Smoke & Lightning, Heavy Metal Thunder [8/?]
Title: Smoke And Lightning, Heavy Metal Thunder (8/?)
Authors: bloody_adorable and eviltwin
Fandoms: Supernatural RPS
Pairing: Jensen Ackles / Jared Padalecki.
Rating: PG all the way to NC-17 in future chapters.
Wordcount: 4,718
Summary: AU. Jared's a classic case of rich kid gone wrong, whose only sense of family comes from his motorbike, the guy he rents a garage from to live in and the precinct cops who know his face better than most already. Jensen's a hard-working student whose family are helping push him towards great things. What happens when their two worlds collide, and will Jared's troublesome nature be too much for Jensen to handle?
Disclaimer: None of the following is true in any way, and no profit is made from this work of fiction.
Note: Introduction of het content, which we may or may not have decided may be slightly more explicit than our userinfo would have you think...
CHAPTER EIGHT
Jensen dreamt about Jared fucking him. He dreamt that Jared found out he was a virgin and decided that he had to get laid before graduation and they kept trying and failing, but Jensen was all for it. Then Jensen graduated and Jared picked him up right off the stage, on his bike, and they rode all the way to New York. Although because it was a dream, the ride only took a few minutes. And then eventually Jared got him to the top of the Empire State Building - somewhere Jensen had never actually been - and fucked him right there in front of everyone.
Jensen woke up with a hard-on, laid flat on his back, but quickly discovered that this wasn't his only problem. Jared was pressed against his side, just like that first time he'd stayed in the other man's bed, and one arm was draped loosely over Jensen's waist. Heart pounding, he turned slightly. Tried to get onto his side so Jared would be forced to move away and then maybe he could get up without his problem being noticed. But Jared just complained at him, his grip tightening, and the next thing he knew the other man was leaning across him, hand pressed against the mattress the other side of him to support his weight. He uttered a single word in surprise as Jared's mouth fell against his and he kissed him; slow, soft and sure. Jared was half asleep; he could tell from the way his tongue moved, from the way he was breathing. But the kiss wasn't clumsy, or half-assed. It was just right and Jensen couldn't help but respond to it.
Just like that, it was over. Jared pulled away and moved back to his side of the bed, folding his arms underneath his head and watching the ceiling.
"You awake?" Jensen asked, after a few minutes of silence.
There was a soft groan. "What d'you think?" Jared replied, turning his head to look at him.
"Well, you know how you freaked when I kissed you last night?"
"Sure."
"I'm kind of freaking out myself right now."
"Really? 'Cause it seemed like you didn't think it was that big a deal. Like maybe guys like me kissed you all the time."
Jensen was about to protest, until he realized that Jared was playing him yet again. "You're a dick. Maybe I should take Jeff up on his offer-" He was cut off as Jared quickly turned and grabbed his arm.
"Oh no, you're definitely staying here with me after this."
"After what?"
Jared watched him for a long moment, eyes searching his, then leaned over and kissed him again. Jensen let himself get lost in the feel of Jared's mouth on his, closing his eyes and listening to the sounds of it. "Should've told me you were into guys," Jared said, sitting back.
"It didn't really..come up."
"It's come up now."
"Won't this make things awkward?" Jensen asked, already worrying that they had moved too fast. Or he had, anyway. He had no doubts that Jared was no stranger to one-night stands.
"Nah," Jared assured him. "And if it ever does, we'll figure something out. I reckon you should probably get out of my bed now, though." He grinned wickedly at the look Jensen gave him. "Time for school."
"Oh. Right."
"Gotta work on your confidence, Jen. I'd never throw you out of bed for no reason, believe me."
At that, Jensen felt blood rush to his face. Jared seemed to have a knack for embarrassing the hell out of him without even trying. He really was too easy and Jared was right. He definitely had to work on that. He asked if Jeffrey would mind him using the bathroom and Jared told him the bathroom was theirs, so long as they weren't in there before seven-thirty. Jeffrey always took his shower at seven in the morning and if anybody was in there when he wanted it, he'd give them hell. Jensen had ten minutes, so he went down to the lower floor of the garage and started looking through his stuff for his clean uniform. He shoved the books he would need to one side, wishing he'd thought to pick up his school bag, and then grabbed his clothes up and headed into the house. He could hear Jared snoring again and laughed softly to himself. That guy really wasn't a morning person.
Jeffrey was out of the shower, dressed, and in the kitchen already when Jensen went through. He looked up, nodded at Jensen, and went back to measuring out coffee into the pot. "I'll give you a ride to school," he said, as Jensen made for the stairs.
After a shower and a quick breakfast, Jensen gathered up his stack of books for the day and went outside to where Jeffrey was waiting in the car, the engine idling. He sat in the passenger seat and pulled his seatbelt on, holding the books on his lap.
"You need a bag for those?"
"It's okay. I can manage. I'll just leave what I don't need in my locker."
"There's a bag in the backseat. You may as well use it. Just throw anything in there onto the seat."
Jensen didn't want to argue. He felt awkward enough as it was. So he twisted around in his seat and found the bag, pulling it forward. There were a couple of ring binders in it which he pulled out and placed carefully on the floor by his feet. Then he stuffed his books and papers into it and snapped the fastener shut. "Thanks for this."
"No problem. I'm guessing somehow we'll have to get you home so you can grab some more stuff."
"While Dad's not there," Jensen agreed.
"He really threw you out?"
"He told me I had to live by his rules and never see you or Jared again, or I could just leave. So...Well, you know which one I chose."
Jeffrey was quiet for a few moments, chewing on his bottom lip, and the silence was slightly uncomfortable. "Any particular reason you decided you couldn't go without seeing us?" He asked, eventually.
