Spiked! Part 4
Title: Spiked! The VolleyVerse Part 4
Author: texankate
Pairings/Characters: J-squared, Chris/Steve, Usual Suspects OFCs, OMCs.
Rating: Up to NC17 in places
Disclaimer: If we shadows have offended, Think but this, and all is mended, That you have but slumber'd here While these visions did appear. And this weak and idle theme, No more yielding but a dream,. In other words: complete and utter fiction. I own nothing but my twisted and sordid little brain. I even had to borrow my disclaimer.
Warning: Angst, drama, character death. Flagrant disregard of USVA reality.
Summary: When Jensen meets Mac's new volleyball coach, he falls head over heels in lust. Can they overcome misunderstanding and tragedy and find their way to each other?
From that day, Mac's world revolved around Volcano Volleyball Club and Coach Padalecki. Every other word out of her mouth was: 'Coach P. said that…' or 'Coach P. thinks…' Jensen was happy that Mac had someone to look up to, someone that wasn't a bigot or an idiot. And apparently someone who could inspire her to work hard and stick with something for longer than three days. It was more than her brothers had been able to manage.
But Jensen was beginning to get kind of tired of listening to the many wonders of Coach Padalecki, even if he was kind of looking forward to seeing him again. He remembered the guy's smile and how his name had sounded on the other man's lips, and it did funny things to his stomach. Of course, whenever he had those kinds of thoughts he tried to push them down; he was Mac's coach, and that came first. Even if Jensen was pretty sure he was head over heels in lust.
Luckily, the new group of girls was a lot nicer than the first bunch, too. After a week with the new team, Mac invited her new teammates over to swim and spend the night. When Alan and Donna were surprised by an old friend in town who wanted to go to dinner, Mac pleaded and cried and cajoled until Jensen agreed to chaperone.
Donna promised him that they were for the most part a fun bunch of goofballs, just like Mac, which wasn't the most reassuring thing she could have said. But the plan for the evening was watching cheesy movies and eating way too much junk food. Not that different than what the Ackles children usually got up to.
The girls showed up at the Ackles' front door at seven thirty, holding pillows and overnight bags with matching grins on their faces. Jensen was not so far from being a teenager that he didn't recognize those grins. It was the same grin that he'd given his mother when he planned on sneaking out at night. It was the same grin Josh had given their father when he was trying to hide a speeding ticket. It might look sweet and innocent, but Jensen wasn't about to be fooled.
"Okay, I need names, positions, and any pertinent information," Jensen said. "Or you don't get in the door. This includes any allergies or medical conditions. If you break out into hives if you come within ten feet of an almond, I need to know now."
They all giggled.
"I'm Kaylee Morgan, libero," a tiny blonde said. "My dad is a contractor." Jensen nodded and she walked inside.
"Bonny Fraser, middle blocker. My dad is an accountant and my mom is a VP at Chase Bank."
"Antonia Rodriguez, outside hitter. Call my Tony and I'll hurt you."
"Duly noted," Jensen replied, gravely.
He also met Lauren McHenry (middle blocker, allergic to strawberries), Jordan Lee (right side hitter, father a state trooper), Abbey Hill (outside hitter, daughter of two college professors), Keisha Jones (middle blocker, parents both lawyers), and Melissa Monroe (outside hitter, lives with her grandparents). Apparently Lexie Davidson (outside hitter, hopelessly in love with someone dude names Joe Jonas) couldn't make it, due to her grandmother's seventieth birthday.
"Satisfied, dork?" Mac asked, shooting Jensen an evil eye. "Please ignore my brother," she added.
Jensen stood back and let the girls file into the house. They thundered upstairs to Mac's room to change into their swimsuits. Jensen brought the cordless phone and the takeout menus out to the pool to get their orders. While they splashed around in the heated pool and hot tub, he placed the orders and waited for the delivery guys.
They ended up with two pizzas, a half-dozen containers of Chinese food, and assorted 2-liter bottles of soda that were now littering the living room. Even with the heated waters, they hadn't lasted long in the January air. Instead, they curled up in their pajamas and watched NCAA volleyball on ESPN Classic while they argued about which movie to watch.
"Dang. I don't think there is a girl on that court under six feet," Bonny said with a sigh. "Is there anything I can do to grow another three inches?"
"Wear lifts in your shoes," Jensen said, from the safety of the kitchen table. When the girls all rolled their eyes at him, he shrugged. "Works for Tom Cruise."
"Ewwww," came the chorus from the living room. Jensen agreed with that assessment.
He watched them goof around and eat, arguing over calls on TV and high-fiving after good plays. It sort of reminded him of hanging out with Chris, Steve, Tom, and Mike. Only with more pink and sparkles (not that Mike didn't try).
No one tried to sneak out, and they were polite the next morning when Jensen brought them donuts and juice. When the last guest had gone, Mac joined Jensen and their parents in the kitchen, collapsing into a chair.
"Fun time?" Jensen asked, putting the orange juice back into the refrigerator.
"Yeah, they're really cool," Mac said, yawning. She eyed Jensen and reached for his coffee.
"No way, kiddo," Jensen chuckled. "It'll stunt your growth."
"Jerk."
"Brat."
"Will you two behave," Donna begged.
"Your mother and I had a late night," Alan added. "We could do without the bickering."
"Too much wine with dinner?" Jensen asked, with an evil grin.
"I can still put you over my knee, son," Alan threatened. He picked up the paper and escaped into the safety of the sports section.
