AN: hello guys! I have been discussing this chapter with my best friend for some time and after an awful lot of thinking and talking I've finally decided what to write so it'd better be good. Though it probably won't.

Also, WARNING: mention of suicide. Yeah. You read that right. More sadness. But I SWEAR next chapter will have more happiness and that's also when the fun starts because [to be continued in author's note at the end because spoilers]

The final notes of Into The West had all but faded when Castiel suddenly looked at Dean with panic in his eyes.

"What? What is it?"

"It's ten in the morning and I'm not at home and my father..."

Dean's eyes widened as the realization struck him. "Oh God."

A mere fraction of a second later, Castiel's phone started ringing. Cas reached to pick it up. Dean tried to stop him, saying, "Don't answer, Cas," but it was already too late.

"Father, I can explain," was the last thing Dean heard his friend say before, he assumed, the shouting started. He saw Cas's courage seep away as his eyes became wider and his skin paler, making him look more and more like a mere shadow of the Castiel everyone knew.

He wanted to interfere but knew it would be no use. So he waited. He waited until the black-haired boy finally put his phone away, not-quite-falling onto Dean's bed.

"Cas?" Dean asked, knowing that Cas would understand the implied question.

"He said... He said I don't ever need to come back. I can come grab my things and then he wants me to leave. He never wants to see me again. Apparently I'm nothing but a disappointment, a disgrace to our family."

Dean didn't know what to say, so he just pulled Cas up and said: "Let's go get your stuff, then. You can stay with us, my parents will understand." As they were walking down the stairs, he added: "Though, I must warn you: my brother Sammy is a little shit."

"Hey!" yelled Sam, who had just entered the hallway, "I heard that, jerk."

"Bitch."

"Mom, dad, this is Castiel Novak. Can he stay with us for a while? A while being a few days to a few weeks," Dean asked at lunch that day. Cas was amazed at Dean's courage to just ask something like that.

"Anything for a buddy of yours," said John after a moment of hesitation, noticing Dean's serious and worried expression, "but why?"

"He..." Dean cleared his throat, "he kind of got kicked out of his house by his father. We're assuming the same thing happened to his mom."

Dean's family seemed shocked. His mother was the one to break the silence.

"Of course he can stay here. Has he got all his stuff?"

"Yes," Cas replied, " we took care of that this morning."

"He can talk!" said Sam.

"Sam, be nice to our guest."

"Sure, mom. As long as he's nice to me."

"Trust me, Sammy," Dean said, "Cas is the sweetest guy you'll ever meet."

Cas felt a shiver running down his spine. He knew Dean didn't mean it that way, but he couldn't help but feel a spark of hope go through him. In those two weeks he'd gotten pretty good at hiding it, but he still had a huge crush on his new friend. The kind of crush that can make grown men feel like teenage girls.

He was glad (and surprised) that Dean's parents had so easily accepted him staying over. His own father would never do such a thing. But at least he didn't have to worry about that anymore.

"Mom, it's Cas, can you call me back soon?"

Cas put his phone on the bedside table in the guest room, which was now his room.

"She still not answering?" Dean asked with a frown.

"She isn't. I'm starting to get worried."

"Don't be. There's probably no reason to be. Right?"

"I don't know."

Suddenly, Castiel's phone started ringing. He answered as quickly as possible.

"Mom?"

Not your mother, sorry.

"Doctor Smith."

Yes. I'm afraid I have some bad news for you, kid.

"What is it?"

It's your mother. She... jumped... Castiel's doctor sighed. They brought her in here but it's too late. She's... she's gone, Castiel.

...

Castiel, are you there?

Cas sat down on his bed, staring at the white walls. They were blurry, far away, as if they weren't real. He felt Dean, who somehow knew what was going on, put an arm around him, but it didn't matter anymore. Nothing mattered now that his mother was dead. His heartbeat resonated through his head, like the approaching footsteps of a dragon, filling him with fear and sadness and an anger so complete, so absolute, that it trampled everything in its way, until there was nothing else left, only the all-powerful, perfect, burning anger. He got up, walking out of the room. He did not know why, he had no purpose, he just needed to be gone.

Then, he was at the bottom of the stairs, and there was darkness. Beautiful, soothing, cold, terrifying darkness.

Cas woke up in his bed. Beside him there stood a glass of water along with the entire Winchester family. They all looked worried, which confused him. The last and only thing he could recall was the sound of someone running down the stairs toward him, yelling for people to help.

But then he remembered.

Mom.

AN: So the next chapter is when the fun will start again (with some short angst interludes) because Dean and Cas are now forced to be together pretty much 24/7...

Also, maybe I'm going to start writing longer chapters, but that probably also means not updating EVERY day.