Changes in the Wind
Thinking Ahead
Standing out on the small balcony, Tim gripped the steaming mug with two hands hoping the heat would pass through his body and ward off the early morning February chill. If he leaned over the railing, craned his neck, peered off in the distance and squinted, he could make out a sliver of dark blue, enough blue for the realtor to legitimize calling this an 'ocean view' apartment. That the realtor got away with it ticked him off, that people like his girlfriend, bought such rose colored language, only demonstrated how badly people wanted to live by the water. For him, the beach was an alright place to visit occasionally, but living by the water held no appeal for him, not after he'd seen the damage that storm whipped water could wreak on man-made buildings and the people caught inside them up close. But for people living on the coast, the water held an almost mystical appeal and even Calleigh was caught in its grasp, at least enough to be willing to pay extra for the privilege of living a few miles from the beach.
He had to admit though, that since he and Calleigh had gotten together, he'd spent a lot more time at the beach, mostly walking along the shore hand in hand in the evening, under the light of the moon and it was pretty nice. Of course, any time spent with her, doing most anything was pretty nice. Considering how they jumped feet first into living together not long after they started dating, things were going surprisingly well. If he were being honest, he'd admit that he probably wasn't the easiest person to live with, but despite that, it was somehow working. They'd had very few squabbles, which taking into account the fact that they had fairly stressful jobs, long hours and saw each other at work every day, was pretty remarkable.
Working together allowed them to see the best and worst sides of themselves before they ever started dating, which undoubtedly helped speed along their relationship. They knew when to give the other space and when support was needed. Work, it seemed, both helped and hindered their relationship. It was still difficult for him when she took risks in the field, or refused assistance when he thought she needed it and he got rankled when she was on his back about his gun or his stubborn streak, but their arguments were usually minor and over quickly.
Learning to share the small space was the biggest adjustment the two faced thus far. What felt like a good sized apartment for one person, suddenly felt a bit cramped when housing two, each of whom possessed a small library of books. It was sometimes hard to be on top of each other, although, he chuckled to himself, most of the time that's exactly the way he liked it. However, the more stuff he brought over from his apartment, the more crowded her place got. Keeping in mind how neat and tidy she liked things compared to how disorderly he could often be and the potential for friction loomed large. Which was why he frequently found himself thinking about real estate these days, a subject he gave little thought to in the past. No longer could he imagine not living with her, but he wanted the best possible set up for them. Needing to empty out his apartment also weighed on his mind, since his lease ran out in a couple months and he had no idea what to do with everything. The idea of moving to a larger place was becoming much more desirable, it just wasn't anything he had mentioned yet.
Whatever initial qualms he had about living with someone hadn't materialized with Calleigh. His hesitancy had been tempered both by his growing feelings for her and the simple fact that he liked having her around, a huge admission for someone who always preferred to be alone. Not close to his parents or his younger brother, he didn't even have many friends. Now, he shared not only a bed, but also a closet and a bathroom with someone, the very thought of which still sometimes made his head spin. And, despite Delko's predictions, he'd managed to avoid being kicked to the couch. But this, this thought taking root in his head was a bit bigger than simply moving into her apartment, this was one that would require a serious commitment from both of them.
"Here's where you went off to. I was getting ready to leave and I couldn't find you anywhere," she said brightly as she joined him on the tiny porch.
Startled by the sound of her voice, he turned to face her, meeting her smile with one of his own. "Gee Cal, it's a little hard to lose someone in there. Usually we're tripping over each other."
"It's not that bad," she said laughing as she joined him at the railing. "Besides, I don't mind tripping on you."
"Good to know," he said, placing his now, cool mug of unfinished coffee on the small table that was flanked on either side by a pair of retro looking metal chairs painted a bright coral color.
"Aren't you freezing out here?" she asked rubbing her arms to ward off the chill despite the blazer she had on. "I can't believe how cold it is out here this morning and you don't even have a jacket on." He laughed and pulled her into his arms.
"I have a T-shirt on under this one," he said as he pulled down the collar of his dark blue button down to real the light blue T-shirt underneath. "Besides, it isn't really that cold. Honestly," he said, shaking his head and snickering at her. "You have no idea what real cold is. When the sun gets a bit higher it will warm up."
"And I don't intend to be standing out here waiting for that to happen," she said with a laugh as she sank deeper into his embrace. "So what are you doing out here this morning? Enjoying the view?"
"Yeah," he said attempting sincerity. "It's nice out here. I never had a little porch before. I like it." The view might not be the best, it was mostly buildings and streets, despite the ocean in the distance, but it was true, he did enjoy sitting out there, despite the chill in the air these February mornings and evenings.
