A/N Okay, a little different this time. Josiris mentioned in a review (way back, I know) seeing the others' reactions; I hadn't really considered that but I guess the suggestion stuck as this chapter just kind of invited itself in. So, it's not 'exactly' Gene and Alex...

Snapshot Six

Ray Carling stubbed out the remains of his cigarette with more force than was necessary - he liked to use excessive force in almost all circumstances - as he blew out the last resulting, and rather long, stream of smoke. He shook his head after completing those tasks and leant closer to his companions sat at the table with him: "I knew it'd happen."

Chris Skelton, ever so slightly distracted by the foot currently snaking its way up his leg, first glanced at the owner of the aforementioned apendage - going for warning but unable to locate it, instead ending up somewhere between startled and excited - and then to his superior officer, his thoughts now very much elsewhere, but duty - off the clock or not - was reminding him to pay attention. "What?"

With an annoyed jab in the direction of his DCI and DI, sat together at a small table and seemingly oblivious to everyone and everything else in Luigi's, Ray scowled at the younger man. "Said she'd wrap him round her little finger," he explained, unable to keep the disappointment out of his voice. He thought the Guv was smarter than that.

"Jealous, Ray?" Shaz Granger asked with a smile, wanting to add on to that question, 'Of the Guv or of Alex?'. But she didn't; DS Carling, as well as being her superior officer, was a touch sensitive about some things - she'd felt his thinly veiled annoyance at her own burgeoning relationship with Chris. No, Ray Carling did not like losing his friends, especially to women. And judging from the look he was currently throwing at her she figured she'd been right to say no more. She slid her foot from Chris' body, no longer comfortable with the sergeant's eyes on her. She wished they'd found a smaller table or Ray had found some poor woman to chat up.

"As if I'd have anything to do with her. Mad as a hatter, that one."

Chris, his head clearing a little as his body felt the loss of Shaz's ministrations, tried to catch up on - and take part in - the conversation. Unfortunately, he only had the last part to go on. "You've said loads of times that you wouldn't mind -" he stopped mid sentence as Ray's eyes fell on him, silently ordering him to shut up.

Shaz was tempted to press Chris further on that but, she actually had a good idea of what he'd been about to say. She glanced at the older couple in the corner, at the source of Ray's bad mood. Sat next to each other, mirroring each others positions, they appeared deep in conversation and even she, right then, couldn't tell that anything was different; they could have been discussing the intricacies of their most recent solved case or something more personal - the romantic in her pictured it being the latter. On their retreat her eyes caught sight of the half empty bottle of fizzy water at their table and Shaz smiled to herself at, in her eyes anyway, the further confirmation of her suspicions and the fact that the rest of her colleagues seemed completely oblivious. If she was right it wouldn't be long before everyone knew anyway - it wasn't the kind of secret you could keep forever and DI Drake wouldn't be able to squeeze into those jeans for much longer. The first time those two had snuck off together only herself and Chris had still remained at Luigi's - and Chris, as well as facing the wrong way, had been quite drunk. Not a word had been said the next morning and she had remained silent too; she admired DI Drake a great deal and she respected, and was maybe just a little bit afraid of, DCI Hunt. So she'd acted as surprised as everyone else when they'd been a little more obvious the next time, knowing that the - behind the Guv's back - comments about one night stands were far off the mark. "I think they're sweet."

Ray almost choked on his pint at the WPC's comment. "There's nothing 'sweet' about the Guv," he said, slamming his glass down on the table, just a little too hard, to emphasise his point. Sometimes he longed for the good old days back in Manchester when Chris wasn't constantly distracted by her and the Guv had a wife who never seemed to mind that her husband spent all his time either at work or down the pub. The only distraction back then had been Sam Tyler but at least he wasn't as bad as a bloody woman; he'd been close, mind, the big Jessie.

Chris cleared his throat, feeling the need to intervene but entirely unsure of how to do so; out of the corner of his eye he could see Ray looking fairly annoyed and he thought about appeasing the older man. However, a glance at Shaz showed a similar glare and he felt torn between the two people once again. They both seemed to be waiting for his own opinion on the subject and he obviously couldn't please both. He looked at his boss, and lady boss, wondering what all the fuss was about. As far as he was concerned nothing had changed. When they were on a job the Guv wasn't any different, he didn't treat DI Drake - or anyone else for that matter - any different to how he had previously. Outside of work he hadn't noticed any changes either. That was probably why, Ray aside, no one else was particularly worried about the Guv. In fact, now that he actually thought about it, the only thing that had changed had been the DI herself but he couldn't put his finger on how she had changed.

"Men are not sweet," Ray continued, as it seemed Chris wasn't actually going to say anything, which was probably for the best, "Unless they're puffs." He took another swig from his glass, looking at Shaz, "And the Guv is not a puff. He's a real man. He drives fast cars, drinks pints and shags birds."

"Is DI Drake not drinking?" Chris said, finally putting his finger on exactly what was different and blurting it out, hoping to end Ray's rant. It was Shaz who looked at him then, Ray twisting his neck to confirm what was being alleged, and Chris was unsure if she was happy or annoyed at what he had said. It could have been either, could have been both.

"Can't hold her drink," Ray scoffed, "She was in the bogs the other week throwing up."

Shaz was in the process of rolling her eyes at Ray's first, typically sexist, comment but stopped with his, more enlightening, second. She hadn't realised that Ray was aware of that fact - and her mind conjured up various reasons as to how he could possibly know, none of which were flattering to the DS. But, for all of Ray's faults, she knew he would eventually make the same connection she had.

"It's a virus, isn't it?" Chris asked, trying to defend the Inspector, "Probably on those anti-wotsits and not allowed to drink." He received a definite smile from Shazza on that one and it was worth the glare that he was ignoring from Ray.

"She's had it bad, poor thing," Shaz said, agreeing with Chris and wondering how best to reward him for his efforts. Despite Ray's comments men could be sweet - Chris sometimes pulled it off quite admirably.

Ray scowled slightly at the couple who were currently giving each other adoring looks. Bloody women. "That's her excuse for everything lately, isn't it?" he groused, gaining his table companion's attentions once more, "And she's got the Guv wrapped that far around her little finger that he can't see it."

"See what?" Chris asked, feeling, once again, compelled to do so.

"Well, it wouldn't go on this long, would it?" Ray explained, daring either of them to step in and defend the woman in question once more. "Anyone else would get a bollocking for all the time she's taken off and -" Ray stopped abruptly, a thought creeping into his head. It couldn't possibly be true, could it? Chris was looking at him blankly but Shaz - well, she looked as if she knew what he was thinking, she looked as if she knew too. When she quickly averted her eyes he knew he was right. On both counts. "Oh no."

"What?" Chris asked, perplexed. Ray had gone quite pale and very quiet, and Shaz was staring intently at the top of the table. "What?" he asked again, but neither seemed willing to answer.