A/N) A little Nick/Katherine oneshot for you all! Hope you enjoy!
Katherine doesn't know why, even now, when this routine has slowly and unwillingly become habit late at night, that she's sitting up in her bed holding her phone.
It's not even as if she's wide awake. She can feel the tiredness tugging at her eyelids, she knows that she'll have a long day tomorrow, where she'll have to be wide awake for her job. But sleep, as it so often does, eludes her.
She finds herself staring at the screen of her phone, her eyes focused on the names as she absently flicks through her contacts, the names unfamiliar on half of them. She knows she should lie down and attempt to at least drift back into sleep for a little while, but she knows it won't work. She's awake now. And her mind has started to work, churning through all the worries and the deadlines in her head and pulling them into view, announcing their presence to the world.
Just like every night.
She's no idea what time it is, and it's probably best not to know. She'll just find herself counting down the hours until it would be socially acceptable to get up, to start the day, even though her mind is apparently convinced that it's morning already.
Then her finger slips on a button and the familiar rings start to bleep in her ear as the phone makes the connection instantly. Katherine fumbles urgently for the 'End Call' button, but it's dark and her brain hasn't bothered to inform her fingers that it's time to wake up yet.
And then her eyes drift to the name of the contact that she has just unwittingly called.
No. Oh, no, don't pick up.
Of course, Nick picks up the phone. "Hello?" he enquires, his voice dull and bleary as he tries to suppress a yawn down the phone line.
"Nick," Katherine greets, trying to sound normal. Oops.
There's a pause. "Katherine," Nick says, his tone suddenly one of surprise. "I wasn't expecting -"
"No, it was a -"
"Are you -?"
"I didn't mean to -"
Their words stumble over each other clumsily, and Katherine shuts up at the same time Nick falls abruptly silent, realising how stupid they must both be sounding, talking both at once like a couple of over excited seven year olds.
"Did you - um -?" There's suddenly a note of frustration in her employee's voice, and Katherine realises what he must be assuming.
"Did I want something? No, no," Katherine assures him quickly. "I pressed your contact by accident."
"Oh." Nick sounds relieved at not having to get up and go on an emergency work call at Calimov in the dead of night. "Are you - all right?"
No. No, I'm not all right, Katherine wants to confess, but her pride of course prevents this truthful statement. "Me? Of course I'm all right," she says condescendingly.
"You're lying," Nick informs her calmly and completely unexpectedly.
Katherine splutters at his audacity. "I'm lying?" she enquires sharply.
"Yes. You're not okay, otherwise why would you be phoning me at half three in the morning with nothing work-related to get me to do?"
Half three. So that's what time it is.
"I already told you, it was an accident."
"Why were you phoning anyone at half three in the morning?" Nick wants to know immediately.
"An accident," Katherine repeats evasively. "I was just checking something, and I slipped on the wrong function. No big deal. End of."
"Right." He doesn't sound too convinced, but mercifully doesn't push the subject.
"Yeah." Katherine hates herself for the vague awkward responses she's giving, but what do you really say in that sort of situation? She's half tempted just to blurt 'Bye' and hang up on him, but then she'll have to explain herself at work tomorrow, and that will be even more awkward. Better to try and explain herself now, so at least she's got that over with.
"So - how are you?" Nick asks cautiously after a moment of tense silence.
Katherine breathes and composes herself. Just finish the conversation, maybe apologise for accidentally phoning him then hang up. Easy. "Well, the cash flow projections this month are already doing well, and I believe the annual cost will be -"
Uncharacteristically, Nick interrupts her. "I didn't ask how the company's finances were doing, I asked how you were."
"Oh." Katherine can't think of a response to that. Her defence strategy for getting the subject off herself is usually to turn to the company, which is pretty much part of her anyway.
Luckily, Nick seems oddly talkative tonight. Maybe he's a night person. "Business is business; it stays at work. That's why I try to keep my work life separate from my home life. Cash flow projections don't need a home to go to at night. Annual costs don't need to eat and sleep. You do," he tells her firmly. She can imagine his expression.
But they do, Katherine wants to say. They stay in my head, while I'm trying to sleep, and keep me awake. They live at my home, and sleep in my bed. I can never get rid of them.
But of course, saying that to an employee would sound ridiculous and Nick would doubtlessly think she was delusional.
So she says nothing.
"You sure you're okay?" Nick repeats after another moment, and Katherine is surprised to hear genuine concern in his voice. Maybe that's why her reply isn't as sharp as she would normally make it to him.
"I'm fine, Nick. Honestly."
"Well - if you're sure."
Katherine finds herself smiling slightly, even though she knows Nick can't see her. "I'm sure."
"Okay. Well - night, Katherine."
"Goodnight, Nick."
"Sleep well."
"You too."
A pause. "Night." Then Katherine hears the click of the phone in her ear as Nick hangs up before she even has the chance to.
Well, that was awkward.
But at least she's actually fairly tired now. Katherine switches the phone off and slides it onto the bedside table next to her, settling back into her covers and feeling her eyes start to close automatically.
And Katherine only realises, next morning, when she's sleepily coming out of her apartment into the foyer, gulping down coffee to wake her up before she arrives at Calimov - it's the first time she's actually slept soundly for weeks.