Loveland High 14/25 - Friends Laugh Together for hs_bingo
Title: Friends Laugh Together
Author: anyothergirl415
Prompt: Best Friends
Rating: PG-13
Pairing/Characters: Christian/Chad, Jared/Jensen, Mike/Misha
Words: ~4,800
Warnings: AU, mild angst, schmoop
Summary: For seventeen years Chad has been strong, he’s made it through more than most people could imagine. Now it’s his turn to fall apart and luckily he’s got people there to pick up the pieces.
Notes: For hs_bingo. All stories are linked; go to my card here to find the correct order. Thanks to cha for being her epically awesome self and helping along/making art.
Some part of Chad had thought, just maybe, when his mom saw him she would lose the cold hard shell she seemed to be hiding under. That wasn’t the case. She seemed only annoyed when she made it into the room, brushing her hair back from her face. “That nurse at the front desk wouldn’t tell me what room you were in until I proved I was your mother. How ridiculous is that?” She huffed, dropping her purse on the counter.
Chad stared at her for a long moment and wished that he could feel some stirring of emotion in him that was expected disappointment. He knew it would be like this, it always was. She never cared, not before when he was being beaten or now when he needed a mother to hold him close. Chad didn’t get it. “Why did you have me?”
"Excuse me?" His mom looked up sharply, her eyes widening.
"You don't want me. And I'd say it's pretty damn obvious that he never wanted me. So why did you even bother?" It stung to ask the question but part of Chad had to know - needed to know - so he kept his eyes trained on his mom and braced himself for the answer.
As it turned out, there was no part of him left strong enough to handle it.
"You were a mistake. I never wanted children and neither did your father. We only kept you because..." Her voice wavered and Chad stared, horrified that his own mother could say these things to his face.
"Because what?" He gasped, foolish enough to hope she'd make it hurt less.
"Taxes. We got more money back and your grandmother was there for the first few years to help." That horrible flatness was back in her voice once more but it was nowhere near as bad as seeing how emotionless her gaze was.
Chad was shocked into silence. Even after everything he'd lived through he still couldn't believe that she could simply not care.
When he finally managed to speak, his words were just as flat as his had been. "I'm not coming home. I've found somewhere else to live."
"Chad I can't just give you money for-"
“I don’t need your money.” Chad interrupted her, looking up sharply and narrowing his gaze. “I don’t need anything from you. I can make it on my own.”
“You can’t expect your friends just to take you in. How do you think that would make me look?”
It was like one blow after another. Chad’s mind was reeling, his heart sinking in his chest; it was a miracle he hadn’t thrown up coffee yet. “It’s not my friends taking me in. Do you really need the details? Or will you just feel reassured knowing your precious reputation won’t be harmed by my moving?”
For some reason she actually looked scandalized by this but it vanished after a moment, her expression smoothing over to calm emptiness. “Well, you’ll still check in of course. Come by once a week to get mail. And you will need to follow up at the police station. Do you think you can get your things out by this weekend?”
“I’ll make it happen.” Chad whispered, turning his gaze down to his lap. Really? Was this really happening? “I’ll leave the key on the counter if you’re not home.”
“Nonsense Chad.” She hummed and shook her head, turning to grab the papers on the counter to sign. When she caught Chad’s wide eyed look she sighed. “We have a key ring for a purpose you know.”
A harsh laugh tore through Chad and he forced himself to nod. “Of course, how could I possibly think anything else?”
“Well then that’s all settled.” His mom stood with the signed papers, looking toward Chad for a moment before looking away. “You will be staying in a house right?”
“Yes.” Chad slowly looked back up again, wetting his lips slowly. This was going to be it, his mother’s one sign of compassion. “With a friend, an older friend. He’s already said it’s okay.”
“Hmm. Alright. Well you know my number.” She nodded a finally time before turning and heading for the door. “I’ll let you know about the funeral details if you’d like to come.” She said over her shoulder, hardly stopping before leaving the room.
