Two Weeks Later

Norah

Things between her and Lee had been tense ever since Randy had shown up at the bar (and she'd given her sister a tongue lashing for telling him how to find her), especially after he basically told her everything they'd shared meant nothing. Norah had kept her distance from him, even after hearing him shout in his sleep every night for a week, and he had made no effort to repair the damage. He made no effort to tell her why he was screaming in the middle of the night at some unseen person to run, and she wasn't sure she even wanted to know. She missed him, even though she was angry at him. When he had said he was leaving again, she had almost cried. She felt like things had become too formal between them, and he did nothing to change it. He'd left without a goodbye to boot. Another stab to the heart.

She went to her car to go to work about three days after Lee had left, but when she turned the key in the ignition, it wouldn't go.

"Shit," she said, banging the heel of her hand against the steering wheel. That was gonna cost her. She tried a few more times. Nothing. She checked under the hood and everything. No solution. She felt slight panic. She had to get to work. Now she had to get someone to tow her car to the garage. She spied Lee's bike under its cover. She knew he wouldn't want her to, but this was an emergency. He'd understand. At least, she hoped he would. After this past while, she didn't really know anymore.

It wasn't hard to get it free and ready to go. She felt so alive when she hopped onto it. Then she popped a wheelie by accident trying to get it into gear. Feeling a bit shaken, she started off. Her nervousness was replaced with sheer joy in moments. Now this was living life on the edge, and she loved every second of it.

Rose

Norah was angry with her. That much was a given since her sister hadn't called her since she'd chewed her out for telling Randy where to find her. Rose hadn't realized the guy would actually go looking for her. She'd thought it was just a casual conversation they were having, the small talk kind. Anyway, she was in the doghouse, but she knew Norah would eventually get over it.

"Mom?" Oscar asked, approaching her.

"Yes, love?"

"I can't sleep without knowing."

This again. Her son had been pestering her about who his father was the last while. How could she tell him that his father was some random one night stand? He'd want to find him, and Rose wasn't sure if she even wanted to. Why make things more complicated than they already were? She was still coping with the miscarriage, and her relationship with Winston was slowly growing. She wanted to just move forward, not look behind her as she walked.

"Sometimes we don't get answers to things," she told Oscar now, kneeling down to be eye level with him. "This is one of those things."

"I asked God," he went on. "On the radio. He didn't answer."

Rose knew God had better things to do than tell Oscar who his father was. She didn't tell him that, though.

"How about you go see if Grandpa will take you to the park today?"

"Where are you going?"

"I have some things to do and then a job later this afternoon."

"Okay."

She reached to hug him, and he hugged her back. Sometimes she didn't know what she'd do without him. She felt bad not telling him about his father, but she didn't know where to find him if Oscar wanted to meet him. It was just easier this way.

Yang

He approached Lee on their last night. He'd watched for the entirety of this mission how Lee snarled and snapped at everyone. He could see the pain radiating off him in waves, and he wanted to somehow make it better.

"You're broken," he said simply after stopping in front of Lee.

"Thanks," Lee said sarcastically. "I didn't notice."

"Norah?"

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Lee growled.

"Because. She moves in with you and you turn grouchy. It's basic math," Yang answered with a shrug.

"I'm not grouchy..."

"Ah-grouchy!" Caesar fake sneezed as he walked by them, a crate in his arms. Gunner snickered from where he was standing. Toll and Barney were inside the plane, loading up from there.

"Survey says: grouchy," Yang said, making Lee roll his eyes and huff in exasperation.

"So what if I am?"

"It's bothering us."

"Then ignore me."

"Hard when you're right there," Yang said, putting his hand in front of his face. He was teasing a little, but he knew Lee could take it. He watched Lee sigh and growl and stamp his foot a little before turning to walk away, gesturing for Yang to follow. They went somewhere private, and he faced Yang when they stopped.

"I said something really hurtful to her," Lee explained, running a hand over his head. "I can't take it back, but I know it crushed her, and I don't know how to make it better."

"Apologize."

"It's gonna take a bit more than that..."

"Start with apology. Go from there," Yang said. He sensed there was something more by the way Lee was fidgeting with his knife holster on his leg. Whatever it was, he wasn't going to share it with Yang.

"Thanks," Lee said eventually. "I'll lighten up."

"Thank God," Yang retorted, moving to walk away now before the others looked for them. He knew Toll liked Norah too, so he knew Lee was avoiding having Toll hear him talk about her. He wondered how big of a mess that was going to be when it finally came to a head.

