Full Circle P9
The doctor finished examining Auggie, assured everything looked good and left the pair alone for the first time since Annie left for Budapest over a month prior.
"We don't seem to be real good at the date thing?" Auggie smirked.
"Is that what tonight was supposed to be?" Annie asked as she pulled a chair up beside the bed.
"I was flying to Europe to visit, did you not think it was a date?"
"I wasn't really sure," she shrugged.
"Well it was, but now we can have hospital food instead."
"You booked 2 rooms," Annie said quietly.
"I didn't want to be presumptuous. Most first dates end with a kiss," he tugged her hand to his lips to illustrate.
"Seems impossible for us to go back to the concept of a first date, don't ya think?" she frowned but didn't pull her hand back.
"I don't want to go back Annie, I don't want to forget what we've already gone through, good and bad to get here. I do think we made a few mistakes that could be rectified with a proper courtship," he shrugged.
"Ooh, it's a courtship now? Have you ever courted a woman?" she snickered.
"I tried once in high school, it didn't go so well. Eventually the rest of my body caught up to my limbs and my ears and I didn't really need to," he tried for modesty but fell a little short.
Annie caught the lethargy in his voice and the tug of sleep at his eye lids.
"You should sleep."
"You too," he patted the edge of the slim mattress.
"I thought we just determined I would be sleeping in my own bed for a while," she stood from the chair and stretched.
"As long as we keep our clothes on I think this is within the rules," he was making it up as he went along.
"I don't know, you have a hospital gown on, that is hardly clothes," she teased but was toeing her shoes off as she did.
"I just want to hold you," he said, all joking gone.
Annie nodded, tears suddenly flooding her eyes. Once again this man had put himself in the line of fire and come out the other end. How many lives did Auggie Anderson have? She didn't want to waste a moment of this one.
"The nurse is probably going to hate me," Annie grimaced as she arranged herself on the edge of the bed placing her head on the uninjured side of Auggie's chest, the side where his heart beat strong and steady against her temple.
***555***
Joan couldn't help the smile that sprang to her face when she entered Auggie's room the next morning. Annie and Auggie slept as one, his arm curled around and holding her to him, preventing her falling to the floor. Her hand splayed across his stomach protectively.
"Joan?" Auggie's voice was quiet but alert to her perfume and the click of her heels.
"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you," she whispered back, accustomed to talking around a sleeping baby.
"I've been up for a while," he admitted.
"Me too," Annie admitted sheepishly.
"I've been trying not to disturb you," Auggie accused.
"Sorry, I was too comfortable to give up my spot."
"You can't possibly be comfortable," he challenged as he moved his hand along her oddly curved back and shoulders.
"Best sleep I've had in months," she kissed his stubbled jaw and unfolded herself from the bed, straightening her clothes for Joan's benefit.
"I have an appointment later this morning, so thought I would check in on you," Joan explained.
"Anything wrong?" Auggie asked.
"No just a regular six week post-baby thing," she fluttered her hands embarrassed.
"You look great by the way," Annie indicated Joan's nearly back-to-perfect body.
"Babies are a lot of work, but not quite as much as my job was so I have some unused energy," she shrugged.
"I want to thank you for getting me back here so quickly," Annie said, she hadn't had a chance to properly thank Joan the night before.
"No problem. You don't have to go back either, you can stay in town," she informed.
"Really?" Annie and Auggie said simultaneously.
"We have enough intel from your guy in Budapest. We'll hand him off to a junior agent."
"Thought you were still on leave?" Auggie smirked.
"Remember when I told you even if we were both fired I am still your boss Anderson, you think a little thing like maternity leave is going to change that," she grinned glad to see Auggie appeared to be just fine.
"Do I have a new assignment?" Annie asked as Calder appeared in the doorway with coffee.
"Figured you were still here," he said to Annie and handed her one of the coffees.
"Thanks, I was just asking Joan what my next assignment was," Annie filled the DCS in.
"Your next assignment?" Calder quirked an eyebrow.
"Yes."
"It's him," Calder indicated the man in the bed.
Annie smiled as Auggie frowned.
"Excuse me?" Auggie asked.
"I am putting Annie in charge of your feeding and watering and assigning her to work with Nick to try and figure out who shot you."
"I am not a pet," Auggie grunted.
"No but I will bet my lunch money you are a lousy patient and she might be the only one who cares enough about you to tolerate you. You got lucky, but you still need to rest and go through physical therapy and all that fun stuff and we don't expect to see your ugly mug in the DPD for a couple weeks. You can work from home though under her supervision," Calder reported.
"I get to be in charge? Of him?" Annie was warming to the idea.
