Chapter Fifty-Five: Complicated Imbuement, Meeting, Rooftop Argument

Gabriel took a deep breath to calm his nerves as he lay on the exam table in the laboratory. "It's been a while since I've been on one of these." He glanced nervously at his wife. "Promise not to stick any shunts in my brain."

"I don't know." Olivia teased. "I think you'd look adorable with a chunk of plastic hanging out of the back of your skull." She smiled as Gabriel stared at her wordlessly. "I'm KIDDING!" She leaned down and pecked him quickly on the lips. "We've done this time and again with the other recruits, there's nothing to it. I'm starting this IV on you myself, we're putting you under and when you wake up, you'll be as indestructible as you are sexy."

Gabriel finally smiled. "So I'll be extremely indestructible, huh?"

"Definitely." Olivia grabbed a stool and sat beside him as she started his IV. "Do you want something to calm you down before we put you under?"

Gabriel shook his head and reached for his wife's hand. "Just stay here with me."

"I'm not going to leave your side until you wake up." She winked at him and then turned to watch Peter sit beside Sherry, who was stretched out on the table beside them. Peter looked up, his expression nervous as he started his girlfriend's IV. Olivia gave him a reassuring smile as their eyes met. Peter nodded, then looked back down at Sherry's arm, concentrating on her IV.

Sherry watched Peter starting the IV, her mouth twisting nervously. "This is going to be totally cool, right?"

Peter nodded as he looked into her eyes. "The only person who's had complications is Olivia. We know what to do now to keep that from happening."

"Yeah, so far." Sherry bit her lip. "Watch me be the next fuck-up in here. Story of my life."

"Don't jinx me or you." Peter smiled and kissed her. "Don't do that to us."

"Okay." Sherry took his hand. "You're staying with me throughout all of this, just like Olivia's staying with Gabriel through his, right?"

"Try and pull me away from your side." Peter squeezed her hand. "Besides, you two are the only ones we're working on today. You two deserve all of our attention."

"Yeah, we're special." Sherry smirked. "I'm special to you and Gabriel's special in that short-bus way."

"I can totally hear you!" Gabriel turned to Sherry, grinning. "And don't think you're not on that short bus with me, Cherry Bomb."

"Cram it sideways." Sherry giggled.

"You realize now that if you yank on my ears, even rip them off when I get smart with you, they'll just grow right back again." Gabriel joked. "Of course, I'm sure you've already discovered that with Peter. Judging from the sounds I hear from his apartment late at night, you've probably ripped those ears off once or twice. Sounds like my brother-in-law's rather, um, gifted."

"Let's just say that I was always called 'turbo tongue' because I talked too much. Peter earned that nickname in a whole other way." Sherry grinned.

"Okay, it's time for you two to be put under." Peter blushed as he reached for a sedative. He glanced at Sherry. "Ready, 'Little Miss TMI'?"

"Sock it to me, Turbo Tongue." Sherry giggled as Peter shook his head.

"You're definitely punch drunk." Peter turned to Herbert and held her hand as she was put under anesthesia. He watched nervously as she was intubated, quickly taking over for Herbert in handling her oxygen pump. "Slow and easy breaths." He whispered to himself.

Olivia turned to Gabriel, who watched Peter breathing for Sherry, his eyes widening nervously. "Your turn."

Gabriel swallowed hard. "Maybe I should wait. Maybe we should do this another-" He closed his eyes as Olivia quickly put him under with Mohinder, then intubated him quickly.

"This was easier to do than the first time." Olivia smiled softly as she began to handle his oxygen pump. "There was so much blood blocking his windpipe the first time I did it in Queens, the night Hiro stabbed him. His lungs were perforated and blood was everywhere. I could barely visualize his vocal chords." She stroked her husband's forehead, brushing his hair back as she breathed for him. She glanced over to notice Peter doing the same thing with Sherry. "This is so much easier to do when it's not someone you're in love with."

