Author's Note: Originally a Yuletide 2013 fic that I didn't quite finish on time. Prompt by Aubry.
'You Should Be Dancing' by The Bee Gees was playing loudly from the gigantic speakers on the stage at the front of the hall. The DJ behind them was surrounded by multi-coloured flashing and rotating lights, mirror balls, light tubes, a bubble machine and a smoke machine. There were several cases stuffed to the brim with CDs ready to provide revellers with appropriate music into the small hours. Julie snorted, if it was a truly authentic seventies party he would have been playing vinyl instead; nothing beat the sound of the needle scratching on a groove every so often. She took out her mobile phone from her pocket and checked to see if anyone had thought to tell her where they were gathered. Nothing. No signal either, so she'd just have to grab a drink and work her way around the huge venue until she found someone she knew. All of Greater Manchester's MIT syndicates had been invited to this party, which was Chief Constable Rutterford's insane idea. It was supposed to promote more cohesive working and was to go alongside a conference later the following year. It made sense Julie supposed, if you didn't know who your fellow colleagues were it was much harder for you to share information and best working practises. Sometimes the scale and nature of the crime led to joint team working where resources were pooled and more than one team worked on the same case. She had been the Senior Investigating Officer between two collaborating syndicates on more than one occasion and she had seen the obvious differences in working styles and personalities first hand.
Julie walked up to the bar, which was set off to one side so that there was maximum space in the centre for people to have a dance, or in this context she supposed she should say 'boogie.' It was only once she had got to the bar that she realised the hall went further back than she had first seen and there were several rooms off to one side of the main hall. She imagined in that case each syndicate would probably be sticking to their own and not intermingling as Rutterford had quite hoped. It was just her luck that as she was waiting for the woman serving to get her change, she was collared by Assistant Chief Constable, Karen Zallinski. Julie was surprised to see that she had made an effort to get into the spirit of the event and was dressed in clothes from the era, albeit in uniform.
"Good evening Julie. I must say, your outfit looks quite remarkable, very much like something I used to wear as a teenager." Julie smiled at her superior officer before accepting her change over the counter top.
"Cheers, it's lucky that most things come back into fashion every so often isn't it?" Julie had found most of her outfit online at very little expense, she refused to admit that the tank top was in fact her own, from a stack of things she still had stored in her mother's loft. "You did well sourcing that uniform."
"I didn't think it was very becoming of a senior officer to go quite as far as some have done this evening. I thought the uniform would be a good compromise. There are plenty of them in the archives, used for television programs and films I believe."
"I'll have to remember that for future reference." Julie finally took a swig of her beer, straight out of the bottle. Despite being a senior officer she was on her own free time and didn't intend being on her complete best behaviour. Karen might have a rod permanently stuck up her arse but Julie didn't want to have that reputation despite what the likes of Kevin Lumb thought. She worked hard, demanded the best, if not competence at least, from her officers and expected to be treated with respect in return. It didn't mean that she didn't like to play hard either and if the situation warranted it and her team had fulfilled their duties she allowed them to play hard too. Sometimes even at her own expense. That's what Kevin had never quite realised about working under her in syndicate three. Chief Constable Ian Rutterford tapped Karen on the shoulder from behind.
"Sir," Julie greeted appropriately a split second before Karen did the same.
"Ian, please; especially when we're dressed like this." A gentle chuckle went around the group and Julie took in his outfit. Brown bell bottoms with platform heels, a suitably chintzy shirt with cuffs that flared and tied up at the wrists. He wore a long, thin knitted brown tie and a stick on handlebar moustache. Seventies brown, oh how she remembered her father wearing clothes just like it! Julie didn't want to spend half her evening stuck brown-nosing her bosses so she made her excuses and left Rutterford and Zallinski to chat amongst themselves.
