"You okay? You're quiet," Jemma said as they walked into the precinct.

"I'm fine," he told her.

Leonard doesn't know why that hug was getting to him. It wasn't the first time they've touched each other and it certainly wasn't gonna be the last, there was just something about it that had his attention. Jemma's emotions were off. That had to be it. Instead of controlling her feelings, they've been on full display today. Which meant that she cares about him. He doesn't know how much or in what way but she does and, today, she wasn't afraid to show him.

She wasn't alone in her feelings. Leonard cared about her too. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Jemma stopped being just his partner and friend, she was more than that. How much more, he didn't know but she was right, people talking about her pissed him off and people disrespecting her made him want to hit something. A few words and smile from her seemed to calm years of anger and angst. The best way to describe it was a crush but crushes were for children and this wasn't childish at all.

"I really am fine, darlin'," Leonard smiled before an officer told them that Pike wanted to see them in one of the conference rooms. They joined Pike, Uhura and Stiles.

"This is our bomber, Simon Lynch. We're working on a current address for him," Pike said. "We tracked his credits to the delivery of some electronic equipment."

"This is what we got from his dating profile," Uhura told them. The profile came up on the screen.

"'Shy and Looking'? Yeah, shy, looking, and deadly," Stiles shook head. Leonard hated to agree with him.

"That's classic," Jem chuckled.

"Her personality's a little off-kilter today," Leonard told their CO.

"A little?" Stiles asked.

"Well, you should've given her charge priority," Uhura pointed out.

"Oh, please," Stiles rolled his eyes.

"You didn't?" Pike asked Stiles. The detective looked at their CO with wide eyes, he knew he screwed up. "Dammit, Stiles. Her emotive functions are the first thing to take a hit when she's trying to conserve power. Keep an eye her, McCoy. I've seen Jemma at ten percent, it would've been hilarious if we weren't being shot at."

"Can we get back to the case, people?" Jemma asked.

"We can," Chris smiled. "Jeannie Hartman fled the date before it was over, went onto the forums telling women to stay away. Ramon Medina turned Lynch down for a loan citing him as 'unstable and unqualified.' He's getting revenge on that people that rejected him in some way."

"It's about control and humiliation," Uhura sighed.

"It gets worse: Lynch was accepted to the police academy," their CO told them. "He trained on the bomb squad, he was kicked out due to psych issues by Sergeant James Morton. We've got a protection detail on him, and we're flagging anyone who might have had a conflict with Lynch. His address looks current. So, Stiles, assemble a tactical team. McCoy, a moment." Everyone left the two men alone in the room. "Are you gonna be able to keep her in check in the field with these mood swings?"

"She's a little edgy, but nothing I can't handle. It's honestly no worse than me. Now I know how she feels. I got her. She'll be okay," Leonard said.

"If you think it's okay, I trust your judgement."

Where the hell was he? The last thing he remembered, he was at Lynch's place with Jem and Stiles. CSI radioed that they had something for him, he walked over to the command vehicle, then he was out. Now he was sitting on a bench, in a jacket that wasn't his, with something around his neck.

"What the hell?" he muttered. There was a bomb on his neck and his leg was cuffed to the bench. His phone started to ring, he took a breath then answered it. "Lynch, I presume."

"Detective McCoy, you ready to play?" the voice asked and Jeannie was right, it was creepy.

"Look, if you want to kill me, Lynch, go ahead. But the people in this square have done nothing to you," Leonard told the maniac. It wasn't gonna help, but it couldn't hurt.

"It's true, but you did," Simon told him. "If there's collateral damage, so be it. Let's go over the rules. One, if you alert anyone to the fact that you have enough explosives under your coat to level a building, I'll detonate the charge. Two, if the cops or the bomb squad come close to you, I'll detonate the charge. This time, that pretty partner of yours can't help, you're on your own. Three, if the police try to evacuate the area, I'll detonate the charge."

"At least let us evacuate the park," Leonard tried.

"Oh, my viewers wouldn't like that. They want a good show and you're a big star. You're gonna help me get my viewers back," Simon said.

"Well, pal, it doesn't seem like you're giving me much of a chance," Leonard huffed.

"I'm giving you a chance. Have a look under the bench," the psycho told him. Leonard found a screwdriver and a pair of wire cutters in a case under him. "You like to disarm bombs and save people? Like to be a big hero? Then save yourself, hero. The whole world's your stage."

Leonard used the screen on his phone to take a look at the bomb. He had less than eleven minutes to disarm this thing. He remembered what Jemma said earlier, it's not the red or yellow wire, and don't touch green. The lead wire was in the back, he just had to get to it.

"We're not so different, you and me," Simon said.

"Last time I checked, I wasn't a homicidal maniac," Leonard said as he tried to see inside the bomb.

"You forget, Detective, I have access to trashed data. I went through everything that I could find about you."

"I'm flattered."

"I know about the raid. I know that you didn't just lose your leg. See, those men died because of decisions you made."

"You're right, they did. Some of them were my friends and I have to carry the weight of that day with me forever. That doesn't make us the same. At the end of the day, they were killed by terrorists. You are a terrorist."

"I disagree," Simon said. "People didn't want you back on the force. See, we've both had bad psych evaluations. The difference is that you got a second chance. But not me. I got kicked out of the Police Academy. That black mark has followed me forever. That's why I couldn't open the bar. That's why I couldn't get a loan."

