[FIC] Gazes Into You - 9/27
Jul. 30th, 2015 11:10 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alexisjane<<<<< Chapter Eight / Masterpost
Walking back onto the ward felt a little surreal. Part of him was kicking himself for getting involved in something that was turning out to be so much more than a simple missing persons case, but also he was having a hard time reconciling the thoughts of what could have happened to Jared if he hadn't come looking for him.
Maybe if Chris had dismissed Jared's claim when Jensen had told him what Jared had said, if Chris had laughed it off, Jensen wouldn't be feeling so apprehensive. But he hadn't. He had turned away from Jensen, held his head in his hands for a moment and then stood and said grimly, "Meet you back at the hospital," and left. The ominous silence exuding from Chris was uncharacteristic and unsettling.
Jensen had arrived in the hospital parking lot first but he saw Chris drive in as he was walking towards the main building, so he waited and they walked up together. Jensen tried to ask what was going on but Chris just said it could wait until they were in Jared's room. The evident practicality of not having to repeat the same conversation twice was dulled by Jensen's nagging suspicion that Chris was avoiding having to say what was on his mind until the last possible minute.
Almost as soon as they stepped onto the ward, someone called out Chris's name. They turned to see Karen from ICU lingering at the nurse’s station, talking in hushed tones to one of the doctors and beckoning Chris over. Chris drifted towards her but Jensen's attention was firmly on the large security guard standing outside Jared's door at the end of the hall. He made his way down, overcome with a sense of urgency to check if Jared was okay, but he was unceremoniously blocked from entering Jared's room by the stony faced guard.
"Is there a problem?" Jensen sounded indignant but felt the effect was probably lost as, at best, he seemed to be addressing the bottom of the guy's chin.
"No one is allowed in, I'm afraid, Sir. Unless you're Detective Kane?" The guy's voice was deep but soft, which was surprising being that he was built like a tank.
Jensen scowled at the guy and tried to stop the surge of panic building in his chest. He made a futile attempt to grab the door handle but the Tank's body blocked him and Jensen took a step back. "Look, I'm...I'm his cousin.."
The Tank smiled wide, and with a hint of a tease that Jensen thought was a bit unprofessional, said, "Oh. So, you'll know the password then."
Jensen stared at him blankly. "I'm sorry?"
Tank shifted his weight and shuffled his feet uncomfortably. Jensen could see he was trying not to laugh. "Not my idea. The patient said you would know."
Jensen cursed Jared under his breath and paced away wiping at his mouth. How in the hell was he supposed to know a password? They'd never agreed anything and, Christ, he'd only known the kid a couple of days. How in the hell was he supposed to...?
Jensen span around and held out his arms, blurting out in desperation, "Moby Dick!"
The Tank didn't even bother trying to stifle his chuckle. He just put his hand on the door and held it open, making Jensen squeeze past him into the room just for kicks.
Jared was sat in bed, staring out of the window. He whipped his head around when Jensen stumbled in. He was wide-eyed, his features pinched and pale. "Jensen! What the hell is going on?"
Jensen shook his head. "I don't know. How long has Conan been outside your door?"
Jared shrugged, "A couple of hours. Not long after you left. You mean this isn't down to Chris? I thought maybe..."
Jensen shook his head. "No, no it wasn't him. But he's here. Or at least he will be. Just...just try not to worry, okay?"
Jared tried to smile but didn't quite make it. "Easy for you to say." There was no bite to it but he sighed and said almost apologetically, "I feel better knowing you're here."
Jensen felt his cheeks heat at that, and hoped to God it didn't show. "So. Password?"
Jared barked out a laugh, the mirth of which didn't quite make it to his eyes. "Well, they said no one was going to be allowed it except Detective Kane...I know it's ridiculous."
"Well, just be glad I guessed right. That guy could have flattened me if I had guessed wrong."
Jared did smile then. "Really? What else was it going to be?"
Jensen shrugged and looked at his feet. "I don't know...Jell-O?"
Jared stopped smiling at that and looked out the window again. Jensen could have kicked himself. They had talked about a lot of things yesterday. Not least that someone had tortured Jared and then thrown him from a bridge. He was scrabbling around in his mind, trying to think of something to say that would fix it, not make it worse, when Jared said quietly, "Y'know, no one is buying that you are my cousin."
Jensen's mouth opened and closed like he was a fish. Thankfully, there was the sound of voices at the door and Chris barged in, the Tank closing the door behind him. Chris wasted no time. "We've got a problem."
