[trigger warning: alcohol and domestic abuse mentions]
His phone buzzed in his pocket, causing him to jolt rather harshly. Realising where he was after a few seconds, he turned and checked to see if he woke Karen. She lay facing him, her mouth parted slightly and tiny snores escaping. Frank realised he had been laying in an awkward position, on top of the duvet and that he ached a little.
The phone kept buzzing and he rummaged around in his jean pocket looking for it. He snoozed the alarm set for 6:15 AM, placing his phone on his lap before leaning back against the bed and shutting his eyes. He covered his face with his hands, rubbing his eyes before running his hands through his hair.
Now that he knew he was in a strange place, he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. It was just a thing he'd had since he was young and he couldn't get rid of it. Karen was so peaceful next to him and Frank's mind had already switched onto work and how he had to be there in two hours.
Being careful not to wake Karen, he pushed himself off the bed and exited the room. He looked around the still apartment, noticing the stain on the beige couch from a drink Karen had the night before. He knew she'd probably be angry at herself so Frank noted to try and clean it up. He also spotted a bookcase in the corner of the room and headed over.
The first thing he noticed was that all the books were of a reasonable size, none of them would be thinner than 400 pages at the least. He figured that's where her articulate tongue came from, all her reading. Frank ran his fingers across the books, feeling the different covers and how worn they were or not.
Frank had never had an interest in reading, High School being the place he had to read most and where he had done it the least. He picked the smoothest one along the first shelf and pulled it out. Audrey Niffenegger. He frowned at the name, turning to the back and beginning to read the summary.
"I didn't know you read"
Frank jumped, almost dropping the book as he turned around. Karen stood in the doorway to her bedroom, gripping onto the frame to steady herself. She was still fully clothed and it was an odd sight to Frank, even though he was fully clothed too. He also had stayed the entire night at Karen's.
"I don't" Frank replied, shoving his hands into his back pockets as he turned to look at her properly. She hesitated on the spot, almost wondering whether to approach him. Frank was the same and he felt almost childish for it. They were both adults. He dismissed his thoughts, going back to the topic of the books. "Have you read all of these?"
Karen walked over to him whilst rubbing her head as Frank put the book back on the shelf, pressing it in with ease and satisfaction that it fit neatly back onto the shelf. They both stood side by side looking at the case and her body only radiated warmth toward Frank's cold torso. Even though he slept fully clothed, a duvet would have been nice. However, he didn't want to step over the boundaries. "I have"
"Impressive," He replied, looking at all the books once again. His eyes flickered toward her as she eyed them, scanning the shelves which she had so clearly spent hours organising, and he smiled at the way she admired her collection. "Which one is your favourite?"
Karen hesitated, reaching down to the third shelf and pointing to a book slap-bang in the middle of the row. The thinnest one on the shelf. She pulled it from its place, smoothing over the cover before handing it to Frank. Their fingers touched, her skin just as delicate and smooth as the book's surface and Frank took it from her hesitantly just to feel her warmth for a little longer.
"On Death and Dying" Frank read aloud, looking down at the cover and the odd illustration. He smiled a little at the fact this book was Karen's favourite. Out of all the other books on the whole of her shelf. "Sounds delightful"
Karen nodded, shoving her hand behind her back as she manoeuvred around awkwardly on the current spot. Frank placed the book back into its place on the shelf until it slotted perfectly. "It is"
Frank's eyes shifted from the shelf to look at Karen. Her hair was shoved to one side and he could see the scar behind her ear. He wasn't dreaming it, it was there. He crossed his arms as he looked at her tired eyes scanning the floor of her apartment. She then looked up toward him.
"Why did you leave?" She asked, pulling his arms apart from across his chest and lacing them around her body. He felt her warmth hit as she pressed herself against him and he tightened his arms around her, holding her close. He could hear her heart against his chest, pounding just as loud as his own.
