Yes, time for Chapter 2. I try to see it in my mind, like I'm really watching the show. Yeah. :)
"Lil, you mind goin' down to the DA's office to see about the exhumation request?" Stillman asked, stopping before her desk. She looked up, a scandalized look on her face. The other detectives had mysteriously and conveniently disappeared.
"You too, huh, boss?" Lilly asked, sighing, narrowing her eyes.
"Peer pressure, Lil," Stillman replied with a hint of a smile. She bit the inside of her lips and stood, leaving the room grudgingly.
Steeling herself for the inevitable awkwardness outside of his office, she knocked once, quick, on the door. He was sitting at his desk, exactly like before, as if nothing had changed. Kite looked up, the familair grin sliding across his face; his mouth opened to speak, but Lilly cut him off.
"What's happening with the exhumation?" she asked swiftly. He paused.
"Been a while," he said, leaning back in his chair. He raised his eyebrows. "Something wrong, Rush?" She glanced away for a second and then her gaze set back on him, eyes slightly narrowed.
"Besides the fact that you use my name to break it off with other people?" she asked, an edge in her voice. For a moment, Kite was still, perplexed. Then his face cleared with realization and he half smiled, standing up.
"I don't know how you heard about that," Kite said, taking slow steps towards her. Her impassive gaze didn't waver. "And I don't know if you heard the part where I said I couldn't stop thinking about you, Rush. But I hope you did. Because it's true. I can't." She scoffed with disbelief, eyes flickering away.
"I'm serious," he persisted, leaning in front of her, against the door.
"Okay," she said, shrugging indifferently, although the anger was still there; only now, it was paired with uncertainty. This wasn't what she'd expected. "What do you want me to do about it?"
"Give me a chance," he told her. She stared at him and then at the ground as if the proper response lay there. But all she could remember was the way her eyes had filled with tears and the way she had looked so weak for him. She hadn't wanted him to leave, had wanted him to realize what her job was to her, but he hadn't cared. She let the anger translate into her words, the words tight, her voice rising.
"You broke it off, Kite," she spoke suddenly, eyes burning. "You said you didn't regret it. Nothing's changed. You didn't want to understand last time and there won't be a 'this time'," she replied, a subtle pain in her voice that she tried to conceal with fury. Kite straightened, slightly leaning forward earnestly.
"Rush, look. Before, even when I had you, it still felt like I didn't really have you. But I don't care anymore. You love your job and you care. Fine. It's one of the reasons I realize I love you. I'll deal with it." Lilly stared up at him, frozen, eyes wide with unspoken surprise. The words had shaken her and she knew that it was evident on her face. She forced herself to ignore them.
"You practice that speech in the mirror last night?" she asked dryly, avoiding his eyes. He shrugged.
"Nah, this morning," he replied, his eyes locked on her. A reluctant smile crossed her face and she rolled her eyes.
"The exhumation, Kite," Lilly reminded him sternly.
"You got the permission," he said, returning to his desk and grabbing a file, handing it to her. "How about coffee? Once?"
She glanced up at him, her gaze lingering on his face. "I don't think so." Then she was gone.
It's one of the reasons I realize I love you. Lilly tried to push the words out of her mind, but they kept ringing in her head, her malevolent mind stressing the next to last word. There was no reason for her to give him another chance. He had willingly walked away. But a little annoying voice kept whispering, Maybe it was a bit your fault. He just wanted to be with you, that's all, and you couldn't give him that. Her mind wandered to her sarcastic comment about his speech and his casual response. She didn't realize she was smiling thoughtfully until Scotty looked up, eyebrows up.
"What's so funny?" he asked, implications in his teasing tone.
"Nothing," she replied too casually. Trying to ignore the complacent looks Scotty exchanged with Jeffries and Vera, she knocked on Stillman's door.
"Got the permission," she said. Stillman looked up, squinting.
"Good work," he said, satisfied, taking the file. "Didn't have any...trouble?" he asked. She knew the boss was asking that honestly, almost trying to be protective, but she had to suppress a sigh.
"Of course not," she answered hastily, leaving the office. Lilly sat down and, after a moment, began sorting through the papers and evidence for the recent case, looking for something, anything, pushing Kite to the back of her mind.
Sort of short. For the next chapter, I planned to write it from Kite's point of view, but I don't know. We'll see.