All the Words Unspoken

Category: Hurt/Comfort, friendship

Pairing: Jisbon :)

Summary: With only good intentions at heart, Jane deviously goes about discovering why Lisbon hasn't been sleeping. Written for the October 2013 Monthly Challenge on Paint It Red.

Warnings: None

Disclaimer: Own nadda...

Authors Notes:

Jane stares at her, all the words unspoken as they sit in the dim light of her office. She's fighting not to acknowledge him, her features twisting in a vain attempt to do so and a small smile betrays his composure. Lisbon's stubborn, irrevocably so but he's an incredibly patient man and has no problem waiting her out.

It's just a matter of time.

"Ok, what-"

She finally breaks, throwing her pen down and leaning back with a sigh. He's been sat in her office for forty-five minutes, not saying anything, not even attempting his sabbatical nap, just staring... and the stack of paperwork on her desk isn't going anywhere with his penetrating eyes distracting her. "Why are you looking at me, it's creepy."

"You really want to know?" He teases, inching forward on the couch with a playful grin.

She's exhausted, cranky and doesn't bother giving him a verbal response. The last thing she wants to do is engage in his little game but she's been in this situation enough times to know that fighting it will only draw out the inevitable. Eventually she concedes with a tight smile, "yes Jane, I really want to know."

"You're absolutely certain?" He asks again, lifting his eyebrow and enjoying the prolonged effort to wind her up. He knows he shouldn't be needling her but when she pushes out a terse breath he can't help himself, "ok, ok..." he lifts his hands in mock surrender, "if you really, really want to know I'll tell you."

"Would you just spit it out already?" She glares at him, the response lacking any sort of enthusiasm as she silently wills him to get to the point. The sooner they get this over with the sooner she can get back to work and he can get back to... whatever the hell he does when they don't have a case.

"I was picturing you naked."

"Excuse me!"

Her mouth drops open, shock curving the response as his eye's dance with humour. Despite every effort she can feel herself blushing furiously like a school girl and she instinctively crosses her arms angry at herself for the reaction. She'd like nothing more than to wipe the smug self-assured smirk off his face but even his arrogance is provocative and she pleads with herself not to go down that road, not to entertain the entirely inappropriate thoughts she's starting to have.

"Relax Lisbon, I'm just kidding." He pushes up from the couch using the momentum to land his hands on her desk with a wink, "but in answer to your question I wear briefs."

"I wasn't, I mean-" she stutters, mortified as her eyes lift up from their unintentional wanderings. She has absolutely no idea what game he's trying to play or what's gotten in to him but the urge to find a baseball bat and beat it out of him is seriously tempting.

"You want to know what I was thinking?" He says, using a serious tone to bring them back to his initial secrecy. This was his plan all along, not to piss her off but to make her want an out, to pave the way for a far more delicate topic. "I'm worried about you."

Jane lets the comment sink in, his ground work predictably delaying her reaction. He can tell she's still trying to get over her embarrassment and he uses the momentary lapse to his advantage, "I know for a fact that you haven't been sleeping."

"I-" she falters, finding her voice but realising too late that it's not a question.

He's right she hasn't been sleeping but his perceptiveness just serves to irritate her. Last week they had a run in. No one got hurt but he was in the firing line again and despite every effort she's been unable to shake the encounter, the weight of his recklessness remaining solid on her shoulders. Of course there are risks involved whenever they go out -he's not a trained agent- but his flippant attitude and blatant disregard of procedure is going to get him seriously hurt and the behaviour doesn't just piss her off, it terrifies her. That's why she hasn't been sleeping but admitting as much would be about as useful as handing a one year old a set of Ikea instructions.

"Jane, thank you for your concern... it's touching, really... but I'm fine-" she defaults to the stock standard response, shuffling her papers in an attempt to deter the conversation but he doesn't take the hint. Instead he sidesteps around the desk, moving to hover behind her chair and she swallows thickly as the close proximately causes her heart to skip a beat.

