Rifiuto: Non Mirena
A/N: Written: 2012. Rewritten: 2013. Found: 2019.- Licia
An hour later, Jo pushed the folders away. "God, what if I have to go to the bathroom?" Zane snorted; Shai had brought the sketchpad Uncle Davie had given her for Christmas back to the counter and now sat doodling while her mother argued with Zane. She'd put her music on, and occasionally looked up to watch them, before returning to her drawings.
"Why do you think I'm working so fast? I had four cups of coffee this morning." He replied, measuring something into a vial. She turned to glare at his back. He glanced back at her, rolling his eyes. After a moment, he reached across her to grab something; she pulled back, her nose meeting his. She found herself staring into his beautiful blue eyes, and for a brief moment, she forgot what they'd been arguing about in the first place.
"See, this isn't so bad, is it?" He asked, grinning. Shai looked up, dark eyes darting between the adults. She'd seen people kiss; Lucas and Zoe kissed all the time. She'd never seen her mother kiss someone other than her uncles and grandfather on occasion, but that was always on the cheek, and Jo and Zane looked like they were about to kiss, on the lips. She wrinkled her nose.
"Yuck."
Jo's gaze flicked from his to his lips, and she leaned closer; just as they were about to meet, she asked, "You gonna try that stuff or what?"
Zane pulled away, a frown tugging at his lips to being so close to her lips and basically blocked; he removed the lid from the solution and mixed it with whatever solvents and solutions he'd been trying. Without another word, he knelt down, tipping the vial onto the cement; it did nothing but smoke lightly. Jo tugged on her foot, letting out a groan as she lay her head on her arms. "Oh my god, we're gonna be stuck like this forever."
Shai snorted softly, as Zane straightened. He caught her gaze, mouthing quickly, 'Mama's clearly a drama queen.' The child giggled softly as Jo lifted her head.
"Hey guys, pick out a china pattern yet?" Both turned as Carter wander in. They sneered at him in annoyance, before moving around the counter, the block of cement that encased their feet lifting lightly before it banged back onto the ground with each step. "Wait! I need Jo for a second."
"Kinda busy now, Carter. And that means-"
"My job is less important than yours?" Jo demanded, grabbing the counter.
"That depends, can you do it with one leg?" Zane snapped; Jo had no choice but to follow him as they moved across the lab to another counter to reach whatever Zane needed. Carter nodded, unsure of how to respond. He glanced at Shai, who shrugged, before hopping off the stool and grabbing her tablet. She returned to her seat and pulled up a movie she'd been watching earlier. After a moment, the sheriff pulled out the blueprints Henry had given him. They were ripped and burned in some places, but were good enough to look over and find a way in to the underground bunker. When the two finally returned, Carter pushed the blueprints towards Jo.
"I was thinking, we could look for a possible weak spot-" He started, but Jo cut him off.
"And if we find it, then we can protect it and get in later." She quickly scanned the images. After a moment, she pointed to something on the blueprint. "This might be it-"
"Um, guys, can I just get to my-" Zane, who had been trying to reach his tablet, that had somehow ended up close to Shai, turned to the two officers. Both ignored him. He turned back, reaching for it again, but he stopped, turning back to the pair, catching only the last of their conversation. "Great. But first- CAN WE GET THIS BLOCK OF CEMENT OFF OF OUR FEET?" Carter and Jo ducked their heads briefly, before turning to stare at swallowed. "I... I just want... my... Sorry..." He sighed, propping his chin on his hand on the counter. Shai looked up, meeting Zane's gaze. He smiled softly at her. "Shai!" The child slowly removed her headphones. "Shai, can I-" He gestured to the tablet, and the child glanced at it and then him. "I just need-"
Without a word, the child grabbed the tablet, pulling it towards her and put it under her own. Zane screwed up his mouth, propping his head on his hand.
"This solvent might work, but FYI, there's a chance of a slight explosion." Hendricks said, pulling a solvent out of his bag and kneeling down to spray the cement. Zane's head snapped up.
"Whoa, explosion?"
Jo turned to Hendricks, ignoring Zane. "Just do it."
After spraying the cement around their feet, Hendricks moved away, and both Jo and Zane leaned over to watch as the rock began to crumble and break apart. It finally exploded, and Jo stumbled back, pulling away as Zane laid a hand along her back to steady her. She pulled away, walking back towards where Shai was still sitting on her stool. "Thank God!"
"Oh look, you're finally free." Lexi said; she'd come down with Allison while Henry looked over Zoe. Without a word, Shai gathered up her things and hopped off her stool, taking her mother's hand.
"Yes, and another five minutes, and I would have chewed off my own leg!" Jo snapped. Shai giggled, glancing back at Zane as his words reached them.
