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“Man, all I wanna do is sleep.”Gabriel’s comment rings loud in the otherwise silent fire truck and is met with quiet murmurs from the rest of their crew. Cas nods in agreement, sending a quick glance first to the clock on the dash, reading 0:13 am, and then to Raphael at the wheel. At least the guy looks awake enough to get them back to the station in one piece.Looking back out on the empty road, Cas takes in the silent side streets of Washington D.C., letting the swirl of colorful lights and darkness wash over him …He’s jerked awake and as his eyes fly open, all Cas sees is the inside of their station’s garage. It must’ve been the curb that jolted the fire engine, it always does. Raphael brings the truck to a halt and sends Cas a small smile. Obviously, he noticed that Cas had fallen asleep, but he doesn’t seem to judge him. They’re all worn out after their last call. Putting out a fire for over six hours does that to people, even the best firefighters.Cas gives him a tight-lipped smile back and hops down. On autopilot, he starts the normal procedure required after every call; cleaning up, checking all the gear, refilling what needs to be refilled. He can barely keep his eyes open, but like all of them, he does it mindfully and precisely. The next call could come any minute and if just one piece is amiss, it could cost them their lives or that of the victims. So even though all he wants to do is shower and then fall into his uncomfortable bunk bed and sleep, he stays and does his work.It’s close to one in the morning when he finally gets in the shower, letting the hot water wash away all the soot and dirt and sweat. He turns the tap to cold for the last minute, enjoying the rush of adrenaline the icy water sends through his body. It’s not enough to chase away the bone-deep tiredness. God, he’s so ready for a few hours of shut-eye. Going home would be even better, but that won't be an option for another eight hours or so; his bunk bed and Gadreel’s and Balthazar’s snoring will have to do for now. Hopefully, nothing else will happen tonight. The calls always seem to pile up at the end of his shift and he hates it. He also hates summertime, for the simple reason that everything seems to catch fire twice as fast and people seem to be even more stupid with all their open fires.Sighing, Cas shuts off the water and gets ready for bed. On his way to the bunk beds, he passes Joshua. The old man, who is more like a father than a Chief for all the firefighters, pats him on the back.“Good job today, son,” he tells him and moves on, not even waiting for a reply. Cas thanks him anyway.Kicking Gabe’s legs out of his way, Cas passes the other bunk beds and flops down on his own. It’s not soon after that someone shuts off the lights and silence falls over them right away. Cas closes his eyes and tries to find some peace and rest. When the sirens blare to life, Castiel is up and moving before he’s fully awake, hastily pulling on his pants while the last traces of his dreams vanish. Dreams of green eyes …Cas shakes his head. No time for that now. It isn’t until he’s seated next to Raphael and the engine is moving again that he can check the time. They didn’t get more than twenty minutes of sleep, and damn if Cas doesn’t feel it in his bones. Looking back, he can see his crew isn’t faring any better. But they’re professionals, and they shake the tiredness away as the radio crackles to life. There’s a fire somewhere, possibly with lives at stake; they can sleep later.Cas answers the call, getting more information about what they’re going into. Some maniac is holding hostages in their own home, the FBI already trying to control the situation. The guy set his house on fire, intent on burning his family with him. Castiel confirms what he’s heard and puts the radio back.“Damn, I hate calls like this,” Anna whispers, but it’s loud enough in the silence of the moving engine to be heard. No one gives her a direct answer, only murmured agreement. Hostage situations are always tricky and they’ll have to work closely with the law enforcement at the scene. Most likely they’ll have to wait for the situation to be under control before they can even really do anything.There’s one thing, however, Castiel knows for sure. He’ll see a certain agent at the scene. One with green eyes and a smile to die for. Dean Winchester, one of the FBI’s top agents, is an expert when it comes to handling hostage situations. Winchester also constantly features in Castiel’s dreams and as bad as it might sound, Cas is looking forward to getting a glimpse of the handsome guy, knowing he’s on duty tonight. A silver lining in these dark hours.Every thought of green eyes is gone the moment he can see the red shimmer in the night sky. Thankfully, the address isn’t too far away and Cas uses the last few blocks to mentally prepare himself for what’s to come.They arrive at the scene just four