Fic: What Lies Behind a Pretty Smile (Chapter 3)

[io_amore_voi]

Title: What Lies Behind a Pretty Smile (Chapter 3)Author: Stef (io_amore_voi)
Pairings: Jensen/Jared, Past Jensen/OMC/ Past Jared OMC
Summary: Jensen finally found the perfect guy. He's gorgeous, smart, funny, romantic...more than Jensen could possibly dream. Still, he can't shake the feeling that he met Jared somewhere before, and, for reasons he can't explain, he finds himself fearing the man. He chalks it up to his own paranoia and dark past. Besides, as they say, what you don't know won't hurt you, right? Wrong.
Rating (of this chapter): PG-13
Warnings (for all parts):Gangs, near kidnap with the use of chloroform, sexual abuse (not childhood), domestic violence

Disclaimer: I do not know or own Jensen or Jared. Everyone and everything else is made up. This story is entirely fictional and I earn nothing for it.

Past Chapters
Less than two hours into the party, everyone was tipsy, except Jensen and Jared. Jensen, of course, wouldn’t drink around so many people he didn’t know, and Jared was staying sober so Jensen wouldn’t be the only one not intoxicated.

So far, the night had been great. The two ate and laughed at everyone else making asses of themselves. Jared kept a respectful distance, only getting inside Jensen’s bubble to say something into his ear; A necessity to be heard over the music. It scared Jensen for only one reason; Every time he felt the warmth from Jared’s buff body get closer and his cool, minty breath hit his ear, it was like an electric shock went through him and all he really wanted to do was have the other guy throw him against the wall and do anything and everything to him.

Stop thinking like that, Jensen scolded himself when he made his way to the bathroom and splashed cold water on his face and neck. He didn’t do that anymore. He wasn’t stupid. He didn’t get wasted and do naughty things with anyone and everyone like he used to.

Of course, he rationalized, he wasn’t drunk and Jared was only one person…

No.

It took a couple minutes, but Jensen got ahold of himself again, then went back to where he’d left Jared.

“Welcome back,” Jared greeted as Jensen hopped up onto the stool next to him.

“Thank you. You’re not bored, are you?”

“Not at all! I haven’t had this much fun in…ever.”

“Good.” Jensen smiled.

“Buuuut,” Jared added, and the other man’s heart sunk a little, knowing he was about to say his goodbyes. That was why he was surprised when Jared continued, “I was wondering…”

“Wondering what…?” Jensen urged when he left it at that, heart rate picking up. Jared gave a nervous smile.

“Well…I was going to ask if you wanted to dance…but that’d probably be too date-y.”

“It is kind of date-y,” Jensen agreed. “But it’s okay. I accept.”

Surprised, Jared’s eyes lit up and a big grin spread across his lips. “Awesome!”

With that, he stood and offered an unsure hand to Jensen, who took it and hopped off the stool. Jared led him to the middle of the floor and pulled him a little closer, saying into his ear, “I must warn you, I’m a pretty amazing dancer.”

“Are you now?” Jensen laughed. “Well, so am I.”

“Oooh, I can’t wait to see.”

So Jensen showed him. Jared seemed truly impressed, though he was just as good. So much for Jensen cooling himself down.

Once the boys finally wore themselves out, they made their way to the couches and plopped down on one, not so close that they were touching, but almost.

“Are you sure you don’t want something to drink?” Jared asked.

“No, thanks,” Jensen replied. “Do you?”

“Nah, I’m good.”

“I’m really glad you came.”

“Yeah, of course. Thanks for inviting me.”

Jensen smiled. Jared returned the expression, then bit his lip and looked down at his knees. Jensen almost asked him what he was thinking, but decided he probably shouldn’t, for his own sake.

The party didn’t last much longer. As the other guests started to sober up, they decided to get themselves home before they ended up just getting smashed again.

“Thanks so much for coming!” Michelle exclaimed, pulling them both into a hug as they said their goodbyes. “Jared, it was so nice to meet you, and Jensen, it was lovely to see you again! Don’t stay away so long this time!”

“Okay,” Jensen said, giving a little, guilty, smile.

“Hey, why don’t you and Jared come to game night this Thursday?!”

Jared shot Jensen a curious glance, so Jensen explained, “Every Thursday night, Michelle and Brandon have a bunch of people over to their house to play games and eat and stuff.”

“Sounds fun.”

“You two discuss it and let me know, okay?” Michelle spoke as another party-goer came requesting her attention.

“I will,” Jensen assured her. They said goodbye, and the two men walked out.

“I really did have a lot of fun tonight,” Jared said. “Thanks again for asking me to come. And for dancing with me.”

“You’re welcome. Let me know if you want to go to game night on Thursday. It’s totally up to you.”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

“Alright. Everyone usually meets at six. I’ll text you their address tomorrow.”

“Sounds good. I’ll see you then.”

“Yeah, see you.”

The two went their separate ways to their cars, and Jensen watched to make sure Jared pulled out and drove away before he did. Though he wanted to be reckless and take him home, it was still best if Jared didn’t know where he lived. The fact that he was almost unbearably sexy didn’t mean that he wasn’t a psychopath.

