SPN-J2 Big Bang 2013 Wolf Like Me
Fic title: Wolf Like Me
Author name: happysgolucky
Artist name: sillie82
Genre: rps, au
Pairing: Jared/Jensen
Rating: NC17
Word count: 29,993
Summary: Werewolves and humans don’t usually mix, but there are rare times when mates are found among the human population. Jared is a cocky alpha destined to take over when his father retires. He isn’t interested in finding a mate at all, preferring casual hook ups over entanglements. Jensen is a human physical therapist who has no idea that werewolves exist. Destined to meet, this is their love story.
Author Notes: I would like to thank the whole J2/SPN community for providing me so much inspiration with the amazing stories I have found here. They gave me the courage to finally try to write one! I would like to thank my amazing beta, JonjoKeat, who gave me so much helpful advice. And a special thanks to Sillie82 for the amazing art work for this story. She has amazing talent.
Disclaimer: I don't own these people and make up stories about them for my own
enjoyment. No money has been made from this fiction.
Wolf Like Me
Part 2
JENSEN
Jensen worked the hammer methodically, slowly replacing the two by fours that made up the front porch of his house. Sweat was dripping from his temples and he could feel that his tee shirt was almost saturated. He had been outside since mid morning and now the sun was directly overhead, giving him the impression he had worked through lunch.
As he pounded nails into slats, he mulled over what had happened the night before. It had been exhilarating and confusing, and he couldn’t decide how he really felt about it. First of all, the guy Jared had been intensely beautiful and Jensen had been almost awestruck by him. The man had seemed interested in Jensen as well and when they had shook hands, he swore he could feel tingles up his arm. It had been a long time since anyone had caught his eye, and he had never felt that immediate attraction to someone before. Then Chris and his strange behavior, grabbing and forcing Jensen to leave the club. Even weirder was the sudden feeling of loss and unhappiness that Jensen had felt when he was pulled away from the man. This morning he had woken from a dream he was sure had featured Jared and since then he hadn’t been able to tear his mind away from the stranger.
Chris had seemed overly suspicious of the man and had made a huge deal out of getting Jensen away from him. On the way home Jensen had questioned Chris. He had evaded his inquiries with vague replies and a stern, “I just got a bad feeling from the guy, didn’t want you to get involved with someone like that.” He wouldn’t expand on his meaning of ‘someone like that’ and Jensen had slammed the door of Chris’ truck harder than necessary when he pulled up in front of Jensen’s house. Now in the light of day, Jensen felt resolve to get to the bottom of Chris’ reaction to Jared.
CHAD
As he had been doing for many years, Chad let himself in the front door of Padalecki mansion without knocking, smiling cheekily at one of the housekeepers as he took two stairs at a time up the spiraling staircase. He jogged down the hallway skidding to a stop in front of the large, mahogany door and rapped three times, loud and quick.
“Jaybird,” he shouted through the door, “I brought breakfast” and with that, he turned the knob and let himself into Jared’s suite of rooms.
He was unprepared for what he walked in on. Jared was normally so upbeat and energetic that Chad felt like he had to buy shares in Red Bull just to keep up with him. The larger man talked and laughed loud, made friends with everyone he ran into and frankly had more charm than any guy who was that good looking should have. So, seeing Jared sitting on the sofa in his suite, shaggy head in his hands, dressed in the same clothing he had been wearing at the club the night before instantly triggered concern in Chad.
Chad liked to tell people he and Jared had been friends since they were in the womb, and it was almost true. Their parents had been best friends that had been delighted to be pregnant at the same time, and spent most of their time as a foursome, even to this day. Being best buds with the “boy who would be king” had its perks and Chad was not above taking advantage of the connection, but in truth he really did love Jared. He knew Jared better than anyone, knew that the gregarious and boisterous personality was a front for someone who was actually a deep thinker. He knew Jared worried about the future of the pack and if he himself was not just up to leading, but bringing the pack into the future.
Putting the cardboard coffee cup holder and the bag of pastries down on Jared’s large desk, he quietly sat down beside his best friend, not saying a word. He knew this was about Jared thinking he had met his mate the night before, but honestly, he was confused. Wasn’t meeting your mate a good thing?
