Damaged Not Broken 5/7 + Epilogue
Title: Damaged Not Broken
Author: ariafree (Moria)
Rating: R
Characters: Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, OFCs, Tom Welling, Chad Michael Murray, Michael Rosenbaum, Adrianne Palicki and Christian Kane
Pairings: Jared/Jensen; Jensen/Tom
Disclaimer: I do not claim to own any of the individuals mentioned above (with the exception of my 2 OFCs), I'm merely a writer wanting to tell a story.
Warnings/Spoilers: AU; MPREG; FEMSLASH
Summary: Jared Padalecki was a real player in high school. When 15 year old Aly knocks on his door claiming to be his daughter he soon realizes he has to confront his past head on. At the top of that list? Jensen Ackles. Aly's other father.
AN: I've made Jensen and Jared roughly the same age in this fic just so you're aware.
It was past time I started posting this 'verse to my LJ. Also, this 'verse is incredibly special to me. It's one of my absolute favorites that I've written and I just love living in this world. :)
Chapter 5:
San Antonio, Texas
Spring 2010
When they got back to the motel room Jared shut the door with his foot. He put his cowboy hat on top of the TV and watched as Jensen did the same.
“Look Jensen, we don’t have to do anything if…”
“I’m sorry I told Chris I was your boyfriend,” Jensen interrupted him, blind panic in his eyes. Jared slowly reached out, gently pulling Jensen to him. He kissed Jensen’s hair, running a hand soothingly along the other man’s back.
“Don’t be sorry, Jensen. I don’t have a problem with you telling our friends that you’re my boyfriend. Just as long as I get to tell them that I’m yours,” he murmured.
Jensen carefully maneuvered himself away from Jared, sitting on the edge of the king sized bed.
“You and I both know you don’t want a relationship. You’re not in love with me, Jared.”
Jared cautiously moved across the small space of the motel room until he was in front of Jensen. He knelt in front of the other man, gently taking a hold of Jensen’s hands in his own.
“I really hurt you didn’t I, Jensen? I know my acknowledging that fact now after sixteen years doesn’t really help things. But I truly am sorry, baby. And despite what you think I am in love with you, Jen. Not sure for how long now, but it’s been awhile. Would you at least let me prove it to you before you start giving up on me?” he asked softly, trying to pour all of the love he felt for this man in front of him into one smile.
“How?” Jensen murmured, warily watching Jared rise to his feet, barely feeling as the other man leaned over and kissed him on the side of his head. He continued to watch with mild curiosity as Jared dug wildly in his duffle for something. He returned moments later with a tattered shoebox in hand.
Carefully sitting down next to Jensen, Jared cautiously reached out and took a hold of the other man’s hand in his own.
“From the minute I met you I was drawn to you in a way that I never have been with someone else before. Unfortunately, still being seventeen at the time I didn’t quite grasp what that could mean. So I kept hooking up with other guys. Not because I necessarily wanted to, but because I had no idea what I’d just given up in not being with you, Jensen. Despite that, I’ve ended up keeping tabs on you in my own way. You see, Jensen, you’re somebody that’s really hard to forget. And my friends can pretty much attest to that considering I’ve done nothing but talk about you for the past sixteen years.”
“Sixteen years, huh? I thought you said you didn’t know how long you’ve been in love with me?” Jensen asked, his voice and eyes filling with mirth.
“Yeah, well, I’ve never been very good with specifics. It could’ve been sixteen years or it could’ve been a lifetime,” Jared replied with a shrug.
Chuckling softly, Jensen rolled his eyes before resting his head on Jared’s broad shoulder. “Mmm, you’re comfy, Jay. I’ve been in love with you since the minute we met. But I was barely eighteen, Jared. And after I found out I was pregnant I let the fear over the situation control me. I think that was one of the reasons I kept Aly from you all these years. I loved you, but I didn’t think it could possibly be enough. Not when I had our daughter to think about. But regardless of how terrified I was that’s no excuse for what I did. To Aly. To you.”
