Juliet holsters her weapon, having cleared the abandoned, run down home that their information had led them to. They always seemed to be a step behind in this particular case, and it was beginning to frustrate her.
Running her hand through her hair, her curls spring back into place, bouncing with every step she takes, until she finds Shawn in a room near the front of the house.
"Well whoever was here is long gone now," she says, flopping her arms by her side, as Shawn nods in agreement, quietly staring out the window.
Things had been particularly awkward since their breakup, a difficult tango they were dancing in which their bodies responded to each other in the same way as before, as if they were still together, while their minds struggled to keep up with the new situation.
Lines had been blurred, the sand having blown over the boundaries she'd set up for them, the love they had for each other refusing to recede with the calling off of their relationship, instead lingering between them, begging to be revisited.
"You find anything?" She asks, now knowing how exactly his gift worked, the disillusionment having settled in the pit of her stomach that first day, along with a deeply rooted distrust that she couldn't quite shake even knowing his intentions had been for the greater good, slowly being replaced with an appreciation and an admiration for having cared enough to give it all up for her.
"Not unless you count a dead cockroach and the skin of a snake that I hope isn't still slithering around here," he jokes, a goofy grin on his face, as he looks back at her.
"No," she says with a shake of her head, fighting back at a smile. The charm and the reminder of what had been slowly, but surely wearing her down, as she put up a good fight, sticking to the rules she'd laid down for them.
A shared meal was okay, teasing quips shared between them allowed, but her serious face would come out when he moved in to kiss her, not quite ready to give in completely just yet. Close, closer still, but not cigar.
He was working on it though.
"I like this," he says, looking up at the dilapidated ceiling.
"Standing in a rodent infested, crumbling house, yeah, me too," she says, her hands coming to find the pockets of her coat, her blue eyes glinting a hint of amusement into his statement.
"Pretty girl, spooky house, if you get scared, it's okay," he says, opening up his arms, signaling there was always a place for her there. But he's only half serious, knowing full well, that she'd be the one to protect them.
"Sure, Shawn—" she's cut off by his finger coming to his mouth, signaling for her to be quiet. Softly moving to the half upright wall on the other side of the room, he tiptoes over, his hands resting against a structure that looked like it would fall over if you put any sort of weight against it.
"Do you hear that?" He dramatically mouths at her, his brow furrowed, putting his ear to the wall.
Drawing her gun, she motions for him to come back by her.
And she thinks he's listening to her, for the first time in…ever.
"I got this," he whispers, a quizzical look passing over her, her neck jutting her head out in confusion. Her brow furrowed and her mouth pursed.
"Shawn," she grits through her teeth.
"Wait," he says, and before she can say anything else he's running towards the structure, pushing his side against the drywall, and collapsing right through, landing with a thump on the other side, his foot caught in the wall.
"Shawn?" Juliet says, worry tinging her voice. "Are you okay?" She asks, nearing the hole he's created, the front door she'd left open now staring her in the face, as a loud groan is heard, paired with a meow of a cat, the cause of the noise he'd apparently heard.
Peeking at him through the now giant hole, he lays crumpled on the floor.
"I'm mostly okay," he grunts out, and she holsters her gun again with a shake of her head. "My hair still looks good, right?" He jokes.
"That was…" she pauses, not even sure where to start, because while dangerous, it was pretty typical, and not the most insane thing he'd done.
"Awesome!" He finishes for her, getting up slowly, dusting himself off.
"We need one of these in our house," he says, leaning over to look at her through the hole.
Her head tilts with annoyance.
"We don't have a house together," she reminds him, but his face doesn't even fall, seemingly undeterred by her statement.
"We could put a string between two cans, talk through the walls. How awesome would that be?" He asks, putting his fingers in the shape of a phone.
"Ring, ring," he mimics a typical ringtone, waiting for her to answer.
She narrows her eyes at him, while biting back another smile.
"Jules, I think your phone is ringing," he nods for her to pick up.
"Yes," she says, humoring him, bringing her pretend phone fingers to her ear.
"What are you wearing?" He asks with a sly grin.
"Nothing," she sarcastically responds, and even though he knows that's not true, he still looks her up and down.
"Lies," he teases in a whiny voice.
"I'm hanging up now," she says, dropping her hand and walking away, only to meet him on the other side of the wall.
"Okay, I get it, holes in the walls, not practical. A bit drafty," he explains, as they exit the house. He follows behind her, nearly skipping to catch up. "But how about this, a doggie door. I can just push right through the door, it couldn't be harder than a wall."
"We don't have a dog," she tries to reason.
"Well, I figured since I was already in the dog house, I could just squeeze on through," he jokes, the glint in his eye meeting her's across at their respective doors.
She scrunches her face at him, a mixture of annoyance and crestfallen hope.
"Kidding…but seriously, how else will our pug get into the house?" He smiles at her, a genuine one that he reserves just for her.
"You could always open the door for it," she suggests, finally giving into the smile that she'd been fighting all day.
"True," he says, both of them getting into the car. "But boring. I'm telling you, I think home improvement is my calling."
She purses her lips with a grin, nodding towards him.
"Yep, that window you replaced, talk about a draft," she teases, and his mouth falls open.
"Jules," he feigns mock hurt, as she starts the car to head back to the office where Gus will likely be waiting for them. "You won't regret this," he says with a cross of his heart.
And just like that, Shawn had found a way back into her heart, and her home.
xxxx
A/N: as always, feedback is appreciated.