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“Damn it!” Castiel Novak swore under his breath. If only he were a few inches taller he would be able to hang the last heart perfectly in the middle of the gymnasium.
As it was, he already was balanced precariously on top of a rickety aluminum ladder he found in the Janitor’s closet down the hall. He was the last member of Student Council left behind to finish the decorations before that evening’s Valentine’s Day dance. As Council president, Castiel agreed to finish the remaining few touches so his co-chairs could go home and start getting ready.
“Cas, man, you in here?” Castiel heard a familiar voice call out from the far end of the gym.
“Toward the stage,” the dark-haired boy called in return.
“I ran into Charlie as she was leaving and she told me...what in the ever loving fuck are you doing?” the voice broke off incredulously.
“Hello Dean,” Castiel called down to his boyfriend, longtime best friend, baseball star, and all around American boy, Dean Winchester.
“Don’t ‘Hello Dean’ me Castiel James,” Dean replied sticking his hands on his hips and narrowing his eyes dangerously. “The last time you were that far off the ground, we were ten and it ended with you falling out of a tree house and me needing to take you to the hospital on your sister’s bike - the one with the basket and streamers on the handlebars.”
Castiel’s cheeks reddened as he remembered that moment. He had been trying to impress his friend, and decided to try swinging from a nearby branch. So intent on showing off, he didn’t listen to Dean’s warnings and the branch wasn’t able to bear his weight and cracked, leaving young Castiel to plummet to the hard ground below.
“Get down from there...carefully,” Dean admonished, holding out his hands and holding on to Castiel every step of the way, before crushing him into a massive bear hug when he finally had both feet firmly planted on the ground.
The seventeen-year-old Castiel chuckled, but enjoyed the warmth and safety of the slightly taller boy’s embrace.
After a few moments, Dean pulled back, placing a gentle kiss on the other boy’s forehead.
“What do you need me to do?” Dean asked, removing his Letterman’s jacket, and rolling up his sleeves. Taking in the shorter boy’s shocked expression, Dean smirked, forest green eyes glinting with mirth. “You act like I’ve never offered to help you with anything before, Cas.”
The darker-haired boy chuckled, “You’ve just never wanted to be involved in the decorations for the dance.”
“Well no,” Dean said, placing a foot on the first rung of the ladder to make sure it would bear his weight. “I didn’t want to encroach on your gig; but since you’ve sent everyone else home, I am your humble servant.”
Castiel squinted his eyes taking that statement into consideration and trying to ignore the flare of heat it sparked down his every nerve ending. Based upon the dirty grin on the taller boy’s face, Castiel wasn’t very successful in tamping down his thoughts quickly enough.
“Here,” the dark-haired boy said, thrusting the heart-shaped decoration into his boyfriend’s outstretched hand. “I was trying to get this to hang from the multi-colored light in the center.”
Still chuckling softly, Dean continued to climb up the ladder until he got to the top. He had a slight height advantage on the Council President, so he easily reached the spot Castiel indicated previously.
“Wait,” the blue-eyed teen said from the ground. “It’s not quite straight. Move it a little more to the left...no, the other left, wait that’s too far, back a little, little more. Stop!!”
Dean fought to laugh at his boyfriend, the other boy was so adorable. It was one of the first reasons the young Winchester fell in love with him.
“Anything else that needs to be hanged while I’m up here?” Dean asked, serious in his request to help with whatever else needed done.
“No, that was the last bit,” Castiel replied, holding the unbalanced ladder steady as Dean gracefully descended.
Once his boyfriend had both feet on the ground, Castiel cupped his face gently and gave him a soft ‘thank you’ kiss.
“Totally worth it,” Dean said, stepping away and grabbing his jacket. “After all, want to make sure the place looks perfect. Have a hot date tonight and all.”
“He’s a lucky guy to have such a caring boyfriend,” Castiel quipped, linking his hands with the baseball star and walking toward the door.
“Naw, he’s slumming it with a bum like me,” Dean replied with a kiss to the shorter teen’s temple. “Thankfully he hasn’t figured that out, yet, so I can keep up the fantasy.”