Jensen could only shrug. He knew the reason, but he didn't think he wanted to tell Jeffrey about it yet. He'd probably guess before Jensen got the nerve to tell him that he was sort of slightly infatuated with Jared. That or Jared would tell him first.
"What does your Mom think about all this? Was she there?"
"No, it was just Dad. And Kenzie. She just hid in her room. He'll probably give Mom some story or other, but he won't let her argue with him, I know that." Jensen grimaced. "When his mind's made up, that's it." He swallowed down the lump in his throat that had risen up while he talked about it. "He won't let any of them..." He trailed off, gulping again, blinking quickly to stop from embarrassing himself. Jeffrey let go of the gear-stick for just a minute and patted his knee, the touch reassuring.
"He'll back down, I'm sure. But at best he can't stop you seeing your brother and sister, right?"
"Who knows what he's capable of?" Jensen muttered and turned to stare out of the window for the rest of the journey.
It took another ten minutes to get to Jensen's school and Jeffrey pulled up a little way from the gates, watching the other students heading in. "Are you going to be okay?" He asked, as Jensen opened his door. "Explaining away that black eye, I mean."
"My teachers are sort of used to me turning up with bruises. They think I take Karate lessons after school. That's what I had to tell them after the first..." He trailed off, thinking maybe he'd said too much. But this was Jeffrey and he trusted him already. It didn't matter if he knew. "The guy that beat me up that first night. He goes to this school too. In the same year as me, on the football team. If I tell anyone it was him, they wouldn't believe me. He's too popular, has too many friends. I have one friend and that's it. So I had to make something up."
"Right." There was a pause and Jensen waited, sensing that Jeffrey wasn't done. "Listen, if that kid or whoever it is bothers you again today, you need to tell someone. Tell me. He's not going to get away with hurting you again, got it?"
Jensen glanced down, then back up at Jeffrey with a forced smile. "Got it. Thanks."
"All right. Have a good day. I'll get Jay to fetch you later. I'll be busy picking his bike up. Since it got wrecked, he'll be using mine. You'll know it when you see it."
"Okay. Thanks for everything." Jensen shut the door, needing to get away and into school. He had to get things straight in his head now, because the morning so far had been making him dizzy. Such a change to routine, a change to everything. He had to tell the school secretary that he no longer needed to use the bus, somehow avoiding the issue of his leaving home. He had to find Chris and tell him what had happened last night. He also had to see the coach for the swim team and check on his timings for tomorrow, because he'd left a bunch of his calendar stuff back at home. Then he had to come to terms with the fact that he had a huge and terrible crush on an older guy who had a criminal record, and that said guy seemed to return the attentions. Today was going to be a busy one.
Jeffrey got a short way away from the school when something poking out from under the passenger seat caught his eye. He pulled over and leaned down, grabbing the edge of the paper and pulling it out. He swore to himself when he realised what it was - Jensen's agenda. Something Jeffrey was pretty sure he'd need for the rest of the day. He had a half hour before his day was due to start, but, screw it. He was the boss. He could roll in a little late if needs be. He checked for traffic then turned the car around, heading back to the school.
The campus grounds looked pretty empty when he parked up outside the gates, and he realised that Jensen would be in class already. Having no idea where that class might be or what it was, Jeffrey locked his car up and made his way to the reception office. He was just explaining to the secretary there that his son's friend had left something behind the previous night, when the doors at the end of the hallway slammed open. Both he and the secretary looked up as a young woman came hurrying towards them, struggling to keep hold of a huge stack of files and papers. As she got close to them, hardly acknowledging that they were there, her foot caught on something and she yelped as she started to fall forward.
Jeffrey instinctively reached out, catching her before she fell, and then leapt back as if his hand had been burnt as he realised exactly where it had ended up. Papers were falling to the floor and he stood there blushing, apologising for his accidental grope.
She smiled brightly at him. "It's okay! I just dropped my English class's essays everywhere, but at least the day is looking up."
Jeffrey stared at her, then broke into a grin. He held out his hand. "I'm Jeffrey Dean. Kind of feel like I should be introducing myself now I've felt you up."
She took his hand and laughed as she shook it. "Stevie. My...Dad was a Stevie Nicks fan. I always feel like I have to explain that." She let go and then crouched down, gathering up the bits of paper. Jeffrey knelt down beside her to help and together they got them into a reasonably neat pile. "So, what're you doing here Jeffrey Dean?" Stevie asked, as they both got to their feet again.
"Dropping something off for my boy's friend. Ackles?"
"Oh, Jensen? I have him for English this afternoon. Bright kid. So far, anyway. I've only been here a few weeks, but you tend to notice the ones who're going to stand out."
"That's good to hear." Stevie was starting to carry on her way and Jeffrey followed, opening the next set of doors for her.
"Thank you," she told him, stopping next to a door with 'English Dept.' stencilled on the glass. "This is me. It was nice meeting you, Jeffrey."
"Nice meeting you too, miss." He thought fast and blurted out his next question just as Stevie was pushing open the door. "I'd like to take you out to dinner sometime. If you'd..If you'd like?"
Stevie let the door fall shut again and turned to him, smiling up at him. "Yes. I would like. Though I think you're meant to do that before you check out the merchandise."
Jeffrey chuckled, ducked his head. "I am sorry about that. I'll make it up to you. Take you somewhere nice."
"You'd better. Do you have a pen?"
Jeffrey dug one out of his jacket pocket and Stevie gave him her number, told him to call her at lunch when she'd be out of classes and they could arrange something. She thanked him again for his help and then went into her class, leaving him grinning to himself in the corridor like an idiot.
