sigil, so the Angels couldn't track me. Apparently it didn't work like I'd planned."

Dean's expression was unreadable as he continued to stare. "Oh…"

Cas began doing the buttons up on his shirt. "It was less painful than I anticipated, and the woman who did it seemed very interested in the design."

He gasped when there was suddenly pressure on the sensitive skin, looking down to see Dean's fingers tracing the pattern.

"Um." Cas took a step back, his skin buzzing from the contact.

Dean took a half step forward to follow him, his fingers intent on the ink marring the smooth expanse of skin. He caught himself in another moment, stepping back to a more reasonable distance and crossing his arms over his chest. "Uh, sorry."

Cas quickly did up the rest of his buttons, trying to push back the awkwardness that had gathered between them.

Dean coughed, chewing his lip but not moving.

"Did you need something Dean?" Cas forced his gaze back to his friend, trying to push through the honey thick barrier the moment had created between them.

Dean shifted, kicking at the doorframe. "I just wanted to see how your-"

Cas had stepped closer, the tingling under his skin finally resolving itself into a feeling he could identify.

Dean trailed off, his eyes widening at the sudden invasion of his space.

"Humans have such complex emotions…I don't know how you can bare it." Castiel sucked his bottom lip between his teeth as he thought.

Dean chuckled, but it sounded off, hollow and too high. "Yeah well we practice at it."

Cas looked back up, letting his lip go after abusing it with his teeth. "I wanted to learn from you." He felt the honey thick awkwardness had returned, without meaning to Cas had probably made it worse.

There was a prolonged silence between them, and the awkwardness fed on it, growing and twisting and thickening until Castiel felt that something had to break or he was going to go insane.

What broke was Dean. He visibly crumbled, resting his forehead on Castiel's in a sudden show of affection that seemed quite out of character.

"I know Cas, but you can't stay…you're not safe here, and we're not safe with you. The reapers found you using us…"

Dean's closeness made him hard to focus on, almost blurry as Cas tried to look at him. "I know Dean. I understand."

Dean pulled away as abruptly as he had closed in, his expression twisting into anger. "Well don't! Don't just stand there and take it! Get angry! Throw stuff and yell and demand to stay!" Dean was shaking, his chest heaving as his anger made his blood run hot. "I don't want to make you leave…"

Cas stared at him. "Dean I-"

Suddenly there were lips pressed against his, the thickness that had swollen between them exploding in on itself at the sensation of kissing.

Cas gasped, his skin burning when Dean's fingers threaded into his hair, cradling his face and molding their lips together better.

It was different than kissing April, that had felt good, but nothing like this. After his moment of surprise Cas kissed back, pressing himself against Dean and drinking in his touch like he was dying.

It felt like hours and seconds at the same time until Dean pulled away, leaving them both panting, their pupils blown with lust.

"Do you wanna stay a bit longer?" Dean pressed their lips together more gently. "At least until morning…I want to see that tattoo a bit closer."