This is based on the song called To Love Someone Else by Avery Lynch. It's a beautiful song, and I highly recommend listening to it when it says to start it, or before or after reading. :)

   Word Count: 2420

   "Mike?" Your heart breaks at the sight in front of you. Your boyfriend in bed with a random girl. 

   "GET OUT!" He growls at you. You nod and close the door behind you, collapsing onto the couch. You should've known he wouldn't change.

   Mike comes out after about 5 minutes more of bed creaking, dressed. "Where were you?" He asks angrily. "It doesn't take that long to buy groceries for me and the pack."

   "I-" you clear your throat. "I had to deal with some Hunters...." you mutter

   "What did you tell them? WHAT DID YOU TELL THEM?!" Mike yells in your face. His hand makes contact with your face before grabbing it forcefully in his hand.

   "Nothing...I swear I didn't tell them anything!" You force out, trying to get out of his tight grip.

   You were just trying to do a grocery run and got cornered by 3 men. You immediately knew they were hunters. Your boyfriend was a werewolf, which was risky for you as a human, but you trusted him enough to keep you safe. He knew you had no interest in being changed. But his pack was wild. He didn't have good control over their behavior and they had been killing humans over the past few weeks. It was only a matter of time.

   "(Y/N)? FBI. I'm Agent Decker and these are my partners, Agent Lopez and Espinoza. Could we ask you a few questions?"

   "I'm sorry I really need to get going..." you say softly. 

   "We just need to know if you recognize these people?"

   They show you a photograph, a bad photo at that, of 3 pack members...with Mike. "I'm sorry." you say after a moments hesitation. "I don't." 

   You push past them and walk to your car, loading your groceries in. "Ma'am?"

   You jump and turn, seeing the Agent who wears the trench coat behind you. "Yes?"

   "I wanted to make sure you were okay. You appear to be hurt." He gestures to a few fading bruises on your upper arm from Mike's last anger episode and the black eye that's mostly cleared up. 

   "No no I'm fine but thank you. I just....fell. I'm very clumsy." You force a small laugh. "Good luck on finding those men." You give him a final smile before quickly getting into your car, avoiding anymore conversation. Oh how much better life would be if you just turned them in...

   "Don't lie to me!" Mike growls deeply. 

   "Lie to you? LIE TO YOU?!" You glare at him. "I thought you said you changed? I thought you said I was enough and you were done with the cheating?!" 

    He laughs, shaking his head. "Now you're going to change the subject. Okay sure. Yeah alright, you want the truth? I cheated on you. A lot. For the past, I dunno, 2-3 months. And ya know what? I'm glad." He gets back close to you, in your face. "As a matter of fact, I think at this point, the one thing you might be able to do right is feed the pack..."

   You sneak your hand into your waistband where you keep a piece of silver just in case something like this might happen. Just as he transforms, you push the silver onto his throat. He howls in pain and retreats, leaving you just enough time to grab your bag and run to the door. He catches your arm just as you throw open the door, his claws cutting into your skin. You yank your arm away dashing out into the woods, knowing full well he's not far behind you. You hear his footsteps on the fallen leaves as you get to your car. 

   There's another car beside the one the pack shared, the 3 agents from earlier at the trunk, knives and pistols in hand. 

   "Hey hey woah you okay?" The tall one with shorter hair asks. You're out of breath from running and can't get your voice to work. You shake your head frantically and point behind you. "Okay okay. Listen, we're here to help okay? I'm Dean, that's Sam, and that's Cas. He's an angel, we're monster hunters."

   "I know." you finally say. You now hear multiple sets of feet not far from where the 4 of your stand. He must've called the pack. "I'm sorry I should've told you guys but he was my boyfriend and-" 

   "Hey it's okay. Listen, he was never really your boyfriend. You're a human. They're monsters, (Y/N). This is what we do. We get rid of monsters." The tall one, Sam, says to you in a comforting voice. "You stay here with Cas, we'll take care of this." He turns to Cas. "Watch her." That's the last thing he says before the 2 hunters take off towards the nearing pack.

   "Come sit down." The angel, Cas, guides you to sit in the car, a black 1967 Chevy Impala. You sit with your legs outside the car, pressing the long sleeves of your jacket into your arm, trying to stop the bleeding. Silent tears start falling down your cheeks.

   "Does it hurt?" Cas ask. You shake your head. "Let me see."

   You hesitate for a second, but his gentle eyes convinced you to roll your sleeve up. He's apparently an angel after all, so he MUST be trustworthy. Right?

   He takes your arm in his hands carefully, running his other hand over the claw marks. They are instantly healed, shocking you slightly. He smiles and leans against the side of the car next to you. 

   "I'm sorry." You whisper, wiping your eyes. 

   "Nothing to be sorry for." He waves it off. "Do you want to talk about it?"

   "I dunno. I mean, talking about him cheating on me after being treated like garbage won't change anything."

   He nods and pauses. "If he treated you horribly....why did you stay?"

   "I...I don't know." you sigh. "I guess I hoped he loved me more than he showed? I wanted to believe that he wouldn't cheat like my other 2 exes. And....and I was scared. I was scared what would happen if I actually left. I tried to leave once before and he threatened to send his pack after me. He knows being like them is the one thing I'm terrified of."

   "I understand." Cas nods. You glance over at him spinning a blade in his hands, keeping it ready in case he needs it. His eyes almost shined in the moonlight, making the blue look even brighter. He turns and catches you watching him. He smiles at you, and you can't help smiling back a little.

   There's howls of pain off in the distance, the sound of the werewolves being killed. You gulp, the guilt bubbling up into your throat. Cas notices and kneels down beside you, opening his arms a bit so you can lean against him. Normally, Cas was more hesitant to open himself up to people, but he felt a strong pull towards you. A strong sense of trust.

