Arranged Marriage || destiel (alpha!dean &a omega!cas)

Chapter Twenty-Two - Freedom

"Wa-was that-?"

"Pan." Castiel replied simply and glumly. Dean turned to look at him from the spot where pan had stood just moments ago.

"You don't look pleased." Worry etched in Deans voice and Castiel almost snorted with the falseness of it. Instead just just let out a small grimace.

"No? I can't imagine why." He drolled pathetically and Dean bit the inside of his cheek.

"Why? What did he say to you?"

"Nothing at all, and then you barged in and now he's gone and I'm probably never going to find out what he was going to say to me." He snapped and instantly regretted it. Dean looked genuinely hurt and ashamed as he looked down at the floor. Castiel's heart wrenched with guilt but he was too stubborn to apologise or comfort the hurt man.

"Sorry?" Dean said as more of a question than an actual apology but Castiel sighed in response and shook his head.

"S'fine." He mumbled out and sighed again before sitting down on the bed and putting his head in his hands tiredly. Dean watched him closely and after a few moment decided to take a few slow steps closer. As he got closer Castiel felt the warmth flow from the alphas body and the scent made his mouth water. But his mood had dropped down to his boots which overruled any passion that may have otherwise filled his mind.

Dean slowly sat down beside Castiel and cautiously put his hand in the omegas knee. Something rushed through Castiel, something that he couldn't quite describe but if he had to it was a tide of warmth that ran from his knee up to enclose over his heart. Dean only thought it was a small comfort that he was giving the young omega but the effect it had was marginally bigger.

Castiel had kept a lot bottled in ever since he had arrived in Lawrence; nerves of marriage, fear of his homeland, heartbreak of leaving Adam,  Pan's riddles on whether or not he was disappointed with him, and the fact that he could not control his wolf, but with a simple gesture from the older alpha, a weight felt it had been lifted off his shoulders in some way. He turned suddenly when Dean gasped and took his hand away.

"Oh pup." Dean groaned, putting the hand that had been in Castiels leg onto his heart. "You hold too much grief over yourself, why can't you let it all go."

Dean didn't even know he had spoken until he realised that Castiel was looking at him in fascination. And he certainly had no clue what he had just done for the young omega.

"Thank you." Castiel whispered incredulously, his eyes wide and his heart now light from the pain that had ridden there slowly dispersing.

"What?" Dean asked gruffly, narrowing his eyes. It was strange to see this new, unfamiliar look on Castiels face. It had suddenly become gentler, the hard lines falling away from his brows and rather than the tight line that had become Castiels almost permanent lips,  a slow half smile appeared on then.

"How did you do that?" Castiels eyes narrowed but it wasn't the hard look of suspicion that dean had slowly become accustomed to in Castiels face, but more of a look of curiosity.

"Do what? What did I do?" Dean was dumbfounded and Castiel frowned and looked at the alpha closely.

"When you put your hand on my knee, you took away my worries and pain." It was the only way Castiel could describe it and he realised after he said it he must have sounded like a crazy person to the man sitting beside him. But instead of snickering and shaking his head at Castiel, dean only shrugged and frowned alongside his husband.