I have just finished rewatching Forever five years after seeing it for the first time, and let's say the ending hit me as hard as it did all these years ago.

Here is a little one-shot about my take on what happened right after 1x22. Based on what Matt Miller said, Henry wouldn't have told Jo the truth about his immortality, so I thought it would be fun to imagine what could have been.

I wrote as it came to my mind, so it is a bit raw and unstructured, but I hope you like it this way.

Please bear in mind that I am not a native speaker, therefore some sentences might not make any sense… But I hope you get the idea!

I don't own anything (although I wish I did!).

She paused and thought for a minute.

A long break was required if she wanted clarity.

Clarity.

She couldn't even begin to understand how she would, could, find clarity as her judgement was clouded with utter rage.

Jo Martinez was not an angry person. No, she was rational, compassionate -some may even say sweet- but anger was something she was not accustomed to experience. Sure, sometimes she got annoyed, maybe frustrated. But pure anger? Rarely.

But this time, she had had enough. Enough of lies, of mystery, of secrets. Suspect, ask, lie, and repeat. That was all Henry Morgan seemed to be able to provide her with these days.

She had been close, so close to finding out, finally, what was up with him. Finding his watch and this picture in the subway -that was something she couldn't explain on her own.

Sure, Henry had been odd since day one. He wasn't a usual man, that's the least one could say. And sometimes, she was certain he was letting on more than he thought. All these little phrases and remarks that were always vague but mysterious about life in particular… He must have thought he was getting away with it, but the truth was, she always mentally noted them and put them away safely in a part of her brain, hoping to find out the meaning of his words.

"My scar… I was shot." This should have been the first true warning sign. A scar on his heart, so prominent it could have only been a serious wound… How could he have gone through something as big and not told her? They all had secrets, and she respected that, she had been patient, but in his case, it only led to more lies and odd behaviours on his part.

She pinched the brink of her nose as she felt a headache coming. Her mind was racing, a hundred thoughts coming and going at a minute. She needed to pause. To breathe. To think.

She was sat in her car, shutting her eyes close as she was trying to make sense of it all. But as much as she needed time to think, she didn't have that luxury. The body found on Fifth Avenue required her immediate attention, and it had given Henry the perfect excuse to get away with explaining himself -once again.

"I was hoping you could explain it to me."

"Tell her."

"It's a long story."

"I have all the time in the world." She answered as she stepped inside the antique shop.

So there she sat, on a chair across from Henry, as Abe served her a cup of tea.

"Thank you." She said warmly to Henry's roommate as she reached for her cup.

She took a sip and observed the man in question. He was nervous; avoiding her gaze, his right leg shaking, his left index nervously tapping his lips. Those gorgeous lips…

Now is not the time, Martinez. She told herself firmly.

"So? Where do you want to start?" She inquired, desperate for a distraction -and the truth.

Henry's head shot up, but as soon as their eyes met, he turned his gaze to Abe, desperately looking for help. However, all he got was a curt nod from the older man. That was good, she thought, it meant that whatever it was that he was hiding from her, Abe was not going to let it slide anymore.

"Well, it's, hum…" He cleared his throat. "As I am sure I have said, it is a long and rather complicated story. And, hum… I have, uh… I have been finding it difficult to, uh, to choose the right words."

She had never seen him like this. He, who was always so sure of himself, who had answers to everything, who was so articulate, was now struggling to put two words together.

She gave him a small smile to encourage him.

"The truth, Jo, is that… I don't think I am ready to tell you about it. It is too deeply rooted, it implies too much…"

"Henry…" Abe's voice came as a warning.

"I can't." His voice broke a little; so did her heart.

"Henry, if you don't tell her, I will."

"No."

The word cut the conversation sharply, and the two men looked at her, surprise written all over their faces.

"I won't hear it if he doesn't want to tell me. There is no point." She stated matter-of-factly.

Henry frowned and sighed in defeat.

"Jo, it's not that I don't want to tell you. I do, I just-"

"Please, Henry, stop making this more complex than it already is." She scoffed as she put her tea down. "I get it. You're hurting, there is something weighing down on you, it makes you all secretive, and clearly you can only tell those you… actually deeply care about. Abe knows, Abigail probably did too, and I am sure Molly would be delighted to listen to you as well. But you are being unfair to me, Henry. And you have been for quite a while now. All I do is jeopardise my job for you, I lie to cover for you, and frankly, I don't even know why I do, considering what you are giving me in return." She laughed a humourless laugh. "Lies, lies, more and more lies and secrets until I don't even know who you are anymore. You said I was your partner, well, sorry to break it to you but partners tell each other the truth. And I am sick of worrying about you and investing in this… in this partnership while I'm clearly the only one concerned about its survival!"

"Jo, I promise, everything I am doing is to protect you…"

"Quit that, Henry! I am a cop; I am perfectly capable of fending for myself. I don't need you to protect me! This is just a pitiful excuse you use to make me believe that it's not all about you, but clearly it is. And you know what? I don't need to waste my time trying to get the truth out of you when it is so obvious you don't want to share it. And it's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, and I mean that. But please, please, stop trying to make me feel better by sugar-coating the fact that you'd rather I don't know. You are making it a thousand times worse."

His jaw dropped and he stared, flabbergasted. "Jo…"

His voice was so small that she barely heard it.

"I… I wish I-

He was interrupted by the sound of the old phone ringing. Abe stood up and hastily made his way to the table.

"What is it?" He asked a bit too harshly, obviously annoyed by the interruption.

Jo studied his face as it softened and mumbled.

"Yes… Of course… No problem."

