Alright kids! I'll be honest, this is just pure fluff but CassidysPersona has been writing little S&B ficlets and sending them to me, and henceforth it made me want to write. That's all there is to say really...
Enjoy!
Morning" Janet cheers, walking into the bathroom just behind her best friend. Rachel replies with a two syllable noise which Janet assumes was meant to be a greeting but was forced out through a yawn. "Tired?" She asks, in that concerned motherly way that she does. Rachel shrugs and rubs at her left eye, not having to worry about smudging her mascara for once, having forgone makeup for an extra ten minutes in bed this morning. "What time did you leave last night?" The blonde queries as she heads into the cubicle, locking the door behind her.
"Urm...half ten maybe." Janet, knowing Rachel Bailey as she does, knows that this means more like eleven by the time she'd gotten all of her belongings together that she tends to spread across her desk. After a couple of minutes the door clicks open and Janet comes out, washing her hands at the sink before reaching back for a paper towel. She then gently places a hand on the younger woman's bicep, speaking softly
"You're going to burn yourself out if you're not careful." Rachel rolls her eyes and Janet has to stop herself from reprimanding her like she would Taisie or Elise.
"I'm fine" the brunette mumbles, another yawn sneaking out shortly after. Janet chuckles,
"Alright kid, if you say so." then reaches out to open the door, "coffee?" she queries back to the other woman, encouraging her to follow.
Janet places a steaming cup of black coffee next to her, and the scent immediately fills her nostrils as she wraps her cold hands around the warm porcelain.
"So, what were you here working on so late, hm?" The blonde asks kindly, wondering if it's something she could help with. Rachel sighs,
"Just CCTV footage, hoping to catch a glimpse of our guy." Janet knows this case is really getting to her junior; a young woman raped and left for dead with her three month old baby just 100 metres away. She knows that Rachel wants nothing more than to catch this guy and lock him up forever, only so this kid doesn't have to grow up wondering where his mum went.
"Anything?" Janet asks.
"Nah. To be honest I was too tired to focus by the end." She replies honestly. Janet feels a pang of sadness in her chest at the defeated look on her friend's face. She returns to her computer, determined to do all she can to help her.
Three hours later Godzilla comes out of her office, summoning Janet and Rachel from their work.
"We might have ourselves a witness, can you two go out and interview him?" Rachel's eyes light up with excitement as she prays to a god she doesn't believe in that this is the breakthrough they've been waiting for.
"Sure thing, what's the address?" Janet replies, very much hoping the same thing. As she notes down what Gill says on to a post-it Rachel quickly stands up and begins to shrug her coat on. Her eyes begin to cloud slightly as she sways. Mitch is walking behind her when he holds out s steadying arm.
"Alright Bailey?" He queries, placing a gentle hand on her back. This pulls Janet and Gill's attention back to the younger woman and they look up to see her pale face as she tries to steady herself.
"I'm fine, just stood up too fast" she lies as Mitch takes away his hand. She holds a tight grip on the desk in front of her, which doesn't go unnoticed by Janet who moves closer to her.
"Did you sleep at all last night?" She asks, her voice now full of concern. Rachel is getting annoyed, they're wasting time when they could be out finding who did this.
"Janet I'm fine, let's go." She insists, not really answering the question. Janet, looks unsure but agrees anyway and they make their way down to the car where the older woman insists on driving.
They drive along in silence for a while before Janet asks gently,
"What's going on in your head pal?" and Rachel immediately takes a deep breath in. She hesitates for a moment before releasing her thoughts,
"Every time I close my eyes I see her little boy. He's so confused, and he's asking me what happened to his mum. I just want to have an answer for him." Rachel never truly understood why her Mum ran off and left her and her two siblings, and Janet is almost certain this is what's behind her strong feelings towards this case. Rachel sniffs back a few tears and adds,
"I haven't slept more than a couple of hours all week." The following silence between then speaks volumes, and then Janet pulls into a lay by. Rachel looks over at her, ready to protest before seeing the look on her friend's face. Janet reaches over and takes Rachel's hand in her own.
