*thank you for coming this far with these characters!! It means a lot. Vote and comment!*

The faint throbbing in Meredith’s temples grew as it slowly roused her from her slumber, becoming more prominent until it was thundering like a stampede around her head. She was vaguely aware of the stale taste in her mouth, as if she’d been gnawing on an athlete’s dirty laundry while she slept. The foul taste made her stomach roll.

No recollection of the previous night sparked in her memory at first, until faint clips of conversation and people flooded her thoughts. She remembered climbing the steps to Gentlemen Only, feeling like she could brawl with a world full of Jets; of cutting her skin before, trying to pull her pain out through her veins. The feeling of drinking lots of liquor lingered, and more than necessary, she assumed groggily, if her slight memory loss was any indication. Ryan had been there, she knew, recalling that he’d served her. Why, she couldn’t fathom: he knew she didn’t imbibe spirits often. Jet must have been present as well, as an angry discontent brewed in her chest that she only associated with him. Then there was a mysterious aura, one that surrounded a soft pair of unknown lips as they pressed against hers. She rather hoped that was a figment forged from the stupor of her drunkenness, and not her actual behavior.

Muted sunlight streamed through her curtains to tease at the junction of her closed eyelids, tempting them to open for the day, though they felt weighted. Meredith tested her sluggish limbs but immediately regretted it: everything hurt, even muscles she didn’t know existed. She groaned, burying her head into the pillows, noting with relief that the sheets smelled like hers. At least she was in her own home, not lying naked in a ditch somewhere or worse, in some stranger’s bed. The faint, lingering lavender of her Epsom salts was welcoming, though a spicy, woodsy scent tainted the smell as she breathed in deeply.

Immediately a burning passion recoiled in the back of her mind, a hot, feverish tickling that edged at the corners of her consciousness. Her fingers knew the sensation of soft, thick hair as she ran her hands through it; her body recognized the heat of another molded tightly to hers. Meredith felt a moan ease from her throat at the thought of it, imagining the sensations were real. She almost convinced herself it was just a dream when the distinct clearing of someone’s throat interrupted her reverie.

Meredith jumped, tangling in the coverlets as she flailed, hair askew as a bird’s nest and negligee hanging crookedly on her warm frame. Suddenly she could hear the loud honking of cars as it rolled in through her open window. The sunlight was incredibly blinding, the pounding of her headache increasing tenfold as it assaulted her.

“Do I need to leave you to yourself?” A churlish lilt came through her cottony ears and she tilted her head toward the source, scrambling madly to find her glasses on her nightstand.

Her body ran cold with recognition even before her trembling hand managed to properly center her spectacles on her nose.

“Corrigan!” She shouted in horror, gathering the blankets in front of her scantily clad figure. “W-what are you doing in my room?”

“Calm down, lass.” He eased; eyes shut. A bemused smile crept up the corners of his mouth. “Nothing you didn’t invite me to do.”

“Oh my God!” Meredith cried, eyes wide in shock. “You mean-”

“Take a breath, Mer.” Corrigan spoke calmly from where he lounged on her chaise beneath the window, his legs and arms haphazardly sprawled in relaxation. “We’ll talk when you’ve calmed down.”

“I-I-” Meredith blushed and faltered, cheeks hot as she observed his lithe body and imagined what they could possibly have done together. Her breathing threatened to overcome her, the signs of her anxiety pooling up. The familiar tightening of her chest began to impinge each breath, squeezing through more tightly each time she inhaled. She clawed into the mattress with shaking fingers, attempting to steady her sensory reception. Corrigan’s silhouette blurred in and out of focus as she attempted to stay grounded.

The space between her legs didn’t feel much different than usual, so she was sure they hadn’t had sex-or so she hoped. Her heart flooded with worry: she didn’t take birth control, because she never had intercourse. There had never been a reason for her to, until now, perhaps. Her whole body felt of fire between the embarrassment of having possibly knocked boots with someone slightly more than a stranger, and the fear of having an unplanned lovechild.

“You’ll be alright, Mer,” Corrigan assured, unfurling his long limbs from the seat, and easing toward the bed.

“Stay over there!” She half shouted, half cried, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Her thin shoulders shook under the nightie. Meredith heard the detectable difference in her name as it flowed from his lips; unlike Jet’s, his held none of the understanding and compassion of the latter.

