The next morning, Sam volunteered to help the Fishers with household chores, letting Dean off the hook for the day. He didn't have much to do, so he figured he'd sneak to town. Sam probably wouldn't be happy that Dean planned on going back to Beau's, but he couldn't help it. He had to go see if Cas was there.
He sat around watching TV (not knowing what to do with himself since it was the first time in a long time that he had free time) for most of the day. At noon, with Sam vacuuming, Dean got into the Impala and left.
He parked around back and came inside. This time, he sat himself at the bar, close to where Cas was positioned. The place was pretty slow for a Monday afternoon. The cashier looked uncomfortable at seeing Dean again, and he realized that if a crazy person started spouting nonsense at him, he would too.
After he ordered, he turned around to face the guy in the island.
"Listen, I'm real sorry about yesterday," Dean apologized. Wearily, the cashier looked up at him.
"It's alright. Do I... remind you of someone?"
Dean looked into his crystal blue eyes, examined his dark, messy, brown hair and the toned body he rarely saw out of a suit and trench coat.
"Yeah... you do," Dean answered, leaving it at that. He cleared his throat and changed the subject. "What's your name?"
"James, and you?" Cas asked. James, he thought, suppressing a laugh. Jimmy for short.
"My name's Dean," he replied. The cashier had to ring someone up after that, a dark fellow with a large beer gut. When he was done, he turned back to Dean.
"Listen, I'm really sorry about yesterday. How about I buy you a drink to make up for it?" James blushed.
"Won't your boyfriend be a little upset?"
"What boyfriend?" Dean asked, feeling pink himself.
"The guy you were with..."
"Ohh, no, I'm not…" Dean felt his face grow hot, "that's my brother, Sam," James seemed relieved, but Dean tried not to notice. "So what do you say? I saw a bar down the street that looked nice."
"Moe's? Nah, the owners a piece of shit." Dean smiled at Cas' sudden potty mouth. He rarely heard the angel curse. It was like Cas was more of a normal human being rather than an emotionally constipated, antiquated angel. "I know a better place, just outside of town."
"Awesome. What do you say, tonight?"
"I've got work tonight," James replied. "but tomorrow I'm free."
Dean was overjoyed. Maybe this time, this one time, he could enjoy Cas' camaraderie without all the angel, demon, monster, whatever bullshit. It could be nice.
"Here you go, anything else?" Jessica asked, setting down his plate.
"Try the peach cobbler," James whispered. Dean grinned.
"And I'll have some peach cobbler," Dean answered, glimpsing at James. He was rewarded with one of Cas' rare smiles. It would be hard to call him James, but he could manage- for James' sake.

Dean left Beau's with James' phone number, address and a smile on his face. Georgia was turning out to be a place for a second chance rather than a vacation.
He tucked the slip of paper James gave him in his pocket as he walked into the door of his house.
"Where've you been?" Sam asked as soon as he arrived.
"Nowhere, just cruisin' around," Dean replied in what he hoped was an off-handed way. If he told Sam he ate lunch he would know he went back to Beau's, and then Sam would give him crap for messing up Cas' second chance.
"Ah, gotcha." Sam turned back to the TV before asking, "so what's her name?"
"Oh, give me a break." Dean closed the fridge after retrieving a beer.
"C'mon, you can tell me."
"There's no one, honest."
"Right, okay."
"Move your feet," Dean grumbled as he sat on the couch.
"You're doing chores tomorrow," Sam informed.
"What's on the agenda?"
"Tatiana wants all the windows to be cleaned."
"Well, well, who knew we'd be going domesticate, eh, Sammy?" Dean gave his brother a cheesy grin and a punch to the shoulder as Sam rolled his eyes.
"Sammy is an eleven year old girl that just hit puberty," Sam complained.
"Then you two sound like two peas in a pod."

The next day Dean helped around the house, cleaning the dishes and the windows.
"Even when my son was here he didn't help out this much!" Tatiana exclaimed. "He was a good boy though. He was very intelligent all throughout school. He was offered a teaching job in Macon, and we were so proud. He teaches history."
It was nice to listen to Tatiana talk. She was the grandmother he never had. She always offered little biscuits or lemonade, and she even felt bad that she was making Dean and Sam do all the work.
"What do you spend your time on?" Dean wondered.
"Me and the other retired ladies in town do baking sales, book clubs and parties and such. We're part of the Elks Lodge here. It's a nice little organization that donates to veterans. My father was a vet."
"So was mine," Dean replied without thinking. Aw, screw it, Dean thought. He could tell someone about himself and maybe even appear as a normal human being.
"Is that so? Where are you boys from anyway?"
"Kansas."
"Oh, that's lovely! They grow'em fine there."
After a few hours of listening to the old couple chatter as he fulfilled a number of chores, Dean returned home. Sam was on his laptop.
"Feels kind of weird having so much time to do anything we want," Sam mentioned as Dean walked through the door.
"Yeah, it does," Dean agreed. He turned on the TV and tried as best he could to casually say, "so I'm thinking about going to the bar in a bit."
"Oh, okay. I'll come too," Sam piped up.
"No," Dean said hurriedly. He glanced at Sam, who was giving him a funny look. "I mean, I kind of want to spend some time by myself."
Sam examined him for a moment, and then shrugged.
"Yeah, whatever."
Dean knew his feelings were hurt, but he knew if Sam realized what he was doing he would stop him. And that couldn't happen.

