Forever Mine Chapter 1.
Oct. 26th, 2010 05:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sasha_dragonTitle: Forever Mine.
Word Count: 6073
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Jared meets the man of his dreams while helping out his best friend Chad. Unfortunately for him, Jensen is being haunted by his past in more ways than one. Can Jared convince the spirit of Jensen’s not so dearly departed boyfriend to move on, or will make good on his promise to make Jensen his forever.
Pairing: Jared/Jensen, Jensen/OMC
Warnings: Mentions of domestic abuse, and non-con that happens off camera.
Jared was closing up for the night when his phone rang, he saw Chad’s name flash up on the display. He sighed and raised his eyes to his shop’s sign and winced. Jared’s Graphic Novel Emporium, as he had wanted to call it had been unfortunate enough to be rechristened. When he’d asked Chad to order the sign he’d been busy with setting up the stock. So now he stood under a sign that bore the name Geeks R Us, although he had to admit it worked better and everyone remembered it. As with so many things in Chad’s mind, it seemed like a great idea at the time.
That also included the tattoo Chad had talked him into whilst drunk, Jared found out too late what it had been. His horror the following morning at finding a pair of boobs on the right cheek of his butt had lead to an epic bitch fit at Chad. Jared had threatened to never speak to him again after that; also there had been the pain and humiliation of having it removed. After all, it’s damned fucking hard explaining to your boyfriend at the time, exactly why you have an enormous pair of tits on your ass. Usually the scar was easier to explain - the heroic rescue of a small child from a pack of wild dogs sounded so much better.
With a sense of foreboding Jared answered the phone, “Hi Chad.” His stomach churned with apprehension.
“Jaybird, my man....” Chad’s happy voice came down the phone; in the background Jared could hear female voices.
“Whatever it is, no way, dude and for the last goddamn time I’m gay. So I will not go on a double date with you just so I can chat to the ugly chick while you seduce her better-looking friend.” Jared grinned as he spoke.
“Dude, I’m wounded. What makes you think I want something?”
“You only call me Jaybird when you want something. Come on, man, spill. There’s a beer upstairs with my name on it.” Jared knew he was doomed the minute Chad called him by his nickname. Chad could wrap him round his little finger and he knew it. But he was determined to try and hold out for a respectable amount of time before he caved.
“Look, normally I wouldn’t ask, dude, but I’ve struck gold. Twins, man, I got twins! It’s the fucking holy grail of threesomes! Come on, you wouldn’t deny me that pleasure. Dude, imagine they cloned Johnny Depp, covered both of them in chocolate and left them in front of you....please, Jaybird?” Chad sounded desperate.
Jared shook his head and got ready to surrender gracefully, “Oh, twins, is it? You mean, like the last time. Remember them? There was a five-year age gap, looked nothing alike and they weren’t even sisters. Come on, then. What do you want me to do?”
“Woo hoo, Jaybird, you’re the best and besides, they have their driver’s licenses with them, so I know they’re sisters. Anyway, after that somewhat unfortunate incident last spring break, I always check the driver’s licences. All I need you to do is to go over to my place and do a little reading for me....”
Jared interrupted him. “No way, Chad! Anything but that. You know why I don’t like doing readings.” He stood his ground against this request.
“No. It’s alright, Jay. I promise. Look, I told Kane it wouldn’t be me doing the reading and he was cool with it.”
“Hang on. Kane, did you say? As in Christian Kane - the guy who owns Vintage Vinyl? The guy’s a maniac. Holy shit! Are you trying to get me killed? The guy hates me. Have you ever seen the way he looks at me? It’s like he wants to rip my heart out and eat it. No fucking way! Twins or not, it’s your gig. You do it.” Jared considered hanging up.
“Listen, Jay. He looks at everybody like that so quit worrying. Besides, he’s nice and mellow at the moment. Him and some buddies are having a drink, and they want a reading for one of them. You know, something along the lines of - yes, he’s had a sad past but now things are looking up and all that crap. Come on, man, twins. Please......” Jared sighed and his shoulders slumped. Crap! He was so screwed and he knew it.
“Alright, but you owe me big time for this, and you’re sure Kane is fine with this? I just happen to like my liver where it is.” Jared waited as he heard the sound of giggling growing louder, and he really didn’t want to know what Chad was doing to make that kind of noise down the phone.
“Look, I promise Kane will not disembowel you, at least, not tonight. Please, man? You’re real good at it. Oh and they will be there in about fifteen minutes so you better get a move on. Bye, Jaybird.” Jared stared at his phone in horror and then took off at a run down the street.
His, Chad and Kane’s shops were on the same part of the boardwalk overlooking Venice Beach, and now Jared was racing down it towards Chad’s shop. He reached the splendidly named Tarotama in record time; it was subtly decorated with every kind of occult symbol Chad could possibly think of. He offered tarot readings, fortune telling and just about everything the discerning and not so discerning practitioner of magic could wish for.
Jared found Chad’s spare key on his key chain and let himself in. Once inside, Jared got to work. For an easy-going guy he was very precise about how his readings were set up. He used subdued lighting to help with the mood, which included candles on the card table. Ha had a favourite tarot deck which he used for readings. Whenever Jared stood in he never used that deck, and, of course, mood music.
Jared rushed round setting the right tone for the room - soft lighting, turned on the hippy dippy music as Chad called it, and found the spare deck of Tarot to read. He slipped into the back room, took off his jacket then checked his appearance in the mirror that hung there. The figure that smiled nervously back wore worn comfortable jeans, a white wife beater that was covered by a half-opened pink flowered shirt. Jared winced a little at the shirt but he didn’t have time to change. He buttoned it up and attempted to smooth his hair down, but gave up when it sprang back to its natural wave in defiance.
Jared stepped back into the shop and took a deep breath; the air was fragrant with the warm, spicy scent of sandalwood incense; it helped him relax with its comforting familiarity. He was just getting settled in his seat, getting the cards ready when the door swung open.
Christian Kane strode into the shop; it always amused Chad that Jared was scared of him. Jared was at least six inches taller and around ten pounds heavier. But Kane had the habit of making everyone else round him feel like a midget. As Chad said, the attitude was seven foot tall. Jared gave a nervous smile, and Kane narrowed his eyes and stalked over to Jared.
“Howdy Padalecki, I spoke to ya boy, Chad and he said you’d do a reading for my friend, Jensen. Well, can ya?” Kane glared at Jared and he nodded, terrified.
Kane leant a little closer and Jared smelt whisky on his breath, “Listen to me. Jensen has been having a rough time lately. I want his mind to be put at rest. You can do that for me, can’t you?”
Jared looked up, cursing Chad under his breath, “What kind of rough time? And is there anything I should avoid talking about?”
Kane weighed up the question, “Look. Just tell him everything will be alright and we’ll be fine. You let me take care of Jensen.” He stood up, “Come in, guys. He ain’t got all night.” Kane turned to Jared and shrugged his shoulders, waiting for the rest of his party.
First member of the party to enter was a tall, black man who Jared was sure he’d seen going into Kane’s shop. The man seemed a little the worse for wear, weaving as he walked. “Hi, I’m Aldis, cool place y’all got here. I really like the decor, man. Real spiritual.” He gave a jaunty wave and looked back over his shoulder. Jared stood up to say hi when another man walked in. “Misha, dude, this is just your kind of place. I bet you could meditate in here.” Aldis laughed.
