A/N: Thanks again for wonderful multiple reviews! And Koezh for making me happy enough to have new ideas! =D Not that everybody else didn't make me happy. :P

Chapter 9

Lisbon stretched sleepily as her alarm blared. She rubbed her eyes and brought herself slowly into a sitting position. Her hand came into contact with the alarm and silence abruptly fell. Lisbon closed her eyes and contentedly smiled in the darkness and silence. Eventually, she got herself out of bed and headed for the ensuite bathroom...but was stopped in her tracks. She sniffed. Was that...cooked breakfast in the air? She wandered over in the direction of the door, making sure not to trip over anything, and stuck her head out. The sound of happy humming reached her ears and she remembered the little someone she'd let sleepover last night. She smiled, pulling herself back into the bedroom, and tousled her hair. Shower first.

Patrick flipped a fat American pancake in the frying pan and swiftly returned to the multiple ingredients littering the kitchen stove and sides. Scrambled egg, bacon, berries, strawberries, syrup. Lisbon needed a good, yummy breakfast after the stresses of yesterday. And pancakes seemed to fill the specification perfectly. Patrick hummed happily, sorting the ingredients into bowls and delivering them to the table, flipping the pancake onto a plate with its friends and pouring some more mixture into the pan somewhere in between. He would say that today felt like it was going to be a good day, but he'd said that yesterday...anyway. No more thoughts of yesterday. Focus on today.

Above the sizzling of the pancake in the pan, Patrick heard the shower turn on upstairs. Good. Lisbon was awake. Not long now before she'd discover the great feast. Of pancake.

Van Pelt sat heavily into her chair in the bull pen. She wasn't sure whether she felt up to working more of the Red John case file, but it was her job, and it needed to be done. She hadn't been able to unearth anything yesterday. So she had her fingers crossed that something would soon appear today. And she also had her fingers crossed that they would see Jane and Lisbon today.

As she sipped on a mug of hot coffee, briefly casting a glance over at Rigsby, who now somehow seemed to be a state of perfect health again, she suddenly remembered one vital piece of material that she'd forgotten yesterday. She almost slapped herself. What an idiot. Surveillance. There had to be something on surveillance. At least Red John leaving, if not getting in a car. She slammed her mug on the desk and shot out of the bull pen, causing Cho and Rigsby to look up, with confusion written on their faces, a hint of worry on Rigsby's.

Lisbon stepped out of the shower into the steaming bathroom fifteen minutes later and wrapped a towel around her slender form. She flicked her dark wet hair over her shoulder and wiped a clear patch onto the steamed up mirror. She briefly glanced at her reflection and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She looked tired. Then again, she wasn't really surprised. Yesterday had been shattering, and now that she looked back on it, it almost felt like it hadn't been her. Everything that had happened, everything that had taken her over was alien now. Oh, apart from many a thing concerning Patrick Jane. Yes, she still felt that. Those feelings were too strong to be going anywhere. Maybe a little stronger than she'd like to admit...

She quickly exited the bathroom and walked through her darkened bedroom to the wardrobe. She picked out a black vest top and a pair of straight cut trousers, her jacket already hanging on the back of the slightly crippled door. She slung them on the bed and swiftly dried off, dressed, and dried her hair, lastly applying a touch of makeup at the dressing table. Finally ready, she made her way downstairs, the smell of pancakes filling her nose. Slowly approaching the kitchen, she set her gaze on Patrick, doing a little dance as he worked away at the breakfast. She couldn't help the smirk rising onto her face.

'Having fun?' she asked, moving into the room, amusement lining her voice.

Patrick shot round, frying pan in hand, providing almost enough motion to send the pancake flying across the kitchen.

He grinned. 'How are you this morning?'

'Good...thanks,' Lisbon smiled, 'Pancakes?'

'Mhm,' Patrick replied, turning back to the stove.

Lisbon cast her eyes across the array of ingredients and the piled up plate of pancakes littering the table.

'Haven't you been busy? How long have you been up?'

'A while.' Patrick replied, his voice temporarily losing the happy tone. The insomnia still wouldn't go. Not even in a different place. Not even when the previous day had contained strawberry hunts and the discovery of Lisbon's crush on him. It still persisted. And that's why the daylight was one of the best things in the world.

But Patrick promptly pulled himself out of that depressive hole and put a smile back on his face, flipping the last pancake onto the plate and flicking the stove off.

'Pancakes!' he declared, looking over his work.

