Amor Vincit Omnia

Love Conquers All

A soft gasp fell from his lips, and the paper floated towards the kitchen tile freed from the grasp of his trembling hands. Dean turned to see his friend slowly drop onto the empty stool behind him, eyes welling with silent tears, mouth a perfect "o" of shock. He quickly moved the pan he was using to cook breakfast from the flame and hurried to where his friend sat in shock.

"Cas? Cas, what's wrong? Talk to me, buddy." He placed his hands on the man's shoulders, jostling him, trying to gain a reaction. Everything seemed fine when they had awoken this morning. Dean rose from his usual spot on the pullout couch, and Cas slumped out from his bedroom to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and sizzling bacon. They had a silent agreement that if Dean slept over, he was tasked with making breakfast. He never minded, given mechanic work rarely gave him the chance to show off his culinary talents. Given he'd raised his little brother after his Mum died, it wasn't much of a surprise that he was a great cook. Having an absentee father and spending many nights falling asleep on the couch with the Food Network in the background gave him some ideas. He made one mean southwest omelette with the perfect seasoned home fries. In fact, that had been on the menu for today. At least until Cas had opened the letter that now laid face down upon the floor. Cas looked up to meet the concerned eyes staring back at him, the hazel green gazing into his baby blues.

Cas's lips trembled, and a knot formed in his throat as Dean's concern grew even more evident. He was going to miss that look, the face that knew like the back of his hand.

"Cas, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on, man." Hearing him speak sent another wave of tears throughout his body, and it took everything within him not to start sobbing at the idea that Dean was going to be ripped away from him. He'd fallen in love with their little routines, their inside jokes, even down to their equivalent love for Five Guy's double cheeseburgers with extra pickles. Above all, he'd fallen in love with his best friend. A deep, endearing love for his little faults and quirks, from his collection of porno mags to the way his brow furrowed whenever you tried to fight him on a single detail about "Dr Sexy M.D". He was indeed head over heels for a guy that would never feel the same for him... what a cliché. Meeting the eyes once more, he cleared his throat, the knot refusing to budge.

"Uh, that's the embassy. My uh, my visa isn't going to be renewed. I've got three months to sort out my affairs, and then I'm being deported back...home." Dean's face dropped, and he went from concern to utter dread. "Home", as he called it, was actually a tiny island off the south of Greece called Eden. It was known as Paradise, named by the English settlers who found it back in the 1700s. They decided on its new title after their Bible's view of the word. Eden was a small country ruled by a longstanding dynasty. However, that dynasty was more of a dictatorship than anything else. Castiel himself just happened to be in line for that throne and was set on not going anywhere near it. He knew what corruption of power can do to a person and what it had done to his father and brothers. So he'd applied for a visa secretly when he turned 18, finally achieving the right to live in America as a legal alien when he turned 23. The very same day the papers came through, he chartered a plane in the dead of night, sneaking out of the enormous palace where his family lived and never looked back. He'd been in America for nearly five years now, an exemplary example of an American citizen, minus the actual citizenship. He'd applied for citizenship not too long ago but was denied due to his abysmal score on the test. Study though he might, he'd never been a good test taker; answers were always too jumbled in his brain to form a coherent paragraph.

It had been a disappointment to Dean as well, given he'd even made "laminated flashcards". When Dean saw the defeat on Cas's face, he'd quickly changed his tune and promised him they'd study even harder for the next one. Now, all their studying seemed to be for nought. Dean pondered his following words for a moment before drawing Cas into a tight hug. It shocked the man for a moment before he cautiously wrapped his arms around the other.