Jensen found himself striding over to stand next to Jared who was white as a sheet. Chris paced at the foot of the bed until Jensen called his name. Chris stopped and looked at Jared. "I'm so sorry about yesterday."
Jared shook his head. "It doesn't....Jensen told you...what I saw. Do you believe me? I didn't think you'd believe me."
Chris racked both hands through his hair. "On an average day...no. No, I wouldn't have believed you but things have been..."
"What the hell is going on, Chris?" Jensen was trying to sound calm, for Jared's sake but the words just weren't coming out that way.
Chris looked up at him. "I've been noticing...my desk, at work...things getting moved around. Not being in the same place when I get back..."
Jensen's eyes went wide. "Someone searched your desk?"
Chris nodded. "Little things, just not being right. Like when I called the witness to follow up and he mentioned speaking to the other detective on the case. But when I asked Griffiths about it, he didn't know what I was talking about."
Jared's eyes flicked between Chris and Jensen. Jensen bent his head towards him without taking his eyes from Chris. "The official detective on the case." Jared's hand went to his mouth.
Chris shrugged. "I just put it down to him getting confused by all the phone calls but now..."
"But you knew this was a possibility, that they might find out. Might come for him. It's why I'm here." Jensen tried not to stumble over the last words. They weren't wholly untrue but still.
Chris nodded. "Which is why Jared was in the isolation room in the ICU. And why his name isn't on the board outside at the nurse’s station with all the other patients. I can do my job, Jen. It's just until this morning and you said that it might be a cop –"
"Why is there a security guard outside my door?" Jared's voice was small but it made Jensen and Chris stop and look.
Chris sighed. "I told the staff that you might be in danger, so they would keep your presence here on the down low. Told them they just needed to call me if anything happened and it made it easier for Jensen to be able to come and go as he pleased so he could look out for you..."
"Why is there a security guard outside my door, Detective?" Jared wasn't panicking, not yet but Jensen couldn't mistake the change in his tone and the tension that was creeping into his body. He reached down and laid a hand on Jared's shoulder, gently squeezing until he felt Jared relax a little.
"This morning a man claiming to be a detective went to ICU and started asking questions about you. Luckily, Karen...Nurse Brennan was there. She deflected his questions and when she asked to see his badge, he left. She tried to call me..."
Jensen sighed out, "But you were in court..."
Chris nodded. "So she called the nurse in charge here, and got him to order the lock down on your room, and make you a privacy patient immediately." He paused, then looked directly at Jared. "We need to get you out of here."
Jared closed his eyes and started muttering to himself. Jensen's heart was hammering in his chest. He wanted to just grab Jared and run but it wasn't exactly going to be easy, given the fact that he was still half-mangled from the fall. He bent down and took Jared by the shoulders. "Jay, come on, man. Don't freak out on us now. You're okay. We'll keep you safe. You're okay."
Jared opened his eyes. He didn't look okay and Jensen knew that he shouldn't be making any promises. Jensen looked at him asking Are we good? with his eyes. Jared responded with a nod that Jensen took as for now, then walked over to Chris. "What do you mean get him out of here? To where? Another hospital? Protective custody?"
Chris threw his hands up and shook his head. "I don't know. All I do know is that he can't stay here. I spoke to his doctor; he's not happy about it but he said that he's willing to discharge him. If a cop is involved then we're going to have to assume that he’s going to know everything we know eventually...if we go by the book."
Jensen caught the tone in the last words and looked hard into Chris's face. They'd known each other a long time so it didn't take more than a second for Jensen to realize what Chris was asking with that pitiful expression.
"Oh, no!" Jensen took a step back. "Hell, no! What the hell are you thinking?!"
Jared looked up, frightened. "What? What is it?"
Chris hung his head and then said softly, "I just think the last place they'd look for you is at Jensen's place..."
Jensen shook his head vehemently. "Chris, you can't ask me to do this. You just can't..."
Jared looked confused. "You know he's not my cousin, right?"
Chris looked at him blankly before huffing out a laugh. "Yes...Yes, I..." He let out a sigh. "What he is, is a...was a great cop, a good man and I trust him to keep you alive..." Chris turned and looked straight at Jensen. "I trust him more than anyone else I know."
Jensen looked back at him for a moment. They stared at each other until Jensen broke, turning away muttering muthafucker under his breath.
Chris nodded. "That settles it then."
~•~
Jensen heard the doorbell ring but waited until Chris knocked before he went to answer it. He was still pissed at him for commandeering his apartment – his life. It wasn't as if he could turn Jared away, wasn't as if he could deny that he was probably in real danger, but for Chris to force Jared into his space like this was really pushing the boundaries of their friendship.
