Confused by Rose's solemn attitude, Juliette went into the bullpen to see what was wrong.

She froze when she saw flowers sitting where Agent Krzeminski should be.

She saw Peggy, who matched her sad stare, and stood next to her.

"Is he..." her words caught in her throat. She looked over at Jack.

"Professional hit. Him and our only witness. Must have been watching us at the scene" Jack stared into space as he spoke,like it was a well rehearsed line.

Jules slowly walked towards him, put a hand in Jack's shoulder as a tear ran down her face. She wasn't close with Krzeminski, but no matter how much of an asshole someone is, no one deserves to have their life cut short.

Jack looked up at her silently. He'd never seen her cry, if his heart wasn't already aching it would have started to from her tears.

Peggy and Sousa spoke but Juliette couldn't hear what they were saying. She just stared at the floor.

Jack stood up from his seat and her gaze met his. She silently wrapped herself in his arms, he hugged her back.

Her tears wet his collar slightly but he just hugged her tighter, burying his face into her hair as the hug continued.

Dooley staggered out of his office, everyone's heads turning to him, Including Juliette and Jack, but she kept clinging onto him in the hug.

"Whatever happened last night, I don't want any of you to forget Krzeminski would still be with us today if it wasn't for Howard Stark. Whether he pulled the trigger or not. We're only neck deep into this mess because of him. I want action plans on my desk in one hour. Stay vigilant, I'm not loosing anymore of you." He blinked back tears as he swayed in his spot "Now I gotta go call Krzeminski's wife" and with that, Dooley went back into his office.

Juliette's head spun in her skull. Apart of her agreed, whether Howard was innocent or not, this could always be traced back to him.

"I'll call his girlfriend" Jack mumbled, sitting back down but Juliette didn't let go of him, she was a little shaken up. He picked up the phone, around around Juliette as she stood next to him, silently grieving.

☆☆☆☆☆

"I miss you bastards" She whispered as she sat at the monument built for Steve's death.

She sat among the gift and flowers left for the great captain america.

She tidied up a little, removing any dead flowers or dampened stuffed bears and then sat at Steve's grave.

It'd been 3 months since he'd died. She could now successfully hear his name without bursting into tears but other than that she still had a hole in her heart that her best friends left.

☆☆☆☆☆

Juliette walked in and over to Agent Yauch's desk "Here's prints we pulled that you asked for"

"Thanks" He grumbled and took them.

The thick air of grief still hung in the office air in Krzeminski's absence, it had most people in a choking on their own misery whereas fueling others anger.

Peggy had just walked in so she started to go over to her but was interrupted by Thompson coming out of Dooley's office.

"Gather round. Come on." He barked.

Everyone came around him in a circle, Juliette stood behind Yauch as they listened to Jack talk.

"Okay, who here knows what Ray Krzeminski's middle name was?"

"Walter" Sousa answered.

"That's right. Walter" Jacks eyes scanned the room, lingering on Juliette for a moment before when continued "Ray Walter Krzeminski. And who knows what the kost important part if Agent Ray Walter Krzeminski's name was?"

Yauch glanced around before guessing "Walter?"

"No." Jack sighed.

Jules sighed and patted Yauch's back "Nice guess" she reassured him.

"Agent. Just like all of us" Jack continued. Juliette glanced around, now feeling out of place "Now Chief Dooley's gone to break a lead on the Stark case and while he's gone, I'm in charge, and while I'm in charge none of you will be resting. So pick up your phones, make kiss noises to your wives, because we're not going home until wr start cracking heads. And if you get tired remember how important your names are. Agents" He paused, scanning the room to find Juliette again.

"Dr Johnson, your assistance is needed in my office. Everyone else, form a single file line and I'll give you your individual assignments. Come on."

Daniel and Peggy gave Jules sympathetic looks as she walked into Chief's office, now taken over by Thompson.

"How can I help?" She asked as she shut the door.

"You get to be my new personal assistant" He smirked, leaning back on his hands against the desk "Isn't that fun?"

"As delightful as that sounds, since Stark's gadgets got sent to the lab I really should be getting bac-"

He raised his hand infront of her face and interrupted "I'm in charge. I say my new assistant. With me all day. Deal? Well you don't get a choice"

She scowled but nodded, not wishing to argue, and he lead her to the sofa in the office, making her sit down.

(A/N-I'm english so I mean couch or whatever lmao)

He stepped back over to the line of people and barked at Sousa and started giving people their assignments.

He sent Peggy off to do the lunch orders and Daniel left the office. Jules silently waited for Jack to give out the assignments.

She knew Doobin and the other idiots in the lab would mess up all of Stark's inventions but not much she could do now.

