Thank you for the reviews, you all make my day! And sorry about this one taking so long, I've been quite busy and I've had a bit of a block. Anyway, here it is, after being re-written 500 times. Enjoy.

It was a couple of days later when the nightmares started.

They made Dean's blood run cold. They weren't even real dreams, they were weird, disturbing flashes of images and sounds, screaming and blood and torture and pain, and they reminded Dean too much of the nightmares he had about Hell. And when he woke up, sweaty and panting, he'd just be filled with an incredible emptiness, like he was missing a huge part in his life. He couldn't get back to sleep after that.

He'd pretended like nothing was wrong the first few times, trying to hide his exhaustion from Sam. He'd wake up, spend half an hour calming himself down, and then lie awake for the rest of the night, while cursing Cas shakily under his breath.

After about a week though, it became too much. He woke up, sitting up immediately. His breath came in gasping pants, and he felt tears and sweat on his face.

"Cas," he whispered pleadingly, trembling all over and frightened of waking Sam. "Please.."

In a heartbeat, the angel was at his bed, looking at him sadly. Their eyes locked and they were silent for a few moments.

"Cas," came Dean's broken whisper, and then Cas was leaning his forehead against Dean's, closing his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I'm so sorry."

Dean took a deep breath, the warmth from Cas' touch spreading through his body, soothing him. He started calming down, and he shuddered, both from shock and pleasure of finally touching the angel again.

The nice warmth that had been seeping through his body the minute Cas touched him, was starting to make him drowsy. Dean's eyes fluttered closed against his will and he sagged forward slightly. He realised dully that Cas was using his mojo on him – but he really couldn't give a shit.

"Be here in the morning," he mumbled as he felt himself being laid back down on the bed.

He got no reply.

The next morning, Dean woke up feeling better than he had in days. He kept his eyes closed for a while longer, pulling the blankets tighter around him. There was no way he was leaving this fucking bed.

He spent a while in a pleasant, half awake state. Eventually, Dean groaned, rolling over. His heart thumped as soon as he felt a certain presence in the room. His eyes flew open, and sure enough, Cas was standing by the window with his back to him.

"What, now I've got angel radar?" Dean muttered, his voice rough from sleep.

Cas turned, his face earnest. "How do you feel?"

Dean blinked at him a couple of times, his jaw clenching as he remembered the night's events. "Fine. Great, actually."

Castiel nodded, relieved. "Good."

The hunter looked around. "Where's Sam?"

"He'll be back any minute, he's gone to get you some breakfast."

Dean nodded, and they were silent for a few moments. "Cas.. what the hell is happening?" he then asked quietly.

Cas sighed, coming closer to Dean as the latter sat up properly.

"I'm afraid.. it's having a severe effect on your subconscious," he answered simply and quietly.

Dean swallowed. "The bond."

Cas tore his eyes away from Dean's Adam's apple and nodded. Dean shook his head, rubbing his jaw for a moment.

"I can't go on like this, man."

The angel looked up.

"All the other crap was bad enough, and now I'm having nightmares? This shit is gonna kill me, Cas."

"What do you want me to do about it, Dean? I've been doing my best searching for answers, searching for people who can give me answers, and you know what I've found? Nothing! Nothing at all. I.. I'm losing hope, Dean."

Dean looked at him sharply after the last sentence, and got out of bed. He walked over to Cas, standing right in front of him as he debated whether or not to touch him. Eventually, he couldn't help himself and he brushed Cas' cheek. They both shuddered.

"Dean.. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything. I never meant for this to happen, I didn't -"

"Hey, hey," Dean said softly, still stroking the angel's cheek. "It's all right, Cas. We'll get through this together. We're a team, right? We'll make it through. Don't worry."

"I think the smartest thing for you two to do is to stay together as much as possible," came a quiet voice from across the room.

Dean and Cas jumped away from each other like they'd been burned.

"Holy fuck, Sam! Don't fucking do that!" Dean snarled at his brother who was currently lying on top of his bed, sipping his coffee.

"How can I help it that you two were so wrapped up in each other you didn't hear me come in?" Sam shrugged.

"Sam, I think you're severely underestimating this fucking situation-"

"What did you mean before?" Cas interrupted curiously.

Sam stood up from the bed, tossing Dean his muffin. "Well, it's pretty obvious, isn't it? You two being apart hurts you both. It even hurts Dean when he's unconscious – I'm not stupid, Dean. I know you've been having nightmares. The only times you two seem more.. at ease, is when you're together. I think you should just stick together until we can find a solution. Don't you think?"

Cas and Dean looked at Sam, then at each other. Cas then hesitantly reached down and took the hunter's hand, to everyone's surprise.

Dean froze, before finally giving his hand a squeeze.

"Right, that's settled. Now let's get the fuck out of here and go for a drive or something," Sam muttered, opening the door already.

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"Cas, buddy? I want to speak to you," Dean said quietly so as not to wake Sam.

Cas appeared in front of him.

"Could we do this somewhere more private?"