"Down Walker, I still outrank you, by a lot," Auggie clarified.
"But I'm in charge," she smiled evilly.
***555***
The day Auggie was released he was a pretty good patient, he tired quickly and Annie had him tucked into bed with his pain meds and a bottle of water around 1:00 in the afternoon.
"I am not an 82 year old man, I do not need a nap," he grumbled.
"No, you are an injured man with still a good deal of drugs coursing through your veins, your body needs to be still."
He pouted tried to roll over on his preferred side and and yelped a little with the pain.
"You OK?" she said gently.
"I'm fine," he gritted out and turned the other way, facing her.
She could see pain etched on his forehead but soon the drugs kicked in the lines softened and she could hear him sleeping within minutes.
When she was certain he was well under the effects of the drugs she pulled up her computer, she had some time before she had to call in to Langley for a briefing and decided to Skype Danielle.
"Hey there," Danielle answered on the third ring.
"Hi, is this a bad time?" Annie asked.
"No, I have to leave in about 20 minutes, but I am good until then," Danielle said looking at her watch.
"Just wanted to let you know I am back in DC."
"Oh, I had you coming back in a couple weeks," Dani8elle looked confused.
"I wrapped everything up early."
"Great, where are you?" Danielle looked past the image of her sister on the screen to a sleek chrome refrigerator.
"DC," Annie repeated.
"I mean the apartment, is it yours? Your new place?"
"No," Annie forgot how observant and nosey Danielle could be.
"Well most hotels don't stock full size fridges, wait, are you at Auggie's?" Danielle whispered the last word.
"Yes, but…."
"Where is he?" she was whispering again.
"He's asleep," Annie said and realized her mistake instantly when Danielle squealed.
"Not from…., Danielle! He had a little accident, I am just helping him get settled."
"Oh my God, is he OK?"
"He will be," Annie sighed.
"Was it a stapler accident?"
"Yes," Annie relented.
"Oh no."
"He's fine," Annie repeated more for her own benefit than Danielle's.
"You guys are talking though, you are together."
"We are going to try Danielle, we are going to try to go on a date and be as normal as we can be."
"Wow, that is a huge improvement over 4 weeks ago."
"It is. I love him Danielle."
"I know that Annie, I believe I was the one who pointed it out a few years ago."
***555***
"I brought food," Nick announced as he entered Auggie's loft a few days later.
"You are officially my favorite person of the day," Annie smiled as she stood from the computer and stretched her back.
"Where's Auggie?"
"He graduated from sponge baths to a real shower today and he has been in there for about 20 minutes," Annie smiled.
"Is he OK?" Nick was particularly worried about Auggie since he was somewhat responsible for the guy getting shot.
"Oh yeah, he was singing a couple minutes ago," Annie smirked.
"Sorry I missed that."
"Don't be."
Annie went to the fridge and got Nick a beer as he unpacked the food.
"I'll go get him," Annie said as Nick stared at the food like a starving man.
She jogged up to the bedroom and grabbed the clean tee shirt Auggie had left on the bed.
"Come on Pavarotti, the rest of us want to eat," Nick heard her say as she walked into the bathroom.
Nick had heard plenty of rumors about these two and he was witness to Annie's seemingly random declaration of love the other night, but he really had no idea if they were a couple, friends, a couple of friends, he was quite unsure.
"I think I can have one beer," Auggie argued as they made their way back to the kitchen.
"Not while you are on pain keeelers," Annie pronounced the word as Teo had in Colombia last year and Auggie smiled.
"OK, then how about you drink the beer and then we can make out," he teased and she turned to glare at him.
"What?" he smiled innocently.
"How did you know she was glaring at you?" Nick said with awe.
"Lucky guess," Auggie shrugged and moved towards the smell of food.
***555***
Nick left a few hours later with some new leads on the shooter and the left over take out.
"He's not a bad kid," Auggie said with a yawn as he moved towards the couch.
"Bed," Annie corrected his destination.
"Bossy," he snarked but changed his course.
"You need to rest."
"I'm fine."
"You're body needs to heal," she said quietly.
"It is, I promise," he turned in her direction and she moved to his side.
She slipped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. He was warm and smelled better since his shower.
"I should go," she murmured against the cotton.
"You could stay," his fingers found their way into her hair.
"What happened to my promised courtship?"
"Oh there will be courting, but if we stick to the clothes on rule, you could stay."
Annie was wary, she saw the benefits of the 'taking it slow' plan, but she also saw the benefits of curling up next to Auggie and going to sleep in his arms, the arms that pulled just the slightest bit tighter as she thought about them.
"Stay," he whispered again.
TBC…