I am the Cat who walks by himself

Carry On, Author presents: Written Interview #3: Xev3n

Do you love fanfiction? Are you curious about how some of your favorite authors make the fics you know and love? You're in the right spot!

In This Interview On Ao3, Xev3n discusses the intricacies of their fic, What Wakes The Void, their writing process, and how they got into fanfiction and fandom in the first place!

Find Xev3n on AO3 and here on Tumblr

Interested in having one of your fics featured on the program? Send a message, or an ask, here on Tumblr to request a slot on the show.

If you are over 18, come join the Discord to discuss the interviews and episodes, or drop a link to one of your fics in the recs and promotions tab!

Coming to you on September 28

Last Call, Second Chance

Written by @blackhorsedances with art by @stonelions

Rating: Teen and Up

Word count: 7083

Characters: Dean Winchester, Castiel Novak 

Ships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Benny LaFitte/Garth Fitzgerald IV 

Tags: No archive warnings apply, AU/Modern, Bartender Dean Winchester, Forensic Auditor Castiel Novak, Dean and Cas Use Their Words, Dean and Cas become friends, Low Angst 

Summary:  A chance recommendation takes middle-aged and newly-unemployed Castiel Novak to The Pirate’s Den where the most gorgeous man he’s ever seen serves him the best burger he’s ever eaten. As he and the man talk, he reflects on how stark and narrow his life has become.

Dean Winchester’s cutting his last tie with this little town at the end of his shift. His car is packed and he’s ready to see where the open road leads. The thing is, this guy that just came in looks like Dean feels: beat-down by life, sad, and scruffy. He needs a good meal and some good cheer, and that’s kinda Dean’s specialty.

They talk, they laugh, and they connect. When it’s time for last call, will they go their separate ways, or will they take a second chance?

Excerpt: “Thinking again?” Dean’s voice is calm, even, and the undertone is friendly.

Castiel snorts. “Yes. I’ve been told I overthink things.”

“An overthinker, huh? Well, Rodin, that offer of coffee and a listening ear is still open. If you, uh, wanna talk, that is. I mean…you seem like a nice guy, so I’m guessing your employer–uh, former employer, sorry man–must be a real piece of work.”

“You don’t know that, Dean. I could be a ‘real piece of work’,” he accentuates the words with the air quotes that delighted Dean earlier, and Dean laughs, “as you put it. I could be a serial killer, for all you know.”

Dean shrugs. “Well, I suppose I could go find you some Corn Flakes…”

Castiel laughs, helpless, caught in the gleam of Dean’s eyes.

The staff table is roughly the size of the large tray Dean handles so expertly. There is a chair angled in the corner next to the swinging kitchen doors, and a chair angled in the corner at the back of the first booth. The space does not look large enough for two tall men, even though Castiel has lost weight. “Are you sure about this, Dean?”

Coming to you on September 25

Things You Love

Written by @bleuzombie with art by @worrynoodle

Rating: Mature 

Word count: ~8k

Characters: Dean Winchester, Castiel, Emma, Jack Kline, Claire Novak, Bobby Singer, Pestilence, Famine, Consuela Alvarez, Donatello Redfield, Rufus Turner 

Ships: Castiel/Dean Winchester

Tags: No archive warnings apply, Horror, Parenting, Aging, Canon Typical Violence, Coping with Grief, Unhealthy Coping Techniques

Summary:  Now that Dean and Castiel’s twins have left for college Dean needs something to keep him from fixating on his kids growing up and his changing role in their lives. He begins spending his time at Whispering Pines Assisted Living where his Uncle Bobby lives. Finding himself drawn to the lonely Mr. Euna, Dean doesn’t notice the strange happenings in the nursing home until a resident ends up dead. It’s sad but normal right? And as long as Mr. Euna is okay, Dean will be fine. As long as he focuses on the things he loves, everything will be okay. Mr. Euna assures him that everything will be okay.

Excerpt: Nurse Alvarez presses the rosary beads into his hand with such force Dean knows each individual bead will have left an indent in his skin.

