They All Fall Down
by movieholic
Pairing: B/A strong friendship, could be considered ("full") ship.
"Did she ever hit you?" the question was soft spoken, but the tone suggested that whatever the answer, she would hate it.
Goren looked up from his binder, "Can we…can we not talk about it?"
Make sure it's locked; make sure it's secure, run faster….faster…faster! Is it locked? Can she get in? No? Good. I'm safe…for now.
"Goren, you okay?" she asked, leaning forward in order to hear his answer better.
She's knocking on the door, but it's not demanding. It's, it's soft. Curious? Concerned? Should I allow her in? No! No one is allowed in. No one.
"I-I'm fine, Eames." He doesn't feel it, or look it. He continues writing, furrowing his eyebrows in order to seem like he's working very hard.
"Really? You're looking like someone ran over your dog."
Okay, okay, it's okay. The knocking is getting louder, sure, but it's not demanding. It's not demanding…
"I don't, I don't have a dog…" he looks up, confused.
"I know, it's a joke…are you sure you're okay?" She presses.
God, she's pounding on the door! Make her stop, please!
"I'm fine, can I get back to-what?" He stops short, noting her annoyed expression.
"Nothing, Bobby, it's nothing. Everything's…fine." Her voice is low, angry.
"Okay, what?" He tosses his pen down. "You called me Bobby, you're upset…what?"
"You never answered my question." She points out, ever the detective.
"Of course I didn't. I didn't think it was any of your, well, business." He picks up the pen again, toying with it with his long, slender fingers.
"Yeah, but you're shutting down on me, I can see it in your eyes. Something gets too personal-"
"No, we're not doing this here, Eames. Not here, not now," he cuts her off, holding up a hand in the process.
"Bobby-"
"Don't. I said-I just…don't."
The pounding is dying down, it sounds like a heartbeat now. Maybe it'll go away? Maybe she'll just, go away? KnockKnock….KnockKnock…KnockKnock…softer, softer, gone.
"Okay, later." No question.
Chest heaving, sweat beading, heart pounding…the door is no longer caving in. It's gone, she's gone. For now.
Screaming. She's screaming, the tearing metal is screaming…it's going to come undone, she's going to enter fighting, and she's going to unleash Hell.
"Alex! Stop! I said I do not want to talk about it!" he shouts, hands thrown in the air.
"You can't hide forever!" she cries, and storms over to him. Tapping his temple angrily, she shouts, "That little boy inside can't keep the door locked forever, I'm going to unlock it Bobby-"
"You don't know what you're saying," his voice is pleading, scared.
Stop! Stop, stop stop!
"I do! When that door come flying open, so will all those memories…but that's good! You need to unlock that damn door to your brain and let me in, dammit! Let someone in!"
The knob is rattling; the walls are crumbling into a fine dust. Photos, each a snapshot of time, each of memories, rattle against the wall. Some fall down, shattering into a million pieces. Rays of light creep through the small cracks, forcing their ray into the dark crevice.
"No," he moans, sinking to his knees. "Stop, Alex, you can't…you don't…"
"Let me in," her voice is in his ear, demanding…soft.
He shakes his head, "I've kept everything locked up for so-so long…I can't…"
"You can," she states firmly, grabbing his face in her petite hands. "You can. Just, unlock the door…"
A wall falls forward, spraying rock and debris in several directions. Blinding light spills in, obliterating all that it can reach into a fine, powdery dust. The shaking begins to subside, the roar of the crumbling wall now a dull hiss.
Goren slumps forward, his broad shoulders shaking with silent sobs. He has been rendered speechless, only able to make breathless grunts as he buries his face into his large hands and cries. Eames falls beside him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling his head towards her, gently.
"What do you see?" she whispered, her amber eyes wet and probing.
Sunlight...green, rolling grass and a cool breeze that ruffles the curls on my head. The smell of dew and the sounds of birds singing to one another. The dust is falling to the ground, clearing as the seconds tick by...and I can see...
"I can see..." he chokes, his eyes squeezed shut. "I can-can see..." his eyes open and he gazes into her concerned face,"You."
She falters in her breathing, and he picks up on it. No matter how down, no matter how torn apart, Bobby Goren was always attentive to the little things. He reaches up with a large southpaw and carefully swipes away a tear from her cheek.
"Yes," he says hoarsely, "Yes, she hit me. Yes, she abused me." He shuddered and her arms tighten unconsciously around his thick neck. "No," he says so clearly that she feels as though he was never distraught to begin with. "No, I do not blame her."
Eames nods slowly, her body tense and unsure. She sighs and presses her cheek into his hair, reveling in the softness of it. "Soon, Goren..."
He glances up curiously, his eyes red-rimmed, but wide and brown and questioning.
"Soon," she smiles, "You and I will get started on breaking down those other, very well constructed walls...okay?"
"I'll bring the hammer," he yawns, rubbing at his eye like a young child.
Fighting off her own yawn, she nods and settles herself more comfortably on the floor with her partner's large frame. "You do that...I'll bring the snacks."
"Skittles?" he gently questioned, his deep voice muffled by her shirt.
"Of course."
She waves and motions him out into the sun, a beaming smile on her face. She rolls her eyes in her way, watching as he tentatively steps out onto the freshly cut grass. Pointing at the gray prison he had built, she smirks and snarks, "That thing has gotta go. Grab the hammer, I'll meet ya with the skittles."
END.
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