A Hard Day's Night: The Next Day
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Summary: As the title suggests, it's the sequel to my other story, "A Hard Day's Night". After their decision Calleigh and Ryan have to face the others… but how will they react?
"Calleigh and I decided to have a baby," Ryan announced with a happy grin because no matter how nervous he was about telling their friends, he was too proud of having Calleigh next to him and too excited about their decision to be able to lose the grin.
Calleigh on the other hand looked at him with a stunned expression. She was just about to explain the situation to their gathered friends in a tactful manner starting from the beginning when Ryan butted in.
"Excuse me?" Walter looked at Ryan as if he had spoken in Ge'ez.
The couple turned to the group whose members displayed quite different emotions. Obviously Walter looked genuinely stunned as opposed to Natalia, who was sitting next to him with a huge grin. Tom looked puzzled, too, but he was nowhere near Walter. Frank only raised an eyebrow and looked like someone who was trying to decide whether the couple was serious or they were pulling a prank on the group. Horatio was standing in the background, leaning against the counter in the break-room as he was still weak from his injury from the previous day, and if his feelings weren't obvious to anybody, it was because he held his head slightly bowed. He was smiling. Not like Eric, who looked like someone who'd just been punched in the face.
"Just like that… Out of the blue?" Walter continued the questioning.
"No," Ryan answered indignantly. "We're getting married, too."
Calleigh sighed exasperatedly. It was so not the way she had imagined their explanation go. For the sake of Eric, she hoped to get the chance to explain before hopping on to the subject of marriage and children. Where was Ryan's infamous love of order when someone needed it?
"All right…," Walter drawled like a parent who was making his hardest to remain patient in the face of his child's reluctance to be straight with him. "And again… just like that?"
"Just like that?" Natalia turned to the man incredulously. "Are you kidding? It was high time for those two to finally get hitched and start making cute little babies."
"What?"
"I believe, Mr. Simmons," Horatio straightened, his expression neutral, "that Miss Boa Vista was referring to the number of years the couple spent together without telling us," he looked at the couple and his expression turned smug when he caught the 'deer-caught-in-the-headlights' look on the couple's faces. He raised an amused eyebrow before asking, "What was it? Five years?"
"More like six," Natalia scoffed.
"Well, congratulations," Eric said abruptly in a bitter tone as he stood up. "I've got to go now." And with that he left the room without looking at anybody.
"Eric," Calleigh started towards him but Ryan held her back.
"Give him a couple of minutes." Calleigh nodded reluctantly then once again, the couple faced the others.
There was a little silence as everybody tried to decide how to deal with Eric's obvious discomfort. Finally Natalia decided that it was Ryan and Calleigh's problem to solve. They had no reason not to be happy for their friends.
"I'm so happy for you," Natalia shot out of her seat to hug Calleigh excitedly. A little laughter could be heard around the room when the woman squeezed her blond friend. "I can't wait to have little Wolfes running around."
"Now that you put it that way," Walter stood up, too, as Natalia proceeded to hug Ryan with no less enthusiasm than she had done with Calleigh, "It doesn't seem such a good idea," he lamented just to bug Ryan but, nonetheless, his grin competed with that of Natalia as he pulled Calleigh into a bear-hug and congratulated her.
"Oh shut it," Natalia warned him smiling, playfully smacking him in the stomach.
"Congratulations, man," Walter pulled Ryan into a man-hug. "Does that mean that I can start planning the bachelor party?"
"On, no, no bachelor party," Ryan protested. "I've seen too many go to hell to want one."
"That's too bad," the tall man remarked but went on, nonetheless, shooting out ideas about huge amounts of alcohol, girls wearing practically nothing… and a cake.
Calleigh wondered whether she should stop the man but Ryan looked suitably panicked as he was looking up at the tall man so she just shook her head.
"So… You are serious," Frank stepped up to Calleigh, who turned her attention away from the man to look at her old friend.
"Yes, we are," she gave him a huge, happy grin. As she kept looking up at him, Frank just stood scoffing unbelievingly. "Say something?" Her grin became an uncertain grimace.
