Jays2 (17/?)
Title: Jays2 (17/?)
Genre: J2 RPS, AU
Pairing: Jensen/Jared although - Heh! You know major league teams have 25-man rosters, right?
Rating: Adult
Warnings (overall): Language, Baseball, Schmoop, Angst, Boy-Sexin’ (wait, what kind of warning is that?)
Word Count: ~ 3,500
Disclaimer: Fiction not fact. All these beautiful guys belong to themselves. Jensen and Jared belong to each other, we all know that :D Only the words are mine. No copyright infringement intended for the use of the MLB teams/players/logos, the Toronto Star, or Rogers Sportsnet. This is for fun, not profit.
A/N: Eeeee! I have been waiting months to write the next chapter, so here’s the build-up to tide you over until then. Enjoy! Comments = Love!
Summary: Ah, Jensen loves it when a plan comes together, no matter how slowly, but of course his father has to throw a spanner in the works. This time though, it’s his sister who’s at the receiving end of his father’s fury, and there’s no way Jensen is going to stand for that. Some plans are made better after a little tweaking here and there.
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SEVENTEEN: WE’LL BE THERE
He had been in Dallas for two weeks. Fourteen freakin’ days and Jensen was ready to jump off the nearest bridge. He was out of practice, not having done it for the past five years of his life, so yes, death was preferable to dealing with his father on a daily basis.
If not for Jared, maybe he would have found that bridge. If only so that he could push his father off of it.
He sat in the boardroom fuming silently - everyone fell silent when Alan Ackles ranted, that was part of the unwritten code of conduct within the company - watching as the older man ripped into his sister for something that had gone wrong with one of her accounts. Mackenzie just sat there, her face blank, resolute, just taking it - every bit of vitriol, every insult, every slanderous word their father flung at her - she took it like a champ.
She reminded Jensen of himself at her age, and it made his insides twist into tight, painful knots, bile and disgust rising in his throat. Gone was the lovely, carefree sweetheart of the family, his kid sister; in her place was a shell of a woman he hadn’t been close to in years but in whom he could see so much of himself that Jensen couldn’t help but feel a little responsible for the person she had become. Perhaps if he had had the courage to really stand up to his father instead of taking the coward’s way out with their stupid deal, then Mackenzie would have had the strength to fight their father too. And he would still have his bubbly baby sister to love and tease and adore and... why the fuck did everything his father touch turn hateful?
“JR!” His father barked, snapping him out of his reverie.
“Sir?”
“I had a chat with James Proctor yesterday. Apparently, he’s interested in investing in our new venture.” Jensen nodded, but said nothing, not sure where his father was taking the conversation. He needed to keep his cards, one of which was Proctor Enterprises, close to his chest right now; one whiff of suspicion on his father’s part could ruin his plans - hell, it would ruin his life - forever. “I’m counting on his contribution, JR, you better not do anything to screw this up. Between him, Jacobson and Harris, I’ll have the financial backing I need to take over Russell Oil. They’re floundering badly; it’ll be an easy target.”
Jensen started in surprise. “Russell Oil?”
His father sneered knowingly at him. “That’s the plan.”
“Montgomery Russell? You’re taking over his company? Is he staying on?”
“The takeover is hostile, JR. He has no idea we’re moving in for the kill.”
Jensen inhaled deeply and tried to quell the urge to strangle his father. “He’s your best friend.”
“Friendship has no place in business,” his father declared offhandedly, sharing a snake-like smile with his older brother. Jensen schooled his features into blankness, noting in some surprise that Mackenzie did the same. He quietly studied his sister for a moment longer, smiling hesitantly when she looked at him. She blinked in surprise and immediately turned away and how fucked up was that?
As his father continued to wax poetic on his particular brand of business savvy, Jensen’s mind kicked into high gear, and suddenly he realized, here was the solution to one of his biggest problems: his sister. When the meeting was done about an hour later, Jensen rose and quietly followed Mackenzie back to her office.
“Hey, Kenz?” His sister started at the use of his childhood nickname for her, but then she tensed, eying him with an alertness borne of distrust.
“Yes?”
“I know you’re busy right now, but do you think we could talk later?”
“I’m actually not that busy,” she told him snidely. “My account was pulled, remember? It’s Joshua’s problem now.”
Jensen couldn’t say anything to that, so he merely nodded and entered her corner office, taking a seat on the leather couch at the far wall opposite her desk. She tentatively sat down too, one seat cushion separating them. Jensen sighed and decided right then and there to risk his plans and trust his sister; he plunged head-first into the deep end.
“How long has he been talking to you like that?”
Mackenzie blinked at him in shock, her mouth dropping open before he gaze skittered away from him. “I... I don’t know what you mean.”
Jensen breathed deeply just to calm himself. “He used to talk to me like that.”