Chad thought maybe her reaction, the way she’d treated him just then, was worse than all the physical abuse he’d ever suffered. Bruises and broken bones, they were all only skin deep and after so many years Chad had mastered the ability to not let them sink further down. This though, his mother’s clearly cool indifference, was like a vice around his heart and Chad could hardly breathe.
He didn’t even realize time was passing, people were walking by outside, Chad was simply sitting in his hospital bed and wondering if the hollow emptiness could swallow him whole. It felt like all his life Chad had been just barely clinging to things, Jared, school, the fact that his mother never struck him. Now he was cut loose, sent sailing through real life where his only option was likely failure.
And then, Christian returned.
“Alright I brought you some clothes from… Chad?” Christian stepped into the room, closing the door behind him and frowning. “What’s the matter? What happened?”
“My mom came to sign me out.” Chad whispered, blinking up at Christian. Some part of him - maybe larger than he would admit to - had thought it was too good to be true, that Christian wasn’t going to show up. But here Christian was and he stepped closer, setting the clothes on the edge of the bed and taking Chad’s hand. “I asked her why she had me.”
“Oh Chad.” Christian whispered and squeezed his hand softly, sliding his hand up along Chad’s arm. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“She just said,” Chad sucked in a slow breath and looked up at Christian, blinking tears from his eyes. “I was a mistake. They kept me because of taxes.” Chad could feel the burn of tears streaking down his cheeks and his lungs shook as he inhaled. “Oh my god.”
“Hey, hey it’s okay.” Christian slid onto the bed side and looped his arm around Chad, pulling him close and pressing his lips to Chad’s neck. “Chad, you are so much more than that. Listen to me; you are a million times more than that, a billion times more. I know it feels impossible right now but you have to believe that.”
“I’m not,” Chad whispered and clutched at Christian, hissing softly at the rush of pain through his body. “I want to get out of here.”
“Alright.” Christian nodded slowly and pulled Chad with him, helping him stand. His hands slid up Chad’s shoulders and curved along his jaw, tilting his head back. “You listen to me Chad, you are kind and caring, you are a fantastic friend and a passionate lover. My life has been so much more complete having you in and there’s so many reasons why. If I have to spend the rest of our lives telling you this to get you to believe it, I will. Because I’m absolutely certain you are worth every moment.”
The tears were back, blurring Chad’s vision but it was different this time he knew. Christian’s words were like cool water over a wound, soothing even if the sting was still there. “What if I never believe you?” He whispered, curling his fingers into Christian’s shirt.
“Then I’ll never stop telling you.” Christian insisted softly, dipping down to gently kiss him. Their lips met in a soft brush and it could have been nothing but it sent ripples of pleasure and warmth through Chad. Touch. That was what he craved.
“And…” Chad’s voice came out breathy, his hand running up to brush tears away from under his eyes. “What if I’m too much? What if you can’t take it anymore?”
"Chad, let me tell you the truth about our future." Christian said softly and some of the fear Chad felt at the words must have been obvious on his face because he rushed to continue. "Sometimes it's going to feel like too much. I imagine in the next few months you'll feel overwhelmed and a little crazy. And sometimes we'll fight. You'll get mad or I will. But I can promise for every bad moment we'll have a hundred good ones. And I will never harm you like you've been harmed. I will always talk to you about our problems and you can always talk to me."
It took Chad a long few minutes to see again, no matter how many times he blinked at the tears in his eyes to try and clear them away. No one had ever been so honest with him about things of such great importance and it went a long way to soothe so much of the ache and hurt in Chad. Finally he was able to nod, swallowing thickly as his arms slid around Christian’s body. “I promise I will.”
“Good.” Christian murmured against his ear and squeezed him softly, kissing the side of his head then drawing back. “Let’s get you dressed and home okay?”
“Home?” Chad repeated, wiping at his nose then slowly smiling. “Our home?”
