Fame Crazy (Sequel to Strings Attached)

Chapter 23

"Hey, Claire," Castiel greets the girl, standing outside the bedroom she stayed in the night before.

Claire looks up from the backpack she came with, which she's putting the Grumpy Cat in. "Hey."

"Mind if I come in?"

Claire shrugs. "Sure. It was your room first anyway."

Castiel steps inside, leaning against the wall. "So, I was wondering, once you leave, do you have anyone else to go to? Friends, family?"

"Doesn't matter," she replies.

"Just... humor me."

She sighs. "No. My family hates me and I don't have friends. Happy now?"

"Sort of, yeah," Castiel replies, earning a confused look. "My dad was wondering, and I think it's a great idea, do you want to stay here for a while? I mean, if you've got nowhere else, we could always use another Novak now that Gabe and I have moved out."

Claire doesn't answer for a moment. Finally, she asks, "Are you serious right now?"

Castiel nods. "Yep."

She grins. "Awesome! Thank you! You're the best!"

"It was really my Dad's idea, actually," Castiel tells her. "I'm only here for another week, anyway. I'm just the messenger."

"I'd still be out on the streets if it wasn't for you," she reminds him. "So thank you." She pauses as something registers. "Does this mean I can't skip school like I could if I lived alone?"

Castiel can't help but chuckle at that. "Yes, Claire. You still have to go to school."

"Dammit!"

Castiel laughs. "It's a small price to pay. Plus, Michael is a freaking genius, so you've got your homework help right there."

Claire scoffs. "Homework? No thank you."

She doesn't do her homework? Castiel used to have an internal freak out if he didn't have his done. How can she voluntarily not do her homework?

"Okay, welcome to the Novak house," Castiel says. "Rule one: do well in school. Rule two: don't kill Lucifer, even when he's really, really annoying."

"Why Lucifer?" Claire asks.

"You'll figure it out pretty soon. But that's not the point. You have to actually at least try to do well in school. You know, no ditching class, do most of your homework."

Actually, looking back on high school, even as such a good student, he probably ditched class more than any of his siblings. In his defense, though, he had more of a reason to do so. None of his siblings got bullied, which really isn't fair, but he's not bitter about it. Okay, maybe a little bit.

"Why bother?" Claire asks. "It's stupid."

"You can't graduate high school until you get your twenty seven credits," he reminds her. "So do it. It'll save you a year or two."

"But it's ridiculous!" she protests. "Why not just do the work in class? School already takes seven hours out of my life. Why should I let it take any more?"

"You don't even go to class for most of those seven hours, do you?"

"Well, no, but that's not the point."

"It's exactly the point," Castiel tells her. "I don't think you realize how important school is."

"Says the guy who dropped out of high school and doesn't use his high school education for shit."

"None of that was true," Castiel tells her. "I did it online, and high school still helps me. My songs from middle school suck."

"I doubt that."

"Trust me, they do," he replies. "But I learned new vocab words and boom, better songs. And the books I read would have lines that would just sort of inspire something, too. So, if nothing else, English class helped me out."

"Well, I'm not gonna be a songwriter, so..."

"What do you want to be?" Castiel asks.

"Hell if I know."

"Anything," he adds. "Anything at all."

"I don't know," she repeats. "Like, I honestly don't have a clue. I sorta just want to be lazy."

"Then maybe songwriting is for you," Castiel jokes. "No, but really, though. If you don't know what you're aiming for, you might as well be ready for anything. Junior year isn't too late to get your grades up. Good grades means good college, which means good job."

"I don't need a good job," she replies. "I'll just work at McDonald's."

"They barely pay minimum wage," he reminds her.

"Then I'll be a stripper. God knows that pays well."

"You know you've reached a new low when being a stripper is a goal."
"I wouldn't actually be a stripper. I have a little more self respect than that."

"Well, I'd hope so," Castiel replies. "Because you're capable of way more than that."

"You don't know me at all," she reminds him. "All you've got to go off is your brother and sister, and I've never spoken to Samandriel until today, and Anna and I don't exactly get along. I'm sure she's filled you in. I don't even get why you're still talking to me."

"Maybe I like you," Castiel suggests.

Claire scoffs. "Right. Because it's not like we just met yesterday or anything. No, wait, don't tell me. This is going to be one of those cliché 'you remind me of myself' moments, isn't it?"

"You are pretty much the opposite of high school me so yeah, not so much," Castiel replies. "I just think you have potential. And as long as you don't mess with any of Lucifer's ships, I think you'll be a great addition to the Novak house."

"Well, thanks, Castiel," Claire says with a small, grateful smile. "I'll try not to be a complete disappointment."

"Have you met Lucifer? Trust me; the standard isn't that high."