A/N: I can finally wrap up these old season 2 stories. A couple hidden scenes from the first night of "Shawn (and Gus) of the Dead."


"I'll do anything you ever dreamed to be complete.
Little pieces of the nothing that fall."
'Slide,' Goo Goo Dolls

Shawn sat on his couch and stared at the bounty hunter vest laying on his coffee table. It was sitting next to his camera, and hadn't moved since he tossed it there after the close talking session. I could totally be a model. He thought to himself again. Especially if I wore the vest.

He's observant, so he knows she's struggling with how to define his place in her life. He understands human nature, so he thinks that she's been burned badly by someone before. And he's got a runaway imagination, so he wonders if that's the reason she came to California. He's also nosy, but he's kept himself in check so he's not certain. But still: a cross-country move, an unyielding disapproval of office romance…it's not hard to fill in the blanks. Truth be told, he'd be surprised if that wasn't what happened.

His thoughts return to the close talking incident for what must be the thousandth time. It was that damn vest that gave him the confidence. The vest that completed his devil-may-care, bounty hunter alter ego. That night he collected all his courage and went for broke. Shawn went as far as he dared—farther than Hitch recommended but leaving enough room for Juliet to have to commit if she wanted him. But it scared her, and she tried to back away but bumped his nose and they were both frozen a hair's breadth apart. Shawn felt tremors in her voice when she spoke. He wanted so badly to close that final distance, but the moment was lost. She wasn't ready so he did the right thing and backed off. He's proven that he can keep his promises, and he's sure that his flirtations have made his feelings clear. All he can do now is pray that it's enough.

He sighs and stands up. I've got to go if I'm going to get that evidence. He picks up the camera, slides his phone into his back pocket, and leaves his apartment.