“Hmm,” Castiel murmured thoughtfully. “I think he would be foolish to let you go.”
Dean’s head fell back as he laughed at the other’s assessment.
“How ‘bout I give you a ride home? That way we can have a chance to get changed before your date shows up,” Dean said, walking toward the student parking lot.
“Sounds good,” Castiel responded. “You still coming at six, so I can be back to help with registration?”
“No problem, angel,” Dean said, opening the car door for Castiel to get in, and waiting for the other boy to be situated before closing the door gently, but firmly behind him.
Castiel couldn’t help the little contented sigh that huffed out of him as he fastened his seat belt. Dean might think Castiel was slumming, but the blue-eyed teen knew better. The green-eyed Winchester was just about the perfect boyfriend. Sure, he did things that annoyed the young Novak, but for the most part, he was just about perfect. Almost every day the couple would walk down the hall together, Castiel would see the envious gazes of the other girls - and guys - who wished it was them on Dean Winchester’s arm.
The teen was especially excited because not only had he planned tonight’s dance, but it was the first he would be attending with his boyfriend. During their sophomore year, Dean and Castiel were still just friends - they hadn’t started dating until March last year. It was soon to be a whole year together and it was just as wonderful as the first day.
So lost in his musings, Castiel didn’t realize they had gone the short distance to his house until he felt the car stop.
“You okay, babe?” Dean asked, a note of concern in his voice. His boyfriend worked too hard and had been so stressed about everything being perfect.
The darker-haired boy smiled, and leaned forward to give a soft kiss to Dean’s cheek. “I’m fine, just lots to think about for tonight.”
“It’s going to be perfect,” Dean assured, giving Castiel’s hand a gentle squeeze. “You did all the planning and work, how could it be anything but?”
Castiel chuckled as he met the adoring gaze of the other teen. “I think you are just biased. You think everything I do is perfect.”
“That’s not true,” Dean responded as his boyfriend exited the car. “I think your taste in films is a little questionable. I mean seriously, who chooses The Hobbit over The Lord of the Rings?”
“See you later, Dean,” the blue-eyed boy said, still laughing.
“Love you, babe.”
Castiel didn’t get a chance to respond before Dean’s shiny black Impala roared away down the street.
**********************
It was only a few hours later and Castiel was cleaned up and waiting for Dean to pick him up.
“Oh Castiel,” his mother, Amelia said, eyes glistening with tears, “you look so handsome, so much like your father, James. He would be so proud to see you dressed and ready for a formal dance.”
The teenager tried to keep his own tears at bay, not wanting to have reddened eyes on such a happy occasion.
“Thanks, Mama,” he replied, giving her a quick but fierce hug.
Just as the pair broke apart, the doorbell rang, announcing Dean’s arrival.
Amelia answered, and gave Dean a hug similar to the one she shared with her son.
“Come in, come in,” she ushered him, “I want to get pictures of the two of you before you leave. I’ll be sure to make copies to send to your parents, Dean.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” Dean replied with his signature boyish grin.
About twenty minutes later, the couple was finally able to leave, and Castiel could take a moment to truly appreciate the splendor that was his boyfriend. Dean’s golden-brown hair was styled slightly spiky. He wore a black suit with a deep red shirt underneath that was made of a shiny, satin-type material, and completed with a black tie, covered in little red hearts. The color combination worked to make Dean even more stunning than normal.
“You look gorgeous, baby,” Dean said, reaching into the car and pulling out a small, clear package. “Your mama told me what you were wearing, so I wanted to get something to match; but, the florist convinced me to go with a combination instead.”
Castiel looked down and saw Dean was pulling a beautiful flower boutonniere from the box.
“I was going to get a corsage, but thought this might be better since you have to get everyone registered.”
The shorter boy had to blink back tears. He didn’t know how he got so lucky to have such an awesome boyfriend.
“The main flower in the middle is a Lily of the Valley, and the flowers around them are violets,” Dean explained as he gently pinned the arrangement to Castiel’s lapel. “I wanted her to design something that showed my love and devotion to my wonderful boyfriend.”
The blue-eyed blue smiled through a haze of tears, this was the best Valentine’s Day ever.
