"Mick, we can't stay in this house forever," Jared says as he walks into the kitchen. "As much as I love shutting out the rest of the world and just being with you, we do have bills to pay."
"I need to keep you safe," she insists, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"Listen," he replies, "Bowers wants us back today. I promise I'll be extra careful, ok? Maybe we can convince her to let us work together until we figure out what your calling means."
"Ok," she sighs heavily. "Drea is going to make fun of me, though."
"Well, can you blame her?" Jared laughs, earning a scowl from Michaela.
Luckily, Bowers agrees to let them work together for the time being, after they tell her they're working one of the higher profile cases together. They have several leads to follow in a drug ring that they've been trailing for months. Jared calls a meeting and gives everyone an update on the case before handing out assignments. She is unable to take her eyes off him as he confidently explains his plan. "What?" he asks when he catches her still staring at him after the meeting has disbanded.
"Can I talk to you for a minute, Lieutenant?" she asks, keeping her face serious as he follows her into the back room of the precinct.
"What is—" he begins, but he is cut off by her lips as she kisses him forcefully, wrapping his tie around her wrist and pulling him close. "Mmm," he purrs into her mouth, and she breaks the kiss, remembering their surroundings.
"Sorry," she says sheepishly. "Do you have any idea how insanely sexy you are?" she asks him.
"I'm getting an idea," he grins, giving her a lopsided smile that makes her stomach flip. "Seriously, never apologize for doing that."
She winks at him before turning around and returning to her desk. They gather the necessary files and information before heading out to his car.
Save him.
The calling stops her in her tracks. "Jay," she reaches for his hand, holding it in hers tightly. "Are you sure about this?"
"We have to continue living, Mick," he says. "I'm right here, you're safe. It's going to be ok."
Mick is on edge for the rest of the day but tries to focus on the job at hand. They spend the morning driving around and interviewing people that may have information on the drug ring, and then stop for lunch at her favorite sandwich place. In the afternoon they continue investigating, and after about the third stop they make, Jared glances into his rearview mirror and sees something suspicious.
"I think we are being followed," he tells Michaela.
"What do you mean?" she asks, looking in the side mirror at the car behind them. She writes down its license plate on a notepad. "What do you think they want?" she wonders.
"I'm sure they're not too happy that we're here digging around," Jared replies. "A few of those witnesses seemed really nervous to talk to us. One of them must've tipped someone off, and they aren't happy."
She tenses in the passenger seat. He reaches for her hand, "Hey, I've got you," he reassures, and she nods at him weakly. Eventually, they reach their destination, and he pulls the car over, moving to open the door. The black sedan behind them also pulls over about a block behind them. Because of the tinted windows, they are unable to see who is driving. "Stay close to me," Jared tells her as they get out of the car.
Save him.
Save him.
Michaela crosses the street with Jared, heading towards a small business on the side of the road. Out of the corner of his eye, Jared sees the window of the black sedan roll down, and a hand extend outward holding a gun. A shot goes off, and before Michaela can process what is happening, Jared flings his body in front of hers, pushing her out of the way as he falls to the ground. She hears a squealing of tires as the black sedan accelerates, heading straight for Jared's prone body, still lying in the street.
Save him.
She screams, "Jared!" In an instant, she pulls out her gun and fires at the car's front tire, hitting it squarely. The sedan swerves, losing control as it careens into a parked car, tires squealing as the driver tries to maneuver it towards Jared. Michaela shouts again, "Jared!" reaching out to him, she pulls him onto his feet, and they run to the side of the road, Jared calling for backup.
They dart behind a parked car, "Are you ok?" Jared asks her, looking over her with concern.
"I'm fine thanks to you," she replies, but he detects the shaking in her voice.
"Just hold on, help is coming," he says, positioning his body between her and the occupants of the sedan. Within seconds, they can hear the sirens of the approaching officers in route, and Michaela is relieved when they have the sedan surrounded.
"Jay," she tugs at his arm, and he turns to face her. "Maybe we should let them handle this."
"No, whoever is in the car tried to kill you," he insists.
"They tried to kill you, too," she reminds him. "Please," she pleads, holding onto his hand. His face softens as he looks at her.
"Ok," he reluctantly agrees, "But I want answers."