Misha had staggered in behind Aldis, turned round slowly, nodding in approval at the spiritual vibe the shop gave off. Jared smiled - if only they knew how Chad had done it. He’d bought a job lot of props off the local theatre group after they had finished a production of Harry Potter. So yeah, deeply spiritual. Misha finished turning and looked at Jared. He tilted his head back, his blue eyes attempting to focus on him. “Wow! If your third eye is in proportion with the rest of you, then damn, you must be good.” Kane snorted at that. Finally, two more men entered the shop and the door closed.
Kane gave the one man a smile, an honest to goodness smile and that just unnerved Jared all the more. He followed Kane’s smile and stopped dead. The man who Jared presumed was Jensen was gorgeous. Jared didn’t believe in love at first sight. Although, he definitely believed in wanting to rip the guy’s clothes off, cover him in whipped cream then lick his body till he screamed at first sight. Jensen was wearing dark-blue jeans like his, worn and comfortable looking and a pale-green button-down over a T-shirt.
Jared caught sight of Jensen’s eyes as he walked forward at Kane’s come here gesture. Even in the subdued lighting Jared could see they were green, the candlelight highlighting the flecks of gold within them. There was a smattering of freckles on his face and his full lips were somewhat of a distraction.
Jared was so distracted he barely paid any attention to the fifth man who arrived with them; he never noticed he hadn’t been introduced to him. “Jensen, this is Jared. He has offered to read your cards and tell you a little about your future.” Jensen stepped forward and held out his hand; Jared took it and the touch of Jensen’s hand made Jared’s skin tingle.
Jensen gave the slightest of smiles, “Hi, Jared. Thanks for letting a bunch of drunken idiots into your friend’s shop. I hope we won’t be too much trouble.” His voice was low and musical and Jared just wanted to hear that melody again.
“No, it’s no problem at all; I hope you don’t mind me standing in for Chad? Or would you prefer to come back when he is here.” Jared prayed Jensen was fine with the stand-in.
“You’re ok, man. I’m only here because the rest of the girls want to see if I’m going to meet a tall handsome stranger. Ain’t that right, ladies?” Jensen threw a look over his shoulder at his grinning friends.
Misha and Aldis nodded and laughed and then Jared heard something that sounded like “Hey, don’t forget to ask about your house guest, Jen.” But a laser-precision glare from Kane stopped the comments dead.
“Please, everyone sit down and we’ll begin. Jensen, would you shuffle the deck and concentrate on what you want to know?” Jensen sat in front of Jared and he watched as Jensen’s long, graceful fingers shuffled the deck. Jared took the cards from him and dealt them out on the table. As Jared began his reading his eyes travelled round the room. He knew how to do this. Chad had taught him well. He made a good show of reading the cards.
Jared was spinning a good yarn, telling Jensen he had been through some sad times but now his life was turning the corner. In fact, for the most part, the cards Jensen had been dealt bore out what Jared was saying, although there was a worrying undercurrent to some of the cards. He decided to keep that to himself after Kane’s insistence on only wanting good news for his friend.
He noticed there was a lot of whispering and giggling going on as he talked to Jensen. Aldis and Misha were finding something hilarious. Jared watched Kane out of the corner of his eye. He was tense about something and he hardly took his eyes from Jensen, concern pouring off him in waves.
“Gentlemen, can I help you with something? Maybe a reading of your own, perhaps?” Aldis and Misha went quiet, and then Misha leaned forward and whispered something to Jensen. Jensen shook his head and turned red. “Jensen, is there anything you want to ask me about your reading or anything else for that matter?” Jared gave an encouraging smile.
Since arriving, Jensen had barely said a word except for his greeting. He seemed tense and his smiles had been strained. There was something going on that Jared couldn’t place. Then he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. Shit! He’d forgotten about the fifth man. Jared looked amongst the shelves and caught sight of him again; he was tall, slim-built with dark, wavy hair. The way he stood meant that Jared couldn’t quite see his features but he looked out of place compared to the others. They were dressed for a casual night out, but he wore a tailored blue suit, beautifully cut to fit him perfectly.
Jared watched as the man drifted round the shop, a bored attitude surrounding him, then Aldis asked a question. “Look, we came here to find out if Jensen’s gonna get a new man sometime soon. Only Kane is champing at the bit to scare the shit out of his next new boyfriend. Although, I think he fell down on the job with Matt.” Suddenly the atmosphere in the room changed from light to tense. Jared saw Jensen stiffen at those words and Kane snarled in his friend’s direction. The fifth man turned and began to walk over to where Jensen sat. Jared decided to attempt to lighten the atmosphere.
“At the moment I’d say, not yet, but the cards are promising you a future with someone new, but they can never give a precise date.” Jared smiled gently at Jensen who seemed uncomfortable, and he wanted to comfort the other man, concerned at his troubled expression.
“Hear that, Jen. That’s good news. You’ll just have to get rid of your guest first; you don’t want to be having a hot time and the doors start banging and the bed levitates. Huh?” This came from Misha who was blissfully unaware of the looks Kane kept shooting him.
“Misha, shut up. Look, thanks for the reading. I enjoyed it but we should let you get on with your evening.” Jensen gave a tentative smile and prepared to leave; Jared drew in a breath and spoke to him.
“Listen, I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but from what I understand you think you are being haunted? Don’t worry about it. Most spirits soon sort out their problems and move on. You can encourage them to let go of this world by telling them not to be scared.” Jensen looked at Jared, hope filling his green eyes.
Kane snorted from beside Jared, “Tell ‘em to let go? Utter fucking bullshit, man. Jensen, if you listen to those two they’ll have you convinced the place is haunted by one of Jim’s ex-patients gone Cujo. Look, I’ll spend the night in your apartment and prove nothing is there, and I suppose this comes at an extra cost.” Kane had stood up and was throwing bills on the table, signalling the reading was over.
“Kane, sit down. I’m enjoying myself and thank you, Jared, I’ll take your advice. Now how about giving one of these guys a reading?” A shy smile lit up Jensen’s face and hell, Jared would’ve read Kane’s cards to see that once more. Instead, he passed the cards to Aldis and Kane sat down.
“By the way, the advice is free and I’ll only charge for Jensen’s reading and not your friends, and I promise you, Jensen, there will be someone else for you.” As Jared spoke the man in the blue suit took a step forward. He placed his hands on Jensen’s shoulders possessively and stared down into Jared’s eyes. Jared cringed inwardly at the expression there, his ice-blue eyes flashed at him, staking his claim on Jensen.
Jared sighed softly. Shit! Not now of all times, not now. He knew the reason why the others had ignored the man. He was the only one who saw him and when he’d touched Jensen, he flinched and shivered as if he was cold.
The man smiled and looked round slowly at the others. His smile grew when he looked back down at Jared, “Well, well, you can see me. What a surprise! You understand this; Jensen is mine and will always be mine. Neither you nor that goon, Kane will ever take him from me. He just needs reminding of whom he belongs to.” With that the man was gone.
