Sorry everyone, I'm a little behind because of homework the holidays, and my final exams are coming in two weeks. I will try to write in-between classes and studying, but I can't promise a new chapter anytime soon. I hope everyone's had a lovely Thanksgiving and enjoyed the holiday break! :) Have a wonderful day.
Disclaimers: I do not own Person of Interest.
The city night was loud and bustling with activity as per usual, but Shaw hid quietly and stayed lurking in the shadows as people passed by. She was observing the number as he got into the club from across the street with a girl under each of his arm. They looked underage but Shaw couldn't be sure with the amount of cake powder on both their faces. She was so focused on the guy that she didn't notice a shadow concealed right behind her. Suddenly, Shaw found herself twisting the hand that had barely brushed her right shoulder, and heard a man's groan only a second later. She pulled the tall shadow forward and pushed him against the dusty brick wall of the old building as she scanned his face. It was Tomas Koroa, the Spanish jewelry thief who once tried to persuade her to leave to Barcelona with him. He'd fallen quickly for her after she joined and worked together with his former team of international thieves, called the Hole in the Wall gang, whom he invested all his existence for six long years before they all turned on him for money. The rest of the gang was promised an extra $500,000 by their then employer if they eliminated Tomas after the robbery. In Katya's words back then, "Business is business." Katya Rodchenko was a member of Tomas Kora's team. Shaw hadn't heard from him again after he went back to Spain.
"What are you doing here?" Shaw asked with a grim expression as she shove him back into the wall to get even with him for sneaking up on her. Shaw let go of Tomas and the death grip she had on his twisted wrist, which she held behind his back, and stepped away. He scoffed and look downward, embarrassed while wiping at the side of his face that was pressed into the wall from a few seconds earlier. Shaw crossed her arms as she watched him dust off the dirty fine powder from his leather jacket.
"The Florentine Diamond." Tomas said as though it should be obvious for his presence. Shaw looked at him like she had no idea what he was talking about and his eyebrows gather towards the center of his forehead and he smirked. "What about I buy you a drink and I can tell you all about it?" Tomas suggested with a dashing smile while nodding towards the club across the street from them.
"I'm on a job." she looked at him as though it wasn't obvious enough. His lips pursed downward and his eyes fell to the ground before lifting to find hers again.
"I believe we're on the same job." he said to her. "That man you're following," he continued while nodding towards the club again, "I've got ears that he knows where the lost diamond is." Shaw looked at the booming club with all the technicolor lights beaming inside. It would help her to go in with a date. Shaw shrugged and rolled her eyes before pulling her dress down and fixing her hair. Tomas admired her strapless black tight-fitted dress.
"Nothing unlocks doors like a beautiful woman." Tomas said as he gestured for her to walk ahead and across the street towards the club. Shaw rolled her eyes back so hard, it looked like it might hurt, and he let out a low chuckle as he followed her winning strides. Tomas flashed the bouncer his B1 visa after he quickly let Shaw through with an appreciative look. The bouncer looked at him for several seconds and then back to his travelling visa that showed he had dual U.S. and Spanish citizenship. He let him in after, and Tomas quickly followed Shaw as she was already halfway to the bar. She chose the end of the bar that was closest to the number's VIP secluded section. Tomas raised a finger to signal to the bartender who quickly came over to take their drink orders. He ordered two cocktails, much to Shaw's dismay.
"So, what's a beautiful woman like you working a job alone?" he asked as they both sat facing each other, Tomas's back facing the number and Shaw facing him. She rested an elbow onto the bar counter and tucked the hair that had fallen from her bun behind her ear.
"Who said I was working alone?" she smiled impishly as Tomas's confident gaze faltered. He looked around and didn't see anyone, not even the pair of brown eyes that were staring holes into the back of his head. He pursed his lips downward again and shrugged as though saying he didn't see Shaw with anyone without actually uttering a word. Shaw's eyes glanced over at the number, seeing that not much was going on before returning her stare to Tomas.
"You need to work on your observation skills." Shaw threw at him before taking a big gulp of the cocktail the bartender just put down.
"How about I work on them with you?" Tomas said as a smile flitted across his lips. Shaw's smile widened at the witty flirting and didn't dare glance in Root's direction on the dancefloor, hiding in the throng of moving bodies. She was quickly making her way over and approaching them.
"How about you work on it with someone your own size?" Root's voice cut through the simmering tension a second later.
"Tomas." Shaw said with a mischievous smile. "Meet supersized nutball." Shaw introduced as she stood up and walked over to the barman to get another drink. Root stared at Tomas icily and crossed her arms as she sized him up. He looked taken aback by her behavior and decided to take a friendly approach and reached out a hand for a handshake. Root looked down at his large muscular hand unimpressed and ignored it. Tomas stare at her in confusion before dropping his hand and sitting back down, moving to whirl the half glassful concoction in the cocktail glass. Shaw came back with a gin and vodka, handing it to Root before plopping down right next to Tomas again, who looked up at her coming back and possibly easing the hostility oozing from Root. The brilliant hacker with wicked gun skills stood near Shaw and decidedly drape her right arm around Shaw's shoulders, who only shrugged it away in response. Root frowned at Shaw brushing her off but still inched closer to Shaw's side.
