Work Text:
1.
It was late, Kate was idly channel hopping not really taking anything in that she saw. It had fallen dark around her, the flickering light of the TV the only source of light in the room. Her coffee had gone cold, barely touched but she paid it no mind.
Her phone lit up next to her with an incoming text, she glanced down at it and seeing that it was Steve's name was staring up at her she picked it up. Too dark in the room for facial recognition to work she entered her passcode and swiped the message open.
'You okay?' It read
She sighed, typing back a quick yet honest reply 'dunno'.
His response was almost immediate 'can I come over?'
She hesitated, she wasn't sure she was up for any company but this was Steve 'yeah' she hit send and looked around her flat, it was messy but not dirty she had barely had time to stand up heading to turn the lights on when the buzzer to her flat sounded.
She picked up the handset frowning, Steve lived a good 30 minute drive away at least.
"Alright mate" was all he said before she buzzed him in, and a minute later he was at her door.
"That was quick" she commented as she opened the door to him ushering him inside.
"I was in the area" he muttered, not quite meeting her eye.
"Drink?" She asked, allowing the obvious lie to slide.
"Yeah, thanks" he took off his jacket and moved to sit on the sofa whilst she went to the kitchen to get the drinks.
She poured them both a large glass of wine, she knew Steve wouldn't be able to drive after drinking it, but she found she didn't mind.
Despite her not wanting company this evening having him with her was comforting, not that she would tell him that she thought wryly.
"Here," she said as she handed him his glass. Whether or not he noticed it would stop him driving he didn't protest and took a long drink as she sat down next to him.
"Want to talk about it?" He asked a few minutes later.
She looked at him and crossed her arms in front of her protectively "He was so young Steve" she said quietly "He was only a year older than Josh."
"I know mate. I wish I'd have been there" he said softly.
"You don't, it was horrible." She sighed running her hand through her short hair "I knew going to MIT I'd see this stuff, but fuck it never gets easier."
"You know I'm always here for you, don't you? You can always come to me. No matter what, no matter when. No matter if it's in the middle of the night I'm there."
She studied him smiling for the first time in what felt like a week. "Not sure you'll want me calling you at 3am to let me in" she knocked her shoulder into his.
"Kate, I mean it." His eyes bored into hers "no matter when, come to me."
Finally, she believed him and nodded silently.
She saw indecision in his eyes for half a second before he reached forward and pulled her into him and hugged her tightly. She let out a shaky breath, and took her first full breath since she had walked into that crime scene.
2.
It had been a month since Steve had made the offer and Kate hadn't felt like she needed him enough to disturb him in the middle of the night, but this scene was nothing short of horrific.
They had been called in following a domestic disturbance turned vicious murder-suicide and she couldn't get the image of the nail marks scratched into the wooden floor out of her mind.
She had parked her car on the street outside his flat and just stared up at the building. She had a text typed out but her finger was hovering over the send button. She had believed him when he said to come to him, but it was 2:30 in the morning and she knew he had to be awake in a few hours. She'd text him, she decided, and if he didn't reply she'd go home and wait for him to see it at a more reasonable hour.
She hit send on her message and stared at the screen. The typing dots appeared within a minute and a text flew in inviting her up.
She sighed in relief and got out of her car locking it up before she buzzed his flat number, the gate opened for her immediately and she rushed through suddenly desperate to see him.
Running up the 3 flights of stairs not wanting to wait for the lift she burst out onto his hallway and saw him standing outside his flat waiting for her. She rushed forward and barrelled into him, hugging him tightly as the tears she had been holding back started to fall. He guided her into his flat without letting her go, shutting the door behind them.
"What happened mate?" He asked later when she had calmed down and he had pushed a cup of tea into her hands.
"Muder-suicide" she said succinctly "Triple 9 had a call for a domestic disturbance but by the time the PCs got there it was too late so they called us in" she paused "you could see where she had tried to get away and he'd dragged her back. If we'd have been quicker..."
"No, Kate come on you know you can't do that. What if's don't help."
"I know. But I can't get those scratch marks out of my head, she tried so hard. And we can't even string the bastard up."
"I'm sorry mate." He said sincerely, pulling her back into his embrace. They sat together quietly, both of them falling asleep until Steve's alarm blared from his bedroom an hour later.
3.
Steve had text her 40 minutes ago asking if she was in. She had replied yes immediately and was waiting for him to buzz her flat to come up.
Just as she was about to text him to check if he was okay her buzzer sounded.
"That you mate?" She questioned just to be sure.
His rough reply of "yeah" made her frown as she released the door. She walked out to the corridor and down to the lift at the end watching as the numbers climbed before it pinged quietly and the doors opened. He looked like crap, she thought as he stepped out of the lift.
"Come on mate" she said, leading him back to her front door.
She led him to her sofa, sat him down dropping down next to him and put her arm around his shoulders patiently waiting for him to tell her what was wrong.
It took half an hour of quiet support before he was ready to speak.
"I need to tell you something" he began, his head hanging down, she nodded waiting for him to continue "I-I think I have a problem."
