Forty-Three Days (2/9)
Nov. 19th, 2008 07:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
timehasa_wayChapter 1: Sound and Vision
Chapter 2: Blood and Dust
Jensen stumbled, his back hitting the living room wall to his left when Jared shoved him in the house, and he slowly slid down it, collapsing on the floor, his leg throbbing. He flinched and shouted when he heard barking inside the house, then relaxed when Jared hurriedly assured him that it was only Harley and Sadie.
“You believe me now?!” Jensen spat from his spot on the floor, watching Jared finish lining the front door with the goofer dust in the pouch. Jared didn’t take the time to respond, but faltered slightly in his step as he rushed off to finish lining the windows and the back door.
Jensen leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes, trying to catch his breath. Once again, just like that night in Gerard’s, he instantly regretted the words that had just left his mouth. Jared had just saved his life, and Jensen was still lashing out at him, his thoughts and emotions so mixed up they even surprised him sometimes.
High-pitched whining accompanied a wet tongue sliding along his cheek, and he blindly reached out a hand, patting soft fur. He flinched away when he felt one of the dogs sniffing at his injured leg and opened his eyes, able to recognize the large, blurry, floppy-eared shape in front of him.
“Harley, no,” he said quietly, weakness suddenly flooding his body.
The big dog turned to look at him, tail wagging slightly, and was suddenly pushed aside by Sadie, who immediately came up to Jensen and planted herself in his lap, licking dried tears off of his face. The position she took kept her weight off of his clawed leg, as if she was mindful of the damage that had been done. Jensen smiled in spite of himself and patted her head.
“Good girl.”
“Sadie, down!” Jared was back at his side, drawing the pouch closed. Sadie turned her big brown eyes on Jared and whined.
“It’s okay,” Jensen breathed, eyes closing again, fingers scratching behind Sadie’s ears. “She’s not hurting me.”
“Not much dust left,” Jared announced, leaning over to take a look at Jensen’s bloodied leg. “Oh, God. Shit. These look kinda deep, what if you need a hospital?”
“Can’t,” Jensen replied tiredly, forcing his eyes open to look up at Jared. “Just gotta patch it up. Can’t leave. Can’t go out there.”
“Okay.” Jared nodded, his own chest still heaving. “Okay. I’ll be right back. Don’t move.”
Jared returned with an armful of supplies for first aid, this time shooing Sadie off of Jensen’s lap so he’d have enough room to work on Jensen’s leg.
“Sure you wanna do this here?” Jensen asked, cracking an eye open. “I’m bleeding all over your floor, dude.”
“I don’t wanna move you yet,” Jared replied, gently lifting Jensen’s leg and sliding a towel under it. “I can clean it up later.”
Silence settled over them as Jared worked on Jensen’s leg, cutting away the shredded denim, cleaning the wounds and wrapping them. Jensen did his best to ignore the pain, instead falling prey to his exhaustion. It had been too long since he’d eaten or slept like he used to, the scotch he’d begun consuming on a regular basis far less than an ideal replacement. His body was rebelling against him, more so now that his mind was finally in a less frantic state. He was still mentally fucked, of course, but he had company now, and said company had just saved him from almost certain death. For the first time since before the break, he felt the tiniest bit of relief creeping into his system. He knew it would be short-lived, and he breathed deeply, savoring the feeling.
“Jensen?” Jared’s voice crept into his thoughts just as he had begun to drift off to sleep. “You still with me, man?”
“I am now,” Jensen said quietly, his eyes opening to tired slits. He swallowed, able to discern Jared’s pale complexion and shaky hands even without contacts, a nasty bruise standing out in stark contrast where Jensen had punched him. “…Did all of that really just happen?”
“I think it did,” Jared breathed, staring at him. “Jesus, Jensen. You’re not crazy.”
“I know,” Jensen replied, staring back at him.
“I’m sorry,” Jared apologized, shaking his head and looking away, “I should’ve-”
“Don’t,” Jensen cut him off. “Don’t even. I should be the one apologizing, and we both know it.” Jared cast him a meaningful glance, jaw set. Jensen rubbed a hand over his face. “I put you through hell, man. I expected way too much from you after treating you like shit, and then you still come through, and I fucking punch you in the face.”
“And almost make it impossible for me to make babies,” Jared added, somehow managing to look thoughtful while grimacing and grabbing at his inner right thigh.
“Oh, God,” Jensen sputtered, gaping at Jared in horror, guilt tightening his chest. “Jesus, Jared, I didn’t mean to, I had no idea what I was doing…”
“I’m fine,” Jared laughed, making Jensen pause in his apology. “I mean, it hurts like hell, but don’t worry. I’m still 100% man.”
“I think that’s up for debate,” Jensen said, smiling and laughing lightly for the first time in what felt like years. But their smiles faded fast, the gravity of the situation taking over. “That was a cheap shot, though, wasn’t it?”
“Not in this situation,” Jared shook his head, “You were scared. And I’m fine. It’s okay.”
“I’m sorry, Jared,” Jensen said, voice thick. “I’m sorry for everything. I’ve been a real dick the past couple of months. I’m lucky you’re even here.”
“So, this is what’s been wrong with you the whole time?” Jared asked, changing the subject a bit, needing to know the truth.
“Yeah,” Jensen nodded, swallowing a grunt of pain, his leg still throbbing angrily. “Man, I saw doctors, called the cops, I did everything. I just…didn’t wanna believe, you know?”
Jared nodded and left the room, returning almost instantly with a glass of water and a bottle of Tylenol, handing the items over to Jensen.
“You look like you’re still in pain,” Jared said. “Leave it to me to forget the meds. Don’t know how much good Tylenol will do you, though.”
“It’ll do fine, thanks,” Jensen assured him, spilling a few pills out into his palm and gulping them down with the water. “Thank you for everything,” Jensen added sincerely. “I think you just saved my life.”
“I’m just glad I was able to,” Jared replied. “Scared the shit out of me. So’d your dash out into traffic.” He paused, blinking rapidly and looking away. “You know, I’ve watched you die a million times on set. But watching you come so close in real life…” Jared trailed off, and Jensen nodded slowly.
“I know. I’d feel the same way if it were you.”
“Come on.” Jared cleared his throat and patted Jensen on the shoulder. “Let me help you up and over to the couch.”
Jared moved the glass of water and the bottle of Tylenol to the coffee table, coming back to crouch down beside Jensen. He reached under Jensen’s left arm, looping his own arm around Jensen’s body, Jensen’s arm wrapped around his shoulders, and helped to lift Jensen up on his left leg.
“You know,” Jared huffed, trying to ignore the pain in his own leg, “I could probably carry you.”
“As romantic as that would be,” Jensen said, keeping his right leg elevated and leaning his weight slightly over onto Jared, “I think I would kill you.”
Jared laughed and gingerly walked Jensen over to the couch, setting him down on it carefully, Jensen propping his leg up on the coffee table.
“How’s the pain?” Jared sat down next to him.
“Sucks,” Jensen answered, allowing his eyes to slide closed again. “But I’ll live.” He shifted uneasily. “I just don’t know for how long.”
“Jensen,” Jared placed a hand on Jensen’s arm, feeling it shaking slightly beneath his fingers, “We’ll figure this out. I promise. You’re safe here, anyways.”
“Yeah, but I can’t stay here forever.”
“Yeah.” Jared paused, squeezing Jensen’s arm in his grasp. “Yeah, you can. If that’s what it takes to keep you alive, you can stay here forever. I’m not gonna let my best friend be torn apart by Hellhounds.”
“Thanks for the image, Jared.” Jensen grimaced. “You’re an awesome friend.”
“…And I promise to bring you porn. Lots and lots of porn.”
“Ah!” Jensen grinned widely. “Forget friend, you’re family. But there’s one problem,” he said, opening his eyes and pointing towards the goofer dust on the floor. “You can’t open the doors.”
Jared frowned. He wouldn’t be bringing Jensen much of anything if he couldn’t leave the house. And, at some point, he’d have to. A yip at the back of the house from one of the dogs made Jared groan and roll his eyes. Nothing could ever be easy.
“Hey, Jare,” Jensen said, trying to keep his tone amused but failing to keep the worry out of it, “I think one of your dogs has to take a shit.”
“Thanks for the enlightenment, Jensen.” Jared turned to him, studying him for a moment. Sighing, he leaned back against the couch. “We’re gonna have to move you.” He felt Jensen fidget nervously next to him.
“Where to?”
“You can have my bed,” Jared decided. “You’ll need it to rest and let your leg heal, anyway.”
“What?” Jensen asked, his eyes wide. “Jared, no. No, man, I’m…I’m screwing things up enough for you as it is. I’m not gonna take your bed from you.”
