Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters related to 24.

A/N: Alright, this one took a while. I've been SO swamped with school, but TGIF. Friday's my busiest day, which sucks… But it's over and I FINALLY finished this chapter. I don't even want to admit how many rewrites I did of this one…As always thanks for your wonderful reviews. They made my day(s) during my week from hell…Hopefully you guys will enjoy this chapter just as much as the last one…

Chapter Eight – Out and About

A few weeks passed at CTU without event. In an emotional sense, Tony and Michelle's relationship was moving faster than either of them could've predicted. They seemed to lean on each other now, something they would've never risked with anyone else before. But with each other, it was okay. Being a little less than completely self-reliant was something they could both live with.

Jack had kept his promise and not breathed a word to anyone about their relationship. Though, as positions started to be filled, and more and more new employees came to work, it got a lot harder to keep things secret. Those who hadn't seen them interact with each other before seemed to think there was something behind it all, and those who had worked with them previously knew there was. It was partially due to the fact that, when they were working together, it all seemed so…intuitive, and effortless. Like they new exactly what the other person was thinking before they even spoke…No one though, save Jack, knew how things went.

Michelle's dad had called the night before, home from his trip. For once, Michelle was relieved to have to spill the beans, he hadn't talked to Danny yet and she wanted to make her position perfectly clear, before he got the chance to over exaggerate everything and make himself seem like the victim. Danny hadn't spoken to her since the night he'd showed up at her apartment and Michelle, for once, really didn't care.

Thursday night was going to be a great night. Both Tony and Michelle were finally getting off at a reasonable hour for once. Michelle's replacement was to show up at 4:30 and Tony had arranged it with Jack so he could be out of CTU by 5. They'd made reservations for an exclusive restaurant that had just opened, and decided for once, that an evening of getting all dressed up and enjoying some fine dining would be nice.

Tony was really looking forward to it, which kind of shocked him. Fancy restaurants with about 13 different kinds of forks weren't normally at the top of his list of "fun things to do"…but Michelle had seemed so excited at the thought of something different for a change. And so, Tony liked the idea because a) first, and foremost, Michelle was exceptionally happy because of it, b) he was finally going to get the opportunity to show her off as his 'girlfriend', not as a 'the-woman-who's-always-with-Tony-and-who-he-can't-stop-staring-at".

So, to say Tony hadn't been anticipating their night would've been a grave misinterpretation. In fact, by the time the end of the day rolled around, he found himself fantasizing about the entire evening.

And then, Michelle called him with news, good news from the sounds of it. She practically skipped up to his office, looking as if she might burst from giddiness. Her friend, she explained, Alicia, had been on her way back from Hawaii when her flight got delayed. She was stuck spending the night in LA and had called Michelle for dinner. Alicia lived in New York and Michelle hadn't seen her in years. Growing up they'd gone to the same high school and college and were virtually joined at the hip until Alicia took a position across the country.

"She wants to have dinner tonight!" Michelle explained, beaming from ear to ear.

"Tonight?" Tony's brow contracted in thought. Michelle simply nodded, totally oblivious to what she was missing.

"Yeah, why?"

"Aren't we going out for dinner tonight?"

Michelle's smile faded immediately. The evening she'd been planning for all week had completely slipped her mind in light of Alicia's call.

"Did you forget?" Tony asked, clearly bitter.

Michelle blushed. "I'm sorry. Rain check?"

"You know we won't have a night off like this again for another couple of months…"

"I haven't seen Alicia for 3 years…" she crossed her arms defensively. "I see you every day…"

"At work…" Tony interjected.

"And night…" Michelle continued, unfazed.

"For about an hour…" the sarcasm in his voice was evident.

"Well I'm sorry you're so deprived…I must be a horrible girlfriend since it's my fault we never get to do anything special…And I guess it's also my fault that I want to see my friend…"

"So go!' Tony raised his voice. "I'm not stopping you!"

"Like you could!" Michelle retorted. "I don't need your permission to go out with my friend…I just thought that maybe you wouldn't be selfish about the whole thing…but I guess I was wrong…"

Tony shook his head. "Like I said, go Michelle, no ones' gonna get in your way…even us selfish people…"

"I will." She stated coolly before marching out of the room.

