Dean woke the next morning with a blistering headache. He rolled onto his back, spreading his arms and legs out on his large bed. He looked over at his bedside table, where a bottle of scotch sat, empty. He was vaguely reminded of 'celebrating' his 30th birthday alone in his apartment. His brother and friends had wanted to take him out, but Dean brushed them off, convincing them he was tired and just wanted to go home.

When in reality, he just didn't feel like it.

He just didn't feel like doing anything anymore.

He sighed and rubbed his hands over his face, looking through half lidded eyes at the window. There was still snow on the ground from winter, but soon it would be spring. Another spring. And then summer. And pretty soon it would be his birthday again.

"The years are just floating by..." he mumbled to himself.

Dean lie in bed, falling in and out of sleep for hours. He knew he had nowhere to be, no responsibilities today. That's what kept him closed off from the world this morning, and his phone, which was glowing with the retrieval of a test message, stashed inside the pocket of the pants he wore last night. Dean sat unknowingly in bed for most of the day, unaware that destiny was ringing the doorbell.


Castiel rolled out of bed early afternoon, pushing the button on his coffee machine and walked towards his bathroom. He took a warm shower, washing the sleep away, and when he walked back into the kitchen in only a towel, his coffee was ready for him. He sat at his counter and breathed in deeply. It felt good to sleep in, and he had no deadlines coming up for his book, so he was in no rush to do anything. In fact, his plans today were to lay on his couch and watch movies.

As he made his way into his living room, he glanced over at his computer. The night before suddenly came back to him.

"Oh no…" He whispered. He rushed over to the open computer screen and saw his Soul Mate page open and completed. He groaned.

"Why did I do that! Oh no…oh no…"

He knew it was too late now. He knew his soul mate had probably already seen the message. Maybe if he deleted his page…

Before he could, however, he thought about what made him finish it. The longing to be with someone. The hope of being loved for the quiet, shy, nerdy guy that he always has been. To be happy for once in his life instead of just content. He rubbed a hand over his face. This was not how he had planned his day.

After a few minutes of contemplation, he shut the computer screen and sat down on his couch. He stared at the blank screen on his TV and took a deep breath.

Maybe everything would be ok?

He took another breath and reached for the remote, hoping to put his troubles aside for the day, and get lost in his imagination. He was glad Gandalf understood his need for a quest.


Dean finally stumbled out of bed late afternoon. He took a shower and made himself a sandwich, while laying a file out on the table to look at while he ate.

Deans' business took up most of his life, mainly because he wanted it to. It was an escape from the real world, and he was excellent with numbers. His clients trusted him to make great decisions with their money, and he definitely did, practically running the company on his own, save for a few geniuses that he hired to help with the work load once business really took off for him a few years ago.

He was proud of his company. It was something he made out of nothing. Much like his Impala, his cherished car from his childhood that he watched grow old and rusty in his backyard. One day he decided enough was enough and rebuilt the entire thing. It was his baby. And he treated his company just as he treated her.

Dean finished his sandwich and scooped up the papers, making his way to the living room to watch some TV. After half an hour of watching a football game that he really didn't care for, he decided to call Sam and see what he was up to.

He retraced his steps and found the previous nights' clothes bundled up on the floor at the foot of the bed. He rummaged through the pockets and found his phone, and turned it on to check his messages. He had a few missed calls from Sam, no doubt complaining about not letting him take him out on his birthday, and a call from Charlie, one of his employees. As he was about to call her back, he noticed an icon for his text messages. He clicked on it and saw the logo for SoulMates.

He felt his breath hitch as he stared at the screen. Could this be it? Could all of his years of waiting and waiting finally paid off?

And why the hell was he just getting this now? Was his soul mate someone who was literally just out of high school? He had a million questions running through his head. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe normally, sitting down on the edge of his bed. When he opened his eyes, yes the text was still there, and yes, it wasn't a trick his mind was playing on him.

He eagerly scrolled down to the text.

'Dean Winchester, we are pleased to announce that a member has joined by the name of Castiel Novak, with a SoulMates name of Dean. Please log into your account for more information.'

He breathed deeply, he could feel his palms sweating as he reread the message over and over.

Castiel Novak.

The name made his heart beat fast in a way it hadn't in years.

Maybe because this time it was real.

He had a chance to meet his soul mate.

He finally had a chance for happiness.

Right?

He made his way to his computer and logged into his account. Even though it was running like normal, it felt like forever for Dean to pull his page up. Everything was going slowly, except for Deans' thoughts, and his heart. When he finally made it to where he wanted to be, he clicked on the name that had haunted Deans dreams for 12 years.

Castiel.

Castiel Novak.

The first thing he noticed about the man, yes, man, was the ocean blue eyes. He stared at the picture of this man, who seemed to be staring back. Dean found himself getting lost in those eyes.

