Fic: Send Out an SOS (1/2)
Jan. 11th, 2011 11:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dauntperplexityTitle: Send Out an SOS
Author: DauntPerplexity
Rating: PG 13
Genre: Humor, Romance
Characters and/or Pairing: Bobby, Sam, Dean/Castiel
Spoilers: None
Warnings: kissing
Word Count: 3846
Summary: He lost something, and now the universe had to pay. Or at least suffer.
Author’s Note: Fourth in my Vegas!Verse. This one comes after Got Me into This. I guess that it’s the first sign of trouble in their marriage. I have a lot of stories set up for this series, and I have a lot of time to write them now because I don’t have school! Yay!
Dean wasn’t a jealous person. He wasn’t. If you asked him, he would say that he wasn’t. He would swear in court, provide documents, call up witnesses, and all that other legal terminology that Sam knew better. Or he could just deny it until he was out of breath, because there was no way he was going to say that he was jealous that his husband was talking to a woman.
Because he wasn’t.
Jealousy was the last emotion he felt as his eyes bore into Castiel’s back. Because jealousy was a step and a handshake away from possessiveness. And Castiel wasn’t an object. He was a person allowed to talk to anyone he wanted. Even if Dean didn’t like it.
“Dean? Dean!”
He stopped staring at Castiel for a second long enough for him to realize that his brother was talking to him. “Yeah.”
“You didn’t hear a word I just said, did you?” Sam glared at his older brother.
“I did.”
“Okay,” Sam replied, unconvinced. “So what should I do?”
Dean grabbed his beer and took a few sips from it. He set the bottle down and looked back to Castiel who had a smile on his face. “You should go to a doctor and have it checked out.”
“Dean!”
“What?”
“You’re jealous.”
“No, I’m not.” He grabbed his beer and drank the rest of it down.
“Dean, if you don’t like Castiel talking to that woman, just go over and grab him. He is your husband.”
“Cas can talk to who he wants.”
“That doesn’t mean you have to like it,” Sam said, because he knew that everything about the way his brother was acting told him that he wanted to be anywhere but where he was, with Castiel at his side.
“Sam, shut up. We aren’t high school girls that like to gossip.”
“Fine. But you don’t get to be bitching and moaning about this when you realize that you are jealous.”
“I’m not jealous.”
“Of course not.”
Dean stood up from his seat. “I need another beer.”
“Dean.”
“It’s okay, Sam. Promise,” he said with a wink.
He walked over to the bar and waited for the bartender to look his way. He didn’t have to wait long until a short, redhead stepped his way. “What can I get you, sweetheart?” she asked with a seductive smile.
“Coors.”
“Got it.”
She pulled a bottle of beer out and popped the cap off. She slid the bottle over to him.
“Thanks.” Dean grabbed the bottle and drank as much as he could in one go. He put the bottle down and turned to look out into the bar.
He saw Castiel and the woman still talking to each other. He smiled as Castiel got up from his seat and stepped away from the woman. But he wasn’t quick enough as she grabbed onto his and pulled him back into his seat. Then Dean showed the most self-restraint any person could as he watched the woman climb into Castiel’s lap.
Dean spun back to the bar and grabbed his beer. He was surprised to see the bartender still standing behind him. “Can I get you anything else, handsome?”
Dean was about to say no when he looked back and saw the girl in Castiel’s lap leaning to either whisper something in or nibble on his ear. If he were any other person in a relationship with the angel, he would’ve walked over and grabbed Castiel and never let him go for the rest of the night. But he wasn’t jealous. “Tequila. A lot of tequila.”
“Sure thing, gorgeous.” She pulled out a bottle of Patron and poured him a shot.
He drank it back with ease. “One more,” Dean said, knowing that he was going to be saying that a bunch more times before the night was over.
He also knew that his body was going to hate him in the morning.
Dean woke up and saw that Castiel was still asleep beside him. He rolled out of bed trying hard to not make a sound and wake up Castiel, although he would be awake moments later.
He grabbed his clothes out of his drawer and headed into his bathroom. He was not able to make it there last night. He didn’t even know how he made it to his bedroom. He knew that his husband had something to do with it. He sent one more look his husband’s way then stepped into his bathroom.
He wanted to wash the hangover from his body and to forget drinking himself into a stupor the night before. He couldn’t remember anything after his sixth shot of tequila. He hoped that he didn’t do anything he’d regret.
Ten minutes in the shower was long enough for him, so he stepped out, and toweled off. He threw on his clothes and stepped out of the bathroom. He wasn’t surprised to not see Castiel in bed. He knew that Castiel never stayed asleep if Dean wasn’t in bed with him.