The rest of the day was a blur. Michelle was fuming at her desk, unable to remember the last time she'd been so furious. Well, actually, it had probably been the day of the bomb, with Carrie, when Tony had constantly been checking up on her. But that was different, she was technically at fault then, in this case she'd done nothing wrong. Tony was being completely unreasonable.

Tony sat at his desk, twirling his pen between his fingers, trying to calm down. The fact that Michelle had dismissed their long-time coming plans so easily was probably the worst part. It wasn't like they'd get another chance at a night out together for a while. Had it just been them, sitting at home all night, doing nothing, Tony would've told her to go, have fun. But this was different…

Michelle left CTU promptly at 4:30 without saying another word to Tony all day. Tony, who could barely concentrate on the work in front of him, left as planned, at 5. Maybe he'd go to the firing range…

Later that night, Michelle was sitting at a small, brightly lit table of an Italian bistro in downtown L.A. Alicia had picked it, as it was right by her hotel. Michelle felt miserable, she was even angrier with Tony for ruining her mood. Now Alicia would prod and poke her about what was wrong, and she wasn't exactly up for discussion about it. Alicia didn't really know about Tony yet, only that they'd gone out of couple of times after the bomb.

Michelle crossed her legs and played lazily with the lemon resting in her water glass. She used a finger to force it just below the surface before removing her hand and starting all over again. This had been going on for a good 5 minutes now. Michelle was still wearing her work clothes. Despite the shortened day, she felt exhausted. The skirt she had put on that morning was in dire need of an iron, as was the blouse she was wearing. It was the one Tony was constantly telling her he loved. Thinking back to that morning Michelle remembered why she'd worn it, it was her wordless thank you for him for making a big deal about their night off from work.

Michelle's face fell into her free hand. Maybe she really was a horrible girlfriend…As much as she wanted to see Alicia she wasn't in the mood for dinner and drinks in her drab, unattractive state. She'd much rather be spending way too much time on her makeup, with Tony hovering over her shoulder insisting that they would be late if she didn't hurry up, and that he didn't see the makeup as being necessary anyway…God damn it, she could hear him saying it too. And then she'd tie up her hair, and put on the dress she'd been planning on wearing; the bright red one that was silky and flared out at the knee, and straps all down the back.

And then they would stand around waiting for their table to be ready, and Tony would wrap an arm across her chest so that she could lean back against him. The lights would be dim, and the atmosphere would be quiet, not loud and flashy like the restaurant she was at now. On any other night it would've been fun, but not tonight…this wasn't supposed to be what happened tonight…

Alicia entered the bistro just as Michelle envisioned Tony slipping his jacket, and then his arm, around her, as he undoubtedly would have at the end of the evening.

"Michelle!" she grinned and Michelle stood out of her chair. They hugged tightly and then pulled back to look at one another.

"You look great!" Alicia squealed. Michelle begged to differ. It was Alicia who looked great. Her chestnut brown hair was smooth and sleek and her green eyes were perfectly made up with a combination of smoky violets and grays. She was wearing a crisp white blouse and a perfectly pressed navy pinstriped suit. A large, chunky diamond dangled at the base of her throat, gracing the little cleavage exposed by a few open buttons of the blouse. Impeccable, as always…

"So do you." Michelle insisted.

"God I can't believe how long it's been!" Alicia voiced, as she sat down. Michelle nodded.

"I know, feels like forever."

Alicia's flawless skin creased at her brow line. "What's wrong?"

Michelle shook her head. "Nothing." She smiled. "Just, kind of a tough day…"

Alicia nodded sympathetically and patted her hand.

Michelle listened to Alicia prattle on about work, her boss, the dating scene, her family…everything you could imagine, throwing in a few well-placed comments of her own now and then. Alicia sensed Michelle's "tough-day" comment wasn't the whole truth, but said nothing. It would come out eventually, it always did.

"So what's new with you?' Alicia asked as their food arrived. Michelle was finally starting to enjoy herself. Alicia seemed to have that affect on people, especially Michelle; she could never stay angry or bitter for long in her presence.

