Can you write Rosa Diaz x autistic!reader where reader is very shy but wants to meet Rosa's coworkers so she goes to the game night with them at Rosa's apartment, please? :) - Anon💜
Staring at your phone, you bounced your leg up and down as you looked at the message your girlfriend had sent you.
Rosa: you don’t have to come if you don’t want. Your choice.
Rosa was having her game night with her squad, and you were supposed to be going there to drop some stuff off for her.
You wanted to meet her team and get to know them all, but at the same time you were nervous about it.
You didn’t deal well with people at all, you got really nervous and shy around them and found it hard to talk, but you knew with Rosa there it would be easier.
She could keep them away from you and she could always tell when you were getting a little bit too uncomfortable with something or someone.
And you still had a few hours until they would arrive, so at the same time you could also just hide in her bedroom until they all left.
Nodding to yourself, you sent her a reply.
You: I’m coming over I don’t know if I want to take part yet, I’ll be there soon!
With that, you stuffed your phone away, grabbed your jacket, keys and the bag of stuff Rosa had ask for and made your way to her apartment.
You let yourself in with the spare key and set the stuff on the couch, and leant over, kissing the top of your head.
“Thanks babe.” She smiled.
“You’re much welcome, when do they all come?”
“Not for another like two hours.”
Nodding, you walked around and sat next to Rosa, curling yourself into her side and she wrapped her arm around you, running her fingers through your hair.
“You don’t have to be here you know.”
“I know but they’re important to you, and I want to meet them. I just… might be a little awkward.”
“That’s why I’m saying you don’t have to be here moron.”
You laughed softly, resting your head in her lap you looked up at her and smiled, taking her hand in yours you laced your fingers together.
Rosa stared down at you and you smiled a little brighter.
“I love you.”
“You too.”
You smiled brightly up at her.
Rosa was awkward when it came to affection, she had told you she loved you, but she felt more comfortable replying with something else, and you were okay with that.
You were a bit awkward too.
You spent time with her on the couch until finally it came time for her friends to arrive and she lead you through to the bedroom.
Rosa made sure you had snacks and drinks and one of her hoodies, and she sat on the bed next to you.
“Text me if you want ti come out okay?” She asked.
“Yeah. I will don’t worry.”
“You’ll be okay?”
You nodded.
“I’ll be alright.”
Rosa nodded and quickly leant down, kissing you and she pulled away with a grumble when the door went.
“Alright I’ll come check on you.”
“Have fun!”
She grumbled again and you laughed.
Rosa left and closed the door.
You spent maybe an hour watching tv and snacking, Rosa and checked up on you once, but now you were debating what to do.
You could hear them laughing and having fun, and you slowly picked up your phone.
You: I want to come out for a little while.
Rosa: are you sure?
You: I think so..
Rosa: give me a minute.
A few seconds later Rosa came inside and she stood in front of you, brow raised.
“I want to meet them.”
“Okay, if you’re sure. Come on.”
Rosa held out her hand and you took it, wrapping your fingers around hers you let her lead you out of the room.
No one noticed at first, until someone in the kitchen turned around and gasped.
“Who’s this?!” He squealed.
“Shut up Boyle!” Rosa hissed.
Everyone went quiet and turned around, and you shuffled behind rosa a little bit.
“Who’s that?” A man asked.
Rosa sighed.
“This is my girlfriend, (Y/N). She wanted to meet you all but she’s shy, so if any of you make her uncomfortable I will break your bones.”
Everyone laughed nervously and you smiled at her.
They introduced themselves and Amy gestured to the seat next to her.
“You can sit here if you like.”
Nodding, you padded over and sat next to her.
“What’s it like dating Rosa?” Jake asked.
“Jake!” Rosa snapped.
You laughed a little, shaking your head.
“It’s uh.. it’s nice. Good.” You said.
Everyone smiled and nodded, and much to Rosa’s dismay they kept asking questions and you happily answered them.
But she didn’t say anything, because slowly she could see you getting more and more comfortable as the time went off, and you began to take part in games.
When you needed a break, you’d wonder away but you would always come back
a Jake x fem!reader and the prompt is that Jake introduces the reader to the whole squad
YESSSSSS!!
Let me know what you thought of this in my ask box or in the comments! Feedback is always wanted!
"So, Y/N I know that you want to meet the sqaudddd so I did something" this was the first thing Jake sad when you woke up next to him on Friday. "What did you do Jake?" You asked despite knowing that it would probably be something stupid. "Wellll, they don't know that I'm dating anyone, but you know who they are so that obviously has to change, you know?" "I don't like where this is going Jake, next thing you know you say that you want to pretend that I'm a criminal and introduce me in the interrogation room!" Jake quickly looked at you and very very quickly erased something from his notes on his phone. "Alrighty then, not that plan, falling through the roof? Knocking on the window? You come dressed up as Holly McClane and start to make out with me?" "No and it is Holly Gennero remember? They divorced." Jake just looked at you with those puppy love eyes. "How about I just walk in with some coffee and lunch for you? You can say you forgot it at home babe?" "Fine, boring but it came from you so it's great." He looked at the time and went to pick out clothes. Cue the whistling from your end, "My man is looking fine today, hurry up and go to work ill come around in the midday." He blew you a quick kiss before bolting out the door.
It was a pretty normal day in the precinct nothing out of the ordinary. Scully had another 'small' heart attack and holt didn't smile. Just a normal friday you would say. But Jake couldn't hide his excitement from his best friend Charles. Well Charles just assumed, and Jake spilled that there would be a surprise this midday. Let's be honest Charles couldn't keep this a secret very long and soon enough the squad all knew something would happen just not yet what would happen. Although they prepared for the worst believe me, the fire extinguisher close to Rosa was just a minor detail.
As you entered the building you walked towards the receptionist who just asked some routine questions and directed you towards the floor you boyfriend was on. Hearing the sound of the elevator Jake peeked to see if it was you, and there you were. With a cup of coffee and a sandwich from subway. Your eyes scanned the room and saw his fluffy hair which you could recognize miles away. "Jake there you are! I noticed you didn't take your food with you this morning so i thought I would visit you at work." You said while smiling at him, not noticing the eyes his colleagues gave each other in surprise that Jake had a girlfriend. "Thanks BABE! How much I LOVE you for doing this!" He almost yelled the words to make sure everyone heard it. Amy came up to him and took him away to have a small squad meeting, leaving you there to sit at his desk and sort the files why not.
"Who is that Jake? Did you kidnap her?" Terry asked worried for you. "No, that is my girlfriend from 8 months." Jake admitted to the squad. "8 months?!?!" "How did you keep this a secret?" Gina genuinely asked. "It was never a subject of conversation, at least not a serious one." You had stood up from his desk and walked to the break room. "Uhm Jake I've got to go, so unless you're going to introduce me now, I'm leaving" "Oh yeah of course."
"The scary looking one is Rosa, the big guy is Terry, the one with the boring outfit is Amy, the one with the phone is Gina, the small one is Charles and the one who never expresses emotions is Captain Holt." Jake said while pointing at each one. "It was very nice to meet you all, I hope to see you another time!" you said while leaving the break room waving and smiling. "Well Jake, I've only just met her but if you hurt her, I'll hurt you." Rosa said while smiling weirdly. "I won't I Won't.
mr mendes just released a new song & i was wondering if you could write something inspired by the line: "i wonder what it's like to be loved by you" 😌✨
Ericaaa I loved this prompt! 💕 Of course I had to throw in some Pining because it’s so good ... hope you enjoy! (here it is on AO3)
to be loved by you
It’s a secret to absolutely no-one that Amy Santiago is the kind of woman that likes to excel in any skillset. Unapologetic in her badass-ery, she can (and has) chase a perp through the boroughs of Brooklyn in boots that have a higher heel than three of her male colleagues put together. Her finely tuned memory - the same one that has led Trivia Newton John to seven straight victories - helped solve a series of long-dead case files, and her problem solving skills are the reason that one of the city’s biggest kingpins is currently behind bars.
