A/N: This is super late, and not even finished really. I was aiming for just two chapters with this story, but I'll have to extend it to three. My draft just got too long, and I'm struggling with one portion of it- not to mention, it's been about a month, or more, since I updated. (Although I had to go through some really irritating computer issues before, so that also explains the delay). But I just wanted to get something out so you know the story isn't going to sit here unfinished.

I hate to keep cockblocking you guys on this, but hopefully you can bear with me for just a little longer.

"Is there a reason Joseph's passed out on the floor?"

Juli looked up from her laptop at the question and, had she not thought that Sebastian's look of concern was legitimate, she might've laughed instead. It was an odd question, but as of lately, there had been a lot of them being asked- they were pretty common to hear now and days. At least, for the three of them it was. "It's a long story," she offered, as she picked up her cup and took a sip of the lukewarm coffee.

... A story she'd much rather not get into.

Especially not with Sebastian.

"Is it serious?"

She knew he was only asking out of concern- even though he also knew that she would've called him the first chance she got if it had been something serious. Still, he was just trying to keep all his bases covered. She offered the best reassuring smile she could to battle out his tired, worried features; he had just gotten back from work, so she supposed she should cut him some slack. "He had another one of those attack earlier, but... it was short and there was no aftermath," Juli reassured. "He passed out from exhaustion before I could move him, so... I had no choice but to leave him there. I tried to make him comfortable, but he'll probably complain about some back pains later."

Sebastian gave a brief nod and rubbed at the back of his neck.

He was looking more tired these days- older almost.

His bronze, roughed-up skin was looking a little more worn down and scarred as well.

"How long has he been there?"

"Hm, about two hours," Juli guessed with a slight shrug, "give or take."

"I'll just leave him there then."

She chuckled quietly at his words, and watched as he seated himself in the chair adjacent to her. When he had returned home a few minutes before, she didn't even hear him walk in and nearly had the life scared out of her when he just started talking. How a man as big as he was, and as brash as he was, could be so quiet at times was beyond her. Or maybe it was her who had been subconsciously canceling out the noise around her. "How was work?"

"It's fine," Sebastian answered, as he rubbed at his neck once more, before he slightly rolled it. "It's just... keeping up with everything going on- but mostly, it's trying to keep up with Myra again."

Juli stilled at the name, and watched as he leaned back in his chair.

The fact that Mobius had allowed all of them to live and escape was a miracle, and a high act of mercy from the black market company.

But... the fact that they had allowed Myra to be free as well was... something in of itself.

"How is she doing?" Juli slowly started.

"She hasn't changed, I can tell you that," he replied, "but she's been working up a storm over this Beacon case- it's hard to keep up with her. It's hard to... keep things from her- at least, for now."

She could hear the hesitation in his voice- the almost kind of guilt at having to withhold information from his long-disappeared wife. The KCPD had been beyond... a mix of amazed, relieved, and horrified at the reappearance of their Lead Investigator. The woman they had all assumed had left after the death of her daughter, had actually been taken and held hostage; a crime had been committed, and the department had done nothing to help her.

After everything they had gone through, after almost a year disappearance only to be reunited after Beacon... she could understand why Sebastian was hesitant to give Myra the information she was looking for. The reason she got tangled up with Mobius in the first place was because of what she was doing now. It wasn't fair to Myra, they all knew that, but Juli could sympathize.

Sebastian didn't want to risk losing her again.

"Either way, she's going to be your problem when you clock in."

Juli grimaced and closed her laptop before she pushed it away from her. The clock nearby said that it was almost one in the afternoon now, which was about the usual time she headed back into the office anyways. They all worked in shifts so that there were always two in the office and two at home; it was usually Sebastian staying with Myra, but... when she had to go in, he usually came back to keep an eye on Joseph- especially if something like this had happened. She knew Sebastian would've preferred to keep an eye on Myra, but he wasn't going to abandon his friend either.

"And she still doesn't..."

"No," Sebastian answered before she had a chance to finish. "She doesn't remember anything. She knows something happened, but... well, that's what she's trying to work on now; she's trying to fit all the pieces back together to make a story."

The woman had always been a workaholic to some degree- or at least, that's what the Mobius reports on her had read her as.

At this point in time though, Juli was certain her working habit was more in part to the grudge she held against whoever had done this to her. And she sure as hell couldn't blame Myra for being pissed off; they all were- herself included.

"She doesn't remember you, Juli, if that's what you're worried about."

It was.

All those months of rigorous training and being fooled into thinking she had found a sense of paradise in her shitty world... It was still hard to believe that it had been Myra behind her eventual involvement with Mobius. It was hard to believe that the woman who had basically started this whole mess with Mobius had been under her nose the entire time.

