( jacob ) shadow boxer,

[alexandriareynolds]

Alexandria had a headache.

Headaches, she could handle. She’d gone through a whole hell of a lot worse in her life, so they didn’t really keep her from doing what she needed to do, they were just… Annoying. Like a loud fly buzzing in her ear. Yes, that was a rather accurate description of how she viewed the throbbing pain she was currently experiencing. She didn’t like the idea of her work being interrupted by something as mundane as a headache. But at the same time, she didn’t really want to do paperwork in the first place. It seemed as though paperwork was the one thing everyone in the office always hated about a case- it was just a lot to do for people who always wanted to go out and be in the field. She didn’t sign up for the job to just sit behind a desk. No. She wanted to get out there and do some real work.

Unfortunately, when you lived in a place like Capeside, homicide detectives didn’t have a whole lot to do. So unless she was being borrowed by a nearby town (which did happen, although rare), paperwork was… Well, the bulk of her work.

They had just finished an actual case and now the paperwork was keeping them past hours. Normally… Well, normally her usual partner could provide a good amount of comic relief. Time passed quickly with him around. All Alex wanted to do was get out of there so she could go visit him in the hospital- it seemed like that was her second home as of late. How much longer were visiting hours? A quick glance at the clock told her that they were over. Cue the brow furrow. This day was turning out spectacular.

It wasn’t that Alex didn’t like Jacob. It was just that she didn’t trust the boy. How could she? She hardly knew him and she was supposed to trust him with her life? How was that going to go? This wasn’t a job to be taken lightly and she was working with someone who was brand new to the force. Sure, the kid had to learn somehow, but… She had grown pretty used to her own partner. And she was still a little shaken from the incident, too.

And… She really just wanted her old partner back. Not only because she didn’t trust this Jacob, but because she was afraid he’d never pull out of it. And that scared the shit out of her.

It also bugged her that she couldn’t have more time off to spend with him.

Christ.

Massaging her temple, Alex dropped her pen on the desk and exhaled heavily. Okay. This headache was just too obnoxious. She began to look around her desk, then through each of the drawers, before finally finding a bottle of Excedrin. She shook it- empty. Really? Sighing, she tossed it into a nearby trashcan. ”Hey, Griffiths. You got any pain killers or something?”

[jacob]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,300] TAGGED FOR ASHLEY AS ALEX | HOPE IT'S OKAY! Being a homicide detective was actually kind of boring. Well, in Capeside, it was, anyway. There were barely any cases to work. But when he thought about it, Jake considered it more to be a blessing than a curse. Just meant that there were less homicides, less people dead. But it still meant that he had to be doing a crapload of paperwork. What was worse was that he had to do his paperwork with his "partner", if you could even call her that. This would not be a problem whatsoever for Jake, were it not for the fact that she seemed to hate him. Which was not something that Jacob was used to. Most people at least gave him a chance, but she seemed to determined to dislike him no matter what. But Jake was not someone who gave up easily. And if he was going to be working with her, he at least wanted to be on neutral grounds with her. First he just had to figure out how to do that, though. Jacob glanced up from his paperwork to see that she was looking up, too, except not at him, but at the clock, and she seemed disappointed. His gaze followed hers and when he noticed what time it was, he frowned a little, himself. It hadn't seemed that late. But Jake didn't have anything better to do. Reynolds probably had a life. That and she probably wanted to go see her old partner. Jacob had heard about him, he was in a coma or something, which made Jake only feel worse for Alex. Of course she wouldn't like him, it wasn't that he was trying to replace her old partner or anything. He was just .. filling in, sort of. Jake looked back up as he heard her rummaging around her desk, and then went on to ask him if he had any painkillers. Without answering, he bent down to look through his drawers, grinning as he found a bottle of asprin in the bottom one. He managed to of course, smack his head on his desk as he sat back up, and let out a soft "ow" before he held the bottle up, rubbing the back of his head with his other hand. "Would asprin fit the bill?" He asked with his signature wide smile. Asprin was something Jake probably needed to keep on hand at all times, seeing as he had a rather fantastic knack for hitting his head on everything and anything in sight no matter where he was. To be honest, though, he was just glad he didn't knock everything off his desk in his search for the painkiller, as he usually did. He would have asked what was wrong, but he was afraid she'd somehow find a way to take that wrong and so he kept his mouth shut, for now anyway. Keeping his mouth shut was not one of his greatest strengths. After a while he'd just burst out with the stupidest joke, and then they'd be back to square one, and he was really trying to keep that from happening again.

