candygramme | Born To Dance Chapter 6 (Reply)

It was late by the time that Jared staggered into their room. Jensen was sleeping already, and Jared could barely convince himself to get in the shower and then stretch. Jeff would be proud of him for sticking to his training, but Jared knew he’d never make it through the performance if he didn’t. PJs on and teeth brushed, he headed for bed, but was distracted by the vision of Jensen sleeping in his own bed and couldn’t resist crawling into Jensen’s arms for just a minute. But as soon as he laid down and snuggled closer, Jensen pulled him in and buried his nose in the nape of Jared’s neck. That was apparently just what Jared needed to quiet his mind and sleep, because the next thing Jared knew, the alarm was going off and he was staring up into Jensen’s confused but loving gaze.

“Umm,” Jared started, brain still fuzzy from sleep. He pulled away from Jensen self-consciously, blushing furiously. “I … I just … I was heading to bed and umm … my bed looked so cold and lonely. And yours looked … warm and inviting. I was just gonna stay for a minute ... Uh, must’ve fallen asleep.”

“I’m not complaining,” Jensen chuckled. “Was kinda nice waking up with you right there. What time did you come in? How did you sleep?”

“Slept better than I have in a while. Usually I’m going over the dance in my head forever. Not last night.” Jared realized there was another question and he hadn’t answered it. “I don’t really know what time it was. Late.”

“Did you get the routine worked out?” Jensen asked.

“Yeah, mostly,” Jared answered. “But then we started doing stupid stuff because it was late and decided to call it a night. But I think we’ll be okay.”

“Good,” Jensen said, smiling at him. “Can’t have you going home just yet.”

“What about you?” Jared asked, suddenly realizing he’d been so caught up in his own problems that he had no idea how Jensen’s dance was coming. Jared wracked his brain trying to remember what style they were doing and his heart sank. So many dancers struggled with the samba on this show and here Jared was freaking out about his own and likely distracting Jensen. “How’s the samba?”

“Better than I was afraid it was gonna be,” Jensen reassured him. “It’s still pretty awkward for us, but Katharine assures me it looks all right. She’s been doing the ballroom stuff a long time, so I trust she’s right.”

“I guess we better head down to breakfast,” Jared said reluctantly. “We’re supposed to go through it one more time before dress rehearsal.”

“Yeah,” Jensen agreed. “We are too.”

For something that they had struggled so much with, the actual performance went surprisingly well. For Jared anyway. There was one flip where Sandy was off balance, but Jared was strong enough that she was never in any danger of falling. And Sandy’s footwork was out of time quite a bit. The judges’ comments were rather harsh, but they said that Jared recovered well on the off-balance flip. Considering how badly they had done in the beginning, Jared was reasonably happy. He’d been too nervous to note how the other couples had done before them, but he hoped that their performance had been enough to keep both of them in. Jensen and Katherine were next, and Jared barely had a moment to wish them luck as they exited and the other couple entered the stage.

Jared had almost dreaded Jensen’s samba, fully expecting to be jealous of Katharine during the always sexy style. But once they started dancing, all Jared could think about was how hot Jensen was. Even the bits where their lips almost touched made him think how Jensen’s lips felt under his. And the strength and command he showed with Katherine was incredibly hot as well. And he couldn’t even think about those hips. Jared was incredibly grateful that he wasn’t dancing in a leotard because it would definitely be obvious where his thoughts had gone.

Jared was just glad Jensen was dancing last. He studiously ignored Jensen through the taping of the rest of the episode until Jensen hissed at him, “What’s wrong? Are you mad at me?”

“No,” Jared answered. “Not mad.”

“Then what?” pressed Jensen.

“I’ll tell you later. After we’re done here.” Jared just needed to get out of here. He never had understood why all of the contestants needed to go back out on the stage at the end. It’s not like they ever showed much of it. It was just the host wrapping up the show. But finally they were free, and Jared just dragged Jensen off to their room and pressed him back against the inside of the door.

“Wha—,” Jensen started. Jared shut him up with a kiss. It didn’t take long for Jensen to get with the program.

They had had even less time than usual this week, with Jared spending every available minute with Sandy working on their routine. Jared had resolutely pushed away any thoughts of the previous week’s results night, when they’d made love for the first time. He couldn’t afford to dwell on it, putting his all into perfecting the Lindy Hop. But watching Jensen dance his samba, all that desire and desperation had come rushing back. And all he wanted to do now was strip them both down, climb Jensen’s body and sink down on his magnificent cock.

