continuity: after 'Deal' s05e06
The doorbell rings. Just once, and then silence.
Alesha groans, putting down her mug of hot chocolate and running a hand through her wet hair, still wet from the shower.
"No interviews, thank you," She spits, hopefully loud enough for the person standing outside the door to hear. For one, she's hardly presentable at this moment and two, she's just had enough.
"I wasn't here for an interview," James says from the other side of the door. Alesha rests her head on her palm, jerking up at the sound of his voice. No, why the hell would he be come knocking at her door? Why at this time?
Reluctantly, she pushes the clutter to one end of the coffee table and gets to her feet.
As she opens the door, she finds that yes, she is right. It's her old friend/boss/(it's complicated). And he doesn't seem to be in high spirits either.
Neither says a word for a few moments. They stand toe to toe at the doorstep of Alesha's apartment. He seems to be studying her, and the reverse could be seen to be true. But honestly, he's just as weary since she last saw him.
James is the first to break the tension, reaching for the newspaper cutting in his pocket. Alesha takes one glance at it and crosses her arms, leaning against the doorframe.
"It's been all over the media, since the incident." She says, bitterly. "The news reporters seem to think I don't deserve my own privacy just because I was a key witness. I don't think Matt would have liked this."
"You must be feeling, terrible," He says, a bit hesitantly. Behind Alesha's bright brown eyes he knows she's not as fine as she lets on. He knows that somewhere within her, her conscience bottles up the emotions brought about by Matt's untimely demise and gives her this tough, steely (internally, he chuckles a bit at this thought. It seems that his behaviour in court may have rubbed off on her) exterior.
Alesha nudges his boot with the tip of her toe, before remembering herself and straightens her composure. "Come in." She welcomes. "It's a bit cluttered, which I'd like to apologise for-"
"Apology accepted." James waves it away, and steps inside her apartment, shutting the door behind him. He loosens his scarf - the thermostat has been turned on. He takes a look around, and is amused to see how much of her is displayed in her living room, this room right before his eyes. Volumes of classic literature are displayed on a small shelf by the television, and CDs line the edge of the counters. He picks one up. It's one of the latest hits, which he could never really get used to.
"Nice place," He admits, trying to make small talk. For a brief moment the corners of her mouth turn up and she smiles, but he sees that tears rise to her eyes and she has to put on a straight face to stop them from spilling.
James, in a gesture of comfort, embraces Alesha as she comes forward. She refuses to cry. She doesn't really want him to know how much she's been hurting. (But honestly, she wondered whether it was improper to invite him in. It seemed strange, meeting one's former boss dressed in merely an oversized maroon sweater and black leggings. It was such a far cry from their office days, she noted.)
"I missed you." She whispers, quite plainly.
James nods, patting her on the back.
"I'm sorry for only coming to find you now, when I could have had the chance to in the past few weeks." He lets her go, and they sit on her sofa. She leans into him, resting her head on her shoulder. Her fingers curl around his upper arm, resting in the crook of his elbow.
"You were busy." Alesha states, and she knows how true it is, how committed he is to his work.
"Private practice, for now, and I don't suppose that's the sole reason I asked to see you sooner." James replies. "How about you?"
"It's fun getting to know new people."
"George has left too, I heard."
"Replaced by Henry Sharpe."
"What about my replacement?"
"Surely you've heard. Jacob Thorne."
"You two must get along well."
"We're doing great." Alesha says.
"It's still a possibility we might still meet in court, you know." James suggests. "I'll be looking forward to that day, then, seeing you and Mr. Thorne work together."
Alesha is silent, deep in thought. "Ronnie's feeling guilty, you know."
"Why wouldn't he?"
"He said he should've been the one to take the bullets," Alesha starts. "But we know there's nothing he could have really done, right?"
"It could have been you." He says, quietly, not wanting to trigger off some strong negative emotion in her.
Alesha acknowledges the fact. "Matt was brave. He saved both me and that witness. But we lost him and I don't think I could ever forget that."
"You don't need to, but you need to move on. You've gone through a lot, Alesha. And every time you come out stronger." He looks to her, in affirmation. "I'm proud of you."
"Thanks. Never thought I'd ever hear that from you," She spits, in a cynical manner. Picking up the mug of hot chocolate, she takes a huge mouthful before setting it back down.
James' expression is a cross between a wince and a smile. "You've got a bit of-"
"I can take care of that myself, James. Unless you'd like to do it for me." She reaches for the tissues, dabbing the excess off her upper lip. "So tell me, why did you wait so long to meet up with me? You could have done so, in the many weeks since our last meeting. I remember you had something to tell me. Then George called, and I guess I didn't have a chance to know."She remembers.
James does a double-take, collecting his emotions. He presses on the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath. Alesha picks her head off his shoulder. "James?"
He leans over, his lips to her ear. "...I find that I might be in love with you." He pulls back, awaiting her response.
"That's it?" Alesha bursts, and James thinks he's done something horribly wrong. "Three words. 'I love you.'" She counts on her fingers. "And I can't believe that it took you weeks to admit it. What happened to your confident demeanor in court, Mr. Steel?"
"Well, I didn't exactly know how to bring this up again. Let me remind you, that we were colleagues before our meeting, and I was your superior and a decade older, no less. I thought the best thing for our relationship was that it had to remain strictly professional." He explains.
"We aren't colleagues now, so it doesn't matter, does it?" Alesha teases.
"I suppose it doesn't, and mainly because then it came down to the gravity of the situation." He poses, tone deadly serious. Alesha pecks him on the cheek, and he loses it. He's all smiles now, unable to hide the fact that he's in love with her. In love with her smile, in love with her personality, in everything that she does...
He loves the person that is Alesha Phillips.
"You still manage to amaze me, Alesha," James compliments, before going in for an actual kiss. The two spend the night talking on Alesha's sofa, mourning over Matt and laughing over peculiar little incidents that have happened over the time they were apart. And when the morning comes and they go their separate ways for work, they agree to meet for dinner and drinks at the local pub. They walk off, in different directions, each getting a fresh experience of what it feels like to be madly in love again.