Castiel had just gotten home from school and was in the kitchen making a snack when he got a text from Dean. Be there in about ten minutes. His heart thudded in his chest when he read it. He typed back, Okay, the door will be open, and went back to making sandwiches.

It had been a week and a half since he and Dean hung out, and Castiel just missed the hell out of him. He didn't care if he even got to hold his hand or kiss him, he just wanted to be around him at this point. They did spend time together in art class today, but it only reinforced Castiel's need to be around him more. Is this what it's like when you're interested in someone? He had no idea whether or not Dean was his boyfriend, but he knew he was crazy about him and didn't want whatever was going on to end.

Ten minutes later he heard the front door open, and a "Cas?" rang out. He turned and made his way to the living room, unable to hide the smile that was creeping on his face.

"Hi, Dean," He said when he walked into the room. He stopped a few feet from the other boy, not wanting to invade his personal space.

"Hi, Cas," Dean replied, smiling. He dropped his backpack on the floor and opened his arms. "Come here."

Castiel smiled wider and walked forward, falling into Dean's embrace. The two held each other tightly, as Castiel buried his face in Dean's neck. "I missed you," Castiel mumbled.

"I missed you too, Cas," Dean replied softly.

After a few moments they pulled apart, and Castiel could feel his cheeks getting hot. He looked away and chuckled nervously. "Sorry, I don't want to invade your personal space."

Dean chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Cas, I was kidding. Invade my personal space all you want."

"Really?"

Dean nodded. "Absolutely. I want you in my personal space."

Castiel looked up at him, and they both laughed. All he wanted to do was kiss the other boy.

"Castiel, you're looking at me like I'm a piece of meat," Dean remarked.

Castiel cleared his throat. "Sorry."

Dean laughed again and moved closer, closing the space between them and pecking Castiel on the lips. When he pulled away Castiel said, "Wow, you haven't seen me for a week and that's the kiss you give me?"

"Alright Cas, calm down. Thirsty as hell." Dean replied, holding out his hand. "We have all the time in the world for more kisses."

Castiel blushed. "Right, well. Let's get upstairs then." He turned towards the stairs, but stopped when he remembered. "Oh, shit. I forgot that I made us a snack."

He left the room and came back a minute later with the sandwiches and two glasses of water. Dean took his plate and drink and said, "Castiel, you didn't need to make me a snack."

"I wanted to," He replied with a smirk.

"Well, thank you."

The two smiled at each other before turning and heading up to Castiel's room.

X

Half an hour later the two boys were sitting on Castiel's bed, holding hands as Castiel was reading a novel for English class, and Dean was attempting to draw with one hand. After a few failed tries, he set his pencil down and said, "You know, it's not easy to draw with one hand."

"Sorry," Castiel said, letting go of Dean's hand. As he did this, Dean stared at him.

"I kind of didn't want you to stop."

Castiel chuckled and said, "Make up your mind."

Dean pursed his lips and looked up, thinking for a moment. "Yeah, I've made up my mind. Hold my hand."

Castiel chuckled again and grabbed Dean's hand, lacing their fingers together. "How are you gonna draw, then?"

"I'm not," Dean responded, moving closer to the other boy and resting his chin on his shoulder. "I'm just gonna sit here for a while."

"Dean, you know you've gotta practice."

"Cas, I've been practicing for weeks. Let me just enjoy being with my boyfriend for a while, okay?"

Castiel froze when the word left Dean's mouth. Boyfriend. Dean appeared to freeze too, panic clouding over his eyes.

"Sorry," Dean finally said after a moment. "I know we haven't talked about it at all. It was-"

"No," Castiel interrupted. "I like being called your boyfriend." He turned his head to get a better look at the other boy. "If you're okay with that, of course."

"Absolutely," Dean replied. "Zero objections here."

Castiel laughed and turned his body more towards Dean, kissing him. After a few seconds they broke apart, and Dean rested his chin back on Castiel's shoulder and wrapped his arms around Castiel's waist, hugging him from behind. He yawned.

"Tired?" Castiel asked.

"Mhm," Dean responded, closing his eyes. "I haven't been getting much sleep. Sam's been having nightmares."

Castiel gave the other boy a sympathetic look. He lifted his hand and ran it through Dean's hair. "I'm sorry. I know what that's like."

Dean opened his eyes and looked up at him. "Yeah? Did you have nightmares after what happened?"