Chris knew better than anyone how hard it was for Jensen to let anyone into his private space. Even before the accident he had been a private person, but after months of friends traipsing in and out to comfort him, family trying to wheedle their way back into his life, medical staff poking and prodding him, and then Internal Affairs and the insurance people tearing his life apart, he'd had enough. So, having Jared living in his apartment – even if it was just temporarily – it was at the limit of his endurance.
Jensen took a breath and drew himself up, walking purposefully to the door and pulling it open abruptly. The first thing he saw was Jared's smile. He looked awful. He sat awkwardly in the wheelchair that was clearly not meant for someone so tall, his broken leg with the nightmare frame sticking out in front of him. He was pale, a sickly sheen of pain and anxiety on his skin, but when he saw Jensen he looked relieved and he smiled. Chris stood behind him, nodding to Jensen as he carefully wheeled Jared in, unexpectedly followed by Karen carrying what seemed like an EMT's bag. She nodded and ducked her head as she passed. Jensen tilted his head back and rolled his eyes. Clearly, Chris had been talking. He closed the door and locked it, before following them into the living room.
The living room had a wide expanse of wooden floor and high ceilings, which served to make the room look bigger than it was. The floor to ceiling windows that pretty much made it feel like one side of the room was missing, helped too. When Jensen had moved in, he hadn't had all that many possessions to fill it and after six months, it still felt empty. There was a huge rug with a couple of couches and a recliner that faced a wall mounted TV at the far end of the room, a table in the space designated as a kitchen with a set of chairs around it, a potted fern that his mother had bought him as a house warming present near the window that he was amazed had stayed alive... and that was about it.
Jensen stood awkwardly, watching Jared's face as he looked around the room. He was frowning and kept opening his mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. Eventually Chris said, "Yeah, I know. He may have moved to a fancy uptown place but he still lives like he did in the one-bed in Brooklyn. You get used to the echo eventually."
Jared snickered, but then shifted his damaged arm and winced. They all saw it but it was Karen that said, "We should get him into bed."
Jensen nodded and held his hand out, directing them down towards the far end of the room. The short hallway leading off it had two doors. Jensen walked ahead and opened the one on the right. Chris wheeled Jared slowly into the main bedroom and Jensen saw them both smirk. The room felt lived in to the point of being downright homely. It had one huge window, like the living room, sporting the same epic view. The bed was big, covered in fresh bedding and as many cushions as Jensen could carry on his way back from the store that afternoon. On either side of the bed there were deep bookcases instead of nightstands. Jensen could see Jared tip his head to one side and hoped that Elmore Leonard and Raymond Chandler weren't going to become a topic for derision.
Jensen hadn't thought to take down the framed photos of his family that sat on top of the bookcases. He almost made a move to sweep them away but Karen touched him on the arm to get his attention and started talking him through the best way to get Jared in and out of the wheelchair without hurting either of them. Apparently any movement was excruciating, so they had to take extra care with Jared's metalwork.
It took a couple of minutes for the realization to hit. Karen was there to teach him how to take care of Jared. They had agreed that they would get a nurse from an agency to come in once a day, as there was no argument from any side that Jensen should have to give Jared a bed bath and he really needed someone to keep an eye out for any early signs of infection. Karen mentioned that she had a friend who did some private nursing work who would be amenable to coming in to treat him without making it official, which Chris thought would be a better option.
So the first time Jared ended up in Jensen’s bed, he had his arms draped loosely over Jensen's shoulders as Jensen carefully turned him and then lowered him down, holding on tight to his waistband. Jared's face was a picture of concentration; Jensen knew it was more that he was in pain than anything else. The cast on Jared's arm rasped against the skin on the back of Jensen's neck and Jared kept mumbling apologies, which seemed ridiculous as Jensen was the one inflicting all the pain. Karen was talking Jensen through the movement, encouraging and explaining what Jensen was going to do next while Chris stood at the end of the bed, trying not to look embarrassed at the awkward intimacy of Jensen holding Jared so tight.
Jensen carefully lowered Jared down, praying that the metal on Jared's leg wasn't going to bump on the wheelchair, and for a moment their faces were so close, Jensen could smell coffee and something sweet on Jared's breath. Jensen's eyes flicked up to Jared's. He marveled at how green they were in this light for the second before Jared met his gaze and Jensen almost dropped him the last few inches onto the mattress. Luckily, Karen was right there and managed to avert disaster.