Joe

He answered the phone smiling. Norah always called him at least once a day if not every other day. He appreciated it.

"Hi," he said. "Miss me already?"

"Did you and Mom ever say things to each other that were so hurtful you didn't think you'd ever speak again?" Norah asked without saying hello back. Joe was taken by surprise, but then he wondered what was going on to make her ask that question.

"Is it your landlord?"

"How do you-?"

"Your sister told me."

"Ugh, Big Mouth Rose. I'm gonna throttle her," Norah sighed. He heard her fall back against something, most likely a wall or a headboard.

"To answer your question, yes," Joe said, remembering it vividly. "She had called me a bumbling baffoon who had no idea how to tell my ass from my face, and I told her she was a miserable old hag who couldn't spell onomatopoeia."

"That is weirdly specific," Norah said, sounding like she was trying not to laugh.

"We said the dumbest things to each other when we were angry," Joe reasoned.

"How do you spell onomatopoeia?" Norah asked.

"Look," Joe said, keeping her on course. "Whatever he's said, he's said it in either anger or out of fear. Sometimes we say shit to push people away to either keep ourselves safe or them safe. If you find that out, then that's most likely what happened."

"Very interesting. You're more complex than I realized," Norah joked.

"Ha ha," Joe said sarcastically. "So who is this landlord guy anyway? Do I need to have a conversation with him about how to treat my daughter?"

"I gotta go," she said quickly. "Love you!"

"That's what I thought," Joe said to the dial tone before hanging up too. Then he started to chuckle to himself.

The Next Day

Barney

He was doing a checkup of his plane once the team had dispersed. He thought about their mission and felt relieved it was a success. They had gotten their groove back from the last two missions they'd done, and he hoped it would stay that way. Lee, on the other hand, was still very grumpy, and Barney knew it was because he'd pushed Norah away. Barney couldn't fault him for it because he'd done the exact same thing. He hadn't wanted Norah asking him whatever it was she wanted to ask him (and he had a pretty good idea), so he hid himself away whenever she was at the parlor. Tool had given him grief about it, but he was holding his ground. The less Norah knew, the better. He cursed himself for promising Tool he'd tell her about them being mercenaries. Why had he thought it was a good idea?

He watched Lee drive off in his rattly old truck and felt frustrated that Christmas still refused to tell him what was coming for him. Barney's mind had gone in circles at times trying to figure it out. It made him realize he didn't know much of Lee's past, and that greatly bothered him, much to his surprise.

"Hey, man," Toll said, approaching him. "Need a hand?"

"Nah, I'm good. Go get some rest."

"You sure?"

"Yea. Go," Barney said again. Toll bobbed his head and headed for his car. Barney wiped his hands with the rag from his back pocket and inhaled slowly. Like Lee, he felt like something was coming, but it was different from what Lee was expecting.

It scared him.

Lee & Norah

Lee was tired when he pulled into his driveway. He was also a bit sore. He parked and pressed his hands into his eyes. He'd been a shit to Norah, and he knew he had to make it up to her somehow. It had bothered him ever since and even more so after he'd left for work. He could just explain he needed to just be her friend. Surely she'd understand. If he recalled, she wasn't looking for a relationship either. This shouldn't be an issue. He lowered his hands and exhaled slowly. He felt nervous of her reaction upon seeing him again. He had left without saying goodbye after all. Yang's advice kept ringing in his ears, though:

Start with an apology.

He looked out the window and noticed Norah's car wasn't there and thought she was at work, but then he saw Rupert running towards him from the backyard. He frowned. She must be home, then, if the dog was out. Where was her car? He got out and grabbed his bag, walking towards the house. He set his bag inside after letting Rupert in and dodging the dog's tongue and then decided to look for her in the yard. It started to rain as he stepped outside. That's when he saw the cover left off his bike and the scratch along the side, and that was the last straw. All the anger he'd been feeling about Randy, about himself for being such an ass, and his own inability to voice his feelings just bubbled to the surface, ready to explode. He marched through the now pouring rain towards Norah as she came up the hill from the lake.

"What?" she asked, noticing his face.

"You used my bike," he said bluntly. So much for the apology. It went right out the window. She looked taken aback at first, but then it was written on her face, and she looked like she was going to deny it for a second but thought better of it.

"I did," she said. "You were gone. My car had a problem, and I needed to get into town to get a part to fix it. I'm getting the scratch fixed..."

"So you just used my bike without asking."

"You weren't here!"

"You could have called a mechanic to help you."

"I don't know any mechanics around here."