“To us?” Jared asked tentatively, hope leaking into his voice. Jensen nodded into the other man’s shoulder before pulling away and meeting Jared’s hopeful gaze.
“Yeah, us too, Jared. So, you gonna show me what’s in that box or am I gonna have to guess?” he asked, his smirk firmly in place.
Jared swallowed hard, nervous energy thrumming through him as he carefully lifted the worn lid off of the shoebox.
“I’ve been talking to Chad and Mike, you know? About our past. And if I wanted to have any hope of having a future with you I needed not only to tell you, but show you how much you mean to me, Jen. I love you, and this…this was the only way I could think of to prove it to you,” Jared said softly, staring at his hands as he drew in a shaky breath.
Jensen carefully lifted several of the newspaper clippings from inside the box. As he quickly skimmed them over he felt his eyes start to sting. Struggling to clear both his throat and his vision, Jensen found himself speechless for several minutes.
“Jared, I can’t…You saved my articles? All of them?”
Jared gave him a half-hearted smile, nodding. “Yeah. I collected all of the articles in the Maryvale High Horizon you wrote after the night we met. So, there’s probably six or seven of those from senior year. And since then I’ve been collecting everything you’ve written for the Maryvale Gazette. Pretty damn pathetic, huh?” he asked with a hoarse chuckle. Jensen carefully set the shoebox on the floor before turning toward Jared, gently taking the other man’s face in his hands, waiting for Jared to look him in the eyes.
“No, not pathetic. Jared, do you have any idea…? This is perfect, honey. I love you. So much, Jared. And I’d love to be your boyfriend if you’ll still have me.”
“God, of course, Jensen. I promise I’ll always want this. Want you,” Jared murmured, tenderly cupping his boyfriend’s face in his large hands and kissing him.
“Want you too. Want you so much, Jay. Make love to me. Please, Jared. I need this. I need you,” Jensen whispered, kisses trailing along the exposed flesh of Jared’s neck. Jared’s tongue darted quickly out of his mouth, wetting his lips.
“I need you too, Jen. Jesus fuck,” he moaned softly, panting slightly as he reluctantly pulled himself away from Jensen. Getting to his feet, he made his way over to his duffle bag, quickly retrieving a box of condoms and a tube of lubrication. Quickly toeing his shoes and pulling his socks off, Jared turned around watching as his boyfriend did the same. It hadn’t even been a full week that he’d been back in Jensen’s life, but already Jared felt like the luckiest guy alive.
Moving back farther onto the bed Jensen swallowed visibly, watching as Jared whipped his shirt over his head, tossing it carelessly to the floor. Standing before him wasn’t the lanky, thin as a rail seventeen-year-old from Jensen’s memories of the guy. Obviously Jared had changed. Hell, they’d both changed in the past sixteen years apart. He would’ve been surprised and disappointed if they hadn’t. But this? Jared, standing in front of him like the pure epitome of everything Jensen had ached for (irrationally he’d begun to believe over the past several years) in a boyfriend since he first hit puberty?
He’d been fortunate enough to have the occasional wet dream in his teen years involving a man of his fantasies looking even remotely like Jared currently did. He watched with baited breath as his boyfriend slid the zipper on his jeans down with a soft snick. And popping the button on those same pair of faded, well-worn jeans, Jared easily moved them passed his hips and well-toned legs letting them pool at his feet.
And just like that Jensen was rock hard. Trembling in anticipation he felt his eyes roll to the back of his head.
“Holy mother fucking…Dammit, Jay. Over here. Now,” Jensen said, his voice raw with want and desire, opening his eyes once again to take in the sight of his nearly naked boyfriend.
Jared smirked, shaking his head. “Nope. You’re not playing fair, Jen. Strip,” he ordered. Jensen shuddered at the way the demand sounded coming from Jared’s lips. Like something dirty wrapping its way around velvet.
“Fuck me,” he panted, choking on a nervous bout of laughter.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart. We’ll get there,” Jared promised with a wink in Jensen’s direction, watching as his boyfriend finally pulled his shirt over his head.