It left a crater in her chest as she thought about all the times before, when she had first joined the KCPD, and listened to those stories about the woman. She had worked alongside Sebastian for months and... just never knew a damn thing.

...

If there was one good thing to come out of this whole mess though, it was that everyone referred to her as Juli now; it made the transition into a post-Mobius life a little easier to adjust to. She had never been a fan of her first name, but after hearing Mobius refer to her as Kid over and over, she never wanted to hear it again. It was a little odd for everyone to adjust to it at first, but thankfully everyone understood where she was coming from and did their best to accommodate her request.

"I guess I should get going then," Juli started.

"I would suggest it- at least before Myra calls hounding you about where you are," Sebastian nodded. "I'll keep an eye on Joseph until you get back, and call you if anything changes. If you can, try to convince Myra to ease up a bit- I don't need to be dragging her back home at three in the morning again."

"I'll try, but no promises."

...

Sometimes Juli hated it when Sebastian was right.

She had months of experience with Myra when she was under Mobius' control- and she thought the woman was hard to keep up with then. But this... this was something entirely new. This was a woman who had over a year missing from her life- and no recollection of where it went. This was a woman still freshly upset over what happened to her daughter, and still having to deal with everyone's reactions to her reappearance.

This was also a woman hellbent on finding out the truth.

... She could certainly see why Myra and Sebastian were made for each other.

When Myra wasn't working, she was on the phone talking to him- always making sure he was there to pick up, always making sure there was someone on the other end of the line. Myra said she had memories of her picking up the phone... only to never remember who she was going to call, and never knowing why no one picked up. Juli had never witnessed these kinds of lapses when Myra was at Mobius, but that wasn't to say they didn't exist. The woman was damn good at being evasive, at hiding things that needed to be confidential until the last minute.

Despite all of this, there was no adjusting for her... Myra went straight into work, straight back to business like it had always been in her blood. And it was odd to witness the woman who had been so stiff and monotone with her before, suddenly so animated in the office. She was damn hard to keep up with, and there were moments where Juli had no idea where the woman had gone off to- only for Myra to kick the office door open and carry in everything she could grab from the courthouse and evidence room.

And it was difficult to keep her mouth shut around the woman- to make sure she didn't let anything slip.

For Sebastian, it was out of desperation and love.

But for her... it was out of fear.

At any time, Mobius could swoop back in and haul the both of them off without a word of warning. Just as they had done before.

And the thought of it was terrifying to her now.

...

But for now, she had more important things to worry about.

Stepping into the house, Juli quietly locked the door behind her, before she slipped off her shoes and hung her jacket up. She had already passed Sebastian on his way out, and warned him that while Myra would be coming home soon, she would be bringing work home with her. The woman was stubborn, but determined, so it was surprising when Myra finally agreed that maybe she had been working too much in the office lately- only to reveal that working at home might provided a better atmosphere for her.

Sebastian thanked her for getting that much done at least.

As long as Myra was home, he didn't have to worry as much for her.

Giving off a heavy sigh in the midst of a silent house, Juli slowly made her way back towards Joseph's bedroom- loosening her shirt as she moved through the house. She peeked into the still dark bedroom, only to notice that he didn't appear to have stirred in the slightest. Sebastian had told her that Joseph hadn't budged through the five hours he had been watching him, which really wasn't all too unusual.

Especially regarding his case.

Still, she found herself walking into the room and kneeling down next to him just to make sure that he was still breathing at least; and it was a quick relief to find that he was. She supposed it was always just an ugly thought that cultivated in the back of her head. He was a horribly quiet sleeper, and never so much as moved an inch while he slept- he could easily be mistaken for dead. And regarding everything that had happened before, she just needed the added security of knowing for certain that he was still alive.

Juli smiled briefly at his peaceful-looking expression- one that was a rarity to see most days.

Once she was certain that he was okay, and would be okay, she quietly stood back up and walked back to slip into the master bathroom for a quick shower.

She felt exhausted and restless all in one- and while the hot water did little to fix that... it was still pretty comforting to have against her skin. And comfort was a pretty big commodity for her now and days.

She ran the water a little to hot, leaving her skin bright red and sensitive when she finally got out. It was getting common for her to do so, and while she was reluctant to admit why... she couldn't deny her own hints of crushed reality. She could still feel the dirt and grime that had been collected in layers on her skin; she could still feel the dried, foreign blood that had clumped in her hair and on her clothing.

Sometimes the water ran hot enough to wash away the impressions of hands that had grabbed and yanked on her arms and legs- ripping and collecting her skin under rotting fingernails.

She didn't have any physical reminders of what had happened in STEM, nothing more than the deep scar on her forearm, and even then... it was easy to ignore. On most days anyways.

