Open Case File [COMPLETED]

Three Little Words

As requested. I warn you it's crazy emotional. Ice cream and tissues are advised! Enjoy!

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Night had descended on the city, coating the sky in a thick velvet with a sprinkling of stars. The common room of Carter's dorm was silent. It was the silence that most weekends took on. It was the silence that came from an absence of occupants, most of them taking the freedom to share drinks and release the pressure of college workloads.

Carter was alone in the building, staring at a computer screen, books and notes were strewn about her. After her father got married, she decided to take a room on campus, wanting to give him space for his first year of marriage. The screen before her blurred and she rubbed her eyes. Exhaustion hung on her, making every action twice as hard and every thought slower. Though it was fairly early the idea of sleep came to her. Even as it did though, she refused it. For the past eight days sleep meant nightmares and images she could never banish.

She checked her phone but there was nothing to see as it had been for far too long. Though Donovan was just at Quantico training, she hadn't heard from him in eight days. Worry and fear crept along the ground, coming for her. Swallowing, she stood up, shoving back her chair. She needed desperately not to think, thinking of late had led her down avenues that she couldn't escape from.

Grabbing a pair of boxing gloves, she pulled them on. In the far corner, near a row of windows was a mannequin dummy. The addition of it had gotten a few curious and confused looks, but after seeing Carter attack it, her fellow dorm room peers had stayed quiet. Though she felt like she might fall to the floor, Carter slammed her fist into the rubber dummy, sending it quivering.

Eight days.

She forced the thought from her head. Spinning, she brought her leg up and kicked the mannequin's side, the thump breaking a piece of the silence. She spun back and landed three quick punches, hitting the face, ribs, and stomach.

Not a word.

Heart clenching, she threw herself into the next attack. She pounded away as if she could beat her emotions into submission. The storm in her thoughts threatened to consume her, fear battling worry. With each new bubble of speculation, her movements became more frantic, her arms flashing in rapid fire. The faceless dummy took each blow with an uncaring detachment that Carter wished she could punch away.

Eight days and not a single word.

She felt as if she were about to break into a million pieces. Her knuckles were raw but she didn't care. Blow after blow hit the mannequin, the force of it jarring her body. She clenched her teeth fighting the rise of emotions that was beginning to choke her.

The flicker of movement outside the window, on the path to the dorms, stopped her. Breathing hard, she walked over. What she saw made her heart pound faster. The relief of seeing Donovan strolling towards the building nearly did her in.

What stopped her from collapsing was the sight of a leggy girl right beside him, smiling up at him. For a breath, Carter let herself believe that it was the unwanted attention of some college student until Donovan smiled back.

All the emotions at seeing him, twisted and morphed into a knife that sliced through her. Anger and jealousy collided, clouding her mind. Clenching her fists, she backed away and returned to the mannequin. She attacked it with renewed vigor, though her body cried for sleep. She pummeled the unchanging face over and over again.

On the desk, her phone buzzed. Though she knew it was Donovan, she didn't answer it. Despite herself, she hated when the call ended and another didn't follow. Her mind was a tangled mess of exhaustion and hurt.