"Nothing really…I told you about the new job…it's been busy but I really do like it there. Danny saw Carrie again, I don't think I've ever seen him so depressed…he was calling me a lot and even showed up in the middle of the night once, a few weeks ago."

The memory came flooding back to Michelle. "After that he kinda backed off though…I guess he took the hint."

Alicia took a sip of her martini and picked up a few noodles off her plate, stopping midway to her mouth.

"What about that guy?"

Michelle's stomach plummeted about a thousand feet. "What guy?"

"The one you told me about, from work…Tony, right? What happened with him?"

Michelle's reaction to the question told Alicia she'd hit the nail on the head.

"We…" Michelle sighed in defeat. "We had a bit of a fight tonight…but…" she managed a smile. "But up until now it's been great…"

"What happened?"

Michelle waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry; I'm not in the mood for talking about…"

"No I do worry because when you're mind's somewhere else I can't have nearly half the fun teasing you about it…"

Michelle laughed and indicated to her own drink. "I might need a few more of these first."

Michelle had been quiet for the rest of the night. Still not explaining the nature of the fight between herself and Tony to Alicia…They had left the restaurant a few minutes earlier and decided to go for some coffee at a small café with some tables on the patio. Michelle had just taken a sip of her latte when Alicia decided it was time to find out what had transpired between her closest friend and this guy.

"So what happened?" Alicia tried a second time.

Michelle glanced nervously around the room before turning crimson and agreeing to spill her guts.

"Tonight was the first real night off we've had together in a long time…last week when we found out we made plans to go out for dinner…we were supposed to try this new restaurant…Anyway when you called this afternoon I told Tony that I hadn't seen you in years and I wanted to just postpone it. He got upset and we had a fight…" Michelle shook her head. "It was stupid…"

"Michelle you should've told me! It wasn't like we planned it – "

"No." Michelle insisted. "I haven't seen you in a long time and I see Tony everyday, he'll get over it..."

Alicia said nothing more about the matter for the rest of the time they were in the cafe.

"I'm just going to check if I have any messages at the hotel…" She told Michelle when their coffee was almost gone.

Michelle waved for Alicia to do so and decided she may as well check her answering machine at home. Once she keyed her in password the operator informed her that she had one new message. Michelle waited patiently as the connection crackled a little and it started to play. When she heard the voice on the other end she immediately regretted not waiting until she got home.

"He-hey Michelle, it's me." Tony's static voice filled her ears. "Look um…I know you're out with Alicia, but uh…if you get in and you're not busy could you call me, please? I don't care how late it is just call me…if you can…"

The message ended. Michelle's finger hovered over the '7' on the keypad, tempting her to delete it. Instead she quickly closed her phone; she'd decide what to do later.

While Michelle waited for Alicia to finish up she replayed the message in her head. Tony had sounded different, almost needy, not angry in the least, possibly even apologetic…Maybe she should call him later that night.

"No messages." Alicia hung up her phone and looked back at Michelle. Michelle's face must've given her away because Alicia immediately stated, "he called…"

Michelle nodded and launched into a play-by-play of the entire message while Alicia watched expectantly.

"Call him." Alicia picked Michelle's phone off the table.

"What?" Michelle pushed Alicia's hand back towards her body.

"Call him Michelle…"

"No, no, I'm not even sure I want to yet…I'll call him later if anything…"

Alicia obviously did not like this response. "Call him…" she told her emphatically. "Trust me, you'll regret it if you don't…"

"Now? He said when I got home..." Michelle still didn't think this was necessarily a good idea.

"Now." Alicia affirmed.

Michelle bit her lip, took the phone, and started dialing Tony's number. A few pangs of nerves shot through her stomach as it rang. Tony finally answered.

"Hi," Michelle said quietly. She could hear the relief in his voice when he spoke again.

"Hey, you're home already?" He sounded warm, not harsh like he had that afternoon.

"No, we're having coffee and I was checking my messages…"

"I'm glad you called…"

Michelle fidgeted with her sleeve. "So what's up?"

Tony paused, Michelle was still with Alicia, but luckily he had a plan. "Well um…have you ladies had dessert yet?"

Michelle, of all the things she'd been expecting Tony to say, had not expected that.

"No…"

"Would you maybe want to get some ice cream with me, both of you?"

