It's been two days and Dean hadn't left the chair beside Cas's bed except to go to the bathroom, but even then he rushed to get back. He was beginning to smell and his hair was a mess. He didn't care about his missed schoolwork that he most likely won't be making up. All he cared about was Cas waking up and getting better. All he wanted was to be able drive Cas out of here in his baby and go to the record store or the mall to check out the selection of band shirts (or in Cas's case, those sweater vests he loved so damn much. Admittedly, Dean loved them too. They just fit Cas.). Instead he was sitting in the uncomfortable chair holding Cas's ace bandaged hand mentally willing him to wake up. Gabriel and Michael tried repeatedly to convince Dean to let them drive him home if only to take a shower, or even to take a shower and get some rest here. Dean refused, of course. Taking a shower would take too long and he couldn't sleep knowing the condition Cas was in.
Michael warmed up to Dean seeing how he was acting,not that Dean really noticed, he was too distracted. Cas's story hit the media pretty big since he was the brother of Balthazar, Gabriel, and Lucifer Novak. Some people were saying he deserved it, which enraged Dean. He just wanted the whole thing to blow over already, or at least before Cas got well enough to leave. The last thing Cas needed was to have a panic attack on live television. "Dean, I know you're worried, we all are, but you should at least shower," Gabriel tried again. Dean turned his desperate green gaze onto him. "I can't, Gabe. I need to be here when he wakes up and I ain't risking him waking up while I'm in the shower," he refused. Gabe sighed. "I'm going to have a smoke," he announced before lifting himself from his chair. "You haven't smoked in three years," Michael said in disbelief. "Yeah, I know," Gabriel breathed and left the room.
"Hey, uh, Dean," Michael broke the silence that blanketed the room after a few moments. Dean went "hm," in reply not taking his eyes off of Cas's bruised face. "Look, I'm sorry about everything I said before and not letting Cas see you. It's just he's my little brother, you know? What if Sam snuck out of the house and got drunk and didn't come home until morning, or punched some kid in the face, or something?" Dean thought about that for moment. He hadn't seen Sam in two days. Sam wanted to visit, of course, but Dean refused to let him. He knew Cas wouldn't want him seeing him this way. "I'd want to kill him," Dean answered and then looked Michael in the eye. "But I sure as hell would hear him out first," he finished. Michael nodded knowing Dean had a point, that he had over reacted just a bit. "I really hate to break up this touching moment, but anything new happening with Cas?" A British accent spoke up. Dean and Michael shifted their gazes to the door where Balthazar stood. Dean's eyes went back to the unconscious boy.
"No," Michael sighed. There has been a whole lot of sighs filling the hospital room these past two days. The two brothers began to talk but to Dean they just became fuzzy background noise. "Please, just wake up," he whispered and shut his eyes tightly. He felt a tight pressure on his hand and his eyes snapped open. Cas was squeezing Dean's hand tightly. "Cas?" Dean asked the desperation clear in his voice, but he didn't care. Michael and Balthazar stopped talking and watched. Cas's eyes squeezed together tightly before blinking open slowly revealing a blue colour that made Dean's stomach flip. "Cas?" Dean said again. "Dean," Cas croaked out his voice much more rough than usual. "Get the nurse," Michael ordered Balthazar who ran to do just that. Dean stood up so fast he almost fell on Cas. Cas gave a weak smile at that even though his vision was still a little fuzzy. "Watch it, poindexter," he repeated Dean's first words to him. Dean let out a laugh that unintentionally had tears following it. "Sorry about that, by the way," Dean chuckled out. Before Cas could reply Dean was moved out of the way so that the nurse and doctor could get to work checking everything. Dean ran both hands through his hair and let a smile grow on his face. Cas was okay.