A.N.- Short chapter, sorry! But at least it's an up-date, right?
Cas closed up the shop. It was dark and quiet. He dove his hands into his pockets and walked briskly through the cold streets. He could have called a taxi, but he preferred to walk. He did not like to get to his house any earlier than necessary. The atmosphere was so icy it felt like it was biting against the skin of his face.
Dingy orange lights dully lit the streets. Up ahead, he noticed a small figure sitting in a bus shelter. He walked closer to it, frowning. The person was very small. The person was a child. A child? What on Earth was a child doing out alone at this time of night?
"Adam?"
The boy smiled weakly at Cas. He had a purple bruise under his eye. "Alright Mr Novak?" the child asked lightly.
Cas sat next to the child. "Why are you out here alone, when it's so late?"
"My mom's boyfriend is at the house," explained Adam, "so I needed to go out. Usually I stay with Dean, but he isn't out tonight."
"He's probably at home in bed," answered Cas, "he is giving up on going to the pub, so hopefully they'll be no more late nights for him. You should be in bed at this hour young man."
"I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault," Cas thought of the child's mother. "It's not your fault," he repeated, wrapping an arm around the child. "Is there anywhere you can stay the night, an aunt's, cousin's, grandparent's?"
"No, it's alright. After a while I'll go home. They just need their space is all."
"Where did you get that bruise?"
The child touched it anxiously and winced slightly, "a nasty boy at school did it. It's alright, my mom will deal with it. She's the best."
Cas said nothing, but he was certain that bruise was too large to belong to anyone's but an adult's fist.
"Are there no adults you trust?"
"Yes," answered Adam as if it were obvious, "I trust you, and Dean, and Mr Williams, a teacher at my school."
Cas felt his heart sink at this. He was one of the only adults Adam trusted? And yet, Adam hardly knew him. Had Cas giving him food and being nice to him enough for this child to trust him so much?
"I'm going to take you to Dean's home," he said after a moment's silence, "you cannot stay outside. I would take you home, I wish I could take you home, but..." but Lilith wouldn't allow it, he thought.
"It's ok," Adam put his small, ice-cold hand in Cas's, "no one wants me in their home. It's ok. I understand."
Cas stood and drew the boy into a hug. "That's not it," he said, feeling his throat aching and tears welling up in his eyes, "that's not it at all Adam, never think that way!" He put the child down and rubbed his eyes, Adam looking at him curiously, not understanding Cas's emotion. "Come, take me to Dean's."
They walked in comfortable silence into the nastier, dirtier side of town. "I live there," Adam pointed to the top half of a maisonette. The lights were all off. "And Dean lives here." He then pointed to a house in front of them. Weeds littered the front garden. The lawn was overgrown and filled with debris and junk from the street. The white paint on the house was yellowed and peeling. It looked sad.
Cas walked up the broken path, Adam's hand tight in his own, and knocked on the door for a number of minutes until he saw the lights of the house coming on and the muffled swearing of Dean.
Dean ripped the door open, "what?! Oh, Cas," he looked down, "and...Adam."
"Yes. May we come in?"
Dean nodded and moved aside to let them enter.
Inside Dean boiled the kettle as Cas explained how he had found Adam outside. Adam himself was in the living room watching television.
"He can't be left outside," Cas was saying, "who knows what will happen to him? It doesn't bear thinking about. He says he often meets you on the street at night."
"Yeah, he does. I'm usually pissed and wandering home when I bump into him. We sometimes crash on the floor outside and sleep until morning. I understand that he needs somewhere safe to go at night, but people will think I'm some sort of kiddy-fiddler if I keep him here."
Cas gaped for a while before, "but you're not! You're being good by letting him stay. His mother has cast him out for the night. And have you noticed that bruise? He says it was a bully from school."
"I doubt that shiner was from another kid, unless that bully is a very large one. I don't know much about his home life, but I've had my suspicions for a while." He sighed, "the truth is, I never wanted to get involved. I've as always too busy dealing with my own crap." He felt a squirm of guilt in his stomach at his own words. He had long realised that Adam was from a bad background, but he was so accustomed to abuse that it hadn't fazed him. He had always been too concerned about getting his next drink. Man, he really did need to start sobering up. The first AA meeting was the following morning. He had already agreed to go with Jo.
"However," he continued, "even if he is being abuse, there's little we can do other than get the social involved. If I take him in, people will talk." He yawned and stretched. He was only wearing boxers. Cas flushed and looked away.
"So what," asked Cas sullenly, "we just leave him in the road?"
"No, I'll see if I can get a lady friend round. It's pretty late though," he muttered as he grabbed his phone, "Jo won't be happy..."
As he dialled, Cas looked at his watch. He should have been home an hour ago. Lilith was going to be furious. He hastily got out his mobile and explained to her the situation along with a series of apologies. She never responded. That was a bad sign.
"Good news," Dean wandered back into the kitchen, "Jo said she can come round. Someone is watching over Ellen, so everything is sorted." He noticed Cas's worried expression and so put a hand on his shoulder and said happily, "it's ok man. Adam is safe and Jo is coming, so I won't look like a paedophile. People trust women more than men. You can go home now."
With those last few words from Dean's mouth, Cas was almost physically sick, but he managed to hold it together. Slowly, he got to his feet and with Herculean effort managed a smile.
"Thank you, Dean. I shall go now." He called out a goodbye to a happy (but sleepy) Adam and left the house. Dean waved him goodbye.
xxXXxx
The following afternoon, Dean walked down to the shops. He had gone to his first AA meeting that morning with Jo after they dropped Adam off at his mother's. Jo hadn't wanted to, but they both knew they couldn't keep the boy with them. Dean wanted to talk to Cas so badly. He wanted to talk about AA, and of Adam and Jo's thoughts on the situation, but the shop was closed.
Dean frowned. Why was it closed? He thought of calling Cas, but then realised that he didn't have Cas's number. He didn't even know exactly where Cas lived.
With a sadness settling in his stomach, Dean walked away, wondering how he was going to spend his time without drink, Adam (who was at school) or Cas.
Cas's shop wouldn't be open for another three days.