Part 16
Gail had her arms clasped around Romi's shoulders as he leaned back against the table she was sat on and they both tried to control their giggles as Holly gave them the evil eye as she tried to pull off a trick shot Romi had set up for her.
"I can't watch." Gail muttered as she dropped her head behind Romi's to hide.
Holly smiled and shook her head at the blonde, Romi gave her a shrug knowing there was little anyone could do about Gail's behaviour. Besides, if Holly made this shot Gail owed her the truthful answer to any question she asked. He was sure Gail had a right to be nervous.
Shaking her head Holly leaned back down over the table and repositioned her cue. She had an almost perfect visual memory so she closed her eyes and recalled the way Romi had performed the shot. With that image replaying in her mind Holly took a deep breath and struck the cue ball. She watched the ball bounce off the cushion at the same trajectory Romi and used now she just had to hope she had used a similar force as well.
She grinned when it rolled along the table and bounced from one cushion to the next and then slowed to knock a waiting ball into the pocket.
"Yes!" She turned jubilantly with her hands going skyward as she claimed victory.
Gail groaned into Romi's shoulder.
Romi chuckled and as Holly bounded over he gave Gail a consoling pat on the arm then took the cue from Holly and slipped away from the blonde to set up another trick shot on the table.
Gail pouted as Holly filled the space left by Romi.
"I did it." Holly said softly, placing her hands between Gail's and the blonde's hips as she sat on an empty pool table. They're bodies were almost touching as Holly stood between Gail's legs.
Gail couldn't help herself as she saw the way Holly's brown eyes danced as they watched her, she lifted her hand and smoothed back some of the pathologists hair. She let her touch linger for a moment and then she smiled at Holly. "So ask." Gail instructed her in a whisper as they continued to stare at each other.
Holly's eyelids fluttered as Gail's hand skimmed over her cheek as it retreated back from her hair.
"Hmm, there's just so many questions." Holly replied teasingly. "What star sign are you, how old you are, do you come here often?"
Gail snorted, but was utterly charmed by the woman in front of her as well. She'd made sure to keep the alcohol flowing and both Holly and Romi seemed to have recovered from what happened earlier.
Even if Gail was still devising ways to pay the rookie back for it. She really didn't care if it was an accident, the moron should never have had the safety off on his weapon to begin with, or his finger at the trigger. So he and Nick were going to have to watch their backs for now.
"I think the rule was one question, not twenty." Gail reminded Holly.
Holly let out a disappointed sigh that had Gail rolling her eyes. "Fine, fine. Bravo, explain." Holly said.
That wasn't a tough question so Gail didn't mind sharing. She gave the brunette a shrug. "It's not some big mystery."
"Then you won't mind telling me."
"I woke up in the hospital, you know, after." She started.
"Anan?" Holly asked doing her best not to scowl.
Gail nodded and continued. "I found out I had a brother." She rolled her eyes. "Anan explained about my 'car crash'," She said using air quotes on Anan's explanation of her injuries. "Anyway, he came by every day and then to the apartment he rented for me. When I was fit enough he brought me back to Toronto and dropped me off at the place I was living at before. I didn't see him for another week or so then he's at my door one night saying he had someone he wanted me to meet. He drove me back to Wolf's bar, my boss, and as I walked into the back Wolf stood up and clapped me in. He called me Bravo, and it just kinda stuck."
Holly frowned, for a start she wanted to know where Gail had been in hospital if she had to be brought back to Toronto. That meant she wasn't here, right? And from what else Gail had said that also meant that Anan was likely to have been the only one that knew where Gail was and the only one that could help her.
Or hurt her.
Holly still wasn't hearing anything that was changing her opinion of Anan. He was obviously a very dangerous and violent person. And she didn't really want to have anything to do with him and hoped she never had to.
"So that's it." Gail concluded with a swing of her legs as she waited for Holly to react. She'd never shared this information with anyone, Romi had found out from Anan and Gail had just confirmed it, but she'd never actually told anyone before. Not that there was really anyone in her life to tell, besides Chris and he never pried too much.
Holly tilted her head and studied the blonde for a few seconds, long enough to get eyebrows hitching up in question. "Do you like it?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, do you mind getting called that? Or would you prefer just to be called Gail?" Holly asked. She thinks she remembers Gail telling her not to call her Bravo, or maybe she had been talking to Romi at the time, but either way Holly still wasn't sure if Gail liked the nickname or not. Personally she quite liked it, it was unusual, but maybe Bravo and Gail were like two separate people to the blonde, one name being used at 'work' and the other the rest of the time.
