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Kieran was usually deadly silent.
From the beginning of their partnership, she’d had to constantly remind herself to keep track of his position in every room. He was fast, agile, and silent like a cat and could easily show up by her side without Lauren ever noticing he’d moved from where she left him.
It came as a surprise for her to have heard him approaching. Sitting on that cold, hard plastic chair, alone in a hallway without knowing when she’d have news about her best friend’s state, Lauren could only stare down into nothingness as if the sight of her shoes could calm her trembling hands. She heard Will call her name first, then softer pads behind, and raised her head toward the two men nearly running down the hall to her, visibly anxious.
That was odd too. Kieran rarely, if ever, appeared anxious . Rarely did he ever allow his usual shield of cool, collected indifference slip, or for his steps to emit even the slightest sound, even when he was in the precinct. That silent, swift gait seemed to come naturally to him, as if embedded in his DNA, so to hear every step he took, to hear the soles of his polished dress shoes echo in the hallway as he accelerated at the sight of Lauren was a novelty.
His pace was that of a frantic man.
“Are you okay?” despite being the one behind Will, Kieran was the first to reach Lauren, gently grabbing her by the arms, half to draw her attention, half to ground himself.
“What happened?” Will arrived right at his heels, looking around at the white doors and tile. “Where’s Kym?”
“They have her… somewhere, they didn’t let me stay with her,” Lauren’s breath hitched. “No one’s come out yet, they haven’t told me anything—”
“There’s blood on your face—” Kieran’s fingertips found Lauren’s chin tipping her face to his frown. “Did you get hurt—”
“No,” Lauren lifted her hand and cupped it over the back of his hand, gulping. “I think it’s Kym’s.”
Alarm’s flared behind Will’s eyes. “She bled?”
“No, no,” Lauren shook her head. “She was coughing up blood, it was… it was just like last night. With Greene.”
“What do you mean?”
“She started coughing and was short of breath, stiff as a plank, and then she collapsed,” Lauren closed her eyes tight, trying to keep the images of the event from replaying too vividly in her head. “It’s all kind of a blur… we got here and they said I couldn’t come with her. I’ve been waiting here since.”
A heavy silence fell upon the trio as they let the words set in the implication clear in Lauren’s explanation. Whatever had happened was clearly related to last night’s murder, and if that was the case, then Kym was most likely in grave, grave danger.
Taking the initiative as he always did in such situations, Will placed a hand on Lauren’s shoulder, giving her a comforting squeeze. “I’ll see what I can find out” then he looked up at Kieran, who still cradled one of Lauren’s hands between his own. “Stay with her?”
“Of course,” Kieran nodded once before Will walked off to find someone who could give them information about their sergeant. When he was gone, Kieran looked back down at Lauren who remained unresponsive and stared at empty space between them clearly too shaken for questions. He squeezed her hand a little to catch her attention. She reacted with half a second of delay but looked up at him nonetheless. Kieran tried a reassuring smile, then tipped his head towards the chairs behind her.
“Let's sit. We have to clean you off, love.”
Lauren nodded, still silent, and blindly followed him to the seats. When she was seated in a chair he lowered himself until they were face to face and pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, wordlessly wiping the blood stains off her skin. Lauren let him, unable to find any strength for her usual pride, and instead tried to focus on the gentle, soothing pressure of his fingertips on her face, focus on the grip of his fingers around her clasped hands on her lap, and the fact she was only now registering he’d shown up without a coat or jacket yet didn’t seem the least bit bothered by that.
He worked carefully for no more than a minute, and once satisfied lifted himself onto the chair available next to her, sitting in amicable silence.
He had yet to release her hands.
Lauren stared at the motion of his thumb rubbing a comforting line over her knuckles before she said, as if just now realizing:
“You came.”
Kieran’s thumb stilled momentarily, but he quickly continued his rhythmic movement, giving her something else to focus on.
“Of course.”
A tiny smile escaped her, there for a second then gone, but she still turned her face to him, meeting his pupils as they stared at her from the corners of his eyes. She scooted closer to him, a little hesitant, but he accommodated himself until she could rest her head on his shoulder, the adrenaline which had been slowly wearing off now taking a hard plummet.
“She’ll be alright.”
The truth in his words wouldn’t usually comfort her much. She knew people could believe things that weren’t real, like how a kid believed in the monster hidden under the bed and inside closets. Still, she let herself believe he was right, closing her eyes as the headache which had been steadily pumping behind her eyes suddenly became much more intense now that she’d somewhat calmed down.
She wanted to believe he was right, but for now, she could only take a moment to gather herself, resting against her partner’s frame.
That was alright, though.
He was silent in most of his movements, and deadly too, yes. But despite that, she knew she didn’t have to hear him coming to know he’d be there to catch her. That he’d always, somehow, be just in time to break her fall and help her to her feet so they could continue together on whatever challenge life threw at them next.
She didn’t need to hear him in the room when she could always feel his presence and know she’d be okay.