“Yes, you are,” Jared insisted, already standing. “I’ll drop the rest of the dust around it, and you’ll be safe there.”
“Jare-”
“I’m not arguing, dude.” Jared moved around the table to Jensen’s other side. “I’ll fuckin’ carry you if I have to.” He returned Jensen’s glare with a smile and a wave.
“I’ll kick your ass,” Jensen growled.
“You can try,” Jared countered. “But you know how well that worked for you earlier.”
Jared felt bad when Jensen actually looked offended. The guy had enough shit going wrong, and now Jared was basically calling him a pussy. He was joking, but still. Jensen didn’t take those kinds of jokes lightly. In fact, Jensen prided himself on his strength, always happy to boast about how well he’d done when taking on the stunt guys on set. He bristled when anything concerning his physical abilities was insulted, whether jokingly or otherwise. Jared knew that, and had never flaunted his own size and strength to Jensen, until now. Another yip sounded from the back door, followed by whining.
“Look,” Jared sighed, “I’m just gonna stand here until you agree with me, and if we wait much longer, both of my dogs are gonna shit on my floor. Are you willing to deal with the consequences?”
Jensen brightened, actually smiling again, and Jared felt his own spirits lift. Jensen looked up at him and lifted his arm, reluctantly giving in. Jared immediately ducked down, and wrapped his arm around Jensen the same way he had before, helping to lift him off the couch. Jensen squeezed his shoulder, and he knew that all was forgiven.
They were both out of breath and in pain when they finally reached the top of the stairs, Jensen pausing to lean on the railing, waiting for the throb in his leg to lessen. Jared leaned over to peek at Jensen’s leg, noticing that blood was seeping through the bandages he’d placed over the claw marks. He tightened his grip on Jensen and urged him forward, eager to check and take care of those wounds.
They made it to the bedroom, Jared moving the bed out from the wall a bit before dropping the rest of the dust in a wide circle around it. Jensen settled back on the mattress, leg propped up on some extra pillows. He laid there resting while Jared rushed around the house, collecting the rest of the dust from the doors and windows to reinforce the circle around the bed and letting the dogs out. When Jared returned, he carried a laptop into the room with him, plugging it into the wall, and sitting down on the bed next to Jensen.
“What’s that for?” Jensen asked, nodding towards the laptop.
“Research,” Jared answered, fidgeting slightly. “And not just about Hellhounds. I wanna check up on some stuff about your leg.”
“You seem nervous,” Jensen stated worriedly, seeing Jared stealing glances at his wounded leg. “Why are you so nervous?”
“You’re still bleeding pretty badly,” Jared admitted. “It’s soaking through the bandages I already put on there.”
“Really?” Jensen gulped, chuckling nervously. “Am I complete wuss for being too afraid to look?”
“Your secret’s safe with me.”
Jensen flinched away when Jared suddenly placed a hand on his forehead, but he couldn’t move far enough. Jared’s hand pressed against his forehead and cheek before traveling down to his wrist to feel for his pulse.
“What are you doing?”
“Are you dizzy?”
“You shouldn’t answer a question with a question, dude.”
“Are you dizzy?” Jared persisted.
“No.”
“Short of breath?”
“No.”
“Confused?”
“Hell yeah,” Jensen chuckled. “What’s with the rundown?”
“I’m just checking your symptoms,” Jared answered, eyes on the laptop screen. “Your skin isn’t clammy, your pulse is fine…you don’t look pale…you are weak.”
“Thanks!” Jensen slapped Jared lightly on the arm. “I think that might have something to do with the past two months.”
“Yeah.” Jared closed the laptop, pushing it aside. “You don’t look like you’ve been taking very good care of yourself. When was the last time you ate? I mean, a full meal.”
“Honestly?” Jensen sighed. “I don’t really remember.”
“Well,” Jared stood, stepping over the circle of dust, “I ordered some pizzas. You need to get your strength back. And I need to get some more stuff to bandage up your leg with.” Just then, the doorbell rang, the dogs barking from the backyard. “Speaking of…”
Jared left the room and walked down the stairs to the front door, pausing in front of it. He looked down at the floor, suddenly feeling the absence of the goofer dust. A chill ran through his body when he realized that he was literally about to let a Hellhound in through the front door, the blood staining the carpet beside him a reminder of what exactly that meant. The bell rang again. He hesitated, reassuring himself that Jensen was safe, protected by the circle around the bed. Reaching for the doorknob, he noticed that his hands were shaking. He opened the door, his hands shaking more violently as he turned to look back at the stairs, his heart racing. He tensed, half expecting to hear a scream from Jensen, ready to tear back up the steps and into the bedroom. Hearing nothing, he turned to the delivery guy, offering him a shaky smile.
“Hey,” he greeted, swallowing the lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat. He ignored the questioning look he received in return, reaching for his wallet and pulling out a few bills. “Uh…yeah…here you go,” he handed the bills over quickly, grabbing the pizzas and soda, and moving to close the door. “Keep the change.”
Once the door was closed, he set the two-liter bottle of Pepsi on the floor and leaned back against it, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Balancing the pizzas on one hand, he walked to the back of the house, letting the dogs back in. Under normal circumstances, they’d be jumping up on him, sniffing at the pizza boxes, begging for some scraps. But dread settled in his chest when both Harley and Sadie slowed as they entered the house, bodies lowering to the ground, hackles raised. They alternately growled and whimpered, moving into the living room and fixing their eyes on the stairs.
“Jensen!” Jared forced the shout through his tightening throat muscles, dropping the pizza boxes and sprinting up the stairs, barely noticing the spark of pain in his thigh.
He ran to the bedroom, unsure what to expect. His eyes were on the floor as he neared the open doorway, picking out the thick circle of goofer dust, noting that the portion he could see was still intact. Turning in to the room, he saw Jensen on the bed, raised up on his elbows, completely unharmed. He was vaguely aware of an embarrassing noise of overwhelming relief escaping his lips, but he froze when he took in Jensen’s expression.
Jensen sat rigid on the bed, leaning back on his elbows, his wide-eyed stare fixed on an intangible figure to Jared’s left. From where he was standing, Jared could see that Jensen was shivering.
“It’s in here?” Jared asked hoarsely.
Jensen merely nodded, never taking his eyes off of the invisible Hellhound. Jared cautiously stepped over the circle of dust, sitting on the bed and blocking Jensen’s view.
“It can’t get you,” Jared said, willing the tremble to stay out of his voice. When Jensen turned fearful eyes on Jared, Jared met his gaze and held it, attempting complete confidence. “It can’t cross that circle. You’re safe here.”
Jensen blinked and swallowed, nodding again. He broke eye contact and cleared his throat before speaking.
“Did you get the pizza?”
“I…” Jared blanked for a moment, completely forgetting that he’d even ordered food. “Yeah,” he said, welcoming the change in the subject. “Yeah, I, uh…I left it downstairs. I’ll be right back.”
Jensen watched Jared leave the room, then closed his eyes. The occasional growl sent fresh chills down his spine, and his fingers clenched into the mattress. He breathed deeply, knowing that he’d have to get used to this, learn to block it out, if he was going to last until they found a way to fix this. It was easier said then done, the throb in his leg a reminder of his last encounter with a Hellhound.
“Hey.”
Jared’s voice broke into his thoughts, and Jensen did his best to scoot over and hoist his body up into some semblance of a sitting position while still keeping his leg elevated on the pillows. Once Jared was settled, the extra space on the bed was taken up by the laptop, the two pizza boxes, and more bandages. Jensen’s stomach flip-flopped when Jared handed him a slice, and he hesitated.
“I don’t know if I can,” he spoke softly. “I’m just…I’m too…”
“I know,” Jared interrupted. “But you should. You need to get your strength back up.”
Jensen reluctantly accepted the slice, forcing himself to take a bite and keep it down. Soon enough, he was surprising himself by scarfing down his fourth slice, chasing it with gulps of Pepsi.
“Damn, dude,” Jared laughed, tightening new bandages around the old ones on Jensen’s leg. “You’re actually eating like Dean. Or, dare I say it, me.”
“Mm, no.” Jensen shook his head, licking at a stray gob of cheese in the corner of his mouth. “No one eats like you do.” He shoved the rest of the slice in his mouth, speaking with a mouthful of crust. “Jesus Christ, this is some good pizza!”
“Yeah, it is.” Jared patted Jensen’s leg softly, then tossed the medical supplies on the floor, grabbing another slice of his own out of the box.
“I mean it,” Jensen said, swallowing his food. “Not eating for a couple of months really makes this shit taste like Heaven.”
