Scorpion Ships

Sylvester

The car was silent.

Up front, Paige had a massive grin on her face and was obviously trying very hard not to shout, "YAY!" or something like that. Walter didn't seem to care, just kept driving - maybe he'd seen it as simply a way of winning a game, as opposed to anything emotional.

In the middle, Cabe looked pissed off and was digging through his pocket, presumedly for those 100$ he owed me now. I was sitting quietly, my hand out to receive the money from him, a small smile on my face. Toby deserved that kiss. He'd been pining after Happy for as long as I could remember (i.e., as long as I'd know know him) and he was a good guy.

In the back, Toby had his eyes closed and was breathing quietly but heavily. He was leaning back against the headrest, hands bracing him on either sides.

Happy was studying her fingernails, completely uninterested.

"Woah," Toby finally breathed out.

"Well, Cabe, you possibly could've argued before, but now I really do win." I grinned.

"Goddamn it, Toby," Cabe muttered, extracting a one hundred dollar bill from his pocket and handing it over. "I was gonna use that for - uh, never mind."

"That was anticipation," Toby said, his eyes still closed. "Friday night party? I know how popular you are. Are you the one bringing the keg?"

"No," Cabe snapped. "Nothing like that."

"So is it a lonely dinner reservation? A cute little dimly-lit bistro where you can cry into your pasta without anyone seeing?"

"No!"

Toby's eyes finally opened. "Cabe, this is a safe space."

Cabe raised one eyebrow.

"So you can tell us." Toby leaned forward and placed one hand on Cabe's shoulder. "Do you have an addiction?"

"What the hell? To what?" Cabe slung Toby's hand off his shoulder.

"To drugs or alcohol. It's okay. Tell us. We can help you."

I started laughing at the absurdity of that. After a moment, Happy joined in, followed, rather reluctantly, by Cabe. Toby shot a proud look at Happy, his lips curling up.

"Of course not," Cabe snorted. "No, it's something else."

Toby shrugged, closing his eyes again and leaning back, a smirk on his face.

"Uh - what you aren't going to keep guessing?" Cabe asked, his brow furrowing.

"No," answered Toby absently. He leaned over close to me and whispered, "government agents secretly love being the center of attention. He'll tell me in a moment." I smiled.

"Okay, okay, I guess I'll tell you," Cabe finally sighed. "I have a, uh, dinner meeting."

"A dinner meeting?" Toby whistled sharply, and I covered my ears, wincing. "You sly dog!"

Cabe colored slightly. "It's just a meeting."

"With whom?" Walter broke in. "What if we need you while you're eating?"

"With Simone," Cabe muttered. "And you know this team is my top priority - unlike someone I could mention."

"Simone," Paige mused, ignoring his second comment. "The woman who helped us catch Ghost?"

Walter's fingers tightened on Paige's hand, and I could see in the rearview mirror that his eyes had widened in panic.

"That's the one," Cand said suspiciously. Evidently he too had noticed Walter's reaction.