Breakthroughs
Most of the time, work is hell.
A frustrating, tiring, boring hell.
In fact, Nick's not even sure why he continues to get up at ungodly hours every morning just to come in to work, when most of the time it just involves staring blankly at computer screens, making tiny, hopeless adjustments to blueprint designs or waiting the two hours until the first allotted coffee break. Usually work is putting two and two together and getting about thirteen.
Therefore, work equates pretty much to hell.
But sometimes – just sometimes - there are certain times when it's not quite so bad.
With every few hours of slugging it out, getting frustrated by tests not working, the complex human mind being outwitted by the comparatively simple digital one – there are occasionally moments when everything does slot into place. When everything works right at any one time, or they put two and two together and it actually comes out as something they expect.
When Katherine turns to him, her face breaking out into an identical smile to his own as they realise they've just made what every research company dreams of – progress.
Neither of them are particularly prone to large outbursts of emotion, but even Katherine can be found to get a little excited when a breakthrough takes place, when they're one step closer to the finish line that always seems so far away, even when they think they're nearing a project's completion. A coffee break would appear early for a couple of days, or Katherine wouldn't yell at quite as many forensics employees as usual. Of course, as all moments do, it all ends rather quickly, and they're back to the weeks of frustration and mindless boredom.
But it's all worth it for those precious breakthrough moments, when it makes him glad to be a scientist, glad to be in this particular hell that calls itself an office, even glad to be in the situation with this particular person.
The breakthroughs somehow seem to make it all worthwhile.