Sam was thankfully in a better mood when Dean and Cas arrived back at the motel room, and the trio left to go to the local diner for some grub and coffee, a drink that Cas had learned to love in his human form.
"I think I found us a case," Sam said, after he had enough coffee in his system to be coherent.
"What this time? Demons, she-wolves, the usual?" Dean grunted.
"I don't recall fighting any she-wolves. Unless that is what you call the women who came to visit while I stayed with you. Was that the reason you made so much noise?" Cas asked.
Dean sputtered on his coffee.
"Seriously dude? No, no- I didn't mean those- how do you even know about-?" Dean said.
"So you were using sarcasm? I am still new to that," Cas replied.
"Moving on…the case is in Vermont. Some movie theatre that shows old horror movies. The people that go see movies have a nasty habit of dying in the way the characters in the movies do," Sam interrupted.
"When do we leave? That's, what, a three day drive from here?"
"Something like that. Listen, Dean, I need to tell you something. I ran into-someone. And I asked if she would tag along. I think her knowledge of this kind of thing could help us," Sam said carefully.
"Yeah? Who would that be?" Dean asked.
"I think you know, honey," a voice came from the booth behind Dean. He swiveled around at the sound of it. No, there's no way Sam would bring her along…
Becky.
"What the hell? You think you ran into her by accident? This crazy bitch has probably been stalking you for months!" Dean yelled. Several patrons turned to look at them.
"Dean, come on. You know she knows all about this kind of thing. Becks loves scary movies, she's probably the best resource we have right now," Sam said.
"Becks? Are you out of your mind? I'm not going to trust her with anything! And I don't know how you could," Dean said angrily.
"Look, I just do. She's been getting help, she's-"
"An absolute nutjob. I'm not riding with her, screw that. She can't get in my Baby, the crazy would leak into it," Dean retorted.
"Don't worry about that. I told Sam he could ride with me," Becky said, choosing to ignore Dean's remarks on her sanity. Sure, she had acted crazy, but had Dean ever actually looked at his brother? Who could help it?
"Fine. You two lovebirds enjoy the scenery. Cas, you're with me," Dean said.
"Shotgun," Cas said quickly.
"Cas, buddy, it's just the two of us, of course you ride shotgun," Dean said. They paid their tab and quickly left to load into the cars.
"Keep your cell phone on, Sammy. I'll need you to keep in contact in case your batshit crazy girlfriend decides to try something again," Dean told him.
Sam just rolled his eyes and got in Becky's car.
"Call you when we get settled for the night," Becky grinned and climbed in too.
Dean was still fuming when he got in the car with Cas. A sudden realization hit him, and he turned to face his friend.
"Why aren't you just flying ahead? You don't have to ride with me," he asked him.
"I have no desire to initiate that uncomfortable stomach illness again. But if you would rather be alone, I can fly," Cas answered.
Dean tensed at the mention of being alone.
"No, stay."
Dean cranked the radio up as he drove. He could get lost in this music. His life was always complicated, and he never knew what each day would bring. But the music, that was always there. Always the same. Journey came on the radio, and Dean started to sing under his breath. Before the song even hit the chorus, he was singing as though his life depended on it.
"I did not think you liked love songs, Dean," Cas said, cocking his head to the side.
"Love songs? Dude, this is no love song."
"I disagree. The words speak of two people meeting and falling in love. Thus, a love song," Cas frowned.
"Okay, I mean, I guess so. But this is Journey! Legends of rock. Stop girlying up my music," Dean said, and returned to singing along. The song ended on a long note, and Dean drummed his fingers on the steering wheel.
"The people in the song remind me of you and I," Cas said as it ended.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Dean asked.
"Two people, or in our case, two beings, who meet though they come from very different settings. And then they do things in the night," Cas said.
Dean swerved the car.
"We don't do anything in the night!" Dean said loudly.
Cas frowned.
"Well, we often hunt at night. We do during the day too, but the song didn't speak of that," Cas said.
Dean pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.
"No more talking for a while, okay? I'm just going to listen to my music," he said, leaning back in his seat.
Cas looked at Dean, studying him the way a scientist would a test animal. He appeared sweaty, nervous. That soon faded as another song came on the radio that he apparently enjoyed. As the man on the radio sang of some girl who somehow had a motor she kept clean, Dean relaxed and began singing along and drumming again. When the song hit a particularly lively part, Dean actually smiled. Cas felt the pain in his stomach and chest return.
How could he be missing Dean? He was sitting next to him. He doubted he was missing Sam, since he wasn't even thinking of him at the moment, and he didn't really know Becky enough to miss her at all. How could he be experiencing the feeling of missing someone when they were right next to him? Dean glanced over at Cas, who was still staring at him while he performed. The discomfort heightened when their eyes met, and Cas felt a pull in his chest. Was he having a heart attack? Could angels have those?
"Cas, man, what is it? You look awful," Dean said, turning the music down.
"The pain is back," Cas answered.
"Are you sure it's the same pain? Maybe you're hungry. Let's pull over and grab a burger, we've been driving for hours," Dean said.
