How I Love Now - A Supernatural/Castiel Love Story

Chapter 1: The Girl at the Door

Castiel picked up his napkin to wipe his mouth. The cheeseburger he had been given was not the nicest he had ever had, he knew one man who would look down on him in disgrace for continually returning to the same cafe for the last 6 months, to eat the same piss-poor burger, every Tuesday night. Cas didn’t mind. Since becoming human he had learnt to accept any food and to not take anything for granted. He was mortal now, it took a while to get used to the fact that he could die. Get run over, or get really ill or something. But when he did think about, he would get scared. Oh, there was that as well. Feelings, emotions...being scared. He still wasn’t used to that, and he didn’t think he ever would be.

As Cas was about to find his wallet to pay for his meal a blast knocked him forward, sending him flying off of his seat. Glass shattered and screams filled the crowded cafe. Oh no, Cas thought. They’ve found me. How the hell did they find me? 

He knew this day was coming, he could deny it all he wanted but, some day, the Angels were going to come for him. Finding his feet a little, Cas dived behind the counter where a skinny waitress who ignored him earlier was crouched, panicking. Before she could say anything, Cas silenced her with a gesture and a matter-of-fact expression, as though he was a figure of authority or, indeed, an Angel of the lord.

Cas needed to get out of here. The Angels wouldn’t harm the humans for no reason, that would attract unwanted attention. No, they wanted him. Noticing a door to the kitchens, Cas went for it as he heard more worried remarks from other customers and demands from at least four Angels. Managing to creep out of the door and head for the back exit he blessed himself. Thank God, he thought, as he ran through the dark alleyway, back home. What the heck was he going to do now?

XXXXX

"So, why is the FBI interested in this crack-case?" The sarcastic and yet smartly-dressed detective questioned the brothers as he obtained the pivotal evidence from his computer. The older of the two was already adequately pissed off by this man’s attitude but he answered nonetheless;

"I'm sorry that's classified. We just go where we're told to go." Dean smiled, waiting for the detective to walk away. He finally does so, leaving him and his younger brother, Sam, alone to look at the CCTV footage of the cafe attack. The hunters already had an idea of what they were dealing with and the black and white fuzzy images confirmed their suspicions. Angels. The blinding light and the strength shown through the utter destruction of the windows made it obvious for them what this case was leading to, but that wasn't the highlight of the film.

"Dean? Is that...?" Sam inferred pausing the clip and intensifying the screen to the cafe counter where the face of their old friend, Cas, was made clear.

The brothers looked at each other, sharing the same thought process. The video clip was low in quality and Cas made sure to try and hide his face but the Winchesters noticed him instantly. They watched as Cas ran out of view of the camera, believing that he had escaped but neither being absolutely certain. Sam and Dean took an exhale of breath as they realised the reason behind the Angel attack. Dean called over to the detective they had just spoken to:

“Hey, do you have directions for the crime scene?”

“Yeah, sure, I’ll get them for you,” The detective answered reluctantly. He was just about to break for lunch.

XXXXX

“So, what are you thinking?” Sam uttered as they entered the messy, glass-filled cafe, their footsteps making noticeable crunch sounds. Not one chair or table was standing upright and only the counter looked like it was holding it’s ground. There were a few police officers still in the cafe collecting information and making notes on the scene, looking relatively bored with the odd investigation. A young, dark haired woman that must have been the owner of the place was hopelessly sweeping up the damage.