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[alexandriareynolds]

Alexandria gave a very slight chuckle when Jacob hit his head on the way back up. Okay, so maybe she shouldn’t have laughed. She hadn’t been treating him the best and he had hurt himself getting her something she was asking for. But it was funny. People getting hurt- with small things like that- was funny. What happened to her partner was not at all humorous. Except, he wasn’t her partner anymore. For now? Who knew. But she did know that this new guy was her partner right at that moment. ”Yeah, Aspirin works great, thanks,” she said, holding her hands out for when he tossed it over.

She needed to stop being such a bitch. It wasn’t like she wasn’t aware of how she was being, but she wasn’t really doing it on purpose, either. There was just something about dealing with a rookie when the most important non-family member in her life was laying in a hospital bed, in a coma, that really pissed her off. Alex wanted more time off. She wanted to spend more time sitting with him, talking to him. Call her crazy, but a small part of her really believed that if she kept talking to him, he’d wake up. All of this was stirring strange feelings up in her and she didn’t know how to deal with them. All she knew was that he was her best friend, first and foremost, and there was no guarantee that he was going to live. It was a stressing point in her life. No doubt about it.

But maybe she could toss this Jake kid a bone. He was doing a good thing, after all.

”Don’t worry about the whole hitting your head thing,” she began, a slight smile gracing her lips, ”My partner-“ Pause. ”Old partner. Whatever he is.” Deep breath. ”We were working a case once in another town and we had to hide out in this really cramped like… Crawl space for a really long time. Four hours, I think we were in there for, ultimately. Every time he moved, he’d hit his head. Almost gave away our location a couple of times, but it was pretty funny. Had a bruise on his head like you wouldn’t believe by the time we were out of there.” Okay, so maybe it wasn’t that great of a story. But the silence was starting to get to her and she figured it was better than staying completely silent. It wasn’t like they had anything else to occupy their time with.

She continued to fill out paperwork as she waited for a response. There was no use rushing anymore, though, not really. She wasn’t going to make it to the hospital tonight. They rarely let her in after visiting hours were over. She had won over the hospital staff enough, though, to where they often let her stay past visiting hours, which was better than nothing. Alex would just have to stop by in the morning before coming into the office. They could deal with her being a few hours late, seeing as though she was normally painfully punctual. Always very dedicated to her work.

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[jacob]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,300] TAGGED FOR ASHLEY AS ALEX | HOPE IT'S OKAY! Jake really did not mind when people laughed at him when he hit his head on things. It happened so often, it was funny to him, the majority of the time, as well. However, he wasn't expecting Alexandria to chuckle, she seemed so serious most of the time, and when she did his smile only grew. A chuckle meant she was lightening up, at least a little, right? Well, he'd go with yes. Mostly because he was desperate for a little approval from his new partner. Gently, he tossed the bottle over to her, being careful not to knock anything over as he did so (because even if he didn't have anything near him, with arms as long as his, he would find something to make a mess of), looking incredibly proud of himself as he accomplished not knocking over a single thing in the process. Jacob was quiet again after that, so that he wouldn't bother her, looking down at his paperwork again until she began to speak, telling him a story that included her and her old partner. Jake was impressed. A smile and a conversation starter? He was either finally starting to wear her down or she was really bored. He was going to go with the she was starting to like him option, though, it sounded much nicer to him. Jake smiled again as she finished her story and continued with filling out her paperwork. "I hit my head on everything. Like, you have no idea. No matter where I go. My head will always find something to bruise itself on." He said with another grin, tilting his head slightly to the side. He felt like he should say something, like he hoped that her partner would wake up soon for her sake, because she really seemed to miss him. He'd like to say that, or at least something seemingly comforting like that, but he was afraid she'd take it in an "i hope he wakes up so i don't have to work with you anymore" way or something of the sort, he usually had a problem with saying something and it coming out entirely wrong. Still, saying nothing made him feel like he came across as heartless, and he really didn't want that, either. He wasn't heartless. Just really, really bad with words, it seemed. "I'm sorry." He finally burst out, and then he paused. "I mean, I'm sorry, I became your partner under .. this certain circumstance.." Another slight, awkward pause. "That.. came out kind of weird.. But it sounded a lot better in my head." He assured her, and then ducked his head and looked back down at his paperwork again. Well, that had worked out just as well as he'd figured it would, unfortunately.

