Chapter Nine – Therapy

It had been three days since Tony had gone into the field with Michael McCarthy.

3 days, 10 hours and 14 minutes.

Once Tony had gotten past the initial shock that day, and was given a few hours of much needed rest to process it, he seemed to gradually morph back into himself. At CTU there was much still to be done regarding blowback from both the threat to District, and the ensuing tragedy, and in the last two nights Michelle had managed all of five hours sleep total. In fact, Tony and Jack informed her of their intention to work straight through the third night to finish consolidating all the data for the other agencies just to get it done.

"Go home…"Tony ordered her when he explained.

"I can help…" she insisted. "And then we can all get some sleep."

Truth be told, on any other night after so little sleep she'd be too tired to resist, but ever since he'd gone with McCarthy, Michelle couldn't help but feel a little hesitant at being apart for a long time. She'd rather be with him, regardless.

He relented, apparently too tired to argue, and the three crowded into Jack's office, (which seemed a lot cozier at 2am than the Conference room) and stared at packet after packet of paper and scrolled through page after page on the computer in an attempt to compile something relatively acceptable.

By 6:30 all three pairs of eyes were blurry, but the work was done.

"When are you guys back on?" Jack asked gruffly as he snapped the laptop shut.

"Eight…" Tony groaned, noticing the time. "Just enough time to prep for the Conference call. What about you?"

"Same…" Jack yawned and smirked at little at Michelle who was fighting to keep her eyes open.

"You look like hell." Tony teased him, needing to lighten the mood somehow.

Jack smirked a little.

"I'm going to sleep in here." He told them. "No point wasting an hour in drive time."

"That's actually not a bad idea…" Tony poked his wife in the arm.

"I'm game…" she sighed, and started to stand.

"If I don't hear from you by 8:30 I'm kicking the door down." Jack warned. "I'm not in the mood to deal with Chappelle alone."

"Yeah…yeah…" Tony grumbled as he followed Michelle out the door.

"So what do ya think?" she asked, surveying the room as Tony loosened the collar of his shirt.

"I think I've fallen asleep in that chair enough times to know I'd rather sleep on the floor than do it again…"

She smiled and kicked off her heels.

"We can squish on the couch…" he decided. "We've done it before."

"Our couch is way bigger than this one." She frowned and studied it.

"Sick of me so soon?" he joked, making her smile.

"There's nothing to use as a blanket either…"

"I'll keep you warm, sweetheart." He told her affectionately and slipped an arm around her waist.

She cocked her head to one side, her eyes laughing a little.

"It's a good thing those doors lock."

"Yeah…we'd just better make sure we're up by 8:30 or we'll have company…I wouldn't put it past Jack to break down the damn thing…"

"I'm setting both alarms on our phones…" she stated as she did so, while unbuttoning her shirt a little. Tony slumped, sitting onto the couch and waited impatiently. She finally joined him after what seemed like forever, and let out a huge sigh of relief as his arm rested around her and their legs entwined.

"It's a good thing you didn't listen to me..." He mumbled out of sheer exhaustion a few seconds later.

"This wouldn't be nearly as fun by myself."

Michelle laughed tiredly and kissed his neck, before resting her cheek against him.

"No kidding."

The alarms blasted a few minutes apart from one another and Tony groaned heavily before leaping to shut them off, forgetting Michelle was almost entirely on top of him and landing her on the floor.

"Sorry…" he grumbled, stumbling back to the couch and collapsing against it. He could've sworn it hadn't been an hour and a half yet.

"Thanks." She groaned and pulled herself off the floor before dragging him to his feet.

Tony started to change his clothes, being lucky enough to have a set in the office, as Michelle searched for some sort of makeup in her bag and headed for the locker room.

At 8:27 Michelle was last into the Conference room, Jack and Tony already waiting, still trying to wake up.

"Here…" Tony pushed a mug of coffee in her direction and she was so happy she could've kissed him.

"Thanks, honey." She said without thinking, but neither batted an eyelash at the endearment.

She took a huge gulp, scalding her tongue, just as they were informed that Chappelle was on the line.