minutes after the call came in. The crew jumps out of the fire truck the moment it stops and Cas takes in the situation, coordinating his crew without hesitation. The fire is roaring, illuminating the black sky, making up for the missing moon tonight. He hears kids crying in the house, even over the crackling and all the shouting going on outside. No time to pay it any mind, though, he sets up the equipment with practiced ease. Then they wait. Given that there’s a hostage situation going on inside, the firefighters have to wait for the Chief to coordinate with the FBI.Looking around, Cas is not only searching for Chief Joshua, but also for his favorite FBI agent. Winchester should be here. There are Benny and Cole, two from his team. Cas sees fiery red hair a bit further down and knows it must be Charlie, another team member. They all have their weapons trained on the house, but … where’s Dean?His eyes fall on Joshua and Cas pushes his thoughts about the FBI agent aside. There are lives at stake, no time for daydreaming. His Chief gives him a hand signal, pointing toward the neighboring houses and Cas nods in understanding: they can’t do anything about the real issue at the moment. Any attempt to put out the fire or even just tame it may inflame the hostage situation. Cas, next in line of command, is quick to pass the order to the other crews and to delegate some of them to take care of the other houses. He keeps his own crew as well as a second one close, ready to go in the moment they get the okay from the FBI. The remaining crews are preparing to start attacking the actual fire once the hostages are safe.Joshua comes up behind them as they’re making their way over to their truck.“There are eight people inside. Get ready. As soon as the FBI has the situation under control, we go in.”“Any more info about the people inside, Sir?” Anna asks as they’re pulling on their SCBA gear and getting out the spare masks for the victims.Nodding, Joshua continues. “Five kids, aged three to fourteen. The father is the aggressor; his ex-wife is one of the hostages. And,” he stops for a moment, sending a worried glance towards Cas. All air seems to leave Cas at once. “One of the agents is inside as well. When the FBI saw the guy set the fire, they charged in. Seems the flames spread too quickly, the bastard must have prepared the house for this. The rest of the team retreated, but one of them continued.”Cas doesn’t want to ask nor does he have to, he already knows the answer. It’s just so very typical Dean. The idiot probably wanted to stay close to the victims. He asks anyway. “Who’s the agent?”Multiple sets of eyes center on him; he can feel the gazes of the surrounding firefighters burning into him like flames. Joshua looks as if he’d rather not say and that alone is answer enough. “It’s Winchester.”He feels like he might throw up, but Cas bites it back and keeps a cool head. It’s not the first time they’ve attended the same scene; it’s not even the first time either of them has had to stand outside while the other is in a burning building or in a hostage situation. Or both, as in this case. He knows Dean. He knows the agent is one of the best and all he can do right now is to pray everything will be alright. So, instead of worrying or panicking over what might happen to Dean, he gets ready to get him and the other victims out as soon as they can.Once they’re ready, they get into position, just enough people to get those inside to safety. Cas’ rational side knows that only mere minutes have passed since they arrived at the scene. That doesn’t help his emotions, however. He also knows that the situation inside must be reaching a critical point. Not because of the flames, but because of the smoke.A gunshot slices through the night followed almost directly by a second one and Cas can feel everyone shocked into silence for just the smallest part of a second, all the people around him holding their breath.The moment is broken immediately and one of the FBI radios flares to life. Not even a heartbeat later, the spell-breaking “Go!” sounds through the night. Cas is inside the house before he even realizes he’s running.Looking around, he lets his training kick in and just reacts. He’s good at this, he knows his stuff. Dean is a victim in this building, nothing more, nothing less. Just a victim. And he has to get him out. The passage to the living room on the left is slightly blocked by flames, not enough to endanger the firefighters in their bunker gear, so Cas doesn’t hesitate. The room behind the wall of flames is full of smoke, so thick it’s hard to see. He can hear soft cries and the first silhouette he makes out is that of a little kid. Cas is about to kneel down when a hand lands on his shoulder. It’s Gadreel.