A/N: Thank you so much for reviewing last chapter! I'm sorry it took me so long to get this one out, I sent it to my beta, and then I didn't have internet to post this one, because my grandmother doesn't have internet at her place. Today I came to my aunt's place to have internet! So here you have the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it, and when you read it, please remember to review it! ^-^

Chapter 16 – It's time to make a change

Castiel was standing alone in the bathroom. Dean had left him there and he had no idea for how long he had been there already. No one had come inside, but he heard people passing by the door. He couldn't move himself. His mind was screaming, and he just didn't know how to control it.

WHAT HAPPENED?! WHY DID HE SAY THAT? HOW DID HE CHANGE? HOW MUCH 'SHIT' DID IT TAKE TO MAKE HIM CHANGE LIKE THAT!? WHY DIDN'T I STOP HIM FROM WALKING AWAY? COULD IT HAVE BEEN ME WHO CHANGED HIM? WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO NOW?

Not only was Castiel confused, but he was starting to feel dizzy. He had too many things on his mind, and he felt like he couldn't stand for much longer. He leaned against the cold wall behind him. His confusion grew as time passed-and as his thoughts played with him, the more confused he became. Dean's explanation for how he had changed wasn't helping. In fact, it puzzled Castiel even more. Saying that he had been through too much made him wonder, was he talking about what happened at school? Or was it something else? Did it have anything to do with who gave him that scar? Castiel decided that it probably did; he remembered how scared Dean was of him finding out. It only made sense that the one who did that to him was the one who made him get through too much; above the fact that everyone in school made him feel like shit. But that must have been light for Dean, since what made him snap was that Castiel made him believe that he cared about Dean, when he only really wanted a new toy. He decided that Dean must have been hurt by someone close to him too many times, that was the only way. He had let him in, only to be stabbed in the back. He could almost instantly confirm that this was what had made him say 'No one ever gave me a reason to believe that I'm worth any friendship'. No one ever stayed with him; they played with him or they bullied him.

A ringing bell startled Castiel, and he figured it was time to leave the bathroom; he had been there for far too long and the cold white walls were making him feel worse-made him feel small, while they stood proud and tall above him. They reminded him that he wasn't as great as he made himself out to be.

He left the bathroom and walked to class. His face sported a look of pure confusion, accompanied with his usual head tilt. After what happened, he was only certain of one thing; he simply had to find out what made Dean so tough. He needed to find out, or curiosity would indeed kill him.

Everything felt different. As much as nothing changed, everything was different. Walking those hallways without giving a crap about what others would think made everything different.

He walked like he wasn't afraid; like he was really there, like he really mattered. While he was always the kind of person who hid away from everyone else, either to protect himself or just because he didn't want to draw attention, now he found he just didn't care. He had as much right to be himself in those hallways as anyone else had; and this was something he'd only realized now.

People started staring as they saw him walking by, walking like any of them would, walking with their style. But they didn't say anything, their mouths were open and they couldn't be blamed for it. They weren't used to Dean being so carefree; he had always been the shy guy and that's what everyone knew about him. That's what he wanted them to know about him.

As he walked through the crowded hallways, he managed to get his mind set on what to do next.

Everything is going to be different now. I'm done with being the one who can't defend himself. I want to be strong for Sammy and for Charlie. I want to be able to protect them if the time comes… It's time… I know what I have to do. It's time to make a change.

Soon people returned to their usual nonchalant state and stopped staring at Dean, who continued walking through them, seemingly unstoppable.

The room he wanted to reach had never been easier to get to. He didn't have to be careful because of possible bullies that he could find (Castiel had claimed him as his 'new toy' no one would dare mess with him now), and even if they did, he could always shut them with his words.

He knocked on the wooden door and waited for permission to be let in.

"Come in." Mr. Lafitte answered.

Dean opened the door and walked inside the room.

"Hey Dean. How are you?" Mr. Lafitte said with an easy smile.

Dean looked at his teacher's eyes and smiled.

"Much better now." He replied in earnest. "But I'm still not good enough. I need your help."

Mr. Lafitte frowned.

"What can I do for you?"

Dean sat himself in the chair in front of Mr. Lafitte's desk and took a deep breath. He swallowed his pride and did the one thing he swore never to do. He asked for help.

"I need you to teach me to fight back."

Hi answer wasn't what the teacher was expecting. It took him a few moments to get the smile in his face again.

"I'm glad you decided to take my offer. Though I would rather that you had accepted it before."

