Fic: Nothing As Easy (CW RPS, Jensen/Chad)
Title: Nothing As Easy
Author: Rosie saekokato
Fandom/Pairing: CWRPS, Slash: Jensen Ackles/Chad Michael Murray
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~3600
Summary: He was sure he wouldn't go back. Not really his scene.
Notes: Inspired by unperfectwolf’s sun's the sky (and I would always get back home), which everyone should go read, because it is absolutely awesome. This is the filler story between sun’s the sky and a story where Jared is utterly jealous of Jensen adopting his own dog, which I have started but have not finished.
This is an AU from then end of season two’s shooting (as in, Jensen does not go to Texas to do the play). Also, I have no idea if the dog breed actually exists and I don't really care either - I just like the way it sounds when you say it. ^^
Beta by the ever amazing roseclaw, who is just happy I haven’t started spamming her inbox with bandom fic.
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Nothing As Easy
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Jensen was bored. He was so completely and utterly bored. He didn't know what he was thinking not taking that gig in Texas, other than he'd really, really wanted a break once season two was in the bag. The show had finally hit its stride but that only meant more work for the only two leads, and by the time they'd put the cap on the season finale, all Jensen wanted to do was sleep for six weeks. Well, that and spend some quality time pounding Chad's ass to the mattress (and every other available surface), but Jensen wasn't admitting that to anyone even under the pain of torture or having to listen to Kim sing. But Chad wasn't in LA now that Jensen was, and Jared was shooting his big deal movie up in Vancouver, and Jensen was bored.
Jensen had to get out of his apartment before he went nuts and admitted that he missed Chad and Jared and that he really, really missed all the dogs and their rambunctious barking and playing and just being there. On a whim, he Googled his local animal shelter, jumped into his car and drove down. The girl at the front desk turned out to be a fan of Smallville and immediately recognized him, but she was cool about it, at least after she had a thirty-second internal freak-out that Jensen politely disregarded.
(It helped that he had Chad's voice in his head going, "Dude! She's HOT. Who cares if she's a rabid fan?" A gentleman Jensen's lover/boyfriend/friendly-fuck or whatever they were calling it this week was not.)
He spent four hours there that first day. He cleaned, feed, petted and played with every single dog there and most of the cats - even the tiny calico cat that liked to bite and scratch. He left tired and in a little pain but happy. He was sure he wouldn't go back. Not really his scene.
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He was back two days later. And three days after that. Then four days after that. Katlin, the front desk girl, finally put his name down as a volunteer on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and he just programmed it into his calendar and kept showing up. He became good buddies with Chuck, the elder golden retriever who liked to play tug of war, and Domino, the mastiff that reminded Jensen of Ozzy. He helped an elderly couple chose Chuck to take home and made sure that the kid that wanted to take Domino knew what he was doing before either of them went near the door. He still kept in contact with both of their owners, keeping tabs on his buddies.
He donated the money he had saved up to buy that big screen plasma that his sister called a waste of intelligence to make sure that the newest batch of kittens and puppies got all of their shots and vaccinations. Then he donated more, because he had it to spare, and the shelter needed to be able to feed and medicate everyone.
Being with all the animals helped a bit with the loneliness that gnawed at him. But he still didn't really consider adopting one of his very own. He knew he'd never be able to handle a cat; they were too much like most of his ex-girlfriends: far too into themselves - even if Karly, the tiny, vicious calico, seemed to have a special sort of love for him. Well, that and Karly was adopted by an awesome lesbian couple who seemed to want to scratch him up just as much as Karly did. Or Casper, a mix short hair tom that reminded Jensen of Chad. Chad would've loved Casper - a pair of cross-species soul mates if Jensen ever saw a pair - even if Chad was drastically allergic to cats.
And he didn't think he'd be able to take care of a dog full-time, not with his job and the moving back and forth between LA and Vancouver. Didn't really matter that Jared and Chad did it. Hell, he could hang out with Harley and Sadie most days of the week when he was filming up north, so it really didn't matter that much.
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Jensen had missed his Tuesday at the shelter because of an audition for a movie he wouldn't have been caught dead doing, not that his agent had really bothered to listen to him before hand. (Jensen didn't care that he wasn't really in a place to turn down any available role that came to him, he wasn't going to go parading around lower LA in a turkey suit that was to be systematically torn apart by hippies, insane businessmen, and packs of rabid dogs. He may be one of the network "hunks," but he had his dignity, damn it.)
