raeschae | The Consultant, Pt. 2 (for spn

Jared's hands are trembling as he steps into the lobby of the Bellagio. There are a million things he is absolutely not sure of and only one thing that he knows beyond a shadow of a doubt: This is the dumbest fucking thing he's ever done in his entire life.

He concentrates on remembering the plan, on thinking about what he's supposed to do and letting everyone else worry about their own parts. Katie's dressed in the tightest little dress he's ever seen, her nails digging into his arm as they feign confidence and head toward the elevators. If this works, he's already promised any god who might hear his prayers that he's never setting foot in Vegas again.

"Relax,” Katie whispers at his side once the elevator doors slide shut.

Jared tips his head back and catches their reflection in the ceiling. He has to believe this or he's never going to make it out. The last thing he wants is for Jensen to open his door and find Jared's body with a pair of matching bullet holes. Okay, the last thing he wants is to be lying on Jensen's doorstep with matching bullet holes but it's pretty much the same thing.

The doors ding on their designated floor and Jared shoots Katie one last glance. “Alright, let's do this.”

She nods and presses a kiss to his cheek. “You're kind of amazing. You know that?”

With a shrug, he says, “Yeah, I kind of am.”

Confidence.

They're greeted at the door of the suite by two men in suits, so cliché Jared almost laughs. He manages to keep his cool, though. “Gentlemen,” he says.

"The fuck are you?” the guy on the left asks.

It takes everything in him not to remind the moron that he's the guy they were shoving up against his car last night. “Need to talk to your boss. Tell him Ackles sent me.”

At the mere mention of the name, the guy on the right growls and nods to his partner. “You pat 'em down.” He disappears into the door and his partner wastes no time in doing as he's told.

A few days ago, if anyone told Jared he was going to be standing in the hallway of the Bellagio, getting patted down by some thug in a cheap suit, he would have never believed it. Still, that's a large hand pawing at his pockets so it must be real.

The door opens and stunt idiot number one pops his head out. “Come on. Follow me.”

Jared hangs back and lets Katie go first, still unsure of why she needs to be here. Jensen said it would be more credible, since Pellegrino's men already saw them together. He's pretty sure that they all think he needs the support, though, and Jared's not going to argue with that.

Somewhere in the back of his head, Jared thinks that he should bring some friends back here and use this room for a serious party someday. It's the biggest hotel room he's ever seen, all dark wood and dim lighting, swanky. He's seen a lot of fancy places in his day but this one ranks pretty high on the list.

Seated in the center of the couch, the man Jared now knows to be Mark Pellegrino. He's smaller than Jared thought he would be but no less imposing than Jensen promised. Calm, cool and collected with an arm stretched over the back of the sofa and a tumbler dangling between his finger, he nods to the guy who led them in and, when they're alone, he stands and offers Jared a hand.

He tells himself that this is just another part, just another roll that he's playing, and he's kind of proud that he isn't trembling when he shakes Pellegrino's hand. He doesn't speak first, remembers Jensen telling him that it's important to let a mark make the first move; it makes them feel like they have the control in this situation.

"I'm impressed, Jared,” Pellegrino finally opens, offering him a drink before he sits and motions for Jared to take the high-backed chair beside the sofa. “Takes balls to enter the belly of the beast like this.”

With a shrug, Jared tries to remember everything. It's jumbling in his head so he abandons most of it in favor of following his own instincts. “We need to talk,” is his answer to Pellegrino's compliment.

He opens his arms and smiles warm enough that it makes Jared's stomach flip. “The floor is yours,” he says on a nod, his voice soft and unsettling.

Jared folds his hands against his stomach and relaxes into the chair, crossing one ankle over his knee. “Do you know who I am?” Pellegrino rolls his shoulder and smiles without actually answering. “I'm not a thief. I'm an actor. As far as I'm concerned, y'all can have your little pissing contests for the rest of your lives. I just wanna know that, when I go back to LA, I'm not gonna be trailed by your cronies here or popped off like Hodge was.”

"And you're willing to do what, exactly, to ensure that?”