With this in mind, one could consider it safe to say that Amy regretting her natural ability to ace any situation would be up there with hell freezing over, or for a flock of pigs to soar across the sky.
But tonight, here in Shaw’s bar as she watches Jake have what seems to be a lovely date with Sophia; Amy just might be, if only maybe a little, slightly regretting her highly graded observation skills (yes, the same ones that pushed her into the highest percentile when graduating from the academy - which she very rarely brags about, and she really should - it was mentioned in the commissioners speech and everything).
To be fair, it wasn’t all bad. She could, for example; hear the jukebox in the corner, playing Come on Eileen for the fifth time in a row - unknowingly settling into a duet with squelching sneakers as a bunch of drunken frat guys danced, all of them too far gone to notice any repetition. Plus, she could pick up on the subtle click of the acrylic nails on the woman at a neighbouring table, listening to them tap against a series of her friends’ photographs, rotating between descriptions of priddy and gawgeous.
Mixed with the scent of spilled beer and day-old peanuts, it was exactly the combination that to others may appear seedy, but to Amy and the squad, just seemed … familiar. Shaw’s was their watering hole, the basement bar each could disappear into and drink to forget their days, and despite the five empty glasses on her table and the half-full one in her hand, Amy was finding it incredibly difficult to stop noticing just how sweet Jake was with his girlfriend.
Even more impossible was to stop imagining what it would be like if she were the one standing near the dart board, with Jake’s arm resting comfortably over her shoulders.
It had all started earlier today, when she had glanced over at her partner just in time to pick up on the tiny little smile that grew on his face when he noticed a text from Sophia.
(Okay, it’s possible that it had actually started back at The Maple Drip Inn, with that look he’d given her after maybe, yes, a little. It had definitely led to a series of Thoughts after Teddy’s departure, of which she’d only given herself just that night to think about.)
(Except ‘that night’ then turned into that week, and okay fine then it had turned into ‘just that month'; and now here she is, several weeks later; completely unable of getting Jake Peralta off of her mind, and it’s becoming very likely that this is more than just a little crush.)
It had been so endearing to see, that tiny glimpse of joy and enchantment as he’d read Sophia’s message - just fleeting enough for Amy to wonder if anybody had ever reacted to a message from her with such glee. (Teddy, she remembers, preferred not to text; and would instead express his affections by saving her the last bottle of his favourite pilsner, or brewing a new concoction ‘inspired by her’ … sweet, but somehow didn’t hold the same sentiment.)
So she’d kept her eyes glued to the computer screen in front of her as she listened to Jake pick up the phone and order a bunch of flowers to be delivered to Sophia’s office - using his debit card, and not a combination of the five questionably balanced credit cards under his name - which in itself is huge. Pretended not to notice the multiple kiss emojis in his reply, or the soft tune that he hummed for a few minutes after, focusing intensely on the case file in front of her as she described a recent interrogation in finite detail. Kept up the facade of all that stuff with us is in the past as he recounted a romantic weekend to their squad in the break room - laughing along in all the right places, doing her very best to keep the wistfulness out of her eyes.
And all the while, Amy’s mind had kept contemplating if she would ever get to know what it would be like to date someone like Jake: to have somebody who would take all the black and whites of her life and show her the beautiful greys in-between.
So when he’d shown up at Shaw’s this evening, with Sophia’s hand carefully wrapped around his own and a grin that announced his contentment to anyone who cared to look; Amy had felt her heart squeeze painfully in her chest. Her painted smile had just lasted until the couple retreated to the corner for a crazily competitive game of darts, and Amy had decided tonight would be a great opportunity to drown her sorrows in a few glasses of whiskey, doing her absolute best not to notice all the little things she will never have.
Like the way Jake would punctuate each congratulatory high five with a kiss, even when it meant that his girlfriend had beaten him at a game. The gentle way he steered them away from a rambunctious crowd, keeping an eye on the raised voices as his unaware girlfriend played her shot and came so close to hitting the bullseye. Or the way Sophia’s hand would rest on Jake’s chest as he held her in his arms (just the way that Amy wishes she could do), and the way she would laugh so happily as he commented on the drunk guys dancing near them.
It was all very simple, but undeniably sweet, and Amy doesn’t know how she ever doubted that Jake would be anything but.
“Your covert skills need work, Santiago.”
The chair beside Amy scrapes angrily against the worn floorboards and she turns, startled by the interruption, quietly praying that her face isn’t quite as red as it suddenly feels. Terry, far more interested in taking the last sip of his scotch than commenting on her appearance, settles in to his new location next to her, and his glass hits the soaking cardboard coaster with a slap.
“Wha-huh? Covert skills? You really must be drunk, Sarge. We’re not even on a stakeout right now. Unless you’re talking about us staking out the contents of that fridge behind the bar haha!”
(She’s rambling - she knows she’s rambling; but cannot stop the desperate need to pretend that she hadn’t just been completely busted for spending her entire evening staring at a life she may never know.)
“Ugh. Okay fine.” Her mouth stretches out into a cringe, eyes flickering to the colleagues Terry had just walked away from. “How noticeable are we talking here?”
“Noticeable enough that Charles has spent the last 40 minutes lamenting on ‘the beautiful tragedy of unrequited love’”. Dropping his air quotes, Terry rolls his eyes, one eyebrow lowering as he returns to his drink. “He lost me when he started quoting poetry. Terry loves Shakespeare, but he could do with a little less soliloquies - and a little more spirits - tonight.”
“Oh! You know what, there was just a Shakespeare play in Polonsky that starred - ” Terry overlaps her last words with his own heavy voice, and Amy’s stops in it’s tracks.
“Dianne Wiest. Terry knows. That was his segue, Amy.”
She nods, sensing the need to dig up. “Should have known. Charles loves his Wiest feasts.” Terry grunts his assent, pressing his lips together as he savours another verse-less sip, and Amy seizes the opportunity to cast another furtive glance at the happy couple.
“Seriously, though. Just because Peralta hasn’t noticed, doesn’t mean the rest of us haven’t.”
Amy brushes her hair to the side, swirling the liquid in her glass with her free hand. “Okay, so maybe I haven’t been very subtle tonight, or whatever.” Her gaze returns to Jake, drawn to him like a magnet, and her heart squeezes once more.
To his credit, Terry gives her a moment; waiting for a silence to settle over their table before leaning forward in his chair, ignoring the sticky residue of the tabletop as he rests his arms on either side of his glass.
“Out with it, Santiago.”
She shakes her head, swallowing hard to push down the burgeoning lump in her throat. “They look really happy together, don’t they? He looks … happy.”
Terry shrugs, glancing in the direction of Amy’s eye line. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“He does! All shiny and cheerful and just .. happy.”
“I don’t know. Terry remembers a time when you and Teddy looked just as content.” His look is pointed, and followed by the unsubtle raise of his eyebrows. Amy nods, draining the last of her drink. Somehow, she has a feeling that Sophia’s underwear isn’t lined with mesh like Teddy’s had been (and even if it was, it would be some kind of inexplicably sexy mesh, for sure).
“Sometimes things aren’t what they seem, sarge.”
“You know that works both ways, don’t you?”