"With what mate?" She prompted after he stopped talking
"Uh, you know I have problems with my back still?" Kate nodded "I've been taking a lot of painkillers because I need them, but I think I might have a problem with them. I know I'm taking too many but I don't know how to stop. Occy health keep emailing me for follow ups and I've been ignoring them because I know what they'll say. They'll pull me off duty and I'm scared Kate." He lifted his head "I'm so scared I don't know what to do, I don't know how I can get out of this. My job is all I have. I need help."
"Okay, okay I'm glad you've come to me about this mate, we can work this out together." She pulled her to him and rubbed his back gently "You'll be okay, I promise."
He clung to her tightly breathing heavily into her neck. She shivered at the contact before reigning herself back in, now was not the time for her growing feelings for him.
She waited for his breathing to even out before she whispered "For the record, you have me, Steve." His arms tightened around her and he sighed into her.
"Then that's all I need"
4.
It was the third time that week that Kate had just happened to be in his area and had dropped him the now expected 'You in mate?' text. He picked his phone up with a smile and responded with his usual 'I'll stick the kettle on'.
She had taken to spending more time at his than she spent at her own home, fully convincing herself it was purely to make sure he was doing okay weaning himself off the painkillers; she had seen one too many tragic cold turkey cases to think that was the way to go, so she was carefully monitoring his intake.
He met her in the hallway as usual and she gave him her usual wide grin she only ever used when she was with him.
"Alright mate?" He said when she reached his side and gave her their usual off duty hug, another thing that had been a common occurrence in recent weeks, not that either of them minded. Though this one was just one arm, given that she was carrying a bag from his favourite curry house in her left hand. She walked into his flat ahead of him and went straight to the kitchen putting the takeaway on the side before opening the various cupboards and draws to assemble their curry.
"How have you been doing then mate?" She asked as though they hadn't been texting each other constantly in the few days between the last time she just happened to be in the area.
"Yeah, alright" he replied anyway, "the packets are in the cupboard for you to check when you're ready" knowing that she would be disappointed in him if he went over the agreed dosage really helped him to keep himself in check.
"How about we eat first, yeah? I'm starving." She said with a grin picking both plates up and handing Steve his.
"Thanks mate, how much do I owe you?"
"Cut it out," they had this argument every time one of them picked food up for the other "you'll get the next one"
He smiled down into his curry and changed the subject "Where did you get that picture from anyway?” He asked, causing her to snort inelegantly.
"Saw it on Facebook, didn't realise you were posing for shots for them if I'm honest."
He belly laughed at that chucking a broken piece of poppadom at her.
"Oi! Don't waste that, food of the gods poppadoms are," she picked it off her shirt and popped into her mouth smugly "snooze you lose, Arnott”
He watched her eating her curry, drinking a beer she had taken out of his fridge and he couldn't stop the smile on his face. This, he thought, this is exactly what I need.
5.
She had text him shortly after his distressed call to her following the revelation that the gaffer had bunged Steph Corbett the £50k everyone had assumed didn't exist. He had responded and told her to text him when she was 5 minutes away, he had something to show her.
As she pulled onto his road she saw him standing outside and she pulled over lowering her passenger side window leaning over to talk to him "What you doing mate?" she asked
"It's brass monkeys out there"
He blinked as though he hadn't noticed her pull up and in a second he was sitting in her passenger seat. She frowned "You okay mate?" She asked, concerned.
"Yeah, yeah course I just figured I'd show you the back way in, in case you ever need it, that all. Go down there and take the next left."
She looked at him for a second longer and did as he said turning left, then left again before coming to a set of grey gates.
"You can park anywhere along here" he instructed and she pulled into one of the spare bays. She was about to get out of the car when he stopped her, his hand on her arm.
"Here" he said, handing her a key card and a set of keys.
"What's this?" She asked.
"Keys to my flat, and a keycard to get through the front gates. It works on the front and back gates.”
She frowned again "What's going on mate?" and he sighed rubbing his forehead with his thumb and forefinger.
"Look, you are literally the only person that I know I can trust, and if something goes sideways I need to know that we have a Plan B. So I'm going to show it to you. Come on" he got out of the car and waited for Kate to gather herself before leading her to a big grey gate.
"Use the keycard on the pad" he instructed pushing the gate open wide with his foot as she did as he said. He led her through a set of doors into the underground resident parking and through another grey gate to a set of large lockers.
"This one is mine" he said "the black key will open it" he gestured for her to open it inside of which sat a set of car keys and two burner phones.
"Keys are to my car, and a burner phone for each of us," he explained "if, for whatever reason, your service vehicle is out, my car will be here. The phones are untraceable. The only contact in there is the other one"
"What's all this in aid of Steve?" She questioned.
"I'll explain upstairs, come on." They continued round past the bikes locked up along the back wall and up into the stairwell, climbing 4 flights up from the basement to the third floor.
They didn't speak until they were outside his door, she was waiting for him to open the door when he nodded at her to open it with the set of keys he'd just given her. She found the only key on the set that looked like a front door key and unlocked the door easily. Steve pushed the door open with one hand, ushering her through with the other.
Once they were both safely inside he visibly relaxed.
