AN:

Title: Hope You're Happy Too

Words: 2,082

Romantic Pairings: Gene&Alex.

About: Ashes To Ashes

The investigation was now in full swing; the team were interviewing what seemed like a million different people, from next door neighbours to the milkman. A huge amount of evidence against the husband was being built up, saying that he could be aggressive and angry, and all they had to do was track him down, a number of statements identified places where he liked to go so they had them covered in case he put in an appearance at any of them, as well as information from the woman's sisters about how Gregory reacted when a found a bank statement with the charges for a weekend stay in a hotel, the dates of when Mary-Alice had said she was visiting her sister. Every scrap of evidence that they had backed up that it was Gregory that had kidnapped her.

"Right" spoke Alex as she stood in front of the flip chart "What can anyone tell me about Gregory Baxter?"

"His missus obviously wasn't getting enough so she found another bloke" laughed Ray.

"Ok, but why? Was he ill or stressed? What was wrong that caused him to not pay his wife enough attention?"

"What's all this about Bolls? Who cares if he wasn't the perfect husband?"

She flashed him a stern look "I am trying to speak at the moment Gene, so if you would stop being rude and interrupting me please?"

"Who put you in charge?"

"I am currently trying to help solve this case, so if you wouldn't mind letting me be in control for just five minutes maybe we can find a missing woman?"

"His boss said he was always asking for overtime" piped up Shaz, cutting the argument dead "Working extra hours whenever he could, maybe he was in debt?"

"Which may be why he lost his temper like he did when he saw the hotel invoice, he's secretly trying to bring in as much money as possible to pay off debt and his wife is blowing hundreds on an expensive hotel for the weekend"

Chris blinked hard, trying to keep himself awake as Alex went on to babble about some psychology nonsense. He stared at her, amazed yet grossed out, as she balanced her pen perfectly on her swollen stomach. He didn't like to stare, but he thought it was crazy how the team would be working as normal and there would also be another life in the room, one that was going to start in months to come.

"DC Skelton!" bellowed Gene from where he had been stood for DI Drakes enlightening presentation "Is there a reason why you are yet to get your arse in gear?"

Chris looked around to see that the team had moved and were sat by their desks, whereas he had been day dreaming.

"Sorry Guv"

Gene turned and went into his office, closing the door and lighting himself a cigarette, whilst Chris moved back to his desk. Alex put her hands on her hips and surveyed the room.

"This office is a mess" sighed Alex as she gathered up crisp packets and scrunched up pieces of paper from desks and put them into bins "How on Earth are we supposed to work in this state?"

After doing a lap of the room and collecting newspapers that lay on desks and chairs, Alex pointed to the cardboard box.

"Is anyone using this box?"

There was no reply from the bored and now sleepy CID officers, with a huff Alex removed the lid and dumped the waste paper into the box, putting the lid back on and carrying it out of the office...

As she sauntered back into CID ten minutes later, Alex walked straight into a roar of anger from Gene. He had just kicked a chair and sent it flying into the doorway of his office; entangling one of the legs against the doorframe and taking it clean off.

"How the hell can a bloody box of evidence go missing? One of you daft bastards has moved it!"

"I swear Guv, nobody has moved it" Ray sighed.

Gene slammed his hand down on the end of Shaz's desk "It was right there, right bloody there! I put it there myself"

"That was evidence?" Alex piped up "I thought it was waste paper"

Silence overcame the entire room as all eyes fell on her. Gene was the first one to speak.

"Where is it Drake?"

"Out back in the bins I..."

Gene cut her off with a grumble as he made his way towards the double doors, only to be knocked down by what Alex said next.

"There's no use going looking for it, the bins were emptied a few minutes ago"

Gene ran his hands down his face and kicked another chair "A week's worth of evidence gone! Evidence that we have all crawled and squirmed and wriggled around to get and you go and throw it all away!"

"I'm sorry, I should have checked to see what was inside the box, I wasn't thinking straight" she mumbled.

"You seem to be doing that a lot at the moment" Ray put in "Women and their stupid bloody hormones clouding their capability"

"Excuse me?" Alex shouted loudly.

"You heard!"

Alex reached across her desk and picked something up to launch at Ray but Gene soon stepped in the way and grabbed hold of her wrists, taking the stapler from her grasp.

"Get out of here now" he ordered.

"What?"

"Now!" he was yelling at her.

Alex felt a shift of emotions, turning from anger to sadness. She turned on her heels and darted through the doors, the quick clicking of her heels broke through the whimpers that slipped between her lips.

"Bolls" came a call after her "Oh Bolls come here you daft mare!"

"Just leave it Gene" she coughed, nausea coming over her as she heaved out more tears "I've screwed up time and time again, this is the final straw"

"What are you going on about?"

He had caught up with her now, holding onto her shoulders and looking into her watering eyes and glimpsing at the white streaks in her foundation.

"I can't work like this Gene; you've just seen how badly I'm coping"

"Coping? Bolls you're trying to do a million ruddy things all at once" he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her forehead "You need to go steady and not try and overdo yourself" he paused and half smiled at her "Come back in, ey?"