"My alarm went off," Frank said, resting his chin on her head. Her head was tilted a little, fitting neatly into Frank's collarbones. Everything fit so well and everything was just so- good. He hated to break the moment. "I have to go to work"
"Seriously?" Karen asked, sighing. Frank could feel her whole body sag a little in his embrace and he shut his eyes. He pressed his mouth to her head and she moved a little to wrap her arms around him further. They reached over his shoulders and she was almost on her tiptoes. "Can't you skip that? Can't you get back into bed with me and we can just lay there and not move all day?"
Frank laughed, lifting his head from hers and smoothing over her hair as she buried herself further into his neck. Her slow breaths sent bumps down his neck as spoke. "It sounds like such a good plan but I really need to go to work, Karen. It looks bad if I skip out when the rest of the squad can't. The city needs me"
Karen hesitated, not bothering to look up toward him. His heart pounded. "I need you"
Frank felt an abnormal thump in his chest and he stayed silent. Everything seemed to have sped up all of a sudden after how slowly the process began. Half of his mind was opposed to the idea but the other half was there, holding Karen in his arms and wouldn't have it any other way. It was right where it was meant to be. "I'll be back as soon as my shift is over, I promise"
"Thank you" She replied, running her hands over his shoulders slowly which sent more bumps down his body. He was a little cold. "For last night. For dealing with everything I said, which admittedly I can't remember half of it. And for stopping me from kissing you whilst I was drunk. Cause, it's something I want to remember"
Frank placed his hand on the back of her head in an attempt to pull her closer and she wrapped her arms around him tighter. He traced the scar by her ear and hoped she wouldn't notice. It was the one thing he learned about her that previous night that intrigued him the most. "You really don't remember anything?"
Karen shook her head, "Sadly. Did I miss anything?"
Only a confession that I think you're my girlfriend from senior year.
"No" Frank answered curtly. He figured she had guessed something was wrong due to his snappy response so he tried to further it with something else. "We just talked about anything. Anything and everything. To take your mind off things, Carson related things"
She finally pulled away from him, looking back up toward him. Frank felt cold and empty where she was lay, her arms slowly sliding from under his own as she distanced. He caught them right at the end, holding onto her hands for a split second before she let go. "Right"
"I was going to start making coffee but I didn't know how long you'd be out," Frank said, shoving his hands into his pockets. His phone was there, reminding him of work. Karen began moving around her apartment and Frank was left standing there almost unsure of what to do or say.
"I'll make some. What time do you have to leave? Cause I can make breakfast too" She offered, heading into the kitchen. Frank followed her, the boots he still wore from the night before causing loud echoes as he paced the apartment after her. It sounded and felt wrong.
"Or we could go down to the pancake place on the corner of fourth st. for breakfast?" Frank asked, "I'm always going there and the guy who serves me the blueberry pancakes always gives me extra. My treat?"
Karen turned around, a small smile on her face as she looked toward him from the kitchen. In her hands were two mugs and she put them down before walking back toward where Frank was stood. She kept her distance and Frank was okay with that. "That sounds wonderful"
--
Frank made it to work by 8:39 and nobody complained that he was late. Purely because there weren't many people there on a Saturday. It was one of his better days at work, the quiet in the precinct letting his mind work properly and the extensive hours he had throughout the day allowing him to get allocated work done and work missed from during the week.
He skipped the locker room even though he figured there would be a spare change of clothes in there that he could change into after having slept in the outfit he was currently wearing and headed straight for his office, dumping his bag down beside it as he sat down in his chair. It was cold and the office was eerily quiet since the last time he was in there.
Frank saw the picture in the frame on his desk, eyeing it before putting it face down as he booted up his laptop. It was a picture of himself, Gabriela, Marco and their father. Frank was 18, Gabriela 16, Marco 15. They were all smiles. Rare for a family full of pain. He figured that was the last time he smiled with genuine happiness up until recently.
Once the laptop started up, Frank pulled up the police files and ran a search on the name Carson Morello. He figured he could strategise better and start to form a profile if he had some background information. His office door opened before the page loaded and Scott headed inside. It clicked shut and Frank sighed. "Hey boss"
"Go home Scott, it's Saturday" He snapped, avoiding Scott's eyes and keeping them trained on the small rotating loading sign in the middle of the screen. It was so slow and he figured he would have to make conversation with Scott whilst it loaded.
