"Dean, you're bleeding…" Sam repeated for what felt like the fourth time in half an hour.

"It's just a scratch." He grunted, putting his foot down on the gas and speeding along the freeway. It was nearly 9pm; the lights at the side of the road were beginning to glow a dull yellow as the sky faded into blackness of the night. He felt a rush coursing through him as the wind flooded in the small crack opened at the top of his window – he hadn't felt this exhilarated in months. It wasn't even as though tonight had been important – it was a run of the mill spirit that was troubling an apartment at the top of a block. Sure enough it hadn't gone altogether smoothly, but they had dealt with it. It felt good to have dealt with something that didn't have an impact on the bigger picture.

Now they were hammering along the interstate, going to a diner that Dean had recalled was nearby (Sam had even suspected that Dean had wanted to take this job because of it), which according to Dean had the best burgers in the state. The slash on Dean's right hand was the only souvenir that they were taking away from tonight's hunt; Sam stretched out his hand to wipe away the blood that was dripping from it.

"Dude, you're getting blood everywhere!"

"Alright, alright!" Dean slapped away Sam's hand, "Stop being such a girl about it!" The snort which sounded from the back seat made Sam look round. The ex-angel, Castiel, was sat in the back seat of the impala, a small smirk across his face.

"What?" Cas asked, shrugging his shoulders carelessly. "It's not like he's not had it worse…" He placated.

"Yet he moans when I get blood in the impala." Sam pointed out.

"Yeah, but my blood is different." Dean cut across; the atmosphere in the car hardened instantly at the possibility that Dean was referring to the demon blood that was inside Sam. "I'll clean it off, you happy Sammy?" Sam crossed his arms tightly over his chest, frowning at Dean, but Dean was too jumped up from the night's hunt to even care.

"How far have we still got to go?" Cas asked from the back seat. "I'm starving!"

"Next turn off." Dean notified, trying to ignore the frosty chill that was now emanating from his brother in the passenger seat.

"These burgers better be as good as you promised Dean," Cas said sternly.

"They are – trust me, they are worth it." He answered, a grin spreading across his face. Dean pulled the impala off the freeway at the next turn off, almost instantly bringing a shabby diner and motel into view. The sign above the diner was dully illuminated, but read Pisten's All Night Diner.

"Awesome," Dean slammed the door of the impala shut, looking as excited as a kid in a candy store. "It's been years since we were here, remember it Sammy?"

"Vaguely…" Sam responded, still with a touch of ice in his tone. The diner was almost deserted, apart from two burly truckers sat in the corner, huddled over cups of coffee – for somewhere that reputedly had the best burgers in the state, it didn't look very promising. "Are you sure this is the place Dean?" Sam asked, glancing around at the empty tables.

"I know it is, come on." He pointed at the faded sign above the counter stating: Pisten's special burger. He sat down at one of the tables at the window; Sam reached across in front of Dean to pick up the menu. Dean looked as though he might have been about to say something scathing, but at that moment a middle aged, cheery looking waitress swept across to their table.

"Hi there boys, what can I get you?" She asked, her voice sounding as cheery as her face looked.

"Three beers, two pisten specials and…" Dean paused, waiting for Sam, whose eyes were still scanning the menu.

"A chicken salad." He added.

"Alrighty, they'll be here in a mo!" She scribbled on her notepad and disappeared off behind the counter of the kitchen. Once she was safely out of ear shot, Dean rolled his eyes in Sam's direction and hissed:

"I bring you to the diner with the best burgers in the state and you're having a salad?!" Dean couldn't seem to comprehend this, the burgers in here were epic (if he remembered correctly), and Sam was passing up the opportunity to have one. "What's with you?"

"Nothing!" Sam shrugged, "I just don't feel like deep fried meat right now."

"Tscha!" Dean made a disconsolate, disapproving noise at Sam, but was prevented from saying anything more by the return of the waitress with the beers.

"Here we go…" She said, placing the bottles down onto the table top, completely oblivious to the fact that the brothers were glaring at one another. Castiel was sitting rather meekly across from Sam and Dean, refusing to join in with this dispute. A few moments of prickly silence later and the waitress was back, carrying the most delicious looking burgers Dean had ever seen. Dean's mouth was watering as the plates were brought closer, he had only just realised how hungry he was. "Two specials." She narrated, "And a chicken salad." She placed the food down in front of them. "If you need anything else, just yell!"

"Right you are… Candice." Dean answered, clocking the name badge pinned to the front of her blouse. Dean turned his attention to his food, picking up the burger in anticipation and excitement. "Here's to a good night's hunt, huh?" He semi toasted, then stopped – both him and Sam stared at Castiel, who had taken the largest bite he possibly could and was chewing voraciously with his eyes closed, clearly in deepest pleasure. After a few seconds he opened his eyes and froze, realising that the two of them were staring at him.

"What?" He asked, still chewing the food in his mouth.

"You hungry then?" Dean jibed as Cas swallowed the huge mouthful.

"I'm starving!" Cas repeated, taking another huge bite from the burger.