So Jensen walked in on Saturday all ready to be pummeled back to the stone age by Katlin's disappointed face and well-timed sighs (Jensen seriously thought that if the military could channel whatever it was about those two things, the country would never have to fear or fight another war for the rest of time). What he didn't expect was to find was the sorrowful eyes of one of the weirdest looking dogs he'd ever seen.
"She's what I think they're calling a daladoodle. That's a dalmatian-poodle mix," Katlin told him as they cleaned out the kennels and fed and watered the dogs. They'd left the new kid Robbie up at the desk because some of the shier and more easily frightened animals got really, really anxious around him. Jensen didn't really think the kid would be around very long. "You should have seen her when she came in - covered in mud and drenched to the bone! Smelled like a steaming cesspool, too. Took us two days to bathe the smell out of her and then another day just to comb her out!"
"When'd she get here?" Jensen asked as he filled up a water dish. They were at the other end of the kennels, but every couple of minutes his eyes would wander back down to her cage. She never moved, just stayed curled up on her blanket, watching them.
"Bob found her dumpster diving out behind the McDonald's on South Broadway with no collar or tags or identification chip Monday morning. She doesn't have any problems with anyone, aside from Robbie, so we don't think she was abused. Probably just got loose or lost. And other than the mud and smell, she has a clean bill of health. We were holding her for a few days to see if someone would come looking, ya know how people are with those new mix-pedigrees, but since no one came a-knockin', Clare put her on the list for adoption yesterday. We've already had a couple of people come in interested in her," Katlin shrugged. She set down the bucket of dog chow and whipped her forehead with her sleeve.
The air conditioning in the shelter was a bit wonky, a bit too cold up in the front mainly people populated areas and a bit too warm back here in the mostly animal populated areas. Jensen had offered to help pay to get it fixed, but Katlin had laughed at him. Clare and Jacob, the owners/operators for shelter, had tried to fix the air a bunch of times, themselves and professionals both, but nothing ever stuck. Mostly they were just happy to have it working at all.
"She's a beaut," Jensen admitted. He finished packing up his supplies, pausing to give Reggie, an energetic husky mix, a good rubdown. Reggie was the last of the original group of dogs Jensen had met on his first day, the rest all picked up and moved out to new homes, thankfully. Reggie wasn't any different - his new family was picking him up as soon as their daughter got out of school. Jensen knew he'd miss the dog, but was glad to see him going home.
"She's a damn spotted ball of fluff, Jensen, and you know it," Katlin laughed.
Robbie popped his head into the kennel. "Kate! Clare's on the phone!" he shouted, sending every single dog in the room into a barking frenzy. Not that Robbie stuck around to witness his handy work - he'd disappeared back into the front before he'd finished his message.
"Stupid son of a bitch," Katlin muttered. Jensen was sure that he wasn't supposed to have heard that, but Katlin wasn't the quietest person ever. Reminded Jensen of Jared. "I'll be back."
Jensen just waved her off and started putting everything away. It was a beautiful day outside, and he wanted to get one last walk in with Reggie. Reggie was very much with that idea and practically tore his arm off trying to get out the door, but Jensen still caught a glimpse of the daladoodle just watching him from her blanket.
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Clare was manning the front counter when Jensen came into the shelter the following Saturday. In the month and a half Jensen had been volunteering at the shelter, he had never seen Clare in on the weekend. Occasionally he'd see Jacob, but mostly it was Katlin or some of the other volunteers, like Robbie, Mikey or Garish. Clare being in on a Saturday meant one of two things, there was an emergency or the apocalypse was nigh on the horizon. Given the dark circles under Clare's normally cheerful face didn't lend a hand to one theory or the other in particular, and that bothered Jensen more than he wanted it to.
"Hey, Clare. No offense, but you look like you lost a fight with a tractor trailer." Jensen mentioned as he leaned against the counter. He gave her his most charming smile to, hopefully, ward off the swat he knew he deserved. His Mama, and later his sister and sister-in-law, had instilled the consequences of commenting negatively on a lady's appearance, no matter how awful she may look.
Clare didn't swat him. She didn't even return his smile. She just continued filling out the paperwork in front of her. "Hey, Jensen. Yes, I realize I look like shit. Thanks for noticing."
Jensen had the good sense to wince. "Sorry. Anything you want to talk about?"
