Jo sat looking between them skeptically, the silence thick. She finally sighed, muttering a quiet, "Aw, hell."
"Look, I love you both very much. I've known you both forever, and it seems like you've made a genuine connection. I'm kinda miffed that you didn't just tell me," she looked at Cas, "HOWEVER, I also understand that this situation is a special circumstance. I'll support you guys as long as I know that everything is good and happy and CONSENSUAL and healthy." She finished.
Cas hugged Jo tightly. "Thank you." He whispered.
"You're welcome." She replied as they pulled away, though after smiling softly at Cas, her eyes flitted to a fidgeting Dean. "I'll keep a lookout." She said, winking at Cas and pushing him in Dean's direction.
He walked over to the taller man and brought a hand up to caress his soft cheek. Dean snaked an arm into the small of Cas's back, pulling him forward, and Castiel leaned into him, savoring the warmth. He hummed and sighed.
Dean brought a hand up to Castiel's shoulder, very gently pushing him away just enough to lean in and capture his lips. Cas's hands immediately found their place on Dean's neck as their lips danced against each other. Tongues began battling for dominance. Dean massaged Castiel's waist and began lifting the thin material of his shirt, sliding his hands underneath. Castiel shuddered a breath, pulling away.
"Dean." He whispered, cheeks flushed, eyes darting to Jo. Dean chuckled softly.
"Alright," he smiled, running his thumbs across Castiel's ribs. "Tomorrow?" He asked against the shorter boy's lips. They joined once again briefly. Castiel nodded, smiling sweetly.
He leaned in close to Dean's ear. "Tomorrow." He growled, laying a hot, wet kiss to Dean's neck. Dean exhaled with the softest hint of a moan, hands sliding to grip Cas's hips. He quickly stepped away, much to Dean's chagrin.
Before the older man could respond, Castiel grabbed Jo's arm. She turned, "You ready?" He asked innocently. She nodded.
"Bye, Dean!" She said, fluttering her eyelashes and puckering her lips dramatically.
"Oh my GOD," Cas rolled his eyes and lightly and repeatedly smacked her until she was pushed out the door. He leaned around the nearly closed door so that only his torso could be seen by Dean. He winked and slowly ran his tongue across his top lip seductively. Dean's eyes darkened as he began walking towards the door, but before the older man could reach him he popped out and shut the door behind him.
Dean propped himself up against the wall next to the door with a hand, panting.
OOOOOO he is going to GET IT tomorrow.
~~~~~~~
Castiel turned around, chuckling, and immediately met Jo's quizzical gaze as she shuffled awkwardly. He rubbed the back of his neck.
"Yeah." He said simply, not knowing what else to say. They began walking slowly down the hall side by side.
"So, uh, how long have you two been...?" Jo trailed off.
Cas exhaled through his teeth. "Hm. A month? Ish? Yeah." He said sheepishly.
"That's, that's a while." She said hollowly. "Were you ever going to tell me?" She looked at him. He faltered.
"Jo, it was just- I wanted to. I did. But, it was much safer for us if NOBODY knew, you know?" He tried. "I would've told you eventually, we're just kind of in a shit situation right now."
"I know, it just...didn't you trust me?" She asked. Cas felt his insides twisting.
"Of course I trust you, but I-I didn't know, I didn't know if you'd be okay with it." He said quietly.
"You know, I honestly don't know if I am yet."
Castiel's head snapped up in concern. His eyes flew to her worried expression, her brows knit tightly together.
"Jo-"
"Cas, I'm not going to tell anyone, but I have a right to be skeptical. Dean is your teacher and you've only known each other for a very short period of time. Not to mention, you both don't exactly have the best track records when it comes to relationships." She continued walking. Cas fell behind, solemnly and silently processing her words.
Am I doing something wrong..??
Then why does it...why does HE feel so right?
He's not that much older than I am...
But it's still a large gap in life experience.
But I'm happy.
"Castiel?"
Cas didn't realize he had stopped. His mouth was bitter and the space behind his eyes had begun to throb.
"I'm, I'm gonna go." He said, pushing past her and rushing off down the hall. He heard her calling after him, but his legs propelled him forward.
~~~~~~~
Jo watched Cas wall away despite her attempts to call him back.
Am I being a bad best friend?
She sighed, turning back towards Dean's classroom.
When she reached the door, she knocked, and after hearing a muffled "come in", she twisted the handle.
Dean looked surprised to see her as he sat at his desk, glasses perched on his nose.
"Hey, kiddo. What's up?" He asked, taking the black frames off and folding them.
She walked in, sitting on a table across from his desk and crossing her arms.
"What the hell?" She asked, looking incredulously at him. He furrowed his brow.
"What do you mean, 'what the hell'?" He said, exasperated.
"What are you doing with him?" She said hotly.
Dean leaned back in his chair, face hardening. "Look, I get that this is a little jarring for you, but this is between Cas and I. Besides weren't YOU the one who told me to do this?"
"I told you to fix the situation so Castiel would stop feeling awful all the time. I thought you would let him down easy so he could get over it and move on, not THIS." She huffed. Dean was alarmed.
"What happened to the whole 'I'll support you' speech?" He said, narrowing his eyes at her.
"I also specified that it must be a healthy and good situation, and I can't guarantee that it is right now." She said, sighing, her resolve beginning to crumble.