Nodding again, Amy wipes her thumb along the smudged lipstick print on her glass, choosing to remain silent. Terry didn’t get it - none of them got it, really. She’d had her chance, the very first time the words romantic styles were uttered, and she’d let it slip away. And now, she has to live with the consequences.
Clearing his throat, Terry continues. “I mean … she is a defence attorney, you know.”
“But see, even that isn’t something that I can fault. Not fairly, anyway.” Clocking the look of disbelief on Terry’s face, Amy shrugs defensively, waving her hand vaguely in Sophia’s direction. “I know we all like to joke and call them evil, but really … all they’re doing is making us prove that our findings are beyond reasonable doubt. If anything, it’s people like her that push us to do better - to work harder to make sure that we’re definitely charging the right person. And as annoying as that can be, it’s definitely not a reason to hate her.”
“Kinda sounds like you do, though.”
She shakes her head, feeling the sense of defeat sink into her bones. “I really don’t. She’s incredibly smart, and funny and beautiful … she honestly looks like she should be in a commercial for shampoo or something. She’s perfect for Jake, and I’m just …”
“You’re just … ?”
Shrugging, Amy slots her thumbnail into the edge of the coaster underneath her glass. It, like her heart, had seen better days, and it was time for her to cut her losses. “I’m just … going home.”
“What? No. Stay! Our squad kicked butt this week, Amy. We all deserve a drink.”
Painting another smile onto her face (she really is getting good at them), Amy pushes her seat away from the table, allowing herself one more glimpse at Jake’s smile before shaking her head at Terry. “Sorry sarge, I just can’t seem to celebrate tonight.”
Heading towards the exit without a second thought, Amy doesn’t see Jake pull away from Sophia, taking a half step in the direction of the door as he watches her leave. She doesn’t notice him pull out his phone, start to type a message before hesitating, pocketing it without hitting send. The night moves on as Amy walks away, and the streets are deafeningly silent as soon as the bar door closes behind her.
The sky seems to feel just as morose as Amy this evening, tiny droplets dropping onto her grey work blazer as she waits for a cab; too lost in her thoughts to take in the frivolity of a parting crowd. As the rain increases and the splotches on her blazer turn into tiny Rorschach Tests she decides to give herself one more night - one last night of wishing for things that will never be.
In the backseat on her ride home Amy twists her hands together, linking her fingers and imagining not for the first time that one hand was Jake’s (she would imagine similar .. later). She thinks of what it could be like to have his warm presence near hers .. to have his hand resting on her leg, not out of possession but just to be near. Watching him get out of the car first, only to turn and offer a helping hand for her exit, every time without fail.
She pictures what it would be like to feel the brick exterior of her apartment against her back as Jake presses his soft lips against hers, kissing the life out of her, making her see stars before pulling her into the apartment for so much more.
He wouldn’t always be the perfect partner - and lord knows, neither would she - but Amy knows that through it all he would remain her best friend, because even through all of this yo-yo pattern of denial and admittance, thats who Jake has been for her. After all these years, he’s become the only one she wants to talk to, at any given moment of the day, who knows her coffee order better than his own and remembers her Abuela’s birthday, even when she hasn’t mentioned it in weeks.
The scent of rain lingers in her apartment as Amy readies herself for bed, casting her pantsuit aside with drunken abandonment and giving her face a half-hearted wash before stumbling towards her bed. She closes her eyes, the thoughts of what could have been still so loud in her quiet apartment, hugging the pillow beside her tightly while her mind begins to wander.
As she finally drifts off to sleep that night, Amy tries not to remember the smile that Jake gave her as they danced so long ago at the community hall - that special kind of smile, that made her think that maybe it was solely for her - and tells herself once. and. for. all. that sometimes, life just doesn’t work out the way you’d hope.
*
* *
It’s a rush of cool air that alerts Amy to a brand new morning, the drop in temperature squashed as quickly as it arrives by the wrapping of a warm arm around her middle. She smiles into the pillow as it completes its protective loop, letting her body get pulled closer to the human hot water bottle in the middle of her bed, and if there was a better way to wake up on a cold day, Amy is yet to see it.
She lets out a sigh of comfort as the bridge of a prominent nose digs into her shoulder blade, feeling the warmth of his breath through her old academy shirt, nestling closer until her legs are well and truly tangled amongst his. It’s late, later than she would normally allow herself to sleep, but the two of them were far too invested in basking in the afterglow of a rainy Saturday filled with sex and movies to consider leaving the bedroom anytime soon.
Jake’s voice is rough, the remnants of a deep sleep obvious in his throat. “Today’s Sunday, right?”
Amy nods, wriggling herself just free enough to turn within her boyfriend’s embrace. His hair is sticking out on all ends - unaided, she is certain, by her hands the night before - and she runs the tip of her thumb along his right cheekbone. Though his eyes are still closed, he leans into her touch, and she grins. “Definitely Sunday. A rainy Sunday, but part of the weekend all the same.”
He nods, the short and prickly fibres of his morning stubble scratching her palm. “Good. More time for time machine building.”
“… we’re building a time machine?”
“Yeah, one that lets us skip past all the boring work stuff, and leaves us with all the time in the world for more of this. Kinda like that movie Click, but a lot less ‘trying to change the past’ stuff, and a lot more sex.”
She chuckles, and his left foot rubs along the side of her calf under the blanket. “You’re crazy, Peralta.” (Although, she will admit - the ‘a lot more sex’ part did sound kinda great.)
His eyelids flutter open, gaze growing soft as a smile stretches across his face. “You’re beautiful, Santiago.”
Amy feels her cheeks begin to heat up, resisting the urge to cool herself down by tucking her hair away, completely unable to move as long as Jake continues to look at her like that. There’s a pimple growing underneath the surface of her chin that is going to rival Mount Vesuvius, and her morning breath could probably wilt the flower pots living happily on her kitchen’s windowsill. But here, in bed with her boyfriend of almost two years, she feels more beautiful than all of her best days put together.
“I don’t think I’ve told you this today, but I love you, Jake.”
Leaning forwards, Jake’s soft lips press against Amy’s, and he winks as he pulls away. “I mean, we’ve both been awake for a sum total of three minutes, so yeah, you’re pretty late with the love you’s today, babe.”
Her free hand flies out from under the cover, delivering an indignant smack to Jake’s chest, and he grabs it back before she can pull away, linking their fingers together and pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “I love you too, Ames. Even if you don’t want to build a time machine with me, I still love you.”
She laughs - a giggle that starts in her belly and bursts through her lungs, something that she’s been doing a lot more of these days - and pulls Jake in for a longer kiss, morning breath be damned.
One day, in eight or so years time, they’ll have a son - a miniature version of Jake that, much like his father, runs to the beat of his own drum; and answers to the name Mac. Amy will fall pregnant again, and when they explain to their son that he’s going to be a big brother, his response is so perfectly him that it makes Amy’s eyes tear up with laughter.
For they are, by Mac’s decree, now officially a Ninja Turtle family. He is Raphael (or ‘Rafel’), Jake Michelangelo due to his love of nunchaku, and Amy nabs Leonardo purely out of homage to one of her favourite artists. The mini-Peralta still growing in her womb is, by default, Donatello (or Donatella, depending), and even though there was a time when Amy truly felt like she could never be this lucky, she will love their little family with all of her heart.
But for now, she has Jake; and together they have warm bedsheets and no plans for a future that isn’t together - no matter what obstacles may be thrown their way.
And Amy realises, as Jake begins to trace a series of kisses along her side of her neck; truly, being loved by him is better than she could have ever imagined.
translations of the spanish are included in brackets. thanks to @florchis for help with translating! any other mistakes are mine, and please feel free to correct me. i’m cuban myself, so all culture stuff is from personal experience.