"So, this is your partner." Tomas said more than asked. Shaw nodded and Root shifted near her.
"In more ways than one." Root returned and Tomas looked at the both of them questioningly. Shaw smirked and took another gulp out of her drink as her eyes dashed over to the number for a moment to check if he was still where he was supposed to be.
"Well, if I may point out, I can't help but notice the subtlety of your antagonism towards me. Have I done something to offend you?" Tomas asked Root. Root's tongue darted out of her lips and swept across her bottom lip and her gaze cast downward before raising up to meet his.
"You've been kind-of hitting on my girlfriend. Well, we haven't decided what to call - " Root barely got started before Shaw decidedly cut her off.
"Decided? I didn't think you got to decide." Shaw joked and Tomas's confusion deepened even further.
"Sameen. We talked about this." Root said as she turned to Shaw and crossed her arms.
"When?" Shaw asked as she ignored Root's pout and continued drinking her nearly empty glass of alcohol.
"You know when." Root looked at her in disbelief as Shaw's face showed no sign of what Root was talking about. Root leaned in and whispered into Shaw's left ear, "Hotel. Bishop. Blade pressing into your inner thigh. My mouth on your - " but Shaw didn't let her finish again out of embarrassment.
"Yeah, she's right. We're together now." Shaw said to Tomas as his eyes light up at the news.
"I see." he said as his head nodded slowly, looking from Shaw to Root and back. "It's too bad I couldn't sell the idea of running off to Spain to you well enough to whisk you away." he smiled at Shaw who only rolled her eyes in response.
"Wouldn't have worked in any scenario." Shaw said but looked to Root to catch her eye, who only smirked victoriously in return.
"Well, I don't want to intrude any further then, ladies. I hope you both have a nice evening." he said suavely as he slipped away quickly without a backward glance. Root and Shaw watched him walk towards the door and out, wondering about the number he left behind.
"How about we let John handle this?" Root whispered seductively into Shaw's ear as she glanced at John who was standing near the bar on the opposite end.
"And miss out on the fun? No way." Shaw beamed at Root's crestfallen expression. "I'm kidding." Shaw chuckled as she looked over at John who gave them a hand signal that he heard everything and that they can leave. Root placed her left hand firmly on Shaw's backside and let her lead them out of the club, smiling at how she seems to be getting her way with Shaw tonight. They both turned off the radio intercom in their ears and took the earpieces out, crushing them under their heels and walked down the sidewalk for a few blocks before Root pulled Shaw by the hand into a back alley. She pressed Shaw against the cement wall and crashed their lips together, not bothering to tease the other woman like she usually does. Shaw groaned as she felt Root's hips pressing into her own and her tongue in her mouth, but both her dress and Root's off the shoulder black dress were constraining them from more desirable movements. Shaw hissed when Root bit down hard on her lower lip, taking it between her lips before releasing her bottom lip, and moving in to kiss her hard again. Shaw didn't even need to fight for dominance as she understood what this was about. Shaw let Root work her ministrations, red lips trailing down to her jawline before resting against the side of her neck, marking and bruising her mercilessly. Shaw bit down on her lower lip when she felt Root's sharp teeth dig into the skin, nearly piercing the thin layer of tissue at her neck, and sucked in a breath when Root didn't ease off. It was only a few seconds later when she felt Root's soft tongue run over the expanse of her skin, and she sighed at the relief it brought to her. Root's hands rested on Shaw's waist, clutching onto the material so fiercely that Shaw started chuckling at the aggressiveness that came out of her.
"What's so funny?" Root asked seriously as she lifted up her head from Shaw's neck to face her. A street light shined a dim orange glow on them as they stood staring at each other.
"You." Shaw said as she relaxed against the wall she was pressed up against and let her eyes wander down Root's amazingly fitted dress. When she looked up, she saw Root looking at her thoughtfully with a slight frown and Shaw gave her an annoyed look after contemplating between that and an angered one.
"What? Did you not like me putting out the flame that you were trying to rekindle with Tomas?" Root half joked and half asked.
"Rekindle what flame?" Shaw laughed into Root's face as it turned into a deeper frown. "Just admit it. You were jealous." Shaw smirked as Root tried to turn her face turned into an inscrutable expression.
"No, I wasn't." Root spoke firmly.
"Yeah. You were." Shaw threw back haughtily.
"No, I wasn't." Root denied again before trying to push herself off of Shaw, but Shaw was faster and moved her arms to wrap them around Root's waist. She brought her face up close to Root, inches away, looking into her eyes and daring her to move again after she held both of Root's hands behind her back and pulled her extremely close and intimate. Shaw kept staring at her for the next fifteen seconds and finally, Root rolled her eyes and let out a reluctant sigh.
"Fine. I was jealous. Happy?" Root said with annoyance as she gave in.
"Maybe a little. It was fun watching you squirm." Shaw grinned. Root was about to say something when Shaw suddenly leaned in and kissed her, surprising Root, who responded to the kiss only a second after.