"It's small, I know, but big enough for two people to enjoy. This balcony, plus the view, sold me on this place. I was so lucky to have found it and even luckier to have been able to afford it. I never want to leave here."
His eyes widened at that last comment, but she was enjoying her view and didn't catch the change in his expression. Does she really mean that? he wondered. "Really?"
"Mmm. I love this place." Checking her watch, she drew in a sharp breath and turned in his arms, wrapping her own around his waist. "It's probably time, don't you think?" she asked, before reaching up, meeting his lips and rapidly deepening the kiss, quickly sending him into mental calculations, trying to figure exactly how much time they had before they'd both be late for work. "I love you," she said, briefly pulling back before he closed the distance between them with his lips. "We gotta get going or we'll be late. See you later?"
"Yeah, I guess," he grumbled, still thinking about the kiss. "I love you, too. I'll see ya later." Perhaps she wasn't going to jump at the opportunity to purchase real estate with him, especially if it didn't come with an ocean view and required moving from this apartment, but at least she loved him. Sighing deeply, he grabbed his mug off the table and followed her in.
As was their habit, they drove separately to work, partly because he liked his bike and partly because they often finished for the day at different times. Occasionally they would ride together, especially if the weather was bad and she didn't want him on his bike. His own small car was often not in working condition, making him dependent on her for the time being, not that he minded.
Whatever it was he'd been worried about when he was reluctant to go public with their relationship hadn't come to fruition, because in the work environment, nothing much had changed from when they weren't dating or dating secretly. Seems she didn't want things to change between them at work after all, she just didn't want their relationship to be a secret. That and she didn't want Delko trying to fix him up anymore. They could let their guard down occasionally when they were alone, but both were extremely conscientious about maintaining a professional relationship. For Calleigh, he realized, this was of the utmost importance.
It was ironic really, for when no one knew they were together and he was distant to her at work, she was hurt, but distance was exactly what she wanted in their work relationship. Now that everyone knew they were together, all that really mattered to her was that the two of them knew they were together. They interacted so little at work, that colleagues who didn't know them well thought they had broken up, not that Tim minded, he was extremely grateful to no longer be the talk of the lab, but Calleigh's delight at that notion surprised him. His delight he expected, hers, he didn't. He shook his head, deciding to give up the hope of ever fully understanding the complicated workings of his girlfriend's mind. Although he had to admit, she was right about one important fact: the only two people who needed to be in their relationship were the two of them. And they were doing just fine.
Now if only he could stop worrying about her when she was out in the field. Not likely something he was ever going to have completely under control, although he was much better at hiding his discomfort. He had gotten so used to having her in his life, that the thought of losing her was one he couldn't quite comprehend. The one and only time she'd been shot, still weighed heavily on his mind
Wandering into the morgue that afternoon, he was surprised to find Calleigh standing by Alexx's side, having lost track of her during the hectic morning amidst the many call outs. They both turned and smiled at his appearance, earning a nod and half smile in return in return. "Hey Calleigh, Alexx. Is this my burn vic?"
"Baby does this look like your burn vic?" Alexx asked, pointing to the gunshot wound in the head of the victim lying on the table.
"Well, no," he said, his eyes darting around the room, taking in the number of bodies currently waiting for autopsy. "Geez, it looks like standing room only in here, you know, if they could actually stand."
"Don't laugh, it only encourages him, not that you'd know anything about that," Alexx said, shaking her head at Calleigh who was having a hard time swallowing her laugh. The medical examiner then turned her attention to her favorite trace expert. "Any more bodies today and they will be standing them up," she said, unable to hide her own smile. "I'm out of table space. Timmy you're just gonna have to wait a bit longer, but I'll get to him next. I'll page you when I'm ready."
"Okay," he said with a shrug. "Guess I'll join Delko back at the murder scene. Hopefully we won't find any more bodies. See ya."
"Lord, I hope not. Bye Baby," Alexx called to him before turning her attention back to the body on the table.
"Bye," Calleigh returned. "Hey Tim," she called to his back, causing him to turn. "Be careful."
He nodded and mindful that Alexx had already turned away, gave her a wink before heading back out. It was nice to know that he wasn't the only one who worried, he thought to himself.
CTTW CTTW CTTW
Draped across him on the couch, she was half sitting, half lying with her head against his chest, her left hand twined with his and his free hand rested on her chest, his fingers absently playing with the buttons on her blouse. Rain pelted the windows, much as it had all day, making him glad they were in for the night and snuggled together on the couch. The only light in the room came from the three fat pillar candles on the coffee table and the glow from the television. Yawning deeply, her chest heaved in a way that exposed a bit more cleavage and whatever interest he'd had in the movie they were watching quickly exited the room. The only thing on his mind now was the question of how quickly he could get the rest of her shirt unbuttoned with one hand. Finding easy success with the first one he attempted, he continued his journey down her shirt, when she suddenly bolted upright to a sitting position.