"I know." Dean told him, making himself comfortable in his chair. "It took me long enough to realize that I don't have to get beaten up by everyone. I can change myself; and with that, everyone around me. But to do that I need to defend myself. I want to be able to take care of Sammy and Charlie."

Dean was proud of himself. He was indeed growing up. Not only he asked for help, but he also realized how important it was that he changed. He could be a king if he decided to take the hand that had been offered to him.

"That's the first step. You accepted that you need help, Dean. Now it's going to be much easier. This is what's going to make you stronger. You have all that you need to become stronger: you have a purpose for it. You want to take care of those who are important to you." Mr. Lafitte was as proud of Dean as the boy was of himself. Mr. Lafitte had been watching Dean being everyone's scapegoat for far too long; he was more than ready to teach him how to become the man that he should be.

"I know, sir. That is what made me realize that I can to be strong. I have to be strong because there are only a few people that matter to me, and they are going to be the people who help me become what they need me to be. And that is their older brother, their savior, the one they can come to when they need help."

It was amazing that Dean had gotten there all by himself. After years of thinking that he was worthless, that he didn't matter, to suddenly find his purpose on his own was an astronomical feat.

Mr. Lafitte hummed in agreement.

"You can be all that Dean. But you can also be 'Dean', the one they know, not the person who helps them. You need to remember that you will change a lot while I teach you how to defend yourself, but you also need to remember who you were before. You can't start being someone else just because you know how to fight. You have to remember what made you strong, so that you can become as great as you can learn to be." He warned with a serious look on his face, trying to show Dean just how important it was to remember what made him change, and what was so important about his past. "Your past defines you Dean. You were weak until the moment you realized that you needed help. Asking for help only makes you stronger than everyone else; it means you have an ally, someone you can trust, someone that can help you when you need help. They won't have anyone like that because they're too proud to even think about asking for help. They're convinced they're invincible, to cover up the fact that in reality? They're just weak. They're weak because they use people who won't defend themselves to feel stronger; they're weak because they won't ask for help; and most of all, they're weak because they only care about what others think. You're so much better than all of them, Dean. You gave everything you knew up because you felt that you were ready to become stronger. I'm proud of you."

Dean's mouth was slightly open. He had never thought about how important it was to do this; to get someone to give him advice when he needed it; or even just to make him realize how stupid he had been. But Mr. Lafitte's words were true, he could tell they were because he felt stronger when he decided to ask for help; he felt stronger when he knocked on his door; he felt stronger after asking his teacher for help. He just didn't expect Mr. Lafitte to tell him that his past was important. He wanted to forget how pathetic he was, he wanted to erase every bit of memory he had that would make him feel worthless again. But his teacher's words were true. It was enough to make him really think, and their truth influenced a change in his mind. His pain would be what would make him be great; it wouldn't just be his family, it wouldn't be that he was sick of being bullied, no. It was going to be the fact that he had been everyone's punching bag; it would be the fact that he had been through so much pain that no could even dare to imagine. That was what would make him stronger.

"Then that's what I'll do." Dean told him with a determined look in his eyes. "I'm going to be as good as I can, always reminding myself that I was under their control."

"You will do that, but you will also remember how it felt to be under someone else's control… If you don't, Dean, you will become even worse than they were to you." It was true, it felt true. Dean didn't want to be like them. He wanted to be able to protect those who couldn't protect themselves.

"I know. I'll be 'Dean', the person my family will need me to be, and I will also be 'Dean', the one who won't let himself be controlled anymore." Dean told him with a proud smile.

Mr. Lafitte smiled back as he thought of Dean's words.

"That is all you need to be who you are supposed to be. You are supposed to fight back, to be free, to be who you want to be without people telling you what you can and what you can't do." He gave Dean a thumbs up,, who let a light chuckle leave his mouth. "Can you stay in school late every day?" Dean nodded. "Alright. I will start teaching you how to fight back, how to defend yourself and how to protect those you care about, today. Come meet me by the gym after school."

Dean smiled warmly.

"Thanks Mr. Lafitte."

Mr. Lafitte chuckled.

"You're a great kid, Dean. And I wouldn't have you unprepared for a fight when you are ready to fight. I'll help you any time you need, just make sure that you come and seek it."

"Will do Sir." Dean nodded in agreement.

Mr. Lafitte glanced at his clock and looked at Dean, with a cocky smile in his face.

"Aren't you late for class?"

Dean's eyes grew wide as he stood from his seat.

"Thanks for your help! I'll see you at the gym after school!" Dean yelled as he opened the door and ran to class as Mr. Lafitte chuckled at the boy's reaction.