Haven

"Do you wanna get out of here?"

Jared had leaned down to ask, his breath hitting her ear as his hand rested easily on her hip. She couldn't help the grin that spread across her face and the shiver that settled down her spine at Before she answered, she looked to Carrie. Her best friend was too far away to hear anything, but judging by the look on her face, it wasn't that hard to guess what was going on.

Carrie was making obscene gestures, and Peyton chose to blame that on the color her face was turning rather than Jared's proximity and touch.

He was quick to lead her out of the bar and towards his vehicle, grabbing a blanket from the backseat to spread out in the bed of the truck. At realizing what he meant, she relaxed a little, letting out a small laugh.

She hadn't pegged him as the sort to take a girl home the first night, and she was glad her assumptions were right.

"Look a little relieved there," Jared teased, turning back around to face her with a crooked smile, letting the tailgate down. "Afraid I was the other kind of guy you meet in the bar?"

She shook her head, wrapping her arms around herself as the wind picked up around them. "Hardly."

"Here, c'mere."

She waited expectantly as he shifted around for a second, holding his hands out for her to take. Even if she could have made the jump, she was a lot shorter than him and Jared obviously knew that. He lifted her with ease and she settled in next to him before he offered her his jacket.

Peyton was going to end up swooning if he managed to be anymore perfect.

For a while, they sat in silence. Neither of them felt the need to say much of anything as they watched the stars, the idling engine acting as a solace for both of them. There was something almost magical about this moment, though Peyton would've ended up scoffing at the idea close to a month ago.

She hadn't necessarily sworn off love, but she had sworn off making any connections with anyone other than anything platonic for a while. She didn't feel ready to let herself go again; she didn't want to open herself up to more heartache and she sure as hell wasn't ready to trust anyone yet. She didn't deserve to be loved when she wasn't whole. When she wasn't stable.

Liam would have laughed at her because she was an idiot to believe that someone could love her after him. He was only capable of loving a broken person; everyone else would be stupid not to run. He was the only one that would love her and accept her. All of her. She almost felt him there, taunting her with the idea of Jared knowing who she was beyond the outer layers. He would never be what Liam was; he'd swear her off as soon as he found out her tastes weren't vanilla.

"What are you thinking about, Peyton?"

Jared's voice was soft and he could tell she had drifted too far into her thoughts just by the concerned expression he was wearing. She felt her eyes start to water slightly before she blinked them away, gnawing on her lip lightly. "Just...things. I don't know, I'm sorry."

He ran a hand through his hair before folding his legs underneath him, giving her a small smile. "When Kate...when my ex left me, I felt like I wasn't worthy of letting someone else in, you know? And I felt guilty for a long time because what if I had moved on and she decided to finally come back? Fuck, I can't say that I haven't felt a lot like that lately. But I know that isn't true. Any part of it. And for what it's worth, you shouldn't believe it, either."

"How did you know?"

"I know that look," Jared told her with a slightly bitter laugh, turning to face her fully. "And I get it. I just wanted you to know that you're not alone."

Peyton let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding before the next one came out more choked than the other and she felt tears slide down her cheeks. In a matter of seconds, she was surrounded in warmth, the smell of Jared's cologne engulfing her. She held onto him and managed to calm herself down, wiping her face with a small laugh. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. God, you probably think I'm some kind of wreck. I don't usually cry on people I've just met."

"I tend to make a lot of people cry," Jared laughed against her hair before allowing her to sit up, his hands returning to his own hair, something of a nervous habit of his. "And you're not a wreck, sweetheart. You're okay."

Peyton tried to let his words sink in. She needed to stop thinking everyone viewed her as something just because Liam said they would. Listening to Liam and giving his words value did little to help her or her mental health. And she was trying to get better. Slowly but surely. "Thank you. Really. And for what it's worth, you're not alone, either."

"I appreciate that," Jared muttered softly before his mind drifted to what he had originally planned to do. "Oh, shit. Right. I know this is sudden or maybe it isn't, really, but would you like to get coffee or something tomorrow?"

"Since you're falling for me and all, I think it'd be rude of me not to accept," she teased, smirking at him.

The older man let out a groan as he shook his head. "I was hoping you'd forgotten that."

"Oh, no, Padalecki. You're never living that down."

"Fuck me," Jared laughed, looking up at the sound of the back door opening and closing. Carrie was walking out behind Jensen and a few of of their friends, keys already in her hand. She smirked at Jared before looking to her friend, walking over to their car slowly as she watched the pair.

"Guess that's my cue," Peyton grinned before sliding off of the edge of the tailgate carefully, holding Jared's jacket out to him when she landed. "And the answer's yes, by the way."

"Keep it. Insurance that you'll show."

Peyton rolled her eyes at the smirk on his face before folding the jacket over her arms, starting the walk to Carrie's car. "Night, Jared."

"Goodnight, Peyton."

Carrie was nearly buzzing when her friend reached her, all but exploding when they were inside and out of earshot. "Okay, so tell me that fuck you wasn't out of context."