“He’s a demon,” Nurse Alvarez hisses. “He wants them. He wants their souls. But only after they feed their hunger.”

Dean feels water splashing on his face, noticing a bottle of water in her hand. “Take this. Put a drop in every drink, every drink you consume. We can still stop him.”

“He’s just an old man,” Dean whispers harshly. But he knows that’s not true. Or at least, he thinks there’s something weird with Mr. Euna when he’s not with the old man but once he sees him again, Dean forgets. Mr. Euna makes him forget. “He’s just an old man,” Dean repeats. His grip tightens on the rosary. “Right?”

Coming to you on September 24

Rescheduled

Written by tossuka / @sitruunavohveli with art by @adromelke & @bucketofli

Rating: Explicit

Word count: ~10k

Characters: Dean, Castiel, Jack, Charlie, Sam, Gabriel 

Ships: Castiel/Dean, mentioned Sam/Eileen, mentioned Gabriel/Kali 

Tags: No archive warnings apply, Domestic fluff, established relationship, 5 + 1 things, interruptions, Cas and Dean are Jack’s parents, wedding anniversary, romance and humor, communication, slice of life 

Summary:  Dean and Cas have been married for 15 years and would very much like to celebrate their anniversary appropriately with a nice dinner. It’s only that scheduling romantic time alone as a couple is easier said than done, when living in the same house with a teenager who calls them both dad, and every minute of their lives is filled with responsibilities and urgent demands for assistance.

Or

Five times when Dean and Cas’ plans to spend time together got interrupted by family, friends, work emergencies, and other unfortunate events, and one time they managed to have a proper date.

Excerpt: “When you’ve eaten, go grab your bag. I will drop you off at school on my way to the shop,” Dean said to Jack who nodded and took the last crumbs from his plate. Then he hurried upstairs to get his school things.

“Man, I can’t wait for the kid to be able to drive. What do you think, should we get him a car for his 16th?” Dean asked Cas before emptying his coffee cup and getting up.

“It’s still almost a year away,” Cas said. “He can’t drive yet.”

“I will teach him,” Dean said and walked to stand behind Cas who was still eating. Dean wrapped his arms around Cas’ shoulders and pressed a kiss on his neck. “Talking of anniversaries, ours is coming up. Any plans for what you’d like to do?”

When Jack was born and lost his mother at birth, Dean and Cas had been dating for two years. Castiel’s brother, Luci, was Jack’s biological father but he wasn’t the father of the year, so Jack’s mother made Cas the official guardian for Jack in case something happened to her. It’d been a chaotic time but, in the aftermath, Dean proposed to Cas.

“Listen, man, you know how I feel about you and I don’t want you to go through all this shit alone. The kid is going to have me in his life, whether he likes it or not, so wouldn’t it be the smartest choice to make all this a bit easier legally?” Dean asked. “Cas, will you marry me? Not just because of Jack, but because I can’t imagine what my life would be without you in it.”

“Have I told you today that I love you?” Cas had asked.

“Is that yes?”

They got married at the courthouse a month later. It’d been 15 years, and Dean never regretted his decision to marry Cas and adopt Jack for even a moment.

“Oh, it’s this week, isn’t it?” Cas asked.

“Yep,” Dean laughed. Cas had a little more gray in his hair and wrinkles around his eyes, and he was still the most attractive man Dean ever met.

“I guess dinner is the most traditional way of celebrating? Unless you want to host a party.”

“I don’t think either of us has the time to arrange a party, but a dinner would be good,” Dean said. “Just you and me. Don’t get me wrong, I love the kid, but we don’t get enough time to just be us.”

“Dean,” Cas turned his head and pulled Dean into a deep kiss. “I can look at some restaurants today and make a reservation for Saturday.”

“You’re the best,” Dean said and kissed Cas again. Jack’s steps could be heard on the staircase, and his voice interrupted their moment.

“Dad! I thought you said we’re going! Do you really have time for that?”

