A/N: A busy weekend and a bit of writer's block makes for a late update, but here we are! Enjoy :)

If there's one thing Dex knows about Josslyn, it's that when things don't go well, she makes it known.

He wilts under her sour expression as they sit on his couch. His hands are clasped together in his lap while her legs are crossed at the ankles. A silence sits between them as Dex lets his eyes dart in different directions: the dormant fireplace, the cloudy overcast morning, the open hallway door. He finally looks at her again, her posture unchanged.

"So," he clears his throat, "you look unhappy."

"What's there to be happy about?" she answers, "It's not everyday someone you care about gets demoted to a lesser role by their corrupt, criminal boss."

"Right…" he sighs as Josslyn gets to her feet. He watches her pace across the wood floor of his apartment while he stays put.

"A bodyguard," she comments, "he made you be a bodyguard. You were his lieutenant, and now you're just some bodyguard."

"I've been one before-"

"Yeah, for me, when there was a literal serial killer on the loose. There's no active threat now."

"So?"

"So he's demoting you! He's removing you from his inner circle! This is bad; you lost your 'in' with Sonny!"

"I don't think of it like that."

Josslyn shoots him a glare, "Come on, Dex. You being demoted to bodyguard means you're getting removed from that circle. You're losing ground."

"It's just a setback, Joss. In my experience, these things happen almost all the time. I'm still working for Sonny, and as far as I'm concerned, he doesn't suspect a thing."

Josslyn stands firm by the couch, her arms crossed. She scowls at him, "How so?"

"Well, he hasn't chewed me out or looked down upon me recently, and he's had no reason to feel like he can't trust me. In fact, after the warehouse incident, he probably trusts me more."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because I saved his life."

Josslyn raises an eyebrow, her scowl staying put, "You said he saved your life."

"He did…after I saved his."

"What happened, exactly?"

"I was the one who saw the sniper in the first place," Dex steps closer to her, "The second I caught him, I immediately had us duck and cover. We both took turns at shooting, and after I was grazed, Sonny killed him."

"You saved each other," Joss deduces.

"Yeah. I-I don't see why he'd suddenly think something was up. He'd probably think that if I didn't save him."

"I guess," Josslyn walks around the corner and flops onto the sofa. Dex sighs before he joins her.

"I get you don't like it," he begins, his arm half-behind her, draped over the back of the furniture, "I know that me being the right-hand means I'm as close as I can be to getting the evidence I need."

"But?"

"But Sonny's still my boss, in a way, and what he says goes. If I'm told to play bodyguard, then I'm playing bodyguard. If my plan is to work at all, I have to do what he says."

"And you're not at all upset about him doing this?"

He shakes his head and shrugs, his eyes wide, "No."

"...Fine," she huffs, pouting. Dex gently pats her shoulder, a smile on his face. She looks his way with a face full of intrigue, "If you're not bothered by it, I won't be either."

"Thanks. I'm glad."

"Yeah…" Josslyn grimaces, "uh…who did he assign you to protect?"

"Kristina."

Josslyn raises an eyebrow, "Why?"

"It's…not my place to say."

"Why not? Did Sonny swear you to secrecy or something?"

"No, no. Me being assigned to her involves something that's her personal business. I'm sure she'll tell you if she hasn't already."

"Well," Josslyn sighs, turning away from the man, "we haven't talked in a while."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Dex frowns, "I'm assuming Sonny's why you two are distant?"

"Yep. She refuses to see the damage he's done to our family out of some…misguided loyalty to him."

"Well, he is her father-"

"Yeah, and he was my stepfather. Plus, she also doesn't like Nina or what she did or what Sonny did to be with her, and she knows full well how dangerous his world is. How can she sit there and still be okay with him?"

"It's different for her-"

"Is it, though?"

"Well, think about it like this," Dex begins, "If your mom went through what Sonny did, and she chose to be with a man who did the things Nina did, would you turn your back on her?"