Gail had to think about that one, did she mind if Holly called her Bravo? Well no, of course not. But, and there was always a but it seemed, she really couldn't risk Holly calling her that around anyone at 15, especially her brother or Traci. She'd tried hard to keep that name as unconnected to her as possible.
She pursed her lips and stared at Holly again. Then she shrugged. "I don't really mind, but it's not something you should call me around other people. Besides Romi and Chris that is."
Holly nodded, turning to glance over at Romi for a second before concentrating on Gail again. "Would you mind if I just called you Gail?" She asked in a soft whisper. She'd tried hard to make herself picture Gail doing awful things, like kill the guy that had pointed the gun at her when Gail had tied her to that chair in the morgue, but she just couldn't seem able to. The blonde was just Gail, this cocky, self-assured gorgeous blonde who she wanted to know everything about.
Gail gave Holly a shy but pleased grin then shook her head. "Nope." For years she had lived with being a Peck, and then she was Bravo to a bunch of people that wouldn't mind seeing her dead, she really didn't mind the idea of just being Gail to someone.
And if that someone was the person standing between her legs right now, looking all pretty and nerdy with her glasses, then who was Gail to argue. "I think I'd like that." She added quietly as her eyes dropped to Holly's lips and she swung her legs a little to brush against the outside of the pathologist's thighs.
The lip look did not go unnoticed by Holly, in fact it made a grin spread over her features and a tingle start in her gut. Or maybe that was just the alcohol catching up with her.
"Good." She told the blonde eventually.
They both just stayed there grinning at each other as the wondered if either of them would make a move and actually kiss the other.
Then Romi cleared his throat to interrupt them a few moments later.
Gail rolled her eyes and shifted her eyes away from Holly to glare at her friend. "What?" She asked him but the hand that stroked her thigh made her voice come out less threatening and more high pitched than she was happy with. She immediately turned her glare on the brunette and Holly laughed at her, shifting away a touch.
"Okay you two, enough of that." Romi said to the pair, only slightly embarrassed at having to.
Gail did her best not to pout when Holly moved even further away and offered to go get them refills as she lifted up empties.
Romi edged his way over to Gail until he was leaning against the table and brushing shoulder to shoulder with her. "Sorry." He muttered then pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and waggled it in Gail's direction. "Chris just text that he was finished his shift and wants to come by and pick me up."
Gail's grin blossomed and she nudged him with her shoulder making him blush. "He staying at yours tonight then?" She asked but had already guessed the answer.
"Yeah." Romi replied. Then he turned and looked up at Gail and studied her carefully. "That okay? I mean will you be oaky if I take off, he wants to pick me up over at the campus in ten. I know you wanted to talk about-"
"Tomorrow." Gail said cutting him off. Tomorrow would be soon enough to talk about Nick and the Rookie and what she should do about it. Given how scared she had been earlier when she thought Romi had been shot, she didn't begrudge Chris wanting to lay eyes on Romi. She was more than okay with that. "Besides," She said as her attention drifted to Holly returning with a pitcher of beer in her hands. "You're starting to cramp my style here, kid." She told him jokingly.
Romi snorted and shifted back over to the pool table. He lifted the pool cue up and smack the cue ball hard and watched it smack into a row of balls and send the last one further down the table to knock into another ball and cause it to drop into the pocket it was near to.
Happy that it worked he put his cue down and set about repositioning everything for Holly to try.
"Everything okay?" Holly asked as she handed Gail a fresh beer.
Gail let her legs swing back and forth again like she didn't have a care in the world. "Yeah." She told Holly before taking a quick drink and gesturing to Romi setting up the trick shot across from them. "But we're going to have to take off soon."
"Oh." Holly's face fell, disappointed that her night with Gail was suddenly over. "Okay."
Gail chuckled and drank more of her beer before glancing back down at Holly. "I meant all of us, Chris is picking Romi up in a minute and we might as well leave too."
"Hey Holly, you ready?" Romi called over as he held the cue out for her to take.
Holly glanced at him then back at a very pleased looking Gail. She took Gail's beer out of the blonde's hand and taking a mouthful before handing it back. "My next question's going to be big." She warned Gail.
Gail snorted thinking about Holly's last question. "Ooooh, I'm scared." She answered back.
Holly just smiled and went over to the table. Romi eyed her then placed the cue ball, when he was sure Holly was watching he smacked it with the cue stick and the trick repeated exactly as it was supposed to. He then lifted an eyebrow to ask Holly if she got it and passed her the cue after getting a nod from her.
"It's a little harder than the last one, if the last ball comes off at a slant it won't work." He warned the older woman as he reset the trick. When he was done he held out the cue ball for Holly. "Ready?"