Peter nodded, touching Sherry's neck for a moment. "She's already getting so cold."

Olivia touched Gabriel's neck, frowning. "Him too." She noticed how her hands shook and concentrated on his pump. "I'll be glad when this is over."

"I second that." Peter stared intensely at Sherry's vitals.

After a few minutes, both Sherry and Gabriel's vital signs had dropped, signaling hypothermia. Olivia and Peter watched as Mohinder and Herbert administered the serums, then turned their eyes nervously back to the monitors charting their vital signs. Olivia's eyes widened for a moment as Gabriel's heart skipped a beat, then returned to normal. "That wasn't good." She whispered.

"I'm sure he's fine." Peter watched Sherry's vitals. "She's holding her own, what about Gabriel?"

Olivia frowned. "His heart just skipped another two beats." She glanced at Mohinder. "What should we do?"

Mohinder frowned with Olivia. "Just stay the course. His EEG is fine and his oxygen levels are holding."

Olivia gasped nervously as his heart began to skip a few more beats. "Mohinder-"

"-I saw it."

"What?" Peter tore his eyes from Sherry's monitors to watch Gabriel's. His eyes widened as Gabriel's heart skipped another beat. "What the hell?"

Olivia shook her head. "I don't know. The serum?"

Mohinder checked the IV fluids bag. "He's half in. Just keep breathing for him. He's going to be okay."

Olivia nodded, her eyes never leaving his heart monitor. She watched nervously as his heart continued to skip beats every few minutes. Just as the last of the serum entered his bloodstream, his monitor started beeping as his heart stopped beating. "SHIT!" Olivia yelped as she yelled for Mohinder and Herbert. Peter watched in horror as Herbert began to perform chest compressions as Mohinder took over the oxygen pump. Olivia grabbed the crash cart and dragged it over, quickly charging the defibrillator paddles. "Clear!" Mohinder and Herbert stepped away as she shocked Gabriel's heart. The monitor stopped beeping as Gabriel's heart began to beat again. Olivia sagged against the cart, her eyes filling with tears. "That was not good." She whispered. She set the paddles down and glanced at Mohinder. "Can you continue with that for a moment?" Mohinder nodded as Olivia stepped out of the room quickly, her legs shaking as she clutched the wall to keep from falling.

Peter handed Sherry's oxygen pump to Herbert and followed his sister out of the room. He touched her shoulder and turned her to him. "You okay?"

Olivia fought to keep from crying. "I told him it would be okay, that he would be alright. He asked me to wait, to do it another day because he was scared, but I put him under anyway." She started to sob, her breath hitching in gasps.

Peter hugged his sister. "He would have asked to do it on another day anytime you put him under, he was nervous."

"I badgered him into doing it. He kept putting it off, saying that he'd do it later, but I nagged and nagged-"

"Sssssh." Peter hugged her tightly. "He was going to have to have it done sooner or later and he's going to have to do it again and again. There are other powers he's going to need, other powers he's going to have to have to survive this."

"No." Olivia shook her head. "Now I understand why he is so adamant about my not doing this again. He was just gone for a moment, I was gone for longer and I had seizures and everything else during it-" She stared at Peter "-if I just went through even a fraction of what he went through when I went south-"

"-Stop it!" Peter sighed. "You're going to have to toughen up, we all are. What just happened in there was scary, what happened when you were under was terrifying, but we've all got to get tough and powered up. What happened in there was a complication, that's all. He's back and he'll be okay when he wakes up, just like you were. Now, he's going to start coming around soon, they both are. We need to be there when they wake up, don't you think?" He smiled softly as Olivia nodded. "Come on." He wrapped an arm around his sister's shoulders and guided her back into the lab.

Mohinder looked up at her as she walked over to Gabriel. "Are you okay?"

Olivia nodded. "How's he doing?"

"Holding his own." Mohinder stared down at Gabriel. "We've started warming both of them up, so they should be coming around soon." He pointed to the oxygen pump. "Feel like taking over?"