“Yeah. Our home.” Christian nodded and smiled back, holding up a shirt. “Need help?”
It was a surprise to laugh but it felt so good, Chad didn’t care.
It was Jensen who saw the sirens first.
From his seat at the dinner table he could see them across the street, pulling up to the Murray house, a stretcher being pulled out. Before his parents could say anything Jensen was up and at the front door, tugging on his coat and slipping into his shoes. He hurried outside and across the lawn, leaping through the snow and jabbing hard at the Padalecki doorbell.
Jared must have seen the sirens shortly after because he was already pulling open the door as Jensen’s arm dropped. “I saw. Have you seen Chad?”
“Not yet.” Jensen grabbed Jared’s hand and led him down the sidewalk, hovering across the street from Chad’s house.
They watched in shock as the paramedics brought Chad out. It was blurry with the bright lights, the falling snow, the darkness of the street. But it was clearly Chad and there was clearly blood. Jared inhaled sharply, shocked and Jensen wrapped an arm around him, pulling him in close and holding him.
By the time they’d left with Chad in the ambulance more cops were there and Jensen and Jared shared a shocked look when the next ambulance brought out a body bag. There were so many questions, so many things they didn’t understand, and they weren’t going to get answers any time soon. Even calling out to Chad’s mom didn’t do any good, the police led her off and she didn’t even look their way.
No matter how much their parents tried to find out information for them, it wasn’t until the following morning that they found out details. Jared’s mom had seen Mrs. Murray heading out of the house and wasted no time hurrying out to check in with her. Jared and Jensen watched from the window, like they could read lips or something, and nearly tackled Jared’s mom when she came back.
“Boys, calm down. Please, come and sit.” Sharon led the boys over to the living room, sitting across from them.
“Mom what is it?” Jared asked in a rush, grasping Jensen’s hand and sitting on the edge of the couch. “Is it Chad? Is he okay?”
When Jensen closed his eyes he could see the faintly illuminated form of Chad on the gurney and his heart clenched. It was terrifying to imagine what might have happened to their friend.
“Chad’s alright.” Sharon nodded and sighed, folding her hands in her lap. “There was an accident last night. It’s… Chad’s dad fell down the stairs.”
“Good.” Jared blurted out, looking at his mom and shrugging. “He was an asshole.”
“Chad’s in the hospital.” Sharon once more nodded and though Jensen didn’t think Jared had ever told her about the abuse, she seemed to know considered the look of pity on her face. “Mrs. Murray was just going to sign him out.”
“I gotta call him.” Jared pushed up off the couch but Jensen grabbed his arm. “Jen, he needs us.”
“We should wait until he gets home; they won’t let us into the hospital anyway. We could go get him flowers, he’d hate that.” Jensen smiled up at Jared, nodding slowly to hopefully get through to his boyfriend. What he couldn’t say, but wanted to say, was that they needed to get a hold of Mr. Kane. Chad would want him to know.
It seemed to take a moment but then realization dawned on Jared’s face and he nodded. “Yeah, definitely. We should go get Mike and Misha too if they’re not busy with Calliope.”
“Do you boys want me to take you to the store or something?” Sharon offered, looking uncertainly between them.
Jensen decided she probably didn’t know everything about the abuse. Maybe she thought it was a onetime thing or something but she clearly expected them to be more upset. All that mattered was Chad was okay and if his mom was going to sign him out, then he had to be fine. “That’s okay Mrs. P; I’ve got the car this weekend. I promise to drive slowly on the back roads.” Jensen smiled at her, pulling his keys from his pocket.
Five minutes later they were heading out the door, Jared’s hand slipping easily into Jensen’s as they crossed over to the Ackles driveway. “Chad’s gonna be okay now right?” Jared asked, stamping his feet on the half frozen cement while he waited for Jensen to unlock the door.