Corrigan placed a soft palm on her arm and trailed down, her skin crawling where he touched it, until he rested his large palm in her smaller one. “I’m not going anywhere, lass.” His sure gaze bore hotly into her trembling one as her eyes darted back and forth in a crazed confusion. The word rolled off his tongue seductively, his touch electrifying her sensitive skin where he caressed her, and suddenly she knew. Memories poured into her mind, as if a dam had been released from another realm, clogging her conscious with flashes of hot, sweaty bodies moving against one another, of panting breaths and swollen lips.

“Oh God,” She cried, ripping her arm from his grasp and burying her face in her hands to hide her growing embarrassment, “We h-had sex!”

“Not so much in the sense, but nearly.” Corrigan chuckled, pulling her body flush against his. She thought her breath stopped as her blue eyes were forced to meet his sparkling green ones. Her body reacted strangely to his touch: instead of an impending nervous breakdown, she felt something else; excitement. Her skin quickly heated a few degrees, a dampness spreading between her thighs as her nipples hardened and brushed against the silky fabric of her gown.

“What?” She moaned, and Corrigan grunted roughly, pulling her into his embrace more firmly.

“We did not.” His voice was gravelly in her ear, breath tickling where it rushed past the lobe. “It was a close thing and I wanted to,” He confessed, sending a shiver down her spine; of pleasure or fear, she wasn’t sure. “Ye God, I wanted you, but you weren’t ready for me yet,” He gazed on her with heavy, brooding eyes and laughed. “Emotionally speaking.”

Relief washed over Meredith and she sagged against his chest, too emotionally wrecked to move away from his embrace. Everything she was feeling embarrassed her beyond anything she had ever experienced. On the one hand, she had nearly slept with a random man, and on the other, she knew she would have liked it. Conflicting emotions raged in her heart and she silently wept on him.

“Don’t cry any tears for me.” Corrigan whispered, and Meredith vaguely noted how narcissistic it sounded.

“You can leave now.” She huffed, miffed that she’d placed herself in such a compromising position.

“I told you,” Corrigan smiled roguishly. “I don’t intend on leaving.”

Meredith’s throat tensed up. She didn’t know how to respond so she merely nodded, cheeks still bright red, avoiding his gaze. He stayed holding her, running his hand down her arms soothingly. Meredith wasn’t sure if she liked it or if it was too intimate for their level of involvement; then again, she never did ask what they did do the previous evening.

Her headache threatened to overwhelm her again. Corrigan stood and stretched, reaching to grab his jacket.

“I’ll take my leave now.” He flashed a half-grin her direction and meandered to the washroom.

Meredith let out a large sigh she wasn’t aware she’d been holding. A sharp knock sounded on her front door.

Jet’s POV

His fist hovered for a moment before he pulled it away, cursing himself for even coming in the first place. Meredith had made it remarkably clear she wanted nothing to do with him anymore outside of their work roles.

He was angry at himself for not being honest with her, but he knew her life would be in less danger if she remained unaware of how important she was to him, and the hold Moretti had over him when it came to her. The whole situation was screwed.

The door creaked open sooner than he expected, given her level of drunkenness the previous night. Meredith peeked sheepishly around the edge, eyeing him with an emotion he couldn’t place.

“Mer.” He croaked, unabashedly drinking in her appearance. Red, plush lips perched under a dainty, pointed straight nose on a beautifully pale canvas. Her deep blue eyes were hazy, still clouded from the booze. The thin slip she wore did little to hide the swell of her breasts and curve of her slim hips. He fought to restrain himself from taking her in his arms. A glimmer of a smile briefly came and went as she watched him.

“Jet.” Her voice was a bit hoarse, no doubt the tell of a sore throat, burned by the sting of liquor.

“You’re ok.” He observed, letting out a relieved sigh. She propped the door open wider, and to his surprise he noticed the lack of a male presence in her living room. He just hoped the same went for her bedroom.

“That’s a rather subjective observation.” She replied wryly. “What are you doing here?”

“Making sure you’re alright.” He offered lamely. She pursed her lips.

“I’m fine.”

"That's good." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly, at a loss for anything witty to say.

"Thanks for checking in on me," Meredith bit out shortly.

He noticed her glance quickly to the side and back up to his face when a shuffling noise issued from behind her. A dark pink tinged her cheeks, down her neck to her chest. She pulled her lip into a nervous grip between her teeth.

"Do you have company, Meredith?" He hoped to God it wasn't who he thought.

Jet felt his stomach drop nearly to his feet when an accented voice called out “Have you seen my other sock, lass?”

A golden-haired figure popped its head around the corner behind her, grinning in victory as he dangled a lone sock from his hand. Meredith’s face fell in horror.

Jet saw red, his self control failing as he hurled himself angrily into her apartment, fists drawn.