Hey guys. I haven't written anything in quite a while and I've had this in my files since the third season had started and just never put it up cause I didn't feel like it was finished enough. I've kinda been debating if I should keep writing Peter/Jared. But, I like it so here it is. Enjoy! Review please.
Title :: Walls
Disclaimer :: I don't own Franklin and Bash.
Summary :: Rachel was leaving the office late when she overhears a conversation between Jared and Peter concerning the newly built wall, and apparently, their relationship. Light Slash, Fluff. Set in the beginning of season three.
It was a little after midnight once Rachel was finally leaving the office, she usually left earlier than this for her private ballet lesson but, reorganizing her opposing counsels' paperwork - the bastards tried to sneak a few things past her - took longer than she had originally expected. She was close to the elevators when she heard the sound of Jared and Peter's voices coming from their offices. She thought about it for a moment before deciding to stay hidden, easily able to see and hear the two of them but neither lawyer knew she was there. Eavesdropping was never something she would admit to but, she was curious to know why the pair were still here so late.
They both had files spread on the floor around them and seemed to be talking to one another on their cellphones, even through both their office doors were swung open.
"I don't like it." Jared said, frowning.
"It's just a wall, Jare." Peter said, crossing his legs from his spot on the floor while reading over a few more papers.
"So?" Jared asked, pushing files away from him. "It's still stupid. It's like...the wall that divided East and West Germany."
Peter smiled at how childish Jared sounded, it was a little cute. "Wait, does that make me East or West Germany?"
Jared thought for a moment then laughed softly. "I would totally be West."
Both of them were silent for a few moments, Peter smiling into his phone and Jared bouncing a ball by his hip to distract himself.
Rachel watched Peter turn his head slightly towards his office door, as if putting his ear, without the phone, closer to the wall. She saw him looking around, thinking for a moment. "Are you...are you sitting against it?"
"What? Pfft. No. Of course not." Jared claimed, though Rachel could see he was, as he looked around his office from his own spot on the floor. "Why? Are...are you?"
Peter made a noise of protest. "No, no I'm not. I'm at my desk." Peter deflected.
Jared smirked. "...You are so sitting against the wall."
"Shut up, so are you."
Rachel smiled at how they were basically sitting back to back, just with the wall constructed between them.
Jared leaned his head back against the wall, closing his eyes. He let out a sigh. "We should just tear it down."
"We can't just decide to tear down a wall, Jared."
"What? Why not? The Berlin Wall got torn down eventually." Jared paused. "And, we did it when we first got here, why can't we just do it again?"
Peter rolled his eyes, laughing slightly. "Because, this time, even Stanton said to just leave it alone."
"Doesn't mean we should. I mean, she can't just come in and decide to split us up like that. It's not fair."
"Wait, what? Split us up? It's not like she won't let us work together. It's literally just a wall. That's not splitting us up."
Jared stayed quiet, pulling his knees up towards his chest. Even Rachel frowned at how Jared looked in this moment. She was sure that the two of them never would've let their guard down, or even had this conversation, had they known anyone was left in the building. For a moment, she felt guilty for eavesdropping on her employees but, it was a fleeting moment.
"...Jared..." Peter put the papers in his hand down. "What's wrong?"
"I told you, I don't like the stupid wall."
"Look, this is obviously about something more than just the wall. So...what's really going on?" Peter asked. Jared didn't respond, instead deciding to pick at a loose thread in the rug of his office. "Come on, Jare, talk to me. What is it?"
Jared took in a deep breath. "I...I don't know..." He paused. "I just, I don't...want to lose you." Jared winced slightly, uncomfortable at feeling this...childish about the whole thing.
"Loose me? What? How is Rachel putting a wall between our desks going to make you lose me?" Peter asked incredulously.
"I don't know!" Jared shook his head. "I just, I don't like not being able to look up from my desk to see you there. Or being able to play catch. I don't get to throw paper planes at you anymore, I don't get to see you smile all the time...and I don't like it, it makes me feel like you're just really far away."
Peter frowned. "I'm literally only right next door."
"That's my point, because I know that. I know I only have to take like ten steps to get to you but, still, next door isn't with me, and yeah, I'm sure I sound like a needy sixteen year old girl but, I don't care because I do need you. A lot." Jared paused, resting his forehead against the top of his kneecap. "I just, I guess I miss you...even though I see you all the time. I miss always having you just, there. Right next to me whenever I looked for you. It just feels empty in here without you. It feels different and I don't like different. It feels weird being separated like this."
When Peter didn't say anything, Jared sighed again.
"I'm sorry." Jared mumbled, the insecurity in his voice actually hurt Peter to hear. "I'm sure you think it's stupid and it probably is. I just," Jared rubbed at his eyes. "I shouldn't have said anything..." Jared froze when he heard his phone beep in his ear, indicating that Peter had hung up on him. He stared down at his cell, confused, he certainly hadn't expected Peter to just hang up like that, but just when he was about to call out Peter's name, the man in question appeared in his doorway.
