So I wrote this for a fanfiction contest (hosted by the lovely -wondersmith) on tumblr, but forgot to submit it on time.

Anyway, it was a Destiel one-word prompt contest and my word was prayer.

Hope you enjoy.

"Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I shall die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take." Castiel Novak glanced out his window to notice his neighbor Dean Winchester sitting at his desk in the house next door. Apparently, Dean had also chosen this moment to look out the window, and the two exchanged a wave before each returning to his own nightly activities.

"Oh, and I know I've prayed for this for months now, but please Heavenly Father," Castiel looked away from the curled hands upon his bedside and up towards his ceiling. "Please let him feel the same." His last words fell to a hushed whisper in fear of his parents overhearing his prayers.

He pulled off his pants and shirt and climbed into bed before reaching to his nightstand, turning off his lamp and setting his bible in the drawer. His back fell onto the blue sheets, and his tousled hair rest lightly upon his pillow. Pulling up the covers, he whispered one final word before descending into sleep.

"Amen."

"Heavenly Father I thank you for this meal and for all of the bountiful foods that you have provided for my sustenance. Amen." Castiel unclasped his hands and took a bite of the burger in front of him.

"Cas, do you always have to pray before you eat?" Dean asked between mouthfuls of food. His curiosity of his friend's habits finally vocalizing themselves during their lunch block.

"Of course Dean!" He exclaimed, half chewed chunks from his cheeseburger falling down his chin, making Dean burst out with laughter. Castiel's head tilted in confusion. "What?" He asked.

Dean picked up his napkin and started to wipe at his friend's chin. "You just got a little something right." He paused. "Everywhere." He chuckled. "My best friend, the messy cheeseburger-aholic." He finished wiping away the last bit of cheese and leaned back in his seat. "There, all clean." He smiled.

"Thanks Dean." Castiel smiled brightly, his dimples hiding the pink tint to his cheeks.

Dean laughed. "Cas, sometimes I think you'd be lost without me." He teased, earning a tongue poking out in his direction. "And sometimes I think that you're ridiculously immature." He mocked before following suit and sticking his own tongue out, just as the school bell rang throughout the room.

They stood up and tossed their Styrofoam trays into the garbage cans. "See you later Dean." Castiel waved at his companion before heading off to class.

"Yep, see you later man." Dean whispered before trudging to Biology.

"Thanks for having me over for dinner Mrs. Novak." Dean smiled at his friend's mom as he placed the plates out on the table, Castiel quickly following him with an assortment of silverware, each placed perfectly alike next to the plates.

"It's no problem at all Dean, you know that you are always welcome in our house." She gave him a tender smile as she positioned the ham in the center of the table, taking her seat like everyone else. "Now, since you're our guest, would you like to say our prayer?" She asked politely.

"Um, sure Mrs. N, but I probably won't be too good at it." Dean shrugged as everyone around the table joined hands, Castiel's warm hand soft in his.

"Oh that's fine dear, we all mess up our first time around, why don't you give it a shot?" She gave him a nurturing smile and he nodded, catching a glance of Castiel's smile as they bowed their heads.

"Oh Heavenly Father," He started, "Thank you. For our lives with which we have been blessed, and for this food which will sustain us to live in your name," He snuck a peek to see Castiel smiling, squeezing his hand lightly before continuing. "And for friends that we know will always be there, to guide us down the right path." He paused and they all looked up, smiling at him for his surprisingly good prayer. "Amen." He said proudly.

A chorus of "Amen" echoed in the dining room as everyone's hands fell apart. Dean's lingering in Castiel's before slowly moving to his plate. "Now let's eat!" He exclaimed, flashing his most charming smile.

"Amen to that." Castiel whispered before smiling at Dean, their eyes locking for a split second before moving to the spread in front of them.

"Amen to that." He repeated in a whisper.

"It's really cool that your mom let you stay over, Dean." Castiel smiled at his friend who was shifting uncomfortably on the floor.

"Okay, this is really uncomfortable." Dean grumbled. "Can you share the bed?" He gave his friend the best puppy look he could muster.

Castiel laughed. "Sure Dean, I think I can manage to let you up here." He smiled as Dean clambered up on the mattress and curled up next to his friend under the heavy comforter.

"Thanks Cas." He mumbled as he started to drift off to sleep, shifting closer to his friend.

"No problem Dean." Castiel smiled in the dark.

A few hours passed without incident, just the sound of Dean's light snores slightly echoing through the room. "Oh Heavenly Father," Castiel whispered. "Thank you." His gaze shifted to the sleeping form of his friend who had slowly drifted closer until his cheek was resting lightly on Castiel's stomach. "Thank you for everything." He whispered.