"May I?" He rests his fingertips lightly against her shoulders, gently applying pressure to the tight muscles, "you're very tense my dear."

She ignores the comment, unintentionally encouraging the touch by relaxing beneath the circular movements.

When a sated sigh escapes her lips Jane smiles softly, lowering his voice and letting a stream of soothing words wash over her, "that's it Teresa, let all your troubles fall away. Take a deep breath and let it all go-" he works the kinks between her shoulder blades, all the while gently lulling her, "...just feel the weight lifting off you, feel yourself getting lighter and don't think that this is anything other than a colleague helping out a friend."

She nods slowly though she's too absorbed to really pay the comment much attention. His voice is thick like silk, warm like honey and she's so enthralled she barely notices when he turns her chair and moves to kneel in front of her.

"I assure you Lisbon you're in complete control," he soothes, brushing his fingers against her arm, "just let the stress melt away, feel the tension seeping from your body. It's ok if you're a little tired, embrace it and relax... just relax, that's it."

She slumps forward and he picks up his hand waving it cautiously in front of her face. She's out cold and for a brief second he feels guilty for evoking the state of hypnosis but he's learnt that there are appropriate times to push her stubbornness and tonight definitely wasn't one of them. With the conventional route out of play he's got few choices and the notion encourages his hand to drop again, giving her knee a reassuringly squeeze, "Teresa, I want you to tell me what's been bothering you. You don't have to be anxious, anything you say will remain strictly confidential."

She lifts her head, keeping her eyes closed as she mummers his name in answer. The revelation causes him to stiffen and he remains hesitant watching the slight rise and fall of her chest with mixed emotions. The last thing he wants to do is press his own involvement but if he really is to blame -and experience tells him it's more than likely- then maybe he can help them both.

"Lisbon what happened," he asks, swallowing an unexpected rise of guilt, "did Jane do or say something, did he upset you?"

She shakes her head and he's almost relieved until her forehead creases bearing the weight of an admission. He knows he's not going to like what's coming and it takes all his self control to let her speak.

"I can't protect him..." her voice is rough like she's trying to fight the thought, "it's my job and I-" she falters, biting her lip nervously, "I can't lose him... I'm scared he's going to get hurt and I.. I can't-" her breath hitches unevenly and the panic in her expression sends another wave of guilt hurtling through him.

He knows he can be a right pain in the arse, hell there even times he prides himself on it but he never, never intended it to be anything more than light-hearted jesting and the fact she's sufferingbecause of him is simply unacceptable. "Teresa, listen to me," he moves his hand to her arm, applying a light pressure, "I can help you but first I need you to do something for me."

She settles at the sound of his voice, nodding her head and he takes it as a sign to continue, "I want you to imagine a small box. There's a lid on top and a lock on the front. Can you see it?"

He watches her carefully, focusing on the rapid movement of her eyelids until she breathes out in agreement. "Good..." he keeps his tone steady and firm, "now I want you to think about Jane, I want you to concentrate on all of that fear and doubt and I want you to lock it inside that box."

"No-" she shakes her head adamant against the idea, "I can't."

"Yes you can," he reasons, reaching down to grasp her hand. It's blatantly obvious that she wants to hold onto the reminder, that on some level she thinks it's necessary and the notion twists uncomfortably in his stomach. His safety shouldn't be her priority least of all something that could potentially put her in danger.

"Teresa I want you to listen very carefully to me... Patrick Jane is a grown, capable man. He might need a little help from time to time but never at the expense of your well being, do you hear me?"

Her expression contorts rejecting the statement and he lets out a small sigh. Hypnosis isn't a foolproof system, he can't force her to let go of emotions and he certainly can't alter her perception of how to do her job. The most he can do is try to lesson her anxiety through the power of suggestion but even then it will only work if she lets him.