It's pretty obvious that Danneel is a genius and that Katie is not here to support Jared so much as she's here to distract Pellegrino. The way his eyes keep cutting to her legs tells Jared that he doesn't have the guy's undivided attention.

Jared doesn't even hesitate. “That box you took from me? It's worth something like twelve and a half million if you have the key that goes with it,” he explains. Pellegrino's lip twitches but that's all the reaction Jared can get from him. It's enough. “Ackles has the key.”

Again, a twitch of Pellegrino's lip as he turns fully toward Jared. “But he doesn't have the box,” he smirks as though he has the upper hand here.

"He will,” Jared assures him with an easy nod. The script he studied so hard last night is rolling off his tongue as though there's a camera rolling in the corner. “He made a mistake with you last time but he won't do it again. He wants that box and he's going to get it.”

For a long time, silence hangs between them and Jared has to remind himself not to fidget and squirm. The ball is in Pellegrino's court and Jared can't afford to foul out on this one.

Finally, he leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees. “Why don't you stop wasting my time and give me the bottom line,” Pellegrino says, voice dropping cold with just a hint of frustration.

"You can do whatever the fuck you want with Ackles and the rest of his crew. Take the money and buy an island, I don't give a shit. But I give you that key, my girl and I go back to LA and we all forget that we ever met.” He puts both of his feet on the floor and stands, offering a hand to Katie.

She stands at his side and flips her hair over her shoulder, blushing and smiling when Pellegrino gives her another flirtatious grin before addressing Jared. Dammit if this girl shouldn't be in front of the camera.

"Jared,” Pellegrino says, feet planted in the same spot beside the couch as Jared makes his way to the door. He stops and turns, eyebrow raised in interest. “If you're fucking with me, I will make sure that you and your little girlfriend here take a nice, long nap next to Aldis Hodge.” He drains the remainder of his drink and then levels Jared with the most bone-chilling stare he's ever seen. “Are we clear?”

It takes every ounce of training he's ever had to make himself believe that this is just a scene. “I'll call you,” he answers, smiling at Pellegrino's goon on the way out of the room.

He doesn't break character until they're in the elevator and Katie is slumped against his chest, breathing just as hard as he is.

"That was quite a performance,” she laughs, nervous and hysterical, against his shirt.

Letting go of her isn't an option – she's shaking and Jared's not much better off – so he just huffs against her hair and says, “I deserve a goddamn Oscar.”

*~*~*

By the time they make it back to Jared's room, his breathing is back to normal but his heart is about to pound through his chest. He just exposed himself to a man who could shoot him in the chest for breathing wrong and he has no idea where the rest of this plan is going to take them. It's iffy, at best, and even Jensen acknowledged that it has its risks.

The biggest problem is that they do not have the key that Jared just promised Pellegrino he can get. It's the same key that Danneel is supposed to be convincing Fuller that they have. Unless Misha and his awesome forging skills pull through, it's the key that's going to kill them all.

"How'd it go?” Jensen asks, rushing to him as soon as they push through the door.

His hand is low on Jared's back and, for just a second, he lets himself feel the warmth that spreads to his toes. It's better than being numb from his neck to his knees. “Good? I think? He's hooked. Or, he's interested at least.”

Jensen kisses him so suddenly that Jared doesn't really have the time to respond or kiss him back before he's pulling away and running his thumb along Jared's bottom lip. “I knew you could do it,” he beams like a proud parent.

Frankly, it's too intimate and Jared doesn't like suddenly pretending like they're best friends or something. He likes Jensen – obviously, or he wouldn't have slept with him in the first place – but he doesn't trust Jensen any further than he can throw him. He's a big guy, he could probably throw him a few feet or something, but it's still not saying much. Jared figures that's probably pretty stupid when he's put his life in the guy's hands and it pisses him off more at himself than anything.

Sidestepping, Jared runs his hands through his hair and looks at Misha, who has turned the entire left side of his suite into some mad laboratory. “Danneel back yet?”