He sighed and handed the telephone in their direction. "It's for you."

Henry almost jumped on his feet, visibly grateful for the escape.

"No, not you. You, Jo."

Perplexed, she grabbed the telephone and brought it to her ear.

"Detective Jo Martinez, what can I do for you?"

"Detective Martinez, make sure your phone is on during working hours."

Jo froze a little as she recognised the voice. She had purposely switched off her phone before getting to the shop as she hadn't wanted any distraction. Well, that was a failure.

"I'm sorry, Lieutenant, it must have run out of battery." She lied through her teeth. "What can I do?"

"The body of a young woman was found on Fifth Avenue. I don't know more about it, but you need to get there fast. Tourists are potentially contaminating the crime scene."

"Yes, of course, I'll be there." She said as she massaged her temples in an attempt to relax. If she were completely honest, she wasn't sure she was ready for another murder investigation after her previous outburst. Too many things left unsaid. And her head was more than ready to explode.

"Take Henry with you."

"I'm sorry?" That was unexpected.

"I assume he is with you considering I rang his place."

Now, that became an inconvenience.

She took a sharp breath, squared her shoulders and lowered her voice.

"With all due respect, Lieutenant, after the little stunt he put on with the security guard, I doubt we should let him on this case so soon."

"Come on, it is not the first time we had to cover for him. You, of all people, know how peculiar he can be. It was in the case's best interest and he didn't put anyone in danger."

Lieutenant Reece was a hell of a woman, and Jo particularly admired her. However, this time, she had to admit that she wasn't keen to follow her boss's order.

"Fine, I'll let him know he is working this case. But I don't want to be working with him at the moment. Let's just say I am having a bit of a hard time trusting him these days."

"Okay." There was a hint of surprise in the Lieutenant's voice, but she didn't press the matter further. "I expect a preliminary report on my desk by the end of the day, as well as the report from the autopsy."

"Sure, boss. Goodbye."

She hung up and turned on her heels, joining the doctor and his friend. She didn't have time to say a word because Henry was the first one to speak.

"I will get my tools and get to the lab right now."

Of course he had been listening and knew she didn't want him anywhere near her.

"Yeah. I'll make sure you get the photos from the crime scene."

"Jo, maybe it'd be best if you returned later tonight, so you two have time to talk…" Abe tried as he could tell the current situation was not going to lead anywhere.

"I really thought we had something here, Henry." Jo said, ignoring Abe's suggestion. "But I guess you used whatever powers of deduction you have to know that I was gullible enough for you to string me along. I just wish I had seen it sooner. And invested less." She concluded sadly as she put her coat on.

Henry opened his mouth, but she didn't give him the time to answer as she turned her back to him and headed to the door, only leaving the shop with the lonely sound of the bell and a heavy heart.

So there she was again, still sat behind the wheel, her jaw so clenched that her teeth could fall out. She simply couldn't stop her mind from replaying the scene.

She had been harsh. Maybe unjustifiably difficult -perhaps she shouldn't have blamed him for keeping things from her. She had told him she would wait. She had been patient. But, again, the problem was the consequences of these secrets. They couldn't pretend things were business as usual, that they were partners, while clearly, she didn't know him.

The anger faded away a little, making way for sadness instead. Because, if she were a hundred per cent honest with herself, she was not angry at him. Well, maybe a little. But no, it was much easier to be angry than to face what she truly felt: heartbreak.

She suppressed the urge to cry and laugh at the situation. She was accusing him of his lack of honesty whereas she could not even be honest with herself.

The truth was, she felt like her heart had been torn in two. Because deep down, she had been hoping that he felt it too, what she felt for him. She couldn't even go near the word, for fear to break down right here, right now.

She had developed feelings for him, that was for sure. When, she couldn't say exactly. It had been gradual, sneakily making its way to her heart so she wouldn't notice and couldn't do anything to stop it before it was too late.

That much had probably become apparent the second she realised she couldn't go to Paris with Isaac. From the moment she'd ended things, she had been functioning on autopilot. Her legs had taken her on their own accord to the shop.

I… I didn't want to go.

What? To Paris?

With Isaac.

I didn't want to go… with Isaac.

Why?

Why? Why had he even asked why? Of all the things he could have said, he had decided to ask why. At that moment, it struck her that she couldn't give him an answer. She didn't have a clear mind, wasn't thinking straight. But all she knew was that she had wanted to go to Paris and get lost with him, she had wanted to wander around the Quartier Latin with him, eat ice cream at Bertillon with him. She didn't even know what to make of that. What did it mean?

In retrospect, thank God that Abe had interrupted them that night in the shop. Who knows what she would have said next if it hadn't been for that interruption? But ever since, they hadn't had time for a proper conversation, with everything going on with Abe's mother… and then this dagger… What was this all about?

Too late, the headache was here. She sighed. And genuinely wanted to smash her head against the wheel. But for the life of her, she couldn't afford to dwell on it much longer. She had to move on. She had to pretend Henry Morgan was just a colleague and that it was all he was going to be to her from now on.

It was going to be a tough ask, however, especially since she had admitted to him that he had made her feel again. And that much was true. She had said it in a last hope that if she opened up, he would too. But reality hit her when he admitted that he didn't want her to know what happened to him.

All she had to do now was to pretend that none of this had ever happened. That she had never caught feelings for him, like a bad cold you wish to get rid of.

Hell, she was going to have to actively overlook the fact that maybe, possibly, potentially… she could have been falling in love with him.

Here you go! I genuinely hope you liked it; feel free to review (always makes a girl happy) or PM me.

Leaving it as a one-shot for now but might continue if some are interested.