The Line

Disclaim: I do not own Lie to Me. This is not exactly a story, at least in the traditional sense. They're just some scenes on my mind which are pushing me to take them down. By the way, I'm not a native English speaker and, as you see, I'm writing to practise it. Please help me pick out the mistakes so that I can improve my English. I'll appreciate that. Danke! :D

"You okay?" he asks, perfectly calm in the surface, but he still feels so hard to hold back the emotion devouring his vulnerable heart which trembles when he witnesses tears trickling down her beautiful face.

"I'm all right." she shoots him a weak smile, her voice trailing off when another wave of tears fills the corner of her blue eyes.

"I'm sorry about all the secrets, love." he observes her reaction cautiously, feeling liquid in his own eyes. He stretches out his hand, wanting to wipe away the evil tears tainting her beauty, but stops in the air when it's only inches from her face. He cannot cross the bloody line which they've tried so hard to keep. He flinches at his own cowardice. He IS a coward! He condemns himself deep in mind.

"Cal?" her voice pulls him back into reality.

He forces a smile, putting his hesitant hand on her shoulder and beginning rubbing it. "Sorry, love. I didn't mean it. I just cannot bear seeing you hurt."

"Cal," he likes the way his name is called from her precious lips, which gives the name much more meaning than it really has." We both know quite well that it's not necessary for you to take all the risks…to… go through all the sufferings."

"Of course not,"he sighs deeply, "unless they are coming to you". She turns pale on hearing the words. Sadness, surprise, guilt are written on all over her face, but there is still something that he isn't quite sure about. Is that…nah, impossible. She respects that line.

"Fancy a quick bite?" he asks, clearly knowing that she is not in the mood of dining right now. "Sorry, Cal, maybe next time?"

"All right then…I'll drive you home." He offers with determination. She looks into his grey green eyes shining with hope and nods.

The night is dead dark and quiet, with only a few people hanging around at a leisurely pace. Cal's car penetrates through the endless darkness as if to tear the night into half with incredible force. The road seems unbelievably long this moment. It extends as far as the eye can see, losing itself in the invisible distance.

Within the car, neither of the two breaks the silence spreading among them which is in no ways comfortable. Lightman holds the steering wheel tightly, his jaw clenched. With something occupying his hands, he could be discouraged, at least for now, from pulling her into his hug, which he wants, right now, in the worst possible way. She rests her head on the window, lost in some deep thoughts. He bites his lower lip and decides to set the ball rolling. Seeing her like this, he is better off being a dead man.

"Look, love, I know that you…love…B…Burns…but he's left and you need to move on…""Cal, that you can read people like a book…doesn't mean you can understand all the emotions. Just…just stay off this, all right? I will fix this myself…would you please try…to mind your own business? I'm fine, really, you can have my word on it." She makes a small smile, pretending to have got rid of all the sorrow. No wrinkles around the eyes…it's not a genuine smile. She's faking it, she's lying…his face goes down.

"Wanna fool me?" Her smile fades away, with the upper eyelid drawn down under her oblique brows. Of course he will unmask her so called happiness. Of course he will see through the lie. After all, that's what he does for a living…

"Sorry, Foster…I…I shouldn't…do that…sorry…"his voice is full of guilt, which is pushing him to the verge of despair. He raises his right hand and wipes a strand of hair away from her eyes. He chuckles to himself, "You know what? You are even more gorgeous now." She didn't respond for a minute or so, making him worry whether he's made another stupid mistake. "What's on your mind?" He asks cautiously.

"You know, Cal, the line we've been talking about…I think we'd better keep it. It's…good for both of us…"

"Why? Why cannot you just stop mentioning the bloody hell line?" He's literally screaming, but shortly regrets for the outburst of emotion, when he notices a slice of fear lingering in her eyes.

"Sorry, love, sorry…"

"You're clear about what we do, right? That we can detect all the lies makes the world too real for us to bear. If…if…we involve personal feelings in the business…I don't think we can still remain …objective when we face a case…you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I got that…"he whispers the words through his teeth. "Just by the way…it's yours."

"What?" she's surprised. Cal completely lost her. "The damned line…it's yours. I 'respect' it because it's you who set it, not because I agree with what it means."

"Cal," she swallows hard as if she had a lump in her throat. "You still cannot see the point here, can you?" She turns her head towards the window.

It's raining heavily outside, which neither of them has ever noticed. Just as she is beginning to find the ride long, the car screeched to a halt, almost jolting her out of the seat. "What are you…"she didn't even finish whatever she intends to say when the sight of a blank-looked Cal strikes her heart. "What do you want?" she asks sadly as if talking to herself. He remains silent for a split second.

"I want this…"