After a minute Jared lifted his head slowly and turned to look at Chad, eyes red-rimmed and a weak smile on his face.
“Hey Chad,” he said feebly, shifting to bump shoulders.
“What’s going on Jay?” Chad was starting to feel a little freaked out seeing Jared in such a state.
Jared sighed deeply and began to pick idly at a seam in his jeans as he spoke.
“I always thought when I finally met my mate, I would be ready to settle down, you know? I would be happy and all the pieces of my life would together perfectly like a puzzle. Not only do I not want this right now, the guy is a human and doesn’t even know we exist. His friend looked to have a definite prejudice against our kind.”
“Ahhhh,” said Chad getting up and grabbing the items he had left on the desk earlier, before returning to sit next to Jared as he handed him a steaming cup of coffee. Jared shook his head when Chad offered him the pastry bag so Chad shrugged, placed the bag beside him on the sofa and took a drink of his own coffee. Sighing in satisfaction, he turned to Jared.
“So, what’s the plan, Jay?” He was curious. He had never heard of anyone not accepting that they had mated and getting on with things. It didn’t surprise him that Jared was being a stubborn ass about things. It was pretty typical of the man.
“I don’t have one. I don’t know the guy and have no way to contact him, so how hard can it be, right?” Jared glanced at Chad hopefully, who did his level best not to snort. He doubted t it would be that easy.
“Well, that’s where I come in.”
Jared stared a Chad with one eyebrow raised for a moment and then gestured for Chad to continue.
“Last night when you left I met with Garrett, the guy who runs the club and got him to play back the security tapes of you meeting Loverboy.”
“Jensen,” Jared corrected him without thinking, and Chad rolled his eyes.
“Jensen, whatever, anyhow, Garrett didn’t recognize Jensen, but he recognized his buddy with the long hair. Guy’s name is Christian Kane. Guess he plays in a band sometimes which is why Garrett knew him, since he isn’t a club regular.”
Jared stood suddenly and paced across the room, raking his hair back off his forehead. He stopped and Chad could see his shoulders moving up and down in an effort to calm himself.
Jared whipped around and Chad saw the fierce expression on his face. “Don’t tell me anything else. I don’t want to fucking know.”
Chad nodded, instinctively knowing that pushing his friend would have disastrous results. Instead he shrugged and feigned indifference. “No problem man, not like I give a shit.” Reaching down he opened the pastry bag and started to rifle through it.
He didn’t look up when he heard Jared mumble, “Yeah, me neither.” Chad figured he didn’t need to dignify Jared’s bullshit bravado with a response.
CHRIS
It had been a few days since the episode at the club and Chris knew that Jensen was pissed at him for forcing him to leave, but at the time it felt like the right thing to do. Now, Chris was less certain and decided he needed to seek some advice from the only man he could ask.
Chris’ Dad had abandoned him, his brother and his mother when Chris was four and Ely was six. They had never heard from him again. Chris’ mom had remarried when Chris was eight to a man named Simon.
Right off the bat Chris had been enamored with Simon. He was a large man with warm brown eyes and a deep laugh. His hair was dark and he wore it longish around his face. He took to being a father like a duck to water and within six months, Chris had forgotten what life had been like before Simon. Everything was perfect.
Then came the night where everything Chris thought he knew about the world was turned upside down.
He had been in his and Ely’s bedroom sleeping when he was jarred awake by a noise. Sitting up he looked to see if Ely had been woken up, but his brother was still sleeping peacefully. Needing to pee and using that as an excuse to get out of bed, Chris wandered down the hall to the bathroom. After doing his business, instead of returning to his room, he had entered the kitchen and was astonished to see a large wolf sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor while his mother cooked what looked like a very rare, very large steak in her special iron skillet.
His mother jumped when Chris squeaked out a “Mom,” as he gestured to the large animal in the room. His mother turned to face him, her face growing pale and she looked from him to the animal and back at him again, her mouth working but no words coming out.
Finally sighing, she looked at the wolf once more and said, “We might as well tell him Simon, we knew it wouldn’t be a secret forever.”