“Good.” Jared hastily swallowed the remainder of his slice. “I’m thinking I can go out to the drug store, and pick up some heavier meds for you, now that you have something substantial in your stomach. Let me ask you something.” He brushed his hands together, tossing crumbs onto the floor. “You took that dust from set, right?”
“Yeah,” Jensen said, leaning back and closing his eyes, exhaustion hitting him again now that his stomach was full. “I took it back before we left.”
“Really?” Jared’s brow furrowed in confusion. “I thought you said you didn’t want to believe?”
“I didn’t.” Jensen shrugged. “But I guess some part of me just felt paranoid enough to take it. You know, just in case. On some level, I knew what it really was. I felt like such a dumbass, and I figured I’d never need it, but…this all turned out to be real.”
“Did you take anything else?” Jared could see Jensen thinking, and was just about to make a crack about smelling wood burning when Jensen’s eyes flew open.
“I did! You know that stuff that Bela had in that one episode, towards the end?” When Jared stared at him cluelessly, Jensen rolled his eyes. Usually he was the one who had trouble remembering things, not Jared. “The branches or whatever that were above the door,” he said, pointing to the bedroom door. Jared’s eyes lit up.
“Right! That could help you, couldn’t it?” Jensen nodded. “Where is it?”
“My apartment,” Jensen replied, following Jared’s line of thought and immediately reaching into his pocket for his keys. Jared grabbed them and stood, carefully stepping over the circle.
“I’ll be quick,” he assured, walking toward the door. “I’m gonna close this just incase. I don’t want the dogs to end up coming in and disturbing the dust around the bed…or you.” Jared smiled when he saw Jensen’s eyelids fall to half-mast. “You get some sleep.”
He watched Jensen’s eyes close, body relaxing into the mattress. It brought him a certain sense of satisfaction that he could make Jensen feel so secure after the craziness of the past two months that he was finally getting some sleep. Jared closed the door as quietly as he could, heading downstairs and grabbing his keys, ready to hop in his Denali and drive over to Jensen’s place.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Devil’s Shoestring.”
Jared stopped in the doorway, expecting to find Jensen asleep in the bed. Instead, Jensen was very much awake and on Jared’s laptop. He dragged a large suitcase in behind him and dropped a small carry-on and two plastic shopping bags on the floor.
“What?”
“Devil’s Shoestring,” Jensen repeated. “Used by Bela in episode 3.15, ‘Time is On My Side,’ to keep Hellhounds at bay. That’s what I had at my apartment.” He paused, staring at the bags Jared had just brought in. “You leaving the country?”
“No!” Jared answered in frustration, pulling the suitcase in and setting it up in the corner of the room. “You’re awake.”
“Nah, I usually have full conversations with other people when I’m asleep.”
“Wow.” Jared raised an eyebrow. “You really are channeling Dean.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Jensen set the laptop next to him on the bed and stretched. “I did take a nap, but I woke up a little bit ago, did some research. What took you so long?”
“Well, while I was at your apartment, I decided to pack some other stuff for you.” He motioned towards the suitcase and carry-on. “I found your luggage, figured I’d get you set up for staying here for a little while.” He cleared his throat and reached for one of the shopping bags when Jensen gave him a look of pure admiration. “I also stopped at the drug store…” He laughed when Jensen immediately held his hands out, and tossed the bag over to him.
“Dude.” Jensen reached in the bag and pulled out a small orange and white bottle, holding it up. “Motrin?”
“What?” Jared shifted on his feet, hands on his hips.
“This is your ‘heavier pain medication?’”
“It’s Ibuprofen!” Jared said defensively, pointing at the bottle.
“Chicks take this for…” Jensen paused, pulling the bottle close and squinting at it for a few seconds before holding it up again, pointing to a particular spot on the label. “Menstrual cramps!”
“Well,” Jared grinned, “You are bleeding.”
“Oh!” Jensen balked. “That’s gross, dude.”
“Anyway…” Jared opened the carry-on and pulled the Devil’s Shoestring out of it, picking up the other shopping bag and joining Jensen on the bed. “I was thinking that we need to find a way for you to be able to leave this bed.”
“Yeah,” Jensen agreed, swallowing a few of the new pills. “I was starting to get worried about that. Pretty soon, I’m gonna have to piss, and that won’t be pretty.”
“You could always go in the empty soda bottle,” Jared suggested, holding the bottle up and shaking it around.
“Would you be willing to dispose of it for me?”
“So, I stopped at an arts and crafts store on the way home,” Jared said, changing the subject. He reached in the shopping bag and pulled out stretch cords, string, a hole punch, and quite a few packs of clear beads.
“Wow.” Jensen blinked and stared at Jared in disbelief. “First Motrin, and now this.”
“Shut up,” Jared said, opening the packs of beads. “It’s totally not gay. And I’ll show you why in a few minutes. Trust me, this is the best idea I’ve ever had.”
“Whatever.”
Jensen watched as Jared grabbed one of the tiny beads in his hands, dropping it a number of times before finally fitting it into the hole punch and squeezing. A pop sounded in the room, and Jared smiled sheepishly as bits of bead flew off the bed.
“Good thing I bought extras.”
“Yeah…Are you seriously trying to punch holes in those things?”
Jared grabbed another bead and handed it to Jensen
“You see this little line right here?” He pointed to the bead. Jensen squinted, grabbing Jared’s wrist and pulling the bead up close, almost directly in front of his eyes.
“Yeah, no, that’s totally visible.”
“Hang on.” Jared stood and walked over to the carry-on, squatting and searching through it for a minute. Finding what he wanted, he walked back over to the bed. “Here.”
“Oh.” Jensen took the glasses Jared handed him, sliding them on. “Thanks, man. It was hell trying to read shit on your laptop earlier.”
“I have your contacts,” Jared said, gesturing back to Jensen’s luggage. “I didn’t even realize you weren’t wearing them. If you’d prefer those…”
“No,” Jensen answered, shaking his head. “These are fine, thanks. I haven’t worn those things in ages.”
“I thought your vision was crap without them,” Jared said, frowning.
“It is.” Jensen shrugged. “But I can make out enough to do what I have to do. It’s just, when something like this is going on, vision doesn’t seem like much of a gift, you know?” He ignored the pitying look Jared gave him and stared at the bead again. “Okay, so, the line?”
“Right.” Jared sat down next to him. “I’m thinking if I can put the right amount of pressure on it, it’ll break along that connecting line.”
“And?” Jensen asked, handing the bead back over to Jared.
“You’ll see.” Jared took the bead and squeezed it in the hole punch, groaning in frustration when it broke again. “If I can ever do it right.”
“Can I try?” Jensen held his hand out, and Jared dropped another bead and the hole punch into his hand. He put it in and began to squeeze, applying pressure to the line Jared had pointed it out. He stopped when he heard a crack, thinking he’d broken another one. Pulling it out of the hole punch, he lifted it up, seeing that it had begun to separate along the line. Carefully pulling it apart, he handed the two halves to Jared, placing them in his open palm. “How come you couldn’t pull that off?” he teased.
“I’m not a fucking girl, alright?” Jared complained, sticking his tongue out.
“Apparently, I am!” Jensen smiled, holding up the bottle of Motrin.
Jared laughed, bending to take a look at Jensen’s leg.
“Looks like the second bandage is doing the trick. I don’t see you bleeding through. How’s the pain?”
“As much as I hate to admit it, I think this cramp shit is actually working.” He set the bottle back down. “Better than the Tylenol, anyway. Instead of feeling like I was torn apart by a Hellhound, I just feel like I had a major accident with a tractor.”
He watched in silence as Jared carefully pulled the Devil’s Shoestring apart, crumbling tiny pieces into the broken bead. He tensed when Jared bent to pick up some of the goofer dust from the circle around the bed. But Jared only took a bit off the edge, then dropped it into the bead, as well.
Jared opened the super glue, then grabbed some of the string, gluing the bead so that it closed over the thread. Jensen watched in curious fascination as Jared worked, cracking, filling, and gluing beads (and cursing when he managed to glue his fingers to the beads and each other more than once). Getting the idea, he reached over for some supplies, the two of them working together in silence, filling the string and the stretch cords with beads. By the time they were finished, they’d created four bracelets and a necklace.
“Two of these are anklets,” Jared said, holding up one of the smaller rings of stretch cord.
Jensen raised an eyebrow, but didn’t question him, pulling the two bracelets over his wrists. He waited while Jared pulled Jensen’s shoes off, careful not to jar his leg, and slid the anklets over his feet.
“Last part.” Jared grabbed the string of the long, beaded necklace. “Let’s see if we got this right.” He reached around Jensen’s neck, tying the string in place. Pulling back, he checked to make sure the beads hung low enough to cover Jensen’s heart and smiled. “Perfect! What’s wrong?” he asked when Jensen shifted uncomfortably.
