A/N: Yeah, a new chapter is already here.

Before you begin, I would like to thank everybody who spared their time.

Thank you for every favorite, every follow, and every review.

I really didn't expect such favoring feedback.

Reviews have been very interesting to read.

Holly is most certainly not blameless. I agree.

But hopefully as the story proceeds you all could see and understand my point of view.

A very special shout-out to "tked". Thank you for noticing that single line. I wanted to put the weight of it all in just a few words.

Still don't own anything. Story is mine, though.

Mistakes are mine too.

Now, without any delay, please proceed.

Enjoy!

Staggering Along The Way

Chapter 2 - Preamble To 'The Talk'

Holly didn't leave for home immediately. She gave another hour to determine what exactly that reddish-brown blob of a sample was. Turned out, it was blood; but not blood. It was the artificial blood that was used in movies, television industry all over. She was amused and quite surprised at the consistency of the chemical. Whoever made that mixture had to have a masters in chemistry. She didn't pen down her observations, only recorded them for now. She would do the full report tomorrow. At her place, she didn't bother changing or cleaning or unpacking. Directly she went to the bedroom and passed out as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Holly woke up a little after seven in the evening. Her body urged her to go back to sleep but she resisted. It would have disturbed her perfectly created sleep-cycle. At first she rummaged the kitchen for any kind of stale or smelly food that needed to go in the trash bin. Luckily there were only few dried-out slices of pizza and a half-full packet of expired brown bread; nothing that would cause a stench. After that she vacuumed the place thoroughly. No matter how packed and locked the house remained, dust always settled in abundance. Satisfied with the cleaned state of the apartment, she ran a bath for herself. Half an hour long soak in warm water and a glass of fine red wine later, Holly emerged a woman free from all the stress of last few days.

She put on a loose straight fit jeans and a grey v-neck t-shirt. Her hair was still a little wet but it felt too good to blow dry it. She left it as it is. She situated herself on the couch with her laptop and started reviewing the article she was supposed to submit in a half-yearly journal this month. Gail would be coming with food soon enough.

Gail threw herself on her chair in the bullpen with a loud huff. Teenagers were getting stupider and stupider with each generation. Why couldn't they understand that crime never pays? Getting the latest version of a freaking game was worth risking their whole future! "I dread the future of this universe," she grumbled to no one in particular.

Chris, who was standing in the opposite station from her, watched her with a smirk. They both were too surprised that a fourteen year old kid was so enticed with a game that apparently raiding a store with a knife for money was not a big deal. What was even more astounding was the fact that he didn't even look a little bit mortified. He was only sorry that he got caught, not sorry at all that he had attempted a crime. The fear of law was diminishing among the general folks. Such arrogant pricks, these teenagers were!

Detective Nash passed by them. She quirked an eyebrow at Chris when she saw Gail sprawled out on the chair with a deep thinker's frown.

Chris snorted. "She is dreading the future of our universe."

"Ah," Traci had heard about the incident involving the foolish teenage boy. She didn't comment. What difference would that make? "Good night, Gail. And don't think too much." She threw over her shoulder and proceeded to go where she was going.

Gail grunted in return. Her thoughts had turned to Holly and their interaction in the lab earlier that day. The future of the universe wasn't the only thing she was dreading. Gail had no idea what they would be talking about. What did she want to hear from Holly anyway? Did she want Holly to say that she wasn't worth it? Or did she want her to refute everything? In reality, though, was she really worth being with Holly? She had to wonder if she deserved her or not. From the time she had become aware of her feelings for the older woman, she had been a mess; a muddle of self-doubt and insecurities. She wasn't a fool. She knew what ever Holly felt for her was true and genuine. She could see that as clear as a day. But then what was the problem? Did she not want this to continue?

She hunched over her bench and pulled up a file to complete the reports for tonight and kept thinking. Her lips curled at the corners a little when she flashed back to their first meeting. No matter what, anytime she thought about the Forensic Pathologist, she always thought about their first meeting. Holly had taken each snide comment in stride and not once complained. With time, Gail had discovered that the older woman herself had an impressive penchant for sarcasm. It was endearing. And maybe that was the reason why they had clicked instantly. She had felt so much at home in the lab that first day; it wasn't just the silence and morbidity of that place that appealed to her conscience. It was also the presence of Holly that had provided her with a certain level of comfort, an ease that she hardly felt with someone so early after meeting them.

She knew it was unfair to compare what she had with Holly with all her previous relationships. But she couldn't help herself. What she had with Chris was a caring relationship that involved sex for some time. That feeling, the care and affection, she still felt for Chris. She valued him too much as a friend. The romantic side of it had vanished and she strangely didn't feel bad about it. In truth, she thought they were better as friends, very good friends.

With Nicholas, though, oh that was a whirlwind she never wanted to endure! She had loved him with abandon when she was young. But he had shattered her heart with a betrayal she doubted she would ever forget. The second time, she knew she had made a mistake; from the beginning itself. She had pursued the relationship for all the wrong reasons. It was naive of her to think that this time, maybe, just maybe, the outcome would differ. In the end, she had been so dejected and angry that she had resorted to hurt them both.

But Holly...she didn't make her feel angry. She didn't make her feel inadequate in anyway. She didn't point out all her faults and blame the failure on her. She made her feel cherished. The way Holly saw her, it seemed like she had no flaws at all. Her gruff personality somehow transformed into a puddle of mush in Holly's company. She craved that feeling of acceptance Holly brought out in her. It didn't feel like an endless abyss full of deadly thorns. Sure, she stood at the edge, looking down, but she knew if she jumped, she would very easily keep floating; not collapse at the pit and lay bleeding with shards piercing all over her body, never collapse. So why couldn't she just make herself jump?

