Living in the Past

@ dancingskiingwriter

Veronica blinked not expecting to hear those words come out of his mouth. She had just wanted him to explain to the owner why they needed help in hopes of actually getting a sufficient answer. A part of her was happy that he had stuck up for her while the other was banging her head against the wall. What happened if this guy decided to kick them out for saying something like that? She placed her hand on his arm and gave a small shake of the head,"It's alright, Sam. Really." Although she tried to do damage control, the owner of the club did not seem to be enthralled by their attitudes at all.

--

"Let's go and pay for this stuff. I think we just need some time to relax. Does that sound like a good plan?" He asked since he didn't want her thinking that he was just trying to boss her around again. Nick offered the smallest of smiles to her since he knew that it was odd for them to be somewhat getting along. He couldn't even remember the last time he held her hand like this without feeling some disgust in the process.

Sam frowned a little as she touched his arm and he shook his head. "No - I don't think it's okay. Anyone who is so disrespectful doesn't deserve to be treated with kindness." He didn't know why he was so angered about it, but he was... Maybe it was just the fact that they were partners - and he knew that he should protect his partner, even in this situation. It was an instinct.

Emma held his hand tightly and then nodded his head. "That sounds really good..." She said softly, blushing as she avoided looking up into his face. She wanted to hate him because he didn't love her, but she still couldn't do it. "I think I need to lay down anyways - I'm really tired... And nauseous... I hate this!" She blushed slightly.

@ dancingskiingwriter

"But we need the information. The case goes first, Sam." She gave him a slight frown since business always came first despite everything else. Even if he felt strongly about it, he shouldn't have said anything to disrespect the owner. "Come on. Let's just get the information we need and then get out of here." Veronica pressed even further giving him a look that said that she was being serious.

--

Nick gave a nod since that was something that they had finally agreed on. It had been a long time since they had been able to get through a conversation without fighting. "I can imagine that morning sickness and all that jazz sucks." He started to push the cart towards the check out line but there were a few people ahead of them.

Sam sighed a little. Why wasn't she fighting it? She always fought him when he made some sort of stupid comment... What was different with this jackass owner? He knew it was business, but still... Why did she always get angry at him about it. "I'm sorry for just defending my partner!" He said in anger as they followed the owner to get the information they needed.

Emma sighed a little at the line. She felt so exhausted lately. She looked up nervously for a moment at him, weighing how he would react, before she laid her head down on his shoulder. "It does... And I'm nervous - and scared. What are people going to say? Beyond that - how am I going to raise a baby? A little person!

@ dancingskiingwriter

She sighed since this was something that he didn't understand. Veronica chose her fights and this one couldn't be one of them. They needed something that he had and that was basically how it was going to go down. She wouldn't say anything that would lose the lead that had produced. The owner muttered something under his breath before holding out a copy of the security footage to Sam.

--

Glancing down at her, he wasn't sure how to react to her head upon his shoulder. His first instinct would have been to shove her away, but he remembered he couldn't do that anymore. Nick decided he would just have to tolerate it. "Well, screw what people say. It is more important that we take care of this child so that it lives well. Who cares what other people to say about you being pregnant or us being teenage parents."

Sam took the security footage. He was still burning from anger inside, but he wouldn't say anything. He would surely be reprimanded my Veronica if he did and he didn't want that right now. Instead, he sighed and nodded his head. "Thank you sir - we'll let you know if we need anything further - thank you for your service!" He faked a kindness

Emma sighed a little, letting her eyes slip shut for longer intervals. Hell, why did he make her feel so comfortable still? She shouldn't want to do this... He hit her - he broke her heart. But as just still loved him. Even in the midst of a broken heart. She nodded her head to what he said, but sighed. "It's not like we're even together anymore..." She said softly, sadly.

@ dancingskiingwriter

Once they left the area, Veronica turned on her heel and stopped before her partner. She looked at him square in the eye and gave a sad smile,"Thanks for before, Sam. I was actually kind of surprised that you stuck up for me, but the case comes first. Even if the guy insults me right in my face, don't say anything, because I am used to it." Veronica was used to putting up the tough girl act and concealing the true negatives of being a vampire. This side of her was something that no one else had seen before.

--

"I know, but we're in this together for the child." He replied as he rubbed her shoulder and then moved forward to place the items on the conveyor belt for the cashier to ring up. Once the total was added, Nick glanced over at her because he didn't have a cent to his name. Sure, it was embarrassing to having a girl pay for everything, but it wasn't his food. She was buying it for herself and the baby. That had nothing to do with him.

