A/N: I spend a little too much time on Twitter these days, this is the result.
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.
'District of Columbia'
"What if you… came with me?"
Her heart stopped beating. She stared at Pike and she could swear her mouth had dropped open too. Had he just said what she thought he had said?
"Wh-what?"
He squeezed her hand. She looked down at where they were joined.
Was he asking her to join him in moving to D.C.? Her?
He was still looking at her. His eyes were sparkling with a hope she wasn't feeling. A life with Marcus Pike in the capital… she wondered what that would be like.
Him leading the art theft squad, her… she wasn't sure what she would do in that scenario. Perhaps she could apply for some jobs as a police chief but the chances of her being hired in the busy city that is D.C. were small, ridiculously small. In the worst case scenario, she would be forced to stay at home and only do some chores around the neighborhood… maybe she'll get pregnant and she would have to stay at home to take care of their child...
A stinging pain went through her body, the epicenter being her heart. She felt tears burning in her eyes.
His hand squeezed hers even tighter, and this time she pulled it back as if it was burned. He frowned at her.
"Teresa?"
She blinked and averted her eyes slightly, causing the tears to fall down her cheeks.
"I… I… Marcus…"
"You can think about it, Teresa… you don't need to decide tonight."
She stood and almost stumbled as she wasn't used to her high heels. She put both her hands on the table and took in a deep breath.
"I… I'm sorry… I don't need to think about this, Marcus…"
She paused, but couldn't bear to look at him.
"I'm honored, Marcus, really I am… but this… this… between us. I can't do it. I don't feel the same for you as you feel for me… and… you deserve someone better than me."
"There's no one better than you, Teresa-"
"I can't go with you, Marcus. I can try but I know that it won't work, for me, because I'm in love with someone else. And… and I know I shouldn't have started this, I shouldn't have given you false hope, but-"
He got up and without giving her a chance to step away, he enveloped her in a hug so tight, all she could do was return it and give in to his comfort.
"It's alright, Teresa. Somewhere deep down, I knew you and Jane felt more for each other than you showed. I had hoped I would be able to show you that I was at least half the man Jane is, in your eyes... but I can't. He is in all of your heart and I will never be able to compete with him. I can't steal a heart when it's already someone else's."
She was sobbing against his chest, the realization that they were standing in the middle of a restaurant and everybody was probably looking at her making it even worse.
"Do you want me to bring you home, Teresa?" he asked her. She clutched his arms and didn't respond for a while, then faintly nodded. Why was she crying so badly? She never cried this horribly!
"I'm sorry," she whispered. He shook his head and got their stuff, guiding her out of the restaurant and to his car.
"Don't worry about it, Teresa. I'm blessed to have these memories with you."
They were silent all the way to her house, and he walked her to her doorstep.
He was so nice. She could have had a good, comfortable life with him. But she wouldn't have loved him, and even though she had spent her entire life telling herself that she didn't need love as long as she had financially stability and was healthy. But she couldn't lie to herself anymore – in these long years she had worked with Jane, she'd had ample time to go out and see other people, other men, try and start a life but subconsciously she had always waited for Jane. She had always sat there and waited for him to be ready for her, for a new life, a new start. And even though she knew he would never be, she couldn't fool herself and date other men. She would make herself miserable thinking about Jane wherever she went. She would probably end up calling her firstborn Jane if she went on like that.
"Thank you, Marcus," she said, smiling softly at him. He returned her smile, bowed down and kissed her cheek gently, before turning around and walking away.
Her hands were shaking when she tried to open her front door, but when she was finally inside, she let out a breath of relief.
Which was soon replaced by a high shriek as she saw a familiar figure sitting on her couch. The figure immediately jumped up and ran into her direction, and all she saw was a mess of blond hair, tears and green eyes.
"Jane? I… what are you doing here?" But she needn't ask, she knew why he was here. He was here in the hopes she wouldn't be on a date with Marcus, yet she didn't know what he would have done if she had been here.
"You cried," he sobbed, slumping his shoulders. "Why… why did you cry?"
She stepped closer to him and before she knew what she was doing, she was shoving him forcefully, once, twice, until he almost lost his footing and crashed against the kitchen table.
"Because of you," she whispered, fresh tears on her cheeks. Great, now they were both crying. "Because I love you, you jerk. It will always be you. No matter what I do, it's… it's always you!" She groaned and ran a hand through her hair. "Dammit."
She took in a deep breath and tried to calm down.
"If you… if you really love me, show me. Because if you won't, I will pack my stuff and be out of here. Words just won't cut it this time."
He was with her within seconds and he pushed her against the next wall, looking down at her for a few seconds. He didn't say anything before he pressed his lips against hers, and neither did she, they let their tongues do the talking, the way their arms wrapped around each other frantically and their eyes searching for the other's when they pulled apart again. His hands grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to him, showing her exactly how much he wanted her.
She simply sighed and sank into his arms. She knew she had made the right decision.
A/N: Well then, let me know! Please, and thanks in advance!
