twenty-four (jensen)

[smackenzie]

The moment Jensen's professional life changed, he was learning the fine art of drawing animals on cappuccino foam from the new kid at the coffeeshop. The new kid, whose name was Anton, had already been there a couple months and was no longer technically new, although he was still the most recently hired barista. Once the other baristas learned that he was actually pretty good at cappuccino art, they pestered him to teach them.

Well, some of them did. Justin had no artistic talent and Joe just liked to draw things with tentacles, but Genevieve and Alona and Jensen thought it was kind of a neat skill to learn. Nicki didn't care as long as they didn't waste milk or coffee, and as long as they kept up a certain quality of customer service and drinks-making.

So when Chris was leaving an incomprehensible and angry message on Jensen's voice mail, Jensen was watching Anton draw a hedgehog in the foam of a customer's decaf latte.

And when Chris was leaving a second, even more incomprehensible message, Jensen was making an espresso con panna for Matt, who was wearing his nerdy glasses and looked like he hadn't slept or even bothered to comb his hair or shave in three days, and was still - Jensen thought - incredibly cute.

(This was not as weird as it might have been - a week or so earlier, Jensen had emailed Matt a link to an online article he'd found about a woman who'd been busted for forging forgeries because he thought Matt would be able to appreciate it, and they'd made some steps towards being friends. It helped that some time had passed and Matt had recently met someone, and they had always liked each other.)

And when Anton was trying to explain to Alona that she'd just made a panda bear, not a teddy bear, there was totally a difference, Jensen was taking a break and listening to his messages.

"I'm gonna fucking kill him," Chris was saying. "Fucked up my band and my tour. You're gonna help me, Jen, and I'm not gonna wrap my hands around Steve's neck and fucking squeeze."

Jensen was tempted to call Chris back, because he sounded grim, but it seemed like the kind of conversation Jensen should be there in person for. So he waited until he was off work before calling back.

"Poached my fucking guitarist," Chris spat over the phone. "Fucking Steve, not a fucking moral bone in his god-damned fucking body."

"Chris. Slow down. Back up. Tell me from the beginning."

"Steve. Stole. Jason. From. The band."

"What?"

"Offered him better money, he's gonna be on Steve's album, tour with him, songwriting credits, everything he's got with us but the bucks."

In the years since he'd gone solo, Steve had managed a pretty good career for himself, enough that he'd recently quit his day job to be a musician full-time. It was something everyone in Oklahoma Ford aspired to but hadn't quite reached yet. And as loyal as he felt to Chris, Jensen could understand why Jason might be swayed by the opportunity to make a full-time living making music. He had a wife, someday he'd have a family, and he wanted the bright lights as much as anyone.

"Tour starts in two weeks, Jen. Two weeks. Little less. I can't take the fucking time to find another guitarist who knows the songs and'll go with us. Steve fucking knew that. I could wring his fucking neck."

"Why aren't you pissed at Jason?" Jensen asked.

"He's got a wife and they want to get pregnant and he's gonna have a fucking family to support. I know he wants the money. He told me when Steve asked him, he asked me what I thought he should do. Hadn't given his answer yet. He didn't wanna piss me off or leave us high and dry."

"And you told him to take the offer?" Jensen pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it disbelievingly, although if he thought about it, that was something Chris would do. He'd tell you to take the offer that would net you better money and more exposure and greater creative input, and he'd respect you for asking his advice and letting him know your choices before making a decision.

Chris had known Steve longer, and no doubt felt more betrayed by him than by Jason. Besides, Steve had made the offer knowing he'd be putting Chris' band in a tight spot. Jensen wondered why Steve had to do it now.

"Fucker didn't even give Jason a lot of time to think it over," Chris was saying. "Told him if he went on tour with us, the offer'd be gone when we got back. He could take it now and fuck us over, or stay with us and lose it. Asshole."

"Steve."

"Yeah, Steve." Chris made a strangled noise of frustration. "We were friends. We formed the band together. He fucking betrayed me, Jen. Next he'll steal Gus. Take you too."

"Not highly likely. I don't have anything he wants."

"Yeah you do. You're gonna be Jason's replacement."

"I am not."

"Don't you fucking argue with me, Jensen. You are coming with us because you know most of the songs already, you know us, we know you, and you need the damn experience. And we fucking need you."

