Steve Jinks wasn't quite sure when being a babysitter became an accepted part of being a Warehouse 13 agent, but as was becoming the norm, Steve once again found himself cradling a sleeping Lattimer child against his shoulder as he read through historical file notes. If Steve was perfectly honest, he actually enjoyed caring for Pete and Myka's children. The twins were only eight months old, but they had already formed quite the attachment to their Uncle Steve. Claudia had labelled Steve the baby whisperer after only he had been able to soothe both boys to sleep one night after hours of endless screaming, and Myka and Pete agreed Steve had a special touch. Baby George made a soft whimpering noise against Steve's shoulder, and Steve lifted his hand from his computer mouse to softly rub the baby's back. Across the office, Myka looked up from where she stood studying replicas of artifacts stored throughout the Warehouse. George's brother, Holden, was perched on her hip, his chubby fingers tangled in his mother's curls.
"Everything ok over there?" Myka asked softly, and Steve rotated slowly in his chair so that he could give Myka a reassuring smile.
"We're just dreaming," he grinned, and Myka smiled in response.
"Myka, a little focus here please," Artie grunted from his seat next to Myka. Myka rolled her eyes good-naturedly at Steve as she turned her attention back to the items spread out on the table before her, and Steve chuckled to himself. Myka's first pregnancy, with daughter Scout, had come as a surprise to them all. The strong and independent woman had been determined to carry on as normal, and her intention had been to stay a field agent for as long as possible, but that plan had hit a bump very early on when Myka had found herself in the line of fire from an artifact-affected gunman, and Pete had nearly gotten himself killed trying to save her. After that incident, Myka had begrudgingly taken up post as Artie's right hand, and the Warehouse survived on a three person field agent roster through her pregnancy. The team had barely gotten back into a regular rotation after Scout's arrival when Myka discovered that she was pregnant again, but they were all surprised when it was Artie, and not Pete, who put his foot down and demanded that Myka step back from field duties. Having decided that he was finally on the track towards retirement, Artie and the Regents agreed that it was necessary for a new senior agent to be trained, and even before her pregnancies, Myka had been the natural fit for the position. It soon became clear that they required a replacement field agent, and it wasn't long before the Regents presented them with FBI agent Colton Reed. Claudia and Steve had met Colton while on a case months before and had taken an instant dislike to him. He was arrogant, rarely went without his aviator sunglasses, and his willingness to cut corners at every turn had caused them to lose their target three times before they'd finally gotten their snag and bag. They'd barely given him another thought after that, but they had not reacted well when he'd arrived at the Warehouse. Steve's usual calm and collected demeanour disappeared whenever Colton was around, and Claudia's snark multiplied tenfold. This continued for months, despite several reprimands from both Artie and a cranky and sleep-deprived Myka. Colton's attitude drove Team Clinks (as Claudia had christened them) crazy, and even when they were on a case miles away from him, they would spend hours relentlessly mocking him. This changed sometime around the point of the arrival of the Lattimer twins. Claudia had been playing one of her regular sets at the coffee house in Univille when Colton had appeared and then surprised Claudia by joining her on stage to sing 'The First Cut is the Deepest'. Having shown his softer side, Colton slowly won Claudia over, to the point where Claudia started to tell Steve to ease off on the nasty comments. Steve was not so easily swayed, and it still took all of his energy to not curl his lip in disgust whenever Colton was around. Even thinking about him in that moment was making Steve grumpy, and he pressed his nose against George's head to take in his soothing baby scent.
"Daddy should be back soon," Myka spoke in response to the babbling squeals Holden was emitting from his perch in his mother's arms. She was unsuccessfully trying to remove her hair from her son's fingers.
"You should be asleep, like your brother," Artie chided, pushing back his chair and getting to his feet. He prised Holden's fingers open and removed the baby from Myka's arms before he had the chance to retain his chubby grasp. Holden let out an excited burble and reached for Artie's glasses, much to Myka's bemusement. She stepped lightly across the office space and reached out to relieve Steve of his babysitting duties.
"Hey, we're ok," Steve told her. Myka pouted, but her protest was cut off when the door to the umbilicus swung open, revealing Pete carrying a container of neutraliser, with Colton bringing up the rear.
"Honey, I'm home," Pete sang, sauntering into the office and placing the container he carried on Artie's desk before sliding his arms around Myka's waist. He pressed his lips against her cheek.
"Miss me?" he asked hopefully, resting his chin on her shoulder. Myka quickly kissed his temple before freeing herself from his hold.
"Your son has a dirty diaper," she informed Pete, who wrinkled his nose as he glanced towards Steve and George.
