She can't stop shaking. This is what she wanted right? To freak out, to react to killing a man. This is it. But is she freaking out because she killed him or because she didn't freak out about killing him?
She glares at her outstretched hands, willing them to just stop shaking. Squeezing them into tight fists, she crosses the break room to the coffee pot. As she reaches for the handle, she realizes she can't lift it any more than she could type at her desk. The damn shaking just won't stop.
Forget it. She doesn't need coffee anyway.
She should get back to work. If she focuses harder on her job, maybe it will go away. With brisk strides, she crosses the room and whips the door open. She nearly jumps out of her skin as she collides with an unexpected obstacle.
She stumbles backward and strong arms grab her, holding her upright. As he releases her, she exclaims, "Jesus, Jack. You scared me."
"Sorry." He glances down the corridor, looking in the direction he'd been going before the collision. He must be in a hurry. He always is. Before he leaves, he turns to her and asks, "Are you okay?"
She's not a helpless little girl. It'll take more than a low-speed impact to give her as much as a bruise. She lets him know it. "Yeah. I'm fine."
He nods and turns to leave. He takes a step, then turns back. He's looking at her hands, trembling and pale like a fragile china doll. He crosses the distance between them and tries to meet her eyes. He asks again, "Chloe, is everything all right?"
She looks away. "I'm just freaking out, that's all. This is why I'm not a field agent."
He turns her chin to face him. "You did what you had to do. I'm just glad you're still alive."
The shaking doesn't stop. It takes over her whole body. Tears build in her eyes but none fall. He pulls her close and holds her until the shaking stops.
She pulls away. With a lopsided smile, she says, "At least I know I'm not a psycho." Confusion works its way across his features. She scrunches her face as she realizes that she's said something odd again. "Never mind."
He nods. With a hand on her shoulder, he asks in a low voice, "Are you going to be okay?"
She nods, and he offers an encouraging smile before rushing back to the chaos.
