Two minor things before you read on, thank you to SWWoman for allowing me to use Davis as John's real legal surname, I adore you and your writing so much! Secondly I had no idea if we ever learned Joss' maiden name, so if we did then please ignore the name I used because I couldn't remember the name whatsoever, or if we even learned it lol. Okay read on:

Prompt: Reunion

Rating: T (strong language, very slight sexual situations)

Warnings:none

Setting: post 3x09 AU since Carter lives

Spoilers: up to episode 3x09 as well as small bit of information learned about John's past in Lethe(3x11)

Relationship status: Established


"Please..."

"No."

"I said please, John."

"And I said no, nicely," he answered in a sweet voice. She knew this was going to be hell, getting him to agree to come with her, but she hadn't figured it would be this tough. She tried promising him he could choose the restaurant on their next date, sex in her car, anything, but nothing worked. He had been warding her off for the past three weeks, all with the same flat answer of no. This morning she had figured she would get him while he was coming off his high from their phenomenal morning round of making love, and she was denied yet again. He rolled over with a sufficient yawn to let her know their late night activities had worn him out. "Besides, I have a case." He patted her thigh affectionately before standing up.

"Shaw can work it."

"Shaw…with a fragile old man, he'd be dead before the afternoon."

"Come on, John, it's just for tonight." She was not above begging. She had a new boyfriend and she couldn't even show him off at her twenty-fifth high school reunion?! "I come through for you all the time." She huffed drawing her knees up, resting her chin on them. Her nude view from the waist down woke him up in every way. Moaning, he had to turn away before his resolve faltered, sliding his boxers up his fit form and burgeoning erection.

"Are you comparing life and death situations to your high school reunion?"

"No, I wasn't talking about work related times I came through for you. Besides I just want to show you off to some people. Is that so much to ask?" He smiled before leaning down to press a soft kiss to her cheek. He straightened again with a sigh when her frown deepened.

"Joss, why would you even want me there; I'm not social."

"Because you're my boyfriend and I want to show you off to all those snobbish girls that picked on me, teased me, and bullied me all the way to graduation! They'll be eating out of the palm of my hand when they get a load of you, who is all mine!" She looked up pleadingly. Joss was tough, independent, and single minded. Normally, she allowed those type things to roll off her back, she had to with her type job. She'd been called a bitch and a bunch of nastier words, all met with a stiff shoulder. But for some reason seeing these same snobby girls that had made her feel small and insecure left her feeling vulnerable all over again. She despised feeling vulnerable, but she couldn't banish the desire to have someone on her side there.

"They shouldn't have been mean to you, you are perfect in every conceivable way." She snorted. Maybe perfect to him, but when she was a kid she was the same goal oriented, tough, stick in the mud, argumentative, non-rule-breaker as she was nowadays. That didn't exactly make you many friends, but made for the perfect target from bullies.

"Let me guess, you were the hottest and most popular boy in school, right?"

"Not the most popular."

"Uh-huh,"

"Fine, I was but it wasn't because I wanted to be. People seemed to flock to me."

"Mainly girls right?" She smiled, wondering what John looked like when he was just a teenager.

"Guys and girls; the guys thought they'd become cool by befriending the guy that made the girls swoon." He held up his hands with a quick flash of his dazzling smile. "Their words, not mine." He added a wink for good measure, which she met with a timely roll of her eyes.

"Bet you were also too cool for school."

"I took school seriously until I was eleven."

"Why, you hit puberty early, deciding you couldn't be good in school and be a jock?" she teased.

"No, I did until I lashed out after my dad died." As he looked away she noticed the stiffening of his features. She moved on the bed and reached out grabbing his hand. His eyes slid down to her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"It's okay, Joss, it was a long time ago." He shrugged it off, sliding his hand free from hers, scrounging around for his pants somewhere where he flung them last night. She couldn't just let it go. The sadness in his eyes even now was so palpable. He truly loved his father and losing him set John's young life into a tailspin. She read all there was to know about Sergeant John Davis from the army, but she didn't know about John Davis the boy who lost his father at a tender age. She slid from her bed yanking on his shirt buttoning the thing up a few before making her way around her bed. She wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, pressing a soft kiss to his back.

