Cases // h.s

seven

We drive through town for a bit, looking for a decent place to get something to eat. We finally find a small sandwich-bar, nothing fancy, and decide to eat there. I get a grilled chicken sandwich and Harry goes for one with beef. We sit and eat in silence as we stare out at the people passing by the window.
"It was nice of you to let me stay at your place,"
He looks at me in the middle of a bite, sauce dripping down his chin. He puts the sandwich down and wipes the sauce off his skin.
"Yes, I know," he answers a bit arrogantly. He seems to reconsider his answer for a second.
"You're welcome,"
"And I'm sorry for looking at that picture,"
"It's fine, let's not talk about it,"
I feel like I really hit a nerve when I looked at that picture. He seems so guarded about it, and I want to know why. But not for the time being, right now I just want myself to be safe and find out who broke into my apartment.
"Hey, want to continue that game of twenty questions you promised me?" I ask as I try to lift the mood. He smiles at me and takes another bite of his sandwich.
"You just asked me a question, so I guess it's my turn,"
I roll my eyes at him, playfully nudging his elbow across the table. I like this side of Harry, he's actually a very playful and humorous person.
"Where do you come from?"
"Since I was two I've lived in Oxford. Until I moved here, that is. Have you ever had any pets?"
"Yes, I had a fish once. It died after a week,"
I laugh and scold him when he tells me he forgot to feed it.
"Where did you live before you lived in Oxford?"
"I don't know. I was given up for adoption when I was two, but I have no clue who my biological parents are," I explain as I lean back into the comfortable cushion.
"Why did they give you up for adoption?"
We seem to forget the game as the conversation continues.
"I have no idea, my biological parents wanted to stay anonymous,"
"I see,"
"Where do you come from?"
He doesn't answer, his eyes focused on my chest. Just as I'm about to see if I've spilled something on my shirt he roughly grabs my shoulder, forcing me to the ground.
"Get down!"
A millisecond later a bullet cuts through the window creating an ear-piercing sound. People start screaming and run out of the store, food and plates falling to the ground.
"What do we do?" I ask as we duck behind the table. We are both breathing rapidly, chests rising and falling at a quick pace, as adrenaline pumps through our veins. He points to the cash, signaling that we should crawl behind it. A second later another gunshot sounds, tearing into the cushion of the sofa where I was sitting seconds ago.
Just as we make our way behind the counter I hear a voice that makes my heart fall.
"Mom?"
A little voice cries from somewhere inside the sandwich-bar.
"It's a child," Harry concludes as he slowly peeks around the edge of the counter. He must have been left in the hassle to get out.
"I see him,"
"I can go get him," I rush and start crawling, but I'm pushed back by Harry.
"They were shooting at you, it's safer for me to go,"
He leans against the cash for a second, squeezing his eyes closed. He takes two deep breaths before exposing himself to whoever is shooting. He quickly makes his way towards the little boy who is desperately pushing himself against a wall.
"Hi buddy,"
The boy looks up at him with tearful eyes.
"I'm Harry. Are you ready to go on a mission? We have to get to my friend who is sitting behind the counter over there," he explains as he tries to soothe the boy by turning it into a play. The boy nods and reaches out for Harry. He lifts the tiny toddler onto his arm and uses his other hand to cover the boy's head. He runs in a crouched position to where I am and I reach out for him, placing him in my lap.
"Hello, what's your name?" I ask as kindly as possible considering the situation.
"Nathan,"
"Okay Nathan, I'm Alexandra. We're just gonna stay here for while, and then mommy or daddy will be back, okay?"
He nods. He must only be around six years old.
His small hands grab ahold of my shirt when another gunshot sounds, making our ears ring.
"It'll be okay," I soothe him and we finally hear sirens coming closer. Footsteps sound through the small restaurant and the local police get us out, hurriedly guiding us to safety behind a building.
"We're federal agents," Harry tells them as he shows them his badge. I'm still holding Nathan in my arms.
"Where's mommy?"
"We'll find mommy in a minute. We just have to make sure that our mission is complete," I say and he nods, completely oblivious to the severity of the situation. We explain what happened inside to the police and they write everything down. Some of the team including Mr. Dickinson, Sandra and Ryan make their appearance a few minutes later and when we've explained the situation again, plus what happened at my apartment we agree that it would be most safe for me to stay at Harry's place again. After all, we still don't know if the gunman was actually shooting at me or if he was a terrorist.

