Going mental
"What do you think you are doing, Bolly?" said DCI Hunt storming out of the police station.
"I am going to take the victim home," said Alex Drake. "Even if you think she's just an attention seeker."
"With my car? I don't think so! Get out, I'll drive."
Alex did as she was told.
"You'd better fasten your seatbelt if he's driving," said Alex to the fifteen year old girl in the backseat, while she fastened her own.
"Criticising my driving, DI Drake?" said Gene.
Alex said nothing, but prepared for a bumpy ride, with screeching tires and brakes.
They brought the girl home, where Alex talked with the mother to assure she was looked after. Afterwards, Gene drove her to her flat above Luigi's bar. As always, she was glad she had a strong stomach, a ride in Gene's Quattro was enough to make anyone sick.
"Fancy a drink?" she asked.
"Always," was the predictable answer.
"I don't think she's after attention, you know," said Hunt, once Luigi had brought them a bottle of wine and two glasses. "But even you must think she quite overreacted."
"Everyone reacts to stress in a different way," Alex said.
"Oh, spare me your psychological crap, Drake," said Gene. "If Ray and Chris don't mess up this time, that rapist bastard who attacked her will be in one of my cells by tomorrow morning and the streets will be safe again, thanks to the Gene Genie."
"Oh, you're such an arrogant prick," said Alex.
"Thank you, Bolly. I'll take that as a compliment."
Alex sighed. Her thoughts wandered towards Molly, and she wondered if she would ever see her again. All her efforts to go home had led her nowhere; still she was sitting here with Gene Hunt, who she had thought was just the product of her imagination. She doubted that now, after what had happened. And sitting here, before him, he seemed to real not to be. Or was she losing her grip on reality? Was she going mental?
"Don't sulk," said Gene. "You're much more beautiful when you smile."
She looked up at him and couldn't help smiling.
"That's better," he said. "Still thinking of the poor lass?"
She frowned: how did he find out about Molly? Then she realised he was referring to the girl who had been assaulted.
"Oh, no," she said. "I was just... lost in thought."
"Pondering over what a handsome bloke I am?"
"No, definitely not," said Alex, but she couldn't repress a chuckle.
"See, you're smiling again."
It was true, DCI Hunt had a way to make her smile, to make her feel better and to put her problems aside for a moment. Even though he was part of it all, part of the imaginary world she had found herself in and that turned out to be not so imaginary after all.
For all his rough manners and rough exterior, Gene Hunt had a heart of gold. He just liked to keep it hidden. She knew it existed, though he would never admit it, and occasionally, she saw a glimmer of it. Like when he brought the girl home earlier to make sure she was alright, even though he said that was because he didn't want her to drive his car. Like now, when he was trying to cheer her up.
He wasn't handsome, not poster boy handsome anyway, but there was something about him. He was tall and strong and he made her feel safe. And she had to be really going mental if she was thinking about Gene Hunt in this way.
She got up and apologised.
"I need some fresh air, back in a moment."
She went outside and greedily sucked the air into her lungs. It had started to rain. She welcomed the cool drops of water on her hot face.
Not more than two minutes had passed when Gene showed up.
"You alright, Bolly?" he asked. "You look all flustered."
"It's nothing, I'm okay," she said. That wasn't entirely honest, but there wasn't that much wrong with her either. She was just confused, very confused, as she had started to realise something. She had realised that going back to her daughter would mean leaving this world behind. It would mean leaving Gene Hunt behind. For some reason, that was not an agreeable thought.
"Are you real?" she asked, looking at him with eyes that begged him not to mock her for that question.
"I'm as real as you are, Bolly," he said.
That she could not deny. If she was in a coma and if this whole world existed only in her imagination, that meant that at least her bodily form was also a product of her mind. Her real body would be somewhere in a hospital bed. So even if he wasn't real, he wás as real as she was, at least as real as this body was. And this body wanted nothing more than to feel his strong arms around her.
She got closer to him and laid her head against his chest. It started to rain harder and both her jacket and his coat were still inside, but she didn't care.
"We should go back in," he said.
"No, I want to stay here," said Alex. "With you."
He put her arms around her now, hesitatingly, to protect her from the rain.
She looked up at his face, caressed his cheek with her hand.
"Kiss me."
"No, Bolls."
"Why not?"
"'Cause I don't want to take advantage."
"I'm not drunk this time," she said. "I only had half a glass of wine."
"I know," said Gene. "But you're obviously very confused."
"Because I want to kiss you? Do you say that to every woman who wants to kiss you?"
"Only to the ones who say they hate me half of the time. You called me an arrogant prick not ten minutes ago. I know women tend to be fickle, but this seems a bit impulsive, even for your standards, Bolly."
Alex sighed.
"I hardly know myself if I hate or love you. Can't we just agree that I feel strongly about you? That is... if you want me."
"Oh, I've wanted to kiss that posh little smile of your face since the first time you set foot in my police station, Drake. Once you were properly dressed, of course."
"Of course," said Alex, remembering how she was dressed like a prostitute the first time she had met Gene.
"So you feel strongly about me, eh? Didn't think I would ever hear you say as much."
He stroked her hair that had become soaking wet, and brought his face closer to hers.
"Are you sure you want this, Alex?" he asked.
She looked into his eyes and saw the indecision because he didn't want to hurt her. And possible because he didn't want to get hurt himself. She had to stand on tiptoe to reach his lips with hers. She kissed him and a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold rain pouring down ran through her spine. He seemed to have felt it too.
"Oh, God, Alex, why have I never kissed you before?"
"Because you were too hard trying to be decent?"
"Not anymore," he said.
He sought out her lips and kissed her again, with less hesitation and more passion this time. Their hands started to roam in pursuit of each other's body and soon they found themselves in a fond embrace. His lips were surprisingly soft, his hands surprisingly tender. She closed her eyes and forgot everything around her that wasn't DCI Gene Hunt. Even the fact that, maybe, she was only kissing a fantasy. All that mattered right now was that if that were true, he felt surprisingly real.