Almost immediately after Jensen had roughly yanked his own jeans off of his lower body, throwing them almost angrily over the side of the bed, Jared was there. Hovering over him, Jared tenderly held the side of his face, kissing him softly. They moaned into each other’s mouths as their still underwear clad neither regions brushed nearly painfully against one another. With their tongues dueling for the upper-hand Jensen finally relented, humming pleasantly as he enjoyed the feeling of Jared taking control.
With his hand resting on Jensen’s well-toned belly, Jared finally broke away, his chest heaving as he gazed hungrily at the sight of his lover spread out beneath him. Jensen reached up and gently tucked a strand of Jared’s hair that’d fallen into his face back behind his ear. Jared grinned at him, taking a hold of Jensen’s hand and bringing it to his lips.
“Jay? Please,” Jensen pleaded, his eyes filling with a mixture of love, trust and slight impatience. Continuing to smirk, Jared leaned down kissing Jensen fully yet briefly on the mouth before helping his boyfriend remove his underwear. Doing the same with his own, Jared ripped open the box of condoms, pulling one out, preparing to rip it open as well. But Jensen reached forward, placing his hands over Jared’s larger ones. Jared stilled, staring at his boyfriend in confusion.
“What’s wrong, baby?” he asked.
“I want to feel you. Feel you inside of me, honey. Come on, Jared.”
Jared nodded, swallowing thickly before popping the cap on the lube, pouring a generous amount onto his hand and slowly starting to open Jensen up, one finger at a time. Jensen hissed, squeezing his eyes shut as Jared added a third finger.
“You okay, Jen? Want me to stop? I don’t ever want to hurt you again, so you gotta tell me if you need me to stop, Jensen,” Jared insisted, his eyes awash with concern.
“Jesus…no, no, no, no. Don’t stop, gorgeous. Just give me a second here to…” And sucking in a sharp breath, Jensen shifted his lower body slightly, his legs trembling as one of Jared’s fingers brushed against his prostate. Jared carefully removed his fingers, leaving a trail of kisses over Jensen’s chest.
“Are you absolutely sure about this?” he whispered huskily, burying his face in the crook of Jensen’s neck for a moment as he struggled to compose himself. A large part of him was still in shock that Jensen wanted him after they’d been apart for so long.
“Yes, dammit. You’re my family, Jared. I love you. Please let me show you how much,” Jensen replied, tears welling in his eyes as he pulled Jared to him once again, kissing his boyfriend for several long, languid moments. When they broke apart, Jared had tears in his eyes as well. Leaning forward, he kissed Jensen’s tears away before pulling back and winking at his boyfriend.
“Okay, darlin’. Let’s do this,” he grunted softly. Holding onto Jensen’s hips, Jared slowly entered him, relishing the feeling of no barriers being between them. As he began to move inside his boyfriend, Jared easily found a rhythm as he took a hold of Jensen’s cock in his hand, matching his thrusts with the movement of his hand.
Jensen’s eyes rolled to the back of his head, moaning deep in his throat as he felt his orgasm rip through him, coating his stomach and Jared’s hand. Jared quickly followed, kissing Jensen’s jaw softly before pulling away from the heat of his lover’s body.
“Don’t go anywhere, Jen. I’ll be right back,” he murmured, heading to the bathroom. Coming back with a warm washcloth he cleaned up the mess he and Jensen had managed to make between the two of them. When he’d finished, Jared tossed the wash cloth in the direction of the bathroom, easily gathering Jensen into his arms.
“I love you, Jay. So much,” Jensen said drowsily, struggling to fight the desire to fall asleep.
“I love you too, Jensen. Now go to sleep, baby. We’ll talk more later,” Jared promised, chuckling quietly as he felt his boyfriend go slack in his arms almost instantly.
Brushing his lips against Jensen’s shoulder, Jared soon felt himself drifting off, relaxed in the feeling that he’d finally come home.
~*~
Maryvale, Texas
Spring, 2010
“Thanks for the ride, Jared. Have fun with the girls this afternoon. I’ll see you later tonight? For dinner?” Jensen asked.