Josslyn bites her bottom lip, pouting at him. Dex closes his eyes, his mouth closed as he sighs through his nose.

"...That's not the point," she says, "My mom isn't Sonny. She's not some criminal mobster who hurts her family, and I'm not some ignorant person who defends a repeat offender because I think highly of them."

"Come on, Joss, that's not fair."

"It's the truth."

"Kristina isn't being ignorant. Sonny is her father. And I get that he was a father figure to you too, but her relationship with him is different. You can't really compare it."

"I know what that man did to me, to my family, and how he hurt all of us. If Kristina wants to live in denial and act like everything's fine, then whatever," she shakes her head, rolling her eyes, "You can't fix stupid."

"Joss," Dex's voice is deep and firm.

"What?" she shoots him a look, "It's the truth. She loves her dad and she's an idiot for it. Then again, she's not known for making the best decisions, so we can just add this to the list."

"This is your stepsister-"

"So? She has her stance and I have mine. It just so happens that mine is more grounded in reality. She can't handle that people hate her 'amazing' mobster father and refuses to acknowledge it."

"So this lack of communication is all her fault?"

Josslyn is silent, blinking with a blank facial expression. Dex's face displays disappointment as he turns away from her, his spine parallel with the back of the couch.

"Look," Josslyn leans in a bit, "I love Kristina, I do. That doesn't change the fact that she makes some bad decisions and isn't incredibly bright. It is what it is."

Dex maintains his posture, keeping his eyes off of her.

"Dex," she moves closer, resting her chin on his shoulder. Her voice is gentle as she speaks, "hey. I'm just looking out for you, that's all. If I had known you'd get so defensive about it, I wouldn't have said what I did, okay?"

He still avoids her eyes.

"I get you being defensive over her; you guys are friends. I don't mean to be so negative. I just want you to understand the position you're in here, even if you're okay with it."

Dex finally looks her way, his expression full of disappointment and defeat. Josslyn leaves a hand on the left side of his face, gazing into his darkened blue eyes.

"I care about you, okay?" she says.

"...Okay," he replies. She smiles wide as she kisses him. The sound of her phone buzzing in her back pocket interrupts them.

"Ugh," she groans as she looks at the device. Her eyebrows shoot up at the contact, "I…should take this."

Dex looks at the name on her screen, "Yeah, yeah, you should. I…I'm going to get ready for work."

"Okay," Josslyn watches Dex enter the back hallway before answering the call, "Hello?"

"Joss?" Michael asks, "Where are you?"

"Um, out? Why? What's up?"

"I was hoping we could talk."

"About?"

"Well…about our family."

"Which member? Mom? Sonny? Kristina?"

"Kristina?"

"Yeah, um…" she pinches the bridge of her nose, "I guess Sonny assigned Dex to be her bodyguard."

"...He did that?" Michael's voice is full of distant confusion.

"Yeah. I guess she's going through something and needs protection."

"I see…"

"I think it's ridiculous, personally," Josslyn looks back at the hallway opening. She hears the faint sound of the shower running before turning back around, "and I think Sonny did this deliberately."

"How so?"

"You and I know that Dex is still kind of new to his business, and Sonny wants unconditional loyalty from his employees. So, why not stick your new guy with someone who will make you feel that way?"

"...I don't know-"

"It sucks for Dex."

"Why do you care?"

Josslyn freezes in her spot. She quickly glances at the hallway before quietly exiting Dex's apartment. She marches to her car as fast as she possibly can.

"Josslyn? Hello?"

"I'm here," she gets into her vehicle and begins to drive off.

"Do you want to answer my question or…?"

"If I tell you, you can't say anything to anyone. Promise?"

"I promise. What is it?"

"I…was at Dex's place. Dex and I…we've been seeing each other."

"Oh my God! Josslyn!" he whines.

"You can lecture me later!" she hisses back, "The point is, I know what's going on. Dex isn't some random guy working for Sonny; he's a mole. He's working to take him down, and Sonny making him be Kristina's bodyguard will ruin things. It'll keep Sonny from the consequences he deserves."