"Like why I'm here on a Saturday instead of cleaning my house and doing three weeks worth of laundry?" Clare sighed and put down her pen. She held her head in her right hand and started gesturing with her left. "Robbie was supposed to be handling this shift, but he’s been AWOL for the past week, since Jacob caught him.” Clare paused looking uncomfortable. Jensen decided he really, really didn’t want to know. “Anyway, on top of that, the cops raided some apartment on a tip and now we've got about a thousand more cats and kittens than we have room for and at least half of them will have to be put down..."
"And we'll do what we can for all of them," Jensen told her, grabbing her flailing hand and giving it a quick squeeze. "I know some people, if you want."
"What?" Clare gave him the most incredulous look like he'd completely dumbfounded her.
"About Robbie. I know some people." Jensen shrugged.
Clare blinked at him for a moment, and then she burst out laughing. "I'm sure you do, Jen, but I doubt they're anything like the people Jacob knows." Given that Jacob had spent some time in person before he'd met Clare and started working with animals, Jensen doesn't doubt it. "Thanks for the offer, but it’s been taken care of." Clare gave him a frightening smile that made him think of suitably bloody things that were going to give him nightmares forever if he didn't start thinking of something else, like, right that instant. Jensen still took a second to feel content in the knowledge that Robbie was going to pay, even if the payment was probably going to be something entirely horrible and possibly illegal.
"Now, I need to finish all of this and I need you to see to all the mutts. Katlin, Mikey and Jacob are all working with the cats and I can't get anyone else in today. And that fluff-ball, the daladoodle thing - we really need to get a name for her - is supposed to be picked up sometime later this afternoon, so make sure she's all set to go, will ya?" Clare shooed him away, already turning back to her paperwork.
"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am." Jensen tossed off a very sloppy salute and laughed as he dodged her swat. But she was smiling as he turned away, so he counted it all as a victory.
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Jensen came back to the shelter two Tuesdays later to find the daladoodle back in her cage. Her fur was cut ridiculously short, but otherwise she looked perfectly fine - if more energetic than she had when she first showed up. Jensen was surprised to see her; the couple that had picked her out had seemed perfect for her and had acted like she was the best thing since sliced bread.
After feeding, watering, cleaning and petting all the dogs, Jensen headed back out to the front desk, where he asked Katlin what had happened.
Katlin just shrugged, twirling a pen around her fingers. "The dude turned out to be allergic to dogs."
Neither of them believed it for a minute.
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Out of all of the animals he'd worked with, Jensen liked the daladoodle best. She was a little firecracker that reminded him of one of his grandmother's friends that lived down the street from his parents'. Miss Daisy was the type of old lady that got a little wild with age. She'd been the talk of the entire church with all of her antics, including the infamous blue hair dye incident and the biker rally, and Jensen never talked with his mother without out at least one "you will not believe what Miss Daisy did this time" story. Miss Daisy got into everything, especially the stuff she wasn't supposed to. Just like the daladoodle.
So Jensen started calling her Daisy. Especially after the second time she'd gotten loose from her harness when he was walking her and went dumpster diving.
"Oh, now I know you're making shit up," Jared laughed at him. It was ten o'clock on a Saturday night and this was the first time Jensen had managed to get a hold of his friend in over three weeks. Jared sounded tired, but happy. Jensen could hear the dogs fighting over a chew toy in the background, a comforting chorus of growls, yips and squeaks that occasionally overrode Jared's voice and the sound of cars in the distance. "There's no way a dog could do that."
"Jared, I'm serious. She totally trounced that guy to get to that dumpster. And by the time I got her out of there, she was covered in soy sauce and packing peanuts. I swear that my life passed before my eyes when Katlin and Clare caught sight of her," Jensen told him. He was sitting out on his balcony watching traffic go by and drinking a beer. "She's totally Miss Daisy in dog form."
Jared just chuckled and spun the conversation off to stories of Sadie and Harley on set and how the newest assistant couldn't stop falling over his own feet. Jared kept talking until he'd relayed just about all of the last three weeks of his life.
And it was good to hear him laughing. The last time they'd talked, Jared and Sandy had been fighting, and Jared had sounded eerily like Sam. But now Jensen could hear the smile in Jared's voice, Sadie getting one over on Harley in the backyard, and Jensen was content to let the silence stretch companionably between them.
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"Dude, we're in LA. Bring beer." Chad's voice sounded rough and ragged even through the tinniness of the voicemail recording, like he'd been awake for days and living off of cigarettes and coffee. Jensen could hear the dogs in the background, but even they sounded tired.