"Your mouth is probably big enough!"
Once they were out of GD and in the car, Shai looked up at her mother. "Where are we going, Mama?"
"We are going back to the office; I need to pick up a few things, and then I'm going to go to the air shaft Uncle Carter and I found on the blueprints. You're going to stay at the office-"
"Oh, please, Mama, can't I come? I promise I'll be good. Please?"
Jo turned to glance at her daughter as they drove down Main. "No, Shai. If you have to, you'll stay in Cafe Diem where Vincent can keep an eye on you- or I can take you back to GD, and you can stay with Zoe."
Outfitted in black flack jackets and climbing gear, Jo and Zane followed Hendricks to the top of the air shaft. The old, gigantic, rusted lid looked like something outside of an old-fashioned war movie. "Look, I know this was a rushed job, but I did seal the entire facility."
Jo rolled her eyes at Hendricks as she tugged on her gloves. "You know, every fortified position has its weak point. I'm thinking yours is down at the bottom of that ventilation shaft." She nodded towards the shaft in question. She then turned and strode back towards the truck, pulling the door open.
"You might know that, but how does Carter know that?" She turned back to Zane as he joined her.
"We looked at the same schematic. You know, when two people really know each other, then they're in sync," She threaded her gloved fingers together. "and when they're partners-" He rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it. Can you just drive the car, please?" She rolled her eyes, climbing into the driver's seat and shutting the door.
"I can't believe the shaft was here the whole time."
"Yeah, labeled on every map as a 'capped well.'" Zane bit, as Jo put the car into drive and slowly hit the gas. Once the cap was off, she climbed out of the truck and followed the men to the shaft, accepting Zane's hand to help her onto the lip of the entrance. "Whoa! Hold on! There's a huge amount of radiation coming out of that shaft. There's no way we're going down there." Zane said, checking the readings on his handheld radiation device. He glanced at Jo.
"Don't worry about that." Hendricks replied.
"Some of us might want to have... kids someday." She replied; Zane turned to her, interest in his blue eyes.
"Really?" She nodded.
"Yeah, but you can go right ahead." He glared at her, curling his lip. Hendricks cut in, stopping the couple's spat from getting worse. He dropped his rope on the ground, turning to Jo and Zane.
"The radiation signal's are false. Thorne had me put an emitter here by the entrance."
They busied themselves for several minutes before Zane said, "She really wanted to keep people out of here, didn't she?"
"Yeah, well, too bad." Jo replied, hooking a belt onto the loop of her belt and following Zane over the rim and into the shaft. Their feet hit cement before they knew it. "Do you have the solvent?"
Rolling his eyes, he pulled the two small spray bottles of the solvent out and turned to the Instantanium, handing her one. Once he'd finished spraying it, he wrapped his arms around Jo, pulling her close to protect her. When the last of the rock had disappeared, Jo and Zane stepped forward to see Carter and Thorne, eyes wide. Jo reached behind her, tugging her ponytail free from Zane's vest before placing her hands on her hips. Speaking as though she were a television host on a game show, she crooned,
"Good afternoon! My name is Jo Lupo and I'll be savin' your ass today!" Zane rolled his eyes as she grinned at them. Carter stood, a grin slowly spreading over his face.
"Someone oughta promote you."
"Yeah." She ground out, nodding.
"Sensor's into the water table. It'll take a few seconds to get the reading." Zane said, as Jo tightened her ponytail. They stood near the air shaft, checking the water table to see if the atomic bomb they'd set off had worked. Shai had begged Jo if she could come with them, and Jo had relented, figuring there was no harm.
"And let us know if we're all gonna die?" Jo asked, crossing her arms; Shai curled into her mother's side, watching Zane intently. She sighed.
"Pretty much."
"Well, no matter how it turns out-"
"It's been a fun day." Zane cut in. She thought a moment, licking her lips as she met his eyes.
"Yeah?" She thought a moment. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess it was."
He sighed, tinkering with the device. Jo reached down, stroking her fingers absentmindedly through her daughter's hair. The child looked up at her, and Jo met her gaze just as the alarm went off. "Nice to end the relationship on a high note."
"So... what's the verdict?" She shifted from foot to foot.
"The explosion's completely neutralized the bariogenic radiation in the aquifer. Groundwater's safe." She mirrored his smile as their eyes met.
"Good for us." Zane pulled his phone out of his pocket, and glanced at her.
"I uh... I should call Allison." She nodded, turning to go, nervously clapping her palms together, another nervous habit of hers when she couldn't find anything small enough to roll between her palms. After a moment, she turned back.
