"What?" Scott throws his hands out as if he has no idea why Alex would be upset.

Alex just stares Scott down, disappointment etched into his face.

"Really?" Alex lets out a deep breath, clearly not amused by Scott's antics.

"Oh come on." Scott waves off his partner. "I was just having some fun with him." He drops his eyes back down to his plate and picks up his burger and takes a big bite.

Alexander just continues to stare Scott down, moments like these reminding him how young his partner really is.

"You should apologize." Alex keeps an even tone, his hands still folded in his lap. Scott just keeps egregiously chewing

"It was an accident." Scott attempts to defend himself again after swallowing his chewed food.

"I know that." Alex rolls his eyes. Scott was smart when it came to a lot of things, but sometimes he was a few clowns short of a circus.

"It doesn't mean you shouldn't apologize." Alexander picks up his burger again and finally take a bite since the entire encounter began. A silence falls between the two men and Alex gets halfway through his burger before he puts it down again.

"And there's no need to tease him." He looks pointedly at Scott. "It's not like he's going through enough, as is, without you antagonizing him."

Scott takes in a deep breath and sighs, knowing Alex was right, as usual. He sometimes hated that about the guy.

"Fine," Scott smirks tightly at Alex, who just smiles back at him, his shoulders rolled back with a clear victory under his belt.

Once Scott clears his plate, he picks up Mitch's unfinished burger, cold and sad looking, and tosses it in the trash before putting both of their plates in the sink.

"I think he may have wanted that," Alex comments to Scott's back, but Scott doesn't respond, just opens up the fridge and grabs what he's looking for.

-/::\-

Scott takes a deep breath as he raises his knuckles to the door. He pauses a moment, his hand hanging in the air as he considers turning back and letting him be.

Don't be a pussy.

With a resounding sigh, Scott finally knocks on the door.

"What?" Mitch's sharp tone carries through, even with a door between them.

Dean nods back and forth, trying to find the right words.

"Can I come in?" He figures it's simple enough. He just needs Mitch to open the door, and hopefully he'd be able to make it right again.

There's a pause; no gruff remark or sarcastic response. Just silence.

Maybe Mitch is giving him the silent treatment.

Scott couldn't really blame him.

Scott gives up and turns away from the doors as it swooshes open, Mitch appearing in the doorway. His lips are set tight and his brown are shaded pink.

Shit. He's been crying. I'm a fucking jackass.

"What?" Mitch's voice is rough and his eyes look anywhere but Scott.

Scott takes a deep breath.

"I'm sorry."

Normally, Scott would try to butter him up, sweet talk him into a smile or eye roll, hopefully cracking a smile in the process, before finally getting to the point.

But not today. Scott clearly had done enough damaged for the night and didn't want to make things worse than they already were for him.

Mitch's eyes shoot to Scott's, his sadness tinged with surprise.

Mitch opens his mouth but Scott stops him.

"I'm sorry about the towel incidence. I really wasn't trying to sneak a peek." He grins softly at Mitch, his heartbeat relaxing as his vice grip on the door releases and Mitch leans against the frame.

"Even though you did." Mitch finishes for Scott and he laughs, nodding.

"Even though I did."

A silence falls between them, Mitch looking up at Scott, his eyes now shining and his lips upright.

Scott can't help but smile down at him; even in his sweats and damp hair, he was handsome, and he was sure, if they had ever met at a bar, Mitch done up in in some shorts or skinny jeans, and Scott looking for someone to take home that night, he would have approached him, dropping his best line while offering to refill his drink and wondering why a man as pretty at him was drinking alone, marking it a travesty. The two of them would escape to Mitch's apartment, Scott rarely ever offering up his, and by morning, he would struggle to remember Mitch's name as he picked up his tossed clothes from the night before, promising a call that they both knew would never come.

Though one look at Mitch now, he would have turned Scott down so fast, his head would spin. Mitch clearly wasn't the type of guy who went for cheap one-liners and guys who weren't even going to care what his name was in the morning.

Mitch was too good for Scott.

He wasn't good for much more than a fun night and some good sex, and Mitch deserved someone who was going to treat him a hell of a lot better than Scott ever could.

-/::\-

"What's that?" My eyes fall down to Scott's hands.

Scott looks at me confused, forgetting the plate he had been carrying until his eyes follow my gaze.

"Oh," Scott suddenly remembers the other reason he had come up here. "Uh, I brought you dinner."

The two stare down at the fresh, steaming burger.

My widened eyes find him again.

"You made me a whole new burger?" I ask incredulously.

Scott feels his cheeks warm as I looks up at him in adoration.

One hand leaves the plate and goes to the back of his neck, scratching it, his eyes avoiding my gaze.

"It's my job to take care of you." He shrugs. "Gotta make sure you don't starve." He pushes the plate towards me and I gently take it, fighting back a smile as his eyes find their way to mine again.

The silence returns, just me smiling up at Scott, and Scott trying desperately to look indifferent.

"Well, uh, enjoy." Scott motions to the burger before quickly turning on his heel and disappearing down the stairs.

