A/N: Hope you like this chapter. I will warn you. It's very angsty. But do not fear, all will end well. I'm not one for angsty endings...usually. But not with this fic. Please read and review. Let me know whatcha think. Enjoy.


The soft snick of her door closing was like the sound of a gavel in a courtroom, signaling the end of their relationship. Final. Finished. Completed. That soft sound, quiet in the deafening silence which enveloped her condo, instigated a barrage of tears that seemed never-ending. Six plus months of denied grief came down on her shoulders and Calleigh's slender form couldn't take the weight. Christ, what had she done? In a matter of under an hour, she'd broken up with her boyfriend and lost her best friend.

I'm done playing games, Calleigh. I'm done with you.

But she hadn't been playing games. None of this was a game to her. She'd done what she thought was best at the time and let Eric move on, even though something inside had died a little. She'd moved on too and gotten involved with a man she knew now she had no business becoming intimate with. Jake hadn't deserved what he got from her and now she'd lost a friend.

And as for Eric… I'm done with you. A fresh set of tears spilled over onto flushed cheeks. He wanted nothing to do with her, as he'd said. She'd lost the man she loved. And for what? To protect herself. For the first time, she admitted the truth. She hadn't broken up with him because she wanted to protect him. She hadn't told him about them after the shooting not because she wanted to make things easier for him, but to make things easier for her. Selfish concern for her own heart motivated her actions, not any altruistic concern for her partner, her lover. She'd never been in love like that before. Jake had been her first true grown-up love while they were in the Academy. But even the memories of that time paled in comparison to the knowledge of what she'd felt for Eric. She'd loved him like she'd never loved anyone else.

Such a short time! It was such a short time from when they started dating to feeling that way about him. He'd always been there for her, five years of friendship, and she'd barely entertained the idea of the two of them as a couple. Once or twice, she'd fancied asking him out, but never seriously, simply because they worked together and she'd been down that road before: dating a co-worker, losing colleagues' respect, losing his respect, and ultimately, her job. She'd had to change jobs, move an entire state away to get out from under the rumors, whispers, and gossip. She'd sworn she'd never do that again. And yet she'd found herself in exactly that position, or the early stages at least. Somewhere under all that feeling for Eric had been a core of fear. Fear it wouldn't last. Fear he'd lose respect for her. Fear she'd lose her co-workers' admiration and respect. Fear she'd lose everything she'd worked so hard to obtain. And so, she acknowledged, she'd sabotaged their budding relationship just as they'd begun to comprehend exactly how they were feeling.

She hadn't realized just how much she would miss him. In those weeks immediately after the break-up and then again, after he returned to work after being cleared for duty, she tried to put on a brave front at work, pretending nothing was wrong, acting so damn professional…but inside…on the inside…when she went home at night, things were different. The walls came down and the tears came to the forefront, tears she had to suppress during the daytime hours when they worked a case together. Holding her breath when he walked by so she wouldn't get a noseful of that woodsy masculine scent that was Eric's personal cologne. Tensing her body just slightly when he got too close, bracing herself for the intense awareness of his heat pressed close to hers…

And now…now it was so much worse. At least then she'd known, on a subconscious level, that it was a possibility they could get back together. Those three short weeks before the shooting, she'd caught herself thinking a couple of times that maybe, maybe she could get over her fears and let herself be happy. But each time something had stopped her. The fear was greater than her love, she was ashamed to admit. And then after the shooting even as she'd made the conscious decision not to tell Eric, she'd irrationally hoped, however dimly a possibility, that he'd recall their relationship on his own, take the decision, the choice, out of her hands and confront her directly.

Well, she'd gotten her wish, however poorly thought out it was, and now she had no one but herself to blame. It was so completely different from what she'd envisioned, but really? How could she have thought it would end any other way? Eric wanted nothing to do with her. He was angry, pissed off, betrayed by her. A bitter laugh escaped briefly before being silenced by the press of her lips. Now he knew the truth and nothing she could say or do was going to bring him back.

Regret was a cold blanket over her body as Calleigh rocked back and forth slightly to comfort herself. She was alone. She'd lost him. As much as she wished him with her, the reality was he wanted nothing to do with her. The air conditioning kicked in and a desolate hum from the machine started cold air circulating throughout the condo. And for some reason, the combination of the utter silence in the room and the complete lack of warmth had Calleigh feeling more alone than she'd ever felt before. Pulling a throw from the back of the sofa, Calleigh curled up tightly on the sofa, nuzzled the soft fleece, trying to divine some warmth from the fabric. Eric had been her warmth. Her blanket. Her everything for six brief, all too brief months. A bleak thought lit in her mind as she cried herself to sleep. I'll never be warm again.