The phone rings in the kitchen. Jake sighs and pauses the tv, already wishing he could get back to it.
It’s the first time all week that he’s gotten a chance to sit down and actually catch up on his shows. Well, he says shows. All he really does is turn on HGTV and watch House Hunters until he can’t keep his eyes open.
But hey, it’s what he likes. He’s never liked sitcoms or intricate fantasy subplots.
He stands up from the couch, grabs his water, and makes his way into the kitchen. It’s nine at night, and he’s alone in the apartment. Amy’s working a late shift, trying to solve a case that she’s been working on for two weeks.
His dinner was a microwaved hot dog and a glass of water. He doesn’t know why he bothers leaving the office without her, except that he’s been craving some time where he doesn’t have to talk to anyone. Even his wife.
He reaches the landline, dodging the sticky spot on the floor that’s been there for four days. “Yeah?”
“Mijita, para el cumpleaños de Jorgito- permiso, ¿quien estas? ¿Donde esta Amy?” [Honey, for Jorgito’s birthday- excuse me, who is this? Where is Amy?]
“Uh-” he says. His Spanish is still pretty terrible, all things considered. “Estoy su- darn it, uh- su esposa. Esposo. Estoy el esposo de Amy.” [I’m her- darn it, uh- her wife. Husband. I’m Amy’s husband.]
“Ah, Jacob!” says the woman on the other end. “I am Amy’s Tia Maria Carmen.”
Her English is accented but carefully pronounced, as if she knows he can’t speak Spanish. “Hi,” he says, relieved. “Sorry, Amy’s still at work. She won’t be home for a while. Hard case and all.”
“Ah,” says Maria. “She has always worked hard.” Jake can hear her smile on the other end of the line. “I am glad to speak with you, Jacob. Your wedding was so complicated.”
“Yeah,” he says, smiling ruefully, even though she can’t see him. “Bomb threats and all. I’m sorry none of you got to make it.”
Okay, so he was looking forward to his night off, but he doesn’t mind taking a few minutes to talk to Amy’s aunt. He regrets not getting to meet her extended family at the wedding. She’s so close with them, and he wants to meet the family he married into.
“We wish we had gotten to go, too,” says Maria. “To see Amy’s wedding, and to meet you. But you are coming to Jorgito’s party on Sunday, yes?”
“Uh...” he says, thinking fast. They hadn’t gotten an invitation in the mail, but that might mean he missed it. Should he try to cover his tracks? Oh, well, everyone already knows he has the attention span of a fly. “I didn’t know there was one.”
She chuckles. “It is okay. This is why I called Amy. The invitation says 12:30, but everyone should show up at 1:30.”
“Oh,” he says. “Why not just put 1:30 on the invitation?”
“Because they will arrive at 2:30,” she says, patiently. “Can you tell her, please?”
“Yeah, of course,” he says. “I think we can make it.” Rule number one of relationships: don’t agree on behalf of both of you until you get to discuss it. “But I’ll have to check with Amy.”
“Tell her to tell her mother,” says Maria. “She will tell me. Thank you, Jacob. It was nice to speak with you.”
She pronounces his name Yakob, sort of like the Hebrew pronunciation. It’s strangely comforting.
“Sure thing,” he says. “Goodnight.”
“Hasta luego,” she says, and hangs up.
A few hours later, Amy unlocks the door and walks inside, waking him up from his light doze on the couch. She hangs up her coat and leans down to kiss his forehead. “Hey, babe.”
“Hi, Ames,” he whispers.
As he feels around the couch for the remote to turn off Property Brothers, she goes into the bedroom to take off her shoes and plug in her phone. He pulls the remote over and squints to find the power button.
He must fall asleep again, because the next thing he knows, she’s lying down on the couch, molded to his side.
“How’s the case?” he asks, yawning. He puts an arm around her shoulder, relishing having her close. He’s gotten his alone-time and is back to loving his Amy-time.
“It’s going well. We’re gonna crack it tomorrow. I have a good feeling.”
“Awesome,” he murmurs, and then blinks awake. “Oh, right. Your aunt called.”
He can hear the frown in her voice. “My aunt?”
“Your Tia Maria.”
She shakes her head, her hair brushing against his shoulder. “Which one? There’s three.”
“Maria... hm... wait, there’s actually three of them? That’s cool. I don’t remember her name, though. It was a C-name.”
“Maria Carmen?”
“Yes!” he says, pointing at the ceiling. “Yes. She called about Jorgito’s birthday party on Sunday?”
“Yeah?” says Amy. “We got the invitation.”
“Oh, we did?” he says. “That’s one question answered. Anyways, she wanted to tell you to show up at 1:30, not 12:30.”
“That’s nice of her.”
“Why did she do that?” he asks, just realizing it. “I mean, you’re super punctual.”
“Exactly,” she says. “Cubans are generally late to things, so people put early times on the invitation. It’s cultural.”
“And you’re never late.”
“Nope,” says Amy. “Not me, not my brothers, not my parents. So we have to show up an hour later on purpose.”
“But your parents’ sister still put late times on the invitations? Your parents are the odd ones of their siblings, huh.”
“What? My aunt- oh. Tia Carmen isn’t my aunt, technically. None of the Marias are. Tia translates to aunt, but it really means any female relative that’s my parents’ age or older.”
“Oh,” says Jake. “That... makes things easier.”
“Yeah,” says Amy. She kisses his shoulder, and he smiles into the darkness. “You didn’t have any problems understanding her?”
“What? No. Her accent was really understandable. She spoke really slowly for me too, which was nice.”
“Yeah,” says Amy. “Good. Of course, that’s why she called you. She has the best English out of all the aunts.”
“What?” asks Jake. “She didn’t call me, remember? She called you.”
“No,” says Amy, drawing out the word. “I told my mom that I was staying late at the precinct today. The aunts show up to my parents’ house on Wednesday nights, when my grandmother holds coffee hour, and my mom would have told them I was busy. Not to mention I already know to show up an hour after the time on the invitation.” She smiles into his shoulder. “Anyway, if someone were actually going to call me about Jorgito’s birthday party, it would be Jorge.”
“Who’s Jorge?”
“Jorgito’s dad,” says Amy, like it’s obvious. On second thought, it probably was. “My second cousin.”
Jake shakes his head, feeling betrayed. “So... she called just to talk to me?”
“Yeah, probably on behalf of all the aunts,” says Amy. “I mean, they want to meet you. They didn’t get to go to our wedding, and you’re family now.” She sits up and smiles at him “I’m sorry she lured you under false pretenses, though.”
He shrugs. “I suppose I can forgive them,” he says, turning his nose up. “More or less. Maybe.”
“That’s my husband,” says Amy, grinning at him. She holds out her hand. “Come on, let’s go to bed.”
yeah I want you baby (I’ve been thinking ‘bout it all day)
Okay, so this fic has been keeping me busy for weeks now and I’m glad to (finally) be finished with. It was a kiss prompt that was requested by @bscgirl99 and I also made it into a song fic using “Slow Hands” by Niall Horan. Thank you to @vic-kovac for reading and giving me feedback and also for help with the title and also to @amydancepants-peralta for reading too. I hope you like it! :D
40. A gentle kiss that quickly descends into passion, with little regard for what’s going on around them.
Jake should have known when he agreed to go on a date with Amy Santiago that he would be nervous. Not because she doesn’t know him (she knows him better than anyone, even himself) but because of what is at stake. They plan to keep things light and breezy, which if Jake thinks about it, is probably the main factor for his nervousness at the moment. Or maybe it’s the way that Amy looks in that red dress. The way it hugs her curves so perfectly, stopping just above the knee, showing off her toned, olive colored legs. Yeah, he’s anything but calm right now.