"What happened?"

"With what?"

"You know what, how did your dad die?"

"He was a bonafide hero, four tours in Vietnam. When he got back we moved to Colorado where he worked at a refinery and two months later he died in a freak accident." She closed her eyes, pressing more soft kisses to his back.

"Poor thing, got your dad back just to lose him." She circled reaching her arms up to wrap around his neck. She pulled his head down to press light and loving kisses to his cheeks, then his chin, and finally she caught his mouth. John sighed softly into her mouth as he kissed her back fervently. They broke apart after a few minutes, and he rested his forehead against hers.

"This reunion has you nervous." His words weren't said in a question more said as a statement so she didn't bother trying to put up a brave front, not with him.

"They were cruel to me when I was a kid, John. I had no friends, I was all alone through high-school I just want someone beside me when I face them again after all these years." John saw through her like she was glass. Joss was hurt over what had happened throughout school. It most likely was why she always felt like she was alone, because she had been, even when she was a young girl. She learned to trust in only herself when she was a kid and that mindset followed her into adulthood.

"Why do you want to go then? Why subject yourself to seeing these people again?" She shrugged, hiding her true feelings on what happened during school. Being bullied wasn't easy. Nowadays kids were getting worse and worse, she went through some tough times, but nothing like these kids today were going through.

"Because, John, I want to show them what I made of my life. I want to show them that their words hurt but didn't break me. It's stupid, but if I don't do this they'll always have the last word."

"Then I'll go."

"You will?!" she bounced happily in his arms, he smiled before pressing a warm kiss to her lips.

"You know all you had to do was tell me this in the first place and I would have gone with you. You didn't have to try to plot ways to get me to go with you," he teased as he slid out of her arms, really needing to head off to relieve Shaw of watching the old man. She had taken the night-shift, he wondered if Shaw had done so at the insistence of Joss, but he couldn't say he was unhappy. He got to spend the night at Joss', while Shaw had to sit out all night watching an old man sleep. He got the better bargain in this deal. She pinched his butt hard as he walked by her towards her adjacent bathroom to go brush his teeth.

"Who says I plotted ways to get you to go with me?"

"So asking me right after sex was not a ploy to get me to agree to go with you?" he asked sweetly as he picked up the blue toothbrush before applying toothpaste to it, and sticking it in his mouth. She didn't bother answering him because it would be a lie, and she couldn't lie to save her life. So she ignored it, which made him laugh. She turned to leave her half naked boyfriend to finish brushing his teeth, to get ready for work herself. Joss looked at her alarm clock seeing the giant red digits blink 6:30 A.M., she had more than enough time to watch John hurry around her place like he owned it as he got ready. His undershirt laid on the floor in the mess of her clothes from last night. She picked it up and flopped back into bed.

His scent was on the shirt, it was soft to the touch too, and she was so stealing a shirt of his one of these days. When she was at his place she was going to look through his clothes, find something, and take it. He wouldn't ever know it was missing. She was roused out of her musings when he appeared in her line of vision. "What?"

"I need my shirt."

"No, get your own."

"It is my own, Joss."

"Nope, its mine now." She clutched it to herself. "You have a million undershirts I'm keeping this gray one."

"Fine, can I have my dress shirt then?" she had a half a mind to tell him no, she was keeping it too, but she really couldn't since he didn't have a spare change of clothing at her place.

"I guess," She put his undershirt behind her so he couldn't snatch it away, slowly unbuttoning the dark gray dress shirt. He moaned softly as he eyed her body. Joss coyly took her sweet time undoing the last button before sliding it from herself, leaving herself naked. "Happy now?" she held the shirt to him, which he slowly took, his eyes roving over her body.