She gave in and followed Gene back into CID, there had been chatter but the room fell silent as she sat behind her desk.

"I almost had my arse squeezed by a pensioner just to get some information about Baxter's shopping habits at the local off license" Ray spat "Eighty she was!"

"I'm sorry" Alex replied wearily.

Chris tapped his pen on the edge of his desk and pondered what evidence he had gotten that was now lost "I spent three hours trailing through his phone book to talk to family, friends and even a bloke from his favourite take out"

"Again I'm sorry"

"If you were a fella I'd knock seven shades of shit out of you!" Ray shouted over to her "Why the hell didn't you just look inside the box you silly cow?"

"Oi!" Gene howled, so loud it was as though the room had shook "Don't you dare speak to her like that!"

"What because she's your missus?" Ray scoffed, an unknown confidence overriding hid senses.

"No, because she is your DI!" Silence overcame the room for a moment before Gene spoke again "She made a mistake, don't tell me that none of you have ever made one"

"We could still make a strong case, if we retake statements and get new CCTV" Alex spoke, a little anxious.

"Retake statements?" Ray asked "And what if people ask what happened to the old ones? We'd look like right idiots if we just told people you lost them, if he gets away with this then it'll be on your conscience for being so stupid!"

"I said don't talk to her like that!" Gene repeated.

Alex went to touch his arm to calm him, but he set off through the double doors shouting something about 'pub' and 'company unwanted'. But as always Alex ignored his anger filled comments and went after him.

Walking into Luigi's, Alex spotted Gene sat alone at their usual table, empty pint glasses in front of him. Beer o'clock wasn't for another hour or two so she knew that him getting pissed meant there was something was bugging him. She approached him and slid into the seat opposite.

"Hey"

He didn't reply, just pulled out his cigarette packet and lit up. Breathing out a grey cloud of smoke and blowing sideways so that Alex didn't get the full puff in her face.

"You can cut down on the cigarettes when Sam arrives" she spoke "And the drinking, I don't want you thinking back to his or her childhood and remembering nothing but blistering hangovers"

She laughed. He didn't.

He loved Alex immensely; he loved everything about her, every fragment of her being, every atom in her body, but she seemed so controlling recently. Gene didn't know if it was the hormones or if there was something on her mind but it was doing his nut in, and with the stress of work added on top he didn't know how much longer he would be able to keep it to himself. It was as though she was trying to level rank with him, steal the glory, assume his position as DCI.

"Look I'm sorry, if I'd have known it was evidence I wouldn't have..."

"Just leave it Bolls" he growled, he wanted to sound angry but he didn't have the energy to keep it up.

"It's just that...well everything has been getting a bit on top of me recently, with everyone tip toeing around me I've felt as though I have to prove even harder that I am just as capable as anyone else"

"What do you mean?"

"It's hard enough trying to be treated equally on the team let alone without being pregnant too" She rested her head in her hands "That's why I've wanted to be in control, so that I can prove I can work just as well as the lads" she sighed and reached out to touch his hand but he pulled back.

"Gene what's the matter?"

"Do you fancy a promotion Bolls?"

She shook her head "Not particularly, why?"

"It's just that recently it comes across that you'd like my job"

She smiled and tilted her head sideways as she gazed at him "I don't want your job, I'm trying to prove to everyone that I am still capable"

"Nobody thinks you aren't Bolly, except you"

She sighed and looked down at her hands "Is it that obvious?"

He didn't reply because she already knew the answer, instead Gene requested two menus from Luigi and he bought himself and Alex some dinner. The pair had finished eating when the team rolled in and over to the bar.

"There she is" Ray mumbled, a little too loud "Wicked bitch of the West"

"DS Carling?" Gene called across the restaurant.

"Yes Guv?"

"A word?"

Ray walked over to where his two superior officers sat, Alex was sipping attentively at her orange juice and Gene was puffing away, a huge grin on his face as he blew the smoke into the gap between himself and Ray.

"Sergeant, do you have a problem with DI Bolly Knickers?"

Ray shook his head "Of course not Guv, why would I?"

"Well in that case..." he rose to his feet to finish off his sentence "...if I ever hear you make some backhanded jibe at her from the other side of the bar, I'll pull you across it by the collar of your shirt and make you say it to her face" he took another drag and blew it out slowly "You got that?"

Ray straightened his jacket and cleared his throat "Yes Guv"

"Good, now get out of my sight"

Gene watched Ray head back over to the bar before he sat down. He felt Alex place a hand on his arm and rest her head against his shoulder.

"Thank you" she smiled against him.

"No problem Bolls" he replied "Nobody talks about you like that, you might be a bitch, but you're my bitch"

I'm really enjoying writing this, but a part of me wants to hurry and finish it so that I can fully admire my work :S sounds weird ha-ha! Its 10:25 PM, and now I've finished this chapter I'm going to make a start on the next one so all you lovely people can carry on reading :D again, sorry if the chapters take longer than the others.