“Love you,” Castiel said, voice thick with raw emotion.
“Love you more,” Dean said with a quick kiss. “Now, let’s get you to the dance. I want to make sure you have the best time ever.”
“Not going to be a problem, so long as you’re there,” Castiel grinned.
“Every step of the way,” Dean promised.
**********
Time passed far too quickly for Castiel’s liking. He barely had a chance to spend any time with his boyfriend, as he was working to check people in at registration, and then had to deal with the arrival of the food, and helping Garth Fitzgerald, one of the students from the Audio Visual club set up the DJ station.
Dean stayed close at hand, but gave Castiel a chance to do what he needed to do without seeming to hover. Yet, whenever the Council President needed a drink, or was looking for a pen, one seemed to materialize out of thin air.
While the young Novak was working to get people signed in, his co-chair Charlie, another of Dean’s close friends, was organizing the final votes for the dance’s Valentine’s King and Queen of Hearts.
Although he was busy, Castiel couldn’t help but notice the flock of girls hanging around his boyfriend, each trying to touch him or convince him to dance. With each attempt to earn his attention, Dean was polite, but firm in his rebuke. Most of the girls were dejected, but respected Dean’s decision...all but one, Abbie Pitchford, often called a Knight of Hell because she was tenacious in the worst possible way, and was devious in her attempts to get what she wanted.
Castiel narrowed his eyes, angry that the red-haired girl wasn’t accepting of Dean’s decision. If anything, the more Dean tried to push her away, the more she rubbed against him, or pulled down the neckline of her dress to entice the young baseball captain.
Glancing away to finish with his official duties, Castiel was surprised after a few minutes to see Abbie stomping off in the opposite direction away from Dean. Standing up, and ready to enjoy the rest of the evening, Castiel approached his boyfriend, sensing the irritation rolling off the taller teen in waves.
Reaching out with a cautious hand, Castiel touched Dean’s shoulder, but immediately removed his hand when Dean flinched, body tense as though expecting to fight.
“Hello Dean,” Castiel said, raising his voice slightly to be heard over the music playing.
The green-eyed teen’s posture relaxed almost instantly, as he reached out to grab Castiel’s hands and pull him flush against his body and starts to sway them both to the music.
“Heya Cas,” the other teen replied with a smile. “You are incredible.”
“What makes you say that?” Castiel questioned, preening slightly under the compliment.
“I can tell you wanted to be enjoying the dance you worked so hard to plan, but even so you let everyone else go to have their fun, and you stayed behind. So, like I said, you are amazing.”
“Well, I’m done with my official duties, so how about we…”
Just as Castiel was ready to ask for his first dance with his boyfriend, the song ended and Garth’s voice filtered over the speakers.
“Hello everyone, hope y’all are having a good time, it’s time to announce the Valentine’s Day King and Queen of Hearts as voted by all of you good folks,” Garth said, in his awkward, yet amiable way.
“I hope it’s you, babe,” Dean whispered into his boyfriend’s ear. “No one deserves it more.”
“Okay, so your Queen of Hearts is Abbie Pitchford,” Garth announced.
Abbie’s friends immediately shrieked and threw their arms around the brilliant redhead. Those not in her circle cheered a little less enthusiastically for her.
“Thank you so much,” Abbie said taking the microphone from Garth, flipping her hair over her shoulder and thrusting her chest out provocatively. “It is such an honor to be here.”
Castiel rolled his eyes at her over-the-top speech, and could feel Dean’s chuckle rumble from where they stood back to front.
“And, for your King of Hearts, we have….Dean Winchester,” Garth said as the gymnasium erupted into cheers, much more heartfelt than with Abbie.
“Go, Dean,” Castiel pushed, ushering his boyfriend to the front, and ignoring the pang in his own chest.
Hugging Castiel tightly, Dean walked toward the makeshift stage, to accept the crown of king. Once he was on the stage, Abbie grabbed him and placed a sloppy kiss right on his lips. The young Novak felt his hands clench into fists; he had never wanted to hit a girl as much as he wanted to with Abbie. This girl was barking up the wrong tree and trying to take his Dean away.
“And now your King and Queen will share their first dance.”