They sounded like the best things in life - like ice cream on a hot day and your Mama kissing your scraped knee better. He sagged against the kitchen counter and hit the repeat button a few times, just to hear them all again. His day had been hell, watching Daisy go off with some idiot who thought she'd be a great gift for his girlfriend and the invasion of fifteen neglected-to-the-point-of-abuse puppies to the shelter.
He saved the message and closed his phone, dropping it in the growing pile of things from his pockets. The sun was just starting to go down and he had to shower then go to the store for the beer before attempting the drive to Chad's place. It'd take him at least an hour to get there, but he knew the time would be worth it.
Jensen was man enough to admit that Chad was the one with perfect timing, especially when it mattered.
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When it came to the important people in his life, Jensen didn't remember things in a linear pattern. Mostly his brain just keeps little snapshots of memory, like the portraits from Harry Potter. His grandmother called their shared, possibly genetic, trait 'photo-album' memory sense. Whenever she did that, Jensen had to remind himself that this was the woman whose best friend was Miss Daisy, the blue-haired, elderly, southern belle biker.
From that night at Chad's, Jensen remembered:
Charlie trying to take down Joe while Ozzy lounges next to Chad's chair. The sun is a pink line on the horizon and Chad is laughing, beer in hand.
Chad opening the door, holding a squirming Charlie while Ozzy and Joe barrel out ready to knock Jensen flat on his ass. Chad is smirking and there's a light in his eyes that belies the circles under them.
Chad putting the beer in the fridge, bent over and skinny ass sticking straight out to nowhere. The dogs are wrestling in the living room and Chad is looking over his shoulder at Jensen, happy.
Lying in bed, long after midnight, with the dogs sprawled around the room. Chad reenacting the picnic scene from Armageddon without the benefit of the animal crackers. Jensen laughing because his stomach is mad ticklish and Chad never resists.
Letting the dogs out one last time. He's standing in the doorway yelling at Charlie, Chad's hand resting on his hip.
Chad spread out under him, head thrown back and eyes closed, back arching off the red sheets. Jensen knowing he'll give into the temptation to latch onto that pale neck, but taking a moment just to see.
Standing in the bathroom, neon white light burning his eyes, counter digging into his back, licking the toothpaste out of Chad's mouth.
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Jensen's last day at the shelter was a Tuesday. Katlin and Clare both gave him hugs and demanded that he stay in touch (both using their own specialized version of threats. He'd made sure that their numbers were programmed into his phone). Jacob just smiled and told him he was smart to get when the gettin' was good.
Jensen was back in Vancouver that Thursday. Chad was already back in North Carolina, and Jared was spending their last free days before production started up again by driving Sandy down to LA. Jared called the trip a rehearsal for when they were older and had kids and took them on crazy cross-country road trips - a rehearsal complete with Sadie and Harley cast as Jared and Sandy's future children.
Jensen didn't have anywhere to be until Tuesday.
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Two months later, Jensen flew back to LA on the threat of death. He'd come home from a crappy day - rain, cold, equipment breaking, last minute full scene rewrites - looking forward to a long weekend (three full days of blessed freedom) only to find Clare's voice on the machine. For the third time in as many weeks, Daisy was back at the shelter.
"We can't keep taking her back, Jensen. I won't do that to her. Now you get your ass down here and man up. I'll expect you in by morning. Don't make me send Jacob to Canada to get your ass."
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Daisy was quiet when Jensen picked her up from the shelter on Saturday. She was quiet on the trip up to Vancouver on Sunday. She was quiet straight up until Monday morning, which was when she’d decided to go dumpster diving on her morning walk before they had to head to set.
Suffice to say, Jensen’s week didn’t really start out any better than how the last had ended.
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Jensen was just about to hop back into the shower to clean off whatever it was that Daisy had rolled around in when his cell rang. He almost tripped over Daisy trying to get to it, because she’d decided to curl up on a clean towel right in front of the bathroom door. Jensen had decided it was retribution for the quick and dirty bath he’d just given her.
"Dude, first you disappear all weekend and don’t answer your calls, then you’re late to set! Kim’s starting to take bets on you lying half-dead in a bar somewhere halfway to Vegas," were the first words out of Jared’s mouth. "What the fuck, man?"
Jensen rubbed at his forehead and chuckled dryly. Daisy lifted her head at the sound and her tail thumped dully against the floor, muffled by the towel, as she watched him. "Well, funny story, man. Remember how I told you about that time Daisy ended up in soy sauce and packing peanuts?"
