hello! for the prompt: "wait a second, you're not straight?"
Castiel Novak is an asshole.
Seriously, screw Castiel Novak and his gorgeous eyes and hismessy hair and his terrible attitude and the fact that he’ll barely even give Dean the time of day, even though they’ve been at the same college for three years.
Screw him, and screw Dean’s life that he agreed to do an interviewwith him, because now he’s stuck sitting across a café table from an unfairlyhot douchebag who won’t even deign to look him in the eyes half the time.
“How old were you when you first became interested in baseball?”Castiel asks curtly, writing something on his notepad. He sounds as annoyed asDean feels, like he’d rather be anywhere other than here, and that makes two ofthem.
Dean casts his thoughts back several years – a lot ofyears. “Probably ten years old? I never really did the whole ‘little league’ or‘t-ball’ thing, I didn’t actually join a team until high school, but when I wasten, uh…” He trails off for a second, wondering how much he should spill about his less-than-storybook childhood, before deciding to gloss over…well, almost everything. “When I was ten, my brother and I went to live withour Uncle Bobby. He took us to the park to play baseball one day, and it just kind of stuck, I guess.”
Castiel, the asshole, doesn’t even glance up – just scribblesaway on his notepad, looking bored. Dean stews silently in his seat, resistingthe urge to fidget, and wonders why the hell he agreed to this interview again? School spirit? The free coffee and donut?
Then Castiel finally glances up, blue eyes boring into his withan intensity that freezes him in place, and oh yeah, he remembers now - becausehe’s got a massive, unrequited crush, and apparently he’s a sadist and a glutton forpunishment, that’s why.
“Who would you say has been your biggest supporter?”
“Uh –“ Dean is distracted for a moment, pinned by those eyes -
- until the silence stretches on too long, and then those eyesnarrow at him, Castiel’s lips pressing together in annoyance. “It’s just anarticle for the school paper, Dean. You don’t have to think of anyaward-winning answers.”
That snaps Dean out of it, and he shoots a withering glare across thetable. “I guess,” he says loudly, deciding to ignore Castiel’s jab, “probably my brother. He’s always pushing me to do more things formyself, and playing college baseball was one of them. He’s the one whopushed me to look into baseball scholarships.”
“I see.” The tone says that yes, Castiel sees, and he obviouslydoesn’t really care. Castiel moves on. “What’s your favorite professional team?”
Dean huffs a laugh at that. “Honestly? Don’t really have one.Anything but the Cubs, I guess. I had an ex-boyfriend in high school that was adiehard Cubs fan and things didn’t end great between us, so now I can’t reallystand them. Not fair to the team, I guess, but ’s how it goes.”
Castiel jots down another few notes, eyes roving over his notepad. “And did you ever –“
He cuts off, snapping his mouth shut so abruptly thatDean actually hears his teeth click. His head jerks up like it’d been yanked by astring. The effect would’ve been hilarious if Castiel wasn’t gaping at Deanlike he’d grown an extra head, and Dean fidgetsuncomfortably under the scrutiny. Maybe the guy was a Cubs fan?
“What?” he finally snaps.
“You said ex-boyfriend,” Castiel points out.
“Uh, yeah, thanks, Captain Obvious?”
Instead of moving on now that the point is clarified, Castiel looks more confused. “Wait asecond, you’re not straight?”
Dean’s eyebrows pinch together. “No? Who said I wasstraight?”
“I…well, no one actually said, but I just thought…”
“Nah, man, I’m bi. I mean, I don’t exactly broadcast the fact, but it’s notlike I’m not in the closet, either.”
“But –“ Castiel looks totally thrown off, floundering, and it’s a little - okay, a lot - gratifying. It’s sweet karma, that’s what it is, for all the times he’s made Dean feel like a lumbering Neanderthal. “You’redating Jo Harvelle!”
“Okay, one, that’s gross, I’m not dating Jo, she’s practicallymy sister,” Dean says, making a face. “And B, you do realize I’d stillbe bi even if I was dating a girl, right? That’s, like, the very definition ofbeing bisexual. Y’know. Dating men or women. Innies or outies. Both.”