If he's bothered by Jared's obvious need for distance, Jensen doesn't let it show through his wide smile. “Called when she left. She's shakin' a tail and then she'll be back,” he explains, turning his attention to Katie. “D'you get it?”

Katie runs her fingers through her hair and produces the hair pin camera that Jensen gave her before she left. “Sorry if it's a little shaky.” Her hands are practically vibrating when she hands it over and Jared kind of wants to reach out and hold them still for her. She's his agent. She does not get paid to do what she just did.

Jensen sticks the pin into what appears to be a jump drive and then hooks the drive into Misha's computer. There's no sound but Jared's entire meeting with Pellegrino plays out in silence on the screen. Occasionally the view shifts around the room, a good three sixty view of the suite, and Jared finds himself impressed with everything that she managed to capture just by hitting the tiny zoom on the pin every time she tucked her hair behind her ears.

"Who needs three safes in their room?” Katie asks on the second viewing.

"It's not in any of them,” Jensen assures her from his place next to Jared on the edge of the bed. He's leaning forward, elbows on his knees as he studies the images. “They're just a deterrent for anybody small time who might try to break in. We're looking for something more nondescript but still slightly out of place,” he explains.

Jared just watches though he's not exactly sure what he's supposed to be looking for. By the time they've watched it all the way through a third time, he feels like his eyes are swimming. He flops back on the bed and presses the heel of his hand to his eye when a though occurs to him and he sits back up.

"Can you start it again from the beginning?”

Jensen doesn't even bother looking at him, just starts the footage over again. “What are you thinkin'?”

Shrugging, Jared says, “Just testin' a theory,” while the video plays over for the fourth time.

They reach the end and he sits up a little straighter, still watching the screen when he says, “It's in the couch.”

"Huh?” Katie asks, fingers massaging the soles of her feet as her brow furrows.

"Look at the guy who walked us into the room. He never quite looks at us or at Pellegrino, he's always concentrating on the couch. And Pellegrino didn't move more than six inches from it the entire time we were there. I don't know where or anything but I'll bet you anything the box is somewhere in that couch.”

Jensen's eyes are dark, Jared's pretty sure that Jensen is going to kiss him again and, even though it's a terrible idea, Jared's heart picks up speed.

Thankfully, the door flies open and then slams shut. Danneel was beautiful before, in jeans and a tee shirt, but she could easily be one of the starlets hanging off his arm at a premier right now. Save for the flush and the heavy breathing, she's phenomenal.

"Tell me I'm amazing,” she announces, tossing Jensen a jump drive. “Video. Audio. Damnation all around. Also, he's totally hooked.” With a giggle and a shrug, she saunters over to the bed and flops down on Jared's other side. “How'd you do?”

Jared just shrugs, not all that interested in telling her anything, and looks to Jensen to fill in the blanks. Before he can, though, Misha stands from the desk and holds his hands out, two old, weathered keys in his hands. “Bullseye,” he calls with an hysterical little laugh.

Crossing the room, Jensen takes the keys and nods, turning them over and over in his hands. Jared’s still not sure why they need forged keys when the plan doesn’t involve ever handing said keys over to Fuller or Pellegrino. However, since he’s not really getting any answers to his questions, he’s not all that interested in asking. He’ll do what he has to do to insure that nothing is going to happen to him once he leaves Vegas and then he’s going home and putting this entire weekend behind him; he doesn’t need to ask a lot of questions for that.

"Alright,” Jensen finally sighs, stepping over to the bed to hand Jared and Danneel each a key. “Phase two.”

*~*~*

As Jensen predicted, Jared’s phone call to Pellegrino takes ten seconds. The video conference that follows takes nearly thirty minutes. He wants to see every inch of the room, the one adjacent to Jared’s actual room, to make sure that he’s alone and not trying to hide anything. Jared thinks it’s pretty ridiculous that he has to walk a laptop around his hotel room but he does it anyway. Then he spends fifteen minutes twisting and turning the key at every possible angle in front of the camera, making sure that Pellegrino can authenticate it.