“Nothing,” Jensen said. “Just weird, you know? Like…being taken care of like this. I hate being laid up like this, man.”
“You’ll be on your feet soon enough,” Jared assured. “We should…test this stuff out, right?”
They shared a nervous glance between them. Neither of them had any idea if this was going to work or not. It was quite a risk to step over that circle if it didn’t. Jensen gulped and nodded, pulling himself up. Jared was immediately at his side, helping him to stand and taking some of his weight.
“You know you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”
“Yes, I do,” Jensen said shakily. “It’s our only plan. I have to at least try.”
Despite what he’d just said, he froze behind the circle, hearing the growl start up again. He kept his eyes on the floor, not wanting to see the Hellhound. He may not be able to do this if he did. Jared waited behind him, hands on his arms, keeping silent. When Jensen finally moved, Jared moved with him, never letting go of his arms, ready to pull him back if something happened.
Jensen stepped over the circle, eyes lifting when both feet were firmly planted on the floor outside the protective dust. He felt Jared’s grip tighten when he started shaking, his heart pounding in his chest. Demonic red eyes were fixed on him, the dark bulk of a Hellhound slinking closer. He flinched hard when it lunged towards him, his breath catching in his throat.
“Jensen!” Jared took hold of him, beginning to lift him back over the circle.
“No, no, no, wait!” Jared settled him back to the floor, and Jensen stared in disbelief at the Hellhound in front of him. It stalked back and forth, keeping a safe distance, growling in frustration. “It’s okay,” he breathed, pulse slowing to a more normal rhythm. “It can’t get me.”
“So it worked?” Jared asked, shifting behind Jensen and loosening his grip. Jensen nodded.
“Yeah…Yeah, I think so.” He slowly began hobbling out of the room and into the hallway.
“What are you doing?” Jared asked nervously.
“We still have some of that Devil’s Shoestring left, right?” Jensen turned back to look at him.
“Yeah.”
“It’ll follow me out of the room,” Jensen said, keeping his eye on the beast falling in step with him. “Put it over the door, maybe over the windows, if you have enough left. It’s better protection.”
Jared nodded, waiting for Jensen’s signal to close the door a bit, reaching up and securing the Devil’s Shoestring over it. Moving to the windows, he set some of it on the sills.
“Done!” he called out, and Jensen reentered the room, turning to watch the Hellhound stop in front of an invisible barrier.
“It worked. Wow.” he let out a huge sigh of relief, then turned to Jared. “Man…Jared, I don’t know how to thank you.”
Jared waved him off, then sniffed and made a face.
“You can thank me by taking this opportunity to shower.”
Jensen couldn’t help the grin that spread over his face.
“Bitch.”
“Jerk.”
“You’re right, though,” Jensen admitted. “I probably do stink. We’ve already acknowledged that I couldn’t handle myself the past two months. Still,” he lifted his injured leg, pointing to it, “How am I supposed to shower with these bandages?”
Jared frowned before his eyes lit up, holding up a finger as a signal for Jensen to wait, then left the room. Jensen smiled as he watched Jared disappear down the stairs.
“Another wonderful Padalecki plan,” he muttered to himself.
A few minutes later, Jared returned, a thin rectangular box in his hand. Jensen eyed the box warily, eyes going wide when Jared reached inside and rolled its contents out, snapping it on the serrated edge of the opening.
“Dude!” He held his hands up in protest. “We are not going to saran wrap my leg.”
“Why not?” Jared’s arms dropped to his sides, the box smacking against his thigh. “This is the best idea I’ve ever had!”
“That’s what you said about the beads! And, you know, granted, they worked like a charm, but what is with you, man? What are you, Inspector Gadget all of a sudden?”
“That would be MacGyver,” Jared said, holding the box up in front of his face and rolling a substantial amount of saran wrap out of it. He paused, thinking. “Which would actually be pretty fitting, considering my past projects.”
“That show didn’t even get picked up, dude.”
“Yeah,” Jared narrowed his eyes at Jensen, “But not because I wasn’t awesome. Now take off your pants.” Jensen gaped at him. “What? It’s like plastic, the water won’t get through, the bandages won’t get wet, your leg will be saved. And you can get cleaned up, which, trust me, will do us both a world of good.”
Jensen wordlessly hobbled over to Jared and snatched the saran wrap out of his hands.
“If I’m gonna do this,” he reluctantly started, “I can do it myself.” He held a hand up when Jared began to protest. “Before I wrap myself, I’ll need to take everything off; jeans and boxers. And as close as we are,” he tapped the box against Jared’s chest, “I don’t want you staring at my junk.”
“Please.” Jared inclined his head, adopting a haughty air. “Why would I have to stare at anyone else’s junk?”
Jensen’s eyes twinkled with amusement, and he stepped back, pretending to look Jared up and down.
“Touché.”
He took his glasses off, tossing them onto the bed. On his way to the bathroom, Jared stopped him, handing him the small carry-on.
“I grabbed some stuff from your place. Things you’d need, like your shampoo and stuff. I figured you might prefer them so…”
“Aww!” Jensen took the bag. “Jared, you’re so sweet. Maybe I will let you stare at my junk now.”
“Get your shower,” Jared laughed, swatting him on the shoulder. “And let me know if you need help.”
“I will,” Jensen said, locking eyes with Jared, hoping his expression was enough to convey just how grateful he was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Come on, guys!”
Jared sat on the floor, dejectedly rolling a tennis ball over it while holding an ice pack over his swollen cheekbone. Jensen could really pack a punch when he wanted to. Sadie and Harley stared at the ball, but didn’t move from their spots next to him, two half-eaten bowls of dog food still sitting in the kitchen. He sighed, leaning forward and rubbing his face.
“I know I can’t expect you to understand what I’m about to say,” he muttered aloud, “But I really need you to be normal right now.”
He brightened a bit when Sadie walked in the direction the ball had rolled. But his shoulders slumped when she walked past it, standing at the bottom of the stairs, her large ears moving back and forth. He stood when she barked, walking over and patting her head.
“What is it, girl?”
He smirked to himself when the thought, “Timmy fell down the well,” ran through his head. Moving halfway up the stairs, he could still hear the water running in the shower. Then, suddenly, beneath it,
“JARED!!”
Jared sprinted up the remaining stairs, dropping the ice pack along the way, and burst through the bathroom door, Jensen pulling the shower curtain back a bit to talk to him.
“What’s wrong?” Jared asked, Jensen looking flushed and pained, bracing himself against the shower walls.
“Can you,” Jensen gasped, wincing, “Turn the water off, and hand me a towel? Please?”
Jared nodded, moving to the other end of the shower, pulling the curtain back slightly, and shutting the water off. Grabbing a fresh towel off the rack, he reached in, handing it over to Jensen.
“I can’t stand much longer,” Jensen breathed, his voice strained. “I can’t.” He let go of the wall, tying the towel around his waist. “Jared…”
Before he could say another word, the curtain was thrown back and Jared was stepping in closer, wrapping his arms around him. Unable to hold his own weight any longer, Jensen fell against him, his head resting on Jared’s shoulder.
“Whoa, okay, okay…I got you. It’s alright, I’m gonna get you back into bed, okay?” It was impossible to tell if the warm droplets landing on his shoulder were water or tears. He moved to pick Jensen up, and felt him tense beneath his fingers. “Shut up, you can’t walk; not even with my help.”
Jensen hissed in pain when Jared lifted him into his arms. It would’ve been surprising when Jensen tucked his head into Jared’s body, but Jared could tell it was simply to hide his tears.
“Fucking hurts,” Jensen choked out.
“I know,” Jared soothed, carrying Jensen into the bedroom. “I know.” He set him down on the bed, propping his leg up on the pillows again. “It’s alright, just relax. Take it easy.”
“I thought I could handle it,” Jensen huffed. “Thought I could wait it out, but it just got worse. Fucking leg. Fucking Hellhound, I’m gonna beat the shit out of that thing!”
“I’m pretty sure that’s just the pain talking,” Jared said, lifting Jensen to help him swallow more pills. “As far as we know, beating a Hellhound with your manly fists doesn’t do much damage.”
Jensen grunted in response and closed his eyes while Jared checked his leg, relieved to find the second bandage still clean. He sat in silence with Jensen for a few more minutes. Jensen eventually began to nod off, and Jared felt fatigue creeping into his own body. Jensen didn’t move much when Jared stood and maneuvered him around on the bed, freeing the blankets from underneath his body and covering him up.
“Sleep it off, man.” Jared yawned. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”
He turned the light off and left the room, retrieving the ice pack as he headed down the stairs to go sleep on the couch.
