I Need Help
The shot glass slammed onto the sticky bar table, remnants of the vile liquid shooting out as laughter fell from Karen's painted lips.
"No no Fog, that's not how that works." she retaliated, her words slurring together as she leaned against the round table. Pouring herself another shot, she was about to throw it back before the liquor sloshed out of the small cup, spilling all across her dress.
"Hey watch where-!"
"Oh shit. I'm so sorry Ma'am. Here, let me grab you a napkin," His deep voice boomed over the music, clearer than the daytime sky as he handed her a couple of napkins. "Please, I am so sorry. I uh..." his apologies were cut off as he met her blue eyes, a smile coming across his lips.
"Please, let me get you another drink," he offered, his lopsided smile capturing Karen's heart.
"Yeah, okay I'll take one."
The man smiled before he held his hand out to her. "Frank."
"Karen." she shook his hand, her head swimming with everything and nothing; this man was far too good looking, and seemed to appear out of nowhere, but she sure as hell wasn't going to protest to a free drink.
~~~~
"Karen, you just met the guy! You don't even know what he's like! What if he's-" Foggy's words were cut off as he snapped his head towards the door, his smile faltering slightly as he saw Sage limp in, holding onto Matt's arm like she always was.
"A guy? I'm gone for six weeks and Karen all of a sudden has a boyfriend? Maybe the five of us could go to dinner to meet this mystery man." Sage teased, groaning slightly as Matt helped her take her bag off her shoulder. Smiling to her friends, she quickly dropped her smile as she realized they weren't as happy to see her and Matt.
"You two are gone for almost two months, and then show up as if nothing happened? Are we just going to gloss over the fact that Sage is like...a shell of herself?" Foggy yelled, crossing his arms across his chest. Sage's heart dropped into her stomach as she watched as Karen sat on the edge of the desk, her legs dangling over the side.
Swallowing thickly, Sage dropped her hand down Matt's arm, slipping his hand into hers.
Before Foggy or Karen could continue to yell at the pair, a soft knock came to the door before en elderly woman walked in. "Uh Señor Foggy?" She asked in broken English.
"Uh si, si I-"
"Hola, soy Karen. ¿Y usted es?" Karen interrupted, sliding off the desk and quickly greeting the small hispanic woman. The woman smiled as she took Karen's hand in both of hers.
She introduced herself as Mrs. Cardenas, and began to explain how she needed help as her landlords tore up her home, and how some scum was offering her thousands of dollars to move out so that he could demolish her building.
"That sounds like Fisk," Matt whispered, squeezing Sage's hand as she hummed in acknowledgement. Just the mere thought of Fisk and what he had done to her just a few weeks prior made her nervous, causing her heart to race.
"We'll help you Mrs. Cardenas. Do you know the name of your landlord so that we can contact him and start looking into what happened?" Matt asked, stepping forward slightly so as to stand out more to the small woman; although he never once let go of Sage's hand.
"Uh Si Si, his name is Señor Tulley." Handing Matt a business card, he thanked her as Karen ushered her outside, saying something to her in her native language that Foggy and Sage couldn't quite make out. Taking the card from him, Sage made sure Foggy wasn't looking as she planted a kiss to Matt's cheek, smiling as his face flushed momentarily.
"I love how much you want to help her," she whispered, her free hand coming up to her head as she felt herself sway just a bit. Blinking rapidly, her vision became cloudy and spotty as she felt a drop of sweat slide down her temple.
"Sage? What's wrong?"
"Nothing Matty. Just still a bit...uh..." She trailed off and took a deep breath. Her eyes fluttered as she dropped Matt's hand, reaching for the desk her and Karen sat at and pushing all her weight onto it. She could hear Matt calling for her, his voice once again sounding like he was at the far end of a tunnel; just as he did when he found her half dead in the alley.
"Matt," she whispered, before darkness consumed her. The last thing she could remember was Matt screaming her name as her body slammed against the hardwood floor.
