What?

You're not perfect sport, and let me save you the suspense,
this girl you met, she isn't perfect either.
But the question is whether or not
you're perfect for each other. - Good Will Hunting

The summer made the days feel long, and the warmth in the apartment wasn't intolerable but it wasn't quite cool enough to be comforting. It wasn't a heat that surrounded itself around you, and made you feel like you could just lie on the floor and let a small puppy's mouth huff small little pants of breath to the top of your head for a while. Elle kept the lights off, the shades drawn in the bedroom and padded around barefoot with a pair of Don's boxers on over her underwear and a tank top on. She could've cheated and turned the air on, but instead she left the windows open and let the ceiling fans circulate the breeze that would come into the room now and again.

Fred followed her around while she shut the windows, but he eventually settled on the floor in the middle of a patch of sun, panting and apparently enjoying the heat. Pausing in the middle of the room Elle glanced to the puppy, wondering how he could tolerate just taking a nap in the radiating heat of sunlight right through the glass. Pressing the arch of her foot against her calf she tugged at the bottom of her tank top, trying to create a breeze of some sort to her stomach.

"Okay, even I can't just watch you lay in the sun like that, you're going to cook!"

( Elle leaned down and scooped the sleeping puppy up off the floor. )

[ooc: Sam is thentheres_me and is mine and abused as such. Don is det_don_flack he's just mentioned, but I still was very nice to him]

The streets were a bit busier now that the weather had begun to warm up. A casual cross breeze would catch the ends of her hair as she pulled at a strand across her face tucking it behind her ear. She smiled at the gentleman that held the door open for her as she moved into the store, keeping to herself as she wandered down the aisles. Most times she didn't even need to get anything, but it was the fact that she could go out, that there wasn't much worry as to what was going on. There was a twinge of guilt that settled in the back of her mind, but she often found it easier to push it back rather than focus on it.

The woman had caught her eye earlier when she crossed at the end of the aisle Elle had been in, but she hadn't been able to place her. Of all the people she'd run across in life, as well as in files, Elle was never sure who was actually safe to approach. Walking up to the wrong person would put her at risk along with Don and everything he worried about would be that much closer to coming to pass. The second time the woman smiled at her apologetically while she waited for Elle to walk in front of her. The smile was more than familiar, it gave her a sign that she was an unfamiliar face, Elle was unknown to the woman. Part of her could've thought that it was a good thing, but she couldn't help but let that small seed of curiosity place in a bit deeper.

As the woman laughed and shook her head insisting that they stop meeting like this, Elle had to smile as well.

"Sorry, I swear I know you. It must sound a bit odd, but you have a familiar face." Elle knew she sounded a bit odd, and the woman looked amused at least. "It's your smile, I know I've seen it before."

If Elle was honest with the woman she'd also say that her eyes were familiar too, but that was a bit too odd, even for Elle to admit.

"Well I've lived in the city for my whole life? You've probably seen me around?"

Elle contemplated that, but it was more than that it was her smile, and not many complete strangers spotted a smile that easily. Shaking her head she bit on her bottom lip, "I really don't think that's it. I'm Elle, Elle Bishop?" Offering a name Elle thought maybe there would be a connection, that it would all be revealed but the woman had no clue who she was, and the name didn't help at all.

"Sorry Elle, but the name doesn't ring a bell. I'm Sam though, Samantha Flack."

Elle laughed, which startled Sam a bit, her hand going up to excuse her slight outburst. Shaking her head she smirked, "I know where I've seen your smile before. On Don's desk, he has a picture of the two of you from some party?" Elle didn't know the details behind the picture, but she knew it had been on his desk since she'd met him. Don had explained about his family late one night after work one night, and Elle had put the connection of his sister to the picture on his desk. It was the first time she actually realized that she wasn't his girlfriend, and while she was happy then, she wasn't actually going to mention that now.

Samantha looked shocked as well, "You know Don?"

Elle winced slightly, she knew that Don had caught up with her recently and then opted to let her have her space. Elle hadn't asked about her, but knew that Don was at least checking in on her. The realization now was that Don hadn't actually been making his presence known.

"Yeah... I, I actually live with him. It's a long story though," Elle tried to reassure her.

Sam laughed shaking her head, "Yeah I figured it would be. Though good for him, I told him he needed to find a girl."

"Well it didn't exactly start out that way, but... you should stop by. I'm sure he'd like to see you." Elle nodded shifting the bottle of shampoo from one hand to the other. It was the only thing she'd actually thought to pick up.

