Chapter Eleven

Cas slept for another few hours and emerged dressed in his usual baggy jeans and red hoodie, his hair wild, and he walked stiffly into the kitchen. He stretched and yawned, and Dean felt heat creep up his neck at the little bit of Cas's toned stomach that was briefly revealed.

'Morning,' Dean said warily.

'Morning,' Cas mumbled back, and Dean let out a relieved breath. Cas seemed to have been too deeply asleep to remember that Dean had seen him naked. 'Is there a pool around here?' he asked, buttering a couple slices of toast.

'Yeah, why?' Dean asked as Cas sat down heavily.

'I didn't cool down well enough yesterday. My legs hurt,' said Cas.

'Right. Get a good soak in.'

'Where's Sam?'

Dean snorted. 'He won't be up until sometime this afternoon. He was raiding last night, whatever that means.'

Cas nodded, knowing exactly what it meant. 'I'll get a cab in a bit.'

'I'm going to the store, you want anything?'

'Ice-cream.'

'Sure thing.'

Cas left to swim not long after he finished his breakfast, but Dean waited until Sam stumbled down the stairs, to ask him what he wanted from the store.

'Snacks,' Sam grunted, grabbing a box of cereal and sleepily pouring himself a huge bowl.

'And more cereal,' Dean snorted, taking the empty box from him. 'Will you be okay here on your own for a while?'

Sam gave him a dirty look. 'No, Dean, I'm immediately going to set the house on fire and die,' he said, filling his voice with as much sarcasm as he could manage.

'You know, a simple "yes" wouldn't kill you,' said Dean, rolling his eyes, before calling himself a cab.

He took his sweet time at the store, filling his cart with snacks, soda, groceries he knew they needed, a few different flavours of ice-cream for Cas, and some generic frozen pizza. When he got home, Sam had holed up in his room again, and Cas was lying uncomfortably on the couch.

'It didn't help?' Dean asked, dumping his bags on the dining room table.

'No,' Cas said, rubbing one of his calves.

'I've got just the thing, hang on.' Dean quickly packed away the groceries, then went digging through the kitchen cabinets for the kit he'd kept from when Sam played lacrosse. He peeled the packaging off of some heat pads, and passed Cas some pain relief. 'Here, put these on,' he said, passing Cas the freshly warmed pads.

Cas pressed one on each of his hamstrings, and lay back, putting an arm miserably over his face.

Dean bit his lip. 'I can help… if you want,' he said hesitantly.

'What?'

Dean glanced up the stairs, making sure Sam wasn't listening. 'Sam never used to stretch properly, so I learned a couple of tricks, if you want to try it.'

'By all means…'

'All right, scooch over.'

Cas shuffled back and sat up so Dean could sit on the couch.

Dean lifted up one of his legs, Cas wincing even at that small movement, and pushed up the leg of his jeans. Dean grabbed what was left of the baby oil he kept in the kit, rubbed it over his hands, and placed his thumbs on either side of the tight tendon he could feel just below Cas's knee. Then he wrapped his hands around Cas's thick calf, carefully placing the tips of his fingers over the muscle. 'Ready?' Dean asked, and Cas nodded, so Dean squeezed and pulled his hands down Cas's leg.

Cas gasped and whimpered, and Dean grimaced as he felt the thick knots all the way down.

'Jeez, that feels like it smarts,' Dean said, attempting to distract Cas. 'We'll do a couple more on this leg and then do the other one, okay?'

Cas could only nod and hiss through his teeth while Dean did his best to relieve the knots

'Almost done, you're doing great,' Dean said, working Cas's legs a little longer. 'Maybe you did a few too many races.'

'Mm. Coach said he wasn't actually expecting me to win them. Apparently I wasn't supposed to put in so much effort.'

Dean chuckled, then wiped the oil off Cas's legs with a towel and gently laid them out on the couch. 'That should help, but you just stay there and rest, okay?'

Cas nodded.

'You want anything from the kitchen?'

'Coffee?'

'You got it.' When Dean came back with a steaming mug for him, Cas smiled.

'They're feeling better already. Thank you.'

'No problem,' Dean grinned. 'Holler if you want anything else.'

Cas lay there for most of the afternoon, only getting up to go to the bathroom, or gently stretch his legs, and he was still there when Jo, Crowley and Kevin arrived.

'Hey!' Jo called through the open front door, lugging a couple of packs of beer with her.

'Jeez, we don't need that much,' Dean laughed, helping her carry them through to the kitchen.

'Crowley's got more,' Jo grinned.

Crowley dumped his on the table too, then went back into the living room and leaned over the back of the couch. 'Hello, angel,' he said.

'Hello, Crowley,' said Cas, putting down his phone.

'Lying down for a reason or just relaxing?'

Cas shrugged. 'My legs hurt from yesterday.'

'I'm sure I could help with that. Give them a little rub,' Crowley smirked.

'Leave him alone, Crowley,' Dean called, rolling his eyes

'It's all right, Dean already helped,' Cas said.

'Did he now?' Crowley laughed, turning to look at Dean as he walked back into the living room.