Jared struggled to keep his composure; the sense of malevolence that surrounded the man when he’d addressed him had shaken Jared. Crap! He was really going to fucking kill Chad when he saw him. Jared had always been able to see spirits and whenever he encountered them he tried to convince them to move on, to go into the light. Some, though, were very hard to convince and from what Jared had seen, this one was going to prove very difficult. He gathered himself together and finished the reading for Aldis amidst much laughter, especially when he convinced the man he was going to marry a Swedish shot putter and have seven children with her.
The party stood up and got ready to leave. Jared wanted to try and speak to Jensen; to tell him to be careful. The spirit was fixated on him and Jared knew he had to try and move the spirit on as quickly as possible but every time he tried to talk to Jensen, Kane cut him off. In the end Jared used his extra inches in height to speak to Jensen. “I hope the reading was everything you wanted, Jensen, and if you ever need anything else just call me.” Before Jared could give Jensen his number Kane hustled him out of the shop. Jensen threw him a look over his shoulder giving him a sheepish smile as Kane all but dragged him out of the door.
Jared watched them go with a sense of dread. He needed to talk to Jensen again or at least try and find out who the spirit was. Shit! It probably meant he’d have to talk to Kane about it. That was going to be a fun conversation.
Jared cleaned up and left. As he locked up he rang Chad. As expected, it went to voice mail, “Chad, you utter bastard! Did you know that Jensen was being haunted? When I get hold of you, you’ll never be able to have another threesome again, you hear me? You better be at work nice and early ‘cause we gotta talk.” Jared hung up and walked back to his home above his shop. He needed to take his dogs for a walk; he’d left them longer than he liked. Putting all thoughts of Jensen, spirits and Chad’s impending death at his hands out of his mind, he walked home.
Jensen opened the door to his apartment which was much smaller than the palatial apartment he’d shared with Matt but Jensen loved it. It was his. Well, it was Jim’s, his employer, but he liked living above the shop, so to speak. He closed the door behind him and took a good look round. He gave a sigh of relief. The apartment was exactly as he left it when he’d gone out.
Everything had been fine. He had been getting on with his life, and then a couple of weeks ago Jensen had noticed strange things happening. At first, he had put it down to his imagination, or the fact he was tired from being back at work after his accident. Items had started to disappear for a couple of days and then they would reappear in completely the wrong place.
Also, he was sure that things were being rearranged. Matt had been a neatness nut, everything in its place and a place for everything. Now Jensen could put his books, CDs and DVDs in any order he wanted. Then the guys had come round for a movie and pizza night, something he hadn’t done in years. Matt hadn’t liked his friends and discouraged them visiting him and Jensen. Jensen had been getting the pizzas ordered and told Aldis to pick a movie.
Aldis had called out to him, “Dude, OCD much? Your movies are alphabetically arranged in genre, and I thought I had issues with my movie collection.” Jensen had nearly dropped the phone because he had deliberately just put them on the shelves in any order. He had convinced himself that old habits die hard and he’d put them in order without thinking.
Now other things had happened. The TV changing channel to programmes Matt had liked to watch; Jensen finding his drapes opened when he knew he’d closed them; the taps being turned on and nearly flooding the place. Lately Jensen was sure he heard a voice in the apartment, just a whisper, snatches of a conversation. Finally, after nearly jumping out of his skin tonight when the guys had been round having a drink, he’d given in and told them what was going on. Misha and Aldis had thought it was hilarious and said he should get Alison Dubois in to solve the case.
Kane had suggested they go and see Chad. Jensen had heard of Chad in fairly graphic detail from Kane. He couldn’t imagine how Chad could help, but he’d been glad to get out of his apartment for a little while, after all the strange events that had been taking place recently. Kane had told him they were going to get a tarot reading from Chad, and Chad would put his mind at rest over the place being haunted. Jensen hadn’t been sure but when he saw how much Aldis and Misha had wanted to go, he’d been happy to go along for a laugh.
Then he’d met Jared and wow didn’t quite cover it. The man was gorgeous and totally opposite in appearance from Matt. Where Matt was meticulous, Jared had been relaxed. His smile had lit up the room and he seemed so at ease with himself, and damn, he loved the dimples when he’d smiled. Jensen smiled to himself as he went to the fridge and drank milk straight from the carton. As the cold liquid ran down his throat he shivered, not just from the milk’s coldness but knowing what Matt would’ve have done to him if he’d been caught doing that.
Matt had been very creative in his punishments and Jensen still bore the scars both emotional and physical; he had been very careful about where he left bruises. After all, he couldn’t show Jensen off if he was covered in them, and Matt hated the thought that his property had permanent damage. It had reached the point where Jensen wished he had scarred him and Matt would no longer want him, but it seemed he had some very good friends, including a plastic surgeon. Matt had convinced the good doctor that Jensen liked ‘it’ rough and one of their games had gotten out of hand. An almost invisible set of stitches later meant Matt was able to push his punishments that little bit further. As Jensen replaced the milk in the fridge he was overwhelmed by a memory.
Jensen stood in his and Matt’s kitchen; he had just been for a run. He was wearing the running outfit Matt had laid out for him, a pair of green shorts and a tight-fitting white vest. Jensen hated it but Matt loved the outfit as it showed off his athletic body to the neighbours, and he could bask in the knowledge many of them wanted Jensen but he belonged to him. It had meant that Jensen could get out on his own so he’d worn it.
He looked round the kitchen warily, and called out softly “Matt, where are you?” When there was no response, he went to the fridge, grabbed his carton of cranberry juice, opened it, and took a long drink from it. He smiled at his small act of rebellion from Matt’s strict rules of etiquette. He had put the carton back when suddenly the fridge door was slammed shut, trapping his wrist. Jensen let out a cry of pain; he turned his head, startled and came face to face with his partner, Matt.
Matt‘s hand was pressed against the fridge door, an expression of regret on his handsome face. He reached out and caressed Jensen’s face with his other hand, and then he changed it to a painful grip under his jaw. He pulled Jensen to him and rested his forehead against Jensen’s, “Jensen, why do you insist on doing things like this? You know I’m going to have to show you that kind of behaviour is unacceptable. You’re not in Yahoosville, Texas anymore; you’re living in the civilized world. I’m very disappointed in you. I thought we were doing so well these days. You know I hate having to do this to you, but you need to understand I have an image to maintain. You behaving like some animal doesn’t go with the image.” Matt’s voice was filled with pain and remorse at what he was about to be forced to do.
With that, Matt had pulled back, releasing Jensen’s hand from the fridge. Jensen cradled his injured left wrist to his chest, his eyes screwed shut with pain. He hadn’t realized that Matt was behind him, until there was the familiar feel of Matt’s hands gripping his biceps. He frequently had hand-shaped bruises where he had done that, and Matt always ensured none of his shirts had sleeves short enough to show them. Jensen stifled his gasp of pain; Matt loved hearing him plead for him to stop or any sound of distress. Matt pushed Jensen forward out of the kitchen towards the bedrooms. They went past the master bedroom to a bedroom that was only ever used when Jensen had committed a crime and had to be instructed to mend his ways.