Coming to you on September 22

Life after Forty Rocks

Written by @hectatess with art by @mercurialkitty

Rating: Mature

Word count: 7143

Characters: Castiel, Dean, Claire, Ben, Jack, Kelly 

Ships: Castiel/Dean, BG Kaia/Claire

Tags: No archive warnings apply, Meet cute, middle age inconveniences, implied abuse, not to Dean or Cas, everyone lives

Summary:  As the single father of above a certain age, Castiel is convinced he is too old for relationships.

Then Claire strikes up a friendship with this young man that seems too good to be true. So, like any worried father would, he gets contact information for Ben’s father. And that’s when the Universe proves him wrong.

Excerpt: When he heard a car pull up a few hours later, Castiel glanced outside. It didn’t sound like the little Kia Patience drove. This sound was deeper and more growling. He blinked when he saw a red Ford Falcon Futura stop at the curb. Squinting he could make out the driver and that definitely wasn’t Patience. A boy with short, dark hair stepped out and held open the door as Claire emerged from the back. “Thanks, Ben!” Claire called cheerfully and waved at the backseat, where Cas presumed another of her friends was seated. “Later, Kaia!”

The boy, probably Ben, gave Claire a bright smile and a saucy wink as he got back into his car. “Later, Claire.” Castiel did not like the way this kid kept his eyes on Claire as she bounded up the garden path. He only pulled away from the curb when she opened the door.

“Hi dad!” Claire called out and plopped her bag under the coat rack. Her cheeks were a little flushed and her blue eyes sparkled. She was way too bubbly to have been studying for four hours.

She had her foot on the bottom stair when Castiel spoke. “Who was that boy, Claire? And why was he the one driving you home?” Claire stiffened and something guilty crept in her eyes. Castiel sighed. “I’m not going to be angry, I’m not going to punish you. You know better than that, pumpkin. I just want to know who you ‘hang out’ with.”

Claire giggled. “You and Ben’s dad have to meet! One dork, one nerd. Gonna work out fine!” She was relaxed now and turned to face him.

You Catch More Guys With Honey

Author: @xev3n

Artist: @67bunker

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 43,643

Pairings: Castiel/Dean Winchester

Content Warnings: None

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Age Gap, Older Sub Dean Winchester/Younger Dom Castiel, Dean Winchester Has A Praise Kink, First Time Sub Dean Winchester, Gentle Dom Castiel, Team Dean Winchester's Red Ass, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester, Light Feminization, Porn With Feelings

Summary: Dean Winchester, an exhausted and overworked man in his forties feels like he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders.

But when a cocky one night stand with a much younger, quietly commanding Castiel turns into something unexpected, Dean finds himself learning just how good it feels to let go.

Cas is incredibly perceptive, and devastatingly good at giving Dean exactly what he needs, whether it’s restraint, praise, a firm hand, or the kind of care that makes Dean feel truly seen for the first time in years. But old ghosts don’t die easy, and discovering he doesn’t always have to be the strong one is harder than Dean ever imagined.

Sneak Peek: Cas hummed, the sound almost approving, but there was something else threaded through it that made Dean feel oddly.. assessed. The corner of that mouth lifted again.

“You seem like the kind of man who’s used to taking care of things, Dean,” Cas observed quietly. “Making sure everyone else gets what they need.”

Dean laughed, leaning in a fraction. “Guilty. I’ve got a pretty good track record on making sure folk leave satisfied. Thought maybe I could show you what that looks like tonight, if you’re interested.”

Cas leaned forward just enough that the space between them felt suddenly smaller, more intimate, the low hum of the bar fading a little at the edges. His gaze stayed steady, almost gentle, but there was a quiet weight behind it that Dean couldn’t quite name.

“I appreciate the offer,” Cas said, voice dropping into something smoother, “but I think you might be operating under a small misconception, Dean.”

Dean lifted an eyebrow, still grinning, though a small part of him worried he had picked up a signal that wasn’t there. At least Cas didn’t seem the type to react with insult at being hit on.