   You lean against the angel, and he starts to talk about what he and the brothers, the Winchesters, did. And about his past. You simply listen to him talk for the next 15 minutes, a pleasant distraction from what was happening. 

   You jump and bolt upright at the sound of someone approaching. Cas, however, doesn't move, just turns to look at who it is. 

   "Got it taken care of." Dean says, opening the trunk to put away the weapons and his and Sam's bag.

   "How is she?" Sam asks, tossing his stuff in too.

   Cas stands up. "She's alright physically."

   They boys nod and close the trunk. Sam goes to the passenger side and Dean comes around to where you are. 

   "Do you need anything? We have food and water back at our bunker, as well as some extra rooms if you need a place to stay."

   "I-" you hesitate for a moment. "I would like that please..." 

   Dean taps the roof of the car. "Sounds good. Cas is gonna ride back there with you." 

   You move over, letting Cas slide in next to you. You strap in, and the haul back to the bunker begins.

   About halfway through the trip, you fall asleep on Cas' shoulder. Dean sees from the rearview mirror and smirks. "Cas you seem awfully close to her already. Someone catch feelings?"

   Cas looks up at him, a small smile on his lips. "Shut up Dean..." he mutters. Sam and Dean both exchange a look and burst out laughing. 

   "Never thought I'd see you fall for a human man." Sam teases. "She seems nice though." 

   Cas smiles. "Yeah...."

   You were living with the boys still after a month. You're first week in the bunker was spent exploring and fully investing yourself into the world of hunting. By the start of week 2, you told the 3 boys that you wanted to become a Hunter. They were hesitant at first, saying how hunting was a death sentence as soon as you started. But after a few days of them discussing it, you were invited along for your first hunt. Many others followed soon after. It was the most alive you had felt in the past 2 years. (Please play the song now)

   Castiel would come along for any hunt you were on as well, anything else being put aside until you were back safe. His feelings for you were obvious. He hadn't admitted it yet, but it was clear with how protective he was of you, and with the looks Sam and Dean would both send your way when you were with him. It made your heart hurt...

   He was so kind to you. More kind than anyone else you'd known since you were 18 when your last close friend moved away for school. He was there while you grieved your relationship and Mike's death. He treated you how you knew you deserved to be treated. But...it always starts that way, doesn't it?

   You were currently in your room, looking through old pictures of yourself and Mike, deleting them one by one. There's a soft knock at the door that's cracked, and you look up and see Dean. 

   "Hey (Y/N). Just wanted to let you know we're gonna go pick up food. You okay?" He asks, concern in his voice when he sees your tears. You wipe your eyes quickly and force a small laugh.

   "Yeah no I'm good. Food sounds great."

   He nods, glancing at your phone and seeing the picture you were on. He walks to the bed and sits carefully beside you. "Hey listen. I know it's not easy, with the whole break up thing and losing someone you care about. Believe me I've had my fair share of both." He puts an arm around you. 

   You sigh, leaning into the embrace. "Being cheated on sucks Dean. It's the 3rd relationship in a row...I dunno if I can trust anyone else." 

   Dean nods his head. "Well....ya know there's someone out there for you. Someone who will treat you with so much respect and love." he pauses. "They might be closer than you think." He smirks and gives you one last hug before getting up. "Sam's waiting so I better get out to Baby. But take your time with recovering, for real. If anyone breaks your heart you best believe your new brothers will kick their ass."

   This makes you laugh as he leaves. You turn back to the photo album on your phone, and just delete the entire thing in 2 clicks. 

   You get up and walk out into the main area of the bunker, grabbing the current lore book you were working your way through. You've only been reading for about 5 minutes when you hear someone come in.

   "(Y/N)."

   "Hey Castiel." you smile at him, closing the book. 

   "Can I talk to you?" He seems nervous about something. 

   "Yeah of course Cas. What's up?" You lean forward a rest your elbows on the table. He sits across from you and hesitates. He takes your hands in his, your breath catching in your throat at the touch. 

   "I know that you're still processing what happened with Mike." he starts. Oh no..."But...Sam and Dean told me I need to be honest. Both for my sake and yours."

   "Cas..."

   He finally looks up into your eyes, your heart melting per usual when you saw his bright blue. "I love you. More than just a friend. I want to show you how much you mean to me, and how special you are. I want to be what Mike never was for you." Your eyes fill with tears again. "If you don't feel the same I completely understand and I would like to remain friends in the least." He says quickly, squeezing your hands a bit. You squeeze back and sigh, wiping your eyes quickly.

   "Cas....I love you too but....I can't. I'm sorry. I can't. I can't let myself fall again. Not yet." You take a breath, and explain better. "I know if and when I'm ready, I'll be able to fall for you. I'll be able to let myself get attached and love you unconditionally. But I'm not ready to love someone else yet. Not like that." 

   "I understand. It's okay. I just wanted to be honest so you understand how I feel."

   "I appreciate that so much Castiel. I really do." You shake your head and choke out a sad laugh. "I hate my past relationships. I hate Mike. I hate the way he makes me feel like even when he's gone, I still can't breath. Like I'm still trapped. I see how you look at me, and deep down I knew how you felt before you told me. I know you would treat me right and care for me like he couldn't but....I can't"

    Castiel gets up and comes to sit beside you instead, pulling you into a tight embrace. You sit there, silent, for several minutes until you hear the door click from above, meaning the Winchester brothers have returned. You pull away from each other and he forces you to look at him, giving you a gentle smile.

   "It's alright (Y/N). It'll be okay. Just remember I'll be here when you're ready to love someone else."