"Extremely." Joss couldn't help it, but her eyes slid down his body while his devoured her.

"I can tell."

"Damn it, Joss, I got to go." He was loosely holding the shirt between his index finger and thumb.

"I'm not stopping you." She leaned back resting her head on her hands, and crossing her ankles making him moan.

"But the number…" he looked at her bedroom door as if it was beckoning him then slid his gaze back to her, she couldn't help but laugh at his dilemma. He cursed as he dropped his dress shirt on the floor climbing onto the bed, then lying on top of her. He kissed her hungrily, ceasing her laughter, making her almost forget her name before breaking it.

"We have five minutes." He groaned as both their hands went for his pants zipper. She didn't have the heart to tell him his five minutes was quite literally thirty minutes to someone else. The man's meaning of quickie to another man's, were two entirely different things. She, however, wasn't one to complain because John was a-mazing! She nodded her head wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him down for a kiss while his hands fumbled at his pants.

"Come here, you," she pulled him down for a kiss and for the next forty minutes he rocked her world.


John was sure he was going to stick out like a sore thumb tonight at her reunion. He didn't do parties, he wasn't the social type, he actually found making small talk worse than combat. He never knew what to say, always falling back on something mundane as the weather. Or then at times he would fall in uncomfortable silence with people, which was the worst. But he would suck it up for her. If she needed him there he'd be by her side, he'd be there for something simple like a high-school reunion, or follow her through the fiery depths of hell, he'd be by her side no matter what.

Joss was tough, beautiful, intelligent, quick witted, had a thick skin, wore her pride beautifully as she should, and never asked for anything. But her pain over what happened in high-school radiated out of her. He couldn't fathom people being cruel to Joss. He wanted to break these people in half for hurting her. How could they hurt someone so beautiful inside and out? Joss was the type of person to never say a bad word about anyone, she didn't have a mean bone in her body, but hurt her, you better watch out. Trust was the most important thing to her, you break that trust she bestowed on you, you had to work double time to earn it back. He knew she didn't stop trusting him after Rikers after he pushed away from her and all she did for him; but he felt like he had mistreated her, she didn't hold anything against him, he held it against himself, so he worked hard to earn her trust back.

In the end they began dating when it became clear to them their feelings had grown too much too fast to remain as they were. Just friends. He laughed to himself as he thought about his defensive assurance to Shaw all those months ago that they weren't anything but 'just' friends. She knew he was a liar, thankfully he figured it out too.

"Mr. Reese, you have finally agreed to go with Detective Carter to her high-school reunion tonight?" Finch's voice brought him out his reverie and back at the task at hand: following and watching an old man as he grocery shopped, talk about stale cases. Who would want to hurt this old guy? John clicked the button that allowed him to speak to Finch on his earpiece.

"Yes, Finch, she convinced me to go."

"More like sex convinced Reese to go," Shaw interjected, painfully reminding him that they were on a three-way. "Why are we even bothering to save this guy when he's going to die soon anyways?"

"Ms. Shaw, we never discriminate over who we save and just because he's in his mid-eighties doesn't make it that he's on his last leg in life."

"I say put the old horse in the glue factory!" John rolled his eyes. Shaw at times was coming along nicely, like with Gen, then she had lapses and this was a big one.

"Shaw, did you find anything in Mr. Roland's apartment?" John asked as he browsed the candy section while the old man was about halfway down the aisle from him.

"Besides, his Velcro gray shoes and dirty underwear….no, nothing to point us into the direction as to who would put this old guy out of his misery."

"Well Mr. Roland doesn't have a digital footprint, I'm not even sure if he owns a computer." Finch sighed. "All I could locate on the internet was the son of Mr. Keith Roland who is Kenneth Roland, age forty-six, but that yielded no results unfortunately. We have been following Mr. Roland for the past two days and we are still no closer to learning who wishes to harm him!" John looked down when his phone buzzed. He pulled it out, seeing it was Joss.