"Lisbon..." he tries a softer approach, the words brimming with genuine honesty, "Jane cares about you, a lot more than I think you realise. He wants to protect you just as much as you want to protect him. I assure you, all he wants is to keep you safe."

The lines on her face start to soften and he moves his thumb back and forth over her hand in a persuasive gesture, "he wants you to do this, it's ok... you just need to let it all go, lock it all away and focus on the good." He can tell she's still hesitant but the doubt slowly recedes to a reluctant nod and he feels a small smile loosen his lips, "that's it, now I want you to take the box and place it somewhere high up. Imagine you'd need either a chair or a ladder to reach it..."

She follows the instruction, her head lolling to the side as she completes the task but something snaps her gaze to the centre of the room. "What if he finds out-" there's a waver of uncertainty to her voice, as if suddenly aware her admissions could be perceived as more than just professional concern and he gives her hand a soft squeeze.

"He won't Teresa, you have my word."

It a small lie but one for the greater good. The thought of her lying awake agonising over a something unknown was never going to be a problem he could could ignore... and now he knows he played a key part he's even more relieved he decided to step in.

"Sometimes I wish..." she falters, an internal debate playing across her features until the conflict resolves itself in an allusive smile, "you know he's the most arrogant, egotistical, stubborn-"

"All right, that's probably all we really need to discuss-" he quickly discourages the line of conversation, not sure he wants to hear where the rest is going. Even though he probably has it coming he's accomplished everything he can under the guise of hypnosis and anything more would be getting in way, way over his head.

"Time for you to wake up my dear..." he's about to follow through with the instruction but stops, his gaze drawn to the smile curving her lips. It doesn't go far in absolving his guilt but it does send a surge of relief rushing though him. He needs her to be ok... more than he's ever really considered before and even though it's wrong he falters not quite ready to let the moment go.

Instead he brings his fingers up to brush the side of her cheek, taking in a slow and steady breath. The sight of her so ungraded is something he rarely gets to see and before he can think better of it he drops his hand to lightly cup her face. She still looks tired, despite the trance like state, and he's overcome by a sudden desire to reassure her.

"You can trust him Lisbon," he whispers the promise, not one ounce of hesitation behind the words, "...he'll be there for you, don't ever doubt that."

She subconsciously leans into the touch and he forces his hand to fall away. Right now it's not his place to give comfort. If it's going to happen then it needs to be when they're both lucid and he sits back, holding onto the hope that one day she'll come to him first. "Teresa, I'm going to count back from three... and when I do you're going to wake up feeling refreshed and relaxed. You're not going to remember anything other than falling asleep doing your paperwork."

She murmurs slightly in response and he counts down, clicking his finger and feigning a look of mock offence when she stirs awake, "so... do I need to be offended, surely my company's not that terrible?"

Lisbon frown trying to shake her confusion as she takes in Jane's form kneeling by her side. The only rational conclusion she can draw is that she must have drifted off and a hot flush quickly spreads across her face.

"It's ok-" he pushes up off the ground, flashing her a reassuring grin, "no harm done, you were hardly even snoring."

"I do not snore!" She immediately protests the insinuation but concedes with a playful roll of her eyes. Despite the impromptu nap she's feeling good, refreshed and she pulls her arms above her head working out the kinks, "why don't we grab dinner? my way of saying sorry for crashing out."

"You my dear have absolutely nothing to apologise for," he assures, concealing his guilt with warm smile, "and it's my shout, least I can do for failing to keep you entertained."

She gives a indignant snort, deciding not to argue as she stands up pulling her jacket off the chair. He instinctively moves to help her, wordlessly manoeuvring the sleeves before letting his hand fall to the small of her back, "so... burgers?"

Her answering smile leaves no room for misinterpretation and he laughs at the predictable assumption, gently guiding her towards the door. Just because words often go unspoken between them doesn't mean they're lacking a connection and one day when they're both ready... he's thoroughly going to enjoy testing those boundaries.