Shutting the water off, she let the memories of STEM drip off of her, and swirl down the drain, before she stepped out of the confined shower. Drying herself off, she slipped into nothing more than an oversized shirt and stepped out of the bathroom.

It was almost odd just how well she and Joseph had integrated their lives and living spaces into one- especially considering how different they were in terms of housekeeping. She always denied that she had moved in with him when someone asked, but... she hadn't been back to her apartment in weeks; she only went back long enough to pay her rent, which at this point, was just a waste of money. Her lease would be up soon, and it wouldn't take much to just shove all of her belongings into a storage unit; it wasn't like she had much anyways.

And he had been open to the idea of her moving in, although remarked that it would take some getting used to.

Giving into a full body stretch, she stifled a brief yawn before she walked over to where he was still passed out and carefully slipped in next to him. She figured he might appreciate the company whenever he woke up- and she was feeling pretty tired as well, despite it barely being seven in the evening now. And... God forbid, if he did wake up and go into another relapse, than at least she would be here for him.

She watched him carefully, taking in every little subtle move that played across his features- like the slight twitch on the corner of his lips whenever he breathed out, or the way his fingers curled in every now and again. Carefully reaching forward, she let her fingertips play against the curve of his jaw, tracing the slight curve of it, before she moved to cup it against her palm. The flat of her thumb brushed circles against his cheek, and she felt the way he turned away from her in response, an airless kind of groan leaving him.

The floor still wasn't the most ideal of places to sleep, but she tried to close her eyes for a little while anyways.

...

She didn't know how long she laid there with him, maybe a little over an hour, maybe not, but she stirred slightly at the sound of a quiet groan leaving him. Sleep didn't exactly find her, but she had gotten comfortable enough that it would hold her over, and she could leave it at that. Stifling another yawn, she watched as he slowly pulled away from her as he rolled onto his back- one hand moving to rub at his face.

"How long have I been asleep?" Joseph whispered; his voice rough and slightly hoarse from sleep.

"Do you want me to answer that truthfully?" Juli replied, watching as he only nodded in response. "Hm, almost eight hours maybe- give or take."

He gave another groan and moved both hands to cover his face- drawing a quiet chuckle from her with the motion. "Well... normally I'd complain, but I'll be damned if that wasn't the best sleep I've gotten in awhile now," he spoke, as he moved to push his fingers through his hair now, pulling it out of his face.

"That's why I didn't try to wake you up," she remarked, as she reached over and brushed some of his loose bangs from his face. It was rare to see his hair not styled in its usual manner, which was a shame because she liked the loose look to it. "If you're feeling better, you should shower and walk around the house for a bit; the exercise will be good for you, and probably work out that knot in your back-"

"Did I fall asleep while we were in the middle of something?"

Juli paused at his interruption, and tried to fight back the slightly snorted laugh that wanted to escape her. "... Do you want me to answer that truthfully?"

Surprisingly enough, Joseph gave a short laugh and moved his hands back to his face. "Oh God..."

She couldn't stop herself this round, and gave into a matching laugh at his comment. Despite the entire situation beforehand, and everything that had gone with it... he actually sounded embarrassed that he quite possibly collapsed from exhaustion while they were slowly getting intimate. He was quite literally losing his mind, and her offer to distract had been poorly-timed maybe, but it had worked about as well as she had figured- he was laughing at himself over it. "We were barely kissing," Juli reminded him, "and I was expecting you to fall asleep on me anyways."

"Then why start anything in the first place?" he queried.

"Kept you distracted, didn't it?"

Joseph dropped his hands to his side and shot her an almost comically exasperated look- one that she really tried not to laugh at this time. Not that that worked out all that well either though. "I need to take a shower," he sighed, before he slowly pushed himself up, groaning the entire time he did so.

Juli watched as he sat up before he leaned forward against his legs; she watched as he briefly tucked his head down as he cupped his hands over the back of his neck. He was probably still in some mild pain- and probably still exhausted too, despite his deep slumber. Her eyes slowly hovered over the small bruises that were forming over his lower back, and briefly wondered where they might've came from- but quickly decided that it wasn't worth thinking about.

Just like the heavy scars that plagued the backs of his shoulders and traveled down his spine.

Instead, she reached over and traced circles with her fingertips against his back- catching the way he leaned into the touch. "Need any help?" she offered.

He surprised her with another laugh, before he slowly worked his way to his feet. "No, I'll be fine- with you there, I'd probably just fall asleep in the middle of it again."

Juli replied with an exaggerated groan and watched as he gradually made his way across the room, before he disappeared into the master bathroom. Well, at the very least, he woke up, which on it's own was good- and he seemed to be in good spirits, which was even better. Better than most days anyways.

