Hello. This is my first DM fic. Hopefully, it turns out pretty well. Let me know what you think, okay?
Steve Sloan lay in bed deep in sleep. Perhaps he was dreaming of women walking along the beach in tight bikinis. Perhaps he wasn't. If he was, he didn't get to finish it. The phone rang loudly, rudely awakening the detective. "No," he muttered, turning over and putting his pillow over his ears. "Today is my day off. Thank you." The phone continued ringing. Finally, Steve picked it up after muttering some very colorful words. "Hello?" he asked groggily. He knew that it was probably import-ant, but what he heard was exactly the opposite of what he expected to hear. He had expected to here about some rich reporter found in his parlor with a knife in his chest, or a model woman found in her bed with a bullet through her head. However, he heard neither. "Are you sure?" he asked into the phone. "All right. I'll be right over."
Steve was not a morning person, even on the days that he had to work; but especially not on the days that he was off. But this day was different. He jumped out of bed, grabbed his clothes, took a quick shower, and ran upstairs to grab a quick bite to eat before he left. "Good morning, Steve," Mark Sloan greeted his son somewhat surprised. "You're up awfully early."
"New case," was all that Steve answered him with.
"I though today was your day off," Mark said. He watched his son's brown-haired head bob up and down, signifying that Mark had been correct. "Well, the least you can do is have a good breakfast before you leave," Mark said, setting down to plates with scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast and two glasses of milk on the table.
"Thanks," Steve said. "But I think I'll stick with something quick." Before Mark could object, Steve grabbed a poptart and all but flew out the door. Mark chuckled and shook his head as he sat down to at least eat his own breakfast. However, the wheels inside his head were turning. What could be so important that it would cause his son to pop out of bed, get ready in record time, and choose to have a poptart for breakfast? His son was very self-conscious about his weight, and he nearly always had the healthy breakfasts that Mark prepared for them. Maybe I'll give him a call later this afternoon, Mark thought as he cleared the dishes.
"Where is she?" Steve asked before he had even really walked into the precinct. A young officer quickly escorted him to a padded room, where a young teenaged girl sat hugging her knees. The girl had black hair that reached to her mid-back, and her blue eyes were glazed as though she was in a different world. "How long has she been like that?" Steve asked the young officer.
"Since she got here," the officer replied. Steve's eyes never left the girl as he listened to the story. "I was on my rounds," the officer said, "when I spotted the girl walking out of an alley. I jumped out of the car, seeing that she was weak. Sure enough, as soon as I got there, she collapsed. I gently picked her up, but she refused to be taken to a hospital; so I brought her here. I figured you could help her and maybe get her to open up. She hasn't said a word since I found her. She doesn't look, does she?"
It was true. Steve had to admit that. The girl's left eye was almost swollen shut. She had various cuts on her face and arms. Dark bruises were forming all over her face, and Steve could see the imprint of hands on her upper arms. "All right," Steve said. "Give me a key so I can go talk to her."
The officer gave him the key, and he opened the door, intending to give the girl a smile and tell her everything would be okay. But it didn't happen that way. The girl immediately came out of her dazed state and snapped her head up to look at the detective. Steve would never forget the look of horror and pain that he saw on the girl's face. It cut right through his heart. The girl scooted off as far as she could until she hit a corner. Then, she tried to make herself as small as possible. Steve walked in, which only served to increase the girl's terror. It didn't help as he walked toward her, either. Then, he realized that he had seen this girl before. He had seen her a great many times in a great many different places. He knew that she was very independent and afraid of very few things. And she surely wasn't a non-social person. What could have reduced her down to this frail, timid being sitting before him? Steve didn't know, but he intended to find out.
"Hey there," Steve said, reaching out his hand to the girl. A look of recognition flittered across the girl's pained features as she looked at Steve's face. Apparently, she remembered Steve just like he did her. She obviously had a little pride left, but Steve wasn't sure about independence. The girl glared at him but still maintained her position. Steve was a little afraid of walking any closer than he had to the girl. He was afraid that she would lash out at him.
Steve was beginning to feel very awkward. He knew he should do something, but he didn't know what. He thought about reaching out to the girl again, but he decided against it. The last thing he needed was to turn this girl against him. "Okay," he said with a shrug as he stood up. "I can talk, and you can listen. I hope you feel okay." At this, he received a glare from the girl. It was obvious that she was not okay, but Steve ignored this and continued. "I wonder where you've been the time that you were missing. I mean, surely you must have been missing for a while. Listen, honey, I need you to cooperate. Could you at least tell me if there was anyone else with you?"
Steve saw the girl visibly flinch as he called her honey. Her eyes filled with tears that threatened to overcome her, but she wouldn't let them. Finally, she nodded. Steve looked out the window at the officer standing just outside. They exchanged glances, and then Steve turned back to the girl. This had just turned into a deadly game of tag. And Steve was determined to win.
Well, what did you think? Was it good? Was it bad? Click on the review button and tell me. I'm a feedback addict. Oh, and I might not get to update for a little while. My com-puter is going to be down for a little while until we get some money to activate Windows with. By this time probably tomorrow, my computer is going to be croaked. So sorry if you liked this! But I promise I will have the next chapter up at most three days after my computer is back up! Stay tuned!