Heat of the Moment

Nine

The park was a real beauty. Cas had never seen anything like it and it all took his breath away; tall, dark green trees grew above Castiel with amazing height, healthy brown trunks rooting them to the center of it all. The grass was alive with colorful tulips and roses and the likes. There were several brushes but those were only the beginning, leading to a playground where kids swung from swings, kicking higher, higher. Toddlers walked around with mothers, who led them to small slides, as they pretended to enjoy spending time with the cute little ankle biters. Several kids played on the seesaw. Castiel hadn't seen one of those in forever. He stared. Trails leading out to God knew where, taking hikers on journeys. Castiel had always liked walking along pathways that could take them wherever it liked. It was almost like a secret destination, awaiting what sat at the end of a trail. He smiled.

"So?" Dean asked. "Not so bad for a first date, eh?" he said it so proudly as if he'd spent hours thinking about what Castiel would like and maybe he had, Castiel realized. Perhaps Dean had stalked Cas's Tumblr or something.

"First date?" Cas asked. It seemed like they'd known each other forever.

Dean nodded. "Yeah," he said. Cas stared at him. "What?"

"You just genuinely seem to care," Castiel said. He narrowed his eyes a little, as if trying to depict what was so special about Dean Winchester. Of course, he saw it all the time, written all over his body, and his words, but he wondered why Dean would ever want to go for Castiel.

Dean raised an eyebrow. He asked, "Is that bad?"

To which Cas responded with, "No, not at all." He smiled. "Thank you."

They walked along the trails for a little bit, gawking at the flowers and birds and exotic insects they saw along the way, to which Dean discovered that Castiel was extremely interested in insects and animals; or just nature in general.

As they walked the trail, Castiel pointed out a bird's nest. "Hey," he said. "There's an egg in it,"

He was so fascinated by the nest that he didn't notice when Dean wrapped his arms around him, kissing his ear. Castiel blushed. "Yeah. So?" Dean asked.

Cas giggled. "I want to get a closer look," he said.

"Do you think they have a ladder somewhere?" Dean asked, avoiding looking at the perfectly stable, decently positioned branches hanging from the tree. "No reason to climb, is there-?"

Castiel rolled his eyes. "Come on," be climbed onto the first branch, hauling his legs up and grabbing the branches above him. Dean stared at him from below a look of horror on his face. "What? Scared?" Castiel asked.

"A little," Dean admitted.

Castiel grinned.

He continued to climb, waiting patiently for Dean to catch up every now and then, containing his laughter when Dean slipped. It was hard to think that Dean Winchester was anything but perfection. To discover one of his fears was like being the first person to know Superman's weakness is kryptonite.

Dean almost slipped, his feet missing a branch by a whole foot, and Cas gasped, grabbing onto Dean's wrist and pulling him up. "Got it?" Castiel asked breathlessly when Dean got up. Dean looked a little horrified but other than that, he was good at containing fear.

"Yeah," he said. "Thanks."

Castiel looked up. They were so close. Only a little further up. Castiel climbed some more until he reached the nest, where a branch and the tree trunk met, in the corner. The egg almost looked as if it were shivering. Castiel made an effort not to touch it but he gawked. Dean joined him a little while after, watching Cas's look of excitement as he watched the nest. "When do you think she'll be back?" Dean asked quietly.

"The egg's been out here for a long time. Poor thing. Probably cold."

"Maybe we can take it home?" Dean suggested.

Castiel looked at him as if he had just suggested they go and hug a ticking bomb. "The mom will never come back and take care of it. It will smell out scent. And besides. My dad wouldn't let me keep any egg."

Dean shrugged. "I could keep it. And it looks like the mother abandoned it anyways,"

"Don't be ridiculous. It'll come back. You just see," Castiel said, starting to climb back down the tree. He plopped to the ground on his feet, grabbing at the tree to steady himself. Dean slowly climbed down and jumped from the lowest branch. He sighed. "Was that so bad?" Cas asked.

Dean rolled his eyes, but blushed a bit. "Come on," he said, hiding a smile.

When they finished the trail, a rather exciting adventure, Castiel caught sight of the swings and stopped. He stared at them longingly, his thoughts wandering to his childhood, where he, Zachariah, and Michael had once stood taking turns pushing Castiel in the swing. Castiel could still feel their hands on his back, squealing, "Higher!" and then at the end, jumping, trying to get higher than he had before.

Dean looked at Castiel worriedly. "What?" He asked. "What is it?"

Cas shook his head. "Nothing," he said.

They continued walking, to the Impala. Dean opened the door up for Castiel, being the gentleman that he was, and put some MCR on, Cas bobbing his head to the beat. The car roared to life, the engine revving under Castiel's butt. Dean smiled. "The old thing still works like new."

Castiel smiled, blushing a little bit.

Dean caught the flush of red on his cheeks, smirking as he put his arm around Castiel's shoulders, growling in a bad-ass, leather-wearing, old-time, 60s voice, "So, babe, do ya work like brand new, too?"

Castiel pushed him off, laughing. He blushed deeper at the implication, shrugging. "I guess so," he says, playing in innocent. "Why?"

Dean grins, backing out of the parking lot, and speeding to Castiel's house. The silence on their way there was nice, not awkward. They both had to reflect for a minute, to think the silence was filled by the sounds of My Chemical Romance. At few parts, Cas would drum his fingers or tap his feet. Dean sang along to some songs.

When they got there, Castiel warned Dean, "Don't park in the driveway, actually. My dad might see," worriedly.

Dean shrugged. "Alright," so he stopped by the entrance to the subdivision, about ten houses down. "Can you walk from here?" he asked.

Castiel nodded. "Thank you," he said.

Dean smirked. "You know, I think this tops all the dates I've had so far," he said.

Cas shrugged. "I dunno. Top five, for sure," he joked.

Dean smiled. "Call me, okay?" he asked.

Castiel nodded and kissed Dean, full on the lips, and Dean sank into the kiss. They no longer felt embarrassed around one another even though the sparks between them were written in the stars. Not to be sappy, of course, as Dean would say. Castiel laughed. "Dean!" He argued. "I gotta go," he said.

"One more kiss?"

Cas pecked him on the nose, whispering, "Better?"

"Better."

But as Castiel turned and opened his door, one foot on the ground, Dean yanked him back, and he fell backwards. He kissed him all over his face, small little pecks that made Castiel giggle. "Dean!" he said, being tickled. "Stop! Dean!" Though he wished he could stay like that forever.

Dean sighed, finally letting him go.