“Now that his dad’s gone? Yeah Jared, I think things are gonna be a lot different from him.” Jensen smiled softly over the top of the car at Jared and shrugged. “We should really still get him flowers though.”
“And balloons.”
“Oh and chocolate.”
“We’re the best friends ever.” Jared grinned and tugged the passenger door open, slipping in quickly and pulling it closed behind him.
“Chad, wake up.” Christian’s hand ran slowly down Chad’s side and even though he was mostly awake, he pretended to be asleep just a little while longer to enjoy the touch.
Plus, Christian’s bed was quite possibly the most comfortable thing ever invented.
“Chad, your friends are here.” Christian murmured, dipping down and gently pressing a kiss to Chad’s temple.
That was the magic words to have Chad’s eyes snapping open, his body twisting on the bed. “What? Why are they here?”
“Well from what I gathered from their overlapping explanation, Jensen and Jared saw the ambulance last night. Apparently they worried about you all night and when they found out you were in the hospital they decided to come here and tell me before going to see you. Of course they got here and I told them you were here.” Christian’s lips pursed for a moment before he sighed. “They all know about us huh?”
Chad flushed and looked down at his lap, slipping his fingers together slowly. “They just kind of figured it out. I told Mike though. I trust them all a lot okay? They won’t say anything, I know it.”
“We won’t-“ Christian sighed shakily and slowly nodded. “Alright but, I want some ground rules here. Try not to talk about our relationship too much. Don’t bring them in here to our bedroom; remember we’re going to keep your stuff in the guest room for that reason. And don’t be upset if I don’t want to act too coupley when they’re here at the house okay?”
“As long as you trust them, it’s all okay with me.” Chad nodded and weakly smiled at Christian. “They’re all I have besides you. I’ve got to cling to them too.”
Christian’s hand curved along Chad’s jaw, thumb sweeping over his skin before he slowly nodded. “I’ll trust them if you do.”
“Good.” Chad leaned into the touch, closing his eyes for a moment and breathing in deeply before nodding. “Do I look okay to see them?”
“You look fine.” Christian smiled softly, passing his hand up through Chad’s hair. “I think they know a lot of what happened to you. They all seem to be on the same page at least.”
“Four of them? Jared, Jensen, Mike and Misha?” Chad asked stepping over to the mirror and wincing at his reflection. There wouldn’t be any hiding what happened, that was for sure.
“Yeah, those four. Do you want to see them? I could tell them to come back tomorrow if it’s easier.” Christian came up behind him, sliding hand over the small of Chad’s back and rubbing in soothing, slow circles.
If all four were there and all on the same page, that meant Jared and Jensen had told Mike and Misha about the abuse. Though he didn’t blame them, it wasn’t the way he wanted them to find out. Of course, he’d rather no one find out but his currently beat up facial features weren’t going to go far to hide anything.
“No, it’s okay. I’ll see them now.” Chad nodded and turned into Christian’s embrace, kissing the corner of his mouth before stepping back. “Do you mind getting me some water?”
“Sure thing.” Christian smiled softly at him, respectfully keeping his distance. Chad wasn’t sure how they were going to not act like a couple in what should be their home but he thought maybe once Christian warmed up to them, he’d come around to the idea. Until then, it would just be another piece of the puzzle to balance.
However Jared tried to picture Chad looking, it was nothing like he really did. His face was all bruised, his lip cut and puffy, a slight limp to his steps. For a moment all they could do was stare then Jared snapped into it and stepped forward, closing the distance to Chad and wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. “Jesus, Chad.”
“Not too tight, asswipe.” Chad grumbled but there was a definite sniff after his words and Jared liked to pretend it was because he brought out the sap in Chad.
Jared pulled back and smiled uncertainly, stepping back so the others could join them. A smile tugged at his lip when Jensen and Chad awkwardly half hugged. Then Mike was giving Chad a big hug too and Misha - unsurprisingly - stepped closer and bumped their elbows together. It was all relatively normal, even if Jared was pretty sure he’d never seen Chad hug so many people at once, and well… the silence.