He walked downstairs and saw Bobby and Sam waiting for him at the bottom with their arms across their chests. “What?” he walked past them and toward the kitchen.
“What’s wrong with you two?” Bobby asked, following the older Winchester with the younger in tow.
“What are you talking about?” Dean replied, taking a seat.
“You and Cas,” Sam added.
“Still doesn’t answer my question,” Dean said, reaching for a piece of bacon from the plate in the middle of the table.
“You didn’t walk down the stairs together,” the younger Winchester said.
“What?”
“Everyday, you guys come down the stairs together. Or at least within like a minute of each other.”
“Okay, it’s weird that you notice something like that.”
“Well, today, Cas came down a lot earlier than you did.”
“He doesn’t have to wait for me to come down the stairs, Sam.”
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” Dean replied, because from his end, nothing was wrong. “Where’s Cas?”
“I think he went out for something. He didn’t say what. He said he wasn’t hungry yet. It’s the most mysterious he’s been since we first met him. Are you sure that you aren’t fighting?”
“We don’t fight unless it has to do with a hunt.”
“Got it,” Sam said. “But are you—”
“Unless I said something last night. Because I honestly can’t remember past eleven o’clock.”
“Because you weren’t jealous, right?”
“Yeah. So breakfast and or lunch?” He swore that he could’ve heard the both of them roll their eyes.
Dean went on with his day, business as usual. He ran some errands for Bobby in town, did some research for hunters that called the elder hunter for hunts in their own towns, and helped clean up the mess he made making his way up to his room the night before.
Somehow during his schedule, he made his way to the Impala and gave her a well-deserved tune up and car wash. As nice as the outside was, the interior looked like it got into a fight with him last night, and won.
He did that until he was called into the house for food. He looked at his watch and didn’t even realize that it was almost dinner time. And more importantly, Castiel didn’t come home. But he didn’t think too much of it. No matter how long Castiel was in Heaven or doing other business, he was always able to make his way back into their bed at night.
After dinner and a shower, he sat down in the living room with a beer in hand watching whatever program Bobby had put on. He finished his beer and made his way upstairs, realizing how tired he actually was.
He wanted to wait up for Castiel to come back and crawl into bed with him, but with all of the errands and housework he did, he was exhausted.
He fell asleep after only an hour of waiting up for Castiel.
Dean woke up and saw that Castiel’s side of the bed was undisturbed. It upset him a little, but he got over it. He figured that Castiel had to be busy in Heaven and would get back to him when he was done. He had been spending a lot of time on Earth, so it made sense that Castiel had to spend a little extra time in Heaven to balance it out.
He went through his normal morning routine of showering, brushing his teeth, and getting dressed. When he looked put together, he stepped out of the room, and headed downstairs.
He found Bobby and Sam in the kitchen. Bobby pulled out a plate of bacon and eggs and set it on the middle of the table. Sam walked over with three mugs and a fresh pot of coffee. Dean reached for the pot immediately and poured a cup for each of them.
“Where’s Cas?” Sam asked.
“I don’t know,” Dean said, taking a sip. “I don’t think he came back last night.”
“You not worried?” Bobby asked.
“Not really. He’s been gone for longer times before. He’ll be back.”
“I don’t know, Dean,” Sam replied.
“Yeah, that’s two days in a row we haven’t seen the happy couple join us for breakfast.”
“It’s nothing,” Dean replied.
He settled down with a cup of coffee in his right hand and a strip of bacon in the left. He was starving and he needed the food to calm his stomach from last night. He took a sip of his coffee, savoring the bitter taste. After he set down his cup, he took a bite of bacon.
Then he saw it.
“What the hell?” he yelled.
“What’s wrong?”
“How did that happen?” he continued yelling, ignoring his brother’s comment.
“Dean,” Sam said, trying to get his brother’s attention.
Without a word, Dean ran back upstairs closing and locking the door behind him, knowing it would do nothing if Castiel just zapped back into the room if he wanted. He went straight for the sheets on the bed, stripping it down to the mattress, hoping for a glimmer or a tiny ping.
Hope was not enough and he balled up everything and tossed it on the mattress. He’d fix it as soon as the crisis passed.
His next search took him to his clothes that he wore two nights before. He searched through every pocket of every shirt he wore, turning his jeans inside out, even searching through his socks. He threw them on the pile on the bed then headed to his bathroom. After a few minutes of searching, he found nothing.
He wanted to cry. He could not believe that he lost his ring. But he’d find it. He had to. All he needed to do was retrace his steps from that night.
He stood in the middle of his room, sighing. He hated feeling this anxious.
The anxiousness intensified when he heard the sound of wings flapping behind him. “Dean?” Castiel whispered.
“What, Cas?” he spun around and yelled, and immediately regretted it. He was frustrated and he had no right to take it out on the angel.
