I don't own Blindspot or any of the wonderful characters.
Well…it's Wednesday and no Blindspot. Here's my contribution to help us make it two more weeks…Heavy sigh…
Jane watched Roman's face when the Uno cards started spitting out and began to laugh.
"You're going to lose," She teased him.
"I can't believe you've never played this game," Patterson shook her head.
"This game is horrible," Roman denied, "Why would anyone play this?"
"It's just because you're losing," Tasha scoffed.
"You thought this was the best game ever when you were winning," Kurt reminded him.
Roman glared at Kurt.
Jane placed down her card, "Uno," she warned the others.
"She's cheating," Reed accused her.
"How could I possibly be cheating?" Jane demanded.
"How do you do half the things you do?" Reed asked the room at large.
"He has a point," Kurt agreed.
"You think I'm cheating?" Jane asked Kurt, feeling a little hurt.
"No," He assured her laughing, "Not cheating, but also not winning."
When he played his draw four card, she was the one glaring.
The other's laughed.
"Uno," He warned them.
Three rounds later Tasha was doing her impromptu dance of joy while the others threw cards at her.
"Want to play another?" Roman asked them eagerly.
"It's getting late," Tasha denied.
"You just want to go out on top," Reed accused her.
"Can't rub it in otherwise," She agreed.
Watching them gather their things Jane looked back at Roman with a little smile. He looked so happy. She couldn't remember very much of their past, but what she did hadn't been like this.
She turned to find Kurt watching her with a smile.
"You seem pretty happy for a guy that just lost," She teased him.
"After all the games with Sawyer, I'm used to it." He admitted.
"Wow," She pulled on his shirt, "Mr. Competitive smiling at a loss…scary."
"I have other things to smile about," He told her cryptically.
Jane gave him one of those playful looks that made his heart race.
"I don't have anywhere to go," Patterson told Roman, "I can play another game."
They began picking up the scattered cards and setting up the game.
"You playing?" Roman asked Jane and Weller.
"I'm in," Jane agreed looking at Kurt in question.
"Why not," Kurt agreed.
They rejoined them at the table.
Jane seemed to be collecting cards instead of discarding them.
"I hate you all," Jane told them.
Patterson laughed and stuck out her tongue.
"I'd watch yourself," Roman warned Patterson, "She once bit me so hard she left a mark." He pulled up his sleeve to show them a scar on his arm.
Jane looked over at him in shock. "You remembered something!"
Roman's smile faded and he looked over at Jane in surprise, "I did!"
"You bit him?" Patterson looked at Jane like she might have rabies.
"I…." She trailed off. She had no idea why she'd done that.
"I might have been sitting on her at the time," Roman remembered, sobering.
"Were you playing a game?" Patterson asked with a smile.
"Well, not exactly," Roman denied, "I was during the raid when Sheppard found us…there was a lot of shooting. Jane was trying to go get some of the younger kids, but I didn't want her to die…so I sat on her."
"What happened to the other kids?" Patterson worried.
"Some of them died," Roman admitted, "But Jane didn't."
Jane listened to Roman and abruptly she was back there…the noise, the smoke, the sound of fighting and dying. She remembered Roman holding her down. She remembered the fear of the younger children and the helpless feeling she felt as she watched them die. She had bit Roman, desperate to change the inevitable. He'd been younger, but he'd been the one to realize there was nothing she could have done. He'd been the one to shield her during the raid and hold her in the aftermath. He'd been the one that was strong.
Roman and Jane's eyes met as they remembered.
She felt tears well she refused to shed. He abruptly stood up and moved around the table.
"Remi," He worried pulling her up and out of her chair.
She fell into his arms and held him tightly.
"I'm fine," She assured him.
Kurt watched them with a concerned frown. What would this memory do to the two of them? Dr. Sun's warnings filled his head as he stood up and joined them. Roman had called Jane Remi…and he wanted to protest. He would not lose her…lose them…to their memories.
Placing his hand on Roman's shoulder he met his gaze over Jane's back.
Patterson was watching them with a tragic expression.
"Are you okay?" He asked Roman with a worried frown.
"It's hard to remember people you care about dying," Roman told him, "But this is the first memory I've had that I saved someone instead of killing them."
"I'm sorry I bit you," Jane mumbled into his chest.
"I'm sorry I couldn't risk you for the others." Roman explained.
"I couldn't have saved them," Jane agreed.
"You were willing to die trying," Roman reminded her, "I couldn't lose you then and I can't lose you now."
"You have the team now," Jane reminded him.
Patterson stood up abruptly and moved in to join them. Standing beside them she pulled them both against her.
"Nobody is losing anyone," She assured them.
Kurt didn't hesitate, he moved into the group. Pulling Jane back against him he let his arm pull Roman in closer.
"We're in this together." He repeated the words Jane had told him so long ago.
Meeting Weller's eyes, Roman smiled, "Together."
They ended up finishing the game, but the atmosphere was subdued.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Patterson looked at the others with a reassuring smile.
