"Hello," Dean rolled over onto his side as he answered his cell phone. It was not even light out yet, way too early for his phone to be ringing.
"Dean," Castiel's voice boomed through the phone.
"Cas?" Dean sat up quickly in his bed. "Where the hell have you been man? I have been calling you for weeks. We have been worried sick about you."
"I am sorry," Castiel apologized. "I was held up with something but I am back now. But I need a favor from you."
"You ignore me for weeks and you expect my help?" Dean asked Castiel, though he had every intention of helping his friend. No matter what had happened, Castiel was still Dean's friend.
"No, I suppose not," Castiel's voice dropped almost to a whisper, realizing that maybe Simiel was right. But whether he was right or not, Castiel stood by his decision.
"What do you need Cas?" Dean sighed, settling at the edge of his bed.
"I need for you to come pick me up," Castiel turned to the waitress in the diner he had stopped in. They had let him use the phone. "Where exactly are we?"
"Pick you up?" Dean shook his head, even though Castiel could not see him. "Why do you need to be picked up? Cas, what happened?"
"I promise to explain everything when you get here," Castiel did not want to explain any of this over the phone. "I am in Lincoln City, Oregon."
"What is in Lincoln City?" Dean asked, even more confused than before.
"Sand," Castiel looked out the window of the diner. "And lots of rain."
"I am on my way then," Dean hung up the phone and quickly got himself dressed.
Castiel waited for hours. He eventually had to leave the diner due to the fact that they were closing. He was lucky they let him stay as long as they did because normally, they would not let someone who was not ordering anything occupy a booth. He would have bought food or coffee, but he was left without any money. All he had were the clothes on his back. He prayed Dean would arrive soon, the hunger was starting to become too much.
Soon the cold set in and even Castiel's oversized trench coat was not cutting it. He rubbed at his arms, hoping to increase the circulation in his blood but nothing was working. Finally, he found refuge at a bus stop. It did not take away from the cold but the three glass sides, covered head to toe in graffiti, did a good job at stopping the wind chill. It was the most he could hope for in this situation.
By time Dean had arrived, Castiel was asleep on the bus stop bench and on the verge of becoming sick from the cold. Dean shook him, more than a few times, in order to wake him up and pull him to his feet.
"We have to get you in the car man," Dean stated as he pulled him to the passenger side and helped him slide into baby. "What the hell are you doing out here?"
"Waiting for you," Castiel stuttered through gritted teeth. He was too cold to open his mouth completely. His entire body was shaking.
"Let's find a hotel," Dean suggested, looking up and down the strip of road. There were many hotels, but he needed to find one that looked like he could afford it. As soon as something looked like it would be in his budget, Dean pulled in. He left the car running so that Castiel could stay in the warmth. "I will go get us a room. You stay here. Put your hands up against the vents, it will help."
Castiel waited as he was told, holding his hands up to the vents in order to warm them up. It was working, except it was not warming the rest of his body. It made his hands feel as if they were not his, they did not fit in with the rest of him. He was already regretting becoming human. He had been human before but there had always been hope of being an angel again and so he fought on and things did not look as glum. Now he was human for good and he did not know what the future held. That left him with a much bleaker outcome on his life.
"Alright man," Dean slid back into the car in order to remove the keys. "Let's get you inside and get you warm."
"Okay," Castiel agreed, letting himself out of the car and following Dean to their room. It was not the nicest of rooms but it had two beds and blankets, something Castiel was looking forward to crawling under.
"Why don't you go take a hot shower," Dean suggested, pointing towards the bathroom. "I will go and see if I can find us something to eat."
"I would like that very much," Castiel nodded, his hand resting against his stomach. Just the mention of food made his stomach growl an ungodly sound. Dean chuckled, but if he only knew how hungry Castiel truly was. His vessel, well now his body, had not eaten anything in months. It was beyond starving to death.