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The angels fell.
Sam was finally safe.
Everything was fine, or so Dean thought. He didn't really care that Heaven's gates closed, but when he realized that it meant that his angel fell too, he was tormented with guilt. He didn't even look for Cas! He just wanted Sam to be okay, so he forgot about the angel. Was he even still an angel? Dean opened his eyes and jumped from his bed. He needed to find him. No matter where Castiel was, Dean swore that he would find him. Without waking Sam, he went in the Impala and drove back to the church they were in a few days ago. Crap. This was like trying to find a needle in a stack of hay. Cas could've been anywhere. He got out of his car and looked around to get clues or something. He searched around the church for about an hour until his phone rang.
He picked up immediately.
"Hello?"
"Dean," a deep voice said. The man recognized it in a second.
"Cas! Where are you? Are you okay?" Dean asked quickly.
"I don't know where I am... I think I'm injured badly. Angry angels dragged me in an alley and attacked me. Well, they're not really angels anymore... I managed to stop them, but I lost all my powers," Castiel answered.
Wait, Dean thought, Cas wasn't an angel anymore? Angels that fall usually keep their powers, but why not him? He put these questions away, only wanting Castiel to get better.
"Do you know which state you're in?" he asked.
"Nebraska, I think."
Shit, that could take hours, Dean thought.
"Okay. Cas, I'll come and find you. Stay on the phone so you can guide me though the city. Hang in there!"
Dean went back in his car and started driving, while talking to Cas. When he got to Nebraska, he started to ask for directions. Luckily, Castiel ended up in Red Cloud, a town only half an hour away from the bunker. He miraculously managed to find the dark alley. Dean parked his Baby, grabbed a med kit and a flashlight in the trunk and ran to Castiel.
"I'm here," he said. "It's okay now."
"Dean." The angel's voice was weak.
The man flashed his light in the direction of the sound. He saw Castiel laying on the ground, in a pool of blood.
"Oh God," Dean said.
He was to Cas' side in seconds. He took off the angel's trench coat and dress short to see where the injuries were. After a quick inspection, Dean noticed multiple stab wounds on Castiel's side and abdomen.
"Okay, Cas," the man started, "I need to patch you up. It'll probably hurt a shitload."
The ex-angel took in a sharp breath.
"Just do it, please," he said through gritted teeth.
Dean cleaned the wounds a bit, poured some alcohol on them, grabbed the needle and the thread and started to stitch Castiel up. Hearing the former angel scream in pain was very hard for Dean. He closed all of the wounds as quickly as possible, but he still wanted to make a decent job.
When Dean was finally done, he let a sigh of relief. He took bandages and wrapped Castiel's torso with it. Dean helped him to put his shirt and coat back on.
"Can you walk?" he asked Cas.
"I... I don't think so. I'm sorry, Dean," he answered.
"It's okay, Cas. I'll help you to the car alright?"
The former angel nodded.
Dean put Castiel's arm around his shoulder and he put his around the other's waist. In his free hand, he held the med kit and the flashlight.
When they got to the car, Dean managed to open the trunk and threw what his hand was carrying. He closed it and they walked 'round the Impala. Dean opened the door to the backseat and helped Cas get in. He stood to go back to the front seat, but his friend stopped him.
"Dean," he only said.
"What's going on, Cas?" asked the man, slightly worried.
"Can you sit with me please? Not for long..." the other said.
"Sure," Dean answered.
He entered the car and sat beside Castiel. He was surprised when he felt the other's arms wrap around his waist.
"Cas, what are you--" he started.
The ex-angel interrupted him.
"Just hold me, please."
"Okay," Dean said.
So they held each other for a while, until Castiel fell asleep in Dean's arms. The man looked down at his friend and smiled. He managed to free himself from the embrace and went to the front seat to drive back to the bunker.
When they arrived, the sun was starting to shine. Dean stopped the engine. He opened the backseat door and the sight of his sleeping friend made his heart ache. He always felt something for Castiel, but he was too deep in his mental closet to get out. He shrugged and put his feelings away. He then carefully picked up the former angel bridal style and entered the bunker. Sam was awake and sitting in the main room.
"Dean!" he said. "Where the hell have you been?"
Then he saw Cas.
"Oh shit, is he okay?"
"Not really," Dean answered. "I don't know why, but he turned human. He was attacked by pissed off angels that fell a few days ago."
"How did you find him?"
"He called me. I was in my bed and I remembered what happened at the church that night. I was worried for him, so I went back there and he suddenly phoned me. He gave me directions to find him. He was in an alley, half-dead. I stitched him up and here we are."
After Dean's monologue, Castiel's eyes opened slightly.
"Dean?" he said, in a broken voice.
"Hey, there, how are you?" the man asked.
"In pain and human," Cas answered.
"You'll need to explain what happened to me, but not right now. I'll take you to my room, alright?"
"Okay."
Sam scoffed. Dean turned to him.
"You," he said, "shut up."
And they were gone, Dean still holding Castiel in his arms. When they arrived to the man's room, he carefully put his friend on his bed.
"Cas, I need to check if any of your stitches opened. I'll change your bandages at the same time, alright?"
Castiel nodded. Dean proceeded to remove yet again the trench coat and the dress shirt. With infinite delicacy, he took off the bandages. Luckily, none of the wounds opened. He fetched a towel soaked with warm water and cleaned the dried blood he missed earlier. He also lightly pressed on Castiel's ribs, to see if they were broken. Dean jumped a bit when his friend hissed in pain. He kept apologizing, explaining that he needed to know if there were any broken bones. He was relieved when he was done. Castiel's ribs were fine. He took clean bandages and wrapped them around Cas like he did earlier. Dean left him shirtless, since his clothes were all soaked with blood. He picked them up and went to his door to wash them, but he heard Castiel's faint voice:
"Stay, please..."
Surprised, Dean put down the clothes he was holding and went on the bed with Castiel. He felt arms weakly hugging him. Dean smiled and pulled him closer. He saw bright blue eyes looking up at him. They stared at each other for a while, then...
"Oh, fuck it," Dean said.
He closed the space between them and kissed Cas on the lips. He felt the other smile and in a second, his kiss was returned, deeper and more passionate. When they stopped to get air, Castiel asked only one thing:
"How long?"
"Too long."
And they were kissing again. Dean didn't want to go further in their relationship because of Cas' current state, but he was hopeful they would get there.
For now, they just held each other.