Out Of The Shadows

"I should go." Punk nodded, getting up from the floor and putting his clothes on as AJ sat up, reaching over for her shorts and t-shirt as she stared at him putting his clothes back on.

"This isn't the part where you never speak to me ever again, is it?" AJ wondered. She knew his reputation. She wondered if what she felt for him was just her feelings. She was sure it was mutual, but she didn't know.

He just turned to her and shook his head, "No, I just… I just need to go." He nodded as she got to her feet, "It's 2am and I… I start at 6." He groaned a little as she put her shorts and t-shirt on, deliberately leaving her bra off as he looked across at her. He'd never had sex like it. It was incredible.

"You can sleep here if you want." AJ shrugged, "There's two bedrooms if you want to play that card." She nodded to him.

"I should really just go." Punk nodded. He wasn't quite sure what to say to her. He wasn't ready to tell her how amazing everything felt. How completely intrigued he was in all of her.

"Ok." AJ just nodded, "I wouldn't mention this to Seth." AJ shook her head.

"Don't worry, I won't." Punk scoffed. He could only imagine what his brother would do to him if he found this out. He would definitely be a dead man.

"I'll uh… I'll see you tomorrow then." AJ nodded.

"Yeah." Punk said, grabbing his jacket.

It was awkward. Of course it was. Both of them knew what the other was thinking, they just weren't brave enough to say it. Punk knew he was falling for her. Every day, bit by bit, his feelings were changing and tonight proved just how much he really wanted her.

AJ watched him put on his jacket, knowing that she would be thinking and dreaming about tonight for a very long time. She hadn't experienced anything like it before.

She watched him as he left the house, leaning against the fridge and sighing to herself. She definitely needed a long, cold shower.

"Morning." Dean slapped Punk's head as Punk jumped from his desk. He had been leaning over it, snoring fast asleep.

"Hey." Punk groaned, massaging the back of his head.

"Late night?" Dean smiled, sitting down at his desk with his folders as Punk chose to ignore him and yawned, "You been to check on April already?"

"Uh… no." Punk shook his head, "No, me and Tony are checking out that address again for the parents." He nodded, "Maybe you could check on April." He shrugged as Dean looked across at him.

"You always check on her." Dean shook his head with confusion.

"Yeah, well… I'm busy so…" Punk shrugged as Dean looked across at him, his mouth gaping slowly as Punk turned around to him, "Shh."

"No!" Dean yelled out as Punk wheeled over to him on his chair and kicked him in the shin.

"Shut up." Punk pointed to him.

"You didn't." Dean said with worry as Punk looked at him, "Phil." Dean shook his head, "That's not cool."

"I know it's not cool." Punk sighed.

"Seth is going to kill you. He warned you about this." Dean said.

"I know. Ok, I know. Which is why… he… he won't find out." Punk nodded, "It's all good. It was just… it was friendly." Punk shrugged.

"A friend fuck?" Dean questioned.

"Yeah." Punk nodded, trying to convince himself.

"And she'll testify to that too?" Dean asked him.

"Yeah…" Punk said, unsure, "I think so." He shrugged.

"This is messy." Dean sighed.

"I know it is." Punk sighed with frustration.

"Well do you like her?" Dean questioned.

"I… I don't know what I feel. I just know it's not like how it was before." He shook his head as Dean nodded.

"Best to look into that." Dean suggested, "She might feel the same." He said as Punk sighed, "Was it good?" He asked as Punk looked up.

"It was fucking incredible." Punk shook his head with amazement.

"Well at least you finally got some. Bet you didn't think it'd be with her but… nevertheless." Dean shrugged as Punk just nodded. He couldn't stop thinking about AJ. The way her body felt against his, her lips when he kissed her, the soft moans and the beauty on her face. He just didn't know what to do with these feelings he had.

"What the hell do I do?" Punk shook his head.

"Well first you gotta figure out what the deal is with her. And then you gotta talk to her." Dean nodded, "But… I can go check on her just now if you're going with Tony."

"Yeah." Punk nodded, "Yeah, just tell her that I had to go out." He said as Dean just nodded, "And if it's not obvious, if you mention any of this to Seth I will kill you." Punk nodded.

"Oh, believe me. I know." Dean said, getting up and heading out of the station to check on AJ.

"Yoo hoo!" Dean called as he walked into the safe house, "April?" He called out, walking through the house where he eventually found AJ in the kitchen.

AJ looked over, her heart sinking a little when she saw it was another police officer. No other cop had checked on her the entire time she was here. It was always Punk. If this wasn't the biggest message she needed, she didn't know what else was.

"Hey." AJ nodded to him.

"Hello." Dean smiled, "I'm Dean." He nodded to her, "Phil's best friend."

"I know who you are." AJ nodded. She remembered him from high school.