"Ryan, it's Tony, you're also on with Jack and Michelle."

"First of all, District Director Vaughan has asked me to express his gratitude for the results this office has been producing this week; both in containing the threat and finishing all the paperwork so efficiently."

"Thanks…" Tony drawled semi-sarcastically, and Michelle smiled a little at him from across the table.

"As far as I can tell, everything looks satisfactory. So unless any more problems or complications arrive you can start coordinating some down time for the staff…"

Everyone's face lit up, a moment too soon though.

"Bearing in mind that two days from now I need someone at Division for the day to help overhaul the entire network. There was substantial data packet lost that caused serious time lags and we need to ensure this won't be a problem again."

"Fine Ryan… We'll send Chloe O'Brian."

"I don't want O'Brian. You may think she's brilliant, but she's no good to me when it comes to managerial work."

Tony sighed heavily. The only person who knew the networks as well as Chloe was…

"Michelle?"

Michelle hung her head a little in defeat.

"Sure Ryan. I'll be there first thing Friday morning."

Tony groaned quietly in exasperation.

"If that's the case, Michelle and I want Saturday off…"

"Don't push it, Almeida."

"It'll have been over a week for both of us by then. We want Saturday off together."

Ryan hesitated before conceding. "Fine."

Tony nudged Michelle's foot under the table and she beamed.

"Jack…any new leads from the information obtained in the field?"

"No… Right now I'm in the middle of the case files for Capretta, Ames and McCarthy, but so far there are no new connections. I'll keep you posted."

"Alright, then we're done here."

The line went dead and Tony turned off the phone, scratching the side of his face and following Jack and Michelle out the room.

Michelle hated going to Division for two reasons. 1) There was a very real possibility that she might run into Carrie Turner - one of the few people who found a way to truly get under her skin – and 2) it was boring. Ryan ran things completely differently from Tony or Jack and everything, everything, was about efficiency and protocol, no matter how slow a day they were having. No one talked to anyone else unless they were on break and well out of sight of Mr. Chappelle. This particular occasion seemed worse than all of the other ones because, rational or not, the thought of being away from her husband for an entire day left Michelle feeling uneasy. She knew it was illogical, but this was the closest she'd ever watched him come to being seriously injured, or worse, and anything that had him out of her sight for more than a few hours didn't sit well. They'd pretty much been with each other entirely for the past three days. But, when Ryan asked for something Ryan usually got what he wanted, and unfortunately for Michelle, he seemed to prefer her out of everyone at CTU. Meaning, she didn't have a choice in the matter.

"Almeida."

It was just before noon and Michelle had been going non-stop all morning. She smiled tiredly at the sound of his voice, anxious for the day to be over so they could finally get some decent rest.

"Hey, it's me."

"Hey, what's goin' on?"

"We're about a third of the way through everything…it's taking longer than I thought."

He groaned. "Great…what time do you think you'll be home?"

"I'm guessing eight or nine. Sorry…"

"Don't be." He shrugged it off. "Just another thing Chappelle can make up to us."

She laughed softly.

"How are things going over there?"

He sighed. "Slow…I'll just be glad when today's over."

"Yeah, no kidding..."

"Ah…damn. Honey, Gael needs me on the floor. I'll call ya in a little while, alright?"

"Let me know if anything changes."

"I will."

She hung up the phone, slightly queasy. The idea that something big could be happening at CTU and she wouldn't be there definitely left Michelle feeling unsettled. Taking a large mouthful of water and turning back to her monitor she forced the thoughts out of her head.

He called her at five to say he was leaving. In fact ever since lunch he'd been calling every hour or so, with nothing much to say except that it was the slowest day in the history of CTU and he missed her. By the third call she was starting to wonder if it really was as slow there as he claimed it was, or whether she had sounded off before and he was calling to reassure her. He must know she was at least somewhat anxious over what had happened with him just a few days before, (particularly because if the situation had been reversed he'd be going out of his mind).

It was 8:00 and she was exhausted. Michelle highly doubted she could've handled one more day without collapsing in the middle of the bullpen from sleep deprivation.

"Tony…" she called as she pushed open the front door and listened patiently for his response. No answer.