Jensen slowed Jared’s frantic pace, ever the gentleman and solicitous lover. He made sure they’d gotten the door locked and guided them to the nearest bed. “Do you wanna,” he asked ambiguously.

“Do I wanna what?” Jared asked for clarification incredulously. Wasn’t it obvious what he wanted? “Fuck? Yes, I most definitely want to fuck.”

“No, I meant, do you want to do me this time?” Jensen clarified.

Jared shook his head. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to. He really, really did. Just, not now. Right now, he just wanted Jensen to take control of him like he had that samba. And maybe he was just a little nervous about being on the other end of things, but he had no doubt they’d work that out. Some other time. “No, not now. Just… Please.”

Jensen nodded, pulling out the supplies he’d stashed in nightstand drawer. He was more confident prepping Jared this time, but still far too deliberate for Jared’s taste right now. He’d obviously succeeded in letting Jensen know he was moving too slowly, because he increased his pace. He still carefully fingered Jared open, taking care to nudge his prostate, and Jared was soon rutting against him shamelessly. Not that Jared needed much encouragement in the mood he was in tonight. Just when Jared had had enough and opened his mouth to insist that Jensen move things along, he removed his hand, replacing it with his cock and sliding home in one long smooth glide.

Jared tried not to wince when it hurt quite a bit more than it had the last time. Clearly he wasn’t successful, because Jensen stilled immediately.

“You good?” Jensen asked solicitously. “Did I go too fast?”

“I’m great,” Jared answered, ineffectively trying to find enough leverage to fuck himself onto Jensen’s cock. “Be better if you’d just get on with it.”

Thankfully, Jensen did, thrusting into him passionately, apparently just as desperate as Jared was. It was every bit as incredible as it had been the first time. In no time at all, they both lost it, practically simultaneously, and they snuggled into each other, breathing raggedly and enjoying the warm intimacy as they came back to themselves.

“What got into you tonight?” asked Jensen.

“I dunno,” Jared answered. “I guess it was all the stress of the week and then the performance. I couldn’t think about anything else. Then it was over, and you were dancing, and you were just so fucking hot up there. Not that you aren’t usually, just… I don’t know. Anyway, all I could think about was getting you alone and naked.”

“Not complaining here,” Jensen smirked, not unkindly. “That was… amazing. More than amazing. Feel free to ravish me anytime.”

Jared smiled at Jensen stupidly, dozing as Jensen cleaned them up and moved them to the other bed. He wallowed in the warm loving embrace, content and finally sated.

By the time they resurfaced, dinner was over, but fortunately the rest of the gang had made plates for them. Jared’s stomach was growling, and he was sure that Jensen was hungry as well. They found the rest of the crew in Nicki and Sandy’s room. Sandy was crying and throwing their stuff around their room with her Minnie Mouse suitcase on her bed. Jared felt guilty for abandoning his partner in what was clearly a time of need.

“What’s up, San?” Jensen asked.

“I’m packing!” Sandy said through her tears. “What does it look like?”

“But why are you packing?” Jared pressed.

“You were there!” Sandy rounded on Jared, pointing her finger in his face. “Didn’t you see my dancing? Didn’t you hear what the judges said?”

“Maybe it wasn’t our best,” Jared conceded. “But I didn’t think we were that bad.”

“Not you,” Sandy sobbed. “Me! And with only five couples left, none of them will be that bad. And I was the worst.”

“Hold up,” Jensen said. “Don’t you think you’re jumping the gun a little bit here?”

“That’s what we’ve been trying to tell her,” Brock put in.

“Yeah, Sandy,” Jared agreed. “At least wait until after the show tomorrow. Enjoy tonight and see what tomorrow brings.”

“I guess you’re right,” Sandy finally agreed. “No sense ruining our last night together with tears. Time enough for that tomorrow night.”

Jared hadn’t really heard the judges’ comments for any of them, so he didn’t want to be the one to try to cheer her up. But nobody else was jumping in to disagree with her. “You don’t know that.”

“Let’s just drop it and go hang out in your room. This room’s depressing.”

Jared met Nicki’s eyes, and she just nodded, so he let it drop. He didn’t envy the girls the cleanup they’d have to do before they would be able to go to bed, but Nicki seemed to agree with Sandy.

When they reconvened in Jensen and Jared’s room, no one mentioned the upcoming results. They all talked about the times they’d shared, all that they’d been through together. It was amazing that they’d all stayed together this long, and Jared sat next to Jensen, enjoying the camaraderie they’d all developed over the past few weeks.

Sure enough, Sandy had been right. She and Gil, the ballroom dancer, were the ones to go. Jared found himself in tears as he watched her farewell montage. They had become such good friends over the weeks working together.

