Best Friend's Brother

Chapter 11

When the police left, the room fell silent. Castiel couldn't bring himself to look Dean in the eye, or anywhere for that matter. Sam sat awkwardly on the couch, Castiel stared at his hands while Dean stared into space. Dean sat still: leaning forwards with his arms resting on his legs. His hand were locked together and his face was stern.

"Why did you lie to me?" Dean asked in a whisper. Castiel didn't answer. "Why didn't you tell me who attacked you?" Slowly, Dean turned to look at Castiel, but he was staring at his hands. Castiel refused to look anywhere else. He had already experienced an angry Dean, he's seen the look in his eyes before, and he doesn't want to see that again.

"I didn't want you to do anything stupid", he admitted.

Dean jumped up from his chair and glared at Castiel. "ANYTHING STUPID?!" He yelled in anger. "HE ATTACKED YOU, CAS! YOU COULD HAVE DIED! HELL, YOU WOULD HAVE IF I DIDN'T FIND YOU IN TIME!" Dean's face turned red with anger. His hands were balled up into fists as he fought the urge to punch something. Luckily, if he breaks his hand, he's already at the hospital. "AND YOU EXPECT ME TO SIT BACK AND DO NOTHING?!"

Castiel glanced up at Dean were a stern look. "Yes", he said firmly. "Because the police are dealing with it. I do not want you involved in anything. I want you to forget this ever happened and let the police do their job. The guy who attacked me will get what he deserves. I don't want to worry about you doing something you'll regret", Castiel explained.

"Oh, trust me, I won't regret breaking his bones", Dean said in a harsh tone.

"Dean", Castiel said warningly.

Sigh and rolling his eyes, Dean said, "Fine! I promise not to track down and harm that dick who attacked you".

Castiel smiled. "Thank you".

Dean was still fighting the urge to punch something - or someone - and Castiel continued to stare at his hands. The awkward silence was killing Dean, so he began to leave the room. "Where are you going?" Castiel asked. Dean stopped and looked at him.

"Out", he answered. "I just need to cool down". He could see that Castiel was anxious. "Don't worry, I promised I wouldn't harm him". Castiel's shoulders relaxed and Dean left the hospital. He stood outside the building and took deep breaths. His eyes were closed while he tried to focus on something good.

"The police are doing their job", Dean whispered to himself. "Let them handle it. You promised Cas. You couldn't protect him from the attack, but you can prevent hurting his feelings. Don't do anything stupid. But what if I track the guy down and tell the police? I can find him faster than the police, and I would be doing something good". Dean smiled. "When we get back home, I'll start looking for him".

<3

When Dean had left the room, Castiel turned to Sam. "Why is he like that?" Castiel asked.

Sam stood up and sat in Dean's chair. He sighed before saying, "Dean feels like it's his job to save everyone. And when he... 'fails', he blames himself. And then he gets angry, at himself mainly, but he does have a shorter temper than usual. I hate it when he gets like this because he continues to beat himself up for something he didn't do. But that's why he beats himself up, because he didn't do anything. He feels like he has to protect everyone, and all the emotions he pushes down flow out of him like a river. All that anger, pain, sadness. He lashes out at those around him".

"But it's not his fault", Castiel stated.

"No", Sam agreed. "But he thinks it is. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders, and it's slowly killing him".

"He's quite scary when he gets like this", Castiel admitted.

"Yeah", Sam smiled. "He's a really good fighter, and he's crazy good at hunting. Our uncle, not really our uncle, but he was there for us when we needed him - he's more like a father to us - he would take us hunting. I never really liked it, I didn't like the idea of harming an innocent creature. But Dean... he was ruthless, merciless, heartless. He wouldn't even blink when he shot an animal. It scared the shit out of me".