Chris was puzzled that his mother was referring to the animal by his step father’s name but before he could question it, the wolf began to shake. Chris stood frozen in terror as the animal seemed to change before his eyes, claws retracting, ears receding, fur disappearing, until quite suddenly, it was Simon curled up on the floor, naked and panting.
His mother had gone into the foyer to grab a robe and Simon got unsteadily to his feet as he put it on, his mother patting his back comfortingly. He sat down at the table and she returned to the stove. He finally met Chris’s eyes and spoke, “I have some things to tell you, Chris.”
After uttering the understatement of the year, Simon had explained about werewolves and packs and the secrecy involved with them. He had spoken of Chris’ Dad and how he could not seem to bond with his wife or children because Chris’ mom was meant for Simon and some primal part of his father knew that she belonged to another. Simon explained that bonding with your mate was something fierce and magical and neither party was ever the same again.
As Chris got older he grew to understand a lot about Simon and Weres in general and he knew he was fortunate to have so much knowledge about such a secret group. When he was sixteen, Simon had taken him to a pack meeting, only allowed because Simon was the “Sergeant in Arms” for the Dallas pack and therefore entitled to a few special privileges. During the meeting, Chris saw a girl around his age continuously staring at him and he felt his own cheeks reddening at the attention.
After the meeting she had approached him and introduced herself as Madeline. She had flirted shamelessly with him and before he left that night, they had exchanged phone numbers and made a date for the weekend. Simon had seemed oddly concerned on the drive home when Chris told him about Madeline, but didn’t elaborate as to why.
Their first date was wonderful and within a couple of weeks they were going steady. Chris had never been so happy and couldn’t believe his luck at meeting such a gorgeous, awesome girl. She was beautiful, with honey blonde hair and large brown eyes and he knew he was falling in love. Three weeks after they started going out officially, they had sex. It was Chris’s first time and when they finished he had gathered her into his arms and told her he was in love with her.
She had giggled and lifted herself up onto one elbow, looking down at him coyly. “Oh that’s sweet Chris, but we can’t have any sort of future. You aren’t my mate. I knew it right away, but you are so cute and fun, I figured, what the hell?”
Chris felt his heart break apart into a dozen pieces as he stared back at her. “You-don’t love me?” He choked out, tears gathering in his eyes.
She laughed again, but this time it wasn’t cute or sweet and her young face suddenly seemed experienced and disdainful.
“Of course not, you aren’t my mate.”
Chris struggled out of the bed and threw on his clothes, slamming the door of her house shut behind him.
He didn’t remember the drive home, but when he walked through the door, Simon grabbed him into a huge hug and led him into the living room. While Chris sobbed, his stepfather stroked his hair and told him about mating.
He had been concerned about Chris with Madeline because he knew they were not mates and she would not get invested, while Chris probably would. In the Were world, all is fair in sex and war until you meet your mate. Unfortunately that meant that most Were’s were casual about sex and relationships until they met their “one.” Once they did of course, all bets were off and they would be monogamous and devoted.
So lesson learned, Chris let his broken heart mend and steered clear of Weres in general. When he had realized the other night the man interested in Jensen was a Were, his reaction had been knee-jerk and now he wasn’t so sure he had done the right thing.
********
His childhood home looked pretty much the same except for a new coat of paint and a sunroom that had been added his first year away at college. He opened the door with the same key he had had since he was ten years old and called out, “Dad?”
Simon came around the corner grinning, quickly enveloping Chris in a hug. Chris smiled to himself and hugged the only man he thought of as a father. Simon pulled away and chucked Chris under the chin.
“Such a handsome devil, bet you have all the girls swooning.” Chris rolled his eyes and laughed with his Dad as they made their way to the living room.
After getting them both a beer from the kitchen, Simon settled in beside Chris on the old couch and looked at him questioningly.
Stalling for time, Chris took a swig of beer and said, “Where’s Mom?”
Simon smiled and said, “Oh she is at her book club, or her garden club, or her something club,” he gestured with his arms. “Retirement hasn’t slowed that woman down a whit.”
Both men smiled as they thought about the woman that had brought them together. After a minute Simon glanced at Chris and said, “What’s going on my boy?”