After the episode, while the closing credits probably rolled on television screens across the country, he pushed through the crowd mobbing the eliminated dancers and pulled her close, hugging her tightly and whispered in her ear, “I’m so sorry. I should’ve done more to make sure you were safe.”

“Nonsense!” Sandy exclaimed, slapping his shoulder to emphasize her point. “You were the best partner I could hope for. Without you, I’d have likely been eliminated weeks ago. So thank you so much, and one of you boys better win this thing for me!”

Results night had been a welcome night off and time that the boys spent together, carefree and without dances to learn. But this week, no one was in any mood to celebrate. Sandy, Nicki and Katharine had made short work of helping Sandy pack her things, and now all six of them were gathered in Jensen and Jared’s room, one last evening hanging out before saying their goodbyes. Sandy would fly out in the morning, leaving a gaping hole in their group. They all knew she’d be back in a couple of weeks for the finale, but it was still a sad moment.

Well, Sandy was gone, and Jensen knew that sooner or later everyone but the winner would share that fate. He tried not to feel smug that it meant Jared’s partner would now be Felicia, who in his opinion at least was a much better dancer. It was Katharine that finally voiced his thoughts.

“At least we’ll be able to concentrate more on our own routines now it’s getting down to the wire,” she said to him as they watched Alaina introduce their next routine to them.

Contenting himself with a smirk and a nod, he elbowed her and nodded towards where Alaina had her hands on her hips in an attitude that demonstrated her lack of patience for anyone who wasn’t fully invested in her words of wisdom.

“Good. Now that I have your attention, your dance is to be about a pair of lovers. It’s stylized, because I’ve taken it from the Willow Pattern, so I want there to be Chinese accents to it. The story goes that the two lovers are meeting in secret, when the girl’s father catches them. They run away before he can kill the boy, and the goddess of compassion, Kuan Yin, sees them and changes them into birds so they can fly away and be together.”

She signaled to the two students who would demo the steps for them, and together Jensen and Katharine watched as the newcomers demonstrated the moves the two of them would need to learn.

Jensen’s mind catalogued the different forms as he watched them. There were lifts, many lifts, and he knew those wouldn’t be a problem. There was a spin he would need to work on, and of course the fluidity of the whole thing would be a concern, since he was so used to hitting each move hard. Toning things down was always his problem, since so much of what he was learning demanded smooth moves between one form and the next,

It was a good dance, he thought. Dramatic and pretty to watch. Katharine’s eyes were shining too as she nodded along to the routine, and Jensen knew that she too was mentally cataloguing the moves.

“You gonna be okay with heaving my fat ass around all the time?” she asked him, and Jensen laughed as he pounded on his chest with his fists.

“Me big strong he-man type person. Me heave small woman thing like sack of flour.” He beat his chest again and then pretended to cough as Alaina glared at them.

“I devoutly hope that any heaving around you do will be somewhat more graceful than hauling sacks of flour,” she said. “I want to see grace in every step, or I will get out my subtle persuader.”

Without further ado, the pair of them began to apply themselves to the task of learning the dance.

Jared and Felicia had really not had much of an opportunity to get to know each other before now. They had drawn Mark Sheppard as their choreographer, and the two of them broke the ice by hypothesizing as to what style he would actually have them do. On the card they had drawn it said contemporary, but neither of them could imagine the man doing the kind of moves that were the staple of a contemporary routine.

They were at first astonished when the man himself arrived for their first session of the day in a wifebeater and sweats instead of his customary silk suit and proceeded to show them just what he was expecting of them.

“All right, you layabouts,” he said. “You’re a pair of hoboes. You got that?”

Wide-eyed, the two of them nodded.

“Good. Now pay attention: Someone’s given Jared a sandwich, because he’s the pretty one, but you, Felicia, want that sandwich, and you’re determined to get it, so there’s a battle going on. You’re sneaky, like all women, and not averse to using your wiles. So this is how it’s going to go.” A slender girl, who Jared recognized as last year’s ‘Born to Dance’ champion, stepped forward and the two of them proceeded to perform a complex routine in which there was a good deal of humor.

It seemed that Mark was more than just a suit, and Jared’s respect for him grew immensely from that moment on.