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[alexandriareynolds]

”Thanks,” Alex said, catching the bottle one-handed and screwing off the lid. She poured a few pills into her hand and popped them into her mouth, chasing them down with a swig of water. She replaced the cap, then, and tossed it back to him, spouting off an ”incoming!” right after it left her hand. If this kid was as clumsy as he claimed, then maybe throwing it back wasn’t all that of a great idea, but he needed good reflexes for a job like this, anyhow. He could deal with it.

Listening as he spoke about how often he hit his head, she offered him a slight smile. ”Well, we’ll work on it. The longer you work this job, the more you’re gonna have to adjust to odd situations. I mean… We live in Capeside, so stuff around here is pretty low-key, but every now and then you’ll get somethin’ good. Most of it’s not even in Capeside, though. It’s when we’re ‘borrowed’ by nearby towns that you get weird stuff.” She offered him a shrug, leaning back and crossing one leg over the other. ”You could have worse downfalls, though. Hitting your head isn’t all that bad.” Her words probably didn’t mean much of anything, but at this point she was just talking to talk.

When they hit a lull in the already short and sluggish-moving conversation, Alex clicked her pen a few times in her ear before reaching for the paper she’d just finished filling out, ready to add it to the painfully slow growing pile of things she’d already gone through. Just then, though, he began to apologize and she paused, glancing up at him. At first, all she could think about was how awkward this poor boy was. But then she found herself… Well, thankful of his gesture.

Nodding, she set her pen down, feeling like she needed to reciprocate and wanted to give him her full attention for a few minutes. She at least owed him that. ”I’m sorry I haven’t been the most… Uhm. Pleasant person to work with,” she began, searching for the right words. ”I just… I’m having a hard time adjusting. You’ll find that when you get really close to your partner, you get this… Overwhelming desire to keep them safe. He’s one of the few people I trust with my life, you know? You’re supposed to trust your partner with your life, and no offense to you, but it’s hard to just… Place that trust into someone’s hands. And… I’m worried about him, too. I guess, as much as I love my job, I’d much rather be there sitting with him then keeping on with my day.” Sighing heavily, she looked away for a moment. ”I shouldn’t take it out on you. You didn’t do anything wrong. And I’m sorry for that.” Well, it wasn’t poetic, but it was a start, right?

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[jacob]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,300] TAGGED FOR ASHLEY AS ALEX | HOPE IT'S OKAY! Jacob's head shot up as well as his hand as she called out that she was sending the bottle back, and though he caught it, he managed to knock over his own papers, sending them flying. Which, in turn, made him scramble around in his seat for a second as he collected them, shaking his head but smiling good-naturedly anyhow as he put them back together again the way they were originally. As this happened more than often, Jacob at least attempted to take it lightly, or else he'd be annoyed with himself all of the time, and that got really old really fast, he had found. Jake looked back up and smiled again once he noticed that she actually had a little smile on herself, and nodded quietly at the fitting times as he listened to her words. He did wonder a little at what she meant when she referred to the weird stuff. How weird could weird be? Then again, it was probably best that he did not ask. Jake would probably find out on his own eventually. "Nah, it isn't so bad," he began with a simple shrug of the shoulders, "Kinda used to it by now." and then he grinned again. He'd always had a sort of issue with hitting his head on everything, even as a child, though now that he was much taller, he had a considerable increase in things to walk into, unfortunately. After he'd apologized, Alexandria began to explain herself. Jake hadn't really expected that. Maybe an acknowledgement, an acceptance, maybe even just a weird look since he was having such problems explaining himself, though she'd have to get used to it if she had to work with him so much. But she didn't do any of those, just began to tell him why she didn't trust him. And Jake understood. Working with someone for so long and suddenly having to replace them with someone new, someone you'd never even met before. The protectiveness she was talking about sounded a lot like the way he protected his little sisters. Something he could relate to very easily. Though by the look in her face, it wasn't quite the same kind of love he had for his sisters. However, it was none of his business anyway, so he wouldn't say anything about it. He smiled again, more softly this time, as she apologized and he shook his head. "You don't have to apologize for anything. Don't worry about it at all." Jake told her quietly, but very sincerely. "I get it. Plus, I am really annoying, so feel free to smack me around if I get on your nerves, everyone else does." Here he chuckled. "Or just tell me, if you'd rather, I'll shut up."