It takes everything Jared has not to snort and laugh. For big time bad guys, they’re pretty easy to scam. For one thing, Pellegrino didn’t even know there was a key for that stupid box until Jared told him earlier today. Studying the key and judging its authenticity is pointless and hilarious but if this is what it’s going to take to sell the guy on it, Jared will stand here for another hour.

Finally, he disconnects the call, shuts the laptop and turns to find Jensen standing in the doorway. “Could have sworn I locked that,” Jared says, sliding the laptop into the bag and setting it next to the television.

Jensen just smirks and shrugs, gives the lock pick between his fingers a little shake. “Locks don’t exactly mean a whole hell of a lot to me,” he says, pushing off of the frame to step into the room and shut the door behind him. “You did good work.”

Sinking to the end of the bed, Jared runs his hands over his face and lets out a long sigh, tinged by sarcastic laughter. “What the hell has happened to my life?” he asks no one in particular. When he looks up, Jensen is watching him carefully, hands in his pockets and an expression of thoughtful regret on his face. “Please don’t apologize again. It’s startin’ to get awkward.”

Instead of speaking, Jensen continues looking him over, taking in his face before his gaze slips to Jared’s throat and then further. “You’re tense,” he deduces.

Jaw clenching, Jared rolls his eyes and asks, “Ya think?” He came to Vegas to research a role, not to get caught up in some nefarious plot between three warring factions of thieves. Now, instead of stripper stories and hangovers to serve as souveniers from this little trip, he’s got ancient artifacts and the looming threat of bullet holes in his chest. It’s not the most relaxing vacation he’s ever taken.

Without a word, Jensen drops to the floor and pushes Jared's knee with his shoulder. “Jensen,” he starts to argue because it feels like he should. They both know he's not going to stop it.

Jensen unzips his pants and smiles as Jared lifts his hips to let him slide them down. “Man, you gotta relax, okay? Remember the stuff I taught you the other night,” he prompts, leaning forward to wrap his mouth around the head of Jared's semi-hard cock beneath his boxer briefs. “You believe it, they'll believe it,” he whispers.

Relax.

Believe.

Confidence.

Jared lays back against the sheets, all thoughts of tomorrow and yesterday and everything else melting away under Jensen's hands and his mouth. It'll all come rushing back to him soon enough but, for right now, this is better than thinking.

*~*~*

The sun is barely starting to peek through the curtains when Jared wakes up at six fifteen. They're not leaving to go to the warehouse until ten so he should probably take advantage of the sleep time while he can. The disconcerting sensation of being watched causes him to roll over instead of snuggling back into the blankets.

Leaning against the headboard, Jensen is staring at the wall and moving his lips, though no sound is coming out. His hair is sticking out in a million directions and there are pillow marks on the side of his face. To be honest, he looks a little insane. Hot, but maybe not all there.

"Thought you'd be gone,” Jared says, his voice strained and sleep gravelled.

His lips twitch into a small smile. “'Squiet in here. Easier to think.”

Blinking a few times, Jared rolls onto his back and tries to focus on the ceiling. “Relax,” he shoots lazily, raising one arm to scratch the other as Jensen lifts a finger to flip him off.

They sit together in the silence for awhile, just a couple of guys gathering their thoughts before the start of their day. A little voice in the back of Jared's head says that this isn't so bad but he scrubs a hand over his face to wipe the thought away.

"How'd you get into this stuff?” Jared asks, the question popping into his head and out of his mouth without much consideration.

Jensen shrugs. “My dad was small time. My uncles. Guess you could call it the family business,” he chuckles a little. “I saw them work a lot when I was younger. Guess it just came easier to me than anything I could learn at school, ya know?”

He thinks Jensen would have made one hell of an actor but he doesn't say so. He's got a feeling that Jensen's a guy who doesn't do so well following someone else's script anyway.

"I wonder sometimes, what my life woulda been like if I did something else. Something more respectable.” He gives a soft laugh at the thought. “Probably be bored outta my mind.” With a slight nod of his head, he finally turns to look at Jared. “Still, if we'd met under different circumstances, if our lives were different.”

