Chapter 12, Love Works in Strange Ways

Wash

The heat from Mass's limp body next to me was keeping the cold air from my apartment from freezing me. Her breathing even and soft as she lie asleep next to me, her bare body covered up to her mid-back.

For what seemed like the thousandth time, I ran my fingers up from the arch of her back up to her neck. Of course, I got no response from her and hadn't the thousand other times I'd done it, but I couldn't stop, like a bad habit.

Faint, blue morning light was seeping through the blinds and lighting up the area next to her bedside, making me think of a song title I couldn't quite place. Dark Blue? Something like that, I just didn't listen to enough music to remember.

I leaned down towards her shoulder, feeling every part of her I could as I did so. Her legs, her side, her back…

My lips gently pressed to her shoulder blade.

It was foreign to feel any of this, or, it seemed that way.

So long of being alone, so many nights of wondering if there was possibly someone who could even feel for me after all the coldness I'd gone through. I'd wondered if it was possible for me to be in a relationship after Epsilon. After he'd broken my soul and destroyed my mind.

Then again, I tried to remind myself painfully, it's possible that this is nothing more then a one night stand.

I gnashed at the thought, leaning away from her. What if this was all she wanted? "David?" I heard her groan and I tried to smooth my expression, but that wasn't easy. I struggled for a moment, then placed the hand I'd been running up and down, firmly on her shoulder.

"I'm here." I murmured. She was quiet after that. I listened to her more quicker and alert breathing now, barely hearing my own. It was almost jagged now instead of even like when she'd been asleep. I listened, not moving even enough to smile or frown.

"I'm surprised you stayed." She finally said. My eyes darted to her and ran up her form next to me.

"Why?" I stared at the back of her head expectantly. Well, if she didn't think I'd be here, why? There had to be some type of reason.

"You just don't seem like the type of guy to wait around for a girl after a night like last night." She sat up, not even attempting to cover herself up.

"I'm a very mysterious man." Even I knew that. Everyone knew that. She slipped on my shirt and buttoned up halfway, then turned to me, her ands on her hips. I stared at her in confusion, my eyes flitting to her body and then her face.

"Well?" I continued staring, confused more than I liked. "Are you gonna make me breakfast? Or do I have to do that?" I smiled, settling for her face finally.

"I think if I can handle you, I can handle a few eggs." She giggled, blushing red on her cheeks.

Break In

Church

I groaned, it was only five AM. Who the fuck got up at five AM? Not me! I glared at the ceiling that looked like it was lighting up a dark blue from the light seeping through the big window at the end of our bedroom. Urg.

Why had I woken up? Tex sure hadn't, so it wasn't the alarm. Maybe A dream I can't remember? I focused, closing my eyes and trying to think. Errrr…

…

…

Nothing. Either I'd completely forgotten it, or something else woke me up. But, what? Had Tex smacked me again in her sleep like a few days ago? I glanced at her with a glare. Her eyes were shut, her breathing perfectly even, facing towards me. It didn't seem that way.

Finally, I heard something, it sounded like something hitting the door downstairs. My eyes shot to the bedroom door that was wide open, Cobalt laying with his muzzle on his paws.

Was I crazy enough to hear something not really there?

I heard it again, only this time, it was loud. Cobalt stood up so fast in response he looked dizzy---swaying a bit. His dog tags rustled, clinking together loudly. Tex groaned and turned over, but didn't wake up.

Urg… somebody must be trying to break in.

I snuck from under the covers as Cobalt pranced over, panting. His little pink tongue hung out his mouth delicately. I patted his head, feeling his feather like fur.

Gingerly, I made it to our closet door and grabbed the bat leaning on it---don't ask why Tex put it there. If this asshole wanted in, I'd let 'em in. But once I did, I'd kick their ass.

Tex twitched as if she noticed I moved the bat, then stopped completely.

The sound stopped, I suddenly realized, heading out the doorway in a half crouch.

I heard it again, this time light like a tap.

I moved down the stairs carefully, feeling the cold air as it clung to my skin, then Cobalt's fir as he stayed next to my left.

My eyes fixated on the door until I was down, then I glanced around. The rest of what I could see looked intact. A shadow moved from under the door where the blue light shined through.