"What the hell happened to your face?"
Jensen looked up as Chris sat opposite him. He'd already endured the remarks from Doug in class, knowing he was curious that someone else had clearly taken to beating on his victim. He hadn't bothered even looking at him, or trying to say something. Now Chris wanted to know and he needed to come clean.
"I got into a fight. In a bar."
"A..wait, what?"
"Jared took me to this place out of town. Biker central. We got into a fight. That's all."
"Proves he's trouble."
"He's trouble I've got to get used to." Jensen set about telling Chris all about the fight with his dad, the leaving home. The waking up to the realization that Jared was into him as much as he was into Jared.
"You're really sure about this, huh?"
"I am. Don't have much choice now. I guess Dad'd have me home if I never saw them again, but I can't do it."
"You want anything picking up?" At Jensen's puzzled look, Chris explained that he could ask Josh or Mackenzie to grab together any of Jensen's stuff and take him over in his truck while his dad wasn't there so he could pick it up.
"Thanks, man. That'd be great. Sunday night? Dad'll be out with mom at my grandparents' house. They always go there on Sunday evening. Kenzie and Josh should be home."
"Perfect. We can go over and you can grab as much as you want."
Relieved at Chris's suggestion, the rest of the day passed a bit easier for Jensen. He tucked everything he needed for the weekend into the bag Jeffrey had given him at the end of the afternoon and told Chris he would call him over the weekend.
"You can tell me tomorrow night. My girl's cheerleading for the game, remember? You have to come and keep me company. And bring Jared. I want to meet him. Properly."
"I will. I'll meet you there, all right?"
Chris nodded, clapped a hand to his shoulder. "Have a good night."
Once he'd finished packing up, Jensen headed out to the gates. Jeffrey had told him he'd know when Jared was there, which was redundant as far as Jensen was concerned, since nobody else at school rode a motorbike that he knew about. So when he heard the powerful sound of a bike that was definitely more of a classic than Jared's Suicycle, he knew who it was. He felt almost honoured to have the chance to ride on the back of a second gorgeous bike, and this one a well-looked after black Harley. Jared was a lot more careful this time around. As he'd explained to Jensen before he got on the bike, Jeffrey had told him, "Look after her. One scratch and you know what happens." Jared had jokingly said that Jeffrey would cut him open and sell his kidneys, but told Jensen that Jeffrey hadn't laughed along with him.
"He must love this bike," Jensen said, pulling his helmet firmly onto his head.
"He's had her as long as I can remember. She's as much a part of the family as I am."
Jensen soon realized that they weren't going straight home. He didn't have a chance to ask Jared where he was taking him, since the noise of the bike was too loud to shout over and be heard. He didn't recognize the part of town Jared was taking them through, either. When he pulled to a stop in front of a dingy looking building painted in faded red, Jensen had to wonder what the hell he was in store for now. Another biker bar or hangout? More people Jared might have fallen foul of? He tugged his helmet off and tucked it under one arm, standing back as Jared swung his legs off the bike. There was another Harley parked up further along, as well as an old Dodge. Jensen eyed them, thinking at least if these were the only other vehicles then at least there couldn't be many people inside.
"What're you looking so worried for?" Jared asked.
Jensen met his eyes, annoyed at himself for showing how afraid he still was of Jared's life. "I don't know where we are."
"Relax. This is Eric's place. Remember? The guy from Sunday? I told him I'd stop by tonight and he's going to do some work on my sleeve. No point in going right home, anyway. Jeff's still at work and Friday night is kind of family night. As in, after work he gets takeout and we watch crappy TV until he falls asleep."
Jensen thought back to the Friday before, when Jared had been on his own in the garage, Jeff already asleep in the house, and he'd invited Jensen to join him watching reruns of Cops. He'd already been welcomed in, he realized with a warm feeling.
"We should be here about an hour. Maybe you can check out his designs yourself. See if there's anything you want." It was said with a mischievious smile, but Jensen was pretty sure Jared actually meant it, too.
Eric's place was much cleaner inside than Jensen was expecting, given the exterior of the building. He supposed it had to be, though. He figured these places probably had health inspections just the same as any other business. An old stereo in the corner was pumping out some metal music that he didn't really recognise and there were sheets of tattoo designs and photos of tattoos tacked all over the walls. There was a sweet smell to the air too, that made him feel slightly light-headed. He sat down on a battered leather sofa opposite the couch where Jared was already seated and pulling off his shirt, and accepted the beer that was immediately shoved at him by Eric. There was one other person there; younger than Eric and sat in the corner of the room bent over a desk, drawing on a large sheet of paper. Jensen figured he must work here, coming up with the designs that covered every available surface.
He tried to ignore Jared at first, because he knew if he stared at him too long things could get uncomfortable and hot and...Obvious. But the noise of the needle was hard to block out for long and he found himself drawn across the room, standing by Eric and watching over his shoulder as he worked on Jared's arm. He'd never seen anything like it before and was fascinated by it straight away. Eric didn't seem put off by it at all and after a short while he even invited Jensen to pull up a chair so he could be comfortable while he watched.
He had to admit, comfort didn't really come into it after a while. His eyes were continuously drawn by the lines of other tattoos to Jared's chest and he'd watch the nipple rings rising and falling with each breath Jared took. Then he'd force his eyes away and back to the tattooing and that would just be a mistake. Sharing in this was odd. Jensen realized it was a pretty personal thing for Jared and it seemed either intrusive or just plain intimate for him to be there watching the tattooing being done. He shifted in his chair, hoping he could stay calm.
"Does it hurt?" His voice faltered as he asked Jared, seeing Eric swipe a cloth across his skin to wipe away the dots of blood that were springing up.
