Dean swung himself over the side of his bed and crossed the floor of his bedroom, the laminated wood cold beneath his bare feet as he stepped into the en suite bathroom, flicking on the light as he shut the door behind him.
Rubbing sleep from his eyes, he blinked up at his reflection in the mirror above the sink with a groggy yawn, he'd had a rather eventful night.
His brother had invited him out for drinks at a local hot spot. Some friends had joined them, and they ended up staying out rather late.
Which meant Dean would be late for his first day at his new job, an assistant position for some big time higher-up. Fuck, he couldn't screw up this first impression but every time Sammy promised one last drink, it had led to more.
"Shit..." he muttered to his reflection as he quickly brushed his teeth, huffing at himself.
He'd definitely give Sam an earful if his drunken antics got him fired, though he really only had himself to blame.
He shrugged his shoulders, hastily brushing down his messy hair before returning to his bedroom to find some decent clothes to wear.
He assumed his new boss would expect him to dress up a little bit, he also hoped it would make a good impression.
Maybe Dean could make the excuse of wanting to make a good impression and fretting over what to wear the reason he showed up late.
At 9:05, Dean showed up at the office building, double checking he'd had the right address when the parking attendant waved him through to the parking garage.
He did his best to ignore how attractive the attendant looked, a cute blonde named Gabriel. Dean had smiled brightly when he'd complimented the Impala, and damn if that didn't make Dean like him more.
Having found a decent parking spot giving him enough space on either side of his car to make sure nobody could possibly scuff or ding his baby, Dean got out.
He entered the elevator on the third floor of the parking garage to take him up to the main office lobby, the doors opened on the fifth floor as a man in a dark three piece suit with striking black hair and piercing blue eyes stepped in with Dean.
"Oh, hello... I don't believe I've seen you around here," the man's voice was deep and gravely, it made the hairs on the back of Dean's neck stand on end. He gave Dean a half smile hitting the button for eighth floor.
"I'm new... First day actually," Dean responded, nodding politely at the man. Dean suspected by the man's attire, he was probably someone high-up. He also looked to be a few years older than him, not that that bothered Dean.
"Well, welcome and good luck. This place can be a little overwhelming for first timers," the man quirked an eyebrow up at Dean, and that small gesture made Dean feel all tingly inside for some reason.
"Thanks," Dean gave a nervous smile, all the more worried about the fact he'd shown up late despite his best efforts to beat traffic. He honestly hated screwing up first impressions, especially when it came to working.
The two of them rode in silence, Dean waved good-bye as he stepped out onto the floor he'd been trying to reach. The man nodded in reply as the elevator doors closed on him.
Dean swallowed a lump in his throat looking around at the pristine interior of the lobby, it definitely wasn't like anywhere else he'd worked before.
He walked over to a big circular desk in the middle of floor, smiling sincerely at the woman sitting behind it. She had curly blond hair and wore a dark gray pantsuit.
"Hello, how may I help you sir?" the woman, Dean read her name tag 'Meg' asked as he came to stand in front of the desk, she gave him a polite smile.
"Yes, Dean Winchester... I'm here for an assistant job," it came out as almost a question because Dean's nerves had managed to get the better of him.
"Oh, yes we've been expecting you Mr. Winchester... Mr. Novak's office is on the eighth floor, just take the elevator," she indicated the elevator set in the wall behind the desk.
"And it'll be the third door on your right, past the restrooms," Meg continued with that polite smile as Dean nodded.
"Eighth floor?" Dean repeated, giving Meg a curious look as if something hadn't quite registered in his brain. Meg simply nodded in response.
Dean quickly made his way over to the elevator Meg had pointed him towards, hitting the call button, he was surprised it opened after just a few seconds.
Once inside, Dean leaned back against the far wall and closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly to calm himself. Could the man he'd met earlier have been Mr. Novak?
Dean's mind was racing, what if he'd somehow knew Dean was late for the job? Did Dean already screw up his first impression? There was only one way to find out.
The elevator dinged as it reached the eighth floor, the doors opening just as Dean hurried out of it. He walked down the corridor lined with offices and meeting rooms until he found the office Meg said would be Mr. Novak's.
He knocked a handful of times, not wanting to just walk in and unintentionally disrupt anything Mr. Novak was possibly in the middle of.
A youngish looking man opened the door, catching Dean off guard. "Ah, there you are... Come in, come in," the young man spoke quickly, ushering Dean inside the office, shutting the door behind him.
"Mr. Novak is on the phone at moment, please make yourself comfortable," the man gestured to a row of chairs in what Dean assumed was a waiting room.
Dean moved to sit in the chair closest to him, fiddling absentmindedly with a button on his shirt as he sat. He could only pray at this point Mr. Novak wasn't the man from the elevator.
After what felt like forever, the door to Mr. Novak's office opened and Dean swore he'd died in that instance as sure as shit the man from the elevator stepped through it.
Shit, shit, shit Dean's mind was screaming at him. He could only hope he wouldn't immediately get turned away the second Mr. Novak recognized him.
"Ah, hello again... You must be Mr. Winchester," Mr. Novak greeted turning to face Dean, giving him a quick smile.
"Please call me Dean, Mr. Winchester was my old man" Dean offered nervously, standing up and stepping over to shake Mr. Novak's hand briefly.
Castiel shook Dean's hand, eyebrow crooked curiously at the younger man. He hadn't expected to see him again after their brief interaction in the elevator earlier.
"Please," Castiel gestured towards his office, Dean moving to follow him inside as the door clicked shut behind them.
Castiel moved around to sit behind his desk, watching as Dean hesitantly took up the chair opposite him at the large oak desk.
He took note of the navy blue button up, iron pressed jeans and tennis shoes Dean was wearing, as well as his slicked back hair, beautifully tanned skin and remarkable green eyes.
"So tell me, Dean, have you ever worked as an assistant before?" Castiel inquired leaning forward on his elbows, his eyes catching Dean's.
"No, sir... But I used to work with my uncle Bobby at his garage, so I understand being a hard worker," Dean responded sincerely, feeling nervous having Castiel looking at him so intently.
"Then I don't doubt you'll do a good job for me, I basically just need someone to run errands and whatnot..." Castiel leaned back into his plush leather office chair, eyes still on Dean.
"I am a bit of a people pleaser," the words more or less slipped out of Dean without his permission, gulping audibly when he realized what he'd just said.
Castiel hid the surprise at that sentence with his best neutral expression, and took the moment of silence between them to pull a notepad from one his desk drawers.
He scribbled something on it before passing it to Dean across the desk, Dean accepted it and held it up to read to himself. It was a more or less a to do list.
"Please have that done by this evening," Castiel moved to stand, gesturing for Dean to leave his office. Dean threw him a quick smirk and made his exit, paper in hand.