"Hey, um, after that call, you want to... I don't know, you want to go for a... breakup dinner?"
"No."
She nodded, a quick smile flitting across her face, turning to follow Shai, who tugged on her hand to go back to the car. Jo took a shaky breath; telling herself that she should have expected it, that they were over before they'd even begun, and she would be lying to herself if she said that part of it wasn't due to her own pride. You were an idiot, thinking that he'd be man enough to want to even consider a relationship with you, all because you have a child. You never should have gotten involved with him in the first place-
"How about a makeup dinner instead?"
She stopped, turning back to him, dark gaze narrowing briefly. She opened her mouth to speak, but the only thing that came out was, "Yeah?" They locked eyes, and she felt her heart begin to skip a beat as he nodded. A grin tugged at her lips, as she let go of her daughter's hand, making her way back to him. Her arms went around his neck, as his lips met hers in a deep kiss. Shai pulled the bottom of her sweater up to cover her eyes in disgust. When Jo finally pulled away, she ran her hand down his chest, grinning. "Guess it's not so bad being stuck together." He rolled his eyes and kissed her quickly once more before letting her go.
"Allison Blake, please." Zane said into his phone, watching as Jo returned to Shai, taking her hand before they left.
"I didn't really want to get away from you that bad, it was... kind of nice being stuck together." Jo said, taking a bite of her ice cream. Zane chuckled softly, draping his arm over the back of her chair.
"And I... totally didn't mean the thing about your mouth being so..." She nodded at his hand motions.
"I... I get it. It... it's fine." She replied, blushing as she sipped her coffee. Shai watched from her seat across the table at the pair; her own ice cream melting slowly in her bowl. She tried her hardest not to sound too eager as she asked,
"Are you back together?"
The adults shared a glance. When they hadn't been at each others' throats, Zane hadn't been trying to break them free, or Jo hadn't been looking over evidence, they'd been forced to talk, more to end the crushing silence than anything. Eventually, somehow, they'd reached an understanding.
"You made it very clear that you don't want anything to do with me or my daughter. I get it, okay? No man wants anything to do with me once they find out about Shai. But that's not her fault. She didn't ask for me to adopt her; I chose to. It's been her and I from the moment I found her, and it will continue to be her and I, for the rest of our lives."
"Why didn't you tell me when we met?"
"Can you honestly look at me and say that you wouldn't have walked away if I'd said something then? That you wouldn't have decided that it wasn't worth it, and it was better to not get attached? Tell me, Zane, can you honestly look at me and say you wouldn't have walked away?"
"I probably would have-"
"So why should I have said anything? It's better that I didn't-"
"I said 'probably would', Jo. Not that I would. There's a difference."
"Not from where I'm standing. Zane, the last guy I dated that my daughter got attached too was Calistar Raynes. And when he left, yes, it hurt me, but it devastated Shai. I will not put my daughter through that again. If you're just going to leave, then leave. But don't stand there and tell me that you won't when you will. Look, I get it, okay? Shai and I both get it. There isn't meant to be anyone else with us, it's just meant to be her and I; we've both accepted it, okay? I fully understand that I will never be enough for a man because I have a child, but that's not her fault. Shai didn't ask me to adopt her, she didn't ask me to find her, or take her back to the base that night. I did that all on my own; that was my choice, not hers. And all I've done since has been trying to give my daughter a stable home with as much love as I possibly can. She's my world; she's all I need."
"Jo-"
"Would I like to be in a relationship? I would love to be in a relationship. I would love to be with a man who understands my need for a little adult recreation, or a night without Disney movies and dolls. I would love to be with a guy who would be willing to look at me and tell me that my over exhaustion from chasing an eight-year-old around the house on my days off just adds to my character and that glitter and paint in my hair from art projects makes the bags under my eyes from nights when she's sick disappear; that the chaos I live in will build her character and make her strong, that I'm doing a good job raising a bright little girl to be an independent young woman, so on the nights when I feel like a complete failure as a parent, I can crawl into bed and think that maybe, just maybe, I'm doing something right, that maybe I haven't completely screwed up both her life and mine. Will I ever have that, though? No. I won't. And you know why?"
"Listen, Jo-"
"Because every time I try to date, they're either gay, married or a robot. They're good for a single date or a wannabe one-night-stand or a series of benefits sans friendship, but as soon as they find out I'm a mother, as soon as they discover that I have a child in the picture, it's too much. It's an issue. So I learned to keep Shai a secret, to keep her from getting attached and then hurt. I learned after Calistar. I will never let myself or my child get attached in that way again. Never."