"Not really," Jared answered. "But I'm kinda used to it anyway."
"I guess." Jensen tried to make out what the design would be, but he couldn't really tell with Eric's hand in the way. He didn't have a clue until about half an hour in when Eric wiped Jared's arm clean and told him they'd take a break for a few minutes so he could grab a cigarette. Then he took a closer look at the lines and colors and saw that Eric had been adding in cloud-like waves and lotus flowers in brilliant blues and reds. "Wow," he said, looking up to find Jared watching him with a sly smile. Jared's other hand came up then and he wound Jensen's tie around his fingers, pulling him closer. He kissed him, barely a touch, and then let him go.
"This is turning you on, huh?"
Jensen nodded, not quite looking straight at Jared.
"It does me, too. Fuck, I so wish.." He stopped, glancing over at the room's other occupant. The other man was no longer bent over his sketch, but was instead watching them with an expression of interest. "Hey, you not got something else you should be doing?" Jared asked, loudly.
"Loudmouth little fuckhead," came the grumbled response, but the guy did turn back to his drawing. Still, the intimate mood had been broken for Jensen and he knew he wouldn't find out what Jared wished. He sat back and pretended to be admiring the photos behind Jared's head until Eric returned.
Jensen had plenty of questions he wanted to ask when they got out of Eric's place, but he also just wanted to get back to Jeffrey's house. Jared took it slowly, his bandaged arm slightly stiff from holding still for so long. They got back just as Jeff's car was pulling into the drive. He said hi to them both, told them to come in the house and find a menu for takeout so they could decide what they wanted and he'd order after he'd taken a shower.
"That was weird," Jared said, as Jensen followed him into the kitchen. He started going through the stack of menus next to the microwave.
"What was?"
"Jeff. Something's up."
Jensen just shrugged; he hadn't really noticed anything different at all. But then, Jared knew the older man far better than he did. "Maybe he just had a crappy day at work."
"Nah. It wasn't something bad." Jared held two menus out and grinned, obviously ready to change the subject. "You want chinese food or pizza?"
By half past eleven Jeffrey was already asleep and snoring on the couch. Jared locked the house up for him and he and Jensen crept out to the garage, careful not to wake him. They readied themselves for bed, Jensen having to settle for the shorts he was wearing and one of Jared's teeshirts to sleep in.
"You gotta be sweating your socks off in that get-up," Jared told him, sliding beneath the covers and shimmying out of his underwear once he was under them. Jensen simply reddened and got into bed beside him, not lifting the sheets too high. "You can look if you want," Jared said, sounding amused.
"I'm good," Jensen answered, voice a little higher than normal.
"You know you're more embarrassed about this than I am, right?"
"Yeah, I know. I just-" He was interrupted then by the sound of his cellphone ringing. "Damn."
"Saved by the bell."
Jensen leaned out of bed and dragged his pants over, grabbing the phone from one pocket and checking the caller ID. "It's my brother."
"Answer it," Jared mumbled, turning onto his side. "Tell him normal people are trying to sleep."
Jensen ignored him, turning away as he answered the call. "Hey, Josh."
"So, where are you?" His brother asked.
"Dad told me to go."
"Right, that's not how he tells it. Said you yelled at him and then left."
Jensen snorted. "Of course. Yeah, sure, I yelled at him. He was being an ass. He told me I couldn't see my friends and if I was going to keep disobeying him and not showing him any respect then I may as well leave. So I did."
"And you didn't stop to think about the rest of your family?"
Rubbing his hand over his face, Jensen sighed. "It's not like I don't still love you guys. Hell, I still love Dad, I guess. But I can't live with that man any more. I'm sorry."
"Kenzie's scared as hell about all this. Mom hasn't spoken to Dad since he finally admitted to her this morning that you'd gone."
"You know what Mom's like. She'll forgive him soon enough."
"She's worried about you. She isn't the only one. Dad told us we're not supposed to talk to you, or try and find you. He just told us you were with friends. Said it like...I don't know.."
"Like he thinks my friends are pieces of shit not worth his time? Josh, the man has no idea. Aren't you sick of the way he looks down on everyone? Like he thinks he's this goddamned king of the world or something, and nobody can possibly be as wealthy or as great as he is. His job's made him judge everyone, see everything in black and white. Something's either wrong or it's right and why the hell should he get to decide which is which? I already feel more at home here than I ever did in his house. And, Josh, that's nothing to do with you, or Kenzie, or even Mom. It's just him."
There was a long silence and Jensen worried that his brother had gone for a moment, then he heard him sigh loudly. "I know. I know he's crappy at being a father, and he's crappy at being a husband too. Just..we're all worried. Not knowing what you're doing now, y'know?"
"I'm not going out and robbing a 7-11 every night, I promise."
"Oh, right. Not every night."
"Yeah, just Tuesdays," Jensen joked, glad when Josh chuckled. "Seriously, I'm okay here. I just..I'm nineteen years old. I want the chance to grow up and behave like it."
"I know. Just promise me something else, okay? Check in with us now and then. You don't have to speak to Dad if you don't want, but, let the rest of us know how it's going. Especially Mom."
"I will, Josh. Hey, give my love to her and Kenzie, all right?"
"Sure. Shit, I gotta go. Dad's coming up. Take care, little bro."
"You too." Jensen started to say something else, but Josh cut him off as he hung up quickly. He closed his phone and laid it out on the floor beside the bed, and froze as he felt Jared shift and press against his back. He'd almost forgotten the other man was beside him. Almost forgotten how naked he was, too. Jared kissed his shoulder, asked him if things were okay. "Yeah. We're good. Can you-"
"Relax. I'm not going to try anything. Not tonight, at least."