'Yeah,' Dean said as casually as he could manage. 'I remember how from when Sam played sports.' Crowley seemed to accept the explanation, to Dean's relief.

Dean threw the pizzas in the oven and put out the snacks, taking a few sips of a beer while he finished setting up. The others settled on the living room floor, helping themselves to food and chatting. Dean turned on some music and joined them.

He drank a little more, feeling pleasantly buzzed as the music swirled around them.

'You know, Dean used to play guitar,' Jo told Cas loudly, already tipsy and pink in the face.

Cas looked up at Dean, still lying on the couch. 'I've never seen one around.'

Dean shrugged uneasily. 'It's not really my thing anymore,' he said evasively.

'Are you sure you don't want one of these?' Crowley asked, again offering Cas a beer.

'No thank you, Crowley.'

They drank some more, Cas quietly observing them in amusement. The conversation turned, inevitably with Crowley around, to their sex lives, and an excruciatingly detailed description of Crowley's latest escapades. Cas listened with a mixture of fascination and disgust.

'How about you, Dean?' Jo asked, giggling drunkenly. 'Why don't you tell us about how you got that harpy into bed with you.'

'What?' said Dean, caught by surprise.

'You know, Rhonda? What happened, she somehow fall for your "charms"?'

Dean's breath caught in his chest, and he drained the rest of the beer he was holding to cover it. 'I gotta go to the bathroom.' He got up, to groans from Jo and Crowley, both begging to hear the story.

He fled to the bathroom, and splashed water over his face in an attempt to force down his nausea. 'Get it together,' he muttered to himself, gripping the edge of the sink and taking deep breaths. He ran the faucet, cupping the cool water in his hands for a moment, then bringing it to his lips and sipping noisily.

'Dean?'

Dean jumped violently. He'd forgotten to close the door and Cas was now standing in the doorway.

'What are you doing up here?' Dean said. 'Your legs…'

'I feel much better now… Are you all right?' Cas gave him a searching look when he nodded. 'They're not talking about her anymore, if you want to come back downstairs.'

'Thanks. Give me a minute.'

'Sure.'

Dean shook out his arms, took a few more steadying breaths, and went downstairs to Crowley ribbing Kevin on his lack of experience.

'I'm too busy for relationships,' Kevin protested as Dean sat down.

'Who said anything about relationships?' Crowley laughed and Kevin flushed.

'What about Cas?' Kevin said, deflecting the attention away from him. 'I'm sure Cas has some stories.'

Crowley and Jo turned to look at him, and he too flushed red.

'No,' he mumbled, shaking his head.

'Nothing?' Jo gaped.

'Wait, you've never been with anyone?' Crowley asked, shocked.

'No, why would I have been?' Cas said. 'I'm not exactly a prize.'

'What are you talking about?' Jo exclaimed. 'Have you seen yourself?'

'What do you mean?'

'Are you - are you trying to tell me that you're completely unaware of how insanely hot you are?'

Cas didn't respond.

'And you haven't noticed Crowley trying to get into your pants this entire time?'

Cas flushed even deeper red. 'I thought that was just Crowley,' he mumbled.

'Well, it is, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't be up for it,' Crowley said, laughing lightly.

'Oh my God, Cas, you're a total catch! If you were straight, we would already be making out in Dean's room,' said Jo.

Cas blinked, surprised.

'And I think Jo's had a little too much to drink,' Dean chuckled.

'Have you ever even kissed anyone?' Jo asked, and Cas shook his head again 'We gotta fix this.' She looked around and grabbed an empty bottle of beer. 'Seven minutes in heaven, let's go.'

Dean rolled his eyes. 'Come on, Jo, how old are we?'

'I don't want to play,' Cas said.

'I'm up for it,' said Crowley.

'Yeah, Jo, most of the people here are guys, I'm not gay,' Kevin protested.

'Neither is Dean, and you don't see him complaining.'

'Did you not hear me?' Dean said.

'Come on, it'll be fun,' Jo insisted, spinning the bottle before anyone could say anything else, and it landed on Dean first. She clapped her hands and he groaned.

'Jo, come on,' he said again, but she ignored him, spinning the bottle again.

This time it landed on Cas.

'I'm not playing, Jo,' he said uneasily.

'Too late, you guys have to go in the closet,' she laughed, grabbing his hand and pulling him up off the couch, snatching his phone off him as they went.

'This is so dumb,' Dean groaned, while Crowley pushed him towards the closet under the stairs.

'Jo-' Cas began, but Jo cut him off.

'You're lucky,' she told him. 'For a first kiss, you could do a lot worse than Dean.'

'Gee, thanks,' Dean said, before they were both shoved into the closet, and the lock slid shut.

They both stood in silence, unable to see anything in the pitch darkness.

'I'm sorry about her,' Dean said, backing against the wall to give Cas space, 'she can get a little messy when she's drunk.'

Cas didn't respond for a moment, until he said, 'Is there a light in here?' in a strangulated voice.

'No… Are you okay?' Dean said, alarmed.

Cas puffed out a breath, then futilely wiggled the door handle. 'I have to get out,' he stammered.