Sam sighed a little as she stopped him. He thought that she was going to yell at him or something, so her kind words surprised him. "Don't mention it..." He said with a shrug and sighed. "I just don't know how you can take that... Just because you're a vampire doesn't give them the right..." Honestly, he didn't know where it was coming from. He had always been one to hate werewolves and he didn't think that had changed...

Emma blushed a little. She almost hated it. She wished he would say that he wanted to try things again... He wanted to make it work for the baby - not for her. He didn't even want to try for her anymore. When all she had done was love him, he never believed it. She stepped up and grabbed out the debit card that she had - working a job made it good for money, though she knew it wouldn't last - not with her condition.

@ dancingskiingwriter

She gave a shrug and glanced away from him unsure of how she did it herself. "I don't know. I guess I just let it go right through me and then take it out on some useless object later." Veronica gave a slight laugh since this was definitely a different attitude than before. He used to practically hate her guts since she was a vampire. "Can I ask you why....why you stuck up for me? I mean, we aren't exactly buddy, buddy to begin with." Looking up at him with curious eyes, she wondered what had decided to change his mind.

--

Once she paid for everything, he took the bags out to her car. "I guess I will follow you back to the house then?" He questioned since he still had his car in the parking lot as his roof on top of his head. Nick still had to figure out what he was going to do sounds Emma wasn't going to let him stay in her house for the rest of his life.

Sam nodded his head. He understood it. Sometimes it was just hard dealing with people, but he didn't want her to feel like that. Hell - what was he saying? Where was that coming from? He sighed and then ran a hand through his hair lightly to her questioning. "I don't know - I really have no idea. I just know that it's not right for him to treat you like that - I'm the only one who gets to tease you!" He tried to joke, but he knew it wasn't right.

Emma sighed and nodded her head. "I guess that would be the best thing to do..." She said softly. Oh, she was hurting. She just wanted him to understand that she had loved him all along... That this child was made from love - and she wanted him to get his act together. But she knew he would never understand...

@ dancingskiingwriter

Veronica noticed that even he didn't really understand where his sudden change in feelings had come from. She raised an eyebrow not convinced by his explanation but let it slide. They had more important things to worry about at the moment. "Alright, well. Thanks, again." With that, she started to head back to the car and slide into the passenger's seat. "Where to next?" She questioned Sam since they had a few more options left to explore.

--

Nick nodded his head before starting to make his way back to the car. Once he got in and started it up, he pulled up next to her car before gesturing for her to go first. He wasn't even sure if he remembered the right route to get to her house since it had been a few months. Maybe it was mostly because of the fact he didn't want to remember how to get back to it.

Sam frowned. He knew she saw right through him and he didn't understand why that angered him so much... Maybe because he didn't like her knowing that she confused him. When they got into the car, he shrugged. "We could go over this data from this shifty place... Or we could go visit the other club around the crime scene... See if they have any data to review either? He asked softly.

Emma sighed a little as she pulled out in front of him to start driving. She hated it... She just wanted things to be normal. She wished he could've not used her for sex and then accused her of not loving him - because she honestly and whole-heartedly did. They wouldn't be in this position. She hummed along to her radio, trying to forget.

@ dancingskiingwriter

"Well, I guess it would make more sense to visit the club that goes near the crime scene. Who knows? The victim could have stumbled further away from the club and happened to die near the other one. I think we should just head to the closer one. We need to get back to the office soon and take a rest on the case." She couldn't help but yawn since it had been almost 24 hours since the last time she had some sleep.

--

Nick just followed behind her wondering how things had played out so well for him. He was finding a place to sleep and no longer had to pay child support. Just act a little and pull a few heartstrings was all it took to have her melt in his hands once more. He thought that he should have taken up a career in acting.

Sam managed a smile and nodded his head. It was really funny - she was so calculating...logical and rational before she did things - and he was the exact opposite. He worked on instinct, even just poor human instinct, but he understood. "Okay - we'll get the footage from the other club and then we'll rest!" He needed it too. He was becoming tired.

Emma sighed a little as she drove up and parked in the driveway. Her parents weren't home yet, but she didn't know how she was going to handle them when they were. They weren't the biggest fans of Nick... Not since he had gotten her pregnant. Luckily, they didn't know about the hitting or anything before, so they should accept what Emma wanted.

@ dancingskiingwriter

"Yeah, we should take a look at them before getting some sleep though. If we find something, it is worth losing sleep." She stated before glancing over at him. If she was starting to feel tired from working so much, she couldn't guess how tired he was. Most of vampires could go for a week or so without getting any sleep, but humans needed sleep every twelve hours or so. "Let's hurry up and get this over with."

