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It’s late by the time Castiel finally gets done with all the patients brought in from the big bus crash that happened this morning. He’s been in Trauma all day, running patients in and out, getting them x-rayed and getting them prepped for surgery. Dr. Chris Micheal, Cas’s Attending, had finally had to chase Cas out, but Cas hadn’t gone far.
He’d swung by the cafeteria to grab a burger before heading up to the third floor. The long term care ward is located on the third floor and there is friend Cas needs to see.
It’s way past visiting hours, so aside from a few nurses and doctors there’s no one around. No one stops Cas, they’re used to seeing him by now. Cas has walked this path so many times that he could go blind and he’d still be able to get here.
There are four beds in the room Cas finally enters. Three are occupied, Cas nods at the two beds closet to the door as he passes them, but they’re not the ones Cas is interested in. It’s the third bed, it’s closet to the window. The man in the bed doesn’t move when Cas approaches, he has pale, mousy hair, skin pale from the lack of sun, but there is still a dusting of freckles across his nose and cheeks. His eyelashes are long and dark, fanned out across his cheeks. Cas remembers that his eyes are green, bright and beautiful.
"Hey Dean," Cas says as he pulls up a chair and sits down. Dean doesn't move, but Cas didn’t expect him to, even if there is a tiny part of him that hoped he would. Dean’s in a coma.
Dean Winchester, twenty-two when he came in, now nearly twenty-four, was in a car accident. He was conscious when he came in, but after his third surgery he didn’t regain consciousness. His younger brother and father had decided to leave him on life support. There isn’t much hope that Dean will every wake up, but Dean’s little brother comes by every Friday like clockwork. Cas and Sam talk occasionally, they’ve become friends in a way.
Dean was one of Cas’s first patients, and Cas remembers talking to him in the beginning, in between surgery’s. Dean had been all light and laughter, even pale and in pain, he’d made Cas laugh. Dean was actually the first person to ever call Castiel, Cas. Before Dean, Cas hadn’t liked having his name shortened, but Dean had made it seem so natural, so right.
"There was a bus crash today," Cas starts, he’s so used to talking to Dean that the words fall naturally from his lips. "I spent most of the day in Trauma. I saved them Dean, all of them. Admittedly, I had help, but we did not lose a soul today." Cas smiles a little, it had been a good day. Sure, he’s bone tired and he just wants to fall into bed, but he’s not going to leave without talking to Dean first.
"Your brother is coming tomorrow. I won't be here as I’m working the night shift, but you should say hello to him for me." Cas pauses, looking up from his burger to stare at Dean’s face. "I miss your smile, Dean. " It’s barely more than a breath of air, one Cas feels horrible for. He barely knows Dean, but Cas still misses him.
Cas finishes his food in silence, then washes his hands and face in the small bathroom before returning to Dean’s side. Cas stands beside the bed for a long time, just staring at Dean’s face. Cas has seen so many coma patients now, but he never really gets over how peaceful they look. They look as if they’re asleep, as if at any moment they’ll wake up and start talking. It almost seems like Dean is smiling, Cas’s fairly sure it’s just his imagination, but it doesn’t stop him from hoping that it’s not.
"Please wake up, Dean. Please come back." Cas touches the back of Dean’s hand then leans in, pressing a light kiss to Dean’s forehead.
"Sleep well, Dean." Cas sighs and heads towards the door. He really needs to go to bed, he should probably call a cab. He shouldn’t really drive when he’s this tired.
Cas stops just outside the door and looks up and down the hall, because he swore someone just said his name. There’s no one there, no nurse or doctor telling him off for still being here. Cas frowns.
"Cas…" The voice is rough, like it hasn’t been used in a long time…
Cas spins around, the room is dark, so it’s hard for him to tell, but he thinks…
He bolts back into the room and switches on the light over Dean’s bed.
Green eyes.
Green eyes that are open and staring up at him.
"Hey…" Dean is smiling.