“I’ll take her,” he says, pushing Cas further into the room. Every firefighter knows who he wants to get out of here first, and he feels bad about it for just a second.All thoughts or guilty feelings fly out of his head as he spots three adults lying on the floor, unmoving. He knows he should check on the other victims, but Zar and Gabe are directly beside him. They’ll take care of them. Cas only has eyes for one of the men on the floor.“Dean.”He’s next to the agent in a heartbeat.“Dean!” Dean knows he’ll get hell from Jody for this later, but right now, he has no time to dwell on it. When his team charged in, the fire in the foyer had spread so quickly it had already been licking at their legs. And while the others did the smart thing – the correct thing – and retreated, Dean had only seen the children in the living room to his left and had jumped over the flames.It couldn't have been more than six, maybe seven minutes, but the burning heat and the smoke tell him that he needs to find a way to get through to this guy.“Come on, man,” he says, his weapon not wavering even as the smoke is slowly but surely irritating his eyes. “You don’t want to do this.”“You don’t know me,” the guy screams at him, his gun alternately pointed at Dean and at the woman’s temple. He has her in a tight hold before him, her body like a shield between Dean’s weapon and himself. She’s crying, begging her ex-husband to let her go, or at least their kids. But Dean has already tried to get the kids out one at a time. The maniac hasn’t even shied away from pointing the gun at his own kids. Now all Dean can do is talk to him, keep him calm so he won’t just shoot blindly. And he needs to talk some sense into the guy. The smoke is getting thicker every minute, the fire spreading faster than Dean thought possible – probably a miscalculation for which Cas would rip him a new one. For a moment, blue eyes flare through his mind as he thinks of the firefighter, though he forces the thought aside. No time for it now.“You’re right,” he agrees with the man, keeping his voice even and gentle. “I don’t know you. But these are your kids. Look at them.” Dean waits for a moment, giving the man enough time to actually look at the children, silently crying on the couch. The oldest son looks ready to jump his father for what he’s doing, murder in his eyes, and Dean is sure the only thing holding him back is his mother’s life on the line. Instead, he’s crouching over the youngest two, shielding them with his own body. Ready to take a bullet for his siblings.Dean knows that feeling.“Look at your children. Do you really want them to die?”He can feel the fire constantly creeping closer. It had started in the entrance and spread around the foyer, blocking out the only exit to the house. By now, it has spread all over the wall behind Dean, the heat burning into his back, sweat running down his neck. There’s no real chance, he knows it. The guy had been ready to shoot his children should they leave the house. But he has to try, there really is no other hope.“Come on, man,” he tries one more time, even though he sees no spark, no ounce of regret or doubt in the guy’s eyes. “They’re so young. They’re your own flesh and blood and they have their whole life ahead of them.”“They’re not mine!” The yell is piercing, though Dean is too experienced to react. “This whore cheated on me. For years!”“No, nono nooohoo.”Tears are streaming down the woman’s face as she assures her ex that she never did any of the things he’s accusing her of. For a moment, the man seems distracted, but it’s not enough for Dean to risk a shot.Suddenly, the woman’s whimpers stop. Dean can see her eyes roll into the back of her head and before he can fully comprehend what it means, her body goes limp, unbalancing the man still holding her.A shot rings through the room and although Dean can feel the pain, he’s too high on adrenaline and – quite frankly – lack of clean oxygen, for it to really register. All he knows in this instance is that the woman’s body is no longer shielding her ex-husband.There’s no hesitation as Dean aims and shoots.He wants to go over, do the correct thing, check on the guy, see if he’s dead, get his weapon away from him, check on the woman, the kids. Before he can, he finds himself on the floor, his lungs burning, a throbbing pain somewhere on his left side. With his last conscious thought, he reaches for his radio, cracks it to life.“Clear,” he forces out and then the world around him goes black.The last thing he sees is the face of a blue-eyed angel appearing over him … The moment green eyes find his Castiel feels like sobbing with relief. The feeling is ripped from him as Dean’s eyes fall shut.