Hayden & Dean (The Sequel) - A Tethered Love

Chapter 32: Something Real, Something Imaginary

"Dean, Castiel can't fix Paul. He said something like he has a sickness that no man or angel has seen before" I basically cry into the phone once he picks up.

He tries to slow me down "wow, wow. What are you talking about?"

I try and slow down, but ultimately I speak just as fast "he tried to make him feel better but he said he couldn't, that whatever he has is unknown and his angel powers can't fix it."

I hear mutter something to his brother and another muffled sound before he responds "and he's sure?!"

"Yes!" I yell "he's tried three times now. Dean, do you think this has to do with the darkness?" I question, that being my biggest fear right now.

At first I thought he was sick with something normal, well not normal, something terrible. But considering he's sick with something unknown to this world, I feel like a normal human sickness would've been easier to handle. Did he get sick because of me, because of the mark? My head is swirling with questions. "Hayden, you there?" Dean asks loudly, getting my attention.

"Uhh, yeah. What?" I mutter, not hearing a thing he said.

He repeats "we have no reason to think this has to do with that. I'm not sick, you're not sick. But as soon as we are done here we will come straight home and figure this out. Can you put Castiel on the phone?"

I groan, annoyed he's still going to Minnesota and not sending Sam alone and coming home to deal with this "yeah, hold on." I walk to the room where he's sitting with Paul and pass the phone "it's Dean."

He stands, takes the phone from me and leaves the room "Yes, Dean."

I sit on the ground to hang out with Paul and wait for Castiel to return with my phone. When he gets back, he has clearly hung up already. He hands me the phone and sits down next to me "don't worry Hayden, we'll figure this out."

"Yeah, we will. Along with everything else we have to figure out." I mutter, rubbing at Paul's head to place his hair back down to his head. Castiel gives me a sympathetic look, and I say to him "you're getting better at responding to people's emotions."

"What do you mean?" He questions.

I explain "your look of sympathy just now, you used it correctly. At the right time."

He straightens his back "it wasn't calculated, I'm deeply concerned about Paul. He's my nephew, he's Dean's son. He's an innocent. I want him to get better."

I put my hand over his on the floor "thanks Cas. I know with people like you in his corner that he's going to be okay." Castiel semi smiles back at me and the two of us just hang out for a bit longer trying to cheer Paul up with some of his toys.

When Dean gets back 2 days later, he goes straight to take Paul from me "any worse?"

"Not since the last time you called 4 hours ago." I respond with annoyance without looking up from the book I am reading. We are still looking to find anything on the darkness, that being the only reasoning behind all this that Castiel and I can think of.

He bounces him in his arms "it looks like he has gotten some more color in his face, maybe he's getting better." He offers. I turn the page that I am on then look at him like he's stupid for not thinking of what I'm thinking. "What?" He catches on to my glare, to my attitude.

I close the book hard then stand up to take Paul from his arms as I say "even if he does get better, he still has something no one else has ever had, that's not going to change."

Dean sighs and follows me out of the room "Hayden, come on. I'm just trying to find the positive here. He's doing better then before, that's good. We will figure out what's wrong and we will fix it."