One Night- Chapter 1

Jack knocked on the door of Bill's office, entering after he got no response. The director was elbow deep in files of paper, his eyes narrowed in concentration as he frowned over whatever information he was reading. He looked up as the office door opened, a tired smile on his lips.

"Jack, just going through some old reports for Division." He indicated to the mess that was piling up either side of his desk, spilling onto the floor and collecting at his feet. "Some of this dates back years."

"Do you need some help?" Jack had been planning on leaving early, but the sight of Bill Buchanan practically swimming in paper tugged at his conscience.

Bill caught on immediately. "No. I will not let you feel bad for me." He laughed. "God knows I should have done this a while ago, but… with one thing and another…" he cast a knowing look towards Jack. "This wasn't exactly top priority."

"I can imagine."

"So, you go, I'll be fine. I'm leaving soon anyway…. Karen's home from DC for the week."

Bill's smile was contagious. "That's great," Jack told him, watching as Bill closed another file and dropped it unceremoniously to the floor.

"Anything planned tonight?" Bill asked conversationally, his eyes not leaving the newly opened file now perched on his desk.

Jack sighed, feeling the usual melancholy overwhelm him as it always did at the end of the day, the prospect of going 'home' only serving to remind him just how lonely he really was. "No, nothing really," he replied finally.

"Well, then I guess you could stay and help me with these files."

"Sure, I'll just-"

Bill held up a hand. "Go home! I was kidding!" He smiled at the tired look on Jack's face. "See you tomorrow."

Somewhat reluctantly, Jack stepped out of Bill's office and closed the door quietly behind him, leaving the older man to his paperwork. After double checking that he'd locked his own office, Jack took the stairs two at a time down to the main floor, nodding at a harassed looking Milo as he went. He noted absently that the comm. station was unmanned, Chloe's chair tucked neatly under her desk, computer monitor off, the desk spotless-

Or not, he realised, taking a step closer.

Lying just under the keyboard, almost out of sight, was a plain black flash drive. Jack knew instantly that it wasn't supposed to be there; it looked out of place from the neatly aligned stationery littering Chloe's desk.

Curious, Jack picked the drive up and studied it. There was nothing special or out of the ordinary about it, but something nagged at him, told him it was important. Without a second thought, he pocketed the item and continued on his way to the parking lot.

…

Chloe had flicked on the TV and was pottering around the lounge aimlessly. She had tried sitting down to watch the news but her mind kept wandering back to the flash drive. She couldn't believe she had been so stupid as to leave it on her desk. She knew it was there because she had been about to decrypt some of the files on it when Milo had screamed at her about the hourlies. She'd eaten lunch and spent the afternoon working on the server, the drive completely forgotten.

Her nails were bitten to the quick. She'd thought about going back to CTU to pick it up but knew the chances of it being there were very slim. Black flash drives were standard in CTU, anyone could have picked it up, thinking it was theirs…

"Dammit!"

Thunder rumbled in the distance, echoing her mood. It was getting closer, she realised, watching numbly as the TV flickered several times before righting itself.

The sound of someone knocking at the door registered in Chloe's brain. Confused, she looked at her watch. Eight. She wasn't expecting anyone, and she certainly wasn't in the mood for door to door salesmen.

"Yeah, I'm coming," she muttered as the knocking became more insistent.

As she swung the door open, a flash of lightning illuminated the exhausted looking man standing on her front porch.

"Jack?" She shielded her eyes as though they had deceived her. She had no idea he knew where she lived.

"Hi, Chloe." He stared at her, unsure. He struggled for the words to explain himself. "I… um… you left this at CTU."

Jack reached into his jacket pocket and retrieved the flash drive. The relief on Chloe's face as she took it from him told Jack he had been right to come here, which calmed him somewhat.

"I could have picked this up tomorrow," she lied, "but thankyou," she added, noting the brief look of unease pass across his face.

A few minutes of silence passed. Chloe felt extremely awkward. Jack looked terrible, but she couldn't invite him in. She didn't know how to without it sounding inappropriate.

"So… I should go." Jack recovered himself and offered her a half-smile, which she returned.

"Thanks, Jack."