Julie went in search of someone, anyone, she recognised. Well that wasn't quite true if she were perfectly honest with herself. She was getting nods and waves from a whole host of officers whom she had had the great pleasure of visiting in the course of her day job, either to iron out small issues here and there or to take over whole syndicates when the need arose. However, tonight she was looking for one very specific person. Gill had refused to tell Julie what she was going to be wearing or anything about it, even where she had got it from. Perhaps she was going to pull a Zallinski and just turn up in some sort of uniform? Although that wouldn't have been like Gill at all. Gill was very much like herself, worked bloody hard but when it was time to play she was practically first in line. She was always game for a laugh and her syndicate had seen her do some very strange things, particularly in the name of charity, over the years. It hadn't affected her reputation and had only commanded more respect from her subordinates. Except for the aforementioned DC Lumb, he was unlikely to ever quite understand those sorts of subtle dynamics. Julie stuck her head round the corner of one of the side rooms. It was bigger than she had anticipated and it looked like there was room enough for three or four syndicates to gather. Syndicate Nine certainly wasn't there but her old team, Syndicate Three, were. She was beckoned over by one of her former DCs and she felt obliged to be social and speak to them.
"Julie! How are you? How are things at HQ?" DC Tracey Walsh was a very promising officer and Julie had a keen interest in seeing her career progress. She was her version of Gill's Rachel Bailey, except without all the drama and sleeping with inappropriate men. Tracey was incredibly career focused and Julie was certain that it wouldn't be long before she was a Sergeant. It was just a question of opportunity.
"Hi Tracey, I'm good thanks. I'm busy, very busy, but then I knew that was going to be the case. I do miss working with you lot though." Tracey grinned broadly.
"Aw, we miss you too."
"How are things under Mark? I hear you're all doing well?" Julie hadn't begrudged her successor a smooth transition and wished him every success running her old team. She'd seen and heard some very positive things from her new position at HQ and she was nothing but happy for them. She had no interest in staking territorial claims over people; only when she had been heading up the syndicate herself and trying to make a name for herself of course.
"Yeah, he's great. Expects a lot but he's also fair, not unlike how you were to be honest. I like him but I'd always prefer to have you as a boss." Tracey smiled in that shy way she had and not for the first time it pinged Julie's instincts about her subordinate. Tracey was open about her sexuality, she'd requested time away from work to go on enough Pride marches and conferences representing the Greater Manchester Police for that to be fairly apparent. Julie was only semi-open about her own sexuality, coming from a different sort of era and working her way up the ranks of the police force at a time where it wasn't quite so accepted had taken its toll on her willingness to be upfront about it. There were those who presumed to know, those who thought she was straight and those who had known her when she had been in relationships in the past. "Perhaps we could meet up for a coffee sometime and have a proper catch up away from all this noise?" Tracey had had to shout a bit for Julie to hear her above the noise of the DJ. Julie internally panicked slightly as she realised that the younger woman was asking her on a personal level. It wasn't that Tracey was unattractive; she was hard working and intelligent enough that they would have plenty to talk about outside of work too. But at twenty eight she was a fair bit younger than Julie and although Julie had to admit to a passing interest on some level, that's all it was.
"I…er… don't think that's a good idea Tracey."
"Why not? You're not my immediate boss anymore and you must know that I've always liked you." Julie was far too sober to be dealing with this right now. It never got any easier to let someone down gently. She supposed that she ought to be grateful she had received her fair share of offers over the years in the first place but she only ended up feeling awkward about it.
"I know and a different time and place who knows what might have happened. I still work within MIT and could end up being Senior Investigating Officer on one of your cases at some point. I do like you and I think you'll go far in your career. I still want to keep up to date with how thing are working out for you but anything else and I'm going to have to say no." Hopefully it was a strong enough no for Tracey to understand but was cushioned with enough genuine interest so she didn't feel too bad.
"Fair enough. Can I just ask, is there someone else?" Julie wasn't sure whether that would make it easier for Tracey to deal with the rejection or not. It was such a complicated question for her to answer at this point in time anyway. She most definitely had feelings for someone else but she hadn't said anything to them and in all likelihood wasn't going to either. However, she didn't feel that she would be able to give her whole self to anyone else at the moment and she didn't think that was fair on them to try to pretend otherwise.
