It's Sad to Eat Pie Alone

Eighteen

Cas cheered up over the next few days. He and Dean went on a few dates and had some good times. He was starting to forget about Naomi's visit, even while Christmas was approaching. Cas was slowly warming up to Dean and everyone else around him. He wasn't any less awkward, but he was getting less shy about it.

"Come on. Get the keys, let's go! I'm taking you out," Cas said, tugging on Dean's arm. Dean smiled, grabbing his keys off his desk and following Cas out the door.

"Wow, Novak, you seem excited," Dean said as Cas rushed to the impala.

"Come on, Dean! Give me the keys," Cas said. He reached for the keys in Dean's hand but Dean pulled them away.

"Hey, I don't know if I trust you enough to let you drive my car," Dean said suspiciously.

"Don't you love me?" Cas pretended to pout.

"I love you, I just don't know if I trust you," Dean said, grinning, "just tell me where we're going and I'll drive."

"But it's a surprise!" Cas whined, reaching for the keys again. Dean held them over his head and Cas stood on tiptoe to try and reach.

"Please?" Cas begged.

"Fine. But I'm watching you," Dean said, giving Cas the keys and sitting in the passenger seat. Cas grinned and hopped in the driver seat, turning the car on and pulling out of the parking space. He drove surprisingly aggressively for someone so shy.

"Geez, Novak, calm down! We'll get there!" Dean exclaimed, clutching the armrest.

"Well it's not like you follow the speed limit either," Cas observed. Dean shrugged.

"I guess you're right," he said. They didn't talk the rest of the way until Cas pulled into the parking lot.

"Mini golf? Really, Novak?" Dean asked.

"Yes, Dean. I love mini golf," Cas said, getting out of the car. Dean climbed out reluctantly behind him.

"Okay. If you really love it and aren't just messing with me," he said, following Cas up the ramp to the building.

"I promise," Cas said. They paid and grabbed their clubs. Cas got a green ball and Dean got a blue one, and they headed out to the course.

"Do you need to take any practice shots?" Cas asked. Dean shook his head. Cas smiled and they went to the first hole. The course was deserted, they were the only ones there, but Cas liked it that way. Cas took the first shot, getting his ball within a few inches of the hole. He smiled with pride and Dean lined up to take his shot.

***

"This isn't a game, this is a torture method!"

"Dean-"

"I mean, it's so simple! You just hit the ball with the stick and make it go in the hole, why the hell is it so hard?"

Dean was practically screaming. Cas was trying not to laugh his butt off to spare what little dignity Dean had left, but it was getting harder with each failed hole and string of curses.

"And speaking of the stick, it's to freaking small! I have to hunch over like a grandpa every time!" Dean continued to rant.

"Dean... The club... Is the wrong size... There are... Other sizes..." Cas wheezed with laughter in between every few words.

"Stop laughing! It's even worse when you laugh at me!" Dean said, hurt.

"I'm sorry... You're just... So bad!" Cas exclaimed, finally falling over into fits of hysterical laughter. Dean stood there leaning on his club like a cane, looking offended, until Cas calmed down. Cas stood up slowly, still chuckling.

"I'm sorry, that was rude of me," he told Dean.

"Yeah it was. Laughing at another man's disability," Dean grumbled. Cas broke out laughing again when Dean called it a disability. Dean nudged Cas with his foot.

"Hey! Shut up!" He said. When Cas calmed down again, he smiled at Dean.

"Okay, okay. Let's finish. I promise I won't laugh anymore," he said, grinning. Dean moved on to the next hole, still grumbling about torture and embarrassment.

***

"Well, I learned something new today," Cas said as they rode back to campus.

"Yeah? What's that?" Dean asked.

"The great Dean Winchester's fatal weakness. Mini golf," Cas said. Dean huffed and Cas grinned out the window. He knew he would remember that day forever.