Author's Note:
As some of you know, I am super good friends in real life with another author here, Cehsja. We usually tend to have a lot in common (other than the fact that we live on different continents, which is decidedly inconvenient at times). So much so that we often seem to read each other's minds on things. SO... when we both emailed each other the first chapter of our new stories, we shouldn't have been surprised one bit at the one major element of similarity. We wrote these without consulting each other and neither are a copy of the others. The plots and pairings are different so we really hope that you read and enjoy both anyway :)

Jess turned around in her bed and signed. Whenever she closed her eyes his picture appeared in her mind: his lopsided smile, the way his hair slightly fell into his face and those dark eyes of his.

She had looked at so many pictures before she had gone to bed in the evening. She had planned on giving herself some time to think about it before she made up her mind, but it was Eduard she couldn't forget about. He wasn't quite what she had been looking for, he was younger then she had planned on, but it seemed her heart had made up its mind.

Sensing that she wouldn't find sleep at the moment anyway, Jess got up and trotted through her flat. She made herself a cup of tea and settled in front of her computer.

It didn't take long until she found Eduard again. She quickly filled out the form, added a personal message and sent it all off.

With a smile on her face she leaned back in her chair and took a sip from the hot beverage. Yes, she had done the right thing. It was time to make a change.

Six weeks later Jess chatted excitingly with Connor and Abby when Becker entered the hub. The head of security stepped closer to follow the conversation. Jess' face lit up as she told them about someone called Eduard and the sweet letter she had received from him the day before.

While Jess was filled with joy and amazement, Becker tensed up visibly as the brunette went on about Eduard's letter.

The soldier's reaction didn't go unnoticed by Abby. The blonde shot him a bemused look. She had learned to read the soldier like a book. The way he frowned with an expression of concentration on his face and darkened eyes told her that Becker was trying hard to figure out who Eduard was. Yet she knew he wouldn't outright ask Jess.

"Who's Eduard?" Becker asked Abby when he met her in the corridors alone, a good half hour later.

Abby smiled innocently, "Why don't you ask Jess? I'm sure she'll tell you if you only ask her."

"Abby, I have to know!" The soldier had planted himself in front of the blonde.

"Why? For security reasons?" Abby teased, she ducked past Becker with a grin and left him standing in the corridor.

Becker stared after the blonde. He suppressed the urge to follow her, to ask Abby again who Eduard was. He knew the consequences too well; Abby would tell Connor and the couple wouldn't let him live it down. They would use every opportunity to tease him about it.

Instead, the Head of Security turned on his heels and headed straight to the armory for some shooting training.

For the following few days, Becker tried to forget about the other man in Jess' life, but he couldn't get the image out of his mind.

Eventually Becker faced the truth. He was sitting in the dark flat with a beer in his hands overlooking the city from his apartment, when he admitted it to himself: he was jealous and he wanted to be the man at Jess' side.

But even though he had finally accepted his feelings for the young field coordinator, he had a problem. He was too late; he simply had missed his chance. Now there was Eduard. And he was obviously important to Jess, measured by her expressions when she talked about him. Jess had found someone new.

By the time Becker arrived at the ARC the next morning, he had made up his mind. He wouldn't interfere with their relationship. It wouldn't be fair. After all Abby had told him long ago that he should make a move and that Jess was head over heels for him. He hadn't listened; he had stuck by his rule to never get involved with a teammate and now he would have to live with that.

As the weeks passed, Becker noticed that Jess still seemed to enjoy his little assiduities. Whenever he brought her chocolate, Jess rewarded him with her beaming smile. And she kept up her visits in the armory. Instead of using the internal email-program, she came around to tell him about information Lester wanted her to pass on or to remind Becker of a report he needed to hand in.

But Becker had also recognized that Jess hadn't mentioned Eduard in a while. When the team returned to the ARC after an anomaly alert, Becker lingered around the ADD until everyone had turned in their black-boxes.

"How is Eduard?" he asked bluntly when the others had left the hub.

Surprise written on her face, Jess turned to him, "Good, I hope. I haven't heard from him in a while."

Becker couldn't believe it, obviously Eduard took Jess for granted and didn't treat her the way she deserved.

Without thinking it over the Captian moved a little closer to Jess and lowered his voice. "Jess, if Eduard doesn't treat you the right way, you don't have to wait for him. He should value you. You are a brilliant woman and you only deserve the best."

As Becker went on, confusion spread over Jess' face. Eventually, with a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips, Jess interrupted the solider. "Becker, who do you think Eduard is?"

The Captain stepped back a little at the unexpected question. "Your boyfriend," he said hesitantly.

Jess bit her lower lip to stop herself from laughing. She tilted her head a little and tried to gauge Becker's reaction.

"Eduard is six years old. He lives in Nicaragua and is my sponsored child."