Kindred

The Proposal

A smile tugged at Melody Parker's lips as she gazed out the window at the snow drifting down from the sky. Large, wet flakes accumulated on the ground, blanketing the grey pavement in pure white. Snow in November wasn't exactly uncommon in Rhode Island, but a blizzard was practically unheard of, especially so early in the month. Melody loved it, though! Winter had always been her favorite season, which was quite odd when you thought about the fact that she was cold natured and broke out a sweater at the slightest drop in temperature. Still, Melody adored winter, she always had. There was some sort of magic in it that she just couldn't explain.

"Are you actually getting any work done there, Mels, or are you dreaming about making a snow angel?"

Startled from her thoughts, Melody let out a small gasp as she turned to see the smirking face of Dave, or well, Tango, as they called him. "If you must know, I've been working all day on trying to get some of this evidence reviewed so we can clear the tapes before the next investigation...But look, it's snowing! I didn't think we were supposed to be getting any snow just yet, where did this blizzard come from?"

Tango gave her a puzzled look as he placed a steaming mug of coffee on the desk before he took a sip of his own. "Where have you been? The news has been talking about it all week, you don't watch the weather?"

Melody shrugged in response to his question, though her eyes lit up at the sight of the caffeine, knowing good and well her favorite Starbucks Holiday blend had been stocked in the small kitchen area of the TAPS headquarters. In fact, she'd made sure they'd have plenty to last them through the winter season, though if she had it her way, she'd drink it all year long."Coffee! You know when a girl needs a pick me up, huh?"

Tango chuckled a bit, though a nervous expression flashed in his eyes for a moment as he brought his free hand up to scratch the back of his neck in an awkward fashion. "Well, I had hoped it would soften the blow of the news I need to break to you."

Melody's smile faded, the coffee cup halfway to her lips. "What is it? What's wrong?" Had someone been in an accident? There were quite a few people out of the office at the moment, but nearly everyone had day jobs, they couldn't spend all their time at TAPS headquarters..

"What? No! No, of course not. Nothing like that." Tango explained. "Just, Jay and Grant were talking earlier and with the weather due to get worse in the next couple of days they decided the driving crew should leave a bit early just to get ahead of the storms..."

Melody couldn't stop the breath of relief that escaped her lips. "Don't scare me like that, Dave! You know I always think the worst!" She exclaimed, resisting the urge to reach out and punch the man on the shoulder. "So how does this affect me? I'm assuming you and Steve will be getting an early start in the morning?" She figured that had better be the case, they were making the long drive to Wyoming, and if there was a threat of snow and ice, it simply wouldn't do to rush.

"Well, that's what I was getting at, Mels. I can't leave tomorrow. I can't swing the time off, unfortunately, and I know your work is pretty flexible..."

"Flexible?" Melody interrupted. "It's not that flexible! I can't just cancel three days worth of appointments at the salon, Tango..." In all truth, Melody didn't have that many appointments scheduled for the next few days, and she knew her coworker would gladly cover for her those days, she'd done it before. But that wasn't the point. The problem was that she was completely unprepared, especially to leave as quickly as the next morning. And there was the fact that Tango couldn't lie worth shit. She knew just as well as he did that the real reason he didn't want to leave so early was he was hesitant to be separated from his girlfriend and fellow investigator, Kris, for so long.

"Come on, Mels, pretty please? I promise to make this up to you.." Tango was almost begging, his desperation evident in his brown eyes. "You know I wouldn't ask you this if I didn't absolutely have to. You know Steve can't make the trip on his own.."

Melody bit her lip as she allowed her gaze to wander to the screen where she'd been reviewing some footage from a local home investigation not too long before. She didn't mind traveling with Steve, if she was completely honest. He was a nice guy, though she didn't know him all that well. She'd only been a member of The Atlantic Paranormal Society for a few months and hadn't been on all that many investigations as of yet. Well, at least not many of the travel ones, the ones that were filmed by SyFy, which she was quite thankful for. As outgoing as she could be, the young woman was quite awkward and shy when the cameras were turned in her direction. Much of her interaction with the senior investigator had been in passing, no less than a hello here and a bit of small talk there. How awkward would it be to spend over 32 hours in a van with a man she barely knew?

Letting out a sigh, Melody turned her attention back to Tango, who was anxiously awaiting her answer. "So, what time are we heading out in the morning?" She asked, the defeat in her voice confirming that Tango had gotten the answer he'd wanted.

A grin tugged at Tango's lips as pulled the newest investigator into a hug of gratitude. "7:00 am sharp. Or well, not sharp, if you know Steve... He's not always on time."

Melody resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she pushed back from the hug slightly. "Actually, I don't know him." She muttered. "Not as well as I'd like, especially when I'll be spending so much time in close quarters with the man. Please tell me there will at least be separate hotel rooms?" She questioned, raising a brow. For his own sake, Tango had better say yes, or it'd be an immediate deal breaker.

"That can be arranged, yes, Originally it wasn't supposed to be, but I'm sure Jay and Grant won't mind the extra expense."

Melody nodded, satisfied with his answer. "Alright then...I'll go, but you owe me big time, Tango. I mean it!"

Now it was Dave's turn to roll his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Unlimited pumpkin spice lattes and Holiday flat whites on the trip sound good enough?"

A mischievous smirk tugged at Melody's lips as she went to place the pink headphones she'd been wearing over her ears once more. "It's a start..Oh, and I hope you enjoy thenext few days with Kris."

Tango's expression was priceless! He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, looking like a fish out of water as he seemed at a loss for words. "I have no idea what you're talking about,Mels."

"Oh, I wasn't born yesterday, you know. You could have just told me the real reason you wanted to switch travel plans with me, it wouldn't have changed my answer." The smirk was still present on Melody's lips as she turned the office chair to face the computer once more, her hand poised over the mouse and prepared to hit play on the video footage any minute now. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a shit ton of footage to get through before I can even think about leaving to pack. Jay and Grant have the reveal meeting with these clients tomorrow afternoon, I think."

Knowing he'd been caught, Tango didn't bother to argue anymore. Instead, he offered a grateful smile as he backed himself toward the doorway. "Right, I'll leave you to it then. Thanks again, Mels!"

"Don't mention it!" Melody waved him off, still smirking despite the amount of stress she was suddenly feeling. "Oh God,what the hell have I just agreed to?" She muttered to herself before taking a large sip of the coffee Tango had brought as a peace offering. She could only hope the trip would be less awkward than she could currently imagine, because at this point, a three to four day road trip in complete silence didn't seem all that appealing to her. There was a bright side, however, and that was the prospect of travelling through a few states she'd never been to before. Melody adored traveling, especially to places she'd never been before. Throw in a few haunted locations and the girl was in heaven!

"Well, I suppose I'll look on the bright side of things," She mused as she pressed play on the video she'd been reviewing. "At least we'll have one thing in common..."
————————————————————
A/N: I'm so excited to share this new story with you guys! I've been a long time fan of Ghost Hunters, and after years of contemplating writing a fic I've finally decided to do it! I claim no ownership to anyone or anything other than my OC, Melody, who received her first name from the lovely LlamaLloyd! :D And of course, the general plot. This will be a slow burn fic, but I promise the romance will be worth the wait! Anyway, thanks for reading, I hope to update soon!
-Bailey Noelle