The police manage to apprehend two suspects from the car, both men that are listed as being part of the drug ring that Michaela and Jared had spent the day investigating. They follow them back to the precinct so that Jared and Michaela could interrogate them. By the end of the night, they determine that they were targeted because they were getting too close for comfort for the men's boss, whose name was still unknown. The men are placed in jail and Jared vows to speak to them again to try and figure it all out, especially since they had tried to hurt Mick.
By the time they reach home, they are both exhausted. Michaela collapses on the couch as Jared removes his jacket and tie, hanging them over the banister.
"I know we haven't really discussed this yet," she says tiredly, "But you live here now, right?"
"Do you want me to live here?" he asks.
"Yes, of course," she replies. "I know you've been stopping at your place to get more of your things, and I was thinking, maybe you should just move in completely here."
He grins, sitting beside her on the couch. "Nothing would make me happier."
She sighs heavily, looking off into the distance.
"Gee," Jared quips, "Not the reaction I was hoping for."
"I'm sorry," she replies. "It isn't that. I just can't get over what happened today. The callings, they asked me to save you. What if I hadn't gone with you today? We were only together because of them. You saved me first, Jay. Then I saved you. You would've been alone. You could have been killed!" her eyes fill with tears. "See, this is what I was afraid of, because you don't have the callings. Somehow, they've been protecting me all this time. But what about you?"
"Zeke," Jared whispers, and Michaela nods slowly. "This is why it was easier, being with him, saying yes to his proposal."
"Jay," she trails off, turning to face him. "When you proposed, Evie had just died. I was a mess. I blamed myself for it. I had been demoted at work to desk duty. There was an investigation, and even though they cleared me, I still feel guilty now. I shouldn't have been driving that car, Jay. And you were there that whole time, by my side, supporting me, and I just didn't feel that I deserved your love. I was afraid."
"Mick," he says softly, "It's me. We've always been able to tell each other anything, sometimes without even talking. I feel like you're still pushing me away somehow, like a part of you is still afraid. Are you thinking that maybe you made the wrong choice?"
She stares at him, unable to respond for a beat, and he frowns. "It's ok," he says, deflating, "I think I'm going to stay at my place tonight."
"Jay," she starts to say, but he shakes his head.
"I can only imagine how difficult all of this has been for you," he tells her. "And I don't want to add to that. I love you more than anything, and I believe we are soulmates, and meant to be, and all that cheesy stuff you only see in rom-coms. But if you don't want what I want, if you don't believe that, then I need to know, Mick. I know that you love me, I've never questioned that. But I also need to know that you have faith in us." With that, he closes the door behind him.
Michaela stares at the empty house, feeling that all the air has left the room with his exit. She picks up the phone and calls Ben.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"What am I going to do?" Michaela asks her brother when he arrives only 15 minutes later. "He was so upset. I really hurt him, again."
"But you didn't mean to, Mick," Ben replies. "It's not like ending things with Zeke was an easy thing for you to do. In fact, nothing about what has happened since 828 landed has been easy. I know you love Jared, you've always loved him, but that love has always scared you a little. With Zeke, you had this purpose of trying to help him and then save his life. Jared has always been this steady presence in your life, even when you married someone else, he never left your side."
"I know," Michaela says. "I think sometimes I worry that 828 changed me so much that I'm not even the person he used to love anymore. The callings, the fact that I might die, or rapidly age up with no explanation. What if he decides that it's too much for him?"
"You're worth it, Mick," Ben explains, "He's made that very clear."
"When Grace was dying," Michaela says, "I heard you beg for her life. I saw what even the thought of losing her did to you. I had to face that too, when Jared was in the explosion. But he actually had to lose me for all that time. I can't imagine what that was like. It terrifies me. I was ready to lose Zeke, or so I thought, but I wasn't actually."
"Nothing ever prepares you to lose someone you love," Ben tells her. "You can't live your life in fear. I know that things are crazy, but you deserve to be happy."
"Jared said I need to have faith in him, in us," she says quietly. "It's not him that I don't have faith in, it's me. I just keep thinking that he could do better. I don't know why he stays with me, after everything. Even when I try to protect him, I end up hurting him."
"He stays because he is in love with you, because you mean more to him than anything. He doesn't want to live his life without you. You're worth it," Ben replies.