"Well, I'll be damned," Frank finally sighed and pulled her into his arms. "Congratulations, Calleigh." He tightened his hold on her before putting his hands on her shoulders to put a little distance between them. "But I can't say I'm not disappointed," he admitted, his tone devoid of any resentment, though.
"Frances Tripp," a huge, amused grin appeared on Calleigh's face, "are you saying that you have a thing for me?"
"Can't blame the guy," Frank shrugged.
This time it was Calleigh, who pulled the man into a hug.
"I love you, Frank."
"Are you stealing my girl, Frank?"
"Got a problem with that?" he let go off Calleigh and stepped into Ryan's personal space, looking down at him with a dead-serious expression, eyebrows raised in challenge.
"As a matter of fact, yeah," Ryan stepped even closer as he straightened his posture. "Yes, I do."
They stood face to face for a long time and Natalia shifted uncomfortably as she looked between the two men. Walter stood next to her uncertainly but ready to step in should the two men get physical. Tom wisely opted to remain in the background and while Calleigh first seemed amused at the men's attitude, she became worried when their hard expression didn't soften as the seconds ticked by. Horatio watched on with a stoic expression.
"Lucky little bastard," Frank finally shook his head as a smile crept on his face and he offered the younger man his hand.
"Thanks… I think."
The tension evaporated in a matter of seconds as they all laughed at Ryan's expression.
"All right, that's my turn to steal a kiss from Calleigh Duquesne," Tom, stepping forward, held out his arms and Calleigh stepped into them laughing.
"Great, we've just announced that we're getting married and suddenly every man's hitting on her." Ryan watched as the ME pressed a kiss on his fiancée's cheek.
"Can you blame them?" Walter asked. "There is not a breathing man who doesn't have a crush on that woman." Ryan looked at him, eyebrows raised bemused. "Not me, of course," Walter added quickly, raising his hands in protest. "Not me," he repeated. Natalia scoffed on his left.
While Tom congratulated to Ryan, Calleigh walked up to Horatio, who hadn't moved from his spot by the counter.
His eyes were smiling as he watched Calleigh approaching him and the corners of his mouth turned upward as she stopped in front of him.
"How are you doing?" Calleigh asked.
"I'm good. I'm good. How are you doing?"
"I'm…" Calleigh hesitated looking for the right words; her grin was wide and her eyes were dancing with joy. "I don't really know," she finally admitted. "Excited, I guess. And truly, truly happy."
"I can see that," he remarked with a happy chuckle. "It's a big decision," he added after a short pause, raising his eyebrows as if asking whether they had thought it over properly.
"It is," Calleigh nodded. "But we are ready. We want this."
"And I'm happy for you," Horatio shared readily then looked into her eyes. "You need anything, you tell me."
"Thank you," Calleigh beamed as she gently hugged him.
"You're welcome," he returned the hug. "And now go and find Eric." Calleigh pulled away and nodded apprehensively. Horatio gave her an encouraging smile and let her go.
She went back to the group gathered around Ryan. They'd just agreed to meet up after shift to celebrate. With a smile, she readily agreed, too, and winced slightly when Ryan looked at her concerned when noticing her smile being far from carefree. She sneaked a hand into his, and turning so that she was facing his side, she rose on tiptoes and told him in a low voice that she'd go and talk to Eric. Ryan squeezed her hand and pressed a kiss on her forehead before letting her go and turning to Natalia with an exasperated roll of the eyes when the woman went all "aww" at that public display of affection.
Another round of laughter ran around the little group which only died away when Horatio slowly walked up to them and looked Ryan in the eye.
"You take care of her, Ryan," in his usual measured tone it sounded more like a statement than a question.
"Always," the younger man told him then chuckled. "But don't tell her that. She's fully capable of taking care of herself."
Horatio smiled knowingly, "Don't we know that? Don't we know that?"
Calleigh found Eric sitting on the back stairs; his whole posture was screaming rejection. She took a deep breath before joining him.
"Eric, I am so sorry," she was looking at him but the gesture wasn't returned as Eric kept staring in front of him. Calleigh sighed and turned to mirror his position.