"It's not stupid." Peter said quietly before walking over to stand in front of where Jared was still seated on the floor, against the wall.
Jared only glanced at him momentarily before casting his eyes downwards again. "Yeah, well..."
Peter's chest hurt once more at the look on Jared's face. He reached down, tugging the shorter man up to his feet.
"Peter-" Jared's sigh was cut off when Peter pushed him back against the stupid wall, leaning down to press their lips together. Peter kissed him roughly but oddly gentle at the same time, hands resting on his hips before wrapping his arms around Jared's waist in a tight hug. Jared kissed back, reaching his arms over Peter's shoulders. Peter kissed him until they were both out of air, pulling back to breathe against eachother. Jared closed his eyes once more as Peter pressed their foreheads together.
"It's not stupid." Peter repeated. Jared barely gave him a smile. "I need you too, Jared." He admitted.
Jared looked up at him, hands sliding off Peter's shoulders and down his chest. "Why do you think Rachel hates us so much?"
"You think she hates us?"
"You don't? I mean, she actually made us get naked on tv and then, all of a sudden, shows up at the firm and gets her name on the door and the second she does, she puts up a wall between us and bets us on our pirate case. If she doesn't hate us, why is she doing it?"
Peter shrugged. "I don't know, Jare."
Jared frowned again, hands playing absent-mindedly with the buttons on Peter's shirt.
"You know, at first I thought the space might do us a little good, maybe having our own offices would, I don't know, give us some breathing room from eachother-" He felt Jared's hands drop from his shirt, obviously nervous now.
Peter could see that Jared's mind was jumping to the conclusion that Peter wanted more space between them, except that wasn't the case.
"But, all I realized, is that it just makes me want to be with you even more, I like being able to see you from my desk. I like having you right next to me, to talk to and to pull into my lap and to kiss you and I like having you with me." Peter said. That got Jared to look at him, to search his eyes and see the truth in them.
Jared pushed up on the tips of his toes, using the wall - and Peter's arms - as support to kiss Peter once more. He threaded his fingers into the soft hair at the nape of Peter's neck. His elbows were pressing on Peter's shoulders as more leverage and Peter took the opportunity to hoist Jared up even more, squeezing gently at his ass before lifting Jared's legs to wrap around his waist. It was surprisingly easy to get Jared into the air. Jared was securely wrapped around Peter. He pressed them more into the wall once Jared was completely off the ground and neither of them ever broke the kiss.
"Not to mention, we still get to go home together." Peter kissed at him again. "I still get to drag you into bed," Peter's lips traveled down Jared's jaw to his neck. "And I get to watch you burn breakfast-"
"I don't burn breakfast!" Jared protested.
Peter pulled back from kissing at his collar. "Do we really have to go over the pancake thing?"
"That was one time! One! And, it was your fault."
"My fault?" Peter asked, looking innocent.
"You're the one who pushed me up onto the counter, if you weren't so horny all the time, I wouldn't have burned them."
"I don't recall you protesting."
"Never said I did." Jared gave him a devious smile, eyes dark as he bit down on his lower lip.
Peter smiled too, leaning into him again to press another kiss to his partner's lips. Jared's hips moved on Peter's waist. He relished in the sound that came from Peter's throat at the movement.
When they finally pulled apart, Jared let out a low moan at the feel of Peter's hands on his ass again.
"Okay, so, maybe the wall has some good uses." Jared said. Peter laughed, leaning in to kiss and nip at Jared's neck. "But, I still don't like it." He felt Peter smile against his throat.
"We'll tear it down first in the morning." Peter gave him another smile before kissing him again. "For now, let's get home." Peter let Jared slide back onto the ground. They cleaned up the files in their offices in record time and headed towards the elevators. Jared was a teasing step in front of Peter but, when Peter caught up as Jared hit the 'down' button on the wall, he kissed at Jared's neck as they waited for the elevator to reach their floor. Peter pulled Jared back against his chest, hands wrapped around his waist as they stumbled into the elevator giggling to eachother.
Rachel noticed Peter turned Jared around and gently pushed him up against the side wall in the elevator too, doors sliding closed as Jared reached up to kiss him.
She could see that both boys needed the other like they needed air, so maybe the wall was a little vindictive and taking things a step too far. Maybe, she underestimated just a little what exactly Jared and Peter meant to eachother.
At the time, Rachel had figured that if she could just get them separated, then maybe the pair would learn how to work on their own. But, like everyone has told her repeatedly, Franklin and Bash do great things but, as Franklin&Bash, they work wonders.
So, maybe she'll put up a fight about the wall, just to see how far these two will go for one another but...in the end, she knew, that when it came down to it, she'd let the wall get torn down.
I hope you guys liked it! It's my second Franklin and Bash fic. So, yeah. Review please! Let me know if I should keep writing these guys?