A Week of Supernatural Romance

Pride and Love

Day 6: Pride/Protect

"Ben, what on Earth are you wearing?" Jacob asks as he watches the medic exit their RV's bathroom.

Ben looks down at his outfit, "clothes for the Pride Parade? Is it too much?"

"What? No, I was talking about the shirt!" he clarified, gesturing to the t-shirt in question.

Backstory time! The hunters had decided to take a break while passing through Grimsborough to rest and refill their supplies. Coincidentally, their arrival coincided with the city's Pride Parade to celebrate Pride Month. So, given that they weren't in a rush to leave and Gwen loves attending events like this, the team decided to watch the parade and have fun at the Grimsborough Pride Festival. This means Gwen wouldn't let anyone attend without looking the part!

This leads us back to the original topic: Ben's outfit for the festival. Gone were the overalls and blue T-shirt; in their place was a pair of basic blue jeans with a gay pride flag belt featuring a blue and green striped pattern. His t-shirt was black with matching rainbow heart patches on both sleeves, and the front had "FREE DAD HUGS" printed in white, blocky letters. He also wore colourful bracelets in various rainbow colours on his wrists and used face paint to paint the gay pride flag on his cheek. It wasn't over-the-top extravagant or tacky; it was, well, Ben. It suited him.

Ben pulls the bottom of the shirt, "oh, this? Gwen got it for me!"

"Ben, I hate to break it to you, but you're not a Dad," Jacob teased.

"I know, but she says I give Dad hugs, so it counts!" he grins, fixing his shirt, "are you going to change? We have to leave soon."

He looks away, "you know I hate crowds of people..."

"Come on, Jake, live a little!" he encouraged, "you always find an excuse to get out of these things! One parade isn't going to kill you!"

"You never know..." he grumbles, crossing his arm as best he can.

Ben's expression softened. "Jake, it'll be fine. We'll only be there for a few hours if you like, and then we'll leave. I'll even stay with you the entire time if you want!"

"What I want is to stay here where there aren't hordes of people bumping into me..." Jacob complained.

"I'll make sure people don't touch you," he promises, understanding his friend's aversion to touch, "people can respect personal space, you know! Come on, Jake, just for a couple of hours and then you can leave. Please? For me?"

The Chief tries to stand his ground but fails when the medic goes to make puppy-dog eyes, "alright! Just don't give me that sad puppy look! You know I can't say no to that..."

"That's why I reserve it for times like this!" Ben grins triumphantly.

Jacob grumbles as he takes the shopping bag of clothes Ben offers him on his way to the bathroom. He shrugs off his Kevlar vest and lays it on the small counter, then unhooks his gun holster and places it on top of the vest. With those gone, he awkwardly pulls off his shirt, which joins the growing pile of clothes on the counter. Avoiding the mirror and seeing his scars, Jacob distracts himself by removing the new clothes from the shopping bag.

First, the shirt. It was a soft black material, just like he had preferred to wear since he had earned the sensitive scars on his left side. Looking at the shirt's design, he was relieved that Gwen hadn't bought him one like Ben's. It featured a pink, purple, and blue watercolour pattern on the chest with two arrows crossed over each other in an X formation and the words "Both Ways" printed below them. He pulled it on and was grateful to see that the sleeve covered his stump.