“What happened?” Jared finally asked, arms sliding across his chest. Jensen stepped up to his side and wrapped his arm around Jared’s waist, supportive and strong, another reason he was the best boyfriend over.
“Why don’t you all come and sit?” Mr. Kane came into the room with a glass of water and smiled softly at them, leading the way over to the couch.
Jared took a seat beside Jensen on the loveseat and Mike and Misha took part of the couch. Jared’s attention was caught by Mr. Kane taking Chad’s elbow and dipping in, saying something quietly in his ear. He watched the faint smile pull at Chad’s lips, and the way Chad’s hand came up to rest on Christian’s chest.
Finally he looked away because it was almost like stepping in on lovers in an intimate moment and when he looked over at Jensen, he could tell his boyfriend had seen and felt the same way. It sparked a million and one more questions in Jared’s mind. He wasn’t the best at being patient, especially not when someone like Chad came into the picture. He knew that Chad would keep whatever things secret that he felt were too much and frankly Jared hated that.
Something big had happened and it seemed like maybe Chad’s entire life had changed. Jared had screwed up, put his best friend’s life at risk by not telling any authority figure about the abuse, he was done with all the secrets.
“What happened, Chad?” Mike was the first when Chad finally sat on the couch and Mr. Kane took his leave.
Jared was relieved that Mr. Kane was giving them all some time alone because no matter what he was to Chad, he was still their teacher and he wasn’t really at the point where he could pretend to be comfortable talking around him normally. It was like talking with your parents in the room, there were only certain things you’d really be able to say.
All the attention was getting to Chad, Jared could see the way he was shifting uncomfortable and he instantly wished he was on the couch to comfort him. Only Chad wasn’t that kind of person, you didn’t comfort him like that and so it was obviously better he wasn’t. Still, Mike’s leg fell to the side and his knee pressed against Chad’s and Chad definitely didn’t move away.
“My dad died last night.” Chad finally said, looked up at them and frowning slightly. “I guess you guys know that huh?”
“Mostly,” Jared agreed with a nod, wetting his lips uncertainly. How did you even begin approaching this subject with your friend when the last time you tried to talk about it you were practically threatened? “My mom said there was an accident.”
"Yeah, it was. He kicked my ass than fell down the stairs." Chad shrugged like it was no big deal, tugging the pillow out from under him and clutching it tightly.
Jared knew what he was doing, the Chad shock and surprise moment. Like he thought they wouldn't be able to hear the truth without freaking out. Only they all knew the truth already. Jared and Jensen had told Mike and Misha before for this very reason. This time there wasn’t going to be a way to back out of the truth; Jared was going to be there to support his friend.
Which didn’t necessarily mean they knew what to say now to make it okay.
“Why are you here?” Misha finally asked after a far too long uncomfortable silence.
Everyone looked at Misha for a moment before slowly looking at Chad. Yeah, that was a pretty good question. After all, Chad’s mom had been on her way to get him before. “Does your mom know you’re here?”
“My mom doesn’t care.” Chad shrugged and when Jensen scoffed softly, his gaze shifted up. “Do you think I’m lying? I’m not. This isn’t some game to get attention and sympathy. It’s just truth, cold hard fact. My mom doesn’t care where I am or who I’m with, as long as I don’t ruin her perfect little reputation. Christian’s letting me stay here because he actually gives a damn.”
Jared frowned, glancing over at Jensen then Misha and Mike. Lastly his gaze landed on Chad, feeling guilty for feeling hurt by Chad’s words. “We care. Any of us would have let you stay with us. We would have come to see you last night but we didn’t even know what was happening.”
Surprisingly, Chad’s expression softened and he looked up at Jared, nodding slowly. “I know Jared. I know you’d all do that for me. It’s complicated though, my mom… well; your parents would all ask these questions. She made it pretty clear she didn’t want me living with friends. And I…” his voice lowered to a whisper, head turning so he could peer down the hall before looking back. “I want to be here.”