"We can tell!" Sam laughed, as Dean bit into his own burger and hummed in satisfaction.

"Mmm!" He was nodding his head, "Definitely worth it!"

The tension between Sam and Dean melted away during the rest of the meal; as they laughed about the job they had just completed. Dean enjoyed that Cas was now travelling along with him and Sam – if anything; at least it broke the monotony of seeing the same one face every day. No longer an angel, it had taken Cas a while to adjust to the difference – but it seemed that he was beginning to embrace his own humanity.

Sam was stifling his own giggles as the three of them bundled into the motel room as Dean was re-enacting Cas' reactions from the hunt tonight, he was glad that they had chosen to stay in the motel round behind the diner as they were all so content from the food and drink that they had consumed to be bothered driving another forty kilometres to reach the next town. The motel behind the diner was basic, but it had the essentials – beds, a restroom, a couple of chairs and a small sink in the corner. Dean sighed heavily and flopped backwards onto one of the beds, fully clothed and closed his eyes.

"God that food was good!"

"Dean!" Castiel reprimanded, although no where near as sternly as he used to.

"Nothing wrong with being thankful!" Dean chuckled; he knew that this would make Cas forgive him for the use of God's name.

"I am exceedingly full." Castiel ruminated, patting his stomach contentedly.

"Exceedingly full…" Dean scoffed quietly. "Only you would use exceedingly to describe how full you are!" Sam chuckled at the blank expression on Cas' face as he tried to understand what was so funny.

"What? What would you say then?" He asked.

"I'd say, I'm stuffed! And definitely ready for sleep…" Dean answered, he was still lying back on his bed but he had raised his head to look at Sam and Cas.

"Getting soft in your old age…" Sam muttered, Dean threw his pillow at Sam's head in retaliation. Sam dodged, and began to unpack his laptop.

"What are you doing…?" Dean moaned in exasperation.

"I thought I'd check out the area, see if there are any jobs about." Sam said, flipping open the computer lid and loading it up.

"Alright geek boy." For this, Dean received his pillow flung back in his own face.

"You can go to sleep if you want, it's still early though." Sam perched upon the edge of his bed and began to type.

Cas was aware of waking up, but he couldn't quite understand what was causing him to wake now. There hadn't been a loud noise which could have startled him, and he knew he couldn't have been asleep long enough for it to be morning. He felt strange though… He could hear Sam typing on his computer, so he sat up on the bed in the dim light of the room. Sam must have heard him, as he looked round.

"Cas?" Sam said, his voice must have been louder than he intended as Dean stirred slightly in his bed. "You alright?"

"I… feel strange…" Cas answered slowly; he felt warmer than he usually did and he was aware of an unusual twisting sensation in his abdomen.

"What do you mean by strange?" Sam inquired, watching Castiel; frown slightly.

"I… I don't know how to explain…" Cas responded, sounding unsure; Sam had stood up from the edge of his bed to move closer to Castiel. This movement woke up Dean, who sat up slightly groggily and rubbed his eyes.

"What's going on?" He asked, looking between Cas and Sam.

"Cas says he feels strange." Sam told him.

"Strange how?" Dean asked.

"I don't know…" Castiel bemoaned, the strange twisting feeling in his lower belly was becoming tighter and stronger.

"Try to explain it." Dean requested, swinging his legs round so he was sitting on the side of his bed facing Cas.

"It's… it's like something is gripping my insides and curling them up." Cas attempted to put the sensation into words.

"Sam, can you hit the lights?" Dean asked, so Sam flicked the light switch, turning on the main lights. Castiel screwed up his face; the bright lights were painful on his eyes. "Sam, look at the colour of his face." Cas could hear Dean's voice as he sat with his eyes shut; he wondered what was different about his face.

"Cask, is it like a pressure – like weight in your stomach?" Sam asked, Cas opened his eyes squinting against the lights and nodded slowly. "Do you think…?" Sam was directing hid words at Dean, who had a peculiar expression on his face; they exchanged a knowing glance, and Cas suddenly felt a pang of anxiousness quite different from the other uncomfortable sensations he was experiencing.

"Yeah." Dean agreed without Sam finishing his sentence.

"What?" Cas asked quickly and worriedly. "What is it?"

"It sounds like you're feeling sick Cas." Dean explained. "How long have you been feeling like this?"

"I just noticed it when I woke up." Cas answered; the tightness in his stomach had changed into a churning uneasiness. "I… what's going to happen to me?" He implored.

"You'll be fine." Dean said, but Castiel didn't believe him; he stood up from the bed. "Come with me," Cas slowly moved off his bed, as he stood up he realised that his knees were quivering. Dean led him into the small bathroom; Sam followed behind the two of them and lurked at the door. As Cas entered the bathroom, feeling slightly confused, he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and saw that his face was a dullish grey colour. "You need to kneel down." Dean instructed, bending down himself and leaning back against the shower panel.

"Why?" Cas asked, his voice came out weak and scared.

"Because if you are sick, this is the best place for you to be." Dean replied; Cas paused and then knelt down next to the toilet. "How are you feeling now?"