Cobalt whimpered as I gripped the knob with shaking hands. Careful…

As soon as I heard the sound of air moving through the air on the other side of the door--hissing---I opened the door.

It happened so fast after that I barely even realized what I was doing.

The intruder stumbled in, something in their hands and I lurched forward, nailing them in the back of the head. A disturbing cracking from their skull echoed through the house and they fell to the floor, the crowbar in their hand clinking down onto the floor.

When I finally made out who it was, my eyes grew wide. "Oh fuck. You retard! Are you okay?" Tucker groaned, rolling his head side to side. Retard!

Huh? What? You Idiot.

Director.

The sunset glows gold, yellows and blues, clouds, oblong stretched across the sun's surface. The heat lowers in this dream, feeling colder then I'd expected it to get, but she doesn't complain. No, she never complains. Not about this kind of stuff. Obviously a waste of breath. "Thanks for taking me here." she mumbled in my direction without even looking.

"Anything for you, Allie." She faced me, her face holding faint traces of a smile. I didn't know what to do except smile, but her beauty has me mesmerized.

"Do you love me?" I reached out, gently touching her cheek with my youthful hand without wrinkles or spider veins.

"Allie-we got a problem." My eyes shot open and I searched around my empty bed for the woman who couldn't be there. It was still pitch-black in my vision, so I ripped off my blindfold and reached for the phone on my nightstand. "Boss? Hey boss? Are you there?" I answered, pulling the receiver up to my ear.

"What happened now?"

"Oh, hey boss!" He never missed a beat.

"Maine, what is it you want at six thirty in the morning?" He chuckled.

"S'well, I made some mistakes and um… ordered the wrong type of metal. This stuff won't bend at all, not even with high levels of heat." I clenched my teeth and closed my eyes as my grip on the phone tightened.

He was such a retard! Could he do anything right? Doubt it.

"I hate you, you know that?"

"Yep!" Still, no loss of enthusiasm.

"I'll make out the paperwork to send it back." I sighed. "Where's it from?"

"Thailand." I opened my eyes.

"You're an idiot."

"Yep."

Know

Wash

"You know, you don't have to act this way, right?" Mass stated, sounding as if she just had to get that off her chest as soon as possible. My hands were tight on a frying pan with eggs sizzling in it loudly, my eyes on them and back turned to her.

"Act like what?" I demanded, not moving my eyes, but grabbing the spatula next to me. With that, I splashed he eggs with more grease. It sizzled a bit louder, then went back to its normal audio.

"You're acting kinda shutdown. Like, you have nothing to say, but yet, I can feel that you have tons of questions." My heart thumped hard now. Why was it she could break me? That she could make me feel so confused and scrambled? She could make my heart feel like it slammed against my ribcage? I didn't like the feelings I was getting, it felt childish.

But then again, I didn't feel like me. I didn't feel like Agent Washington, or David, or anyone else for that matter. At least, not anyone I recognized.

"David? Are you alright?" My heart thumped hard again.

"Yes, I'm fine… just… thinking." Maybe I was just so unfamiliar with this that I had to go through the teenage faze of this before I could act normal. Before I could feel like Agent Washington again.

The thought made me cringe, practically causing the grease to slush. How long could that take?

"Ask me any questions you have. I want to hear what you want to know. I want to know you." Now that felt weird. Someone wanting to know me. I was… I was me. No one ever bothered. No one until her.

"Why me? Of everyone?" The question sent her away, I could hear her breathing get even like she was dreaming again. I splashed the eggs again, trying not too focus too hard on her reaction. If there was someone else…

No, I thought. If there was someone else, I wouldn't care. Instead, I'd give her a reason to move on. Incase anyone's wonder, yes, I'm a fucking him home wrecker. If you've got a problem with that, don't bother me about it.

"You're so much more interesting and I can just see the way you act. You need someone to help you heal." I whipped around, bewildered, but getting a feeling I was being patronized.

"What the hell do you mean, HEAL?" Her expression was agape, shock of my reaction hitting her. She frowned, closing her mouth as soon as I didn't move from my defensive position in front of my stove with my arms crossed.

"as everyone knows, the epsilon unit-" I decided that was enough. This was worse then her having someone else.