"I have a job, Chris. I can't take off for, what, two weeks? Two and a half?"

"So quit and let them hire you back. We're gonna talk about this when you get home. I need you to do this for me. If you ever fucking loved me, Jen, you will do this."

And because Jensen didn't know how to respond to that, he didn't. But when he got home, Chris sat him down and, in a calmer and more rational tone of voice than he'd had on the phone, explained all the pros and some of the cons of going on tour with the band. Jensen listened, asked questions, tried to argue in defense of staying here, and eventually had to agree that if he was thinking about his career, if he wanted exposure and experience, it would be stupid to pass this up.

"If your manager gives you shit," Chris said, "tell her you'll quit and reapply for your job when you get back."

"Is that what you're doing?"

"Don't have to. If I don't come back in three weeks they'll just hire someone else. But they'll give me the time. Don't worry about me, just talk to your manager. We got a bunch of rehearsals, you'll be ready when we leave, you'll be fine. This'll be good for you, Jen. Ok?"

It wasn't entirely ok, because two, two and a half weeks of touring meant being away from Jared, and Jared was less than thrilled about this arrangement although he was excited that it meant Jensen could be an actual paid professional musician on an actual paid professional tour, and if that was what Jensen wanted, Jared wanted it for him. Even if it meant being apart the whole time.

"We don't leave for another couple weeks," Jensen explained, trying to make it easier on both of them. "I have to brush up on the songs I know and learn the songs I don't, but that still leaves us some time together."

"I wish I could go see you," Jared said. "Too bad I can't tour with you as your driver or something. I'm really handy if the van breaks down."

"Yeah, I know how handy you are." Jensen grinned. "Don't worry, I'll steer all the groupies towards Chris."

"Even the guys?"

"Even the guys." Jensen chuckled, amused at the image of Chris, who was straight as they came, fending off hordes of male groupies.

"Nah, I trust you. Bring me back some souvenirs or something. Club napkins. Postcards."

"Other bands' stuff."

"Where are you going, anyway?"

"I'll send you the itinerary. We'll call, text, email, whatever. I'll send you some pictures if we go anywhere pretty."

"Just send me some pictures of you."

Jensen blushed. Jared kissed him.

"If it makes you happy," he said, "I want you to do it. It's not like you're going overseas for three months. I'll miss you, but you'll be back. I got the dogs, they'll keep me company. I'll think about you late at night when I'm lying in bed all alone with just the memory of my mouth on your dick, or your dick in my ass." Now his grin was wicked, and Jensen was embarrassed to realize he was blushing harder. He would have thought he'd like the mental image that conjured up, Jared jerking off to thoughts of him, and he did, but he'd hoped that it wouldn't make him blush like a teenaged girl.

He talked to Nicki, she made him talk to Sam who owned the coffeeshop, and eventually he won the right to have his job back when the band returned. Nicki grumbled about having to train a temp or give everyone extra shifts, and Anton piped up that he'd take more hours, he could use the money.

Jensen told everyone at the coffeeshop, he told Danneel, he even told Matt. He called home to tell his parents and his mom told him to be careful. He called Kevin and said they were going to be in Houston, and Kevin should come see them because Jensen wanted to see him. He rehearsed a lot, spent a lot of time learning the few new songs he didn't know at all, and by the time they were loading the van and he was calling Jared from the road to say they were on their way - they left in the late morning on a weekday, and Jared was at work - Jensen felt mostly prepared for the tour, a little nervous, and a little excited.

By the time they got to the first venue, he was a lot nervous and still only a little excited. His first show with Oklahoma Ford was not a resounding success on his part, but the rest of the band was tight enough to mostly make up for it, and once he had an actual show under his belt, he felt better prepared. The second show was better than the first, and Jensen started to think maybe this would be the amazing opportunity Chris sold it as, and he'd come out of it a better musician and a more experienced professional, and wasn't that why he left Houston and came to Nashville in the first place?

He couldn't thank Steve for stealing Jason away - Chris didn't even want to hear Steve's name mentioned - but he thought maybe he could thank Jason for going.



words: 1802
total words: 46,862

Comments

[wrenlet.livejournal.com]

The new kid, whose name was Anton

*SQUEAK!*

Two words, boys... phone sex. \o/

[smackenzie.livejournal.com]

the phone sex is coming! ...so to speak.