"I'll be right back I gotta take this,"

"Oh Finch, he's ditching us for his girlfriend." John ignored Shaw's singsong voice as he muted them, and answered Joss quickly without missing a step as he followed Mr. Roland through the supermarket.

"Hey, so I ran Keith Roland through the system for you, and we got a hit."

"Wait, our new number has a record?"

"He did time, a little time, for vehicular manslaughter; he hit a teen who was walking home from school. He got off for good behavior."

"How long did he serve?"

"90 days, he was sentenced to only six months and a year probation, because he had connections with the judge presiding on the case. The mother and father of the teen requested a new judge because they claimed conflict of interest, but were denied. They wanted him to go to jail for longer, they were devastated. The mother was institutionalized for a couple days after the trial was over."

"How long ago was this?"

"He was released from jail two months ago, the anniversary of the teen's death is today; he's been gone two years."

"I could just kiss you, Joss."

"You could, couldn't you? I bailed your sexy behind out of another jam didn't I? You can grovel and thank me later." He smiled as he hung up with her, and switched back to Finch and Shaw.

"I have a lead thanks to Carter."

"What is it Mr. Reese, did the detective find out if Mr. Roland had a record?" Finch asked.

"He does, he hit and killed a teenager. Charges of vehicular manslaughter were brought up and he was sentenced, but for only six months."

"Six months, that's it, why, he blow a judge or something?" Shaw demanded.

"Something like that. Carter just said he had connections with the judge presiding over the case. The family requested the court for a new judge claiming conflict of interest, but they wouldn't, and the guy skated. The teen's death is two years ago, today."

"His number comes up days before the two year anniversary of a teenager's death that devastated a family, talk about more than a coincidence," Shaw sighed and those were his exact thoughts. They needed to get Joss to give them the name of the mother and father of the teenager killed.

"I'll contact Carter to get us the name of the mother and father, we need to have a talk with them before something happens that will ruin their life even further."


"Will you stop fidgeting, Joss." She shot John a glare as he drove towards the high-school she went to back in the day. She hadn't been near it in a very long time. "You look beautiful."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know you think I look beautiful, it's why we are running late," she huffed, annoyed that she didn't have the strength to tell him no to sex before the reunion. She had just gotten the damn dress on when he was pulling it off, and yanking her onto the bed. "Distract me, John."

"Okay, we couldn't have finished our case without your valuable help."

"Sucking up is good too." She said with a smile making him laugh. She was so cute when she was nervous. He just wished she could relax a little and enjoy this. He understood why she wanted to do this, but if it was causing her this much stress than maybe it wasn't worth it. "It hurt to arrest the father of the teen," she sighed.

"I know, I keep thinking we made a mistake, maybe an eye for an eye was the way to go." He knew her getting all hopped up on telling him how wrong he was would distract her, hopefully.

"John, Roland skated and it's not right, but it doesn't give Mr. Hotchkins the right to murder him in cold blood. Two wrongs don't make a right, and it won't bring back Calvin." John knew that, but sometimes the justice system failed. Calvin's death was senseless, Roland had been speeding and driving recklessly, hitting the teen who was just walking home from school, and he should be in jail.

"How am I doing?" he asked.

"What?"

"With distracting you?"

"Pretty good, John." She smiled as he pulled into the parking lot of the high-school. Her eyes slid from his profile to look out her window, he thought he saw her tense which irked him. He parked the car, the car was enveloped in darkness, but he could see her hand trembling.

"Joss."

"Hmmm?" She turned to look at him, and he put his hand behind her neck, his fingers tangling in her hair, and yanked her to him. He kissed her passionately. He felt the tension seep out of her as she kissed him back. When she was good and kissed, he pushed back and smiled at her. They climbed out of his car, walked hand in hand towards her old high-school, and entered.

