#lcstscience

“You’re still not getting my tater tots.” She hoisted him up to his feet, smiling at him. He really was annoyingly cute, especially with that smile that reached his eyes. 

Sally couldn’t help but close the gap between them, wrapping her arms around his torso and burying her face in his neck. She just wanted to be right here at the moment. Just there, in the embrace of this annoyingly adorable, wonderful man. She didn’t quite understand the way she felt about him. Her ex never made her feel this way. Sometimes, a lot of times, she wished that he made her feel wanted, or at least, she wanted to want to be held by him but usually she just wanted to go to work, come home, avoid an argument, and go to bed. It was so different with Luke. She wanted him. All parts of him and she even felt like it was, dare she say, mutual. 

She nuzzled into his neck, almost getting comfortable there, even standing. she let her cheek rest on his shoulder. “I love you, too, Stretch.” 

Sally hadn’t realized how tightly she was gripping the kitchen counter until the gentle gravel of Luke’s voice coated in drowsiness broke through the quiet. A soft beam of moonlight crept across the sink and  laying on the floor beside her cutting into the darkness of the room, casting only faint shadows in its dim glow. 

Her nightmares were getting bad again. She didn’t want to risk waking him up with tossing or thrashing…she’d also been known to be vocally disruptive. Instead, after the first one woke her, Sally decided to slip out of bed to avoid waking him up. Heading to the kitchen, her initial plan was to get some water but zoned out in front of the sink before even opening a cabinet for a glass. She was exhausted. It showed on her face–in her eyes (and under them). Sleeping was difficult lately and staying asleep was even harder. The nightmares made it impossible to get back to sleep and even if she could, she didn’t even want to because she knew there would just be another one waiting for her once she did fall asleep.

“I.. I’m sorry, I was trying not to wake you up…I hope I didn’t–” she trailed off, turning to face his silhouette. “I came out here for some water.” 

“I know,” she nodded, “I know you are.” 

Sally was grateful to Luke, truthfully. Not many people would have stayed with someone during such a trying time in their life and Sally wasn’t blind to Luke’s patience and generosity. She was incredibly gracious but no less surprised. At this point she felt so accustomed to abandonment it felt more normal than the alternative. Her mind was distant but once she blinked herself back into the present, she reached out to slip her hand in his. She knew that he was there for her and she appreciated it more than she could convey. “I just don’t know why.” She hadn’t meant to say that part out loud but by the confused look on his face, she realized that it must have slipped out anyway. He was such a nice guy, a genuinely kind human being that had a mostly positive outlook for being in a career filled with doom, gloom, and chemicals all day every day. He was just…so much better. Sally didn’t want him to feel obligated to be the nice guy and suffer through her pain with her. 

a meme i can’t find but will try to answer anyway || @lcstscience 

The reality of it all hadn’t quite sunken in yet, but it was slowly becoming more transparent as she made her way inside. Sally was used to being close to death -- it came with the territory of her job. This time however, she almost lost a kid taken hostage. She saw the fear in the child’s eyes and those terrified eyes were burned into her memory as she walked through the rooms silently, mindlessly. Her mind was elsewhere -- back at that scene. She trudged up the stairs to the bathroom where she splashed cold water on her face, though barely felt it. She stared at her reflection for a moment, hardly seeing herself in that moment, instead flashing back to the sounds and what she had seen and went through. The woman breathed heavily as she clutched the sink, head hanging; a few stray tears hit the ceramic in silent little splashes of reminiscence. Her chest was tight with anxiety, reminding herself over and over that the kid was alright and the man was no longer a free one. But the fear in those small eyes was haunting. She never wanted to come that close to losing another kid again. 

“Ha. ha.” She shook her head, pointing to his imaginary camera. “Put that thing away, Ansel Adams.” 

Soft Intimacy Meme - send one to .... 

“Y’know, I am capable of feeding myself..” Sally sat back in her chair to eye up the man holding a bag of food. She looked up at him, almost defeated yet, grateful for the intrusion. This paperwork was grating on her nerves and driving her nuts. She hadn’t even realized how late it was getting because she was knee deep in evidence trails. “Although I definitely won’t turn down snacks.”