Chandler had looked in all the usual places, the bathroom, the parking lot, the canteen, practically everywhere, before finally calling Kent just to see if he would pick up. He didn't, allowing Chandler's near frantic calls go to answer phone.
Chandler huffed, wracking his brains to try and think of where the younger male could possibly be. an idea struck him. Why didn't he think to look there first? Barely anyone went up there and it was quiet, not to mention that Kent would most likely feel quite comfortable up there.
"The roof." He breathed, jogging for the stairs and taking them two at a time. He hurried down the corridors and skidded around the corners. He climbed to the roof, taking the seldom used service stairs to the roof of their building.
As he reached the top, Chandler tried to catch his breath. He was considered to be quite fit for his age but still found the running a bit of a challenge. He began to wonder how Kent did this every night. Running up and down and pulling himself onto the roofs. The younger man must of been a lot fitter than he looked. A hell of a lot fitter.
He pushed open the heavy metal door, stepping into the bright light of midday. Chandler squinted, looking around as he waited for the spots in front of his eyes to stop moving. Blinking a few times, he began to walk toward a figure standing on the edge of the roof.
"Hello, sir." Kent mumbled, not turning around when Chandler got within five metres.
Chandler paused for a moment, before walking a bit closer, wondering how the hell Kent knew it was him. "Hi... Mind if I join you?"
"Of course, sir..." A slight sad tone edged into Kent's voice, making Chandler move forward to be able to see his face. Had he really been... Crying?
"Kent? Are you alright?" He asked softly, looking intently at his DC.
Kent nodded, swiping at his eyes quickly. "Yes, sir... I'm fine..."
"No, you're not..." Chandler gently held his shoulders, turning him to face him. "What's wrong, Emerson?"
Kent swallowed and glanced up from under his fringe. "It's just Mansell being Mansell... He just always manages to get under my skin and piss me off..."
Chandler let out a small breath of relief. For a moment he had thought that Kent was angry about the fact that Miles was now in on their secret. "Is that really the reason you stormed out?"
Kent nodded slowly. "I just couldn't take it. I know I shouldn't let it get to me but it does... I know here I'm just meant to be DC Emerson Kent here and not Shadow but I'm both and I really can't help getting angry about it and wanting to lash out..." He ranted, pulling away from Chandler and taking a seat on the edge of the roof.
"It's not your fault, Emerson..."
Kent tweaked then that for the past few minutes Chandler had been calling him Emerson. It strangely had a calming effect on him, letting his anger melt away slowly. He decided quickly that changing the subject would be the best course of action.
"How'd you know I was up here?"
Chandler smiled softly, checking the spot briefly before taking a seat next to him. "Call it a hunch."
"Where else did you try, sir?"
"The car park. The bathrooms. Buchan's lair. The canteen. The file rooms." He counted them off one by one on his fingers. "Most places. And can you please call me Joe away from the others?" He added sheepishly.
Kent nodded, focusing on the office building across from them. "O-okay, si-Joe..."
An all too awkward silence fell between the two men for a few moments before Chandler thought of a fair question. "Can I ask you something?"