“No! Dean!” With quick movements, he secures the oxygen mask over the agent’s face. “Dean, come on. Stay with me!”He gives him a quick once over, his gaze zeroing in on the shoulder the unconscious man is still loosely clutching. Brushing his hand away, he sees his clothing soaked with blood, but the wound can’t be fatal.Cas takes just a second to check the situation. Three of them have to fight the flames around the entrance so the rest can bring the victims outside. That means three fewer firefighters to carry kids to safety and if Cas knows anything about Dean, then it’s the fact that the man would never forgive him should he save his life over that of a kid. But Cas gets a last glimpse of Gadreel carrying two younger-looking kids out through the door; Inias is right behind him, one of the daughters in his arms, the other one grasps firmly by her hand, hastily pulling her out as well. Gabriel and another kid carry a woman out who appears to be unconscious. Balthazar is next to him, checking on the husband. If the wide-open and unmoving eyes weren’t already a giveaway, the hole in the guy’s head certainly is. Dean has always been one of the best shots.“Raphael, Michael,” Cas yells to be heard over the roaring flames. When the men look towards him, he gestures first towards the corpse, then to Dean. Neither of them hesitates to follow his orders, leaving Anna to fight the flames alone. As Raphael rushes over to help Zar pick up the guy and carry him out, Michael is next to Cas in a heartbeat.Cas looks back down at Dean. His eyes are still closed, yet he appears to be breathing. Not hesitating any longer, Castiel moves over to grab the agent’s upper body, mindful of his shoulder, while Michael takes his legs. Together, they make it outside right after Zar and Raphael with the dead man, Anna hot on their heels. The moment they’re all outside, the other firefighters direct the water onto the burning building.It doesn’t take long until the medics are by their side with a gurney and carefully, the two firefighters ease Dean down on it. Without warning, the agent jerks up, coughing and ripping the mask away.“Oh no, you don’t,” one of the medics commands, pressing the mask back on his face and guiding him to lie back down while they roll him over to the ambulance. “Just keep calm and breathe. You’re safe now.”“Cas.”“I’m here,” Cas replies, touching the agent’s good arm gently to give him direction. The moment their eyes meet, he knows Dean will be okay. Nothing will kill this stubborn idiot that easily.As they reach the ambulance, Lisa is there to take over, already switching the provisional mask to one from the ambulance. Her fingers are quick, yet Cas can’t help but notice how they linger just a tad too long on Dean. He knows it’s stupid, but even in this situation, Cas can’t stop himself from hating it and his old jealousy flares up again. He always feels it whenever the emergency doctor is there to take care of Dean, no matter how childish it might be. At least her feelings for the agent make sure she does neat and thorough work with taking care of him.He knows he should get back. Dean is okay and in capable hands and there’s no reason for him to linger. However, Jody is by their side before Cas can make a conscious decision to leave.“Good to see you alive, Winchester,” the agent states in her usual no-nonsense voice. “Next time you pull something like that, I’ll shoot you myself and I swear that bullet will go where it’s supposed to be.”“Duly noted, boss,” Dean replies, his voice raw, coughing interrupting him. Lisa helps him sit up and takes the mask off, handing him some water. While he sips on it slowly, she rubs his back in soothing circles and as he hands the cup back Dean sends her a tender and thankful smile. Cas’ jealousy swells.Jody is back to business. “Can you tell me what happened or is the smoke too much?”“It’s okay,” Dean rasps out and ignores Lisa’s disapproving look. Instead of putting the mask back on as he should, Dean tells in a few short, clipped sentences what had happened after his team had to retreat. While he talks, Lisa hands him another cup of water and after giving her yet another grateful smile, he carefully sips on it. In between sips, he continues. “Don’t really know why, but suddenly the woman collapsed. I’m guessing too much smoke and the situation as a whole.”“Yeah, you’re correct. Medics say she’ll pull through, though,” Jody interrupts and Dean nods, taking another sip, watching as Lisa cuts open his shirt to get to his damaged shoulder. “The guy got distracted and a shot must’ve gone off. Don’t think he shot me on purpose. At least, I didn’t see him pointing at me. Don’t really remember the pain,” he says, gesturing towards his shoulder that Lisa is cleaning at the moment. Her fingers look tender and soft as they wash away all the blood and Cas has to hold himself back so he won’t just push her hands away and do it himself. “I really didn’t want to risk the shot before that, but the woman was out of the way, the man distracted, and really: it was our last chance to get out of there alive. So, I just reacted.”“You did good,” Jody replies, nodding as if to emphasize her words.“Thanks, Jody. Well, after that I don’t remember much. Just calling you and … Cas being there,” Dean finishes up his story, sending Cas a warm smile that makes the butterflies inside of Cas burst to life.Jody grins as she turns toward the firefighter. “Ah, I see,” she mocks, but there’s no malice behind her words. “Your guardian angel, there again to save your sorry ass.”