Joss wasn't ready for the memories to flood her, but they did. Girls shoving her down, boys snickering behind her back, but the worst were the comments. Words did hurt, not physically, but emotionally. She had learned to tune it out for the most part. She did fine ignoring everyone, but when she was alone at night sometimes she would cry herself to sleep, wondering why no one liked her. She held John's hand in hers, then realized she was crushing it by squeezing. She lifted her gaze apologizing without speaking; when she felt a gentle squeeze she knew he didn't mind. A young woman sat in front with name tags and a man was taking coats.

"Name." Joss recognized this woman easily. This was the class president back in the day and one of the girls that made her feel about an inch in size. Bethany Michaels was every guys' dream back in the day; she noticed with irritation that the years had been kind to her. She was still as beautiful as she was in highschool.

"Jocelyn Henson-Carter." She knew they found her with her married last name, but she was nervous so she wasn't exactly sure which name to give. The woman looked up finally.

"Jossy?" Her back stiffened when the shock was apparent on the woman's face. She wasn't sure what she was shocked about, the fact that she showed up or wasn't ugly.

"Bethany," she greeted back trying to force a smile on her face. "Long time."

"I'll say, you look different."

"You do too." Like older, but Joss resisted saying the snide remark. She felt John move closer to her, before sliding an arm around her waist. Joss, noticed with extreme happiness as Bethany finally looked away from her and to John. The surprise written on her face was amusing. John had that effect on women. "Where are my manners, Bethany, this is my very close friend, John Warren. John, this is a woman I went to school with."

"Nice to meet you." He nodded politely. Bethany recovered quickly before handing Joss her name tag. She didn't say anything further to her, which left her stunned. Bethany always had something to say and always had to have the last word. They walked towards the cafeteria where Beth had told them the reunion was taking place. "That wasn't so bad, I take it she was one of the girls that made fun of you?"

"She was, one of the worst." She acknowledged, putting her name tag on. Maybe she had been worrying for nothing. They were all in their forties, clearly they all grew up, and she relaxed a little. They entered the cafeteria and noticed a lot of men and women were there already. People turned to watch them enter, the women stared at John and some men stared at her. "Why are they staring?" she whispered.

"Because they are seeing the most beautiful woman in the world walk into their reunion."

"Stop John, you don't have to distract me any longer." She assured as they maneuvered further into the cafeteria, taking seats in the back. "It's more like the women are staring at you, while the men are staring at me, trying to figure out why this good looking guy is with me." She said on a long suffered sigh, feeling like she was in high-school all over again. What was it about this place and these people that put her insecurities on high? She didn't see the angry look on John's handsome face, she was too busy looking around the cafeteria looking for possible escape routes if things went south.

"Jocelyn?" She blinked and looked up.

"Erica, Erica Wilkinson, right?" she greeted. The woman had long blonde hair; the years hadn't been as kind to her as they had been to Bethany. She must have tanned too much because she had a lot of wrinkles and she appeared to have had a nose job at some point. She stood up when the woman motioned she wanted to give her a hug.

"You look so slim, Jossy." She parted from the hug and had to bite down on her lower lip from telling this woman she was never heavy. But why bother? "Who is this hunk, your escort?" she laughed at her own joke and a few other men and women she recognized from school made their way over.

"He's my boyfriend, not an escort, his name is John." She turned to him, who had yet to stand up. She gulped softly, seeing the rage in his icy blue depths. Uh-oh, these people's subtle putdowns were provoking a bear. "John, honey, say hi." She tapped his shoulder begging for him to not start anything. Clearly he'd rather drink acid than say hello, but he slowly stood up.

"Hello," his voice was deathly low, venomous.

"So what is it you do, John?"

"I'm an investment banker."

"That's interesting, how did you meet, Jossy?" John held her possessively to him. She could feel the tension in him.

"I met him through my work, I'm an NYPD detective, and helped with a case when they brought John in when four thugs attacked him in the subway." She eyed him adoringly. He looked at her and smiled. "They didn't lay a hand on you."

