Hey guys, this is my first Sue Thomas fanfic, I usually write HP (Harry Potter) stories, also this is my first on , so I hope you enjoy, and this is the first chapter going. Not sure how many chapters yet, but we'll see what we come up with. Please read and review (that's my favortie part to any fanfic writing)
Susan Thomas had a problem. Actually she had two problems. First off, she missed her old team in D.C. dearly. Tara, and her computer smarts, Bobby and his constant use of the word 'shelia', it was what first tipped her off to his being from Australia. D - Dimitrius, the way his eyes lit up whenever mention of a tough case came their way, and Myles. There wasn't something specific she missed about Myles, she just missed him, the lightness he brought when the team was together, gathered on a front to bring him down. But most of all she missed Jack and Lucy. She missed living with Lucy, working in the same office as her and the laughs they share. Jack was a different story. She was sure that she had been in love with him before she left for New York, and maybe still was, and Lucy, the whole team really had been sure that he reciprocated the feelings, but it hadn't ever really worked out. Every date she'd been on in the past few years had been filled with inadequacies. She missed they way he looked at her, and she also just missed the way he sort of signed, and tried to enunciate more pronounced at the same time.
However, now that the people in her team in New York were starting to question her abilities, she felt the time was right to make her way back to D.C. and try to talk Garret into letting her back into the fold.
"What do you think Levi? Should we phone him?"
The golden retriever barked once and placed his paw on her knee. He looked at her with golden brown eyes and she knew he missed them all as well, maybe even more so than she did, as they were the first friends either of them had in D.C. and having been abused as a puppy he had taken to them as instantly as she had.
"Okay then Levi, we shall call him."
It was Friday night, and Sue had been spending most of those alone. Her apartment was cold and gleaper than the one in D.C. was, mostly due to the absence of Lucy and her friends, but it just didn't feel like home. It wasn't late, and she thought that it was still early enough to try and call Garret, see if he would let her loose in the old bull-pen with the crew.
Dialing the number for his private line within the F.B.I. office in D.C. she watched as the little flash signal on her reader flashed as it rang.
"Hello, this is Special Agent Ted Garret." The letters flashed as he spoke into the phone.
"Hi Ted. It's Sue. Sue Thomas." She paused and Levi barked.
"Hi Sue, and Levi. To what do I owe this auspicious phone call."
"I just... wanted to call and say hello..." She paused... she hoped he wouldn't know that she was lying.
"Well you've said that already so I assume that this wasn't your only reason for calling." Sue sometimes wondered if working at the F.B.I. didn't have it's drawbacks when someone could tell you were lying.
"I know it's only been a year, but things aren't really working out here in New York and I was wondering if you were able to accept me back, there in D.C.?" She was hesitant in asking, afraid that he might say no, or that there wasn't space available at this present moment.
Nothing came up on her machine showing what he was saying. It was a few moments before Sue started thinking that he had just simply hung up on her. "Ted? Are you still there?"
"Yes Sue, I'm still here." She let go a breath that she hadn't really known she was holding in.
"Sue, I think that it would be a great idea if you came back. We've missed you here, and Levi as well. But there are certain channels that this needs to go through."
"I know that, but I didn't want to go through them and have the team here know that I put in for a request to leave them. I may work for the F.B.I., but I'm still a coward." There was a blankness on the screen, Sue hoped that he was laughing instead of anything else. "I hope you have said anything because you are laughing."
"Yes Sue, I am laughing. I think we have enough room here for you and Levi. Of course if you go through the right channels."
Sue was so excited that she started laughing, the flood of emotions in here where threatening to overwhelm her. "Okay! I will do those first thing Monday morning. Oh, and could you not tell the team, it would be a wonderful surprise."
"Okay, well I'll be expecting your transfer request. Goodbye Sue."
"Goodbye." Sue hung up her phone, and Levi jumped into her lap. "I know boy, I am excited to be going back to them as well." Levi jumped down and rolled onto his back and just looked at her. This had been one of his habits lately, rolling over. It amused Sue, especially when he stayed that way for long periods of time. She walked up, more excited for a Friday night than she had been in a long time.
Come Monday morning, the speech she had planned in her head was fresh and memorized, and she was feeling largely confident that no one would really miss her. It just wasn't the same. She had been told that in New York things would be the same, tolerant about her deafness, but it wasn't many people turned away from her when speaking to her, or they wouldn't look at her period, when talking to her. Walking into her supervisors office she sat down, the confidence in her speech faltering a little as she always felt diminished in the towering mans presence.