Michaela rolls her eyes, "If you say so. You know today was so insane. Save him. Indirectly, they were telling me to save myself."
"No, they weren't," Ben says. "They were protecting him. All this time Jared has been fighting to keep you safe. He's supported everything we've done to help the passengers, even when he thought it was crazy. He's helped when we asked, and even at times when we didn't. He saved your life, and mine, and Olive's, and Zeke's. And he did all of that for you."
"I know," she whispers. "Why am I making this so hard?"
"Because you're you," Ben laughs, "And because you're used to having to fight for everything. Let go, Mick."
She smiles, giving her brother a hug, "Thanks. You're a great brother."
"You know," Ben says, "When you first started going with Zeke, I thought it was temporary, a way to distract yourself from what was going on with Jared. I like Zeke, don't get me wrong, he's a great guy, but when you married him, it was kind of a surprise. You know all I want is your happiness, but I've also known Jared for 12 years. He's become a part of this family too. I know you shut him out after the shooting, and I know he was really hurt by that. Maybe you both just need a little more time to process what's happened and try and move forward from it."
Michaela frowns, hating the idea of how much she has hurt Jared. Just then, there's a knock at the door. She opens it to find him standing there.
"I'm so sorry," he says. "I should never have left you like that." He spies Ben standing behind Michaela as he enters the house. "Hey Ben, good to see you," he says warmly, shaking Ben's hand.
"You too," Ben says. He gives Mick a hug and whispers in her ear, "Tell him everything."
She nods, closing the door behind him and turns around to face Jared. "We need to talk," she tells him, and he moves to sit down on the couch. She stands, beginning to pace the room. "Today really threw me," she begins. "Ever since we met at the Academy, you've been this steady presence in my life. And then we fell in love, and you proposed, and I couldn't even say yes. I know that I've done so many things that hurt you, and when you keep hurting the person you love the most, you have to look inward."
He opens his mouth as if to say something, but she holds up her hands, silencing him. "No, please. Let me finish," she tells him. "When I got shot, I was so angry at you. I know you weren't the one who pulled the trigger, but it wasn't even about that. You and Lourdes were happy, and I showed up and took that away. I took Evie's life away. Somehow everyone I love gets hurt. I know you wanted us to be together, and I didn't lie when I said I wanted the same thing. I just needed time to process everything that had happened to me. I couldn't look at you without thinking that it would have been better if I'd died on that plane."
"Michaela," he stands to move in front of her. "Every day that I thought you were dead, a part of me died as well. Do you have any idea how much I missed you? Do you know how many nights I cried myself to sleep, or woke thinking you were still here only to remember that you weren't? It was like half of me was missing, and no matter what I did, no matter what I do, nothing can ever fill that place in my heart. I know I must have seemed like the biggest asshole in the world. I mean, who just drops their wife for another woman, right? But you weren't the other woman to me. You're the only woman. I can't love someone else knowing you exist in the world, Mick."
"Jay…" she sniffs, her eyes filling with tears.
"No, you don't know," he whispers. "You keep telling me that I don't understand the callings, and maybe that's true. And I know you lost so much during those five and a half years, but Mick, I lost you. And when you came back and I felt you slipping away again, I panicked. I'm not proud of how I acted. I was desperate…and then you wouldn't even let me see you…you protected him instead."
"Jared, I'm so sorry," she replies. "You were just so crazy. You didn't trust Zeke and you wouldn't listen to me that he was, is a good man. I know why you did what you did, I was just hurt, angry, and upset. And like I said before, things with Zeke were…easy."
"Easy as in better?" Jared asks nervously.
"No," she replies. "Easy as in uncomplicated. With our history, the accident, the proposal, Lourdes, and everything else, I was overwhelmed. It isn't you I don't have faith in, it's me."
He sighs, shaking his head. "I wish you could see yourself the way I see you. You're the most incredible woman I've ever known. You're beautiful, smart, determined, caring, generous, kind, loving, loyal, and fierce. And so, so stubborn," he laughs. "You make me want to be a better man. When I'm with you, I feel like anything is possible." He kisses her softly.
"Wow," she replies. "You're amazing, Jay. How did I ever get this lucky?" she takes a step toward him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"I'm the lucky one," he whispers, lowering his lips to hers once more.