The morning light made it hard for Dean to gather the will to open his eyes. He took a moment to steel himself, listening to his surroundings. He recognized the far off melodies of Led Zeppelin and the hum of the engine in the still moving car. Finally he forced his eyes open, blinking several times against the intruding sun.

"Good morning." Cas greeted.

The hunter rubbed a hand over his eyes, straightening up from his slouched position. "Where are we?" He yawned.

"Albany."

Dean's eyebrows scrunched as he tried to catch up with the information. "New York?"

"Georgia."

Dean whipped his head around, squinting to look outside the car at their surroundings. "Dude… you've been driving for like 26 hours straight."

"Mmh." Cas confirmed.

Dean tried to stretch out a bit, slowly waking his mind enough to try and engage with his surroundings. He thought for a second on that information. "Mmh." He echoed absently. He took a deep breath. "Where're we stopping for breakfast? I'm starving."

.

Dean started to properly wake up and take stock of himself and everything after a cup of coffee in the small diner off the highway. He looked at Cas who was absently watching the silent weather report in the corner television and took a second to appreciate what he was doing for him. The drive was helping his mind clear, or at the very least helping distract him.

He felt more like a functioning person now than he had since Cas pulled him off the beach in his mind. He even felt hungry for the first time since he was human again.

For the first time since I was human again. Dean shuddered slightly, the thought sinking into his mind and sending a chill down his spine.

He looked up, suddenly aware Cas had turned his attention back, and was watching him with a look of concern. He vaguely wondered what his face had been doing to give away his inner turmoil.

"Dean?"

"I'm fine." He closed his eyes for a second, stopping himself from just brushing it off. "I mean I'm coping." He forced out, trying to ignore the instinct to bottle up his emotions and move on. He sighed. "Thanks for this. For everything you're doing."

"Of course Dean." He said sincerely.

The hunter closed his eyes, feeling the walls close in a bit as another wave of memory washed over him. He needed an anchor, for once, he allowed himself to reach out. He moved before he could think himself out of it, putting his hand over Cas' where it rested beside his coffee mug.

Cas twisted his hand slightly, taking Dean's hand in his own. He was mildly surprised. Dean was usually conservative with displays of affection, and never in a public setting. He distractedly rubbed his thumb back and forth across Dean's knuckles, thinking of everything that had just happened.

Just four days ago he had been chained in a condemned hotel. Dean had been a demon, fresh off the slaughter of a quiet vacation town. Just four days ago...

Cas suppressed a wince fearing the implications of that. He knew Dean was still in shock. He was putting on a good front, but he was still reeling from the events. He hadn't fully processed the full brunt of the events, and Cas feared what would come when that damn broke.

Dean pulled away when breakfast came to the table. Despite his hunger just moments ago, the sight of the food turned his stomach. Still, he could manage at least a little.

Cas was relieved when Dean did actually eat something. It was honestly more than he was hoping for when they got to the diner. Even if it was half a meal instead of two, anything was better than nothing.

"So." Dean started, putting his fork down. "Do you have any plans, or is this sort of just a take it as we go sort of thing?"

"I have no destinations in mind."

Dean nodded. "Alright then. Pick a direction."

Cas furrowed his brow. He considered for a moment. "West?" He offered, uncertain.

"West it is." Dean tossed some money down, slipping out from the booth. "Let's head out."

Castiel followed Dean to the car, tossing him the keys before climbing in the passenger door. He watched the hunter carefully, trying to gauge if Dean was actually fit to drive at the moment. He had some doubts, but for the moment at least, he seemed to have it under control.

Dean relaxed into the seat, kicking the engine on and easing the car back out on the road. He turned his attention to the highway and let his memories drift away for as long as he could.

.

Castiel was surprised when Dean turned into a motel parking lot somewhere in Louisiana. "I could take over driving if you'd like."

"No, it's fine. It'll be good to stretch out for a bit." Dean said absently.

Cas wondered how present Dean really was at the moment. He sounded somewhat far off when he was responding. He watched Dean go off to get a room, and tried to think of anything he could do to help.

Dean had started the morning strong, but through the day his silences became longer and his expression was set almost permanently in some sort of quiet distress.

Cas followed Dean into the motel room. He watched Dean settle to sit at the small table against the wall. A bottle of whiskey appeared from the depths of his bag, and two glasses were laid out. Cas moved over and picked up the other glass, taking it out of habit. He noted that Dean made no moves to find any sort of food to accompany this liquor.

"Movie?" Dean said at last, trying to give one last attempt to hold onto some sort of normalcy.

"Sure." Cas replied.

.

By the end of the film the bottle was gone, and Cas would say Dean looked less like he had it together than before.

Dean however wasn't willing to drop the facade just yet. He pulled himself to his feet, only a little unsteady. He stretched before walking across the room and pulling his bag up, tossing it onto the bed closest to the bathroom. He rooted around until he came up with the leather case containing his toothbrush. He hesitated before digging back into the bag.

Cas was surprised at the clothing tossed his way. He managed to catch the bundle, and looked down at it. He lifted his head to ask, but Dean had already walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind him. After a moment, Cas slipped out of his stiff semi-formal clothes, swapping them out for the black t-shirt and sweatpants that had been given to him.

Dean didn't comment when he came out in his own sleepwear. He simply walked over, taking the half of the bed closest to the door. Cas took the hint, following him to the other side and laying beside the hunter.

Dean rolled onto his side and reached behind him, pulling Cas to his back, and he folded his arm over the arm now around his torso.

When he spoke, it was barely a whisper. "Thank you."

Cas in turn just pulled him closer, letting his presence comfort Dean better than words could.

They laid like that until Dean managed to find sleep. Cas closed his eyes, listening to the steady breath of the broken human beside him. He rested his cheek against Dean's head, simply waiting for morning to hopefully bring something good.