The rest of the picture was much the same. Black, unruly hair that Dean wanted to run his fingers through, a perfectly shaped face, and lips that looked too good to be true.

He was an angel.

A beautiful angel and Dean began to fall in love.

A wave of euphoria rushed over him and he wanted to contact this man. Call him up and beg him to see him, to love him. He felt himself wanting it more than anything.

Until he glanced down at Castiels age.


"Twenty-six Sam! The guy has known about me for 8 years! And he never bothered to try and find me!" Dean yelled frustratingly into the phone. Sam sighed and listened to his brothers' rant. "Why the hell should I even contact him now? Why all of a sudden did he decide to search for me?"

"Dean, I don't have the answers for you. Maybe you should just ask him yourself. You've waited this long to find him, and now you have. Maybe you should just calm down and give this a chance."

Dean scoffed. "Give this a chance? How do I even know this will work out? He didn't seem to care about my feelings for 8 years, why would I want to be with a person like that?"

"Because, Dean, finding your soul mate is…well, it's incredible. It's the best feeling in the world, dude, I can't explain it. Go see for yourself. I'm sure he has an explanation, and if you two are meant to be, you'll work it out."

"I hate you, Sammy."

"No, you love me."

"Bitch."

"Jerk."

Dean shook his head and sighed before hanging up the phone. Even though he hated to admit it, Sam was right about one thing. The only way Dean was going to get answers was to ask Castiel himself. Did he really want to know the reason behind it?

It almost felt like a betrayal.

To know the person who the universe deemed perfect for him spent the last 8 years ignoring the call of his soul mate.

He's heard of people denying the universes plans for them, tattooing over the name on their wrist to cover it up and trying to forget. Those people who want to be able to choose for themselves. There was many out there. Maybe Castiel was one of those people.

Hell, Dean had the same thoughts after 12 years of not being able to fill the void in his heart where Castiels name conquered.

But no matter how hard Dean tried, he couldn't find anyone that seemed to suit his personality, that wanted the same things as him, that he would be happy and proud to take home to his small but close family. He always had that secret wish to be found by his soul mate.

He just didn't think it would happen like this.

After hours of thinking, his anger had subsided and he decided he would at least give the guy a chance to speak for his actions. He knew it would drive him crazy if he never found of the reason his soul mate decided he didn't need him for 8 years. Dean knew it wasn't his fault, he knew Castiel didn't know him, knew nothing about him. It had to be a decision he made blindly, for reasons unknown.

But Dean would find out if it was the last thing he did.


Most of the day had gone by quickly, and Castiel was enjoying lying on his couch and watching the adventures through Mordor. The sun had set and Castiel decided it was time to make dinner for himself. Dinner, for Castiel, consisted of pulling a TV dinner out of the freezer and popping it into the microwave. Satisfied that he had set it to the correct time, he glanced over at the closed computer screen.

He hadn't thought about it all day.

Not once did his thoughts drift to his soul mate and the mistake he may or may not have made by contacting him. It did however pain him to know he went that long without thinking about the man he was destined to love.

Even though Castiel wasn't into the whole soul mates thing, he still thought of Dean every day.

And now, he had his chance to meet him, to learn his life story, to tell a story of his own.

To make happy memories to override the bad.

He made his way to the computer and opened it up. His soul mates page was still up, and when he refreshed the page, he saw the icon in the corner, alerting him that they may have found his soul mate. He took a deep breath and clicked on the alert.

As soon as the page loaded, Castiel felt his heart skip a beat. His breath hitched and his hand found its way to his mouth, covering it in shock.

Dean.

Dean Winchester.

He was absolutely stunning.

Castiel stared hard at the picture of this supposed man that he was destined for. He didn't know where to begin. He didn't know which part of Dean captivated him the most.

The first thing he noticed were the eyes that stared back at him through the screen. He could see flecks of gold swirled delicately thru his forest green irises', warm and inviting. He could see the freckles scattered on the nose and cheeks of the bronze skin that his soul mate adorned. Light brown hair atop his head and a demeanor that seemed to say 'I know I'm a bad ass."

"Wow." Castiel shivered. There had to be some mistake. There's no way he would get lucky enough to be soul mated with someone so gorgeous.

But then, he thought, he's probably a jerk.

Castiel sat back in his chair and covered his face with his hands.

"This was a mistake. Such a mistake. And now he's going to want to meet me and then he'll be a total douche bag and leave me, and fuck! I need a drink."

Before he had a chance to grab the bottle of whiskey in his cabinet, the computer chimed, alerting him that a message had been received. He uncovered his face and peeked at the screen.

Dean Winchester is waiting to chat. Accept?

And there it is. The moment Castiel dreaded since he was a teenager. The first contact. He stared at the screen, willing it to go away, but no such luck.

He groaned and clicked the accept button. There was no going back. He carefully typed the first words he would ever say to his Soul Mate.

"Hello Dean."

"Castiel."