Castiel nodded slowly. "Michael had a hell of a time dealing with me. He ended up taking me to a therapist and we got through it."

"So no more nightmares?"

Castiel shook his head. "No, I still have them. They're just not as often and I can handle them better."

"So, if I took Sammy to a therapist he might not get better?" Dean asked.

Castiel grew quiet for a moment, looking away. "Mental illness can be complicated, Dean. People tend to think it's like a cold or a stomachache, that it'll go away with rest and medicine. The reality? Rest and medicine can make it more manageable, along with a proper support system and coping mechanisms. But it doesn't ever go away."

A silence hung between them for a while before Castiel said, "I have post-traumatic stress disorder."

Castiel didn't look at Dean, but he could feel the other boy's eyes on him. "Cas...I'm so sorry."

He half shrugged. "It's okay. I have it managed a lot better now, but it was pretty bad for a while. Nightmares are part of the symptoms."

Castiel could feel Dean's arms tighten slightly, almost protectively. "I hate that your father did that to you," he said.

"Me too," Castiel agreed. "But I can't change it. All I can do is keep going."

"How bad did it get for you?" Dean asked quietly.

Castiel let out a slow, deep breath. "Other than the nightmares? I got awful anxiety. I started having panic attacks a lot, when I'd never really had them before. I got really depressed too. I started being afraid to go anywhere or do anything because I was afraid my father would be there. I was constantly on edge, constantly looking over my shoulder, constantly irritated. I got really spacey a lot, couldn't focus or concentrate or remember things like I used to. Things like that."

Castiel felt his eyes start to water, and he swallowed carefully, trying to keep the tears at bay. But he couldn't control it and a few slipped out. Dean must have seen this, because he dropped his arms from around Castiel's waist, and placed a hand on his chin, turning his face to look at him.

"Castiel, it's okay," Dean said as he wiped the younger boy's tears away. Castiel tried to blink away the tears, but he just started fully crying at that point. Dean pulled Castiel into his lap and wrapped his arms around him, holding him as he sobbed into Dean's neck.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, until Castiel finally stopped crying. He rubbed his sore eyes and mumbled, "I'm sorry," into Dean's neck.

"No, don't be," Dean replied. "You can cry if you need to. I won't judge."

"I feel like a child sometimes with how much I cry," Castiel said quietly.

"Isn't that part of the PTSD? I mean, any mental illness. You cry a lot, because you're feeling a lot of different emotions."

"Yeah...that's true."

"Cas, it's okay. Whatever you need to do to work through it, you do it. So long as you're not hurting yourself or someone else."

Castiel looked up at Dean, locking eyes. "You're right," he said with a small smile.

"See, I know things about things. I may not be book smart, but I'm life smart." Dean returned the smile, and the two chuckled.

"Yes, Dean. You're the wisest of all."

"Alright, no need to be snarky, Cas." He stopped suddenly. "Shit, I keep calling you Cas. I'm sorry, I've been trying to catch myself but it still slips through."

"It's okay," Castiel responded, looking at his hands. "I actually don't mind anymore."

"What?" Dean asked, surprised. "You corrected me on that for weeks, and now you're okay with it?"

Castiel nodded and looked up. "I've changed my mind. It's grown on me. But I don't want anyone but you calling me that."

"Ah, I understand now," Dean said with a smirk. "It's because you like me. That makes sense."

"Dean Winchester, how dare you assume I like you," Castiel teased. "I just kiss you because it's fun."

"Oh wow, so you don't like me? Well, I guess I can just go-"

"No!" Castiel interjected. "I like you, I like you. Jeez." He hugged Dean tighter as the Winchester boy laughed.

"Okay, good. You had me worried for a second."

Castiel laughed as Dean let out another yawn. "Dean, take a nap."

"Here?" Dean asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Yeah," Castiel said.

"What about you?"

"I'll take a nap too."

"Oh, so are you just trying to get me in your bed, Cas?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"You're already in my bed, Dean," Castiel pointed out, rolling his eyes.

"Right," Dean replied, pulling away from Castiel and laying on the bed. "Okay, but I get to be the big spoon."

Castiel laughed as he turned over, tossing their homework on the floor. He crawled over to the head of the bed and laid next to Dean, his back to the boy. Dean draped an arm over Castiel and snuggled closer, his face inches away from him. Castiel felt Dean's breath on the back of his neck. He closed his eyes and listened to Dean's breathing as it steadied, and slowly drifted off to sleep.