Don't Tell Sammy

Chapter 5: It's Not Weird Unless You Make It Weird

After animals he moved on to weird foods, after foods they fell silent. The radio cranked out song after song. The conversation picked up again at their next stop, where Dean took over from driving because Cas had had enough and it was easier for Dean to just drive there without having to give Cas directions. The reason the conversation picked up was because Dean was tired of it lagging, so he decided to ask Cas a question.

'So besides chocolate, what other flavors of ice cream do you like?'

Ice cream was on his mind because he spotted some when buying them some drinks to keep hydrated on the road.

'I liked what I had of the cookie dough last night,' Castiel thought about it. 'And what I had of the peanut butter cup flavor. And when I worked in the store I tried some strawberry and some mint, which are also good. Besides that, I don't know any other flavors besides plain.'

'You're missing out,' Dean told him seriously. 'Like seriously missing out. Tell you what, I'm making it my personal mission to make sure you get to taste every single ice cream flavor we come across,' Dean decided. 'I'm going to make you my personal project. I'm going to shove as much of the stuff you've been missing out on as possible at you.'

'Dean, you really don't have to do that.'

'But I want to,' Dean insisted. 'You deserve it.'

'Do I?'

The fact that Cas had to ask was painful. The fact that he didn't take Dean's word for it without questioning it was even more painful.

'I wouldn't say you did if you didn't,' Dean replied, as sincere as he'd ever been. 'Let me do this for you.'

'Okay,' Castiel accepted the offer.

'Great. I'll make this ... however long ... a time you won't forget in a hurry.'

'I doubt I could forget it whether I was your new "personal project" or not.'

'That's the spirit,' Dean grinned.

Dean began making a plan of the different kinds of things he'd get Cas to experience at once, lapsing into silence again albeit a more comfortable one than the last. Of course food was a big thing. He needed to try as many different takeout options as possible, foods from different places around the world and of course he'd promised him spaghetti. And there were drinks, too – sodas and milkshakes and different coffee drinks and hot chocolate and weird tasting tropical juices made from weird fruits that were surprisingly good, not that Dean ever let on to Sam that he liked the weird juices he bought.

He had to take him to the movies at least once and he had to take him out to a bar. It was true he'd done that last thing before, but that was to get a spell ingredient. And look at the mess than caused. This time it would be normal. They could play cards and darts and pool, and it would be fun.

And they had to, had to do Christmas. It was only a month away and they'd likely be there for it anyway. Maybe they'd even get to ring in the New Year, get wasted and eat junk food and watch fireworks. Maybe even get some illegal fireworks like Dean had done for Sam when they were kids. It would be a welcome change to have some fun for once.

He would make sure that at least once, Cas would stay up all night binge watching some stupid TV show.

He was going to make sure Castiel knew how appreciated he was, and he wasn't going to ask for anything in return.

Well ... besides the obvious.

The tape came to a sudden, abrupt end, snapping Dean out of his own head.

'Mind reaching under the seat and pulling out my tape collection?' Dean asked Cas, who had been looking out over the road with a relatively bored look on his face, a bottle of Pepsi (as he requested) in his lap.