#rose .

Washington D.C. would never be Siri’s home. Its cheerful cherry blossoms and marble domes were undoubtedly impressive, but it could never compare to home. He’d only left Florida a few days ago, and already he missed the white sand and the arcing turquoise waves. Sirius missed the feeling of salt water on his skin and the sun in his hair, and the sense of self he felt when he returned to his native state.

Sirius blew a breath through his lips, and turned to watch a gaggle of dorky tourists pass by. People watching at Metro Station was one of the highlights of Siri’s evenings. He liked to watch the way that they carefully folded their maps, how they talked of where they’d get dinner, complained about the unrelenting summer heat, and the souvenirs that they wore proudly. The politics in this city were as much of a tourist attraction as the Lincoln Monument.

There were dumb tourists in Florida too, of course, but a different breed. Not a gaggle of middle schoolers on a class trip with a haggard looking chaperone…

His attention was diverted from the odd group only at the feeling of his phone buzzing in his pocket. “Please don’t be work,” he mumbled to himself. He’d only just left. It had been yet another late night. Finally, the Elysion case was beginning to come together. “Carson,” he answered shortly, not bothering to check. He’d just left, it had to be Kaito recalling him to the damned office for some painful, tedious task.

“So official.” His mother’s voice teased, he could hear the amusement in each word. “Lighten up, baby. They’ve already got you wearing a suit, don’t let them turn you into one.” Sirius chuckled. She thought it was an insult to call someone a suit, and she wasn’t wrong… It wasn’t often that he acted the part anyway.

He glanced down the train tracks and frowned. Still no train. All he wanted was to go home, but even that was a challenge today. “I just left the office.” He explained. “That explains it.”

“Hardly,” Sirius retorted,  “I’m as badly behaved as ever. You don’t need to worry.”

He heard her hum in agreement through the phone, and at once he realized that there was a reason for her call. This was not a simple hello. Just as quickly, Sirius understood precisely what this was about. “So I’ve heard.” Yup, here came the scolding. “Moreno told me that you were in Miami over the weekend?”

“I had a––“

“What the hell, Sirius?” She demanded. Fuck. He hesitated. In truth, he didn’t really have a good explanation for any of it. The portion of the trip that he’d spent in Miami was over just as soon as he’d gotten settled, and he had admittedly, been a little bit preoccupied. Just as he wasn’t comfortable telling Erik about Rune, however, he wasn’t certain how the hell he was supposed to explain to his mother that he’d been shacked up all weekend. “Not even a clever explanation?” She asked. His mother knew him too well.

And there in the distance was the train. It twin lights glowed dimly as it entered the station. If he went onboard, however, he might lose signal and she would be even more upset. “I was there for work,” he told her and watched as dozens of people filed onto the trains. Maps, stupid hats, fanny packs, and all… Well, at least it was a little quieter. Sirius watched as the doors closed and sat down on one of the benches.

“You’ve had work in Miami before, and you still found time to come home.” She was too smart to believe that he’d spent the entirety of his time working.

“Well…” he started, his tone obviously shifting. There was none of his usual confidence or playfulness, just back-peddling “I wasn’t in Miami the whole time, Ma.”

She huffed. “That’s a bad excuse, Sirius.”

The station was damn near empty. He sat back and leaned against the stone seat back. For a long moment, he merely let the silence stretch between them. He understood why she was angry, of course, but he hand’t intended to hurt her feelings. Sirius groaned and pressed his thumb and forefinger to the bridge of his nose.

“You’re ready to be honest now?” Despite his annoyance, his uncertainty, his inner turmoil, he couldn’t help but smile faintly. She knew him too well…

“Yeah, fine,” he mumbled. “I don’t know, there’s this girl…” She didn’t respond right away, and Sirius could tell that she was waiting for him to divulge more information. It was a tactic she’d used since she was a kid, and one that the F.B.I. had taught him later. People are uncomfortable with silence, and feel the need to fill it. Despite knowing this, so did he. “The weekend was over before I knew it and boss man needed me in Tampa.”

“Oh! I see, you like her.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement.

At once, Sirius felt himself become defensive. What was it about him lately that gave people a hint that something was up? Well, Erik had seen a text… but his mother? It wasn’t like he’d said anything of importance, had he? “What? I didn’t say that. No.”

“You’re so full of it.” She teased.

Judging by his own uncertainty and unwillingness to give Erik her number, Sirius had started to suspect that she was right. He tapped his foot impatiently, considering and finally shrugged a shoulder. “Yeah, I guess I do.” Sirius frowned. “I didn’t mean for it to happen like this,” he confessed, “it was only supposed to be lighthearted, but I fucked up.”

She was quiet for a moment, Sirius could feel her considering what he’d said. “It’s not a bad thing, Siri.” She told him gently. “Just be careful.” Sirius couldn’t promise that. He’d thought that he was being careful before and he’d ended up in pieces. There was no guarantee that it wouldn’t happen again… or that she even felt the same way. “But next time you’re in Miami, you’d better come to visit. Bring her too if you’d like. I’d like to see who had you so preoccupied last time you were home.”

Already, the station had started to fill up with tourists. Another train would come soon. “We’ll see what happens,” he told her with a smirk, “I’m sorry I didn’t come to visit you. I’ll try to make it back soon.”

“Be good.” She replied.