"Hello ... What brings you here ... In the ... -ing." She could fill in the blanks easily enough, but it was a little frustrating when even her supervisor didn't always stay facing her when he spoke to her. He sat down and finally looked at her long enough for her to read a full sentence.
"I am here to put in an official request for transfer."
He didn't say anything, which kind of worried Sue, but she knew if he was anything, James Bradford was not talkative. He wounded his staff with silent stares, and hard glances, and the way criminals seemed to shrink in his presence. "Well Thomas, that comes as little surprise. I've felt for a few weeks now that your mind and thoughts were someplace different."
"Yes sir," She didn't mention where, or that a few weeks she had been thinking for a few weeks of asking for a transfer. "They have been."
"Well okay then. Fill out the forms, and I'll sign them straight away." Levi, placed his head on Sues knee and looked up at her. She stood up to leave and was nearly at the door when Levi nudged her with his head and she turned and saw that Bradford was standing and speaking. " ... wondering where you were applying for?"
"Oh, I was hoping to go back to D.C." She turned and left, and just as she did she thought she saw her boss give a small smile.
The transfer request took a few weeks to process and once it was official she started to pack up her belongings and decided that the person she should call first was Charlie. It seemed fitting that the first friend she made in D.C. was the first person she she let know that she was coming back. Once he got over the fact that she was coming back he agreed to keep her things at the garage until she found a place to live again, he even agreed to send Troy with the truck to collect her, Levi and her things. The Saturday before she was to start back at work Troy showed up with the old red truck and they packed her belongings into the back and placed Levi into the cab with no problems and set off for the trip to D.C. They signed only briefly as the highway was congested and Troy rarely had time to look at her hands, as he was only learning to read lips.
Once they were in D.C. they stopped at the garage and dropped off her things. Troy asked which hotel she was planning to stay at, but at the last moment, she had a change of heart and asked Troy to drop her off at her old apartment. She and Lucy had been keeping contact since she left, and so she knew that Lucy had kept that old apartment and lived there, so she asked to be dropped off there.
"I am glad you're back." Troy signed as she got out of the truck with Levi.
"Me too. And thank you Troy, it was nice seeing you again." She signed back and shut the door. "See you later Troy."
Slightly nervous, she walked up to the door buzzer and pressed the call button for the old apartment. She noticed that the name on the plate still read Dotson/Thomas. Smiling at that she looked down at Levi until, nudged her leg, indicating that Lucy had answered back. "Hi Lucy..." She called tentatively. "It's Sue." Levi jumped up at her then moved to the door. She walked to it and pulled it open. Walking the familiar route to her old place. Once the elevator door opened she saw Lucy standing there waiting for her. Her faced widened into a smile of it's own accord and even Levi seemed excited to see their old friend and roommate once again. They hugged for several minutes, before their tears forced them back into the apartment.
"Oh my gosh. I am so excited to see you guys." Lucy both hurriedly signed and spoke. They sat on the couch, Levi between them, his head in Lucy's lap, gently being stroked.
"Me too, I am so happy to see you."
"What are you doing here? What happened in New York?"
Sue hesitated in telling her, but since going back to the bull-pen was less than 48 hours away, and 24 of them were Sunday, so she knew that her secret was almost safe.
"I will tell you... only if you promise to keep a secret." Sue, knew that Lucy loved a good secret, and this one was going to be so exciting for both of them, she hoped that Lucy had the strength to keep it in, for at least an hour into the work day.
"I can't promise anything, but I'll certainly try."
Sue nodded and smiled, "I am coming back to work with the team." She looked down, embarrassed at what Lucy might say.
Sue felt Lucy reach over and pat her on the shoulder and Sue looked up at her, feeling her cheek burn with color as she looked at the excited look on her friends face. "That is so wonderful... who else knows?"
"No one. Well Garret does, because he said I could come back, and Levi. NOt even Charlie and Troy know, and they brought me here.
Lucy reach over Levi and hugged Sue, "Well as long as you are back in the bull-pen after like five minutes, I don't think I'll be able to last that long." Sue laughed and watched as Lucy did as well.
"Where are you going to live?" Sue watched as Lucy's eyebrow rose, knowing the body language as asking a question.
"I'm not sure yet. I actually just got here, so I haven't done any looking. Truth be told, I haven't even started looking yet."
