A/N- Thank you all for the reviews. I thought I'd be updating more often but I am afraid too many episodes of One Tree Hill are rather distracting me from writing. This one's basically about the aftermath, and I know Peggy may sound rather OOC to a lot of you, but I picture her as a rather normal girl who likes letting her guard down, when she can afford to do so of course (not much since after the war, that we all know from what we've seen on the show). And since she's been all tough and strong for so long, I decided to explore what I think would be her slightly more... girly aspects, I guess, the whole falling for someone and that kind of thing. I hope you guys like it :)
That night Peggy went home rather late, having been at the office to try and tie the loose ends of their mission. She had been the one to inform Smith's family of his death. Rather than simply calling them and letting them know, she had made it a point to go visit his mother and tell her in person. She not only informed them of his death, but she felt it was her duty to tell them the whole story, of why her son had done what he had done, however wrong he had been. Needless to say, it had been nothing but painful to witness.
As she finally lay on her bed, she thought of how the day had been. How a normal day had been turned upside down- kidnapping, Russian assassins, finding Grekov, getting out of there alive, Jack…Jack freezing again, Jack overcoming it to stay by her side, the dead bodies of Smith and that woman…and finally, the ride to the infirmary, their conversation, and how her heart had almost melted when he said he said she was too important to him.
She had decided not to let anyone in, for the fear of losing them just like she had before, she knew her life was anything but normal and she knew that simple dinner might create complications in her life at the SSR and her friendship with Jack, but for once, she allowed her heart to take over the reigns from her calm and sensible mind, and just go with the flow.
The next morning, Peggy got up and as she was getting ready for work, she decided to go meet Angie on her way, since it had been days since she had had time to see one of her closest friends. Just as she had stepped inside the L&L Automat, she saw Angie on the counter, brewing a fresh pot of coffee.
"Well, look who decided to show up here!" said Angie, though she said it in a friendly way rather than being accusatory.
"Hi Angie, I am really sorry, but things have been crazy around the office, I just didn't have to come visit you" apologized Peggy as she dropped her bag on the counter and took a seat.
"It's alright. I can't even pretend to be mad at you when I am so happy. I have some great news!" said Angie, excitement evident in her tone.
"What is it?" asked Peggy.
"I got a call back from one of the producers from my last audition! They called me last evening. Well, they actually called the diner since I don't exactly own a telephone and this was the only number I could give them when they had asked. Can you believe it Peggy? They said they'd like me to come back for the next round of auditions!" she squealed.
"Oh that is absolutely wonderful Angie! I am so happy for you" smiled Peggy.
"I mean I know I haven't got the part yet but it's just me and these two other girls who've been asked to come again. Oh I really hope I get it!" said Angie.
"If those producers have any brains, they will choose you!" said Peggy, "I can see it now… Angela Martinelli, Broadway Star"
"Shut up English" laughed Angie, "there's still a long way to go"
"Hmm" Peggy nodded, "But it will happen"
"Although" said Angie, "Angela Martinelli, Broadway star does have a nice ring to it" and both of them laughed.
"So, enough about me, how's work going?" asked Angie.
"Well it's going rather well at the moment" replied Peggy.
"I know I am not allowed to really ask what it is that you really do, but given what I heard about dear Miss Dottie being some kind of an assassin, I really worry about you, English" said Angie in a concerned voice.
"Relax Angie, it's nothing I can't handle." replied Peggy.
"How are your fat head male co- workers now? They're not still giving you a hard time, are they?" she asked.
"No, I mean, a lot of them still see me as their coffee girl, but mostly it has died down. Well, I guess I have Jack to thank for that" said Peggy.
"We may not have met for a long time, but I don't remember you referring to him as Jack the last time we talked" Angie smiled slyly, "Whatever happened to Chief Thompson?"
"Oh, it's just that we've become close friends lately" she replied, keeping her tone as neutral as she could and avoiding eye contact, trying not to think about what had recently happened between her and her newest friend but failing to get that kiss out of her mind.