The angel nodded once, touching his fingers against Dean's forehead. They were back in same forest they were last time.

"What's up with you and this place, huh?" Dean said softly, looking around. It was night here as well, so it couldn't be that far away.

"I like it. It's quiet, it's peaceful. It's beautiful. I come here often to think," Cas answered quietly.

"Right," Dean said, not knowing what else to say.

"You wanted to talk?"

The hunter blinked. "Um, yeah. Yeah. I wanted to ask you something."

Cas raised his eyebrows slightly as Dean tried to formulate the question. "If.. if you've looked everywhere, asked every single soul out there for help and after everything you've found nothing.. what are our options?"

Castiel sighed, running a hand through his hair. Dean was surprised at the movement, it was an incredibly human thing to do.

"I leave the decision to you. We can either try.. and probably fail.. to ignore this. I don't need to remind you that this will only become worse as time passes. I'm sure you've already noticed."

Dean glanced at his trembling hands, and clenched them into fists.

"That, or we'll have to bond properly."

"You keep saying that. What the hell does that mean, exactly?"

"Our souls.. link together. It's.. incredibly intense. Unforgettable. And after that, we'll never even think of anyone else in that manner.. we'll only crave each other."

"You mean like.. soul sex?" Dean asked, raising an eyebrow.

Cas glared at him.

"What? That's what you're making it sound like, dude!"

"Yes, I suppose you could call it that. Leave it to you to ruin even this."

Dean grinned briefly.

"Dean?"

"Yeah?"

"You seem awful.. calm about all of this. I'd expected a more intense reaction than this."

"Yeah, well.. I've been thinking about stuff. And I still am," Dean said quietly.

Cas tilted his head, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Hey, Cas?" Dean leaned forward, coming as close to Cas as humanly possible without actually touching him.

He shoved his hands into his pockets, clenching them into tight fists, nails digging into his palms to keep from reaching out to the angel. He saw Cas' gaze trail down to his lips, and he took a deep breath.

"Cas, focus. I want to say something," he breathed.

Cas shivered, feeling Dean's warm breath practically on his lips. "What?"

"I'm sorry for what I said before. I don't hate you, Cas."

As the angel's eyes widened in surprise, Dean shrugged. "I knew you were there. Don't ask me how. I felt it. Anyway, you weren't supposed to hear that. It was a.. weak moment, I guess. This isn't your fault. You couldn't help it that your wings showed when you were so hurt.. I shouldn't have yelled."

Castiel looked at him, not knowing what to say.

"Oh, and by the way?" Dean leaned closer, now finally giving in and putting his hand on Cas' hip. "I never told you. Your wings. They're beautiful," he breathed in his ear.

Cas hissed. "Dean, if you don't back off now, I won't be responsible for my actions," he said through gritted teeth.

They stared at each other for a long time.

"We really shouldn't," Dean murmured painfully.

"We can't," Cas agreed.

"How.. how 'bout.. a hug?" Dean felt like such a pussy at the moment. Asking a guy for a fucking hug. Jesus Christ.

Luckily though, Cas knew exactly how he felt and nodded, immediately stepping forward and pulling the hunter to him.

Dean swallowed a groan at finally being close to the angel, wrapping his arms around him and surrounding himself with the scent and feel of Cas.

Dean focused on getting Cas as close to him as possible, holding him tight. He jumped like he'd been electrocuted when he felt lips at his neck, pressing softly, staying chaste.

He leaned his head sideways, giving the angel more access. Dean was unable to stop the moan pouring from his throat when he felt the nipping of teeth and the lick of a tongue.

"Cas.." he hissed, closing his eyes.

"Dean," Cas murmured in response, moving to right under his earlobe.

"Wh.. what happened to just a hug, huh?" the hunter chuckled breathlessly.

"You'll be the death of me, Dean Winchester," Cas moaned before pulling away with great difficulty.

They both stared at each other, thinking the same. One of these days, and they both knew it was going to be very soon, one of them was going to let go. They were going to go too far, and not be able to stop it.

"God help us when it happens," Dean whispered, more to himself than to Cas.

"I think if God had anything to do with this, none of it would have happened," Cas answered quietly.

"You think so?"

The angel nodded.

"Well, that's kind of insulting," Dean joked, but Cas tilted his head at him, not understanding.

"Wouldn't you prefer this not happening?" he asked, confused.

"Yeah, yeah. Of course," Dean said, rubbing a hand along his jaw. To be honest, he was still feeling quite light headed. And they had hardly done shit.

"Come," Cas said, reaching out his hand to Dean's forehead. The next moment, they were back in the motel room.

"You should get some rest, Dean."

Cas turned away. Dean grabbed his wrist. "Stay with me," he whispered, the anxiety clear in his eyes.

Cas felt his guts twist with guilt as he thought of the horrors which were Dean's dreams. He nodded, barely visible.

Dean quickly stripped, leaving himself only in his boxers as he climbed into the bed. Cas climbed in next to him, fully dressed as he wrapped his arms around the hunter, vowing to keep his mind pure and mercifully blank.

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