I should tell you
“Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, are you dating Joanne Davidson?”
“Boss, I honestly don’t see an issue...” Kate trailed off as Ted massaged his temples.
“You don’t see an issue? She swears at her superiors, has affairs with her staff, shot an officer twice in the chest, set up a plot to kill you and replied with ‘no comment’ to almost every bloody question.”
The euphoria Kate Fleming felt around Joanne Davidson was extravagant. Even now, when they lie in bed together trying to come down from their high, Kate still felt energised. The DI rolled over to face her girlfriend, with the bedsheets pulled up to her neck and subtly smiled.
Kate ran her left hand through Jo’s hair and cupped her cheek with the other, “Morning, boss.”
Jo opened her eyes and grinned when she met Kate’s, “You don’t have to keep calling me that.”
“I want to,” Kate replied honestly.
“You look beautiful, by the way.” Jo simply said as she moved forward to kiss her girlfriend tenderly. No one would have expected that Kate Fleming and Jo Davidson would become a thing. Especially after Jo’s arrest. Heck, they didn’t even know if Jo would survive prison! Jo paused their kiss, and Kate looked unexpectedly at the DI, “You should probably tell Steve and Ted.”
The moment was ruined.
Kate tensed as she sat up, pulling the duvet with her and laughing when she pulled too hard, so Jo was left bare, “What?”
“I said-'' Davidson smirked as she deliberately rolled onto Kate’s chest, making her blush, “You should tell Steve and Ted. You may not be related, but they’re your friends.”
“What if I don’t want to tell Steve?” Kate challenged with a whisper, not looking away from Jo's eyes.
“You can look at my tits, Kate. I don't mind.”
“JO!” Kate profusely blushed and shoved her ex-boss to the side,
Jo snickered and leant back into the DI for a cuddle, “It isn’t like you haven’t seen them before.”
“But seriously,” Kate hummed when she went back to being serious, “Steve will support it; I know he will. But Ted? I don’t want to tell. He might not like it.”
“But he threw confetti at that proposing gay couple?”
“That’s different. Not only am I his colleague, but I’m also dating a woman who committed multiple offences to the law and it’ll be awkward, especially in a work setting.”
“Yeah, I still feel a little guilty for that,” Jo confessed.
“You shouldn’t. It was shitty, but you did it because Pilkinton had a gun to your head and somehow made things right, but,” Kate hesitated and wrapped an arm around Jo’s torso, “that still doesn’t change what happened.”
“Steve’s your best friend, and from what I can tell, you’ve known Ted for a good while.” Jo gently kissed Kate’s jaw before shuffling away, allowing the DI to go downstairs.
“I might.” Kate smiled as she grabbed her underwear and a towel from the floor, “I love you.”
“I love you too, Kate.”
Both women had been dating for a significant amount of time. Their story started when Jo broke up with Farida, and the two started getting close. After that, there had been a series of unofficial dates, secret glances, handholding, confessions and a memorable car getaway. Kate was embarrassed that it took her so long to come to terms with her feelings.
The night when Kate shot Pilkinton was definitely memorable but for all the wrong reasons. Kate couldn’t care less that she’d shot an officer; the only thing she cared about was saving Jo and getting them far away from town. She was looking forward to a life of peace without bent coppers lurking around corners and getting married to the woman she loved. That being said, Kate didn’t confess her love until Jo was in prison.
Finally arriving at work, Kate scanned her ID and headed straight for Ted’s office.
“Morning, Kate.” Hastings didn’t look up from his computer.
Tapping her on the shoulder, Steve approached with two cups of coffee from behind, “The Gaffer thinks he’s found something worth looking at.”
Kate raised an eyebrow, “Oh yeah? What’s it relating to?”
“Our friend, Jo Davidson.”
Kate’s heart dropped to the floor. Was it bad? Who was she kidding? Of course, it was going to be bad.
“I don’t want to make any sudden moves,” Ted admired his coffee, “Let’s just wait it out.”