"Oh, so you two are just friends now?" enquired Angie, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes…" replied Peggy, unsure of why Angie was quirking up her eyebrow, looking all suspicious.
Angie gave a small laugh, "I don't know how you do your job English. You should look at your face in the mirror! You're avoiding eye contact and your face is getting pinker by the minute" laughed Angie, "Now how about you tell me what is really going on between you and blondie?"
"Oh come on Angie it's nothing" began Peggy but once she saw the look on Angie's face that clearly meant Angie wasn't falling for this, and sighed, "Oh alright alright, he asked me out to dinner…and I said yes" she said, a small smile grazing her lips.
"I knew blondie had a thing for you!" said Angie, triumphantly, "Ha! All those times you tried denying it… and looks like I was right all along"
"Oh yes all hail Angie Martinelli, the new love doctor in town" said Peggy.
"Well, I could be a love doctor if it doesn't interfere with my Broadway schedule too much" said Angie smugly.
"Hey you! Are you getting me my coffee or should I call the manager on you" an angry voice called out from behind them.
"Yes sir, I am just on my way" Angie replied hastily, having forgotten entirely that she had an order to attend to before Peggy had come in.
"Guess that's my cue to leave. Tell me how that dinner date of yours goes" she winked, "Say hi to blondie for me" she said slyly, and went ahead to give the disgruntled customer his coffee, while Peggy decided to pack a bagel to eat on her way to the office.
She was greeted by her usual load of paperwork, the dullest part of being an SSR agent. However, after the day she had had yesterday, she was rather relieved of having a relatively quiet day. She knew Jack wouldn't be back in the office that morning; He obviously needed time to recover.
During the day, while she was busy working, she seemed to notice something. It was as if everyone in the office was looking at her in a different way. She could sense it, the glances, the whispering and more than once she caught an agent or two staring at her and then quickly looking away when they realized that she'd seen. After about an hour of this, she couldn't take it anymore and she decided to go get a strong cup of tea.
Just as she stepped inside the break room, she was greeted by Daniel.
"Looks like we've both too busy this morning. It's a good thing we decided to take a break at the same time" he joked.
"Daniel, have I got something silly written on my face?" she asked.
"No…" replied Daniel, unsure where this was going, "Why?"
"Well I fail to understand then what is it about me that's making every agent here stare at me from time to time! I mean, they're whispering about me, I can feel it." she said angrily.
"Oh that" laughed Daniel, "I think it has more to do with the fact that you and Thompson went into the lion's den without any back up and battled with a dozen armed guards, a trained Russian assassin and managed to get out of there alive. And out of the two of you, Jack was the one who was badly injured, not you, as most of them would've expected. Everyone's awfully impressed to say the least"
"Oh" was all Peggy could say, hardly able to believe that what she was considering to be nasty comments were actually looks of awe.
"Anyway, how are you feeling now?" he asked, as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
"Oh I am fine Daniel, no permanent damage, just some stitches" she said dismissively, "It was Jack who is in worse shape, have you heard from him?" she asked as she was making herself a cup of tea.
"He isn't supposed to come back anytime soon, but as far as I know him, I know he'll be here to boss us around within the next week. A man like Thompson can't sit at home doing nothing." replied Daniel.
"By the way, I forgot to ask this, given the day's events, is everything alright between the two of you or were you two still at each other's throats as you were fighting Grekov?" he asked.
"No, we've made up" smiled Peggy, and Daniel knew that her smile meant much more, it meant that they had finally admitted their feelings to each other. He would've asked for details, because he considered Peggy to be a close friend but he didn't want to make her uncomfortable. Moreover, though he had someone else in his life now, it still would've been rather uncomfortable for him too, to hear the woman he, until recently, had harbored feelings for, declare her feelings for another man.
So he decided to leave it at that, and added casually, "You going to visit him? I am sure he could use some company"
"Oh I don't know, maybe…" replied Peggy, who was sipping her good old favorite beverage.
"So, now that we have some time, how about you tell him how you managed to go through all that and still stay alive?" he asked, interest evident in his voice.