"Amen."

Dean found himself walking down a Pier. His target in sight. His best friend was sitting at the very end, jeans rolled up and legs hanging over the edge, a fishing line tossed casually into the water.

He sat down next to Castiel. "This is a dream isn't it?" He asked as he looked on into the setting sun.

"Yep." Castiel looked at him and smiled.

"I love you Cas." Dean whispered, looking down at his intertwined fingers.

"I'm just a piece of you Dean, I'm not the one that you should be telling." He pulled his line out of the water, smiling at the catfish that he hooked before taking it off and throwing it back into the water. "Life is like fishing Dean." He smiled as he cast his line again. "You put yourself out there, you're the bait. And you think the bobber is moving." The little orb started bouncing in the water. "So you reel it in." He pulled an empty hook out of the water. "And sometimes you get a good one, sometimes you don't get anything." He set down the fishing pole next to him. "But Dean, if you leave that bouncing bobber in the water for too long, the fish gets away. And you'll always wonder if you would've caught something, or if you'd just get an empty hook."

Dean turned to him. "Cas what do I do? How do I know whether or not to ask him?" His voice carried a tone of sadness and of worry.

"Dean, you need to pray. Do what I do, what he does. Pray and seek for guidance." He smiled at Dean, before disappearing, with a noise that sounded like fluttering wings.

"Lord." Dean whispered. "I don't know if you're real, or if you can help me, but I know that Cas believes in you, with his heart and soul, I know he believes in you. So I want guidance, I want a sign, and I want Cas." He paused, a few small tears stinging his eyes. "I want him so much that it hurts to look in those beautiful blue eyes. I want him so much that every fiber of my being just screams out for him. And I love him." He wiped away the hot tears that; by this point; were flowing down his face. "I love every little quirk and perfection, and imperfection. And there are these girls that faun over him because he's good looking, and that hurts so much, because I don't love him in such a shallow way; just because he's beautiful. He's beautiful because I love him." He hunched over and tears began to pour down his face, just as the clouds in the sky began to slowly release their stored water. "He loves rain." Dean whispered. "He says that rain is what happens when God sees something so beautiful, that he openly weeps into the sky." He chuckled under his breath. "I know that's not entirely true, but it makes me wonder." He paused, looking straight forward over the calm ocean. "Does science apply here? Or are you really crying for me?"

He looked up to feel the raindrops mixing with the tears on his cheeks. "I love him God. I love him more than anyone I've ever met, and I know that I don't need permission to tell him, but you're the Father that he's turned to since his left. So I want to tell you before I tell him. I love him." He stopped, blinking slowly as it dawned on him. "And I'm gonna tell him when I wake up. I need to tell him. No matter what happens afterward, he needs to know how I feel." He smiled. "Thank you Father."

"Amen." He whispered as his vision faded to black.

Castiel Novak woke up groggily at nine a.m. on Saturday morning. His best friend's head resting on his chest, rising and falling slowly with each restrained breath that he took. Silently he slid out from under Dean and got dressed, tossing a small smile at the sleeping boy draped over his blue bedspread, snoring quietly.

He smiled one last time before leaving his room, heading out to the woods for his usual walk.

Half an hour later, Dean Winchester awoke, fully prepared to tell Castiel how he felt, but he soon realized that he was alone in the bed. His mood fell fast and hard before realizing that he knew exactly where his friend would be. Every Saturday, he went into the woods, and sat on the old log for hours. The old log where they first met. Dean pulled on his clothes before running out the door into the trees, within minutes he reached the clearing, smiling when he saw his friend sitting casually on a fallen tree.

"Dean what are you," Castiel began to ask, but he was interrupted with a hand smoothly dragging over his cheek, followed by a pair of lips slowly pressing against his, parting only a second later.

"I love you." They whispered in unison. Their eyes meeting in pure happiness as they leaned toward each other, lips meeting again. Slowly falling back onto the carpet of leaves covering the ground. As they parted, a single drop of rain fell from the sky onto Dean's nose.

"You know they say," He whispered. "That when it rains, God has seen something so beautiful, that it caused him to openly weep." He smiled up at his best friend as tears began to prick at both of their eyes. "Well I don't know about God," Their foreheads met, and emerald green eyes met icy blue as tears mixed together seamlessly. "But I think I found something just that beautiful." He looked up to see Castiel choking up a little at such chick flick words.

"Amen to that." Castiel whispered, and all the while, he had only two words going through what parts of his mind hadn't already melted in the heat of such perfection. 'Thank you.' He thought happily, 'Thank you.'

Amen.

Reviews are always appreciated