(A/N): Okay so this is a oneshot based on the scene of Nikki patching up Jack's face in the mid season trailer and a theory on what happens in that episode, so consider yourself warned. I own nothing and I hope you enjoy this little snippet.

Hope.

"Jack?"

Jack glanced up as he all but fell into his seat, watching Nikki as she emerged from the meeting room, Thomas' former office. He'd not really known where he was going when he'd stormed out of his house less than an hour earlier, his face on fire and the guilt warring with the anger inside him. He'd ended up at the Lyell without conscious thought, but he hadn't expected anyone else to be there so late. Clearly, he should have remembered Nikki's long working hours when he didn't drag her away at a reasonable time under the guise of food or the pub.

He saw her jaw drop in shock and her eyes widen as she took in his bruised and bleeding face, dropping her tablet onto the sofa on her way to rush up to his side. He nearly shivered as she reached out to his face, one hand lifting his chin gently whilst the other hovered over the wound to his cheekbone. "Jack, what happened? You weren't like this earlier." Nikki's worry practically radiated from her as she tilted his head to see the injuries better. "I thought tonight was a family meal for you."

Jack shrugged. "It was." His dad had insisted on a family meal now Ryan was living with them again and Cara was around. Jack hadn't been keen on the idea and had told his dad so, but Conor had been insistant and so Jack had ended up going reluctantly home that evening. Of course, Nikki had tried cheering him up beforehand, but they both knew exactly what Ryan was like so the gesture fell a little flat. Jack had bore the evening fairly well until Ryan had brought Nikki up, his words on the blonde enough that even Conor was telling him to shut up and Jack had stormed into the living room to calm down. Cara had followed him in an attempt to help, which she had, soothing his temper almost as quickly as Nikki could. "It didn't go too well."

Nikki opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off by the sound of her phone ringing. Jack mentally lamented the loss of her hand immediately as she turned, perched on the corner of their desks, to pick up her phone and answer it quickly. "Nikki Alexander… Oh, hi… Yes, sure… What happened?… Really? No, no he's right here… Yes, of course… Bye." She hung up and turned back to him.

Jack nodded to the phone. "Was that Matt?"

Nikki shook her head. "No. I haven't heard from Matt in months." She sighed, slumping a little on the desk. Jack instinctively reached out to take hold of her hand. "I'm… technically, I suppose I'm still with him, but it's mostly just been a lack of opportunity to finish things. Between Thomas, and taking over here and then Adam… I just haven't had the chance. Things haven't really worked since the plane crash, I just didn't want to face it."

Jack nodded, squeezing her hand gently to offer her a little comfort. It explained a lot. "That's understandable Nikki. So, if not Matt, then who?" He nodded to her phone again.

"Hmm? Oh that was your dad." Nikki smiled as he stared at her in surprise. He didn't even realise his dad had Nikki's number, let alone would call her. "He was worried about you and called to see if I knew where you were. He said Ryan's gone out for the night and Cara's sleeping on the sofa, waiting for you to come home."

Jack winced, though part of him felt soothed that Cara would rather stay and wait for him to come home than to go after Ryan. The clever teenager had guessed that the issue of her paternity was more complicated than she'd been led to believe, and Jack hadn't been able to lie to her. Unfortunately, Ryan had overheard and burst into the room, intent on burying his fists in his brother's face for having an affair with Aoife. "Great, it's gone Ryan's curfew. Why can't he play by the rules for once in his life?"

"I'm guessing Ryan's the reason your face looks like that." Nikki hopped up from the desk, only to return a few moments later with a familiar looking first aid kit. The one she kept fully stocked for every time she had to clean him up and patch up his wounds. It had started when he'd called her after one of his fights, as the hospital had threatened to call the police if he showed up battered and bruised one more time. After that, he always called Nikki when he was hurt rather than go anywhere near the hospital if he could help it. "Let me clean it up for you."

"Sure, can't let your skills with live people go to waste now, can we?" Jack forced himself to sit still whilst she busied herself getting everything ready, the familiarity of the movements soothing in an odd way. His eyes followed her movements as a thought occurred to him. "Wait, I know why I'm here so late, but why are you?"

Nikki shrugged. "I had some paperwork to finish. The university are complaining about some form or other so I was completing it before they sent anyone down in person."

"Nikki."

"What? Work doesn't stop whenever we have a case, Jack, you know that." Nikki sighed, glancing at his face again. "Does your face look like that because Ryan found out?"

"Found out what?"

"That you might be Cara's dad."

Jack stared at Nikki, his mouth open in shock at her calm words and almost gentle tone. How on earth had she known? He was so sure he'd managed to keep that piece of information to himself, well, him and his dad, but apparently not. "What? How… how did you…?"

"How did I know?" Nikki offered him a gentle smile as she finished his question for him. Jack nodded. "I have to sign off on every test that isn't directly involved in an active investigation. And you swore blind you weren't doing the paternity test for Ryan. Plus you hadn't been to visit him again before the request fell onto my desk. Unless you had reason to suspect Frank the wank, it's only logical that the paternal sample would be from you."

"Frank the wank? Nikki!" Jack's face scrunched up in disgust even as Nikki giggled, the mood automatically lifted. He let out a laugh, more relieved than anything else that Nikki knew what had been plaguing him for weeks and it hadn't fazed her, hadn't made her run in the opposite direction as far as she could. "Do you know the results?"

"No. But I did call the lab yesterday and they promised the results by next week." Nikki held up a wipe, her other hand beneath his chin once more. "The way I see it though, Cara will be fine."

"Really?"

"Yes. Well, no matter what the results say, she's got Conor as her grandfather and either a wonderful dad or a wonderful uncle Jack. She'll always have you, whether that's a dad, an uncle, a confidante or a friend. She's got you, Jack."

"Ryan heard me tell Cara that her dad could be him or me." Jack confided as Nikki began dabbing gently yet firmly at his injured cheek. "He flew off the handle. But even da was getting sick of him with that meal."

"Jack, it's not your fault."

"Which bit?"

"All of it, any of it. Jack, I mean it. It's not your fault." Nikki held the antiseptic wipe to his face as she stared directly into his eyes. "You are not a bad person, Jack, far from it."

Jack felt his eyes drift to her lips almost involuntarily as he saw hers flicker down in a similar way. When they were this close, the whole world fell away and he couldn't remember all of his reasons he had to not kiss the beautiful woman he spent all his time with. Not that it looked like she wanted him to stop though, far from it. His hand drifted up to lightly play with the ends of her curls as they both leant in closer, lips almost touching…

The buzz of the door broke them apart and let the rest of the world back in again, both of them staring at each other wide eyed. Jack recovered first, recalling belatedly why exactly the door would be buzzing at this time of night. "I ordered pizza. I'll split it with you in return for your handiwork on my face."

"Deal." Nikki grinned at him, hopping up to collect the pizza from the rather rattled looking pizza delivery driver. Someone had probably told him horror stories about the mortuary, Jack decided as he heaved himself up and moved the first aid things to the sofa. Sure, the moment was interrupted, but it had given him hope, hope for the both of them and whatever future he had with Cara as well. And that was enough, for the moment.