Title: Forever, Whenever.

Author: Roguie/ SunSpecOps/ Danae Bowen

Fandom: Eureka

Genre: Romance, Friendship, Pure and utter Fluff

Characters: Jo/Zane

Rating: T

Spoilers: The lot of it, up to and including One Giant Leap

Summary: Eureka can be a very lonely place on Christmas Eve as Jo finds out, walking the quiet streets long after her friends have left for the holidays. She doesn't believe in Christmas miracles, but will a poorly timed surprise change her mind?

Disclaimer: Eureka obviously doesn't belong to me, I just like to borrow the characters and mutate their inner voices. Please don't sue; my house is small, my car is useless and my dogs are pains in the arse, but they're all I have.

A/N: This is for all of you that have stuck with me through My Soul To Keep. A Christmas treat, posted early at your requests. This was written with all of you in mind in the hopes that it would bring you each a small smile as you have done for me so many times through your reviews. Merry Christmas!

A/N2: Reviews inspire my muse; I find Jo and Zane like a drug to her, but if they're the drug, reviews are the devil's whisper putting that needle in her arm. Please don't leave me hanging, and I promise in return that I won't leave you hanging.

~~~E~~~

She hadn't returned to Eureka by choice, but by the necessity to help with the disaster that had become the Astraeus launch. As such, when all had been returned to place, she hadn't had the will to leave again; it had been hard enough to do with Zane strapped into a spaceship, knowing he was going to be gone. It was a different decision when he was leaning against her car, watching as she threw her bags into the backseat, programming her GPS for a place far away. Their goodbyes hadn't changed, however, and rather than finding herself behind the wheel ten minutes later, she found herself in Zane's bed, wrapped in his arms, bodies flushed with heat, slippery with sweat as they came together in a passion so heated that her brain short circuited and afterwards they'd slept until morning.

The next day had resulted in the same, and the day after that. It was fairly mindless, a release of built up stress, tension, of the all around crap they had to deal with on a daily basis. They rarely talked, sometimes shared coffee, occasionally shared dinner, but each day they shared their bodies, blissfully losing themselves in sensation until reality settled in over them with its cold knowledge. Life had to go on, Jo had to either stay or leave, Zane had to accept her decision, and they had to step back and figure out where they were going, together or apart.

When December approached, bringing with it snow and ice, effectively cutting off the way in and out of town by ground, it solidified the decision Jo had been struggling to make when she could no longer drive her Subaru down the blocked roads. It was not a courageous way to get out of the choice she had made, but the results were the same. Still, the damage had been done, Zane was not the type that could handle the teasing back that he'd handed out, and rather than grow closer to Jo throughout her necessary goodbyes, he'd distanced himself, wrapping his heart in a protective layer, ensuring that when she did disappear down the road he wouldn't be half as hurt as he'd been expecting. He'd turned within himself, growing quieter as the days grew shorter, speaking to her less and less, finding comfort in her body but not her company. Something weighed heavily upon him, but he never voiced his thoughts and Jo never asked.

Which is how she found herself alone on Christmas Eve, walking the quiet streets of Eureka as the snow fell in heaps, wishing she was anywhere but there. When Carter and Allison flew out with the kids to visit his family, she'd forced a smile to her lips and promised that of course she'd check in on SARAH while they were gone. When Fargo and Holly had flown out to visit her family, she'd nodded solemnly and promised that of course she'd keep an eye on Global Dynamics while they were gone. When Grace and Henry had packed up to visit her family, she'd sighed and wished them the best. When Zane flashed her his trademark grin, tossed his bag on the GD helicopter, the last to use its services for personal use, he told her he'd see her soon and left without a backward glance, and she'd had to fight back the tears. Eureka could be a very lonely place during the holidays, the only one of her friends left in town being Vincent, and only because his family had come to visit him. Now, with the roads shut down, the helicopters grounded and even Virtual Vincent offline from the flickering power caused by the oncoming storm, Jo wrapped her arms around herself, shivering in the darkness.

She sighed heavily, trudging through the heavy snow to her new house, finished just days prior. A few things needed a bit of finesse, the construction crew too eager to get out of the snow and weather, to get home to their families and friends for the smaller details to have been wrapped up, but it was nothing she couldn't live with a for a few weeks. Okay, so her front door didn't lock, but no one worried about that in Eureka. The AI was offline, but Fargo had promised to have it up and running the moment he got back. A few other details needed checking into, including the power fluctuation that had her house currently lit up like a firework on her otherwise dark street, but she could cope with all of that. As long as no one blew it up, burned it down, or otherwise deprived her of the one place she could find comfort and escape from it all, she could cope with anything.