"Tool. He also could have picked you up." His anger at himself was being aimed at her, and he couldn't stop it. She was growing angry herself and crossed her arms tightly.

"I was late for work! I wasn't thinking!"

"Clearly not!"

"Oh my God, what is this really about, Lee?" she asked, really pissed now.

"Everything!" Lee exploded. "You come around here with your bags and your cat, and suddenly nothing is the same anymore. You mess up my shit, and you don't bother to ask if you can use something. You're like an overgrown child."

Her mouth fell open at some point during this tirade, and she swelled up her chest.

"Well, you're no picnic either!" she exclaimed. "You march around with your little hissy fits and your moods, and you never tell me what's wrong, so I'm left thinking I've done something to piss you off. Then you disappear for days or months at a time, and you never tell me why! Not to mention how cruel you were to me two weeks ago!"

"I wasn't being cruel..."

"You were! You're just a big, huge, cruel, jerk," she finished choppily. He blinked.

"Oh yea? Well, you're lazy. You keep putting the milk back in the fridge empty so I get it next instead of rinsing it out," Lee said snarkily. Norah was walking past him now, heading for the house. He kept pace with her.

"You leave the toilet seat up!" she barked back, getting into the petty fight with him.

"Use your own toilet!"

"I don't always have time to run all the way down there!" she shot back. They were up the porch now, and she yanked the door open. He followed her. Rupert watched from the floor, a worried expression on his face.

"You always track dirt into my part of the house," he commented. She huffed and kicked her shoes off, narrowly missing his face as she sent them flying.

"You purposely flush the toilet when I'm showering," she snapped. Her hair was wet against her face, and her clothes were sticking to her from the rain. His were too.

"Only because you know I'm trying to shower and get in right after!"

"You hate my cat," she said next.

"You throw out my leftovers."

"Once! And it had mold on it!" she exclaimed. "You're welcome!"

"You have the worst taste in music," he said next. It seemed they were on a roll now, and nothing they were hurling at each other had anything to do with what was really on their minds.

"You act like I'm a bomb going to go off and ignore me," she said.

"Only once a month," he retorted. She gaped at him. "That's right, I figured out your cycle. It's not that hard, really."

"You're disgusting!" she raged. How the hell had he figured it out in the short time he'd actually been around her?

"You're a slob."

"You're an idiot!"

"You're nuts!"

"You don't know how to spell onomatopoeia!" she shouted.

"What?!" He had no idea what she was talking about.

They were squared off now, arms crossed and breathing heavily. Norah was used to having petty fights with her sister. It was new having one with a guy. The extremely strange thing that was happening, though, was Norah feeling a charge inside of her as she glared at Lee. The tension was crackling and popping around them, and she wondered if he felt it too.

"I need some space," he said after a moment.

"Fine," she replied. She moved past him and clomped down the stairs hard. She was irritated and mad now. How dare he just attack her like that! And right when he got back home! After he'd been an asshole to her! She ripped off her wet clothes and headed for the shower. She needed to warm up and try to distract herself from this big fight they'd just had. She was leaning her hands against the shower wall, eyes closed, when pounding started on her bathroom door.

"Oh. My. God," she said, yanking back the curtain and stepping out. She grabbed her towel and wrapped it around herself, wrenching the bathroom door open to find Lee glowering at her, also in a towel. "What?! What do you want? You wanna yell at me some more, huh? You wanna tell me I don't wash my hair right or something? Do I not hold the bar of soap correctly? What?!" She was breathing hard again as she glared back at him.

"How many times do I have to tell you that we can't shower at the same time unless we are in the same shower?" he asked.

"Uhhhhh!" she growled loudly raising her hand and clenching her fingers like she was imitating squeezing something. "I am not a mind reader! How am I supposed to know every time you wanna shower? There's no sign in sheet for the shower!" Her voice was getting higher again.

"Are you always this infuriating?" he asked.

"Me?! What about you?!" she exclaimed.

"What about me?" he challenged.

"You're infuriating-er," she said, slightly off guard as he got closer to her.

"What else?" he asked.

"Annoying. Frustrating. Pain in the ass," she added, faltering slightly as he was now right in front of her.

"What else?" he asked again.

"Stubborn," she said, following his eyes with hers as he took in her face.

"So are you," he pointed out.

"Oh, are we doing a character assassination on me again now?" she asked. The tension was back, but it wasn't in a bad way.

"No, keep going," he said.

"Okay," she said easily. "When you don't shave, you look like a hobo. I hate the way you slurp your coffee like you don't know how to work your mouth, and you never look happy."