“Who could blame you?” Misha muttered, looking up quickly as he realized what he’d said. There was a beat or two of silence before they were all laughing, the tension of the room dissolving with the amusement.
There was a clattering in the hallway, nails skittering on hard wood floor. Then suddenly Jared had a lap full of black lap and his grin grew. “Mr. Kane has a dog?! Look how big he is! Aw he’s so cute.”
“Ickis!” Mr. Kane came around the corner, smiling at them. “Sorry, I was trying to keep him from running in here. He’s a big people dog.”
“He’s adorable. Ickis?” Jared looked up at his teacher, studying him for a moment. He wasn’t sure if he could ever think of him as more than just a teacher, it would certainly take him awhile to think of him as Chad’s boyfriend.
Chad’s boyfriend. Yeah, definitely weird.
“Yeah, Oblina is around her too.” Chad added, turning slightly. “She’s people shy.”
“And Krum?” Mike supplied without missing a beat.
Chad’s grin grew and Jared’s matched it. Even Jensen was smiling at this. When they were all younger, still friends before the fall out, they’d watched AAahh real monsters!!!. The fact that Mr. Kane would have pets named after the characters was more than a little ironic.
“That’s the turtle.” Mr. Kane explained and held up his phone. “Chad needs to eat some so I was going to order some pizza, you guys sticking around for lunch?”
“Do we have to call you Mr. Kane?” Mike asked, glancing over his shoulder at the man.
There was another beat of silence followed by laughter and Jared was admittedly a little relieved to see Mr. Kane laughing too. “I think here in our house you can call me Christian. We don’t have to have a conversation about keeping things quiet right? For Chad’s and my safety?”
“No, let’s really not.” Jensen shook his head roughly, grasping Jared’s hand. “We totally get it and won’t say anything at all.”
“Thank god.” Christian muttered and looked around at them all for a moment before shaking his head and walking out of the room.
Before he left though, Jared watched his hand, fingers just barely running through the back of Chad’s hair. It was weird but cute and sweet and Jared felt a little reassured that Christian was there to look after him. It suddenly seemed to make a lot more sense as to why Chad had settled so easily on moving here. Who wouldn’t want someone like Christian to take care of them?
Glancing over at Jensen, his smile grew. Alright, he’d rather not have someone like Christian, he’d be just fine with the boy he had.
"Hey Chad," Jared smiled softly over at him until Chad looked his way. "I think it's going to work out, you know, you being here but if for some reason... well you can just come stay with me if you need to okay?"
"Me too." Jensen nodded quickly, smiling at Chad just as warmly.
"Ditto." Mike added, patting Chad's knee.
"I'd say me too but there's a baby there and well you might not like getting woken up at night." Misha shrugged and smiled over at Chad.
For a few moments it didn't seem like Chad knew how to react. His face was blank as he looked between them all. Then tears glistened at his eyes and he looked down, blinking a few times. Jared wasn’t really sure what to think, he’d never really seen Chad cry and it threw him for a loop.
When Chad looked back up he scoffed, shaking his head and rubbing at his eyes. “God you guys are so gay.”
It was so very Chad that they all couldn’t help laughing. Jared had the feeling that no matter what happened now, they’d all be okay. It was a little refreshing really, and he couldn’t help launching off the loveseat and making a dive for Chad.
It didn’t take long for everyone else to join them, creating a big dog pile hug with Chad right in the middle. They were all still laughing, slumped over each other in the middle of their English teacher’s living room.
“Hey did you guys know that mosquitoes have teeth?” Mike said as the laughter died down, his voice muffled somewhere under Misha’s body.
“Good to know.” Chad muttered back and Jared twisted around, enough to see the boy’s grin.
Yeah, they could definitely do that.
Let Me Hold You While You’re Falling Apart
Master Post