"Don't,” Jared interrupts him, shaking his head and trying to fight through the final haze of sleep. “Man, you can't,” he starts to argue. It's the kind of thing that he'd love to hear if he could let himself believe that Jensen actually meant it. All things he considered, he can't let himself do that.

Rolling off of the bed, Jensen runs his hands through his hair and laughs outright. “I need a shower,” he announces, disappearing into the bathroom before Jared can stop him.

He has to remember that this is not make believe, that he's not on a set and that his life, Katie's, maybe Danneel's and Jensen's, are on the line here. He still doesn't know who he can trust and what's going to happen this afternoon. All he knows is that he can't let Jensen in or he's going to lose a hell of a lot more than a few days in a weird Vegas weekend.

*~*~*

The drop off is set in a private hangar near the airport, owned by someone that Jensen has known for years. Jared is too focused on his part of the plan to ask anymore questions and, as usual, Jensen isn't offering unnecessary details. It's possible that Jared once did a photo shoot here with some other 'young Hollywood' types but humid warehouses start to look the same after a few years.

Misha is in the van out back and Katie is waiting back at the hotel. She asked to come along but Jared was against the idea and Jensen made it official by letting her know that she would just distract Jared, give him something else to worry about, so she was going to stay home. At that, she begrudgingly agreed but Jared knows she wasn't happy about it.

Danneel and Jensen are huddled together in the middle of the room and Jared is idling by the his door. They've gone over this plan a thousand times – it wasn't that complicated to begin with – and he was sure that he had it down when they got here. Now he's almost as sure that he's going to screw it up completely.

He's checking his watch, five minutes until showtime, when he feels a hand on his shoulder. Turning, he gives Jensen a thin smile but drops it almost immediately; it's not fooling anybody. “Jensen,” he starts but Jensen just presses a finger to his lips. It takes everything Jared has not to push him away and throw up all over his shoes.

"Dude, I do not have time to relax you again,” Jensen teases, running a hand down the center of Jared's back before he pulls away and rests his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “You know your character. You know your lines. All you gotta do is play it up for the camera and you'll be fine.” He reaches out again and hooks a finger into Jared's waistband, pulling him forward enough to give him an alluring smile. “Think of it as your final exam.”

Heaving a wear sigh, Jared hangs his head and runs a hand through his hair. He wants to ask if Jensen really thinks he can do this but he has to believe that Jensen isn't the kind of asshole that would throw him into something he doesn't think Jared can handle. He's done some douchey things since they met two days ago but he's not malicious. At least, Jared doesn't think he is.

Jensen gives him one more smile and squeezes his shoulder. “Twenty minutes and this will all just be a bad dream, okay? You'll be on your way back to California and you can forget you ever met me and my crazy crew.”

For some reason, that thought makes Jared's stomach flip a little bit. Before he can contemplate it, though, Danneel raises a hand into the air and calls out, “Showtime, boys!”

Jensen starts toward the center of the room while Danneel and Jared open the side doors of the hangar. Jared has to blink against the blare of the afternoon sun when two of Pellegrino's men look him over with a snort and enter before their boss. They don't bother looking at him, their eyes focused on the place where Danneel is ushering Fuller and his men into the other side of the room.

Pellegrino barely casts Fuller a look before his eyes settle on Jensen, shoulders loose and arms crossed over his chest. His feet don't move but he's clearly aware of both of them and their crews. Danneel is swiftly making her way back to Jensen's side, her heels clicking against the concrete floor the only sound in the hollow room.

Jared is supposed to be doing the same, joining them in the center of the room, but Pellegrino catches his arm before he can move. Jared's stronger, he could break the hold easily but the hard nudge of a gun barrel against his ribs causes him to freeze. This was not part of the plan.

He's told himself a million times that this was too easy, that there had to be more to it than this. He knew damn well something was going to go wrong; if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. He let Jensen tell him that it was simple but effective. He let himself believe Jensen even though he knew it was a very, very stupid thing to do. Maybe he deserve to take a bullet to the stomach.