"Interesting," he commented. Norah was on a roll now.

"You hide my cigarettes, you secretly like that my cat sleeps with you but claim you hate it, you eat my food and lie about it, and-" She was cut off by him grabbing the back of her head and pulling her in to kiss her hard. At first, Norah was taken aback, but then she realized how much this had been building between them, that this was what he'd been trying to put off by shutting himself off from her two weeks ago. He moved back slowly, the sound of his lips separating from hers making her shiver. Norah's breath was shaky as he hovered his mouth next to hers. His eyes never left hers, and she found herself sliding her fingers along his jaw and pressing her lips against his gently after closing her eyes again. It was tentative and unsure; she didn't know if he was just toying with her. She stopped after ten seconds, took her hand back, and leaned away, getting ready to apologize (for what she didn't even know...he'd started it after all) when he pulled her into him, tangling his fingers in her wet hair and wrapping his other arm around her lower back while crashing his lips into hers again. She kept one hand on her towel and used her other hand to grip his face once more. So this was what it was like to really kiss him. She'd only imagined it after their almost kiss two weeks earlier. It was warm and soft and gentle and invigorating. When they stopped for air, he searched her eyes.

"And what?" he asked, referring to the last word she'd said before he'd kissed her.

"Oh, um..." she said, thinking. "You...you're a bumbling baffoon."

"Am I really?" he asked lightly. She wondered if he was going to pretend he didn't just kiss her like he was a dying man. She knew she couldn't take that.

"You hurt me," she whispered.

"I've never been sorrier about anything in my life," he replied softly. "I'm sorry, Norah." Norah thought about pushing him away, but she didn't want to.

"Why'd you do it?"

"I was afraid I'd somehow hurt you. I ended up hurting you anyway."

"Well," she said carefully. "Come on then. You can make it up to me." She took a step back into her bathroom and towards the shower. He followed slowly. Then they were kissing again under the water, his mouth opening hers and letting her finally taste him. She noticed the traces of mint, as though he'd prepared for this. She found that very sweet.

He was in incredible shape. She felt all his muscles under her fingers. Norah forgot that she was mad at him. As he pushed her against the wall and gripped the back of her neck, kissing her more urgently now, it seemed he forgot he was mad at her too.

Gunner

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Gunner asked. He looked at the booming house and felt like this was a terrible idea. Victoria was walking ahead of him, her heels clacking on the pavement.

"It's just a party, Gunner. We're allowed to go to a party," she insisted.

"Yes, but doesn't that just make the temptation to use that much higher?" He followed her slowly. He was feeling shaky. He didn't think he could do this. Victoria stopped and reached to take his hands in hers.

"We're going to see some of my friends, and then we'll go," she promised. "I still go to parties, Gunner. I just don't use." She gave him a big smile, and he felt like there was more to this, but he didn't know what.

"Alright," he caved. She held his hand as they walked up into the house. The music was loud, and people were all over the place. Gunner could pick out the sober from the not-so-sober. He wondered what he got like when he was intoxicated.

"Heyyyy!" Victoria called, seeing one of her friends and letting go of his hand to rush over to them. He watched the two women put their heads together.

"Beer?" someone asked him.

"No, thanks," he answered. He dodged the incoming bottle that came anyway. He lost sight of Victoria and felt slight panic. He walked around the house, pushing past sweaty dancers and shouting/laughing drunks. He was getting hot and anxious. He wanted out of there.

Someone stuffed a bag of something into his hand. He turned around and stuffed it into a potted plant before he could even consider tucking it into his pocket.

"Vic?!" he called, still looking for her. He needed to go. He pulled out his phone, typing her a text to tell her he'd stepped outside, when he spied her in a corner with two guys and the same girl she'd gone to greet. He watched her lean over something, and he felt the hair on his arms rise. She stood up straight and was laughing, her head tipping back. He let his arm hang, his phone pressed into his palm. She wouldn't have. There was just no way.

"Gunner!" she exclaimed, seeing him as he walked slowly towards her.

"I'm going outside," he said, studying her carefully. She didn't seem high. For now.

"Okay. I'll be a bit."

He nodded and turned to walk out. Something in his gut didn't feel right, but he knew better than to challenge her on it. He sat outside on a bench, and about fifteen minutes later, he got a phone call.

Caesar

"That's it," Caesar said encouragingly. "Steady now." He was watching Will ever so delicately place a card on top of the card house he was creating. Char was trying to corral Sasha to bed, but she was protesting.

"Almost there," Caesar commented. Will had the tip of his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth in concentration. He set the card down, and carefully pulled his hands back. The house of cards stayed standing.

