First Glance (Kellic)

30: Namesake

Vic eventually pulls me out. I guess he thought I would punch Remington anyway. But to be fair, I probably would have hit him at least once if I stayed there any longer. 

"Hey, so I got word from Tony's mission," Jaime runs over to us, Oli right behind him. "He's almost done. Just have to breach and then it'll be coming home." 

Vic laughs. "Thank god. I was starting to get worried about that guy. Do you have an estimate on when he'll be back?" 

Jaime shakes his head. "Kind of? They said he should be back sometime from this week to next week, but not a specific time or anything." 

I nod in response and turn when I hear a thud. Awsten laughs nervously and rushes off. I glance at Vic, who gives me a confused look. 

"What was that all about?" He asks. I furrow my eyebrows. "Anyways, Jaime, Oli, can I speak to you?" He glances at me and sends me a quick smile before walking away. 

"Kellin," Andy jogs over to me. "Have you seen Awsten?" 

I nod. "Come with me," I speak and lead him over to where I last saw him. "He should be somewhere over-"

Andy rushes past me and into a room, the door slamming behind him. I walk over and twist the knob. Both of them are out of sight from where I stand. 

"A-Andy, who- who's there?" I hear Awsten stutter, sounding breathless. 

"It's just Kellin. Do you want him gone?" Andy speaks softly. I purse my lips and wait. 

"N-Not yet," Awsten gasps and I hear a thud. 

I refrain from running over. If he doesn't want me there, then I'll just leave. I sigh and turn towards the door. 

"Andy- it hurts," Awsten speaks weakly. I stop, suddenly unable to breathe. What's he talking about? "It really hurts- make it s-stop." 

"Aws, I know. I wish I could," Andy whispers. "Just take deep breaths. It'll pass." 

I bite my lip, curiosity coursing through me. I shake my head and walk out the door. 

"Kellin," Vic speaks, walking over to me. I stare at him. "I'm done for the day, do you want to go home?" 

I nod and glance back at the closed door. "Vic, do you know anything about Awsten?" 

"Not really. I don't talk to him that often... Why?" 

I shrug. "I don't know. I can't help but feel that there's something... Off about him." 

He nods. "I can investigate it for you. Try and find out what might have happened. I can ask around the agency." 

"No, it's alright. Maybe I'm just paranoid because of everything going on," I scan the room. "Can we go?" 

~~~

As we walk over to my apartment door, I see a figure sitting there, on the welcome mat. Vic automatically steps in front of me and places his hand on his gun. As we get closer, I see the face and place my hand on Vic's arm. 

"Jack, what the fuck?" I smile and walk over to him. He glances at me, an odd look on his face. "Did something happen?" 

I notice the tears in his eyes and I purse my lips. "He's gone- someone took him," he mumbles. "Alex and I got in a fight, and he left the house. I thought he was going to you, but then he didn't come back for days and I started getting worried. I texted everyone and no one's seen him and-" he grabs my arms. "Kellin, you gotta find him." 

Vic and I exchange a glance and he pulls out his phone. 

"Jack, tell me everything," I speak. 

"Uh, Alex and I were arguing, and-" he scoffs. "I don't even remember what we were arguing about but- then he left. I assumed he'd go to you, and you know how he is, I just- I gave him space, but then three days passed, and I was starting to get worried. So I came over here to check, and no one answered the door. And I texted everyone, and no one's seen him." 

My heart sinks and I glance at Vic. He's texting someone, a serious expression on his face. "It'll be okay," I turn back to Jack. "Let's go inside, and take a deep breath, okay? Maybe he just went to a hotel or something." 

"I'm worried, Kellin. What if something happened to him? It'll all be my fault and I just-" he sighs. "Kellin, I love him. I can't lose him." 

"You won't," I speak, staring him straight in the eyes. "I'll do anything I can. We can call some people, try and find him, okay?" 

He nods and looks down. "I just- I won't be able to live knowing that he might be dead because of me. I-" he takes a deep breath. "It should have been me." 

"No, don't say that," I place my hands on his shoulders. "We'll figure this out, okay?"

Vic puts his phone away. "I called the police," he glances at me. "They're starting an investigation. One cop will be here momentarily." 

Jack nods and lays against the couch. "Kellin... I'm scared." 

"I know," I sigh. "I am too. But we'll figure this out." 

There's a knock on the door. Vic stands up and checks through the peephole. He opens the door. "Hello... Officer," he clears his throat. "Jack Barakat is sitting on the couch, the person next to him is Kellin Quinn."  

I silently smile at the ground as Awsten walks in. 

"Why aren't you wearing a uniform?" Jack asks softly. 

Awsten blinks. "Well, you see, I'm technically off duty, but Vic here called me saying there's an emergency." 

I stare at Awsten. He purposely lowered his voice. 

"My name is Awsten Knight," he says. He reaches into his pocket and shows Jack a name card. I slap my hand over my mouth to keep from laughing. 

On the card, it says Austin Night. 

Jack glances at me. And then back at Aw-Austin Night. Vic glances at me, humor in his eyes, but he remains blank-faced aside from that. Awsten winks at me when Jack isn't looking. 

"I'm Jack Barakat," Jack answers softly. 

"I'm just here to ask a few questions. It'll help with the investigation," Awsten says. "Let's go somewhere more isolated," he turns to me. "Kellin, right?" He asks. I nod. "This is your apartment?" I nod again. "Is there anywhere we can go?" I nod for the third time. 

I walk them to a room and shut the door behind them. I turn and stare at Vic, who's staring at me. 

"You really suck at acting," he sighs and pulls me over to the couch. 

"Do you have a weird fake name too?" I ask. 

"I go by a different alias every time. Awsten just gets the funny one. Once, I think he was called Felony Steve. That was a weird one." 

"What- alright, whatever. Do I get a fake name?" 

He gives me a look. "You're never going to be out on the field, or undercover. Why would you?" 

I shrug. "It'd be cool to have a different name, I guess. I don't know." He sighs and wraps his arms around me. 

I smile and press a soft kiss to his lips. He laughs and leans in close to whisper in my ear. "I like your name."