“I…nevermind,” he replied, looking to the floor. “We’ll talk later.”
“Cas,” Dean whispered, wanting to apologize. “Sure thing.”
Castiel nodded once and left the room.
Dean sat down on his bed and groaned. He needed to fix this before he said or did something else he’d regret. And he knew that Castiel out of all people didn’t deserve his anger.
He jumped up from his bed and ran out the door. He saw Sam waiting at the bottom with a very confused look on his face. He went straight for the front door and was about to step out when his brother pushed the door shut.
“Where are you going?” Sam asked.
“I… I need to go to the bar,” Dean said.
“Dean, it’s not even noon.”
“I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Dean.”
“Give me some time to figure this out.”
“Figure what out?” Sam asked, not know what his brother was talking about.
But Dean ignored him and ran out the door.
He jumped into the Impala and thought about searching through it, but he didn’t want to do it with Sam and Bobby ready to follow him and ask a bunch of questions. He drove all the way to bar thinking up of the game plan.
His thoughts didn’t go very far because he could only think of the fact that he yelled at Castiel. Instead his thoughts went to how he was going to apologize and make it up to his husband.
Twenty minutes and four AC/DC songs later, he pulled into the parking lot of the bar they were at last night. He tore open the doors to the Impala and searched in every crevice of his car for it. But it wasn’t in the car, and something inside of him knew it wasn’t going to be especially since he cleaned it the day before.
So, he headed for option D, or maybe E. He walked into the bar and saw a familiar face. It was the woman who served him the shots of tequila that he remembered. He walked over to the bar and sat down. She looked up from wiping down the bar and greeted him with a smile. “Hey, handsome.”
“You… you were the one serving me drinks two nights ago.”
“Yes, I’m the one that made a very impressive tip because you love the taste of tequila.”
“Yeah, that’s me,” Dean replied, embarrassed. “I need your help.”
“What can I do you for?”
“I was wondering if you found a ring in here from that night.”
“We found a couple,” she said simply.
“A couple?”
“Yeah,” she said, throwing down the rag in her hand. “Husbands always take off their rings in bars so the homing beacon turns back on them again. During the night, it slips out of their pockets, I collect them, keep them until they return.”
“Can I see what you found?”
“You’re one of those guys,” she replied, a little disappointed.
“No, I’m not. I don’t ever take off my ring.”
“But you aren’t wearing one,” she stated.
His hand went to his ring finger and he rubbed around where the ring was supposed to be, but all there was was a slight discoloration from a tan. “I lost it somewhere between this bar and my house,” he said, tired.
“You didn’t take it off,” she stated more than asked. “This is really tearing you up, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “It is.”
“I can try to help you out.”
The bartender reached under the bar and pulled out a shoebox. She put the box in front of Dean and opened it. Dean opened the box and saw at least thirty rings inside of the box. “Really?”
“Some men are just stupid,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “Or forgetful.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll leave you to it.”
She headed toward the back of the bar, probably to restock, leaving Dean alone with a bunch of rings. He flipped the box over, and over a dozen tones of pings were heard on the bar. He lifted the box and picked up the first ring.
He knew that he’d be sitting there for quite some time.
Almost an hour and a half later, Dean found himself finishing looking through every ring twice and thinking about going through them once more. The bartender returned with a sympathetic look on her face. “No luck?” she replied.
He shook his head. “I don’t believe in luck,” Dean replied.
“I’m sorry you couldn’t find your ring.” She reached over and put her hand on Dean’s. They both knew that was just for comfort and maybe a little pity.
“Me too.”
“You can’t just buy a replacement for it?”
“It wouldn’t be the same.”
“Yeah, I guess not. If it’s any consolation, I hope that you do find it.”
“Me too.”
The bartender squeezed his hand then let go.
Dean stood up, wiping his face, feeling like if he were a crier, a few tears would be rolling down his cheeks. He’d never been so frustrated with himself in his life. He looked at the time and saw that he had been gone for more than two hours. He had no idea how that happened.
He stood up and left the bar without another word, although he wanted some alcohol in him to help him deal with not finding the ring. But he knew that it wouldn’t have helped.
He let out a breath in a huff and made his way back to his car. He got into the Impala and started her up and began his long drive back. For the first time in years, he actually drove the speed limit, not in a rush to get back any time soon.
It took him more than half an hour to get there, and when pulling into the junkyard, he almost ran his brother over.
Sam stood at the entrance of Bobby’s junkyard and looked like he was waiting for his brother. Dean stopped the car and stepped out, wondering what was wrong. His brother looked angry. “What’s going on?” he asked.
“Unlock my door, Dean,” he said.