Chris sighed and began to tell the story of Jensen meeting Jared at the bar, and how he had recognized Jared as a Were. With his past experiences and Simon’s warnings regarding their casual promiscuity he had felt like the thing to do was to get Jensen away from the situation.
“I have known the guy for a couple of years now, hasn’t had any interest in anyone, although I know he is into guys as a rule. Then the other night, he had little stars in his eyes and was totally pissed at me for making him leave. Hasn’t answered my calls since.”
Simon looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, “What was the wolf’s name?”
Chris took another slug of beer and said, “Jared. Huge ass guy, almost twice the size of me. Looked like he wanted to kill me when I hustled Jen out of there.”
Simon was quiet for a moment and then said, “Jared? Big boy with shaggy hair and dimples?”
Chris looked at his father in surprise and nodded. “Yeah that’s the guy.”
Simon chuckled softly and looked at his son fondly. “Boy, that is the heir to the pack, Jared Padalecki. The future King. Nicest kid you ever want to meet too. Tell me again how he reacted to your friend.”
Chris ran through Jared’s actions from the previous night, noting the nostril flaring and the possessive glint in his eyes, the offensive stance and the look of almost despair when he had made Jensen leave the bar.
When he finished talking, Simon shook his head slowly and smiled at his son. “I know that I told you about Were’s and their promiscuity all those years ago, but I thought I also explained mating to you. Jared wasn’t trying to have one night of fun with your boy. He found his mate.”
Chris felt his mouth fall open as he stared wide-eyed at his father. “His mate?”
JARED
His feet hit the pavement rhythmically as he ran in the chilly Texas night air. Jared loved to run at night alone, it gave him time to think. And these days it seemed he had a lot to think about.
Jensen. Despite Jared’s stubbornness, that name had entered his mind hundreds of times in the last few days. He had even dreamt of the green eyed man. He knew he was fighting a losing battle but dammit, this was the part he hated about his supposed “destiny.” He felt like he wasn’t given any choices to make for himself. He didn’t get to choose who he ended up with or how it happened. The moment his wolf had scented Jensen, Jared had known he was mated.
He thought of Jensen’s full lips and his slightly bowed legs and groaned into the night air as he felt his dick start to harden at just the thought of the other man. Not that he minded the idea of ending up with Jensen, the man was gorgeous. He just wasn’t ready to give into his wolf yet. The other man had no idea his kind existed and his friend seemed to know what Jared was and didn’t approve. How the hell was that supposed to work? Gritting his teeth he pushed himself harder as he ran towards his home. He needed to speak to his father.
Panting heavily in the foyer Jared walked in circles, hands on his hips and he tried to get his breathing under control. He gulped down some water and continued to slowly walk off the adrenaline from his run.
His vision started blurring slightly and he stumbled a bit, catching himself on the marble table near the front door. He shook his head slightly and heard his wolf whimper in his head. Frightened he gripped the table tighter as the world seemed to tilt upside down. He was unconscious before he hit the floor.
**********
Coming to slowly, Jared saw his father and mother standing at the end of his bed, while the pack doctor held his wrist lightly, obviously checking his pulse. Jared moved to sit up and sagged back a bit at the dizziness in his head.
“Take it easy, boy,” the Doc said. Dr. Steven Williams had been the pack physician as long as Jared could remember. He had delivered both Jared and Chad and most of their friends. He was cantankerous but kind. “No sudden movements.”
Jared’s eyes fluttered to his parents and he asked fearfully, “What happened to me?”
His mother stroked his leg through the blanket and his father moved to stand on the other side of his bed. “You fainted, Jared, in the front entrance. It looked as though you had just been out for a run.”
Jared’s recollection was fuzzy but he remembered not being able to catch his breath and his vision blurring. “Am I sick?” He turned to look at Doc Williams, who was just putting his stethoscope back into his bag. He turned to Jared with a hard stare and spoke in a tone that made Jared cringe.
“How long have you known you were mated, Jared? Because the longer you stay away from your mate, the worse this is going to get. Not just for you, but for them.”
Jared winced slightly as he heard his mother’s sharp intake of breath and his father’s startled voice. “Mated, Jared? To whom?”
