Thank you for the reviews for the last chapter. Hope you enjoy chapter 11.

Small Animal

When Alex awoke, she saw that Gene had left, all though he had folded up his blanket along with an old newspaper that had "thanks Bolls" scrawled across one corner. She also found a yellow piece of paper on her doormat that must have arrived after Gene had left. It bore the words: Stay away from Luigi's.

Alex made herself a cup of coffee and brought that day's newspaper towards her and started circling job vacancies in red pen. Before long, her mind wandered, as it always did, to Gene Hunt.

They had always argued. Usually they argued over work, a policing method that Gene used that disagreed with her morals or a psychological profile that didn't match his gut instinct. Those fights were resolved within days if nor hours. They had to be if they were going to work together in such close quarters with such a tight group.

But she wasn't part of that tight group anymore. She couldn't walk into CID the next day and discuss cases with Gene as though they hadn't fought a few days before. There would be no closure. She wasn't really sure when she would see him next- unless she went to Luigi's. Alex didn't think she could face him without the distraction of work.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. She grimaced and went to open it, thinking that it was Gene to either apologise (yeah right) or continue their fight. When she opened the door, however, she saw that it couldn't possibly have been Gene as the knock had been too soft and too polite- and scared.

"Come in Chris."

"Thanks Ma'am," he said, nervously wiping his feet on her mat.

"You don't have to call me that you know," Alex replied without smiling but still she took two mugs from her cupboards and put the kettle on. She didn't want to hate Chris Skelton- she wasn't sure she could- but she felt loyalty to Shaz. "Tea?"

"Ta," Chris muttered, looking at the floor.

Neither of them said anything until the tea was brewed. Chris was scared and Alex didn't rush him. She took her time adding milk and sugar, giving him a few moments to collect his thoughts.

Finally he said, "Have you told Shaz?"

"No," said Alex, knowing exactly what he was talking about, "Have you?"

Chris shook his head. "She doesn't know. Leanne hasn't told her either, I think."

"You need to consider the possibility that she will, Chris," said Alex seriously, "They do live together after all."

A tear escaped from Chris' eye. "I didn't mean to, Ma'am. It was just a kiss, a stupid, drunken kiss and I didn't know how to stop. I love Shaz and this guilt is killing me."

He broke down into tears and Alex patted his arm sympathetically.

"Do you think I should beg Leanne to not tell her?" Chris asked when he had stopped crying.

"Do you think that's the right thing to do?" Alex asked.

"She can't know," said Chris, "It'll break her heart and she'd never speak to me again."

"She might forgive you," said Alex, "You said yourself, you were drunk, you didn't know how to stop and I know you love Shaz."

"She won't," said Chris miserably.

"Look, what if it was the other way around? What if Shaz had drunkenly kissed someone else? Someone that she didn't love or like romantically, she had just had too much to drink could you forgive her?"

"I-I dunno," said Chris, furrowing his brow in thought, "I would be upset, really sad. But I guess… I love Shaz. I would forgive her."

"Would you prefer to hear it from her? Or from the other guy?"

"From her," replied Chris, reluctantly.

"What if… what if the other man was Ray? Your best friend?"

"That's different. That's not what happened," said Chris shortly, his fingers tightening around his mug so much his knuckles turned white.

"Your best friend, her best friend," said Alex, "Same difference."

Chris' hand relaxed but not because he was relieved. He put his half-empty mug on the side.

"I acted like a prick but the truth is, I love Shaz, more than anything. I can't lose her but I can't keep feeling guilty, keep panicking that Leanne is gonna say something."

"Then you know what you need to do, don't you?" said Alex gently.

XXX

Chris left Alex's flat feeling… not happy exactly but the small animal that had been chewing at his stomach seemed to be losing its appetite. He was going to do it. He was going to go to Shaz's flat right now and tell her. Get her to come for a walk or something and tell her. Get it over and done with so she could hate him or whatever. Chris thought he deserved that. He hoped she would forgive him.

Chris let himself in with his spare key. Shaz had given it to him ages ago when he was spending a ridiculous amount of time at work at night without her and she didn't want to get out of bed to let him in. He could have always gone back to his own place but then they would never have seen each other and probably have broken up.

The irony that the key that stopped them breaking up was now probably going to facilitate a breakup was not lost on Chris.

XXX

Twenty minutes later, Chris left Shaz's flat almost running. He knew he should go back to see DI Drake but he couldn't. He needed Shaz, needed to find her. No, not yet, he needed to think. Gather his thoughts.

Shaz had been out. Leanne had been in. And the small animal in his stomach was gnawing away with a vengeance.