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[alexandriareynolds]

Alexandria cocked an eyebrow as he sent the papers flying, although made no effort to help him. Alright, so just because she was apologizing to him, that didn’t mean she had to go totally nice, right? Instead, she just shook her head and resituated herself in her chair, watching as he collected them. At least he was a good sport. Although it was pretty hypocritical, if anyone had been a jackass to her about being her partner, she probably would’ve had it out with them by now. She wasn’t really that much of a hardass. Really, if given the opportunity, she had the ability of making a situation pretty lighthearted. She enjoyed cracking jokes as long as she wasn’t dealing with some sort of really nasty case. And even so, in the office, she felt no need to be grave about it. But lately she hadn’t really felt like doing much of anything. She supposed that was because her partner was in the hospital and she was worried sick, but nevertheless. Most of the people around the precinct had figured out that, for the moment, it was safer to just let her do as she wanted instead of trying to cheer her up.

Shrugging a shoulder as he responded, she began clicking the top of her pen slowly, offering him a small smirk. “You’re not really annoying,” she responded, before adding, “Only slightly annoying.” Mostly a joke, and she hoped he understood that. He seemed like a good natured kid. While she still probably wouldn’t be ecstatic about working with him- and probably wouldn’t trust him, either- she could envy his boyish nature a little, and how lightly he seemed to take himself. Most people had a stick up their ass (herself included, at times) and it was always nice to know that there were still some people in the world who didn’t take themselves so seriously.

”Don’t worry about it. I’d rather you talk than not talk. For some reason people don’t go killing each other often in Capeside so it gets pretty quiet here,” she shrugged, putting her feet up on the desk, casually. She was ready for a break from all this damn paperwork, and now there wasn’t a reason for her to hurry. ”So, what made you decide to be a homicide detective?” she asked, switching the conversation around.

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[jacob]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,300] TAGGED FOR ASHLEY AS ALEX | (: Jake didn't expect Alexandria to leave her own desk to help him with his papers. Not because he thought she was childishly mean or cruel or anything, but because this happened so often he didn't expect anyone to help him after they'd known him for long enough. But he was always a good sport about it, obviously. Or else he'd be a very mean and bitter person. And no one wanted that, but of course. Who wanted a sour partner, after all? Certainly not Jacob, and he would imagine, not Alexandria either. He laughed softly as she told him he wasn't really annoying, assuring him that he was only slightly annoying. “Well thank you, I think.” he grinned at her, only half convinced that she was actually teasing him. But hey, he'd take it. It was close enough for his liking, anyway. “But don't tell anyone. I do have a “really annoying” reputation to uphold, you know.” He nodded seriously as he trailed off, and then chuckled again, looking back down at his paperwork and scribbling something or other down. “You'll probably regret that sooner or later, just a fair warning.” He said with a smile in response to her telling him she would rather he talked, looking back up as she put her feet on her desk and turned the conversation around on him, asking him what made him decide to be a homicide detective. He shrugged and shook his head, leaning back in his chair and making himself comfortable. “To be honest, I don't really know. It just.. felt right.” You'd most likely learn quickly after meeting him, that Jacob always trusted his gut. His heart and his brain told him things that didn't usually end up being trustworthy, but Jacob's gut feeling almost never failed him. “I just.. think that people shouldn't go unpunished. You know? And, anything I can do to bring justice to this slightly screwed world we live in, I like to think I've made it a little bit of a better place for the future.” He paused, and cleared his throat. “Does that make sense? Or do I sound way too cheesy Lifetime movie? That seems to happens a lot.” He chuckled again, this time a little uncomfortably. Jake really wasn't used to talking about himself. He could find a way to talk about things for hours, but when it came to talking about himself, he really wasn't sure how to explain anything at all, and it was just all quite.. awkward.