Despite feeling like shit already, Jared knew he was in for one long ass night.
Part 3
Author name: happysgolucky
Artist name: sillie82
Genre: rps, au
Pairing: Jared/Jensen
Rating: NC17
Word count: 29,993
Summary: Werewolves and humans don’t usually mix, but there are rare times when mates are found among the human population. Jared is a cocky alpha destined to take over when his father retires. He isn’t interested in finding a mate at all, preferring casual hook ups over entanglements. Jensen is a human physical therapist who has no idea that werewolves exist. Destined to meet, this is their love story.
Author Notes: I would like to thank the whole J2/SPN community for providing me so much inspiration with the amazing stories I have found here. They gave me the courage to finally try to write one! I would like to thank my amazing beta, JonjoKeat, who gave me so much helpful advice. And a special thanks to Sillie82 for the amazing art work for this story. She has amazing talent.
Disclaimer: I don't own these people and make up stories about them for my own
enjoyment. No money has been made from this fiction.
Wolf Like Me
Part 2
JENSEN
Jensen worked the hammer methodically, slowly replacing the two by fours that made up the front porch of his house. Sweat was dripping from his temples and he could feel that his tee shirt was almost saturated. He had been outside since mid morning and now the sun was directly overhead, giving him the impression he had worked through lunch.
As he pounded nails into slats, he mulled over what had happened the night before. It had been exhilarating and confusing, and he couldn’t decide how he really felt about it. First of all, the guy Jared had been intensely beautiful and Jensen had been almost awestruck by him. The man had seemed interested in Jensen as well and when they had shook hands, he swore he could feel tingles up his arm. It had been a long time since anyone had caught his eye, and he had never felt that immediate attraction to someone before. Then Chris and his strange behavior, grabbing and forcing Jensen to leave the club. Even weirder was the sudden feeling of loss and unhappiness that Jensen had felt when he was pulled away from the man. This morning he had woken from a dream he was sure had featured Jared and since then he hadn’t been able to tear his mind away from the stranger.
Chris had seemed overly suspicious of the man and had made a huge deal out of getting Jensen away from him. On the way home Jensen had questioned Chris. He had evaded his inquiries with vague replies and a stern, “I just got a bad feeling from the guy, didn’t want you to get involved with someone like that.” He wouldn’t expand on his meaning of ‘someone like that’ and Jensen had slammed the door of Chris’ truck harder than necessary when he pulled up in front of Jensen’s house. Now in the light of day, Jensen felt resolve to get to the bottom of Chris’ reaction to Jared.
CHAD
As he had been doing for many years, Chad let himself in the front door of Padalecki mansion without knocking, smiling cheekily at one of the housekeepers as he took two stairs at a time up the spiraling staircase. He jogged down the hallway skidding to a stop in front of the large, mahogany door and rapped three times, loud and quick.
“Jaybird,” he shouted through the door, “I brought breakfast” and with that, he turned the knob and let himself into Jared’s suite of rooms.
He was unprepared for what he walked in on. Jared was normally so upbeat and energetic that Chad felt like he had to buy shares in Red Bull just to keep up with him. The larger man talked and laughed loud, made friends with everyone he ran into and frankly had more charm than any guy who was that good looking should have. So, seeing Jared sitting on the sofa in his suite, shaggy head in his hands, dressed in the same clothing he had been wearing at the club the night before instantly triggered concern in Chad.
Chad liked to tell people he and Jared had been friends since they were in the womb, and it was almost true. Their parents had been best friends that had been delighted to be pregnant at the same time, and spent most of their time as a foursome, even to this day. Being best buds with the “boy who would be king” had its perks and Chad was not above taking advantage of the connection, but in truth he really did love Jared. He knew Jared better than anyone, knew that the gregarious and boisterous personality was a front for someone who was actually a deep thinker. He knew Jared worried about the future of the pack and if he himself was not just up to leading, but bringing the pack into the future.
Putting the cardboard coffee cup holder and the bag of pastries down on Jared’s large desk, he quietly sat down beside his best friend, not saying a word. He knew this was about Jared thinking he had met his mate the night before, but honestly, he was confused. Wasn’t meeting your mate a good thing?