The front door closed behind her, but the click that would normally accompany it sealing into place was non-existent, forcing her to shake her head. In any other town… But it didn't matter. She moved silently to her kitchen, putting on the kettle to boil water for hot chocolate before moving through out her house, repeatedly flipping switches until most rooms powered down, leaving her with the glow of the fire in her living room, the blinking lights on her tree, and the fluorescent light over her oven in the kitchen. Finally, she sighed, softly; if she was going to spend Christmas alone, at the very least she'd do it in comfort.

She stripped off the suit that clung to her body like a second skin, choosing instead to spend the evening in a pair of low hipped sweat pants and a tank top. She sighed a breath of relief when her hair came out of it's ponytail, falling down around her shoulders in a soft veil. She loved her job, she truly did, but sometimes she missed the quiet relaxation of the life of a small town deputy. At that thought she snorted delicately, bouncing down her staircase and into the kitchen to retrieve a mug and fill it with water and hot chocolate, a favourite treat for the holidays. Nothing had been quiet about her life as a deputy, but still, it was nothing compared to the day to day of Global Dynamics.

A quick flurry of her fingers had quiet Christmas carols piping through the sound system she had insisted be installed before the crews left on holiday. No lock on the door and power surges she could cope with, no music, that was another story entirely.

It was with a book in hand that she settled into the corner of her sofa, losing herself in the story contained within the pages. The warmth of the heated chocolate flowed through her, the flicker of her fireplace and the Christmas lights comforted her, and her head rested against the back of the sofa as the hour grew late and the small words on the thin pages grew bleary.

Because everyone had flown out early this year, an attempt to circumvent the weather and prevent everyone's Christmas from being ruined, her tree was loaded with presents that had yet to be delivered. Carter, Allison, Fargo, Vincent, Henry, Grace, the children - she smiled softly as she looked at the pile of gaily wrapped boxes. If she didn't think too much on it, it would almost seem as though her Christmas day would be filled with loved ones piling into her house to collect their bounty. Those were the Christmases she missed, the ones she loved, where you had to fight for a spot to sit, winning the wishbone on the turkey was a measure of pride, where children laughed and the eyes of adults grew misty as gift wrapping flew off boxes in strips and she'd be the one left to clean up when it was over.

Her eyes trailed to several boxes set aside from the others, her presents for Zane. They were wrapped carefully, stacked gently, and waited patiently for the man to arrive to claim them. She'd not expected him to fly out this year; his mom generally vacationed over the holidays, no one was ever sure where his dad was calling home, and no one else ever seemed to matter to him. Their Christmases before the time shift were spent together and with their friends, the day itself not as important as their yearly re-watch of black and white holiday movies, their mock battle over hot chocolate with or without marshmallows, the quiet love they made when the day grew long and the lights dim. Last Christmas in this timeline had left something to be said for their relationship, and though they'd not yet defined what they were to each other, Jo had thought, just for a moment, this Christmas would be different. Not that she minded being alone; after living at SARAH for the better part of a year, Jo was grateful for her own, quiet company. Still, having Zane around would have been nice.

She didn't notice when her eyes closed or the light sleep that overtook her. Somewhere in the warmth and comfort of the night, she'd failed to make her way to her bedroom, so when her clock clicked to ten past two in the morning and a cool chill breezed over her warm flesh, her eyes flew open instantly. She froze where she lay as she listened to the rustle in her hallway, the drip of melting snow on her tile floor, the door closing without latching once more. Using just sound she tracked the progress of the intruder through her small house, the pause at the staircase leading to her bedroom, feet shuffling into her living room. She knew the moment he stood in front of her Christmas tree, four feet from her head, and she opened her eyes warily.

His parka was red and large, hood covering his head from behind. His hands were gloved in leather as they reached towards the presents she'd so lovingly laid out for her friends. He wore jeans and black socks, obviously having removed his boots at the door, that small piece of knowledge bringing a frown to her lips as she sat up, careful to make no noise. She cocked her head in the dim light as she watched him shiver, running his hands up his arms as he moved closer to the fire, the only thing keeping her from pinning him to the floor her odd interest in his obvious comfort in her home.

When she was sure she had the upper hand, track pants, tank top and bare feet aside, she cleared her voice softly, forcing the dark figure to jump in surprise.