--

He parked along the side of the curb as she pulled into the drive way and noted that the other car was actually missing. It seemed that her parents were out for the time being. Hopefully, they wouldn't banish him from their home, despite the fact that it would be the most obvious thing to do after getting their daughter pregnant and then leaving her alone. He just prayed that his luck would be on his side this time as well. He got out of the car before walking over to her car to help out with the groceries.

Sam faked a yawn slightly and smiled at her, shaking his head. "Always working... Is that all you do, Veronica?" He asked softly. "We could just go home. Relax for a little. It's not like the tapes are going to disappear if we don't watch them right away." He said, trying to persuade her, though the look she gave him told him she didn't give up so easily.

Emma blushed a little. It was weird to be back here with him... Especially when they weren't together. He was just crashing here. She was pregnant with his baby, but that didn't mean anything. She wished it meant that they could put the broken pieces back together - but she didn't get her hopes up anymore. That was only asking for trouble. "Thanks," she said as they carried the groceries inside.

@ dancingskiingwriter

Veronica's eyes flickered over to him as if the answer were obvious before returning to the road in front of them. Sam knew what she was going to say so she saved her breath. Of course, she always worked all the time seeing as the only positive thing in her life was work. "We both know that the word 'relax' doesn't exist in my vocabulary, Sam. Why don't we just get those tapes and while you take a nap or something I can watch them. I will wake you up if there is some sort of lead I get." She offered as a compromise since it would allow her to work and him to sleep. Veronica wouldn't let her fatigue take over her desire to finish wrapping up the case. Her body would hold out as it was used to this type of stress.

--

"Yeah, it's no problem." He assured her as he brought he groceries inside. Nick remembered that she would always needed help carrying things around even before the pregnancy and felt nostalgic as he set down the groceries inside of the kitchen. Although it was a familiar feeling, it was definitely not something that he missed. "You can put everything away, right? I don't exactly know where everything goes anyway..."

Sam smiled at her and nodded her head. He never expected to be compromising with the vampire. He expected it to be her way or the highway - but he was very happy that she wasn't so uptight. He nearly grabbed her and hugged her for those words but he merely smiled, nodding his head at her and then, unable to avoid it, kissed her cheek. He didn't see it as wrong - just a sign of thank you. "Thank you... That is amazing - you're amazing, Veronica!" He teased.

Emma smiled at him lightly and nodded her head. Awkward. That's what this was - awkward. She wished it wasn't... Why did it have to be? She didn't know... she just wanted him back. She wanted him to be the father of this baby and to take care of her and this child. Was that asking for too much?! "Yeah, I can do it... And then I'll get your room ready. You'll be right across the hall from me if that's okay..." She blushed.

@ dancingskiingwriter

She was a bit overtaken by this immediate happiness and wondered if all humans were this easy to please. Well, actually, it was probably just Sam. She eventually reasoned in her mind as it seemed like there was no other person like him out there. Although, the cheek thing did kind of spook her out, but it was more of the shock of the action and less of disgust. Veronica placed her hand upon her cheek before quickly dropping it hoping that her face didn't show the heat in her cheeks. "Um, yeah. No problem, but I think that's a bit of an exaggeration." Veronica pointed out since it only seemed like the only logical thing to do. How would she function with a partner that was half asleep?

--

"Yeah, that should be cool. I guess just call me if you need help with placing high things." He offered slightly hoping that she would never need him to do anything before venturing towards his room. Nick knew which room she was talking about as he used to walk past it all the time. Before, he didn't even need to have an invitation to come into the house. He would just come and go as he pleased, but now he needed to be extended an invitation. It slightly annoyed him that he had lost that privilege as he did have some great times with Emma before his home got turned upside down. Although, it was mostly his fault that it had been lost.

Sam smiled a little. He could tell he caught her off guard a little and he liked that. He usually didn't act this way with his partners - though, he guessed, that was because most of his partners were just guys. That would just be odd that way. "I'll be back in a little - if there are any leads or smirking, don't do anything without me. Call me on my cell - I'm not too heavy of a sleeper - I'm sure I'll wake up to it." He winked a little before heading out. He was okay with this.

Emma sighed a little when he walked away. She shook her head. She wished that he could just love her the way he used to. Part of this baby was his fault... She wished that he would just own up to and she would want to be with him.... It would be perfectly okay. When she was done putting everything away, she sighed and walked upstairs. "Nick... I'm sorta glad you're here." She said with a slight smile through the wood in the door. "I really... I really did miss you a lot, Nick." It was barely a whisper, but she was just scared. What if he left again? What would she do?