"Come on, Ackles,” Pellegrino calls out, walking Jared toward Jensen behind the shield of his two guards. “You're not even trying, man,” he accuses.

Jensen looks at Jared, expression easy, conscience clear. He's not the least bit concerned and, while Jared should probably feel better knowing Jensen has this under control, there is a gun in his side and his sense of calm is a little stilted at the moment.

"The hell is goin' on here, Ackles?” Fuller demands, leading his men over from the door. “What the hell's he doin' here?”

"Him?” Jensen nods toward Pellegrino. “He came to get the key to the box he stole from me, the one I was supposed to be fencin' for you,” he explains.

The statement catches Fully by surprise. “You have the box?”

Pellegrino smirks and gives a half shrug. “Nothin' personal,” he says.

"No, he's right, Fuller,” Jensen jumps in. “He didn't know you had anything to do with this. All he knew was that two of his men got popped during my last job and he only got to return the favor with one of mine.” Jared sees the way his throat works around those words, around the memory. “He has no idea that I was workin' that job for you or that you're actually the one who offed his men.”

It's Pellegrino's turn for shock. “You?”

Fuller barely smiles. “They were warned,” is all he says in his own defense.

Jared is sure that Pellegrino is going to puncture his bicep with the pressure he's applying. His heart is pounding in his ears and his breath catches in his throat when he feels the gun press harder against his side. He always thought that, if he was going to die in Vegas, it would involve Chad, some transvestite hookers and enough blow to put down a horse. Wasted in a warehouse because of a con artist he met while working wasn't even on Jared's list of possibilities.

He's about to say something – he doesn't know what and he knows it won't help – when he shoots another look at Jensen. He doesn't meet Jared's eye, barely turns his head, but Jared watches him raise his hand and brush it quickly over the back of his neck and he knows that this was not part of the plan. He's as thrown by Jared getting grabbed as Jared is. Danneel checks her watch and tries to look bored but she's got her own tell, twirling the end of her hair around her index finger.

"You knew this?” Pellegrino asks Jensen, sliding the gun up Jared's side to rest it against his chest.

The signature cocksure grin is gone and in it's place a somber frown that deepens the lines at the corners of Jensen's mouth and eyes. “I suspected. Confirmed it yesterday.”

Fuller's eyes are fiery when he turns his attention to Danneel and grabs a gun from his waistband. “You sold me out,” he says, realization washing over him in a way that Jared would find comical if his heart wasn't about to hammer through his chest cavity.

"Fellas, I think we've had enough bloodshed already,” Jensen interrupts, holding his hands out in a show of surrender.

"Give me the goddamn key and you won't have to worry about anymore,” Fuller growls, fingers tightening around the handle of his gun.

Air feels like it's slicing Jared's lungs when Pellegrino swings his gun toward Fuller. He doesn't let go of Jared's arm but the relief is still immeasurable. “The fuck's it matter to you, Fuller? I've got the box.”

On cue, the wailing sound of sirens fills the air beyond the walls. It allows Jared enough distraction to yank his arm away from Pellegrino and sprint toward the back door, a few steps behind Danneel by the time they get there. She pulls the door open and Jared steps through as a gunshot rings out from somewhere behind.

No matter what you see or hear, no matter what happens, Jared, you don't stop until your ass is safe inside the van. Do you understand me?

He understood it this morning but that was before Jensen was in a room with crazy villains with guns. He's unarmed and turning back isn't smart or safe but the idea of leaving Jensen, the guy who was so proud of never being so much as questioned by police just the other day, to bleed out until the police bust in makes him sick to his stomach.

"Go!” Jensen shouts in his ear, both hands pushing Jared's back and propelling him forward as they burst through the back door. He nearly stumbles and Jensen takes the lead, casting one look over his shoulder to make sure that Jared isn't flat on his face before he dives into the back of the van and motions for Jared to hurry. “Dammit, Padalecki, move your ass.”