Chapter Nine
Walking back onto the ward felt a little surreal. Part of him was kicking himself for getting involved in something that was turning out to be so much more than a simple missing persons case, but also he was having a hard time reconciling the thoughts of what could have happened to Jared if he hadn't come looking for him.
Maybe if Chris had dismissed Jared's claim when Jensen had told him what Jared had said, if Chris had laughed it off, Jensen wouldn't be feeling so apprehensive. But he hadn't. He had turned away from Jensen, held his head in his hands for a moment and then stood and said grimly, "Meet you back at the hospital," and left. The ominous silence exuding from Chris was uncharacteristic and unsettling.
Jensen had arrived in the hospital parking lot first but he saw Chris drive in as he was walking towards the main building, so he waited and they walked up together. Jensen tried to ask what was going on but Chris just said it could wait until they were in Jared's room. The evident practicality of not having to repeat the same conversation twice was dulled by Jensen's nagging suspicion that Chris was avoiding having to say what was on his mind until the last possible minute.
Almost as soon as they stepped onto the ward, someone called out Chris's name. They turned to see Karen from ICU lingering at the nurse’s station, talking in hushed tones to one of the doctors and beckoning Chris over. Chris drifted towards her but Jensen's attention was firmly on the large security guard standing outside Jared's door at the end of the hall. He made his way down, overcome with a sense of urgency to check if Jared was okay, but he was unceremoniously blocked from entering Jared's room by the stony faced guard.
"Is there a problem?" Jensen sounded indignant but felt the effect was probably lost as, at best, he seemed to be addressing the bottom of the guy's chin.
"No one is allowed in, I'm afraid, Sir. Unless you're Detective Kane?" The guy's voice was deep but soft, which was surprising being that he was built like a tank.
Jensen scowled at the guy and tried to stop the surge of panic building in his chest. He made a futile attempt to grab the door handle but the Tank's body blocked him and Jensen took a step back. "Look, I'm...I'm his cousin.."
The Tank smiled wide, and with a hint of a tease that Jensen thought was a bit unprofessional, said, "Oh. So, you'll know the password then."
Jensen stared at him blankly. "I'm sorry?"
Tank shifted his weight and shuffled his feet uncomfortably. Jensen could see he was trying not to laugh. "Not my idea. The patient said you would know."
Jensen cursed Jared under his breath and paced away wiping at his mouth. How in the hell was he supposed to know a password? They'd never agreed anything and, Christ, he'd only known the kid a couple of days. How in the hell was he supposed to...?
Jensen span around and held out his arms, blurting out in desperation, "Moby Dick!"
The Tank didn't even bother trying to stifle his chuckle. He just put his hand on the door and held it open, making Jensen squeeze past him into the room just for kicks.
Jared was sat in bed, staring out of the window. He whipped his head around when Jensen stumbled in. He was wide-eyed, his features pinched and pale. "Jensen! What the hell is going on?"
Jensen shook his head. "I don't know. How long has Conan been outside your door?"
Jared shrugged, "A couple of hours. Not long after you left. You mean this isn't down to Chris? I thought maybe..."
Jensen shook his head. "No, no it wasn't him. But he's here. Or at least he will be. Just...just try not to worry, okay?"
Jared tried to smile but didn't quite make it. "Easy for you to say." There was no bite to it but he sighed and said almost apologetically, "I feel better knowing you're here."
Jensen felt his cheeks heat at that, and hoped to God it didn't show. "So. Password?"
Jared barked out a laugh, the mirth of which didn't quite make it to his eyes. "Well, they said no one was going to be allowed it except Detective Kane...I know it's ridiculous."
"Well, just be glad I guessed right. That guy could have flattened me if I had guessed wrong."
Jared did smile then. "Really? What else was it going to be?"
Jensen shrugged and looked at his feet. "I don't know...Jell-O?"
Jared stopped smiling at that and looked out the window again. Jensen could have kicked himself. They had talked about a lot of things yesterday. Not least that someone had tortured Jared and then thrown him from a bridge. He was scrabbling around in his mind, trying to think of something to say that would fix it, not make it worse, when Jared said quietly, "Y'know, no one is buying that you are my cousin."
Jensen's mouth opened and closed like he was a fish. Thankfully, there was the sound of voices at the door and Chris barged in, the Tank closing the door behind him. Chris wasted no time. "We've got a problem."
Jensen found himself striding over to stand next to Jared who was white as a sheet. Chris paced at the foot of the bed until Jensen called his name. Chris stopped and looked at Jared. "I'm so sorry about yesterday."