"Not us," Steve said, shaking his head.
"Yeah, it's definitely this one," Colton spoke up with a chuckle from where he stood next to Artie. He was distracting Holden from Artie's glasses by waving the strings of his hoodie in front of the baby.
"Is somebody a poopypants?" Pete teased, causing Steve to cringe.
"Guys, can I please remind you that Poopypants is still currently one of my many in-use nicknames?" he whined.
"One that totally still applies," Claudia quipped as she breezed into the office through the door that led to the Warehouse floor. Scout toddled in behind her, a purple cape wrapped around her shoulders and glitter sparkling in her brunette curls.
"Daddy!" the two year old cried excitedly, dropping the lollipop she carried and hurrying towards Pete as fast as her little legs could carry her.
"Hey, there's my girl!" Pete and Colton exclaimed in unison, both of them opening their arms wide. Scout flung herself into Pete's arms, while Claudia more elegantly folded herself into Colton's embrace.
"You're all sticky," Pete commented as Scout placed her hands on her father's face.
"I had candy," Scout told him nonchalantly, causing a frown to form on Myka's face.
"Little snitch," Claudia huffed with a grin, glancing at Myka. "It was one lollipop, which I might add is currently on the floor."
"Ok, time for a Lattimer team clean up," Pete declared, sliding Scout to the floor and taking Holden from Artie. He herded Scout towards the staircase, which the toddler took on all fours. Rolling her eyes, Myka finally relieved Steve of George and followed her family upstairs. Colton sank into Artie's desk chair and pulled Claudia down into his lap, stroking her cheek as he kissed her gently.
"You taste like cotton candy," he commented, and Claudia grinned.
"Yeah, it was totally more than one lollipop," she admitted, kissing Colton again. Steve felt his mood instantly darken as the pair continued to canoodle in front of him, and he clenched his teeth together as he fought to stop himself from growling. Colton and Claudia had been together as a couple for nearly six months, but while Claudia's affections for the FBI agent grew, Steve could honestly say that he found Colton more irritating than ever. Steve's hackles rose if Colton even breathed in his direction, though for Claudia's sake he did his best to try and hide it. Claudia claimed that they were still Team Clinks, and that he was still her BFFEWYLION, but of course things had changed between them. They weren't in each other's pockets 24/7 anymore, and Steve was no longer the one that Claudia ran to for comfort or when she was excited about something. Steve hated that he'd lost her even just a little, but the fact that it was to Colton Reed made the feeling almost unbearable. He felt his blood start to boil as Colton slid his hand up Claudia's denim-clad leg, and when Claudia emitted a low moan, Steve cleared his throat as loudly as possible. Artie looked up from the table he was tidying up at the sound.
"You two, out of my chair!" he barked, stomping across the office as Claudia and Colton scrambled to their feet. Artie glared at them as he pushed his chair back under his desk.
"This chair is set to my precise specifications," he lectured, causing Claudia to roll her eyes.
"Yes, to accommodate your geriatric needs," she snarked, entwining her fingers with Colton's as she ignored Artie's dark look. Colton was trying unsuccessfully not to snigger.
"Come on," Claudia said, tugging on Colton's hand as she pulled him towards the door. "I have something fun to show you."
Steve barely heard Artie's grumbles as he watched Colton follow Claudia out of the office. Leaning forward, he placed his elbows on the desk so that he could rest his chin on his hands, but even though he was staring at his computer screen, he wasn't seeing the words in front of him. All he could think was that he couldn't remember the last time Claudia had smiled at him the way she smiled at Colton, and how that actually hurt him more than he liked to admit.
The afternoon they'd spent together in Paris almost three years earlier would forever be etched in Steve's memory. Claudia and Steve had followed a ping to the Louvre, and even they had been surprised when the artifact swap-out had been an easy task. They'd been in a playful headspace that day. It had only been a few weeks since the Warehouse had threatened to shut down around them, and even though that scare had passed, all of the Warehouse agents were still trying to emotionally regain their footing. It was of course Claudia who suggested that they tell Artie that their flight had been delayed, so that they could take advantage of the perfect Parisian fall day. She'd looked so hopeful that Steve had been unable to protest, much to Claudia's delight. They'd gathered baguettes and cheese, chocolate and strawberries, and even a cheap bottle of sparkling wine, and settled onto the grassy slope in front of the Eiffel Tower, spreading out their picnic in the warm afternoon sun.
"This is perfect," Claudia declared, stretching her legs out in front of her and reclining back on the grass. "Best idea ever."