"To get back on the force means I left, I never left, I was on medical leave in a coma. My psych eval was a recommendation, one that was ignored by my captain because, despite my bad attitude and disdain for most synthetics, I'm good at what I do. It's why I'm here now. I save people and it pisses you off," Leonard chuckled. "I feel for you, pal. I mean, where is a psychopath to get a bank loan these days?"

"I said no cops!"

"I didn't call them. You did. You're broadcasting this, they figured out where I was. Don't worry, all but a handful of them couldn't care less if I died. My partner would care, my captain too. A few others but that's it. I wouldn't be surprised if they were taking bets. I mean, the last time I was blown up, I ended up in a coma and woke up with a synthetic leg. Maybe my head'll just need replaced this time."

"If they evacuate, I'm blowing you and them to hell right now," Simon told him. Leonard tried to concentrate on the task at hand but he ended up flinging the screwdriver out of reach. "That was bad luck. What are you going to do now?"

What the hell? Leonard looked around, and that's when he spotted it. A relic laying on the concrete a few feet away from him. He got on the ground and stretched as far as he could reach. His fingers barely touched the small piece of metal but he kept trying.

"Ah, trying to get the token. You think that you can use it to separate the wires. You better hurry. People are getting excited. They want me to blow you up," Simon told him.

"Yeah I'm getting kind of excited myself," Leonard said just as his fingers gripped the token. Lynch was right, he was gonna wedge it into the bomb to hold the wires apart. "These people don't care if you blow me up or if you kill yourself. They just want a show."

"Those are bold words, considering I can obliterate you and everyone around you."

"You could but that wouldn't be fair, now would it? You wanted me to play. Or are you going to rig it so I can't win, like you did with Ramon?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"He had less than a minute but he was ten miles from the address that we found, so he would've blown up before he even got close. You know that."

"You don't understand. My black marks just kept following me around. See, people should've respected me like they do now," Simon told him.

"You gotta earn respect. This ain't it. These people don't give a damn about you, just the show you put on. When you're done, they'll move on to the next person that shows them what they want to see. None of it gives you the right to kill people."

"Tell me you never killed anybody."

"I'm a cop, it's part of the job. Every time I do, it stays with me. I think about the mothers who will never see their child again. The children who won't see their parents again. It doesn't go away when the shift ends."

"You hide behind a uniform. Game over, Detective," Lynch said just as Leonard cut the wire and the clock stopped at two seconds. The next voice he heard shocked the hell out of him.

"Suspect is secure. My power's deple…" it was Jemma.

"Someone get this damn thing off of me so I can help my partner," Leonard yelled.

"I got her, McCoy," Stiles said. He doesn't know what happened, but he could hear the respect in Stiles' tone. "I got her."

"What are we drinking to?" he asked Chris as the other man poured him a drink of the good stuff he hides in his desk.

"Winning."

"Here's to winning."

"How's your partner?" Chris asked.

"Jemma's charging. Apparently, she climbed the side of the tower to get to Lynch and used the last of her power to stop him. Stiles is impressed that she risked her life like that for me. He even feels bad that he didn't give her charge priority."

"You know, I gotta admit, I'm gonna miss her mood swings. They're kind of hilarious."

"You have no idea. What did the doctors say about Lynch?" Leonard asked.

"Severe electrical burns, but he'll live. Open and shut case, he recorded it and there are over a thousand witnesses. Just… don't put me in a room with them."

"You know, as crazy as that guy was, he was right about one thing: Black marks, they do follow you around. Sometimes, I walk through this precinct and the way people look at me…"

"Don't do that. Don't let him into your head. You've done nothing but a great job since you've been back," Pike smiled.

"Well, I got you to thank for that. You fought for me. And if you hadn't ignored that psych report, I would sulking at home."

"There was a psych report?" Chris asked with a smile. "I got something for you."

"Why are we here? Your apartment is next door," Jemma said.

"We're fixing your charging problem," he smiled.

"I don't have a problem, I'm fully charged," she chuckled.

"That's not what I meant. Welcome home," Leonard smiled.

"What?" Jemma's eyes widened.

"There's a docking station in the back room. The couch, desk and bed are Scotty and Uhura's doing. The guitar is one of mine, saw you eyeing it the last time you were over, figured I could let you borrow it. If you need something, or want something, there's a credit chip linked to you. It's a stipend from the department, since you're technically city property, they can't pay you wedges, this is a compromise. Because you have to be monitored, Chris, Scotty, Uhura and I are all keyed into the locks. We'll make sure to knock though. Other than that, it's all yours."

"I… how…?"

"You know my mother's family has money," he said. Jemma nodded, she's read his file. "She brought the building for me years ago. There's no rent and the utilities are covered."

There were four apartments in the building when his mother brought the oceanfront property on the southern edge of Mission Bay near Dogpatch. She renovated the medium living spaces into two large apartments. Leonard had the one and the other stayed empty. He thought about renting it but then the ambush happened, he was in a coma and after he woke up it was the last thing he wanted to think about.

When Chris talked to the brass about letting Jemma move, Leonard's offer to let her live with him was the one they thought made the most sense. They still see him as unstable, and she has to be monitored off-duty, so letting her live with him killed two birds with one stone. Jemma got the space she needed and the department got to keep an eye on them both.

"We had all your stuff moved from the locker room and Scotty's. Uhura added some stuff she thought you'd like. Is this okay?"

"Okay? It's perfect. Thank you," Jemma smiled and, for the second time today, she was in his arms. This time, he hugged her back.

"You're welcome, darlin'."