“Yeah, of course. I’ll see you tonight,” Jared replied with a smile, squeezing Jensen’s hand briefly.
As Jensen made his way up the driveway and into his house he felt ice settle in the pit of his stomach as he recognized the familiar car sitting in his driveway.
Entering the house, he heard Aly rushing down the stairs to greet him.
“Daddy?” she said hesitantly, her eyes darting to the kitchen. He smiled warmly at her, pulling his daughter into a tight hug.
“Yeah, I know he’s here, sweetie. You go finish getting ready for lunch, and I’ll take care of this, all right?” Jensen suggested.
As he entered the kitchen he sighed heavily, taking in the sight of his ex. Tom got up from the kitchen chair he’d been sitting in when he saw Jensen come into the room.
“Hey, Jensen. Aly tells me that Jared is taking her and Ashley out to lunch in about an hour? Sounds like fun. Look, the reason I came was to give you your keys back, and to tell you that I’ll be moving my stuff out of here tomorrow,” he said, giving Jensen a tired, sad smile.
“Tom, you don’t have to be in a hurry about this. Jared and I…we still have a lot to work through. It’s not like we’re in a rush to move in together or something. We need to talk, you know? Figure out where we stand with one another. Not to mention Aly. It’ll take awhile,” Jensen replied, flashing a weak smile in his ex-fiancé’s direction.
“Actually, yeah, I do need to put a rush on things, Jensen. I got that job offer, but the thing is they need me in Dallas on Thursday. So, see, it’s a good thing your soul mate came back into your life when he did.”
Jensen snorted, shaking his head. “Jared’s not my…I mean, sure I’ve been in love with the guy most of my life, but that doesn’t make him my soul mate!” he insisted, throwing his arms around for emphasis.
“Sure it does, Jen. And you’re not alone either. Just meeting him once I could tell how in love he is with you. Just make sure he treats you well or I’ll have to come back and kick his ass. I’ll see you tomorrow, all right?” Tom said, giving Jensen’s shoulder a light squeeze before heading out the kitchen door.
TBC...
Author: ariafree (Moria)
Rating: R
Characters: Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, OFCs, Tom Welling, Chad Michael Murray, Michael Rosenbaum, Adrianne Palicki and Christian Kane
Pairings: Jared/Jensen; Jensen/Tom
Disclaimer: I do not claim to own any of the individuals mentioned above (with the exception of my 2 OFCs), I'm merely a writer wanting to tell a story.
Warnings/Spoilers: AU; MPREG; FEMSLASH
Summary: Jared Padalecki was a real player in high school. When 15 year old Aly knocks on his door claiming to be his daughter he soon realizes he has to confront his past head on. At the top of that list? Jensen Ackles. Aly's other father.
AN: I've made Jensen and Jared roughly the same age in this fic just so you're aware.
It was past time I started posting this 'verse to my LJ. Also, this 'verse is incredibly special to me. It's one of my absolute favorites that I've written and I just love living in this world. :)
Chapter 5:
San Antonio, Texas
Spring 2010
When they got back to the motel room Jared shut the door with his foot. He put his cowboy hat on top of the TV and watched as Jensen did the same.
“Look Jensen, we don’t have to do anything if…”
“I’m sorry I told Chris I was your boyfriend,” Jensen interrupted him, blind panic in his eyes. Jared slowly reached out, gently pulling Jensen to him. He kissed Jensen’s hair, running a hand soothingly along the other man’s back.
“Don’t be sorry, Jensen. I don’t have a problem with you telling our friends that you’re my boyfriend. Just as long as I get to tell them that I’m yours,” he murmured.
Jensen carefully maneuvered himself away from Jared, sitting on the edge of the king sized bed.
“You and I both know you don’t want a relationship. You’re not in love with me, Jared.”
Jared cautiously moved across the small space of the motel room until he was in front of Jensen. He knelt in front of the other man, gently taking a hold of Jensen’s hands in his own.
