Hey babes! Back with a new Brightwell fic for ya! We've got roughly three weeks until the new episode, so hopefully I can knock a few more stories out in that time. I have a couple of ideas, just gotta write them and then post. :)

Enjoy!

Adrenaline. That's what's always coursing through his veins whenever he's put into life or death situations. Well, not necessarily life or death, but close enough to it that his blood starts pumping and his brain works rapidly to find the best plan of action. More often than not, he acts without thinking or acts while he's still thinking. He knows he does. Because if he takes too long to think without acting, then the bad guy could get away, someone else could get hurt, or everything could just spiral out of control.

Sometimes he comes close to losing his own life. If he wasn't Malcolm Bright, he honestly would probably be dead by now.

Their latest case had been a crazy one that had led to him, once again, risking his life to stop the killer. He hadn't left his team much notice before he took off running into the building that was a literal death trap in order to find the guy. He'd managed to get him cornered, talk him down, and come out of it all relatively unscathed. Except for a few small cuts and bruises that he got along the way.

He never thinks twice about any of the reckless stuff that he does, and he knows his team is relatively used to his antics by now. Having worked together for a number of years now, they're all well aware of each other's skills and faults, as well as little things they do or like. So he always knows without a shadow of a doubt that there will be some reprimanding from Gil about his actions, some light ribbing from JT, and then some verbal jabs from Dani followed by tea and then chaste kisses in the break room when no one's watching them. She needs it for her own peace of mind. Everyone knows they're together but she still wants to keep the PDA to a bare minimum in the workplace. But he always gets a few kisses in when they're at the station. Just not out in the open while they're working. It's almost always in the break room after they've finished up a case.

Which is why, after this particular case, he's a little caught off-guard when Dani says her usual spiel to him about doing dumb things that risk his life, but she doesn't pull him into the break room to have a cup of tea and share a few kisses.

His brows furrow together tightly as he watches his wife at her desk, her eyes focused with laser-like precision on the screen of her computer. No doubt filling out her part of the paperwork for their latest case. "Dani...are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she snaps at him.

He takes a small step back, his eyes roaming his wife's face for any sign of what's going on. But he doesn't find one. "Did I...did I do something wrong? Because usually, you tell me when I'm doing something wrong. And right now you're not."

"I shouldn't have to tell you. You should just know."

"Okay, fair point." He moves back to the desk and sinks down into a chair that he pulls over from an unoccupied desk nearby. "But maybe you could just tell me instead of making me guess."

She glares at him again. "Like I said, I shouldn't have to tell you. You should just know."

He shakes his head. "No. You told me once before that you don't want me profiling you like a suspect or victim, that you're a regular person and I should treat you like one. And that's what I've been doing since we started this relationship."

She sighs heavily, running her hands through her tight curls. "This isn't about profiling me, this is about just knowing. I shouldn't have to always tell you. You should be able to figure it out on your own." He goes to open his mouth but she cuts him off, pulling her lips in tight. "You know what? Forget it." She pushes herself away from her desk, one of her chair wheels squeaking as she does. "I need some air. I'll see you at home." She yanks her jacket off the back of her chair as she stands up. She pulls it on and storms out of the precinct, doing her best not to draw too much attention.

But the damage is already done. Malcolm glances around quickly to see many officers and detectives glancing in the general direction of Dani's desk, including JT. And he knows Gil is watching through the window of his office. He doesn't need either of their thoughts though. Not now.

Standing from his chair, he replaces it at the proper desk and then smooths out the front of his jacket as he casually makes his way toward the front of the precinct. As if nothing is wrong.

It's only when he's outside that he realizes Dani most likely took the car since they ride to work together. So now he has to find his own ride home. Perfect. Absolutely perfect.

.

.

.

Stepping into their loft hours later, Malcolm listens carefully for any sign of his wife milling about. She's not in the bedroom area, and the loft lights are a bit dimmer than usual, so he's unsure of exactly where she is. It has him concerned, to say the least. Is she home? Did she go somewhere else earlier after their argument like he did?

The sound of bare feet padding against the hardwood floor draws his attention to the hallway leading to the bathroom. He looks up in time to see Dani making her way into the living space, wearing a pair of shorts and a long-sleeved knitted shirt. He loves when she dresses like this at home, completely at ease and carefree.

"Didn't know when you were coming home," she says to him as she makes her way into the kitchen, heading straight for the cabinet where they keep the tea. "You certainly took your time."

"I was at my mother's," he tells her honestly, shrugging out of his coat and hanging it up on the rack. He easily slips out of his shoes and crosses to the kitchen, staying on the outside of the counter. "It seemed like a good idea at the time," he adds with a quick laugh, seeing the raised brow she gives him. "But," he continues, placing his palms on the countertop, "I think it did open my eyes. Talking to her, about us, it made me realize something."

"And what did you realize?" Dani questions with her arms crossed, leaning back against the counter where the stove sits, the kettle next to her on one of the burners.

"I hope I'm not wrong about this," he mutters under his breath, looking down momentarily. He takes a deep breath and looks up at his wife. "You're upset because of something I did during the investigation. Because I put myself in danger."

She pulls her lips tight and nods. "Now he gets it."

His brows furrow together tightly. "But I don't...I don't get it completely. You've never had a problem before with me putting myself in danger. At least, not to the extent that you get this upset with me."