“Always,” Cas replies, smiling as well.The smile vanishes as he hears Joshua calling his name. Turning around, he sees his Chief come over towards them. “Everything alright with you, Winchester?”“Yes, Sir,” Dean answers. His voice is getting rougher and rougher, but despite that he already looks better, no trace left of him being unconscious mere minutes before. Especially now, that the wound is covered with bandages. They’ll take the bullet out at the hospital.“Good.” Joshua nods at him before turning around towards Cas. “Then there’s no reason for you to stay here. Come on, there’s a fire that needs to be taken care of.”“Yes, Sir, sorry.”Cas throws one last glance at Dean. The man smiles at him before finally putting the mask back on and it’s all Cas needs at the moment. He returns the smile before jamming his helmet back on and running toward his crew to help with the fire. Moments later, he hears the sirens, telling him that Dean is on his way to the hospital. It takes them another hour to put out the fire. It’s way past three-thirty in the morning when they finally get back to the firehouse and another thirty minutes until all their stuff is clean and ready again. After showers and a quick bite, Cas really only wants to collapse on his bed, tired beyond compare.However, Joshua intercepts him on his way to the bunk beds.“Son, you did good today.”“Thanks, Chief.”“Your shift ends in four hours, correct?”“Yes, Sir.”“Good. Next time you come in, you can add those hours to your shift.”“Sir?” Cas asks, not sure what Joshua is trying to tell him.His Chief smiles at him. “We both know you don’t wanna be here. Go. Check on him.”The relief must be quite visible on his face, as Joshua’s smile only grows wider.“Thank you, Sir.”“Call me tomorrow and let us know how he is. And tell me how much time you need off to take care of him.”“Joshua …”“It’s alright, Cas. Now go.”“Thank you so much.”Without another glance, Cas hastens to get into his own clothes and to ask Anna to please take care of his usual cleaning duties, before running downstairs and to the parking lot. He’s still tired as hell, even more so than before, but the drive isn’t long and he can risk it even in his state. Not bothering with the front entrance, the hospital long closed, Cas drives around and towards the back entrance instead, the one for the ambulances. He rings the bell and a few seconds later, he’s granted entrance.“Hello, Jess,” he greets the night nurse, hugging her as she comes around the counter.“Hey, Cas,” she replies, taking his arm as they walk down the corridor. “I was beginning to wonder when you’d show up.”“You know, there was this fire we needed to take care of.” A slight slap on his forearm interrupts him and he chuckles softly. “Sorry. But besides that, I’m technically still on my shift. Joshua let me go.”Jess smiles at the mention of the Chief. “That’s nice of him.” She stops them in front of one of the emergency rooms. “Dean’s doing alright. We just kept him here for the rest of the night so we could keep an eye on him. Be careful with all the cables.”“I always am,” Cas says, pouting that she still feels the need to remind him.Grinning, she gives him a kiss on his cheek. “I know. Oh and: no funny business. Last time, Dean’s heart rate shot up so high you almost gave Becky a heart attack, remember?”Nodding, Cas feels his ears burning up. “I was trying to forget that, but thanks for reminding me. No funny business, I promise.”When Jess turns to go back to her station, Cas pushes the door open and quietly steps inside the dark room. Dean is asleep on his bed. Not wanting to wake him, Cas silently pulls a chair closer and sits down, studying the agent’s face. His features are soft, relaxed, no traces of any pain. Most likely, he’s high on medication, but that’s okay.Sighing in relief of knowing that Dean is doing alright, Cas takes his hand, carefully, mindful of the tubes. He needs the contact. Needs to feel Dean’s warmth as the cold of his own tiredness is coming back tenfold. He’s about to let his head sink down on the bed when Dean wakes, green eyes fixing on Cas immediately.His speech is slurred, though clear enough. “Hey, Sweetheart.”“Hey, yourself,” Cas replies, squeezing Dean’s hand. “You scared me today.”Dean squeezes back, eyes falling shut again already. “Sorry ‘bout that.”“It’s alright,” Cas soothes him, pressing a kiss to his knuckles. “Go back to sleep. I’m here now.”“C’mere,” Dean begs and sluggishly scoots over to make room.Too tired to complain, Cas crawls into bed and mindful of all the cables and most importantly, Dean’s shoulder, he snuggles up into the warmth he loves so much and misses every time he’s away from Dean. Sneaking his arm over Dean’s body, Cas sighs in contentment as he hugs his husband close and finally, finally falls asleep.