Chapter Six: Simplicity

Tap, tap, tap.

Castiel's brow flickered but he ignored the rhythmic tapping of his brother's fingertips against the wooden counter. He kept focusing on the arrangement in front of him, which was under their "Lover's Arrangements", and worked the stalks of purple mountain lilac into the ferns. Gabriel was credited with the idea of creating a small handbook with different pictures of the kind of arrangements they could provide that all had a different meaning overall based off what the flowers communicated.

"So are you gonna call him or what?" Gabriel finally asked, tossing the card across the counter so it slid against the vase Castiel was holding.

Castiel's blue eyes flickered down to the card, where Dean's number was written neatly on the bottom, below his information at the fire station. "He just gave it to me yesterday, Gabriel," he stated calmly.

"So why didn't you call him yesterday?" Gabe pressed, lifting his brows pointedly.

"I'm in no rush," Castiel replied, moving just as slowly with the arrangement. When he was satisfied, he rubbed his fingers against his smock, since they were covered with sticky fern fur (sometimes called bear hair).

Gabriel huffed, rolling his eyes before looking back at the flowers. He narrowed his eyes then before turning and grabbing a small bundle of white, star-shaped flowers with a multitude of tiny antlers. "Top it with these," he suggested.

"Myrtle?" Castiel inquired.

"Trust me."

Castiel took the small flowers and arranged them delicately on top of the stalks, so they peered out from the soft purple flowers and deep green, unfurling fern leaves. He studied it for a moment before nodding.

Passing the vase to Gabriel, Castiel looked back down at the card while his brother placed the arrangement into one of their fridges, so the flowers stayed fresh until they were picked up later that day.

Had it only been yesterday that Dean had strode inside Heavenly and had given Cas his number? For Castiel, it seemed like only moments ago, having been stuck with a floaty kind of feeling for the past twenty four hours.

"Call him," Gabriel all but hissed into Castiel's ear, making him jump.

Castiel merely glared before snatching the card and walking into the back room. He sat down at the desk that he and Jess shared and ran a hand through his hair nervously. Then he took a deep breath and pulled out his phone and dialed.

Dean answered with a distracted, "Hello?" There was loud music playing in the background.

"Hello, Dean. It's, um, Cas. Castiel."

Immediately Dean's tone changed, brightened. "Oh hey, Cas. Hang on a minute."

There was some shuffling and Castiel could make out the sound of Dean murmuring to someone else before the background grew quiet.

"I'm glad you called," Dean said. "Sorry about that, I was fixing one of the truck's engines. Problem with one of the cylinders."

"Oh… I see," Castiel said cautiously, not overly familiar with cars or mechanics.

"What's up?"

"Well, I was wondering… I was wondering if perhaps you would like to get the cup of coffee this evening?"

"This evening?" Dean repeated.

Castiel's heart sank, anticipating rejection.

"Yeah, this evening..." Dean continued. "That sounds good. Do you have a place in mind?"

Castiel blinked rapidly before replying. "Um, well, Charlie Bradbury has opened up a café... I don't know if you remember her, she was only two grades behind you, and well, it's on the same street as the shop-,"

"Cas," Dean interjected gently, laughing. "Breathe."

Inhaling and exhaling deeply, Castiel smiled a little, even though Dean couldn't see it.

"Yeah, I remember Charlie a little," Dean said, still chuckling. "She's dating Jo, right?"

"Yes, for about a year now," Castiel said. "Charlie opened the café with Kevin Tran, who was her college friend who moved here less than two years ago. He's younger than her though, I believe he was a school prodigy of sorts…"

"Leave it to Charlie to bond with another nerd," Dean joked.

Castiel laughed as well. "I'm sure Charlie would want to introduce you…"

"Okay. Say around eight?"

"Okay. I'll see you then, Dean."

"Bye, Cas."

When Castiel hung up, he jumped again when he saw some movement out of the corner of his eye. Gabriel slouched against the door, brow raised yet again.

"Eavesdropping is rude, Gabriel," Castiel muttered, refusing to meet his brother's shrewd hazel gaze.

"Sure, bro. So when's your date?"

"Eight o'clock. And it isn't a date, we're just grabbing coffee."

"Sure, bro," Gabriel repeated, now with a mischievous grin. "Five bucks says it turns into a date."

"Well, I don't wish to take your money but…" Castiel's brows tilted up when he looked up at his brother.

Gabriel scoffed, rolling his eyes, before leaving Castiel alone again.

Ooo0ooO

When Castiel went to take his lunch, Gabriel made a call himself.

"Jess? It's Gabe. You busy? No? Great. Come by the shop. No, bring him too. See you in a bit."

Grinning, Gabriel leaned against the counter, feeling pleased with himself.

When Jess walked through the door, the bell rang twice, since she was followed by Sam Winchester.

"Hey, Samsquatch," Gabriel said, using the nickname he had given the taller Winchester.

"Hey, Gabe," Sam replied.

"What's up? You got an evil look in your eye…" Jess said, trailing off as she gave him a suspicious look.

"Well, I have an idea, and I need your help to make it work."

So Jess and Sam both leaned close to listen to Gabriel, before both of them pulled back and exchanged a look. Jess's bright blue eyes gleamed excitedly.

"All right," Sam said on a slight, dramatic sigh. "I'll go… play my role."

Jess and Gabe wore matching grins when Sam left.

Ooo0ooO

Dean spent most of his day working on the truck that was making on odd clinking noise. He was covered in grease and sweat, and was willing to pay twenty bucks to anyone for an ice cold beer.

But he smiled when he saw Sam pulling up, wiping the grime off of his face with a dirty rag. "Hey, Sammy," he said when his brother strolled up.