Holly fully intended to review the article but she just couldn't concentrate. Her scientific mind didn't cooperate. She thought back to what she had said to Gail earlier in the afternoon. Holly was at fault, not completely but somewhat. She knew that, she had known that all along. She had made attempts, though half-hearted. Once a day she would call Gail just to see if she answered. If not, she would leave a text to her, one scientific fact – completely useless – daily. In hindsight, though, she was in a way projecting that she was ready to talk when Gail wanted to. She wasn't going anywhere.

But she had stubbornly avoided Gail. She had to convince herself daily not to stalk her. She couldn't always be the one with an olive branch. She couldn't be the one to always seek Gail out. Gail had to learn to come to her too at times. They both had to meet somewhere in the middle, only then their relationship could work; not when Holly always had to go to the other side. Whatever, her self-respect or ego, it was that stopped her from overwhelming Gail with apologies and excuses, she was thankful to it. She knew the younger woman would not appreciate being cornered against her wishes. As for her apology, she would definitely do that tonight. Gail had agreed to have a civilized conversation. It was more than she wanted.

Holly checked the time. It was already fifteen minutes past nine. She left the laptop at the coffee table and went to the bedroom. There she took out her phone from charging and sorted through her call lists and messages. There was no message or missed call from Gail. Was she bailing out? Holly decided not to jump to conclusions, it never worked out well. She took the phone to the living room and dialled Gail's number. She settled back on the couch with a satisfied exhale.

"Hey," Gail's voice answered after the third ring.

Holly caught the resigned tone. "Hi," she greeted.

"I was just about to leave, sorry I am late," Gail explained. She was in the dressing room changing out of her uniform. She put the phone on speaker and leaned on the lockers.

Holly heard some scuffling and grunting from the other side of the phone. She didn't want the younger woman to feel obligated to come for dinner. She sounded tired too. "Gail, listen honey, if you are too tired or if you don't want to come, you don't have to, okay?" She provided an out and held her breath.

Gail fumbled with her undershirt hurriedly. She picked up her phone but it slipped. She cursed and turned off the speaker. "What?" She snapped. "No, Holly, no, no...no," her voice got softer with each 'no'. "I want to." She sat down on the bench with her uniform pants on and only in her bra.

Holly exhaled heavily, not caring if Gail had heard her relief. The police officer had definitely caught that. She smiled at realizing that the older woman was in fact looking forward to seeing her. Some of her anxiety disappeared.

"Okay," Holly whispered. She lay down on the couch and closed her eyes. It felt too good to talk to Gail after so many days. She didn't want it to end. "You sound tired sweetie," she said softly.

Gail's heart clenched at the softness of that simple observation. She slumped down and buried her face in between her legs. The sensation of what she might have lost suddenly clawed at her insides. Her breaths shortened and her throat closed. A stifling sob tripped out of her lips.

"Gail?" Holly worriedly asked.

"Here," Gail replied after a few moments. She breathed deeply a few times to compose herself. "I missed you, Holly," she confessed and sighed as if the burden of the whole world had been lifted off of her shoulders.

"I missed you too, Gail," Holly whispered lovingly. "I am sorry, honey. I am so sorry for everything," she couldn't stop herself from saying that.

Gail didn't say anything immediately. She knew it was an apology for everything that had happened in the pub. She wanted to give them both a chance to apologise face to face, in person. So she didn't say what she wanted to. Instead, she replied, "I know, Hol. I know."

They both remained silent for a few minutes, taking comfort from the hum of each other's breathing. Gail didn't want to delay anymore. She stood up and put on her t-shirt. As she started to take off her uniform pants she asked, "Chinese will do, right?"

Holly had only eaten a light breakfast at the airport in the morning. She was too hungry to choose. "Yeah, sure." She agreed. Then something struck her. "I can order in, Gail. By the time you reach the food will be here. You don't have to take a detour," she suggested.

Gail groaned in relief. She really didn't have the energy to go to a Chinese restaurant, place the order, wait for the take-out, pay, and then go to Holly's. "Thanks, Hol." She pulled up her black skinny jeans and snatched the leather jacket out of the locker. The jacket had become a regular of her wardrobe ensemble these days. "I will be there in twenty, okay?"

"Mmmhmm," Holly distractedly answered while shuffling through the bunch of menu cards in one of the kitchen draws. "Okay, see you soon."

"Yeah," Gail breathed out. "See you soon," she agreed.

No one disconnected the call for two long minutes.

"Holly, hang up," Gail griped while smiling widely.

Holly chuckled at their stupidity. "Gail, hang up," she retorted teasingly.

"Holly," Gail whined.

"Gail," Holly whined longer.

They both burst out laughing.

Gail relented. "Okay fine! You order in and I will be there in twenty. I am hanging up now." She warned. "I am serious." She proceeded as Holly kept laughing at the other end. "Nerd," she teased.

"Oh, yeah, like that will shut me up," Holly controlled herself enough to reply. Gail whimpered on the other end. "Okay, okay," she caved. "Bye," she said softly.

Gail could hear the smile in Holly's voice. "Bye," she whispered in return and finally hung up. She pulled on the black leather jacket, ran her hands a few times through her short hair and made her way out of the division waving distractedly to the other members in the bullpen.

Hopefully you all liked the chapter.

Feedbacks will be greatly appreciated.

The next chapter might take a few days. It will be all about their talk.

I wanted a lone chapter for that, so yeah this came out of nowhere.

Just kidding... ;))

Thank You.