Steve knew that Kate had some sort of soft spot for Jo. He didn’t know the details of their relationship but was aware they were close,
“Has she mentioned anything to you since she was released?”
Kate shook her head.
“Strange.” Hastings began, “I was quite hoping we’d seen the last of her. The poor girl’s been through enough as it is.”
Kate picked her fingernails, and her stomach churned over, “Can I confess something?”
“Of course…” Hastings folded his arms and leaned across the desk, gesturing for Kate to take a seat.
“Do you want me out?” DI Arnott hesitated.
“It’s alright, Steve. I need to tell both of you anyway.”
“I’ve been seeing someone,” A beat, “romantically.”
The confession slipped out, and jumping the first hurdle was surprisingly easy, but unfortunately, it wasn’t as straightforward as that.
The Gaffer corrected his posture, and Steve cocked his head, “Oh? For how long?”
“About 4 months.”
Steve looked slightly hurt, “And you never told me?”
“I didn’t think it was necessary,” Kate replied sheepishly.
Steve and Ted weren’t blood-related, but Kate still viewed them as her family. One of Kate’s strongest memories was when Steve slept on her sofa bed every night after her husband left.
“What’s his name?”
Another hurdle appeared that Kate had to somehow jump over - the gay hurdle. Until she met Jo, Kate never imagined herself to be bisexual. The haircut had always been misleading until now.
“He’s a she.” Kate wouldn’t say she was scared of her boss, but she certainly valued his approval and Catholic beliefs.
Ted paused to think this over before leaning back in his chair, closing his eyes, and smiling. The smile grew, and a flower of hope blossomed in the DI’s chest. Steve was grinning at both reactions and patted Kate reassuringly on the shoulder.
“I’m happy you felt comfortable enough to tell us,” Steve spoke for them.
“Does this mean you’re okay with this?” Kate didn’t know why she needed an answer, but she would feel even better with confirmation.
“It’s your life, of course, we are! Now, who is she?”
“Okay, okay”, Kate could burst with excitement! Even though they didn’t know it was Jo, Kate could still describe her lover in perfect detail. “She has short, dark brown hair, which has a subtle wave at the end. She is pretty pale, so in the sun, her freckles come out, but you won’t see them unless you’re super close! Her cheeks are always red because she is somehow always blushing!” Kate continued to gush, “Her eyes are brown, and her favourite colour is blue! She was also a police officer-”
“You told them yet?” Jo Davidson leaned in the doorway with a giant grin plastered on her face, “or are you just going to keep describing my facial features?”
Silence.
Jo stopped as she realised what she’d said.
Kate looked between Jo, Steve and Ted. She loved her ex-boss, but she really needs to learn to read a situation.
Steve and Ted simultaneously looked between Kate and Jo. Their brains slowly put the puzzle together in an organised fashion. The hair, the skin, the blush, the eyes and finally, the favourite colour.
The history hurdle.
The grinding of Ted’s chair against the floor wasn’t enough to pierce the tension between the group. Kate ushered her girlfriend into the office, closing the door, taking her hand and cautiously walking over to Steve and Ted.
“Jo, this is Steve. Steve, this is Jo.” Kate introduced them, and Jo waved shily. “Jo, this is Ted, Ted this is-”
“I know who Jo Davidson is.” Ted’s voice was a deadly monotone. “How did you even get in?”
“I walked through the door.” The awkwardness had obviously got to the former SIO, who proceeded to bite her lip as she glanced around the room, eyeing the wall with great curiosity.
“Davidson.” Jo’s head snapped back to the situation as Hastings addressed her. “Are you dating one of my officers?”
“Well-” Jo didn’t know what to say, and thankfully, Ted didn’t want to hear it.
“Katherine Laura Fleming.” Kate flinched at the use of her full name.
“Your middle name is Laura?” Jo tentatively asked before Ted shut her off. “Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, are you dating Joanne Davidson?”
