bluejay way

As Castiel made his way into the crowded hallways, he suddenly felt a hard push and a clang as he was shoved up against the lockers. He glanced warily up at his attacker, even though he had a pretty good idea of who it was. The dark hair, even darker eyes, and devilish smirk of none other than Crowley, who as it were, seemed a tad more vicious today than usual.

"Hello there, pet.", he purred smoothly into Castiel's ear, and even though Castiel turned his head away, Crowley seemed to be able to look directly into him. "I've been meaning to have a chat with you. It does seem as though you're still alive, and yet, for some reason you think that you're going to walk around these hallways without giving me a dime for the privilege. Now, it can't be that you've forgotten our little deal, have we?"

Castiel cringed, his blue eyes sliding shut. "No."

"Then, I would expect that you would be paying up quite soon, won't we? Wouldn't want another nasty accident around here." He dropped the smaller boy, who shrunk back up against the lockers, and nodded. "Good boy. I knew you'd see it my way. Don't be late."

Watching Crowley's retreating back, Castiel sighed. His parents had stopped giving him any kind of allowance after realizing that the last bit of money he had, he had ended up buying an assortment of sleeping pills, razors, and a bottle of codeine in which to send himself back to where he came from, so to speak. It didn't help that his parents didn't see depression as a sign of anything other than weakness, and suicide as a sin. He couldn't help the way he felt. He just couldn't! He balled his fists up, nails biting into his palms, as he turned to face the lockers, refusing to let his emotions get the better of him, especially in a hallway where anyone can see, which just made his anxiety worse.

"You okay?"

Castiel recognized that voice, that deep tenor that sounded so smooth even in its roughness. Dean Winchester. Putting on his best poker face, he turned to face the only person left in the school that would even look him in the eye.

"Yes." He internally berated himself. That was the best he could do? "I'm fine."

"I heard. You know, about what happened.", Green eyes slid over blue, and Castiel found himself feeling extremely aware of the awkward placement of his hands, the fact that his shirt didn't match his jacket probably, and the funny way his bangs were probably sticking up after having been shoved into the lockers, but Dean didn't seem to notice any of those things, and all of the sudden, Castiel heard the silence as Dean obviously waited for him to speak.

"I didn't mean to cause you worry." His voice came out rough, and he cleared his throat. "I had some trouble."

Trouble didn't even begin to explain anything, but there didn't seem to be a need to scare off a potential friend. Castiel found himself thinking that this must be more trouble.

"Hey, dude, if you ever need to talk…", Dean awkwardly trailed off, looking a bit lost. The hallway had cleared by now, and Castiel began to realize that he was late for lunch, but the weakness he felt didn't seem to stem from hunger. He lifted his eyes to search Dean's face, and despite the usual bravado of the boy, he seemed almost shy in this moment, as if he actually looked for Castiel's approval, the way he seem to look out at him from the corner of his eyes, the way he worried at his bottom lip, his hands, and the way they seem to curl and uncurl and Castiel felt a warmth he hadn't felt in a long time. He felt a need to reassure this boy.

"I would love that." He gave an attempt at his best smile, which for all intents and purposes probably was not the best smile in a million mile radius, but the effortless smile Dean gave back more than made up for it.

"Great. See you around then."

With a lopsided grin, Dean was gone, and Castiel finally let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.