Olivia nodded and took over the pump, watching as Gabriel's color returned as his body warmed back up. Once his vitals regained their initial levels, she extubated him and placed an oxygen mask on him, stroking his hair as she watched his monitors. After a few minutes, she sighed with relief as his eyes fluttered open. Beside her, she could hear Sherry cough and start to move around as Peter whispered and talked reassuringly to her. Gabriel blinked for a moment, looking into his wife's eyes. "How did I do?" He croaked, his voice raspy from the breathing tube. His eyes widened as Olivia burst into tears and began to cover his face with kisses. "Well, okay then." He whispered. "You don't have to be such a drama queen."


"So I had a few complications, huh?" Gabriel sat up on the table an hour later as Olivia checked his blood pressure.

Olivia nodded, her eyes still swollen from crying. "I'm sorry I made you do it."

"Hey, I'm back and now I should be virtually indestructible, no harm no foul." He sighed as Olivia pumped up the blood pressure cuff again. "Oh for crying out loud, I'm fine! Stop taking that. I'm not about to start pining for the fjords."

"That's NOT funny!" Olivia gasped.

"I've got to have a little sense of humor about this." Gabriel kissed her cheek. "I'm sorry I scared the shit out of you."

"It's okay." Olivia took his hand and grabbed a scalpel. "Let's see if taking ten years off of my life was worth it." She drew the blade across his left ring finger, then smiled as the cut she made quickly healed. "Works like a charm."

"Cool!" Gabriel grinned. "So now I can throw myself off of roofs and walk away without a scratch, like I've done to Peter once or twice."

"Don't try it." Olivia kissed him.

"I do owe you a death or two." Peter smirked. "At the very least."

"Try it, Turbo Tongue." Gabriel smirked. He glanced at Sherry. "How are you feeling?"

"Indestructible." Sherry winked at him. "Welcome back to the land of the living, by the way. I hear I missed some excitement."

"I apparently did too." Gabriel hugged his wife. "Scared the shit out of her and everything. I owed her a few of those as well."

"Consider that debt paid." Olivia clutched at her husband. "Paid in full. Don't ever do that to me again."

"I'll try my best." Gabriel smiled. "I bet this means I'm getting seriously laid when we get home."

"Is that all you think about? Sex?" Olivia shook her head.

"When I'm around you? Hell yes." Gabriel slowly got off of the table. "Ready to head home? Put me to bed? Play naughty doctor with me?" He placed his head on her shoulder. "After a near-death experience, I don't think I should have to train tonight and I'll need you beside me to take my temperature and make sure I'm recovering correctly."

"He's got a point." Sherry grinned at Peter. "Suddenly I'm feeling weak and helpless too. I don't think I should train tonight."

"You're both full of SHIT!" Peter laughed. "Besides, there's a meeting tonight, no training, so you're both pulling this little pitiful act for nothing."

"What's the meeting about?" Olivia turned to Peter, frowning.

"There's something we need to tell everyone in the main group." Peter nodded. "Something important." He glanced at Gabriel. "Think you can keep it in your pants long enough to deal with that?"

Gabriel smirked. "I don't know, I guess we'll see."

"Yeah, we don't want to see, that's the point." Sherry shook her head as she climbed off of the table and headed towards a changing room.


Everyone in the usual training class, with the exception of Herbert and Collette, gathered in the training room that evening. They watched as Mohinder and Peter paced in front of the platform, and finally turned to everyone. Peter took a deep breath. "We've got a mole."

"We know, we're trying to figure out who it is." Noah nodded.

"No. WE'VE got a mole in Linderman's compound. We've had one since Sherry and I returned from South America." Peter grinned. "It's someone that's fed up with his bull shit and is ready to sing like a canary about everything that's been going on there. They have been singing for the last three weeks."

"Who is it?" Olivia asked.