"Four thugs, and you took them down? You must be a good fighter." Joss slid her gaze to the man that was captain of their football team, Benjamin Dunn. He had been cruel to her, calling her nasty names. She lifted her chin defiantly. She noted with intense satisfaction that Benjamin Dunn was overweight with a beer belly, and had thinning hair.

"I was in the military." He shrugged. "Just like Joss, she served her country as well, got a law degree, then went into the police academy." She squeezed his shoulder to cease him from listing her accomplishments. "So what is it that you people do?" she clamped down hard on his shoulder, but it seemed John was on a mission to embarrass these people.

"Oh I'm a car salesman." Benjamin spoke up. "A pretty good one too, I have the best sales rate at the dealership."

"Do you own the dealership?"

"Well, no..."

"Mmmmmmm," John said knowingly. Joss wished a hole would open on the floor to swallow her whole because this was not what she had in mind for when she asked for John to come with her. Benjamin smiled then frowned when he realized John just put him down in the roundabout way.

"Well, I'm a wedding planner, so if you ever can get a man to marry you Jossy, come seek me out." She wasn't going to rise to the bait to explain to this woman she had been married before. She was sure the woman would turn it around, and make it sound like her marriage failed because of her, not because of Paul's inability to seek help.

"I plan on wedding Joss as soon as she'll agree to marry me, but, knowing Joss's phenomenal planning skills and excellent taste, she won't want or need any help...unless you might want to help bake the groom's cake?" Joss's eyes widened. "It was nice meeting you both, but I want to speak to Joss alone." He grinned, tugging her with him away from the two people he just put down in the span of two minutes.

"What are you doing?" She hissed.

"Me, what are you doing? This isn't you, Joss, you don't just let people walk all over you and put you down like that. Where is my girlfriend who tans my hide with a word or two or just a look?" he growled angrily as they stepped into the corner and he faced her. His eyes blazed with anger, not just at those people, but at her as well. Well, she was just as angry.

"John, I didn't ask you to come here to fight my battles, I asked you here to have someone beside me."

"And I am. I just don't understand why you are letting these people continue to put you down. You are confident, self-assured, beautiful, and intelligent, yet you won't tell these people off. Why?"

"I don't know. I feel like I'm back in high-school again, John." She shrugged helplessly. She felt small, insecure, and invisible the moment she entered this place. "I…" but he cut off the rest of her sentence. His mouth caught hers, as his arms wrapped around tugging her to him. She sighed happily forgetting where she was, just enjoying his warmth. She slid her arms around his neck, kissing him back. They broke apart after a few minutes, and she didn't even care that people were staring.

"I love you, Joss."

"I know you do, John."

"Stop pretending you are the same girl that you were that didn't have a voice, that didn't have anyone to watch her back. Sure you are still proud, still goal oriented, still a stickler for the rules, BUT you are tough, argumentative, and a courageous woman. You've gone through more than any sane woman would have too, coming out it with very little dust to brush off. These people aren't worthy to walk in the same room as you, neither do I for that matter." She smiled softly as she played with his hair.

"John you are worth more than what you give yourself credit for."

"Only because of you," he answered, kissing her sweetly before pushing back. "Come on lets go find someplace to sit where I don't have to deal with some of these people. One more backhanded insult, and I might start shooting kneecaps." She laughed but when he didn't even crack a smile she was worried, he was telling the truth. She allowed him to tug her to the very corner where there happened to be not many people. She walked beside him, overhearing some whispers as she walked with him. Typical, whispers as she walked by, and when she turned to look they giggled and stop.

For a while the reunion went along without further incident, until Bethany, Erica, and Benjamin managed to make it over to them. Dancing had commenced with old tunes from their high-school years.

"Jossy, you don't mind if I borrow your hot 'friend' to dance with?" Bethany's voice sounded slurred like she drank too much, even though it was barely nine o'clock.

"Actually I do mind, Bethany."

"Come on sugar, dance with me, I'll show you a real fun time unlike Jossy." She curled her hands into fists the innuendo was clear.