--TBC--
Authors: bloody_adorable and eviltwin
Fandoms: Supernatural RPS
Pairing: Jensen Ackles / Jared Padalecki.
Rating: PG all the way to NC-17 in future chapters.
Wordcount: 4,718
Summary: AU. Jared's a classic case of rich kid gone wrong, whose only sense of family comes from his motorbike, the guy he rents a garage from to live in and the precinct cops who know his face better than most already. Jensen's a hard-working student whose family are helping push him towards great things. What happens when their two worlds collide, and will Jared's troublesome nature be too much for Jensen to handle?
Disclaimer: None of the following is true in any way, and no profit is made from this work of fiction.
Note: Introduction of het content, which we may or may not have decided may be slightly more explicit than our userinfo would have you think...
CHAPTER EIGHT
Jensen dreamt about Jared fucking him. He dreamt that Jared found out he was a virgin and decided that he had to get laid before graduation and they kept trying and failing, but Jensen was all for it. Then Jensen graduated and Jared picked him up right off the stage, on his bike, and they rode all the way to New York. Although because it was a dream, the ride only took a few minutes. And then eventually Jared got him to the top of the Empire State Building - somewhere Jensen had never actually been - and fucked him right there in front of everyone.
Jensen woke up with a hard-on, laid flat on his back, but quickly discovered that this wasn't his only problem. Jared was pressed against his side, just like that first time he'd stayed in the other man's bed, and one arm was draped loosely over Jensen's waist. Heart pounding, he turned slightly. Tried to get onto his side so Jared would be forced to move away and then maybe he could get up without his problem being noticed. But Jared just complained at him, his grip tightening, and the next thing he knew the other man was leaning across him, hand pressed against the mattress the other side of him to support his weight. He uttered a single word in surprise as Jared's mouth fell against his and he kissed him; slow, soft and sure. Jared was half asleep; he could tell from the way his tongue moved, from the way he was breathing. But the kiss wasn't clumsy, or half-assed. It was just right and Jensen couldn't help but respond to it.
Just like that, it was over. Jared pulled away and moved back to his side of the bed, folding his arms underneath his head and watching the ceiling.
"You awake?" Jensen asked, after a few minutes of silence.
There was a soft groan. "What d'you think?" Jared replied, turning his head to look at him.
"Well, you know how you freaked when I kissed you last night?"
"Sure."
"I'm kind of freaking out myself right now."
"Really? 'Cause it seemed like you didn't think it was that big a deal. Like maybe guys like me kissed you all the time."
Jensen was about to protest, until he realized that Jared was playing him yet again. "You're a dick. Maybe I should take Jeff up on his offer-" He was cut off as Jared quickly turned and grabbed his arm.
"Oh no, you're definitely staying here with me after this."
"After what?"
Jared watched him for a long moment, eyes searching his, then leaned over and kissed him again. Jensen let himself get lost in the feel of Jared's mouth on his, closing his eyes and listening to the sounds of it. "Should've told me you were into guys," Jared said, sitting back.
"It didn't really..come up."
"It's come up now."
"Won't this make things awkward?" Jensen asked, already worrying that they had moved too fast. Or he had, anyway. He had no doubts that Jared was no stranger to one-night stands.
"Nah," Jared assured him. "And if it ever does, we'll figure something out. I reckon you should probably get out of my bed now, though." He grinned wickedly at the look Jensen gave him. "Time for school."
"Oh. Right."
"Gotta work on your confidence, Jen. I'd never throw you out of bed for no reason, believe me."
At that, Jensen felt blood rush to his face. Jared seemed to have a knack for embarrassing the hell out of him without even trying. He really was too easy and Jared was right. He definitely had to work on that. He asked if Jeffrey would mind him using the bathroom and Jared told him the bathroom was theirs, so long as they weren't in there before seven-thirty. Jeffrey always took his shower at seven in the morning and if anybody was in there when he wanted it, he'd give them hell. Jensen had ten minutes, so he went down to the lower floor of the garage and started looking through his stuff for his clean uniform. He shoved the books he would need to one side, wishing he'd thought to pick up his school bag, and then grabbed his clothes up and headed into the house. He could hear Jared snoring again and laughed softly to himself. That guy really wasn't a morning person.
Jeffrey was out of the shower, dressed, and in the kitchen already when Jensen went through. He looked up, nodded at Jensen, and went back to measuring out coffee into the pot. "I'll give you a ride to school," he said, as Jensen made for the stairs.
After a shower and a quick breakfast, Jensen gathered up his stack of books for the day and went outside to where Jeffrey was waiting in the car, the engine idling. He sat in the passenger seat and pulled his seatbelt on, holding the books on his lap.
"You need a bag for those?"
"It's okay. I can manage. I'll just leave what I don't need in my locker."
"There's a bag in the backseat. You may as well use it. Just throw anything in there onto the seat."
Jensen didn't want to argue. He felt awkward enough as it was. So he twisted around in his seat and found the bag, pulling it forward. There were a couple of ring binders in it which he pulled out and placed carefully on the floor by his feet. Then he stuffed his books and papers into it and snapped the fastener shut. "Thanks for this."
"No problem. I'm guessing somehow we'll have to get you home so you can grab some more stuff."
"While Dad's not there," Jensen agreed.
"He really threw you out?"
"He told me I had to live by his rules and never see you or Jared again, or I could just leave. So...Well, you know which one I chose."
Jeffrey was quiet for a few moments, chewing on his bottom lip, and the silence was slightly uncomfortable. "Any particular reason you decided you couldn't go without seeing us?" He asked, eventually.