“Boss, I honestly don’t see an issue...” Kate trailed off as the Gaffer rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“You don’t see an issue?” Ted tried hard to keep his composure, “She swears at her superiors, has affairs with her staff, shot an officer twice in the chest, set up a plot to kill you and replied with ‘no comment’ to almost every bloody question.”
“She also commanded multiple armed officers, is super observant, tactically agile, Scottish and be honest: we all know I was the one who shot Ryan Pilkinton.”
Steve sniggered. “I just can’t believe you both.”
“After everything, she's done? I don’t know if I should be impressed or appalled.” Ted corrected.
“You’re not mad?” Kate pushed,
“I'm not mad, but I’m seriously debating whether I should fire you for stupidity. You said it’s been going on for 2 or 3 months, but when did it even start?”
“Jo and I have been shagging on the sly for months.” Jo snickered at Kate’s comment, “But for me, it started in the getaway car and when Jo went to prison. I always felt different about her, but it only hit me when I thought I’d lose her for good.”
Kate’s sentence pulled on Jo’s heartstrings as she remembered the recent events. Throughout her short time in prison and working on Operation Lighthouse, Kate had been her friend and colleague. She cared for Jo more than anyone else in her life and Kate was the only person to make an effort and ask about her day. Overwhelmed, the smaller woman buried her head in Kate’s shoulder, forgetting all about the angry Ted Hastings. Kate kissed Jo’s forehead and smiled fondly down at her.
Both Steve and Ted thought they knew exactly how Jo Davidson worked, especially after interviewing Farida they pictured her as a manipulative, self-centred psychopath. The recent interview didn’t exactly change their opinions either. But this was different. It wasn’t normal for anyone to see Jo vulnerable, but it looked easy when she was with Kate. Jo relaxed, her shoulders dropped, breathing steady, eyes shut with a gentle smile. And in the years Steve had known Kate, he had never seen her blush as much as she did now or look at someone with so much compassion and… love?
“Just so you know, we don’t care that you’re gay, mate. And we shouldn’t care who you date either. I think it was just a shock for Hastings here.” Steve patted his boss on the back.
“It was a shock to me too.” Jo finally addressed the room, “I thought I was done. Mentally, physically and romantically.”
“I should apologise for my words,” Ted replied sheepishly, “I have nothing against anyone, but as you can tell, I’m still a little prickly.”
Jo awkwardly picked down the skin on her fingers, “I don’t blame you, sir.” It was still a little awkward between the trio, and Ted was determined to settle things, “I didn’t get a chance to mention it, but I’m impressed with your knowledge of the law, especially in that interview.”
Kate proudly squeezed Jo’s arm, “Thank you.”
“Unfortunately,” Ted continued, “I can’t let you back on the force-”
“Oh, don’t worry about that: I’m done with police work altogether.” Jo looked fondly at Kate, “I just want to focus on my life and what I have left.”
“Wise words.” Steve nodded, “Can I get anyone another coffee?”
“Tea, please.”
“Same here.”
Steve headed towards the door, gesturing Kate to follow.
“Is it wise to leave them there alone?” Kate jogged after her colleague.
Steve grinned, “Let them talk about rules for a while; I’d rather know all about this new development!” he playfully nudged Kate’s arm and jumped for joy when they were at the coffee machine and out of sight.
“You gonna calm down now?” Kate chucked before looking serious, “By the way, what did you find out about Jo? Should I be worried?”
“Go no! There was a small break in around your apartment. We checked the security cameras and noticed Jo Davidson walking past and holding hands with…” Steve dragged out the answer before pointing to DI Fleming, “you.” Kate turned pale as Steve continued, “I had my suspicions, and we intended to mention it today, see if we could get a reaction. Guess I didn’t even have to try, mate.”
☁️ First ever Flemson fic, fist time watching Line of Duty - that ending was NOT IT (expect a 4000 word alternate ending fic soon) if you read this, thank you x ☁️