Quite some time had passed before Eric spoke up.
"Are you happy?" His voice was low but Calleigh started as she was pulled out of her thoughts.
She looked sideways but Eric still refused to look at her.
"Very much," she admitted with a sad smile.
Slowly, Eric turned and finally locked eyes with her. He looked sad and disappointed… but not angry.
"Then don't be sorry," he told her. "I'm happy if you're happy."
"Really?" Calleigh raised her eyebrows skeptically. "You could have fooled me."
He let out a rueful chuckle before admitting, "I am hurt; I won't deny that. But I'll get over it," he reached over to take her hand into his, "and it'll be all right."
"Still, I should have told you," she admitted looking at their joint hands.
"It's not as if you hadn't been quite specific about your feelings towards me."
"You are one of my best friends, Eric." She looked back into his eyes. "You are like the brother I never had."
"Then I'll learn to live with that. I love you, Calleigh. And I don't want you to feel bad about me. If Wolfe is the man for you, I'll accept that." Another rueful chuckle escaped his lips. "Well, I'll try…"
"I love you, too, Eric."
He gave her a bittersweet smile and squeezed her hand before letting it go. He turned and assumed his previous position facing away from her.
"So Wolfe, huh?" he scoffed unbelievingly. "I can't believe I didn't see it. Six year! Man!"
"Don't be so hard on yourself. Walter didn't see it."
"But H did. Natalia, too."
"Well, Horatio knows everything," Calleigh smiled. "And Natalia is the hopelessly romantic one. She can make things up out of nothing. You knew that she thinks Dave's dating the redhead from nightshift? What's her name?"
"Cindy," Eric supplied and Calleigh nodded with a smile when the man turned back to her. His eyes became curious and it made Calleigh relax. "Really? She's cute."
"Cute?" Calleigh's voice betrayed her incredulity. "I'd say weird… or creepy. Have you ever heard her laugh? She can wake up the dead."
"Well, that definitely can't be a problem for Dave," Eric chuckled obviously warming up to a little gossiping. "He isn't half as funny as he thinks he is."
"Not to mention I happen to know that Cindy's actually dating one of Tom's assistants."
"Which one?" Eric furrowed his brows in disbelief. He couldn't imagine anyone wanting to date those guys. "The small black guy with the huge glasses and greasy hair or the tall blonde with the pimples and bad taste of fashion?"
"Actually, I was referring to the redhead with the long legs and nice ass," Calleigh laughed then added, "not my words."
"You heard that?"
"What? How you and Walter drooled over her the other day? Yeah," Calleigh laughed finding Eric's expression amusing. "But I have to admit that she is hot," she laughed even harder when Eric's eyes bulged out of his head at her observation. She gave him a coy look and they continued laughing together.
After a little while their laughter died away and they just sat next to each other in silence. And it didn't feel awkward anymore. The melancholy and uncertainty that dominated the first part of their conversation had vanished and only familiar companionship remained.
"Thank you," Eric spoke up after a little while.
"For what?" Calleigh looked at him confused.
"For being my friend," the man admitted in a solemn tone. "It really means a lot to me."
"To me, too." She took his hand into hers and squeezed it. She got a smile in return that was still tinted with sadness but that was free of any bitterness.
"Do you need me to have 'the conversation' with Ryan?" Eric hit a lighter tone and Calleigh was grateful for that.
"That's very sweet of you but I think he'd already heard every possible way he could end up dead should he hurt me."
"I think I can come up with something new."
Calleigh just shook her head amused. "Men. You always forget that I'm the bullet-girl."
"Never. But we all know that any of us could be more subtle than a pissed-off Calleigh Duquesne with a gun. No need to get caught when we all know how to make someone disappear without a trace."
"I really appreciate it."
"All right then," Eric concluded their conversation and proceeded to stand up. "I'll be in the A/V lab if you need me."
"Eric," Calleigh called after him. "We're heading out for a drink after shift with the others…" She left the other part of the sentence hanging because she didn't want to push him.
