Sam and Jo want to get together, but it's not so easy. John and Jack talk about Ianto, and maybe they come to an agreement. The car wash becomes a reality, and new connections ar made for prom.
Song in this chapter
Car Wash - Rose Royce - M/L: Norman Whitfield
That Dean sometimes ventured out on his own without any explanation was usually not a big problem. He didn't stay away for long, and in the meantime, Sam could catch up with friends online. If he needed to, he could always reach him on his phone regardless.
This time, when it really mattered, Sam was unable to get hold of his brother. Jo had texted him and asked if they could hang out, but he couldn't easily get out.
It was fucked up.
He had practically forced Dean to join Glee-Club just to get to know the girl. When he finally had a chance with her, he was screwed over by that same brother.
Calling him hadn't worked. Dean had obviously turned the phone off, or he'd forgot to charge it. Sam was thoroughly pissed off as he kept a 'facebook'-conversation with Jo going. He had gotten his driver's licence eventually - daddy had sent a check for his sixteenth birthday especially for that - but it didn't help much when he didn't have wheels.
Birthdays wasn't something they celebrated much in the family, so Sam had almost not expected to get anything. When the check arrived, he had offered to spend it on food, but Dean wouldn't hear it. Even if they were always short on money, they didn't starve, so Dean took him to the DMV and demanded that he take the test.
From Dean he got a promise that he could use the car every so often, but when he really needed it, it wasn't there.
"If you tell me where you live, I can pick you up." The next text from Jo was a little disturbing. It wasn't a secret that they lived in a crappy neighborhood, but he didn't want her to have to come there and see it for herself.
"How can you? You don't have..." He typed the words and then he checked a notification he'd gotten. "It's Joanna Beth Harvelle's birthday. Write a birthday wish on her timeline." He deleted the words that he'd just written and pondered on what to do. He should have checked earlier, but he was too pissed about his brother going AWOL.
How could it be possible to get out of this? He had failed to discover that the girl of his dreams was turning sixteen today, and he had no excuse. "I'm still here, just have to use the restroom. Be back in a minute."
Sam needed time to think. Not only had he not found out beforehand, but he had no money to get the girl a gift. He couldn't possibly meet up with her today. If he wanted to hang out with her, he should at least have something to give her.
Sam sifted through their belongings as he looked at the watch. How long could he pretend to be in the bathroom? In Dean's stash he found a black T-shirt with a big smiley on the front. He knew for sure that this was something Dean would never wear, and he wondered where it came from. It still had a tag on, and even if it would be a little too big for Jo, Sam decided to take it.
When he came back to the computer there was a new message from the girl. "Okay. Need a br brk myself. BTW, got my licence today, so… and they let me borrow the car."
He could walk to the small strip mall a few blocks away and meet up with her there. Sam was still worrying about where his brother was, but decided to not give a shit. "I'm sorry. I failed to notice that it is your birthday today. Forgive me. If you still want to hang out, we can, but you have to pick me up."
-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Jack got surprised when he received a text from John that he was on his way over. He'd thought that both John and Ianto were shying away from him now.
It was with mixed feelings that he opened the door. If John was there to get seconds it wouldn't happen. He was alone in the house, so he led John into the living room so that he wouldn't get any ideas.
"What can I get you? I could possibly find some wine or beer, but I prefer it if you settle for something non-alcoholic." He watched as John got comfortable on the couch. "I don't need anything. A glass of water is sufficient."
Jack shrugged as he turned around to go to the kitchen. "I have some freshly brewed iced tea if you want." He was about to pick a couple of glasses out of the cupboard when John replied. "Iced tea sounds great."
This was a bit awkward. Jack wasn't sure what to do after he'd served John the drink. He didn't want to join him on the couch, so he slumped down on the piano chair at the other end of the room.
John took a sip and panned the room. "Nice. It's a nice house." He took another sip before he drew his breath heavily. "Ianto is in love with you, and I know that you're gonna break his heart if you get the chance." The calm and collected voice didn't really fit the message. "He is my friend, and I love him, so if you could just let him down easy, I would appreciate it."
The guy seemed as cool as a cucumber as he uttered the words, but Jack understood that this was affecting John more than he wanted to show.
"I don't have to do any such thing. I never got it on with the guy. Why would I have to explain myself? Why would I have to explain myself to you?" Jack felt a little offended. So what if he flirted left and right? John didn't come to ask him to stay away from Gwen or Cas or any of the other guys he'd thrown a thing or two at.
They stared at each other for a moment before John looked away. "Because I know you want him, but you're going to leave in a couple of months, and you're not going to look back. You are going to break his heart whether you want to or not. I just want you to walk away. Tell him that you're not interested, even if you have to lie."