They know each other so well that the awkwardness doesn’t make sense, but at the same time, it also does because their friendship has always been based on competitive banter and teasing, so now that they are ‘no longer just colleagues, dating’ it feels different. It feels important, like a ‘I-don’t-want-to-screw-this-up’ kind of important. There is also the list of rules that Amy mentioned before the date, that could also be contributing to the awkwardness. Number 3 in particular, ‘Let’s not have sex right away.’ Jake wants to respect that because he really really likes her, and he knows how much she loves following the rules, but it keeps playing in the back of his head like a mantra and he just doesn’t want to mess it up. He can’t mess this up. She means too much to him.
So, what’s the first thing he thinks of to break the tension? Alcohol. It's always when confessions are made even if they aren't meant to be, but since they are on their first date, how much more honest can they get? Apparently Amy has the same idea because she also asks for 4 kamikaze shots. Oh, this date just got even more interesting.
Ending the awkwardness also comes with the ever popular Santiago Drunkenness Scale. One Drink Amy is spacey, which Jake secretly enjoys because Amy is always so together and organized.
He watches as Amy starts to space out, loosening up a little after the first shot hits her system. Jake took his first shot when she did, but his drunkenness scale is different than hers, so he’s not as affected after one shot. A few minutes later, they down the second one and Jake remembers that two drink Amy is a little too loud.
However, her loud side doesn’t have very long to be known before she is picking up the third shot, tipping her head back as she downs it. Jake does the same and he’s starting to question whether or not this was a good idea. Racking his brain to remember what three drink Amy is from all the times he’s seen her drunk, Amy starts to sway in her seat and then he remembers, three drinks in and she becomes Amy dance pants. The thing is, there’s no music playing, so the little dance she’s doing makes Jake laugh because, she’s just so damn adorable. And sexy. He would gladly dance with her right there, but that would bring even more attention to them than what they currently have.
He can’t stop staring at her though as she does a little shimmy with her hips and she couldn’t be any more beautiful if she tried. Well, maybe she could, but Jake has always thought Amy was the most beautiful and sexiest person in any room, even before he had feelings for her. Although, he can’t really imagine a time he didn’t have feelings for Amy Santiago. He was just really good at hiding them and damn, he’s just so happy he doesn’t have to anymore.
She looks so carefree and happy in the moment and Jake is so focused on the sway of her hips and the glassy look in her eyes, that he doesn’t realize she picked up her last shot until it’s too late. As she sets the glass back down, her eyes flicker back to his with a genuine smile on her face. “You still have one shot left, can’t handle your liquor, Peralta?” she asks, smirk clearly visible.
Slowly picking it up, he chuckles, “I can handle it just fine, Santiago. The question is, can you?” He smirks back playfully as he downs his fourth shot, eyes coming back to rest on her face the way hers did a minute ago.
This time, she’s looking at him with longing, desire, and something along the lines of lust. Wait, what’s four drink Amy? And when did she get so close? She’s inches away from his face and he can feel his hands getting clammy and his heart racing in his chest. He doesn’t know who leans in first, but suddenly her lips are on his, so gentle at first, then, not one to back down from a challenge, she deepens it, throwing her arms around his neck and bringing her body closer to his in the process.
To say that Jake is surprised is an understatement. He knows they are in a restaurant full of people who are probably watching them with looks of horror and annoyance, and usually Amy would never do something this forward in public, not that Jake is complaining of course. It’s just...unexpected.
When Amy breaks away, she leans forward and whispers seductively in his ear, “We should take this back to your place,” nipping his earlobe before pulling back completely. At the look on her face, smirk firmly in place, Jake hears Gina in his head ‘Four drink Amy is a bit of a pervert.’ And suddenly everything makes sense, but that doesn’t help the nervousness settling in his gut.
It would be a lie to say that Jake hasn't been thinking about this all day because he clearly does want this, her. And maybe she does too, he hopes she does and if her current state is any indication, then they are definitely about to break a rule.
He lays some money on the table and takes Amy's hand, leading her outside to catch a cab. The ride home is filled with soft kisses and caresses, mixed with a want and desire so strong that they needed to get back to his apartment or he might burst.
Finally, the cab stops in front of his apartment and Jake practically leaps out in his haste to get inside, but not without paying the driver. Then, he takes her by the hand and leads her up the steps to his apartment. He has a hard time opening the door, with all the nervous energy pulsing through his system and it also doesn’t help that Amy’s hands are roaming up and down his arm.
If he could just get this damn door open. Finally, the knob turns and the door is open and this is it. This is the moment of truth. The minute they step through the door will define where their relationship goes from here.
All he knows is that he wants her, he wants her so bad. He isn’t given much time to think about it before Amy is pulling him through the door and leaning in to kiss him. Then he’s moving his hands ever so slowly - from her hair, to her face, across her shoulders, then down her sides, to finally settling in the curve of her waist, pulling her close because there’s no way she is leaving here without them at least having a serious makeout session.
Apparently Amy had other plans because she pushes him against the door and starts to kiss his neck and slowly works her way down to the buttons of his shirt. Jake is suddenly aware of where this is going and it’s not that he doesn’t want to, because he wants her more than ever, but it’s Amy and this isn’t just some one night stand thing for him. He wants to do this right. So, he reaches up to take her hands and gently move them from his shirt, she looks up at him in confusion, “What’s wrong?” she asks quietly, the alcohol seemed to have worn off a little.
“I know where this is leading and trust me, I want this with you so much, but I also just want to take my time. We have all night Amy, we don’t have to go fast. Plus, we have rule number 3 - (that hasn’t left his mind since Amy mentioned it) - and you being here with me, wanting to kiss me like this, is enough right now. However, if we do end up breaking a rule tonight, that’s okay too.” Amy, surprised at his declaration, and also a little turned on, turns her head at the blush starting on her cheeks.
Jake reaches down and gently lifts her chin up to look at him, pulling her face toward his in a soft, slow kiss. Hands start to roam as Jake makes good on his promise to take his time. They really do have all night and he intends to end this night with Amy snuggled in his embrace or relishing in post sex bliss. Either way, Jake can't remember the last time he was this happy or also this nervous.
The soft kisses became more heated and Jake slowly walks them towards the bed, continuing to punctuate her mouth with kisses. Everything done in slow, soft movements meant to tempt and show the want and desire that is pulsating through his entire body and probably hers as well.
Jake isn’t the only one taking it slow, Amy’s reaching for the buttons of his shirt again, and then, as the shirt loosens around his torso, she slides her hands slowly up his stomach to his chest, her hand lingering there, by his heart. He knows she can feel how fast it’s beating right now, but she doesn’t say anything, content to merge her lips with his in silent recognition as if to say ‘I’m nervous too’. Keeping her hand on his heart, she moves her other one into his hair, softly caressing his curls, then plunging her fingers deeper and pulling, just a little, which spurs Jake on and he pushes her, albeit gently onto the bed, hovering above her for a minute to stare into her beautiful dark brown eyes.
It’s like he’s a teenager again, doing this for the first time and he has to be sure that this is what she wants because he can’t risk her leaving.
“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” he says quietly and if Amy wasn’t looking directly at him she probably would have missed it. She knows he meant what he said earlier and yeah, she may still be a little intoxicated, but she very much wants this too.
Turning his face towards her and stroking his cheek, she whispers, “Hey, it’s okay. I want to. So much.” Sealing her permission with a kiss, she plays with the soft curls on his forehead as he continues his caresses, exploring and taking his time.
