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He looked away from his phone for a moment, flickering his eyes towards Sam. He was preoccupied with driving so Castiel looked back down. He wasn't sure if he should betray Sam like this. He stewed in guilt for a moment. But, ultimately, he did what he always knew he would. He continued his text, hitting send when he was done.
he wore a cardigan. it was maroon.
Sent
Three dots immediately appeared on the screen. He watched, waiting patiently for Dean’s response.
Picture. NOW.
Received
PLEASE.
Received
Cas chuckled lightly; all guilt subsided; before shooting off another quick text.
he doesn’t have it on anymore. sorry
Sent
“What’s funny?” Sam suddenly questioned, curiosity seeping his tone as he shot a quick glance at the phone. Cas shifted it away slightly.
“Uh. Pictures of cats.” He replied unconvincingly. He received a suspicious look from Sam in response, but to his relief that was it.
His phone buzzed again.
You suck.
Received
Castiel rolled his eyes, looking out the window for a moment before a thought hit him.
so you don’t want to hear about the wife?
Sent
The three dots reappeared immediately. Cas chuckled to himself again, attempting to hide it behind a cough this time for Sam’s benefit.
The what now?
Received
He smiled to himself, having received the expected reaction. He went to type a response before suddenly stopping himself. He put his phone down, deciding to let Dean stew for a moment. It didn’t take long for his phone to buzz again, and despite wanting to hold out longer, he couldn’t help but pick it up.
Okay I’m sorry. You don’t suck.
Received
Deeming that an appropriate apology, he responded.
he was brainwashed and thought he was married to a woman named Cindy. she really liked margaritas
Sent
A response immediately came back.
Not even the first time that’s happened to him.
Received
Sounds like a fun girl.
Received
Cas eyed the first text, slightly confused. He decided to save that conversation for later when Dean could explain it to him face to face.
she wasn’t fun. she screamed at me for sitting in her husbands chair
Sent
Cas glanced over at Sam again, who was stifling a yawn. His phone buzzed in his hands. He ignored it for the time being.
“Do you want me to take over? You seem tired.” He offered, fidgeting with his phone.
Sam shot him a tired smile.
“Nah I’m fine.” He paused for a moment before adding on “You keep texting Dean.”
Cas squinted up at Sam. The man in the driver’s seat had the signs of a smirk threatening to break out, but aside from that, he said nothing further. Cas decided to revert his attention back to his phone, though he did so more sheepishly this time.
Shouldn’t have sat in her husband’s chair then.
Received
Very rude of you.
Received
How far away are you guys?
Received
Cas rolled his eyes again, smiling despite himself.
a few hours still.
He paused for a moment, contemplating before he began to type again. He did want to keep talking to Dean, but Sam had made him realise it was getting late.
a few hours still. you should go to sleep we’ll be back by the time you wake
Sent
Dean responded immediately.
Or you could tell me more embarrassing things about Sam.
Received
Cas glanced at Sam shaking his head fondly.
im afraid that’s all there is. there’s not much more to say
Sent
he did seem happy though
Sent
He frowned down at his phone. The humour from earlier made way for something else. Worry simmered in his chest when he thought about what Sam had been through recently. The loss he'd suffered. Neither of the Winchester’s were good at dealing with the things that happened to them. While Sam was better at it than Dean, Cas was still concerned.
His phone buzzed.
Happy?
Received
He sighed and responded.
after everything he’s been through. i think he was really happy to be someone else
Sent
The three dots flickered, disappearing again after a moment. That happened twice more before Cas sent through another text.
you can talk to him about it once we get back
Sent
now go to sleep
Sent
The next text came through much quicker. What Cas didn’t expect was the rush of warmth that would flood him when it did. His heart rate quickened slightly, while confusion overwhelmed him.
Yeah fine. Love ya.
Received
Another text immediately came through.
Later.* Cya.*
Received
Autocorrect.
Received
He let out the breath he'd been holding, smiling tightly at the messages. His thumb hovered over the third to last text as he sighed. Finally, he turned the screen off and placed his phone down on his lap.
The car was silent for a while after that. Nothing but the sound of the engine droning on in the background of his thoughts.
Eventually, Sam interrupted.
"Everything okay?"
Cas glanced at him, tilting his head in question.
"With Dean. You got kind of a weird look on your face after you put your phone down." Sam responded to the expression.
Cas swallowed. He hadn't meant to be that transparent. He was more so used to being around the brother who wouldn't push matters like this.
"I'm fine." He smiled faintly, hoping that was enough to appease Sam.
To avoid further queries he picked his phone up again and began reading through articles that interested him online. He sent one about the consequences of bee extinction to Dean.
They drove in silence the rest of the way.
***
"Did you talk to him- to Sam?" Cas questioned, hovering in the doorway of the kitchen. His heart was pounding, his chest was tense. Having just seen Jack with the snake, he hadn't expected to walk into the kitchen to see Dean there looking just as stressed as Cas felt.
Dean glanced up, the worry not leaving his face.
"Yeah. He's not doing so well. But I think he's gonna be alright. He's strong." Dean nodded as if he were reminding himself of that fact.
Cas sighed. When he'd seen Dean he'd contemplated telling him about Jack, but it didn't seem like the time. Not now that he was concerned about Sam. Not with all else plaguing them.
More so. He admitted to himself. He didn't want to ruin what they had finally gotten back. Even if they had everything else stacked up against them, at least they were a family again.
"He's got you, Dean. He's going to get through it." Cas finally responded, walking up to stand next to him against the counter. The tension in him settled slightly, the closeness providing some sort of comfort.
Dean huffed out a humourless laugh, before shaking his head and turning to Cas. He attempted a casual tone.
"What about you, how are you doing?"
Cas hesitated.
"I'm fine."
Dean nodded but didn't respond. It was quiet for a moment.
"What about you?" Cas continued.
"I'm always fine." He smiled up at Cas knowingly, a tragic sort of humour dancing behind his eyes. Cas looked back, his expression pained.
"De-"
"Come on Cas lets talk about something else." He cut in.
Cas sighed, glancing up at Dean with furrowed brows. But ultimately he decided to let it go - for the moment - and humour him. He couldn't fix everything going on, but what he could do was make Dean smile. That was enough for the time being.
"Do you want to hear more about Sam's cardigan?"
This time Dean's laugh was genuine.
"Please."
***
An hour had passed. Maybe more. No fish. Cas sighed to himself.
Dean had described this as a meditative activity, but it was more so stressful for him. Then again, maybe he shouldn't have sought out comfort in something that reminded him so much of what- or who- he was getting away from in the first place.
If they had been on talking terms he would have texted Dean for advice. Maybe with a fish emoji. He always did make fun of Cas anytime he used one, but that made him smile for some reason.
Tentatively, he reached for his phone, tapping on messages. He choked down guilt at the sight of Sam's unanswered ones. The pain at seeing Jack and Mary's names. Looking for a text chain that hadn't been used in a while.
He scrolled back to the last happy texts in it.