[alexandriareynolds]

Alexandria smiled softly and chuckled, shaking her head. ”Don’t worry, Detective. Your secret’s safe with me, as long as you keep telling everyone I’m a bitch behind my back. Deal?” Alright, so she didn’t exactly have the reputation of being a bitch, but she supposed if they were going off this kind of banter then she might as well make that comment. She wouldn’t have been surprised if Jacob had been trash talking her around the office. He didn’t seem the type, though- too nice- but she wouldn’t have blamed him if he had. She was sure the information would’ve looped back around to her in the end, considering she was pretty well liked in the office (if she did say so herself) and everyone knew she was having a tough time. Sure, she probably would’ve been a little pissed had she heard something of the sort, but all in all, she would’ve understood.

Nodding a little as he said why he wanted to become a homicide detective, she noted that his motives didn’t really come with a back story like most. Her reasoning came with a back story. Her father had been killed doing this job, but he’d loved every second of it. He’d always said that Capeside and the surrounding areas didn’t have a lot of crime, but that didn’t mean they didn’t deserve justice when something did happen. Work was slow but every murder he did happen to solve was just that much more gratifying because it wasn’t just another number, as it was in bigger cities. These were people he’d lived near. Alex wanted to follow in his footsteps. Although, the fact that he’d died trying to save his partner made the fact that she hadn’t been able to save her own a lot more difficult. It was an honorable way to go.

”Why’d you decide to stick to Capeside?” she pressed, cocking an eyebrow curiously. They really only handled the few cases that popped up around and in Capeside. So sure, their jurisdiction ranged in a few different cities and towns, but they still weren’t swamped with cases. Which was pretty good, she supposed. People weren’t getting killed. ”I mean, I have my own reasons for taking up the least demanding job in this town. But what about you? You could’ve gone up to Boston, easily. More work. Better pay, too, I’d imagine.”

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[jacob]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,300] TAGGED FOR ASHLEY AS ALEX | (: Jacob grinned as the other detective promised to keep his secret. He'd never call her that or anything near it- because honestly, he didn't believe that she was. Grief affected different people in different ways, after all. Jake didn't blame her for her.. abruptness. Of course, he wouldn't mind it not existing, but he didn't complain about it to everyone else, if that was she was implying. "I can start doing that, sure," He chuckled softly, nodding. As if that would actually happen. For a moment there was a silence as Alexandria nodded to his explanation, though it still sounded far too cheesy to him. It was still the only explanation he could muster. He'd never really known what had drawn him to this. It just felt like that was what he was supposed to do. It was hard for him to describe it. But at least she was talking to him, that was the main thing here, she was making conversation and he was making progress with her. At least she didn't seem to hate him or anything anymore. She seemed.. more curious than anything, which was nice. Curious could be good. As long as he didn't say the wrong thing as he seemed to do often enough, hopefully he would manage to stay on her good side with his answers. He didn't seem to be saying anything too scandalous so far, though, that was good. He had sort of zoned out a little, lost in his own thoughts, when she questioned him further, and his eyebrows raised slightly in surprise. "I don't really care much about the pay," he admitted with a smile. "But I like Capeside. Boston is where everyone wants a job. Capeside may not have as much work, but when it does, it's just as important here as it is there." He wasn't really sure if that answered her question, once he'd said it, but it at least made sense to him. Besides, if not, she'd probably tell him, and then he'd try to make himself clearer then. He wasn't sure if he ought to be asking her questions as well, if she wanted him to know about her personal life and convictions of why she chose this job as well. For now, however, he kept his mouth shut. If she wanted him to know, she would have told him. And maybe he'd learn about it, eventually.