Castiel Novak wasn't particularly different from other guys in his year. He was average height, fairly slender in build, but unlike any other guy the same age, he was taking suppressants for heat. The pills were usually daily for when you were in heat – which happened twice a year – but Castiel was on a monthly pill. The monthly pill was more effective at supressing heat, without making you bitchy and aggressive, yet more expensive, no problem for his family though, rich, and willing to do anything to avoid the shame of having a beta for a son.

Male betas weren't unheard of, but they were about as common as female alphas, and equally as rejected by society. Although there were some countries in Europe that welcomed them, even had altered some laws and made new ones pertaining to what would be a unique situation otherwise.

So of course he was beyond horrified when, in the middle of an Ancient History lesson, there was a deep throb just behind his naval. Without thinking, he grabbed his things and bolted from the classroom.

Dean bobbed his head and sang along to the Led Zeppelin song on his ancient cassette-tape Walkman as he picked up litter from the college grounds, it wasn't a glamorous job, but this and his job at the garage was enough to keep Sammy in books for school, and keep them both clothed and fed, with just enough left to afford the daily suppressants when they needed them.

Once it was full he tied up the trash bag and added it to the cart. He'd changed the bags in all the trashcans on campus, picked up the majority of the litter and fixed the air-con in the science lab with the hot lab-tech chic watching his every move and fanning herself with papers. She'd given him her number with the promise that she'd just have to find some way to repay him. As he pushed the cart round back – one foot on the cart and pushing him and the cart along with the other, using it as if it was some over-large scooter – to the dumpsters, and started to pile the bags into the blue one, a scent – brought in on the rare wind this excruciatingly hot summer – caught his nose.

It was a beta, only just going into heat, and when Dean sniffed the air again he couldn't catch a whiff of alpha anywhere, so he decided it was safe to investigate. He crept round to the back of the building via the alley where the dumpsters were, and stopped when he caught sight of a guy sitting back against the wall. He had dark hair and blue eyes; he was visibly sweating and trying to pull the knot of his tie loose, but only making it tighter in the process.

'A sweater-vest and tie in this whether, really dude?' was Dean's first thought until he remembered what he could smell and he pitied the poor guy. Not only was he a male beta but he'd clearly not taken his suppressant in time and was now suffering the early throws of heat. "You alright buddy?" he asked, crouching next to him. In his heat, the guy could probably smell the alpha in him, and it should make him do exactly the opposite of make him flinch away and cower in fear, but he did just that, begging him 'please don't' and 'I don't want to'. Dean had never really thought about all the shit male betas had to go through in their heat, especially if they encountered an alpha, because they'd happily let themselves get raped they were so high on heat; there were stories about it in the papers all the time if you read cover-to-cover any cases virtually thrown out of court because there was no proof the beta-male wasn't begging for it, and Dean could only guess that that was what put the fear of God into this poor guy. "Oh hey no," he said in a gentler voice than last time "I'm not gonna touch you, I was just checking you were okay"

"Y-You're not?" he raised his head a little, and it looked as if they were about the same age. But he didn't look anything like the looks-like-a-girl stereotype of a beta-male.

"O'course not, I have awesome self-control" he joked, although it was true, and it drew a weak half-laugh from the guy "So what's your name?"

"Castiel" he replied, straining a little and scrunching his eyes shut

"Well Castiel, I'm gonna clear off and leave you to your thing," he said, knowing that the presence of an alpha wouldn't help him any "but you should probably go home before an alpha with less self-control gets a whiff of you"

"Is it that strong?" Castiel asked weakly, flushing redder from embarrassment this time, looking ashamed.

"You've got no idea have you? ..." Dean found it hard to believe that he didn't know anything about how strong pheromone scents could get, but he decided that that was a conversation for later if they ever got to have it. "You really should get outta here then, go home"

"Can't…" he uttered, just holding himself back from taking a sniff of Dean, so Dean backed out of the guy's space a little bit more. "… They don't wanna know"

Dean thought for a moment "Have you uh- got anyone you can go to?" he asked, they both knew what he really meant, or at least he hoped they both knew. Castiel shook his head again, getting worse by the second. Dean knew he should leave him, but he couldn't leave the poor guy to suffer, and to possibly allot worse.

"You'll have to touch yourself" said Dean, reluctantly, recalling his talk through a door with Sam during his younger brother's first heat

Instantly the guy started stammering "But- but I've never-"

"You've never…" Dean took a tight grip on his own thigh, digging his nails, and taking a deep breath, strangely turned on by such a virginal guy "You'll kinda have to, or it'll get worse" he said, managing to keep the aroused husk from his voice.

Timidly, Castiel shook his head, curling his knees up to his chest. He couldn't… he just couldn't.

"There's gotta be something I can do, someone I can call?" he said, despite the two looking exactly nothing in common aside from the sense of innocence they radiated, this kid reminded him too much of Sammy to just leave him here, like he's sure he'd do with anyone else.

"Katie…" he shuddered out "…my phone" Castiel remembered something Kate had told him after his first heat, about why girls grouped together all the time. Despite the lack of detail of what he wanted him to do, Dean clicked on and searched the kid's bag for a phone, when he found it he scrolled through it to find a 'Katie'. All of the contacts were full names, and alphabetised by last name so he struggled to find 'McCarthy, Kate' which was the closest guess. He pressed call.

Within seconds there was an answer.

"Cas, honey, what is it? Are you okay?" answered a soft, concerned, woman's voice. Clearly he didn't call her often.

"Hi – um – actually this is Dean Winchester"

"Winchester?" she cut in

"Yeah, I've – uh – I've got… Cas" he thinks that's what she called him "here with me, and he uh…" Dean wasn't sure how to phrase it "he needs you to come pick him up."

She was either smart, or cared too much for 'Cas' to mess around asking him to explain what was wrong. "I'll be there in five" she said "tell him to hang in there" Dean told her where to find them, she repeated it back to him and the line went dead.

When she hung up, Dean put Cas' phone back in his bag and passed on Kate's message. Cas gave what he supposed could have been a weak smile as his tightened his grip on his knees.

In exactly three minutes Kate was jogging up the alley way towards him. "Dean Winchester?" she asked, slightly breathless, and he nodded, thumbing behind him and she rushed straight past to find Cas. He'd left Cas' side before his self-control collapsed, and favoured staying round the corner from him, and finish tossing the trash bags into the dumpster. A few moments later, with their arms round one another, Cas and Kate rounded the corner and rushed right past him, Kate throwing him a quick 'thank you'.

As they left, Cas cast his eyes back and gave him a look that put a knot in Dean's stomach.