Author: SoThatHappened

Shaw walked into Finch's the next day and found Root sitting at in front of his computer with her feet kicked up on the desk. Shaw glanced around for Finch as she walked over to Root, immediately feeling a weird pull in her stomach. She hadn't expected to see Root here, she hadn't expected to see Root at all actually. Not after the way she nonchalantly had walked out yesterday. Leaving that weird almost bitter feeling in the pit of Shaw's stomach that still hadn't gone away.

"Hey" Shaw said and Root swivelled around without even a twitch of shock hearing Shaw's voice.

"Sameen." Root said and then looked back at the screen. Shaw lifted an eyebrow.

"Was that the whole sentence?" Shaw asked. Root smirked at her screen.

"You seem tense Sam" Root added still without turning around to look at her. Shaw folded her arms.

"I'm not" Shaw said and Root kept tapping at her keyboard.

Why is she ignoring me, Shaw thought with a frown creeping onto her face. It was something to do with yesterday she knew it. Maybe Root regretted sleeping with Shaw. Maybe she'd changed her mind and didn't want this after all. Shaw shook her head a little, there was no way.

Shaw hadn't been able to stop thinking about it, running it over and over in her mind the way Root just walked out. Why. Because it was just sex. Yes. But this was Root.

"I thought we were good" Shaw suddenly blurted out and Root stopped what she was doing.

"We are good" Root said slowly and Shaw raised an eyebrow still looking at the back of Root's head.

Then why are you being like this? Shaw wanted to ask. She knew what happened with Tomas was still going to have repercussions, but this seemed...different. Or maybe it was just her, and whatever crap was inside her making her overthink this.

"Are you sure?" Shaw double checked. Suddenly Root was swinging her feet off the desk, turning around in the chair and directly facing Shaw.

"What's going on, Sameen?" Root asked instead of reconfirming the answer.

"Nothing" Shaw shrugged and Root rolled her eyes.

"Clearly it's something" Root said "or you wouldn't be standing five feet away from me asking if we're all good."

A frown flickered on Shaw's face as she contemplated denying everything. It would be easier, but would it solve anything? No. Unfortunately not. Although what needed solving was still...unconfirmed.

"I'm just..." Shaw paused "deliberating."

"About what?" Root arched a brow curiously.

Shaw looked at the space between them and rolled her eyes.

"If um, if you left yesterday because you're still mad at me, or if I'm just being a moronic loser" Shaw said with a slight cringe as she dodged Root's eyes. Root opened her mouth to answer and then shut it again, looking at Shaw, gazing, almost.

"You're not a moronic loser" Root said and Shaw glanced up at her, catching her eye.

"So you're mad still?" Shaw said and Root just sighed, getting to her feet and taking a couple of steps closer to Shaw.

"No" Root said.

"Then what is it?" Shaw almost begged "because I am unclear."

Root studied Shaw's face, It was bothering her, Root could tell, it was eating at her that Root had just gotten up and left yesterday. She knew Shaw cared. It was obvious, but Shaw figuring that out for herself was a whole different situation, and Root wasn't going to force her into that.

"I'm just being cautious" Root said "and our agreement was sex, not sex and sleepovers."

Shaw frowned. "That's not-"

"Sam" Root said "relax, you're not in trouble, and I'm not mad, it's that simple."

Shaw looked at her. "It's not."

Root arched an eyebrow as if this were news to her and Shaw just looked away. Root knew better than to expect Shaw to just come out and say what she was thinking...or feeling for that matter. She reached out and touched Shaw's arm lightly.

"It can be" Root said softly and Shaw lifted her eyes to meet with Root's. "I'm not angry, okay?"

Shaw just nodded. She believed Root, she could see it in those damn warm brown eyes that Root meant it. She wasn't mad, she was just protecting herself from Shaw fucking her over again. And the fact she had to do that made Shaw uncomfortable. She wouldn't hurt Root again, ever. The fact she had in the first place made her deeply infuriated with herself. Root was one of the very few good things in her life. She wouldn't risk that, again.