Soon, they were pulling into a fast food place. Dean and Cas ate quietly, watching the other people in the restaurant, particularly a young boy who was placing quarter after quarter in a claw machine, wishing to win a stuffed football.
"Mom, please, just one more. I almost had it!" he said to a young brunette woman.
"No, sweetie. You've wasted enough. Those things are rigged," she said sternly.
Cas rose from the table without a word, and walked over to the machine. Curious, Dean turned to see where he was going. Cas pulled a quarter out of his pocket.
"Would you mind if I played?" he asked the boy, who was still begging his mother.
"Not at all. Move a bit, Andy, so this nice man can have a turn," the woman said.
Cas placed in his quarter, and grabbed the handle to move the claw. Within seconds, he had maneuvered it into place, and pushed the button. The claw rose with the football in its grasp. It clanked into the receiving bin, and Cas happily fished it out. The little blonde headed boy looked crestfallen.
Cas turned to face him and his mother, and knelt in front of the boy, holding out the toy in his hand.
"I think you would enjoy this much more than I would," he said, handing it to him. The boy giggled and squeezed the toy, and the mother thanked Cas for his kindness.
"Sometimes it takes some practice to learn things like this," Cas said.
The boy grabbed Cas around the legs.
"Thank you!" he said, before turning to leave with his mother.
Dean watched the scene unfold in front of his eyes. Cas came back to sit down and finish his food.
"That was a very good thing to do," Dean said with a small smile.
"Thank you. I would have done it for any child, but he was certainly special," Cas said.
"Why? Do you know him?" Dean asked.
"No, but I felt like I did. He looks just like I imagined you would as a child," Cas said simply.
Dean felt a tug in his stomach.
"You're not far off. My hair was darker than that, though. You've thought about me as a kid?" Dean asked.
"Of course. I think you would have been quite fun to have known then. Not that you aren't now," Cas said.
Dean smiled again. Since when did he become so sensitive?
The duo left soon after, and drove for hours across the country. The drive was one of the best Dean had ever had. He and Cas listened to music. They had driven so long, some songs had come on the radio multiple times. Cas now had his own favorites, and especially liked anything by Queen.
"His voice is quite good," Cas said, as another Queen song came on.
"Yeah, he's one of my favorites. You getting tired?" he asked, yawning widely.
"A bit. I find my 'mojo' has not returned enough to allow me to stay awake constantly," Cas said.
They pulled into a motel parking lot soon after, and booked a room to stay in for the night. It wasn't anything extravagant, but it would do. Dean took a shower and stretched out on the bed, waiting for Cas to get out of his shower. His cell phone rang, and Dean answered.
"Hey, Sam, made it to a hotel?" he asked.
"Sure did, sweetie," the sickly sweet voice came through the phone.
"Becky! What the hell are you doing calling me? Where is Sam?" he asked, panic in his voice.
"Relax, he's right next to me," she said.
"Prove it."
She sighed. A few seconds later, Sam's voice came over the phone.
"Oh my God, Dean, you can't actually think she'd do something to me," Sam said.
"Why the hell not? She did before. She can't be trusted, and you hopped in the car with her. Damn, if you were that desperate for a lay, just go to the bar and get one," Dean said. He was so relieved his brother was okay, but furious at him for trusting Becky again.
"It's not like that! We just needed some help on this case and I did what's best for us!" Sam yelled.
"Are you sure about that? Because Becky sure as hell wasn't best for me. She already tricked you once, remember?" Dean asked.
"It's not like I ran off and got married today. I just rode with someone else on the way to our case. Eventually, you're going to have to get over this fear of being alone, because I might not always be here. And the way you're acting, I don't think I'd care," Sam said angrily.
The line went dead. Dean cursed out loud, angry, but also feeling a twinge of fear. He'd never admit it to Sam, but he was right. Dean was terrified of being alone. He heard the bathroom door open, and Cas walked out.
"Is everything okay with Sam? I heard you yelling," Cas said.
"Yeah, it's fine. He's off with that crazy bitch and pissed because it worries me, no big deal," Dean said gruffly.
"You care for Sam very deeply. And he cares for you," Cas said, moving to sit on the edge of the bed with Dean.
"He's not acting like it. He even said he wouldn't care if he left me to do this shit alone," Sam said.
"You are afraid of being alone," Cas said in his straightforward manner.
"I'm not scared of anything, Cas," he growled.
"I do not understand why you feel the need to cover it up. You are not alone, anyway," Cas said.
"How do you figure that? If Sam leaves, then I get to hunt monsters alone," Dean said.
"You have me," Cas answered.
Dean's heart pulled again.
"That's true. Listen, I'm pretty worn down, I think I need some sleep," Dean said as he pulled himself to the top of the bed and got under the blankets. "'Night, Cas."
Cas watched as Dean slowly fell asleep. His chest moved up and down in a rhythmic pattern. Suddenly, the pain in Cas' chest came back again. Only this time, he knew what it was without having to wakehis best friend to ask.
Cas was in love with Dean.