“So, Felicia, you offer him the bottle in exchange for the sandwich, but it’s full of water, not booze, and that makes you chase her, Jared. You bring her down and take it back, but as you turn away, she’s going to whack you on the back of the head with the bottle, like this. While Jared is staggering around, you tuck the sandwich under your hat and pretend you ate it. Jared droops and turns away, and you get it out to start taking a bite, so he will somersault right into your space and snatch it back. Then you beg a little, and finally Jared tears it in half, and you both sit down back to back to eat the thing, okay?” Mark made a kissy face at his partner. “Thank you, Amy. As ever, I couldn’t do it without your help.” As Amy turned to leave the rehearsal room, Mark turned back to Jared and Felicia. “Okay. Any questions, children?’”

Both of them shook their heads "no" and rose to begin their take on the routine.

The week flew by, and before they knew it, performance night was upon them. Felicia had somehow managed to tear her ACL, and danced courtesy of steroid shots, painkillers and strapping. It was obvious that she wouldn’t be able to continue and left in tears following Mark’s praise for her strength of will. The other one to go was Osric, a young, energetic martial artist whose agility had been very popular with the fans. This, of course, meant that Jared would have yet another new partner.

This time his partner was Alona, and she didn’t worry him even slightly. Her dancing was precise and graceful, and he knew that they would do well together. He was a little worried about Jensen, who was trying his best for more flexibility, stretching whenever he got the chance and who was becoming increasingly remote as exhaustion took its toll on them all.

As Tahmoh, their coach for the group dance, kept on saying to them, they were playing for all the marbles now. Finalists received all kinds of prizes, and the contest winner would get a part in Mark Pellegrino’s new movie as well as the cash prize on offer.

Jensen and Katharine were krumping with Sam Ferris this time, and by now it didn’t take long for Katharine to master the style. It was easy for Jensen, and the two of them had fun with it. Less need to struggle through it also meant that they were able to sleep a little more and rest their aching joints.

Mark Pellegrino was making life complicated for Jared and Alona, and the two of them were learning a piece where they were both clowns. To say it wasn’t Jared’s favorite dance routine was putting it mildly. Clowns meant makeup and stupid clothes. He wasn’t looking forward to it. Behind the door to their room was fast becoming the only place where Jensen and Jared could relax.

Jared’s grandparents had come into town to see him perform in the semi-finals, and Mack and Donna were going to be there if Jensen made it to the finals. Brock and Danneel were apparently hot and heavy after Danneel had flown in a few days earlier.

The night before they were due to dance in the semi-finals, Jared and his grandparents had been out for a meal. He returned somewhat later than he’d intended and pushed open the door to the room, thinking that Jensen would be sleeping.

He was taken by surprise by Jensen flinging himself across the room in an almost perfect grand jeté and hurling himself into Jared’s arms.

“I missed you,” he mumbled, his mouth against Jared’s lips. “Been waiting.”

“Well, hello,” was all Jared was able to say before Jensen was kissing him deep and hard.

Jared let himself be owned, his heart thumping in his chest as he felt strong arms pull him tight and Jensen’s body roll against him, arousal prickling along his nerve endings. The telltale nudge of Jensen’s cock pressed against his hip as Jared clung, his own arms holding that vital body just as tightly.

Getting from the wall to the bed was accomplished in a flurry of discarded clothing, soft moans and filthy, whispered endearments. Jared was hard now. Harder than he’d ever been, and as Jensen pressed him back against the mattress, he could feel that swag, feel the control that Jensen radiated in his dancing and suddenly knew that this was Jensen’s core, the sweat and fire and altogether irresistible sexuality of him.

“God, I love you,” he groaned as Jensen mumbled kisses down over his neck, his shoulders, hot mouth devouring superheated skin and Jensen’s rough jaw scratchy as he slid down to mouth at each nipple.

Jared could only hold on, overwhelmed by Jensen, the taste of him, his scent, his heat. “Love you too,” whispered Jensen. “You an’ me, we’re gonna own that stage tomorrow. They won’t be able to see anyone else but the two of us.”

“You already own me,” said Jared, gasping as one of Jensen’s hands stole down to take hold of his cock and squeeze it.

“Glad to hear it,” said Jensen, grinning down at him, and Jared pushed into his grip, knew he was close and bit his lip.

“You gonna do something with that?” he asked.

“Yeah. I’m gonna sit on it.” He lifted himself up and forward so that Jared’s cock was pressed against him and began to rock against him, slowly sinking down onto it. It seemed that Jensen had already slicked himself up, because there was no dryness, no pain, only the slow, silken glide as he gradually sank down and that heat that radiated from inside Jensen to sear Jared as he pushed in, pushed up, striving to get impossibly closer.

The room was filled with the sounds of exertion, of gasps and sighs. It wasn’t long before Jared couldn’t hold back anymore and came with a strangled cry of “Jen!” Jensen followed him down, his sticky essence coating Jared’s belly as he let his release overtake him.