"Okay, before I tell you, I want everyone to keep an open mind, Mom and Olivia especially." Peter took a deep breath. "It's Candice Wilmer."

"EXCUSE ME?" Olivia gasped.

"You cannot be serious!" Angela hissed.

"Wait." Gabriel frowned. "Isn't that the bitch that kidnapped and shot Sherry?"

"Hang ON!" Peter held out his hands. "Look-"

"-She's been SLEEPING with Linderman. They're lovers!" Olivia made a face as Peter sighed.

"-I know but-"

"-But what?" Nathan shook his head. "You can't expect us to believe that Candice is now a turncoat for Linderman. How do you know she's not feeding you a line of total bullshit? How do you know she's not running back to him, laughing with him because they're making us chase our tails?"

"I read her mind in Rio." Peter sighed. "After she botched the whole Sherry incident by not killing her immediately and then letting us both get away, Linderman tossed her. She's out of his bed and that Gota chick is-"

"-The woman that killed Natalia and Papa." Nikolai ground his teeth as Claire gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah. She's the woman who killed your family." Peter nodded sadly. "Candice was hurt and angry. She came to me and Sherry when we were preparing to recruit Katharina. She offered to become a spy for us in Linderman's camp. I used Matt's powers and Trevor's to ascertain that she was indeed telling the truth. She met us in Peru when our trip was over and teleported back here with us late at night. In order to help her spy, Mohinder and I imbued her with Katharina's mind-block power and Nathan's flight power. She's been flying here frequently and telling us what's going on in Linderman's camp. She's given us some very useful information."

Olivia sighed. "Are you SURE she's not lying?"

Peter nodded. "I'm positive. She's not proud of the things she's done and she's ashamed that she let Linderman use her, only to toss her over for Gota. She wants to come here when she's spied enough. She wants to join with us to bring Linderman down." He scanned the room. "She's been doing good work, at her own personal risk. Does anyone have a problem with her joining us after she's done this?" His eyes narrowed as they locked with Angela's and Olivia's. "ANYONE?"

Gabriel raised his hand. "What information has she given?"

Mohinder stepped forward. "First of all, their imbuement technique is much more dangerous and primitive than ours. They lose quite a few of them to seizure and heart failure. Also, there were two children that were taken in England, the Bunton children. Candice remembered seeing them around, then they disappeared. She found out that Linderman had his lab experiment on them."

Niki put an arm around Micah's shoulders protectively as she stared up at Mohinder. "Experimented HOW?"

"He had them both imbued with Claire's powers. One of the children didn't make it through the infusion. After the other one barely survived, the doctors stabbed and shot her to see when she'd heal and when she wouldn't. She survived everything but a gun shot to the head."

"They tortured her, in other words." Gabriel's nostrils began to flare angrily. "Bastards. They tortured a fucking KID!"

Niki sighed. "Mohinder, this is the same woman that kidnapped Micah and took him to New York City."

Micah looked up at his mother. "She wasn't mean to me, Mom. She was pretty cool. I know what she did was wrong, but she didn't mistreat me at all. She was nice, really. She didn't have to be." Niki looked down at her son and nodded before she hugged him tightly. "I promise Mom, she was really good to me."

"Okay, I believe you." She whispered.

"What else has she told you?" Matt asked.

"Linderman is hoarding two powers to keep for himself. Those two powers are Angela Petrelli's and Ted Sprague's." Mohinder glanced at Peter. "We don't know why he'd want Angela's, but we have figured out about Ted. Peter had a dream walk with Sanjog where he saw Future Hiro's version of our battle. It ended with a mushroom cloud. Peter initially thought that either he or Gabriel set that off, but now we think it was Linderman, who did it in order to neutralize everyone on that battlefield long enough to decapitate everyone so he would reign supreme. She also told us that he definitely has someone here, in the building, watching and reporting what we do. She doesn't know who it is, but she is currently trying to find out who. She does suspect that, whoever it is may not KNOW it. Gota's power is mind control through hypnosis. She could have created a sleeper agent that way, someone who acts without knowing that they're under her control."