Chapter 3: Cereal and Stitches
Chapter 2: Blood and Dust
Jensen stumbled, his back hitting the living room wall to his left when Jared shoved him in the house, and he slowly slid down it, collapsing on the floor, his leg throbbing. He flinched and shouted when he heard barking inside the house, then relaxed when Jared hurriedly assured him that it was only Harley and Sadie.
“You believe me now?!” Jensen spat from his spot on the floor, watching Jared finish lining the front door with the goofer dust in the pouch. Jared didn’t take the time to respond, but faltered slightly in his step as he rushed off to finish lining the windows and the back door.
Jensen leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes, trying to catch his breath. Once again, just like that night in Gerard’s, he instantly regretted the words that had just left his mouth. Jared had just saved his life, and Jensen was still lashing out at him, his thoughts and emotions so mixed up they even surprised him sometimes.
High-pitched whining accompanied a wet tongue sliding along his cheek, and he blindly reached out a hand, patting soft fur. He flinched away when he felt one of the dogs sniffing at his injured leg and opened his eyes, able to recognize the large, blurry, floppy-eared shape in front of him.
“Harley, no,” he said quietly, weakness suddenly flooding his body.
The big dog turned to look at him, tail wagging slightly, and was suddenly pushed aside by Sadie, who immediately came up to Jensen and planted herself in his lap, licking dried tears off of his face. The position she took kept her weight off of his clawed leg, as if she was mindful of the damage that had been done. Jensen smiled in spite of himself and patted her head.
“Good girl.”
“Sadie, down!” Jared was back at his side, drawing the pouch closed. Sadie turned her big brown eyes on Jared and whined.
“It’s okay,” Jensen breathed, eyes closing again, fingers scratching behind Sadie’s ears. “She’s not hurting me.”
“Not much dust left,” Jared announced, leaning over to take a look at Jensen’s bloodied leg. “Oh, God. Shit. These look kinda deep, what if you need a hospital?”
“Can’t,” Jensen replied tiredly, forcing his eyes open to look up at Jared. “Just gotta patch it up. Can’t leave. Can’t go out there.”
“Okay.” Jared nodded, his own chest still heaving. “Okay. I’ll be right back. Don’t move.”
Jared returned with an armful of supplies for first aid, this time shooing Sadie off of Jensen’s lap so he’d have enough room to work on Jensen’s leg.
“Sure you wanna do this here?” Jensen asked, cracking an eye open. “I’m bleeding all over your floor, dude.”
“I don’t wanna move you yet,” Jared replied, gently lifting Jensen’s leg and sliding a towel under it. “I can clean it up later.”
Silence settled over them as Jared worked on Jensen’s leg, cutting away the shredded denim, cleaning the wounds and wrapping them. Jensen did his best to ignore the pain, instead falling prey to his exhaustion. It had been too long since he’d eaten or slept like he used to, the scotch he’d begun consuming on a regular basis far less than an ideal replacement. His body was rebelling against him, more so now that his mind was finally in a less frantic state. He was still mentally fucked, of course, but he had company now, and said company had just saved him from almost certain death. For the first time since before the break, he felt the tiniest bit of relief creeping into his system. He knew it would be short-lived, and he breathed deeply, savoring the feeling.
“Jensen?” Jared’s voice crept into his thoughts just as he had begun to drift off to sleep. “You still with me, man?”
“I am now,” Jensen said quietly, his eyes opening to tired slits. He swallowed, able to discern Jared’s pale complexion and shaky hands even without contacts, a nasty bruise standing out in stark contrast where Jensen had punched him. “…Did all of that really just happen?”
“I think it did,” Jared breathed, staring at him. “Jesus, Jensen. You’re not crazy.”
“I know,” Jensen replied, staring back at him.
“I’m sorry,” Jared apologized, shaking his head and looking away, “I should’ve-”
“Don’t,” Jensen cut him off. “Don’t even. I should be the one apologizing, and we both know it.” Jared cast him a meaningful glance, jaw set. Jensen rubbed a hand over his face. “I put you through hell, man. I expected way too much from you after treating you like shit, and then you still come through, and I fucking punch you in the face.”
“And almost make it impossible for me to make babies,” Jared added, somehow managing to look thoughtful while grimacing and grabbing at his inner right thigh.
“Oh, God,” Jensen sputtered, gaping at Jared in horror, guilt tightening his chest. “Jesus, Jared, I didn’t mean to, I had no idea what I was doing…”
“I’m fine,” Jared laughed, making Jensen pause in his apology. “I mean, it hurts like hell, but don’t worry. I’m still 100% man.”
“I think that’s up for debate,” Jensen said, smiling and laughing lightly for the first time in what felt like years. But their smiles faded fast, the gravity of the situation taking over. “That was a cheap shot, though, wasn’t it?”
“Not in this situation,” Jared shook his head, “You were scared. And I’m fine. It’s okay.”
“I’m sorry, Jared,” Jensen said, voice thick. “I’m sorry for everything. I’ve been a real dick the past couple of months. I’m lucky you’re even here.”
“So, this is what’s been wrong with you the whole time?” Jared asked, changing the subject a bit, needing to know the truth.
“Yeah,” Jensen nodded, swallowing a grunt of pain, his leg still throbbing angrily. “Man, I saw doctors, called the cops, I did everything. I just…didn’t wanna believe, you know?”
Jared nodded and left the room, returning almost instantly with a glass of water and a bottle of Tylenol, handing the items over to Jensen.
“You look like you’re still in pain,” Jared said. “Leave it to me to forget the meds. Don’t know how much good Tylenol will do you, though.”
“It’ll do fine, thanks,” Jensen assured him, spilling a few pills out into his palm and gulping them down with the water. “Thank you for everything,” Jensen added sincerely. “I think you just saved my life.”
“I’m just glad I was able to,” Jared replied. “Scared the shit out of me. So’d your dash out into traffic.” He paused, blinking rapidly and looking away. “You know, I’ve watched you die a million times on set. But watching you come so close in real life…” Jared trailed off, and Jensen nodded slowly.
“I know. I’d feel the same way if it were you.”
“Come on.” Jared cleared his throat and patted Jensen on the shoulder. “Let me help you up and over to the couch.”
Jared moved the glass of water and the bottle of Tylenol to the coffee table, coming back to crouch down beside Jensen. He reached under Jensen’s left arm, looping his own arm around Jensen’s body, Jensen’s arm wrapped around his shoulders, and helped to lift Jensen up on his left leg.
“You know,” Jared huffed, trying to ignore the pain in his own leg, “I could probably carry you.”
“As romantic as that would be,” Jensen said, keeping his right leg elevated and leaning his weight slightly over onto Jared, “I think I would kill you.”
Jared laughed and gingerly walked Jensen over to the couch, setting him down on it carefully, Jensen propping his leg up on the coffee table.
“How’s the pain?” Jared sat down next to him.
“Sucks,” Jensen answered, allowing his eyes to slide closed again. “But I’ll live.” He shifted uneasily. “I just don’t know for how long.”
“Jensen,” Jared placed a hand on Jensen’s arm, feeling it shaking slightly beneath his fingers, “We’ll figure this out. I promise. You’re safe here, anyways.”
“Yeah, but I can’t stay here forever.”
“Yeah.” Jared paused, squeezing Jensen’s arm in his grasp. “Yeah, you can. If that’s what it takes to keep you alive, you can stay here forever. I’m not gonna let my best friend be torn apart by Hellhounds.”
“Thanks for the image, Jared.” Jensen grimaced. “You’re an awesome friend.”
“…And I promise to bring you porn. Lots and lots of porn.”
“Ah!” Jensen grinned widely. “Forget friend, you’re family. But there’s one problem,” he said, opening his eyes and pointing towards the goofer dust on the floor. “You can’t open the doors.”
Jared frowned. He wouldn’t be bringing Jensen much of anything if he couldn’t leave the house. And, at some point, he’d have to. A yip at the back of the house from one of the dogs made Jared groan and roll his eyes. Nothing could ever be easy.
“Hey, Jare,” Jensen said, trying to keep his tone amused but failing to keep the worry out of it, “I think one of your dogs has to take a shit.”
“Thanks for the enlightenment, Jensen.” Jared turned to him, studying him for a moment. Sighing, he leaned back against the couch. “We’re gonna have to move you.” He felt Jensen fidget nervously next to him.
“Where to?”
“You can have my bed,” Jared decided. “You’ll need it to rest and let your leg heal, anyway.”
“What?” Jensen asked, his eyes wide. “Jared, no. No, man, I’m…I’m screwing things up enough for you as it is. I’m not gonna take your bed from you.”