☆☆☆☆☆

Jack came back into the office after giving people their assignments. He shut the door and drew the blinds.

"Hey there, sweetheart, excited to spend time with me?" He smirked.

"Delighted" she grimaced.

He sat next to her.

"How are you?"

She froze, looking him in the eyes that's not what she expected him to say.

"Uh I've been worse" She bounced her leg up and down as she now avoided his gaze, looking around the room.

"Hmm" He squinted at her, putting a hand in her knee to stop it from bouncing.

She looked down at his hand, her face reddening, which he didn't miss.

"Are you blushing, Jules?" He smirked.

"Shut up" She scoffed, and leant back on the sofa "Don't you got work to do?"

"Yeah, and it's more enjoyable with you here" he winked slyly as he spoke.

"What's my assignment?"

"Smile. Pretend you enjoy my company" he smirked even wider.

"You're kidding" She scoffed.

"Nope. That's your job" he was clearly enjoying his little power trip.

"Whatever" she sighed and ran he thank over her face.

"With a smile" he was clearly enjoying annoying her.

She plastered on a big fake smile "Whatever!" She said in a false happy tune.

"Good girl" he whispered but she elbowed him to the ribs "Ow"

"Are you drunk?"

"Sober as a judge" he winked and went over to his desk and sat down.

☆☆☆☆☆

Jack left her alone in his office as he left for a bit. She lay back on the sofa and he came back in, laughing lightly.

"Sousa just dragged some random drunk off the street and thinks he got a big break" he scoffed, sipping his coffee.

Juliette turned to look at him, still laying on the sofa with her hands on her stomach, her hair draping over the arm of the chair "Hmm sounds dreadful"

She watched as his eyes scanned her, her face reddening involuntarily and she turned her head away.

He sighed and kept watching her as silence took over the room.

"Head home"

"Really?" She turned back to him.

"Yeah, I shouldn't be so stubborn and keep you here" he put his hands in his pockets.

"Thats" She sat up, and got to her feet. She shivered as the cold air drifted from the window and went of to shut it.

"You got a coat?" Jack asked, trying to casually lean against the desk like he didn't care.

"Uh no I forgot it" She sighed and moved to walk past him.

He blocked her, putting his palm against her stomach "Take my coat"

"Thompson I-" she began to protest but he grabbed his coat and put it on her shoulders.

"The words you want are you're welcome" He smirked and she sighed, leaving his office with a small smile.

☆☆☆☆☆

She sat down at the griffith next to the ever smiling Dottie, who was giddy when she found out Gloria had a pocket in her bag for gravy and even more excited when she said she'd make her one for pickles.

"I'm going to eat in my room, I have the last five pages of Agatha Christie, goodnight" Jules heard Peggy call out.

She watched as her friend left amd then silently listened to Dottie. She seemed sweet, but something about Underwood dug a pit in her stomach, she couldn't quite place it.

Later that night, Juliette watched out her window onto the hestic street. It was busy for that time of night but she didn't miss the dark hair of Peggy Carter as she stepped into a car.

Her phone rung, making her tear her eyes away from the window.

"Dr Ju-"

"I know who you are, Johnson" Thompson slurred.

"Jack? What do you want?" She sighed, he was clearly drunk. She sat at her dressing table waiting for him to speak.

"Why do you work for the SSR?"

"What?" Confused tainted her tone.

"Why? You'll never be an equal to any man. Even one's who love you. You'll never be my equal"

"Because if people like me amd Peggy don't exist then women will always be kicked to the dirt"

"But you're so vulnerable and weak, I'd rather protect  you then have you running around playing super spy" He grumbled, hiccuping a few times, clearly more than tipsy.

"Contrary to popular belief, I'm not helpless, I'm not weak. I can handle myself and if you're done-"

He cut in with a whine "But Juliette why are you Dr Johnson?"

She sighed "Because that's my name"

"Why not Mrs Thompson?" He hiccups inbetween his words.

She closed her eyes and leant her head back "If you weren't an asshole, and if you were sober. I'd probably ask you that question. Goodnight, Agent Thompson" She hung up before he could speak.

He kept calling her phone all through the night, in the end she unplugged it from the wall.

☆☆☆☆☆

Juliette got into work and didn't bother going to the bullpen, just straight go the lab.

But before she could get there, Thompson followed after her.

"Hey Johnson" He called, her pace quickened "Johnson!" He yelled again but she kept going "Juliette!" She got faster and he went after her "Dr Juliette Dorothy Johnson!" He caught her arm.

"Go away" She scowled at him, pulling her arm from his grip.

"No, I'm sorry I-'

"I don't care" She interrupted and turned to go but he turned her around again.