"So are you coming to the next tournament?" Mac asked, turning to her brother.
"If I don't have to be in San Francisco, yes," Jensen said. "But work is getting really crazy, so I might not make it."
To her credit, Mac did try to hide her disappointment. "Okay, but you have to come to the rest, right? I really like this team, and I don't want you to think that all of the tournaments are like that last one."
"You mean they don't all end in black eyes and broken noses? I don't know. Sounds kinda boring," Jensen teased.
"Not with this new team," Mac said with a slight blush. "I really feel like I belong. It's cool. Y'all won't have anything to complain about, I swear."
"Sounds like you've got a good thing here, kiddo. I'm happy for you. Now just keep your grades up and everything will be good," Jensen said, ruffling her hair.
"God, you sound like Mom and Daddy," Mac teased. "But I will. I promise."
True to her word, Mac's grades were steady, and in fact some of them even improved. Apparently Coach P. had mandatory study time before practice, and everyone was encouraged to tutor any teammate who might need help. Donna and Alan Ackles were so happy that Jensen wouldn't have been surprised to come home one evening to find out that they'd gone ahead and adopted Coach P. and given him Jensen's old room. His was only a little jealous.
No one was that perfect. Jensen had dated enough guys to know that. The man had to have some sort of fatal flaw. Jensen was sure of it.
Jensen reverted to being the second favorite brother when he missed Mac's first tournament with the new team, while Josh cheered her on all weekend. Jensen thought it was a little unfair; he'd been the one to talk their parents into letting her play after all. But he also figured that if she could restrain her flakiness to things like picking her favorite sibling, then everything would work out in the end.
Josh, too, had gone on and on about the coach. Jensen had told him to shut up already, that he'd met the man at the first tournament. Josh had given him a puzzled look, but let the matter drop.
When the next tournament rolled around, Alan had to go to an out of town conference. And since Donna wasn't about to turn down a free trip to the Bahamas and Josh was on call all weekend, Jensen was left with the task of getting Mac to and from the tournament, and making sure she was properly fed and watered.
It was another small tournament, and play didn't start until Saturday. Mac had to be there and ready to go by seven in the morning, so she was smart enough to make Jensen coffee and lure him out of bed by six.
She took advantage of his still half-comatose state to assure him that breakfast tacos with extra salsa were what the coach had recommended for a healthy breakfast, washed down with soda. When one was still technically asleep, it made a kind of sense. It didn't dawn on him that she might have been lying until they were standing outside of the sports complex and saw lots of parents chasing after their daughters with fresh fruit and water bottles.
"Hey-" Jensen began.
Mac must have been able to read his tone of voice. "Sorry, gotta go. See you inside on court fifteen, right?"
Jensen grumbled, but waved her on. He paid for his entrance then found the nearest black coffee. Remembering the flying balls at the first tournament, he asked for a lid.
Groups of parents were already huddled around the courts, with their own coffees and boxes of donuts. Jensen didn't know any of them, so he set his chair up in the back, not wanting to intrude on what seemed to be very tight-knit groups. He pulled his cap down lower, his jacket tighter, and wondered if he'd be able to catch a nap before the first game. He was almost asleep when Mac flicked the brim of his cap.
"Wake up you lazy bum," she commanded. "We're going to start warming up."
"And this has what to do with me?" Jensen asked.
"We need you to come catch balls," she said.
"You need me to what?" Jensen asked. "I don't handle balls in front of my baby sister."
"Get your mind out of the gutter," Mac said, rolling her eyes. "We need you to make sure that when we do hitting practice, we don't end up smacking somebody's grandma."
"Can't one of the other parents do it?" Jensen asked. "I'm just the driver."
Oh God. The eyes. She was using the eyes.
"Jen, please?" she asked.
Like fucking kryptonite. He set his coffee on the ground and pushed his way out of his folding chair. "Owe me. Owe me so big."
He stood on one end of the court with one of the dads while the girls lined up to make shots. Coach Padalecki, who looked just as hot as Jensen remembered, tossed the ball up, one of the other girls in the back of the court then hit it to Mac, who directed it to one of three positions. The girl at that position would jump up and try to spike the ball.
The other man introduced himself as Jeff, the father of Kaylee, the little blonde girl playing libero. Jensen and Jeff moved back and forth across the court, blocking and catching the balls before they hit the back net. When the team was through with them, Jeff motioned for Jensen to join the rest of the parents and siblings, and wouldn't take no for an answer. Within minutes, Jensen had met over a dozen people who seemed to know all about him, and it was incredibly uncomfortable.
"So, Jensen," one of the mothers, Susan maybe, began. "I hear Donna and Alan are in the Bahamas this week. Your mother must be thrilled. And with the crazy hours your mother says you've been working, it's a good thing you could help out with Mac."
"Yes ma'am," Jensen said, more than a little creeped out that he was a topic of conversation amongst a bunch of people he'd never met. "She and Dad haven't been on a vacation in a while, so they were both looking forward to it."
"We are just so happy that y'all joined the team," another mother chimed in. "My Bonny just adores Mac. And she seems to be really getting into the groove as a setter."
"Setter?" Jensen asked.
"Hell yeah," Jeff said. "Abbey was playing setter before, but she's a much better outside hitter. Coach P. was right about your sister; she's got amazing hands."
Jensen grinned at the praise, but internally grimaced at another mention of the perfect Coach Padalecki. He nodded his thanks and turned back to the court.
Chapter 5