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Day 12: Having a Lazy Day
After a 5 day work week that started at 6am and ended at 6pm, after meeting with more than a hundred parents, some of which really tried his patience, and after grading so many papers that it felt like his eyes might melt right out of his head, all Dean wanted was a day to himself. It was a 4 day weekend and even though he had to spend tomorrow with family since it was Thanksgiving, he intended to take Friday for himself. Shut off his phone, stay off the internet, and just…decompress. Tomorrow was going to be stressful enough, what with family drama, cooking, watching the game with his overzealous father and brother, and getting asked for the 800th time by his mother why he wasn’t married yet. Yeah, Friday was his.
Thanksgiving went exactly as he’d expected. He made it as far as dessert before his mother made her not so casual inquiry about his dating life, but warning her to back off and leave him alone hadn’t been enough to get her to drop the subject so as soon as he’d had his fill of pie, he’d excused himself and come home. He loved his family but sometimes they drove him nuts. No doubt his dad was upset that he wasn’t going to finish watching the game as was their tradition, but he hoped he took it up with his wife rather than him. Dean had had enough!
Friday morning he woke to a bright, sunny room and silence. It brought a smile to his face knowing that he had nowhere to be and nothing to do today. That didn’t mean that he didn’t have plans, starting with a breakfast of pancakes and bacon followed by a marathon of last season of Doctor Sexy. It was a travesty that he’d fallen so far behind but life had a way of making that happen.
After his breakfast he left the dishes in the sink and grabbing a throw blanket to toss over his legs, he stretched out on the couch and grabbed the remote. His DVR wasn’t loading.
“What the hell?” He tried to pull up something else on his cable box but nothing was working.
“Just my luck.” He growled as he tossed the blanket off and stormed back upstairs to his room to grab his phone. Now he had to interact with people because he’d need to speak to a rep and most likely need a repairman to come out. He turned the phone on, ignoring the texts from his brother and mother, and dialed the cable company’s technical support number. It was a little sad that he had the number programmed into his phone, but at least the company was pretty quick about handling issues.
The entire phone call took almost a half hour, but they promised a tech was in the area and would be there within the next 2 hours. Now he just had to find something to do until they got to his house. Painting sounded like a good idea. He hadn’t had much time to enjoy his favorite hobby, so after changing into a torn, paint stained tee shirt and an old pair of sweats, he headed to his studio. There were several unfinished pieces in here but he was in the mood for something new. After a couple of minutes of deliberation, he decided on a landscape, a view from the dock where he liked to fish. It wouldn’t be particularly spectacular but it would have meaning to him. It’s where his dad used to take him and his brother when they were little, and where he still went fishing, even if most of the time that was only in his dreams.
He was adding gentle waves to the water when someone rang the doorbell. Setting his brush down, he wiped his hands on a towel and went to answer it. The shopping list he was going over in his head disappeared in an instant the moment he opened the door and met the bright blue eyes looking back. The man stared for a long moment before finally lifting his clipboard and looking at it.
“Mr. Winchester?”
Dean’s skin prickled at the deep sound of the man’s voice. Not what he’d expected.
“Yeah.”
“Your box isn’t working?” The man asked.
“I was trying to watch some things I had saved to my DVR, but the box gave me a black screen. I’ve never seen that before.” Dean replied. The man nodded and smiled softly.
“Can I come in and take a look at it?”
Dean stepped aside and watched the man enter his house. He let his eyes wander down over the company jacket that covered a white tee shirt, and the jeans that covered a tight ass. The belt on his waist contained a meter and other tools that Dean was clueless about. He carried a tool bag in one hand as well. Dean shut the door and directed the man into the living room.
“Is this common?” He asked.
“Well, just looking at the box I can tell you’ve had it for at least 2 years, but probably more. It has most likely reached the end of its life cycle. I anticipated this when I got the call and they told me the serial number. If I can’t get this one to work, I have a new one with me and we’ll just replace it with an updated model.” The guy had already dropped his bag and stripped out of his coat as he talked and now he was investigating the box itself. Dean stood back with his arms crossed, watching.