The room was bare, no obvious signs of whips or chains, but Matt was much more imaginative than that. He had spent a long time training Jensen, and he only had to bring Jensen into that room for a punishment to start. He walked in front of him, “Strip! If you are going to behave like an animal then I’ll treat you like one. Animals don’t wear clothes. When I come back I want you naked.” Matt turned and stalked out of the room. Jensen automatically took off his clothes, folding them with meticulous care before placing them in front of his feet. Matt returned and Jensen’s heart sped up; he was holding a blindfold and a pair of handcuffs. The room was warm but Jensen could feel the cool of the air conditioner. Matt had switched it on when he came back. He walked behind Jensen, roughly tied the blindfold on and spoke softly into his ear. “Hands behind your back. I want you to kneel here until I fetch you. You are not to move until I come for you. Do you understand me?” Matt snapped the cuffs tightly round Jensen’s wrist. He jerked at the connecting chain, expecting an answer.
“Yes, Matt, I’m sorry. Please....please, don’t do this...I’m sorry.” Jensen’s voice broke with fear and he felt a soft caress from Matt’s hand just before he was pushed brutally to his knees.
Jensen heard Matt pick up his clothes and then leave the room. He was alone and the room was growing colder. He shivered; Matt must have turned up the air con to full and he was kneeling under the full force of it.
Jensen shook himself, trying to free himself of the memory. He couldn’t help but shiver at its power over him. He moved away from the fridge, breathing hard, trying not to succumb to a panic attack. That day had been horrendous. Matt knew what he was doing. The whole punishment had been about the anticipation of violence rather than him being beaten. By the time Matt had come back to get him, Jensen was completely numb. It had been like kneeling in a fridge. Every time the door opened Jensen had tensed, waiting for a rain of blows that never came.
Matt had put the cuffs on so tight that Jensen hadn’t been able to feel his hands for hours after. For days he had been forced to wear long-sleeved shirts in the height of the Californian summer, to cover the cuff marks round his wrists. In the days that followed he discovered he had a hairline fracture of his left wrist and needed to wear a lightweight cast, which had annoyed Matted as it spoiled the line of his clothes.
The reason Matt had fetched Jensen after only a few hours of contemplating his crime, was that he had invited friends round for a drink and Jensen was expected to be the perfect host. He’d served drinks and smiled, gritting his teeth against the pain in his wrist and hands, watching Matt revel in the compliments his performance garnered.
Matt had virtually carried Jensen back to their room, as his legs had cramped from the cold with his kneeling in the same position for hour after hour. He remembered how Matt had held him after he’d taken him back to their bedroom, telling him to get dressed, saying he was sorry but Jensen had to learn. He felt the familiar anger brewing inside of him for letting Matt reduce him to that. But it had happened so slowly that by the time he realized what Matt had done, it was too late and he was alone, with no one to help him, utterly dependent on Matt for everything. He recalled how he would’ve done just about anything for a kind word or gesture from him.
Jensen shook himself; it was in his past. His present was what he had to concentrate on now. He had a job he loved, his friends were back in his life and Jared...well, Jared was kind of cute. Maybe he could ask Chris if he should ask Jared out for a coffee. Then it stuck him he didn’t need permission for anything now, he could do what he liked. Jensen felt dizzy at the prospect, just to do what he wanted. Then he remembered Jared’s words about his ghost, and he thought why not?
Feeling somewhat foolish Jensen addressed his empty apartment, “Err, hi there. Look, someone told me tonight that you shouldn’t be scared. It’s ok to let go and move on into the light or whatever. Just ...you don’t have to stay here, ok?” With that, Jensen decided to get ready for bed, completely unaware he was being watched.
Matt stood watching Jensen as he moved round his apartment, his nose wrinkled in distaste at the decor. He would have to do something about that soon. He felt the man Jensen was working for wasn’t good enough. Hadn’t he secured him a good position with a Vet in Beverly Hills with the father of one of his friends? All the clients were rich and powerful, and look at Jensen now! He was reduced to caring for guinea pigs and cats for suburban brats. No, that would never do. When Jensen had drunk the milk Matt had felt his anger rise; he was slipping back into his old ways. He would have to amend that, but he did find Jensen’s little speech to his unseen guest rather adorable.
Matt followed Jensen into the bathroom, watching as he brushed his teeth and got ready for bed. Jensen shivered slightly as he felt a presence behind him, the room temperature dropping. Matt decided it was time to really make his presence felt. With each passing day he was growing stronger and soon Jensen would be back under his careful guidance as he should be.
Jensen felt goose bumps rise on his skin. Surprised at the sudden chill in the bathroom he shivered. He quickly finished cleaning his teeth and decided to get into bed. He turned the bathroom light off and stepped back into his bedroom and froze in horror at the sight before him. To anyone else all that Jensen saw was a bed, a bed that had been turned back, nothing that should inspire terror.
He knew he hadn’t done it and as he stepped forward cautiously, a wave of nausea swept over him. The bed had been made with military precision with perfectly folded-down corners. The bedclothes were folded back to a forty-five degree angle; it was something he could do in his sleep. Matt had made him strip and remake the bed continually one night after he had not turned the bedclothes back to the precise angle. He felt a phantom pain flare across his back; Matt had reminded him of his mistakes. Each time the bed had been incorrectly made, he had administered a punch to his kidneys. Jensen had barely been able to stand by the time Matt had finally been happy with how the bed had been made.
Now Jensen was looking down at his bed, made in a way he knew even if he had been going mad, he would never do again. Then Jensen felt a cruel grip round his biceps and he knew who his ghost was......”No, Matt, please....you can’t be here...you’re gone.”
Matt smiled at the terror in Jensen’s voice. Good! He remembered how to behave. Now it was time to begin to reassert himself into Jensen’s life. With one swift motion Matt spun Jensen round and flung him hard against the bedroom wall, listening with satisfaction to the thud of his body as it struck the wall. Jensen slid down it and automatically curled into a ball, trying to protect himself. He knew what was coming next.
Matt stood over his cowering lover and drew back his foot. The first kick landed hard against his ribs and Jensen gasped with pain; the second caught him on the arms crossed in front of his face. Matt kicked him again viciously in the ribs; he felt himself start to weaken. He wasn’t strong enough yet; he had to take this slowly just like when he’d trained Jensen. But that was alright, he had all the time in the world. In fact, he had forever. As he faded away he could hear Jensen crying, crying out his name over and over begging for his forgiveness. Matt smiled at that. Of course, he should ask for his forgiveness. After all, Jensen had killed him.
Once the kicks had stopped, Jensen had crawled into the corner and sat shivering with fear and pain. He couldn’t believe it. Matt was back! Matt was dead. He’d been killed in the car accident that had nearly claimed his own life as well. Jensen looked round the room, trying to see Matt. He gave a brittle laugh. Right! As if he could see a ghost. Fuck! Why him? He thought he was free now Matt was gone, but it looked like it would never be over. Jensen felt sleep pulling him down. Exhausted from the beating and the rush of adrenaline, his eyes drifted closed. Just before he passed out a single thought went through his mind. Jared.....maybe Jared could help him.
Chapter 2
Word Count: 6073
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Jared meets the man of his dreams while helping out his best friend Chad. Unfortunately for him, Jensen is being haunted by his past in more ways than one. Can Jared convince the spirit of Jensen’s not so dearly departed boyfriend to move on, or will make good on his promise to make Jensen his forever.
