As the doors of the elevator opened, Ryan rushed out and started down the familiar hallway. The normal morning nods from passing workers were now replaced by confused faces, low whispers and stares.

The change response could've been that Ryan was dressed in skinny jeans and a tight shirt Brendon had picked out back in California. It was different from his usual work suit. It could've been that or the fact that he completely disappeared for a week and left his partner back in California.

Whichever reason, Ryan tried to ignore the whispers as he walked. He heard a few words, not enough to form full sentences. Freaked out... He's the reason... left... him and Brendon...

Ryan pushed opened the door to the main office. He went toward his private office but stopped at an empty cubicle. His eyebrows creased in confusion.

He rounded the wall and noticed there was nothing but a desk, chair and wastebasket remaining. He could feel the eyes of his co-workers on him as he started opening every drawer and saw nothing inside.

"Are you okay, Ross?" Ryan looked up and quickly stepped out of the cubicle.

"Where is he?" He was tense in front of agent Williams. His voice was sharp. He didn't want her dancing around the answer.

"I don't know who you're talking about." Ryan growled in frustration.

"Brendon. Where's Brendon?"

"Brendon, wow. I didn't know you knew his name." Ryan grabbed the agent's shoulders.

"Cut the crap, Williams. Where's Brendon?" She smirked and looked around the office.

"We have an audience." Ryan frowned and ignored everyone else. She sighed and pulled out of Ryan's reluctant grasp. "He left." Ryan felt his stomach drop.

"Left?" His voice was quiet.

"He transferred to Chicago." She was frowning and Ryan could hear her trying to hold back her own anger. "What ever happened back in California caused him to come back alone and begged Hurley for a transfer. He just about broke down when I asked him about it. He said that he told you the truth, but that was it. He left because of you." Ryan shook his head.

"He can't be gone. I-I need to see him. I need to talk to him and explain why I..," he trailed off. He ran a hand through his hair as he leaned against the cubicle wall.

"What the hell happened out there?" Ryan met her eyes.

"He can't be gone." Williams's face fell when she noticed how distraught Ryan was. He was pale and shaking slightly. She hated to be the one to tell him all of this. "Maybe I can still catch him before he leaves. I can go to the airport an-"

"Brendon left this morning. He's already gone." Ryan let out an uneven breath. His hands came back up to grip his hair and shook his head.

"No, no, no," he whispered. "I can't be too late. It can't be too late." Williams placed an arm on Ryan's shoulder, stilling the man's movement.

"I'm sorry, Ryan." Ryan let out a shaky breath and looked into her soft eyes. He let out one more whispered breath.

"No."

˜˜˜

(Brendon's perspective)

Brendon just finished unpacking his bed sheet before collapsing onto the bed. When got to his new apartment, all he wanted to do was sleep. He shut his eyes to try to forget about the other boxes he would soon need to unpack. He just couldn't care to deal with it right now.

He just let himself fall asleep. He let himself forget about his decision to start new somewhere else. He wanted to let go of what he left behind. His only refugee at the moment was in his dreams.

˜˜˜

Brendon sat at his desk, fidgeting in his seat. He wished he could stop his thoughts. This office wasn't much different from his old one. He had a similar cubicle, nice co-workers, he dressed the same. Everything was the same... except it wasn't. He leaned back in his chair and sighed.

"You doing alright, bud?" He looked up to see who he recognized to be agent Wentz. Brendon sat up straight and nodded.

"Yeah, just tired from the move and time change and all." Wentz nodded in understanding.

"Well, if you need anything, you can come to me. I can help you adjust to everything." He offered a friendly smile.

"Thanks, Wentz." The agent cringed and shook his head.

"Call me Pete," he said with a charming smile. Brendon nodded.

"Thanks, Pete." With that, Pete walked off, leaving Brendon alone with his thoughts. Brendon watched the clock slowly ticking away. He didn't looked away from the numbers until he heard Pete's voice again.

"Sir, you can't be in here. I'm gonna have to ask you to leave." A few agents around him began abandoning their work to see who Pete was talking to. Brendon slouched more into his chair. He didn't care who the other person was. He was just ready for the day to be over.