Shaking off the shock, Jared runs harder than he's ever run in his life, spanning the distance to the fan in a few short strides. The door slams behind him and Jensen smacks him in the back of the head before stepping around him to hand something to Misha.

They round the side of the building and Misha slows enough to pass the object out the window before he speeds toward the gate that surrounds the old hangar.

They're on the highway, headed back to the hotel, before Jared can form words around his heart in his throat. “The hell was that?”

Jensen shrugs and sits next to Danneel, who is gulping from a champagne bottle. “Told you to play it up for the camera, man,” he winks. Hand on Danneel's knee, he adds, “Police now have video and audio confessions on three unsolved murders. And you can go be a movie star without worrying about being followed. Everybody wins.”

Taking the bottle from Danneel, Jensen pauses and then tips the bottle to pour some onto the floor of the van. “To Aldis,” he says, taking his own drink while Danneel covers his hand on her leg and rests her head on his shoulder.

Jared watches them, takes the bottle when they offer it and wonders to himself why he's almost sorry that he's not going to see these people ever again.

*~*~*

All Jared wants to do is pack his car and get the hell out of Vegas by the time they get back to the hotel.
Katie is, apparently, on the same page, seated on the edge of Jared's bed with a suitcase at her side. “Finally!” she sighs when Jared leads the team into his room.

He gives her a slight smile. “Glad to see you were worried about my safety,” he teases.

“Oh, please. Like Jensen was going to let anything happen to your ass.” Shouldering her bag, she grabs the handle of her suitcase and says, “I'm going to get the car.”

Jared watches her leave, unsure of exactly what he's feeling. Truth be told, he's still a little numb.

A throat clears behind him, the little blond tucking her hands into the pockets of the black hoodie she's wearing. “So who'm I givin' this to?” she asks, producing the box with a shit-eating grin.

Jensen whoops and weaves between the rest of his crew to get his hands on the artifact that started this whole mess in the first place. “Alona, you are my hero,” he declares, hugging her tightly and kissing the top of her head.

"Yeah, yeah,” she rolls her eyes and pushes him away but she's laughing. “Spot on instincts, Stretch. Tucked away in the middle couch cushion, just like you said.”

As much as he knows this was a one-time thing, Jared's chest does swell with pride at the idea that he got it right, that he contributed something to this whole production. “Yeah, well, sorry I couldn't help with the key.”

Misha's forgeries look cool enough but they're not going to make the box worth twelve million. Jensen can say this job was all about avenging Aldis but Jared knows that he's dying to get his hand on that key.

Jensen just shakes his head, though. “Don't be. You did more than we should have asked you to do.”

It almost seems like they're about to have a moment when Danneel steps around Jared to ask Jensen, “We done here?”

Shifting his focus from Jared, Jensen pulls her into a hug and says, “Thanks, Dani,” against her hair.

She laughs before she pushes his shoulder and tells him, “Don't thank me. Pay me.”

Misha and Alona don't say much before they follow Danneel out of the room, offering Jared a hand and a congratulations on the way.

Silent tension pulls tight between them when Jared and Jensen are finally standing alone. There are a lot of things that Jared wants to say – he has a feeling there will be a lot more in the weeks to come – but all he can think to ask is, “What're ya gonna do now?”

Jensen seems startled by the question, as though he was expecting something else entirely. “Probably try to disappear for awhile.”

Nodding, Jared says, “Makes sense,” but he's too busy wondering why he feels so maudlin to elaborate.

"You've got this down, man. Your movie's gonna kill,” Jensen encourages him and he seems just as nervous as Jared does, dragging his feet like he doesn't want to leave. When he does move, he offers Jared a small smile. “I'll see ya around,” he offers as a good-bye.

"Will you?” He doesn't know what possesses him to ask the question but it just kind of tumbles out. “See me, I mean?” he clarifies when Jensen starts to walk away.

He smiles, bright and brilliant and beautiful like the other night in the bar. “Thought you couldn't wait to be rid of my ass,” Jensen teases.

Letting his eyes drift from Jensen's hair down to his feet and then back with a lingering stop on his jeans, he shrugs. “It's a good ass.”