Pairing: Jared/Jensen, Jensen/OMC
Warnings: Mentions of domestic abuse, and non-con that happens off camera.
Jared was closing up for the night when his phone rang, he saw Chad’s name flash up on the display. He sighed and raised his eyes to his shop’s sign and winced. Jared’s Graphic Novel Emporium, as he had wanted to call it had been unfortunate enough to be rechristened. When he’d asked Chad to order the sign he’d been busy with setting up the stock. So now he stood under a sign that bore the name Geeks R Us, although he had to admit it worked better and everyone remembered it. As with so many things in Chad’s mind, it seemed like a great idea at the time.
That also included the tattoo Chad had talked him into whilst drunk, Jared found out too late what it had been. His horror the following morning at finding a pair of boobs on the right cheek of his butt had lead to an epic bitch fit at Chad. Jared had threatened to never speak to him again after that; also there had been the pain and humiliation of having it removed. After all, it’s damned fucking hard explaining to your boyfriend at the time, exactly why you have an enormous pair of tits on your ass. Usually the scar was easier to explain - the heroic rescue of a small child from a pack of wild dogs sounded so much better.
With a sense of foreboding Jared answered the phone, “Hi Chad.” His stomach churned with apprehension.
“Jaybird, my man....” Chad’s happy voice came down the phone; in the background Jared could hear female voices.
“Whatever it is, no way, dude and for the last goddamn time I’m gay. So I will not go on a double date with you just so I can chat to the ugly chick while you seduce her better-looking friend.” Jared grinned as he spoke.
“Dude, I’m wounded. What makes you think I want something?”
“You only call me Jaybird when you want something. Come on, man, spill. There’s a beer upstairs with my name on it.” Jared knew he was doomed the minute Chad called him by his nickname. Chad could wrap him round his little finger and he knew it. But he was determined to try and hold out for a respectable amount of time before he caved.
“Look, normally I wouldn’t ask, dude, but I’ve struck gold. Twins, man, I got twins! It’s the fucking holy grail of threesomes! Come on, you wouldn’t deny me that pleasure. Dude, imagine they cloned Johnny Depp, covered both of them in chocolate and left them in front of you....please, Jaybird?” Chad sounded desperate.
Jared shook his head and got ready to surrender gracefully, “Oh, twins, is it? You mean, like the last time. Remember them? There was a five-year age gap, looked nothing alike and they weren’t even sisters. Come on, then. What do you want me to do?”
“Woo hoo, Jaybird, you’re the best and besides, they have their driver’s licenses with them, so I know they’re sisters. Anyway, after that somewhat unfortunate incident last spring break, I always check the driver’s licences. All I need you to do is to go over to my place and do a little reading for me....”
Jared interrupted him. “No way, Chad! Anything but that. You know why I don’t like doing readings.” He stood his ground against this request.
“No. It’s alright, Jay. I promise. Look, I told Kane it wouldn’t be me doing the reading and he was cool with it.”
“Hang on. Kane, did you say? As in Christian Kane - the guy who owns Vintage Vinyl? The guy’s a maniac. Holy shit! Are you trying to get me killed? The guy hates me. Have you ever seen the way he looks at me? It’s like he wants to rip my heart out and eat it. No fucking way! Twins or not, it’s your gig. You do it.” Jared considered hanging up.
“Listen, Jay. He looks at everybody like that so quit worrying. Besides, he’s nice and mellow at the moment. Him and some buddies are having a drink, and they want a reading for one of them. You know, something along the lines of - yes, he’s had a sad past but now things are looking up and all that crap. Come on, man, twins. Please......” Jared sighed and his shoulders slumped. Crap! He was so screwed and he knew it.
“Alright, but you owe me big time for this, and you’re sure Kane is fine with this? I just happen to like my liver where it is.” Jared waited as he heard the sound of giggling growing louder, and he really didn’t want to know what Chad was doing to make that kind of noise down the phone.
“Look, I promise Kane will not disembowel you, at least, not tonight. Please, man? You’re real good at it. Oh and they will be there in about fifteen minutes so you better get a move on. Bye, Jaybird.” Jared stared at his phone in horror and then took off at a run down the street.
His, Chad and Kane’s shops were on the same part of the boardwalk overlooking Venice Beach, and now Jared was racing down it towards Chad’s shop. He reached the splendidly named Tarotama in record time; it was subtly decorated with every kind of occult symbol Chad could possibly think of. He offered tarot readings, fortune telling and just about everything the discerning and not so discerning practitioner of magic could wish for.
Jared found Chad’s spare key on his key chain and let himself in. Once inside, Jared got to work. For an easy-going guy he was very precise about how his readings were set up. He used subdued lighting to help with the mood, which included candles on the card table. Ha had a favourite tarot deck which he used for readings. Whenever Jared stood in he never used that deck, and, of course, mood music.
Jared rushed round setting the right tone for the room - soft lighting, turned on the hippy dippy music as Chad called it, and found the spare deck of Tarot to read. He slipped into the back room, took off his jacket then checked his appearance in the mirror that hung there. The figure that smiled nervously back wore worn comfortable jeans, a white wife beater that was covered by a half-opened pink flowered shirt. Jared winced a little at the shirt but he didn’t have time to change. He buttoned it up and attempted to smooth his hair down, but gave up when it sprang back to its natural wave in defiance.
Jared stepped back into the shop and took a deep breath; the air was fragrant with the warm, spicy scent of sandalwood incense; it helped him relax with its comforting familiarity. He was just getting settled in his seat, getting the cards ready when the door swung open.
Christian Kane strode into the shop; it always amused Chad that Jared was scared of him. Jared was at least six inches taller and around ten pounds heavier. But Kane had the habit of making everyone else round him feel like a midget. As Chad said, the attitude was seven foot tall. Jared gave a nervous smile, and Kane narrowed his eyes and stalked over to Jared.
“Howdy Padalecki, I spoke to ya boy, Chad and he said you’d do a reading for my friend, Jensen. Well, can ya?” Kane glared at Jared and he nodded, terrified.
Kane leant a little closer and Jared smelt whisky on his breath, “Listen to me. Jensen has been having a rough time lately. I want his mind to be put at rest. You can do that for me, can’t you?”
Jared looked up, cursing Chad under his breath, “What kind of rough time? And is there anything I should avoid talking about?”
Kane weighed up the question, “Look. Just tell him everything will be alright and we’ll be fine. You let me take care of Jensen.” He stood up, “Come in, guys. He ain’t got all night.” Kane turned to Jared and shrugged his shoulders, waiting for the rest of his party.
First member of the party to enter was a tall, black man who Jared was sure he’d seen going into Kane’s shop. The man seemed a little the worse for wear, weaving as he walked. “Hi, I’m Aldis, cool place y’all got here. I really like the decor, man. Real spiritual.” He gave a jaunty wave and looked back over his shoulder. Jared stood up to say hi when another man walked in. “Misha, dude, this is just your kind of place. I bet you could meditate in here.” Aldis laughed.
