Standing Together

Chapter 31

"Okay, I'm gonna go get the postage stamp thingies for you before I forget," Dean says that afternoon. "I think the post office is still open. It's still kinda early-ish."

"Is it just going to be a quick in-and-out thing?" Castiel asks.

"Yeah, pretty much," Dean says. "Depends on how long the line is, but I'd say it'll probably take 15 minutes, max, and I'll be back." In a teasing voice, he adds, "If you think you can survive 15 minutes without me, of course."

Castiel rolls his eyes. "Yes, Dean, I'm sure I could survive 15 minutes without you. In fact, just because you said that, I'm not going to offer to come with you."

"Wait, were you really going to offer to come?" Dean asks.

Castiel nods. "Emphasis on 'were.'"

"What if I ask you to come?" Dean asks. "Would you still come with me?"

Castiel sighs dramatically, as if he wasn't going to ask anyway. "Fine, if I have to."

Dean grins. "Awesome! Come on!"

"Wait, hold up." Castiel sprints to their bedroom, digging through his single suitcase to find a pair of sunglasses. He clips them on his shirt and returns to Dean's side. "Okay, now I'm ready."

"Camouflage?" Dean guesses.

"Good call," Castiel replies. It's not entirely true — he would definitely like to hide from people who might recognize him, but he also just doesn't want anyone to see him and realize that he just looks like a mess. At least with the sunglasses, no one can see the dark purple circles under his eyes.

Dean takes Castiel's hand and leads him out of the house. Dean opens the car door for his fiancé, then hops in the driver's seat, and they're off.

"Not that I'm complaining," Dean says, "But why are you coming with me? I thought you wanted to hibernate for a while."

Castiel shrugs. "I don't know. I've been cooped up in there for ages. I'm getting bored. I figured a quick in-and-out trip to the post office wouldn't hurt."

"You're going to be just as bored at the post office, you know," Dean says. "It's not a very entertaining place."

"Neither is your house," Castiel says. "At least this way, I still get to talk to you."

"Touché," Dean says. "I'm all the entertainment anyone could ever need."

~~

As Dean buys the postage stamps, Castiel can't help but look around, eyes darting frantically around the room. He doesn't even know what he's looking for. Other than the two of them and the workers, the building is empty, and almost dead silent. If anything went wrong, it would be impossible not to know.

So what's he looking for? The blinking light of a movie-status time bomb? The red dot on a chest from a sniper rifle? It doesn't even make sense to be on the lookout for something like that. So why can't he calm down?

"Oh my god, it's Castiel and Dean!"

Castiel whips around at the sudden sound of voices, only to find a couple of teenager girls standing in the doorway. He quickly turns his attention back to the counter, looking up at Dean. He's almost done buying their stamps. He's almost done. He's almost —

"Are you really Castiel?" one of the girls asks, standing uncomfortably close to him.

Castiel risks a glance at her from the side of his sunglasses, and he notices a phone trained on his face. He should have stayed home. He really should have stayed home.