Root smiled a little at Shaw, she seemed less tense now. Everything about her had softened a little the moment Root had reached out and touched her arm. Shaw let out a sigh and shook her head a little.

"Sorry" she said "I'm being such a douche."

Root just smirked and looked at her. "I don't think that's the right word for it"

Shaw looked back at her. "And what would be?"

"You wouldn't like it."

"Try me."

Root just grinned, and didn't answer. Shaw just stared at her as she sat back down and went back to whatever it was she had been doing on Finch's laptop. Shaw understood that Root wouldn't tell her, she knew there was no point in pressing. Instead she took a step forward towards the chair Root was sitting on and grabbed the back of it with both hands.

"So, what are you doing later?" Shaw asked there had been a brief pause of hesitance before the words had left her mouth, but undoubtedly she let them fall out anyway.

Root leaned back in the chair against Shaw's fingers.

"I don't know yet" Root said coyly and Shaw rolled her eyes with a smirk.

"Well you could come over" Shaw said and spun the chair around so Root was facing her. Their eyes met. Root's cheeks were a little pink. "and not for a sleepover."

Root just smirked with amusement. "Again already?"

"Why not?" Shaw asked "I've got nothing better to do."

"Or no one" Root added quirking an eyebrow that made Shaw frown.

"Don't do that." Shaw said firmly.

"Do what?" Root asked innocently, snaking her fingers into Shaw's belt loops and giving them a rough tug pulling Shaw closer, between her legs.

"Don't mention that" Shaw said looking down at her.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't" Root said.

"I could give you a whole list" Shaw said "starting with, because it sucks."

Root narrowed her eyes. "Not good enough."

Shaw just stared at her. What was she doing. For once she felt like she didn't understand Root. Not that she would ever admit to 100% understanding what went on in that brain of hers. But sometimes it felt like she was the person closest to her, that understood her the most. But right now she couldn't tell what was going on behind those eyes.

"Because I hurt you," Shaw said "and I don't like to think about it."

Root raised an eyebrow, Shaw could see the words basically reaching Root's heart. The look on her face softening for a millisecond before she quickly regained control and her jaw tightened. Shaw almost frowned at the reaction, it was like Root was refusing to let herself feel, whatever it was that she was feeling around Shaw.

"I guess that's good enough" Root said and popped open the button on Shaw's jeans, flicking down the zipper. Shaw arched an eyebrow.

"What are you doing?" Shaw asked.

"Why wait for tonight?" Root said and Shaw opened her mouth to answer, but before she could Root had stood up, spun Shaw around and backed her up against the desk, planting a deep kiss on her lips.

Shaw grabbed at the desk she was suddenly leaning against, but Root pulled her hands away putting them on her chest. Shaw groaned as Root leaned her body weight onto her, pressing a knee between Shaw's legs.

"What if Finch-" Shaw started but Root cut her mumble off.

"He won't" Root whispered against her lips.

Root kissed Shaw, kissed along her jaw, down her neck, biting on her shoulder enough to leave tiny red teeth marks. She let Shaw move against her leg, let her hands roam underneath her shirt, squeezing lightly at her skin, dragging her nails over Root's back, she let Shaw's hands wander down into her pants.

Root still wasn't touching Shaw like that, even though she wanted to. Instead she was just teasing her, and teasing her, letting her do it herself.

Shaw looked at her, it was a brief glance nothing more. But in those two seconds that she watched Shaw looking at her, she felt her heart. Shaw was checking to make sure she was okay, that this was what she wanted. She didn't need to say it. She just needed to check quietly. With her eyes.

Don't fall in love. Root told herself, repeating it in her head over and over again until suddenly she closed her eyes and couldn't take it anymore. She didn't hear the door. Neither did Shaw. She pushed herself away from Shaw. Don't fall in love. This is how you fall in love.