"I said I minded, Bethany." She spoke up much like she did when she was getting tired of a suspect in custody, John smiled at her, and she tried to tamp down on her growing anger. John's smile and the twinkling of his eyes told her he was willing her to allow her temper to explode.

Then Benjamin cozied up to her, almost making her sick in the stomach. "How about you dance with me? Can you believe it Jossy, you will be dancing with the former prom king and former captain of the football team? I bet you never thought in a million years you'd get that opportunity." His hands were held out wide as if he was some prize. She made a face at him.

"Oh yes, I've been waiting my entire life for this very moment." Her scathing and sarcastic remark didn't hit home obviously, because the giant moron moved close to her. John's movement was so quick, he twisted the man's meaty wrist which elicited a cry of pain.

"Touch her, and I'll break every bone in your body with great delight."

"John, let his arm go."

"Why? He doesn't need it to sell cars?"

"Please," she looked around, hoping against hope they weren't making spectacles of themselves. But thankfully most people were dancing and waiting for the prom king and queen to get re-crowned before they left.

"He's so hot." Bethany fanned herself tugging on John's arm. "Come on, mousy Jossy said I could dance with you." Joss turned to eye Bethany, forgetting about Benjamin's arm that was twisted in an unnatural way thanks to John.

"I didn't say it was okay, I actually said no."

"Like you can keep a guy like him." She pointed to John who released Ben's wrist who took the opportunity to scurry away. But Joss didn't care, didn't pay attention, because all her focus was on the woman that made her life a living hell during high-school. Bethany Michaels had been horrible to her, dated Benjamin and both of them had took great joy in making life for her terrible.

"I promised myself I wouldn't ever try to understand, but I always wondered why you hated me so much, but I finally figured it out. You were jealous and still are jealous of me. I have a great career, a good looking boyfriend, a wonderful son, and what do you have….? Right, I heard three failed marriages, a career that is going nowhere, and almost past child bearing years with an empty nest. You might have been prom queen, the lead cheerleader, the most popular girl in school, and you ruled the roost here in high-school. But where did it get you in life? Nowhere, that's where, and now you're spinning in circles. I feel sorry for you, Bethany, for everyone that ever picked on me, because you lost out on knowing someone like me. I'm loyal to a fault, I'm a good listener, a good friend, and I'm always there for someone that needs me, you would have had a friend for life. I never stuck up for myself back in high-school because I didn't want to be teased further. But I'm done with allowing your backhanded comments, your subtle putdowns, because I'm better than you people. I always had been and always will be. Come on John, let's go!" She felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest, as she grabbed John's hand to yank him with her.

"That had to feel good." He murmured as they weaved through the crowd, leaving Bethany stunned.

"Yeah it did, I was having a hard time holding my tongue, it wasn't easy but she made it damn near impossible. I never would say anything in high-school but I couldn't resist finally putting that bitch in her place!" He laughed as they made their way towards the exit to collect their jackets.

"Hold it!" Of course Bethany had to have the last word, she always did. John helped her slide her jacket on before going to put his on. Joss turned to eye her.

"What is it, Bethany?"

"How dare you embarrass me in front of everyone like that? I didn't tell your hot boyfriend what a cow you were in high-school. Did she tell that? Did she tell you everything about herself? Did she tell you we set her up because she was so naive, making her cry in front of the entire school?"

"I suggest you go back into the cafeteria drink your alcohol and enjoy the rest of your evening Bethany, John and I are leaving."

"I suggest you shut your mouth. Ben was right, you are nothing but a cunt, you must give good head to keep a guy like this one by your side." She felt John stiffen beside her. Joss looked around, seeing if there were any cameras around, and smirked when she didn't see a single one.