"Tony!" she tried again, wondering if she'd imagined his car in the driveway in her desire to get inside. She'd spoken to him barely two hours ago, but it felt like an eternity.

"Ton – !" he appeared at the top of the stairs and her voice tapered off.

"Hey," she smiled, not even bothering trying to mask her relief.

"Hey," he appeared disinterested. "Anything new at Division?"

"No. Upgrades are done…thankfully."

He nodded and started to descend and then move into the kitchen, with her a few paces behind.

"You wanna go out for dinner?" he asked, after a quick glance at the clock, and then grumbled as he swung open the cupboards: "There's no food in this damn house…and I don't feel like takeout."

She nodded. "Yeah, sounds good. Just let me change…"

"Alright…where do you wanna go?" he spun around to face her.

Michelle shrugged. "Doesn't matter…"

He rolled his eyes sarcastically. "Y'know one of these days you will have to pick where we eat…"

She laughed.

He paced aimlessly into the living room to wait, and raised an eyebrow when Michelle followed him and leaned against the doorframe, arms folded across her chest.

"You okay?"

She nodded a little before crossing the room and wrapping her arms snugly around his neck while kissing him slowly with a probing tongue. Caught a little off guard by this, Tony took a minute to gather his composure before reciprocating fully and lifting her ever-so slightly off the ground.

"What was that for?" he asked after a couple of nice, long minutes. The kiss was broken but he was still holding onto her as tightly as he had been before, and their foreheads were resting together.

Michelle shook her head casually. "Nothing. Just felt like it…"

He chuckled softly before slapping her lightly.

"Go change…"

She grinned and kissed him once more firmly before departing.

He noted that she looked particularly pretty that evening as they walked into the restaurant they'd agreed upon. Her hair was loose and she wore nothing but a white tank top, zip up sweater, and dark jeans. The bags under her eyes were even more apparent now and he felt guilty for dragging her out to a restaurant, (despite the fact that she'd agreed willingly), especially when they were told it would be at least a forty-five minute wait.

He frowned in chagrin when she reminded him it was quarter to nine on a Friday night.

"We'll just wait…" she told him quietly, leaning in slightly and touching his arm. "Everywhere else is gonna be the same."

He watched her fight to stay awake as they settled down on a bench in the corner of the restaurant, and slipped an arm around her shoulders. She smiled a little, tilted her head against him, and sighed contentedly as his fingers caressed the back of her neck and toyed with her hair.

"Rough week…" he commented tiredly, trailing his hand down her arm. She nodded, leaning into him further and feeling the best she'd felt since that day.

Just as the feeling of contentment Michelle was experiencing seemed to have peaked, Brad Hammond pushed through the front door, a gust of cool air coming with him, and bursting their serene little bubble. She shivered and Tony kept an eye on him while he walked up to the hostess' stand, hoping to remain unnoticed.

Unfortunately for everyone involved, that didn't happen.

Hammond saw them and looked as though he was debating whether or not to say something. He watched uncomfortably for a few seconds, before realizing they'd all seen each other and trudging forward to where they were. Michelle made to sit up, but felt Tony's grip tighten slightly.

"Tony…Michelle…" he inclined his head curtly.

"Hey Brad…" Tony leaned back against the bench casually as Michelle mumbled something similar.

"Waiting for a table?" he asked awkwardly.

No, we just like the view from here…Tony had to fight an eye roll.

"Yeah…" he responded simply, and they continued to look between each other waiting for someone to speak.

"Are you meeting someone?" Michelle asked.

He nodded. "My wife…There was a late meeting at District."

After a few seconds of standing there, looking uncomfortable, Hammond spoke to Michelle.

"Ryan Chappelle told me that you were in charge of the upgrades at Division today."

"Yes. We finished about two hours ago."

"Good. Ryan places a lot of confidence in your abilities Michelle…with good reason."

Her jaw hung open in slight disbelief. Was that a compliment? Or well, as backhanded of a compliment as you get from Hammond…especially when you're married to Tony Almeida. She watched his eyes linger on Tony's arm, which was still around her, ever-so subtly caressing her skin.

