AN: Ok for reals this time. 3 more chapters.
Reviews!
SuperWhoLockedsince'12: I'm no Steven Moffat, but I do thrive on the pain and emotions of others. Cheers.
Ishouldbesleepingitslike4am: I dunno, I feel like it COULD have ended there, but there's more I want to do with it.
Ale: M? I don't get it…
BeccySaysRawr: I'm no Satan, although Mark Pellegrino is quite fine.
AND ONWARDS TO THE CHAPTER!
Chapter 12
Dean scooted to the side, patting the empty space next to him. Castiel gladly joined him on the hospital bed, pressing the call button before settling down. A nurse quickly entered the room.
"Oh good!" she said cheerfully. "You're up! And apparently everything's working," she added as Dean nodded happily. "I'm going to do some quick checks and then I'll leave you two alone."
Dean reached out and grabbed her arm as she turned away. "Name things?" he asked, giving her his best puppy dog look.
"Sure!" she said, perpetually smiling. "I'm Jo."
"Jo," Dean murmured. "Pretty."
"Thank you! I'll say everything I do so you can learn, okay?"
"Okay."
Castiel threaded his fingers through Dean's as Jo tested Dean's ears. She reached out a hand and put it by Dean's left ear and snapped, naming the action as she did it. The noise right by Dean's ear caused it to twitch slightly. She did the same on the right side.
"Perfect! You're reflexes all seem to be working."
"Reflexes?" Dean asked, glancing at Castiel for help.
"Here," Cas offered, grabbing a pad of paper and some pens from a bag at the foot of the bed. He wrote the word down and handed it to Dean to read.
"Reflexes," Dean repeated, sounding out each letter as- well, as a four year old would.
Next, Jo grabbed a tool off the wall.
"This is called an otoscope," she explained. "Doctors use it to look in people's ears." She examined his ears swiftly, replacing the tool to its proper spot with satisfaction.
"Everything's looking good," she said, turning to Castiel. "We'd like him to stay overnight for another check tomorrow morning, just to make sure none of the scar tissue is reforming."
"Thank you so much!" Castiel called as she left the room. He reached down, hoisting his bag onto the bed.
Castiel turned to Dean as he unzipped his bag. "I thought we could read out loud together to help build your vocabulary," he said, signing as well as speaking to make sure Dean understood. Hopefully, if Castiel used the two together, Dean would make the connections between each word and how it was said.
"I thought we could start with something simple." Castiel handed a thin book to Dean.
"Green Eggs and Ham," Dean read, shooting Cas a 'you-can't-be-serious' look.
"What?" Cas asked defensively. "I thought it'd be easy, and clearly I was right. You have the vocal vocabulary of four year old. That makes Dr. Suess a good place to start."
"Dr. Suess… for babies," Dean grumbled brokenly.
"Then at least it will help with your grammar," Castiel teased.
Dean just crossed his arms and pouted.
"How bout this," Castiel said as he stroked Dean's hair. "For every book you finish, you get a kiss. Deal?"
"Deal," Dean smirked. He pulled the book onto his lap and opened it confidently. He zoomed through the book, hardly stumbling. When he was done, he smirked triumphantly at Cas.
"Now was that so bad?" Cas asked.
"Shut up and give me my kiss."
Castiel smiled as he leaned forward, barely grazing Dean's lips with his own.
"Hey!" Dean pouted. "What was that?"
"Read a harder book and you'll get a better kiss," Cas smirked.
They read for hours, Dean growing increasingly confident with each book. By the time some nurses brought in lunch, Dean's grammar was near perfect and his speech was fluid.
When they finished eating, Dean started to get out of bed.
"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Cas asked, getting up after him.
"I'm tired of sitting around," Dean replied, fishing through the bag of clothes they had brought with them. "I want to get out, hear the birds chirp and the wind blow or whatever." He pulled on a pair of jeans under his hospital gown.
