I'm very happy about this chapter :D :D :D It contains a small refrence/spoiler for 5.4 *squeals* Now I gotta go research which flight class the team will be taking... might even make it a private jet :D :D :D Don't own anything except the plot.
Enjoy :D
Jess stood in the middle of the main ops room with her large chocolate brown suitcase with cream polka dots and rainbow ribbon tied neatly to the handle. The lights had all been turned down as everyone packed up to leave for the night. An eerie feeling sent goosebumps up her arms, snaking around her neck. A shiver ran down her spine.
The last time she'd been in the ARC with the lights this low, She and Lester were fighting for their lives.
"Everything is fine Jess..." she muttered quietly to herself. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Lester's office, the man himself nowhere to be seen. He had gone home after giving Jess a secret hug. Who knew the man had a soft side. A small smile rose across Jess' face.
She got out her phone and checked the time. They had all agreed on meeting up at the ARC and taking one of the trucks to the airport. She had managed to get to there with Connor and Abby before the others had arrived.
Excitement had had her bouncing off the walls as she gathered up the clothes she was going to take that time seemed to be put on a standstill as she shot around the flat at lightning speed.
Truth was, there was barely anything in her suitcase besides from a single light sundress, two bikini sets, a couple of light camisoles and her cotton pijama shorts, one skirt, one light cardigan, a pair of blue flat shoes and two pairs of her beloved heels. There's was still a heck load of space left in her suitcase.
"Jess... you have all those clothes in your wardrobe and you're still going to buy more?" Abby asked with an unsurprised grin.
"You know this will only last me a day Abby! Plus I just know I'll end up finding some really cute dresses when I drag you and Emily shopping with me."
Abby rolled her eyes as Jess zipped up her suitcase and disappeared into the bathroom to pack her essentials into her small travelbag. "I don't think you'll have any objections to that Jess!" She replied as she made her way to the kitchen.
Jess grinned to herself, her eyes sparkling as she checked her hair in the bathroom mirror. "Hey maybe we can bring the guys along too?"
"Hell no!" Connor's voice rang through the flat from the spare room. "The only time I go shopping is when we go grocery shopping! And even that's a complete torture! You girls are so picky!"
"Who are you calling girls!" Abby growled.
"You women are so picky!" Connor corrected himself.
"Much better!"
Jess laughed. "Oh come on Connor! It's no use denying the fact that you love trying on womens clothes!" Jess practically skipped down the hall towards the livingroom with her suitcase and travel bag in toe. Her grin growing wider as the seconds ticked by.
"That was ONE time Jess! And Jenny eventually got her dress back."
"She probably had to burn it afterwards though." Abby laughed.
"Abby! I thought you would be on my side!"
Abby laughed as she saw Jess skip around the corner, sitting herself up on the bench. "I'm the neutral party here guys!"
Jess placed her suitcase next to Abby's and sighed happily. "I wonder how the others are getting on..." She noticed her mistake just as Abby smirked.
"You curious as to what a certain Captain is doing Jess?"
Jess could feel her cheeks burning up. "What? No! It's just... Shut up." Abby just laughed as Jess busied herself by rummaging around inside of the fridge while they waited for Connor to finish packing.
Abby sighed after thirty minutes had ticked by. "Connor, how long does it take you to put a couple pairs of shorts and t-shirts into a bag? Abby exclaimed as she made her way down the hall and into the spare room.
Abby's eyes widened as Connor grinned up at her, the small red velvet box resting in the palm of his open hand. "I had to do it properly Abs."
"Oh my god." Jess blurted as she rounded the corner. She squealed. "Oh my fricken god!"
Connor's eyes never left Abby's. She smiled, unable to control her emotions any longer. His puppydog eyes were just too hard to resist when they kept sparkling as he spoke. "Abigal Maitland... will you marry me?"
Abby's smile widened before it cooled down. Her eyes narrowed. "I'll have to think about it." she replied quietly, mimiking him
Connor's grin vanished as he got back up to his feet. "Oh..."