"Don't you think you're being a little..." He hesitated.
"A little WHAT?" She mused.
"Overbearing? Ridiculous? Dictating?" He said, stifling a smile.
She huffed, rolling her eyes. "Whatever. You're the worst." She mumbled grumpily. Dean chuckled.
"I get that you're worried, but I'm happy, Cas seems happy, so as long as we just keep it to ourselves, it's fine. We're not hurting anyone." Dean said sincerely. Jo nodded hesitantly,
"If you do anything to hurt him, I'm gonna get mom, Bobby, AND Sam to help me whoop your ass." Jo said as she hopped off the desk and waltzed towards the door.
"I'm sure you will."
~~~~~~
"These lyrics are really good, Balth!" Cas said, scanning over the paper within his hand. Balthazar smiled shyly.
"Thanks." He chuckled. Garth began plucking his bass, looking up thoughtfully and scrunching his eyes shut.
"Mmmmmmm. Eh. Ehh?" He made noises as he played.
"Dude, what are you doing?" Ash laughed.
"SHH. I'm making a bass line." He hushed his band mates. Cas heard a lick he liked.
"WOAH, wait, play that again." He said, pointing towards Garth.
"Shit, which one?" He said.
"The little 'do bum bah dum'" He imitated. Garth played what he thought was right once again.
"YES. That shit is TASTY. Record that or write it down or something." Cas said excitedly.
They worked like this all period, writing one of many songs for what would eventually become their first album.
As they packed up, Cas looked over his fellow musicians.
"Guys. That was great, we made a lot of progress today." He said happily as he wound up a cable. The other nodded in agreement.
"That was a sweet session." Garth added, slipping on his backpack. Ash
"We'll finish it next time and have a run through to work out the kinks??" Cas asked hopefully.
Ash nodded as he moved towards the door, Garth close behind.
"For sure dude." Ash gave a hang loose. The two boys walked out.
As Balth stacked the last amp on top of a larger one below it.
"Nice work, Cassie." He said, hands on his hips.
"Thanks dude." He said, fidgeting with the cable he still held. He began to feel a little uncomfortable as he thought about what Charlie had told him the other day.
Balth walked towards him, an odd look in his eye. As he passed Castiel, he got a little too close, putting a hand on his shoulder and squeezing lightly. He leaned in and Cas could feel his breath on his ear.
"Anytime."
As his hand left Castiel's shoulder, it slid down his arm, lingering before releasing and continuing to walk out the door.
Cas didn't turn around. He stood frozen in place, waiting for the sound of the door shutting to propel him forward. He quickly locked up the locker, trying to shake off the thought of Balthazar's hands on him.
He's just shooting his shot, it's not his fault he kind of disgusts you.
Cas tried to give his friend the benefit of the doubt, but something about the way Balthazar had looked at him unsettled him.
It'll be fine.
~~~~~~
About a week later, Castiel paced nervously back and forth at the front of the band room.
"Dude. You're gonna wear a groove in the floor. Calm your shit." Garth said as he set up. Cas stopped.
"Sorry." He mumbled and moved to help Garth.
"What's up with you today?" Ash asked.
"Just nervous is all." He said as he plugged an extension cord into the wall.
"Castiel is NERVOUS?" Balth said chuckling.
"Shut up." He groaned.
"So what's the occasion? What's got Cassie all worked up?" Balthazar's continued. Cas's mouth turned sour at his words.
"We don't ever perform originals for anyone. I'm just worried is all." He half-truthed. He WAS worried about performing a song they wrote themselves, but he was also extremely anxious because of a certain blonde-haired, green-eyed GOD who would soon be arriving.
He jumped slightly at a slight knock on the wall. His head snapped up to see Dean waving at them.
"Hey teach!"
"Winchester! Glad you could make it!"
The guys greeted him happily. Cas smiled shyly and gave him a small wave.
"Alright, lets do this." Cas said, determined, almost just to himself.
"Hell yeah!"
~~~~~~~
(Play Bad Behavior by the Maine and then pretend that the boys wrote it don't worry about it)
Cas felt a little more confident than the last time. He was looser, he could move freely with the jiving tempo.
"I never wanna be a distraction"
You say as
You're unashamed and naked
I feel okay all over
Void of all composure
And I know this may sound narcissistic
I like the lips you kiss with
But I want to wear your lipstick
'Cause it means I got to kiss them
Castiel felt the rejuvenation of performing once again. This song felt perfect in his voice, and he was on top of the world.
Dean watched excitedly, subconsciously tapping to the infectious beat. He couldn't help but smile as Castiel winked at him.
As the chorus kicked in, Balthazar's arms went wild, Garth and Ash emphasizes the hit with the necks of their guitars, and Castiel stepped and swayed with the beat.
One, two hits
Her lips
And bad behavior
I'm in danger
Three, four a.m
The feeling's getting stranger
I'm in danger
Bad behavior
Instead of his usual method of performing only for people who weren't there (and mostly trying desperately not to look at him), Cas had all his attention on Dean.
Today, he had ditched the stand in favor of a single wireless mic giving him the stability to move more freely. Taking full advantage of this, he moved out of his little circle in the middle of the other three boys and made his way to Dean.
Dean shifted in his seat as Castiel slunk towards him.
How is he so hot?