Yawning, Jared felt Jensen reach down for a piece of discarded clothing to clean them off with, and then his eyes drifted closed, and he knew no more.

The following morning, the six dancers presented themselves for costume and makeup, while Jared grumbled softly about fake noses and stupid clowns. Jensen, in his loose overalls and beanie, saw him in his multi-colored satin and just about bust a gut laughing. Brock and Nicki, due to perform some African jazz thing, came by in their feathers and hide to wish them all luck, and Jared snarled when Nicki said, “Nice nose!”

The opening group number displayed Jared at his best, leaping and twirling as he wove between the others, playing the part of the hero come to liberate them. He couldn’t help thinking that Tahmoh had choreographed it specially for him and it allowed him to show off his perfect lines as he prowled across the stage. A brief pas de deux with Brock had the audience yelling their approval, but it was the final lift with Jensen that set them on fire and made them scream for more. As they took their bow, oiled muscles gleaming under the lights, it was evident that it was going to be a hard fought battle.

Jensen took the stage first, his dance with Katharine testament to Sam Ferris’s ingenuity. She’d made it about the battle of the sexes, and Katharine gave it her all. When they were done, Jensen wanted to applaud her.

“God, woman! You rock my world. You need to marry me, like, right now.”

“I think Jared would have something to say about that,” she shot back at him, still flushed with the effort of her performance.

“Are we that obvious?” Jensen was taken aback by her words.

“Duh!” She rolled her eyes. “You’re so cute together with your surreptitious touching and eye fucking. I can’t quite decide if you’ve got it together yet or not. Brock swears you have, but I think you’d be a lot more relaxed if you were getting off.”

Jensen was now bright red, and he covered his face with his hands. “Dude! I’m from Texas, and your words are terrifying me. Never let me hear you speak of this again.”

“Well, all right,” she said and then giggled. “On one condition. When you do get it together, you have to let me watch.”

Jensen was now the rich purple color of a plum. “Woman!” he yelled, making as if to strangle her. She turned and fled giggling.

By the time Jared made it back into the green room, he had managed to pull his fake nose off, which, if anything, made him look even scarier than he had before.

He was swiftly swept away to have the makeup removed and to be made ready for their final group dance, which had them all in flowing white shrouds, rising from the grave to Danse Macabre.

Jensen noted with satisfaction that whenever his partner became possible to single out during these group routines that a cheer would go up from the audience. It made him happy. Once they were done, and the closing credits were rolling, he sought Jared out. “They all know about us, Jay,” he told him.

Jared grinned at him. “Oh yeah?” he said. “What do they know?”

“Katharine asked me point blank if she could watch us do it!” The outrage in his voice was unmistakable.

“I hope you told her we charge a hefty fee for that kind of performance,” smirked Jared, and Jensen huffed, stalking away with his nose in the air.

The following night saw them all lined up on the stage again for the results, and when Mark Pellegrino took the stage with the dreaded white envelopes, the audience fell silent.

“So this set of results is for what my esteemed colleague Tahmoh calls ‘all the marbles.’ And it means a place in the finals for four out of our top six.” He waved the envelopes in the air. “Of course, that doesn’t mean that the contestants who aren’t chosen are not wonderful dancers. We’ve all seen them week after week struggle to learn and then succeed beyond our wildest dreams. All the dancers who have graced our stage have been terrific, but alas, tonight we have to let two of them go.” He popped open the first envelope. “Hmmm... This tells me the name of the first person to be a contestant in our finals. The honor goes to Jared.”

Whatever he was going to say next was lost in the screams of approval from the audience, and Jensen turned to hug his lover, not caring, for once, how gay he might look.

“The next person to make it through to our final is... Nicki.” She gave a little bounce, and Brock swung her into his arms to hug her while the audience applauded a little more sedately.

“Our second lady finalist is... Katharine,” he announced, and as Katharine squeaked and jumped into Jensen’s arms, Mark turned to Alona. “I’m sorry, my dear. That means you didn’t quite make it.”

Someone hurried onto the stage with a bouquet for Alona, and everyone paused to watch the footage of Alona’s journey on the show. Once that was finished, Mark stepped forward again to claim the microphone. “That means that one of these two amazing dancers has claimed our last spot in the finals. We’ll tell you who that is, right after this commercial break.”

To Jared, watching his lover from the audience, it seemed as if the commercial would never end. Jensen seemed calm, but Jared could see that telltale left hand of Jensen’s tapping against his thigh and sent up a prayer to anyone that might be listening that Jensen had made it into the final with him.

