"Perlata."
There it was. His name but yet, so much more, uttered in that terrifying timbre of calmness that only the trained ear could discern as anything but. Jake froze with the congealing muffin in his hand and slowly turned on his heel. Amy cautiously threw her file on the tottering pile between their two desks and muttered something about a witness interview. Jake watched her go with a sinking stomach. There was no witness interview. Her new name would be Salazar upon her return. "I would like to see you in my office. I have issues that require discussion. In my office… as I believe I have just stated."
Jake nodded at the smooth, emotionless and yet emotional speech and with worms slithering in his stomach, threw the muffin in the trash can and sloped after the straight backed Holt. The imposing man sat behind his desk with his usual rigidity and motioned for Jake to close the door on his entrance. Feeling rather like he was closing the door on the only people who could and would testify to his murder, Jake did so with a certain reluctance before coming to land in his usual spot before the man with a raised brow.
"What can I do for you, Captain?" He grinned. "O Captain! My Captain!…what can I do for thee?"
Interlocking his fingers as he always did, Raymond studied his most complex of detectives with an uncomfortable scrutiny. Jake began to feel the tell tale beads of sweat pop up at the base of his neck but he studiously ignored them. He'd put a lot, a hell of a lot of work into cultivating an image that wasn't intimidated by Raymond Holt and he would not betray that image now. Racking his brains throughout the sombre silence for any transgressions he may or may not have committed in the last month, he was coming up blank. In fact, by his standards, he'd been positively angelic. He'd even filed half of his paperwork on time with minimal mustard stains. And he'd stopped complaining about the horrendous tie range that adorned his neck. Granted, it had taken him several months to stop doing so, but he had.
"Perlata. At a rough estimate, and I do mean a rough estimate…I appreciate your affinity with mathematics is as poor as your inclination to follow instruction, would you say you've obeyed the letter of my orders without quarrel?" Jake cocked his head, reminding Raymond against his will of a very cute labradoodle. He pushed that image from his mind as he stared down his most challenging underling. Staring back at the staring face, Jake's brow puckered in confusion. "Uhh….could you repeat the question in a more uhh…Perlata friendly manner, Captain?"
Raymond resisted the urge to do something as irascible as twitch his facial muscles. He could not descend into baboon territory. "Certainly. How about this: Why can you never do as you are told?" Jake blinked. Well, it was more understandable at least. He was silent as he considered the query. In his opinion, he always did as he was told. Sure, he might not do it exactly in the way he was told, but he definitely got the job done. Repressing a sigh, he shook his head. "I don't think that I never do as I'm told, Captain," he countered with a winning smile, "Just last week for example, you told me to get rid of Henrietta. And although it caused me great heartache, pain and many sleepless nights, I did just as you asked. Henrietta…rest her soul…is gone."
"Henrietta was an obese, unfriendly centipede."
"She was my obese, unfriendly centipede."
Raymond's nostrils quivered but he quickly reined in his outrageous loss of temper. Taking a deep breath, he leaned back in his chair and cast his x-ray gaze upon the now pouting Peralta once more. He could not deny that the heat he was catching on behalf of his detective was beginning to sizzle at him. Jake's escapades had not gone unnoticed by the upper echelon and he was growing weary of scathing email after scathing email. The last one had even contained a series of uppercase expletives. He shuddered at the memory and resolved to harden his stance.
"Peralta you are upsetting those who ought not to be upset."
Jake blinked.
"I ate Terry's yoghurt the one time Captain, I swear. And he busted me down to desk jockey for a week for it. And it wasn't even Greek strained, it was some awful supermarket blend. I was doing him a favour so if that is what this is about then-"
"You ate Terry's yoghurt? Are you a mad man Perlata?"
Jake winked and cocked his head.
"I've been known to ride the wild waves. Back at the academy-"
"Quite fascinating," Holt interrupted. "But I would prefer if we were not to be distracted from the task at hand. Perlata, the reason I have called you in here today is not pleasant. I have been harbouring a secret from you for a long time now but I can harbour it no more. There are people, important people, who are growing weary of your…unorthodox method of policing. They also show signs of exasperation in relation to your inability to follow direct, uncomplicated orders." He paused as he saw the involuntary look of hurt cross Jake's face and felt the distinct tingling of annoyance when he found he cared. He would rather die, and he was a literal man, than have the maddening detective in front of him find out that he was by a clear country mile, his favourite. He'd never had one before, all those under his command sort of blurring into one. But the nine-nine had changed that for him. He pushed away all the wild emotions he was feeling and took a great deep breath.
"They wish for me to rectify the issue. If I do not, they will rectify it for me."
Jake gulped.
"Rectify it for you?"
Holt nodded gravely and the unspoken implication shone in the understanding in Jake's eyes. He shook his head internally. If Kevin could see the weeping mess he was becoming he would be horrified. He stiffened in his chair as if this would somehow restore his sense of detached indifference. But the bravado-less and downright thin words that washed over him had him slouching like a mad man once again.
"They want you to fire me?"
He couldn't lie. He would not, not to him. He cleared his throat.
"Yes. They do."
Jake's entire body sagged and his face drained. Holt felt a terribly terrifying surge of emotion.
"But I have another idea."
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A/N: Two or three shot I think. I've recently binged B99 and loved the Holt/Jake relationship. This is gonna be a lot more light hearted than some of my other fic's but still hone in on that adorable father/son relationship that kinda reminds me of JD/Dr Cox. Anyhow, hope you guys enjoyed!
_Inks
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