Everything happens in a flurry of movement. Slow and controlled, but amazing all the same. Yes, he would be content to just makeout on his couch while they cuddle, but this, being this close to her, this intimate, and her wanting him as much as he wants her, it’s more than anything he could have imagined happening.
Maybe he isn’t going to screw this up. That’s his last thought before the haziness takes over his mind and he’s lost in complete bliss with this beautiful, amazing woman who he can’t wait to continue smooshing booties with.
“So…we broke a rule.” He says, smirking. “Yeah, but if I was going to break any rule, I’m glad that it was this one,” she says snuggling into his side, sighing in contentment as she starts to fall asleep.
Laying there, watching her sleep, he knows that this is the start of something new and exciting and he falls asleep with thoughts of more dates, kisses, sex, I love yous and a future he never would have imagined for himself until now. It’s only their first date, but this is just the beginning. The beginning of a beautiful future.
This little drabble is just a result of my need for some fluff in this gloomy weather recently and a boring lecture 😅 thank you @b99peraltiago for beta-reading and just being an amazing person 💕💕
read on ao3
It’s been a hard Thursday for Amy Santiago.
And it’s not that there’s a particular reason for it, no. No hard or chilling case, no family tragedy happening or a personal related drama. None of that. It’s just that this is a Thursday when all traffic lights are red, and it took ages for people to take their orders at the coffee shop and there was a truck standing at her usual parking space so she had to walk to the precinct, almost running late. This Thursday is this kind of a day when all those little things happen that can drive a person insane and especially a person like Amy Santiago, whose nerves are pretty wrecked on a regular basis.
The rain doesn’t help.
Especially when a car passing by drives right into a huge puddle just when Amy’s emerging from her own vehicle, splashing the muddy water right onto her and into her car. As if this day wasn’t challenging enough with the prospect of having a dinner later with her parents and David, of all of her brothers.
The front door closes with a loud thump as Amy comes in, a big grunt escaping her lips and she throws the grocery bags on the kitchen counter. Jake is there, obviously, lying in a relaxed pose on the couch under their fluffiest blanket, watching another Netflix TV show. How jealous she is of him, having such an awful and tiring day, while her boyfriend - oblivious to her misery - was just chilling out and enjoying his (well deserved, of course, as the reasonable part of Amy’s brain chimes in) day off.
Jake grins seeing her ruffled silhouette, but she glares in return and another vibrating growl escapes her throat. She expects at least a witty remark about it (”When did you turn into an orc, Ames?”) but he’s quiet and it frustrates her even more. He didn’t even greet her or move his butt from the couch to help her, isn’t he going to at least ask her about her day?
She squints her eyes at him, sending a clear hostile message and he chuckles in response and Amy’s had enough. Being on the verge of bursting out - either in anxiety tears or screams caused by her unreasonable anger - she opens her mouth to scold him but that’s when Jake, sweet Jake, throws away the blanket and spreads his arms wide in an inviting gesture, a soft smile dancing at the corners of his mouth.
“Come here, babe.”
The whole stress and tension leaves her in an instant with one heavy sigh, as she comes closer to her scrappy and lovable boyfriend.
(It’s been already a few months since Jake moved in, time sure flies, so the initial euphoria has cooled down a bit, even if only a little. She’s no longer thinking about it all day long, now this is a routine, a completely normal status that she’s coming back home to Jake, her boyfriend who now lives with her. And it's moments like this one that remind her to cherish his constant presence, them sharing a home, after months of nerve-wracking separation, uncertainty and longing.)
She’s close to collapsing on top of him but he stops her with his palm up. “First, take off your pants.”
And the anger is back, flaring.
“Rude! I thought you want to cuddle, not-”
Jake laughs. At her. He laughs at her misery.
How mean of him.
“Easy tiger. Don’t bite me.” Jake grins widely, still clearly amused by her grumpiness (just as he was from the moment the first grunt emerged from the bottom of her lungs). “Get rid of them, it’s gonna be more comfortable for you to lay down and relax.”
How sweet of him.
Amy can’t stop the emotional smile, and she doesn’t want to, as she calms down right away thanks to Jake’s brilliant advice, another sweet reminder of what an amazing boyfriend Jake is. She lets go of her tight pants and the rest of her work clothes, folds them neatly (which earns her another chuckle from Jake), and then she melts into the coziest embrace on earth. Jake encircles his arms around her slumped form, locking her in a bear hug and there is his smell overflowing her nostrils, his heart is beating steadily right next to her ear, and Amy’s instantly at ease.
After years of her fighting with anxiety it turned out cuddling with Jake Peralta is the best calming technique there is.
TV plays in the background, Jake’s caressing gently her back and she slowly falls into slumber, a soft beam on her face, knowing that coming back home to Jake will never get old.
(When she wakes up from her prolonged nap it’s already dark outside and panic rises in her chest, Amy realizing they’re probably late for dinner with her parents, but then she sees a hot chocolate, steaming in her favourite mug, standing right in front of her and feels a tug on her waist, Jake’s palm hot against the skin of her stomach, him hugging her from behind. She feels safe being his small spoon and he whispers to her ear that he canceled with Camilla, saying Amy’s too busy saving the world.
This story was written for @nerd-husbands for @b99fandomevents. The prompt was a case from Nikolaj’s point of view. Nerd-husbands, I know your first writer couldn’t participate after all, but that’s their loss because I was delighted to get to write for you! I had a lot of fun with this prompt, and I hope you enjoy your story.
Thank you to @fezzle for the speedy beta. And thank you to @startofamoment and @elsaclack for organizing this fic exchange and letting me bounce in at the last minute (actually AFTER the last minute).
Read on AO3.
Before Nikolaj came to Brooklyn he was scared of police officers. So scared. There had been a woman at the orphanage who told the boys that if they didn’t behave then the police would come and take them away, and Niko believed her. The funny thing is that the police did take him away, even though he always behaved, and it was the best thing that ever happened to him.
He wasn’t afraid of Daddy, of course, because Daddy wasn’t scary and also he didn’t know that Daddy was a police officer before he met him. But the first time he went with Daddy to the Nine-Nine he was terrified.
When Niko saw Sergeant Terry he hid behind Daddy’s legs because he’d never seen anyone so big, and Sergeant Terry had been yelling at someone on the phone. But when Daddy introduced them Sergeant Terry smiled so wide that it was impossible not to smile back at him, and then he got down on one knee and offered to shake Niko’s hand, which no one had ever done to him before. After that, Niko loved Terry.
He loved Sergeant Amy too, even though she sometimes got nervous around him, and was always asking him funny questions like if he wanted to play with her stapler or her hole puncher when he saw her at her desk. She had the best pens and pencils. He loved Captain Holt, who was always so serious and had a face like a statue, and he loved Mr. Kevin, who had given him a book of Latvian fairy tales when they met. He loved Gina because she told him stories that he didn’t understand but that made him laugh anyway. And Niko especially loved Jake, because he was silly and he was Daddy’s best friend.
But he loved Detective Rosa best of all. Rosa smelled like leather and motor oil and fresh flowers from the farmer’s market, and she had long shiny hair and dark eyes that held secrets and a special-occasion smile. Rosa reminded him a little bit about the good things from Latvia, the things he didn’t want to forget. Also, sometimes she let him look at the knives she kept in her desk.
“Rosa, I need a huge favor.” Niko looked up from the comic book he’d been reading at Daddy’s desk. His school had been canceled last minute because of a plumbing problem so Niko had gone to work with Daddy, which he didn’t mind, even though it was Tuesday and they had hot dogs on Tuesday. Niko only ever got hot dogs at school and they were his favorite food.
