Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Okay, that episode was the best damn episode of the whole season! Here is something I would have LOVED to see happen after the case ended…it's a two-parter. Please review if you have time.

Derek was finishing up shoving case files into his bag. It was time to start heading home. Savannah said she might try and stop by that night, but at the moment he was considering calling her and telling her not to. He was dead tired. And not only was he tired, but he was confused. Mostly because of the fact he didn't understand why the hell he was dating Savannah when he wasn't who he wanted at all. He didn't want the doctor woman who had the normal vocabulary and looked sophisticated with her regular wardrobe. No, he wanted someone completely different. Someone who didn't know how to keep her language from being sexually explicit and dressed in colors of every blooming flower known to man.

He wanted his best friend.

The flight back from San Jose had been a quiet one for Penelope. Usually she was lively and talkative, joking with the rest of them, but instead she had spent most of the time staring out the window at the stratosphere. He wanted to go to her and try and bring her out of her little world, but JJ had put his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to keep him from going over to her.

Leave her be, Derek. She's had a long few days.

So he'd reluctantly stayed behind, keeping a careful eye on her to make sure she was okay. At first when they were getting in the car after the case, and she explained to him the definition of a "flarpy blunderguff" — something he still didn't completely understand — he thought she was going to be okay. However, she'd retreated off by herself. He wondered the whole flight home what she had been thinking about…if she had been thinking about Shane.

He wasn't going to lie and say he wasn't jealous of Shane. She had been in a serious relationship with him, even more serious than Kevin. And he still affected her in serious ways. He'd seen the pictures on the computer. She looked happy in them, in love. A way she would never look at him. He never thought he would be jealous of a criminal, but he was extremely jealous of the hacker. Even if Penelope had come a long way — and he knew she had — he would forever wish he could be with her the same way her old boyfriend had been.

Closing the door to his office, he was about to start for the elevator, but then he saw that the light was still on beneath Penelope's door. He cocked a brow. Usually she would have been gone by now. He walked over and knocked lightly, hoping she would answer him and allow him in. He had to make sure she was okay. It would bring him some peace of mind.

Very softly, he heard her call out, "Don't come in."

Her voice sounded choked, like it was clogged with cotton balls. He didn't waste any time getting in there, bursting in almost instantly. He didn't even care if she got pissed at him. No way was he leaving her alone right now. When he entered, he found Penelope in her desk, a tissue in her hand that she was using to wipe damp black makeup from her cheeks. As soon as she saw him, she glared at him and snapped, "Derek, I said not to come in! Why did you?"

"I came in because I couldn't handle hearing you like this," he said sadly. He pulled up one of her other chairs and sat right in front of her. Taking her hands, similar to the way he had when she was telling him about her past with Shane, he added, "And I'm not going anywhere until I see you're alright."

She huffed, but then smiled at him, giving his hands a squeeze. "Hot Stuff, I appreciate it," she said. "But not much is going to make me feel better than a good drink."

"Well, then…" He perked up and rose, pulling her up to her feet as well. As he did, she was surprised by it, stumbled on her high heels, and fell against his chest. She looked up at him, her cheek still against his chest. Shocks ran up his spine as their eyes stayed connected, he tightened his hold on her unconsciously. She felt wonderful in his arms, like the two of them fit together in perfect unity. God, did he want to kiss her. All he would have to do was lean down. Her perfectly pink lips were only a mere few inches from his face. He could kiss her if he leaned forward slighlty. She looked at him with wide eyes, and they stood frozen in that position. After a moment, she coughed and pulled back from him.

"Well, then what?" she asked with an uncomfortable giggle, finally asking him what he wanted.

He laughed and gave her a tense smile, unhappy with the loss of her body warmth next to his. Instead of saying anything, he merely said, "Well, let's go get a drink, then."