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The End.
Author: Rosie saekokato
Fandom/Pairing: CWRPS, Slash: Jensen Ackles/Chad Michael Murray
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~3600
Summary: He was sure he wouldn't go back. Not really his scene.
Notes: Inspired by unperfectwolf’s sun's the sky (and I would always get back home), which everyone should go read, because it is absolutely awesome. This is the filler story between sun’s the sky and a story where Jared is utterly jealous of Jensen adopting his own dog, which I have started but have not finished.
This is an AU from then end of season two’s shooting (as in, Jensen does not go to Texas to do the play). Also, I have no idea if the dog breed actually exists and I don't really care either - I just like the way it sounds when you say it. ^^
Beta by the ever amazing roseclaw, who is just happy I haven’t started spamming her inbox with bandom fic.
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Nothing As Easy
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Jensen was bored. He was so completely and utterly bored. He didn't know what he was thinking not taking that gig in Texas, other than he'd really, really wanted a break once season two was in the bag. The show had finally hit its stride but that only meant more work for the only two leads, and by the time they'd put the cap on the season finale, all Jensen wanted to do was sleep for six weeks. Well, that and spend some quality time pounding Chad's ass to the mattress (and every other available surface), but Jensen wasn't admitting that to anyone even under the pain of torture or having to listen to Kim sing. But Chad wasn't in LA now that Jensen was, and Jared was shooting his big deal movie up in Vancouver, and Jensen was bored.
Jensen had to get out of his apartment before he went nuts and admitted that he missed Chad and Jared and that he really, really missed all the dogs and their rambunctious barking and playing and just being there. On a whim, he Googled his local animal shelter, jumped into his car and drove down. The girl at the front desk turned out to be a fan of Smallville and immediately recognized him, but she was cool about it, at least after she had a thirty-second internal freak-out that Jensen politely disregarded.
(It helped that he had Chad's voice in his head going, "Dude! She's HOT. Who cares if she's a rabid fan?" A gentleman Jensen's lover/boyfriend/friendly-fuck or whatever they were calling it this week was not.)
He spent four hours there that first day. He cleaned, feed, petted and played with every single dog there and most of the cats - even the tiny calico cat that liked to bite and scratch. He left tired and in a little pain but happy. He was sure he wouldn't go back. Not really his scene.
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He was back two days later. And three days after that. Then four days after that. Katlin, the front desk girl, finally put his name down as a volunteer on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and he just programmed it into his calendar and kept showing up. He became good buddies with Chuck, the elder golden retriever who liked to play tug of war, and Domino, the mastiff that reminded Jensen of Ozzy. He helped an elderly couple chose Chuck to take home and made sure that the kid that wanted to take Domino knew what he was doing before either of them went near the door. He still kept in contact with both of their owners, keeping tabs on his buddies.
He donated the money he had saved up to buy that big screen plasma that his sister called a waste of intelligence to make sure that the newest batch of kittens and puppies got all of their shots and vaccinations. Then he donated more, because he had it to spare, and the shelter needed to be able to feed and medicate everyone.
Being with all the animals helped a bit with the loneliness that gnawed at him. But he still didn't really consider adopting one of his very own. He knew he'd never be able to handle a cat; they were too much like most of his ex-girlfriends: far too into themselves - even if Karly, the tiny, vicious calico, seemed to have a special sort of love for him. Well, that and Karly was adopted by an awesome lesbian couple who seemed to want to scratch him up just as much as Karly did. Or Casper, a mix short hair tom that reminded Jensen of Chad. Chad would've loved Casper - a pair of cross-species soul mates if Jensen ever saw a pair - even if Chad was drastically allergic to cats.
And he didn't think he'd be able to take care of a dog full-time, not with his job and the moving back and forth between LA and Vancouver. Didn't really matter that Jared and Chad did it. Hell, he could hang out with Harley and Sadie most days of the week when he was filming up north, so it really didn't matter that much.
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Jensen had missed his Tuesday at the shelter because of an audition for a movie he wouldn't have been caught dead doing, not that his agent had really bothered to listen to him before hand. (Jensen didn't care that he wasn't really in a place to turn down any available role that came to him, he wasn't going to go parading around lower LA in a turkey suit that was to be systematically torn apart by hippies, insane businessmen, and packs of rabid dogs. He may be one of the network "hunks," but he had his dignity, damn it.)