Michelle still was unsure of what the point of this was. "You want us to come out with you for ice cream?" Reiterating it so that Alicia could hear what was being discussed.

Alicia almost burst out laughing but managed to contain herself. Michelle looked at her for some sort of indication as to what the hell they should do. Alicia nodded vigorously.

"Alright…we'll meet you in half an hour?"

"Great, where?"

Michelle gave Tony the name of Alicia's hotel and agreed to meet in front of it before they hung up.

They paid the bill quickly and made there way back, lingering in front of the lobby. Fifteen minutes later, Michelle spotted Tony heading in their direction. He was incredibly nervous about the whole thing, he hoped Michelle wasn't so mad at him anymore…

"Hey," he did not smile but waited expectantly for Michelle's reaction.

"Hi."

They looked at each other seriously. Alicia held back a few seconds before announcing her presence. Tony snapped out of Michelle's gaze and immediately shook her hand. Alicia pulled her cell phone out of her pocket.

"Excuse me for one minute, I just realized I have to call my boss and tell him I was delayed…"

She moved away from the pair of them and Tony immediately decided he liked Alicia very much. Eventually he worked up enough nerve to talk to Michelle…and, as brutal as it was, admit he had been at fault earlier.

"I'm sorry I flipped out…" He said so quietly Michelle had no choice but to lean in closer.

Analyzing him vigilantly she said, "Its fine." Trying to minimize the amount of emotion in her voice…

"Michelle…" Tony brushed back a piece of hair, leaned in, and grabbed a hand that hung limp at her side. "I know that you don't get a lot of chances to see Alicia," he started playing with her fingers, "and it's not your fault if it's bad timing…okay?"

Michelle eyed him again before nodding, actually meaning her assurances.

"I hate fighting with you sweetheart." He whispered, and rested his forehead against hers.

A funny feeling arose in Michelle's throat and all she could think to do was wrap her arms tightly around his neck, and squeeze him into a bear hug. Tony reciprocated and lifted her off the ground a little, using every ounce of strength he could muster to pull Michelle closer to him. His took in a deep breath as his lips and nose got buried in her hair.

"I love you, y' know?" he spoke to the side of her neck.

Michelle closed her eyes, as these words made them start to sting a little bit. "I love you too." Tony squeezed her more tightly and kissed the side of her face.

Alicia, whose fake phone call had ended ages ago, was trying to inconspicuously observe the couple in her peripheral vision. When they broke the hug Tony kissed Michelle almost unnoticeably on the lips, aware that Alicia's eyes were on them. Michelle turned to see where her friend had gone to after that and Alicia immediately took it as her cue that it was a good time to return.

Alicia grinned when she saw Michelle smiling again. This was the Michelle she was accustomed to. Tony glanced over Michelle's shoulder to Alicia.

"Did you get a hold of your boss?" Tony asked.

Alicia winked at him. "Yup, thanks."

Michelle rolled her eyes. "Subtle…" She swung her elbow into Alicia's side when she finally stood beside her.

Alicia giggled. "Well…you know me…that's not exactly one of my strong points."

Michelle laughed.

"Speaking of which," Alicia went on. "My flight leaves really early tomorrow so it looks like I won't be able to come out for ice cream after all…" Michelle raised an eyebrow. "Thanks for the invite though," Alicia turned to Tony. "It was nice to meet you." and smiled sweetly. "I'm sure I'll be seeing you again…"

Michelle felt very sad all of a sudden. Alicia was leaving.

"Alicia please, you can sleep on the plane tomorrow…" Michelle begged. She hated saying goodbye to her friend and regretted tarnishing their night over her spat with Tony.

"No, no, I really can't. I have to go to the office right after…" Alicia smiled sadly with tear-filled eyes. She pulled her in for a hug. "And I'm not 'trying anything'," she insisted. "I really do have to get some rest. You can't shake me off that easily y'know…"

Michelle felt a few of Alicia's tears fall on the shoulder of her blouse. It had hit her so suddenly and she didn't understand why. Alicia pecked her briefly on the cheek and mumbled into her ear before pulling back: "Don't do anything I wouldn't do…"

Michelle laughed and wiped Alicia's eyes. "Call me when you get home."