Steve couldn't help but smile as he popped open the wine and poured a plastic cupful for first Claudia and then himself. Claudia sat up and accepted her cup, then clicked it against Steve's.
"To BFFs," she murmured with a smile, and Steve winked at her before taking a sip. Claudia craned her neck around the gaze up at the towering landmark behind them.
"So this is one of the most romantic places in the world," she mused.
"I'd wager there's about seven guys up there right now, sweating over the exact right moment to propose," Steve quipped, reaching over to break apart the fresh bread they'd purchased. Claudia's lips twitched in a half smile, and she munched a piece of chocolate for a while before reaching for the strawberries. Her eyes widened with joy as soon as she took a bite.
"Oh my goddess, Jinksy, these are amazing!" she exclaimed. "You have to try these." She picked up a berry and held it out. Without hesitation, Steve leaned forward and allowed her to feed him.
"Mmm, that is good," Steve acknowledged, using his fingers to wipe away the juice the dripped from his lower lip. Watching him through her eyelashes, Claudia dropped the top of the strawberry back in the punnet and leaned back on her heels. She turned her face skyward and blew her bangs out of her eyes. Leaning back on one elbow, Steve studied her curiously.
"You ok, Claud?" he asked. Claudia picked at the chipped nail polish on her thumbnail as she chewed on her lower lip.
"Steve, I want to tell you something," she said softly. Steve raised his eyebrows.
"Claud?" he asked hesitantly, and Claudia let out a shaky breath.
"I love you," she murmured. Steve's concerned expression relaxed into softness.
"I love you too," he told her. Claudia groaned in exasperation.
"I don't think you understand," she tried again. "Steve, I'm in love with you. I always have been."
Steve's face slackened, and he pushed himself upright as he stared at her.
"Claudia," he whispered. Claudia was staring at him pleadingly, her eyes brimming with tears.
"Please say you love me back," she begged, her lower lip trembling. Steve stared down at his hands before looking back up at her.
"Claud, where is this coming from?" he murmured. Claudia whimpered his name in reply. Pain was etched across her face, and Steve instinctively wanted to pull her close, but right in that moment, it clearly was not the right move.
"Claudia, I'm gay," he stated softly. "That hasn't changed."
"I know!" Claudia exclaimed unhappily, pulling forcefully at the blades of grass around her knees. "I just thought..."
"Claudia," Steve breathed. "Sweetheart."
"Damn it," Claudia squeaked, squeezing her eyes shut in distress. Despite her best efforts, a tear worked its way free and trickled down her face. Steve couldn't just let her sit there while she radiated pain, and he quickly moved to her side so that he could wrap his arms around her. Claudia let out a sob as she pressed her face against his chest.
"I shouldn't have said anything," she sniffled, her voice muffled by Steve's t-shirt. "I'm sorry. I'm an idiot."
"Hey, you are not an idiot," Steve protested, lifting her face so that he could look into her eyes. He used his thumb to wipe her tears off her cheek.
"What's going on, Claud?" he asked softly.
"No one's ever going to love me," Claudia whimpered unhappily, and Steve's mouth dropped open in surprise.
"Why would you say that?" he exclaimed. Claudia sighed, and her lower lip wobbled slightly.
"Pete and Myka are so happy together," she whined. "I mean, it's kind of disgusting really, but they're really sweet. They're in love, Jinksy. And I look at them, and I just keep thinking..."
"That you'll never find someone like that," Steve finished with a sigh. Claudia let out a shuddering breath as she sank back down on the grass.
"Where am I possibly going to find someone like that?" she asked forlornly. "I lost Todd to witness protection, and Doug met Holly, and then there's you, Jinks." She reached out and entwined her fingers with Steve.
"It's always been you," Claudia murmured. "You're my soulmate." A fresh tear rolled down her cheek.
"I'm going to be alone for the rest of my life."
"Claudia, you are the without doubt the most amazing person I have ever met," Steve said gently, giving Claudia's hand a strong squeeze. "There's someone out there for you, I promise. It'll happen when you least expect it, and when it does, you're going to wonder why you ever thought it could be otherwise."
"Ugh, Steve, your pep talk is like one giant cliché," Claudia moaned, leaning her cheek against Steve's shoulder. Steve scowled at the top of her head.
"I'm never going to leave you alone, Claud," he murmured. "You're my soulmate too."
Claudia lifted her head and rested her chin on his shoulder. Steve kissed her forehead.
"I do love you," he told her softly. Claudia managed a rueful smile.
"Just not the way I want you to," she said forlornly, a shuddering sigh escaping from her.
"I'll never leave you alone," Steve repeated. "It's you and me against the world, Claud."