Disclaimer: Oh, you know as well as I do that I don't own the show.
A/N: Here's an itsy bitsy chapter for you. I'm still trying to decide exactly what's going to happen next, but I know how it's going to end, and I'll bet you do too.
Edited to add: I love you guys! Now at least I have some actual canon details on which to base the story. I apologize to anyone adversely affected by my inability to keep city/state/area names straight. I think it has something to do with my hopeless lack of map-reading skills; just be glad you'll never have to ride in a car with me as your navigator. Annebd, you've gone and tempted me into starting another story. Now I'll never get this one done! ;-)
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The next morning
John's apartment
Brooklyn
John
For the first time in a very long while, I don't wake up alone. The woman next to me is still asleep, her head resting on my chest and a contented smile on her beautiful face. I take a moment to cement this in my memory: our first morning waking up together. Hopefully, it's the first of many more to come.
I have to admit, though, I wouldn't mind it if some of those future mornings included a little nudity. I think Alex would've gone along with it if I'd pushed her to take things further than just kissing last night, but I don't want our relationship to involve me pushing her into anything, especially considering the way McKenna treated her. Instead, we made out on the couch for a while, and when she started looking tired I called a halt to things, declaring that it was past both our bedtimes.
She's half-covered by my dark green comforter, her legs hopelessly tangled in the sheets. Underneath the blanket she's wearing one of my old grey t-shirts from the Baltimore PD and sweatpants the hospital gave her, but somehow she still looks as gorgeous as she usually does in a suit jacket and skirt. She took off the sling when we went to bed, but her arm is cradled protectively against her chest even in her sleep. I'm grateful that the docs decided to put her wrist in a brace instead of a cast; I know how uncomfortable casts are, and the added weight would've put an extra strain on her elbow.
The wrist brace is flesh-colored fabric over steel supports, held on with enough Velcro to fasten at least fifty kids' shoes. The brace on her elbow is all metal, with one hinged support on either side of her arm and three thin metal bands connecting them. Just looking at her arm makes me angry all over again, but I remind myself that it could be worse. She could've been the one to hit her head and end up in a coma.
My cell phone rings, shattering the early-morning quiet of my bedroom. I grab it off of the nightstand, silencing the ringer and glancing down at Alex. She's still fast asleep. Getting out of bed as quietly as possible, I go into the hallway and answer the call.
"Munch."
"Good morning, Sunshine."
"Since when did wake-up calls become a service you offer?" I demand, ready to strangle my partner. "It's five in the morning, Fin."
"McKenna just woke up, too," he replies. "In fact, he was about as grouchy as you are. The first four words out of his mouth were 'I want a lawyer'. The next four were 'I'll kill that bitch'. I told him if he didn't exercise his right to remain silent, I'd rip out his tongue. He hasn't been very forthcoming since."
"Bastard," I mutter. "I'd take that as a threat against Alex's life, wouldn't you?"
"I would, and so would the nurse who was in the room when he said it." Fin snorts. "In spite of his stellar reputation, our man Todd really isn't all that bright."
"Who did the DA's office assign to the case?"
"The DA is taking the case himself," Fin replies. "Branch said Alex is one of his people, and nobody screws with his people and gets away with it."
"I think I could really learn to like that guy. Do you need Alex for anything yet?"
"Nah. We've got her statement. She'll need to ID McKenna in a lineup, but he won't be out of the hospital until this afternoon. Is she still asleep?"
"That woman could sleep through World War 3," I inform him. "A talent I wish I possessed, because then I'd be sleeping instead of chatting with you."
"So go back to bed," he says. I can hear poorly-concealed amusement in his voice. "Cragen wants you to take some personal time today and make sure Alex is coping, so don't bother coming in unless you're bringing Alex for the lineup. When she wakes up, have her call Cragen and work something out."
"Done," I agree, and he hangs up on me without further adieu. I'm relieved that I'm not going to have to contrive an excuse to miss work today. I'm sure Cragen wouldn't buy whatever story I came up with, but I'm not willing to leave Alex alone until I'm sure she's all right by herself, so it's just as well he's giving me the day off.
True to form, Alex is sleeping peacefully when I return to the bedroom. I set my phone back on the charger and slip under the covers. After a moment's hesitation I rest my arm around her waist. The hem of the shirt she borrowed from me must have migrated upward during the night, because the silky-soft skin of her lower back is exposed. I trail my fingers across it, reveling in the sensation.
"Mmm, John," she murmurs, shifting in my grasp. "Your fingers are freezing."
"Sorry," I whisper, starting to pull my hand away.