Lisbon looked up at Patrick's happy face. How childish, yet fun, and wonderful he could be to have around. She really did love him sometimes...well...she loved him all the time really. She just didn't like him some days. He created too much paperwork...but hey. Today was no time to complain about paperwork.

Patrick quickly rushed around to the other side of the table, pulling Lisbon's chair out for her.

'Madame,' he smirked, sweeping his hand, inviting her to sit.

Lisbon smiled amusedly at him and took her place. 'Thank you.'

Patrick nodded and moved round to his chair, sitting and grinning at Lisbon.

'Tuck in!'

Van Pelt sat in the surveillance room, concentrating fully on the footage that whirred away on the screen. Quarter past five was it? Somewhere around there. She stared at the CBI building entrance, everybody's activities from yesterday, zooming past in high speed. And then she saw him. She slammed the play button and watched as the Asian man made his way from the building, a badly hidden smirk on his face.

She watched as he exited the gates as if nothing had happened. She watched as he left, walking straight past the security without a sound. And she watched as he disappeared from the view of the camera. Heading left. That gave them...something? Maybe somebody would have seen him? Be able to give them something else on where he was headed.

Before she left, Van Pelt quickly rewound and enhanced the picture, taking a snapshot of him. A snapshot of his face, as he briefly glanced round. She noted the blood spots only just visible on his wrists as his hands dug deep into his coat pockets, and the small blood spatters on his trouser legs. The guards wouldn't even have noticed it.

Patrick and Lisbon climbed into Lisbon's car after breakfast, sufficiently full of pancake. Patrick had lost the fight to drive, ending up in him getting the last pancake as consolation. He kept insisting that his driving skills were fine. Lisbon just had an irrational fear. He sat in the passenger seat, a mock grumpy expression on his face.

'Oh, pull yourself together, Jane. You can drive your own car. Not mine.'

'We really must get you over your fear Lisbon. My driving's fine and you know it.'

'No it's not.'

'You trusted me in that sports car. And yet you won't trust me in a normal car. What's with that?'

'A sports car is different.'

'No it's not.'

'Oh shush. You're not driving. Just be happy with the pancake.'

Patrick felt a smirk pulling up the corner of his mouth as he watched Lisbon's expression crumple into concentration. She leant over and pushed the key into the ignition, bringing the engine spurting to life.

'Rigsby?'

'Yeah? You alright?' Rigsby asked Van Pelt as she came back into the bull pen looking a little flustered.

'Yeah. I found sound surveillance footage of Red John leaving the building. We could ask people whether they've seen him? And where he's going.'

Rigsby nodded. 'Sounds good. Cho?'

'I'll stay here,' the other agent replied quietly, sifting through a pile of papers.

'Okay,' Rigsby joined Van Pelt as they mounted the elevator and descended down towards the car park.

As the elevator dropped, Rigsby side glanced at Van Pelt. Why did he always feel nervous around her?

His hand brushed hers gently. Van Pelt turned her head towards him.

'Hey...' He gave her a weak smile.

'Hey,' Van Pelt smiled. She saw the way he looked at her. She could tell how much he liked her. Why couldn't she be as sure? She looked up into his penetrating eyes. Blushing, she turned her gaze away, looking anywhere but him.

Rigsby made to take her hand gently in his own, but the elevator doors pinged and the ground floor of the CBI could see them. Rigsby cleared his throat and left the elevator quickly.

Patrick tapped his thighs quietly, bobbing his head as if he was listening to music.

Lisbon cast another sideways glance at him and turned back to driving. She flicked the radio on. Patrick looked at Lisbon momentarily, pausing in his tapping. The corner of his mouth lifted as he watched her concentrate on the road. She was looking at him. And trying to hide it. But that little pink blush that grew on her cheeks told him everything. He smirked, looking out of the window at the white lines flashing past on the side of the road. He was glad she seemed to be back to normal today. He hated to see her like she had been yesterday. It hurt him. But now she was back to her usual self.

'You think they survived without us?' Patrick broke the silence.

'Hmm?' Lisbon brought herself back down to earth.

'You think they survived without us? Patrick repeated, a smile playing at his lips.

'I'm sure they were fine. They're big enough now,' Lisbon replied, watching the hard grey tarmac pass under the car.

'Lisbon?'

'Yes?'

'Why don't you just say it?'

Lisbon looked at him, 'Say what?'

Patrick raised an eyebrow.

'What?'

'It's plain as day you have a crush on me.'

If Lisbon wasn't awake beforehand, she definitely was now, as she swerved on the road momentarily. She brought the car back under control, her heart pounding. She couldn't tell whether that was because of the car swerving or because of what Patrick just said.