Dean did just that and Sam got into the car. “Seriously, Sam, what’s going on?”
“You’re yelling at Cas?” Sam yelled.
Dean sighed, he should’ve known that his brother was going to find out. “Stay out of it, Sam.”
“Why the hell are you yelling at Cas?”
“Why are you yelling at me?”
“Because you’re yelling at Cas! What did he do?”
“Nothing.”
“Then why are you yelling at him? He had to ask me if I knew anything. I don’t like not knowing what is going on. ”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Dean, I’m serious. What is going on? Cas is scared.”
Dean froze for a second. He wondered if Castiel knew that he actually lost his ring. Or maybe he just wanted to know why he snapped at him. “Nothing is going on.”
Sam sighed, knowing that there were just some fights that he couldn’t win against his brother. “Well, fix it. Before Bobby finds out.”
“Why would Bobby care?” Dean asked.
Sam groaned. There were some moments in his life where he just wanted to strangle his brother for being so dense. “I know that he told Cas to watch over you and take care of you and treat you right and all that good stuff, but seriously, Dean, it goes both ways. He will murder you if you break that angel’s heart.”
Dean stared at his brother, chewing his lip. He didn’t know what to say. He wanted to just bolt out of his car and run to the house to lock himself in the room for the rest of the day and night. He knew that it wasn’t going to be possible. “I’m not mad at him.”
“Liar.”
“Sam, if I was mad at him, I would not be this calm about this.”
“Fine. You’ll tell me eventually. You always do.”
“There is nothing to tell.”
“There better not be, Dean,” Sam threatened.
Dean wanted to smile at the fact that Sam was just as overprotective of his brother-in-law as he was of his own blood, but it wasn’t the time. He could be proud later. “I’ll apologize to Cas when he comes back tonight.”
“Good,” Sam said with a loud sigh. “Just so you know, Bobby doesn’t know. Cas didn’t tell him anything. But he suspects something.”
“Why?” Dean asked.
“Because I’m waiting out here for you.”
Dean rolled his eyes. He started the Impala back up and drove the short distance back to the house. He parked in his usual spot and got out of the car after his brother.
He stepped into the house and heard two voices coming from the kitchen. He walked toward them and saw that one of them was Bobby. The other was his husband.
They both looked up as soon as he set foot in the kitchen. Castiel made eye contact with him for a second before his eyes went to the floor. “I should leave, Bobby,” he whispered. “I will return later.”
“What? Why?” Bobby asked. “You just got here.”
“I promise I’ll return at a more convenient time.”
“Cas,” Dean said, crossing the distance between them in a few steps and grabbing him by the wrist.
“I have to go, Dean. We’ll talk later.”
Before Dean could even say anything close to a send-off, Castiel disappeared. Dean sighed, walked to the dining room table, and plopped himself down in one of the chairs. He rested his head in his hands, not looking up when he heard the heavy footsteps follow him in.
“Fix it.”
“There is nothing to fix.”
“Dean. I swear—”
“Bobby, nothing is wrong. Not from my end.”
“Then why have you guys been within ten feet of each other for a grand total of five minutes since yesterday? It’s weird seeing not seeing one of you guys without seeing the other.”
“Nothing’s wrong. We’re not fighting. It’s… We just need some time apart. Maybe we’re driving each other crazy.”
“So you two are all right? There’s nothing wrong.”
“I don’t think so. Not from me at least.”
“You need to talk to Cas,” Sam said, leaning against the counter and crossing his arms over his chest.
“He’s busy. When there’s time, we’ll talk.”
“No running away, Dean,” Sam said. “You need to talk to him.”
“I feel like that phrase is going to be flying around a lot. Idjits.”
“Bobby,” Dean sighed.
“I swear, Dean,” Bobby said before Dean could say anything else. “I don’t want any of this domestic bull in my house. That angel isn’t just a friend anymore. He’s family. He’s your husband. Fix it.”
Dean nodded once. “I’ll fix it.”
“Now.”
“I’ll wait until he comes back. He probably has some important angel business to do.” Dean shook his head. He knew the reason that Castiel left so abruptly was because he thought he was still mad at him. He couldn’t blame him. He did yell at him for no reason at all.
He wanted to hit his head against the table.
But instead he stood up and left his brother and Bobby in the kitchen.
He made his way up to his room. He groaned at the mess that was in it. And like the situation he was in, it was all his fault.
He walked over to his and Castiel’s bed and unfolded the balls of sheets that he threw on them. He put the bed back together sheet by sheet.
Losing the ring was so exhausting that he just wanted to close his eyes for a few seconds. He threw his arm over his eyes and sighed, taking one breath. Then another.
He couldn’t stop himself from falling into a deeper relaxation, but not falling asleep.