So Jensen walked in on Saturday all ready to be pummeled back to the stone age by Katlin's disappointed face and well-timed sighs (Jensen seriously thought that if the military could channel whatever it was about those two things, the country would never have to fear or fight another war for the rest of time). What he didn't expect was to find was the sorrowful eyes of one of the weirdest looking dogs he'd ever seen.
"She's what I think they're calling a daladoodle. That's a dalmatian-poodle mix," Katlin told him as they cleaned out the kennels and fed and watered the dogs. They'd left the new kid Robbie up at the desk because some of the shier and more easily frightened animals got really, really anxious around him. Jensen didn't really think the kid would be around very long. "You should have seen her when she came in - covered in mud and drenched to the bone! Smelled like a steaming cesspool, too. Took us two days to bathe the smell out of her and then another day just to comb her out!"
"When'd she get here?" Jensen asked as he filled up a water dish. They were at the other end of the kennels, but every couple of minutes his eyes would wander back down to her cage. She never moved, just stayed curled up on her blanket, watching them.
"Bob found her dumpster diving out behind the McDonald's on South Broadway with no collar or tags or identification chip Monday morning. She doesn't have any problems with anyone, aside from Robbie, so we don't think she was abused. Probably just got loose or lost. And other than the mud and smell, she has a clean bill of health. We were holding her for a few days to see if someone would come looking, ya know how people are with those new mix-pedigrees, but since no one came a-knockin', Clare put her on the list for adoption yesterday. We've already had a couple of people come in interested in her," Katlin shrugged. She set down the bucket of dog chow and whipped her forehead with her sleeve.
The air conditioning in the shelter was a bit wonky, a bit too cold up in the front mainly people populated areas and a bit too warm back here in the mostly animal populated areas. Jensen had offered to help pay to get it fixed, but Katlin had laughed at him. Clare and Jacob, the owners/operators for shelter, had tried to fix the air a bunch of times, themselves and professionals both, but nothing ever stuck. Mostly they were just happy to have it working at all.
"She's a beaut," Jensen admitted. He finished packing up his supplies, pausing to give Reggie, an energetic husky mix, a good rubdown. Reggie was the last of the original group of dogs Jensen had met on his first day, the rest all picked up and moved out to new homes, thankfully. Reggie wasn't any different - his new family was picking him up as soon as their daughter got out of school. Jensen knew he'd miss the dog, but was glad to see him going home.
"She's a damn spotted ball of fluff, Jensen, and you know it," Katlin laughed.
Robbie popped his head into the kennel. "Kate! Clare's on the phone!" he shouted, sending every single dog in the room into a barking frenzy. Not that Robbie stuck around to witness his handy work - he'd disappeared back into the front before he'd finished his message.
"Stupid son of a bitch," Katlin muttered. Jensen was sure that he wasn't supposed to have heard that, but Katlin wasn't the quietest person ever. Reminded Jensen of Jared. "I'll be back."
Jensen just waved her off and started putting everything away. It was a beautiful day outside, and he wanted to get one last walk in with Reggie. Reggie was very much with that idea and practically tore his arm off trying to get out the door, but Jensen still caught a glimpse of the daladoodle just watching him from her blanket.
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Clare was manning the front counter when Jensen came into the shelter the following Saturday. In the month and a half Jensen had been volunteering at the shelter, he had never seen Clare in on the weekend. Occasionally he'd see Jacob, but mostly it was Katlin or some of the other volunteers, like Robbie, Mikey or Garish. Clare being in on a Saturday meant one of two things, there was an emergency or the apocalypse was nigh on the horizon. Given the dark circles under Clare's normally cheerful face didn't lend a hand to one theory or the other in particular, and that bothered Jensen more than he wanted it to.
"Hey, Clare. No offense, but you look like you lost a fight with a tractor trailer." Jensen mentioned as he leaned against the counter. He gave her his most charming smile to, hopefully, ward off the swat he knew he deserved. His Mama, and later his sister and sister-in-law, had instilled the consequences of commenting negatively on a lady's appearance, no matter how awful she may look.
Clare didn't swat him. She didn't even return his smile. She just continued filling out the paperwork in front of her. "Hey, Jensen. Yes, I realize I look like shit. Thanks for noticing."
Jensen had the good sense to wince. "Sorry. Anything you want to talk about?"