"Right." Dean nodded, "Well… Phil would have come but him and Tony are going back to the address where our guy's parents supposedly live at. I assume he filled you in?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, he did." AJ nodded, "Nice of him to send you." She smiled sarcastically as Dean nodded awkwardly.

"Yeah, he's… he's a little awkward when it comes to things like this. He's not particularly good with feelings."

"So he decides to just avoid them? Explains why he's so alone." AJ said coldly. She was hurt that he hadn't had the decency to show up and talk to her this morning. She was waiting on him, hopeful they could discuss about how wonderful the night was. How unexpected, but right it all felt. Instead he had avoided her like the plague.

"Well yeah, it kinda does explain why he's alone." Dean agreed as AJ looked up at him, "Plus, I think he feels kinda bad, you know… if Seth found out he would literally kill Phil."

"He wouldn't literally him. He'd be pissed, yeah. But this… this has nothing to do with Seth." AJ said. She loved her best friend, but her feelings were her feelings and no one had a say in that.

"I know but… they're brothers, it's like… bro code." Dean shrugged as AJ rolled her eyes.

"Whatever." AJ shook her head. She was trying not to show Dean that she was hurt. She knew Dean was Punk's closest friend and would probably report back to him. But it was hard to be unbothered. She felt used and stupid. Like she was just another girl to him, and that hurt her feelings. She wish she knew better.

"I'm uh… I'm gonna take a look around and then I'll leave." Dean nodded.

"Ok." AJ said.

"Just give him a bit of time. His head is all over the place with this case. He's not sleeping. He does… he does care about you." Dean nodded.

"Then why did he send you?" AJ asked.

"Because… because it's Phil. He very rarely does the right thing. But when he does, it always works out pretty well." Dean said.

"That's hard to believe." AJ said.

"I'll go take a look and be out your hair." Dean nodded, leaving the kitchen as AJ sighed to herself. She hated herself for expecting more from him.

"What is wrong with you this morning?" Tony shook his head, getting out of the car as they arrived at the house which they believed was Norman's parents, hoping they would get an answer this time.

"What do you mean?" Punk shook his head.

"Well you just yelled at the guy in the coffee shop for the coffee being too hot." Tony looked at Punk with confusion.

"Well I don't know why they can't make the temperature drinkable. I don't wanna burn my mouth." Punk shook his head, "And I'm tired, leave me alone." Punk shook his head, walking ahead and stepping up the few steps to the door.

"Ok, let's hope they're in." Tony nodded, knocking on the door politely as Punk folded his arms. They both waited for a few minutes where Tony knocked on the door again, announcing that it was the police and that if anyone was in, they had to answer the door.

Punk however, just wan't feeling like waiting around, "Fuck this." Punk shook his head, kicking on the door as it flew open and hit back against the wall, "After you." Punk nodded to Tony.

"Have you lost your mind?" Tony shook his head.

"Maybe." Punk nodded, walking on into the house, "Stinks like serial killers parents in here." Punk shook his head, hand hovering over his gun as they walked through the house.

"Kitchen is clear." Tony called.

"Yeah, clear in here." Punk nodded after looking around the living room.

"I'll check upstairs." Tony said, heading upstairs whilst Punk looked around the living room.

He crouched down in front of the mantel and looked at the childhood pictures of what he assumed was Norman and his sister. It was like these people were oblivious.

"All clear upstairs." Tony walked into the living room, "Technically we have no right being in here."

"Technically, I'm getting fed up of this guy." Punk stood up straight, "And I want this over. So we do what is necessary." He said.

"We don't have a warrant to search this place." Tony shook his head.

"Good job they aren't home then." Punk shrugged, "You take the kitchen, I'll look around in here." He nodded.

"Yeah, ok." Tony agreed, walking through to the kitchen to look at some things whilst Punk took the living room.

The house was particularly messy with books, newspapers and dishes everywhere. He wasn't entirely sure when the last time someone was even in the house.

He spent some time looking at all the pictures on the mantel, finding a pile of newspapers in the corner of the mantel and taking them out. There appeared to only be six newspapers, and he quickly realised, by looking at the dates and the headlines, why the newspapers were there.

"Tony, you gotta look at this." Punk stood up, listening as there was a sudden crash in the kitchen, "Tony." Punk sat the papers down, walking through to the kitchen where he saw his boss collapsed down against the kitchen fridge, holding his wounded side, "What the hell?" Punk panicked as he crouched down.

"It was… it was him." Tony gasped as Punk looked over at the back door which was wide open, "It was him." He nodded as Punk kept his hand on the wound, "Go after him. He ran out." He nodded, "Once… once he saw me."

"I gotta call for backup." Punk shook his head.

"Really? Now you wanna follow orders?" Tony groaned with pain as Punk spoke into his phone for backup immediately, pressing Tony's side.

"You're gonna be fine." Punk nodded, "Son of a bitch." He whispered to himself.