"You think this is some big conspiracy?"

"You think it isn't?"

"Sonny's done this before. Wasn't Dex assigned to watch over you when Heather Webber was running around with a hook?"

"Well, yeah, but there's nothing like that going on now."

"I still don't see what you see. Kristina loves him, yeah, but that doesn't mean she'll just gleefully do whatever he says, no questions asked. She's nothing if not independent."

"Yeah, but-"

"And I-I know you and Kristina don't really talk anymore, but she doesn't sit there and talk poorly of you over this; you guys are still sisters. Why do you think so low of her?"

"I…I don't-"

"Then there's no reason to look down upon someone else for feeling that way. Come on, Joss, you're better than this. I can't believe you."

Josslyn sighs, pulling over to the side of the road, "I…I just care about Dex, okay? I want him to succeed in this, so that way he can leave the mob and we can be together. I want him to please his boss."

"Yeah, well, his boss isn't very pleased right now…" Michael's mutter slips through the car speaker.

Josslyn scowls and raises an eyebrow at his words, "...What do you mean?"

A silence fills her vehicle, and she grows annoyed with each passing second, "Michael?"

"I'm keeping you and Dex a secret," he says, "I'm doing that for you. Can you do the same for me?"

"Yes, of course."

"His boss isn't pleased right now…because his boss…is me."

"Nice of you to show up."

There's a sparkle in Kristina's eye as Dex stands in her doorway. He does his best to look around the apartment, taking note of the tie-dye wall decorations and eclectic mix of furniture and colors before she moves aside.

"Nice place," he notes, "Very colorful."

"Thanks. It's a diverse, homey little place. Just how we like it."

"We? You have a roommate?"

"Yeah, Amy Driscoll. She's-"

"Chet's sister, right?"

"You know Chet?"

"We're friends. I managed Volonino's in his place while he was on a tour," Dex answers, "but enough about me. How are you? Nothing bad happening or…?"

"Nope. I've done everything Dr. Navarro told me to: rest, healthy eating, medication. I'm fine."

"Good to hear," Dex nods. He looks around the apartment a second time, "Well, is there anything you want to do?"

"Excuse me?"

"I'm here for the day, protecting you like your dad asked me to. So, we can stay here, or we can go out."

"You're not very good at this."

"I'm sorry?"

"Playing bodyguard," Kristina says, scooting closer to him, "You should be standing outside the door, watching me from afar, doing intermittent sweeps of the place every hour. And my dad trusted you to protect me?"

"I…um…"

"It's fine," she giggles, "I'm just giving you crap. I appreciate you coming inside and taking care of me."

"Oh…okay," Dex forces a laugh as he takes a seat on the white velvet couch. Kristina sits next to him, a few inches between them, "Thanks."

"How are you?"

"I'm good. The pain from the graze is pretty much gone."

"Aw, that's great."

"Thanks. It's as great as knowing that you're doing okay."

"Aren't you sweet," Kristina smiles.

"I do my best," Dex responds in kind, looking around the open living room, "So, what do you want to do?"

"Well, I have some board games, TV, leftovers in the fridge. Tons of fun things to do around here."

"You don't want to go out?"

"I want to play it as safe as possible…for Molly's sake."

"Right," Dex nods slowly, "right, okay, uh…" he looks around, catching sight of the kitchen a foot or two away, "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"

"No. Why? Can you cook?"

"Kind of, yeah."

"Kind of?"

"I'm still a bit new to it."

"Is your food better than Molly's meal-prep salads?"

"Molly's what?" Dex laughs out his question.

"Oh God," Kristina hides her face in her hands, "She gave me these packaged salads with kale and tofu and random veggies and ginger peanut dressing-"

"Do those two things even go together?"

"Apparently they do! It's all things she'd eat and she thinks that it'll help me too. I mean, I love my sister to pieces, but I cannot subscribe to her lifestyle. I just can't do it."