Misha had staggered in behind Aldis, turned round slowly, nodding in approval at the spiritual vibe the shop gave off. Jared smiled - if only they knew how Chad had done it. He’d bought a job lot of props off the local theatre group after they had finished a production of Harry Potter. So yeah, deeply spiritual. Misha finished turning and looked at Jared. He tilted his head back, his blue eyes attempting to focus on him. “Wow! If your third eye is in proportion with the rest of you, then damn, you must be good.” Kane snorted at that. Finally, two more men entered the shop and the door closed.
Kane gave the one man a smile, an honest to goodness smile and that just unnerved Jared all the more. He followed Kane’s smile and stopped dead. The man who Jared presumed was Jensen was gorgeous. Jared didn’t believe in love at first sight. Although, he definitely believed in wanting to rip the guy’s clothes off, cover him in whipped cream then lick his body till he screamed at first sight. Jensen was wearing dark-blue jeans like his, worn and comfortable looking and a pale-green button-down over a T-shirt.
Jared caught sight of Jensen’s eyes as he walked forward at Kane’s come here gesture. Even in the subdued lighting Jared could see they were green, the candlelight highlighting the flecks of gold within them. There was a smattering of freckles on his face and his full lips were somewhat of a distraction.
Jared was so distracted he barely paid any attention to the fifth man who arrived with them; he never noticed he hadn’t been introduced to him. “Jensen, this is Jared. He has offered to read your cards and tell you a little about your future.” Jensen stepped forward and held out his hand; Jared took it and the touch of Jensen’s hand made Jared’s skin tingle.
Jensen gave the slightest of smiles, “Hi, Jared. Thanks for letting a bunch of drunken idiots into your friend’s shop. I hope we won’t be too much trouble.” His voice was low and musical and Jared just wanted to hear that melody again.
“No, it’s no problem at all; I hope you don’t mind me standing in for Chad? Or would you prefer to come back when he is here.” Jared prayed Jensen was fine with the stand-in.
“You’re ok, man. I’m only here because the rest of the girls want to see if I’m going to meet a tall handsome stranger. Ain’t that right, ladies?” Jensen threw a look over his shoulder at his grinning friends.
Misha and Aldis nodded and laughed and then Jared heard something that sounded like “Hey, don’t forget to ask about your house guest, Jen.” But a laser-precision glare from Kane stopped the comments dead.
“Please, everyone sit down and we’ll begin. Jensen, would you shuffle the deck and concentrate on what you want to know?” Jensen sat in front of Jared and he watched as Jensen’s long, graceful fingers shuffled the deck. Jared took the cards from him and dealt them out on the table. As Jared began his reading his eyes travelled round the room. He knew how to do this. Chad had taught him well. He made a good show of reading the cards.
Jared was spinning a good yarn, telling Jensen he had been through some sad times but now his life was turning the corner. In fact, for the most part, the cards Jensen had been dealt bore out what Jared was saying, although there was a worrying undercurrent to some of the cards. He decided to keep that to himself after Kane’s insistence on only wanting good news for his friend.
He noticed there was a lot of whispering and giggling going on as he talked to Jensen. Aldis and Misha were finding something hilarious. Jared watched Kane out of the corner of his eye. He was tense about something and he hardly took his eyes from Jensen, concern pouring off him in waves.
“Gentlemen, can I help you with something? Maybe a reading of your own, perhaps?” Aldis and Misha went quiet, and then Misha leaned forward and whispered something to Jensen. Jensen shook his head and turned red. “Jensen, is there anything you want to ask me about your reading or anything else for that matter?” Jared gave an encouraging smile.
Since arriving, Jensen had barely said a word except for his greeting. He seemed tense and his smiles had been strained. There was something going on that Jared couldn’t place. Then he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. Shit! He’d forgotten about the fifth man. Jared looked amongst the shelves and caught sight of him again; he was tall, slim-built with dark, wavy hair. The way he stood meant that Jared couldn’t quite see his features but he looked out of place compared to the others. They were dressed for a casual night out, but he wore a tailored blue suit, beautifully cut to fit him perfectly.
Jared watched as the man drifted round the shop, a bored attitude surrounding him, then Aldis asked a question. “Look, we came here to find out if Jensen’s gonna get a new man sometime soon. Only Kane is champing at the bit to scare the shit out of his next new boyfriend. Although, I think he fell down on the job with Matt.” Suddenly the atmosphere in the room changed from light to tense. Jared saw Jensen stiffen at those words and Kane snarled in his friend’s direction. The fifth man turned and began to walk over to where Jensen sat. Jared decided to attempt to lighten the atmosphere.
“At the moment I’d say, not yet, but the cards are promising you a future with someone new, but they can never give a precise date.” Jared smiled gently at Jensen who seemed uncomfortable, and he wanted to comfort the other man, concerned at his troubled expression.
“Hear that, Jen. That’s good news. You’ll just have to get rid of your guest first; you don’t want to be having a hot time and the doors start banging and the bed levitates. Huh?” This came from Misha who was blissfully unaware of the looks Kane kept shooting him.
“Misha, shut up. Look, thanks for the reading. I enjoyed it but we should let you get on with your evening.” Jensen gave a tentative smile and prepared to leave; Jared drew in a breath and spoke to him.
“Listen, I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but from what I understand you think you are being haunted? Don’t worry about it. Most spirits soon sort out their problems and move on. You can encourage them to let go of this world by telling them not to be scared.” Jensen looked at Jared, hope filling his green eyes.
Kane snorted from beside Jared, “Tell ‘em to let go? Utter fucking bullshit, man. Jensen, if you listen to those two they’ll have you convinced the place is haunted by one of Jim’s ex-patients gone Cujo. Look, I’ll spend the night in your apartment and prove nothing is there, and I suppose this comes at an extra cost.” Kane had stood up and was throwing bills on the table, signalling the reading was over.
“Kane, sit down. I’m enjoying myself and thank you, Jared, I’ll take your advice. Now how about giving one of these guys a reading?” A shy smile lit up Jensen’s face and hell, Jared would’ve read Kane’s cards to see that once more. Instead, he passed the cards to Aldis and Kane sat down.
“By the way, the advice is free and I’ll only charge for Jensen’s reading and not your friends, and I promise you, Jensen, there will be someone else for you.” As Jared spoke the man in the blue suit took a step forward. He placed his hands on Jensen’s shoulders possessively and stared down into Jared’s eyes. Jared cringed inwardly at the expression there, his ice-blue eyes flashed at him, staking his claim on Jensen.
Jared sighed softly. Shit! Not now of all times, not now. He knew the reason why the others had ignored the man. He was the only one who saw him and when he’d touched Jensen, he flinched and shivered as if he was cold.
The man smiled and looked round slowly at the others. His smile grew when he looked back down at Jared, “Well, well, you can see me. What a surprise! You understand this; Jensen is mine and will always be mine. Neither you nor that goon, Kane will ever take him from me. He just needs reminding of whom he belongs to.” With that the man was gone.
Jared struggled to keep his composure; the sense of malevolence that surrounded the man when he’d addressed him had shaken Jared. Crap! He was really going to fucking kill Chad when he saw him. Jared had always been able to see spirits and whenever he encountered them he tried to convince them to move on, to go into the light. Some, though, were very hard to convince and from what Jared had seen, this one was going to prove very difficult. He gathered himself together and finished the reading for Aldis amidst much laughter, especially when he convinced the man he was going to marry a Swedish shot putter and have seven children with her.