"No there isn't, I wish there was! There's a distinct lack of talent in the force." This earned a chuckle from Tracey and they shared a conspiratorial look between them. Julie knew then that she would be okay and move on in time. She understood well enough what it was like to have a crush on an older, more senior officer. A couple of other syndicate members had spotted their old boss and had decided to interrupt for their own catch up.
Twenty minutes later and Julie was finally able to get away. She had finished her beer and popped out to get another before continuing her search of the venue. She could really do with a cigarette but she didn't have any on her, maybe Gill would have one or two floating about in her handbag when she found her? Julie meandered over to the next room along the corridor, stepping out of the way as someone passed her on their way out before entering herself. She scanned the room with her eyes before stopping in her tracks on sight of the person she had been eager to see all night. Gill was standing in the middle of her team of officers, no doubt regaling them with some anecdote or other, and she had their rapt attention. Julie's breath caught in her throat at Gill's outfit and she stood off to one side casually observing from a distance until she had sufficiently calmed herself down. Gill wore a salmon pink, loose fitting trouser suit. It had a halter neck, next to no back and jewelled detail under the bust. She had let her hair dry in its natural waves and Julie thought that she looked absolutely stunning. Sometimes it hurt to think about how much she was in love with her best friend knowing that she would never be able to tell her. However, life moved on and she had to settle for what she already had. She couldn't risk being caught staring so Julie took a deep breath and made her way over to the crowd of Syndicate Nine officers. She should have known Gill would spot her near enough instantly.
"Julie!" Gill broke free from the circle of subordinates that had gathered around her and met Julie for a hug and kiss on the cheek. They were all well aware of the long standing friendship between the two senior officers, so neither of them had a problem showing affection in a public setting like this. Gill pulled back but kept a loose hand on Julie's arm. She appraised her friend's outfit and grinned. "Very nice." Julie wore a pair of purple high-waisted, snug fitting bell bottoms with a matching blazer. She also wore a yellow knitted tank top over the top of a green shirt with an over-sized collar and cuffs. She stood in a pair of high platform shoes which were purple to match her suit and made her look impossibly taller than she already was. Julie was slightly panicked as she knew that she should say something about Gill's outfit but what could she say without sounding like a complete idiot? She thought about the truth but she knew that it would give her away too much.
"Beautiful…" It was out of her mouth automatically before Julie could really think about it and she flushed deeply in embarrassment. Thank Christ it was dark and that no one else would be able to detect it. "You look really lovely." Julie hoped that she had covered up her faux pas well enough.
"Thanks Slap. I was beginning to wonder where you were, I tried to text you but there doesn't seem to be any signal here." Julie couldn't think beyond the hand still holding on to her arm.
"Err, yeah…I couldn't get a signal either."
"Have you only just got here?"
"No, I got caught up with Karen and Ian and then some of my old team from Syndicate Three."
"Oh, of course. I forgot they might want to catch up with you." They were interrupted by Janet who, through being another long-time friend of Gill's, knew Julie outside of work too. She had dragged Rachel along with her and said their hellos.
"It's alright this innit?" Rachel asked rhetorically as she glanced around the room pointedly meaning the outfits people had made an effort to wear.
"The music's a bit loud." Julie said loudly as though to emphasise her point. Unfortunately the song that had been playing faded out at that moment and her voice was embarrassingly as clear as day for several moments until the next song kicked in.
"Let's dance!" Gill grinned childishly as Abba began to play and she grabbed Julie's hand and dragged her to the middle of the room they were in. Janet did the same with Rachel and before long most of Gill's syndicate were up and dancing, although 'dancing' was a loosely descriptive term for shuffling.