"Your mother called earlier," she announced out of the blue, quickly dampening his previous thoughts, not to mention the effect on his growing arousal. "You were out. I forgot to tell you, I'm sorry," she said sincerely.
"My mother? She called … here? Tonight? Why? My cell phone was on, wasn't it?" he stammered, as he retrieved the phone and checked it quickly. "What did she want?"
"Relax," she said, stroking his cheek, "she wasn't calling to say she was in the neighborhood, she just wanted to try out your new number. At least that's what she said." He groaned loudly, wishing he had never broken the news to his parents that he had moved in with his girlfriend-slash-coworker. "I take it you finally told them," she continued, unable to hide her grin.
"Yeah. I told them. I thought I told you that, sorry if I forgot," he said, sighing deeply. "I figured they ought to know where I was living, although I don't know why. I specifically told them to use my cell if they needed to reach me. Obviously she didn't," he said with exasperation. "So did she say what she wanted?"
"I think she was just interested in me."
That comment caused him to groan again and sink deeply into the couch. Almost as soon as he told them of his move, he regretted it. They'd been living together just over a month and his forays back to his old apartment were happening with less frequency, so he figured the time had come to update his parents. He'd only mentioned in passing that the two were dating and the news that he was moving in with Calleigh had sent his mother into some sort of parental overdrive. He wasn't used to his parents having much of an interest in his life or maybe it was that he was more comfortable keeping them at arm's distance, but for whatever reason, he'd felt the need to divulge this and now his mother was probably already naming future grandchildren that she previously thought he'd never give her. "Oh?" he asked, wary of what he might be told.
"It was harmless, not like an interrogation. Honest," she added after seeing his lines of worry deepen. "I answered her questions, told her a little about myself, how long we'd been together, that sort of thing. Really Tim, it was fine. She seemed very sweet."
"You don't know her as well as I do."
She laughed. "I think you're probably exaggerating, but I understand. People's families always seem fine to outsiders." He nodded his agreement. "I think she was just really surprised that you were serious about someone, enough to move in. Oh, and she did wonder when we might come to visit," she said as she sat back against his chest.
"You're kidding. Did you tell her never?"
"Of course not," she said, turning to meet his gaze. "She thought maybe you might want to bring me up north to see the snow and of course, meet them. But don't worry, I told her I didn't think we would be able to get time off till the summer," she said, sounding letdown. Moving to get a closer look at her, he pondered her apparent disappointment.
"Cal, you actually sound disappointed. I promise you, Syracuse in winter is not a vacation and my parents are not exactly a picnic."
"No. It's not that. Well, it is, I guess, maybe not about meeting your parents, although I do want to sometime. I am a little curious about where you came from. But, I do kind of think it would've been fun to go away with you some place where they have winter weather."
"Well, actually, I've been thinking about that, too," he began. This time it was her turn to face him looking bewildered. "Not visiting my parents, but a quick weekend out of town to give you a small taste of winter. I was thinking one of the northern beaches, somewhere in Maine or Cape Cod, maybe."
"You were? Since when?"
Shrugging, he continued, "I don't know, for a couple weeks I guess. I thought it might be nice to get away." She nodded. "I think we can both swing a three-day weekend sometime before winter wanes. If you're interested, that is. I wasn't presuming. I planned to ask you first. So, I'm asking."
"I would love to, I'd go anywhere with you," she said smiling widely. "But why the beach in winter, why not the mountains?"
"I know how you like the beach. I just thought it would be different to experience it in the winter. No crowds, no sun," he said, chuckling. "Then after walking along the water, warming up in front of a cozy fireplace might be nice," he continued before finding her lips and caressing them gently with his own. "Now where were we before you brought up my mother?" he asked as he moved his lips to her throat.
"I think you were trying to take off my shirt," she told him, giggling.
"That's right," he said, moving off her and meeting her gaze. "So why exactly was that a good time to bring up my mother?" he asked with a smirk, as he unbuttoned her blouse, this time using two hands.
"Well, she called after you left to get the pizza and I forgot to tell you when you got back," she said as she began to work on the buttons of his shirt. "And, if you remember, we were rather, uh, busy, when you got back and you kind of distracted me, like you're doing right now. I forgot all about the call till just now, when you started distracting me from the movie."
"I do remember," he said slipping her blouse off her shoulders and running his palms over her breasts, feeling her nipples harden through the lace of her bra. "I kinda like distracting you," he said as he reached behind for the clasp on her bra and brought his mouth down to her chest at the same time. Her only response was a soft moan, a signal to him that she liked being distracted and that it was definitely time to move this off of the couch and into the bedroom.
TBC