“I really hurt you didn’t I, Jensen? I know my acknowledging that fact now after sixteen years doesn’t really help things. But I truly am sorry, baby. And despite what you think I am in love with you, Jen. Not sure for how long now, but it’s been awhile. Would you at least let me prove it to you before you start giving up on me?” he asked softly, trying to pour all of the love he felt for this man in front of him into one smile.
“How?” Jensen murmured, warily watching Jared rise to his feet, barely feeling as the other man leaned over and kissed him on the side of his head. He continued to watch with mild curiosity as Jared dug wildly in his duffle for something. He returned moments later with a tattered shoebox in hand.
Carefully sitting down next to Jensen, Jared cautiously reached out and took a hold of the other man’s hand in his own.
“From the minute I met you I was drawn to you in a way that I never have been with someone else before. Unfortunately, still being seventeen at the time I didn’t quite grasp what that could mean. So I kept hooking up with other guys. Not because I necessarily wanted to, but because I had no idea what I’d just given up in not being with you, Jensen. Despite that, I’ve ended up keeping tabs on you in my own way. You see, Jensen, you’re somebody that’s really hard to forget. And my friends can pretty much attest to that considering I’ve done nothing but talk about you for the past sixteen years.”
“Sixteen years, huh? I thought you said you didn’t know how long you’ve been in love with me?” Jensen asked, his voice and eyes filling with mirth.
“Yeah, well, I’ve never been very good with specifics. It could’ve been sixteen years or it could’ve been a lifetime,” Jared replied with a shrug.
Chuckling softly, Jensen rolled his eyes before resting his head on Jared’s broad shoulder. “Mmm, you’re comfy, Jay. I’ve been in love with you since the minute we met. But I was barely eighteen, Jared. And after I found out I was pregnant I let the fear over the situation control me. I think that was one of the reasons I kept Aly from you all these years. I loved you, but I didn’t think it could possibly be enough. Not when I had our daughter to think about. But regardless of how terrified I was that’s no excuse for what I did. To Aly. To you.”
“To us?” Jared asked tentatively, hope leaking into his voice. Jensen nodded into the other man’s shoulder before pulling away and meeting Jared’s hopeful gaze.
“Yeah, us too, Jared. So, you gonna show me what’s in that box or am I gonna have to guess?” he asked, his smirk firmly in place.
Jared swallowed hard, nervous energy thrumming through him as he carefully lifted the worn lid off of the shoebox.
“I’ve been talking to Chad and Mike, you know? About our past. And if I wanted to have any hope of having a future with you I needed not only to tell you, but show you how much you mean to me, Jen. I love you, and this…this was the only way I could think of to prove it to you,” Jared said softly, staring at his hands as he drew in a shaky breath.
Jensen carefully lifted several of the newspaper clippings from inside the box. As he quickly skimmed them over he felt his eyes start to sting. Struggling to clear both his throat and his vision, Jensen found himself speechless for several minutes.
“Jared, I can’t…You saved my articles? All of them?”
Jared gave him a half-hearted smile, nodding. “Yeah. I collected all of the articles in the Maryvale High Horizon you wrote after the night we met. So, there’s probably six or seven of those from senior year. And since then I’ve been collecting everything you’ve written for the Maryvale Gazette. Pretty damn pathetic, huh?” he asked with a hoarse chuckle. Jensen carefully set the shoebox on the floor before turning toward Jared, gently taking the other man’s face in his hands, waiting for Jared to look him in the eyes.
“No, not pathetic. Jared, do you have any idea…? This is perfect, honey. I love you. So much, Jared. And I’d love to be your boyfriend if you’ll still have me.”
“God, of course, Jensen. I promise I’ll always want this. Want you,” Jared murmured, tenderly cupping his boyfriend’s face in his large hands and kissing him.
“Want you too. Want you so much, Jay. Make love to me. Please, Jared. I need this. I need you,” Jensen whispered, kisses trailing along the exposed flesh of Jared’s neck. Jared’s tongue darted quickly out of his mouth, wetting his lips.