She shook her head and protested, "No, no! You were going to spend time with Savannah tonight. And I think Sam and —"

Putting his finger to her lips, he shook his head. "No," he said firmly. "I'll text Savannah and let her know we're going to the bar." Digging in his pockets, he dug out his phone and ignored her protesting as he sent a hasty text to his girlfriend. When he was done, he put his phone back and grinned broadly. "All done. Now you have to come with me." He grinned.

Penelope fixed him with a stern glance, but eventually couldn't stop her smile from spreading across her face. "Okay. I'll come. You buying?"

He slung an arm around her shoulder and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Of course," he said.

XXXXX

Penelope and Derek entered the bar just down the street from work. They'd taken his SUV there, deciding to go back for Esther when they were done drinking. He opened the door for her, and she gave him a coy smile. "Well at least you didn't forget this time," she said.

"After last time, I wouldn't dream of forgetting," he teased. The bar was extremely quiet, only a few people mingling around and drinking. They found a table in a secluded corner booth where he helped taking her coat for her. He looked down at her as she sat down and asked, "What's your poison tonight, Baby Girl?"

She tapped her chin and looked up thoughtfully. "Oh, I'll just have a Cosmopolitan," she said.

"Coming right up," he said with a wink, before heading off to the bar to get the drinks. She leaned on her elbows and watched him unconsciously. He was leaning against the bar, telling the bartender what to make for him, looking so smooth with his surroundings. The bartender said something that made him smile, and it caused her heart to beat a little faster. This was her best friend, this stunning and confident man. She was reminded of the case they'd just returned from all of the sudden. He had been there for her every step of the way, whether it had been a comforting hand or a word of advice. At one point, she'd thought it was Shane who kept her safe, but that safety wasn't real. Derek was what was really safe. She didn't feel like she had to worry or fight to feel comfortable.

As she was sitting and waiting on Derek and her drink, her cell phone rang beside her. She picked it up and read the caller ID. Sam. She gulped. She didn't know if she could talk with her boyfriend right now. She was too tired and not in the mood to recount the whole tale of the case and Shane. But she answered anyway. "Hey there," she said, forcing a smile into her voice.

"Hey, Penelope," he said happily. "I was wondering if we were still getting together tonight? I've got this great bottle of wine for us to try out."

She rubbed her forehead. "Oh, Sam," she started, "that's really sweet of you, but we had a really…" She didn't quite know what word to use to describe how this case was for her. Emotionally toiling? Draining? Bizarre? Those were just a few. Instead, she went with something a little less descriptive. "It was really difficult case. Lots of work. So Derek and I are just getting a drink at Roger's right now, then I'm gonna head home and hit the hay."

"Oh." She could very clearly hear the disappointment in Sam's voice. "Well, do you want to get together some other night then?"

She looked up to see Derek coming towards her, both their drinks in his hands. He grinned before he sat down beside her in the booth, and she mouthed her thanks before returning her attention to the phone. "That sounds good. I'll call you about another day. Bye." She hung up the phone and set it back in her purse, taking the glass Derek had slid over to her. "Thanks, Hot Stuff."

"No need to thank me," he said, raising his glass to her. "And now I want to have a toast."

She arched a brow at him and raised her own glass. "Oh? And what are we toasting?"

He leaned forward and tapped her nose. "You," he said. "I want to toast my — and I say 'my' like that because no matter how many hackers have called you this before, you are mine — Baby Girl. Because without you and that sexy brain of yours, we never would have caught this other killer. I mean, we can't catch any of the other killers without you, but —"

"I get it, Derek," she laughed, cutting him off. She clinked her glass with his. "But thank you. It's very sweet of you."

Around half way through their first drinks and some small talk, he asked, "Who was that on the phone?"

"It was Sam," she said simply, keeping her face neutral. "He was just calling to see if I wanted to get together. I told him no." A look crossed his face, and he snorted. A giggle escaped her throat. "What? You've got a look on your face, like you wanna say something."

He cleared his throat and took a drink of his beer. "You still seeing him?" he asked.

She smirked. "Yes," she said. She studied him carefully. Why was his jaw set in such a hard line? And why had his eyes just darkened? Taking another sip of her Cosmo, she added, "Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering. Pure, uh, curiosity." Shaking his head, he said, "But that's not something I want to talk about."