"Booya!" he exclaimed gleefully.

"New champion in the house!" Caesar whooped. He gave Will a high five, and he loved seeing his son grinning so hugely.

"What's going on in here?" Char asked. Caesar vaguely heard Sasha call out about needing to get her Teddy from somewhere. He grinned at Char as she came to see what the fuss was all about.

"Wow!" she exclaimed upon seeing the tall house of cards. "That's amazing, Will!"

"What's the biggest one you've ever done?" Will asked Caesar.

"Pfft, nothing compared to that," Caesar answered. Char chuckled and left, saying something about the front door being open. Then she called out and asked what Sasha was doing. Will was about to say something else when there was a squeal of brakes followed by a high pitched scream and an even louder scream from Char.

"SASHAAAAAA!"

Caesar was on his feet in seconds, rushing to the door. Char was already outside.

"SASHA!" she screamed again. Caesar's brain couldn't comprehend what his wife was saying. Sasha was in the house...wasn't she? He stumbled out onto the front lawn and saw her racing towards the small figure lying on the side of the road. His heart started to race a million mile an hour.

"Sasha!" Char was shrieking. "Sashaaaaa!" Caesar heard Will yelling behind him as he ran towards them both. Char gathered Sasha into her arms, sobbing. Caesar was there in seconds, landing on his knees and skidding to a stop next to Char. There was blood on the ground, on his daughter. Sasha's eyes were closed.

"Set her down," he ordered, pulling at Char's arms to make her let go. "I gotta check her."

"Mom?!" Will shouted. Char looked at him, tears staining her cheeks.

"Go back inside!" she yelled at him. Will did no such thing. Char didn't notice, though. She was pulling out her phone to call for an ambulance.

"She's alive," Caesar said, finding Sasha's pulse. Her arm and leg looked funny, though. He imagined they were broken. He was furious. Who had hit his precious baby without stopping?! And what the hell was Sasha doing out here?! He turned his head and spied the teddy bear laying on its back about five feet away from where Sasha had landed. She'd gone out for her bear, and for whatever reason, she'd gone to the road. He felt sick. How had they missed this?!

"I didn't know she'd gone outside," Char kept saying. "I saw her by the road. I called her back. She didn't come and then...then the car just..." She broke off, unable to finish.

"Just breathe," Caesar ordered her. Will was standing closer now, looking nauseous.

"Dad?" he asked, his voice wobbly.

"Go inside," Caesar commanded. Will took a few steps back but didn't obey. After what felt like hours, the ambulance came, and they took Sasha away. Char went in the ambulance with Sasha. Caesar was going to follow with Will. They would arrange for Char's mother to pick Will up from the hospital.

Not knowing who else to call, Caesar pulled out his phone and dialed Barney.

Toll

He answered when he saw it was Barney calling. Victoria was still out with Gunner, so he had the place to himself. He'd been reading his trauma book and learning lots.

"What's up?" he asked, answering.

"Caesar's in the hospital. Sasha's been hit by a car. Hit and run. Go by his house and see what you can find on the road. NOPD will be there. Act casual."

"Shit, are you serious?!" Toll asked, feeling his heart drop.

"Unfortunately. I'm meeting him at the hospital. I'll call the others."

"Alright. I'll be there as soon as I'm done."

They hung up, and Toll hurried to get moving. When he arrived at Caesar's house, cops were everywhere. He knew he wasn't getting close to the crime scene, but he took in the crowd. Sometimes perpetrators liked to come back and watch. No one stood out to him, though. He wanted to vomit. Sasha was the cutest little thing. Who would ever want to hurt her?

He made his way to the hospital after getting nowhere at the house. He found Gunner, Victoria, Yang, and Tool there with Barney. Lee was nowhere to be found.

"Keep trying him," Barney instructed Tool. Toll wondered why Lee wasn't answering his phone. It was no longer an important thought when Caesar and Char came towards them. Caesar was holding his wife up.

"What's happening?" Toll asked him.

"She's in surgery," Caesar answered.

"Oh God," Gunner groaned, burying his face in his hands. Toll swallowed around the thick lump in his throat.

"Will?"

"With his grandmother."

Victoria went over to hug Char, who clung to her tightly. The team went to pull Caesar into a group hug as well. They were a family, and when their family hurt, they all hurt. Toll noticed Gunner shooting Victoria looks, and he tried not to worry about it. There was too much raw emotion in the room to think about drama. Too much pain.

Toll just hoped Sasha would make it out of this alive.