Jack knew that John was speaking the truth, but he didn't want to admit to it. "That's just stupid. I'm not in the habit of breaking hearts. I understand what you're saying, but that's not me." He took a sip from his glass. "Ianto knows that I'm leaving, and he knows that I won't be coming back here. If he doesn't want to get his heart broken, he should just shy away from me. He is not my responsibility."
John sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. "You are not that ignorant. I know you care about him, so why can't you just make sure that he doesn't get the wrong idea?" He shook his head before he met Jack's eyes again. "You are a decent guy. I'm pretty sure that you're not going to con him into something he doesn't want, but if you love him, let him go."
It made sense. Jack didn't want to make Ianto unhappy, and he knew that could be the result if he didn't follow John's advice. He wished that things could have been different and that he had more time. If Ianto had been a bit older, they could have gone to New York together and see how it went. Surprised by his own thoughts he had to turn away from John. He didn't want the guy to see the doubt on his face.
He realized that he wanted Ianto in every way possible, and it scared him a little. Going to New York, being free as a bird, was the only scenario he had seen for himself up until now.
"What? Are you going to say something, or are the apple trees in the yard more important to you than the happiness of our mutual friend?" John had gotten up from the couch and was now standing in the middle of the floor.
Jack stopped staring out the window and turned slowly to face the guy. "I understand, and I will take your advice into consideration. Mind you. I still think this is non of your business, but I know that you are just looking out for a friend." He drew his breath. "By the way. Can we be civil about this and pretend to be mates for the remainder of the school year?"
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Sober and in a totally unfamiliar environment, Dean couldn't come up with much to say when they met up with Castiel after the concert. Cas didn't really have much time to chat anyway, but he thanked them for coming before the rest of his choir whisked him away for a private celebration after the successful performance.
Waiting around was not an option; they had no idea if Cas would be gone for long, so Dean and Unique just left.
It had been a nice experience, but Dean didn't know if it would change anything between him and Cas. It wasn't like they really hung out, and would definitely not count as a date.
He didn't know what he'd expected, but he'd hoped that Castiel would be thrilled about him showing up, and maybe say something clever about it; maybe give him a hidden message of some sort.
Dean hesitantly realized that nothing would happen between them unless he stepped up to the plate himself. How that was going to happen without a good amount of alcohol in his bloodstream would be something to ponder on, but he was pretty sure he was running out of time if he postponed it any longer.
In the choir room the next day, Dean wanted to tell Cas what he thought about the concert just as a means to actually start a real conversation with the guy, but the didn't get a chance. He was late as usual, and had to hurry to get seated, as Sam Evans made a short speech preparing them for the upcoming event.
He noticed that his brother was standing by the door, smiling at Jo. Something was going on between the two of them, but Sam hadn't shared anything about it so far. Dean threw a peek at the girl and got a little bit of a surprise. That t-shirt looked strangely familiar. He could have sworn that he'd seen that exact shirt in his own drawer only two days ago. Jo was practically swimming in it.
If his brother for some odd reason had lent her the shirt, it was perfectly okay with Dean. Even if he'd never get it back it was fine. He wouldn't wear it in a million years, and he wasn't especially proud of how it came to his possession anyway, so he was really happy about getting rid of it.
About two years ago, he'd been so pissed at his dad for not giving him money to buy new clothes and had ran out in a rage. He'd gone to a department store, determined to get something regardless. The first and only actual crime he had ever committed landed him with that ghastly shirt. He was so embarrassed afterwards that he'd kept it just to remind himself about never to venture out on that path again.
He looked at Jo again. It didn't look so bad anymore. It actually suited her fine. Her t-shirt could of course have nothing to do with him. Maybe Jo owned the exact same shirt? That it was a few sizes too big could probably be explained.
The others were talking about the car wash, and Dean suddenly realized that Mr Evans was addressing him. "Did you talk to your boss, Dean?" Dean needed a moment to adjust, but he had the answer ready. "Sure, yeah. He said it was okay, but asked if we could hand out fliers for his shop."
That wasn't a problem for anybody in there. "He even said that if this accumulated more customers for him, he'd chip in some cash to our cause."
After making a quite elaborate schedule for the the next few weeks of rehearsals, they divided the chores regarding the fundraiser. John and the Winchesters had to set up the car wash, while Gwen, Jane and Unique took care of the 'beauty-salon' bit.
They wouldn't have much time to socialize during the next few weeks, but Dean knew that there could be a few spare moments where he could possibly get a chance to talk to Cas if he just dared.
"That movie will have to wait until this is over, right?" Castiel nudged him as they walked out of the choir room a couple of hours later. This was Dean's chance to say something that would make the guy understand that he was interested, but again he chickened out. "Sure. Later. Definitely."
