So I heard this song awhile back and I immediately thought of Cal and Gillian. I've been mulling over the lyrics, trying to make the idea flow into a half-decent "story" of sorts. I finally decided last night to only use three lines from the song, but those three lines seem to summarize their relationship to a T, particularly after everything that happened in season 3. My plan is for this fic to be written in 3 parts - one for each line. I also think all of them will be written from Gillian's perspective, but that could change depending on how it all ultimately unfolds in my head. This first chapter obviously elaborates on the first line from the lyrics I'm using.

Disclaimer - not mine. The song isn't mine either. If either were, I highly doubt I'd be writing fan-fiction in my spare time...

"I said, we've been walking a thin line.
You've got one hand on the devil baby and one hand in mine.
But don't let go. No, it's not too late you know."

Where We Belong - Thriving Ivory

Sometimes I wonder how I could be so foolish, so stupid to let it happen. I honestly tried not to because I knew my heart would only end up broken when all was said and done. That's how things always ended, it seemed. Or rather, that's how I always saw the endings. I didn't want to be one of them, not when it came to this. This was too important to me. He was too important to me.

I created that line for us long before now – when I was still married to Alec. At the time, it was simply to protect our friendship and our business partnership. I remember the day Cal and I had that conversation. It had just stopped raining outside, but because it was summer, the air had become thick and oppressive, not cool and refreshing like after a spring rain. Perhaps that'd been a sign. Maybe if I'd paid more attention to the weather that day I wouldn't be where I am right now. But I didn't, so damn it, here I am, reflecting on that day.

We'd just finishing moving into our offices and setting up all our many belongings. I walked down the hall to his office, my mind reeling at the idea of the conversation I was about to have with him. I was doing the right thing, or so I'd thought at the time. I poked my head around his office door, rapping gently on it with my knuckles to let him know I was there.

"No point in even knockin', Foster," he grinned at me. "I could hear ya comin' all the way from your office with those heels you're wearing." He was sitting in his chair with his feet propped up on his desk, ankles crossed. His head was tilted to the side, a habit I'd long since come to learn that meant he was thinking – or reading – something. That was the look I knew had to go, when it came to us anyway.

I laughed lightly and smiled, stepping through the doorway. "I'll make a note of it then," I said, acting like I was writing something on my hand. "Wear stealthier shoes."

"But no so stealthy that you can scare the hell outta me, yeah?"

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "I want to talk to you about something, Cal." I took a deep breath, sitting down in the chair in front of his desk.

"Bloody hell. We haven't even officially opened the Group yet and I'm already in trouble with the boss?" He was mocking me. Normally I'd play along with his silly antics to humor him, but I wasn't in the mood. I couldn't be, not with the conversation that was about to unfold.

"I'm an equity partner, Cal, not your boss," I corrected him, my lips forming a thin line.

"Right then, not the time to joke apparently," he replied, dropping his feet off the desk and sitting up straight in his chair. "What can I do ya for, Foster?" he asked, looking me straight in the eyes.

"Well, I've been thinking about something. I think we need to set some boundaries to make this work between us." I could see I'd clearly gotten his attention. He simply looked at me, expecting me to elaborate. "I know you sometimes dismiss my 'psychobabble,' as you call it, but I think we need to decide between what's appropriate for us to tell each other and what's not."

"You mean draw a line between you and me for when I'm not allowed to read you?" he asked me slowly, deliberately choosing his words.

I frowned. "Well, no. I was thinking more along the lines for when we both shouldn't read each other. If we're going to be working together, it's inevitable that we're going to see entirely too much and I don't think that's healthy for us, for our partnership."

"So you mean draw a line between you and me for when I'm not allowed to read you?" he repeated.

"Fine, Cal. If that's how you want to think about it - then yes." This was going worse than I'd expected. I needed him to understand that it wasn't just about me, not just something to make me feel better. "But you forget that I see things too. I may not be the expert you are, but you aren't the only one with areas of expertise, Cal."

His eyebrow quirked upward. "So where are we drawing this line, Gill?"

I knew by his tone of voice that he wasn't angry, but he wasn't entirely thrilled about the whole thing either. "I think the most important place we need to draw a line is between our personal and professional lives, Cal. I know we can't really turn off our abilities to read everything, but that doesn't mean we have to say everything out loud either. If we did, not only would we drive each other insane, the Group would never survive. And you know it, Cal."

He thought for a moment, then nodded. "I guess you're right, Foster. I have no doubt it's gonna drive me batty sometimes, but overall, it probably is for the best."

Honestly, I hadn't expected him to agree so easily, but I sure as hell was relieved. "I promise, Cal, this isn't just for me. There will be times when you're not going to want me to push an issue, so I won't. Just like there'll be times when I'm not going to want you to push either. If we really need to talk about whatever's bothering us, we'll bring it up ourselves, okay?"

He grinned, "Got it. I'll go ahead and tell ya, if it's something to do with all the accounting nonsense, spare me the details, Foster."

I knew then we were on the same page. He really understood why it was important for both of us. And if he thought anything more than that, he wasn't letting on, which is what I'd hoped for most. I returned his grin. "Not unless I absolutely need to, Cal."

"Brilliant! Fancy a drink, love? We should celebrate our first unofficial day in the office, don't ya think?"

So what do you think? Continue? Abandon ship? Gotta click below to let me know! :)