His sister scoffed. “He treated you worse than all of us put together, JR.”
“Please don’t call me that, Kenz.”
She stared at him before huffing. “Jensen, I do have other accounts, so if you have a point, I suggest you make it soon.”
“I do have a point, and you can bet I’m going to make it soon,” he told her, smiling slightly when she glanced at him assessingly. “But for now, I have a proposition for you.”
“I knew it!” She exclaimed, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. “You looked too damn happy in Toronto to just walk away quietly.”
Jensen full-on grinned. Maybe they had retained a little bit of their brother-sister dynamic despite their estrangement after all. “I was happy in Toronto. I am happy, Kenz; and I’m not going to give up my happiness for this.” Jensen stood and walked to the huge glass windows that flanked the couch, quietly gathering his thoughts before turning to face her again. “The person I used to be - that person he was trying to make me become? Ruthless, selfish... that’s not me, Kenzie, and it’s certainly not you.” His sister flinched at that but Jensen continued. “He used to hold family over my head; he’d threaten to disown me, leave me penniless. I was just a kid back then, you know? It scared me. This family was all I knew.”
Mackenzie stood and strode towards him, angrily jabbing him in the chest. “That’s a pathetic excuse, Jensen, and you know it! You stayed for the money? That’s not what my brother would have done - you were always the strong one!”
“He said he would make sure I would never see Momma or you again if I left.” Mackenzie gasped at his quiet words.
“But you... you did leave.”
“Because he thought it would be funny to dangle the dream in front of me first. Give me a taste of what my life could be like and then take it away from me,” the corner of Jensen’s mouth tipped up humourlessly. “His punishments for me were always imaginative.”
“The sorry, sadistic son of a bitch!”
“Well,” Jensen smirked at the genuine rancour in his sister’s voice, “no argument there, baby girl.”
Mackenzie’s eyes snapped to his at the endearment, and she blinked rapidly. “I didn’t know.”
“Nobody knew - not even Momma. You think he would have broadcast that threat? No way. Even with the ‘no divorces in the Ackles family’ rule of his, Momma would have left him if she knew.”
“You should have told her then.”
“No matter how much I want Momma to leave, that decision is hers to make, Kenz; I never wanted to be the one to drive her to it.” His sister nodded curtly at that, perhaps finally understanding what had driven him away from the family so completely; what had brought him back to Dallas two weeks ago. “Why do you stay and take it?”
Mackenzie sighed. “Because I have to, Jensen. This company means something to me. I just don’t agree with Daddy’s vision for it. I don’t agree with the way he conducts business, and I certainly didn’t sign on to screw Montgomery Russell over. He’s my godfather, for crying out loud! He’s been more of a role model to me than our own father!”
“I won’t support hostile takeover of Russell Oil.”
“Neither will I, but our combined votes won’t overrule the board. You mentioned a proposition?”
“That I did,” Jensen smirked down at her again, reaching out to caress her cheek with his thumb. She smiled at him, leaning into the touch slightly. It was such a little show of support on her end, but it meant a whole heck of a lot to Jensen.
“So spill.”
“Come meet me tomorrow. I’ll tell Al to set up a meeting. We’ll discuss it then.”
“Now I’m intrigued.”
Jensen playfully tapped her nose with his finger. “You should be. You’re also gonna be excited. I guarantee it.”
“You’re really... it’s like you’re gearing up for battle.”
“No, sweetheart,” Jensen shook his head ruefully. “He’s won all the battles so far. I’m gearing up for war. And you can bet I’m in it to win it.”
“That’s a lot of confidence even for you, Jensen. Playing baseball really means that much to you?”
“It’s not the baseball.”
“It’s not? Then...? Oh. Freedom.” Mackenzie bit her lip as she regarded him thoughtfully. “You know, if you want to win, you can’t take the higher ground. There is no playing fair with Alan Ackles. You’ll have to fight dirty.”
“I won’t lower myself to his level.”
“Then he’ll beat you.”
“I don’t fight dirty, Kenz, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be a little devious. This matters. I have to win.”
“What’s waiting for you in Toronto?” She asked shrewdly, narrowing her eyes. “Or should I say... who’s waiting for you in Toronto?” Jensen grinned, going a little red in the face, and his sister huffed out a laugh. “You’ve met someone? My God - you’re stopping the wedding somehow, too!”
“I’m in love.” Mackenzie squealed at his smiling declaration, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him close. He swallowed hard against the lump in his throat as he kissed the top of her head, but she jerked back suddenly, grabbing him by the lapels of his suit as she shook him, her face bright, her smile brilliant.
