A/N: It's late and this took on a life of its own so enjoy.
It hadn't surprised her really. The way he was looking at her, had been looking at her since they returned home from the con, made her feel on edge more than she already was.
She could handle him screaming at her, because she did something stupid, like put herself between him and the mark holding the gun. She knew he could handle himself. He always did, but somehow her heart overrode the sensible part of her brain and the bullet grazed them both.
She could handle the silence that came after the screaming as he slowly stitched them both up. It wouldn't be either of their first scars, but the first that they had acquired together. She relished his quiet moodiness, giving her time to quell that feeling in the pit of her stomach. The one that makes her feel sick to the stomach, not because she almost died, but because he could have.
She could handle the lack of eye contact as the others made sure she was alright. It just reaffirmed her feelings for him and made her realize that she'd do it again. She'd give her life for this man wholeheartedly and without thinking. He always put himself in harm's way for the rest of the team, but she idly wondered if he'd do the same thing for her for the same reasons.
It's when the others aren't looking and he finally looks at her, and it's the look that she can't handle. It's a scrutinizing and soul searing look that makes her want to hide. She usually can handle anything he throws her way, with a stubborn grace that drives him to the brink, but the look causes her to quietly slip away.
So it doesn't really surprise her that he notices her missing right away, or that he follows her into their apartment. What does surprise her is the way he acts when they're finally alone. Grabbing her, pinning her against the wall as his mouth devours hers. He's needy and his hands seem to be everywhere, barely giving her a chance to breath.
Later when they've exhausted themselves, lying in a tangled mass of arms and legs that he gives her that look again. This time it's lost the harsh edge that it had earlier and it's filled with something that she can't quite put her finger on. She trails her fingers along the roughness of his cheek, he closes his eyes and he kisses her palm. When he opens them again, there's a glassy look to them that she's never seen in them before. His eyes go to the stitches on her arm and a rough thumb ghosts over the them.
"Don't ever do that again." He pleads with her.
She doesn't give him an answer, causing him to look at her. All the doubts and fears she had about him are gone with that single look.
They both had been alone for a very long time. Each of them building walls around themselves to protect them from a harsh world. She'd like to think that was part of the attraction. She never imagined when they met that they'd tear down each other's walls so easily, but they have.
She smiles at him, a smile she reserves just for him, reassuring him, but he doesn't seem satisfied with the answer. He wants more. He wants her to promise that she'll let him go first if there's not an out. Fear grips her tight again and she's not sure if she can make that promise. A few years ago she'd have no problem imaging herself alone, but now she can't see past his handsome face.
So she makes the promise she's not sure she can keep, praying that she never has to see if she can. He relaxes at her answer and gathers her tightly to him. She relaxes as his fingers trace intricate patters across her back and allows herself to fall asleep to the rhythmic beating of his heart.