'I don't have a crush on you, Jane! Are you insane?' she scoffed.

'Lisbon. Don't deny it. I know that's your number one favourite thing to do around me...but it's just not gonna work.'

'And what makes you think I have a crush on you?'

'Oh, I don't know,' Patrick replied, looking out the window, 'Maybe the dream, maybe the way you keep casting a sideways glance at me...? Or maybe the way you kept throwing yourself into my arms yesterday?'

'Don't talk that way about yesterday, Jane. I was vulnerable. And no, I don't like to admit that, but yesterday was a bad day.'

Patrick silenced for a moment. 'You still have a crush on me.'

'No I don't!'

'It fascinates me when you lie, Lisbon.'

'I'm not lying!'

Patrick smirked. 'I think someone disagrees with youuu.'

'Shut up.'

Patrick's smirk widened as he looked out of the window.

Lisbon looked at him in the corner of her eye.

Rigsby pulled up at the first house, glancing at Van Pelt briefly before putting on the handbrake.

'Ok. First house. You wanna do it?' Rigsby asked.

'Aren't we both doing it?'

'Well...yeah.'

'Come on then.'

Rigsby joined Van Pelt on the sidewalk and looked up at the fresh white washed house.

'Nice place.' Rigsby complimented, beginning to walk up the front path with a copy of the picture that Van Pelt had pulled from the surveillance footage. He knocked on the front door and stood back a few steps, waiting for a reply. Van Pelt stood quietly behind him, ready to show her badge when the door was answered. Eventually the door swung open a crack and an old woman peered outside.

'Hello, ma'am. Agent Rigsby. Agent Van Pelt. CBI.' He introduced, holding up his badge.

'Y-Yes?' the old lady replied timidly.

'We were wondering if you'd seen this man. Yesterday.' He provided the photo.

'U-um...I don't think so, dear. Sorry.'

'Ok. Well, thank you for your help.' Rigsby nodded politely.

'Ok...' the lady replied, shutting the door carefully.

'One down...' Rigsby murmured, heading back to the sidewalk and onto the next house, Van Pelt in pursuit.

Bosco fidgeted under the bed sheets. Damn it. He badly wanted to go. He was losing his mind in here. And he'd only been here for half a day and a night. Not that he didn't trust Lisbon with his case. Of course he trusted her. It was just that he couldn't bear to sit around while Red John had escaped. He needed to investigate. Research. Look at surveillance. He wanted to do it himself. He was the one that got into an explosion. He felt like he needed to be the one finding him. Paying him back.

Well, at least his blood bag had been removed. That was one thing down. One step closer to getting out. He wondered if he would be able to walk. The wood had been removed...no muscle damage by some sort of miracle. God, Mandy would freak when she found out...

Bosco shut that thought out of his head and picked himself up, swinging his legs gingerly over the side. He had to start trying to walk at some point. He removed the pads and wires that he was hooked up to. He touched his bare feet down on the cold laminate floor and winced as pain shot up his leg. He grabbed the IV stand for support and pulled himself up, shifting his weight onto his good leg, working up the confidence to put some weight on the worse one.

He carefully pressed his foot onto the floor and leant forward. He ignored the spiking pain and pulled his other leg forward, stumbling slightly as the weakness stopped his injured leg from functioning properly. Bosco hissed in pain, pulling himself up to full height again. He could feel the stitches pulling at his thigh. Next step...

Lisbon pulled into the car park after passing through the guards at the entrance. She brought the car to a halt in a free space and applied the handbrake with a loud creak. She undid her seatbelt and seemed to shoot out of the car seat and onto the tarmac, not really wanting to stay in the car with that annoying consultant much longer. She didn't need him to know that she was unearthing feelings for him. But she guessed she was stupid for thinking that he wouldn't find out. He knew everything. He always did. She clicked the key, setting off the automated locking system as soon as Patrick was out.

She entered the building ahead of Patrick, greeting a few people as they greeted her. She got into the elevator and hit the button, waiting for the doors to close. If Patrick didn't make it in in time, he would just have to ride alone.

But as it was, he did make it time. As Lisbon thought, the elevator slowly rising, she suddenly realised that being in a grump with him for the rest of the day probably wasn't the best course of action. Surely, that would provide even more evidence that what he said was true? Even though it was, she was just going to try and deny it to him. She would always have to live with the fact that she had feelings for him. But that was just life.

Ugh. Love was a pain in the ass. Just like Jane!

A/N: Reviewsies. (this is my new word) =D