After a minute Jared lifted his head slowly and turned to look at Chad, eyes red-rimmed and a weak smile on his face.
“Hey Chad,” he said feebly, shifting to bump shoulders.
“What’s going on Jay?” Chad was starting to feel a little freaked out seeing Jared in such a state.
Jared sighed deeply and began to pick idly at a seam in his jeans as he spoke.
“I always thought when I finally met my mate, I would be ready to settle down, you know? I would be happy and all the pieces of my life would together perfectly like a puzzle. Not only do I not want this right now, the guy is a human and doesn’t even know we exist. His friend looked to have a definite prejudice against our kind.”
“Ahhhh,” said Chad getting up and grabbing the items he had left on the desk earlier, before returning to sit next to Jared as he handed him a steaming cup of coffee. Jared shook his head when Chad offered him the pastry bag so Chad shrugged, placed the bag beside him on the sofa and took a drink of his own coffee. Sighing in satisfaction, he turned to Jared.
“So, what’s the plan, Jay?” He was curious. He had never heard of anyone not accepting that they had mated and getting on with things. It didn’t surprise him that Jared was being a stubborn ass about things. It was pretty typical of the man.
“I don’t have one. I don’t know the guy and have no way to contact him, so how hard can it be, right?” Jared glanced at Chad hopefully, who did his level best not to snort. He doubted t it would be that easy.
“Well, that’s where I come in.”
Jared stared a Chad with one eyebrow raised for a moment and then gestured for Chad to continue.
“Last night when you left I met with Garrett, the guy who runs the club and got him to play back the security tapes of you meeting Loverboy.”
“Jensen,” Jared corrected him without thinking, and Chad rolled his eyes.
“Jensen, whatever, anyhow, Garrett didn’t recognize Jensen, but he recognized his buddy with the long hair. Guy’s name is Christian Kane. Guess he plays in a band sometimes which is why Garrett knew him, since he isn’t a club regular.”
Jared stood suddenly and paced across the room, raking his hair back off his forehead. He stopped and Chad could see his shoulders moving up and down in an effort to calm himself.
Jared whipped around and Chad saw the fierce expression on his face. “Don’t tell me anything else. I don’t want to fucking know.”
Chad nodded, instinctively knowing that pushing his friend would have disastrous results. Instead he shrugged and feigned indifference. “No problem man, not like I give a shit.” Reaching down he opened the pastry bag and started to rifle through it.
He didn’t look up when he heard Jared mumble, “Yeah, me neither.” Chad figured he didn’t need to dignify Jared’s bullshit bravado with a response.
CHRIS
It had been a few days since the episode at the club and Chris knew that Jensen was pissed at him for forcing him to leave, but at the time it felt like the right thing to do. Now, Chris was less certain and decided he needed to seek some advice from the only man he could ask.
Chris’ Dad had abandoned him, his brother and his mother when Chris was four and Ely was six. They had never heard from him again. Chris’ mom had remarried when Chris was eight to a man named Simon.
Right off the bat Chris had been enamored with Simon. He was a large man with warm brown eyes and a deep laugh. His hair was dark and he wore it longish around his face. He took to being a father like a duck to water and within six months, Chris had forgotten what life had been like before Simon. Everything was perfect.
Then came the night where everything Chris thought he knew about the world was turned upside down.
He had been in his and Ely’s bedroom sleeping when he was jarred awake by a noise. Sitting up he looked to see if Ely had been woken up, but his brother was still sleeping peacefully. Needing to pee and using that as an excuse to get out of bed, Chris wandered down the hall to the bathroom. After doing his business, instead of returning to his room, he had entered the kitchen and was astonished to see a large wolf sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor while his mother cooked what looked like a very rare, very large steak in her special iron skillet.
His mother jumped when Chris squeaked out a “Mom,” as he gestured to the large animal in the room. His mother turned to face him, her face growing pale and she looked from him to the animal and back at him again, her mouth working but no words coming out.
Finally sighing, she looked at the wolf once more and said, “We might as well tell him Simon, we knew it wouldn’t be a secret forever.”