“Yes, you are,” Jared insisted, already standing. “I’ll drop the rest of the dust around it, and you’ll be safe there.”
“Jare-”
“I’m not arguing, dude.” Jared moved around the table to Jensen’s other side. “I’ll fuckin’ carry you if I have to.” He returned Jensen’s glare with a smile and a wave.
“I’ll kick your ass,” Jensen growled.
“You can try,” Jared countered. “But you know how well that worked for you earlier.”
Jared felt bad when Jensen actually looked offended. The guy had enough shit going wrong, and now Jared was basically calling him a pussy. He was joking, but still. Jensen didn’t take those kinds of jokes lightly. In fact, Jensen prided himself on his strength, always happy to boast about how well he’d done when taking on the stunt guys on set. He bristled when anything concerning his physical abilities was insulted, whether jokingly or otherwise. Jared knew that, and had never flaunted his own size and strength to Jensen, until now. Another yip sounded from the back door, followed by whining.
“Look,” Jared sighed, “I’m just gonna stand here until you agree with me, and if we wait much longer, both of my dogs are gonna shit on my floor. Are you willing to deal with the consequences?”
Jensen brightened, actually smiling again, and Jared felt his own spirits lift. Jensen looked up at him and lifted his arm, reluctantly giving in. Jared immediately ducked down, and wrapped his arm around Jensen the same way he had before, helping to lift him off the couch. Jensen squeezed his shoulder, and he knew that all was forgiven.
They were both out of breath and in pain when they finally reached the top of the stairs, Jensen pausing to lean on the railing, waiting for the throb in his leg to lessen. Jared leaned over to peek at Jensen’s leg, noticing that blood was seeping through the bandages he’d placed over the claw marks. He tightened his grip on Jensen and urged him forward, eager to check and take care of those wounds.
They made it to the bedroom, Jared moving the bed out from the wall a bit before dropping the rest of the dust in a wide circle around it. Jensen settled back on the mattress, leg propped up on some extra pillows. He laid there resting while Jared rushed around the house, collecting the rest of the dust from the doors and windows to reinforce the circle around the bed and letting the dogs out. When Jared returned, he carried a laptop into the room with him, plugging it into the wall, and sitting down on the bed next to Jensen.
“What’s that for?” Jensen asked, nodding towards the laptop.
“Research,” Jared answered, fidgeting slightly. “And not just about Hellhounds. I wanna check up on some stuff about your leg.”
“You seem nervous,” Jensen stated worriedly, seeing Jared stealing glances at his wounded leg. “Why are you so nervous?”
“You’re still bleeding pretty badly,” Jared admitted. “It’s soaking through the bandages I already put on there.”
“Really?” Jensen gulped, chuckling nervously. “Am I complete wuss for being too afraid to look?”
“Your secret’s safe with me.”
Jensen flinched away when Jared suddenly placed a hand on his forehead, but he couldn’t move far enough. Jared’s hand pressed against his forehead and cheek before traveling down to his wrist to feel for his pulse.
“What are you doing?”
“Are you dizzy?”
“You shouldn’t answer a question with a question, dude.”
“Are you dizzy?” Jared persisted.
“No.”
“Short of breath?”
“No.”
“Confused?”
“Hell yeah,” Jensen chuckled. “What’s with the rundown?”
“I’m just checking your symptoms,” Jared answered, eyes on the laptop screen. “Your skin isn’t clammy, your pulse is fine…you don’t look pale…you are weak.”
“Thanks!” Jensen slapped Jared lightly on the arm. “I think that might have something to do with the past two months.”
“Yeah.” Jared closed the laptop, pushing it aside. “You don’t look like you’ve been taking very good care of yourself. When was the last time you ate? I mean, a full meal.”
“Honestly?” Jensen sighed. “I don’t really remember.”
“Well,” Jared stood, stepping over the circle of dust, “I ordered some pizzas. You need to get your strength back. And I need to get some more stuff to bandage up your leg with.” Just then, the doorbell rang, the dogs barking from the backyard. “Speaking of…”
Jared left the room and walked down the stairs to the front door, pausing in front of it. He looked down at the floor, suddenly feeling the absence of the goofer dust. A chill ran through his body when he realized that he was literally about to let a Hellhound in through the front door, the blood staining the carpet beside him a reminder of what exactly that meant. The bell rang again. He hesitated, reassuring himself that Jensen was safe, protected by the circle around the bed. Reaching for the doorknob, he noticed that his hands were shaking. He opened the door, his hands shaking more violently as he turned to look back at the stairs, his heart racing. He tensed, half expecting to hear a scream from Jensen, ready to tear back up the steps and into the bedroom. Hearing nothing, he turned to the delivery guy, offering him a shaky smile.
“Hey,” he greeted, swallowing the lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat. He ignored the questioning look he received in return, reaching for his wallet and pulling out a few bills. “Uh…yeah…here you go,” he handed the bills over quickly, grabbing the pizzas and soda, and moving to close the door. “Keep the change.”
Once the door was closed, he set the two-liter bottle of Pepsi on the floor and leaned back against it, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Balancing the pizzas on one hand, he walked to the back of the house, letting the dogs back in. Under normal circumstances, they’d be jumping up on him, sniffing at the pizza boxes, begging for some scraps. But dread settled in his chest when both Harley and Sadie slowed as they entered the house, bodies lowering to the ground, hackles raised. They alternately growled and whimpered, moving into the living room and fixing their eyes on the stairs.
“Jensen!” Jared forced the shout through his tightening throat muscles, dropping the pizza boxes and sprinting up the stairs, barely noticing the spark of pain in his thigh.
He ran to the bedroom, unsure what to expect. His eyes were on the floor as he neared the open doorway, picking out the thick circle of goofer dust, noting that the portion he could see was still intact. Turning in to the room, he saw Jensen on the bed, raised up on his elbows, completely unharmed. He was vaguely aware of an embarrassing noise of overwhelming relief escaping his lips, but he froze when he took in Jensen’s expression.
Jensen sat rigid on the bed, leaning back on his elbows, his wide-eyed stare fixed on an intangible figure to Jared’s left. From where he was standing, Jared could see that Jensen was shivering.
“It’s in here?” Jared asked hoarsely.
Jensen merely nodded, never taking his eyes off of the invisible Hellhound. Jared cautiously stepped over the circle of dust, sitting on the bed and blocking Jensen’s view.
“It can’t get you,” Jared said, willing the tremble to stay out of his voice. When Jensen turned fearful eyes on Jared, Jared met his gaze and held it, attempting complete confidence. “It can’t cross that circle. You’re safe here.”
Jensen blinked and swallowed, nodding again. He broke eye contact and cleared his throat before speaking.
“Did you get the pizza?”
“I…” Jared blanked for a moment, completely forgetting that he’d even ordered food. “Yeah,” he said, welcoming the change in the subject. “Yeah, I, uh…I left it downstairs. I’ll be right back.”
Jensen watched Jared leave the room, then closed his eyes. The occasional growl sent fresh chills down his spine, and his fingers clenched into the mattress. He breathed deeply, knowing that he’d have to get used to this, learn to block it out, if he was going to last until they found a way to fix this. It was easier said then done, the throb in his leg a reminder of his last encounter with a Hellhound.
“Hey.”
Jared’s voice broke into his thoughts, and Jensen did his best to scoot over and hoist his body up into some semblance of a sitting position while still keeping his leg elevated on the pillows. Once Jared was settled, the extra space on the bed was taken up by the laptop, the two pizza boxes, and more bandages. Jensen’s stomach flip-flopped when Jared handed him a slice, and he hesitated.
“I don’t know if I can,” he spoke softly. “I’m just…I’m too…”
“I know,” Jared interrupted. “But you should. You need to get your strength back up.”
Jensen reluctantly accepted the slice, forcing himself to take a bite and keep it down. Soon enough, he was surprising himself by scarfing down his fourth slice, chasing it with gulps of Pepsi.
“Damn, dude,” Jared laughed, tightening new bandages around the old ones on Jensen’s leg. “You’re actually eating like Dean. Or, dare I say it, me.”
“Mm, no.” Jensen shook his head, licking at a stray gob of cheese in the corner of his mouth. “No one eats like you do.” He shoved the rest of the slice in his mouth, speaking with a mouthful of crust. “Jesus Christ, this is some good pizza!”
“Yeah, it is.” Jared patted Jensen’s leg softly, then tossed the medical supplies on the floor, grabbing another slice of his own out of the box.
“I mean it,” Jensen said, swallowing his food. “Not eating for a couple of months really makes this shit taste like Heaven.”
“Good.” Jared hastily swallowed the remainder of his slice. “I’m thinking I can go out to the drug store, and pick up some heavier meds for you, now that you have something substantial in your stomach. Let me ask you something.” He brushed his hands together, tossing crumbs onto the floor. “You took that dust from set, right?”
