A/N: This is set in 1986, before either Michael or Jackie joined the show
Disclaimer: I own nothing
DC Michael Jardine walked into the pub, frustrated after the case he'd been working on. He couldn't believe that bastard Malcolm Innes had blamed him for the file he lost. And to top it off, the killer Liam Kennedy, blamed them both.
Admittedly, Michael wasn't too worried about any repercussions from Kennedy. With the psychiatric report gone, Kennedy had been sentenced to life in prison and it would be a long time before he would be eligible for parole.
What had bothered him most was that there was now a file stating that he had allegedly lost the report. He felt like he now had a black mark on his record. Ever since he worked with a sergeant who had taken a bribe, Michael had sworn to himself that he would never stoop to any lows as a police officer.
At best, this incident could look like he was incompetent, at worst it looked like he was deliberately tampering with the case. Luckily for Michael, his boss was supportive and didn't think it would come to anything, his career would hopefully be fine.
But, days like today made him wish he wasn't teetotal. He was sorely tempted to order something alcoholic, but he ordered a lemonade instead.
Michael wasn't sure why he'd bothered to come here, he only went to pubs with other people, never on his own. There was hardly any point when you didn't drink. Perhaps he'd just down the lemonade and go home to his mum and Ian.
At least, that was his intention until he caught a glimpse of dark curls. Turning to his left, he noticed a woman, probably slightly younger than him, alone at the bar. Judging from her body language, she was growing impatient. Whatever was going on had made her unhappy.
He could definitely relate to that.
He turned his attention back to his lemonade, but he couldn't help but sneak a few glances at the woman. While finishing off his drink, an unknown voice interrupted him.
"Why do keep looking at me?"
Michael turned around and saw that it was the woman that he'd noticed.
"I'm sorry?" he asked.
"You keep looking in my direction, is there a reason why?" she asked, clearly irritated.
"I just noticed you were alone, and that you don't look happy," he said apologetically. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," she lied, "I'm just waiting for someone," she admitted.
From the clothes she was wearing, Michael assumed it was a date.
"Let me guess, a date?" he asked.
She nodded, "Actually he should have been here half an hour ago." She was less irritated now. If anything, she looked disappointed that the night wasn't going the way she'd planned.
So, it seemed someone had stood her up. Which sounded ridiculous, who in the right mind would turn down a date with this woman? She looked lovely, and while she wasn't in the best mood now, Michael had a gut feeling she was a likeable person.
It was that feeling that made him ask his next question.
"Would you like to join me? Until your date arrives, of course."
They both knew that was unlikely to happen, but neither commented on it. The woman considered it for a moment before she answered.
"Okay, thanks," she said before giving a small smile.
Michael found that he liked the sight and hoped he'd be able to elicit a bigger smile from her later.
"What will you have?" he asked.
She told him her drink of choice before he gave their orders to a barmaid and when they received their drinks, they went to a nearby table.
"So, what's your name?" she asked.
"Michael," he replied.
"I'm Jackie," she said.
"Pleased to meet you," he said before he offered his hand.
"Likewise," she said before offering her own. And it was the truth, she realised. Had anyone else had asked her to join them, she probably would have declined. But she sensed a kindness in Michael, and she felt that he had no suspicious intentions.
It also helped that she found him handsome.
"Just sticking with the lemonade tonight?" she asked.
"I don't drink," he replied.
He could tell by Jackie's reaction that she was a little surprised. To be fair, most people were taken aback, especially if they knew he was in the police.
"If you don't mind me asking, if you don't drink, why are you here by yourself?" she asked.
Michael shrugged, "Bad day at work."
"What is it you do?" she asked.
"I'm a police officer," he said.
Jackie gave a small laugh. Out of all the reactions he'd had to his occupation, he didn't think anyone had ever laughed, save maybe a couple of old classmates he'd bumped into. Not surprisingly, people didn't find his job funny.
"What's amusing?" he asked.
"Sorry, it's just… I'm a police officer too."
He hadn't expected that, but it made a refreshing change from the usual responses.
"You're kidding," he smiled.
"I haven't been in the force for long though, I'm still learning the ropes," she said with a smile.
"How are you finding it?" he asked, genuinely interested to know.
Jackie gave a brief recount of her time thus far as a WPC, and Michael found himself relating to most of it.
"What about you?" she asked.
"I'm a DC," he replied.
"What's it like?"
"Recently… it's been shit," he answered truthfully.
"And here I thought the CID had it better," she said.
"It's not bad, really. I've just worked on a terrible case."
"I'm sorry," she said looking sympathetic.
"It's fine, I'm actually starting to feel better now," he said.
"That must be some good lemonade," she said teasingly.
"I was thinking it was more of the company."
He could tell from the smile on her face that it was not an unwelcome comment.
"So, this guy you were meant to be seeing…"
"Oh, he's just a friend a of a friend, we've only met a couple of times. It's no big loss. To be honest, I'd considered leaving before we talked."
"That would have been a pity," he said with a smile.
Jackie nodded shyly, and Michael noted the faint blush on her cheeks.
The conversation went on to other things, and Michael found that she was very easy to talk to. They stayed away from anything too personal, but he felt that Jackie could be someone he could talk to about anything. Which scared him slightly, she was a stranger, but as the night went on, he realised he didn't want her to be.
Eventually, Jackie looked at her watch with a small frown on her face.
"I hate to break this up, but I think it's time I called it a night," she said almost regrettably.
"Do you want a lift home?"
Jackie thought about it for a moment, "Are you sure? I don't want to be a bother."
"It's no bother at all," he said.
Jackie gave a nod, "Thank you."