The party stood up and got ready to leave. Jared wanted to try and speak to Jensen; to tell him to be careful. The spirit was fixated on him and Jared knew he had to try and move the spirit on as quickly as possible but every time he tried to talk to Jensen, Kane cut him off. In the end Jared used his extra inches in height to speak to Jensen. “I hope the reading was everything you wanted, Jensen, and if you ever need anything else just call me.” Before Jared could give Jensen his number Kane hustled him out of the shop. Jensen threw him a look over his shoulder giving him a sheepish smile as Kane all but dragged him out of the door.
Jared watched them go with a sense of dread. He needed to talk to Jensen again or at least try and find out who the spirit was. Shit! It probably meant he’d have to talk to Kane about it. That was going to be a fun conversation.
Jared cleaned up and left. As he locked up he rang Chad. As expected, it went to voice mail, “Chad, you utter bastard! Did you know that Jensen was being haunted? When I get hold of you, you’ll never be able to have another threesome again, you hear me? You better be at work nice and early ‘cause we gotta talk.” Jared hung up and walked back to his home above his shop. He needed to take his dogs for a walk; he’d left them longer than he liked. Putting all thoughts of Jensen, spirits and Chad’s impending death at his hands out of his mind, he walked home.
Everything had been fine. He had been getting on with his life, and then a couple of weeks ago Jensen had noticed strange things happening. At first, he had put it down to his imagination, or the fact he was tired from being back at work after his accident. Items had started to disappear for a couple of days and then they would reappear in completely the wrong place.
Also, he was sure that things were being rearranged. Matt had been a neatness nut, everything in its place and a place for everything. Now Jensen could put his books, CDs and DVDs in any order he wanted. Then the guys had come round for a movie and pizza night, something he hadn’t done in years. Matt hadn’t liked his friends and discouraged them visiting him and Jensen. Jensen had been getting the pizzas ordered and told Aldis to pick a movie.
Aldis had called out to him, “Dude, OCD much? Your movies are alphabetically arranged in genre, and I thought I had issues with my movie collection.” Jensen had nearly dropped the phone because he had deliberately just put them on the shelves in any order. He had convinced himself that old habits die hard and he’d put them in order without thinking.
Now other things had happened. The TV changing channel to programmes Matt had liked to watch; Jensen finding his drapes opened when he knew he’d closed them; the taps being turned on and nearly flooding the place. Lately Jensen was sure he heard a voice in the apartment, just a whisper, snatches of a conversation. Finally, after nearly jumping out of his skin tonight when the guys had been round having a drink, he’d given in and told them what was going on. Misha and Aldis had thought it was hilarious and said he should get Alison Dubois in to solve the case.
Kane had suggested they go and see Chad. Jensen had heard of Chad in fairly graphic detail from Kane. He couldn’t imagine how Chad could help, but he’d been glad to get out of his apartment for a little while, after all the strange events that had been taking place recently. Kane had told him they were going to get a tarot reading from Chad, and Chad would put his mind at rest over the place being haunted. Jensen hadn’t been sure but when he saw how much Aldis and Misha had wanted to go, he’d been happy to go along for a laugh.
Then he’d met Jared and wow didn’t quite cover it. The man was gorgeous and totally opposite in appearance from Matt. Where Matt was meticulous, Jared had been relaxed. His smile had lit up the room and he seemed so at ease with himself, and damn, he loved the dimples when he’d smiled. Jensen smiled to himself as he went to the fridge and drank milk straight from the carton. As the cold liquid ran down his throat he shivered, not just from the milk’s coldness but knowing what Matt would’ve have done to him if he’d been caught doing that.
Matt had been very creative in his punishments and Jensen still bore the scars both emotional and physical; he had been very careful about where he left bruises. After all, he couldn’t show Jensen off if he was covered in them, and Matt hated the thought that his property had permanent damage. It had reached the point where Jensen wished he had scarred him and Matt would no longer want him, but it seemed he had some very good friends, including a plastic surgeon. Matt had convinced the good doctor that Jensen liked ‘it’ rough and one of their games had gotten out of hand. An almost invisible set of stitches later meant Matt was able to push his punishments that little bit further. As Jensen replaced the milk in the fridge he was overwhelmed by a memory.
Jensen stood in his and Matt’s kitchen; he had just been for a run. He was wearing the running outfit Matt had laid out for him, a pair of green shorts and a tight-fitting white vest. Jensen hated it but Matt loved the outfit as it showed off his athletic body to the neighbours, and he could bask in the knowledge many of them wanted Jensen but he belonged to him. It had meant that Jensen could get out on his own so he’d worn it.
He looked round the kitchen warily, and called out softly “Matt, where are you?” When there was no response, he went to the fridge, grabbed his carton of cranberry juice, opened it, and took a long drink from it. He smiled at his small act of rebellion from Matt’s strict rules of etiquette. He had put the carton back when suddenly the fridge door was slammed shut, trapping his wrist. Jensen let out a cry of pain; he turned his head, startled and came face to face with his partner, Matt.
Matt‘s hand was pressed against the fridge door, an expression of regret on his handsome face. He reached out and caressed Jensen’s face with his other hand, and then he changed it to a painful grip under his jaw. He pulled Jensen to him and rested his forehead against Jensen’s, “Jensen, why do you insist on doing things like this? You know I’m going to have to show you that kind of behaviour is unacceptable. You’re not in Yahoosville, Texas anymore; you’re living in the civilized world. I’m very disappointed in you. I thought we were doing so well these days. You know I hate having to do this to you, but you need to understand I have an image to maintain. You behaving like some animal doesn’t go with the image.” Matt’s voice was filled with pain and remorse at what he was about to be forced to do.
With that, Matt had pulled back, releasing Jensen’s hand from the fridge. Jensen cradled his injured left wrist to his chest, his eyes screwed shut with pain. He hadn’t realized that Matt was behind him, until there was the familiar feel of Matt’s hands gripping his biceps. He frequently had hand-shaped bruises where he had done that, and Matt always ensured none of his shirts had sleeves short enough to show them. Jensen stifled his gasp of pain; Matt loved hearing him plead for him to stop or any sound of distress. Matt pushed Jensen forward out of the kitchen towards the bedrooms. They went past the master bedroom to a bedroom that was only ever used when Jensen had committed a crime and had to be instructed to mend his ways.
The room was bare, no obvious signs of whips or chains, but Matt was much more imaginative than that. He had spent a long time training Jensen, and he only had to bring Jensen into that room for a punishment to start. He walked in front of him, “Strip! If you are going to behave like an animal then I’ll treat you like one. Animals don’t wear clothes. When I come back I want you naked.” Matt turned and stalked out of the room. Jensen automatically took off his clothes, folding them with meticulous care before placing them in front of his feet. Matt returned and Jensen’s heart sped up; he was holding a blindfold and a pair of handcuffs. The room was warm but Jensen could feel the cool of the air conditioner. Matt had switched it on when he came back. He walked behind Jensen, roughly tied the blindfold on and spoke softly into his ear. “Hands behind your back. I want you to kneel here until I fetch you. You are not to move until I come for you. Do you understand me?” Matt snapped the cuffs tightly round Jensen’s wrist. He jerked at the connecting chain, expecting an answer.