"I probably couldn't do it either. I enjoy eating meat too much."

"If only I had some," Kristina sighs, "Ours expired a few days ago and Molly bought tofu bacon instead."

"That's okay," Dex stands up, "I can make something else. How about a parfait?"

"Okay," Kristina turns to watch him approach the kitchen. She eventually gets up and takes a seat at the bar, "There's Greek yogurt in the fridge, along with some fruits Molly bought. We also have some granola in that upper right cabinet."

"Got it," Dex digs through the kitchen, grabbing the needed ingredients. He proceeds to drop spoonfuls of yogurt into two small glass cups.

"Is cooking a new hobby or something?" she asks.

"You could say that. The food in the military was awful, and I got sick and tired of buying frozen meals. So I figured I'd start cooking."

"How have you been learning?"

"Online tutorials-"

"Oh no," Kristina groans as Dex sprinkles in bits of granola, "don't tell me you're one of those people."

"What?"

"Someone who uses the internet for everything."

"I don't use it for everything. I've just been…using it temporarily for this. When I get enough money, I'll enroll in some classes."

"Why not let my dad teach you?"

"...He'd be willing to do that?"

"I don't see why he wouldn't be," she shrugs, "and if he has a problem, I'll give him an extra nudge."

"You don't have to."

"Yeah, but I want to. Think of it as a thank you for going the extra mile in your bodyguard work."

"Simply saying 'thank you' is enough for me."

"You know," Kristina leans forward as Dex places sliced strawberries into the cups, "sometimes your modest, humble nature can be annoying."

"I don't mean to be that way."

"Mhm, sure. And my middle name is Ashley."

"Is it?"

"No!" Kristina's laugh comes out as a scoff, "I was making a point! Besides, my middle name is Adela."

"That's…really pretty," Dex looks at her curiously, "really pretty. Is it a family name?"

"My grandmother's. My dad's mom, specifically. Do you have one?"

"James."

"Family name?"

"My dad's."

"Dexter James Heller…" Kristina ruminates on it, a finger flat against her chin.

"You got it," he drops an additional blueberry in Kristina's cup before placing his hands on the edge of the kitchen counter, "God, I haven't heard someone say my full name in years. The last person to do that was my mom."

"Did you get in trouble a lot?"

"Uh, no," he gulps, "it was just her way of getting me to…back off."

"Back off?"

"I don't want to bother you with it," Dex finishes up the parfaits, dropping a spoon in both cups before handing one to Kristina. He walks to the couch, "You have enough going on-"

"Which you heard me talk about at length," Kristina follows him, settling into the spot next to him. She watches him eat a large spoonful of yogurt, "It's only fair I listen to you the way you did for me," she lays a gentle hand on his shoulder, "You're my friend; I care."

Dex swallows, the parfait going down smoothly. He placed the cup and spoon on the coffee table before looking at Kristina. She stares back at him, a firm, determined curiosity in her eyes.

"Okay," he sighs, turning to face her directly, "My upbringing wasn't great."

"Why?"

"Boys…being boys."

"...What happened, Dex?" Kristina's voice cracks, a small lump in her throat. An intense wave of dread rushes over her as she waits for his answer. She subconsciously grabs his hand, a spark shooting through both of their nerves.

"My brothers and I…" he takes a deep breath, "we didn't get along. I was the baby of the family, years younger than them, and they made sure I knew it. Black eyes, broken bones, concussions, and one time they choked me out. I was in and out of the hospital at least five times."

"Your parents didn't do anything to protect you?"

"Not at all. My dad more or less enabled them while my mom…she'd go between playing bystander and caring for me in private. To me, it's the same as doing nothing."

"I'm sorry," her voice is soft as she squeezes his hand, "You didn't deserve any of that."

"It's just…" Dex sighs loudly, his hand holding hers tight, "You'd think I'd be over it by now, y'know? I'm living on my own, I haven't spoken to any of them in years, but…"

"You want closure."