“You know I don’t do favors, Boyle,” Rosa said.
“I know, but I’m really stuck. Jake and I just got a huge break in that-” Daddy looked back at Niko, gave him a thumbs up, and then mouthed “murder” at Rosa. Niko rolled his eyes, just a little, and pretended to go back to reading. “And I just need you to look after Niko, for like, an hour.”
“Sure.”
Niko’s head popped up and he was sure he looked just as shocked as Daddy did. “Sure? Just like that?”
Daddy ran back to his desk and kissed Niko on top of the head. “Be good for Detective Rosa. I’ll be back soon. I love you.”
“I love you too,” Niko said and smiled wide so Daddy would know he was okay.
Jake came by just then and they grabbed their jackets and their guns and Daddy patted his pockets to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything and they left.
“You want to ransack Santiago’s desk for pens?” Rosa said.
“Yes please.” Niko jumped up and followed Rosa to the elevator. This was going to be the best day.
+++
Sergeant Amy wasn’t at work today, Rosa said, but Niko knew which desk was hers right away because of the framed photo of her and Jake, up close to the camera and smiling really big and looking goofy. Hers was also the only desk with all of the office supplies lined up by size. Rosa told Niko to take all of the pens, and she showed him a special box shoved to the very back of one drawer that had even more pens, in black and blue mostly but also green and red and purple and one called coriander.
“Are you sure Sergeant Amy won’t mind?”
“She won’t even notice they’re missing,” said Rosa, with the kind of smile that was only for herself, like she was thinking happy things.
Rosa asked how old Niko was as they were riding up the elevator.
“Daddy thinks I’m 8 years old,” Niko said.
“He thinks you are? He doesn’t know?”
“Oh no, no one knows. They kept terrible records at the orphanage.” Niko looked up at Rosa and put on his best Boyle smile, the one with all of his teeth. “May I push all of the buttons on the elevator after we get to our floor?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“Thank you, Detective Rosa!”
“Just call me Rosa.”
“Okay!”
+++
Niko was drawing an amazing picture with unicorns and a rainbow and Captain Latvia that he planned to leave on Sergeant Amy’s desk later, to say thank you for the pens, when Captain Holt came up to Rosa. He handed her a file and said, “We just got a lead on those decapitated-” he glanced at Niko, bared his teeth in what was maybe supposed to be a smile, “-things that keep showing up in subway stations. Can you work the case?”
He looked meaningfully at Niko again, and Niko bent further over his drawing. Rosa said, “Yeah, it’s fine.”
Not long after that, a woman came in. Rosa said she was a witness. She sat in a chair beside Rosa’s desk and Rosa asked about what she’d found in the apartment next to hers, and the woman clutched her purse very close to her chest and sucked her lips into her mouth and didn’t say anything. Rosa said, in a kind, careful voice, that the woman didn’t have to be afraid. The woman shook her head and held her purse even tighter.
Then Rosa said something in Spanish, and the woman said “sí” and nodded a little. They talked back in forth in Spanish, until finally Rosa said thank you and took out a notebook and a pen and started writing.
Niko didn’t know a lot of Spanish, but he knew a little. He kept his head down and pretended not to listen. It was mostly the woman talking, but every time Rosa asked a question, Niko felt something warm in his chest, like he was safe. He wanted Rosa to ask him questions too.
+++
Rosa hung up her phone and said to Niko, “Your dad’s going to be a little longer. He said he brought lunch for you.”
“Oh.” Niko glanced over at the refrigerator where he’d seen Daddy put both of their lunch bags.
“What’d he bring?” Rosa said.
Niko looked up at her. Rosa’s eyes were narrowed.
“Squid ink ravioli with cheese from bat milk.” Niko swallowed the lump in his throat. “He says it’s my favorite.”
“Is it?”
Niko sighed and shook his head slowly.
“Do you want hot dogs instead?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go.”
Rosa put on her leather jacket and made Niko put on his puffy jacket and they bought hot dogs from a street vendor right outside the precinct. Niko ordered his with extra ketchup and Rosa didn’t ask if he at least wanted to try the seeded brown mustard. Rosa ordered hers with ketchup and yellow mustard and extra pickles. She bought them a soda to share and they ate outside, even though it was so cold that his nose hurt and his cheeks and chin were numb by the time they had balled up their wrappers and thrown them away. They didn’t talk at all, and Niko enjoyed watching everyone walk in and out of the building – some smiling and relieved, some nervous like the lady who had talked to Rosa earlier, a few in handcuffs. One man started yanking at his cuffs as he was led up to the doors by two policemen in uniform. When he shoved his shoulder into one of them and almost knocked him down, Rosa got up and yelled “knock it off” and grabbed the man by the back of the neck and said something quiet in his ear. The man stopped fighting.
“Are you going to tell your dad that I fed you a hot dog?” Rosa said later, as they were walking back inside.
“I tell Daddy everything.”
“Good for you,” Rosa said, and he could tell she meant it.
+++
They were waiting for the elevator back upstairs when a voice called out “Rosa” and they turned together. A woman with short blond hair and a bright, friendly face was standing at the guard’s desk, hand held up in a wave. Rosa went back to her and Niko followed.
Rosa kissed the woman quickly on the mouth and said, “Did we have plans today? Because if we did I totally forgot, I’m sorry.”
The woman laughed and tugged on a strand of Rosa’s hair, where it had fallen over her eyes. “I should say yes and get the apology points,” she said. “But no, I was just in the neighborhood. Who’s your friend?”
She looked down at Niko, who smiled and waved.
“Nikolaj. Boyle’s kid.”
“And you’re, what-” The woman paused and lifted both eyebrows. “Oh wow, are you babysitting?”
“I’m just watching him while Boyle’s out in the field.”
“So, yes, babysitting.” The woman crouched down in front of Niko and grinned at him. “I’m Jocelyn. I hope you’re giving Rosa a hard time today.”
“Hi, Jocelyn,” Niko said. “I hope I am too.”
Jocelyn laughed again. Niko liked her laugh – it was sturdy, like she really meant it. Rosa must have liked it too because she laughed with her, kind of quiet and shy.
“I’ll let you get back to work,” Jocelyn said, moving her fingers in the air around the word “work.” Jake said those were air quotes and he made the same gesture around Daddy a lot.
“Okay, I’ll see you tonight,” Rosa said. They kissed once more and Jocelyn waved at Niko and then they were back at the elevator.
“Daddy said you’re bisexual and that means you like girls and boys,” Niko said, once the doors had closed.
“Yep.”
“Good,” Niko said. “I like girls and boys too.”
When he glanced back up at Rosa, she was looking at him like maybe she had something important to say. Then she just smiled a little and said, “Yeah, that’s good.”
+++
They moved to the briefing room after lunch. Rosa stuck photos to a board that was turned away from him and she told him not to look, not even a peak. Then she opened the file Captain Holt had given her and started reading papers from it and sticking pins into a map on another board. It looked like fun and Niko asked if he could help. Rosa said she wished he could, but she was working on a very serious case and it might go to a trial in front of a judge, and if that happened then every single thing she did to solve it would be questioned. Niko understood. A judge might not like it if a kid helped solve a case, even if he only helped a tiny bit.
Instead, he asked what she was doing, and Rosa said she was marking all of the locations where a crime had occurred to see if there was anything that connected them. She explained that sometimes it was easier to see the connections than it was to imagine them just by reading individual reports.
“Like connecting the dots,” Niko said.
Rosa laughed, only this time it was a sound just like a bark. Niko was so startled by it that he jumped a little in his seat, but then he laughed too.
“Yeah, it’s actually just like connecting the dots,” she said.