Turning away so he wouldn’t have to see what was transpiring on stage, Castiel suddenly wished he hadn’t come tonight. Maybe it would have been better if he and Dean had just gone to dinner and a movie and not have any distractions.
“Sorry Garth, but since Abbie gave a short speech, I would like to as well,” Dean said, halting Castiel’s retreat. The dark-haired teen wanted to know what his boyfriend was going to say.
“Thank y’all for voting for me, it means a lot,” Dean said with a soft, shy smile. “But, I want to take a moment to thank our amazing Student Council for all their hard working in putting this dance together for us. I’d also like to thank our President, Castiel Novak, for all his hours of hard work in making this such a beautiful event for all of us. Can we take a moment to give them all a round of applause to show our gratitude?”
Castiel felt the very tips of his ears burn red with the sudden attention as the whole gymnasium broke started clapping to acknowledge Castiel and his council.
When the applause died down, Dean grinned at his boyfriend and blew an air kiss.
“Once last thing and then I’ll hand this back to Garth for his awesome music,” Dean continued. “I want to thank Cas not only for everything he’s done for us for the dance, but for me as well. He is the love of my life and the best boyfriend I could possibly ask for. I love you now and always, Castiel Novak, you are my angel and the one who always lifts me and believes in me even when I don’t have the strength to believe in myself.”
Behind Dean, Abbie’s face had turned a mottled shade of purple that made her look monstrous and livid to hear the genuine warmth with which Dean spoke of the other male.
“I love you, Cas.”
The teen in question had tears streaming down his face. He felt the same way about Dean, but the distance between them was too great, so he looked toward where the other teen was standing and mouth “I love you, too...so much.”
Dean caught his eye and mouthed “I know.”
“Smartass.”
The young Winchester handed the microphone back to Garth, but Castiel saw him whisper something in the other man’s ear and a grin breaking on to the older man’s face at whatever Dean said.
Castiel watched Dean stiffen his resolve and reach a hand out for Abbie, to lead her to the dance floor. The blue-eyed youth watched as she tried to plaster a fake smile onto her face as they started to dance. Watching the scene unfold, Castiel couldn’t find it in himself to be jealous. He saw the cavernous distance Dean kept between him and Abbie. The song was one that Castiel didn’t recognize, but after only about a minute, the music changed and Garth was talking again.
“Now that our King and Queen have had a chance to share a dance, let’s open up the floor for all couples to come and dance.”
Dean carefully extricated himself from Abbie’s tentacle-like grasp, and made his way across the floor to where his boyfriend was watching with awe in his eyes.
“Mr. President, may I have this dance?” Dean asked with an exaggerated bow.
“Kind sir, I’d be delighted,” the blue-eyed Novak said with a gummy smile.
Walking into his boyfriend’s warm embrace, Castiel laid his head on Dean’s shoulder and allowed the taller boy to guide him smoothly across the floor. After a few seconds, the music finally filtered through his consciousness, bringing a fresh wave a tears to his eyes.
“Dean,” the shorter boy breathed in amazement. The song was one he had mentioned before as one of his favorite cheesy songs.
“Shhh, let us not speak of it,” Dean quipped, trying to act macho.
“Of course, it’ll be our little secret that you are a romantic and that you professed your undying love to me in front of our school.”
“Damn straight,” Dean snarked, continuing to move the two of them gracefully across the floor.
The couple basked in the joy of dancing in each other’s arms for several more seconds, and then Dean ducked down to place his lips right by Castiel’s ear. The shorter boy expected Dean to start kissing him, but he was surprised to feel the first puff of warm breath as Dean started speaking...no singing.
“Did you ever know that you’re my hero?,” Dean sang softly along with the song, his last gift to Castiel. “And everything I would like to be. I can fly higher than an eagle for you are the wind beneath my wings.”
The blue-eyed teen pulled back, love and happiness reflected in his warm gaze. He gently kissed his boyfriend with all the love he could muster in that moment.
“Happy Valentine’s Day, baby,” Dean said with a contented grin.
“Happy Valentine’s Day, my love.”
Castiel could only think it had been worth waiting for this moment, because it was pretty damn near perfect.