Abby laughed, flinging her arms around his neck. "Yes you idiot!"
Jess clapped her hands together excitedly, jumping up and down on the spot. "CONGRATULATIONS!" she cheered.
Her phone vibrated in her pocket suddenly, giving her a fright as Abby and Connor sealed their promise with a kiss.
Jess glanced down at the screen and smiled at the familiar name. He looked up and sighed. "Guys, Becker's getting impatient..."
Jess' cheeks burned a bright shade of crimson as the happily engaged couple both gave her knowing smirks.
"What?"
"Jess. I thought you came with Connor and Abby... Why are you standing here alone in the dark?" the voice made Jess' heart skip a beat as she spun around towards the stairs. She had to do a double take when she saw Becker standing there wearing casual civilian clothes. She was so used to seeing him in the all black uniform that when she finally set eyes on him, she was stunned speechless. He made his way across the room to her, his eyes filled with concern.
Jess blinked. Focus Jess! "I thought I'd leave them alone while we waited for Matt and Emily to arrive. I guess out of habit, I automatically came here." She glanced away, noticing the plain black suitcase with a silver dogchain handing from the handle sitting by the stairs. So Becker... She thought.
"Do you still have the tickets?" Becker asked as he made his way around Jess and sat himself down in front of the ADD.
"Yeah" Jess glared at him. "No one sits there except me..."
He grinned smugly, spinning around and checking out the screens that had not turned off yet. His grin widened when he brought up the minimised ARC security footage. "Spying on anyone in particular?"
Jess was all too glad that his back was to her since her cheeks turned bright red. "It's old footage. Lester asked me to look over it, I guess I never closed it down" She replied quickly, her cheeks returning to their original colour as he looked over towards her.
He looked back at the screens and frowned. It was the footage from the night of the Beetle Incursion. "Jess this is that footage from-"
"Yeah I know." She replied simply, sitting herself down on the stairs on the opposite side of the room.
Becker put everything back the way he found it and made his way over, sitting himself down beside her. "Why did Lester want you to look over that footage?"
Jess bit the inside of her lip, praying that the others would appear then. "Don't know." she shrugged.
Becker's eyes narrowed. "Jess..."
She refused to look at him.
"Jessica."
She looked down at her hands, her eyes skimming over to his. "Lester didn't want me to look over it. I was... there's only so much..." She paused. "I couldn't remember much of what happened so I decided to skim through the footage to try refresh my memory."
Becker sighed. The memories he had of how terrible she looked, so close to death gave him goosebumps. "How much of it did you get through?"
"None of it... the Anomoly Detector when off before I could watch any of it." she replied quietly.
Becker hid a small grin. "Well... You thought there were tigers in the ARC at one point... then you went and said I was mean."
Jess stared at him with wide eyes. "I... what?"
"Yup. You said I was mean, and then you went on to say I had nice hair."
"Oh god!" Jess hid her face in her hands, peaking between her fingers. "Did I really say that?"
He smiled "Yeah... you did."
"That's embarrassing." she mumbled as she pulled her knees into her chest, hugging them tightly.
"It's fine Jess, seriously. I'm perfectly aware of how awesome my hair is." She turned her head to glare at him but he just grinned.
"There you are Jess!" Connor called. "Abby I found her... and Becker too!"
"Temple." Becker nodded towards him.
He grinned. "Waow Becker, I'm surprised. I had no idea you owned normal clothes- ow!"
"Connor, shut up." Abby growled as she appeared beside him. "Matt and Emily are down in the parking lot waiting by the truck. You guys ready?"
"Yeah" Becker and Jess replied in unison as they got to their feet. Connor and Abby exchanged glances as they made their way to the parking lot, leaving the two alone again.
"I'll take that for you, if you want." Becker suggested, gesturing towards Jess' suitcase.
She smiled and nodded. "Thanks."
"Anytime."