He ended up skipping dinner.
Part 2
Author: DauntPerplexity
Rating: PG 13
Genre: Humor, Romance
Characters and/or Pairing: Bobby, Sam, Dean/Castiel
Spoilers: None
Warnings: kissing
Word Count: 3846
Summary: He lost something, and now the universe had to pay. Or at least suffer.
Author’s Note: Fourth in my Vegas!Verse. This one comes after Got Me into This. I guess that it’s the first sign of trouble in their marriage. I have a lot of stories set up for this series, and I have a lot of time to write them now because I don’t have school! Yay!
Dean wasn’t a jealous person. He wasn’t. If you asked him, he would say that he wasn’t. He would swear in court, provide documents, call up witnesses, and all that other legal terminology that Sam knew better. Or he could just deny it until he was out of breath, because there was no way he was going to say that he was jealous that his husband was talking to a woman.
Because he wasn’t.
Jealousy was the last emotion he felt as his eyes bore into Castiel’s back. Because jealousy was a step and a handshake away from possessiveness. And Castiel wasn’t an object. He was a person allowed to talk to anyone he wanted. Even if Dean didn’t like it.
“Dean? Dean!”
He stopped staring at Castiel for a second long enough for him to realize that his brother was talking to him. “Yeah.”
“You didn’t hear a word I just said, did you?” Sam glared at his older brother.
“I did.”
“Okay,” Sam replied, unconvinced. “So what should I do?”
Dean grabbed his beer and took a few sips from it. He set the bottle down and looked back to Castiel who had a smile on his face. “You should go to a doctor and have it checked out.”
“Dean!”
“What?”
“You’re jealous.”
“No, I’m not.” He grabbed his beer and drank the rest of it down.
“Dean, if you don’t like Castiel talking to that woman, just go over and grab him. He is your husband.”
“Cas can talk to who he wants.”
“That doesn’t mean you have to like it,” Sam said, because he knew that everything about the way his brother was acting told him that he wanted to be anywhere but where he was, with Castiel at his side.
“Sam, shut up. We aren’t high school girls that like to gossip.”
“Fine. But you don’t get to be bitching and moaning about this when you realize that you are jealous.”
“I’m not jealous.”
“Of course not.”
Dean stood up from his seat. “I need another beer.”
“Dean.”
“It’s okay, Sam. Promise,” he said with a wink.
He walked over to the bar and waited for the bartender to look his way. He didn’t have to wait long until a short, redhead stepped his way. “What can I get you, sweetheart?” she asked with a seductive smile.
“Coors.”
“Got it.”
She pulled a bottle of beer out and popped the cap off. She slid the bottle over to him.
“Thanks.” Dean grabbed the bottle and drank as much as he could in one go. He put the bottle down and turned to look out into the bar.
He saw Castiel and the woman still talking to each other. He smiled as Castiel got up from his seat and stepped away from the woman. But he wasn’t quick enough as she grabbed onto his and pulled him back into his seat. Then Dean showed the most self-restraint any person could as he watched the woman climb into Castiel’s lap.
Dean spun back to the bar and grabbed his beer. He was surprised to see the bartender still standing behind him. “Can I get you anything else, handsome?”
Dean was about to say no when he looked back and saw the girl in Castiel’s lap leaning to either whisper something in or nibble on his ear. If he were any other person in a relationship with the angel, he would’ve walked over and grabbed Castiel and never let him go for the rest of the night. But he wasn’t jealous. “Tequila. A lot of tequila.”
“Sure thing, gorgeous.” She pulled out a bottle of Patron and poured him a shot.
He drank it back with ease. “One more,” Dean said, knowing that he was going to be saying that a bunch more times before the night was over.
He also knew that his body was going to hate him in the morning.
LRLRLRLRLRLRLR
Dean woke up and saw that Castiel was still asleep beside him. He rolled out of bed trying hard to not make a sound and wake up Castiel, although he would be awake moments later.
He grabbed his clothes out of his drawer and headed into his bathroom. He was not able to make it there last night. He didn’t even know how he made it to his bedroom. He knew that his husband had something to do with it. He sent one more look his husband’s way then stepped into his bathroom.
He wanted to wash the hangover from his body and to forget drinking himself into a stupor the night before. He couldn’t remember anything after his sixth shot of tequila. He hoped that he didn’t do anything he’d regret.
Ten minutes in the shower was long enough for him, so he stepped out, and toweled off. He threw on his clothes and stepped out of the bathroom. He wasn’t surprised to not see Castiel in bed. He knew that Castiel never stayed asleep if Dean wasn’t in bed with him.
He walked downstairs and saw Bobby and Sam waiting for him at the bottom with their arms across their chests. “What?” he walked past them and toward the kitchen.