When the call for quiet finally came, Mark seemed to want to spin out the moment a little while longer. He extolled the two dancers’ virtues and finally announced that the last dancer to reach the finale had actually polled the most votes. The theater was so quiet, you could hear the proverbial pin drop, and when Mark at last announced, “Jensen,” the entire place erupted into bedlam. Jensen himself staggered and then turned to hug Brock, commiserating with him as he turned to leave the stage and go join Jared in the audience.

Neither of them paid much attention to Brock’s farewell montage, they merely clung to each other shakily.

“We made it. We’re through.”

Brock wasn’t going home because he, along with all the others were to be brought in for the finale group dances.

Alaina had worked out a routine where the seasons were at war with each other, and Katharine was the sun, who was supposed to dry up Nicki’s rain, while Jensen was snow, and Jared represented the wind. The premise made Jensen giggle, since he’d soon discovered that if Jared were to eat anything at all that wasn’t on his permitted list of food, he became incredibly gassy and could clear the entire rehearsal room in one gigantic explosion of wind.

“Excellent casting,” he told Alaina and got a clip around the ear from Jared as well as a wink from his choreographer. It didn’t take long for the dance to take shape, and he wondered why he’d ever had a problem picking up choreography. He was even thinking that he’d like to try doing some of it for himself.

Everything was going perfectly, and of course it was too good to last. When the call from his sister came at dinner time, he wasn’t expecting anything except to hear her fangirl over his success.

“Jensen,” he heard, and then her voice dissolved into incomprehensible mumbles as she burst into tears.

“Mack?” He knew he was yelling, and Jared had looked up, then come over to join him, one arm around his shoulders as he frowned.

The phone crackled, and then Jensen heard Jim Beaver’s measured tones. “Son, I hate to have to tell you this, but your mama was taken to the hospital. They ain’t quite sure what the problem is, but she was found unconscious on the floor a couple of hours ago, and so far she’s been unresponsive to any stimuli.”

“She’s not dead?” Jensen made a little move as if to push away the very idea.

“No, son. She ain’t dead, but it don’t look good.”

“Oh, god.” For a moment, Jensen wasn’t sure if he could remember how to breathe. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“We’ll keep Mack with us tonight, son. She ain’t in the best state to be on her own.”

Jensen believed he might have said thank you. He thought he might possibly even have said goodbye, but when Jared took the phone from his hands, he looked up, bewildered.

“I’ve gotta go home now,” he mumbled and then just sat, staring at nothing in particular.

“What is it? What’s happened?” Jared cupped Jensen’s cheek, trying for eye contact and finally, after a while, getting it.

“It’s... momma’s in the hospital. She’s unresponsive. I have to go.” Jensen sounded calm, but Jared could see the shock in his eyes, feel the muscles in his jaw jumping under his fingertips.

“Come on, we need to go talk to Mr. Sheppard.” Jared drew Jensen in, offering whatever comfort he could. “We can still make the redeye if we hurry.”

Jensen nodded and then paused as Jared’s words cut through his misery. “Wait, what? No! You have to stay and win this thing.”

“Not gonna happen.” Jared took a deep breath, aware of just how much he was throwing away and how little it meant to him when stacked up against the warm-hearted lady who had welcomed him in when he had nobody. “She’s my momma too, and you’re my forever. I’m going with you, baby.”

Jensen made as if to protest again, but the look of gratitude on his face gave whatever he might have said the lie. “Okay,” he said finally, and together they went to find Mark Sheppard.

As expected, Sheppard didn’t take the news well. “You do realize that to leave at this point will leave you both cut from the show?” he asked. “Are you willing to throw it all away?”

Tears sprang into Jensen’s eyes. “She’s my mom,” he whispered. “And it’s my fault...”

“No, Jen. It’s not your fault at all. You were a kid. There was nothing you could’ve done.” Jared put his arms around Jensen.

Mark studied the two of them with a wry smile, then reached for the phone and demanded that he be put through to whichever Dallas hospital contained Donna Ackles as a patient. Replacing the phone, he glared at Jensen. “You know you would’ve won this thing?”

“Not me. Jared.” Mark rolled his eyes.

“Gawd help me, I can see I’ve got myself saddled with a pair of hopeless romantics,” he grumbled and was about to go on, when the phone rang. “Well, go on then. Pick it up!” he told Jensen, who was looking vaguely terrified.

“Hello?” Jensen sounded shell-shocked still. He listened to the person on the other end of the line and his shoulders slumped. “Yeah. I just heard that my mom is there. Donna, Donna Ackles. I need to know how she is.”