"You had a plan about what we were going to talk about?"

He set his beer back down and looked over at her more closely. "Baby, why were you crying? You seemed…well, you seemed like you would be okay, but then you were all quiet on the plane. Then I heard you in your office. So…spill."

Penelope felt her eyes grow wide. She didn't think she could talk about all this. For so many years, she'd tried to keep her past from resurfacing, to keep the person she'd become with Shane from ever being seen by anyone. And then Derek had seen her, the girl she'd been before. She could only imagine what he thought of her now. Averting her eyes, she took a long swallow of her drink in an effort to gain some courage. "I — I…" she stammered. Putting her drink down, she rubbed her temples and admitted, "I can't imagine what you must have thought about that video you saw, about the person I was."

Derek laughed. "Baby Girl, I haven't had a single bad thought about you…now or ever," he said, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze. "Even when you called me eyebrows and asked me if the FBI calendar was twelve months of me." Even the comforting smile he gave her didn't give her any consolation. Tears filled her eyes even as she tried to fight them, and she gritted her teeth in frustration. His face grew concerned. "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

She shook her head. "Derek, there are parts of me that hate that girl," she said. "She was so different from who I am now. I hate that I had become that and that I had to stay that way if I wanted to stay with Shane. There's so much I'm glad I left behind. And by not focussing on it, I can stay begin who I want to be."

He used his thumb to wipe her tears as she reached for her drink. While she was sipping, he said, "You know, I don't want you to forget who you were. And do you know why?"

Rolling her eyes, she grumbled, "Why would that be?"

Taking her drink from her hand, he set it on the table and tilted her chin so that she was looking directly at him. Tingles broke out over her skin all of the sudden. The warmth in his eyes felt like more than just friendship. There was something much deeper there, inciting a burst of flame in her belly that worked it's way through her bloodstream and left her feeling…safe. This was what true safety was here, being with Derek, having their gazes connected in something deeper than just pure friendship. She knew in this moment why Shane had been so threatened by Derek: he had a major reason to be. It wasn't just the way they talked. No, there was so much more to it all. This was loveright here. She knew it, consciously and unconsciously. This was that cosmic connection that every one dreamed of having with one other person.

This was the person she was meant to spend her life with.

His hand moved from her chin to cupping her cheek, and it forced her to hold her breath. Unaware of her own body's actions, her hand shot up to hold his against her face. He leaned closer to her and whispered his answer finally, "I don't want you to forget who you are, because if you hadn't been that person, I never would have found you. I never would have gotten to know the feisty, intelligent, stubborn, beautiful woman you are. You are so much more than just my best friend, Baby Girl…you're everything." He kissed her forehead and added, "You know what I'm trying say."

Penelope had no idea how to respond. She just stared at him, her emotions turning from sour to savory. But after a moment of silence, she smiled coyly and purred, "Of course I do, eyebrows." Then she let go of his hand and pulled him towards her by the shirt collar, planting her lips on his and kissing him passionately.

Everything fell into place at that moment. Their lips danced together in perfect unison, setting fire to their bodies. They fell into the other, both of them enjoying the power they had over each other. It was beautiful. She separated her lips from his and leaned down, kissing his neck momentarily. Pulling backwards, she looked up at him and he murmured, "I love you."

She nodded and held him close again, whispered in his ear, "I love you, too."

And then they returned to kissing one another. But they were interrupted a few moments later.

"Penelope?"

"Derek?"

They broke apart immediately when they heard the voices of their significant other. Still holding onto one another, they saw Sam and Savannah, both of them standing in front of the booth and looking at them with rapidly blinking eyes. They all stared between one another, Penelope and Derek's arms around the other's waists, Sam and Savannah glancing at the other with confused looks.

"So, uh, what's going on here?" Sam asked.

Penelope and Derek glanced at one another, and the same thought entered their heads at the same time.

Oh, shit.