"So, that's what this is about? Me, my Ai and what it did to me? You wanna FIX me? Is that it?" She shook her head, getting up from her spot at the island.

"It's not that it at all!" Her voice was getting defensive now too.

"Then, what is it? 'cause that's sure what it sounds like! And I don't take being patronized lightly." I glowered at her, feeling the tension in the air as tough as steel. Anytime two freelancers went at it, the tension got like this.

"Wash, please. I really didn't do it for that, but I want to help you too." Deciding to go back to the stove, I turned back to it and got the eggs off, onto a plate.

"How do you like your eggs?" I grumbled over my shoulder.

Stop the Presses!

Tex

"So, let me get this strait, Caboose called you and asked you to come on a date with him and his girlfriend?" Church repeated for what seemed like the hundredth time. My eyes flitted between the two of them. Tucker sat on the bumper of an ambulance and Church stood in front of him with one leg propped up next to him. An icepack was pressed to Tucker's head on the back where Church had whacked him with my bat.

Yeah, this was gold. Every second.

Not only did Caboose have a girlfriend, but church owned Tucker, Tucker tried to break into our house and now Tucker had to have a paramedic take a look at his head. Yeah, today was starting out great. Now, all I had to see to make my day was wash getting owned by something or someone.

"Dude, yes! He told me!" Tucker shouted, I leaned back in the rocker on the porch, sighing contently. And I get amusement without lifting a finger.

"How can I be sure? I mean, I did hit you pretty hard 'ya know." Tucker winced at the mention.

"I know what I heard." Church chuckled, moving back from the cyan moron.

"Tex, what are you doing?' My eyes darted to him as he moved up towards the house slowly and casually.

"Just sitting here."

'You look like you're enjoying the scene." I shrugged, trying to look natural.

"It's pretty funny, don't you agree?" He shook his head with a smile, going up the stairs.

"Not as funny as you with your dark humor and hatred of tucker."

"I don't hate Tucker, I just don't like him." Church sat down next to me as the paramedic moved out and started looking further at Tucker's injury.

"What do you think?"

"What?" I demanded, being sucked from my concentration on Tucker.

"Do you think caboose really has a girlfriend?" I shrugged casually, leaning forward in my seat, it creaked.

"Depends if you consider a GPS he calls Velma a girlfriend." Church laughed again. Knowing the idea could quite possibly prove to be real, he shrugged too.

"Well, I just hope whatever he does, it's human this time."

"Yeah…" I agreed, staring at Tucker again with an instant smile.

"Well, that was close." Tucker muttered, getting up. The paramedic shut the doors to the back and drove off down our drive, gravel crunching loudly beneath the tires. Before tucker could even get up the stairs to our porch, it had disappeared. "So, you think I should go on this date?"

"Do what you want." Church answered irately.

"Yeah, but I'll need a date too. Tex-' Before he could finish, I cu him off sharply.

"No."

'Aww…"

"stay away from my lady, dick." Church snapped. Though I didn't kow why he bothered replying at all.

"Guess I should get gong. Catch you guys later?" I felt both mine and church's glare on him. "maybe?' we continued. "I'll just call back in a couple weeks." He waved to us until he reached his car. The engine purred to life and he dove away with a single word.

The silence was a bit annoying.

Cobalt lied down at my feet, his dog tags scraping though wood and light panting filling the silence. My eyes didn't move from where Tucker's car had disappeared.

"Well… I'm… bored.. And tired." Church mumbled to himself, or maybe me, but I didn't care.

"Go to bed then." I answered flatly.

"Don't. I just almost gave Tucker a concussion. I don't need you being your usually bitchy self already."

"I didn't think you minded it anymore." I grumbled. His hand was on my shoulder just a moment after I finished.

"I don't mind it, but I'm not in the mood right now, alright?" I didn't answer. "I'm gonna go make some coffee."

My eyes flickered to his retreating back as he left. "Okay…" something was nagging at me, but I couldn't quite place my finger on it. Maybe it was something with Church, or maybe Tucker. But something didn't feel right.

(Sorry for long wait time! I've just got this huge project for the RvB fandom sucking out all my time like Edward Cullen on steroids(lol, lame). Hope you all liked it.)

Red vs. Blue After