Disoriented Cosmos {A Torchwood Story} [COMPLETED]

26. And Then They Were Coworkers

Owen's POV

I wake up to roll on my side and see Suzie pulling her smart black jeans up. God, that woman never dresses casually, does she? Makes me wonder why I chose to shag someone who never lets her hair be tied into a ponytail lower than a 90° angle.

"So," she says, buttoning her jeans round her belly, "I'll see you at work."
She bends to pick up her top from the floor, and I peer over the bed to get a good look at her arse, like usual - but this time I can't get into it. I'm not distracted like I normally am when I look at her arse.

She walks out of the bedroom, and I hear the sleepy grumble of an irritated woman and smile despite myself.

Evelina's awake!

I roll out of bed and pull on my own trousers and top, and walk as nonchalantly as I can with my hands in my pockets into the main room.
Both women are standing across the kitchen from each other, both wearing the same stony expressions. On Evelina it looks kinda sexy; on Suzie it just looks kinda... meh. Maybe she's losing her appeal.

I cough loudly and they both look at me, giving me the same expression.
"I'll be seeing the both of you," Suzie says curtly, then taps briskly out of the flat. The door clicks shut behind her, and Evy sniffs in contempt. She automatically begins pouring cereal, looking cross and sleepy at the same time.

I sigh at her. "Please talk to me? Mornings aren't the same without you making fun of how I burn toast."

She stays determinedly silent. I sigh again and get to making my breakfast, as my roommate collects her clothes and walks into her room that I've guiltily taken over for another night.
I keep forgetting that this is her flat; I'm surprised she hasn't kicked me out yet for using her space in multiple sexual exploits.

~∆~

When we get to HQ, Evy is still not talking to me and Suzie is being pissy. Not just at me, at everyone: she struts about ordering everyone and complaining about the work they're doing, until Jack catches wind and beckons her into his office to talk to her.

Never able to resist some gossip, I use a microphone attached to Jack's office wall to listen in to the conversation, and find out that Suzie's just learned this morning as she woke up that her father has cancer.

I lean back in my chair, turning my earpiece off as I do. I don't want to listen to their conversation anymore.

I knew Suzie had mentioned before that her estranged dad was always a bit under the weather, but I selfishly didn't want to know anything more. I know, I know, she's my coworker and I guess my lover, but we don't need to know anything personal about each other - I haven't told anyone but Evelina about Katie, and that's the way I want to keep that.

After a while, Suzie leaves Jack's office with a brand new outlook - and it's still bossy and strict as fuck.
Jack informs us about an unidentified flying object that about ten minutes ago crashed just west of Carmarthen, so we set to work preparing our tools and demeanour for the investigation with our second in command snapping at our heels.

Suzie acts as if nothing has happened, as if she hadn't just learned that her own flesh and blood is at death's door, giving us orders and running errands before we all run to fetch our coats to guard us against the cold Welsh winds.

I catch Evelina's eyes rolling as we walk to the doors together at Suzie's current rant about punctuality, and we both grin in silent friendship as our coworker goes on and on, despite us currently being at odds that I'm sleeping with said coworker.

Evelina really does has the most exquisite multicolored eyes, glowing every time she behaves as herself a little bit more. I wonder if I should ever tell her she has the most beautiful eyes I've honestly ever seen.

Although it might sound a bit weird coming from a friend.

~∆~

Later in the evening, when we get home and resemble a jigsaw by trying to sleep in our own places and subsequently giving up and sleeping in Evy's bed together - again - I watch her as she sleeps.

Even from all the times we've slept together, in the most innocent sense of the word, I've never noticed how she sniffles in her sleep and rolls her head around on the pillow. And how she almost tucks herself in by pinching the duvet around her together and rolling over it all over her body, until it looks like a mummy is sleeping next to me.

I suddenly feel incredibly guilty for bringing Suzie into this bed, for even starting with Suzie in the first place; Evelina was right, it wasn't a good idea - we work together... and also Suzie is kind of a bitch. Although today I have to give her credit - she did just learn her dad is dying.

We work together, I repeat to myself firmly as I refocus on my flatmate lying in peaceful kinda cute sleep in front of me.

We work together, we work together...

Evelina's POV

Owen lays out all the apparatus, and from my spot perched on the edge of the body trolley I pick up something that has a metal whirly thing on the end of it.

"So what's this?" I ask him, chucking it about in my hand.
He turns to me from organising everything, looks at it, then looks at me with an amused smile forming from the corner of his mouth. "Well, actually, this," he plucks it out of my hand and brings it up between our faces with a fully grown smile, "is used to stick up patients' noses and catch all their brains and pull them out of their noses."

"Eww! Stop, liar!" I squeal in laughter and he takes the instrument away from me and rubs it in sanitizer, smiling.

It's silent again in the autopsy room as I swing my legs from the table and he sterilizes the equipment. I want to make some small talk, or big talk, whatever. I just wanna talk. It's this sort of primal urge inside me: I never got to express myself before, so I can't stop myself from spewing information and questions here.

I tilt my head at Owen who has his back to me, and ask with an edge to my voice, "So, are you going out with Suzie tonight?"

He pauses, then continues cleaning as he says firmly, "Actually, no."
I blink. What? And I say as much too: "Eh? What you mean?"
"Just don't fancy it tonight," he clarifies casually. He moves to another place in the room away from me, and I tug the body trolley to him and sit on it again. "Why? Tell me."

"Leave off will you? God, you're everywhere," he complains in a voice that sounds like he only half means it.
I keep on: "Tell me, and I won't ask again." He turns to me and rolls his eyes, and whilst he pulls off his gloves says matter-of-factly, "I've decided to stop with Suzie; it would only end badly anyway, what with us working together."

I blink again, then again. "You're... listening to me?"
He shrugs. "Even though you annoy me about it constantly, you do mean well and you are actually right. I need to get over Katie properly, and this isn't the right way. Plus, I thought you might want your bed back after last time you tried to get in it and there was a random guy in there."

"Yeah, that did freak me out - reminded me of the good ol' drug days," I chuckle out, and he laughs through his nose, and for once I catch Owen at his most genuine. Not thinking about work, not thinking about his next load of flesh, just in the moment, laughing about something meaningless. It's rare for Owen, and needs to happen more because when it does, it seems magical.

I just sit there watching Owen wind down from his chuckle and try to focus his attention on his work, until I snap to attention myself.
"Owen," I ask cautiously, "have you told Suzie about this decision?"

He snaps to attention too and whips his head up to look in my eyes. I can see the whites of them, scared of the hell that'll break loose when he tells our second-in-command something she won't like.

Owen gulps. "She's gonna bite my balls off, isn't she?"
"Considering how you were probably her only lay in fifteen billion years cuz no-one else would fucking dream of it - yes."