"Jo-"
"So I guess I should thank you, for reacting as you did. You saved both Shai and I a lot of heartbreak. If it had gone on any longer, I would have gotten attached, and then introduced you to Shai and it would have... ended even worse than it did. So thanks, Zane, for reacting that way. Now we can go our separate ways, and my life can go back to just... just us, just me and Shai."
It had been very, very evident how much her own words were hurting her, and Zane couldn't help but feel responsible. He thought back to Carter and Vincent's explanations earlier that day- how Jo would keep Shai a secret from whoever she was dating to protect her daughter; that everything Jo did was to protect her daughter. Jo's our deputy and Shai's our girl. She doesn't know if she can trust you around her daughter. Do you want to be there or not?
Seeing the pain in her eyes that she was willing to put herself through by walking away from a good relationship, simply to keep her daughter safe, and he began to realize that Carter and Vincent were right. He greatly enjoyed Jo's company when they went out; she was funny, insightful, all together different than most girls. And she challenged him, which he loved. But he also knew that she was exceedingly protective of those she loved, especially her daughter. And as much as he hated to admit it, the little girl that flitted around town with the long dark curls and big brown eyes, that attached herself to her mother every chance she got, had begun to weasel her way into his heart, despite his limited interactions with her. Both Lupo women had.
Zane met Jo's eye, and after several long, tense minutes, he smiled at her. "Yeah, we're back together." He was expecting squealing, giggling, any form of excitement from the little girl, and was surprised when he heard nothing from across the table except,
"Mama?"
Jo met her daughter's gaze, a bright smile on her face, knowing exactly what her child was asking. "Sí, cariña, Zane y yo estamos de nuevo juntos. We're back together."
The child gasped softly, clambering out of her chair to throw herself into Jo's arms. Zane pulled away briefly as Jo slammed into the back of the seat as she pulled the child into her lap, wrapping her arms around the girl. She pressed a kiss to Shai's hair, glancing at Zane, who grinned. As the girl got up to return to her seat, she stopped, poking her head around the wall to look out the open door. She let out a soft squeal, dashing out of the Cafe. "Shai? Shai!"
Jo got up, hurrying from the Cafe, Zane on her heels. They stopped in the doorway, watching as Shai rushed towards Mansfield, quietly slipping her hand into his. "Um, Jo? Shouldn't we-"
"Hi, Uncle Mansfield." The soft voice started Zane, who hadn't been expecting such a development. He glanced at Jo, who met his gaze.
"He's my godfather." He nodded, watching as the old general turned a scowl the voice's way, before realizing who it was. His faced softened.
"Hello, Shai." The child smiled up at him and he looked up, meeting Jo's gaze as she stood in the doorway. A moment passed, before he leaned down and gently hugged the child before pushing her back towards her mother. Once close enough, Jo scooped the child into her arms, settling her on her hip. She then turned back to the scene before her.
"What's going on?"
Mansfield ignored her, turning instead to Carter. "You don't make my job easy, do you, Carter?" Instantly, Allison and Carter stood. "Where's Thorne?"
"General, I can-"
"I have no evidence that you've been insubordinate, Dr. Blake. Don't give me any." Allison snapped her mouth shut; Shai moved to speak, but Jo gently laid a finger against her daughter's lips. Instead, the girl rested her head against her mother's shoulder.
"Uh, sir..." As Carter stammered to explain himself, Mansfield began to lose patience. He glanced towards his goddaughter and her child. Jo had grown up in the few short years she'd been here. This town had been good for both her and Shai. And he hated to admit it, but Carter had helped make Jo's job a little easier, but unfortunately, he couldn't overlook this slight, this time.
"Your job is to enforce the law, not to make judgments."
"Yes, sir." Carter whispered.
"You're a good man." Mansfield glanced at Jo; he knew how much this would hurt both her and Shai, but he had no choice. "But you disobeyed a direct order, and this time, I can't look the other way." Jo's brow furrowed in confusion, and she turned to Carter. Shai lifted her head, confused.
"Mama?" She tugged on Jo's collar. "Mamá, ¿qué pasa?" It surprised everyone but Mansfield to hear Shai speaking Spanish, but given Jo's Spanish blood, it should have been a given. Jo made it very clear that she wanted her daughter to be well-rounded, and that meant learning a second language. And if they had only cared to ask, Jo could have told them that Shai had pretty much grown up hearing Spanish her entire life- her early years had been spent in Jersey, right on the outskirts of Perth Amboy, hopping the border between New York and New Jersey to spend spring breaks in New York, and summers down in Atlantic City with her mother, uncles and grandfather. It wasn't any wonder that Shai had picked up the language. "What's going on?"
Mansfield sighed, glancing at Jo, before turning back to Carter. "Eureka no longer requires your services. You are fired, Carter."