SILENT NIGHT
POST-3X17 AU
Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
-Silent Night (traditional Christmas carol)
He shouldn't be here. She didn't invite him; well, not explicitly, anyway.
But they've been doing this for months, this "sneak to each other's apartment" thing, and frankly, he's sick of it.
Sick of denying his feelings.
He thinks she's denying hers too, if the way she looked at him last night was any indication.
They'd had yet another close call with death, this time getting locked in a freezer, and had miraculously been rescued at some point between losing consciousness and losing their lives.
It's been a whirlwind since, one that only began to calm a few short hours ago, after they found the bomb and saved the city. His mother and daughter will return from the Hamptons in the morning, so his loft is quiet, should be relaxing after the chaotic case.
Except it's anything but.
He wants quiet and relaxing, but he doesn't want to be alone. He wants the comfort of his…whatever their label is. Partner? Friend-with-benefits? So he grabs his keys, including the one to her apartment that she gave him for emergencies, and heads out.
He tells himself not to panic when she doesn't answer his text, call, or knock. She's asleep, he figures, probably passed out cold - no pun intended - from going nonstop for days. He lets himself in anyway to make sure she's okay, and maybe so he isn't alone for a few minutes.
Her apartment is dark, so he uses his phone's flashlight to navigate.
Judging by the trail of clothes that leads to her bedroom, she started stripping as soon as she walked in the door. The towel hanging on her doorknob is still damp, so she must have bathed or showered the day away, like he did.
He spots the Beckett-sized lump on her side of the bed, pauses for a moment before quickly - and quietly - toeing off his shoes and coat and approaching the bed. He kneels on the floor and brushes a lock of hair off her cheek, leans forward to press his lips to her forehead.
She stirs, her eyelids fluttering for a few short seconds before they open. To his surprise, she doesn't panic, or yell, or kick him out and demand that he return her key. Instead, she offers him a small smile, and she lifts the covers as she scoots back to give him room.
Tomorrow, he'll reconcile his feelings, maybe try to talk to her about their relationship, see where she stands. But tonight…
Tonight, he'll hold her close, find comfort in the feel of her body close to his, fall asleep with her slow, deep breaths warming his skin.
Tonight, he'll just be with the woman he loves.
Tomorrow, he'll tell her how he feels.
(A/N: This is a series of 12 mostly-unrelated one shots, each one using a different Christmas/winter song as inspiration. All are rated T or lower, and the song and setting will be noted at the beginning of each chapter. And many thanks to Jenn for her continued pom poms, and also for reminding me that the 12 Days of Christmas technically refer to the 12 days AFTER Christmas, from 12/25 to 1/6, making this only slightly late. Not marking it as a ficathon fic because I don't think it'll hit the word count, but I'll update if that changes.)