"What?" Shaw asked eyes wide, fingers soaked. Root could barely look at her, but she did. But before she could answer Shaw's eyes widened and Root spun around, seeing Finch standing behind her. He looked even more mortified than Shaw had. He swallowed, hard and then spun on his heel muttering something under his breath.

Root turned back to Shaw who was staring at the empty space where Finch had just been standing. Her palm leaned against the desk behind her, two fingers gleamed with a white wetness as they stuck up in the air. There was no hiding what had just been happening. Root's shirt was half off, their pants undone. But the distance between them was something that needed explaining.

Shaw eventually looked back at Root.

"What just happened?" Shaw asked, Root just eyed Shaw's fingers.

"I think you were there" Root said and Shaw rolled her eyes quickly licking her fingers.

"You moved away before he was there" Shaw said and Root said nothing. "It wasn't because of him." Shaw added and Root just looked down, zipping her pants back up and straightening her shirt.

"I should go" Root said.

Shaw just frowned in disbelief. "No way, you can't just leave."

"For Harry's sake, I think I probably should." Root replied.

"And what about for my sake?" Shaw asked and Root stopped, glancing at her.

"You'll live" Root said with a slight smile, but Shaw wasn't pleased.

"Can you just tell me what happened?" Shaw asked. "Did I...hurt you?"

"No, Sam" Root shook her head almost as if she were embarrassed suddenly "no," she said again.

"Then what?" Shaw asked.

"I can't..." Root shrugged and looked away. Shaw kept her distance, she felt she knew Root well enough in this moment to know if she got any closer Root would just move away. She knew that, because she would do the same. Whatever was happening in Root's head was a solitary problem, that much was obvious, someone else couldn't swoop in and fix this for her. Shaw didn't want to make it worse. But she did wish she understood.

But by the time she went to say something, Root was gone.

Shaw just stayed there, leaning against Finch's desk lost in her own contemplation about what the fuck was happening. Then suddenly someone cleared their throat. She snapped out of it and saw Finch hovering by his chair looking at it suspiciously.

Shaw leapt forward and awkwardly looked down.

"Sorry" she muttered and felt Finch staring at her.

"Your zipper, Ms Shaw" Finch said and carefully took his seat. Shaw glanced down and saw her jeans were still very much undone. She quickly did them up and looked around.

"That wasn't..."

"I really don't need to know Ms Shaw" Finch said almost looking pained.

"Okay" Shaw said quickly "sorry" she muttered again as she quickly grabbed her jacket and bolted for the door.

She didn't hear from Root for the rest of the day. Not that she anticipated she would. Not after whatever it was that happened, she figured Root would retreat into one of her shells and not come out until Shaw basically dragged her. Because she wanted answers. She needed them.

Just because she hadn't heard from Root didn't stop her from thinking about her, like all the fucking time. Root crossed Shaw's mind more than she thought were humanly possible. It's almost like Root's silence was bothering Shaw even more than her presence would. Every time she got a new message she would check it too eagerly hoping it was from Root, and then feel that sinking feeling in her stomach only to discover it wasn't. It was annoying. It was stupid. She willed it to stop but she couldn't control it. She couldn't get that look on Root's face out of her mind, like she was trying to repress immediately any emotion she was feeling around Shaw.

Shaw couldn't imagine why that would be. Root was a person who felt everything. Unless Shaw had hurt her so badly...that she didn't want to anymore. She needed answers. Shaw's fists were balled up by the time she got home. She angrily slammed her fridge door shut as she knocked the cap off a beer and took a long sip. All this thinking, all these stupid mind gripping thoughts about Root were infuriating her. Mostly because there was nothing she could actively be doing about it. She couldn't just fix this.

She wasn't used to that. Shaw threw herself down on her stolen couch, she stared at the ceiling. Why, Root? She thought. Why?

Then there was a knock at her door. Shaw leapt to her feet, it could only be one person. She threw the door open.

"Thank god you're-" Shaw started then suddenly stopped her face falling "bleeding."