He could have beat himself up for being so evasive, and he could see that Cas looked a little disappointed. With everybody else around, Dean wasn't going to explain himself, but then Castiel grabbed his hand and shook it. After a split second of hesitation Cas leaned in and whispered: "It's a date then, right? When this is over, no matter how it goes, we will spend some time together alone." Dean was still holding Castiel's hand, and he squeezed it quickly before he smiled and nodded.
That was it. Everybody was pushing to get out, and they were forced apart by the crowd.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
"Working at the car wash
Working at the car wash, yeah
Come on and sing it with me, car wash
Sing it with the feeling now, car wash yeah…"
Dean seemed to have the day of his life as he sang loudly along with the background music. He shut up during the verse as he jokingly splashed water on a couple of the other choir members. None of them were overly amused, but Dean's enthusiasm was contagious so he got a crooked smile from Ianto.
The girls had refused to partake in the car wash event. "Girls in skimpy outfits getting wet is so yesterday's news." Gwen had Jane, Madison and Charlie on her side as she delivered the statement. "We have our own little thing going, so the boys have to step up for that."
"At the car wash, woooh
Talking about the car wash, yeah
Come on y'all and sing it for me
Car wash, woh, car wash yeah…"
John didn't see any problems with it, but he hadn't expected Dean to embrace the idea so wholeheartedly. He had to admit that the guy looked extremely hot in his skinny jeans and soaked tank-top.
After the decision was made, John contacted all his mother's friends and asked them to show up. It had worked wonders. For the first hour, they had cleaned four Beamers, two Mercs, and a Lexus. They charged $5, but all of the forty-something women had tipped them as well. Dean even got twenty dollars extra from one of them.
"Hey, get your car washed today
Be in our band, you don't have to pay
Come on and give us a play."
In between the luxury cars, they had a few other customers, and it was soon decided that Dean and Jack should take care of the ladies.
One reason for Dean's good mood could have to do with what happened in the locker room the other day. Beiste had found out about the video of Dean, and he was not happy. That the rest of the guys were mocking Dean for his participation in Glee-club didn't go unpunished.
The two guys behind the little film were forced to take part in the car wash business without getting payed. The big burly lineman and the slimmer, but tall, running back showed up in their football gear - helmets and all - and seemed to be on good terms with Dean regardless of their little prank.
Some of the clients actually wanted to have their car washed by them, and they too got tipped handsomely. They didn't get to keep the tip either, and Ianto, being in charge of the money, made sure they handed everything to him. He was too self-conscious to stand there soaking wet in a t-shirt. "I'm too flabby to do that." He's whispered to John when they planned the whole thing. John did not agree, Ianto was just as fit, or unfit as the rest of them, but they needed a money-man, and Ianto was good with numbers.
"Car wash
Talking about the car wash yeah
Car wash yeah
Come on y'all and sing it with me
Car wash
Sing it with feeling…"
Ianto wasn't the only one who had second thought about this. Castiel and Kevin weren't too eager to get wet either. The solution was to put them at the end of the line, and dry the cars off. The whole thing had been scrambled together in record time, and it looked to be a great success.
"Wowowoh
Those cars never seem to stop coming
Keeps those rags and machines coming
Let me tell you it's always cool…"
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Some of the girls were sitting inside the garage watching the boys. They had their own client-list, and they were talking about how to divide the chores. Keeping a keen eye on the lineman, Unique nudged Gwen as she leaned over to whisper into her ear. "I need a favor."
Jo was not happy. "I thought Sam was gonna be here. And I don't know nothin' about makeup. Not a lot anyway." Gwen wanted to comfort the girl, but she was eager to know what Unique needed help with. "I'm sure he'll show up, go ask Dean."
Reluctantly, Jo got up from her seat, but Dean was playing with the hose, so she turned back. "I don't want to get hosed down, he's out of control." She sat back down. She must have spotted the slightly disgruntled expression on Unique's face. "Did you want to get rid of me? Do you two have a secret?"
Unique shook her head vigorously. "No, no. Hey. I agree with you. You can see it too, Gwen. Dean is a little out of control. You think something happened. I mean, he… I don't know."
The little smile on her face told Gwen that she probably knew something, but she was obviously not going to share any information with Jo around. "Come on Jo. Let's go and talk to him. If he acts up, I'll give him a piece of my mind." Gwen grabbed Jo's arm and pulled her outside.
Fate struck, and as they were approaching Dean, Sam pulled up in the Impala. Jo ripped herself loose and ran over to the car, waving Gwen away.
"So. What do you need, and why is is a secret?" Gwen slumped down next to Unique as she asked. "Oh. It's not a secret per se, but Jo and Sam are... you know. She'll tell Sam and Sam will taunt his brother and…" Gwen didn't really need the long winded explanation. "Get to the point please."