Alicia nodded. "Night guys…" she finally acknowledged Tony again.

"Safe flight." He responded, not really sure what else there was to say. Instead he let Michelle and Alicia have their moment.

Alicia headed for the lobby of her hotel and stopped once she was safely inside. She snuck a glance at Tony and Michelle who were walking away from the building now. The obvious gap between them was closed when Tony slid an arm around Michelle and he kissed the top of her head. Alicia smiled. Michelle was happy, it was blatantly obvious, and this made her smile. Forgoing ice cream wasn't such a bad deal after all…

They were going out for ice cream. Michelle was still wearing her "work clothes", and Tony was still carrying a loaded gun…but they were going out for ice cream. It was deliciously childlike. Michelle decided on mint chocolate chip, and Tony finally agreed to let her pay for something, his own scoop of plain vanilla. He figured that this would, hopefully, placate her without making him feel too guilty…

They had just emerged from the store and were heading down the street when Michelle took a lick. The stars were exceptionally bright that night and the weather was mild.

"How is it?" Tony asked her.

"So good!" she beamed, then looked away animatedly. "I can't remember the last time I had ice cream."

"Let me try it…" Tony leaned in for a bite.

"You have your own!" she raised her eyebrows, eyeing his cone. "Why you got vanilla is beyond me, you can have that anytime."

"I just want a bite…c'mon." he whined. "You have two scoops! One bite won't hurt…"

Michelle held the cone up to his mouth for him to take a lick. She laughed out loud when she jerked her hand, intentionally covering his nose, mouth and chin with ice cream.

"Good huh?" she teased, in all innocence, continuing to walk ahead of him unperturbed. Tony was a little taken aback by the gesture and the fact that Michelle's lips were on his a few seconds later didn't help. They stood there, on the side of the road, completely lost in the moment, not really caring who might drive by and see them or what would happen if someone did. Their kisses were intermingled with Michelle's ice cream, making it all that much sweeter. When Tony released her, Michelle just rested her forehead against his and closed her eyes, arms wrapped securely around his neck. Her hair smelled good…faint, but incredibly good.

It was at that very moment, with Michelle's cheek against his, her fragrant hair, and her arms snugly wound around his neck, that Tony decided he absolutely, without a doubt, wanted to marry Michelle. He loved every fiber of her with every fiber of himself. He wished he could some how bottle her "essence" and stick it in his pocket for safekeeping, if, for whatever reason, he spent a day without her. Because, at that moment, completely absorbed in her presence, Tony wasn't entirely sure how'd he be able to make it without her. He needed her with him; everything seemed so much more bearable, even enjoyable when she was there. Yes, he definitely needed Michelle, a hell of a lot more than he cared to admit out loud to anyone.

Tony pressed his lips against her forehead and released her. They started walking again; Tony kept his arm around Michelle's waist. She leaned against his shoulder.

"You smell good." Tony told her burying his face in her delightfully aromatic hair again. Michelle turned into his chest.

"So do you."

As they kept walking, Tony marveled at how much he loved Michelle. Getting too close to her was out of the question at this point. And while he did not know everything about her, he did know that regardless of what else there was left to learn, Tony would never love her more or less than he did at that instant. Getting any closer to Michelle, and loving her any less than he did already, was, impossible, he decided.

The best surprise to either of them had been when Jack came into Tony's office the following morning, whilst Tony was in the midst of sorting through some paperwork.

"Hey Jack. What's up?"

"Nothing…any new leads on that guy from LAX?"

"Not yet. We still have no idea why he thought he could walk onto a 747 carrying a bomb but it looks like he was acting on his own. Might be a little psychotic…"

"I hope that's all…" Jack sat down on the couch as Tony went back to his paperwork.

"Something else?"

"No." Jack's eyes ventured downwards towards the bullpen, where Michelle was seated at her computer.

"How's Michelle?'

Tony looked up from his paperwork. "You can ask her yourself, can't you?"

"You know what I mean."

Tony put down the document he'd been scrutinizing. "Great…we're great…"

Jack nodded. "You seem happier."

"Probably because I am…A lot happier than I've been in a long time." There was a silence, an awkward one.

"I took your advice…" Tony thought his jaw might've come unhinged at this.

