9/8/10 - Working on redoing this and found the free time. This involves Maria Frank returning to Boston a few months before she was originally do to go back, due to receiving tragic news from her Captain. Maria is my own creation and John Munch belongs to Law and Order: SVU.

Chapter One: Sad Beginnings

"Oh, shit!"

The sound of Maria's morning cussing woke John from his deep slumber. Laying on his stomach, he opened one eye to see the living room light seeping into the bed room. Pulling the blanket over his head, he could hear things being knocked together, dropped, put in containers or being tossed into the trash can. He knew fully well why she was in cleaning mode. Not only did she have slight OCD, but she was also due to move back to Boston in a few months and she wanted to get everything packed up before then. In his heart, he didn't want her to leave as he had fallen hard for her and she to him. They were both trying to savor what time they had together.

With a deep sigh, he sat up, found his glasses on top of a box, pulled on his slacks and walked into the brightly lit room. Looking around, he saw her on her hands and knees, picking up papers and books from the floor. "Maria? How long have you been up?" He sat in the chair, looking down at her beside him.

She sat back on her heels and wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. "Since six. I haven't even taken my shower yet," She motioned to her still ruffled hair. "I want to get this done before I do that, though." She put her hand on his knee and pushed herself up, two books in her other hand.

John looked over at the clock, seeing it was almost 7. "Want to take it now? It's our day off. You have all day to do that." He said, standing and wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer.

She looked up at him, a sly smile forming on her lips. "And you wish to 'assist' in my shower, don't you?"

His smile spread wide across his face and he dipped his head down, kissing the tip of her nose. Giving up, she rolled her eyes. "Ok, just let me finish putting these books where they belong and I'll join you in a minute." he took off to her bathroom, leaving Maria wondering, God, I'm going to miss that man. Wish I could take him with me. As she placed the books into a box, she could hear the water running in the bathroom. Looking at her K-9 partner, Alex, she smiled softly. "In a way, I'm going to miss this small apartment." The black German Shepherd lowered his eyes, sensing her sadness.

In the bathroom, the sudden depression that John had been trying to avoid hit him. Standing under the water, he thought back to when he first met her. Ever since her first day months ago, he had serious feelings for her. He got to finally show her that two months later, letting her experience something that she had never felt before. Since then, they had been inseparable. They were only separate at work, where none of the other detectives knew about them and they wanted to keep it that way. Last night, after a rather quick "strip search", she took control and tackled him to the bed, assaulting his mouth along the way. He smiled at remembering that. She was getting better at being comfortable with her own self. Before, she was extremely shy. He thought for sure that she would have slept in late with him, but her stress from the last few days didn't let her. Instead, he was seeing the OCD side of her and it scared him.

Hearing the door open, he listened as he heard clothes being pulled off and stepped aside as the curtain moved. He lifted his water soaked head to see her step in. He shoulder length dark brown hair was wet in an instant and she smiled as he nuzzled her neck. "I'm sorry about earlier-"

"Let's not think of that issue right now. Just not right now, please?" He pleaded as he pulled her closer to him under the flowing water. Her finger tips traveled up and down his bare back, feeling his sharp shoulder blades and his smooth hips under her palms. she rested her head under his chin, loving the feel of his chest rising and falling under her cheek.

He, like her, was tracing small designs on her back, moving his hands from her shoulders to her backside with his chin resting on top of her's. He was a good six foot one while she was an easy five foot eight. He found her to be the perfect height. After a few minutes of holding each other, they both attempted to actually take that shower. Lack of room didn't help very much.

M*M*M*M*M*M*M*M*M

"Tell me, why do we do that when there is little space?" John asked as he dried himself and wrapped the towel around his thin waist.

"I don't know. But the next time? It'll be your shower. It's bigger." She said as she opened the bathroom door and proceeded to rummage through a suitcase, looking for clean clothes. Pulling a black thermal over his head, he made a mental note to bring a change of clothes next time. They both had a bad habit of not remembering clean clothes. As he finished pulling his slacks back on, the phone started the ring. Maria jogged to the kitchen phone, warning John not to make a sound as she picked it up. "Maria speaking." Standing next to her, John watched as her expression when from content to extremely concerned. She didn't seem to notice that he was standing there. "Did he say if they are connected?" Her eyes closed as and she bowed her heard as she heard the reply from the other person on the phone. "Okay. Thank you, sir. If he does call back, give him my number here so we can discuss what to do. See you tomorrow."

John tilted his head to look into her eyes - they seemed so out of focus. He became deeply concerned and scared. "Maria? What happened?" His voice snapped her out of her daze and she looked back up at him. "Something terrible happened in Boston. I might have to go back sooner then expected."

John's heart began to ache. Oh, god. No.

To be continued...