“Are you like, an artist?” The guy asked as he checked some things on the TV itself.
“Huh?” Dean asked, not really listening. He was too busy staring at the guy’s ass as he bent over.
“You’re covered in paint. Are you an artist? Or just painting a room in various shades of blue?”
Dean looked down at his shirt and remembered what he’d been doing earlier.
“Oh, well, sort of. I’ve sold pieces over the years but it’s more of a hobby than anything. I teach art now. It’s a 4 day weekend for me and since I couldn’t watch my shows, I decided to work on a painting.”
The man glanced back, smiling. “That’s pretty cool. Never met a real artist before. What do you paint?”
Dean shrugged and moved over to the couch to sit. “I work mostly in acrylics. I like doing landscapes but I’ve painted other natural pieces and people.”
“Winchester. That name sounds familiar. Do you teach at Jeff?” The man asked.
“Yeah, I do, actually.” Dean was a little surprised this guy had heard of him. Maybe his kid was his student.
“My, uh, sister teaches there. Anna Novak-Logan. She’s married to one of the freshman math teachers. She actually mentioned you a few times.”
Dean knew Anna well. She was always trying to set him up with her single friends. In fact, she’d mentioned her hot, single brother….oh…
At least she hadn’t been exaggerating when she’s said “hot”.
“Are you Michael or Castiel?”
The man turned around, the box in his hands, and smiled.
“I’m Castiel.”
Dean found himself staring and the moment he realized it, he dropped his gaze to the box in Castiel’s hands.
“It bit the dust?”
“It did, but you’ll be able to watch your shows in just a few minutes, once I replace it.” Castiel set the old box on the coffee table before pulling a new one from his toolbox, still in its original packaging.
“So, uh, this might sound weird but Anna, she was uh, trying to get me to go out with you. I was tired of her trying to set me up though, so I kept refusing. I’m sort of regretting that now.” Castiel chuckled nervously as he began installing the new box. Dean found himself smiling and laughing too.
“Yeah, she mentioned she had a hot brother she wanted me to meet, but she also said she had several, so I didn’t know which one she was talking about. And since Gabe teaches German and I absolutely do not find him to be hot, I’m assuming she meant you.”
Castiel looked back over his shoulder, a huge grin gracing the most perfect mouth Dean had ever laid eyes on. He’d resisted Anna’s attempts to set him up with her brother and he was regretting it now too.
“I hate that she tells people that. I’m not hot by any means.” He leaned behind the television to connect the cables and when he was finished, he turned the TV back on. It only took a few minutes for the cable box to catch up and get everything loaded.
“There you go, all fixed. Now you get to watch your shows and enjoy your days off.” Castiel checked his phone. “And now I get to do the same. Half day for me, I was just covering a shift. It was supposed to be a 4 day weekend for me too.” He started gathering up his things and as he started for the door, Dean got up and followed.
“Hey, Cas?”
The man paused and looked back at him.
“Yes?”
“How does a Doctor Sexy marathon and pizza sound?” Dean asked. The man smiled wide.
“It sounds pretty damn good.”
“Would you like to join me? It’s my lazy day and I was planning to spend it alone, but I can make an exception for you.”
Castiel smiled wider.
“I’d like that. On one condition.”
Dean cocked an eyebrow in question. “What is it?”
“We not tell Anna, at least, not for a while. She has a tendency to gloat.” Castiel replied. Dean threw his head back and laughed.
“Yeah, that’s fine by me.”
“Alright then. Give me a half hour to drop the company van off and I’ll be back. I can bring pizza and beer. Any preferences?” Castiel asked.
“Nah, just none of that lite crap.”
Castiel nodded and opened the door.
“I’ll see you soon then. Save a spot on the couch for me.” He winked before opening the door and stepping out onto the porch. Dean watched him walk to the van and get in behind the wheel. This wasn’t part of the plan for his day but boy was it going to be so much better now!