Title: Blood Relatives

Author: Roth

Rating: PG 13

Spoilers: Rampage, Sniper Zero

Disclaimer: I don't own Numb3rs and neither do you. We don't have a problem so please don't sue.

Summary: Don's thought after the shooting at the office. (Don POV)

Note: I normally don't do tags to episodes or first person stories, but I just loved this episode too much.

Shattered

Chapter Four: Fragments

"There is so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, that it behooves all of us not to talk about the rest of us." Robert Stevenson

After a case, I always try to just sit down and let everything sink in; sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but I can tell you one thing. After a case, nobody, including me some of the time wants to be in my head.

Charlie seemed to have recovered from everything just fine, but God, did I wish I could be bouncing back like he was right now. He was rushing around the break room looking for sugar for his coffee, and it was rather entertaining. It was actually brightening up the dark area my mind had become a little for the time being. Still, after a case, my mind was like the Cabrini Green of minds.

"Hey, where the hell did evidence response put the sugar?" he asked, turning toward me.

"I don't know," I replied, not really paying attention to him anymore.

I saw him out of the corner of my eye turn back around to search a drawer, but closed it when he found the sugar wasn't there either. "Some week?" Charlie turned back toward me.

"Yeah." I scratched my head, knowing the comment was directed at my change in demeanor. "I-I mean..I'm cool until everything quiets down then it's like...my head is a bad neighborhood to be in."

Charlie didn't respond. He looked back to the counters and pulled a box of something out of the drawer. "Hey, did you know that if you bend a piece of spaghetti it will always break into three or more pieces?" He held up the box as a visual aid.

I smiled. "No, Charlie. I can't say I do."

"Richie Fineman and Danny Hellis spent an entire night bending spaghetti. Took them twenty years to figure out why you cannot break spaghetti in half."

"And why is that?" I figured Charlie was going to give me a big whole lecture that I was not looking forward to.

Charlie took a few pieces of spaghetti and started to bend them. "Fragmentation Theory." The pieces broke. "Math Stuff."

I waited a second for him to continue to explain, and I was surprised when he didn't. "What's your point?"

Charlie sighed as he handed me a piece of spaghetti. "Not every story has point. Sometimes you...uh you just bend spaghetti to watch it break."

I bent the pasta along with my brother and watched as it broke into several pieces.

"Right," said Charlie, showing me the broken piece.

"Huh." I sat there with my brother bending the pieces for awhile. It was so stupid, but it was a distraction, and I have to admit, it was kind of fun.

The really funny thing though is I saw Dad walk into the office and pause when he saw me and Charlie in the break room. I didn't react though I just continued talking to Charlie and bending the spaghetti. I don't know if Charlie saw him, and if he had, he did the same thing I did and didn't say a word. I saw him leave a second later with Megan, and I smiled slightly. My dad was wrong right then. You see he thinks I didn't see him; the truth, I just didn't want to leave.

XVIIIIV

I'm done. YAY! I'm also depressed which I won't go into. I'm sorry if I didn't spell the name of the Fragmentation Theory guys right. I couldn't find it online. Hope you enjoyed. BYES TO ALL!