Eric rubbed gritty eyes as he walked into the lab. The previous night or rather morning hadn't left him with much time for sleep. And even if he'd had eight full-uninterrupted hours to dedicate to the activity, he suspected it still would not have come to pass. Not after what he'd learned. Thinking about Calleigh's deception had kept him up the remainder of the night and he hadn't even gotten fifteen minutes sleep before the sun was rising over the horizon and it was time to get ready to go to work. No matter how pissed off he might be at Calleigh, there was work to be done and Eric wasn't one for taking off without a damn good reason. And in his estimation, wanting to call in sick just to avoid her wasn't a good reason.

So he dragged himself into the office, having tossed his dress shirt from the night before into the dryer to get the wrinkles out and redressed in that and white Chinos. Inexplicably, Eric found his eyes wandering to every corner of the lab, searching for silky blonde straight hair as though she'd magically appear. It had him scowling in earnest at the thought he was actively searching her out. What the hell for? He shouldn't even be thinking about her right now.

Heading into the locker room, he snagged his lab coat from his locker and walked over to Fingerprints to start manually hunting for a match on several prints taken from the nightshift the evening before. He snapped on the latex gloves he acquired from a box inside the glass walls and went to town.

It wasn't long before he was absorbed into his task. So absorbed he failed to notice a presence behind him until a soft voice cleared the throat. Instantly, before he'd even raised his eyes from the magnifying glass, he knew who was behind him and he wasn't in the mood.

"Eric, please give me a cha—" Calleigh started.

Eric rose swiftly from his hunched-over position and confronted her. "A chance to explain, Calleigh? Explain what? I think you said enough last night," he said furiously in a low voice, trying to keep his voice from carrying to the outside world. The lab's walls were constructed of glass, as was pretty much every department, and the last thing he wanted was for his co-workers to get into his business.

"Eric, there's a lot I still need to explain," Calleigh replied quietly, fidgeting slightly, wanting to move closer, but wanting to respect his personal space.

Eric moved swiftly into her, into her personal space, and whispered furiously, "Damn you, Calleigh. Did it ever occur to you that I neither want nor need any more of your fucking explanations? There's nothing you can say that could erase what you did to us six months ago!"

His voice had risen slightly with each word, such that several curious co-workers passed by seemingly innocently, but in reality, they were fishing for information to feed the gossip mill. Tension was expressed in every line of his body and several wondered just what the duo were discussing. Obviously something of a personal nature. No one got this worked up over business.

He backed off instantly, giving her breathing room. "I'm done talking, Calleigh. I just…can't talk to you right now. Maybe not ever, I don't know. Just leave me alone, please," he added, the last sentence unwittingly taking on a pleading tone. Calleigh's face crumpled for a split second and Eric saw past the brave front to the vulnerable woman beneath and he had to fight with himself not to reach out. Not to touch and hold. Comfort and console.

Calleigh's vulnerable side disappeared an instant later and Eric had to wonder if he'd imagined that single sadness-tinged moment. Her unflappable exterior was back and the composed, rational side to her personality took over, walking out of the room without another word spoken, clearly giving Eric what he so desperately needed.

Calleigh walked as swiftly as she could to the firing range without arousing anyone else's suspicions. The confrontation with Eric had been a mistake, she realized. Just one more gallon of gasoline to fuel the fire that was the gossip over her and Eric. The rumor mill had always revolved around the two of them: did they? Or didn't they? Will they, won't they? It was one thing or another, but until the last year, none of it had been true and she'd been able to unequivocally deny anything was going on. But if today was any indicator, the mill would be working in overtime. She'd gotten nowhere with Eric and taking a chance had only put them back in the spotlight. As well as started the bleeding on the open wound that was her heart.

His words had been harsh, but heart-felt and true. She always knew when he was lying and he hadn't been then. He really didn't want to talk to her, not now, maybe not ever, she recalled his words.

Having reached the range, Calleigh let herself go on autopilot and prepped for a couple of rounds of target practice, a ritual which almost never failed to center her. Because that was exactly what she needed. She felt her center was out of place. Just like months earlier, it was the same feeling. This pain, never-ending it seemed, but this time, sharper, harder, edgier, because Eric's emotions were so much more than before.

And that was how Horatio found her—focused on the target, so focused, she didn't even realize he was there until she finished her last clip and he said softly, "Calleigh." She jumped slightly at his low voice and placed her weapon on the table before turning to him.

"What's up?" Calleigh tried for bright, but she suspected she failed as he narrowed his eyes at her and she had to suppress a wince.

"Homicide on North Miami Boulevard. Take Eric," he said.

Calleigh definitely had to suppress a grimace and he must have seen a glimpse of something in her eyes. Pain. Fear. Anguish maybe, because Horatio looked at her in concern. "Is there something wrong? Is everything okay with you and Eric?"

She didn't want to air her, their, dirty laundry and so she forced a smile. "Of course not. Eric's fine. I'm good. I just know Eric's busy looking over some prints."

"Not anymore. I just came from him. He's getting geared up as we speak," Horatio said briefly before looking into her eyes once more. Seemingly satisfied by whatever he saw, he turned and walked out of the range, leaving Calleigh alone.

Great. Just what she needed. Several hours of interaction with a man who couldn't stand to be around her. This day was just getting better and better…