Chapter Two:
I left the bar right before midnight, when the place started to get a little too crowded for my taste. I could still hear the techno music blasting from three blocks away, 'Supernatural' having left the stage a few hours earlier.
I walked down the sidewalk towards my motel, debating whether or not to stop to get something to eat. Jo told me that Rally's has a really great bacon cheeseburger, but you can't deny the classic Wendy's. Plus, Wendy's has Frosty's. With that factor, Wendy's totally fucking wins.
Smiling to myself, I crossed the street, which was surprisingly empty at this time of night on a Saturday, to the Wendy's I passed earlier on my way to the bar. Everything was so condensed in Radcliff, so small. It was kind of suffocating, if you thought about it. Which I did. And I didn't like it.
I walked into the Wendy's with my "good food mood" fading away, replaced with a feeling of exhaustion. A short girl with black hair stood at the counter, waiting for me to come closer to order. She had glasses and a small nose, probably around 17 years old.
"Hi, my name is Sarah, would you like a combo meal tonight?" Her words sounded rehearsed, an automatic response to anyone who walked in.
"Nah, not tonight, sweetheart." I smiled. "Just a bacon cheeseburger, please, and a side of large fries." Sarah giggled as she pressed the buttons, confusing me.
"Why is that funny?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"It's just," She smiled wider. "That's the same order as the guy before you." She pointed over to a row of booths where I could see a head of black, spiky hair.
Sarah walked to the back of the store, leaving me alone at the counter, not even bothering to tell me my total or collect my money. I have a strong feeling that she's not going to keep this job very long. Patting my pockets awkwardly, I slowly walked over to a booth to sit and wait, figuring I'll pay when she comes back out. If she remembers. I sat in a corner booth, a small one for two people, three away from the black haired man. He looked down at the table, hiding his face.
"So I guess you and I ordered the same thing." He said, his voice deep and somewhat familiar.
"Yeah," I chuckled. "I guess we did. Not surprising, though. Bacon cheeseburgers are the shit."
"I agree." He said, looking up, blue eyes boring into mine. "One of my favorites."
Then I realized why his voice sounded so familiar. I guess I should've been able to tell by the hair. Castiel, still in his clothes from the bar, sat in the booth, munching on his fries and what looked like to be his third cheeseburger.
"Castiel?" I asked, incredulous. I wasn't expecting to meet him, let alone actually talk at all. Castiel looked at me, narrowing his eyes.
"Yes? Do I know you?"
"Uh, well, no, not really, but I saw you perform earlier, man. You're really good." I couldn't help myself from telling him that, even if it did sound cheesy as fuck. But Castiel smiled anyways.
"Thanks. I'm not a big fan of Fall Out Boy, to be honest with you. They're talented, yes, but just not one of my favorites. But Gabriel insisted." He shrugged, going on as if I knew who Gabriel was.
"Anyway," Castiel continued after taking another bite of his burger. "What's your name?"
"Mine? It's uh, Dean." Really? You had to hesitate on your own name, Dean? Nice going. Shut up, Mind-Dean.
"Nice to meet you. I've never seen you at the bar before. Are you new here?" Castiel asked, ignoring my awkward silence.
"Actually, I'm just passing through."
"Well, I'm glad you were able to see one of our shows, then. I hope you enjoyed it." He smiled once more before taking another bite and shoving a handful of fries into his mouth.
He was strangely polite and he talked as if he were in an important interview. It was strange, considering the kind of band he was in and where his usual gig was, according to Jo. He seemed more relaxed on stage than he does sitting in a Wendy's.
"So how long have you been performing?" I asked, attempting to make sucky-ass small talk to break the awkward silence that made me nervous.
"Ever since I was little." He answered. "But if you mean with 'Supernatural', it's only been ten months."
"So you and your friends just decided to start a band?"
"No." Castiel laughed, which was surprisingly light for a guy who sounded like him. "They're family. All of my brothers."
"Really?" I tried to imagine performing with Sammy but quickly erased that thought before I died of laughter. "You guys don't really look alike."
"Different parents, but I like to think I'm adopted. It makes me feel better."
I laughed, an actual, genuine laugh, before I saw Sarah walk out with my food. As far as I know, Wendy's didn't serve you like that, you had to get your food, but here she was, placing a tray in front of me. "Here you go!" She giggled. "Your bacon cheeseburger and large fry!" She leaned over farther and closer until I was sure she was trying to hit me with her boobs, which made my face light up like a flare. I looked down and away, not knowing exactly what to do.
"Thanks...Sarah. Here you go." I handed her a $10, seeing how she never really told me my total. She took up and winked at me, flouncing away with a swing in her hips, pausing when she passed Castiel.
"Hi, Cassie, you need a re-fill?" She smiled. She acted more natural around Castiel and didn't shove her boobs in his face.
"Naw, thanks, though, Sarah. Tell your mom I said hi."
"Okie dokie!" She saluted him and walked back to her post behind the counter, giving me one final look before she couldn't see me anymore.
Castiel looked at me with amusement in his eyes as I just stared at him. He slowly lifted up his burger, gesturing to mine, as if reminding me that, oh, hey, look, food was in front of me and to eat like the starving fucker I was!
"You know her?" I asked instead.
"Yeah, I used to babysit her." He laughed. "Don't worry, she doesn't do that, usually."
"Then...why?" I asked. I mean, sure, I was flattered, but I felt...dirty...I'm 5 years older than her! Castiel just shrugged and smiled some more.