"No." She squints up at me, smiling sleepily. "It feels good."
"Well, in that case," I reply with a wink, and return my hand to her back. She makes a little noise of contentment and closes her eyes, lifting her head just far enough to brush a chaste kiss to the corner of my mouth before letting it fall back down onto the pillow. I lean in to kiss her again and realize she's already asleep. Smiling fondly, I decide to follow her example and catch a few more hours' sleep.
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Two hours later
John's apartment
Brooklyn
Alex
I wake up slowly, confused by my unfamiliar surroundings. I try to raise my arm to run a hand through my hair, and the resulting agony that shoots through my wrist brings yesterday's events back to me quickly. First my confrontation with Todd, which resulted in my visit to the hospital, and then my discussion with John, the result of which was much more pleasant than the broken arm Todd gave me. John and I talked for a while, I admitted I was falling for him, and to my complete shock he reciprocated.
Kissing him was even better than I'd hoped it would be. I have to admit, though, that I was relieved when he brought things to a halt and told me we should get some sleep. I wouldn't have said no if he'd tried to take it further, but I know deep down I'm not ready for that yet. I'd trust John with my life, but I need some time to get over the shock of what Todd did to me before I can trust anyone with my heart.
In the meantime, I want to get to know John better. I know the odd things I've picked up over the years, from watching and listening in on conversations I probably wasn't intended to hear, but my knowledge base has gaping holes in it. I know that he has four different ex-wives, but I don't know anything about them, or about why he fell in love with them. I don't know when they were married or why they broke up. I heard John telling Fin about his brother, but I don't know the brother's name, or whether he's older or younger. It's these little details, which seem so unimportant to learn about people with which one has a strictly working relationship, that made him into the man he is today. Since I'm well on my way to being in love with that man, I'd like to learn those details.
Resolving to have a nice long talk with John about his personal life, I turn my head and come nose to chin with the man in question. He's fast asleep, one arm tucked around me as he dozes. In sleep he looks more peaceful than I've ever seen him, and although I spend half a second contemplating waking him up, I just can't bring myself to do it. I know he couldn't have slept well last night since he was relegated to the couch, and I don't want to further contribute to his sleep deprivation. Instead, I move my gaze to the ceiling and contemplate my current circumstances as I wait for him to wake up.
A/N: Here's an itsy bitsy chapter for you. I'm still trying to decide exactly what's going to happen next, but I know how it's going to end, and I'll bet you do too.
Edited to add: I love you guys! Now at least I have some actual canon details on which to base the story. I apologize to anyone adversely affected by my inability to keep city/state/area names straight. I think it has something to do with my hopeless lack of map-reading skills; just be glad you'll never have to ride in a car with me as your navigator. Annebd, you've gone and tempted me into starting another story. Now I'll never get this one done! ;-)
---------------------
The next morning
John's apartment
Brooklyn
John
For the first time in a very long while, I don't wake up alone. The woman next to me is still asleep, her head resting on my chest and a contented smile on her beautiful face. I take a moment to cement this in my memory: our first morning waking up together. Hopefully, it's the first of many more to come.
I have to admit, though, I wouldn't mind it if some of those future mornings included a little nudity. I think Alex would've gone along with it if I'd pushed her to take things further than just kissing last night, but I don't want our relationship to involve me pushing her into anything, especially considering the way McKenna treated her. Instead, we made out on the couch for a while, and when she started looking tired I called a halt to things, declaring that it was past both our bedtimes.
She's half-covered by my dark green comforter, her legs hopelessly tangled in the sheets. Underneath the blanket she's wearing one of my old grey t-shirts from the Baltimore PD and sweatpants the hospital gave her, but somehow she still looks as gorgeous as she usually does in a suit jacket and skirt. She took off the sling when we went to bed, but her arm is cradled protectively against her chest even in her sleep. I'm grateful that the docs decided to put her wrist in a brace instead of a cast; I know how uncomfortable casts are, and the added weight would've put an extra strain on her elbow.
The wrist brace is flesh-colored fabric over steel supports, held on with enough Velcro to fasten at least fifty kids' shoes. The brace on her elbow is all metal, with one hinged support on either side of her arm and three thin metal bands connecting them. Just looking at her arm makes me angry all over again, but I remind myself that it could be worse. She could've been the one to hit her head and end up in a coma.
My cell phone rings, shattering the early-morning quiet of my bedroom. I grab it off of the nightstand, silencing the ringer and glancing down at Alex. She's still fast asleep. Getting out of bed as quietly as possible, I go into the hallway and answer the call.
