My Beautiful Doll

Chapter Five

Five hours and ten cups of coffee in, Don was re-thinking his career choices.

They had been reading up on all of the case files regarding the Artist and had managed to make a sizable dent in the pile. With the work divided between the two of them, they were able to read through them faster. Not as fast as if we had a team though he thought to himself. A part of him wanted to give in and call his team, but he shook his head. He knew everyone was practically close to sleeping on their feet the last time he saw them. He couldn't afford to have other members compromised. Rubbing his temples, he could tell that he was close to his limit.

"I'm going to grab another cup." He muttered. Stepping out of the war room, he allowed himself to stretch his stiff limbs. God...how is it only 9am? It certainly felt like forever. Stifling a yawn, he headed straight towards the break room.

The break room was empty when he walked in, which was a godsend. Dropping all pretense of being awake, he sat down and closed his eyes, willing the headache that was starting to make itself known go away. He was about to doze off before his phone rang. Loudly.

"Eppes" he said, tone clipped and formal, making sure his voice was devoid of any sign of exhaustion.

"Has there ever been a time where you don't sound like you're on duty?" a familiar voice replied.

He blinked for a second and checked the caller ID. Sure enough, he definitely wasn't mistaken. "Charlie? Why are you calling me? Is everything alright?". His brother didn't usually call him unprompted outside of work, not unless there was something he needed.

"Whoa Don, slow down! Don't worry, everything's fine actually"

Don paused, then he checked the area around him. Everything seems to be in place...

"Don, you okay?" Charlie sounds worried.

"I'm fine. It's just that I'm trying to see if I have accidentally stepped into an alternate dimension"

"Funny..." Charlie said sarcastically. Don could even hear the eye roll.

"I try to be," he replied, smiling. Leaning back into the stiff chair, he decided to ask again. "Care to tell me why you're calling me at 9am?"

"Oh...uh...did I wake you?" Charlie sounded apologetic.

Don shook his head, "Nah, I was already awake. Now, don't try to change the subject."

"I'm not!" He shouted, trying to defend himself. "It's just that...well- maybe I..." he trailed off, probably trying to find a suitable excuse without embarrassing himself.

Don chuckled. "If you're worried about me, just say it."

"Wait, I never said-! How did you...?" For once, his brother is somewhat lost for words.

At that, Don grinned widely. He could picture the astonished and embarrassed look on Charlie's face. He had always cherished these moments. Times when he was the one surprising or confusing his brother. They were few and far between, but it was always worth it. "C'mon Chuck, have faith in me. I am an FBI agent after all."

"So you keep reminding me" Charlie grumbled, somehow managing to sound like a petulant child. Don could hear his brother sigh before asking, "So...are you okay there? I know with everyone being out of town, you're probably bored out of your mind right now and itching to go back to work. But I think you should remember that taking a break is good for you. In fact, there was a study shown in-"

"Charlie!" Don interjected. He knew that if he didn't say anything, Charlie could go on for hours. "I appreciate the concern buddy, but something tells me that you called me for reasons other than to lecture me about my work/life habits."