"I guess she thinks your hot." He laughed. I chuckled along and picked up my burger, muttering something along the lines of "bitch, I'm fucking gorgeous".
I really wanted to continue talking to Castiel, but I didn't want to seem creepy or like a total wimp. I wanted to talk to him about performing and what it feels like to play on a stage. I wanted to talk about his music and see if he had any advice.
"Something on your mind?" Castiel said, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"What?"
"You were staring at me."
"No, I wasn't."
"Uh, yeah," Castiel laughed. "You were."
"Oh, uh..." I smiled awkwardly...again...and chuckled. "Sorry."
"It's fine. It looked like you had wanted to ask a question."
"Nothing really. I just...well, you know, I, uh...saw you perform and since I...since I want to make it big-well, I mean-" Castiel raised his hand, cutting me off with a clear of his throat.
"I cannot actually hear you from here. Do you mind if I join you?"
"Um...sure."
Castiel smiled and picked up his tray, sitting in the seat across from me. Up close, I could see what the tattoo on his arm had been. It was a symbol I had never seen before, but it looked religious so I left it alone. A strong scent of soap and cologne wafted from him, but it didn't exactly smell bad and suffocating like most did. If it had, I would've choked to death by now.
"Now what were you saying?" Castiel said, his voice quieter now that he didn't have to talk from across the room.
"I just wanted to know how you did it." I rushed, not exactly pausing between words. Damn, I feel so freaking stupid right now!
"Did what?" Castiel cocked his head to the side, confused and narrowing his eyes in wonder.
"How did you manage to become apart of a kick-ass band?"
"I asked my brothers to play with me."
"I mean, how did you become successful?"
"I don't know. Gabriel says its because I'm a sex God, but I don't understand what he means."
"Um...okay. Anything else?"
"I guess its just because people like us and "Margarita's" is a popular place. The only reason we're able to get gigs there is because I went to school with Jo and her mom owns the place."
"So," My heart deflated. "You gotta know people."
"Well, obviously. Everyone knows people. It's impossible to not know people."
"Not if you were Tarzan." I suggested, going along with his train of thought.
"I don't know who that is, but if you know him, then he knows people."
"...Tarzan is a movie character."
"Oh."
He didn't know who Tarzan was? I didn't think anybody could not know who Tarzan was! Castiel was definitely a strange person, but he was also...fuck, he was also kind of interesting. He was quirky and kind of reminded me of Sam when we were growing up.
"Are you not going to eat?" Castiel said to me, pointing to my half eaten burger and untouched fries. To be honest, I had completely forgotten about them. "If not, can I have your fries?"
"What? You have, two things of them right there!"
"Yeah, but I ate them all!"
"Wha-..." I sighed. "Fine, we can split, if you want. I'm not all that hungry anymore, anyways."
"Sweet! Thanks!" Castiel smiled, reaching over to grab a handful of fries. I took a bite of my sandwich to stop the oncoming smile from nowhere. It was nice talking to someone who didn't know everything about you and knew you since you were in diapers. It was refreshing, for lack of a better word.
"So how old are you, Cas?" I said through a mouthful of burger.
"Cas?" He questioned.
"Yeah, Cas. Castiel's just a mouthful."
"I like it." He grinned. "I've never had a nickname before. Well, besides Cassie."
"Well, good...I guess."
"To answer your question, though, I'm twenty-two."
"So you're going to school, then?"
"No, I graduated early. I have a bachelors in music."
"You graduated...early? And you're only twenty-two?"
"Well, I skipped a few grades. And took a lot of advanced courses. What about you?"
"What about me?"
"How old are you? Are you in school?"
"I'm twenty-two, as well. And I have an associates in music." Same age as me, but a better degree. Pft, impressive show-off.
"That's interesting! We have the same degree!"
"Well, not really."
"Eh, to me, there's not much of a difference." He shrugged before standing up. "It was nice talking to you, Dean."
"Yeah, same here."
"Maybe I'll see you around. If you stay long enough."
"Yeah, maybe."
Cas threw his garbage away and left the Wendy's leaving me alone to finish my food, which didn't take long because I didn't have any company to chat with and every time Sarah came near I pulled my phone out, pretending to have a conversation. Once I finished, I threw my trash away and gave Sarah the tray, smiling as I "talked to my doctor" on the phone. I left Wendy's feeling full and a little violated.
I walked down the sidewalk back to the motel, once again cursing everything in this town for how closed in it is, and stopped beside my car. Something was wrong. I could feel it. My Baby-Senses were going off like fireworks on the Fourth. Or like the Death-Star after Luke finished with it. Yeah...whatever. I walked in circles around her, checking for any scratches or dents, but I didn't see anything. I looked under her, but nothing was leaking or looked wrong. The tires weren't flat. The only thing left was the engine. Dread filled my gut as I walked to the front, pulled out my keys, and popped the hood. Smoke billowed out from under her and flooded my nostrils as I swung my arms around, trying to clear the air.
My engine was shot.
I was stuck here, for God knows how long until I could get it fixed.
What the Fuck, Universe?!
Here's a new chapter for people who actually stuck with this story after such a boring introduction. XD I hope you like it! Tell me what you think in the comments and I will do my best to reply! Thank you so much for reading it and I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing this!
(A/N: Margarita's is a real place, as well. I've never been there, though, but I'm pretty sure it's a strip club. It just didn't fit the scenario here so I changed it a bit. Sorry!)