Matt frowned. "Trevor and I have talked to everyone in the building."

"I know." Mohinder nodded. "But how can you tell who they are if they think they're telling the truth? As far as they know, and by extension YOU know, they ARE telling the truth when they say that they're not reporting to Linderman. Has anyone seen anything suspicious?" Everyone shook their heads. Mohinder frowned. "Very well then."

"What about training?" Noah raised his hand. Did she say anything about what they're doing?"

Mohinder nodded again. "They have a man there from the Turkish Army named Farkan. His power is increased agility. He is well versed in hand-to-hand combat and sword training, specifically the scimitar. He's been training everyone daily for four hours a day." Mohinder smiled. "That's where we have the advantage over them. They don't have someone who can stop time in order to let them train twenty-four hours a day."

Peter stepped forward. "So we're asking again. Does ANYONE have a problem with her coming here when it's been deemed too dangerous for her to return to Linderman?" He smiled as everyone shook their heads. "Good. She's been doing a great job, you guys. She really has."

Olivia raised her hand. "What else does she need to do before she comes here?"

Mohinder shrugged. "She mainly needs to find the mole. Also, I bought this for her this afternoon." Mohinder held up a small device. "It looks like a brooch, but it's a camera with a small flash drive inside. I'm going to ask her to photograph as many of his people as she can so we'll be able to identify them on sight."

"Good idea." Olivia nodded. "I have a request, but only if it's not too dangerous for her. If she thinks it's a bad idea, tell her to drop it and not to do it."

"What?" Peter asked.

"Is there any way she could get her hands on some of their blood samples, specifically Furkan's? I don't know about the rest of you, but super agility doesn't sound like such a bad thing to have in a fight. Also, here's another thought. Is there any way she could agree to being imbued with Micah's power? That way, she could dig around in Linderman's files, maybe move his money around. Imagine how much it would hamstring him if he found himself without funds."

Peter's eyes widened. "Sneaky. Good one."

"She could move it into an account we could set up for our recruits. I think it would definitely be poetic justice if they ended up getting Linderman's money after this is over and done with."

Angela smiled at her daughter. "Hit the bastard in the wallet. NOW you're thinking like my child."

Mohinder nodded. "I'll suggest it to her tonight." He looked around the room. "Any other thoughts on this?" Everyone looked at each other, then shook their heads. "Good. This meeting is adjourned then."

"Good." Gabriel stood up and wiggled his eyebrows at Olivia. "I'm suddenly feeling so tired and weak and I need to be under a doctor's care after my complications this afternoon."

"You know, you probably shouldn't do anything that could adversely affect your heart for the next few days." Olivia smirked at him. "Just take it easy. Don't exert yourself-"

"-I'll let you do all of the exertion then." Gabriel grinned. "I don't mind lying back and letting you take control, I let you do it all the time." He pulled Olivia close as they left the room, nibbling on her ear. "The beach in Puerto Rico comes to mind."

"Excuse me?" Olivia laughed. "Halfway through it, you took over like you always do, so don't give me that 'you can do it all and I'll just lie back' bullshit!" They watched as Mohinder quickly passed them to leave the room. "So what's your take on the Mohinder and Candice situation? Was it just me being a major yenta again, or did you notice a slight change in demeanor when he'd talk about her?"

"You're not the only one who noticed." Gabriel smirked. "I noticed how flushed he got whenever anyone would bad mouth her. He acted like he was about to kick anyone's ass who didn't agree to his whole 'let's let her come here afterwards' plan."

"So you think he's got it bad?" Olivia grinned at her husband.

"I couldn't give a shit one way or the other." Gabriel shrugged. "As long as he's not giving you schmoopy looks, I don't care."