"Jesus, JoJo, you're gonna give a guy a stroke one of these days!"

Waking up to an intruder in her home hadn't surprised her. Watching as he made his way through her belongings hadn't astounded her. His voice, however, froze her in place, her jaw dropping in amazement.

"Zane? What the hell?"

He made a small sound of frustration before unzipping his parka and dropping the coat into the corner by the fireplace to dry out. His jeans were plastered to his legs from the dampness left behind by reams of cold snow. His shirt was much the same, the weather having soaked through even the thickness of his over sized coat. He shivered unmercifully by the fire as he struggled to get warm, and yet still his blue eyes danced as he grinned at her.

"And a Merry Christmas to you, too. You make me so glad I just walked ten miles in snow more than a foot deep to get here."

She couldn't clear the confusion from her eyes as she stared at him, still not believing. "But… you left. Two days ago!"

He shrugged. "Needed to stop and see my mom before she left, and I had something to pick up. I actually meant to be back this morning, but they grounded all non essential flights in this area."

She blinked, and then a full on thousand watt smile broke over her face, her dark eyes lighting with pleasure. "You meant to be here?"

"Yeah," he couldn't help it, the corners of his lips tugged upwards at the pleasure his words had brought. "You thought I'd gone for the holiday?"

She nodded slowly, carefully guarding her eyes, never sure what he saw in their depths.

He moved easily across the small room to her sofa, kneeling down in front of her, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. "You didn't say a word."

She shrugged quietly, twisting her blanket in her fingers as she broke away from his gaze. "Wouldn't really have been fair."

His smile was gentle, his finger brushing slowly across her cheek. "What do you think I would have said? C'mon, Jo, I think I've been pretty obvious, don't you agree? Do you have any idea how much I paid Doc Baker to call me whenever you looked like you were packing your car? How many times I had to cut out in the middle of something I was working on to make sure I caught you before you left?" He chuckled softly. "The only reason I flew out when I did was because I knew there was no way you were getting out of town while I was gone." He lowered his head to hers, resting forehead to forehead. "I'm sorry you thought I'd left you alone on Christmas."

She shrugged softly, offering no words as she struggled to process what he was telling her.

"If it makes you feel any better, I think I terrified at least two pilots when they refused to fly me back. Even called Mansfield to see if I could get a DoD chopper ride, but apparently I don't have the pull others in this town have with him." He grinned, moving onto the sofa, pulling her into his arms, ignoring her squeak as his damp clothing chilled her warm skin.

"Zane, you're freezing!"

"Mhmm, and you're going to help me warm up." He lifted a teasing eyebrow, stealing a quick kiss from her, holding her firmly as she tried to escape. "It's only fair, after I had to hitch a ride with complete strangers, only to be dropped off ten miles out of town and had to hike my way here to you."

At that, Jo laughed out loud. "I don't believe a word of it."

Zane frowned at her, his blue eyes twinkling mischievously. "God's honest truth, I swear."

"Please, no one in their right minds would stop for you hitchhiking. They'd take one look at you and hit the gas." She leaned her head on his shoulder, grinning, head spinning as the fact he'd wanted to be here with her finally hit home.

He held her close, grateful as her body heat flowed into his chilled flesh, warming him even while she began to shiver. He pulled the blanket that had fallen onto the floor up and over them, giving them one last small measure of comfort before he settled back, continuing with the teasing tone in his voice. "No one said they were sane, JoJo; I could've ended up dead, you know, and instead ended up freezing my ass off for hours." He lowered his voice, leaning his head back, breathing softly. "There was a point I started wondering if I'd lost my mind, walking through that shit, and I swear I may never feel anything below the waist again." He just knew she was grinning wickedly as her fingers trailed downwards, warmth following her touch in a tingling trail of sensation. He chuckled softly, catching her fingers as they toyed with the cold metal zipper of his jeans. "Or not."

"What was so important you had to leave?" She murmured quietly, lifting her head to watch him.

"My mom had something I wanted to grab before she took off. She'll be gone for months, and the thought of having to rip apart her house looking for it wasn't very appealing." He grinned wryly. "Of course, half the reason I'm late is her, she just couldn't stop with the questions."

"She's your mom and she hasn't seen you in a while."

He breathed deeply, closing his eyes for a moment, gathering his thoughts before speaking again. "Yep, that's how it started. Of course," he reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny box, pressing it into her hand and closing her fingers around it. "When I asked for this, I thought for a second I may have killed her. That's when the real questions started, and I didn't make it out before the snow."