"Okay, plan B," he began "in the event of the chain of command being compromised, ditch your service vehicle and come here. Get my keys take my car and get the hell out, or come up here and wait for me then we both get the hell out."
“Steve, what's brought all this on?"
"After what happened when Dot was trying to frame me, I've gotten a little nervous about who's really in charge and what they're willing to do to stay in charge. They're killers Kate, they're not going to just frame us and get us locked up they're going to kill us if we get too close so I need to know, no matter what happens, we have a plan and you'll be safe."
"Okay, so we come here but what if my place is closer, or yours is being watched?" She reached down into her bag and pulled out another set of keys.
"This goes both ways. These are to my place, fob is the lobby door, key is my front door and my spare car key." She pressed them into his hand. "Plus that way I don't have to keep buzzing you up every time you come round" she said trying to lighten the mood.
It worked, he smiled though it didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Yeah, and you can come up to me at 3 and I won’t even need to get out of bed" he said, clearing his throat awkwardly at how it sounded.
She smiled widely."Don't tempt me." grinning at his bright blush.
+1
It had been a long week, and Kate wanted nothing more than to fall into a deep uninterrupted sleep.
It had gone 2am and she had just finished cataloging a scene they had been called to. It was going to be a long drive home she thought wearily when she registered where she was. If she took the next right & 2 lefts she would be at Steve's place. The keys he gave her a few weeks ago springing to the forefront of her mind.
She really was shattered, she thought, and driving tired was as bad as driving drunk, so she would be doing the responsible thing if she really thought about it. Mind made up she took the right turn and a few minutes later she was parked up in the visitor parking and grabbed her bag fishing out the keycard and set of keys he had given her.
She hesitated for a second before she sent him a quick cursory 'Can I sleep on your sofa?' text so he wasn't completely blindsided when he woke up in the morning to see her camped out in his living room. Not waiting for his response she tapped the keycard on the reader and made her way to the lift hitting the button for the third floor. The doors opened on Steve's floor and she trudged down the hall to his door, selecting the front door key she opened the door, letting herself into his dark living room. She turned and locked the door behind her and kicked off her shoes groaning with satisfaction.
She was making her way over to his sofa to lie down at last when his bedroom door opened and he shuffled out, wearing a pair of boxers and nothing else. Kate's breath hitched at the sight.
"You okay?" He asked rubbing his eyes adorably, his voice rough with sleep.
"Uh. Yeah, I'm okay just too tired to drive home, and I was round the corner" she practically whispered "go back to bed."
"You're not sleeping on the sofa Kate, it's the most uncomfortable thing in the world, believe me. Come here."
She paused, pretty sure he was sleep walking.
"Come on" he repeated, this time reaching out to grab her hand and lead her into his bedroom.
She followed him in hardly trusting herself to breathe as he pulled opened his draws and took out a pair of pyjama bottoms and an oversized tshirt handing them to her "go get changed then come back," he mumbled climbing back into what was obviously his side "Beds big enough for two."
She didn't take any more convincing and quickly went to the bathroom to get changed into her borrowed sleep wear and get herself ready for bed. She padded back into the bedroom to find Steve lying on his side, facing her as she walked through the door looking more awake than he had since she arrived. He smiled and lifted the covers on the other side of his bed in a clear invitation and she didn't need telling twice. Slipping in Steve settled the duvet over her and let his arm rest across her torso comfortably.
"You sure you're alright?" He asked "I know things are getting a bit mad, what with Davidson and Pilkington, I don't want you to take it all on on your own."
She rolled her head to the side, taking in his features in the low light. His eyes reflected the glow of the streetlights streaming through the sliver where the curtains hadn't quite been pulled all the way across the window.
She nodded, "I'm okay, I promise. I just- well, I guess I could have had a kip in the car, wouldn't have been the first time, but I-"
"No, I'm glad you came." He said shuffling a tiny bit closer to her, not quite touching but close enough so that she could feel the heat of his body seeping into hers.
She had never felt more comfortable, she thought as she closed her eyes and burrowed down further into the duvet. She rolled her whole body towards him bringing them into contact when she suddenly remembered he was half naked. Her eyes flew open again, afraid she had made him uncomfortable when she met his eyes, inches from her own watching her.
She saw his tongue dart out licking his lips unconsciously and her eyes zeroed in on the movement. She swallowed and dragged her eyes back up to his and then all at once they were kissing.
She couldn't really say who had initiated it, but in that moment she couldn't care less. The hand that was resting across her torso flew up to her face, holding her in place as they moved against each other. He rolled them both over so she was on her back, him hovering over her.
It could have been 2 minutes or an hour, both of them had lost track of any sense of time, but eventually the kiss slowed gradually as they both came back to themselves breathing heavily.
"This should probably feel weird" she panted, him still above her, her hands still running up and down his sides making him shiver she noted with satisfaction.
"Yeah, probably" he replied dropping his head to rest in the crook of her neck
"It doesn't though, does it?"
"Nah not even a little bit" he spoke against her skin
"We alright with that?" She asked carefully
"Oh yeah," he lifted his head looking her in the eye grinning playfully "you should let yourself in every night"
"Count on it, Arnott"