Damn you, Jensen scolded himself. Why can’t you ever let yourself have a little fun?

In reality, he knew the answer to that question, and it was best he didn’t think about it.

The first thing Jensen did when he got home was pop a Xanax. The second thing he did was drink a bottle of rum. After that, he took a shower, but almost fell asleep with the hot water beating down on his skin, so got out prematurely and collapsed onto the bed, only the towel wrapped around him.

That still wasn’t enough to keep Jared out of his dreams.

On Thursday, Jensen and Jared arrived at the couple’s house at the same time. Walking up to the door together, Jensen noticed that he felt good; almost happy even, like he’d been at the beginning of his and Aidan’s relationship. Of course, Jensen knew how quickly that happiness could be broken.

“Yay, you guys made it!” Michelle exclaimed when she opened her door to see the two of them standing there, waiting to be let in.

“Thanks for inviting me,” Jared said.

“Yeah, of course! Come on in! The pizza should be here soon, so I hope you’re hungry.”

“Always.”

Michelle smiled and stepped back, allowing the guys to enter. Jared gestured for Jensen to go first, so he did, resisting a smile. Guys are only sweet until they have you where they want you.

When they walked into the family room, where the main event was held, everyone jumped up, excited, apparently, that Jensen was there. Jensen felt good, he guessed, that he was missed so much, but all of the attention was a little overwhelming, so he quickly introduced Jared and sat while everyone greeted him. Once the excited crowd finally settled and regained their seats, Jared took a chair next to Jensen.

“These are very…friendly people,” he commented quietly.

“Yeah, extremely. Sorry about that.”

“No, it’s totally cool. I don’t mind at all!”

And he seemed to really mean that. He got along great with everyone, chattering happily, but never letting Jensen feel left out.

As it turned out, Jensen and Jared made a great team. They were in each other’s group for each game, and kicked ass at each one of them.

“New love luck,” Brandon teased, winking at Jensen, who glared.

“I usually suck at stuff like this,” Jared commented, then, looking over at Jensen and flashing that beautiful, perfect smile, “You must be my lucky charm.”

The shorter man blushed and, trying to hide it, quickly excused himself to go get more food that he didn’t really want.

It was nearly midnight when everyone started filing out,  Jensen and Jared included.

“Thank you both so much for coming!” Michelle said. “Jensen, Dustin will be disappointed that he didn’t get to see you!”

It only then occurred to Jensen that Dustin, Michelle’s brother, hadn’t been at the gathering. He almost felt guilty. Almost.

“Oh, yeah, I meant to ask where he was,” Jensen lied kindly.

“He just said he had other plans. I’ll tell him you said hello though, if you want.”

“Yeah, sure. Thanks.”

Jensen turned back to Jared and was startled to see that the man’s eyes had grown to the size of saucers.

“You okay?” he asked, worried. The guy looked like he was going to pass out or something. Blinking, Jared regained his composure and smiled.

“Yeah, sorry. I was just trying to remember if I locked my apartment door or not.”

“Oh, shit, you should probably get going just in case.”

Jared shrugged. “I don’t know why I was so worried. It’s not like I have anything of value in my place.”

"That’s not the point.”

After saying goodbye to Michelle and Brandon, Jensen walked Jared outside, stopping a few feet away from his car.

“Do I get to see you again soon?” Jared asked.

“Yeah, of course.”

“You off tomorrow?”

“No, I work, but only until three.”

“So what about dinner?”

Jensen opened his mouth to answer, but, eyes wide again, Jared cut him off.

“Not dinner like…a dinner date. Just, you know, dinner, cuz…um…we need to eat…”

“Jared, it’s okay,” Jensen assured the frazzled man. “It can be a date if you want.”

The words came spilling out of Jensen’s mouth before he could stop them, but the bright smile Jared gave in response made him feel like maybe he hadn’t done anything too bad.

“Okay, um, want me to pick you up then?” Jared asked, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.

“I’d rather pick you up if you don’t care,” Jensen said.

“Oh, okay, that’s fine,” Jared replied.

After giving the other guy his address, Jared got in his car and drove home, smiling. He had a date with Jensen! It didn’t take long for fear to set in, though. Dustin will be disappointed that he didn’t get to see you…

Jared knew he was being stupid. It wasn’t like Dustin was an uncommon name. There was absolutely no way that they had been talking about his ex. He lived in New York, not North Carolina! Of course, both Jensen and Jared had lived in New York as well and had somehow managed to end up in the same place. But Jensen would know if it was the same Dustin, right? He was engaged to the guy’s best friend, after all, so they had to have met...right? Then again, Aidan was the jealous type. He had supposedly been dating some new guy for a while, but had never brought him around. Jared had simply assumed that he had been lying about having a boyfriend, but maybe he just liked to keep his lovers under a tight lock. It could explain Jensen’s social anxiety.

Still, it was too big of a coincidence. It wasn’t the same guy; couldn’t be.

Though the thought was rational, Jared couldn’t get rid of the bad feeling in his gut. He was scared; Not for himself, but for Jensen. He knew that he was probably at the top of Dustin’s hit list after failing to fulfill his duty and then, even worse, fleeing, but he didn’t care so much about himself. Jensen, on the other hand, was the one Dustin had wanted to begin with, and Jared would die to protect him.

