A/N Yup, I went there. Now that it's out of my system, back to regularly scheduled programming.

As always, much thanks to BookJunkie007, dharmamonkey & Laura from Oz.

Disclaimer: Zero.

oOo

When a relationship ends, whether it's romantic or platonic, a sense of sadness washes over. You instinctively go back and re-assess the good, the bad and sometimes the ugly. You ask yourself, Was it my fault? Your partner's fault? At what moment did you know you couldn't go on? Or was it a gesture? Or a passing comment from conversation? Do you just stand by and watch it break? Do you fight for it? If you do fight, is it worth it? Will it end where you are now? Do you just hang your head and walk away? What if it's the best decision you've ever made, but you haven't realized that yet? Is there someone you will love you more? Love your partner more? Is it worth that risk? Knowing you may be a consolation prize? You have to be willing to jump.

oOo

Sure, he'd mention her. After all, they'd worked together so long it was natural they would grow accustomed to each other. I didn't ask too much about it because this was our relationship and we didn't need to rehash the past. That never did any good.

Then, he was summoned back to work on case. He told me the team was getting back together. She was coming back, too. I wondered if that is why he was so impatient to go back. But, I wasn't going to stand in his way. Hell, I'd have done the same thing.

I missed him so I flew back to Washington, D.C.. I had spoken with the press bureau there, so I could start reporting on domestic issues. I'd covered enough death and war this past year to want a break. This was a big step for me. Leaving a post to follow a man. Love or whatever this is, sometimes makes people do crazy, irrational things.

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He asked me to move in. I figured it was customary to buy a housewarming gift. Our house. I asked Temperance, the person who knew him the best about what to get him. She gave me a clue. And it will be very painful for him if you aren't as serious about the relationship as he is. I played this sentence over and over again. I loved him, I really did. Yeah, maybe deep down I knew what his partner said rang true. All of sudden, there was a moment. That Ah-Ha moment. It was just a matter time before it happened. That was a fact.

oOo

In a fairy tale, a woman meets a man. A man who sweeps this woman off her feet. In the movies, it always happens so fast. The couple meets in an exotic, ironic or funny situation. An incident brings them together. The couple is instantly wrapped up in each other. But there is always a caveat, usually it's the best friend. Whether it be the woman's best friend or the man's, always the opposite sex. The best friend yearns silently. A situation arises, the happy couple faces a hurdle. Usually a hurdle, they will not overcome together. That leads down the path of the inevitable break. In this fracture, the man will turn to his best friend, the one who carries the broom with her. To pick up the pieces.

oOo

I went with her suggestion. A Bakelite telephone. In the digital age, I didn't think landlines were used that often. I was a nomad, those lines laid down something permanent. I was at the store, looking for a phone and I had found the perfect one. It was heavy enough to knock someone out. I turned the dial and it made the tick-tick-tick sound. Perfect.

I heard her, you know. I heard her say, "You're welcome." I felt her sparkly blue eyes on us as she silently wished she'd given him the phone. I had seen that look before. She tried to be a good friend, offered advice to the girlfriend, something she stored in her Booth compartment. You never knew what information would be shared. They are little snippets of a life shared. A partnership I'd never be able to break. A partnership so intertwined no one can break it. No matter how many people came in and out of their lives, no matter how much they fought it, no matter how much they talked about it, around it and through it, no matter how much they say they loved other people, it was all just words. And sometimes, words just weren't needed.

She went to leave. He followed her. He clutched the bow.

He knew. She knew. I knew.

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