Castiel is such an odd little character to write – I love him! Please please please write a review of what you think, I really appreciate feedback and it would be nice to know what you think of the story so far. It only takes a few seconds! *Shameless bribery with Cas hugs*

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or any of the characters. If I did, Destiel would be canon, Gabriel would be alive, and Metatron would never have gotten away with expelling all of the angels from Heaven... *sob*

Castiel just couldn't stop himself from staring as he followed Dean down the corridor. The man's leather jacket fit his clearly muscular frame very snugly, and was exactly the right shade of brown to perfectly compliment his blonde hair, and his jeans were moulded to his gorgeous ass without looking too tight or restricting. Occasionally he would glance back, and Castiel would have to force himself to look away and not meet the man's amazing, bright green eyes. Their shade of green was barely describable – until this moment, he hadn't realised a green that bright and sparkling could actually exist. Castiel thought he could spend hours just staring into the depths of those eyes – he was so glad that he had the excuse to study Dean as he was using him as a model.

He had no idea why this man was affecting him so much. Normally, Castiel was excellent at distancing himself from those around him – and by doing so, he found that he didn't really notice them or experience any sort of attraction. There had never been anyone who Castiel had felt compelled to get to know in any way. Yet as soon as he had laid eyes on this Dean, he had felt himself drawn to every aspect of him and desperate to get to know him. It wasn't just his incredible looks – although, loathe as Castiel was to admit it, they did play a part – it was the way he held himself, like he didn't truly belong and felt uncomfortable about this fact, yet still chose to display an amount of confidence that probably at times bordered on cocky.

Castiel was so lost in his thoughts that he barely noticed Michael and Dean had stopped outside the studio, almost waking into Dean as a result.

"Woah, watch out there, Cas! Are you alright?" Dean put out a hand to stop Castiel, and he was forced to suppress a pleasant shudder at the contact. What was wrong with him today?

"My apologies – I was lost in thought." Castiel spoke quietly, not making eye contact with Dean.

Suddenly realising something, he looked up and tilted his head sideways, staring intently at the wall behind Dean's head.

"Cas?"

Dean's cheeks reddened slightly – a response which confused and fascinated Castiel.

"Sorry... I have a habit of nicknaming people. I hope you don't mind?"

Castiel blinked. "I have never been called that before."

"Really? No offence, but your name's kind of a mouthful." Dean was looking sheepish, standing there slightly awkwardly with an expression that Castiel couldn't decipher.

"Is it?" Castiel wasn't entirely sure how to respond. "I suppose you could call me Cas, if it's easier for you. I may not respond immediately, however."

Dean shrugged. "Cas it is."

Castiel thought he was imagining the slight smile that crossed Dean's face as he made this statement. It didn't make sense anyhow.

He heard the sound of a throat being cleared and glanced up to see Michael holding the door open.

"I'm very sorry, but if you two would mind saving the flirtation for another time, I for one would like to complete this assignment."

Castiel gave another confused head tilt. Flirting? He wasn't flirting with Dean – was he? He couldn't be – Castiel didn't do flirting, he didn't even do friendship let alone anything more. Michael must be confused.

Shrugging minutely, Castiel made his way past Michael into the studio, setting his bag down at the back. He was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't notice the bright red flush now covering Dean's face, nor the cute way in which he nibbled his lip in an attempt to hide his embarrassment.

"Right then." Michael made his way to stand in front of Dean, making it obvious that he was going to be the one in charge. Not that Castiel was complaining – the feelings that he was beginning to get regarding Dean were entirely inappropriate considering that his work did not allow him to pursue any kind of relationship, friendly or otherwise. He was going to have to distance himself in case either of them got the wrong idea.

"I have decided that for my portrait portfolio, I am going to focus on very traditional portraits depicting the various, ahem, groups of society. I am going to use one model, which is you, and pose you in a variety of different postures and costumes, each one of which will turn you in to a fundamentally different person. This is in order to gain a greater understanding of how to create a certain stereotype." Michael smiled, the expression looking quite uncomfortable on his face.

"Cool." Dean didn't seem particularly pleased or displeased with the suggestion. "What's Cas doing?"

Michael glanced stiffly back at Castiel, who remained stood in the shadows at the back.