Late that night, Mohinder stared at his cell phone, willing it to ring. When it finally did, he jumped out of bed as he answered it and took an elevator towards the roof. As he hit the top floor and took the stairs, he stumbled over an object. Cursing under his breath, he lifted it up to see a sleeping bag. "Bloody Peter." He muttered under his breath. He stepped out onto the roof, tossing the bag aside as Candice paced the roof.

She frowned at the bag. "What's that?"

"Peter's idea of a joke, apparently." Mohinder rolled his eyes as he hugged Candice. "Good news!"

Candice ignored his last comment, her eyes on the bag. "Is that a sleeping bag?" She turned to Mohinder. "And it's for?"

"Nothing. Like I said, it's Peter's idea of a joke. He kept sensing chemistry or something equally ridiculous between us last night. He joked about leaving that up here for us to use."

Candice quirked an eyebrow as she stepped away from Mohinder. "Right, because sleeping with me would definitely be a joke, right? Who'd want Linderman's whore, the hidden fatty?"

Mohinder's eyes widened for a moment. "That's not what I meant. That's not what Peter meant. He was just being meddlesome and a smart-ass. He's quite good at it, actually. I wouldn't have any qualms about-" He shrugged "What I mean is, I wouldn't mind-" He shook his head, blushing. "Anyway, I have good news."

"You wouldn't mind or have any qualms about what? Sleeping with me?" Candice crossed her arms in front of her chest. "What, like I'm some cheap floozy or something?"

"I don't think of you that way in the least." Mohinder grabbed a chair and sat down. "Honestly, where is this coming from?"

"Nowhere, never mind." Candice rolled her eyes. "So what's this good news?"

Mohinder stared for a moment as Candice glared at him, her arms remaining crossed in front of her chest. "Peter and I called a meeting with our leader group. We told them about you and what you've been doing for us. They're all on board with you coming to stay here and joining us."

"Even Olivia and Angela?"

"They don't have a problem with it. Peter and I both told everyone about how honest and sincere you've been and how great you've been handling things these last few weeks. You've really been doing a wonderful job, Candice."

"Thanks." Candice sighed. "So when I'm done pulling a Sydney Bristow, I can come back here and live?"

"Absolutely!" Mohinder stood up, smiling. "Isn't that great? No more sneaking around on rooftops in the middle of the night. We'll be able to talk to each other anywhere we choose, in broad daylight."

Candice nodded, still frowning. "Yeah, that's wonderful." She glanced over her shoulder at the sleeping bag. "So you and Peter have been talking about that, joking about it? Joking about nailing me?"

"NO!" Mohinder sighed. "He knows I've been spending a lot of time with you lately and he and his girlfriend Sherry have been on this matchmaking kick for a while now, he's just trying to find someone to pair me off with and you're his latest candidate, that's all."

"And you've been telling him that it's NEVER going to happen."

"EXACTLY!" Mohinder nodded. "I've been telling him and telling him that we're both just friends. Men and women can be friends with each other, they don't always have to jump into bed together, regardless of what seems to take place around here on a daily basis." He rolled his eyes. "It's like Noah's Bloody Ark down there, everyone's pairing up two-by-two." He raised an eyebrow. "And there's a few that are three-by-three." He laughed and looked at Candice, noticing that she was still frowning. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She stepped past him. "I don't have anything to report tonight, I just wanted to see you. I've seen you, so now I'm heading back to the frigid mountains, which is apparently where I should be."

"Wait!" Mohinder reached out and took her arm. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"I know I'm rather clueless when it comes to women, but even I know that 'nothing' means everything a lot of the time. Did I say something I oughtn't?"

"No, I think you said everything you needed to." Candice glared at the sleeping bag. "Hope it only fits one, 'cause that's all you'll need." She turned and jumped up, flying away.

Mohinder watched her leave and sighed as he turned to return downstairs. He jumped back as Gabriel stepped into view, then looked around nervously. "What do you want?"

"I thought I'd give Olivia a LITTLE bit of sleep, and I heard you two talking, so I thought I'd be nosy." Gabriel shook his head. "You're right, you ARE clueless when it comes to women."