Laughing Sam shook her head, "Yeah, I'm sure he'd love that."

Elle glanced to her, "You never know? I don't know, he's had a rough few weeks." Elle shrugged, "I think he'd like to see you, I mean the fact that I only recognized you from a picture on his desk? That needs to get fixed."

"Yeah, maybe you're right," Sam paused thinking about it, "Shit! Does he still have the picture of me from Christmas like ten years ago? It was on the wall near the kitchen last I was there."

Thinking about it Elle shrugged, "Maybe? I spend a lot of time there but I haven't actually taken notice of much of his stuff." Sam shook it off dismissing the thought, but now Elle was curious. "You could come by? See for yourself?"

Shrugging Sam glanced to her basket of things, "Yeah, maybe. I should probably finish up. Tell Don I said hi though, yeah?"

Nodding Elle smiled again, "It was good to meet you though, and honestly... think about talking to him. I know he'd like that."

Sam nodded again and smiled waving to Elle as she headed back down the next aisle. Elle exhaled glancing to the bottle of shampoo and turning on heel to go check out. Even though she had just met Don's sister for the first time the only thing she was thinking about was if there was that picture on the wall, and how growing up she knew the only picture on her father's desk had been one of him and a fish.

[ooc: AU Content with spoiler from current season of Heroes and CSI:NY 5x14 "She's Not There". Flack is det_don_flack and is not binding on any other canon muses from either series.

Elle was never really sure when he slept some nights, and she knew that more recently his sleep hadn't been the easiest. Now as the alarm went off she turned over to feel against his pillow glad that she wasn't grabbing at his mouth, but unsure of where he was. Sitting up in bed her hand ran over her features allowing her sight to adjust a bit. Flack wandered into the bedroom fastening the links on the cuffs of his shirt.

"Ooh, your favorite suit. Looks sharp with the hair cut Detective."

He smirked at her and she had to return the smile as well. Tugging at the blankets she wanted to settle back into bed and go back to sleep but he gave her a look that she knew meant he had either an opinion or something to say, which in general were the same thing.

"What?" Homeland Security had taken the case away and it had been a few days since the text message and nothing had happened.

"Come with me to the station today."

The look of confusion on her features was met with a look of seriousness on his.

"Just.. don't look at me like that. I know it's been a few days, but just... for me. Come on. Hang out at my desk and just.. I'll feel better if you do alright?"

Taking in a breath for a moment she nodded, "So what is this? Take your Elle to work day?"

"Something like that."

***

Elle was used to sitting around while other people did all the important stuff. It wasn't the building in Hartsdale, but it was still a building full of people that were doing the right thing for the city. Of course the difference was that this actually was the right thing, and it wasn't just someones beliefs that it could be right. The one good thing was that Flack's desk had a chair that swiveled and most of the guys in the precinct were really nice to her. It was odd, mostly because she'd been there before. Not in the actual building, but in the parking lot out front. Bennet had to claim a few people... a few times. He'd give them the whole routine, flash some credential and then he'd be back out to the van with the one that got away. Now Elle was inside the building, and it looked... boring.

What probably wasn't boring was whatever Flack was doing. He was off with someone from the crime lab, who Elle recognized in name, but not in his face. It wasn't like it actually mattered, but she knew that he was close to all of the people he worked with. Elle had only worked with Bennet really... and she figured he was out there somewhere keeping his Claire Bear safe.

"Save the dumb cheerleader Bennet..." Elle muttered under her breath as she let her feet swivel the chair a bit side to side. She should've brought a book.

***

Elle pouted over at him, "That was your favorite suit. Now it smells like the fish market."

"Cause I fell into a fish stand."

Hanging it up on the hanger she tilted her head at him as he changed. It wasn't that she didn't see him, and not even that she didn't see him like this, but it was different still. He was on edge, rattled even and it worried her. "Hey..." Elle kept her voice low as she moved toward him in the locker room. Her hands settled on his shoulders for a moment before she leaned against him. She knew he could feel the static on her and that he knew what it was, understood that it wasn't just an oddity. Shutting her eyes she let her breathing soften to match the rise of his chest as his hand covered over hers on his chest. Smirking she kissed his back then laughed as her forehead pressed to him, "You still smell like fish. I'll take your suit to the cleaners, and I'll come back. I promise. I'm going stir crazy."