“Yeah? What’s that?”

Cas’ eyes flicked down to Dean’s lips for the briefest moment, then back up, and when he spoke again his tone was perfectly even.

“I don’t let other people take the lead. Not in bed.” He paused, letting the words settle between them. “If we do this, you’ll be the one following mine. And I promise you, the only thing that will be on your mind is exactly what I put there.”

Coming to you on September 21

The Rookie

Written by @twinone1221 with art by @bucketofli

Rating: Teen and Up

Word count: ~22k 

Characters: Donna Hanscum, Kevin Tran, Jody Mills 

Ships: Castiel/Dean Winchester

Tags: No archive warnings apply, Slow Burn, Firefighter Dean Winchester, Firefighter Castiel Novak, Lieutenant Dean Winchester, Rookie Castiel Novak, Workplace Romance, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining 

Summary:  Lieutenant Dean Winchester is pretty sure his new forty-year-old rookie is chasing a midlife crisis that'll last about two shifts. Castiel Novak joins Engine 7 determined to become the firefighter he's dreamed of being for the last twenty-two years.

Somehow, skepticism turns into friendship, friendship turns into something a whole lot more complicated, and one catastrophic fire changes both of their lives forever.

Excerpt: Dean exhaled hard through his nose, scrubbing a hand over his face. Exhaustion sat heavy under his eyes, buried beneath irritation and caffeine and stubbornness. “You have to stop sending in floaters. My team needs consistency, Jody. I need a crew that knows what to do. People I can trust not to freeze up when things go sideways. I need real firefighters.”

“You saying you can’t handle a floater, Lieutenant Winchester?” she asked dryly.

“I’m saying it’s been months! It’s time to hire someone permanent.”

“And I’ve told you I’ve been looking.”

Dean shot her a glare. “You know, most chiefs don’t take months to hire someone new.”

“And most lieutenants knock before barging into my office like a lumberjack with no manners.”

Dean snorted despite himself, sinking further into the chair. “Okay, first off, rude.”

Jody’s mouth twitched faintly, but she reached for the top drawer of her desk before the moment softened too much. “Not to worry. Your prayers have been answered.”

Dean noticed the color of the folder immediately.

“Jody. No,” he said.

“I haven't said anything yet.”

“You got the green folder.”

“I always have folders.”

“That’s a rookie folder.”

Jody slid the file across the desk toward him anyway. “Not just a rookie. You’re getting a permanent rookie.”

Dean stared at the folder like it might explode. “You say it like this is good news.”

“It is good news.”

“For who?”

“For me,” Jody said. “Because now you’ll stop haunting my office every shift.”

“A rookie is barely an improvement from a floater.” Dean grabbed the file with visible reluctance and flipped it open. A clipped ID photo stared back at him, a dark-haired man in a suit, expression serious enough to belong in a courtroom instead of a firehouse.

“At least this one will be trainable.” Joddy shrugged.

Dean frowned immediately. “…You’re kidding.”

“Keep reading.”

He glared at her, but did it anyway. The silence stretched just long enough for Jody to enjoy herself.

Then Dean looked up slowly. “He’s forty-four years old.”

“Forty-three,” she confirmed.

“His birthday is next month.” Dean deadpanned. “What the fuck is this? He’s as old as I am, not the usual rookie age.”

“Pretty sure you are older by more than a year and the academy accepted him anyway so why does it matter?”

Dean scoffed and flipped another page. “Master of Science in Finance?”

“Mhm.”

Dean stared at her in disbelief. “You hired a stockbroker to join my Engine.”

“At least you know he’ll know how to manage the food budget.”

Falling

Author: @whoipretended2b

Artist: @szlez

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 9,670

Pairings: Castiel/Dean Winchester

Content Warnings: None

Tags: BDSM, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean, Dom Castiel/Sub Dean, Collars, Cockcage, subspace, idiots in love, post-hell Dean Winchester, Praise Kink, Angel grace

Summary: Fresh out of Hell, Dean Winchester accidentally prays to Castiel in the middle of a bad BDSM scene.