“Yes, I know that,” Castiel snaps, looking flustered. “Ijust…never realized you were bi,” he ends lamely.
Dean can’t believe they’re actually having this conversation. “Are you serious? Dude, I go to the campus LGBTQ meetings, we’ve literally seen each other there!”
“Yes, but you always come with Charlie Bradbury!” Castiel protests. “I just thought you were attending as an ‘ally’!”
“…okay, I guess I could see that,” Dean concedes. “But c’mon, I’vebeen hitting on you since Chem Lab in freshman year. I’veasked you out like five times!”
And always been shot down, too. Brutally, without an ounce of mercy. Not that Dean is bitter or anything. Nope, he’s definitely not bitter. Not at all.
Castiel actually has the good grace to look ashamed,fidgeting with his pencil and glancing down at his lap. “…I just thought youwere being facetious.”
“It means ‘teasing’, behaving in a joking or humorous -”
“I know what ‘facetious’ means!” Dean interrupts. “I just can’tbelieve you thought I was flirting with you as a joke,like some kind of monumental asshole.”
“I didn’t think you were an asshole, necessarily,” Castiel mutters, looking moresheepish by the moment. “Just…disingenuous.”
“I know what ‘disingenuous’ means, Cas! Christ!” Dean’s anger ismounting, stoked by each discouraging revelation, and it doesn’t help that Castiel apparently thinks he’s an utter moron. “You know I’m an Education major, right? You’ve been asking me about baseball for the last halfhour, but you haven’t asked a single question about what I’m actually doing hereat college. Surprise, surprise - I’m actually halfway decent at my classes, too.”
“I…was not aware of that, no,” Castiel says quietly, then seems to realize what he’s said and hurriedly adds, “Not the part about you doing well in classes, I meant the part about you being an Education major! I wasn’t aware you were majoring in Education.”
Dean snorts. “Yeah, well, baseball ain’t much use to me aftergraduation. I wanna be an English teacher, for yourinformation.”
Castiel looks properly cowed, and, for once, is apparently outof things to say. An awkward silence descends on the table – Castiel staringdown at his notepad, Dean glaring across the table at him. He’s simmering with anger, a righteous anger because he knows it’sjustified, but in the face of Castiel’s hunched shoulders and ducked head, it’s starting towaver a bit.
Castiel breaks the silence first, clearing his throat andlooking up into Dean’s eyes. God, even as pissed as he is, Dean’s still a sucker for those blue eyes.
“Dean, I apologize. I’ve treated you very unfairly these pastthree years, and you didn’t deserve it. I’m realizing now that I made a lot ofassumptions about you that are untrue, but it affected the way I treated you. I’ve been a complete assbutt, and I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”
Castiel sounds properly chastised. Like a pricked balloon, Dean’s anger starts to deflate inthe face of that earnest, hopeful expression, and he sighs and runs a handthrough his hair. “Yeah, well. Y’know what they say about assuming, I guess,” he jokes weakly.
Castiel cocks his head, looking nonplussed. “No?”
“Oh. Really? Uh –“ Dean doesn’t really want to say it now, incase it pisses Castiel off and makes him revert back to being a douchebag, but Cas is obviously waiting, full of curiosity, so hebites the bullet. “…when you assume, you make an ‘ass’ out of ‘u’ and ‘me’,” he quoteslamely.
There’s a beat of silence, and then Castiel bursts out laughing. Dean stares, a little entranced. He definitely didn’t expect that reaction. He’s barely ever seenCastiel crack a smile, much less laugh, and it’s - wow. He wouldn’t mind seeing a lot more of this Cas.
Castiel meets his gaze, eyes still crinkled with mirth.
“Dean, do you think it would be possible to start over? No assumptions?”
“Yeah. I’d like that, Cas.”
“Good. I’m Castiel Novak.”
When Castiel holds out a hand across the table, Dean shakes it, amused. Castiel’s palm iswarm and broad against his. “Hi, Cas. I’m Dean Winchester.”
Castiel smiles. “Hello, Dean.”