He raises an eyebrow at her, "How'd you figure?"

"You're not the only person who notices things they're not supposed to yet," Kristina scoots closer, laying a hand on his shoulder, "Your family hurt you, you don't know why, and you want answers and an apology."

"And yet, here I am with neither."

"I know how it feels. My family's done their fair share of judgment and harm, and their apologies range from genuine to hand-wavey."

"At least you got them."

"One day, you will too, at least, I hope you do. I can't imagine someone being so horrible to someone as lovely as you."

A softness suddenly creeps into Dex as he looks Kristina over. He takes in her toothless smile and warm eyes, her long brunette hair and smooth face, and for a moment, he's pulled out of the present, frozen in a pocket of unprompted bliss. It's a sensation he's meant to feel with someone else, a someone else whose name presently escapes him, but doesn't. Guilt claws at the back of his mind the more he dwells on it, but the bliss remains.

"You're giving me a bit too much credit," his response is gentle.

"You've been so good to me, better than a lot of people I know. I don't think I'm giving you enough credit."

Her face is close to his, the hand on his shoulder now on his back. His cheeks burn a bit as he desperately tries to pivot from the headspace he's in. He knows his feelings, he knows his thoughts, and yet, in that moment, with her close by, a look of genuine admiration on her face, it's all out the window.

"Thank you," he whispers. She lays her other hand on his cheek, looking him over with a sweet grin.

"You're welcome," she answers in kind before pulling back, "and thank you for the parfait. It was great."

He looks at her empty cup before his half-full one, all while trying to regain the composure he lost, "You're welcome."

"I'm in the mood for a movie."

"Okay. What do you want to watch?"

"...Have you ever seen Amélie?"

Dex feels pressure against the side of his left shoulder a half-hour into the film. Kristina curls up next to him, her arm around his, her eyes wide as she watches.

"So…" he whispers, "what am I watching, exactly?"

"This woman, Amelié," she begins, her volume matching his, "secretly helps other people by fixing their lives. She works behind the scenes so they can get what they want."

"But what about her?"

"Well, that's just it. She does all this at the expense of herself. She has all these issues from her childhood that she doesn't really acknowledge, and her selflessness gets in the way of what she's always wanted: true love."

"Ah," Dex nods slowly, "and you got all of that from the subtitles?"

"I watched it in one of my classes at Wesleyan."

"You went to Wesleyan?"

"For a time."

"Why this film?"

"One of my professors...she thought it could speak to some of us in the class…or, at least, to me."

"You two were close?"

Kristina's silence gives him an answer, and he chooses to not press further. The pair refocus on the movie, time gradually ticking by. Another hour passes before Dex glances down at her again. She's slumped against him, her breathing steady and shallow and her eyes closed. The softness from before takes hold of him, his body relaxing the longer he stares, a sense of peace filling him. He mentally pauses for a moment, processing the sensation, unknowingly embracing it in full.

"Kristina," he speaks softly, gently bumping her with his side, "hey."

"Mm…" she hums as she stirs. Her eyes flutter open, slowly turning to face him, "did I fall asleep?"

"You did."

"I'm sorry…"

"It's alright," he pauses the television: ten minutes left in the film.

"I thought I got enough sleep last night…" she sits up, rubbing her eyes, "I guess six hours isn't enough…"

"Not even close," Dex gets to his feet, offering her a hand, "Let's get you to bed."

"Mm," she hums. Dex pulls her up, wrapping an arm around her as he guides her to her bedroom: the open door to the right of the television. He gently lays her on the burgundy comforter of her bed, turning back towards the living room.

"Dex…" she moans, her eyelids fluttering.

He stops and turns around, "Yes?"

"Don't go too far."

"I won't."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Good," Kristina beams at him. The sight makes him melt, his smile lighting up his face as much as it lights up the room. He slowly closes the door behind him, his back against the wood as he lets out a hefty sigh.

Get it together, man, he thinks, desperately trying to keep the young woman on the other side off his mind, get it together.