Jensen could only shrug. He knew the reason, but he didn't think he wanted to tell Jeffrey about it yet. He'd probably guess before Jensen got the nerve to tell him that he was sort of slightly infatuated with Jared. That or Jared would tell him first.
"What does your Mom think about all this? Was she there?"
"No, it was just Dad. And Kenzie. She just hid in her room. He'll probably give Mom some story or other, but he won't let her argue with him, I know that." Jensen grimaced. "When his mind's made up, that's it." He swallowed down the lump in his throat that had risen up while he talked about it. "He won't let any of them..." He trailed off, gulping again, blinking quickly to stop from embarrassing himself. Jeffrey let go of the gear-stick for just a minute and patted his knee, the touch reassuring.
"He'll back down, I'm sure. But at best he can't stop you seeing your brother and sister, right?"
"Who knows what he's capable of?" Jensen muttered and turned to stare out of the window for the rest of the journey.
It took another ten minutes to get to Jensen's school and Jeffrey pulled up a little way from the gates, watching the other students heading in. "Are you going to be okay?" He asked, as Jensen opened his door. "Explaining away that black eye, I mean."
"My teachers are sort of used to me turning up with bruises. They think I take Karate lessons after school. That's what I had to tell them after the first..." He trailed off, thinking maybe he'd said too much. But this was Jeffrey and he trusted him already. It didn't matter if he knew. "The guy that beat me up that first night. He goes to this school too. In the same year as me, on the football team. If I tell anyone it was him, they wouldn't believe me. He's too popular, has too many friends. I have one friend and that's it. So I had to make something up."
"Right." There was a pause and Jensen waited, sensing that Jeffrey wasn't done. "Listen, if that kid or whoever it is bothers you again today, you need to tell someone. Tell me. He's not going to get away with hurting you again, got it?"
Jensen glanced down, then back up at Jeffrey with a forced smile. "Got it. Thanks."
"All right. Have a good day. I'll get Jay to fetch you later. I'll be busy picking his bike up. Since it got wrecked, he'll be using mine. You'll know it when you see it."
"Okay. Thanks for everything." Jensen shut the door, needing to get away and into school. He had to get things straight in his head now, because the morning so far had been making him dizzy. Such a change to routine, a change to everything. He had to tell the school secretary that he no longer needed to use the bus, somehow avoiding the issue of his leaving home. He had to find Chris and tell him what had happened last night. He also had to see the coach for the swim team and check on his timings for tomorrow, because he'd left a bunch of his calendar stuff back at home. Then he had to come to terms with the fact that he had a huge and terrible crush on an older guy who had a criminal record, and that said guy seemed to return the attentions. Today was going to be a busy one.
Jeffrey got a short way away from the school when something poking out from under the passenger seat caught his eye. He pulled over and leaned down, grabbing the edge of the paper and pulling it out. He swore to himself when he realised what it was - Jensen's agenda. Something Jeffrey was pretty sure he'd need for the rest of the day. He had a half hour before his day was due to start, but, screw it. He was the boss. He could roll in a little late if needs be. He checked for traffic then turned the car around, heading back to the school.
The campus grounds looked pretty empty when he parked up outside the gates, and he realised that Jensen would be in class already. Having no idea where that class might be or what it was, Jeffrey locked his car up and made his way to the reception office. He was just explaining to the secretary there that his son's friend had left something behind the previous night, when the doors at the end of the hallway slammed open. Both he and the secretary looked up as a young woman came hurrying towards them, struggling to keep hold of a huge stack of files and papers. As she got close to them, hardly acknowledging that they were there, her foot caught on something and she yelped as she started to fall forward.
Jeffrey instinctively reached out, catching her before she fell, and then leapt back as if his hand had been burnt as he realised exactly where it had ended up. Papers were falling to the floor and he stood there blushing, apologising for his accidental grope.
She smiled brightly at him. "It's okay! I just dropped my English class's essays everywhere, but at least the day is looking up."
Jeffrey stared at her, then broke into a grin. He held out his hand. "I'm Jeffrey Dean. Kind of feel like I should be introducing myself now I've felt you up."
She took his hand and laughed as she shook it. "Stevie. My...Dad was a Stevie Nicks fan. I always feel like I have to explain that." She let go and then crouched down, gathering up the bits of paper. Jeffrey knelt down beside her to help and together they got them into a reasonably neat pile. "So, what're you doing here Jeffrey Dean?" Stevie asked, as they both got to their feet again.
"Dropping something off for my boy's friend. Ackles?"
"Oh, Jensen? I have him for English this afternoon. Bright kid. So far, anyway. I've only been here a few weeks, but you tend to notice the ones who're going to stand out."
"That's good to hear." Stevie was starting to carry on her way and Jeffrey followed, opening the next set of doors for her.
"Thank you," she told him, stopping next to a door with 'English Dept.' stencilled on the glass. "This is me. It was nice meeting you, Jeffrey."
"Nice meeting you too, miss." He thought fast and blurted out his next question just as Stevie was pushing open the door. "I'd like to take you out to dinner sometime. If you'd..If you'd like?"
Stevie let the door fall shut again and turned to him, smiling up at him. "Yes. I would like. Though I think you're meant to do that before you check out the merchandise."
Jeffrey chuckled, ducked his head. "I am sorry about that. I'll make it up to you. Take you somewhere nice."
"You'd better. Do you have a pen?"
Jeffrey dug one out of his jacket pocket and Stevie gave him her number, told him to call her at lunch when she'd be out of classes and they could arrange something. She thanked him again for his help and then went into her class, leaving him grinning to himself in the corridor like an idiot.
"What the hell happened to your face?"