"I'm sorry"

"I don't care" She repeated and walked off to the lab.

He gave you and went back to Chief's office. He'd messed up. He knew that. Too late to make it better it seemed.

☆☆☆☆☆

A day or so later, Jules went with Dottie and Peggy to the automat. She hadn't had a chance to go yet but since Angie worked their she figured it'd be nice.

"What does ennui mean?" Dottie looked up from her map.

"Uh its like meloncholy" Peggy answered.

Dottie still looked confused so Juliette added "Sadness born out of boredom or tedium" before sipper her tea.

"Why do you ask?" Peggy questioned.

"When I knocked on Angie's door this morning she said she was 'too consumed by ennui' to come to work today" the blonde responded, making Jules chuckle softly.

"Oh and to think her acting teacher said she wasn't dramatic enough" Peggy quipped, turning Jules' chuckle to a snort of laughter.

"Hmm 'Ennui'" Dottie mocked "Sounds French. Baguette?" She ripped it and offered some to Peggy and Jules.

"Yeah. Um, no, no thank you" Peggy gave her a grateful smile.

"Same here, I'm good" Juliette nodded and finished her tea.

"Go on, I can never finish mine" Dottie took a bite then asked with her mouth full "Hey, you got a pen?"

Peggy nodded and put her bag on the table to get one out.

"Do you think I could convince Angie to come out and give me a tour of the city? I still get lost but I want to see everything" Dottie complained "and I want to see the best things first"

Jules just nodded amd walked over to the counter to get more tea. While she waited she couldn't get Thompson to leave her thoughts. It was stressing her out at this point. He was an asshole and she knew that. He'd never respect her and she knew that. He'd never like her for anything more than her appearance and she knew that. And yet, the idiotic man never failed to show up in her thoughts, in her dreams. There was no escape.

She got her tea refilled and turned around to see Dottie scrambling to pick up Peggy's bag. Jules sat down next to Peggy again and sipped her tea while Dottie fussed over the bag.

She put it back on the table "Here you go" She grinned.

Whatever else she was saying didn't clock in Jules' mind. She couldn't get him out of her head. But she wouldn't let herself fall for a man who, even he said so, would never see her as an equal.

☆☆☆☆☆

She walked into the bullpen just as Peggy and Sousa walked into the briefing room. She followed after to hear a man say "It's clearly not a German cupher, or the Turing method would work."

"What will work, in your estimation?" Dooley leaned over the man not noticing as Juliette walked behind Peggy and observed the conversation "Huh?" He scoffed.

Jack flipped some paper away from the guy, the two men leaning over the poor nervous man.

"You already looked through that book ten times" Jack got close to the man's ear.

"I'm gonna take this to Virginia where-"

"You're not taking it anywhere" Dooley cut him off.

The man snapped and stood up in a hundred "Lookz as difficult as it might be for you people to understand, I can't just beat a code jnto submission or shoot it with a fun!"

"Yeah?" Thompson smirked "That works great with pencil pushers like you."

"May I see it?" Peggy stepped forward, picking it up "I saw this at Bletchley, its a one-time pad system."

"You think I didn't try a pad immediately?" The code breaker scoffed.

"Did you maybe think that the original message being written in Russian?" Juliette stepped forward next to Peggy.

"Can you read it?" Dooley asked Peggy.

After a beat Peggy said "They are map coordinates. Fifty-three degrees, seventy-two minutes north, twenty-seven degrees, thirty-seven minutes west"

The rude man slumped into his chair and Dooley pointed at Sousa, telling him to write this down.

"Purchade confirmed" Peggy continued "Exchange at 0800, April 27th"

Thompson stood with his arms crossed at his chest "That's less than two days from now"

"Woah, well done Jack, want a medal?" Juliette scowled at him, sarcasm dripping from her voice in a spiteful way.

Before Jack could say anything back Sousa interrupted "Coordinates are in the Mar'ina Horka Forest in Belarus"

"Leviathan. To acquire prototype. Havoc reactor" Peggy continued the code.

"I'm sorry, Leviathan?" Jack questioned.

"As far as I know its an Old testament sea monster" Daniel informed him.

"Who types, apparently" Juliette shared a look with Daniel.

"No. Its a covert Russian organisation, supposedly" Dooley piped up "I always just assumed it was a spook story. Rumors had it, after the war, their group wanted to purchase weapons to fight the allies"

"Well, if they're real and she's reading that right-" Jack started.

"She is trying to concentrate, thank you" Peggy glared at Thompson before going back to cracking the code "Payment of $100,000 American. Upon deliver. Payable to." She stood up straight as she finished writing "Howard Stark."

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