"Like you have a lot of room to talk. Before Olivia, how many women graced your doorstep?"

Gabriel nodded. "Not many. Before I woke up in St. Ignacious Hospital, I didn't attract a lot of women, unless I paid them first, but not even I would be clueless enough to completely and totally diss a woman who was OBVIOUSLY that crazy about me. I know you just have normal hearing, but I don't. I could hear all the way on the tenth floor the way her heart started pounding the minute she laid eyes on you and I could hear in her voice just how completely nuts she is about you. She was giving you every signal in the book to take back that 'just friends' bullshit you were spouting and it flew over your head, just like she finally did. God, for someone so smart, you're really stupid!" He laughed and left the roof as Mohinder slumped in a chair.

"Shit." He muttered under his breath. He heard a noise and looked up to see Candice circle overhead before landing in front of him. "You came back!"

"Yeah!" She stomped towards him. "I decided that I'm sick and tired of just taking it and keeping my mouth shut when someone pisses me off, so I thought I'd come back and tell you off! First of all, HOW can you not have noticed the signals I've been giving you for the last three weeks? I'm not very experienced when it comes to men, I'll be honest. My one and only physical relationship was with someone who had to chug Viagra first and was only using me because he felt I was useful, but I THOUGHT I knew how to flirt! Do I have to draw you a diagram or write a research paper about how attracted I am to you before you pull your head out of your ass and NOTICE? I mean, I KNOW that I'm screwed up, I KNOW that in my natural form, you'd probably find me repellant, but honestly? WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?"

"Fine!" Mohinder rolled his eyes. "That's IT! I'm sick and tired of people getting pissed at me, tossing me aside for serial killers, and thinking that I'm shallow enough to think that just because you had a few extra pounds once upon a time ago that I'd judge you unworthy, and I'm TIRED of people calling me stupid and asking what's wrong with me!" He stomped towards her. "Am I attracted to you? YES! You're a good listener, you're funny, and you've got a good and decent heart! Do I think you're beautiful? YES! I'd still be attracted to you no matter what because the person I've been getting feelings for would still be in there" he jabbed a finger into her forehead "and not out here! I HAVE noticed how you've been flirting, I have noticed the signals, but I also know that you've recently been hurt by someone you cared about and, as much as I wanted to act on those signals, I didn't want to be a rebound. I seem to always be falling for unavailable women somehow and I didn't want you to be the next one who decided that I wasn't worth the effort, for whatever reason. Do you think I come bounding up here every other night because it's my duty? I come up here because I can't wait to see you, I can't wait to hear your voice and I love spending time with you, even if it's just for a few bloody minutes before you have to fly away again to eat shit for your ex-lover, a fact that's been driving me crazier and crazier lately! I hate the fact that he gets to see you on a daily basis and doesn't appreciate you or care one damned bit while I only get a few minutes late at night on a rooftop! There! Are you happy now?"

Candice smiled at him. "Yeah. I'm happy now." She stepped towards him and kissed him softly on the lips. "I'm glad I came back, even if it was just for a minute."

"You HAVE to go? NOW?" Mohinder looked sadly at her.

"Yeah." She nodded. "I need to knock Linderman's feet out from under him just as efficiently as you've knocked my socks off of me. I have even more incentive to do it now."

She started to step away from Mohinder. He reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her to him again and kissing her passionately. "Come back soon." He whispered.

"Leave the sleeping bag here." She winked. "We might need it one night."

"God, yes." He breathed. "One night. Soon. I'd like that."

"Me too." Candice kissed him again quickly, before she stepped away and flew off into the sky.

From the bottom of the stairs, Gabriel rolled his eyes at the conversation he'd just overheard. "God, dorks in love. Just bang her already and get it over with, damn!" He sighed. "Maybe if he gets laid already, he'll be a nicer person." He shook his head and went to the elevator to return to his apartment and his wife.