He seemed to listen for forever but finally said, “Thank you. Tell her I... tell her that we’ll be there tomorrow morning, me an’ Jared, okay?”

He hung up the phone. “According to the nurse, she’s resting comfortably, whatever that means.”

“It means she’s not in any danger of popping her clogs,” said Mark, smirking. “I’ll have the travel arrangements set up for you tomorrow. Go and get some sleep, and good luck. The finale is going to be a poorer place without you.”

And that was that. As the two of them walked away, their dreams and hopes all gone, Mark Sheppard watched them out of sight and then swore softly and put in a call to Julian Ritching.

Coming home to Dallas seemed like an anticlimax after the fun and adrenaline rushes of the past weeks in Los Angeles. Jensen wasn’t sure he could just go back to his job in the bakery, and he knew he didn’t want Jared to fade back into his school. Much of the weekly stipend he’d received from the show was still in the bank account. Mack had been very frugal, and it seemed that he had at least some money saved up.

Once off the plane, he and Jared headed for the hospital, where they were at last able to get some better information on Donna’s condition.

Apparently there had been a seizure, and she had fallen. The coma she was in was the result of a slow bleed inside her brain due to striking her head on the coffee table, and she’d required surgery to relieve it. Now it would just be a matter of seeing what kind of damage had been done once she regained consciousness.

Sitting at Donna’s bedside, watching her sleep was making Jensen crazy. He couldn’t even fathom what the bill for her treatment would be, let alone what he was going to do now that his dream of becoming a dancer was fading away before his exhausted eyes. As the days dragged by, the memories of performing and the exhilaration of the audience applauding faded into a misty memory, and all he could see was his mother’s still frame lying pale and fragile in the hospital bed.

Jared stayed beside Jensen, trying to support him while he fretted, reassuring him, telling him not to sweat the small stuff, that they would be fine together, but when Jensen was dozing, he too wondered what they’d done and how their future would go.

The local press had been clamoring for an interview for several days, but neither of them had bothered to return the calls. Neither of them had stirred from Donna’s side other than to use the shower or eat what Mr. Beaver brought in for them, so they were in a pathetic state when Donna finally opened her eyes.

“Jensen?”

Jensen was dozing, but the sound of her voice caused him to blink awake. Jared was in the bathroom showering and making himself as presentable as possible for the day’s vigil, so Jensen greeted his mother alone for a moment.

“God, momma, don’t you ever do that to me again,” he said, pushing the buzzer for the nurse. He looked like a mental patient, four day’s growth of scruff, bloodshot eyes and wild hair, and wondered if his mom had called his name because he was unrecognizable.

“Sorry, baby,” she murmured, and then the nurses and doctor descended on her, and Jensen found himself excluded from further proceedings while they checked her over and sent her for tests.

“She’s going to be gone for most of the day doing tests and making sure all is well,” said the nurse who finally took pity on his woebegone state. “Why don’t you two boys go home and get a few hours real sleep while we make her glamorous for you?”

Reluctantly agreeing to go home for a short while, the two of them made their way back to Jensen’s home, where they found that Mrs. Beaver had been keeping the place clean and tidy for them. There was an inordinate amount of mail, and it had all been heaped on the kitchen table for them, at first in a pile and then in several boxes. Jensen gazed at it, frowning, then turned away to go back to the sitting room where he could feel closer to his mother. Mack was at school, and all was quiet. Jensen slumped onto the couch and gazed up at Jared. “You could do so much better than this,” he whispered. “So much better than me.”

“Not really.” Jared dropped to his knees and pulled Jensen into his arms. “You and me together, Jen. We’re it. I’m never gonna let you go, and we’re so much better together. You know that.”

“I’m gonna be in jail for non-payment of debt before much longer. You gonna want a jailbird for a boyfriend?”

“You bet your sweet ass I am!” Jared smiled against his neck. “Besides, I have money. You won’t go to jail.”

“That’s yours, not mine,” protested Jensen. “Besides which, nobody has that kind of money. It’s just not possible.”

“It’s yours, babe. Anything I have is yours.” Jared kissed him hard, and kept kissing him until Jensen stopped fussing and returned the kiss, which turned into a yawn. “Okay. Bed. Sleep while we can, and then we’ll order in something before we go back to the hospital.”

Five hours later, the two were woken by someone leaning on the doorbell. Jensen merely moaned softly in his sleep, and it was Jared who eventually climbed out of the bed, pulled on his jeans and stumbled down the stairs to find out who was disturbing the first good sleep they’d had in days.