"And you are nothing but a bitch that couldn't get a man like John's attention because you are superficial from the inside out." Joss grinned before she swiftly punched her, hearing a loud crack as her knuckles collided with her nose. Bethany cried out, grabbing at her nose while Joss fixed her hair. God that felt good. "Hey, remember when you used to trip me and say 'whoops my leg sort of tripped you' and you would laugh; well, 'whoops my fist sort of collided with your face'…my bad." Bethany cried loudly as a few people ran out to see what was wrong.

"She hit me!" Bethany wailed, she sort of wanted to cover her ears.

"Actually, no she came after me. Beth you should stay on your meds." She tsked. "Come on John, we should leave her to go get cleaned up." John nodded with sparkling eyes, and followed her out. She felt like she was walking on air.

"That was insanely hot, watching you punch her and not caring about the fact that she could press charges against you." She laughed she wondered what aroused John more; her punching someone or her not caring about getting into trouble.

"Bethany can't, because she knows no one will believe her. She has three misdemeanor charges of filing a false police report against her, so no one will believe her word against mine."

"How do you know that?"

"Let's just say I did a little digging into my former classmates before we went to the reunion." She shrugged while they walked together out into the cold night's air. Her knuckles hurting but it was a welcomed pang.

"You played the shy, quiet, mousy girl to a T knowing they wouldn't suspect a thing." He grinned as they made their way to his car.

"No, I had no plans of embarrassing them or having a run in with them; but just in case anyone tried to start anything with me I figured it would be good to know your enemy. So I checked up on the ones that were the meanest to me and learned some interesting facts about them. Finch helped me too."

"I wouldn't want to be on your bad side." He smiled pressing her against his car. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"No, you wouldn't want to be, I know all there is about John Reese." She agreed kissing his chin. "Especially where he's ticklish at." She murmured into his ear. "Which is useful information, and I'm not afraid to use it!" He smiled.

"Oh yeah, well I know where you like to be kissed that makes you shiver," he whispered as he dragged his lips down the column of her neck before lightly kissing where her pulse was racing.

"Get me home, now."

"Yes ma'am. As your escort, I'll take you wherever you need to go." He winked as he opened the passenger side door with a gentlemanly flourish, assisted her in with a final kiss to her neck, then rushed around the side of his car. He drove them towards her place quietly, but fast. While it was quiet she was left with her musing and one moment in particular stood out in her mind tonight.

"John?"

"What, Joss?"

"Did you mean what you said earlier?"

"What exactly are you referring too?"

"That you plan on marrying me someday?" she asked. She noticed his relaxed face remained relaxed, no hint of tension. His smile didn't melt away and no awkwardness occurred.

"Yes," his warm reply was heartfelt and sincere. She smiled as she eyed his profile feeling giddy.

"That's good to know, John, very good to know."


Author's note: So yay, another fluffier type one. What still pisses me off about the show is there so much backstory on Jocelyn Carter that now we will never know! I mean I will never know if she was bullied or not, why she decided to sign up in the military was there a reason or just for herself, how did SHE feel when she got out of the military and how did SHE get over what she witnessed. I know how Paul felt and how he handled it, but not her and she was one of the main characters! I mean she got that horrible injury in Fallujah where she could have felt survivor's guilt since she lived while the marine died I could go on and on listing things I wish I could learn for real but instead I got to resort to my lowly imagination for. Sigh. Maybe I should start another series of Carter oneshots called Carter Moments where we get to see a glimpse into just her life. Ugh, I don't think I can though I got this, the next Moments installment, Time Lapse 2, the final story to go along with Love Games/War Games, a promised smut story for a loyal reader, Careese half of my Shaw story that I promised Gretchen, and my own original novel...hmmmmm, one more project? I'm not sure but I love the idea of Carter getting her backstory filled.

Okay pent up rant over, the next one will probably be slightly angstier I'm not sure which oneshot Elaine will read next since I sent her a few, and she has had some bad luck so take your time reading my stories, Elaine and if you need it I can see if I can find someone to help read some of my stuff for you. XOXOXOXOXOXOX

Thanks everyone for reading, reviewing, following, and or favoriting I heart you all :D