“What’s wrong with you two?” Bobby asked, following the older Winchester with the younger in tow.
“What are you talking about?” Dean replied, taking a seat.
“You and Cas,” Sam added.
“Still doesn’t answer my question,” Dean said, reaching for a piece of bacon from the plate in the middle of the table.
“You didn’t walk down the stairs together,” the younger Winchester said.
“What?”
“Everyday, you guys come down the stairs together. Or at least within like a minute of each other.”
“Okay, it’s weird that you notice something like that.”
“Well, today, Cas came down a lot earlier than you did.”
“He doesn’t have to wait for me to come down the stairs, Sam.”
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” Dean replied, because from his end, nothing was wrong. “Where’s Cas?”
“I think he went out for something. He didn’t say what. He said he wasn’t hungry yet. It’s the most mysterious he’s been since we first met him. Are you sure that you aren’t fighting?”
“We don’t fight unless it has to do with a hunt.”
“Got it,” Sam said. “But are you—”
“Unless I said something last night. Because I honestly can’t remember past eleven o’clock.”
“Because you weren’t jealous, right?”
“Yeah. So breakfast and or lunch?” He swore that he could’ve heard the both of them roll their eyes.
Dean went on with his day, business as usual. He ran some errands for Bobby in town, did some research for hunters that called the elder hunter for hunts in their own towns, and helped clean up the mess he made making his way up to his room the night before.
Somehow during his schedule, he made his way to the Impala and gave her a well-deserved tune up and car wash. As nice as the outside was, the interior looked like it got into a fight with him last night, and won.
He did that until he was called into the house for food. He looked at his watch and didn’t even realize that it was almost dinner time. And more importantly, Castiel didn’t come home. But he didn’t think too much of it. No matter how long Castiel was in Heaven or doing other business, he was always able to make his way back into their bed at night.
After dinner and a shower, he sat down in the living room with a beer in hand watching whatever program Bobby had put on. He finished his beer and made his way upstairs, realizing how tired he actually was.
He wanted to wait up for Castiel to come back and crawl into bed with him, but with all of the errands and housework he did, he was exhausted.
He fell asleep after only an hour of waiting up for Castiel.
LRLRLRLRLRLRLR
Dean woke up and saw that Castiel’s side of the bed was undisturbed. It upset him a little, but he got over it. He figured that Castiel had to be busy in Heaven and would get back to him when he was done. He had been spending a lot of time on Earth, so it made sense that Castiel had to spend a little extra time in Heaven to balance it out.
He went through his normal morning routine of showering, brushing his teeth, and getting dressed. When he looked put together, he stepped out of the room, and headed downstairs.
He found Bobby and Sam in the kitchen. Bobby pulled out a plate of bacon and eggs and set it on the middle of the table. Sam walked over with three mugs and a fresh pot of coffee. Dean reached for the pot immediately and poured a cup for each of them.
“Where’s Cas?” Sam asked.
“I don’t know,” Dean said, taking a sip. “I don’t think he came back last night.”
“You not worried?” Bobby asked.
“Not really. He’s been gone for longer times before. He’ll be back.”
“I don’t know, Dean,” Sam replied.
“Yeah, that’s two days in a row we haven’t seen the happy couple join us for breakfast.”
“It’s nothing,” Dean replied.
He settled down with a cup of coffee in his right hand and a strip of bacon in the left. He was starving and he needed the food to calm his stomach from last night. He took a sip of his coffee, savoring the bitter taste. After he set down his cup, he took a bite of bacon.
Then he saw it.
“What the hell?” he yelled.
“What’s wrong?”
“How did that happen?” he continued yelling, ignoring his brother’s comment.
“Dean,” Sam said, trying to get his brother’s attention.
Without a word, Dean ran back upstairs closing and locking the door behind him, knowing it would do nothing if Castiel just zapped back into the room if he wanted. He went straight for the sheets on the bed, stripping it down to the mattress, hoping for a glimmer or a tiny ping.
Hope was not enough and he balled up everything and tossed it on the mattress. He’d fix it as soon as the crisis passed.
His next search took him to his clothes that he wore two nights before. He searched through every pocket of every shirt he wore, turning his jeans inside out, even searching through his socks. He threw them on the pile on the bed then headed to his bathroom. After a few minutes of searching, he found nothing.
He wanted to cry. He could not believe that he lost his ring. But he’d find it. He had to. All he needed to do was retrace his steps from that night.
He stood in the middle of his room, sighing. He hated feeling this anxious.
The anxiousness intensified when he heard the sound of wings flapping behind him. “Dean?” Castiel whispered.
“What, Cas?” he spun around and yelled, and immediately regretted it. He was frustrated and he had no right to take it out on the angel.