He couldn't miss the sudden, sharp intake of breath that froze in Jo's throat as she instantly recognized the weight of the box in her fingers. When she swallowed deeply, his heart skipped a beat; when her jaw dropped slightly, a choking sound of shock escaped her lips.

"Quit panicking, Miss Anti-Commitment. I'm not going to lay this in your hands and tell you either you marry me or I'm walking."

"Then what…?"

He shifted so that she was looking him in the eyes, his gaze dead serious as he kept her fingers firmly wrapped around the box. "I'm telling you that I'm here, and I'm not going to leave you alone on Christmas, or your birthday, or Thanksgiving, or any other day that's important to you. I'm telling you that I will wear a dress shirt and tie the day we go to meet your dad, and I promise not to touch your ass in front of him." He grinned, cheekily, offering her a wink as she glared at him. "Jo, I just walked ten miles in the dark through a blizzard so that I could be here Christmas morning with you, because I know how important these stupid holidays are to you. I'm telling you that I know what I want, and I'm not going to change my mind. We won't reset, we won't cease to exist, not this time because I will fight, and I will win, and I swear to God I won't forget. I'm not going to leave you again. We're on the edge of something big, you and me, the forever kind of big. I've watched you struggle for months over whether this is what you want, but have you noticed that there's never been a doubt in my mind?" He reached into his pocket one more time and pulled out a simple gold chain. "This is from my mother. She says to take your time with your decision, apparently you have the power to break my heart and she would rather that not happen." He smiled at her wryly, latching the chain around her neck. "Wear it around your neck again if you don't want to wear it on your finger. Just…" He paused, looking for the right words as he smiled at her, his eyes tinged with something unreadable. "When you've figured out what you need to, that's how you can let me know."

Jo gaped at him quietly, no words coming to mind as he untangled himself from her and climbed to his feet.

"Now, sleeping on the sofa on Christmas Eve may be your thing, but I'm cold as hell, Lupo. I'm going to bed." His grin turned crooked as he lifted an eyebrow and danced his eyes towards the stairs. "Coming?"

He amazed her. He truly astonished her. Somehow, somewhere down the road when she wasn't looking, Zane had grown into the man she always knew he could be. Oh, the little boy still existed in those dancing blue eyes, the promise of mischief apparent in that grin of his that always curled her toes, but under it, there he stood, his fragile heart exposed and held gingerly in his hands, learned patience apparent in his every carefully thought over sentence. Zane had handed himself to her, body and soul, in the form of a ring he wasn't forcing on her, but asking her to honestly consider. She could feel the power in her hands, the power he'd given her to make or break the relationship he'd finally admitted to wanting, the relationship he'd finally named.

Forever, whenever she was ready.

She struggled with herself as she stared down at the little box in her hand, listening as Zane made his way upstairs, nosing through the rooms until finding the master. She forced back tears as she heard the shower come on, and the yelp of surprise as Zane realized they'd not yet hooked up her hot water heater - she'd intended to do that tomorrow morning after opening the presents her friends had left days earlier. She opened the tiny box and pulled out the painfully familiar ring hidden within. He'd gone to such trouble to ensure she had his ring, not the one she'd thrown at him, but the one his grandmother had given to him, trusting him to place it in the hands of the woman who would wear it forever. She swallowed thickly, fingers trembling as she unlatched the gold band and slipped the small piece of eternity over the gold links and refastened it around her neck.

Okay, so she wasn't ready to put it on her finger, but he said that didn't matter so long she wore it around her neck. All he cared about was that his ring was nestled somewhere on her body, against her flesh, reminding her whose heart beat in time with her own, who's life entwined with hers so deeply that when she lost herself in his stormy gaze, whether friend or enemy, their souls touched every time.

Maybe tomorrow, after they'd watched old movies, and opened presents, and fought over the marshmallows in hot chocolate, she'd look down at that ring and wonder why it wasn't on her finger. Maybe tomorrow, when the day grew long, when they'd made gentle love long into the quiet night and the only sounds remaining were the beating of their hearts, their gasping for air, she'd move the ring to her finger, just for a minute to see exactly how she felt about the full circle they'd come.

Maybe tomorrow she'd be able to look into Zane's painfully honest gaze and wrap her own fingers around his fragile heart that he held out to her and return his promise that she'd always fight, that she'd never forget, and for once in his life he could lay down to sleep knowing that he'd never be left alone.

"Seriously, JoJo, you're not gonna make me sleep alone on Christmas Eve, are you?"

She grinned.

Yep. Maybe tomorrow.

They'd said enough for one night.

~~~Fin.