Dean got in his car at around seven to pick up James. He lived, to what Dean later found out, in a sprawling mansion that was once a plantation owner's. Acres upon acres of fields and lush Spanish moss. The driveway was lined with drooping trees, who's branches and leaves sagged as if the heat was too much to bear. After the long driveway was a big cement wall with a black iron gate, which was opened. Dean drove up into the driveway, the Impala purring as he parked it in front of a huge off-white mansion, complete with wraparound porch for the first and second floor. Dean was amazed. How did Cas end up here?
James came walking out of the house in jeans and a long sleeved plaid shirt. He bounded down the stairs and into Dean's car.
"This place is incredible," Dean said, pausing to look at the home before he backed out of the driveway. James put on his seatbelt and smiled at the driver.
"I agree."
"Where did you get it?"
"It's been in the family for generations," James said. Of course, Dean thought.
"You live with anyone else?" The hunter asked. James shook his head.
"No... it's just me." Dean ignored the glance James gave him.
They drove for a few minutes making idle chit chat until they came across a bar titled Southern Bells with neon lit bells and everything.
"I know the owner here, he's a good guy," James supplied as they got out of the car. The sun was almost set, the parking lot dark.
The bar was busy tonight, with a few guys playing pool, even more at booths and some sprinkled at the bar, music blaring in the background. The walls were all maroon with exposed brick, the floors a dark stained wood.
James led the way to two empty bar stools. They both ordered a beer.
"So you're new in town," James stated.
"Yeah, taking a little vacation."
"What do you do?" James asked. Dean paused for a moment.
"Me and my brother are... hunters. We go all over the country hunting."
"For animals?" James wondered. Dean took a sip of his beer and nodded. "I don't think I could do that. I'm a wuss when it comes to hurting things."
Dean's lips stretches into a smile, knowing quite the contrary.
"So a rough-and-tumble guy like you floats into town, and somehow ends up in my restaurant on a Sunday afternoon?" Dean shrugs and gives James a small smile. "You are something else."
"You guys have good BBQ. There's nothing I like more than a pig roasted over a fire," Dean responds.
"And peach cobbler."
"Oh, yeah, to die for," Dean said, leaning in. This was so easy. Their bond was effortless, no matter what life Castiel led.
"So what do you plan to do with your life, besides serving the great people of Savannah?" Dean asked, pulling away.
"I haven't got a plan," James responded.
"Really?"
"I enjoy quiet life here. It's safe."
"Safe?"
"Uh...yes," James glanced away at Dean.
"That's an odd way of putting it," he mumbled, taking a swig of beer.
"It's the truth. Nothing happens here. Not until a raving lunatic comes in spouting nonsense about why I'm here," James ended the statement with a simper. Their attention turned to a TV above the bar. A reporter was going over the details of the murder spree. They flashed a picture of the murderer- well, before he was vamped and beheaded by Dean.

"Safe, huh?" Dean said.

"Freak accident," James replied casually, taking one more cautionary peek at the screen. There was a lull in the conversation when James said, "so how come your brother freaked out Jessica?"

"He really freaked her out?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, she was really confused. He was acting weird." Dean glanced away, finding the strength to say the next few words he knew would have to be altered from the truth.

"He had a girlfriend awhile back that was… murdered," he explained. It didn't feel right lying to Cas, but it wasn't really Cas, was it? It was just a man that looked like Cas, or rather- a vessel with Cas in it who didn't know he was Cas. Dean's brain hurt.

"Oh, and her name was Jessica?" His voice lowered a few octaves the way people do when discussing sad subjects.

"Yeah." Dean peered into James' eyes, taking a sip of his beer.

"I'm sorry." Dean was so used to people saying this, giving him a pitied look, that he didn't bother responding.

"He was the one that found her," Dean said, knowing he didn't have to discuss it but feeling the need to. "He found her, and… he was a wreck. And I pulled him out of the room."

James said nothing, perhaps knowing that there wasn't anything needed to be said. Finally he broke the silence surrounding them with a laugh.

"Well, this has been light-hearted and fun," James said, trying to give Dean a reassuring smile. They continued talking, Dean holding back all the things he wanted to tell Cas. They had a couple more drinks before James called it a night, saying he had the morning shift tomorrow and needed to get some sleep.

Dean drove him home, rolling up the long driveway and finally to the front steps. He put his baby in park and glanced over at James.

"This was nice," James gave him a lighthearted grin.

"Yeah, it was," Dean agreed. Pause.

"Aren't you going to walk me to the door?" James asked in a playful tone.

"Um…sure," Dean said, a bit hesitant. They both exited the car and walked up the steps until they were at the door. James pulled out his keys and turned to Dean.

And suddenly it hit Dean. Like really hit him. James thought that they were on a date. James thought Dean asked him out on a date. And now he was expecting Dean to kiss him. He was even leaning in, his lips parted.

"I have to go," Dean blurted out, pulling away. He couldn't bear to look at James' hurt expression to he turned away. "I'll, uh… see you around."

"Yeah, bye," James said wistfully. Dean walked to the Impala, not daring to look back.

He arrived home, glad that Sam was already up in the bedroom. He didn't need Sam around asking him questions and badgering him. He unrolled the futon and turned on the TV, getting into a comfy position on the bed.

His thoughts drifted to James. Okay, more like raced to them. He was confused beyond anything. Did that mean that Cas was attracted to him too? All this time, did Cas love him? And where did that leave Dean?

He knew it, in the pit of his hell-beaten soul, that he loved Cas. Why else would he still need him, even after the decisions he made? Why else would he still pray for Cas, to somehow come back. He wanted Cas to be alive, and now here he was. Albeit, he wasn't the real Cas, personality wise. But there had to be some sort of similarities, like loving Dean despite the circumstances.

He passed out with the TV still on and his thoughts consumed by the angel.

Authors Note: Sorry this one is a bit shorter. The smu- ahem- the story really picks up in the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed :)