Coming soon for the @destielaureversebb:
“Hello, Goodbye, Hello Again”
Author: tsujiharu @tsujiharu
Artist: ColorlessJay @colorlessjay
Rating: General Audiences
Archive warnings: None
Length: 19,000 words
Tags: College AU, An Ode to Rom Coms, Meet Cute, Strangers (That Might Be) Falling in Love
Relationships: Dean/Castiel, Charlie Bradbury/Dorothy Baum, mentioned Gabriel/Kali
The University of Kansas campus is a lot bigger than the community college Dean attended over the last two years. So how is it possible that he keeps running into the same drop-dead gorgeous stranger over and over and over again?
Now if only he could get the guy’s name.
It’s the start of Castiel’s senior year at KU, and he’s ready for one more year of books and assignments before applying for graduate school. But a series of unlikely encounters with a beautiful stranger has him rethinking his plans.
Now if only he could figure out who the man was.
His ungraceful grunt is loud enough to be heard over the cracking branches that follow him down. The silver lining is that his back finds the rough tree trunk that catches onto his clothing as he begins sliding down, head first. By the time he’s nearing the tree roots, he’s sliding painfully slowly down to the bottom—
—where he locks eyes with the stranger.
The stranger is looking at him curiously (or is he looking at him judgingly? Dean hopes it's the former), his head cocked to one side. His thick brows are furrowed like he has a question but doesn’t know where to start. Dean doesn’t blame him. He probably wouldn’t know what to say to him either.
“Uhm.” His attempt at conversation is derailed when he looks down (up?) at his feet and sees that the squirrel managed to keep his shoe. “Well, fuck.”
His silent companion still hasn’t said anything, eyes narrowing even further like he’s analyzing the scene unfolding before him. Dean can see him better from down here, albeit his view is slightly warped from being upside down. The guy’s eyes are a bright blue that match the necktie that he wears. Close-up, the tie is even shabbier than Dean thought. It’s poorly tied, too, with the worn ends twisting awkwardly. Absently, Dean wonders if the guy would let him re-tie it for him.
Dean’s wildly intrusive thought is interrupted by a small thunk. It’s Dean’s shoe landing between the two of them. The squirrel, aka Mini Satan, seems to have finally figured out that Dean’s shoe carried nothing of importance to it.
Only then, Dean realizes that he’s still laying upside down against a tree, shoeless foot in the air, like an idiot, in front of this stranger.
Posting date: February 5, 2025