Though Jared was still stressing about the Dustin issue when the next day rolled around, he was really more worried about what he was going to wear to dinner. What was one supposed to wear on a date? A t-shirt seemed too casual, but a suit way too formal. He eventually settled for a grey t-shirt, spruced up by a blue button up, which he left unbuttoned, and nice, dark blue jeans. He felt that he looked all wrong, but was relieved to see that Jensen had worn a button-up as well, his a deep red, and jeans. He still, of course, looked better than Jared, but that was inevitable.

“Wow. You look…amazing,” Jared commented as he got into the passenger seat of Jensen’s Explorer.

“Thank you. You look pretty good yourself,” Jensen said, blushing as he did so. Jared smiled, wondering how it was possible for someone to be so sexy, yet so adorable at the same time.

“Where do you want to go to eat?” Jared asked.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m not picky.”

“Me neither.”

After a little debate, they decided to go to a more up-scale steakhouse that neither had ever been to before. It was nice, and Jared insisted on paying, since he’d technically been the one to ask Jensen out. The two chattered happily the entire dinner and Jared started to notice Jensen slowly become more comfortable around him. The tension left his shoulders and his laugh became less forced to the point where, by the end, it was completely natural. He even let out a little snort, turning a deep shade of red afterwards, though Jared assured him that it was probably the cutest thing he’d ever heard in his life.

“You’re so lying. It’s disgusting,” Jensen claimed, taking a big drink of water to try to cool his heated face.

“No it’s not! I love your laugh!”

“Well, you seem to make me laugh a lot. You’re one funny guy.”

“It’s not without effort, I assure you.”

“Seems pretty natural to me.”

“That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”

“I doubt that.”

“No, it pretty much is. Not that I’m complaining.”

“Come on. People have to always tell you how gorgeous you are and how strong you look…”

“Mmm, nope. But thank you.”

“Seriously?”

“People don’t approach me much.”

“Probably because you could accidentally step on them and break their head.”

Jared laughed loudly, causing Jensen to smile a little, unsure.

“Yes, these sexy long legs can sometimes be a curse,” Jared admitted.

“Well, trust me, being unapproachable isn’t always a bad thing.”

“True. Besides, I’m on a date with you, so I’m happy.”

Jensen smiled, blushing yet again and taking another sip of his water.

After leaving the restaurant, Jensen drove Jared home, but it was still early, so Jared asked if he wanted to come in. He looked hesitant at first, but agreed. Jared was glad, but also nervous again. He’d never had guests at his place. He was probably a terrible host!

“It’s still an apartment, and it’s small, but I love this place,” Jared said as he led Jensen inside.

“It’s nice,” Jensen said genuinely.

“Thank you. Would you like anything to drink?”

“No, thank you.”

“Okay. The living room is this way. Do you want to watch a movie or something?”

“That’s fine.”

“What kind of movies do you like?”

“I’m not really picky with that either.”

“Cool. Wanna eenie-meenie-miney-mo it?”

“Let’s go for it.”

Jared opened the movies on demand menu, closed his eyes and scrolled up and down. When he stopped, a Nicholas Sparks movie, Safe Haven, was highlighted. Jared laughed a little bit.

“You can overthrow this if you want.”

“I don’t think that’s the way eenie-meenie-miney-mo goes,” Jensen told him. “Let’s chick flick this shit.”

Again, Jared laughed. “Alright. Let’s do this!”

The movie was better than either one expected, though a little of Jensen’s tension came back each time it would flash back to memories of the girl and her abusive husband. He was obviously trying to be casual about it, though, so Jared pretended not to notice anything. He really probably wouldn’t have noticed anything if he didn’t seem to be so in tune with Jensen’s body language. As such, Jared had to work really hard to control his anger. He had a feeling that the bad relationship they were watching on TV somewhat mimicked the way Jensen’s relationship with Aidan had been, and Jared was pissed that anyone could ever hurt such a wonderful guy.

You did, a voice in Jared’s head reminded him, but he quickly shut it up. Right now with Jensen was perfect, and he wasn’t going to let his guilt ruin it.

Soon after the movie was over, Jensen announced that he should probably be going. Standing, Jared walked him to the door.

“Thank you for accompanying me to dinner,” the taller man said, smiling. “I had a great time.”

“I did too,” Jensen said. “Thanks for paying. Next time’s on me.”

“Oooh, I get a next time?!”

Smiling, Jensen bit his lip and nodded. Jared smiled too.

“Awesome! Just tell me when.”

“Okay. I’m unsure of next week’s schedule, but I’ll look at it and text you.”

“Sounds good. Drive safe.”

“I will. Have a good night.”

“You too.”

Jensen had one foot out the door when he stopped and turned around, wheels clearly turning in his head. Then, he stepped back in, wrapping his arms around Jared’s middle. Eyes welling up with emotion, Jared held onto the other man as well, his arms providing a strong shelter, but also a safe exit, though he felt, at that moment, that they were both right where they belonged.