"You're so mean to me." Root said breathlessly when Shaw released her lips and hands. Shaw moved her hands to rest against Root's waist again and she smiled at Root, who only smiled back.
"Yeah, so?" Shaw said in return as she basked in the orange glow that made Root look so angelic and roguish at the same time.
"So, you should be nice to me...because as we've just agreed earlier, I'm your girlfriend now." Root said as she decidedly wrapped her arms around Shaw's neck.
"So?" Shaw said again as though she didn't get Root's point and her face scrunched up at the new term defining their relationship finally.
"Therefore, now you're my girlfriend too. So start acting like it." Root said while gazing at Shaw's jawline and brought a hand up to trace the curves and edges with her fingertips. Root finally leaned in after a while and pressed her lips against Shaw's chin and licked her way up to Shaw's waiting lips. Their kiss started out slow and easy with lips barely brushing and parting, but then Root begin to press the entire length of her body into Shaw and it ignited the churning feeling that started in the center of her chest from earlier. Shaw really wanted to touch her but she wasn't much of an exhibitionist when she knew the Machine was watching. She saw the security camera in the back alley, red light blinking and then going solid. She pulled away from the kiss and looked into Root's lust-filled eyes, shaking her head and exhaling in disbelief at all the emotions she felt for the woman before her, and leaned in to kiss her once more and then pulled back.
"Let's get out of here." Shaw said as she tug Root by the hand, who look confused but followed her anyway. They retraced their steps out of the back alley and onto the sidewalk again, and that's when Shaw felt Root shivering slightly. She walked faster and Root had no trouble keeping up with her long legs and quick steps. Root felt the cool midnight air all around her, but she also felt warm inside. She watched from behind as Shaw's bun was slowly coming apart and she reached forward with her other hand to free the bun, Shaw's tresses falling past her shoulders and down to her mid-back like midnight ocean waves. Root felt her a flutter in her chest at the sight when Shaw turned around looking surprised but her expression quickly turning into that of annoyance. Root only flashed a smile in return and she pulled on Shaw's hand to slow them down, walking at a leisure tempo instead. Root bit down on her bottom lip as she thought about how they've gotten to where they are. She was suddenly left with a sour feeling as she thought of Tomas again when all she wanted to do was just reminisce on how everything that has happened had only led them to this point where they were; where they're supposed to be. Together. Tomas was a part of that journey. A hurdle.
"Did you sleep with him?" Root asked suddenly just as she let go of Shaw's hand. Shaw turned her head to the left and looked at Root with confusion before it finally dawned on her what Root was talking about. She snickered and looked away as they continued walking on the endless empty sidewalk.
"You did, didn't you?" Root said defeatedly with a sigh. This made Shaw chuckle even more as she stopped in her steps and turned her whole body around to face Root.
"What makes you think that I fucked him?" Shaw asked blatantly, which really threw Root off. Root frowned at the use of those words. "Or that he fucked me?" Shaw added and made Root's frown deepen even more. "Or maybe we did just sleepā¦together in the same bed." Shaw smirked as Root looked down at her confused. "Side by sideā¦" Shaw teased as she drawl out the end of it. Root's eyes narrowed in on Shaw and the former ISA operative couldn't take it anymore as a winning smile crept near the edges of her mouth.
"What are you saying?" Root implored as she lifted a hand to rub her right temple and shook her head while her eyes closed momentarily.
"What I'm saying, Root, is that I haven't slept with anyone else, not since the hood and zip ties in a CIA safe house with ten hours to kill incident." Shaw said with a gleam in her eyes while Root's brown orbs gradually soften.
"Sameen," Root said her name airily almost like a sigh. "You can't be serious." she continued with a slight tone of disbelief. Shaw grinned and bit down on her bottom lip, wondering if she should go on about it or not. She decided she was going to.
"It just happened. I kept thinking that the next few times we got together again, after that night at the CIA safe house, would be the last time. But...they weren't. We'd come together and I'd just...lose control." Shaw admitted as she started walking again and had a faraway look in her eyes. "Then, God knows why, you were always going away during those three years after we shut down Samaritan for good. I just thought...I don't know, that you got tired of me? Every time you came back, you'd sleep on my damn couch." Shaw said bitterly and kicked the pavement with her heel. "So when you left, I'd find myself sleeping on it for weeks not knowing why until I could finally admit to myself that it was because the couch had your scent." Shaw looked away but Root can see a little bit of red shading where her cheekbones were. "I didn't even go out looking for a nice fuck." Shaw disclosed and it made Root cringe. "I just knew I only wanted you." Shaw's head turned to the left and her look pierced into Root's stare. "So stop this jealousy shit you have with Tomas, and be perky psycho that you're the only one for me." Shaw said and stomped forward. Root was so much in a daze that she didn't realize she was almost ten steps behind Shaw.
"Sameen! Wait!" Root yelled as she tried to catch up with the smaller woman. Shaw kept walking and smiling to herself until Root appeared by her side again. She kept an expressionless face while Root was smiling that smug smile she had after Shaw told her that she didn't leave with Tomas because she cared about half a decade ago. They walked in comfortable silence and Root couldn't help but feel a warmth in her chest the rest of the way home.