Jared shook his head. "It doesn't....Jensen told you...what I saw. Do you believe me? I didn't think you'd believe me."
Chris racked both hands through his hair. "On an average day...no. No, I wouldn't have believed you but things have been..."
"What the hell is going on, Chris?" Jensen was trying to sound calm, for Jared's sake but the words just weren't coming out that way.
Chris looked up at him. "I've been noticing...my desk, at work...things getting moved around. Not being in the same place when I get back..."
Jensen's eyes went wide. "Someone searched your desk?"
Chris nodded. "Little things, just not being right. Like when I called the witness to follow up and he mentioned speaking to the other detective on the case. But when I asked Griffiths about it, he didn't know what I was talking about."
Jared's eyes flicked between Chris and Jensen. Jensen bent his head towards him without taking his eyes from Chris. "The official detective on the case." Jared's hand went to his mouth.
Chris shrugged. "I just put it down to him getting confused by all the phone calls but now..."
"But you knew this was a possibility, that they might find out. Might come for him. It's why I'm here." Jensen tried not to stumble over the last words. They weren't wholly untrue but still.
Chris nodded. "Which is why Jared was in the isolation room in the ICU. And why his name isn't on the board outside at the nurse’s station with all the other patients. I can do my job, Jen. It's just until this morning and you said that it might be a cop –"
"Why is there a security guard outside my door?" Jared's voice was small but it made Jensen and Chris stop and look.
Chris sighed. "I told the staff that you might be in danger, so they would keep your presence here on the down low. Told them they just needed to call me if anything happened and it made it easier for Jensen to be able to come and go as he pleased so he could look out for you..."
"Why is there a security guard outside my door, Detective?" Jared wasn't panicking, not yet but Jensen couldn't mistake the change in his tone and the tension that was creeping into his body. He reached down and laid a hand on Jared's shoulder, gently squeezing until he felt Jared relax a little.
"This morning a man claiming to be a detective went to ICU and started asking questions about you. Luckily, Karen...Nurse Brennan was there. She deflected his questions and when she asked to see his badge, he left. She tried to call me..."
Jensen sighed out, "But you were in court..."
Chris nodded. "So she called the nurse in charge here, and got him to order the lock down on your room, and make you a privacy patient immediately." He paused, then looked directly at Jared. "We need to get you out of here."
Jared closed his eyes and started muttering to himself. Jensen's heart was hammering in his chest. He wanted to just grab Jared and run but it wasn't exactly going to be easy, given the fact that he was still half-mangled from the fall. He bent down and took Jared by the shoulders. "Jay, come on, man. Don't freak out on us now. You're okay. We'll keep you safe. You're okay."
Jared opened his eyes. He didn't look okay and Jensen knew that he shouldn't be making any promises. Jensen looked at him asking Are we good? with his eyes. Jared responded with a nod that Jensen took as for now, then walked over to Chris. "What do you mean get him out of here? To where? Another hospital? Protective custody?"
Chris threw his hands up and shook his head. "I don't know. All I do know is that he can't stay here. I spoke to his doctor; he's not happy about it but he said that he's willing to discharge him. If a cop is involved then we're going to have to assume that he’s going to know everything we know eventually...if we go by the book."
Jensen caught the tone in the last words and looked hard into Chris's face. They'd known each other a long time so it didn't take more than a second for Jensen to realize what Chris was asking with that pitiful expression.
"Oh, no!" Jensen took a step back. "Hell, no! What the hell are you thinking?!"
Jared looked up, frightened. "What? What is it?"
Chris hung his head and then said softly, "I just think the last place they'd look for you is at Jensen's place..."
Jensen shook his head vehemently. "Chris, you can't ask me to do this. You just can't..."
Jared looked confused. "You know he's not my cousin, right?"
Chris looked at him blankly before huffing out a laugh. "Yes...Yes, I..." He let out a sigh. "What he is, is a...was a great cop, a good man and I trust him to keep you alive..." Chris turned and looked straight at Jensen. "I trust him more than anyone else I know."
Jensen looked back at him for a moment. They stared at each other until Jensen broke, turning away muttering muthafucker under his breath.
Chris nodded. "That settles it then."
~•~
Jensen heard the doorbell ring but waited until Chris knocked before he went to answer it. He was still pissed at him for commandeering his apartment – his life. It wasn't as if he could turn Jared away, wasn't as if he could deny that he was probably in real danger, but for Chris to force Jared into his space like this was really pushing the boundaries of their friendship.
