Spare Time

I.

She sat down on a bench and closed her eyes, allowing the peace and quiet of the empty church wash over her troubled soul.

It had been a tough week at work. They were currently investigating a particularly nasty case involving child abuse, and things like that always set her on edge.

When they'd finally found the little girl's dead body Jane had turned pale and all but fled from the crime scene. She couldn't blame him for that.

Bowing her head she whispered a silent prayer for the little girl.

And then one for Jane and his family too.

II.

"Why, aunt Reese – someone might think you're trying to live vicariously through me."

"What? No, I just… Stop messing with me, Annabeth!"

Annie chuckled. Her aunt spluttering at the other end of the line was always priceless.

"Aren't you jealous because I currently have a boyfriend and you don't?"

"Who says I don't?"

"Nice try. You can't fool me though."

"I don't know why I bother to call."

Her niece smiled affectionately. "Because you miss me and my dad."

"I do."

"You should come and visit us. I might even let you meet David – what do you say about that?"

III.

It was six a.m. of a beautiful Saturday morning, and the riverside walk was completely deserted.

That was one of the reasons why she'd taken to jog this early. She got to enjoy her route in solitude, something that helped her to relax and clear her mind.

She didn't exercise just in order to keep fit, or as a good training for all those times when she had to tackle a suspect. As weird as it sounded, it was her way to keep things in perspective.

Beside her the river flowed quietly, and that wasn't going to change anytime soon.

IV.

She really hated when things spun out of control.

A stray bullet hurting one of her team members. Jane pulling one of his crazy stunts and then leaving her to deal with the fallout. Red John toying with their lives as if they were his favorite puppets.

All those things left her in dire need of a way to release her anger, lest she would just explode.

She'd never liked guns per se, and yet the shooting range was the perfect place for her to vent.

As the bullets hit the target she finally felt her anger slowly draining away.

V.

"Seriously, Lisbon?"

She rolled her eyes in annoyance. "You invited yourself in. It's only fair that I get to choose the movie we're watching."

"Why Labyrinth?"

"You're the mind reader, you tell me."

Jane tapped his finger lightly on his lips. "I guess you had a crush on Jareth as a teenager. And you probably identified yourself with Sarah – stranded at home with your younger brothers while all other girls went out on dates."

"I think I'm going to choose another movie now."

"You don't have to. I might even be your Jareth for an evening."

"Just shut up, Jane!"