“I need you too, Jen. Jesus fuck,” he moaned softly, panting slightly as he reluctantly pulled himself away from Jensen. Getting to his feet, he made his way over to his duffle bag, quickly retrieving a box of condoms and a tube of lubrication. Quickly toeing his shoes and pulling his socks off, Jared turned around watching as his boyfriend did the same. It hadn’t even been a full week that he’d been back in Jensen’s life, but already Jared felt like the luckiest guy alive.
Moving back farther onto the bed Jensen swallowed visibly, watching as Jared whipped his shirt over his head, tossing it carelessly to the floor. Standing before him wasn’t the lanky, thin as a rail seventeen-year-old from Jensen’s memories of the guy. Obviously Jared had changed. Hell, they’d both changed in the past sixteen years apart. He would’ve been surprised and disappointed if they hadn’t. But this? Jared, standing in front of him like the pure epitome of everything Jensen had ached for (irrationally he’d begun to believe over the past several years) in a boyfriend since he first hit puberty?
He’d been fortunate enough to have the occasional wet dream in his teen years involving a man of his fantasies looking even remotely like Jared currently did. He watched with baited breath as his boyfriend slid the zipper on his jeans down with a soft snick. And popping the button on those same pair of faded, well-worn jeans, Jared easily moved them passed his hips and well-toned legs letting them pool at his feet.
And just like that Jensen was rock hard. Trembling in anticipation he felt his eyes roll to the back of his head.
“Holy mother fucking…Dammit, Jay. Over here. Now,” Jensen said, his voice raw with want and desire, opening his eyes once again to take in the sight of his nearly naked boyfriend.
Jared smirked, shaking his head. “Nope. You’re not playing fair, Jen. Strip,” he ordered. Jensen shuddered at the way the demand sounded coming from Jared’s lips. Like something dirty wrapping its way around velvet.
“Fuck me,” he panted, choking on a nervous bout of laughter.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart. We’ll get there,” Jared promised with a wink in Jensen’s direction, watching as his boyfriend finally pulled his shirt over his head.
Almost immediately after Jensen had roughly yanked his own jeans off of his lower body, throwing them almost angrily over the side of the bed, Jared was there. Hovering over him, Jared tenderly held the side of his face, kissing him softly. They moaned into each other’s mouths as their still underwear clad neither regions brushed nearly painfully against one another. With their tongues dueling for the upper-hand Jensen finally relented, humming pleasantly as he enjoyed the feeling of Jared taking control.
With his hand resting on Jensen’s well-toned belly, Jared finally broke away, his chest heaving as he gazed hungrily at the sight of his lover spread out beneath him. Jensen reached up and gently tucked a strand of Jared’s hair that’d fallen into his face back behind his ear. Jared grinned at him, taking a hold of Jensen’s hand and bringing it to his lips.
“Jay? Please,” Jensen pleaded, his eyes filling with a mixture of love, trust and slight impatience. Continuing to smirk, Jared leaned down kissing Jensen fully yet briefly on the mouth before helping his boyfriend remove his underwear. Doing the same with his own, Jared ripped open the box of condoms, pulling one out, preparing to rip it open as well. But Jensen reached forward, placing his hands over Jared’s larger ones. Jared stilled, staring at his boyfriend in confusion.
“What’s wrong, baby?” he asked.
“I want to feel you. Feel you inside of me, honey. Come on, Jared.”
Jared nodded, swallowing thickly before popping the cap on the lube, pouring a generous amount onto his hand and slowly starting to open Jensen up, one finger at a time. Jensen hissed, squeezing his eyes shut as Jared added a third finger.
“You okay, Jen? Want me to stop? I don’t ever want to hurt you again, so you gotta tell me if you need me to stop, Jensen,” Jared insisted, his eyes awash with concern.
“Jesus…no, no, no, no. Don’t stop, gorgeous. Just give me a second here to…” And sucking in a sharp breath, Jensen shifted his lower body slightly, his legs trembling as one of Jared’s fingers brushed against his prostate. Jared carefully removed his fingers, leaving a trail of kisses over Jensen’s chest.