Chris was puzzled that his mother was referring to the animal by his step father’s name but before he could question it, the wolf began to shake. Chris stood frozen in terror as the animal seemed to change before his eyes, claws retracting, ears receding, fur disappearing, until quite suddenly, it was Simon curled up on the floor, naked and panting.
His mother had gone into the foyer to grab a robe and Simon got unsteadily to his feet as he put it on, his mother patting his back comfortingly. He sat down at the table and she returned to the stove. He finally met Chris’s eyes and spoke, “I have some things to tell you, Chris.”
After uttering the understatement of the year, Simon had explained about werewolves and packs and the secrecy involved with them. He had spoken of Chris’ Dad and how he could not seem to bond with his wife or children because Chris’ mom was meant for Simon and some primal part of his father knew that she belonged to another. Simon explained that bonding with your mate was something fierce and magical and neither party was ever the same again.
As Chris got older he grew to understand a lot about Simon and Weres in general and he knew he was fortunate to have so much knowledge about such a secret group. When he was sixteen, Simon had taken him to a pack meeting, only allowed because Simon was the “Sergeant in Arms” for the Dallas pack and therefore entitled to a few special privileges. During the meeting, Chris saw a girl around his age continuously staring at him and he felt his own cheeks reddening at the attention.
After the meeting she had approached him and introduced herself as Madeline. She had flirted shamelessly with him and before he left that night, they had exchanged phone numbers and made a date for the weekend. Simon had seemed oddly concerned on the drive home when Chris told him about Madeline, but didn’t elaborate as to why.
Their first date was wonderful and within a couple of weeks they were going steady. Chris had never been so happy and couldn’t believe his luck at meeting such a gorgeous, awesome girl. She was beautiful, with honey blonde hair and large brown eyes and he knew he was falling in love. Three weeks after they started going out officially, they had sex. It was Chris’s first time and when they finished he had gathered her into his arms and told her he was in love with her.
She had giggled and lifted herself up onto one elbow, looking down at him coyly. “Oh that’s sweet Chris, but we can’t have any sort of future. You aren’t my mate. I knew it right away, but you are so cute and fun, I figured, what the hell?”
Chris felt his heart break apart into a dozen pieces as he stared back at her. “You-don’t love me?” He choked out, tears gathering in his eyes.
She laughed again, but this time it wasn’t cute or sweet and her young face suddenly seemed experienced and disdainful.
“Of course not, you aren’t my mate.”
Chris struggled out of the bed and threw on his clothes, slamming the door of her house shut behind him.
He didn’t remember the drive home, but when he walked through the door, Simon grabbed him into a huge hug and led him into the living room. While Chris sobbed, his stepfather stroked his hair and told him about mating.
He had been concerned about Chris with Madeline because he knew they were not mates and she would not get invested, while Chris probably would. In the Were world, all is fair in sex and war until you meet your mate. Unfortunately that meant that most Were’s were casual about sex and relationships until they met their “one.” Once they did of course, all bets were off and they would be monogamous and devoted.
So lesson learned, Chris let his broken heart mend and steered clear of Weres in general. When he had realized the other night the man interested in Jensen was a Were, his reaction had been knee-jerk and now he wasn’t so sure he had done the right thing.
********
His childhood home looked pretty much the same except for a new coat of paint and a sunroom that had been added his first year away at college. He opened the door with the same key he had had since he was ten years old and called out, “Dad?”
Simon came around the corner grinning, quickly enveloping Chris in a hug. Chris smiled to himself and hugged the only man he thought of as a father. Simon pulled away and chucked Chris under the chin.
“Such a handsome devil, bet you have all the girls swooning.” Chris rolled his eyes and laughed with his Dad as they made their way to the living room.
After getting them both a beer from the kitchen, Simon settled in beside Chris on the old couch and looked at him questioningly.
Stalling for time, Chris took a swig of beer and said, “Where’s Mom?”
Simon smiled and said, “Oh she is at her book club, or her garden club, or her something club,” he gestured with his arms. “Retirement hasn’t slowed that woman down a whit.”
Both men smiled as they thought about the woman that had brought them together. After a minute Simon glanced at Chris and said, “What’s going on my boy?”