"Like why I'm here on a Saturday instead of cleaning my house and doing three weeks worth of laundry?" Clare sighed and put down her pen. She held her head in her right hand and started gesturing with her left. "Robbie was supposed to be handling this shift, but he’s been AWOL for the past week, since Jacob caught him.” Clare paused looking uncomfortable. Jensen decided he really, really didn’t want to know. “Anyway, on top of that, the cops raided some apartment on a tip and now we've got about a thousand more cats and kittens than we have room for and at least half of them will have to be put down..."
"And we'll do what we can for all of them," Jensen told her, grabbing her flailing hand and giving it a quick squeeze. "I know some people, if you want."
"What?" Clare gave him the most incredulous look like he'd completely dumbfounded her.
"About Robbie. I know some people." Jensen shrugged.
Clare blinked at him for a moment, and then she burst out laughing. "I'm sure you do, Jen, but I doubt they're anything like the people Jacob knows." Given that Jacob had spent some time in person before he'd met Clare and started working with animals, Jensen doesn't doubt it. "Thanks for the offer, but it’s been taken care of." Clare gave him a frightening smile that made him think of suitably bloody things that were going to give him nightmares forever if he didn't start thinking of something else, like, right that instant. Jensen still took a second to feel content in the knowledge that Robbie was going to pay, even if the payment was probably going to be something entirely horrible and possibly illegal.
"Now, I need to finish all of this and I need you to see to all the mutts. Katlin, Mikey and Jacob are all working with the cats and I can't get anyone else in today. And that fluff-ball, the daladoodle thing - we really need to get a name for her - is supposed to be picked up sometime later this afternoon, so make sure she's all set to go, will ya?" Clare shooed him away, already turning back to her paperwork.
"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am." Jensen tossed off a very sloppy salute and laughed as he dodged her swat. But she was smiling as he turned away, so he counted it all as a victory.
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Jensen came back to the shelter two Tuesdays later to find the daladoodle back in her cage. Her fur was cut ridiculously short, but otherwise she looked perfectly fine - if more energetic than she had when she first showed up. Jensen was surprised to see her; the couple that had picked her out had seemed perfect for her and had acted like she was the best thing since sliced bread.
After feeding, watering, cleaning and petting all the dogs, Jensen headed back out to the front desk, where he asked Katlin what had happened.
Katlin just shrugged, twirling a pen around her fingers. "The dude turned out to be allergic to dogs."
Neither of them believed it for a minute.
+
Out of all of the animals he'd worked with, Jensen liked the daladoodle best. She was a little firecracker that reminded him of one of his grandmother's friends that lived down the street from his parents'. Miss Daisy was the type of old lady that got a little wild with age. She'd been the talk of the entire church with all of her antics, including the infamous blue hair dye incident and the biker rally, and Jensen never talked with his mother without out at least one "you will not believe what Miss Daisy did this time" story. Miss Daisy got into everything, especially the stuff she wasn't supposed to. Just like the daladoodle.
So Jensen started calling her Daisy. Especially after the second time she'd gotten loose from her harness when he was walking her and went dumpster diving.
"Oh, now I know you're making shit up," Jared laughed at him. It was ten o'clock on a Saturday night and this was the first time Jensen had managed to get a hold of his friend in over three weeks. Jared sounded tired, but happy. Jensen could hear the dogs fighting over a chew toy in the background, a comforting chorus of growls, yips and squeaks that occasionally overrode Jared's voice and the sound of cars in the distance. "There's no way a dog could do that."
"Jared, I'm serious. She totally trounced that guy to get to that dumpster. And by the time I got her out of there, she was covered in soy sauce and packing peanuts. I swear that my life passed before my eyes when Katlin and Clare caught sight of her," Jensen told him. He was sitting out on his balcony watching traffic go by and drinking a beer. "She's totally Miss Daisy in dog form."
Jared just chuckled and spun the conversation off to stories of Sadie and Harley on set and how the newest assistant couldn't stop falling over his own feet. Jared kept talking until he'd relayed just about all of the last three weeks of his life.
And it was good to hear him laughing. The last time they'd talked, Jared and Sandy had been fighting, and Jared had sounded eerily like Sam. But now Jensen could hear the smile in Jared's voice, Sadie getting one over on Harley in the backyard, and Jensen was content to let the silence stretch companionably between them.
+
"Dude, we're in LA. Bring beer." Chad's voice sounded rough and ragged even through the tinniness of the voicemail recording, like he'd been awake for days and living off of cigarettes and coffee. Jensen could hear the dogs in the background, but even they sounded tired.