"Where is he?" Brendon's eyes widened as he sat straight up at the voice. It couldn't be.

"Who?" Brendon peaked over the cubicle wall for confirmation. He let out a small gasp. It was him.

"Urie, Brendon," Ryan huffed. He was breathing heavy, almost as if he'd been running. Pete shook his head at the name.

"I don't know who you're talking about." Ryan groaned.

"Don't bullshit me. I didn't just spend the last eighteen hours getting dragged around by another agent so I could get simple information, squirming my way through airport security to be shoved into a small seat between a screaming baby and man afraid of heights, getting through your damn receptionist who wouldn't let me through until I completed the whole fucking hour protocol process to prove that I'm also an agent from another state who made a surprise visit, then climbing God knows how many flights of stairs because your elevators are packed with other people just to be stopped you." Ryan towered over Pete, obviously irritated by the day he's had.

"Now, I'll ask again. Where is Brendon Urie?" Brendon was shocked as he took in Ryan's appearance. The man was dressed in an outfit he'd picked out during their time together. His hair was unwashed, sticking out in all directions. He looked exhausted from lack of sleep.

"Listen.. sorry, what's your name?"

"Ross," Ryan gritted his teeth. "My name is Ryan Ross." Pete's eyes wide.

"Holy shit. Are you serious? I didn't recognize you," Pete chuckled. "I've only seen that one ID profile photo and right now," Pete looked him up and down. "You look nothing like that photo. You should have more photos out. Being a legend and all, you should let other agents know how you look like. I'm sure you could've skipped that whole hour identity verification if Shannon knew how Ryan Ross looked like."

The people around the office began whispering when they heard that the man talking to Pete was Ryan Ross. Brendon tried to ignore hearing the rumors of Ryan forcing another agent to transfer out of his department out of jealousy.

'What the hell? That's not what happened and how did that news get all the way over here?' Brendon thought to himself.

"I like my privacy. Now, Brendon?" Pete chuckled softly, giving Ryan another once over.

"Ryan Ross. This is wild. I gotta ask. How did you know that the mother in the DeBower case wa-." Pete was cut off by Ryan grabbing the front of his shirt and pinning him back against the wall.

"Dude, what the fuck?" Pete struggled against Ryan's grip, but wasn't strong enough to do so.

"My patience is next to none at this moment. I just want to know where Brendon is."

"Why do you care? From what we've heard around here, he was just an agent you ditched out in California." Ryan looked like he was ready to beat the crap out of Pete. Brendon quickly moved out of his cubicle and toward Ryan. He tried pulling the taller man away from Pete.

"Ryan, let him go." At the sound of Brendon's voice, Ryan released Pete and turned too him. The younger man couldn't help thinking how much more tired Ryan looked up close.

"Brendon." He sound almost like he didn't believe Brendon was standing in front of him. Brendon let his head face down and kept a small distance between them.

"What are you doing here?"

"You left," Ryan said as if it were obvious.

"I didn't ask you to follow." Ryan opened his mouth to respond but immediately shut it again. "After you left me at the restaurant," Brendon trailed off. He glanced around the room, seeing everyone's eyes on the two.

"I'm sorry," Ryan was quick to say. "I shouldn't have left. Not in the way I did at least. I'm so sorry." Brendon bit his lip nervously.

"I came back to see all your stuff was gone. There was no note explaining what was going on. You were just gone," Brendon murmured. "You didn't show up for work. No one knew were you were or when you'd come back."

"I needed to get away. So much happened and it was a lot to take in. I just needed to clear my mind." Brendon nodded, but didn't look up. "I didn't mean to just leave you."

"Then why did you?" Brendon looked up, but stared the wall over Ryan's shoulder. "I tried to explain why we lied to you, but you wouldn't listen to me. You didn't give me a chance to..." he sighed. "You just left."

"I'm not gonna try to reason my actions because there's nothing I can say to justify the way I acted like a total asshole. I just needed to get away to clear my head. Then when I got back, I heard that you were gone. I didn't mean for you to leave." Ryan sounded desperate, like he was aching to say something that he was holding back.