"Munch."
"Good morning, Sunshine."
"Since when did wake-up calls become a service you offer?" I demand, ready to strangle my partner. "It's five in the morning, Fin."
"McKenna just woke up, too," he replies. "In fact, he was about as grouchy as you are. The first four words out of his mouth were 'I want a lawyer'. The next four were 'I'll kill that bitch'. I told him if he didn't exercise his right to remain silent, I'd rip out his tongue. He hasn't been very forthcoming since."
"Bastard," I mutter. "I'd take that as a threat against Alex's life, wouldn't you?"
"I would, and so would the nurse who was in the room when he said it." Fin snorts. "In spite of his stellar reputation, our man Todd really isn't all that bright."
"Who did the DA's office assign to the case?"
"The DA is taking the case himself," Fin replies. "Branch said Alex is one of his people, and nobody screws with his people and gets away with it."
"I think I could really learn to like that guy. Do you need Alex for anything yet?"
"Nah. We've got her statement. She'll need to ID McKenna in a lineup, but he won't be out of the hospital until this afternoon. Is she still asleep?"
"That woman could sleep through World War 3," I inform him. "A talent I wish I possessed, because then I'd be sleeping instead of chatting with you."
"So go back to bed," he says. I can hear poorly-concealed amusement in his voice. "Cragen wants you to take some personal time today and make sure Alex is coping, so don't bother coming in unless you're bringing Alex for the lineup. When she wakes up, have her call Cragen and work something out."
"Done," I agree, and he hangs up on me without further adieu. I'm relieved that I'm not going to have to contrive an excuse to miss work today. I'm sure Cragen wouldn't buy whatever story I came up with, but I'm not willing to leave Alex alone until I'm sure she's all right by herself, so it's just as well he's giving me the day off.
True to form, Alex is sleeping peacefully when I return to the bedroom. I set my phone back on the charger and slip under the covers. After a moment's hesitation I rest my arm around her waist. The hem of the shirt she borrowed from me must have migrated upward during the night, because the silky-soft skin of her lower back is exposed. I trail my fingers across it, reveling in the sensation.
"Mmm, John," she murmurs, shifting in my grasp. "Your fingers are freezing."
"Sorry," I whisper, starting to pull my hand away.
"No." She squints up at me, smiling sleepily. "It feels good."
"Well, in that case," I reply with a wink, and return my hand to her back. She makes a little noise of contentment and closes her eyes, lifting her head just far enough to brush a chaste kiss to the corner of my mouth before letting it fall back down onto the pillow. I lean in to kiss her again and realize she's already asleep. Smiling fondly, I decide to follow her example and catch a few more hours' sleep.
------------------------
Two hours later
John's apartment
Brooklyn
Alex
I wake up slowly, confused by my unfamiliar surroundings. I try to raise my arm to run a hand through my hair, and the resulting agony that shoots through my wrist brings yesterday's events back to me quickly. First my confrontation with Todd, which resulted in my visit to the hospital, and then my discussion with John, the result of which was much more pleasant than the broken arm Todd gave me. John and I talked for a while, I admitted I was falling for him, and to my complete shock he reciprocated.
Kissing him was even better than I'd hoped it would be. I have to admit, though, that I was relieved when he brought things to a halt and told me we should get some sleep. I wouldn't have said no if he'd tried to take it further, but I know deep down I'm not ready for that yet. I'd trust John with my life, but I need some time to get over the shock of what Todd did to me before I can trust anyone with my heart.
In the meantime, I want to get to know John better. I know the odd things I've picked up over the years, from watching and listening in on conversations I probably wasn't intended to hear, but my knowledge base has gaping holes in it. I know that he has four different ex-wives, but I don't know anything about them, or about why he fell in love with them. I don't know when they were married or why they broke up. I heard John telling Fin about his brother, but I don't know the brother's name, or whether he's older or younger. It's these little details, which seem so unimportant to learn about people with which one has a strictly working relationship, that made him into the man he is today. Since I'm well on my way to being in love with that man, I'd like to learn those details.
Resolving to have a nice long talk with John about his personal life, I turn my head and come nose to chin with the man in question. He's fast asleep, one arm tucked around me as he dozes. In sleep he looks more peaceful than I've ever seen him, and although I spend half a second contemplating waking him up, I just can't bring myself to do it. I know he couldn't have slept well last night since he was relegated to the couch, and I don't want to further contribute to his sleep deprivation. Instead, I move my gaze to the ceiling and contemplate my current circumstances as I wait for him to wake up.