What he found on the front porch made him stumble back, eyes wide.

“Well, don’t keep us hanging around outside. It’s hot out here,” said Mark Sheppard, with a grin that Jared would later describe as evil.

“Sorry.” Jared stepped aside and allowed Mark to enter. He was followed by Julian Ritching, who gave him a brief smile as he passed him by. “Jensen’s sleeping. I’ll just...”

Turning, he ran up the stairs. “Jen. Jen, wake up. We’ve got visitors.”

Jensen opened gummy eyes and blinked at him. “Jay? What...?”

“You need to come downstairs. We’ve got visitors,” he said again.

It was some half hour later before Jensen finally made his appearance downstairs, still half asleep and very confused indeed. Stopping at the living room door, he stared at his two visitors, a frown on his brow.

“Ah. The other half of the terrible twins,” murmured Mark. “I hope you don’t mind. I took the liberty of putting the coffee on, since you guys didn’t seem to have it together.”

“Coffee?” Jensen turned and made for the kitchen to reach for the carafe with shaky hands.

Mark followed him in. “Look, go and sit down before you fall down,” he said. “I’ll be mum for once.” Swiftly assembling a tray with the required items, he followed Jensen into the living room and placed the tray on the coffee table. Pouring out a mug for Jensen, he held it out and smirked when Jensen immediately buried his nose in the fragrant brew.

Serving Jared and Julian at a much more leisurely pace, he sat back and gestured for Julian to take the conversation.

“I don’t know how much you two have been following what’s happened with the show?” Julian gave them a toothy grin. “But when we lost our two star dancers right before the final, we put a special together to kind of explain where you were and why you wouldn't be dancing.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a reaction to one of our shows before,” said Mark, sitting forward. “It was amazing. Jensen, a GoFundMe account was set up to pay your mom’s hospital bills, and you wouldn’t believe the amount of money that’s already been collected. Both of you, fair warning, you’re going to need to sign up with an agent, or you’ll get screwed over big time. You’ve got offers coming out the yin-yang.”

“Offers for what?” Jared was somewhat more alert than his partner.

“Movies, for a start,” said Julian. “However, what we’d like to propose, if you’ll let us, is this: The finale is going on tonight, and if I’m right...”

“And he always is,” cut in Mark.

“And I always am,” grinned Julian. “If I’m right, your friend Brock is going to win. He’s good, but nothing remotely comparable to the two of you. Anyway, we’d like you to do a demo piece together on the results show, and then I want you to sign with me to develop a series of fusion dance styles merging street and ballet. You should get that manager first, of course, but the way I see it, it’ll be a stage show in Vegas, with possibly a TV and movie spinoff. Bearing in mind that I’m jumping the gun here before Pellegrino gets his ugly mitts on you for one of his Broadway shows, what do you say?”

“Guh,” said Jensen.

“Together?” That was Jared.

“Absolutely together. You have no idea how incredible audience response has been.” Mark gave a short laugh. “We interviewed the others about you, showed a montage of your dances on the show, broadcast it as a special. Now every PA in the place is hiding from the press until we’ve got something to tell them. We’ve had to employ security above and beyond to keep the place from being inundated when the final goes out. If you two can be there on stage for the results show next week, we’ll be certain of the best ratings ever.”

Jensen looked at Jared, eyebrows raised. Jared nodded to him, and then Jensen said, “As long as my mom’s out of danger by then, I think we’d love to.”

“And this year’s winner of ‘Born to Dance’ is...” Alaina was in her element on the stage, with Brock on her right hand side and Katharine on her left. “Brock Kelly!”

As the audience applauded, Brock stepped forward, gesturing for calm, and Katharine, her arms full of flowers, followed.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we all know that I didn’t really win this contest. The ones that should’ve been up here on the stage couldn’t compete, due to personal reasons we’ve all heard about by now. However, they did agree to be here tonight, and so, dancing for you one last time, let me introduce the two who were really ‘Born to Dance,’ Jared and Jensen.”

The stage was darkened, and as ‘He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother’ began, a single spotlight showed a man collapsed on the stage in a heap. As he stirred, a second figure, dressed all in white, made its delicate way to the first, and Jared could be seen stooping to raise up his partner who joined him to perform a pas de deux that had the audience screaming for more. The scene changed, and this time, Jared was failing, while Jensen wrapped his lover’s arms around him like a cloak and danced out his support and his love.

As they slowly came into each other's arms to finish their dance, the audience exploded, and as the show ended, there was no doubt in anybody’s mind exactly who it was that had been ‘Born To Dance.’