(J2 Fic) A Boy's Best Friend: 2/2
Jared stared at the man in horror. Take buddy away from him? No way! Who did the stupid Kripke guy think he was anyways? Even if he was Buddy’s original “owner”, it was obvious that Buddy was happier and safer with him. Not this weirdo who works as a clown, for crap’s sake.
The past few months had been incredible. After some hard work and stolen paint (that his mother did NOT need to know about), his hidden court had finally taken shape and was still one of his favorite places to hang out at with Buddy and Jensen. He had finally convinced his mom to let him keep Buddy, after some hardcore pleading, butt kissing, and epic amounts of grooming that took both Jensen and him to accomplish (Jensen swears that he had to throw out the clothes he was wearing and that it took hours to get the odd mixture of suds and mud out of his hair).
School was going better than ever, and basketball was fantastic. Coach Wilson had been fired after they discovered him verbally abusing one of the new guys and pelting him with balls to “teach him how to catch”. The custodian Mr. Morgan had been given the new coaching position. Jensen said that Coach Morgan used to play for the Celtics way back, and while Jared was originally unsure as to whether or not this was true, Coach Morgan had certainly proven himself better than Coach Wilson.
The team had improved a lot under Coach Morgan, and they were learning to appreciate the game and each other, not just winning and scoring the most baskets. Buddy had even found a special place on the team, showing off his coordination and his unique talent during the half-time shows as the Timberwolves’ mascot. His unexpected talent at shooting baskets was quickly making him famous. Jensen joked that Buddy was what people really came to watch when they attended the games.
Jensen…. He had been one of the best changes. Jared had continued to grow closer to Jensen, claiming him as his best friend. They told each other everything, and were together whenever they could be. They both knew that they wanted to be more than friends, but Jensen seemed to be waiting for Jared to feel ready. Most everyone who knew them thought it was just a matter of time until they finally got together though, and Jensen was one of the best things to come out of moving here, right up there with Buddy.
Which was why Jared refused to let Buddy go. He didn’t care what that lying cheat Kripke said. Buddy was Jared’s dog, his best friend. Jared wasn’t going to let him go.
However, he stood silently behind his mother has she tried to reason with Kripke, even offering to buy Buddy back from him. When he refused and drove away, Jared didn’t mutter a single word, even if he was crying out on the inside.
His mom looked at him with red-rimmed eyes. “Baby, I’m so sorry. I had to give him back, he was rightfully Mr.Kripke’s… We’ll get Buddy back though, don’t worry. I know how important he is to you…”
Jared stared at the ground. He knew his mom was worried about how he would handle losing someone else close to him. Buddy was his best friend, and he was a big reason why he had changed so much. Moving here had helped him heal after losing his dad, but without Buddy, he wouldn’t have begun to really live again.
No. Buddy was his and damn it, he was getting him back. He turned and ran into the house, calling Jensen the first thing that came to mind. After all, they had a dog to save.
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Jensen had immediately come over after Jared called him to tell him about Buddy and he was prepared to do whatever it took to help get Buddy back. The first thing he said to Jared was “What’s the plan”. He didn’t bother to ask if Jared was okay; he knew Jared was hurting and he knew that Jared would be remembering what it was like to lose his dad. Jensen didn’t ask him about it, he already knew. Instead, he made it clear that he was behind Jared one hundred percent and Jared had never loved Jensen so much as he did in that moment.
“I have an idea…” And they began to plan out their retaliation.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Admittedly, sneaking into Kripke’s house with Jensen to try and break Buddy free hadn’t been one of their best ideas. Yeah it worked, and watching Kripke turn tomato-red with anger and flounder around after them even after the wreck they left behind blocked his way was all kinds of funny. But they knew there would be consequences.
He really wasn’t all that surprised when they were summoned to court for custody of Buddy. The victory was great while it lasted, but now it was time for the final battle. And no way was Jared going to lose.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~**~*~~**~~*
Jared sat on the lawn outside of the courthouse, biting his nails anxiously. Court had been going as well as could be expected, all things considered. Jared had no real claim to Buddy, but apparently neither did Kripke. Although he did have papers that said he technically bought Buddy, there were some inconsistencies and enough holes in both his paperwork and his story to make his claim of ownership invalid. Judge Ferris was a strict, no nonsense kind of woman, and even she seemed a little confused about how best to proceed. Technically, Buddy had no owner, but two people wanting to claim him.
They seemed to be at a stalemate, until Jensen spoke up. “What about if Buddy chooses his owner?”
Although people had been skeptical in the beginning, it was eventually decided that since that was the best idea so far, that was what they would do.
So here Jared was, standing on his side of the lawn anxiously hoping that Buddy would choose him. The whole town seemed to have shown up to see what would happen, and Jared was aware of Jensen and his mom standing right behind him, silently supporting him. Judge Ferris stood behind Buddy, looking sternly at both Jared and Kripke.
“On my say-so, I want both of you to begin calling the dog to you. You cannot move even an inch forward to try and encourage the dog to come to you or you will be disqualified and ownership will automatically be granted to the other person. Is this clear?”
Jared swallowed hard and nodded. He could not screw this up.
“Then proceed.”
The next five minutes were some of the most nerve-wracking of Jared’s life. He remembered calling Buddy towards him, speaking lovingly and encouragingly at him, promising treats and belly rubs if he would just come to him, please. He remembered seeing Buddy turn his way, remembered his heart lifting at the sight. He remembered the sinking feeling in his chest when he saw Buddy turn towards Kripke, who was jeering at him and waving a newspaper around threateningly. He remembered wondering if Buddy would go to Kripke because he feared getting hurt if he didn’t listen, and he remembered feeling so terrified for his precious pet in that moment.
And then he saw Buddy lunge at Kripke, snarling and growling and snapping in a way Jared had never seen him do before. He saw Kripke scream and kick out and run back, and then he saw Buddy run towards him. The next thing Jared knew, he had his arms full of Buddy, of his dog, his now. No one could ever take him away now and Jared was so happy he could burst. Everyone was cheering and clapping, and Jared stood up, searching and searching and then…
Jensen was gathering him close, holding him in a tight hug, then tugging him into a fierce, happy kiss. It wasn’t like in the movies; they bumped noses and were laughing and fumbling as they finally got it right, but to Jared, it was perfect. It was everything Jared had ever wanted, and everything was okay now. He had Buddy, and his friends, and basketball, and Jensen. He had Jensen now, his best friend who stood by him from the very beginning, who helped him steal Buddy back and went to every single one of his games and who he could tell everything to.
He pulled back, grinning and then laughing as a few of his friends wolf-whistled. Jensen grinned back, and when Buddy jumped up and licked their faces, Jared couldn’t think of anything more perfect.
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A/N: First of all, I'm sorry for all the plot holes and my insane skipping around. I had a hard time writing this, as this was my first ever J2 and my first time attempting romance of any kind (I love romance, but find writing Gen easier). Anywho, this follows the movie pretty closely, and I feel like I really could have done better with this, but oh well.
Thank you for reading, feedback would be extremely appreciated, especially constructive criticism! I promise to do better next time around! ;)