Chris knew better than anyone how hard it was for Jensen to let anyone into his private space. Even before the accident he had been a private person, but after months of friends traipsing in and out to comfort him, family trying to wheedle their way back into his life, medical staff poking and prodding him, and then Internal Affairs and the insurance people tearing his life apart, he'd had enough. So, having Jared living in his apartment – even if it was just temporarily – it was at the limit of his endurance.
Jensen took a breath and drew himself up, walking purposefully to the door and pulling it open abruptly. The first thing he saw was Jared's smile. He looked awful. He sat awkwardly in the wheelchair that was clearly not meant for someone so tall, his broken leg with the nightmare frame sticking out in front of him. He was pale, a sickly sheen of pain and anxiety on his skin, but when he saw Jensen he looked relieved and he smiled. Chris stood behind him, nodding to Jensen as he carefully wheeled Jared in, unexpectedly followed by Karen carrying what seemed like an EMT's bag. She nodded and ducked her head as she passed. Jensen tilted his head back and rolled his eyes. Clearly, Chris had been talking. He closed the door and locked it, before following them into the living room.
The living room had a wide expanse of wooden floor and high ceilings, which served to make the room look bigger than it was. The floor to ceiling windows that pretty much made it feel like one side of the room was missing, helped too. When Jensen had moved in, he hadn't had all that many possessions to fill it and after six months, it still felt empty. There was a huge rug with a couple of couches and a recliner that faced a wall mounted TV at the far end of the room, a table in the space designated as a kitchen with a set of chairs around it, a potted fern that his mother had bought him as a house warming present near the window that he was amazed had stayed alive... and that was about it.
Jensen stood awkwardly, watching Jared's face as he looked around the room. He was frowning and kept opening his mouth as if to speak, but no words came out. Eventually Chris said, "Yeah, I know. He may have moved to a fancy uptown place but he still lives like he did in the one-bed in Brooklyn. You get used to the echo eventually."
Jared snickered, but then shifted his damaged arm and winced. They all saw it but it was Karen that said, "We should get him into bed."
Jensen nodded and held his hand out, directing them down towards the far end of the room. The short hallway leading off it had two doors. Jensen walked ahead and opened the one on the right. Chris wheeled Jared slowly into the main bedroom and Jensen saw them both smirk. The room felt lived in to the point of being downright homely. It had one huge window, like the living room, sporting the same epic view. The bed was big, covered in fresh bedding and as many cushions as Jensen could carry on his way back from the store that afternoon. On either side of the bed there were deep bookcases instead of nightstands. Jensen could see Jared tip his head to one side and hoped that Elmore Leonard and Raymond Chandler weren't going to become a topic for derision.
Jensen hadn't thought to take down the framed photos of his family that sat on top of the bookcases. He almost made a move to sweep them away but Karen touched him on the arm to get his attention and started talking him through the best way to get Jared in and out of the wheelchair without hurting either of them. Apparently any movement was excruciating, so they had to take extra care with Jared's metalwork.
It took a couple of minutes for the realization to hit. Karen was there to teach him how to take care of Jared. They had agreed that they would get a nurse from an agency to come in once a day, as there was no argument from any side that Jensen should have to give Jared a bed bath and he really needed someone to keep an eye out for any early signs of infection. Karen mentioned that she had a friend who did some private nursing work who would be amenable to coming in to treat him without making it official, which Chris thought would be a better option.
So the first time Jared ended up in Jensen’s bed, he had his arms draped loosely over Jensen's shoulders as Jensen carefully turned him and then lowered him down, holding on tight to his waistband. Jared's face was a picture of concentration; Jensen knew it was more that he was in pain than anything else. The cast on Jared's arm rasped against the skin on the back of Jensen's neck and Jared kept mumbling apologies, which seemed ridiculous as Jensen was the one inflicting all the pain. Karen was talking Jensen through the movement, encouraging and explaining what Jensen was going to do next while Chris stood at the end of the bed, trying not to look embarrassed at the awkward intimacy of Jensen holding Jared so tight.
Jensen carefully lowered Jared down, praying that the metal on Jared's leg wasn't going to bump on the wheelchair, and for a moment their faces were so close, Jensen could smell coffee and something sweet on Jared's breath. Jensen's eyes flicked up to Jared's. He marveled at how green they were in this light for the second before Jared met his gaze and Jensen almost dropped him the last few inches onto the mattress. Luckily, Karen was right there and managed to avert disaster.