"I don't know," Castiel said, unsure. "Maybe we should check with a nurse first to-" Cas trailed off.
"To what?" Dean smirked, his hospital gown lying on the floor.
Cas cleared his throat. "To, uh, to-"
Dean crossed his arms over his bare chest. "I'm waiting."
"Oh, shut up," Castiel growled, wrapping his arms around Dean's neck and pulling him down for a kiss. Dean chuckled against Cas's lips when the shorter man moaned slightly.
"I could get used to hearing things like that," Dean murmured before kissing Cas again, his arms snaking around Castiel's waist.
"Uh…. Should I come back later?"
Dean's head whipped towards the door. "Sammy?"
"Hey, Dean." Sam stood in the doorway of the hospital room, hands in his pocket. His neck was flushed red. Castiel wondered why before realizing how he and Dean were standing. Embarrassed, he stepped back slightly from Dean.
Dean strode quickly towards the door, pulling Sam into a strong hug.
"It's good to see you too, Dean," Sam laughed, patting Dean's back. "Maybe you could put on a shirt, though?"
"Sorry," Dean said, releasing him. "It's just so good to hear your voice, Sammy." Dean pulled a shirt out of his bag and slipped it on.
"It's even better hearing yours," Sam replied. "And most people call me Sam, now."
"Too bad," Dean smiled. "You'll always be Sammy to me."
Castiel, Sam, and Dean talked for the next few hours. Eventually, Sam had to leave for school. Once he left, a sort of quiet fell over the room. Dean started pacing, unable to sit still.
"Are you okay, Dean?" Castiel asked, concerned.
"I… I don't like it getting so quiet," he confessed. "It makes me nervous."
"Well, let's find something to fill up the silence, then," Cas suggested. "What about music?"
"Okay," Dean answered. "What kind of music?"
"What kind do you like?"
"I haven't heard music in 13 years," Dean pointed out.
Cas nodded thoughtfully. "Sit down on the bed," he said, pulling his computer out of his bag. "We're going to figure out what kind of music you like."
Dean sat back on the bed, leaving his legs open so Castiel could sit between them.
"Where do you want to start?" Castiel asked, opening his computer as he leaned back into Dean's chest.
"Play me your favorite song," Dean requested, nuzzling his nose into Cas's hair. Cas complied, and classical music began streaming through the computer.
"What'd you think?" Cas asked when the song was done.
"It was nice, but it's not really my style," Dean replied, wrinkling his nose. "What else have you got?"
They went through Castiel's entire iTunes library, eventually moving on to the Internet for other genres. They listened to classical, musicals, country, western, 80's music, rap, metal.
"I like this one," Dean said, perking up when ACDC started playing. "What's so funny?" he asked as Castiel began to chuckle.
"Nothing. It's just very you."
After a little while, Dean began to nod off.
"Do you want me to turn it off?" Castiel asked, getting up so Dean could change from jeans to pajamas.
"Not at all," Dean answered, crawling back into the bed. "But I do want you to come cuddle with me."
"You can't possibly fall asleep with "Highway to Hell" playing," Cas said skeptically.
"So make it something more peaceful. Either way, you still have to come lay down with me."
Cas turned the lights off before climbing into the bed. "What do you want to hear?" he asked, sitting down next to Dean.
"You pick," Dean replied quietly, his eyes already drifting shut.
Suddenly, the perfect song came to Cas. He scrolled through his music quickly, finally finding the song he was looking for. He clicked it, turning to lay down so he was facing Dean. Dean's eyes flew open and he gasped as the music began to play.
Hey Jude, don't make it bad.
Take a sad song, and make it better.
Remember to let her into your heart,
Then you can start to make it better.
Dean pulled Cas closer to him, placing a kiss in his hair."Thank you," he murmured.
"I love you," Castiel said, tilting his head up to kiss Dean's jaw.
"I love you, too."
By the time the song was over, Dean was fast asleep.