Eric sighed leaning against the railing and Calleigh cringed when she saw his hesitation to look her in the eye. He finally did so though, and gave her a shrug. "At the usual place?" he asked and Calleigh nodded. "We'll see," he finally told her in a tone that suggested he most probably wouldn't be there.
Calleigh understood. It didn't stop the pang of sadness in her heart, though. She wanted her friend to be happy for her… to be happy with her.
"See you around," he said and turned to descend the stairs and walk around the building.
After Eric's form had disappeared from her sight, Calleigh leant her head on her arms resting folded on her knees. She could hear footsteps behind her not long after Eric's departure but she didn't move from her position. She knew those steps.
She listened to him getting closer, stopping and then taking a seat next to her. Not long after that she felt his hand running circles soothingly on her back.
"You're all right?"
Calleigh lifted her head and found herself staring into Ryan's concerned eyes.
"Yes," she answered in a low voice, still under the influence of her previous conversation with Eric but then a small smile appeared on her face and she nodded with more conviction. "Yes, I am."
She let Ryan pull her close to him and rested her head on his shoulder.
"He's all right?"
"He will be. Just needs a little time."
"Good," Ryan acknowledged then after a little consideration, he asked, "Do you think I should take him out for a drink… you know… to talk?"
"It might not be such a good idea," Calleigh adviced. "Not yet anyway," she added when she could feel Ryan tense. "He's your friend, too, you know," she reassured him in a gentle tone. "And if he wants to be happy for me, he wants to be happy for you, too. He just needs a little time. And when he's ready, he'll come to you, too. I'm sure of it. You can talk then."
"Works for me," Ryan concluded then loosened his hold on Calleigh when she began shifting.
She straightened and looked Ryan in the eye, her blue eyes bearing into his.
"I love you, Ryan."
Ryan's smile took her breath away and their lips met in a short sweet kiss.
"I love you, too," Ryan told her after they pulled apart and promptly claimed her lips once again, this time more passionately. "And I'm absolutely tempted to just have my ways with you right here… Unfortunately," he let out a heavy sigh, "I have a date with Cynthia; she's yet to get back to me on that love letter I gave her this morning."
"Something you want to tell me?" Calleigh raised an eyebrow inquisitively.
"Now that you mention it…" he started with a cheeky smile.
"You know what," Calleigh cut him off. "I don't want to know. And anyway, I have a date myself..." she added nonchalantly then continued, "...with Travers."
"Travers? You know that he won't make me jealous, right?"
"Why? He's cute. And that accent is way too sexy," she drawled the last part.
"Why, Miss Duquesne, if I had known that you prefer an English gentleman to my humble self…" Ryan told in perfect British accent and Calleigh laughed out merrily.
"Okay…" Calleigh grinned. "However incredibly hot that was," she put a peck on his lips, "I prefer you."
"That's good to hear."
"All right, Mister, come on, we have a crime to solve."
They both stood up and started up the stairs, hands touching.
"I can't believe that H and Natalia knew about us," Ryan remarked as he held open the door for Calleigh.
"Oh, I can," she answered, stepping into the building. "I can't believe that Natalia hadn't said anything sooner."
"She was rather excited, wasn't she?" Ryan chuckled still amused at the other woman's enthusiasm.
"That and she is practically the one who keeps the wheels of the rumor mill working." They laughed at that because both of them knew that it was true. And they both were grateful for her keeping her suspicions to herself and not starting a rumor with or without any ground for it. "I'm happy they took it so well."
"They are our friends. They are happy for us…"
"Look who's talking," Calleigh cut him off but only got a roll of the eyes in return as Ryan continued.
"…and they are quite protective of you. Speaking of which," Ryan stopped and looked at Calleigh seriously. "Please, do something for me."
"Anything."
"If I ever hurt you, shoot me in the head," he pleaded. "There are some sick folks in there," he indicated the Lab.
"Deal," Calleigh smiled understandingly and made a mental note to ask the others what they had told Ryan that made him fear them more than her and her guns. "But it won't be your head I'll aim at if it comes to that," she added with a wink and a pat on the shoulder before leaving to look for Travers.
"Of course," Ryan remarked to himself and with a sigh he was on his way, too, to continue with his work.
The End
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