"About what?"

"Nina…trusting people…I'm seeing Kate Warner tonight."

"A date?"

Jack shrugged. "Looks like it…Look Tony I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry I freaked out before. I'm happy for the both of you…"

"Thanks Jack."

"K…" Jack smiled a little and headed towards the door. "Let me know if you hear anything…"

"Yeah, sure."

Jack's back was barely turned and Tony had already picked up the phone. Michelle smiled when she answered. Tony needed her to go over the security upgrades for the airport that they were finally getting around to after the bomb.

Michelle was standing in front of him a few minutes later, trying her hardest to be professional. Tony was attempting to lead by example, but it wasn't working very well. All he could think about with her standing in front of him was the previous night.

Tony was cherishing every second before they would be interrupted. Michelle stepped in between the desk and his chair to pull something up on the computer and the ends of her ponytail brushed against his newly formed stubble. Tony scooted his chair in closer to her so that the side of his face could just barely reach the middle of her spine and let out a deep breath, warming the patch of clothing. Michelle looked over her shoulder to see his expression.

"You know you're supposed to be listening to what I'm telling you." she reminded him. Tony closed his eyes and moved in more closely, completely oblivious to Michelle's scolding.

"I want to take you somewhere." He said quietly into the back of her shirt.

Michelle smiled. "And I want to go somewhere with you but as of right now we have work to do…"

She reached a hand back without turning around completely so that his fingers could touch hers. With her free hand she kept keying away at the computer. Tony stood up and moved his palms to her hips, resting his chin against her neck so he could see the screen. It was then that the phone rang.

"Tony, its Adam…Langley's on the phone. Something about a terrorist threat on the East Coast…apparently they need to talk to you."

Tony immediately snatched up the phone, while Michelle straightened up and listened in to his side of the conversation. When the call ended Michelle looked up expectantly.

"We're looking for a Nadia Quadir…her husband died a few months ago when US Militia raided the factory he worked at in Iran. Apparently they were manufacturing bombs for a small terrorist group. DOD just apprehended a suicide bomber at a subway station in Richmond as he was trying to detonate. The only person whose name he could give was hers, and they think she's still residing in LA. I need her last known address."

"I'll brief Adam and get him started on it."

"Alright, I'm gonna go tell Jack."

The both exited the room purposefully, without so much as another glance at each other.

A few hours later virtually everyone at CTU was huddled around the bullpen, watching the live feed. Jack was leading a team into a house in Hollywood, a mansion really, the last place Quadir was seen. Satellites showed there was no one inside but they had to try to find something.

Michelle stood on the far side of the room listening intently as Jack slipped inside through a basement entrance. It was pitch black, even in the middle of the afternoon. Jack quietly made his way towards the stairs, where there was a faint ray of light sliding through the crack of the door. Outside Baker was maintaining the perimeter; Jack preferred to go in alone anyway.

Michelle glanced over at Tony who was staring at the screen fixedly, the tips of his fingers digging into both side of his cheeks.

Jack kicked down the door and aimed his weapon. He hurried through the first floor and cleared it, before calling in for backup.

"There's no one here Tony." Jack told him through the microphone he was wearing. Tony hung his head. "Damn it!"

Minutes later Jack was back on the intercom.

"I think we have something here!" he told everyone listening. "Someone from tech just managed to decrypt a file on the laptop that was in the bedroom. Whoever was in here obviously left in a hurry and forgot to take it with them. It's a got a list of emergency contact people all over the world, the highest probability one is downtown…"

Tony quickly ordered Jason to get him in contact with the closest LAPD unit and field team. Jason told him that LAPD could be at the address within the next 5 minutes but the nearest CTU personnel were at least 25 minutes away.

"We can't wait that long." Tony told them frustrated, Jack agreed.

"Whoever's there might've been warned by now; they could be leaving any second, if they haven't already…"

"Don't worry, I'll figure something out Jack."

"Alright get back to me when you decide what to do. But Tony, hurry…"

The feed went dead.

"Michelle!" Tony called across the room. He was already running towards the stairs. "Work from my office, you can facilitate the transfer of all the files that we're sharing with Division from there. You're in command until I get back…"