“I…nevermind,” he replied, looking to the floor. “We’ll talk later.”
“Cas,” Dean whispered, wanting to apologize. “Sure thing.”
Castiel nodded once and left the room.
Dean sat down on his bed and groaned. He needed to fix this before he said or did something else he’d regret. And he knew that Castiel out of all people didn’t deserve his anger.
He jumped up from his bed and ran out the door. He saw Sam waiting at the bottom with a very confused look on his face. He went straight for the front door and was about to step out when his brother pushed the door shut.
“Where are you going?” Sam asked.
“I… I need to go to the bar,” Dean said.
“Dean, it’s not even noon.”
“I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Dean.”
“Give me some time to figure this out.”
“Figure what out?” Sam asked, not know what his brother was talking about.
But Dean ignored him and ran out the door.
He jumped into the Impala and thought about searching through it, but he didn’t want to do it with Sam and Bobby ready to follow him and ask a bunch of questions. He drove all the way to bar thinking up of the game plan.
His thoughts didn’t go very far because he could only think of the fact that he yelled at Castiel. Instead his thoughts went to how he was going to apologize and make it up to his husband.
Twenty minutes and four AC/DC songs later, he pulled into the parking lot of the bar they were at last night. He tore open the doors to the Impala and searched in every crevice of his car for it. But it wasn’t in the car, and something inside of him knew it wasn’t going to be especially since he cleaned it the day before.
So, he headed for option D, or maybe E. He walked into the bar and saw a familiar face. It was the woman who served him the shots of tequila that he remembered. He walked over to the bar and sat down. She looked up from wiping down the bar and greeted him with a smile. “Hey, handsome.”
“You… you were the one serving me drinks two nights ago.”
“Yes, I’m the one that made a very impressive tip because you love the taste of tequila.”
“Yeah, that’s me,” Dean replied, embarrassed. “I need your help.”
“What can I do you for?”
“I was wondering if you found a ring in here from that night.”
“We found a couple,” she said simply.
“A couple?”
“Yeah,” she said, throwing down the rag in her hand. “Husbands always take off their rings in bars so the homing beacon turns back on them again. During the night, it slips out of their pockets, I collect them, keep them until they return.”
“Can I see what you found?”
“You’re one of those guys,” she replied, a little disappointed.
“No, I’m not. I don’t ever take off my ring.”
“But you aren’t wearing one,” she stated.
His hand went to his ring finger and he rubbed around where the ring was supposed to be, but all there was was a slight discoloration from a tan. “I lost it somewhere between this bar and my house,” he said, tired.
“You didn’t take it off,” she stated more than asked. “This is really tearing you up, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “It is.”
“I can try to help you out.”
The bartender reached under the bar and pulled out a shoebox. She put the box in front of Dean and opened it. Dean opened the box and saw at least thirty rings inside of the box. “Really?”
“Some men are just stupid,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “Or forgetful.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll leave you to it.”
She headed toward the back of the bar, probably to restock, leaving Dean alone with a bunch of rings. He flipped the box over, and over a dozen tones of pings were heard on the bar. He lifted the box and picked up the first ring.
He knew that he’d be sitting there for quite some time.
Almost an hour and a half later, Dean found himself finishing looking through every ring twice and thinking about going through them once more. The bartender returned with a sympathetic look on her face. “No luck?” she replied.
He shook his head. “I don’t believe in luck,” Dean replied.
“I’m sorry you couldn’t find your ring.” She reached over and put her hand on Dean’s. They both knew that was just for comfort and maybe a little pity.
“Me too.”
“You can’t just buy a replacement for it?”
“It wouldn’t be the same.”
“Yeah, I guess not. If it’s any consolation, I hope that you do find it.”
“Me too.”
The bartender squeezed his hand then let go.
Dean stood up, wiping his face, feeling like if he were a crier, a few tears would be rolling down his cheeks. He’d never been so frustrated with himself in his life. He looked at the time and saw that he had been gone for more than two hours. He had no idea how that happened.
He stood up and left the bar without another word, although he wanted some alcohol in him to help him deal with not finding the ring. But he knew that it wouldn’t have helped.
He let out a breath in a huff and made his way back to his car. He got into the Impala and started her up and began his long drive back. For the first time in years, he actually drove the speed limit, not in a rush to get back any time soon.
It took him more than half an hour to get there, and when pulling into the junkyard, he almost ran his brother over.
Sam stood at the entrance of Bobby’s junkyard and looked like he was waiting for his brother. Dean stopped the car and stepped out, wondering what was wrong. His brother looked angry. “What’s going on?” he asked.
“Unlock my door, Dean,” he said.
Dean did just that and Sam got into the car. “Seriously, Sam, what’s going on?”
