To The Moon (Destiel AU)

Chapter Four

When Cas finally got home from school, his dad was sitting in the same recliner, awake, with 6 beer bottles on the ground next to him. He was watching wrestling with a placid, glazed look on his face. Cas knew how to get past his dad without drawing attention to himself. He walked around the recliner silently. He thought he was home free when he heard glass shatter.

He jumped and turned to look at his dad. He noticed his shaggy, dark-brown hair was greasy enough to be flammable. He was in the same clothes he'd been in for the past two days. Cas looked down at the pile of beer bottles on the ground. Two were shattered now.

"What happened to your face, boy?" Cas reached up and lightly touched his cheekbone where he had slammed into the locker.

"Fight at school," Cas muttered. His dad stood up out of his chair so fast that he nearly fell over.

"What did you say?!" he shouted, "you know I hate it when you mumble!" His words slurred together and he swayed when he yelled. Cas felt his face turn red in anger. "I was in a fight. At school," he said with strong, loud words.

Most dads would be angry. They would probably ground their sons. They would make sure they weren't too hurt. But his dad leaned over and grabbed another empty beer bottle before Castiel could flinch. He threw it at Cas's head. Cas ducked and it crashed against the wall. He bolted upstairs and into his room, slamming the door and locking it. Even with the door shut, his dad could be heard shouting curse words. He knew that his dad wouldn't make it up the stairs and into his room, but he double checked that the doors were locked anyway. He walked over to his bed and sat down. His breathing was labored due to the adrenaline rush, so ran his hands through his hair to try to calm himself down. Even though this happened almost every day, it still shook him up. He walked over to his window and opened it up. It was screenless and he stepped out of it onto the roof.

Sometimes when he was lucky, Cas would get to see the sun set. It looked like he was going to be lucky today. He sat down and watched the edge of the woods behind his house. He waited and watched as the sun went down.

***

Cas woke up early the next morning, so he took extra time to get dressed. When he went downstairs for breakfast, he passed through the living room. The bottles weren't on the ground anymore, so Gabe must have picked them up. His dad wasn't in the chair either, so Cas figured he was asleep in his room. He grabbed a bowl and the cereal and milk and made breakfast. When he was done eating, he was still ten minutes early, so he walked to school slowly.

When he arrived, Dean was sitting on the hood of a black Impala. He looked at Cas and waved. Cas smiled and walked over to him. "Hey, I didn't know you walked to school," Dean said. "I do. I don't have a license, and Gabe has work early in the morning, so he's never home when I leave," Cas said, surprised by how easily conversation came to him.

"Well, I mean, I could drive you. Since I have the Impala," Dean said sheepishly. "Oh, you don't have to do that, Dean. I can walk. It's only a few miles." Dean insisted, "it's really not a big deal. Where do you live?"

Cas went over in his head what could happen if he gave Dean his address. If he gave it to him, he would have a ride when it was unbearably hot or cold and he would get to know Dean better. But where Cas lived, his dad lived also. And what would his dad say about him when he knew he was hanging out with Dean? He decided it was worth the risk. "415 Kings Road."

Dean smiled and Cas's stomach flipped a little. He was gorgeous. "Okay. I'll be there at 7:20 tomorrow morning."

"Alright. But don't ring the doorbell. Ever. My dad will hear," Cas said. The bell rang and they went to class.