During the journey to Jackie's they briefly talked about their home situations. Jackie was living with her dad; her two brothers had already moved out and were married. Michael also talked a little about living at home with his mum and Ian.
When they reached her house, they sat in silence for a moment, both wondering if the other would make some sort of move.
"I probably would have had a lousy night tonight if you hadn't… thanks," she said.
"My pleasure," he said.
His sincerity was evident from the way he looked at her. The silence hung in the air, Jackie tried to think of something else to say, but everything in her head sounded lame.
Michael was also at a loss of words. He desperately wanted to see her again and he hated the thought that this could be their only encounter.
"Do you have a pen and paper?" he finally asked.
Jackie nodded before she retrieved them from her bag. She handed them over to Michael and he jotted something down. When he was finished, he handed them back over to her.
"My phone number, maybe you could give me a call sometime?"
"I'll do that," she said.
"Just don't let my mum or brother put you off if they answer," he said with a smile.
Jackie laughed, "It won't."
They said their goodnights before Jackie left the car. He was surprised when she turned back and knocked on the car window.
Michael rolled the window down and Jackie leaned forward.
"I'm glad my date didn't show up tonight," she smiled before she turned back and entered her house.
Michael was positive that the grin on his face lasted all the way home.
Jackie didn't have much time to herself after her shift had ended. She was meeting her friend who had arranged last night's date.
They had planned to meet up to talk about it, and Jackie was sure she wouldn't be disappointed when she heard what had actually happened.
Michael had popped in and out of her thoughts all day. Within minutes of their encounter, her spirits had lifted, she really was happy that the night unfolded the way it had.
Maybe she could phone him now, or would that be too soon? To hell with it, she thought. Michael obviously wanted to hear from her again, otherwise he wouldn't have given her his number. And she wanted to hear from him just as badly.
She got the piece of paper with his number and dialled it. After a moment of the dialling tone ringing out, she hung up. She ignored the disappointment and hoped she'd be able to talk to him later.
Jackie got ready and met up with her friend. She had been surprised to hear that the date hadn't shown up but, was excited to hear about Michael.
While she already knew her feelings about the night before, their chat gave Jackie a chance to really reflect on it.
She had felt… safe probably wasn't the right word, they had only just met. But she had a strong feeling she could trust him. That wasn't usually something she felt just after meeting someone.
Eventually, the conversation strayed from Michael. After a while, she returned home, her dad was out which meant she had the house to herself. Now would be the perfect time to phone Michael again, at least she'd have some privacy.
She dialled his number and waited, a moment later, someone who Jackie assumed was his mum answered.
"Hello, is Michael there?" Jackie asked.
"Yes, just give me a moment and I'll get him for you. Who should I say is calling?"
"Jackie."
She could vaguely hear his mum call on him before she told Jackie he was on his way. Barely a moment later, Michael came on the line.
"Hi, I thought I'd call you. Would you like to go out sometime?" she asked after Michael greeted her.
"Sure," he said brightly, "how does dinner sound?"
"That would be great," she said.
"Are you free tomorrow?"
"Yes, I am," she said.
"Great, I could pick you up at seven," he suggested.
"I'll look forward to it," she said.
"So, will I," he said, and while she couldn't see him, she could tell he was smiling.
They went on to ask each other about their day before they said their goodbyes.
Jackie was sure tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.
For the most part, she was right. There had been a lot of things that had kept her busy throughout the day, yet the time seemed to pass slower than normal. Eventually, it was time for their dinner and Michael had arrived promptly, he'd even spoken briefly with her father.
The dinner itself had gone well; she had enjoyed getting to know him better and he had seemed genuinely interested in getting to know her.
His interest in her was a little obvious but, weirdly enough, it didn't bother her, possibly because she was just as interested in him.
When the dinner was over, Jackie knew she didn't want their date to be finished just yet. So, she suggested going for a stroll which Michael had accepted.
They were having a great time, but she couldn't help but notice that Michael seemed a little like he was at odds with himself. At first, she assumed it was to do with a case he was working on, but it didn't take her too long to figure out the real reason.
She might not be a detective, but she liked to think she had good observation skills.
It wasn't until they had made their way to Michael's car that she said something.
"You can, you know," said Jackie.
Michael had been about to unlock the car, but turned to face Jackie instead, "What?"
"Kiss me," she said baldly, "if you want to," she added.
She could feel her cheeks reddening and resisted the urge to avoid his gaze. Fortunately, her embarrassment started to fade when he smiled and completely evaporated when he leaned forward and kissed her.
When the kiss ended, they got into the car and Michael drove her home. The car ride was mostly silent, they'd chatted at length and neither felt the need to make any conversation for the sake of it.
When they reached her house, Jackie handed him a piece of paper.
"Here's my number, maybe you can call me next time," she suggested.
"You can count on it," he said.
Jackie closed the distance between them and met her lips with his. This kiss was slightly more passionate than their first and Jackie broke away before they got too caught up in it.
She'd be mortified if she found her dad watching from the window.
Michael saw Jackie to her front door this time, she could see he was very good at playing the gentleman.
Something that secretly pleased her.
"I like you," he said softly.
"I was able to figure that out," she smiled.
"I was trying not to be too obvious,"
"It's okay, I like you too."
He promised he'd phone her the next day before he kissed her cheek. They said their goodnights, before Jackie entered her house.
While her dad hadn't been looking through the window, he was home and was curious to know how the dinner had been. He'd found Michael okay during their brief conversation and was glad to know that Michael had treated her well.
Jackie spent the rest of the night in a slight daze. She'd never thought she'd be happy to be stood up but, as it resulted in her meeting Michael, she was quite thankful.
A/N: This technically works as a one-shot, but I do have other ideas for this universe, so I may or may not update this once in a while.