“You’re yelling at Cas?” Sam yelled.
Dean sighed, he should’ve known that his brother was going to find out. “Stay out of it, Sam.”
“Why the hell are you yelling at Cas?”
“Why are you yelling at me?”
“Because you’re yelling at Cas! What did he do?”
“Nothing.”
“Then why are you yelling at him? He had to ask me if I knew anything. I don’t like not knowing what is going on. ”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Dean, I’m serious. What is going on? Cas is scared.”
Dean froze for a second. He wondered if Castiel knew that he actually lost his ring. Or maybe he just wanted to know why he snapped at him. “Nothing is going on.”
Sam sighed, knowing that there were just some fights that he couldn’t win against his brother. “Well, fix it. Before Bobby finds out.”
“Why would Bobby care?” Dean asked.
Sam groaned. There were some moments in his life where he just wanted to strangle his brother for being so dense. “I know that he told Cas to watch over you and take care of you and treat you right and all that good stuff, but seriously, Dean, it goes both ways. He will murder you if you break that angel’s heart.”
Dean stared at his brother, chewing his lip. He didn’t know what to say. He wanted to just bolt out of his car and run to the house to lock himself in the room for the rest of the day and night. He knew that it wasn’t going to be possible. “I’m not mad at him.”
“Liar.”
“Sam, if I was mad at him, I would not be this calm about this.”
“Fine. You’ll tell me eventually. You always do.”
“There is nothing to tell.”
“There better not be, Dean,” Sam threatened.
Dean wanted to smile at the fact that Sam was just as overprotective of his brother-in-law as he was of his own blood, but it wasn’t the time. He could be proud later. “I’ll apologize to Cas when he comes back tonight.”
“Good,” Sam said with a loud sigh. “Just so you know, Bobby doesn’t know. Cas didn’t tell him anything. But he suspects something.”
“Why?” Dean asked.
“Because I’m waiting out here for you.”
Dean rolled his eyes. He started the Impala back up and drove the short distance back to the house. He parked in his usual spot and got out of the car after his brother.
He stepped into the house and heard two voices coming from the kitchen. He walked toward them and saw that one of them was Bobby. The other was his husband.
They both looked up as soon as he set foot in the kitchen. Castiel made eye contact with him for a second before his eyes went to the floor. “I should leave, Bobby,” he whispered. “I will return later.”
“What? Why?” Bobby asked. “You just got here.”
“I promise I’ll return at a more convenient time.”
“Cas,” Dean said, crossing the distance between them in a few steps and grabbing him by the wrist.
“I have to go, Dean. We’ll talk later.”
Before Dean could even say anything close to a send-off, Castiel disappeared. Dean sighed, walked to the dining room table, and plopped himself down in one of the chairs. He rested his head in his hands, not looking up when he heard the heavy footsteps follow him in.
“Fix it.”
“There is nothing to fix.”
“Dean. I swear—”
“Bobby, nothing is wrong. Not from my end.”
“Then why have you guys been within ten feet of each other for a grand total of five minutes since yesterday? It’s weird seeing not seeing one of you guys without seeing the other.”
“Nothing’s wrong. We’re not fighting. It’s… We just need some time apart. Maybe we’re driving each other crazy.”
“So you two are all right? There’s nothing wrong.”
“I don’t think so. Not from me at least.”
“You need to talk to Cas,” Sam said, leaning against the counter and crossing his arms over his chest.
“He’s busy. When there’s time, we’ll talk.”
“No running away, Dean,” Sam said. “You need to talk to him.”
“I feel like that phrase is going to be flying around a lot. Idjits.”
“Bobby,” Dean sighed.
“I swear, Dean,” Bobby said before Dean could say anything else. “I don’t want any of this domestic bull in my house. That angel isn’t just a friend anymore. He’s family. He’s your husband. Fix it.”
Dean nodded once. “I’ll fix it.”
“Now.”
“I’ll wait until he comes back. He probably has some important angel business to do.” Dean shook his head. He knew the reason that Castiel left so abruptly was because he thought he was still mad at him. He couldn’t blame him. He did yell at him for no reason at all.
He wanted to hit his head against the table.
But instead he stood up and left his brother and Bobby in the kitchen.
He made his way up to his room. He groaned at the mess that was in it. And like the situation he was in, it was all his fault.
He walked over to his and Castiel’s bed and unfolded the balls of sheets that he threw on them. He put the bed back together sheet by sheet.
Losing the ring was so exhausting that he just wanted to close his eyes for a few seconds. He threw his arm over his eyes and sighed, taking one breath. Then another.
He couldn’t stop himself from falling into a deeper relaxation, but not falling asleep.
He ended up skipping dinner.
Part 2