"I prefer my portraits to be more natural. I will stay at the back of the room at take photographs when I see a good opportunity. Your clothing at the moment is more than adequate, but if Michael wishes for you to wear other clothes then I can work with that."

Michael seemed pleased that Castiel wasn't interfering. "Excellent. Now, I will need to apply some light makeup in order for you to look the correct way in this lighting. Shall we begin?"

The next few hours passed both insanely quickly and exceptionally slowly for Castiel. The time seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye, yet at the same time, it seemed to slow down almost to a stop every time he focused his eye through his camera lens to take a photograph of Dean. His entire world had shrunk down to consist only of Dean – the way he became alert and glanced at the door every time he heard a noise from outside, the way he brushed a few strands of hair back when they tickled his forehead, the way his freckles shone when a beam of light shot through a gap in the blackout blinds. Castiel found himself taking dozens more shots than he had initially anticipated, capturing every aspect of Dean in all sorts of random costumes – all dictated exactly by Michael.

The most difficult time was when Michael asked Dean to strip off and do a photograph in just a pair of low-cut skinny jeans that left absolutely nothing to the imagination, combined with his heavy black boots and a ring of black eyeliner. Castiel had never really felt sexual attraction to anybody – he found that by not permitting himself to look at anyone in that way, he was able to avoid it – yet the sight of Dean shirtless, his defined chest prominently displayed in the strange pose Michael had placed him in, stirred something in Castiel that he was not aware he was able to feel. It almost scared him, but he still found himself succumbing to the urge to take many more photos of Dean like this than in any other position, including a few close-ups of how bright his eyes looked surrounded by the smoky, dark make-up.

Eventually, a loud bell rang signalling that it was time for lunch, and Castiel blinked in surprise – he hadn't realised what time it was. Hastily, he packed away his camera, spare lenses and tripod, placing them quickly but carefully in his bag before making his way to the door.

Michael had cornered Dean to talk to him about some aspect of the photoshoot, so Castiel expected he could slip away, but to his surprise he found Dean calling out to him.

"Wait one sec Cas, I want to ask you something. About the shoot."

Shocked, Castiel simply stood there in the doorway, not doing anything as Michael finished whatever he was saying before handing Dean a pack of make-up wipes and walking out, raising his eyebrows at Castiel as he did so.

""You can shut the door." Dean commented, walking over to a mirror in the corner and starting to wipe at his face.

Not entirely sure why he was here, Castiel shut the door and awkwardly walked over to Dean.

"You had a question about the photoshoot?"

"Why are you letting Michael call all the shots?"

Dean's question came quickly and bluntly, but also curiously, showing that he was genuinely interested in Castiel's actions.

"I prefer my shots to have a natural, less posed feel about them – I find that capturing you in the moments between his photographs allows me to do that. Is that a problem?"

"No." Dean chucked the wipe he was using in the bin and pulled out another one. "It just seems like you're slightly intimidated and trying not to disagree with Michael. I mean, if you want me to try and look natural, I can do that, this is a photoshoot for both of you, not just him."

"I'm not intimidated." Castiel's voice was monotonous, but inside he was confused – was his silence really mistaken for intimidation? More than that – was it actually intimidation and he hadn't even realised himself?

Dean raised his eyebrows. "Why don't you really talk then, or make your opinions known?"

This was getting uncomfortably personal.

"No offence, Dean, but I don't share personal facts with others. I do not even know you."

"What if I wanted you to know me?" Dean's face was frighteningly open and honest.

"Why?" Castiel was even more confused.

Dean shrugged, looking unsure. "There's just something about you – I dunno what it is exactly, just some kind of vibe you give off. You intrigue me, you seem like a cool guy, and I'd just like to get to know you. Y'know, spend more time with you than just today."

Castiel found himself really pleased about this fact, and really wanting to get to know Dean to. But it went against the deal he had made with himself long ago, when he decided work was more important.

"I'm sorry, but I don't spend time with people, outside of the Academy. At all."

Dean looked very confused, and Castiel stepped back, deciding he had better remove himself from the situation before he did something he would regret.

"If you'll excuse me, I have to go and have lunch."

Without pausing to look at Dean again, Castiel shouldered his bag and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him with a quiet click.

So, there's a mutual attraction but Cas is cockblocking himself... what do you think should happen next? Feel free to make suggestions, and please do review!