A week had passed since Aiden had stayed over, and Danny had barely seen her at all. Sometimes, he would catch a glimpse as she ran down the hall, her hair coming loose from its ponytail, framing her face.
It made Danny catch his breath. It was funny how a thing as simple as that could make him lose his focus.
Then, on Saturday, Danny finally stopped her. Her eyes were lined with black, covering up the sad purple lines beneath them, and she was thinner than ever. Where she usually had a stack of files in her hand, she held a picture.
"Aid…" Danny said, the concerned look in his eyes betraying him, "What's the matter? Ya look awful…I mean, ya look gorgeous, ya always do…but, you're killin' yourself with this case…" His voice trailed off.
"Thanks Danny," Aiden said wearily, "but this case is something I really need to do…it's…it's hard, to explain, ya know?" Her eyes started tearing up. "You, um, will you come by my apartment later? I think we need to talk." A tear slid down her face. "I gotta go, Danny, see you later."
Clutching the picture in her hand, she left Danny standing there, confused and very worried.
After shift, Danny pulled on his coat, headed out the door, and caught a cab home. On the way out, he saw Aiden in Mac's office, looking near a nervous breakdown. During the cab ride home, all he could think about was her face, clouded with anger. When Danny got home, he took a quick shower and got changed. As he was putting on his shirt, he looked at the clock. 6:25. He grabbed his wallet and keys and went downstairs. He flagged down a cab, and told him Aiden's address.
Danny ran up to Aiden's fourth floor apartment and used his key to open the door. Aiden was sitting in one of Danny's old shirts that he had left a couple of weeks ago curled up on the couch, tears streaming down her face. Danny ran over to the couch and gathered Aiden in his arms.
"Oh my god, Aid! What's wrong!"
"M-mac's taking me off the case…" she paused to hold in another sob. "He, he can't do this to me! It's something that I've got to do. I've got to!" She buried her head in Danny's chest, breathing him in.
"Oh, Aid, baby. I'm sorry….shhh…" Danny paused to breathe into her hair. "Shhh…I'm so sorry, so sorry."
Aiden took a shallow breath. "It was, I mean, it is…so important. I, I have something to tell you." She paused to swallow. "I was…once, I was almost raped. And I never told anyone, I was too embarrassed. And…" She stopped and fought the urge to vomit. "It's important. I need this case, Danny." She started crying again, looking up into Danny's gorgeous blue eyes, which flashed angrily.
Danny couldn't think. He wanted to help, he needed to do something. All he could think about was this, her, and her face as she was looking up to him. Then, not for the first time, Danny acted on instinct, doing the only thing he could think of to do.
He gently cupped Aiden's face, leaned down, and kissed her.
There's beauty in the breakdownA/N: R&R…more coming, probably this weekend. Last chappie coming up! If ya love it or hate it you'll review….