Jensen looked up as Chris sat opposite him. He'd already endured the remarks from Doug in class, knowing he was curious that someone else had clearly taken to beating on his victim. He hadn't bothered even looking at him, or trying to say something. Now Chris wanted to know and he needed to come clean.
"I got into a fight. In a bar."
"A..wait, what?"
"Jared took me to this place out of town. Biker central. We got into a fight. That's all."
"Proves he's trouble."
"He's trouble I've got to get used to." Jensen set about telling Chris all about the fight with his dad, the leaving home. The waking up to the realization that Jared was into him as much as he was into Jared.
"You're really sure about this, huh?"
"I am. Don't have much choice now. I guess Dad'd have me home if I never saw them again, but I can't do it."
"You want anything picking up?" At Jensen's puzzled look, Chris explained that he could ask Josh or Mackenzie to grab together any of Jensen's stuff and take him over in his truck while his dad wasn't there so he could pick it up.
"Thanks, man. That'd be great. Sunday night? Dad'll be out with mom at my grandparents' house. They always go there on Sunday evening. Kenzie and Josh should be home."
"Perfect. We can go over and you can grab as much as you want."
Relieved at Chris's suggestion, the rest of the day passed a bit easier for Jensen. He tucked everything he needed for the weekend into the bag Jeffrey had given him at the end of the afternoon and told Chris he would call him over the weekend.
"You can tell me tomorrow night. My girl's cheerleading for the game, remember? You have to come and keep me company. And bring Jared. I want to meet him. Properly."
"I will. I'll meet you there, all right?"
Chris nodded, clapped a hand to his shoulder. "Have a good night."
Once he'd finished packing up, Jensen headed out to the gates. Jeffrey had told him he'd know when Jared was there, which was redundant as far as Jensen was concerned, since nobody else at school rode a motorbike that he knew about. So when he heard the powerful sound of a bike that was definitely more of a classic than Jared's Suicycle, he knew who it was. He felt almost honoured to have the chance to ride on the back of a second gorgeous bike, and this one a well-looked after black Harley. Jared was a lot more careful this time around. As he'd explained to Jensen before he got on the bike, Jeffrey had told him, "Look after her. One scratch and you know what happens." Jared had jokingly said that Jeffrey would cut him open and sell his kidneys, but told Jensen that Jeffrey hadn't laughed along with him.
"He must love this bike," Jensen said, pulling his helmet firmly onto his head.
"He's had her as long as I can remember. She's as much a part of the family as I am."
Jensen soon realized that they weren't going straight home. He didn't have a chance to ask Jared where he was taking him, since the noise of the bike was too loud to shout over and be heard. He didn't recognize the part of town Jared was taking them through, either. When he pulled to a stop in front of a dingy looking building painted in faded red, Jensen had to wonder what the hell he was in store for now. Another biker bar or hangout? More people Jared might have fallen foul of? He tugged his helmet off and tucked it under one arm, standing back as Jared swung his legs off the bike. There was another Harley parked up further along, as well as an old Dodge. Jensen eyed them, thinking at least if these were the only other vehicles then at least there couldn't be many people inside.
"What're you looking so worried for?" Jared asked.
Jensen met his eyes, annoyed at himself for showing how afraid he still was of Jared's life. "I don't know where we are."
"Relax. This is Eric's place. Remember? The guy from Sunday? I told him I'd stop by tonight and he's going to do some work on my sleeve. No point in going right home, anyway. Jeff's still at work and Friday night is kind of family night. As in, after work he gets takeout and we watch crappy TV until he falls asleep."
Jensen thought back to the Friday before, when Jared had been on his own in the garage, Jeff already asleep in the house, and he'd invited Jensen to join him watching reruns of Cops. He'd already been welcomed in, he realized with a warm feeling.
"We should be here about an hour. Maybe you can check out his designs yourself. See if there's anything you want." It was said with a mischievious smile, but Jensen was pretty sure Jared actually meant it, too.
Eric's place was much cleaner inside than Jensen was expecting, given the exterior of the building. He supposed it had to be, though. He figured these places probably had health inspections just the same as any other business. An old stereo in the corner was pumping out some metal music that he didn't really recognise and there were sheets of tattoo designs and photos of tattoos tacked all over the walls. There was a sweet smell to the air too, that made him feel slightly light-headed. He sat down on a battered leather sofa opposite the couch where Jared was already seated and pulling off his shirt, and accepted the beer that was immediately shoved at him by Eric. There was one other person there; younger than Eric and sat in the corner of the room bent over a desk, drawing on a large sheet of paper. Jensen figured he must work here, coming up with the designs that covered every available surface.
He tried to ignore Jared at first, because he knew if he stared at him too long things could get uncomfortable and hot and...Obvious. But the noise of the needle was hard to block out for long and he found himself drawn across the room, standing by Eric and watching over his shoulder as he worked on Jared's arm. He'd never seen anything like it before and was fascinated by it straight away. Eric didn't seem put off by it at all and after a short while he even invited Jensen to pull up a chair so he could be comfortable while he watched.
He had to admit, comfort didn't really come into it after a while. His eyes were continuously drawn by the lines of other tattoos to Jared's chest and he'd watch the nipple rings rising and falling with each breath Jared took. Then he'd force his eyes away and back to the tattooing and that would just be a mistake. Sharing in this was odd. Jensen realized it was a pretty personal thing for Jared and it seemed either intrusive or just plain intimate for him to be there watching the tattooing being done. He shifted in his chair, hoping he could stay calm.
"Does it hurt?" His voice faltered as he asked Jared, seeing Eric swipe a cloth across his skin to wipe away the dots of blood that were springing up.
"Not really," Jared answered. "But I'm kinda used to it anyway."