"Yeah, I know that. But things are different now. Or, they will be. You can't just go risking your life all the time without thinking. You need to think things through, make sure you're staying safe. I can't do this alone. I won't do this alone," she says with conviction, her eyes boring deeply into him.

He steps around the counter, brows still furrowed together, and stops in front of his wife. "Dani...what are you talking about?"

She rubs a hand over her forehead, her eyes closing. "This is not how I wanted to tell you. This is supposed to be a good thing, something I tell you when we're both in a good spot. Because we both want this."

"Tell me what?"

She sighs heavily and opens her eyes to look at him. "I'm pregnant."

His eyes go wide and he feels the edges of his lips twitching. "You are? You're sure?"

She nods. "I found out the other morning."

The realization dawns on him. "And then I was being my usual reckless self out in the field today."

"Yeah. And I know normally I'm fine with it, well, not really fine, but less crazy about it, but once I found out I'm pregnant everything just shifted. My whole viewpoint shifted. I was trying to figure out a way to tell you but then when you almost got hurt my mind immediately flashed to you not being here and me having to do all of this alone."

He frowns and then gives her a sad smile. "I am so sorry I put you through that." He steps forward, his hands on her arms. "I promise you I will be much more careful from here on out."

She cracks a small smile, resting her arms on his shoulders. "You really mean that?"

He nods, a genuine smile taking over his face. "I really mean it. I love you, Dani, and I love this baby, and I never want to jeopardize not being here for any of what's ahead of us."

"I love you too." She runs her fingers through his hair and his eyes flutter for a moment.

His head lolls to the side at the feeling. He knows that she knows it makes him instantly calmer and most of the time really sleepy. He fights against it, though. He forces his eyes open to look at his wife. "Do you...do you know how far along you are?" he asks, pulling her a little closer to wrap his arms around her.

She shakes her head. "Not yet. I was planning on making a doctor's appointment as soon as possible to find that out. And to make sure everything is progressing how it should."

"Okay. That sounds good. I think we should also consider finding a different place. I love living here with you, but I kind of want our kid to have a backyard to run around in, to have as close to a normal childhood as possible."

She smiles softly. "I think I can get behind that. Just...can we wait for a little while to tell your mom? I know she's going to be excited when we do tell her, I just need some more time to prepare myself for her level of excitement."

He chuckles quietly, thinking about all the ways his mother is most likely going to go overboard when it comes to buying gifts for the baby. Part of him is looking forward to seeing how much she's willing to spend on her grandchild. The other part isn't too thrilled at having to try to rein her in every now and then from going too over-the-top.

"We can wait for however long you would like. Though, when we do tell her, I think we should tell Ainsley at the same time. Maybe at dinner," he suggests, referencing their monthly dinner at his mother's place.

Dani nods and smiles. "Yeah, we can do that. And hey, I'm sorry about before, at the precinct. I shouldn't have freaked out on you like that. You didn't know, and I shouldn't have expected you to just know."

He shakes his head. "No, I'm sorry. I should have started being more careful the moment we started a relationship."

She purses her lips and tilts her head as she watches him, a tiny hint of a smile growing on her lips. "I think an argument can be made that you always should have been careful, but I'll let you have that one."

"Thank you."

"But only if you make me some tea and bring it to me because I'm exhausted and need to lie down."

He smiles, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. "I think I can do that." One of his hands drifts down to her still flat stomach and he can't help the uncharacteristically giddy feeling he gets at the thought of his child growing in there. "You go relax, put on a movie or something and I'll join you when the tea's done."

She smiles back at him, resting one of her hands over his. "I can get behind that. But you can't complain if I pick out something that you find overly sappy."

He shakes his head. "I promise I won't. I think a sappy movie might be a nice reprieve from the world right now." He gently nudges her toward the living room and then makes his way back into the kitchen to finish up the tea that his wife had already started making. Though, he does have to heat the water back up since it's gone cold.

It doesn't take long for him to make their tea, enough time for Dani to select a film and get the menu loaded on their flatscreen in the living room. She's waiting for him on the couch, her legs tucked up under her and her favorite blanket draped across her lap.

"Your tea, my dear," he speaks up as he approaches, holding out one of the steaming cups to his wife.

She takes it from him with a smile, snuggling back deeper into the couch cushions as she wraps both hands around the cup and holds it close.

He settles himself next to her, leaning forward to set his own cup on the coffee table. He doesn't necessarily like drinking tea when it's still so hot; he likes to let it cool for a bit.

Leaning back into the couch, he curls up happily next to his wife, letting his head fall to her shoulder as it has done many times. He fights to keep his eyes open as they watch whatever movie Dani picked out, but ultimately he fails. The exhaustion from the day's events takes him over, as well as Dani's fingers running through his hair, and he succumbs to sleep. Dani's not too far behind him in her own exhaustion, her head leaning against his as her eyes fall closed.

They both sleep peacefully and comfortably that night, despite being on the couch, visions of a child that's the perfect mixture of the two of them running through their heads.

So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Also, let me know on here or on my Tumblr: skyeward-otp if there are any ideas you'd like to see played out. Since we're all under quarantine I've got plenty of time. :)

Until next time,
Jellybean96 out!