Castiel comes when Dean calls. And when Dean admits he can’t trust anyone enough to let go, Castiel offers to be his Dom. After all, he has the strength and control Dean needs and he can hear Dean’s prayers. He can stop before Dean has to ask.

It should work.

But the more they scene together, the harder it becomes for Castiel to get Dean to surrender to subspace.

Castiel knows he is doing something wrong.

He just doesn’t know what.

Sneak Peek: Dean let himself into the room. Sam was gone, but the bed was messy and his laptop was open, screen still aglow. Dean checked his phone and rolled his eyes. He sat on the bed that was still made. He did nothing else. He did not relax on the bed and he did not turn on the TV.

“You are—” Castiel began but stopped. “You should drink water.”

Dean snorted, but he pushed up, went to the tiny counter, and filled up one of the plastic cups. He drank it in three long swallows, throat working as he did so. Why was watching Dean drink so appealing?

“Can you explain it?”

Dean set the cup down and made eye contact in the mirror. “Explain what? I told you.”

“You said you like being tied,” Castiel said. “That you like letting someone else… ‘run the show’. These are mechanics, not meaning. I want to understand why.”

“You really don’t do small talk.” Dean drummed his fingers on the counter. “My head is quiet, when it’s good.”

Castiel nodded.

“When it’s good, I got nothing to worry about. Guy says to put my hands behind my back, I put ‘em there. Tells me not to move, I don’t move. That’s it. No monsters. No seals. Just… doing what I’m told. All the noise…” He tapped his temple. “Goes away.”

“And tonight the noise… got louder instead?”

Dean rolled his eyes and faced him. “Got a real talent for the obvious, you know that?”

He rubbed his hand over his face, left his palm over his eyes for a moment, then dropped it. “So. Congratulations. Now you know why your righteous-ass soldier of the Lord spent his Friday night in a dungeon with a safe word.”

“I could help you,” Castiel said.

Carry On, Author presents: Podcast Episode #2: Cheesecakekiss

Do you love fanfiction? Are you curious about how some of your favorite authors make the fics you know and love? You're in the right spot!

In this interview on Ao3, or Spotify, Cheesecakekiss discusses the intricacies of her fic, Walk A Broke Line, her writing process, and how she got into fanfiction and fandom in the first place!

Find Cheesecakekiss on Ao3 and here on Tumblr

Interested in having one of your fics featured on the program? Send a message, or an ask, here on Tumblr to request a slot on the show.

If you are over 18, come join the Discord to discuss the interviews and episodes, or drop a link to one of your fics in the recs and promotions tab!

Coming to you on September 17

Megabytes

Written by @cheesecakekiss with art by @hellion-cat & @onowey

Rating: Explicit

Word count: ~60k

Characters: Dean, Castiel, Missouri, Charlie, Garth, Ash, Gabriel, Bartholomew 

Ships: Castiel/Dean, Gabriel/Kali, Sam/Eileen 

Tags: Graphic depictions of violence, Vampire Castiel, IT worker Dean, AU: Urban Fantasy, Oblivious Dean, Bottom Dean/Top Cas, Blood Kink, Biting Kink, Slow Burn, Smut and Comedy, Twilight if Everyone Was In Their 40s 

Summary: Dean Winchester works in IT for Roman Enterprises. It’s underpaid, underfunded, and the only good thing about it is the friends he works with. They make their own fun together, like starting a tally for the kinds of porn people access on the company wi-fi.

Confronting the offenders is a lot less fun.

Especially when it’s Castiel Novak. Dean’s surprised to see his name, even more surprised that he has a vampire kink, apparently. A kink Dean seems to share, given his reaction to the video.

Cas works in accounts. He’s widely considered to be the oddball of the office, never talking to anyone, getting there before the sun rises, leaving after it sets. It probably doesn’t help that he’s a vampire. When he has to hypnotise Dean into forgetting what he saw, it’s a pretty miserable low point of his long existence.

And now he can’t forget him. 