Jane hugged her and Roman smiled as she headed out the door.
"I'm going to go shower," Roman told them, "Thanks for bringing the games." He told Kurt.
"These games are for you and Jane to keep," He told them, "We'll have to play again."
"Thanks," Roman walked away while they watched him with concern.
"You think he's okay?" Jane asked Kurt.
"Are you okay?" He asked her instead.
"I'm…" She trailed off.
Pulling her back against him he told her, "You're not okay."
"No," She agreed melting against him in defeat.
"It's okay to cry," he whispered.
It was as if him giving her permission to cry opened the flood gates. She began to shake while silent tears fell. He pulled her more tightly against him.
She couldn't remember the last time she'd been allowed the luxury of crying. It was as if for once she didn't have to be the strong one. She could lean on him.
When the tears finally ran dry she abruptly became self-conscious.
"Kurt," Jane couldn't look up at him.
Reaching over he lifted her chin to force her to meet his concerned gaze.
"Jane," He chided, "I know you're strong. Crying doesn't change that."
"It's like you know what I need even when I don't," She admitted with a wavering smile.
"I know you," He agreed, "I'll give you whatever you need whenever I can."
It was a vow and she recognized it.
"Kurt…" She hesitated.
Kissing her forehead he assured her, "Roman isn't the only one who now has us to lean on."
"I don't know what I'd do without you." She told him seriously.
"If I have my way, you won't have to find out." He assured her.
Smiling up at him she rubbed at the tears on her cheeks.
He ran his thumb over them to help whip them away.
"Do you want me to stay?" He worried.
"No," She assured him, "I want a chance to talk with Roman, make sure he's okay."
"Call me before you go to bed," He told her, "I want to make sure your both okay."
She nodded.
"Promise," He insisted.
"I promise," She assured him.
Turning he headed toward the door reluctantly.
"Be safe," She told him before he pulled it open.
Turning he looked down at her strangely before smiling back tenderly.
"I will."
She watched the door shut, missing him already.
Roman joined Jane on the couch.
"Feel better?" She asked him.
"Yeah," He looked down into her red eyes, "You?"
She knew she looked a mess and smiled anyway. "Better."
"I guess not all the memories we lost are worth having," He suggested.
"You saving me is worth remembering," She denied.
"I don't feel that was normally our dynamic," Roman denied.
"Maybe not," She simply agreed, "But dead is pretty permanent and if you saved me just once, then every good thing I did after that was because of you."
"So you're saying my saving you allowed you to save me all those times?" He teased her.
"It would have been hard to do dead," She reminded him.
"Then I'm awesome," He teased her.
"I've always know that," She pushed his shoulder.
"Our life was never like this," He looked at her with a worried frown.
"No," she agreed, "We had to hide every emotion, every worry. Preform when we wanted to quit. Fight when we wanted to run. You were all I had and I needed to hide what you meant to me so that they wouldn't use you against me. Nobody had our backs. We were just tools that could be replaced."
"Are you ever afraid we're going to have to lose all this and go back?" He looked at her seriously.
"I won't let anyone take this from us," Jane denied, "I would rather die than ever give up what we've found here."
"We might end up doing that anyway." He reminded her.
"Then we better appreciate it while it lasts," She suggested.
"While it lasts," Roman agreed, pulling her against him and squeezed her tightly.
"I guess it's my turn to shower." She pulled away, "Did you leave me any hot water?"
"Nope," He denied.
"Jerk," She hit him on the back of the head.
"You're just sore because I won that last game," He argued.
"Beginner's luck," She accused him.
"You've never been a good loser." He accused her.
"How would you know?" She scoffed, "You'd have to have beaten me to know that."
"Touché," He chided.
She shot him a crude gesture and walked away to the sound of his laughter.
The phone rang and Kurt reached over to the nightstand and picked up his cell phone.
"It's about time," He chided when he answered.
"Roman and I talked and then I had to shower," She explained.
"How's he doing?" Kurt worried.
"He's okay," She assured him.
"And you?" He insisted.
"It's hard to remember the bad things that happened, but it makes both us appreciated what we have now." She explained.
"Jane you're life isn't exactly easy," Kurt reminded her.
"It's never been easy," Jane agreed, "But for the first time we aren't alone. We've never really had anyone we could depend on before other than each other. Having a real family…that cares about you, that makes everything else worth it."
"I doubt you realize just how much we do care," Kurt whispered.
"If you care at all, it's more than we've ever had," She told him softly.
"I can assure you that at this point you're irreplaceable," Kurt admitted.
She drew in a shaky breath. Not a tool…irreplaceable.
"Jane?" Kurt worried.
"I see you tomorrow." She finally answered.
"Are you crying?" He demanded.
"No," She denied, whipping the single tear away.
"Should I come back over?" He worried.
"No," Jane denied, "I'm just tired. I'll see you in the morning."
"I'll bring your favorite coffee." Kurt promised her.
"You're the best," She had never meant anything more.