"Well, I think you'll find it interesting enough" laughed Peggy, as she began to regale her experience to Daniel, both of them sipping on their tea and coffee respectively.
That evening as Peggy packed her things to leave the office, she decided to stop by Jack's cabin and pick up some papers that needed his signatures. It wasn't really urgent business but she figured it was a good excuse as any to visit him. She didn't want to look like those desperate clingy women who couldn't give a man his space.
She was only visiting him a friend, to look how he was, after all, the man had just been shot the day before. Nonetheless, she didn't want to look like she was prying or anything, so with those papers in her hands, she took off to meet Jack.
Half an hour later, she was knocking on his front door. She was greeted by Jack, who was in his undershirt and a pair of trousers, his suspenders hanging loose, with his wounded arm wrapped in a sling and the place where he had been hit was covered in bandages.
"Oh hey there Peggy, I uh…wasn't expecting you" he said, his tone surprised to say the least.
"Oh yes I was just here to get your signatures on these papers, and to see how you were doing. I am sorry I came in unannounced." she said,
"Did your hand suffer any more injuries? Why is it in a sling?" she asked, looking concerned.
"Oh it's just to make sure I don't strain it too much. The doctors said this'll help restrict my hand movements for the time being." he replied, looking at it, and added, "Come on in"
She stepped inside tentatively. This was the first time she was seeing his home, and it was rather like she had expected it to be. It was a relatively spacious flat, and it was rather well kept, she had to admit. She knew Jack, being an ex-soldier wouldn't be the one to keep his house untidy, and it turned out she was right. It wasn't very well furnished, just a couch and two chairs and a coffee table in the living room. The windows were open, the curtains pulled apart, letting in the cool evening breeze. All in all, it looked like the home of a man who spent many nights at the office and didn't come home much.
"Have a seat, I'll sign those papers in a minute" he said.
She sat down, and he sat next to her, poring over the papers, and said, "It's a good thing I didn't injure my right arm, god knows what I'd do without it"
As Jack was looking over the papers, he saw that they were all relatively old, nothing urgent. In fact, a few of them were just routine surveillance reports that could've been signed by him once he was back in the office. So, she's just here to see me, and she's using work as an excuse, he thought, a small smile appearing on his face, which was mercifully not noticed by Peggy. Jack decided not to mention it.
"So, you can't cook because of your hand or you just don't know how to?" asked Peggy, a few moments later, pointing to a few take out menus that were lying on the coffee table.
"Oh I know enough cooking to not let myself starve, but that's it. Mostly I tend to order in, and since becoming Chief, I've spent more nights at the office than this place" he replied.
"Oh I almost forgot to ask, d'you want anything? Coffee? Afraid I don't have tea in the house" he said.
"Oh no I am fine, I don't need anything. But how about you, how much is your arm hurting you?" she enquired.
"Oh it's seen better days. I guess I am lucky that the bullet didn't penetrate in too deep, so they got it out pretty quickly. Got some pretty strong painkillers right now. But it'll be fine in a day or two, I guess, and I'll be back at the office" he replied.
"You can't be serious! You were shot! You need rest. I know you're the Chief but I am sure SSR can survive a few days without you. And we'll be sure to pass on all the important information" she said.
"Nice try Carter" he smiled wryly, "So what about you? Got any fancy dinner plans for tonight?" he asked.
"No not exactly… It's been a long day so I'll just head home right away" she answered.
"So, since we're both headed for a lonely night, how about we have dinner?" he asked tentatively.
"Honestly, I could really use some company. What do you say Peggy? Ready to help a fellow agent in need?" he asked playfully.
"Is that your idea of a first date Chief Thompson?" Peggy smiled amusedly.
"Oh hell no. I'll take you out when preferably I won't be in my shabbiest look" he said, pointing to his appearance.
"You know what? I could use some company too" she said.
"Alright, then we'll just order something fancy for the lady" he replied.
"You know what? I have a better idea. Give me your car keys" she said.
"What? Why?" he asked, looking confused.
"I'll go and get us something to eat" she replied, "Come on hand them to me"
"Alright. Whatever you say Agent" he said as he handed her the keys that were lying in one of his coat pockets.