-/::\-

Alex turns on the couch as he hears Scott enter the living room. His hands keep flexing besides his thighs, and in the light, Alex can see a light sheen on Scott's forehead.

"How'd it go?" Alex asks knowingly as his partner takes a seat on the 90′s looking couch across from to him.

Scott just shoots Alex a look, prompting a smile.

"That was very nice of you," Alex speaks with the tone he uses when he's trying to teach his daughter a lesson.

Scott's eyes flicker to him for a moment.

"Shut up." Scott grimaces, picking up the remote, flicking on the tv and flipping through the channels until he finds a non-staticky baseball game, effectively ending the conversation.

Three innings pass fairly slow, and as the current batter winds up to swing, a creak in the stairs has both of them now alert and on attention.

Mitch descends down the steps, an empty plate in hand, not noticing or not acknowledging the two pairs of eyes that follow him through the foyer until he disappears behind the wall.

Both men turn back to the TV, though Scott keeps his head slightly tilted towards the kitchen, the sounds of running water and clanking ceramic plates drifting in from two rooms over.

Two more hitters step up to the bat, one hitting a line drive that the shortstop misses and gets him a double, and the next who strikes out on a full count before Mitch wanders in through the dining room. Scott keeps his eyes forward, though he can feel the air sweep by as Mitch passes behind him, making his way through the room until he sits himself down on the far corner of Alex's couch, pulling his feet up and under his lap as he settles in.

"Who's playing?" He looks between both men, his eyes bright once again.

"Kansas City and Minnesota," Scott's replies, his interest in the game gone as he watches Mitch purse his lips as the final out is caught and the teams trade positions on the field.

"Are you a big baseball fan?" Alex leans towards him as he asks, prompting a strange look from Mitch.

Despite being an agent for almost twenty years, the eighteen years of religious homeschooling did a number on Alex's people skills. He definitely took some getting use to, and Scott was continuously amazed–though he would never say it out loud–that Alex had managed to find a man that fell in love with him, and hell, adopted a kid with him.

But it was like his mother always said–on the quiet days when the family was all home together, and her and Scott would be watching Richard do something simple, like wash the dishes, or clean the car, that Connie would watch him with a smile and say to Scott, "There's someone out there for everyone."

Alex had found his someone at church, unsurprisingly, and within the year, they were engaged, and two years after that, were welcoming their blond-haired, blue-eyed daughter into the family.

Alex sometimes wondered if he had a someone out there for him. Besides his fling in college–that ended once their grad caps were thrown and diplomas in hand, him off to Seattle to start his career as an investigative journalist, and Scott on his way to Quantico to being training–Scott had never been in a serious relationship. His interactions with men rarely went past a night, and on the off-chance they made it to sunlight, whatever they had was usually over within two months. He was way too consumed with his work to worry about a relationship. Though, with Jeremy, Kirstie's longtime boyfriend,  asking Scott's permission to propose to Kirstie, and the few friends he had starting to settle down, Scott couldn't help but think about filling the empty space besides him at night, waking up each morning with a man who meant something to him, and hell, maybe even have a few kids before he got too old.

He knows that his mom would have wanted that for him, and probably his dad, too, at some point. If Connie could, she would probably give him a slap on the head and ask him what he thought he was doing; spending his life trying to catch her killer, putting everything else on the back burner in the meantime.

Though, it was more than that now; in the almost ten years he's been working for the bureau, he's made little headway in Connie's case, but in that same time, he's worked hundreds of cases, starting with kidnappings and missing persons, he reunited missing daughters, sons, mother and fathers, husbands and wives, with their families then being transferred to homicide, and being able to bring justice to murderers and peace to victims who had families, before finally landing with the organized crime division.

He was able to do some good in this totally fucked up world, and even after years of chasing half-assed leads, interviewing suspects who conveniently "knew nothing," and years of dead ends, he may not have been able to close his most important case, but at least he could help others in the meantime, and he knew that would have made his mom proud.

"Scott!"

Scott's glassed-over eyes blink, taking in the baseball game before quickly turning his attention to Alex who had called him, both Mitch and he staring at him with concern.

"What?" Scott asks gruffly, heat spreading up to his ears being at being caught in such thought.

Mitch and Alex exchange a slight glance before Mitch leans back into the couch and claps his hands against his thighs.

"Well," Alex shoots Scott a concerned glance before all of their attentions shoot to the tv as the baseball announcers go wild in the background as a homerun is hit, their excited voices resounding through the quiet house.

"I think I'm going to call it a night." Alex stands as the hitter crosses home plate and looks between his partner and the man they were protecting.

"Meaning I get the first shift?" Scott asks as Alex starts to leave the room. Alex just turns with a smirk on his face.

"Think of it as compliment." Alex takes slow steps towards the doorway. "You're young enough to still take the first shift."

Scott's shoulders sag and he rolls his eyes, brushing off Alex's compliment.

"Have fun you, two." Alex waves to both of them before heading for the stairs.

Mitch turns in his seat and says a soft goodnight before Alex disappears upstairs.

Scott returns his attention to the game and a full inning is played before Mitch breaks the silence between them.