"My stomach is doing strange things." Cas murmured, not quite sure what he should say.

"Does it feel like it's lurching inside of you?" Dean asked, Cas nodded. "Okay – don't fight it Cas, it's better to get it out than to force yourself to keep feeling like this."

"How do I…?" Cas started.

"You'll know," Dean cut across him, "You'll feel like you can't control it, but it'll get better." Dean reached out his hand and placed it on top of Cas' hand, squeezing it reassuringly. Cas didn't know what he was waiting for, but he felt his mouth beginning to water and he swallowed repeatedly. He felt weak and shaky, then very unexpectedly his whole body jerked; a disgusting taste coated the inside of his mouth and he tried to swallow it down more determinedly. "No Cas, just let it happen – it'll feel horrible just now, but you'll feel better."

"I don't like it…" Cas whispered, still swallowing rapidly; but then the feeling overwhelmed him, he heaved as the muscles in his abdomen pressed tightly upwards. He whimpered aloud, wishing that this would all stop. The muscles contracted again, and it happened too quickly for Cas to fight it. A gush of liquid flowed up his throat and he jerked forwards – vomiting profusely into the toilet bowl. He hardly managed to draw a breath before it happened again; he felt disgusting, foul liquid pouring from his mouth and nose, tears leaking from his eyes. Cas could feel Dean's hand rubbing his back in an attempt to make him feel better, but it wasn't working. Once the vomiting had stopped, Cas took a few deep breaths in, he was still whimpering weakly. Dean flushed the toilet so that Cas wasn't faced with looking at his dinner in repeat.

"Is it over?" He whispered, his voice croaky.

"I don't know Cas." Dean answered, "It might be… How are you feeling now? Any better?" Cas shook his head in response. "I think we should just stay here, until you feel better."

"Okay…" He agreed.

"I'll get you some water to sip at; it might help your stomach." Dean told him, he got up and passed Sam at the door. Dean stood at the sink for a few seconds, the water running from the tap in front of him. He wasn't sure whether his brain was overcompensating, but he felt slightly ill too… Perhaps it was because he had witnessed Castiel throwing up, but he had never had a weak stomach before – and he had sat with Sam several times during their teen years as Sam had emptied the contents of his stomach, he had always been fine then.

"Dean?" Sam's voice made him jump, and he wiped his hand across his face – surprised to find that he was sweating. "Are you alright? You don't look so good either?"

"I'm fine." Dean answered gruffly, grabbing a glass to fill up for Cas.

"Don't be the hero." Sam said sharply. "Are you feeling ill too?" Dean paused with the glass of water clutched in his hand, it was trembling slightly.

"A little." He admitted finally, "Not as bad as Cas though."

"Yet." Sam muttered lowly; Dean didn't want to think about that, it was Cas who needed looking after right now.

"Shut up." Dean snapped, more to try and settle his mind than argue with Sam. "Do you think it's a bug?"

"No." Sam answered, "I think it was the food… you both ate the same burgers." The mere mention of the food that they had consumed several hours earlier made Dean's stomach turn over.

"Can you not talk about that?" Dean asked, feeling a sudden precipitative urge that he could recognise much better than Cas. "I need to take this water to Cas." He murmured, pushing past Sam and returning to the bathroom; bending down he placed the glass on the floor in front of Cas. "Here you go." Dean said quietly.

"Thank you." Cas was leaning back against the wall, he still looked very grey and weak, but he was eyeing Dean with a strange look. "Your face is an odd colour Dean." Dean couldn't stop himself from chuckling; it was just like Cas to point out the obvious.

"Yeah, well… you're not the only one feeling a bit off." Dean told him.

"What's wrong with us?" Cas asked.

"The food…" Dean offered his theory, but it was the wrong thing to think about. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Dean retched – he tried to swallow back, but his body was convulsing too fiercely. He jerked forwards and closed his eyes as he puked, unable to catch his breath. "Urgh… oh god…" He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and was surprised when Cas didn't reprimand him – glancing up he saw that Cas had his hand clamped across his mouth, obviously holding back a fresh wave of sickness. "Go, go!" Dean scrambled back from the toilet bowl, giving enough room for Cas to get in.

"I'll get you some water too." Sam said to Dean, as the renewed sounds of Cas vomiting filled the small bathroom. This was going to be a long night…

Four hours later, Castiel was curled up on the bathroom floor – he hadn't thrown up in nearly half an hour now, and he was desperately praying that this might be it over for good. Dean was propped up with his back against the wall, breathing heavily. Sam had positioned one of the motel chairs just outside the bathroom door and was keeping a vigil over them both. Things seemed to be easing up now; he hoped that it might be coming to an end so that all three of them could get a decent rest.

"Sammy…?" Dean spoke gruffly.

"Yeah Dean?" Sam looked up just in case Dean needed help.

"Don't let me ever convince us to go somewhere just because of food again." He ordered weakly, Sam laughed gently.

"The burgers not worth it?" Sam smiled.

"Definitely not worth it."

A/N: I'm an absolute sucker for a sick fic, I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this! I'd love to know what you think of it! :)