Chapter Fourteen: Crazy and Entitled. (Or, Is It Just Me Or Are My Titles Getting Worse As This Story Progresses?!)

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So, that night, Aimee stayed in my room, whilst I slept on the couch. I really didn't mind, at all. Although, I didn't mind doing it for Ryan, either. Aimee was a nice little kid. Very mannerly, very sweet...in essence, she was picture perfect. Except that she was now an orphan with nowhere to go and nobody to turn to. The whole situation was breaking my heart, but what could I do? I was lying out on the couch, flicking through the true movies and sitcom channels, when my phone beeped next to me. I yawned and slid it up to read the message.

Hey. How are you and the Kid? - Ryan.

I smiled, despite myself. Good. She's sleeping. Dinner was good. She's a nice kid. - Me.

If you need any help, I'm here. Just ask.

Suddenly, I felt very good about myself...and warmer, too, Like, when you watch a Christmas film and everything turns out well at the end. I cleared my throat. Thank you, Ryan. Good night.I pondered wether or not to put XOX at the end, but I decided against it. -Jess.

Night. OXO- Ry.

OXO? Now that's a new one. I put the phone underneath my pillow and turned the TV down. I wondered if Ryan had previously been thinking about me. I inwardly called myself crazy and a short while later, I fell asleep.

I woke up the next morning at 6:41 with Aimee in front of me, tears in her eyes and a down-turned mouth. "Hey? Aimee, what's wrong?" I immediately sat up, and my heart was in my mouth. Aimee came up to the couch and sat next to me. I put my arm around her and she still kept on crying. "Aimee, sweetie, tell me...did something happen? Bad dream? Uh..." I wracked my brain, trying to think of things that could have been wrong with her. "Hey, it's okay!"

"No...it's...not!" She hollered, crying hysterically. I asked her another load of questions, but to no avail. I even went and checked her bed in case there was something in there. It was, seriously, nothing that could have upset her. I figured she just missed her parents, so I put her down in front of the TV, managed to have a four-minute shower, brushed my teeth, then I got her sorted. Gave her a bath, dressed her in some spare clothes, brushed her teeth, got her breakfast. I honestly do not know how my own mother did all that for me when I was her age. After she had breakfast, she seemed a lot perkier, so I bundled her in the car and took her to work with me. I admit, I felt awful about it, because I was thinking of it this way: If you're eight, and interested in everything outside or on TV, how is a crime lab going to give you entertainment? It isn't! I was halted at a red-light, so I looked over at Aimee. It was evident that she had been crying.

"Aimee? Honey, are you feeling better now?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Okay...well, if you want to tell me anything, you know I'm here, don't you?"

"Yes." Aimee's voice was so soft and so quiet. Almost brought a tear to my eye. I yawned. I hadn't gotten a very good sleep last night, mostly because everytime I heard a noise, I had to check on Aimee. It was like an impulsive thing. "Jessie?"

"Mm?"

"I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"Crying earlier. I miss my Mommy and Daddy."

"Well, hey...that's perfectly alright. You're entitled."

She scrunched her face up. "What's that mean?"

I laughed. "It means...uh, you're allowed to miss them. I understand."

"Oh."

"You know, I lost my Dad when I was fourteen."

"Did you find him?"

Oh, now that I couldn't help but laugh at. "Um, not exactly. I mean, he went to Heaven, too. Like your parents."

"Did you miss him?"

"I did. I missed him a lot. But I took it a day at a time and I...slowly but surely, I got happier. You feel sad, at the start. But then, it gets easier. I promise you." She nodded and we chatted away for the rest of the journey. In just two days, I had gotten to be quite fond of this little girl. Although, I knew she'd be going soon. I opened the door to the lab and found Ryan leaning against the reception desk, sunglasses in his hand, gently twirling them around. He stopped and stood upright when he saw me. I smiled. "Hey, Ryan..."

"Hey. Hello, Aimee." He smiled and folded his arms.

Aimee only muttered a mumbled hello back and dug herself into the back of my leg. "She's shy." I enthused.

"Uh, Horatio wants you in the morgue. He seems a bit...off."

"Oh." I bit my lip. "Okay, could you keep an eye on Aimee for a sec, please?" I handed her over to Ryan, grinned and headed off for the morgue. Oh, joy. I opened the door to see Alexx and Horatio glaring at the table. "Uh-oh...who's in the dog-house?"

"Nobody, Jess. It's just...the children's home called me."

"Oh." My heart just plummeted. "Right. So, uh, I guess I have to hand her over again, huh?"

Horatio nodded. "I'm afraid so, Miss Lucas." He sighed. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah." I squeaked. "Of course. I'll go and get her ready."

"Actually, you have her for another..." Horatio glanced quickly at his watch. "Seven hours, at most."

I swallowed. "Uh, actually, that's alright. I-I could probably do better with some paperwork. Alexx, if you don't want to do it, I'll see if Natalia or somebody could do it." I stuttered out the words quickly, smiled feebly and opened the door. Soon enough, Horatio was walking with me.

"Are you okay, Miss Lucas?" He asked, wearily. I nodded.

"Yep. Top banana." My voice was going up and down like a yo-yo again. "Um, I'll have to go and get Aimee sorted out. I'll meet you in the break room, say, ten minutes?"

"Take your time."