They sounded like the best things in life - like ice cream on a hot day and your Mama kissing your scraped knee better. He sagged against the kitchen counter and hit the repeat button a few times, just to hear them all again. His day had been hell, watching Daisy go off with some idiot who thought she'd be a great gift for his girlfriend and the invasion of fifteen neglected-to-the-point-of-abuse puppies to the shelter.
He saved the message and closed his phone, dropping it in the growing pile of things from his pockets. The sun was just starting to go down and he had to shower then go to the store for the beer before attempting the drive to Chad's place. It'd take him at least an hour to get there, but he knew the time would be worth it.
Jensen was man enough to admit that Chad was the one with perfect timing, especially when it mattered.
+
When it came to the important people in his life, Jensen didn't remember things in a linear pattern. Mostly his brain just keeps little snapshots of memory, like the portraits from Harry Potter. His grandmother called their shared, possibly genetic, trait 'photo-album' memory sense. Whenever she did that, Jensen had to remind himself that this was the woman whose best friend was Miss Daisy, the blue-haired, elderly, southern belle biker.
From that night at Chad's, Jensen remembered:
Charlie trying to take down Joe while Ozzy lounges next to Chad's chair. The sun is a pink line on the horizon and Chad is laughing, beer in hand.
Chad opening the door, holding a squirming Charlie while Ozzy and Joe barrel out ready to knock Jensen flat on his ass. Chad is smirking and there's a light in his eyes that belies the circles under them.
Chad putting the beer in the fridge, bent over and skinny ass sticking straight out to nowhere. The dogs are wrestling in the living room and Chad is looking over his shoulder at Jensen, happy.
Lying in bed, long after midnight, with the dogs sprawled around the room. Chad reenacting the picnic scene from Armageddon without the benefit of the animal crackers. Jensen laughing because his stomach is mad ticklish and Chad never resists.
Letting the dogs out one last time. He's standing in the doorway yelling at Charlie, Chad's hand resting on his hip.
Chad spread out under him, head thrown back and eyes closed, back arching off the red sheets. Jensen knowing he'll give into the temptation to latch onto that pale neck, but taking a moment just to see.
Standing in the bathroom, neon white light burning his eyes, counter digging into his back, licking the toothpaste out of Chad's mouth.
+
Jensen's last day at the shelter was a Tuesday. Katlin and Clare both gave him hugs and demanded that he stay in touch (both using their own specialized version of threats. He'd made sure that their numbers were programmed into his phone). Jacob just smiled and told him he was smart to get when the gettin' was good.
Jensen was back in Vancouver that Thursday. Chad was already back in North Carolina, and Jared was spending their last free days before production started up again by driving Sandy down to LA. Jared called the trip a rehearsal for when they were older and had kids and took them on crazy cross-country road trips - a rehearsal complete with Sadie and Harley cast as Jared and Sandy's future children.
Jensen didn't have anywhere to be until Tuesday.
+
Two months later, Jensen flew back to LA on the threat of death. He'd come home from a crappy day - rain, cold, equipment breaking, last minute full scene rewrites - looking forward to a long weekend (three full days of blessed freedom) only to find Clare's voice on the machine. For the third time in as many weeks, Daisy was back at the shelter.
"We can't keep taking her back, Jensen. I won't do that to her. Now you get your ass down here and man up. I'll expect you in by morning. Don't make me send Jacob to Canada to get your ass."
+
Daisy was quiet when Jensen picked her up from the shelter on Saturday. She was quiet on the trip up to Vancouver on Sunday. She was quiet straight up until Monday morning, which was when she’d decided to go dumpster diving on her morning walk before they had to head to set.
Suffice to say, Jensen’s week didn’t really start out any better than how the last had ended.
+
Jensen was just about to hop back into the shower to clean off whatever it was that Daisy had rolled around in when his cell rang. He almost tripped over Daisy trying to get to it, because she’d decided to curl up on a clean towel right in front of the bathroom door. Jensen had decided it was retribution for the quick and dirty bath he’d just given her.
"Dude, first you disappear all weekend and don’t answer your calls, then you’re late to set! Kim’s starting to take bets on you lying half-dead in a bar somewhere halfway to Vegas," were the first words out of Jared’s mouth. "What the fuck, man?"
Jensen rubbed at his forehead and chuckled dryly. Daisy lifted her head at the sound and her tail thumped dully against the floor, muffled by the towel, as she watched him. "Well, funny story, man. Remember how I told you about that time Daisy ended up in soy sauce and packing peanuts?"
+
The End.