Niko preferred word searches and “I Spy” games, but he liked the connect-the-dots too in the puzzle books Daddy sometimes brought home for him. Most of the time he could already tell by the way the dots were arranged what the finished drawing was going to look like, but sometimes it was a mystery until the very end, and those were the best ones. He looked up at the pins on the map. Rosa was now stringing colorful yarn between them, creating a pattern of criss-crossed lines that was beautiful but didn’t seem to reveal anything. Solving a case seemed very difficult. It was no wonder they didn’t want 8-year-olds to help.
Then Rosa set a spool of yarn in front of him, and a small plastic box filled with pins. She showed him an area of the map, in the lower right corner, where he could work.
“I can put the pins anywhere?” Niko said.
“Anywhere in this box,” Rosa said, and she drew imaginary lines with her finger to show him the boundaries.
“Don’t I need a file to work from?”
Rosa turned to the table she’d been working from and sifted through her papers. She handed him a folder.
“It’s empty,” Niko said.
“Use your imagination.”
Niko stared into his open file and stared at his corner of the map, and gave a short nod.
+++
They were sitting side by side on the work tables, legs swinging, arms folded across their chests, when Gina ducked into the room.
“Captain Holt says the Eight-Two picked up your guy and they’re bringing him in now.”
Rosa stood and started to collect the papers she’d spread across the table. Niko jumped off and asked if he should remove his pins, and Rosa said yes.
“Has Boyle checked in?” Rosa said to Gina.
“I don’t think so, but Jake called and said the scene was a mess and it was taking them a lot longer than they’d expected to get it under control.” Niko felt Gina’s eyes on the back of his neck. “Do you want me to watch Nikolaj while you-”
“I’ve got it,” Rosa said.
“You’re sure?”
“We’re fine.”
Niko turned then and grinned at Gina. “Rosa said I can shoot her gun later!”
Gina’s eyes got very big. Rosa said, “I did not say that. Don’t tell Holt I said that.”
“I don’t think you’re supposed to let little kids shoot your gun, Rosa.”
Rosa rolled her eyes. “Obviously not.”
“But, I mean, a promise is a promise.”
“We’re done here,” Rosa said, and shoved past Gina out the door. Niko followed closely behind and beamed at Gina, who gave him a high five.
At her desk, Rosa put a hand on Niko’s shoulder and squeezed.
“You are a little shit,” she said.
“I’m going to tell Daddy you said that.”
“I’m counting on it.” She gave him her special smile when she said it.
+++
Rosa told him that he would sit in the observation room and she would be in the interrogation room. She explained that he would be able to see her through the glass but she wouldn’t be able to see him. She showed him the button to press if he needed to talk to her. She also told him to never press the button unless he had somehow injured himself and was bleeding out all over the floor.
“What’s bleeding out?” Niko said.
“It’s when all of your blood gushes out of your body and you die.”
“Okay, Rosa.”
Niko had some paper and Sergeant Amy’s pens again so he could draw while Rosa talked to the man in the interrogation room. But he decided it would be more fun to watch her. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, so he paid close attention to the way Rosa moved. She closed the door carefully behind her, pressing a palm flat against it before walking into the room. She dropped her file on the table, across from the man whose hands were cuffed in front of him. He had a scruffy beard and wild hair that stuck up all over, and he looked like he might smell bad. He kept scratching his face, and there were places where the skin was rubbed raw and he was bleeding a little. Niko was glad he wasn’t in the room too.
Rosa sat down across from him and leaned back casually in her chair. She might have been talking but it was hard to tell because her back was to the window and the man wasn’t doing or saying anything in response to her, just picking at his chin. Rosa opened the file and took out some glossy photos – Niko thought they were probably the same ones that had been pinned up in the briefing room, the ones she’d told him not to look at – and lined them up on the table in front of the man. The man looked away.
For a while that was it. Sometimes Rosa would point at a photo or slide one closer to the man, and every time he would move his eyes away and stare at some other spot in the room. Finally Rosa stacked up her photos again and put them back in the file. She folded her hands in front of her, and for some reason the man did the same thing.
Then Rosa slammed her hand on the table, hard enough that the window shook a little, and the man jumped almost out of his chair. He started to cry, his face twisting up, and Rosa stood and leaned toward him over the table. She slapped the table again, though not nearly as hard, and jabbed a finger into the closed file. The man’s shoulders were shaking and he ducked his head and tried to bury his face in his cuffed hands.
The door to the observation room opened with a soft click, and Captain Holt walked in. He stood directly behind Niko and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“Why don’t we go in the other room.”
“I want to stay,” Niko said.
Rosa sat back down, and she opened her file again and took out another piece of paper. She held it in front of her and Niko imagined she was reading from the page, and then she placed it in front of the man. He’d folded his hands again, and his forehead was resting against his knuckles.
“It’s over,” Captain Holt said to Niko.
“Did Rosa solve the case?”
“Yes, she did.” Captain Holt patted his shoulder, and Niko stood up and gathered his papers and Sergeant Santiago’s pens and he walked back into the bullpen. He was waiting at Rosa’s desk when she came out almost half an hour later, an unreadable look on her face. She seemed tired though, so Niko stood up so she could have her chair back.
After a few minutes, Rosa said, “Do you want to go grab an ice cream and not talk?”
“Yes, Rosa,” Niko said. They walked down the street to a bodega and she bought them both orange creamsicles and they leaned against the newspaper racks outside and watched the traffic go by.
+++
Daddy was at his desk when they got back to the precinct and he gave Niko the biggest hug. Jake gave him a bag of cookies as an apology for taking so long to bring Daddy back.
“They’re actually from the bakery where this couple was stab-” Daddy cleared his throat and Jake rolled his eyes and said, “tickled. And there was tickle juice all over the place and I’m sorry, Charles, I can’t with the tickling.”
Jake went back to his desk, where Sergeant Amy was waiting for him wearing regular clothes, not her uniform, and he kissed her very quickly on the cheek.
“So how was it?” Daddy said, pulling Niko toward him. “Did you and Detective Rosa have a good time?”
“She said I should call her Rosa, and then she solved a case about a man who was decapitating heads and leaving them at subway stations all over Brooklyn!”
The room fell silent. Daddy just sort of stared blankly for a minute, and then he patted Niko on the head and stood and faced Rosa.
“Rosa?”
“Boyle, I swear, I had no idea he knew what case I was working,” Rosa said. “I told him not to look at the photos.”
“There were photos?!” Daddy’s face was turning red and he looked like he might fall over.
“Daddy, it’s okay! The skin was so decomposed you could hardly even tell they were heads.”
Jake snort-laughed. Niko turned to find both him and Sergeant Amy nearly doubled over, their hands pressed to their mouths to stop from laughing out loud. They looked like they were in pain. Gina seemed to be taking pictures of Daddy.
Rosa said, “I am so sorry, man, I thought he had no idea.”
“It’s okay. It’s just, he’s been through so much trauma already-” Daddy sighed and stroked a hand down the back of Niko’s head. “You ready to go home, Nikolaj?”
“Okay, Daddy.”
Daddy took his hand and led him toward the elevator, but Niko stopped before he could hit the down button.
“I forgot!” Niko said, and raced back through the bullpen. He plowed into Rosa, nearly knocking her off her chair, and wrapped his arms around her neck and said in her ear, “I love you, Rosa.”
Rosa didn’t say anything, but he felt her arms go around his back and hold on tight. She smelled like hot dogs and orange creamsicles and fresh flowers and the best day ever.
“Please tell Sergeant Amy that I’m sorry I lost her coriander pen,” Niko said. And he ran back to Daddy, just as the elevator doors were opening.