“You’re in love,” she repeated gleefully, “God, Jensen! This changes everything! Now... now you can fight dirty. You can, ‘cause you know what? All’s fair in love and war... and you’re going to war for love! Good God - we have to win!” She released him as he burst into laughter and threw her arms up in the air like a ref at a football game. “Whatever you want... whatever you need me to do to get this done? I’m with you,” she grinned at him, holding out her pinkie. Jensen kissed the tip of her little finger before entwining it with his pinkie; a promise of years gone by.
“Some things never change,” he said softly, regret lacing his words. “I’m glad to get you back in my life, kiddo; any way I can.”
“I never left, Jensen,” she told him, “you did.” He jerked his head back at that but she pulled him close, her finger still tangled with his. “I’m glad you did, though. You needed to. And you would have never found yourself if you hadn’t. There’s no way I begrudge you that, especially now I know why you left in the first place.”
“I’m so sorry, Kenz. That’s still no excuse for cutting you off.”
“I’m not exactly blameless here, Jensen,” she said, her mouth curving into a remorseful smile. “You’re still my big brother, you were my hero as a kid; the guy I ran to with all my teen angst. If anyone’s to blame for this, it’s Daddy. And I’m done, Jensen. I’m so done with him. And so help me, I cannot stand by and let him destroy Russell Oil - it would kill Uncle Monty!”
“I know. We’re not going to let it happen. I might need your input on a few things, but we have to be careful, Kenz. He can’t find out.”
“We’ll make sure of that,” Mackenzie smirked up at him. “This is gonna be interesting. You’re planning something big, aren’t you?” Jensen merely smiled. Like a goddamn sphinx. “Hoo-whee! Daddy’s never taken you on in the boardroom, Jensen; he won’t know what hit him. There’s a reason our biggest clients deal only with you - you’re a genius when it comes to doing business and your instincts are razor sharp. I’m just thrilled to have courtside seats.”
“Oh no, baby girl. No way you’re gonna be sitting on the sidelines. I need you on my team.”
“Well, hell, in that case,” she chuckled and winked at him, mischief dancing in her green eyes, “let’s play ball.”
|*|*|*|
A week and change later and Jensen was in a much better place mentally. Sure, his father still had him climbing walls and wanting to tear all his hair out, but he had made headway, all his chess pieces had been moved strategically into place; it wouldn’t be much longer.
Especially since he now had his sister’s support and his mother’s blessing. He had the backing he needed on the business end of things and he was feeling confident.
And terrified.
Freedom was so close he could almost taste it.
There was so much riding on this. So much. The rest of his life, his livelihood, the Jays... Jared.
Jensen closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall of the elevator as he, accompanied by his mother and sister, rode up to his office on the floor below the main offices where his father held court and ruled with an iron fist. It was a survivalist tactic on his part to stay as far from his father as he could physically get away with; that, and his staff did not need to be deluged and harassed by his father’s regimental employees. Jensen actually liked his staff of seven, Alona heading them up, and he wanted them to be happy.
“You okay, Jensen?” His sister asked, and he opened his eyes to see his mother and sister watching him, their faces tinged with worry. Yeah, he knew he looked like shit, but it had nothing to do with work for once.
No, it had everything to do with missing Jared so much, that he couldn’t sleep. Even though they spoke on the phone at least a couple of times a day, and even though they exchanged texts at least every other hour because Jared was a cheesy romantic like that. Not that Jensen was complaining or anything.
“I’m good,” Jensen smiled as the elevator dinged open, “just tired.”
“Don’t worry, son,” his mother reassured him, “this will work. It has to. We’ll make it work.”
Jensen nodded and pushed open the glass doors separating his suite of offices from the rest of the floor. His own office was in a corner, guarded by Alona’ s desk outside, his staff of number-crunchers sat in the bullpen area, while his first line of defence, his awesome receptionist, Beth Riesgraf, took the sentinel’s spot at the entrance.
“Good Afternoon, Jensen,” Beth greeted him sunnily, perkier than usual actually, but her attitude never failed to drag a smile out of him. “Mrs. Ackles, Ms. Ackles.”
“Afternoon, Beth,” Jensen smirked, handing her the package that had arrived at his condo the day before, “this is for you.”
She looked pleasantly surprised and tore into it with the excitement of a kid at Christmas, her jaw dropping when she saw what was inside. She squealed - none too quietly, and then dropping everything, rounded her desk and threw her arms around him in a fierce hug.
“I love you!” She exclaimed exuberantly, and Jensen chuckled as his mother and sister exchanged startled glances. “You... I... you can’t even begin to understand how much I love you right now. You are the best damn boss in the world.”
“So what you’re saying is... you love me?” Jensen teased with a smile. Beth nodded so hard, he worried she might get a crick in her neck. “Put it on. I wanna see how it looks.” Beth squealed again and grabbed the jersey from her desk, yanking it on over her dress. The white Jays jersey suited her and she turned around to display the name on the back: Hodge. Beth hugged herself and sighed, obviously ecstatic to have Aldis’ jersey - finally - and Jensen was glad he could do something to encourage her epic adoration of his teammate. Well, former teammate.