"Thank you." Scott turns to face Mitch fully, his brow creased. He hadn't done anything but sat there and watched the game.

"For earlier," he clarifies, an actual grateful smile on his lips. "It was a really good burger."

Scott relaxes.

"Don't mention it." He throws his arm over the back of the couch, trying to relax, but is suddenly tense.

Scott hears him take in a breath, and braces himself for whatever he says to say, but no words come.

The game continues for another hour without any conversation, the final inning ending with Kansas City winning 9 to 3.

A local newscast comes on immediately after, tonight's big story: a local bakery owner served Paris Hilton a coffee.

"Riveting." Mitch interrupts the reporter, earning Scott's gaze.

"Small towns." He smiles sleepily, hating that Alex took the first shift. It would be four more hours until he got to sleep.

"How long do you have to stay up until it's Alex's turn?" Mitch asks innocently, obviously something on Scott's face telling Mitch how tired he was, though he probably wasn't surprised after last night.

"About four hours, give or take, depending on how long he decides to keep his old ass in bed."

Mitch just nods, crossing his arms over his chest.

Selfies of patrons from the coffee shop flash across with screen with a friendly-looking Hilton besides them. Someone even managed to get a video of her taking a sip from her coffee and saying, "that's hot," causing Mitch to snort. Scott looks over his shoulder at Mitch like he's crazy and a blush creeps up to Mitch's cheeks under his gaze.

"What?" Mitch demands, squirming a bit.

"Snorting?" He looks at Mitch hard. "Really?"

Mitch rolls his eyes and huffs, his arms falling away from his chest.

"What's so wrong with it?" Mitch argues, his eyebrows pinching together despite the smirk on his face.

"Well besides the obvious." Scott starts.
"Which is?" Mitch interrupts without missing a beat.

"It's unattractive."

"Are you calling me unattractive?" Mitch's smile falls, but there's still a playfulness in his eyes.

Scott's arm falls away from the back of the couch as he leans forward, towards him and points.

"I did not say you were unattractive." He gives Mitch a pointed look. There's a moment that flashes through his mind, wondering if he should do it or not, but ignoring the voice that tells him no.

"I'm pretty sure we figured out quite the opposite this afternoon." Scott leans back smugly, crossing his arms.

Mitch's mouth falls open, and Scott knows he shouldn't be poking the bear, but with the light in Mitch's eyes, Scott just can't help himself.

"We're really going to go back there again?" Mitch raises his eyebrows at Scott, though his tone is far from annoyed.

"What can I say?" Scott throws his hands behind his head and leans back, kicking his feet up on the coffee table. "I'm a glutton for punishment." He winks at Mitch, causing him whole head to roll along with his eyes.

"Clearly."

-/::\-

Next, the weatherman appears, predicting the demise of winter with the days slowly getting warmer this week.

From the corner of his eye, Scott catches me has I tries to stifle a yawn behind my hand.

"You should get some sleep." The playfulness from his voice is gone as he once again slips into guardian mode.

"I'll stay up with you. It's no problem." I shake my head as a yawn starts on my lips. "Besides, I'm the reason you have to stay up in the first place. And why you barely slept last night." My voice falls at the very end.

Scott rolls his eyes and stands up, towering over me.

"Like I said before, it's my job to take care of you. From hitmen," he starts listing off his fingers. "Starvation and exhaustion. Time for bed." He points to the stairs, but I don't move.

"And I appreciate that, but I'm a big girl, and I can take care of myself," I straighten up in my seat and cross my arms. "Not the hitman part," I falter. "But the rest of it."

"Mitch." Scott says firmly, and I just stares up at him.

"Scott."

Scott's shoulders fall and he huffs.
"You're a pain in the ass, you know that?" He concedes and sits back down as I smile triumphantly.

"An attractive pain in the ass." I mutter and Scott bites his tongue to keep himself in check.

-/::\-

Scott keeps his comments to himself when, a few minutes later, Mitch grabs a throw pillow and places it under his head and spreads out on the couch. He watches in the light of the tv as Mitch's eyes flutter, fighting to stay awake, before finally shutting, his lips falling apart and his body relaxing into the weathered cloth of the couch, just as the news ends and a prepaid infomercial for a mini oven comes on.

Scott stands quietly, grabbing the blanket that sits on the back of Mitch's couch and lays it over him, causing Mitch to sigh as he snuggles into the warmth. Scott just smiles and tries keep his laugh from escaping before he wanders into the kitchen to clean up from dinner.

He flips the faucet on, the warm water splashing into the empty basin before he quickly shuts it off, his face scrunching at the missing dishes. He looks to the right, the drying rack full of plates and pans from tonight.

His breath catches for a moment; No one has ever done the dishes for him before. He was usually the one cleaning up after everyone growing up. Kirstie helped, but Scott was the one who kept the house in order.

He wanders back into the living room, Mitch now curled up rather than spread out, his relaxed features flashing in the light of the tv.

He walks by his couch and takes the empty spot on the end of Mitch's, kicking his feet up and waiting for Alex's shift to begin.