The next day Cas walked into science class, a little more paranoid than normal. He hadn't had science yesterday, so if there was a chance that Dean was in his class....

He was.

Fuck.

Cas stood frozen in the doorway, watching as Dean chatted with Jo Harvelle and some other kid near the back of the room. Charlie sat in the front of the room, and she waved at Cas until he snapped out of his trance, walked over, and promptly faceplanted into the desk.

"Wow," Charlie commented. "You've really got it bad." Cas let out a whine.

"It's not that I've got it bad," He said. "It's that I've never had a crush this serious before!"

"AKA you've got it bad, and that ain't good," Charlie supplied. She glanced at the back of the room, only to watch Dean, Jo, and the other boy burst out laughing. "Well, at least he's making friends." Cas groaned.

"But what if one of those friends gets to him before I do?" He asked, picking his head off the table. "I wanted to befriend him first, but I don't know how!"

"You talk to him. It's that simple." Cas stared at her.

"Charlie the last friend I made was you. And that was in KINDERGARTEN."

"And you did a helluva good job with it."

"WE WERE FIVE."

"And now you're sixteen and the man of your dreams is right there for the taking. So go get him, tiger!" Cas glared at her.

"If it's that easy, why don't you talk to Jo?" Charlie shut up.

The bell rang a moment later, and everyone filed into their seats, only for the teacher to announce that they'd be changing seats, and everyone could pick a new spot.

"Go time," Charlie muttered, practically sprinting across the room in order to slide into the seat beside Jo Harvelle, leaving Cas alone for reasons he completely understood but also hated her for. 

Cas moved back a row, just in case someone had been dying to take his seat in the front. He didn't expect anyone to sit next to him, and knowing his luck, Dean would sit with Benny, the other boy he'd been talking to with Jo.

But instead Dean sat next to him and shot him a smile.

"Hey," He said casually, and Cas flat-lined.

"Ahoy hoy," He said back, immediately regretting every sound that came out of his mouth. Who the fuck said 'Ahoy hoy'?? Were those even words???? 

But Dean laughed and smiled that beautiful smile at him a little more, so Cas relaxed an inch. Dean was just a person. He could talk to people. That was how humans worked. Communication was a thing he had the skills to do, right? He could talk. 

"Jo said you're pretty good at science," Dean went on. "And I'm pretty shit at everything school, so who knows, maybe you could help me out if I get stuck." Cas half smiled. How Jo fucking Harvelle knew anything he was good at, he had no idea (although he guessed that Balthazar or Anna had dated her at one point and let it slip), but if that got him in the Winchester's good graces, then he was in.

"I bet you're smarter then you think," He offered. 

"My grades beg to differ."

"Well grades aren't everything," Cas attempted to strike a more casual pose and fell off his chair instead. He heard Charlie facepalm across the room louder than the crash of him hitting the floor.

"Are you okay?" Dean asked.

"YEP!" Cas said quickly, scrambling back into his chair, his face burning.

"I'm starting to think you have no sense of balance whatsoever."

"That's because I don't." Cas agreed, smiling. And they kept talking, talking like normal people having a functioning conversation.

After class he and Charlie ran to the girls bathroom and screamed.

"I'm gonna throw up," Cas announced, running for a stall.

"What are you talking about, YOU TALKED TO HIM!" Charlie screeched. "And you only made a fool out of yourself once! That's great!"

"Yes, I TALKED TO HIM AND I REPRESSED SO MUCH NERVOUSNESS THAT NOW I HAVE TO PUKE IT UP."

"This is called progress!" Charlie declared, dancing around the bathroom as Cas gagged. The door to the bathroom swung open, and Charlie paused mid dance as Anna walked in, Balthazar close behind.

"....I'm not even gonna question it," Anna said, rolling her eyes. 

"Hi Charlie!" Balthazar waltzed into the restroom. "Where's Cas?"

"VOMITING," Cas called from the stall.

"Sweetie you haven't eaten lunch yet, how are you puking up the shitty cafeteria food already?" He asked.

"He talked to Dean Winchester in science," Charlie explained. "And only fell on his face once in the process. Apparently that causes so much anxiety that you have to puke your guts out."

"Are you actually puking?" Anna asked, shoving the stall door open. Cas was sitting on the floor of the stall, folding toilet paper.

"No," He admitted. "BUT I AM SUFFERING."

"You talked to a hot guy and didn't die, how are you suffering?" Balthazar asked.

"BECAUSE I WANT TO DATE THE HOT GUY AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO TELL HIM THAT."

"Oh hon-"

"Well that's when you try flirting with him," Anna suggested.

 "I don't know how to flirt," Cas said. Charlie nodded in agreement.

"It's true. He doesn't. I asked him for a line to use on Jo once and he told me to tell her she had nice earlobes."

"OKAY THAT'S IT." Balthazar threw up his hands. "WE'RE GOING TO THE MALL."

"What."

"YES." Anna shouted in agreement.

"I don't understand," Cas started, but Balthazar cut him off.

"Baby brother, Anna and I have slept with more people combined then you will meet in your life-"

"That's not healthy-"

"And THEREFORE we have mastered the art of flirting and seduction and it is time for us to pass along our wisdom to YOU." Cas looked terrified.

"Why me?"

"Because Dean Winchester is a hot piece of ass," Anna deadpanned. "And you want him. Therefore we must help you, and we'll do that by going to the mall."

"Why do we have to go to the mall to learn how to flirt?" Balthazar scoffed.

"You don't really think you can seduce a hot guy in THAT shirt, do you?" Cas stared down at his T-shirt. 

"What's wrong with my shirt?"

"You look like a nerd." Anna said bluntly. Cas stared at her.

"But...I...am a nerd...."

"We'll fix that."

"Please teach me your ways," Charlie begged. Balthazar spun around to face her.

"Honey, I've seen Jo Harvelle, and damn right I'm helping you. We're going to the mall now, let's go."

"You mean after school," Cas corrected. Balthazar laughed.

"No. I don't. Let's go."

"We don't have a car-"

"We'll get one."

"What about the rest of our classes-"

"FASHION AND FLIRTING DON'T WAIT FOR CLASSES, CASTIEL. WE ARE GOING TO MAKE YOU FABULOUS AND SEDUCTIVE AND WE HAVE TO START NOW!" Anna pulled Cas up from the floor and Balthazar kicked open the bathroom door and strutted out. "Besides," He called back. "I need a new skirt anyways. Anna's are boring."

"STOP STEALING MY CLOTHES!" She yelled after him.