"So you came here to explain yourself?" Ryan didn't answer. "I'm sure you could've found an easier way of doing so." Ryan shook his head and lessened the distance between them. He was glad Brendon didn't step back to keep the space the same.

Ryan reached around and pulled a long strip of glossy paper from his back pocket. He handed it to Brendon without a word. The shorter man gasped softly when he recognized the photos that were now over a week old.

"I'm an idiot. I know that," Ryan finally spoke. "I was stupid not to realize what was in front of me sooner. I was too blinded by my past to properly live in the present. I see that now. I know I've made mistakes, Brendon." He swallowed the lump in his throat. "I was wondering if you'd give me a chance to fix those mistakes."

Brendon finally met Ryan's eyes. He was shocked, not knowing how to process this. The photos were heavy in his hand. Ryan's eyes were silently pleading at him.

"What exactly are you saying?"

"I like you Brendon... More than I thought I did. More than I've ever liked anyone. When I found your cubicle empty, I started panicking. I needed to see you, to talk to you, to apologize for what I put you through back in California. I knew if I didn't, I would only obsess over the 'what ifs' with you." Ryan took a deep breath.

"So, I'm standing here now, sound body and fairly sound mind, asking for a chance to take you out on another date where I promise to stay with you the whole time." Brendon was surprised. First, Ryan showed up at his new job and now asked him out. Brendon couldn't wrap his head around it.

Ryan liked him. His crush actually liked him back. He thought everything they could've had was over when Ryan left him alone in California. Of course Brendon wanted to give him a second chance.

"If you want me to go, I'll leave you alone. Just tell me to leave and I won't bother you again," Ryan added when Brendon hadn't answered. Brendon closed the space between them. He put his hands on Ryan's chest.

"Where'd you go this past week?" Ryan hesitantly placed his hands on Brendon's hips.

"My parents' place... unresolved conflict I need to deal with." Brendon nodded, knowing what Ryan was referring to.

"And is it?.. Resolved I mean." Ryan smiled and shrugged.

"I mean there are some things I need to work on, but for the most part, yes. I believe so." Brendon smiled back.

"And after you did that, the first thing you did was come to Chicago to tell me you liked me," Brendon teased. Ryan's cheeks went pink as he nodded.

"Yeah.." Brendon moved his arms up to wrap around Ryan's neck. They were now pressed against each other.

"I can't believe the Ryan Ross went through all that hassle to fly across country to see me." Brendon whispered as he and Ryan slowly leaned in.

"Only for you. You're worth it." They grinning stupidly at each other. "I really like you, Brendon."

"I really like you too, Ryan."

"So," Ryan chewed his bottom lip. "Will you go out with me?" Brendon nodded and bit his lip to contain a giggle. They were only a couple inches apart, just staring in each other eyes.

"Just kiss already!" They turned to see Pete standing impatiently. A worker nearby smacked his arm for ruining the moment. "Sorry. Continue," he mumbled. Brendon and Ryan turned back to each other laughing softly.

Ryan was the one who leaned in and pressed his lips on Brendon's. They were warm and full against his own. They smiled against each other when the agents around them started clapping and cheering. When they pulled apart, Ryan was grinning and blushing profusely.

"Where do you plan on taking me?" Brendon asked. Ryan hummed and pecked Brendon's lips.

"Well you see, I know this really amazing Italian restaurant back on the West coast. Very romantic and redemption worthy in my opinion. What do you think?" Brendon giggled.

"Sounds perfect." They pressed their foreheads together.

"It's a date then." Brendon could feel a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest. He didn't think he could ever be this happy before.

The two agents were in a line of work where it wasn't rare for someone to meet tragic ends. It wasn't a job that would leave them hopeful for second chances and happy endings. Now wrapped in Ryan's arms, Brendon was so glad he could experience both.

Fin

---

A/N:

This is the end of Case Closed. I have thoughts for an epilogue if anyone is interested. Let me know and I can post something. Thanks for reading!

Also, went to the mall with my sister yesterday and found a Brendon Urie Funko! I'm hella excited about it! It's so cool!!