Chris sighed and began to tell the story of Jensen meeting Jared at the bar, and how he had recognized Jared as a Were. With his past experiences and Simon’s warnings regarding their casual promiscuity he had felt like the thing to do was to get Jensen away from the situation.
“I have known the guy for a couple of years now, hasn’t had any interest in anyone, although I know he is into guys as a rule. Then the other night, he had little stars in his eyes and was totally pissed at me for making him leave. Hasn’t answered my calls since.”
Simon looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, “What was the wolf’s name?”
Chris took another slug of beer and said, “Jared. Huge ass guy, almost twice the size of me. Looked like he wanted to kill me when I hustled Jen out of there.”
Simon was quiet for a moment and then said, “Jared? Big boy with shaggy hair and dimples?”
Chris looked at his father in surprise and nodded. “Yeah that’s the guy.”
Simon chuckled softly and looked at his son fondly. “Boy, that is the heir to the pack, Jared Padalecki. The future King. Nicest kid you ever want to meet too. Tell me again how he reacted to your friend.”
Chris ran through Jared’s actions from the previous night, noting the nostril flaring and the possessive glint in his eyes, the offensive stance and the look of almost despair when he had made Jensen leave the bar.
When he finished talking, Simon shook his head slowly and smiled at his son. “I know that I told you about Were’s and their promiscuity all those years ago, but I thought I also explained mating to you. Jared wasn’t trying to have one night of fun with your boy. He found his mate.”
Chris felt his mouth fall open as he stared wide-eyed at his father. “His mate?”
JARED
His feet hit the pavement rhythmically as he ran in the chilly Texas night air. Jared loved to run at night alone, it gave him time to think. And these days it seemed he had a lot to think about.
Jensen. Despite Jared’s stubbornness, that name had entered his mind hundreds of times in the last few days. He had even dreamt of the green eyed man. He knew he was fighting a losing battle but dammit, this was the part he hated about his supposed “destiny.” He felt like he wasn’t given any choices to make for himself. He didn’t get to choose who he ended up with or how it happened. The moment his wolf had scented Jensen, Jared had known he was mated.
He thought of Jensen’s full lips and his slightly bowed legs and groaned into the night air as he felt his dick start to harden at just the thought of the other man. Not that he minded the idea of ending up with Jensen, the man was gorgeous. He just wasn’t ready to give into his wolf yet. The other man had no idea his kind existed and his friend seemed to know what Jared was and didn’t approve. How the hell was that supposed to work? Gritting his teeth he pushed himself harder as he ran towards his home. He needed to speak to his father.
Panting heavily in the foyer Jared walked in circles, hands on his hips and he tried to get his breathing under control. He gulped down some water and continued to slowly walk off the adrenaline from his run.
His vision started blurring slightly and he stumbled a bit, catching himself on the marble table near the front door. He shook his head slightly and heard his wolf whimper in his head. Frightened he gripped the table tighter as the world seemed to tilt upside down. He was unconscious before he hit the floor.
**********
Coming to slowly, Jared saw his father and mother standing at the end of his bed, while the pack doctor held his wrist lightly, obviously checking his pulse. Jared moved to sit up and sagged back a bit at the dizziness in his head.
“Take it easy, boy,” the Doc said. Dr. Steven Williams had been the pack physician as long as Jared could remember. He had delivered both Jared and Chad and most of their friends. He was cantankerous but kind. “No sudden movements.”
Jared’s eyes fluttered to his parents and he asked fearfully, “What happened to me?”
His mother stroked his leg through the blanket and his father moved to stand on the other side of his bed. “You fainted, Jared, in the front entrance. It looked as though you had just been out for a run.”
Jared’s recollection was fuzzy but he remembered not being able to catch his breath and his vision blurring. “Am I sick?” He turned to look at Doc Williams, who was just putting his stethoscope back into his bag. He turned to Jared with a hard stare and spoke in a tone that made Jared cringe.
“How long have you known you were mated, Jared? Because the longer you stay away from your mate, the worse this is going to get. Not just for you, but for them.”
Jared winced slightly as he heard his mother’s sharp intake of breath and his father’s startled voice. “Mated, Jared? To whom?”
Despite feeling like shit already, Jared knew he was in for one long ass night.
Part 3