“Yeah,” Jensen said, leaning back and closing his eyes, exhaustion hitting him again now that his stomach was full. “I took it back before we left.”
“Really?” Jared’s brow furrowed in confusion. “I thought you said you didn’t want to believe?”
“I didn’t.” Jensen shrugged. “But I guess some part of me just felt paranoid enough to take it. You know, just in case. On some level, I knew what it really was. I felt like such a dumbass, and I figured I’d never need it, but…this all turned out to be real.”
“Did you take anything else?” Jared could see Jensen thinking, and was just about to make a crack about smelling wood burning when Jensen’s eyes flew open.
“I did! You know that stuff that Bela had in that one episode, towards the end?” When Jared stared at him cluelessly, Jensen rolled his eyes. Usually he was the one who had trouble remembering things, not Jared. “The branches or whatever that were above the door,” he said, pointing to the bedroom door. Jared’s eyes lit up.
“Right! That could help you, couldn’t it?” Jensen nodded. “Where is it?”
“My apartment,” Jensen replied, following Jared’s line of thought and immediately reaching into his pocket for his keys. Jared grabbed them and stood, carefully stepping over the circle.
“I’ll be quick,” he assured, walking toward the door. “I’m gonna close this just incase. I don’t want the dogs to end up coming in and disturbing the dust around the bed…or you.” Jared smiled when he saw Jensen’s eyelids fall to half-mast. “You get some sleep.”
He watched Jensen’s eyes close, body relaxing into the mattress. It brought him a certain sense of satisfaction that he could make Jensen feel so secure after the craziness of the past two months that he was finally getting some sleep. Jared closed the door as quietly as he could, heading downstairs and grabbing his keys, ready to hop in his Denali and drive over to Jensen’s place.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Devil’s Shoestring.”
Jared stopped in the doorway, expecting to find Jensen asleep in the bed. Instead, Jensen was very much awake and on Jared’s laptop. He dragged a large suitcase in behind him and dropped a small carry-on and two plastic shopping bags on the floor.
“What?”
“Devil’s Shoestring,” Jensen repeated. “Used by Bela in episode 3.15, ‘Time is On My Side,’ to keep Hellhounds at bay. That’s what I had at my apartment.” He paused, staring at the bags Jared had just brought in. “You leaving the country?”
“No!” Jared answered in frustration, pulling the suitcase in and setting it up in the corner of the room. “You’re awake.”
“Nah, I usually have full conversations with other people when I’m asleep.”
“Wow.” Jared raised an eyebrow. “You really are channeling Dean.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Jensen set the laptop next to him on the bed and stretched. “I did take a nap, but I woke up a little bit ago, did some research. What took you so long?”
“Well, while I was at your apartment, I decided to pack some other stuff for you.” He motioned towards the suitcase and carry-on. “I found your luggage, figured I’d get you set up for staying here for a little while.” He cleared his throat and reached for one of the shopping bags when Jensen gave him a look of pure admiration. “I also stopped at the drug store…” He laughed when Jensen immediately held his hands out, and tossed the bag over to him.
“Dude.” Jensen reached in the bag and pulled out a small orange and white bottle, holding it up. “Motrin?”
“What?” Jared shifted on his feet, hands on his hips.
“This is your ‘heavier pain medication?’”
“It’s Ibuprofen!” Jared said defensively, pointing at the bottle.
“Chicks take this for…” Jensen paused, pulling the bottle close and squinting at it for a few seconds before holding it up again, pointing to a particular spot on the label. “Menstrual cramps!”
“Well,” Jared grinned, “You are bleeding.”
“Oh!” Jensen balked. “That’s gross, dude.”
“Anyway…” Jared opened the carry-on and pulled the Devil’s Shoestring out of it, picking up the other shopping bag and joining Jensen on the bed. “I was thinking that we need to find a way for you to be able to leave this bed.”
“Yeah,” Jensen agreed, swallowing a few of the new pills. “I was starting to get worried about that. Pretty soon, I’m gonna have to piss, and that won’t be pretty.”
“You could always go in the empty soda bottle,” Jared suggested, holding the bottle up and shaking it around.
“Would you be willing to dispose of it for me?”
“So, I stopped at an arts and crafts store on the way home,” Jared said, changing the subject. He reached in the shopping bag and pulled out stretch cords, string, a hole punch, and quite a few packs of clear beads.
“Wow.” Jensen blinked and stared at Jared in disbelief. “First Motrin, and now this.”
“Shut up,” Jared said, opening the packs of beads. “It’s totally not gay. And I’ll show you why in a few minutes. Trust me, this is the best idea I’ve ever had.”
“Whatever.”
Jensen watched as Jared grabbed one of the tiny beads in his hands, dropping it a number of times before finally fitting it into the hole punch and squeezing. A pop sounded in the room, and Jared smiled sheepishly as bits of bead flew off the bed.
“Good thing I bought extras.”
“Yeah…Are you seriously trying to punch holes in those things?”
Jared grabbed another bead and handed it to Jensen
“You see this little line right here?” He pointed to the bead. Jensen squinted, grabbing Jared’s wrist and pulling the bead up close, almost directly in front of his eyes.
“Yeah, no, that’s totally visible.”
“Hang on.” Jared stood and walked over to the carry-on, squatting and searching through it for a minute. Finding what he wanted, he walked back over to the bed. “Here.”
“Oh.” Jensen took the glasses Jared handed him, sliding them on. “Thanks, man. It was hell trying to read shit on your laptop earlier.”
“I have your contacts,” Jared said, gesturing back to Jensen’s luggage. “I didn’t even realize you weren’t wearing them. If you’d prefer those…”
“No,” Jensen answered, shaking his head. “These are fine, thanks. I haven’t worn those things in ages.”
“I thought your vision was crap without them,” Jared said, frowning.
“It is.” Jensen shrugged. “But I can make out enough to do what I have to do. It’s just, when something like this is going on, vision doesn’t seem like much of a gift, you know?” He ignored the pitying look Jared gave him and stared at the bead again. “Okay, so, the line?”
“Right.” Jared sat down next to him. “I’m thinking if I can put the right amount of pressure on it, it’ll break along that connecting line.”
“And?” Jensen asked, handing the bead back over to Jared.
“You’ll see.” Jared took the bead and squeezed it in the hole punch, groaning in frustration when it broke again. “If I can ever do it right.”
“Can I try?” Jensen held his hand out, and Jared dropped another bead and the hole punch into his hand. He put it in and began to squeeze, applying pressure to the line Jared had pointed it out. He stopped when he heard a crack, thinking he’d broken another one. Pulling it out of the hole punch, he lifted it up, seeing that it had begun to separate along the line. Carefully pulling it apart, he handed the two halves to Jared, placing them in his open palm. “How come you couldn’t pull that off?” he teased.
“I’m not a fucking girl, alright?” Jared complained, sticking his tongue out.
“Apparently, I am!” Jensen smiled, holding up the bottle of Motrin.
Jared laughed, bending to take a look at Jensen’s leg.
“Looks like the second bandage is doing the trick. I don’t see you bleeding through. How’s the pain?”
“As much as I hate to admit it, I think this cramp shit is actually working.” He set the bottle back down. “Better than the Tylenol, anyway. Instead of feeling like I was torn apart by a Hellhound, I just feel like I had a major accident with a tractor.”
He watched in silence as Jared carefully pulled the Devil’s Shoestring apart, crumbling tiny pieces into the broken bead. He tensed when Jared bent to pick up some of the goofer dust from the circle around the bed. But Jared only took a bit off the edge, then dropped it into the bead, as well.
Jared opened the super glue, then grabbed some of the string, gluing the bead so that it closed over the thread. Jensen watched in curious fascination as Jared worked, cracking, filling, and gluing beads (and cursing when he managed to glue his fingers to the beads and each other more than once). Getting the idea, he reached over for some supplies, the two of them working together in silence, filling the string and the stretch cords with beads. By the time they were finished, they’d created four bracelets and a necklace.
“Two of these are anklets,” Jared said, holding up one of the smaller rings of stretch cord.
Jensen raised an eyebrow, but didn’t question him, pulling the two bracelets over his wrists. He waited while Jared pulled Jensen’s shoes off, careful not to jar his leg, and slid the anklets over his feet.
“Last part.” Jared grabbed the string of the long, beaded necklace. “Let’s see if we got this right.” He reached around Jensen’s neck, tying the string in place. Pulling back, he checked to make sure the beads hung low enough to cover Jensen’s heart and smiled. “Perfect! What’s wrong?” he asked when Jensen shifted uncomfortably.