Giving out a sigh, she rolled over to where he had previously been laying, and partly collapsed against his pillow- at this point, she didn't care if she fell asleep on the floor. Sure, she could go through the trouble of putting everything back together on the bed, but why bother? She was pretty content here just the same, and maybe she could still salvage some sleep.

Besides, she didn't think she could get up and do it even if she wanted to.

She waited until she heard the shower going before she tried to make herself comfortable.

...

But, after ten minutes of tossing and turning, she gave up.

She was tired, sure, but for some reason her body and her mind weren't on the same page- which wasn't a surprise. They never really had been, which was why her sleep schedule was always in a constant state of fucked up.

Reluctantly forcing herself to get up, Juli stepped out of the bedroom and headed into the kitchen- hoping maybe some water would help balance her out; she had been on a caffeine buzz as of lately, so she wasn't surprised by her mild restlessness. Although, in all honesty, she could go for something much stronger than water, but she knew alcohol wouldn't help her mental state in the least bit.

Not to mention, she knew Joseph didn't keep any kind of alcohol in his house to begin with.

On the plus side though, his refrigerator was always full of water, which she gladly helped herself to. She took a brief sip before she headed back into the small dining area, now figuring that maybe an hour or two on her computer would mentally kill her enough to sleep. It usually did most days, mostly just out of boredom- but it was better than nothing.

...

But those plans got tossed the moment she heard him step out of the shower.

She waited, partly leaning against the small dining table, until Joseph came out of his room a few minutes later. He was dressed in little more than a pair of black lounge pants, and a sleeveless shirt- which was rare for him to sport considering the long collection of scars he had running up and down his arms. He didn't seem bothered to show them off around her though, probably because she had been the one to tend to them before they were scars- which was a testament to her horrible first aid skills.

He looked... better, although his skin had the same hint of redness hers had before.

Juli offered a brief smile and set her water aside, before she moved to met him as he walked in. She barely got her arms around him before she felt him immediately lean in against her, one arm loosely hooking around the back of her neck. Just as she suspected, his skin was warm to the touch, as was his body pressed against hers- encouraging her to tuck her head in against his shoulder to take in the heat he was putting off.

Before... any of this had ever happened, before the Beacon ordeal overall, they hadn't been the touch-est of people. Even in their loosely called relationship, neither of them were really fans of physical gestures- although that wasn't to say they didn't hold hands, or hug from time to time. It was just something neither of them were accustomed to; she guessed they were just too independent for their own good- they were too used to living, and existing, alone.

But now...

Now she had to admit that it was a little harder for them to keep their hands off of each other.

It was like they needed to physically touch one another to make sure that the other was still around- and to give out whatever bit of comfort they could. And she came to find out that she rather liked the occasional brush of his hand against her- she liked the subtle weight of his arm draped over her while they slept. She enjoyed the way she could lean against him while they watched the late-night news, when the both of them happened to have insomnia.

She liked holding his face in her hands and laughing at the exasperated look he would give her when she wouldn't let him go.

"Feeling any better?" Juli asked, as she knitted her hands against his lower back, and moved to tuck her head against the curve of his neck.

His other arm moved to wrap around her waist, pulling her in closer against him. "Enough," he answered.

It was... an okay answer.

She knew not to expect much, and yet, she always found herself disappointed by the lackluster response. She moved to press her forehead to his- which was an important advantage to them being the same height; neither of them had to lean up or stoop down to reach the other. As long as she wasn't wearing heels, they were always at eye level with one another.

"How enough?" Juli queried.

"Hard to explain- why are you asking?" Joseph started, only to interrupt himself halfway through his own response.

"Quick to the defense there," she teased, giving a quiet laugh at the annoyed look he responded with. "Well, I just figured, it's still pretty early, I mean, we could go for a walk, get some fresh air, maybe go to the park if you want."

He gave a brief laugh in response. "That sounds nice, Juli, it does, but... neither of us are the kind of people to do that."

Okay... she had to give him that.

But he couldn't say that she didn't try.

"Alright, well, you got any better plans?" she asked.

"Well... no, not really," Joseph admitted, "I mean, I still have some work left over from yesterday that I need to finish- it shouldn't take me long though, so... I don't know, maybe I can call Myra and see if she needs any help with anything."

Again, she shouldn't be surprised- or disappointed- by his answer.

"She did mention something about taking home another drawerful of case files, and such," Juli remarked, not exactly thrilled to give up that information. "Or, you could forget about work for once, and we could just watch a movie, or the news. Or if you're up to it..." she suggested instead, noting that he didn't seem the least bit interested in any of her offers, which wasn't surprising, "we could always pick up where we left off earlier."