Static Radios and Broken Lights

8: An Incomprehensible Dream

I opened my eyes and found myself in a park, sitting on a bench. "This is strange," I looked around. There were no people anywhere in my sight, even though the day was bright and warm. "Where is everyone? Sam! Cas!"

Then something blue and bright whizzed past me. I flinched, but it was gone as fast as it had arrived. A voice called my name. "Dean!" It was a voice I didn't recognize. But it was a deep voice, a man's voice.

"Hello?" I yelled, standing up and spinning in a slow circle to try to see the source of the voice. "Are you alright? Do you need help?"

"Dean!" This time the voice sounded female, although still deep.

I ran to the center of the grass in the park. "Where are you?!"

"Dean!" The voice came from all directions. "Dean!" It became eerily familiar.

I instantly knew who it was. "Cas!" I yelled. "Where are you? Do you need a vessel? Where's Jimmy?" I spun in a circle, looking for feathers or a trench coat, anywhere. "Please, come here! You're scaring me!"

"Dean," It was Cas. Not Jimmy's voice, but something like it. I still couldn't see him anywhere. "Shut your eyes!"

"No!" I yelled back, searching the sky. "Come here!"

"Shut your eyes," He demanded. The blue light flew past me again, its heat searing me a bit. It got bigger, brighter, and hotter. It seemed to reach out to me. "Shut your eyes," It yelled. He yelled.

I squinted, but forced my eyes to stay open. "No!" I screamed. The light got almost too bright to handle but I kept my eyes open. "Please, come here!" The light surrounded me, overtaking everything else.

I tried desperately to stay on my feet, but fell to my knees as it closed in. "Shut your eyes!" It yelled again. He yelled again.

"No!" I screamed it a final time. I tried to keep my eyes open, but when the light came so close I could feel my skin start to burn, I cowered and hid my face behind my forearms. I kept my eyes open despite the very bright light, glaring at it. It blasted through me, knocking me on my back. I let out a yelp, and wheezed as I tried to sit up.

-

Then it was black as night, and colder than ice. My eyes shut instinctively, and I felt Cas's hands cover them. "Keep them shut," He demanded. I tried to shove them away, but they were like immovable stones.

I clamped down on his wrists and protested his demands. "No, please. What is this?" I kept wheezing, trying to catch my breath. All of the air around us seemed to be sucked away. I started to gasp, "Cas!"

I sat up quickly, waking up from that horrible nightmare. I gasped in, holding my chest, trying to stop the painful wheezes. I looked to my side to see Cas standing quietly. He noticed me struggling, and I grabbed his shoulder, shaking him. He jumped to action, placing two fingers on my forehead. Nothing happened.

"You're going to be alright, Dean," He put his hands on the sides of my face, rubbing my cheeks with his thumbs. "You just need to wake up."

My wheezes turned to pained croaks, and I blindly grasped at his face, accidentally getting his neck instead. I squeezed it and glared at him. I pulled his head closer, hoping he could hear my thoughts screaming at him. I don't know what's happening but you make sure Sammy's safe, alright?

I pressed my forehead against his and passed out. My eyes were still open, watching him shake and scream silently at me.

-

I woke up quietly, noticing that it was easy to breathe. I was laying on my back with an arm around Cas, whose head was resting on my chest. His eyes were open, and he was firmly grasping my bare forearm. His thumb was strangely still.

I nudged him a little and we both sat up. "Were you in my head?" I asked. "What was happening in there?"

"You were having a nightmare," He said plainly.

"I know that," I said. "I just don't understand. I thought you were there, and that you needed help or something." I grabbed his shoulder with one hand. "Are you okay?"

He hung his head in shame. "I was trying to show you my true form. I just ended up causing a nightmare. I was worried something like this might happen." He looked up at me with those blue eyes. 

I pulled him into a hug. He wasn't warm like he normally was, though. It was strange. "I appreciate the gesture, but that was terrifying," I turned my head and kissed his neck gently. "Were you protecting me from whatever was out there?" He put his arms around me stiffly.

"Of course," He spoke into my skin. He laid down on his back, holding me against his chest. I cuddled against him. "It's alright, go to sleep, Dean. I'll protect you."

"That's reassuring," I joked, but really I wanted him to hold me tighter. He silently obeyed.

"You'll be alright," he whispered to me. I breathed easier, despite his crushing grip. I brushed my lips against his neck, hoping it would tickle him. He chuckled shyly -- although it seemed forced. I fell asleep after about half an hour.

-

I woke up and felt Cas's arms around me. I kissed his hands gently and he loosened his grip. "You're awake," He stated. "Were your dreams alright?"

"I think so," I shifted and faced him, pressing my hands against his chest. "But I don't really remember. Would you know something about that?"

"No," He looked me in the eyes. "Yes. You had another nightmare."

"Well I'm okay, now, right?" He avoided an answer. I snaked an arm around his waist. "Can I have a kiss, now?"

He nodded and we leaned into each other.

The day passed by uneventfully and Cas was strangely quiet. The real excitement began when we went to bed that night. He refused to leave me alone, worried that without him I would "succumb to the night terrors."

"Like that would happen," I teased.

But in reality I wanted him to stay with me, even if the apocalypse showed up on our doorstep. Again.

Word Count: 1060