Crumble: A Destiel AU

[1]

[Castiel]

The acceptance letter had come in early January, and I instantly packed my bags from New York and moved back to my hometown. It had a sentimental feel about it. I was only four when I moved but I learned and remembered so much from that time. I knew the best places to get food, the best places to hang out, and the best place to live at the best cost.

"Thank you so much, Jenny. This deal is incredible. I knew you'd give it to me cheap, but I didn't expect a deal like this." I signed the contract that said I owned the house. "No problem, Castiel. Your mother and I were good friends before your father got a divorce and she left the city." The fact my mother never tried to contact me after we left was a hard hit to take anyway, but the fact that she left the city and didn't tell me crippled me inside. I was devastated. "She never told me." The hurt could be seen in my eyes, I could feel the pain radiate off of me. "It happened right after you and your father left. She was a mess, alone in her house, pictures of you and him everywhere, reminders of before everything fell apart. She took all of her stuff and moved out to California. I don't blame her for moving, but I can also see how hurt you are that she never told you.

After a brief breakdown in the realtor's office, I stopped by the moving truck company to rent one of their small trucks. My car wouldn't hold everything, but I didn't need to get a large moving truck for just a few items. The whole ordeal was a hassle, they only had the really big ones and they kept raising the price. I just left and went to the other place; which was halfway across the city, and finally got the truck I needed. I took two hours to get all of my stuff loaded into the truck from the storage center all of it was at and take it to the new house. It was almost eleven at night, so I decided it would be best to just leave it there overnight and unload it early the next morning.

Early the next morning turned out to be four am. It was very hard to sleep on the couch I was able to bring in by myself and it was a terrible couch. I mean what do you expect from a guy who wasn't able to work high paying jobs because he wasn't eighteen and didn't have a college degree? I worked at a diner full time and at a coffee shop part time, and it took me two years to save up enough to move back to Chicago, buy furniture, buy a house, and enough for college at least for the upfront costs, and still pay for the usual bills in everyday life. Back to the couch, it was an old yellow flower printed couch that looked like it would be owned by someone's grandma. It was still like a brick, so I decided to go ahead and unpack. Everything went smoothly and all the stuff from the truck was in the house before the sun came up.

It took about an hour to get all of the bedroom pieces upstairs, the bed was still not put together but at least it was upstairs. It was seven before I decided I needed a break. I remembered Sammy was in the kennel and I needed to go get him. I didn't want to bring him home until after I got all the furniture set up, but it was impossible at the moment. I had to return the truck anyway, and maybe I would stop at the library and pick up something to read and get some coffee.

Picking up Sammy and taking him home felt like it was really going to be home, me and my puppy starting a new chapter in our lives. I pulled the car in front of the house, my neighbor across the street mowing his lawn. I got out of the car, our eyes meeting. He has this feel about him, his eyes examining me quickly before darting back up to my eyes. Not knowing what it meant or what I was going to do next, I walked around the car and picked up Sammy. I could feel him watching me walking up the brick pathway and into the house. From the curtains, I saw him slightly shake his head and continue mowing. He was strange, interesting even.

I heard the revving of a diesel engine, the window letting me peer outside. A black car pulled onto the street and headed towards town. I didn't know the make or model, but it looked old; not like they do today with their hybrid engines and rounded sides. He must be into cars I guessed, which seemed fitting for him. Sammy started barking at the mattress again, and I knew he wanted it set up so he could take a nap. After a forty minute struggle, the mattress won, and Sammy was still barking at it. I love that dog to death, but he was very demanding.

A knock on my door not a hour later echoed through the mainly empty house. I picked up my bowl of popcorn from the couch and headed towards the door. The man from across the street stood on the porch, a small smile on his lips. "Hi, I'm Dean Winchester. I live across the street." I shook his outstretched hand. "I'm Castiel, nice to meet you." I smiled, noticing his eyes were a hypnotic dark green. "So, uh, I know you were just moving in and I thought I'd offer to help you set everything up." His hands rubbed together at his waistline, a telltale he was nervous about something. "That would be great actually. My mattress kicked my butt earlier and I couldn't even get it up the stairs." I crunched a piece of popcorn between my teeth, wanting to appear as casual. "C'mon in" I waved him in, popcorn in my hand. He smiled brightly for a moment before walking into the doorway.