Holly took the ball and placed it in practically the exact spot it had been in when Romi had hit it. "I was born ready." She confirmed only to hear Gail guff from her viewing seat on the other pool table.
Holly lifted the cue stick and pointed it at the blonde. "You just get ready to spill your guts up in a minute."
Gail grimaced and put her beer down beside her. Still feeling unsettled by Holly's choice of words she pushed the beer further away with her finger causing Holly to laugh at her.
"You okay there?" Romi asked with a chuckle at the look on her face as he came back over to watch Holly take the shot.
"Hm." Was about as much of a response as Gail could manage.
"Watching?" Holly called out to the pair, not wanting her efforts to go to waste.
Gail made a gesture with her hand to indicate Holly should go ahead and take the shot. "Astound us with your mad skills pretty lady."
Holly bit her lip to stop her grin from breaking out as she aimed the cue. Was it wrong to find the tipsy blonde so fucking adorable?
"Go Holly!" Romi cheered before Gail smacked the back of his head.
"You're supposed to be on my side." Gail reminded him.
Romi snorted and glanced at Gail in disbelief before his eyes went pointedly to Holly before he gave Gail a knowing look. He was on her side. The side that wanted her to be happy and from his point of view the woman at the pool table across from them was doing just that.
"Shut up!" Gail grumbled as she felt a blush work its way over her cheeks.
"Yes!" Holly shouted drawing their attention back to the older woman.
Holly's victorious grin fell when she noticed the innocent looks she was receiving from the pair. "You weren't watching were you?" She asked but from the guilty look now on Gail's face she already had her answer. She pouted at the blonde.
"What? No!" Gail looked at the table and the balls that had been moved. "You potted the ball, you win." She said with a nod.
Holly narrowed her eyes and leaned against the table. "Oh yeah? Into what pocket?" She asked, she could have been really mean though and asked what colour ball she pocketed but it was just a game after all.
"Umm." Gail bit her lip, her eyes frantically trying to remember what trick shot Romi had set up.
Romi, for his part, just lifted his hands up at Holly, acknowledging that she was right.
Gail scowled at her friend and put her hand on the side of his head and pushed him away from her as he started chuckling.
Romi grinned and moved, especially when he saw Holly coming towards them. "We should get going anyway." He reminded her before passing Holly on his way to pick up his jacket which he'd left hanging over a chair near the window.
"Sorry." Gail said and gave Holly a sad look although she couldn't quite rid the smile from her face at Holly's proximity.
Holly sighed and eased between Gail's legs, although this time she didn't care about avoiding touch as her hands curled lightly against Gail's hips. "You owe me." She informed the blonde with narrowed eyes as she wanted Gail to know there was no getting out of it just because she hadn't been watching like she was supposed to.
"I guess I do." Gail replied amiably, her knees closing to press against Holly's waist.
And then they were breathing the same air as they stared at each other. After a moment they both smiled as their eyes glinted as if a secret had just been passed between them silently.
"Uh, guys?" Romi hesitantly interrupted them. "Chris is waiting."
Gail kept her eyes on Holly, bringing her hand up to push a lock of hair back into place for the brunette. "Time to go." She whispered before pressing her lips to Holly's for a quick kiss then slid down from the table, grabbed Holly's hand and started for the staircase.
"Hurry up loser, or your boyfriend might leave without you." She called back towards Romi.
Holly just grinned, and let herself be led.
xxxxx
The sky had clouded over but it was a warm humid evening and it felt almost romantic to be walking hand in hand with Holly as they headed back across the common with Romi.
The grassy area was filled with students enjoying themselves, some playing games, others with books out in their laps and a few paired off and in quiet conversations or in the midst of acts better left to more private surrounds.
"You two need a lift?" Romi asked, finally breaking the silence that had descended after leaving the bar.
"Nah." Gail answered as she and Holly slowed to a stop as she spotted Chris, car. "We'll be fine."
"You sure?" He asked, although he had to admit neither woman looked in a hurry for their time together to be over.
"Yeah, it's fine honest. Go before Chris starts attracting the coeds." Gail told him.
Romi smiled, Chris did have a certain way about him that often attracted all kinds of attention, male and female. "You'd know." He said with a snort before he froze in place and turned wide eyes at his friend. "Sorry that, what I meant was…uh."
Gail watched him flounder as she felt Holly squeeze her hand but she didn't remove her heated stare from Romi as she enjoyed his frantic scramble to fix his gaff about Gail's previous relationship with Chris.
"Go away. Now." She told him with a scowl on her face.
Romi closed his mouth then spun on his heel and headed towards Chris' jeep.
"That was so mean." Holly muttered as she watched Romi climb into the passenger side of the jeep she had saw Chris drive away in only this morning when they had met at the café near her apartment building.