“Are you absolutely sure about this?” he whispered huskily, burying his face in the crook of Jensen’s neck for a moment as he struggled to compose himself. A large part of him was still in shock that Jensen wanted him after they’d been apart for so long.
“Yes, dammit. You’re my family, Jared. I love you. Please let me show you how much,” Jensen replied, tears welling in his eyes as he pulled Jared to him once again, kissing his boyfriend for several long, languid moments. When they broke apart, Jared had tears in his eyes as well. Leaning forward, he kissed Jensen’s tears away before pulling back and winking at his boyfriend.
“Okay, darlin’. Let’s do this,” he grunted softly. Holding onto Jensen’s hips, Jared slowly entered him, relishing the feeling of no barriers being between them. As he began to move inside his boyfriend, Jared easily found a rhythm as he took a hold of Jensen’s cock in his hand, matching his thrusts with the movement of his hand.
Jensen’s eyes rolled to the back of his head, moaning deep in his throat as he felt his orgasm rip through him, coating his stomach and Jared’s hand. Jared quickly followed, kissing Jensen’s jaw softly before pulling away from the heat of his lover’s body.
“Don’t go anywhere, Jen. I’ll be right back,” he murmured, heading to the bathroom. Coming back with a warm washcloth he cleaned up the mess he and Jensen had managed to make between the two of them. When he’d finished, Jared tossed the wash cloth in the direction of the bathroom, easily gathering Jensen into his arms.
“I love you, Jay. So much,” Jensen said drowsily, struggling to fight the desire to fall asleep.
“I love you too, Jensen. Now go to sleep, baby. We’ll talk more later,” Jared promised, chuckling quietly as he felt his boyfriend go slack in his arms almost instantly.
Brushing his lips against Jensen’s shoulder, Jared soon felt himself drifting off, relaxed in the feeling that he’d finally come home.
~*~
Maryvale, Texas
Spring, 2010
“Thanks for the ride, Jared. Have fun with the girls this afternoon. I’ll see you later tonight? For dinner?” Jensen asked.
“Yeah, of course. I’ll see you tonight,” Jared replied with a smile, squeezing Jensen’s hand briefly.
As Jensen made his way up the driveway and into his house he felt ice settle in the pit of his stomach as he recognized the familiar car sitting in his driveway.
Entering the house, he heard Aly rushing down the stairs to greet him.
“Daddy?” she said hesitantly, her eyes darting to the kitchen. He smiled warmly at her, pulling his daughter into a tight hug.
“Yeah, I know he’s here, sweetie. You go finish getting ready for lunch, and I’ll take care of this, all right?” Jensen suggested.
As he entered the kitchen he sighed heavily, taking in the sight of his ex. Tom got up from the kitchen chair he’d been sitting in when he saw Jensen come into the room.
“Hey, Jensen. Aly tells me that Jared is taking her and Ashley out to lunch in about an hour? Sounds like fun. Look, the reason I came was to give you your keys back, and to tell you that I’ll be moving my stuff out of here tomorrow,” he said, giving Jensen a tired, sad smile.
“Tom, you don’t have to be in a hurry about this. Jared and I…we still have a lot to work through. It’s not like we’re in a rush to move in together or something. We need to talk, you know? Figure out where we stand with one another. Not to mention Aly. It’ll take awhile,” Jensen replied, flashing a weak smile in his ex-fiancé’s direction.
“Actually, yeah, I do need to put a rush on things, Jensen. I got that job offer, but the thing is they need me in Dallas on Thursday. So, see, it’s a good thing your soul mate came back into your life when he did.”
Jensen snorted, shaking his head. “Jared’s not my…I mean, sure I’ve been in love with the guy most of my life, but that doesn’t make him my soul mate!” he insisted, throwing his arms around for emphasis.
“Sure it does, Jen. And you’re not alone either. Just meeting him once I could tell how in love he is with you. Just make sure he treats you well or I’ll have to come back and kick his ass. I’ll see you tomorrow, all right?” Tom said, giving Jensen’s shoulder a light squeeze before heading out the kitchen door.
TBC...