"I guess." Jensen tried to make out what the design would be, but he couldn't really tell with Eric's hand in the way. He didn't have a clue until about half an hour in when Eric wiped Jared's arm clean and told him they'd take a break for a few minutes so he could grab a cigarette. Then he took a closer look at the lines and colors and saw that Eric had been adding in cloud-like waves and lotus flowers in brilliant blues and reds. "Wow," he said, looking up to find Jared watching him with a sly smile. Jared's other hand came up then and he wound Jensen's tie around his fingers, pulling him closer. He kissed him, barely a touch, and then let him go.
"This is turning you on, huh?"
Jensen nodded, not quite looking straight at Jared.
"It does me, too. Fuck, I so wish.." He stopped, glancing over at the room's other occupant. The other man was no longer bent over his sketch, but was instead watching them with an expression of interest. "Hey, you not got something else you should be doing?" Jared asked, loudly.
"Loudmouth little fuckhead," came the grumbled response, but the guy did turn back to his drawing. Still, the intimate mood had been broken for Jensen and he knew he wouldn't find out what Jared wished. He sat back and pretended to be admiring the photos behind Jared's head until Eric returned.
Jensen had plenty of questions he wanted to ask when they got out of Eric's place, but he also just wanted to get back to Jeffrey's house. Jared took it slowly, his bandaged arm slightly stiff from holding still for so long. They got back just as Jeff's car was pulling into the drive. He said hi to them both, told them to come in the house and find a menu for takeout so they could decide what they wanted and he'd order after he'd taken a shower.
"That was weird," Jared said, as Jensen followed him into the kitchen. He started going through the stack of menus next to the microwave.
"What was?"
"Jeff. Something's up."
Jensen just shrugged; he hadn't really noticed anything different at all. But then, Jared knew the older man far better than he did. "Maybe he just had a crappy day at work."
"Nah. It wasn't something bad." Jared held two menus out and grinned, obviously ready to change the subject. "You want chinese food or pizza?"
By half past eleven Jeffrey was already asleep and snoring on the couch. Jared locked the house up for him and he and Jensen crept out to the garage, careful not to wake him. They readied themselves for bed, Jensen having to settle for the shorts he was wearing and one of Jared's teeshirts to sleep in.
"You gotta be sweating your socks off in that get-up," Jared told him, sliding beneath the covers and shimmying out of his underwear once he was under them. Jensen simply reddened and got into bed beside him, not lifting the sheets too high. "You can look if you want," Jared said, sounding amused.
"I'm good," Jensen answered, voice a little higher than normal.
"You know you're more embarrassed about this than I am, right?"
"Yeah, I know. I just-" He was interrupted then by the sound of his cellphone ringing. "Damn."
"Saved by the bell."
Jensen leaned out of bed and dragged his pants over, grabbing the phone from one pocket and checking the caller ID. "It's my brother."
"Answer it," Jared mumbled, turning onto his side. "Tell him normal people are trying to sleep."
Jensen ignored him, turning away as he answered the call. "Hey, Josh."
"So, where are you?" His brother asked.
"Dad told me to go."
"Right, that's not how he tells it. Said you yelled at him and then left."
Jensen snorted. "Of course. Yeah, sure, I yelled at him. He was being an ass. He told me I couldn't see my friends and if I was going to keep disobeying him and not showing him any respect then I may as well leave. So I did."
"And you didn't stop to think about the rest of your family?"
Rubbing his hand over his face, Jensen sighed. "It's not like I don't still love you guys. Hell, I still love Dad, I guess. But I can't live with that man any more. I'm sorry."
"Kenzie's scared as hell about all this. Mom hasn't spoken to Dad since he finally admitted to her this morning that you'd gone."
"You know what Mom's like. She'll forgive him soon enough."
"She's worried about you. She isn't the only one. Dad told us we're not supposed to talk to you, or try and find you. He just told us you were with friends. Said it like...I don't know.."
"Like he thinks my friends are pieces of shit not worth his time? Josh, the man has no idea. Aren't you sick of the way he looks down on everyone? Like he thinks he's this goddamned king of the world or something, and nobody can possibly be as wealthy or as great as he is. His job's made him judge everyone, see everything in black and white. Something's either wrong or it's right and why the hell should he get to decide which is which? I already feel more at home here than I ever did in his house. And, Josh, that's nothing to do with you, or Kenzie, or even Mom. It's just him."
There was a long silence and Jensen worried that his brother had gone for a moment, then he heard him sigh loudly. "I know. I know he's crappy at being a father, and he's crappy at being a husband too. Just..we're all worried. Not knowing what you're doing now, y'know?"
"I'm not going out and robbing a 7-11 every night, I promise."
"Oh, right. Not every night."
"Yeah, just Tuesdays," Jensen joked, glad when Josh chuckled. "Seriously, I'm okay here. I just..I'm nineteen years old. I want the chance to grow up and behave like it."
"I know. Just promise me something else, okay? Check in with us now and then. You don't have to speak to Dad if you don't want, but, let the rest of us know how it's going. Especially Mom."
"I will, Josh. Hey, give my love to her and Kenzie, all right?"
"Sure. Shit, I gotta go. Dad's coming up. Take care, little bro."
"You too." Jensen started to say something else, but Josh cut him off as he hung up quickly. He closed his phone and laid it out on the floor beside the bed, and froze as he felt Jared shift and press against his back. He'd almost forgotten the other man was beside him. Almost forgotten how naked he was, too. Jared kissed his shoulder, asked him if things were okay. "Yeah. We're good. Can you-"
"Relax. I'm not going to try anything. Not tonight, at least."
--TBC--