A thousand words pass between them unspoken. His gut tells him that it's sadness or regret in Jensen's eye but he's not sure how much he should trust his gut anymore. Still, it stings to hear Jensen say, “Good luck, Jared,” before the door clicks shut and he's gone.

If there's one thing Jared has known since before he brought Jensen back to his room that first time it's that this thing with them, whatever path it took, wasn't going to last. Maybe he will see Jensen around. Maybe he won't. Either way, he's got a crazy weekend in Vegas that will stay with him forever.

**EPILOGUE**

A year ago, before this movie came out, Jared didn't have to worry about dealing with press junkets and talk shows all that much. Sure, he did them on occasion but he wasn't exactly high-profile for anyone outside of the MTV demographic. Now that he's doing promotional work for Stolen, he has a new found respect for everyone who's ever had to make the late-night, early morning, mid day rounds. Jesus, it's exhausting.

He's never been this proud of his work, never been so happy to talk about something he's done and have it received like an actual, credible, adult piece of legitimate work. Every time someone asks him how he prepared for the role, he smiles and tells them that he had a good teacher. He doesn't tell them just how method he got but he always imagines that Jensen is watching and laughing at him from whatever beachfront cabana he's hiding in this week.

The premier party was still going strong when he left but Jared has an early call on his next project tomorrow so he headed out, hoping to get a little bit of sleep before Katie comes pounding on the door in the morning. They don't talk about that weekend, either. It's almost as though it never happened.

He drops his clothes as he moves toward his bedroom, reminding himself to leave a bonus on the counter for the cleaning lady before he leaves tomorrow. By the time he makes it to the top of the stairs, he's sporting nothing but a pair of tuxedo pants, already working the button on them to let them puddle just inside the door.

He senses the movement before he even turns the lights on so it's not a total shock to find Jensen, shirtless and barefoot, in his bed. He's smirking and drinking Jared's beer, loose and cocky as ever. “Your alarm system is for shit,” are the first words he says.

"I've missed you, too, dear,” Jared intones, flopping onto the bed to steal the bottle from Jensen's hand. “You're a little late,” he adds, handing it back.

Jensen reaches out a hand to run it through Jared's hair as Jared's head falls heavy against his chest. “Sorry. Traffic was crazy on the fifteen,” he explains.

"What were you doin' on the 15?” Jared asks, eyes falling heavy as he drops one hand against Jensen's denim-clad thigh.

"Pellegrino's murder trial started today. Wanted to watch the kick off.”

Jensen's voice is softer than usual but in the last year, Jared has heard a million stories about Aldis and Danneel and Misha, so many that he sometimes feels like he's an honorary part of their team. “You doin' alright?” He feels like he can ask that now, but he still needs to tread lightly. Aldis is sacred territory for the others; he's practically a deity to Jensen.

"I will be,” Jensen promises, rolling his hips until Jared raises his head. “You really wanna make me feel better, you'll lose the pants and fuck me.”

He wastes no time stripping down while Jensen does the same. Who knows how long they have this time, how long Jensen will stay until he steals away again while Jared isn't looking? He still doesn't know where Jensen goes when he's not here. Sometimes he's away for a week, sometimes a month, but they never talk about the in between times.

Maybe he's still retired or maybe he's putting himself in danger again. Either way, Jared figures it's better for both of them if he doesn't know, so he doesn't ask.

Hours later, between the heavy breathing and the crying for Jesus, they're lying in a sweaty, messy heap of limbs in the center of Jared's bed when Jensen says, “When you're done with this project, we should go somewhere.”

A part of Jared wants to laugh at the absurdity of it, another part at the thrill of excitement that races through him at the suggestion. “I'm game,” he agrees, brushing his fingers along the length of Jensen's thigh. “As long as it's not Vegas.”

*Don't forget to check out tinkabell007's art post here.*

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magser.livejournal.com

I really enjoyed this, thanks for sharing!

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The Consultant, Pt. 2 (for spn_reversebang)

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