'Oh man, okay.'

Cas pounded on the door. 'Please let me out,' he gasped, his breath coming in short spurts.

'Guys, seriously, open the door,' Dean called, getting more irritated when he could hear them giggling outside.

'Let me out,' Cas repeated, still desperately pounding on the door. 'Let me out!' his voice rose in pitch until he was screaming the words 'let me out' over and over. Someone finally scrambled at the lock, and the door burst open.

Cas fell out of the closet, crying and struggling for breath.

'Cas, I'm so sorry,' Jo said, horrified at the reaction she'd caused.

Cas shook his head and made for the front door. 'Need some air,' he gasped, throwing himself out into the chilly October air.

'Way to go, Jo,' Dean snapped and followed Cas outside, where he'd fallen to his knees, sobbing and sucking on the sleeve of his hoodie. 'Kevin, get some water,' Dean called, then kneeled in the grass. 'Hey,' he said softly, rubbing Cas's back. 'You're okay.'

The others came outside and all sat around Cas, doing their best to comfort him.

'I'm so sorry,' Jo said again, gently stroking his leg.

'It's okay,' Cas croaked, his breath slowing to a normal rate. 'You didn't know.' He took the cup of water that Kevin brought out for him and took slow, shaky sips.

'What happened?' Dean asked gently.

Cas sniffed, wiping his face with his already soaked sleeve. It took him a couple of attempts to start. 'One of the foster homes I was in - they - they had this little chest - ' he broke off, fighting back his tears.

'You don't have to tell us,' said Dean. 'It's okay. You wanna go inside?'

Cas shook his head. 'It wasn't fair,' he told them.

'What wasn't?'

'I didn't mean to break the plate, I didn't,' he said, looking up at Dean with wide, fearful eyes.

'I know you didn't,' Dean said, still rubbing his back.

'They locked me in the chest - it was so small - I couldn't move.'

Jo put a hand over her mouth, and Crowley and Kevin both looked disgusted.

Cas began to get worked up again, and repeatedly shook his hands.

'Deep breaths, Cas,' Dean said.

'I just - I was - the water in the sink was so hot, Dean,' he said, trembling. 'I was trying to wash the dishes, but I couldn't hold onto the plate. They said I was disrespectful and I needed to learn a lesson.'

'You didn't do anything wrong,' said Dean. 'How old were you?'

'Seven. Eight. Around then.'

Jo gasped.

'How many times did they lock you in?'

'I don't know. I lost count.'

Dean nodded, forcing himself to stay calm. 'It's really brave of you to tell us,' he said. 'And don't worry, no one's ever gonna lock you in again, right, Jo?' he said pointedly.

'No, never,' she said.

'Hey, what's going on? I heard yelling.' Sam had appeared in the doorway. 'Why are you all out here?'

'Hey, Sam,' Dean said calmly. 'Can you go upstairs and get Cas's coat for him? It's hanging up in his closet.'

Sam understood from Dean's tone, and ran back inside, returning with Cas's tan trench coat and gently putting it in his hands.

Cas put his face in it, his shoulders slumping.

'Come on, let's get you inside.' Dean said, lifting Cas to his feet.

'I'm going to bed,' Cas mumbled, when Dean let go of him.

'Sounds good, I'll see you up there,' Dean said, watching him go. As soon as the bedroom door closed, he let out a deep sigh.

'Dean-' Jo began.

'It's fine,' Dean said. 'These things happen. It's getting late, you guys should go.'

'Okay,' Jo said in a defeated voice. 'Kev, you wanna share a cab?'

'Fine by me,' said Kevin, grabbing his drink from the living room and draining it. 'How are you getting home, Crowley?'

'Good brisk walk, I think,' Crowley said brightly, clapping his hands together. 'Scope out the usual haunts on the way back, see what I can pick up.'

'Gross,' said Dean, rolling his eyes.

'What? I'm legal. See you on Monday,' Crowley said with a wink, and left the house.

Dean stayed up with Jo and Kevin until their taxi arrived, then dragged himself upstairs.

Cas was still awake, lying in the dark, the blue light of his phone illuminating his face.

'Hey,' Dean said, closing the bedroom door. 'You need anything?'

'No.'

'All right. 'Night.' Dean pulled across the curtain and barely made it into his pajamas before collapsing into his bed, asleep in moments.

He dreamed about Cas that night, massaging Cas's legs again.

'You're so nice to me,' Cas smiled.

'Sure, anything for the future State Champion,' Dean laughed, his hand creeping further and further up Cas's leg.

Cas leaned forward, tilting Dean's chin with a finger and kissing him, pulling him closer. Dean's heart fluttered as Cas unzipped his hoodie-

Dean woke with a start at a loud thump coming from the other side of the room.

'What-?' he mumbled, sitting up, disorientated.

'Sorry,' Cas said from beyond the curtain. 'Fell out of bed.'

'Oh. You okay?'

'Yes,' Cas sighed, and there were some shuffling sounds as he got back into bed.

Dean sighed, wishing he hadn't been interrupted just as his dream was getting good, though it was probably for the best.