"It's ok you know." She states, slowly. "It's ok to have a personal motive behind solving a case. It happens to us all now and then. Sometimes there's one that just get's to us more than others." The tears are flowing freely down Rachel's pale face now as she listens and nods in response to her best friend. Janet leans over and gives her a cuddle before restarting the engine. As they pull away she adds "you're staying at mine tonight by the way. That way I can feed you and make sure you're in bed for a reasonable time." to which Rachel replies with a smile, and a warm feeling of love spreading through her body.
They pull up in front of a house two storey terraced house with an overgrown front lawn and a rotting wooden fence. The two ladies are feeling apprehensive as they get out of the unmarked car and make their way up the path. The front door Janet knocks on is white but there are remnants of red underneath as the paint is peeling off in places. The door opens a crack to revel an elderly woman hiding behind the metal chain. Janet introduces herself and Rachel, showing their IDs through the small opening. Once satisfied the woman allows them to enter a dingy lounge where they sit tentatively on the edge of a dark green sofa. As they continue the conversation further with the woman it becomes more and more obvious that she is anything but a credible witness. It is common for them to receive calls from lonely elderly people, whether that be just because they want some company, or they actually think they have useful information which turns out to be quite the opposite. In this case the woman tells Janet and Rachel how she knew the victim to chat to in the supermarket, and had been so pleased to meet her little boy. However, she hadn't seen her on the day of the murder and hadn't actually witnessed anything of any use at all. After half an hour the two women thank her kindly, make their excuses, and leave. On the journey back to the syndicate the two women are pretty lost in their own thoughts, and Janet can tell that Rachel is feeling pretty despondent about the whole experience.
When the end of the day finally comes Janet and Rachel climb into their respective vehicles and Janet follows Rachel to her flat where she quickly picks up a change of clothes and the things she would need for the night, before Janet drives the pair back to the Scott house.
As soon as she walks through the door Rachel is greeted with hugs and excitement from Taisie and Elise, and even Dorothy says hello and offers her a cup of tea. For the next few hours she sits in the lounge with the young girls hearing their stories from school and painting Taisie's nails for her, in the same shade as her own. She is glad of the distraction as she is completely unable to think about the case for the time she spends with them. Dorothy has made macaroni cheese for tea and Rachel scoffs it down, even having seconds, only then realising that she isn't sure of the last time she ate any sort of food, never mind a proper home cooked meal. Janet spends the evening fussing around her, making sure she's had enough food and drink, and providing her with blankets when the girls sit her down to watch Lilo and Stitch. By the time the film finishes both Taisie and Rachel are falling asleep on each other, so Janet encourages all three upstairs to brush their teeth and get to bed.
Janet slides under the covers of the double bed quietly assuming Rachel is already asleep. She lies there for a few minutes before she hears a small, quiet "Jan?" from the other side of the bed.
"I thought you were asleep" she replies softly, "you alright?" Rachel shakes her head and sniffs quietly, failing to keep the tears spilling out of her big brown eyes.
"Can I…" she stops, and a small sob escapes her body. Janet places a comforting hand on the arm of the emotionally distraught woman,
"Can you what? What's up chicken?" she returns, her gentle voice full of concern. Rachel takes a deep breath and almost silently asks,
"Can I have hug?" Janet lets out a little chuckle and replies,
"Of course you can my love, come here" as she sits up slightly in bed and opens her arms wide. Rachel rolls over and shuffles towards the older woman, who wraps her arms tightly around the slender frame of her best friend and gently rocks her, feeling the tears seep through her pyjama top. "Rach" she coos delicately, to which the other woman replies with a sleepy,
"Mm?"
"I love you y'know pal." Janet tells her, gently tracing circles on her back. Rachel smiles to herself,
"I love you too Jan, you're my best friend" she mumbles, as she eventually slips off into the most peaceful sleep she's had in a while.
Thanks for reading bros, hope you enjoyed. x