Excerpt: This is quite possibly the most awkward moment of Dean’s life, and he’s led a very awkward life.

Cas breaks it by ducking suddenly, and there’s the sound of a zipper, then rummaging, and Dean peeks to see an unassuming rucksack at his feet. He’s pretty sure it’s the same one Cas takes to the office even. When Cas re-emerges, he’s clutching a portable water bottle, stainless steel, but the kind with a see-through plastic straw that can be flicked out. Which Cas does now, getting his mouth on it, and sucking with the kind of desperation Dean normally has to turn on a VPN to feel comfy watching.

Soft, pink lips wrapped around, cheeks hollowed, drawing deep. Eyes still burning intensely into Dean’s. Large hand squeezing on the metal cylinder.

Wow, it sure has been a very, very long time, hasn’t it? Dean’s brain chimes in cheerfully.

His dick chimes in with the same, much less cheerfully.

“Thirsty, huh?” Dean asks weakly, shifting desperately in his seat, clenching his fist on his thigh.

He’s in sweatpants.

There’s ways to redirect bloodflow, there must be, isn’t there some kind of Buddhist monk thing where you get complete control of your body? Dean can do it, he has to, or he’s trapped here forever. He cannot stand up with a full fucking tent.

Think of Buddha, his mind wails, while he throbs stubbornly between his legs.

Cas lets the straw go, almost reluctantly, teeth grazing the edge as he drops it. The canines look weirdly sharp in this lighting, like they’re peeking out from under his lip, either side of the straw. “Yes,” he rasps bluntly.

There’s a dark red coating the inside of the plastic, clinging on before it drips back down into the bottle.

Dean snorts, starting to feel his boner situation resolve. “Aw, man, tell me they didn’t get you with the sports drink add-on thing.”

Cas cocks his head, eyes narrowing. “What?”

Dean waves a dismissive hand at the bottle. “Whaddathey call that one? ‘Cranberry explosion’? ‘Pummelin’ pomegranate’?”

https://artfight.net/character/2687286.vilkas

I Put A Spell On You

Author: @friendofcarlotta

Artist: @jellyvolcano

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 8,539

Pairings: Castiel/Dean Winchester

Content Warnings: None

Tags: Dom Castiel, Sub Dean Winchester, Bondage, Magical Restraints, Sounding

Summary: They say love is the most powerful force in the universe. Dean figures a convincing case can be made that it’s actually boredom.

Boredom is what first led him to hook up with his colleague Cas, and boredom is what led Cas to start experimenting with magic. So apparently, Cas can now conjure magical restraints. (Yeah, this was news to Dean as well.) Might as well try them out, right? What could possibly go wrong?

Sneak Peek: “I was calling upon the powers of darkness,” Cas says.

“Okay, that…” Dean goes to close the door behind himself, because a demon summoning is probably not the kind of thing they should be discussing with the door open. “Um. Why?”

Cas grimaces, like this is something he was hoping wouldn’t come up. “I was going to tell you this, but I was never sure how to bring it up. Essentially, I’ve been dabbling in magic.”

“Magic,” Dean repeats, in a tone that is absolutely not a squeak. “Okay. Right. That’s… yeah.”

“It’s real,” Cas says, getting a little defensive as he blows out his candles one by one and closes the massive, leather-bound tome that Dean only now notices has been lying open in front of him. “I’ve been doing a few spells. Nothing too crazy. It was really just a way to pass the time.”

“Uh-huh.” Dean takes a seat in the middle of Cas’ hallway, there being no chairs he can reach without moving further into the room. Moving further into the room would mean potentially disrupting this chalk setup Cas has going on, and Dean might be a skeptic when it comes to anything remotely supernatural, but he’s not going to be responsible for putting a foot on the wrong chalk squiggle and accidentally triggering the apocalypse.

They sit like that in complete silence for a minute, while Dean tries to figure out how to politely show an interest in his friend-and-occasional-fuck-buddy’s new hobby or possible mental breakdown.