"I'll be back shortly" she said as she closed the door behind her.
20 minutes later, Peggy was knocking again on Jack's door, her hands laden with paper bags. As the door opened she was predictably greeted by Jack. What was unpredictable was the fact that he now had a shirt on, his suspenders right where they were supposed to be, and his hair was neatly parted.
"Finally!" said Jack as he opened the door, "I was beginning to think you had taken off with my car to god knows where"
"What's with your sudden desire to dress up for the night?" she asked lightly, eyeing him.
"Well I thought I'd rather not repel you by being in that state even before we'd gone out for our first dinner" he chuckled, before adding, " Although, if you're into the whole shabby unkempt look, I could go back to that"
"No, this works well enough for me" she laughed.
"Okay so now will you care to tell me why you rushed off with my car keys?" he asked, "And what's all this?" he added, pointing to the bags in her hands.
"This, Jack, is our meal for the night- hamburgers, fries and sodas. I got them from this place downtown, they have the best burgers" she said as she deposited the bags on the table.
"What? You went all the way downtown to pick this up?" he said incredulously, "There's a place just a few blocks away"
"Yes I saw that, but this one's got the best burgers in town. Trust me, I got your lunches for a whole year, didn't I? I think I can be trusted to know which place sells the best burgers" she said.
"Yes ma'am" he held up his hands in mock surrender.
As they sat down, both of them eating their burgers, Jack said, "You know, I wouldn't have taken you to be a hamburger and fries kinda gal"
"Well, contrary to what you may believe, I do not out every evening and have wine and caviar and fancy cheeses" she said, picking up some fries.
"I guess this isn't the first time I was wrong about you. I remember getting the shock of my life when I heard Sousa say that you were the woman who was behind that whole thing." he laughed.
"Yes I expect it must've been shocking to realize that the girl who brought you your coffee and lunch orders and did the filing was actually capable of actually doing something" she said dryly.
"Doing something? Damn it Peggy, you were handing their asses to them" he laughed.
"So is that why you stopped behaving with me the way you behaved before" she asked.
"Come on you can say it… I'll admit I was a jackass to you" he said wryly, and added, "Well that too but I guess Russia kind of changed things. When I told you what I'd done" he said, a painful look on his face, "And you didn't shirk away from me-"
"Jack, stop moping now. You made a mistake, and I know it's hard to let go off but you have to stop feeling guilty over something that you can't change now" she said soothingly.
"Yeah… anyway" he said, trying to change the topic, " I was hoping to get some of those fries if you haven't finished them already given how you've been makin' a grab for them every minute or so." he joked as Peggy looked scandalized.
They ate, they talked, they laughed, all in all, none of them realized that they'd spent the last two hours together. After Peggy had glanced at the clock and realized it was almost 10 p.m., she decided to leave.
Jack said, just as she was collecting the papers she had brought with herself, "Come on I'll escort you and get you a cab"
"Oh wow, how very noble of you Jack because obviously I can't manage to get a cab on my own" she said sarcastically, her voice deadpanned.
"Fine. Have it your way then Carter. I was just trying to be a gentleman since you already refused to let me pay for the meal" he said.
She smiled and shook her head but said nothing. Wordlessly she gathered her things and began to leave.
As she opened the door, Jack standing behind her, she turned to face him and said, "I had a good time tonight Jack. I hope you get better quickly"
Jack smiled his lopsided smile and said, "Thanks for keeping me company. I'll hold on to you about that dinner. "
They both stood there, not really knowing how to part since they were somewhere between friendship and a courtship. A simple goodbye didn't seem enough for them, but neither of them wanted to push things too far even before they had had their official first date. So Peggy settled for a swift kiss on his cheek, and said, "Goodnight Jack" and gave him one last smile before she left.
As Jack closed the door, he had his lopsided smile on his face, his hand touching the spot where she had kissed him goodbye.
A/N II- Getting close to ending this story, just one or two more chapters, I think, not very sure at the moment. Let me know what you think about it. I really appreciate your support. :)