Unique cleared her throat. "Well, could you ask Castiel to the prom?" She continued before Gwen got a chance to reply. "I was gonna ask him, but John… Cas is disappointed, and I, erm, I'm sure Dean wants him to come, but he's never going to ask him himself. You see my problem?"
Gwen cocked her head and stared at Dean as she addressed Unique. "Is that why Dean is so, so, so not Dean? Did something happen between the two of them?" It took a moment before she got an answer. Unique exhaled audibly before she drew her breath. "Well, no, er, yes. Not really, but there is no doubt that the two of them like each other a lot. They are both too chicken to do anything about it. Well. Dean is the chicken. Castiel is just naturally shy."
Castiel was not as shy as some people thought. Gwen had realized that a while ago, but in this case, she kind of agreed with Unique.
Dean had pulled off his soaking wet tank-top, and was leaning on the hood of the Impala talking to his brother and Jo. Gwen had never really looked at the guy thoroughly, but now she whistled quietly as she gave him a once over from afar. "You know. If we are all going together as a group anyway, one more wouldn't be a problem. I can ask him, but if you don't mind, I will tell him that he is free to go with Dean if the guy musters up the courage to ask."
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
It had been a blast. Castiel hadn't had so much fun in his life. That they had to call in the girls, was, at first, a little embarrassing, but it all worked out swimmingly.
His own part in this had been a little boring, but even if drying off cars wasn't the greatest job in the world, he felt like he was part of a team.
When it was all over - the last car driving away from the garage a few minutes before they closed - everybody joined in on a group hug. He wasn't anywhere near Dean. There were too many bodies separating them, but he met the guy's eyes through the crowd, and he could have sworn he got a wink.
It was something.
Ianto had counted the money. Even if it wouldn't cover all the costs, they had definitely chipped in on the budget. They didn't have the exact numbers for the nationals yet, but with what they could get from the beauty salon the girls were in charge of, they would be close.
They all agreed that they would try to squeeze a few more dollars out of their parents, and that would work for most of the guys. The only person in the choir that didn't have that option was Dean. Knowing that the guy had made enough tip to almost cover his own airfare, it would be tragic if he wouldn't be able to go.
The prom was another issue. Cas had really wanted to be there, but when John asked Unique and it looked like Dean wouldn't go anyway, he'd pushed it away. Maybe the two of them could do something together that evening instead? Cas had no idea what that could be, and he wasn't sure if he would dare to suggest it.
As they were tidying up and gathering their stuff, Gwen came up to him. "You really wanted to go to the prom, didn't you?" She gave him a bright smile as Cas wrung up the sponges and put them in a bag. "Well, sure, but it's not such a big deal. I get to do it next year." He tried to laugh it off, and hoped it sounded genuine.
"I was thinking maybe you and I, I mean… Do you want to be my date for the prom?" She blushed a little, but composed herself quickly. "We're friends, and Unique is so sorry that she couldn't take you. She didn't twist my arm or anything, and it's no bother to me. We are going as a group anyway."
It wasn't the most flattering invite he had heard, but Castiel understood perfectly. It was extremely tempting to take the offer even if Dean wouldn't be there. "I don't know. It would be fun, but you don't have to do this." Gwen nudged him gently with her shoulder. "I know, but it's really no problem. Mind you, if Dean asks you I will withdraw."
Castiel stopped what he was doing and looked at her. Did she really think that Dean would ever ask? Even if he was going to this event himself, he would never ask Cas to be his date. "Dean isn't even going, so that's out of the question. Will you let me think about it, or do you have someone else lined up?"
Gwen shook her head. "You're wrong. Dean is going. If I have to carry him there myself and push him through the door, he will be there." She gave him a crooked smile. "If he told you he wasn't, he's lying. John has already bought tickets for all of us, including Dean, and…" She lowered her voice. "I know that he doesn't have a lot of money, so we'll all chip in if he can't pay it back."
That was surprising news. Suddenly, Castiel didn't care if Gwen invited him out of pity. Dean would be there, and they would technically go together even if Cas would be Gwen's date for the evening. He tried not to sound too eager when he spoke again. "I mean, I have nothing better to do that night, so… It could be fun. Yeah, why not?"
Gwen patted his back. "Good boy. I'm not going to be a clingy date. I'll let you hang with Dean if that's what you want. Remember to not tell anyone. We don't want him to be discouraged from asking you himself."
It was kind of embarrassing to realize that Gwen understood why Castiel had a change of heart, but he tried to not let it show. He couldn't do anything about that regardless. "I think that will never happen, but thanks." It was okay if Gwen knew. So maybe the two of them weren't best friends or anything, but she seemed to have the best intentions, and he was pretty sure she'd keep the knowledge to herself.
Unique's part in this was a different story. He would have to have a serious conversation with her about sharing his secrets with others. Part of him was a little pissed, but he knew he would forgive her.