The light in his eyes dimmed slightly at that thought, but Beth seemed to notice it, and her cheery smile widened. “Al’s waiting for you in the boardroom; she wanted to see you as soon as you got in - said it was urgent.”
Oh shit, Jensen thought, his gaze darting to the closed boardroom doors across from the reception; had there been a glitch in their plans? He so could not afford to make a mistake right now. Warily eying his mother and sister, he nodded at Beth and stalked to the boardroom, trying to steel himself for whatever Alona had to throw at him.
Then he froze on the threshold in shock, for of all the scenarios that had been running through his mind, this was not one of them. No, this was a sight for sore eyes, this was a balm for a bruised heart. This was unbelievable.
He had definitely not expected to see the majority of the Jays starting line-up lounging in the leather chairs around the large, glossy table, Jared and Alona perched side by side on the table, sharing secrets and smiling at him.
He absolutely had not anticipated the multiple laptops sitting open on the table, the faces of some of his teammates filling up the screens, grinning at him: David, Adam, Pej and Benjamin, and Kane and Carlson.
And he really should have seen this coming - because this was them - but it still surprised him when the music started.
He grinned when he recognized at the opening strains of the classic song and he laughed delightedly at his flummoxed family as they and the rest of his staff joined him in the boardroom.
Jared stood and took a step forward, so much affection in his gaze that Jensen felt it like a physical caress against his skin. He shivered. All he needed, he realized, maybe ever, was standing right there in front of him.
Jared.
“You and I must make a pact; we must bring salvation back,” Jared smiled and Jensen found his mouth curving in response. “Where there is love... I’ll be there.”
“I’ll be there,” the guys - both in the room and by webcam - chorused, incredibly, unsurprisingly, in flawless harmony.
“I’ll reach out my hand to you...,” And Jared did, and Jensen’s hand found his instinctively, no thought processes required, and their hand closed around each other warmly, fitting perfecting together. “I’ll have faith in all you do...,” And his eyes told him that he did trust Jensen, and this was it; they were in it for the long haul. “Just call my name, and I’ll be there.”
I’ll be there.
Tommy rose and nudged Mike as they both smiled at Jensen. “Ohhh, I’ll be there to comfort you...”
“Build my world of dreams around you,” Mike winked at him, snapping his fingers to the beat, “I’m so glad that I found you...”
Chad leered at him, making a heart with his hands as Jensen cracked up. “I’ll be there with a love that’s strong...”
“I’ll be your strength,” Aldis sang, and Misha harmonized with him, “I’ll keep holding on... holding on, holding on. Yes, I will... Yes, I will.”
Jared pulled him close by their firmly clasped hands, and Jensen tried not to swoon at the love and sincerity on his face. “Let me fill your heart with joy and laughter. Togetherness, well that’s all I’m after. Whenever you need me, I’ll be there.”
I’ll be there.
“I’ll be there to protect you,” Mark declared punching his palm with his fist, smirking as usual.
“Yeah, baby,” Cory agreed with a goofy grin, “with an unselfish love that respects you...”
Just call my name, and I’ll be there. I’ll be there.
“Ohhh, I’ll be there to comfort you,” Zach assured him, his arms around Chris and John who both turned to Jensen and sang. “Build my world of dreams around you, I’m so glad that I found you...”
“I’ll be there with a love that’s strong,” Jared sang, slinging his arm around Jensen’s shoulders, anchoring him close. “I’ll be your strength, I’ll keep holding on...”
Yes, I will. Holding on... holding on, yes, I will.
Jensen couldn’t stay quiet any longer; he faced his friends. “If you should ever find someone new... I know he’d better be good to you,” he glanced up at Jared, his hand over his heart, as the team shook their heads in unison - as if even the thought of replacing Jensen was ludicrous. Jensen showed his solidarity: “’Cause if he doesn’t, I’ll be there.”
Alona smirked at him. “Don’t you know, baby, yeah, yeah... I’ll be there...”
I’ll be there. Just call my name... I’ll be there.
Jared drew him into his broad chest and whispered in his ear. “Just look over your shoulders, honey.”
And Jensen could only watch as his team, his staff, his Momma, Kenzie and Jared behind him, and all around him, sang, supported and humbled him.
I’ll be there.
I’ll be there.
Whenever you need me, I’ll be there...
|*|*|*|
AN: Also, for those of you who volunteered to test read my BB entry - thanks so much! I'm going to pick two of you at random and I'll be in touch soon! Much love!
This is the version of the song I was listening to as I wrote the scene above - just imagine manlier voices singing, lol. The original and the best: Jackson 5 - I'll Be There