Chapter Text
“A holographic Christmas tree? Come on!”
Dr. Rhodes put her hand on Jensen’s shoulder. “Jared did the best he could. You know we’re not allowed to have a real one down here.”
“Then let’s just not have one. This is lame.” Jensen crossed his arms and glared at the hologram, which was twinkling merrily in the space usually occupied by Professor Beaver, the captain’s holographic companion.
“Jensen—”
“I hate Christmas anyway.” Jensen turned and stormed out of the Captain’s quarters, bumping into Jared on the way out. He shoved past him without stopping.
Jared sighed and stepped inside Captain Morgan’s quarters. “I take it he didn't like it.”
“Face it, Jared, I think it's hopeless.” The doctor shut the hologram off. “He says he hates Christmas.”
Jared frowned, concerned. “Because of his parents, you think?”
“I'd imagine.” Dr. Rhodes gestured for Jared to follow her out. “The Captain never quite came out and said it, but he’s implied that his parents were neglectful—almost criminally so. He probably spent most of his Christmases alone.”
“Then I have to make this special for him,” declared Jared with determination in his eyes. “He's going to have the best Christmas ever. I'll make sure of it.”
Dr. Rhodes stopped at the door of her lab. “Good luck with that, Lieutenant. If you pull this off, you'll deserve that promotion.”
“From your mouth to Morgan’s ears,” replied Jared, grinning.
* * *
As supply and morale officer on the UEO’s flagship submarine, Jared was used to dealing with government bureaucracy. Supply chain logistics for submarines that routinely went four to six months between ports were still evolving, and the nature of the SeaQuest’s research mission posed some…unusual challenges, to say the least. But as maddening as the UEO internal network was to navigate, dealing with Jensen’s father’s company, Zeppelin-Arrow Energy, was exponentially worse. When his emails had gone unanswered for three days, he resorted to piggybacking on Jensen’s unauthorized satellite comlink to call the company headquarters, only to be stuck in an endless automated phone tree with exactly zero branches that led to an actual human. All Jared wanted was to get some kind of acknowledgment from Alan Ackles that he remembered his only son’s existence. Maybe Morgan was right—he was trying to scale Everest in flip-flops and swim trunks.
“I thought you were supposed to be on the bridge,” said Misha. Jared jumped. He hadn't heard the communications officer come in.
Jared checked the computer clock. He still had twenty minutes. “Don't scare me like that, Jesus.”
“I generally answer to Misha, but I am grateful for your acknowledgment of my divinity,” replied Misha. He sat down beside Jared. “Is that Jensen’s unauthorized comlink that he thinks none of us know about?”
“Indeed it is,” answered Jared. “I'm trying to reach his father.”
Misha raised an eyebrow. “I'm not sure the Man Himself could even pull that off.”
“Tell me about it.” Jared cut off the connection. “I don't want much. A text message would do. Just some tiny gesture to show he gives a shit. Is that so hard?”
“Well, at least you can be sure that Jensen’s not expecting it.”
Jared sighed. “That's the saddest part of all.”
Misha frowned. “Why are you beating yourself up about this? Jensen knows he’s got a worthless excuse of a human being for a father. That's not your fault.”
“I'm the morale officer,” said Jared. “It's my job.”
“That is so far above and beyond your job that Morgan would kick your ass back to Headquarters if he knew you were attempting it.” Misha stood up. “Jensen’s not expecting a Miracle on 34th Street, and neither should you.”
Jared jumped out of his seat. “You just gave me an idea. Thanks, man!”
Misha looked confused as Jared darted out of the room.
* * *
Jared stood in front of the wall screen, flipping through notes on his e-pad. He still had five minutes before Jensen was supposed to arrive. He had no idea if this was going to work. It was kind of cheesy, especially for something aimed at a sixteen-year-old boy, but Jared hoped Jensen would at least appreciate the sentiment.
