It's In Your Eyes

Trigonometry

Dean's POV -

A bell rings throughout the school. It's loud. It's shrill. And it's most certainly unwelcome. Pulling us from sleep to tell us breakfast will be served now, and just reminding us that lessons begin today.

I reluctantly swing out of bed, leaving behind my fluffy, warm blanket and feeling the pinch of morning against my bare legs and chest. I rub my eyes, I stand up, and I stretch, letting out a sigh without thinking of a thing. But I can't block out thoughts forever, and soon I find myself looking round at Cas's bed.

It's empty and made. Everything's neat, in that old, worn blue of school bedding. Something about it just looks so small, so gentle and lonely. I feel a twinge behind my eyes, a warm sting of pity, so I pull on a jumper and some pants, and follow a sleep-drunk Ash out, down to breakfast.

I take my seat at the table, eat and leave, all without any sign of Castiel. No one really questions it, they all knows he doesn't eat much, less in the mornings and often just skips it all together. I'm working on getting him to eat more, but he only consumes a small amount of the stuff I bring him at night.

As I get showered and dressed, making my way along to my first lesson of the year, maths, I let my mind wander, and come to rest. My chest squeezes when I think about sitting on the roof with Castiel, at night, just idly talking, idly nibbling biscuits, idly playing with the loose, undefined curled locks of his hair when he leans against me, sometimes falling asleep. It pinches harder when I remember how I watched him slip out the window last night, pretending to sleep as he glanced back. Once he was gone, I'd turned my back on the open air and tried to think of anything else.

I couldn't.

Castiel's POV -

Okay, so I'm a little hurt Dean didn't join me on the roof last night. But he's been so tired lately, I think I've been keeping him from getting a good night's sleep, and he was curled up so soundly I can forgive him. But looking him in the face so early this morning would have been too difficult after what had happened before that...

So I was up early, waking up shivering against the windowpane, the soft glow of morning light falling over the tree tops and patches of grass, even though I was hidden in the shadow of the school building. I'd sat for a short time, assessing the day ahead of me. Lessons. Actual lessons. I'm almost glad for the distraction. Less time to let my mind drift to places I don't want it to go, dark places and otherwise.

The ice of the air penetrates my bones at last, through my clothes, a T-shirt and a hoodie Dean had put round me one night. I hadn't given it back yet... So I push up and head down to the bathrooms again, taking care to use a shower further along, away from my vandalised one, letting the steaming water run over me, all of me, a soothing downpour.

After a while I got dried and dressed, quickly, with a look outside, deciding to take a walk. I would get some air while the others rise and eat and dress in a few minutes most likely, let my hair dry in the sun maybe. I didn't venture out to mine and Charlie's little creek, aware I didn't have that long really, before my first period of teaching at this school would begin with some trigonometry and a couple simultaneous equations. Instead I just explored some of the vast grounds on the schools land. I passed a hedge maze, a small, smart-looking park and a bandstand with elegant moulding and sporting a fresh, bright coat of paint.

A bell had rang as I was leaving the building. Another one had rang a while after that, a good two hours later, but I was out in a field filled with flowers of a myriad colours and scents. I began picking my way back, my watch telling me I had twenty minutes before the lesson began, I should be back in plenty of time.

So here I am now, on time, early even, but one of the last to arrive at the classroom. Those in the lesson had bundled into the room, desks taken here and there, claimed for the year, or at least for now, all over the place. There's a shout from the corner and I look over.

"Cas, over here!" Charlie beckons me over and I go to join her, Dean perched on the desk next to her, but his things clutter the one next to that. He smiles at me, a little warily, like he's unsure of how I'll take it. This is because of yesterday. Damn it, it would be better to just act like it didn't happen. It didn't happen. Nothing happened.

"Hey." I smile at her, then shift my focus to Dean, his face softening when he most likely sees in my eyes my decision to ignore the best thing that's happened to me in a long time. I swear I see a flash of disappointment in his, but it's gone quicker than I can take it in, replaced with genuine friendship.

"Saved you this desk. So we can both keep an eye on you, newbie." He winks, hoping down, his arm brushing against mine for a split second, then he sat at his own.

"Thanks." I say, just as a hush falls over the room and I drop down into my seat. The door closes behind my first teacher in a long time and I feel my heart rate pick up a few notches. He strides to his desk, braces his hands on it firmly, looking round at us with a steady eye. It falls on me, hesitating for a second before moving on. He turns to the oldstyle backboard and starts scribing in white chalk.

"My name is Mr. S. Colt. Address me as Sir or Mr Colt, work hard and don't mess about, and we have no problem. I do not want a repeat on last year." He glares at the front row and I shiver. "I won't tolerate it, okay?"

"Yes Mr Colt." Everyone says together, sounding feed up already.

"Good, now. Turn to page 394."