Charlie Crews stepped out into the pink glow of the neon sign above. Why now? he thought.
Dani Reese looked at him and shook her head as she watched him go off into his own private universe. "Crews? Come on." she said and they walked into the building.
"But why here, Reese? Why now?"
"I don't know. This place has already been searched. I don't know why he would come back here. The LAPD already found the stash and took it as evidence. Personally I think that the call is a load of crap."
"Mmm. It could be." mused Crews.
A little later the pair came down the stairs. "That's the last room, right?" asked Dani. "Last room." said Crews and they walked out the door. "There was nobody at the place, lieutenant. We're going home." said Dani.
As they walked to the car, Dani smelt the slight fragrance of peaches. Or pears. Or was it peaches?
Goddamn you Crews.
"You are not eating a peach in my car."
Crews looked back at her and spoke through a mouthful of fruit. "M'not eating peach. Not the season for peach. These are grapes, Reese."
"Want some?" he added as an afterthought, his blue eyes squinting in the harsh neon glow.
Dani looked puzzled and slowly shook her head. Where did I get peaches from?
"No, thanks Crews. Let's go home. I gotta write up the report for tomorrow morning."
"Yeah. Reportfor'mornin'." He said indistinctly.
Dani rolled her eyes. He was doing it again. "Just leave the file in the car okay?"
"Okay."
"And stop talking with your mouth full."
"Mmf." he mumbled again.
Dani didn't even bother saying anything. Idiot.
Nobody saw a pair of eyes follow them to their car.

--

Dani entered her house. She never understood how Crews could do it. Live alone in that big house.
Not always alone, she mused. Women seemed to look at him. Want to look at him.
Why, she had never understood.
After all he was a fruit devouring, six foot, red headed, never tanning, zen spouting idiot. And though she would never actually admit it to herself, all that attention to him made her... feel things.
Things she wasn't sure she approved of.
Things that shouldn't exist. That don't exist.
But for something not to exist it can't really be a thing right?
Stop it! You're doing that thing when you're doing the thing again.
She walked into her bedroom.That's funny, she thought. I don't remember leaving this place like this. Something doesn't feel right. Dani began reaching for her gun with her right hand while flipping open her cellphone with her left when she heard a voice.
Hello Dani. How's it feel to be a respectable citizen?"
Dani's heart froze.

--

Charlie Crews had decided to take the bus home. Get a nice walk. A nice cup of seeded grapes and a walk. Charlie liked the night air. He hadn't seen much of the night air for while in the middle. Stop thinking about that.
These are good grapes, he thought, changing tracks inside his head. Crews was good at that.
As he experimentally rolled a seed in his mouth, he wondered what was flapping in his hand. My hands don't flap. He looked down.
"Oh no."
He saw a standard issue yellow file in his hand. Report for the morning. Reese was going to kill him.
"No walk today. Reese needs you." he spoke to the file and hailed a passing cab through a mouthful of grapes.
"Where you wanna go?" asked the cab. "Mfshto shtreet" he said indistinctly. "What?"
"Mephisto Street". I gotta stop talking with my mouth full.
Ten minutes he was outside Dani's apartment.
Lights were still on. Good.
He payed the cabbie and walked up to the front door.
Front door was open. Not so good.
Crews drew his gun and slowly walked inside.