She couldn't believe that this was still the same day, so much had happened.
Gail grinned and shrugged her shoulders. As she watched Chris stuck his head out his window and wave at them before driving off.
Alone, Gail turned to Holly and just smiled at her, completely unruffled by Romi's slip.
"You know I know that, don't you?" Holly said taking a guess as to why Gail seemed unbelievably calm after Romi's revelation.
Gail grinned and started them walking again. "There are only so many rumours about me floating around the station. One that I got Jerry killed, two that I slept my way through the Academy instructors, and three, that I broke up Dov and Chris' bromance by cheating on Chris with Dov." She explained to Holly. Sure there was others but those ones were probably top of the list. "Oh, and that I slept with Swarek when he was my TO."
Holly's eyes widened at that and she looked at Gail slightly aghast at the thought of the blonde with Sam, especially knowing how Sam had treated Gail since Detective Barber had died.
Gail chuckled at she caught the look on Holly's face. "None of which are true Holly."
"Thank god!" Holly replied as she clutched at her chest dramatically. "I have standards you know."
Gail smiled and swung their joined hands a little. "Oh really?"
"Yes."
Intrigued Gail had to ask, "And what kind of standards would those be?"
"Well, no men, obviously."
"That's a given." Gail replied with an eye roll.
"No criminals." Holly said just to see Gail's reaction. The blonde flicked an eyebrow up making her grin. "No convicted criminals, I meant. My bad."
Gail snorted. "What else?"
"It helps if they like sport."
Gail scowled hard at Holly as she thought about the baseball bat in the pathologist home.
Holly laughed.
"So female, sporty, and what else?" Gail was kind of sporty, she worked out and could beat up two guys at the one time, that counted right?
Holly shrugged thinking her jokey comments were suddenly being taken a little bit too seriously by the blonde. "Nothing really. So you dated Chris, I had heard that rumour, and it doesn't bother me if that's what you're asking."
Gail let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding in. She'd never really considered that Holly might be bothered that she'd slept with men before, but now, yeah, it was starting to matter what the brunette thought of her.
"And that you almost married Nick Collins." Holly added, wanting to get that one over and done with quickly.
Gail winced and eyed Holly cautiously. "I can only plead youthful stupidity for that one. And that it was partly an attempt to piss my mother off." She told Holly.
Holly shrugged her shoulders again. Everyone had a history, Gail's was just a little more dramatic than most people's.
Gail sighed as they fell silent the rest of the way to Holly's car.
Holly opened up her car door and pulled out a satchel that contained some of her work stuff that she didn't want to leave in her car overnight. Once she pulled the bag strap over her head she locked her car up and took Gail's hand back.
"So, I still get to ask you a question and you have to answer truthfully right?" She asked as she and Gail started for a set of bus stops nearby.
Gail blinked and swallowed. She was starting to dread the thought of revealing more of herself to Holly, surprised that the brunette was still willing to hold her hand after what she had just heard.
But Holly was right, and whatever the question Gail would answer it.
Holly felt a smile tug at her lips as noticed how tense Gail was getting. Aww. Deciding to take her time and let Gail's panic continue she started to look at the bus numbers and tried to work out which one went where.
"Holly." Gail muttered, the waiting finally getting to her as she tried pouting at her.
Holly had worked out what bus she'd need if she was to head back to her apartment but she had no idea if Gail could get any of these buses because she didn't know where the blonde lived.
She turned her eyes to the street, there was no buses headed their way for now.
She didn't mind though, it was a nice evening and she had Gail Peck for company. Even if the blonde looked miserable right now.
Holly decided enough was enough and took her hand away from Gail's but didn't let the upset it caused linger in Gail's eyes as she wrapped her arms around the blonde and hugged her close. She rocked them gently then pressed her lips to Gail's forehead, eventually feeling her body relax against her.
"So my question." She started and pulled her head back to stare into bright blue eyes.
Gail chewed on her lip and waited. It was hard to panic when Holly was practically smothering her in warm fuzzy feelings and looked at her the way she was.
Holly's eyes twinkled, wondering if the blonde would kill her or not for her teasing but she just couldn't help herself, it was fun.
Gail watched the grin spread across Holly's face with a sigh. The older woman was killing her, and Holly knew it. Extending her lower lip she ducked her head and looked up at Holly with sad eyes.
Holly chuckled and gave in, pressing her lips to Gail's in a sweet kiss before tightening her hold on Gail and asking in a whisper, "Your place or mine?"
xxxxx
AN/
Hey guys, I'm really considering a oneshot from the 503 leak that I have floating around in my head. Not sure anything else will be updated until after that, but you never know.
Thanks for reading!