"Thank you." Tony was frowning and she averted his gaze.

"It'd be a shame for your talents to go to waste because of unfortunate circumstances..."

At that moment the hostess returned and ended the conversation. Hammond nodded slightly to each of them and let without another word.

Ten minutes later they were sitting at their own table, the encounter with Hammond still fresh in their minds.

"What wrong?" Michelle raised her eyebrows, taking a sip of her drink. They hadn't spoken since they'd been seated.

Tony shrugged. "Nothing…"

"You've been acting strange since…"

"Yeah well…since when has seeing Hammond ever put me in a good mood?" He scowled and turned back to his menu.

She wasn't buying it; the exasperated expression on her face told him so.

"You know what he was doing, don't you?" he spat out suddenly.

"What?"

"That whole act…he's trying to convince you that you'd have more opportunities elsewhere and that I'm holding you back."

She looked skeptical, although inwardly she knew he had a point.

"Trust me, Michelle…I know this guy. He's always got some sort of motive and so long as we're married you're not gonna get the same chances you would get otherwise. It's his way of trying to - "

"Break us up?" she stared at him incredulously.

"He hates the idea that we're married, and let's face it…you'd have plenty of chances to move up if that weren't the case."

She stared at him in disbelief.

"I did…"

"What?"

"Right before we got engaged…I got a job offer from District."

"You didn't tell me that."

She shrugged. "I didn't have to."

"Of course you didn't have to, but if you were thinking about leaving - "

"No…I mean." She met his eyes. "I wasn't thinking about it. I turned it down over the phone."

"Why?"

Again, she shrugged. "After I came to CTU I realized how miserable it was at District…why would I want to go back to that for a little extra money?"

After a few seconds of silence he reached out and rubbed her hand.

"Sorry."

"For what?"

"For biting your head off…It just bugs me that he's so…"

"Honey, I know." She assured him sympathetically. "But that's never gonna change so we just…can't let him get to us. Even when I first transferred to CTU I was so much happier there…believe me. I can't imagine wanting to be anywhere else."

He searched her face for reassurance which she gave easily.

"And if you did…"

"And if I did not even Brad Hammond could stop me…" she told him wryly. "And if I did I know you wouldn't care…" her expression softened.

"No…" he assured her. Of course he wouldn't care. Her wanting to do well in her career had absolutely nothing to do with her feelings for him. If she ever had the opportunity to leave CTU, he would expect her to take it if that's what she wanted.

"I'd just miss you."

She smiled softly and her fingers started to trace his palm, the conversation turning to more lighthearted matters after that.

The next morning the sun woke Michelle up and she groaned, wishing she could sleep late like she had in college, and wondering if you became more sensitive to light with age. She'd barely had time to process the thought when she was being kissed warmly on the mouth.

"Hey…" she beamed and rubbed his cheek when the kiss broke. Tony didn't say anything, and instead maneuvered her beneath him before kissing her more deeply. His fingers slipped beneath her shirt, trailing across her cool stomach and applying gentle pressure. A soft noise came from her throat and he moved his lips to the spot as her nails raked gently across his back…

A while later, they were still trying to force themselves to get out of bed…it was just so nice to be able to loaf around. She felt like a cat, lying on the stretch of mattress being warmed by the sun and feeling completely relaxed for the first time all week. His weight shifted behind her and his body sealed snugly around hers as his hand crossed her, lifted her own hand slightly and began tracing patterns lazily against the sheet. She watched in interest for a few minutes before linking their fingers together and pulling his arm around her more tightly. He smiled as he kissed her bare shoulder and she did too.

"We have to go shopping…" she reminded him apologetically and he groaned a little in exasperation.

"We don't really need to eat that badly, do we?"

She gave a soft laugh.

"Unfortunately yes…"

"Alright…" he rolled away from her and climbed out of bed. If he had to go shopping, there really was no one better to have to go shopping with.

Michelle knew she was grinning like an idiot when he grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet, but she didn't care. Days like this, where she took the time to appreciate every intricate detail of their life, only came around once in a blue moon and she'd be damned if she wasn't going to soak up every last second of it.