--

Dani could feel him as he pushed her down on her bed. "You got no right. Officer Dani. You used to like Rick. We used to be friends. Then Rick goes and shoots his fucking head off, and you get us busted. I got out two weeks ago. My stash was gone. Rick was dead. I find out LAPD took it. I find out Officer Dani took it. I think I can get it back at Dani's. Do you remember the high, Dani?"
She could feel him against her. The burning had come unbidden to her eyes. Rick had died. She had gone to pieces. Over her fucking snow. Hadn't even cared about the dead human being beside her. And Maddox had come back her to remind her.
"I don't use anymore, Maddy. Now please let me go before I have to hurt you." she said in an even voice. She was shaking inside. Don't show him you care.
Shots. Shots everywhere. All that red blood. And the snow. White snow.
"You have to hurt me? No no no. This is how it works. You give me what I want. Or I hurt you. Or maybe I take what I want and I hurt you anyway."
She could feel him. The smell of days old sweat and drugs and gasoline. He had her hands behind her back and she could feel his hands on her throat. She could feel the cheap smell invading her lungs and she thought so this is what it will feel like when I die. Smell of decay. Her throat was closing up.
"Stop it Maddy.. I don't have any..." she choked into incoherence.
Red blood. White. All that snow.
All that work at rehab, rebuilding her life had come to nothing. She wanted to see the day one more time. She wanted to come out of this. She wanted to smell her life once last time. She didn't even have the energy to fight it anymore. She didn't even have the will to cry.
Gasoline. Rick's body lying facedown in the red. Her snow, her precious snow. Not white. Pink. Red and White made Pink. She could smell pink.
She could feel Maddox's hands upon her, the weight was crushing her. Soon he would begin. And she would float away, never to return.
Some part of her even welcomed it. Death.
Pink. Pink like lips. Pink like peaches.
She could smell the peaches. Not dead.
The weight was lifting off her. Dani tried to rise and then slumped back onto the bed.

--

Charlie entered the room. He took a second to absorb what was going on and lunged at the intruder. Maddy, she had called him. In seconds Crews was on top of him; twisting his hands behind his back. The scuffle had lasted only about two seconds. Crews was bigger and had gone through the unfortunate experience of serving 12 years in a maximum security prison.
"Now listen to me Maddy. Your name's Maddy right? You do not come in here and assault an officer of the LAPD. You especially do not come in and assault my partner." Crews hissed into his ear as he snapped open the cuffs.
"Don't cuff him."
Crews turned around. He said nothing, only tilted his head slightly and looked at her.
"Don't cuff him, Just - just let him go. I don't think he's going to come back. " Her voice took on a harder note. "Because if he comes back, I'll kill him. You got that?" said Dani, her eyes dark and murderous.
Crews nodded slowly and tightened his hold on Maddox. "You got that? She'll kill you. And if I catch you nearOfficer Reese - no - no, even breathing the same air as Officer Reese, I will kill you." He whispered so that only Maddox could hear.
Crews watched Maddox run blindly through the door. He turned to Reese. "You sure letting him go was such a good idea?" Dani looked at him and didn't say anything for a while. "Forget it. Forget I said that. We don't have to talk about it just now." Reese looked at him. "Or ever!" he said, holding his hands up in a gesture of surrender.
Reese looked at him. "He's just a junkie. He - I - I used to know him when I was uh, on another, uh case." Just another case, Dani?
"Anyway, he's harmless." she shrugged.
"Didn't look harmless to me." said Crews. He backpedalled furiously when Reese glared at him. "Of course harmless is a relative term. To the birds, bees are harmless, to the bears, coyotes are harmless! Like I said, harmless is a relative term."
"Stop saying harmless Crews!" said Dani, continuing to glare at him.
"Yeah. Sorry." He looked at her and did that annoying head tilt of his. "Everything ok in there? You can crash at my place if you want."
She stared at him.
"Plenty of room." He said.
Plenty of room, she repeated in her head.
Six foot, red headed idiot. Then she smiled. "Thanks Crews, but no thanks. I can take it from here."
Dani had begun to feel better. Feeling better now. Maddy's gone now. Better now.
She looked at Crews.
Don't let him know you care. Change the subject. Change the goddamned subject Dani.
"Why were you here, Crews?" she asked. He had the grace to look guilty. "I uh.. sort of took this file with me, and you said you needed it so-"
Dani stared at the file. And laughed. Feeling better already thought Crews. Good girl, he smiled to himself.
"You'll uh, be alright, Reese?" asked Crews taking in the spartan bedroom.
She glared at him. Both of them knew she didn't really mean it. "Yes Crews, now go home."
Crews smiled an insanely bright smile at her. He started to walk by her toward the door. "Uh, thanks Crews. For tonight." she said awkwardly.
He looked at her as he walked past and smiled again.
Dani rolled her eyes and felt him drift past her and out the door.
Crews walked out of the door, humming oh-so tunelessly. And smelling like peaches, thought Reese wryly.
Peaches.
Reese eyes widened in surprise.
And as she stood there, watching Crews walk off into the night, Dani Reese smiled in spite of herself.