Soooo this is my second take at writing a response to this week's episode, because I am still very, very unhappy with my first attempt, to the point where I'm not sure I'll even bother uploading it for you guys to read. Yeah. That unhappy with it.

I finished this late Saturday night after it sitting on my laptop for like two days, barely started. I would have posted it Saturday, because obviously I'm way later than usual when it comes to posting my usual ep-oneshots, but I decided to visit my parents this weekend and, OF COURSE, our wifi inexplicably went down around 5 p.m. Saturday night and my dad had a helluva time getting it to work. O.o

I really was not impressed with this week's episode (is it wrong that I liked Jai more than Ben this week? I feel wrong saying it, but it's true), and if it hadn't been for that tiny "My problem is that I like you" moment between Auggie and Annie, I would have been super disappointed.

This is one of those random times where I actually call attention to the quotes I put at the beginning of each fic/chapter I write. It started out as a little fun thing I borrowed from a favorite ff writer of mine, and it spawned into something I can't do without now. XD

Anyway, the quote for this fic is something I know is/was popular on the radio (I almost never listen to the radio, so I rarely if ever know what's popular) and when I heard the lyrics, the little muse in the back of my mind started freaking out because this just screamed Auggie/Annie to me.

I knew I was going to use it eventually, I just wasn't totally sure where, so I decided to put it on the backburner. Until now.

Spoilers for What Is and What Should Never Be (1.09).

$4$

Oh, half of my heart's got a grip on the situation
Half of my heart takes time
Half of my heart's got a right mind to tell you that
That I can't keep loving you
With half of my heart

- "Half of My Heart," by John Mayer feat. Taylor Swift

"Thanks for putting up with me this week," Annie said, and he felt the subtle dip in the couch as she sat down and it distributed her weight. There was a rustle and the sound of movement which he recognized as her tucking her feet under her, something she always did when she was nervous. "I could have really gotten you in trouble, and I was too busy focusing on my own problems to think about anyone else."

They were back in his apartment, listening to the soft sounds of Mingus piped through his speakers. He had been surprised when she asked him if she could come over- but he didn't miss the hesitation in her voice, expecting him to turn her down. He had a feeling it had a lot to do with Liza- and, technically, he did have a standing date with her. But when Annie asked, he didn't even hesitate saying yes and quickly sent Liza a message that he had to work late and wouldn't be able to meet her at her place.

But Auggie didn't bother stopping the rueful smile that appeared on his face. This was around the fifth or sixth time she had apologized to him tonight, and while every time had been sincere, every time she had also carefully tap-danced around why she had gone all gung-ho solo mission and nearly gotten herself thrown in jail.

He didn't know precisely what had happened, what had caused her to go AWOL, but he had his suspicions. He knew better to voice them, however, because he also knew with equal certainty that she wouldn't take his theories well. She had enough on her plate- he wasn't going to make it worse for her.

"You can stop apologizing now," he said, keeping his tone light and teasing. "I'd be a hell of a hypocrite if I didn't forgive you after everything I put you through a couple of weeks ago."

Annie got quiet, and for a second he wondered if he had done the wrong thing in bringing up Tash. They hadn't really talked about everything that went down during and after Tash and Canada, and they certainly hadn't mentioned anything more about Liza. That hesitating silence after he promised her he'd get rid of Liza the second he gave Joan the information they needed for the leak was a major problem in and of itself.

"I guess that makes us even, huh?" she said quietly, and he had to hold back a sigh of relief. "But you weren't arrested." She settled further in the couch, the guilt and regret settling over her like a heavy blanket.

He grinned again, wry as ever. "A minute or two longer and I would've gotten my ass hauled in, too," he said.

She laughed, but it was small and sounded nothing like her real laugh. Silence stretched between them, and he sensed that tension start to bubble up once more that had never quite dissipated after his op with Tash. "Did you mean what you said today?" she asked, tilting her head he supposed so she could look at him straight on.

Auggie could have feigned stupid, acted as if he didn't know what she was talking about and hoped that she would drop the subject. But he respected Annie, and he knew that ducking the subject would only make the non-situation going on between them more tense.

He turned his head to face her (well, face her as best as he could gauge). "Yes," he said, and he was telling the complete truth. That kind of scared him, because admitting something like that, while simple, had all the markings of crossing into dangerous territory.

Because he did. He liked Annie, and while admitting that much sounded like he was still in junior high, it was serious. He hadn't liked anyone since Tash. He dated women, slept with a few of them, but never truly liked any of them. Liza was a means to end, the most direct way to get at the leak. Tash was the last woman he liked, the last woman he loved…

Until Annie.

Realistically, he's liked Annie since the second she asked about his headphones and not his blindness, but he never thought about it seriously until all of Annie's sneaking around came to light. He trusted her, and he liked her a little more than any reasonable and (mostly) unbiased handler should. If she asked him to commit treason for her, he'd have serious trouble finding reasons to say no.

That was a serious problem. Shit, that was a stop-being-her-handler problem. That was the kind of bias that lead to ex-CIA agents. Or, worse, dead CIA agents.

"I like you, too," she said, and it was so quiet that it took even his sharp ears a second to catch. The tension was gone between them, replaced with something far more serious.

The couch shifted once more under her weight, and it took a second to register that she wasn't getting up, but instead moving closer. His eyebrows furrowed, and he knew his eyes were moving back and forth, trying to search her face even though all he saw was black.

He felt her breath on his face for half a second- sweet, tinged with the bitterness from the Corona she had earlier- and then he stupidly realized what was happening. By that point, it was too late, because her soft mouth was against his and he was fairly certain he had lost the ability to think clearly.

Annie pulled back before he could respond- something his body was strongly suggesting he fix- and rested her forehead against his. "You're my best friend," she said, repeating the sentence that managed to make his heart seize a little every time. "Thank you for putting up with me lately."

She leaned back, breaking their distance and sitting back against the armrest. "Anytime, babydoll," he said easily, trying to conjure up that typical banter. He ruined it pretty easily by licking his lips, because he needed to commit her taste to memory- cherry Chapstick and Corona and something sweet and tangy that was all Annie.

Auggie didn't know if she saw that (he kind of hoped she didn't) but she chuckled and nudged his hip with her foot, stretching out her legs and depositing them on his lap. "In the future, let's not keep each other out of the loop," she said, and he heard the smile in her voice. "Our bosses are one thing."

He laughed a little and squeezed one of her ankles gently, resisting the desire to trace her long, lean legs up until he finally reached her shorts and kissed her the way he'd been wanting to for the last couple months. "No more keeping the other out of the loop," he agreed.

The tension between them wasn't gone forever, but he knew if they kept going at this rate, it could turn into something much more beneficial and much more interesting.

$4$

I'm happy I managed another Auggie point of view- I hardly ever write him, simply because I am a girl and it's easier for me to write Annie. XD The ending's passable, but I usually have some trouble tacking down my muse to find an ending that my brain finds acceptable. So this'll do for now.

Sorry if this seems half-assed. It's about 90-percent better than my first attempt, even if it's still not quite up to snuff when it comes to my standards. :/ I've got my fingers crossed that I won't have this much trouble this week.

It's certainly better than the first ep-oneshot I wrote in response to this week's episode, which was fairly depressing (even for my standards). I'm not totally sure I'm even going to bother posting it. I may read over it once more and then decide later this week.