"What are you doing?" Scott asked, heading around Frank's desk to join him before leaning over his shoulder. Frank sighed angrily and shoved his hand in Scott's face to push him away but Scott continued looking after forcing Frank's hands away from him. "Who the hell is Carson Morello?"
Frank sighed, leaning back in his chair and scooting backwards so Scott would take a few steps backwards. He did exactly as Frank figured and he could relax a little knowing Scott wasn't practically perched on his shoulder anymore. "I don't have a case built yet but- he could be a possible suspect for my mugging"
"Wait, what? How? When did you find this out?" Scott asked, heading back around the desk and sitting in the chair opposite Frank's desk. He instantly leaned forward, his chin in his palms ready to listen like an eager kindergarten child. Frank would laugh but that would only humour Scott which at the moment was a no-no.
"Cool it with the questions, Scott" Frank snapped, rubbing his eyes wildly as they began to water. "I sort of began theorising about it last night but it is really, really early days. And don't get telling anyone I'm doing this on the side of everything else"
"Why?" Scott asked, somehow leaning in further intrigued even further. Frank had never worked with an officer excited by everything and who happened to also be the most gullible person on the entire Earth. He didn't understand how someone like Scott got put in someone like his command.
"One, I don't have substantial evidence against him, nor have I ever met him. Two, I need to do a background check and everything else before you go blabbing to the commissioner. For all I know, he could be a completely normal guy and I could be blowing things way out of proportion. But I still have to check"
"You got it, Sarge," Scott answered, nodding his head affirmatively. "I won't tell anyone"
"Why are you here Scott? You don't work on Saturdays" Frank asked, still waiting for the page to load as he impatiently tapped his hands on his desk. He had never known it to take this long and he figured it was a way to get back at Frank for being a dick to Scott. He probably deserved it.
"Better than being at home," Scott replied, sinking in the chair. He began twidling his thumbs and going quiet for a few seconds, clearly thinking about something that hit home. Frank watched him with a frown on his face before he perked up again quickly. "Where did you find this Morello guy anyway?"
"So I told you I went on a date the other week, right?" Frank said, lowering his voice. Scott nodded his confirmation, leaning forward once again. "Her ex, he's showed up to her apartment multiple times when she told me herself she doesn't want to see him and that she moved to get away from him. There's clear destruction there and definitely something between them that's driven her away. Not just the whole "falling out of love" thing"
Scott nodded, "So you think he's a psycho, is that it? You're being the overprotective boyfriend, right?"
"She is not my girlfriend, Scott" Frank snapped, shaking his head as "overprotective boyfriend" sent him into a little bit of a fluster. "I just can't help but wonder" He went back to the laptop, refreshing the page multiple times before looking back at Scott. "I don't have to justify myself to you, anyway. I don't make you justify all the questionable shit you do, do I?"
Scott surrendered himself as Frank's focus was back on the computer. His files had loaded and Frank got a look at the picture and information. He was just as he pictured; a typical white male with a questionable haircut and suburban attire. He skim-read the offences, looking for anything out of place.
"Here," Frank said, pointing at the screen and looking over the top of the laptop toward Scott. He beckoned him over quickly. "I told you"
Scott jumped out of the chair heading around the desk back toward Frank eagerly. He looked over his shoulder at the screen, squinting as Frank turned a little to see Scott's reaction and to have hopefully have proven him wrong.
"First wife Calissa Marriott reported him for alcohol abuse and domestic violence toward her and a child. Charges were dropped when his lawyer got hold of things" Frank said, not fully turned toward Scott. His anger was bubbling and Scott could tell as he stepped away from Frank. He clenched his fists on his desk, trying to avert his anger away from Scott.
"You don't think he did it again, do you? To your girl?" Frank stared back at the screen, his fist curling in and out. He never replied and Scott spoke up again. "Surely he'd be laying low if the cops were onto him. He wouldn't try it again?"
He just shrugged, shaking his head. "Some people are so twisted that they just don't care"
Frank wondered how long Karen had suffered this before she spoke out and got shut down.
He closed the laptop violently.