Ishan and Ava
The sound of his fists hitting the training dummy had been a welcome distraction, but not an efficient one.
Ishan plopped himself on the ground, laying down, and closed his eyes all the while trying to get his breathing in control. He had woken up earlier (due to nightmares), and usually, he would stare up at the ceiling before falling back asleep, but it hadn’t worked this time.
Being lost and alone, trying to find someone but knowing that there wasn’t anyone who was there or cared enough to even try for him, was something Ishan was used to.
Well, was used to it.
Honestly, Ishan shouldn’t have been so affected by it. He was used to the idea of what it meant, has lived through it, but knowing that he has found a family in Unit Bravo is why it has affected him to such an extent.
“Detective?”
Ishan opened his eyes at the sound of Ava’s voice. He sat up slowly when he felt her growing closer. Ishan didn’t like how aware he was of her presence whenever she was in the same room as him. It kind of felt like he was dependent on her in some way, and it was dangerous because he never wants to feel that way for anybody.
Ava certainly had her ways, even if she didn’t know it.
“Detective?”
Ava grasped his shoulder and he turned his head to the hand on his shoulder. Ishan grunted in response, picking himself up off the ground. He rolled his shoulders back, already feeling the upcoming strain, and turned to Ava.
“Ava,” He replied, taking notice that she was in sleepwear. A rare sight indeed. “Something you need?”
“I heard you and thought that I should tell you to get some sleep,” Ava's eyes were looking at the expanse of Ishan’s bare chest, her hands clenching at her sides. Ishan raised an eyebrow at the blatant staring, clearing his throat to get her attention. Ava’s eyes darted to meet Ishan’s gaze, her hands clasping behind her back.
“I wake up this early, though,” Ishan retorted, going through his cool-down stretches.
“It’s four in the morning, detective,” Ava knows, from staying with the detective during the Murphy case, that Ishan always woke up at five-thirty on the dot. She was not going to mention that, though.
No, it was something else.
“Yes, it is,” Ishan finished his stretches and met Ava’s eye with a knowing look. Ava pressed her lips together, he knew that she knew when he woke up. He was too observant to Ava’s demise.
“Getting proper rest is beneficial for the work you do,” Ava’s brow raised at the glare directed her way.
“It’s always about work with you, isn’t it?” Ishan scoffed at Ava’s silence, turning away from her and stalking over to the bench. He grabbed his shirt, roughly tugging it back on, and turned on his heel. He didn’t move, only standing stock-still before her, before letting out a heavy breath. “Sorry, I’m just, I don’t know.”
Ishan took a seat on the bench, arms resting on his leg as he leaned forward to accommodate the weight of his upper body. He clasped his hands together, bringing them up to his forehead, and breathed deeply. Then, he pulled his clasped hands away and started to hit his forehead lightly.
Only the touch of a hand made him stop.
Ishan didn’t look up because if he did then he would spill everything. How being left alone scared the living daylights out of him. The fear that everyone would one day leave him and never come back because they chose to. Ishan never wanted to get used to being alone, to feel alone.
“Ishan?” Ava kneeled in front of him, pulling his hands apart to peer into his eyes, and that was what it took. Ishan cupped her face in his hands, gently stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.
“How can you make me feel this way?” Ishan’s brow furrowed, his confusion evident in his expression. Ava herself was frozen at the warm hands cupping her face. She should pull away, as this was dangerous territory, but Ishan spoke up, effectively breaking her out of her dilemma.
“You fill this part of me that I don’t ever want to go away and yet I can feel so alone because of you,” Ishan leaned closer, stopping to make sure Ava was alright with the motion and when she didn’t pull away he leaned the rest of the way, bumping their foreheads together and closing his eyes. Ava’s breath hitched, both at their closeness and the sound of their hearts beating heavily. “I don’t want to be left alone. I don’t want to feel like this anymore.”
The sight of a tear falling from Ishan’s eye made Ava’s heart constrict. This man was always composed, and if, for some reason, he wasn’t then it was nothing but sarcastic remarks with an expressionless look. Ava wasn’t sure what to do and she certainly did not want to make it worse.
“You are not alone,” Ava stated firmly. Ishan gave a little chuckle, his hands squeezing her face lightly. Ava covered his hands with her own because she wanted him to know. She wanted to make sure he knew. “You are not alone.”
Ishan’s eyes opened his face somewhat between confusion, disbelief, and hope. Ava wasn’t quite sure if she wanted to know what feeling was in response to. Confusion at what she was saying, disbelief at her saying it, and hope at the prospect of knowing that he wasn’t alone.
Ishan pulled back a little, eyes blinking as he looked at her and Ava waited for him to say something, to do something. Ishan removed one of his hands to rub away the wetness that the tear left on his cheek and replaced his hand on the side of Ava’s neck.
Ava hoped that he didn’t feel her swallow hard at the touch.
Ishan leaned forward again, tilting his head to press a gentle kiss on her cheek and holding himself there for a moment. He pulled back again, removing both of his hands as Ava stared at him with her mouth parted in shock. He smiled, a rare sight that Ava will never forget, and whispered two words.
“Thank you.”