What Were You Thinking?

Author's Note: I live in an AU keenler world and in some of my fics their world is very different than the show. So, here's one of those. The title is the prompt for Febressuary 2022.

Let me know what you think with a review.

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"What were you thinking?!" Liz yelled as him as she approached the ambulance.

He sighed and ignored her and looked at the EMT bandaging his arm where the bullet had literally grazed the side of him and taken off some skin in the process.

"Well?" Liz asked when she stopped in front of him and stood with her arms crossed.

"I was just trying to get him to move away from a populated area," Ressler huffed, still not meeting her eyes.

"By taunting him and making yourself a moving target?" She yelled as she pointed toward his arm. "A few more inches and…"

"But it wasn't," he interrupted her with some snap to his voice.

"But it could have been!" She snapped back.

The EMT bandaging him moved her eyes back and forth between the pair of them. She knew police partners were close, but these partners were not mincing words with each other.

"Of all the stupid…" Liz started as she wiped at her forehead.

"Yeah, thanks for that," he huffed on his breath.

"You should be good, but you'll need to get some antibiotic cream to…" the EMT started.

"Thanks," Ressler winced as he reached for his shirt and jacket that had been discarded beside him.

"Here," Liz said picking up his shirt for him.

"I'm fine," he said curtly as he reached for the shirt. She didn't let go and they stood in a stand-off both gripping his shirt and starring darts at each other.

"Why would you…?" Liz started; her voice vulnerable for the first time.

Just then, Aram showed up out of breath.

"She's fine, the museum went into lockdown as soon as…" he started.

"What museum?" Liz asked, suddenly confused.

"The children's museum, Agnes is fine," Aram smiled at her.

"It's on…isn't it in Rock Creek Park?" Liz asked.

"Last year it moved into the Ronald Regan Building and International Trade Centre," Aram said.

"Wait, what?!" Liz snapped her head toward Aram as she let go of the shirt they were fighting over.

"She's fine," Aram reassured her. "The building went into lockdown because Ressler bought them enough time before…"

Her head swivelled and her eyes met Ressler's before he broke eye contact and looked down, starting to carefully put on his shirt.

"You can go pick her up if…" Aram said, thinking Liz was upset about Agnes being in danger with her kindergarten class on their trip that afternoon.

Liz launched herself at Ressler wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him tight.

"It's okay," Ressler said softly as he wrapped his good arm around her. "She's fine Liz."

"Thank you," Liz said, her voice thready.

He swallowed hard and met Aram's eye over Liz's shoulder and Aram nodded and walked away from them.

"How did you…?" Liz asked as she pulled back.

"You told me yesterday how excited she was to go to the dinosaur display her teacher said they could climb all over," Ressler said, meeting her eyes.

"And you knew it was here? I didn't know…last time we went it was…" Liz stammered, feeling like an idiot for knowing her daughter was at the National Children's Museum but realizing she didn't know the physical location of the building.

"There was a lot of coverage in the paper months ago when it moved," Ressler shrugged and then stepped back from her. He tried to slide his injured arm into his sleeve.

She reached for his sleeve and started to help him put on his shirt.

"You did that for her?" Liz asked him, still in awe of what she was piecing together had happened.

"You lost Tom, you can't lose Agnes too," Ressler said softly as he met her eyes.

She swallowed hard.

"I can't lose you either," Liz said as she met his eyes. "I mean that. Thank you for keeping Agnes safe but if you ever pull a stunt like that again, I'll kill you myself."

He chuckled.

"I mean it," she said as she reached for his shirt to help him button it, but then stopped and placed her one palm over his heart then covered it with her other hand. "Ressler, I need you."

He took a quick intake of air, his heart starting to race under her hand.

"Okay?" Liz asked her eyes watery.

He nodded and she gave him a soft smile before she pulled her hands back and started to do up his shirt.

The end.