Jared cued up the slides and quickly flicked through them. They were all there, thankfully, and still in the right order. He circled back to the beginning and set the remote down on a nearby table. He sure hoped that this would lighten Jensen’s mood a little. Morgan and some of the other crew members had complained to him that Jensen was more insubordinate and mouthy than usual, and he’d been spending an awful lot of time alone in his quarters. Even Winchester the dolphin had picked up on it. When Jared had asked Winchester if he’d seen Jensen lately, he’d said “Jensen not play. Winchester miss Jensen.” Considering that Winchester was the closest thing Jensen had to a best friend on board, that was definitely a bad sign.
Jared checked the time on the e-pad. Two minutes.
The door opened. Jensen came in, scowling. “What did you want?”
“I wanted to talk to you,” replied Jared, trying not to react to Jensen’s snotty tone.
Jensen crossed his arms. “About what?”
Jared pointed to a chair. “You wanna sit down?”
Jensen rolled his eyes and dropped into the chair. Jared sat down next to him. “You seem pretty unhappy lately. Is something wrong?” Jensen shrugged and looked away. “Is it the season? Everybody’s excited about Christmas shore leave, and you don’t have anyone to spend it with?”
Jensen picked at the hem of his flannel shirt. “How did you know?”
Jared decided at that minute to change his approach. He didn’t need a slide presentation. He just needed to talk to the kid. “Look, just because your biological parents are selfish dicks, doesn’t mean you don’t have a family that cares about you. We’re your family now, Jensen.”
“That doesn’t count,” muttered Jensen.
“It counts to Winchester,” replied Jared. “You know what term he uses to describe you? It translates to ‘brother.’ He misses you a lot. You need to stop hiding from him.”
Jensen nods, still looking down at the floor. “I know.”
“You also know about the Captain’s Christmas party? You’re the only crew member who didn’t RSVP. You are coming, right?”
Jensen shook his head. “I’m not a crew member, I shouldn’t go.”
“You don’t really think that, do you?”
Jensen shrugged miserably. Jared pulled his chair in front of Jensen’s and tilted his chin up, forcing the teenager to look at him. “Listen to me, Jensen. The Captain absolutely considers you a crew member—a vital one. And so do the rest of us. You are a valuable member of the SeaQuest crew. You accomplish things in minutes that the rest of us would take months to do. You’re the one who gave Winchester a voice. Captain Morgan couldn’t even do that, and he tried for years! Don’t you for one minute think that you’re somehow inferior to the rest of us.”
Jensen nodded, pulling out of Jared’s grasp. Jared started to sit back, but then Jensen surged forward and pressed his lips to Jared’s. Before Jared quite knew what was happening, he was kissing Jensen. Sixteen-year-old Jensen.
Jared pulled back. “Jensen, we can’t. I’m twenty-three and about to be a commissioned officer. You’re a minor. I’m not allowed.”
“I won’t tell.” Jensen turned pleading eyes on Jared. “Please. You’re the only person on here who makes me feel like I’m not a kid. You treat me like your equal. And I know you’re gay. I heard you talking to Collins and Sheppard about your ex-boyfriend.” His voice dropped lower. “And you—you *see* me. In a way nobody else does.”
Jared closed his eyes. “God, Jensen, I—I want to. I really do. But it’s my career on the line here. If anyone finds out—”
“They won’t. I’ll never tell.” Jensen licked his lips, those plush pink cocksucking lips, and it was damn near obscene. “Please?”
Jared swallowed hard. “Look, let’s take this to my quarters. I’ll go, and you wait ten minutes and then follow.”
“Okay.” Jensen stood up. “I’ll see you in ten minutes. And—thank you. For the speech. It helped.”
Jared smiled. “I’m glad.” He stood up and walked to the door. “See you soon.”
“Yeah,” breathed Jensen. Jared tapped on the doorframe and left the room.
This was a bad idea. A terrible idea. But Jared would be lying if he said it didn’t thrill him. Nine months underwater was a long damn time.
Suddenly, Jared knew exactly what to get Jensen for Christmas. It was gonna take work, some serious work, but it would be worth it in the end.