“Nothing,” Jensen said. “Just weird, you know? Like…being taken care of like this. I hate being laid up like this, man.”
“You’ll be on your feet soon enough,” Jared assured. “We should…test this stuff out, right?”
They shared a nervous glance between them. Neither of them had any idea if this was going to work or not. It was quite a risk to step over that circle if it didn’t. Jensen gulped and nodded, pulling himself up. Jared was immediately at his side, helping him to stand and taking some of his weight.
“You know you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”
“Yes, I do,” Jensen said shakily. “It’s our only plan. I have to at least try.”
Despite what he’d just said, he froze behind the circle, hearing the growl start up again. He kept his eyes on the floor, not wanting to see the Hellhound. He may not be able to do this if he did. Jared waited behind him, hands on his arms, keeping silent. When Jensen finally moved, Jared moved with him, never letting go of his arms, ready to pull him back if something happened.
Jensen stepped over the circle, eyes lifting when both feet were firmly planted on the floor outside the protective dust. He felt Jared’s grip tighten when he started shaking, his heart pounding in his chest. Demonic red eyes were fixed on him, the dark bulk of a Hellhound slinking closer. He flinched hard when it lunged towards him, his breath catching in his throat.
“Jensen!” Jared took hold of him, beginning to lift him back over the circle.
“No, no, no, wait!” Jared settled him back to the floor, and Jensen stared in disbelief at the Hellhound in front of him. It stalked back and forth, keeping a safe distance, growling in frustration. “It’s okay,” he breathed, pulse slowing to a more normal rhythm. “It can’t get me.”
“So it worked?” Jared asked, shifting behind Jensen and loosening his grip. Jensen nodded.
“Yeah…Yeah, I think so.” He slowly began hobbling out of the room and into the hallway.
“What are you doing?” Jared asked nervously.
“We still have some of that Devil’s Shoestring left, right?” Jensen turned back to look at him.
“Yeah.”
“It’ll follow me out of the room,” Jensen said, keeping his eye on the beast falling in step with him. “Put it over the door, maybe over the windows, if you have enough left. It’s better protection.”
Jared nodded, waiting for Jensen’s signal to close the door a bit, reaching up and securing the Devil’s Shoestring over it. Moving to the windows, he set some of it on the sills.
“Done!” he called out, and Jensen reentered the room, turning to watch the Hellhound stop in front of an invisible barrier.
“It worked. Wow.” he let out a huge sigh of relief, then turned to Jared. “Man…Jared, I don’t know how to thank you.”
Jared waved him off, then sniffed and made a face.
“You can thank me by taking this opportunity to shower.”
Jensen couldn’t help the grin that spread over his face.
“Bitch.”
“Jerk.”
“You’re right, though,” Jensen admitted. “I probably do stink. We’ve already acknowledged that I couldn’t handle myself the past two months. Still,” he lifted his injured leg, pointing to it, “How am I supposed to shower with these bandages?”
Jared frowned before his eyes lit up, holding up a finger as a signal for Jensen to wait, then left the room. Jensen smiled as he watched Jared disappear down the stairs.
“Another wonderful Padalecki plan,” he muttered to himself.
A few minutes later, Jared returned, a thin rectangular box in his hand. Jensen eyed the box warily, eyes going wide when Jared reached inside and rolled its contents out, snapping it on the serrated edge of the opening.
“Dude!” He held his hands up in protest. “We are not going to saran wrap my leg.”
“Why not?” Jared’s arms dropped to his sides, the box smacking against his thigh. “This is the best idea I’ve ever had!”
“That’s what you said about the beads! And, you know, granted, they worked like a charm, but what is with you, man? What are you, Inspector Gadget all of a sudden?”
“That would be MacGyver,” Jared said, holding the box up in front of his face and rolling a substantial amount of saran wrap out of it. He paused, thinking. “Which would actually be pretty fitting, considering my past projects.”
“That show didn’t even get picked up, dude.”
“Yeah,” Jared narrowed his eyes at Jensen, “But not because I wasn’t awesome. Now take off your pants.” Jensen gaped at him. “What? It’s like plastic, the water won’t get through, the bandages won’t get wet, your leg will be saved. And you can get cleaned up, which, trust me, will do us both a world of good.”
Jensen wordlessly hobbled over to Jared and snatched the saran wrap out of his hands.
“If I’m gonna do this,” he reluctantly started, “I can do it myself.” He held a hand up when Jared began to protest. “Before I wrap myself, I’ll need to take everything off; jeans and boxers. And as close as we are,” he tapped the box against Jared’s chest, “I don’t want you staring at my junk.”
“Please.” Jared inclined his head, adopting a haughty air. “Why would I have to stare at anyone else’s junk?”
Jensen’s eyes twinkled with amusement, and he stepped back, pretending to look Jared up and down.
“Touché.”
He took his glasses off, tossing them onto the bed. On his way to the bathroom, Jared stopped him, handing him the small carry-on.
“I grabbed some stuff from your place. Things you’d need, like your shampoo and stuff. I figured you might prefer them so…”
“Aww!” Jensen took the bag. “Jared, you’re so sweet. Maybe I will let you stare at my junk now.”
“Get your shower,” Jared laughed, swatting him on the shoulder. “And let me know if you need help.”
“I will,” Jensen said, locking eyes with Jared, hoping his expression was enough to convey just how grateful he was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Come on, guys!”
Jared sat on the floor, dejectedly rolling a tennis ball over it while holding an ice pack over his swollen cheekbone. Jensen could really pack a punch when he wanted to. Sadie and Harley stared at the ball, but didn’t move from their spots next to him, two half-eaten bowls of dog food still sitting in the kitchen. He sighed, leaning forward and rubbing his face.
“I know I can’t expect you to understand what I’m about to say,” he muttered aloud, “But I really need you to be normal right now.”
He brightened a bit when Sadie walked in the direction the ball had rolled. But his shoulders slumped when she walked past it, standing at the bottom of the stairs, her large ears moving back and forth. He stood when she barked, walking over and patting her head.
“What is it, girl?”
He smirked to himself when the thought, “Timmy fell down the well,” ran through his head. Moving halfway up the stairs, he could still hear the water running in the shower. Then, suddenly, beneath it,
“JARED!!”
Jared sprinted up the remaining stairs, dropping the ice pack along the way, and burst through the bathroom door, Jensen pulling the shower curtain back a bit to talk to him.
“What’s wrong?” Jared asked, Jensen looking flushed and pained, bracing himself against the shower walls.
“Can you,” Jensen gasped, wincing, “Turn the water off, and hand me a towel? Please?”
Jared nodded, moving to the other end of the shower, pulling the curtain back slightly, and shutting the water off. Grabbing a fresh towel off the rack, he reached in, handing it over to Jensen.
“I can’t stand much longer,” Jensen breathed, his voice strained. “I can’t.” He let go of the wall, tying the towel around his waist. “Jared…”
Before he could say another word, the curtain was thrown back and Jared was stepping in closer, wrapping his arms around him. Unable to hold his own weight any longer, Jensen fell against him, his head resting on Jared’s shoulder.
“Whoa, okay, okay…I got you. It’s alright, I’m gonna get you back into bed, okay?” It was impossible to tell if the warm droplets landing on his shoulder were water or tears. He moved to pick Jensen up, and felt him tense beneath his fingers. “Shut up, you can’t walk; not even with my help.”
Jensen hissed in pain when Jared lifted him into his arms. It would’ve been surprising when Jensen tucked his head into Jared’s body, but Jared could tell it was simply to hide his tears.
“Fucking hurts,” Jensen choked out.
“I know,” Jared soothed, carrying Jensen into the bedroom. “I know.” He set him down on the bed, propping his leg up on the pillows again. “It’s alright, just relax. Take it easy.”
“I thought I could handle it,” Jensen huffed. “Thought I could wait it out, but it just got worse. Fucking leg. Fucking Hellhound, I’m gonna beat the shit out of that thing!”
“I’m pretty sure that’s just the pain talking,” Jared said, lifting Jensen to help him swallow more pills. “As far as we know, beating a Hellhound with your manly fists doesn’t do much damage.”
Jensen grunted in response and closed his eyes while Jared checked his leg, relieved to find the second bandage still clean. He sat in silence with Jensen for a few more minutes. Jensen eventually began to nod off, and Jared felt fatigue creeping into his own body. Jensen didn’t move much when Jared stood and maneuvered him around on the bed, freeing the blankets from underneath his body and covering him up.
“Sleep it off, man.” Jared yawned. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”
He turned the light off and left the room, retrieving the ice pack as he headed down the stairs to go sleep on the couch.
Chapter 3: Cereal and Stitches