***

It bothered her to sit in the room with the man trying to describe a woman that had helped take his daughter. Shifting in her chair Elle tucked her hair behind her ear, wishing that Flack had asked someone to take a patrol car and take her home. He knew it was going to be a late night, and he'd told her just that. Sitting there waiting for them to come back though was making her anxious. Hearing the man talk about his daughter.. the way he was so concerned, so worried about her. Exhaling Elle took a strand of her hair winding it around her finger in a nervous manner. There wasn't a single position on the wooden bench she'd opted to sit in that was comfortable. Every time the door to the station opened she saw the man flinch in reaction, expecting someone to call his name. Elle glanced every few times hoping to see a pair of blue eyes coming to claim her.

Always willing to stay out of the way Elle had barely managed to see him in the few times he'd been in the station after the fish incident. Whatever he was working on was taking a lot of time and energy and she'd seen people milling through the rooms at a higher frequency. She was good at determining patterns, and noticing who was leaving and not coming back. Her fingers itched at her nose before she started to chew on her bottom lip. The minute hand on the clock seemed to tick away at an uneven pace as she curled up against her jacket folded in half pressed to the wall.

The girl came through the door and Elle saw the way she looked at the man that had been worried about his daughter. Her foot shifted against the floor as the man stood up and with a look forgave anything the girl had done. Elle had never seen that look, not from her father at least. Her eyes cast toward the door to see Flack, and he looked relieved. This was another look she didn't ever see from him. When he was done with the case, he'd have the drive home, the drive to the bar even to steel over what had brushed too close to him. Standing up her hand moved to hold her jacket so that it settled on the bench instead of the floor. Moving through the rest of the officers she found her way to stand before him. Looking into his eyes she saw the fear, the worry that weighted on his shoulders, and she knew... she understood that it wasn't just this case.

There wasn't anything he needed to say as his arm reached for her and pulled her close to him. Shutting her eyes she leaned against him, feeling his hand cradle to the back of her head. It wasn't a matter of needing contact, or wanting to be held by him. As his other arm wound across her back she felt so much smaller in his arms, and it didn't matter because she felt safe. Sitting in a police station with officers all around her she felt on edge, but there half in the outer hall entrance and having people brush against her casually she knew nothing would happen because he was there. His mouth pressed to the top of her head gently as his words murmured into her hair, "Come on I'll take you home."

Elle nodded against his chest agreeing with him, because she believed him. She agreed with him because when he accepted the truth, when he found out who she was and didn't cast her out... he became her home.

The weight of her head against the pillow would often make her arm fall asleep. She'd slip it against the cool of the sheets to let her palm press to the underside of it and just watch the way his chest rose and fall. He'd shift in the middle of the night away from her ever so slightly, and it wasn't as if she actually minded. There had always been that space between them, that air of tension that neither actually felt like admitting to. Instead they fell into something familiar, something both of them could understand without having to label it as anything at all. He had his job, early mornings filled with text messages making his phone vibrate on the dresser. Even if she had been able to sleep through it she'd still hear the clink of metal to metal as he slipped his cuffs to his belt and the click as he double checked the safety on his sidearm.

Now though it was still night, and it was still that part where she could just wait for her arm to fall asleep. Still at his back, just watching how his body moved when he breathed. How his shoulder could roll backward slightly, almost looking for a touchstone of her presence at his side. The hand that lay at her hip lifted up easily, not burdened by a lack of circulation and pressed gingerly to his back. Easing that motion of unrest with a soft touch that had a heat all of her own to it. She wanted to tell him, to let him know what she could do, but with him she wasn't that person. She wasn't her father's daughter... or someone dangerous.

Her name was out there, but it was just assumed that someone had taken her ability, and she was fine with that theory. Let the mobs come for whoever else could be found, but she wanted to just be left alone. She wanted to lay at his back and reassure him with her touch that she was there, and that in the morning when he woke up to face the streets filled with people trying to hide who they were, trying to survive while they were hunted down for something they couldn't control... that she would still be there when he got back.

That if anything was possible, if she could survive everything she had... that she could be there for him. She could smile at the comments of how she smelled like it had just rained, and that he could've sworn she got a new cell phone more times than he cared to count. That the air was always too dry in his place, because she'd always catch him with a tiny bit of static when he kissed her was just a common thought. If she could hide all of that from him, and still be at his side when he woke up, she'd make sure she'd be there when he fell asleep as well.

If anything just to watch how his chest rose and fell when he slept.