"Sue," she noticed that Lucy had got this super excited look on her face, and Sue thought she might know what was coming. Much as should could try to deny it, she had been looking to ask Lucy if she could move back in with her, but was concerned that Lucy might not want. Again, she could hide the smile that spread to her face. "How would it be, if you and Levi moved back in with me?"
"Lucy, are you sure. I've noticed that your couch is completely hair free. If Levi came back, his hair would be everywhere again." Levi raised his head and looked at Sue in an offended way.
"I am completely fine with Levi hair over everything." Lucy smiled and clapped her hands and Sue saw Levi bark, it was just as Sue had planned. This was one of the things that Sue was most looking forward too, moving back in with her best friend.
The rest of the night was spent in conversation, and plans for the bringing back of Sue's things, and how on earth was Lucy going to be able to keep this secret. Sue spent the night on the hide-a-bed, and Levi slept beside her. Troy and Charlie helped, so that the guys from the team would be completely unawares.
Come Monday morning Sue was as nervous as she was the day she first started at the F.B.I. Even more nervous than when she first joined the bull-pen with Jack. She got dressed in her best suit, even brushed Levi's fur so he looked his best, though it was difficult as he kept rolling onto his back. Apparently it was nervousness as well as happiness, to coax him into that position.
She walked in, acting the spy so as not to come in contact with her team, they got their security passes and took the stairs to Garrets office, so she wouldn't meet anyone until she was going back into the bull-pen. Glancing at the clock in her supervisors office she noticed that it was half past eight, and she hoped that Lucy was able to contain herself, and the secret of their new teammate.
Jack Hudson was not having a good Monday. though by no means was any monday, a good monday, this one was especially bad. He'd had this odd feeling of dread all weekend, which he couldn't place. They had been told late last week that they would be getting a new teammate, and the usual bet between them wasn't resolved. No one was able to learn who this new person was, not even Tara the computer savvy genius, could figure it out. He wasn't interested in a new teammate. He thought the team was a good as they were, except of course for the absence of Sue and Levi. Though Jack hasn't told anyone the truth of much he missed them, especially Sue. The desk was still there, and sometimes, when they were working late into the night, or not really doing anything at all, he'll look over and swear he see's her smiling face, but when he looks back for a second look she's gone.
It had hurt him to watch her go, even more to know that he had let her go, but he couldn't change the past. Sighing, he took a drink of his coffee and sat at his desk waiting for Garret to bring the new guy in. He tuned out the chatter around him, only slightly noticing that Lucy wasn't speaking to anyone, but keeping her head down, and avoiding eye contact with everyone in the room.
"Okay everyone listen up," Ted Garret walked into the room, the new recruit strangely absent. "Your new teammate is here, I am sure you are all excited to have them. I know I am."
Jack wasn't really listening anymore, he tuned them out until his boss did something so incredibly odd, that Jack stood up and question his sanity. He whistled. He noticed smiles spread to his friends faces, and they all seemed to be looking down. Jack looked down as well, and was shocked to see Levi standing there, beside Garrets legs and another pair of legs he wasn't ashamed to say he recognized.
The room erupted into cheers and shouts of "Hey Sue." As he stood stock still, his body froze, and his heart dropped, and sped up at the same time. His mind was suddenly blank and running and his body would do as his brain commanded and join the rest of the team in going to hug her.
"Sue is going to be our new teammate." Garret shook her hand and the rest of the team enveloped her with hugs and shakes. But he stood as still as a tree in no wind, not moving a muscle. He couldn't seem to process the fact the the woman he loved was once again back into his world. It was beyond comprehension that she was back in D.c. and back working with them. Sitting back down seemed the only he was capable of doing, resting his head in his hands he looked down at his desk and didn't look back up until a shadow crossed his desk and fell across his head. Looking up at the shadow caster he saw that Sue was standing beside him smiling. Nervousness flooding his body he stood up and found that he was standing to close to her for comfort. He was barely comfortable being in the same room as her, but the mere inches between them gave him no comfort, or no illusion that she was anymore comfortable as he was.
"Hi Jack." She held out her hand to shake his, and he took it. The contact was safe and yet alarming at the feelings he felt at the innocent contact, as they were anything but innocent. Visions of pulling her into his arms and kissing her with reckless abandon, but all he could manage was a stutter and a prolonged handshake.
"Sue Thomas."