I do not own Supernatural!

Here's a new and improved version of this fic - without all of the grammatical errors and such. All thanks to a kind beta reader! Thank you!

Heartbeat. This endless and unceasing heartbeat. Can be stopped only with a bullet, a blade, illness or other bodily damage. Hearts can race, hearts can stop, hearts can slow down, hearts can rise, hearts can drop. This endless heartbeat.

The heart had always fascinated Castiel. Both the physical heart, the one actually beating in the chest of every living human being, the one that determined life, but the angel was also curious why humans formed this gory beating lump into a soft, red figure of love. Why was the heart connected to love? It wasn't really as though the heart was where all emotions were held: the center of love. The heart was a beating muscle, supplying the limbs with blood, keeping the human alive. And that's that. You can't feel anything with your heart.

Castiel often came to rest his eyes on the chest of a man, one special man, his thoughts wandering, wondering, about the beating inside of him. The beating that was hidden behind those layers of fabric, hidden behind muscles, veins and skin. It was strange that the beating didn't show, that his shirt didn't move in pace with his heart's pounding.

Castiel had chained himself, chained himself with steel, everything he could get hold of to keep himself from reaching out, to keep himself from placing his hand upon the chest that held the heart of Dean Winchester. Just to feel the beating. Just to feel life running through him. That dear, precious life. More than once, Dean had caught Castiel staring at him. Sometimes he just lowered his gaze and pretended that he hadn't seen. Other times he broke the spell by asking things like, "What's up, man?" or "Have I got something on my face?" But most of the time, he just met Castiel's eyes. Just for a second, sometimes more. But always timidly, something Castiel was not used to when it came to Dean. Forward and outgoing and never-back-down Dean.

"Cas, you're doing it again." The rumbling sound of Dean's voice did not come from inside Castiel's head. The hunter was actually standing just inches away, with that little wrinkle between his eyes that told he was thinking very hard about something. The spell hearts usually cast upon Castiel was now broken; he was no longer buried deep in thought, but brought back to reality. Back to the dark and shabby motel room in which Sam and Dean had stayed for some nights. The wrinkle between Dean's eyes did not disappear, which was a certain sign that Castiel really needed to say something. Or do something, for that matter. For some reason, he was loose. Those chains he had bound himself with were no longer there to hold him back.

"Dean, can I touch your heart?" he asked, but it wasn't really a question. He could see surprise tighten every feature in Dean's face as the angel closed those last steps between them. Dean didn't as much as flinch when Castiel lifted his hand and reached out. Excitement filled every fiber in the angel's body. He had touched his own heart at times, but it wasn't even close to the excitement he felt now.

When Castiel placed his warm hand upon Dean's chest, right over the spot that protected his heart, Dean closed his eyes and the tension in his face eased.

Something amazing happened underneath Castiel's palm. He could feel every heartbeat, every muscle in the heart moving, working to provide the rest of the body with blood. He could feel every movement, everything. But what surprised Castiel most was the fact that Dean's heart didn't beat as slow and steady and rhythmically as his own. Dean's heart was racing, pumping for all it was worth, almost like Dean was dying. The realization made Castiel flinch and remove his hand from Dean's chest, only to place it upon his own, just to see what was happening inside of him.

"Dean, why are both our hearts beating at an abnormal pace?" The words that left Castiel's mouth were both careful and thoughtful, but also laced with a hint of worry. When Dean answered, his voice was lower and deeper than before, and his words almost seemed to belong to someone else.

"That usually happens when you touch someone you deeply care about."

The answer caused a small wrinkle of confusion to appear between Castiel's eyes.

"So the heart can hold emotions?" he asked, feeling as if everything was a lie. Dean laughed and took Castiel's hand by the wrist, moving it to place the angel's palm over his heart once again. As Cas concentrated on the persistent beating, Dean leaned closer and kissed the tip of his nose, barely touching it, just brushing it with his sweet lips.

Still, it felt like Castiel's heart would jump out of his chest.