So, I found Ryan and Aimee still in the reception area. I had informed Ryan that Aimee was getting put into the home today. It was a nice place. He had brought her into the locker rooms, while I got her some new clothes. "So, Aimee...you excited?" Ryan asked, sitting next to her and attempting to put her socks on. Aimee shook her head.

"I don't want to go." Her little bottom lip quivered. Oh, man. I was getting far too attached for my own good. "I want to stay here."

"But they have a nice little room for you. There'll be loads of other kids around. Your age. Nice food, cartoons."

"Have they got a big TV?"

Ryan laughed. "Yes, they have a huge TV." So, me, Ryan and Aimee spent the next two hours with each other, and by the end of it, I was feeling a lot more positive. This was a good thing, I decided. Of course, I still felt a little sad, but...life does go on. Alexx came into the break room with a tall, dreary-looking man. She smiled but she wasn't really putting anything into it.

"Jessica, Ryan, this is Mr. Edvark. He's the manager of the children's home." Edvark, huh? That isn't a real name, if you ask me. Ryan cleared his throat and stood up. He took Mr. Edvark's hand and smiled.

"Nice to meet you, Sir."

I, gingerly, stood up and shook his hand. "Hi." Aimee was behind me, playing with her Barbie. I swallowed.

"Hello. So, is the child ready?" He clasped his hands together in a manner that I didn't like.

"She is." I said, silently wondering why I actually had to be here. Edvark walked towards Aimee, kneeled beside her and smiled. He chatted to her for five minutes, then he left me and Ryan with Aimee to say our goodbyes. Ryan went first, with absolutely no difficulty. Then it was my turn...which I seriously didn't want. "Hey, Kid."

"Hi." Aimee sniffed. She had been crying. I blinked.

"So, uh, I guess I'll see you around, then, huh?" She nodded, tears pouring out of her eyes. I could see she was trying to not make any noises. I knelt down next to her. "Hey, it's going to be okay, you know. Just...don't try and forget your parents. They'll still love you...and they would want you to have fun. So, don't forget that, okay? Besides, if you need someone to talk to..." I smiled. "I'm always here."

Aimee ran into my arms, making little odd crying noises as she went. I wrapped my arms around her and sighed. Edvark came back into the room, so I quickly pulled away from Aimee. She wiped frantically at her eyes, still making audible noises. "Jessie! I...don't want...to...go!" She yelled. I looked at the floor for a long moment. "Please, let me stay here! I'll be good! I swear it! I'll be good!" She hollered now, crying maniacally. I stood up, but she clung her hand into mine. Edvark came over and took her hand. He whispered a few soothing words to her, but she really wasn't interested. "No!" Aimee screamed. Edvark opened the door, said goodbye to me and Ryan, lifted Aimee into his arms and miraculously, she stopped screaming. It was as if she just resigned herself. She waved me a tiny goodbye as her and Edvark walked down the corridor. I had a strange, shivery feeling down my hairline and all the way down to my feet. Ryan came up behind me and placed a hand on my shoulder. Easy for him, as he was a lot taller than me.

"She'll be fine, Jess. Give her some time." He sighed.

"I know. It's just...upsetting." My voice cracked a little. Ryan sat me down and put his arm around me.

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Not right now, but, uh...thanks." I rubbed my face. Surprisingly, I didn't cry. Not one tear. Not one, single, solitary, stupid tear. "Anyway," I cleared my throat, trying to rid myself of all the bad feelings. I've found that it works. Well, I always feel a little better. "Have we got a case yet?"

Ryan stood up, went to the sink, got a glass and poured some water into it. He came over and handed it to me. "No. Not today."

I took the water, but looked at it curiously. "What's this for?"

"I..don't want you getting re-de-hydrated." He laughed. I grinned. That was incredibly sweet.

"Thanks."

"Jess?"

"Yes?"

"Do you...do you want to gout later? With me?"

I licked my lip. I really did. Actually, I just didn't want to be alone. I had planned on working late, but...this was so much more of an offer, really. "Sure."

"I just...figured you wouldn't want to be on your own."

I grinned. "Ryan, I'm fine. Seriously, I'm not depressed, I'm not angry. I'm just...kids to that to me."

"Really? Animals do that to me." He teased. A small scoff came out before I intended it to. "What? I can be sensitive."

"Mm." I said, disbelievingly. Ryan was sweet, but I couldn't imagine him to be the type to be moved to tears by a ferret. I glanced over at him. I really liked everything about him. He had a nice face, great hair and really, really good arms. So strong and very muscular. And a broad back, which I admired.

"Jess?"

"What?" I snapped back to reality.

"You zoned out, there."

"Sorry." My thoughts quickly drifted back to Aimee. I wondered how she would cope. I've seen those places, when I was just getting into the realms of being a CSI. That was pretty much my first case. I mean, not my first Miami case. Anyway, the places aren't pretty. Just a lot of sad, young kids with no parents. Honestly, the first place I went into, while it was a nice, clean, well-treated place, the kids just weren't happy. They all had such sad little faces and frowns. I cried myself to sleep that night. "Okay, actually, yes. I do want to talk about it." I turned round to face Ryan.

And we talked about it.

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A/N: Hey all! Sorry for the absolutely awful ending. I'm in a hurry for something, obviously! LOL. Anyways, soon enough, I shall write some fluff, then some more angst, but I'll give you a spoiler for the angst.

cough Episode 408 cough

Wow...I can't believe I typed something that big! Amazing.

Please R&R, as always...you dudes make my day!

JauntyChick

XOX