“Yes, Matt, I’m sorry. Please....please, don’t do this...I’m sorry.” Jensen’s voice broke with fear and he felt a soft caress from Matt’s hand just before he was pushed brutally to his knees.
Jensen heard Matt pick up his clothes and then leave the room. He was alone and the room was growing colder. He shivered; Matt must have turned up the air con to full and he was kneeling under the full force of it.
Jensen shook himself, trying to free himself of the memory. He couldn’t help but shiver at its power over him. He moved away from the fridge, breathing hard, trying not to succumb to a panic attack. That day had been horrendous. Matt knew what he was doing. The whole punishment had been about the anticipation of violence rather than him being beaten. By the time Matt had come back to get him, Jensen was completely numb. It had been like kneeling in a fridge. Every time the door opened Jensen had tensed, waiting for a rain of blows that never came.
Matt had put the cuffs on so tight that Jensen hadn’t been able to feel his hands for hours after. For days he had been forced to wear long-sleeved shirts in the height of the Californian summer, to cover the cuff marks round his wrists. In the days that followed he discovered he had a hairline fracture of his left wrist and needed to wear a lightweight cast, which had annoyed Matted as it spoiled the line of his clothes.
The reason Matt had fetched Jensen after only a few hours of contemplating his crime, was that he had invited friends round for a drink and Jensen was expected to be the perfect host. He’d served drinks and smiled, gritting his teeth against the pain in his wrist and hands, watching Matt revel in the compliments his performance garnered.
Matt had virtually carried Jensen back to their room, as his legs had cramped from the cold with his kneeling in the same position for hour after hour. He remembered how Matt had held him after he’d taken him back to their bedroom, telling him to get dressed, saying he was sorry but Jensen had to learn. He felt the familiar anger brewing inside of him for letting Matt reduce him to that. But it had happened so slowly that by the time he realized what Matt had done, it was too late and he was alone, with no one to help him, utterly dependent on Matt for everything. He recalled how he would’ve done just about anything for a kind word or gesture from him.
Jensen shook himself; it was in his past. His present was what he had to concentrate on now. He had a job he loved, his friends were back in his life and Jared...well, Jared was kind of cute. Maybe he could ask Chris if he should ask Jared out for a coffee. Then it stuck him he didn’t need permission for anything now, he could do what he liked. Jensen felt dizzy at the prospect, just to do what he wanted. Then he remembered Jared’s words about his ghost, and he thought why not?
Feeling somewhat foolish Jensen addressed his empty apartment, “Err, hi there. Look, someone told me tonight that you shouldn’t be scared. It’s ok to let go and move on into the light or whatever. Just ...you don’t have to stay here, ok?” With that, Jensen decided to get ready for bed, completely unaware he was being watched.
Matt stood watching Jensen as he moved round his apartment, his nose wrinkled in distaste at the decor. He would have to do something about that soon. He felt the man Jensen was working for wasn’t good enough. Hadn’t he secured him a good position with a Vet in Beverly Hills with the father of one of his friends? All the clients were rich and powerful, and look at Jensen now! He was reduced to caring for guinea pigs and cats for suburban brats. No, that would never do. When Jensen had drunk the milk Matt had felt his anger rise; he was slipping back into his old ways. He would have to amend that, but he did find Jensen’s little speech to his unseen guest rather adorable.
Matt followed Jensen into the bathroom, watching as he brushed his teeth and got ready for bed. Jensen shivered slightly as he felt a presence behind him, the room temperature dropping. Matt decided it was time to really make his presence felt. With each passing day he was growing stronger and soon Jensen would be back under his careful guidance as he should be.
Jensen felt goose bumps rise on his skin. Surprised at the sudden chill in the bathroom he shivered. He quickly finished cleaning his teeth and decided to get into bed. He turned the bathroom light off and stepped back into his bedroom and froze in horror at the sight before him. To anyone else all that Jensen saw was a bed, a bed that had been turned back, nothing that should inspire terror.
He knew he hadn’t done it and as he stepped forward cautiously, a wave of nausea swept over him. The bed had been made with military precision with perfectly folded-down corners. The bedclothes were folded back to a forty-five degree angle; it was something he could do in his sleep. Matt had made him strip and remake the bed continually one night after he had not turned the bedclothes back to the precise angle. He felt a phantom pain flare across his back; Matt had reminded him of his mistakes. Each time the bed had been incorrectly made, he had administered a punch to his kidneys. Jensen had barely been able to stand by the time Matt had finally been happy with how the bed had been made.
Now Jensen was looking down at his bed, made in a way he knew even if he had been going mad, he would never do again. Then Jensen felt a cruel grip round his biceps and he knew who his ghost was......”No, Matt, please....you can’t be here...you’re gone.”
Matt smiled at the terror in Jensen’s voice. Good! He remembered how to behave. Now it was time to begin to reassert himself into Jensen’s life. With one swift motion Matt spun Jensen round and flung him hard against the bedroom wall, listening with satisfaction to the thud of his body as it struck the wall. Jensen slid down it and automatically curled into a ball, trying to protect himself. He knew what was coming next.
Matt stood over his cowering lover and drew back his foot. The first kick landed hard against his ribs and Jensen gasped with pain; the second caught him on the arms crossed in front of his face. Matt kicked him again viciously in the ribs; he felt himself start to weaken. He wasn’t strong enough yet; he had to take this slowly just like when he’d trained Jensen. But that was alright, he had all the time in the world. In fact, he had forever. As he faded away he could hear Jensen crying, crying out his name over and over begging for his forgiveness. Matt smiled at that. Of course, he should ask for his forgiveness. After all, Jensen had killed him.
Once the kicks had stopped, Jensen had crawled into the corner and sat shivering with fear and pain. He couldn’t believe it. Matt was back! Matt was dead. He’d been killed in the car accident that had nearly claimed his own life as well. Jensen looked round the room, trying to see Matt. He gave a brittle laugh. Right! As if he could see a ghost. Fuck! Why him? He thought he was free now Matt was gone, but it looked like it would never be over. Jensen felt sleep pulling him down. Exhausted from the beating and the rush of adrenaline, his eyes drifted closed. Just before he passed out a single thought went through his mind. Jared.....maybe Jared could help him.
Chapter 2
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2010-11-14 05:04 am (UTC)It's really great...a little bit of Ghost Whisperer mixed with an "overcoming abuse and taking your life back" story.
Jensen is such a wounded man with the spirit of a survivor...although he doesn't know it yet.
Matt is a truly terrifying character...and not because he's a ghost either...it's scary how there are some people in the world who truly believe that they are such a superior being that they have to make others into what they think is the perfect person! People like that never will be satisfied...even when they get what they think they want...like that memory of the bed.
Looking forward to the next chappy! *runs to read*
(no subject)
Date: 2011-02-12 04:49 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-02-15 08:57 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-14 01:55 am (UTC)Poor Jensen once he thought he was free, now Matt came back and as a ghost, but Jared is going to help him right?
I can't believe this chapter has just 2 comments, it deserves a thousands more
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-14 10:36 pm (UTC)