He nodded. Turning his collar up against the rain that was now starting to fall, he jogged across the darkened road and over to his car. Sighing, Chloe closed the door and walked back into the lounge, the flash drive now gripped in her hand. Of all the people to bring it back to her, she thought ironically.

The rain pelted against the window, causing the television to give up for good. Chloe headed into the study and booted up the laptop, grateful that she'd recharged the batteries earlier that morning. While it hummed into life, she pulled the curtains closed. Although her vision was obscured by the rivulets of water streaming down the glass, she could just make out the sight of someone leant over the bonnet of a car. With a start she ran to the front door, this time wrenching it open.

"Jack!"

Her voice was accompanied by another clap of thunder, but he heard her. He looked up from the car, concerned.

"Jack, come in!"

Slamming down the bonnet, Jack ran back towards the house, the rain permeating through his clothes and chilling him. Chloe looked agitated; she slammed the door shut as soon as he was inside and ran upstairs, returning a minute later with a huge cream towel.

"Here," she said, handing it to him almost shyly.

"Thanks." Jack shivered as he rubbed the towel over his hair. "Need to take this off," he stammered, shrugging out of his jacket. He looked at Chloe, as though seeking reassurance. She nodded, taking it from him and hanging it on the back of the hall chair. Chloe kept her eyes fixed firmly on the water dripping from the sleeves and onto her tiled floor, not wanting to stare at the rain soaked shirt that was now clinging to Jack's chest.

"Damn thing won't start," he muttered. "I knew I should have taken a CTU car."

A beeping from the study told Chloe that the laptop was ready.

"I'm sorry… you're busy," Jack said quietly.

"Not at all. Um… do you want to use the phone? To ring the garage? I think the phone's still working."

She wants me out of here, Jack thought, watching sadly as she led him into the small lounge now engulfed in semi-darkness. She cleared some magazines from the coffee table to reveal the cordless phone. Picking it up, Chloe verified that it was indeed still working before handing it over to Jack.

"I'll just… be in the study."

Chloe hurried away as he started dialling. The laptop was blinking silently at her. She checked the battery- 97 left. Good. She inserted the flash drive and waited as the machine whirred.

She could hear Jack arguing with the guy on the phone. The words "tomorrow", "work" and "not good enough" were easily discernible. Chloe started to panic. If they couldn't get to him until tomorrow-

Files started popping up all over the screen, demanding attention. One by one, Chloe clicked on them, starting the decryption process. She needed to make sure nothing important had been missed before she deleted the files for good.

"Dammit!"

Chloe stepped back out into the lounge to see Jack peering out of the window. In her haste, she left the door to the study open, the laptop clearly visible.

"They can't get to me until tomorrow," he explained, his back still to her as he assessed the rain. "So I'll have to leave the car here over night, if that's okay?"

He turned then, smiled. "Sorry about this, Chloe. Dammit, this isn't how I wanted it to be."

She wasn't sure if the words had been meant for her, or whether he had been talking to himself. Confused, she pushed them to the back of her mind, deciding that now wasn't the time to analyse every word that Jack said in the vague hope that it would reveal how he felt about her. She was sure Jack had more important things on his mind now other than her, if he thought about her at all…

"Where are you going?" she blurted, noticing that Jack had left the room. Hurrying after him, she saw him putting on his still wet jacket.

"I'm going… home," he replied, wincing as the cold crept through his skin once more.

"No, you're not." Jack was shocked by the authority in Chloe's tone, but not as much as she was. "You can't walk in that," she continued, blushing.

"Then what do you suggest?" His tone was gentle, and Chloe felt her resolve slipping away.

"Stay here." The words were out before she could stop them, and she looked away quickly, feeling the blush creep over her cheeks. She found herself immensely grateful for the darkness of the hallway.

Before Jack could answer, another beep sounded from the study. Grateful for the interruption, Chloe almost ran back towards the laptop, cursing as she noticed the fully open door. Eyes focussed on the screen, she began skimming through the decrypted files, the information as gut wrenching as the first time she had read it.

"I'd like that."

She didn't hear Jack approach until it was too late. Slamming down the lid of the laptop, Chloe leaned on the desk and closed her eyes, praying he hadn't seen anything but knowing he had.