The Endless Life

Part 7

You sat at the kitchen table, caressing the cold glass of the beer bottle you held. Dean and Sam sat opposite you, mouthing requests at the other to talk to you. "You do it, you're her girl-buddy," Dean whispered into Sam's ear. "I'm more of a man than you'll ever be," he shot back at him. Dean rewarded him with a swift stomp to his toes. He yelped, springing out from his seat. You looked up. "(Y/n)? Can we talk to you?" he asked through gritted teeth, holding back the throbbing pain in his foot. You shrugged, chugging down your third beer. He tried to grab it from you, but you cradled it protectively in your arms. "What's wrong?" Sam asked redirecting his hand to your shoulder. "Cas has been gone for so long. I miss him," you lay your head on the table. "He's been gone for two days," Dean stated. You peeled yourself off from the cold table and walked towards the living room, swaying with each step ,"I know". Sam elbowed Dean in the rib disapprovingly before trailing after you. "He'll be back," he said after catching up to you. You hummed in response, not bothering to form your mouth to create words. You slumped down on a random chair. "Do you wanna go do something?" he asked. You shook your head. You missed Castiel so much. You knew he was an angel, you knew he had important responsibilities. But you wanted him all to yourself. Sam's large hands rubbed your back sympathetically. His warm comfort slowly pulled you into a state of drowsiness.

Suddenly there was the sound of feathers and the clashing of pots, instantly snapping your attention back to reality. "Cas!" you shrieked excitedly, jumping from your seat and practically throwing yourself into the kitchen. You saw Dean kneeling over in a corner of the room, cutlery and pots spilled over the floor. He knelt over Cas, you could only see his shoulder as Dean blocked the rest of him from view. "Cas?" you ask, cautiously taking a step towards Dean. "(Y/n)! Stay back! You don't want to see this. Go get Sam," he said, accidently shifting his body to reveal more of your angel. You gasped at the sight of him. His hair mangled and knotted, was thick with blood. His nose was broken, his left eye surrounded by bruising. Deep cuts were carved into his skin, his shirt unbuttoned and stained red, you could see torture etched into his chest. Tears streamed down your face as you ran to his side, shoving Dean out of the way in your panicked state. "Castiel!" you screamed, fingers prodding his skin searching for a pulse. You found it pumping weakly on his neck. You clutched him in your arms, burrowing your face into his hair and whimpering loudly. You felt cold fingers stroke your cheeks. You looked down at him, and he smiled at you weakily. "I love it when say my full name," he whispered through his coarse breathing. His hand fell from your cheek returning to its limp position by his side. "Dean! Help him!" You cried tugging at Dean's sleeve, still nursing Cas in your arms. "Sammy!" he called, pulling the angel upright. Sam ran in, instantly assessed the situation and helped carry him away. "What happening?" Sam asked after Cas was secured in their arms. "I don't know. (Y/n) we're taking him to your room ok?" Dean said looking over his shoulder. You nodded.

The boys laid him carefully on your bed. You fluffed his pillows and took off his trench coat and shoes. "You'll be fine," you whispered, holding back your tears and hoping your voice wouldn't crack. You took his hand in yours and he gripped in return. You knew he was trying his best to fight for you. "We'll find the first aid kit," Sam said, dragging Dean away. You brushed his dirty hair away from his face and lay a gentle kiss on his sweat-drenched forehead. "We'll need to clean and dress those wounds. It'll hurt but it'll be over quickly," you let go of his hand and began taking off the remainder of his top layers. You poured him a glass of water and lifted it to his lips. He drank it thirstily, and you wiped away the water dribbling down his chin with your sleeve. You helped Sam and Dean clean the wounds, but you couldn't bare to stitch the torn flesh together and so you left that task to the boys while redirecting your attention to comforting Castiel. "You need rest," you whispered after Sam and Dean left. As you lifted yourself from the bed, Cas grabbed your sleeve and pulled you back onto him. "Stay," he winced, his breathing causing him pain. You smiled, trying to contain your tears. You crawled next to him, spacing yourself from his sensitive body in fear you would harm him, but he pulled you closer to him. You placed a hand on his chest, whimpering at how shallow his breathes were and how he quivered from each exhalation and inhalation. "Castiel," you began but noticing that he was drifting off, you nestled into his body and fell asleep in his embrace.

The next morning, Cas was looking better; any minor scratches were healed and he was able to speak without being out of breath. You and the boys took it in turns trying interrogate him on what had happened, but he refused to answer. He spent the whole day in bed with you at his side, apart from when you left him to make something to eat. You and the boys gave him another once over, discovering two broken fingers. Everytime you left the room and entered again, you winced at the sight of him. You helped him change into sweatpants and an old shirt you always wore but were actually Dean's. You fed him your cooking and despite claiming that angels do not need food, he accepted every bite with hunger, not once complaining about the taste of molecules. He spent most of the day sleeping or just talking to you. You watched a movie, you read him a book and as evening closed in, you asked again why he was in such a state. "I was attacked...." he stared into your eyes, "by angels". His gentle grip on your hand tightened. "Why?" you asked caressing his hand with your thumb. He struggled to sit up and you helped him into the position he wanted. "This... Us... It's against the rules. A human and an angel... Such a pairing is forbidden" his eye contact with you broke and his eyes fluttered to his bed sheets. "But I will fight for you. I will fight for us. I've loved you since the moment you were born. I've looked over you, I watched you grow up into the woman I'd die to be with. I'm not going to give up on that.... On us," his hands gripped the sheets, his voice grew louder with determination. His eyes shot back to you, passion flaring across his features,waiting for some sort of response. You fell into his arms "Castiel, I love you. That will never change. But you cannot sacrifice your life for me. If you truly love me you cannot put yourself in harm's way for my sake". You buried yourself into the crook of his neck. "What's the issue with a human-angel couple?" you asked, running your fingers through his soft hair. "If you were to conceive my child, the offspring would be a Nephilim. They are seen as abominations because of their forbidden existence," he whispered. "And the douche-bags upstairs can't have something that goes against their rules running around, can they?" You sighed, kneading your forehead with the heel of your palm. "No. Listen (y/n)-", "You think we might have a kid?" You interrupted him. "We can't," he said, you picked up his subtle sadness. "But you'd like one?" you bit your lip. "We can't..." he looked around, seemingly looking for an escape. Finding none, his eyes snapped back to yours, "but yes... Under different circumstances". You squeeled at his words but soon you remembered something. That fact alone came crushing down on your fantasies. Knowing Cas had a right to know, you whispered it into his ear. Shock and sympathy captured his features. "I'm so sorry (y/n). I'm sorry for being so insensitive". "I'll go grab some fresh bandages, ok?" you sprung away from his bed, a stupid tear trickling down your cheek as you exited.