“So… what, uh, were you calling on the, uh…” Dean rolls his wrist in the universal gesture for "whatever you said."

“Powers of darkness,” Cas supplies, helpful as ever.

“Yeah, those. What were you calling on them for?”

Cas squirms a little. The movement smudges one of the chalk lines, so maybe that’s actually fine. Still, Dean glances into the corners of the room in case of ominously gathering shadows.

“I was trying to get a raise.”

Coming to you on September 16

One Night at Rocky’s

Written by @imaginaryprotagonist with art by @valdelion

Rating: Explicit

Word count: ~5k

Characters: Castiel, Dean Winchester, Pamela Barnes, Bobby Singer

Ships: Castiel/Dean Winchester

Tags: No archive warnings apply, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Castiel POV, Strangers to Lovers, First Kiss, Fluff, Smut

Summary: After getting caught in a thunderstorm at the end of a truly awful day, Castiel seeks refuge in the nearby Rocky’s Bar. The handsome bar owner offers Castiel a listening ear and the pair form an instant connection. Maybe this day won’t turn out to be as bad as Castiel originally thought.

Excerpt: “Sorry, my people skills are, uh, rusty.”

Resting his forearms against the bar, Dean offered him another smile. “You’re doin’ just fine, Cas. How ‘bout I join you for the next round and you can give me the rundown of what’s ailin’ ya?”

“Aren’t you on the clock?”

Dean shrugged as he got to work preparing two shots. “Boss won’t mind, he’s pretty relaxed…handsome too,” he finished with a smirk.

“So you’re the boss?”

As someone who can be rather socially awkward, sometimes Castiel takes far too long to respond, other times he just says things. That was the latter.

While Castiel was busy dying inside, Dean simply grinned at him. “You caught me.” He threw up his hands in surrender, as though he was the most casual criminal in the world.

Returning his attention to the drinks, Dean added the lime wedges and nudged one to Castiel. Following Dean’s suit, Castiel picked up his glass and clinked it against Dean’s, before throwing his head back to down the shot. Like the first one, he couldn’t help screwing up his face.

“Shit dude, that packs a punch.”

Castiel shoved the lime in his mouth as he nodded his agreement.

“You ain’t corrupting this sweet, angel of a man now, are you, Winchester?”

The tank-top-wearing woman was standing a few feet away from them filling a glass at the mid-strength beer tap. She wore a knowing grin that Castiel couldn’t even begin to imagine what it meant she knew.

Dean appeared to feign outrage, placing a hand over his chest as he gaped at her with wide eyes. “I would never.”

“Sure you wouldn’t. Me on the other hand…” She trailed off as she ran her eyes over Castiel, licking her top lip seductively.

“Umm, is that a flirtation?” Castiel fiddled nervously with his fingers.

“Well, what if it was?” The woman placed the beverage in front of the older gentleman before slinking back over, her gaze predatory in a way that had Castiel ducking his head, fearing he was about to be devoured.

“M-my apologies ma’am, but I’m not…I mean, you’re very attractive, obviously, so it’s not…Umm, I’m gay.”

“Oh, blue eyes, I know that.” Castiel glanced up to see her smile morph from lecherous to simply gleeful. “I was just making sure my boy Dean here knew that.”

The woman smacked Dean’s rear and it was at that point that Castiel noticed Dean was scowling at her, a faint blush peeking above his beard.

Author: FriendofCarlotta || @friendofcarlotta Artist: szlez || @szlez

Rating: Explicit Archive Warnings: Descriptions of Dead Bodies, Vomiting, Mentions of Suicide, Child Death, Temporary MCD Word count: 36k Tags: Inspired by The Ring, Established Relationship, Alternate Angel Lore

Summary:

Never open an email attachment from an unknown sender. It’s a good rule to live by. Investigative reporter Castiel Novak breaks it anyway, accidentally exposing himself to disturbing video footage that kills anyone who watches it within seven days. When his husband Dean watches the footage too, a race against time begins. Can Castiel save them both before their seven days are up?