Julie had managed to let go enough to enjoy herself and dance to a few records but she desperately needed some fresh air and a break from the heavy, stale atmosphere of body heat and sweat. She nudged Gill and made a motion with her fingers up to her lips to indicate a fag break. Gill caught her drift, nodded her assent and they manoeuvred themselves away from the throng of the crowd on the dance floor. Julie made her way over to the exit while Gill picked up her coat and handbag which contained her fags. She caught up with Julie just as what seemed like the whole of Syndicate Three swept into the room and Gill instinctively grabbed hold of Julie's hand so they didn't get separated. It was a good thing too as Julie was caught up in more greetings and taps on the shoulder from old colleagues. Tracey caught Julie's eye and pointedly looked down at her hand clasped in Gill's. The younger woman raised her eyebrows and winked at her old boss. Julie rolled her eyes and was grateful for the dim light of the club; she felt it was very unbecoming of a senior officer to have gone crimson in embarrassment.
Once outside Gill and Julie walked past several other smokers in an attempt to find a quieter, more secluded area. Julie's platforms made a loud clack clack sound on the concrete path in between Gill's quieter footsteps with her wedged shoes. They found a short brick wall and Julie perched on it while Gill fished around in her handbag for her packet of cigarettes and lighter.
"Put your bloody coat on, you'll freeze to death in that outfit!" Julie admonished the younger woman. As much as she needed a fag she needed her friend to be fit and healthy more.
"I will, just give us a sec." Gill threw her coat at her best friend so that she could rummage around for her lighter better. Julie couldn't help but get a whiff of Gill's perfume on the garment and smiled at the feelings it evoked. "Ah ha! Right, you have those and I'll put this on." Gill said as she passed Julie the cigarette packet and illusive lighter. She took her coat from Julie's lap and shrugged it on over her shoulders and down her arms. By the time she turned back to Julie she'd lit two cigarettes and immediately passed one over to Gill. The shorter woman inhaled on the lit stick deeply and breathed out a plume of thick smoke before she sat herself down on the wall next to Julie. "Thanks Slap, I needed that."
"Me too." Julie agreed and sighed in contentment. They sat in companionable silence for a few moments as they puffed away on their fags and became lost in their own thoughts. The muffled sound of music filled the night air with white noise and merged with the monotonous drone of chatter from their fellow smokers several feet away. Julie took several final drags on the last of her cigarette, threw the butt on the ground beside her and extinguished it with her platform clad foot. Just as she lifted her head from watching what she was doing she had a face full of Gill and her soft lips pressed against her own before she knew what was happening. Julie instinctively pressed back and closed her eyes as her heart soared. They parted slowly, carefully and their eyes met and shy smiles grew. "What was that for?" Julie whispered huskily, partly because she couldn't quite find her voice and partly in fear of breaking the moment. Gill shrugged nonchalantly in response.
"Just felt like it," she finally voiced after a beat or two. There was a cheekiness in the tone and a look on Gill's face that indicated to Julie the younger woman had known exactly what she was doing and why.
"Uh huh…" Julie smirked and returned the kiss, pressing just that bit harder this time. Gill's hands were splayed on her chest, no doubt feeling the wildly beating heart underneath them and Julie's had somehow threaded their way through the hair at the nape of Gill's neck. The kiss lasted just as long as the first, enough to mean something but not so much that they had made a spectacle of themselves. Their laboured breaths punctuated the white noise around them and seemed far louder than it probably was.
"Shall we be heading off?" There was Gill's nonchalant tone again, as though it wasn't quite so much of a loaded question. Despite being surprised by the turn of events, Julie still knew her best friend thoroughly and caught the meaning behind her words. Perhaps it had always been there and she hadn't been able to see it clear enough through her wishful thinking and hopeless longing or perhaps Gill had simply felt like making a romantic overture on the spot and it had worked out better than she thought it would? Whatever the case, Julie was elated and no amount of rational thinking was going to stop her tonight. Julie stood up, dusted herself down and held a hand out to Gill. The hand was promptly taken and Gill shuffled herself off the wall with a small bounce as the cork from her wedges absorbed the impact of the ground beneath her. It was difficult not to stare and grin at each other indefinitely as the anticipation of what was to come steadily grew. Julie pulled Gill close and leaned down, close enough for another kiss but instead gave a sultry, whispered response.
"Your place or mine?"