"Hey, Dean. You busy?"

"No, I'm done now. I think I'll head home and heat something up, I'm starved."

"Oh, well, I'm done too, do you want to grab a bite at Ellen's?" Sam asked.

"Sure, why not? Does Ash still work at the Roadhouse?"

"Ah, yep. Come on, I'll give you a ride."

When they drove over, Sam offered Dean a clean shirt. When Dean gave him a questioning look, Sam rolled his eyes. "Force of habit, you know, when you helped out at Bobby's and you came home covered in grease. Plus, dude, you smell."

Dean lifted an arm and took a whiff. Then he leaned back and snatched the gym bag that he knew Sam always kept in the back and rolled on some fresh deodorant. When Sam gave him a grumpy look, he smirked. "You said I smell. Bitch."

"Jerk."

When they pulled up to the Roadhouse, Sam spotted Gabriel's car pulling away. The older Novak and younger Winchester shared a nod when their cars passed, before Sam made a point of looking at his watch and making a small, startled noise under his breath.

"What's up?" Dean asked, lifting a brow.

"I forgot… I have some files that need to be sent out today. Shit."

"You can't eat first?" Dean asked, absently rubbing his rumbling stomach.

"No, these are important," Sam said, before looking and smothering a smile. "Oh, look… Cas is here."

Dean's head snapped towards where Sam was looking.

Castiel was standing outside the Roadhouse, head tilted slightly as though confused.

"Look, Dean, I gotta motor," Sam pressed, giving him an innocent, wide-eyed look. "Why don't you, I dunno, go eat with Cas?"

"What?" Dean all but yelped. "I just got off work. I'm gross."

Sam leaned over, unlocking and opening the car door, before giving his brother a shove. "Just- just go."

Dean got out and closed the door, then froze. He turned around quickly and glared but Sam laughed, waved, and accelerated out of the parking lot before Dean could shout, "Hey!"

Turning back around, Dean gulped. "Uh, Cas?"

Castiel turned and blinked. "Oh! Hello, Dean. What are you doing here?"

"My brother just kind of…dumped me here," Dean said, pulling a face.

"Strange, so did my brother."

"Yeah, weird," Dean muttered, eyes narrowing. "Have you ever been here before?"

"Of course."

"Well, are you hungry?" Dean asked, gathering his courage. "Because I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

Castiel smiled a little. "Yes, I'm hungry."

"Then shall we?"

Ooo0ooO

Dean and Castiel found themselves at the café Charlie and Kevin owned at eight, like they had planned, except their bellies were full from their unexpected dinner at the Roadhouse.

The small café, called Charlie's, was owned by the vivacious red-head and managed by Kevin Tran, and both of them greeted Castiel warmly before he introduced them to Dean.

"I remember you!" Charlie exclaimed. "You fixed up my yellow bug senior year, right before you left."

"Right, right," Dean said, remembering the canary-yellow car that had coughed up more exhausted than a chain smoker.

The place was decorated with vintage posters, from Star Wars to Game of Thrones, and even had old thrown-back games set up in the back, like Pac-Man.

Dean and Castiel said near the window so they could watch the rest of the sunset. Dean ordered black coffee while Castiel had green tea, claiming that it had the same amount of caffeine as Dean's coffee, but it didn't run the risk of turning his teeth yellow later on in life. Dean had laughed at that.

And when they finished their drinks, they both waved at Charlie and Kevin.

Castiel gave Dean a curious look when he chuckled when they stepped out into the cool night air.

"I can see why Jo likes her," Dean explained.

"It does seem like everyone from Lawrence has a way of finding a way back to one another," Castiel commented, tucking his hands into the pockets of his trenchcoat.

"Yeah…"

When Castiel glanced back at Dean, he saw that the green-eyed man was gazing at him intensely. Castiel nearly blushed and looked away.

They strolled down the street slowly, and Castiel paused in front of Heavenly to adjust some of the flowers that were on display in front of the shop.

"Don't you worry that people with take them?" Dean wanted to know.

"We hope they do, if that brings them back," Castiel said. "However, I'm a co-owner, therefore I can do this…" He plucked three flowers from a small bucket and turned to hand them to Dean.

They were a soft pink color, with wide petals and a yellow center, and had a subtle and familiar fragrance that had Dean's brow furrowing when he sniffed them.

"Wild roses," Castiel said gently when he met Dean's gaze. "As a thank you for this evening, it was wonderful…"

But before he could draw in his next breath, since he was ready to spout off some random detail about the roses, Dean stepped in and wrapped his free hand around the back of Castiel's neck and pulled him close, before kissing him gently.

Dean pulled away and Castiel blinked, and neither were sure who leaned in first again, but soon they were kissing under the pale yellow streetlight and the illuminated lights that read Heavenly Arrangements.

Ooo0ooO

The next morning, Gabriel walked into the shop, humming. When he approached the counter, he saw that there was a small envelope tacked to the message board behind the register with his name on it.

Inside was a crisp five dollar bill and a note that read; You win this round. –Castiel

Gabriel grinned triumphantly and slipped the envelope into his back pocket. Then he turned and smiled widely at the willowy brunette that was standing by the amethyst flowers.

"Hello, gorgeous. How can I help you today?"

Ooo0ooO

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural!

Author's Note: Thank you to all who have reviewed, your kind words are highly appreciated! I'm glad you're enjoying this story, it's very much inspired by the book The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh, which is where I'm getting most of my information about all the different flowers from!

Purple mountain lilac: First emotions of love

Ferns: Sincerity

Myrtle: Love (and marriage in Hebrew)

Wild rose: Simplicity

Amethyst: Admiration

Please keep reviewing!