His fixation

Chapter 2

"You've been quite the assistant this past week." Cole praises you at the cafe as he waits for your shift to be over. He'd been working the case with you since that fateful night. Spending much of his time at the cafe while you worked and leading you around the neighborhood in the evenings. No big fluffy cat belonging to your roommate had been found but more cases had happened and just last night you rescued a dog that belonged to a kind old man.

"Thanks." You've beam brightly at Cole whose cold indifference melts into a soft subtle smile when it's just the two of you talking.

"Assistant is too subservient a word don't you think?" He licks his lips, tongue curling around one particularly long tooth of his. "You're an investigator without the job title, perhaps I should call you my partner instead?"

Your cheeks feel warm as you respond. It kinda sounds like he's flirting sometimes but he's also so serious. "I don't think I'm worthy of that." You admit.

"Nonsense, your humility further cements your worthiness." You open your mouth to thank him but your manager shouts your name and you scurry back behind the counter before you can get in more trouble. Cole glares daggers at your manager who simply taps at a sign limiting time spent at a table to thirty minutes per order. Cole brings his cheap black coffee to his lips, he is well aware of the sign by now.

Cole waits for your shift to be over in the afternoon. Doing paperwork at the table he has claimed as his. "Hey if your boyfriend is going to hang around all day, tell him to order more than a small coffee." Your manager grunts as you clock out at the register.

"He's not my boyfriend." You've never had a boyfriend. A real boyfriend anyway. You went to a dance with a boy in highschool and he kissed your cheek when he took you home and you just never really hung out after that.

"He creeps me out." Your manager hisses under his breath. Why do people keep saying that? He doesn't creep you out. He's a great listener and a polite guy most of the time.

"Off already? My how the hours fly while watching you." Cole's voice sounds deeper today, his odd words not quite registering over your contemplation of his voice. Your phone rings as you and Cole leave the building, the caller Id is a picture of Garret and you eating pancakes at a breakfast joint. Cole glances at it, a brow arched as he waits to see if you'll answer it.

"Sorry I gotta take this." You apologize. "Hey roomie." You answer cheerfully.

"Roomie! Please tell Garret you have news about his Princess? Also we are out of milk, maybe run to store on way home?"

"No news yet but I can get milk."

"Of course these things, they take time. Or so Garret is told." You nod, humming in affirmation. "Lately when you are home, Garret has feeling he is being watched. Is very bad. Garret is sometimes shy, and he gets the blushies. Also he worries for you. You are quite delicate as mama would have said."

"Don't worry I'm sure it's just your anxiety, I have to go." You don't want poor Garret to worry, besides you have a taser in your pocket. You're not some helpless girl.

"I don't know what you see in that Garret fellow. I mean, he is an attractive mess of physicality and good nature. But his guilelessness is a danger, for him and anyone he is with." Cole comments coldly. "He'd better watch out for wandering matadors." He adds with a single sharp laugh.

"Most of Garret's problems as a bull are about size. No one's thought he was a normal animal, his fur has a bluish tint." You say, missing the point entirely. "I really need to find his cat. He's so distraught I spent last night holding him while he cried." Cole stops in his tracks, one hand clenching his tie tightly.

"Did you now? I trust he kept his hands in friendly areas?" Cole chokes out, brows drawn tightly together. You're a little surprised by his sudden upset.

"Yyyyeeess?" You reply confused and cautious. "I was just comforting him, I know he'd do the same for me if Noodle was missing. He wouldn't try anything inappropriate, he's like my brother."

Cole shakes his head and relaxes his features. "That Garret guy just gets under my skin. The way he talks in third person - he's more cartoon than man. I just can't take him seriously." Cole brushes his sweaty hands on his pants then straightens his tie. "Every time I think about what would have happened if it was your 'Noodle' who was missing, my blood runs cold." Cole presses two fingers to his left brow and sighs. "Lets just hope you continue to be an amazing partner." You can't help but worry about your ferret all that night. Noodle means the world to you, and the apartment gets so lonely when Garret's gone. So occupied are your thoughts that you forget the milk.

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Cole suddenly drops most contact with you. Says he's busy with a case far too dangerous for you to be involved in and not to expect to see him for the rest of the month, disappointed but understanding you use the chance to hangout with the friends you've been neglecting.

Volks and Kelby were both free and while Volks is never (outwardly) excited to see anyone, Kelby is always up for hanging with a group.

"It's disturbing how often that detective hangs around you." Volks comments after a summary of your time since you last met up with him. Kelby shrugs and grabs his tennis racket.

"I don't know, sounds like he's just dedicated to his job. I can respect that." Kelby hits a ball Volks's way, where he serves it back hard enough to knock the racket out of Kelby's hand on the attempted return. Kelby whistles, impressed at Volks's strength as he goes to collect his racket.

"It sounds like he's playing around with her. Like a cat toying with a mouse." Volks sniffs the air but his human nose doesn't quite give him what even his half form would in information. "You should see him, he moves with carefully calculated movements made as quietly as possible, able to remain perfectly still. If he isn't a Therian I'll eat my shoe."

"But we're Therians?" Kelby questions, rubbing his hand as he looks for damage to his racket. "So like what's the big deal? This side of the city has a lot of us... this whole city has quite a lot of us compared to other places."

"Well he isn't a chicken, or a rabbit, he's something dangerous and cat-like! I know I smelled it on him." Volks grunts.

"Even if that's true, Ichiban is my friend, and he's a tiger Therian, and no more dangerous than Kelby." You defend pointing behind you at Kelby. He gives a two thumbs up, dropping his racket by accident.

"Yeah! You're just jealous he's taking up so much of our little human friend's time." Kelby's racket is found under a bench, and you stand in Volks's court since he doesn't seem in a sporting mood anymore. "You can just ask her out." Kelby teases.

Volks face turns red and he folds his arms. "I'm just worried about her safety. She's got the survival instincts of a lemming." You stick your tongue out in response. You're an excellent judge of character.