The Long Haul

Chapter 22

Coming into the district on a Saturday majorly sucked. Coming in after school sucked but on a Saturday sucked more. The teen was used to being out late Friday night and spending the entire Saturday morning sleeping. But no - not today. Jay knocked on the door again. "Alex, get up," he said firmly for the third time. The only response he heard was an annoyed groan from under the covers.

Even though Alex wasn't out last night, her body still protested being woken up at 7:00am on the weekend.

"This is your last warning," Jay said a minute later when no effort had been made on her part.

"Leave me alone," she mumbled from under the covers.

Jay groaned - after the small progress they'd made, he was met with yet another challenge. Although this problem seemed to be more universal to teens. The detective looked around the room, trying to figure out what his next move was going to be that didn't involve yelling at a brick wall. Ah-ha! This time, he knew just what to do.

He marched into Alex's room (actually his bedroom) and stood by the bed, giving her one last chance to get up. When nothing happened, he ripped the comforter off her abruptly, exposing her to the cold air of the morning. She turned over harshly to face him and was about to say a slew of curse words, but just as she opened her mouth, he tossed a glass of water in her face.

She jumped into a sitting position at the unwelcomed action, wiping water from her eyes.

"Great, now you're up and done with your shower," Jay said with a devilish grin.

Alex's eyes were narrowed as she flipped him off. She then squirted the water out of her mouth, aiming to hit him. However, his reflexes were much faster and he quickly took a step back, allowing the water to fall onto the floor instead.

"Now get a move on, we're leaving in 10," he announced as he headed out of the room.

"You're the worst!" she yelled after him, to which Jay just smiled and waved, feeling like he'd won for a change.

While she didn't enjoy being woken up this way, there was a small part of her that reveled in the levity of the situation, almost enjoying a regular sibling moment. However, she shoved that feeling down into her vault, not letting herself truly process her feelings. Stowing them away was far easier.

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As they headed up to the bullpen, Alex recalled Erin's advice from yesterday and the teen had made it her mission to think up ways to get Jay off her case. If she could get him to simmer down on things, then her life could go back to normal without him hovering and controlling her.

She'd managed to come up with at least one idea. Giving in to his stupid demands, albeit momentarily, might work in her favor, so she was willing to give it a try. As the teen walked past her brother's desk on her way to the break room, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and placed it on his desk. So far, Jay had come into the room to confiscate her cell each day, so he was shocked to see that she willingly left it behind.

He watched as she retreated into the room and took a seat at the table. He hadn't expected her to take some responsibility and initiative. It was a great feeling - almost like he was proud and reminded that change could happen. Instead of following her in as usual, he simply went to sit at his desk. He couldn't help but smile in relief as he placed her phone away in the top drawer of his desk. Maybe, just maybe, he was finally starting to get through to her after all.

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There had been a lot of commotion around the office today. The Intelligence Unit was hard at work on a time sensitive case. The team had been in and out of the office all day, working various leads. About an hour ago, they'd returned with a prime suspect in tow.