Cops and killers. Motive spoilers in comments.

[secondshift]

I told you Mark is not that guy. He may not have been around here very long, but even in the short time I knew him, I knew he was better than that.

What is wrong with you recently? First you decide to see what would happen if you killed me off, now you're thinking I might have been associating with dirty cops? I would never disrespect my badge like that. And I'm starting to believe that you don't have a lot of respect for me anymore. And I don't like the implications about my character.

Knock it off.

Comments

[liketogetajump]

Glad someone believed in me.

[secondshift]

Hey. [Karen gives him a small smile, leaning against her desk.] I just went with my gut. My gut told me you were a good guy.

[She doesn't want to ask, but at the same time she feels like she needs to. She'll understand if he doesn't answer.] Is there anything I can do? [Never mind they're talking about the murder of his girlfriend and that they'd once slept together.]

[liketogetajump]

Drinks?

[secondshift]

Yeah, sure. [Karen nodded and grabbed her jacket.] They're on me.

You coming back or taking a few days off?

[liketogetajump]

I wouldn't know what to do with a few days off.

[secondshift]

Maybe just get some breathing room. [Karen's been there, remember?] I know after my husband died I thought I could power through and I didn't.

[She walks with him out of the precinct, resisting the urge to take his hand. He's not hers anymore.]

[liketogetajump]

[He takes her hand and gives it a squeeze. Its done wordlessly before he lets go.]

I guess we'll see.

[secondshift]

[Karen's pleasantly surprised by that. She misses him.]

If you need anything at all, you call me. I don't want to see you turn into what I turned into, you know? You're better than me.

[liketogetajump]

[He misses her too. He gives a tiny smile at her offer. It means more than she might know because its her.]

We'll agree to disagree on that.

[secondshift]

Yeah we will.

[Karen leans over and kisses him lightly on the cheek. She'd have been happy to be the woman he'd been thinking of proposing to.]

You're still the best boss I've ever had.

[liketogetajump]

[But he has thought it. He has always entertained the idea of them being more. Just the timing never seemed right, and even now he knows it's wrong to think of her like that. So he resists that urge to accidentally turn his head for a kiss.]

Thanks, Karen.

[secondshift]

[She wouldn't mind that topic being broached. But it's so wrong to talk about them when they're talking about loved ones being killed. Maybe after a few drinks. Who knows.]

You're welcome. At least you weren't here when my mun had me executed in an abandoned factory. The bitch.

[liketogetajump]

That sucks she would do that.

[secondshift]

Tell me about it. Orphan my kid and traumatize my partner? Fuck, no.

[Karen shakes her head as they're walking to the elevator.]

Mark? Do you ever think about...you ever miss before?

[liketogetajump]

You mean us?

[secondshift]

Yeah.

I've missed you.

[liketogetajump]

I've missed you too. More than you know.

[secondshift]

[Karen looks down a little shyly at that. As they step onto the elevator together, she allows herself to reach for his hand.]

Does your mun know what she's going to do? Because I mean, I'm guessing we broke up if you were on the verge of proposing to another woman.

[liketogetajump]

Yeah she doesn't really know how to play that. She wants to follow canon but she likes you. SO maybe we just had a thing and something happened and we stopped...?

[secondshift]

Yeah. Maybe because we work together.

[A sad smile.]

She was a lucky woman, if you were thinking about marrying her.

[liketogetajump]

[He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.]

Part of my heart has always been yours though.

[secondshift]

I never forgot about you either.

[Damn elevator. It seems to be going really slow.]

But it'd be truly classless of me to try and pick you up when you're in mourning. Unless we get drunk and somehow angstily fall into bed together.

[liketogetajump]

It's us, who knows what might happen.

[secondshift]

[A laugh.]

Well, that's true.

Can I be jealous? Because honestly I was probably quietly jealous.

[liketogetajump]

As long as I can find that sexy.

[secondshift]

Yeah you can.

Should my mun set up a new thread then? Our last one was still...in the middle of sex.

[Smirk.]

[liketogetajump]

Absolutely.

[secondshift]

Here. Hey, we're gonna get through this, okay?