Because Of You

Chapter 12

The wandering eyes of curious minds linger on Detective Kevin Ryan. Ever since a smug Mick McConnell sauntered out of the precinct with his army of lawyers the detective has received some funny looks. It was a shock to all. Well, all except Kevin, to him it was a relief. Finally, with his father out of the precinct, it gave him some breathing space. However, that too will soon disappear.

Esposito's concern for his partner has been growing at an alarming rate. It's practically unstoppable. Every time he tries to think about something else his mind snaps back to Kevin. The Irishman is not acting like himself. If he can't even confide in his own partner then it must be something serious. As in off the scale kind of serious. There's no other way Espo can wrap his head around all of this. The two of them normally share everything with one another. No secrets between them. Although, technically, Esposito has been keeping a secret from his partner for a very long time. Espo has yet to tell Ryan of his true feelings for him. The thought of confessing his biggest secret makes his stomach twist in knots and his heart race.

Speaking of things to make Javier's heart race - the hand holding on the backseat is something he's keen to discuss with his fellow detective. What happened was all Ryan. The blue eyed detective was the one to grab his hand first and they held hands the whole way back. Espo can't help but wonder why. Is that Kevin's way of reciprocating his feelings towards him?

"Hey Kev" Esposito calls out, as he hurries to join the one who has been on his mind, into the break room "Can we talk?"

"Depends what you want to talk about" Ryan replies as he puts his coffee cup down on the counter.

"I'm not going to ask why you're not pressing charges" the Hispanic detective reassures him as he leans against the counter.

Kevin raises an eyebrow "Really?"

"Alright, I'll be honest with you. More than anything I want to know why, but I know when you've made up your mind" Espo sighs as he locks his worried gaze on to his best friend "I'm just wondering how you're doing. You were kidnapped and that has to have affected you in some way"

"I wasn't kidnapped!" Kevin protests as he pours the remainder of the coffee pot into his mug.

"You were chloroformed and shoved in the back of a van by masked men. Sounds to me like a kidnapping" his partner argues, confusion starting to build once more.

"It's not like I was being held against my will. I was allowed to leave whenever I wanted" Ryan throws back, trying to push Esposito away with his harsh tone.

The Hispanic detective is starting to get a little too close for comfort. It scares Ryan, because if anyone can break him then Javier can.

"In my time I've seen quite a few cases of Stockholm Syndrome, but this has to be the weirdest" Espo says to himself, but his intention is that his partner hears it too.

Kevin scoffs, falling right into his partner's verbal trap "I don't have Stockholm Syndrome. Why would you even think that?!"

"It has to be. Otherwise, why the hell would you want to stick up for a low life like Mick McConnell?! The Kevin I know wouldn't do that. The Kevin I know would be fighting to nail this guy for what he did!" Esposito exclaims, raising his voice to Ryan's level.

There's no way he can back down now (not that he wants to anyway). Espo knows he's only just scratched the surface of his best friend's defences, but at least he's got his foot in the door now. The detective can't let the door slam in his face when he's getting so close to the truth.

"I'm not sticking up for him, okay?!" Ryan snaps, but then takes a moment to gather his thoughts "Just drop it, Javi. It's for your own good"

"For my own good? What's that supposed to mean? Kev, did he threaten you? Did he get to you by threatening to hurt one of us? Just tell me and we can bring this guy-" Espo starts to say.