"Thank you so much," Nathan's mom cries as we hand him over. She had been running around, crying hysterically as she asked every single person if they'd seen her son. It was Nathan himself who caught sight of her and she immediately recognized his voice.
"You're welcome," I say as she hugs him tightly against her chest.
"It was so exciting mom, we completed the mission!" the toddler exclaims, flailing his arms in the air.
"We couldn't have done it without you," Harry says as he pulls out a small coin.
"This is a special medal, only given if you're exceptionally brave,"
Nathan gapes at it, quickly gripping it in his hands to examine it closely.
"Thank you again, I don't know what I would have done if.." she doesn't continue the sentence, but we know what she means and nod as we say one last goodbye to Nathan.

We're driven back to Harry's apartment by a very bubbly police-officer, who constantly brags about how good he handled the situation. Apparently, he had heroically guided an old couple away from the scene, and he makes sure to describe how he got them safely over the road. His obnoxious voice drives me insane and I can feel Harry getting irritated too.
"Could you shut up for one second?" he suddenly says which immediately silences the man. Normally I would object to Harry's rude words but right now, I was glad I had someone with me who dared to tell him to shut up.

When we're finally at Harry's apartment again we both crash onto the sofa in his livingroom. My mind is a train of thoughts driving on an endless rail. I sigh as I relax back into the cushion, rubbing my face.
"Are you scared?"
I look up at him. He's looking at me almost curiously and I sigh again thinking for a second. Someone was in my apartment and I would have died not long ago if it wasn't for Harry. If he hadn't seen the laser on my chest I would be on my way to the cemetery.
"Yes," I answer honestly. "Are you?"
He leans forward, placing his elbows on his knees as he runs a hand through his hair.
"Yes,"
I would never have thought that Harry would admit to being scared. But it's nice to know that I'm not the only one.
"It's six," I state. We're silent for a few minutes, too caught up in our thoughts to say anything.
"You're good with kids," I break the silence, desperately trying to take my mind off what happened today. He laughs a little at the randomness.
"I like kids," he looks at me. "You're good with kids too,"
"Thank you,"
"Do you want some tea?"
"Yes, thank you,"
He brews some tea as I sit quietly at the kitchen table.
"Thank you for saving my life Harry," I never thought I would say that, I never thought my life would ever be in actual danger. I knew that being a federal agent was somewhat risky, but from I learned the Police Academy my main job would be to investigate the crime scene. He chuckles as he hands me the mug of steaming tea.
"Would've been quite rude to just ignore the laser," he tries to brighten the mood and he succeeds as I laugh at his joke.
We converse for a bit before Harry goes to take a shower. Once again I'm left with my thoughts and before they take over completely I decide that Harry wouldn't bother if I watched some television. I turn it on and immediately regret it when police cars and running people appear on the screen.
"A shooting near The British Museum in London has brought panic to the whole city. Luckily, no people were injured." A journalist says and two familiar faces pop onto the screen. "If it wouldn't have been for the two federal agents, I'm not sure what would've happened to my son. I thank them with all of my heart," "Look, they gave me a medal because we completed the mission!" The toddler exclaims, excitedly showing the small coin to the camera. I smile slightly, glad that he doesn't know the true gravity of the situation he was in. "The police are still working to find the gunman who is currently still at large." I turn off the TV and sigh.
"Nothing to watch?"
I look behind me where Harry is standing and I nearly choke on my own saliva. He's wearing a towel around his waist, but his torso is exposed and his skin is still damp. He's rubbing a smaller towel against his hair as he looks at me, luckily seeming oblivious to my reaction.
"N-no, there's nothing exciting,"
He's muscled and tattoos are littering his skin, and I imagine things I shouldn't be.
"Quit staring, I'm beginning to feel uncomfortable," he chuckles and I tear my eyes off him, embarrassed.
"I'm going to bed," he says as he looks at the watch hanging on the wall. "It's nine thirty."
"Yeah, I think I'll go to bed too," I mumble as he disappears into his room.

A/N: Hello guys, update's up! Hope you like it, please comment and vote xx