Strings Attached

Chapter 5

The walk home is no picnic, and every step makes him wish he took the bus. But he knows that's not an option for him, and he pushes the thought aside, even though his ankle kills him every time he walks on it.

Castiel's dad, Chuck, is waiting for him inside. Castiel frowns when he notices his only two escapes to his room are blocked, one by Chuck and one by Gabriel.

"Hey, Castiel!" Gabriel greets him with a kind smile.

"Hi," Castiel replies quietly.

"Dad wants us to get out of the house," Gabriel tells him. "I figured I'd wait for you."

"Why...?" Castiel asks, looking at his dad curiously.

"Because you guys never leave the house, so you should," Chuck replies vaguely. "I don't care what you do, but just don't stay here, 'kay?"

"Can I please stay here?" Castiel pleads. He knows that he'll run into someone from school if he doesn't. It's just his luck.

"Nope," Chuck replies. "Shoo. Go make friends or something."

Castiel sighs, knowing there's no point in fighting it. Do you have any idea what it's like to argue with your father when your father thinks he's God?

"Can I bring my guitar?" Castiel asks.

"What would you do with your guitar?"

"Play it in the park or something," Castiel replies.

Chuck shrugs. "Yeah, sure, go ahead."

"But if you're playing guitar, who am I going to talk to?" Gabriel asks.

"A friend from school?" Castiel suggests. He's sure Gabriel has plenty of those. It's strange to think it's possible to befriend people there.

"Fine," Gabriel agrees reluctantly. "But I'm hanging with you 'til they show up."

Castiel nods in agreement before rushing to his room and grabbing his guitar. It's already in his case; he hates the idea of leaving his guitar out without its protective shell. He returns to find Gabriel waiting for him.

"Let's go to the park!" Gabriel says excitedly, running out the door.
Castiel sighs and walks after them, trying to hide his limp. This is going to be a long day.

~~

Castiel sits down in a park bench and pulls his guitar out of the case, resting it on his lap. He leaves his case open in front of him, ready to put his guitar away as soon as he gets the okay to go home.

Gabriel sits down next to Castiel, careful not to hit the guitar, and pulls out his phone. Castiel listens to the conversation as he tunes his guitar.

"Hey, Sammy!" Gabriel says excitedly. "My dad kicked me out of the house... No, not like that. Just for a little while... Can you come to the park and hang out?... Sure, he can come, too... Nope, my brother is the opposite of clingy..." Gabriel laughs. "Alright, see you then." He hangs up the phone and turns to Castiel. "And what will you be serenading us with today?"

"I don't know," Castiel replies as he begins to play random chords that all seem to compliment each other perfectly.

It's silent between them for a couple minutes as Castiel plays, his eyes on his fingers just so he doesn't accidentally make eye contact with anyone.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees something land in his guitar case. He looks up to see someone just put a dollar in there, and continue to watching Castiel play. There are a couple people watching, actually, and it's strange to him.