~~~~
"Sage, please wake up. Please Flower." Matt's distant voice pleaded with her. Tears were caught in his throat as his voice was quiet and forced. A groan left her lips, although she didn't feel like she had made the sound on her own.
She could hear scattering about, and feel something soft and lumpy under her head as a cool breeze covered her face and neck. Foggy and Karen's panicked voices were more distant, somethings she wasn't able to make out at all.
As the blackened fog lifted, she could feel the harsh office lighting beating down on her closed eyelids; it felt as if she was in an interrogation and tried begging the officer to turn the lights off.
"She's waking up, Foggy can you turn the lights off and draw the shades?" Karen's soft tone was closer now, not as echo-y, almost as if she was on her side of the tunnel now. The room became slightly darker, not as harsh as before as she willed her eyes to open.
"Matty?" her hoarse voice broke through the silence that she had created. His hand rested on her arm and squeezed. Opening her eyes just enough, she could seem him sitting on the ground beside her, his suit jacket off and his red tinted glasses nowhere to be seen.
"I'm here Flower. Are you okay?" She contemplated her answer as she could feel that she tore some of her stitches within her stomach and her back, thankfully she had them covered as she knew something like this would happen.
"What happened?"
"You fainted Sage. We weren't able to catch you in time but the second you hit the floor, so did Matt," Foggy joked, trying to lighten the stressful air within the office. Rolling her head to the side, Sage smiled as her eyes met with Matt's. she watched as the stray beams of sun bounced off of his eyes, reminded her of the early mornings sitting on the porch, watching the gold sun rays filter through the dew ridden leaves.
"Here's some water," Karen offered. Pushing herself up, Sage stared at the wall as she tried to steady her still spinning head. Sipping the cold water, Sage silently berated herself; she had been fine at home for the last few days, and had even felt fine after her and Matt had sex, but apparently the stairs up to the office were too much for her.
"Maybe you should-"
"No Fog I don't want to go home," she grunted as she slowly stood, using her desk to help. "I can't look at those grungy walls anymore."
Foggy held his hands up in defense, not one to fight with his friend as he watched Sage plop herself down into her chair, her breathing still a bit labored as she looked up to the brunette, watching as he slipped his glasses back on.
"I'm sorry love, but I'm not moving today." A dry laughed left her lips as she opened her computer, fully ready to start looking up this Tulley guy that Mrs. Cardenas had mentioned.
"Well, we have a bigger desk in the other room, and if we want to find this Tulley guy, it would be best if we are all together." Matt pointed out, his lips turning into a downward smile.
Sighing, she dropped her head in defeat. He was right, they had to work together as the team that they were. Looking back up, she saw that Matt had his hand held out for her.
"Come on Flower. I'll maybe even convince Foggy to grab coffee from the cafe for us," he whispered, a smirk playing across his lips as Sage let out a soft laugh. Taking his hand, he was quick in bringing it up to his lips and planting a soft kiss to her knuckles.
"My Goddess." His whisper was even more quiet and his smile more bright as he helped her stand. Hearing her other nickname brought butterflies to her stomach as she thought about the other night.
Helping her into the other room, he pulled a chair out for her before slumping into the one next to her. "Hey Fog, why don't you grab some coffees from the cafe down the block. I know how much you love their coffee," Matt teased.
Sage couldn't help but laugh at Foggy's eager expression, his previous anger towards her and Matt now seeming to have dissipated. Agreeing on the coffee, he quickly grabbed his suit jacket and ran out the door.
"So, I won't tell if you don't. But are you two a thing now?"
~~~~
The sun had long since set as the table was covered in papers and empty coffee cups. Karen and Sage both having had pulled out glasses to help with how tired and fried their eyes had felt with having been staring at computer screens for hours. The two girls had long since given up comfort, with Sage's legs laid across Matt's lap and Karen now having made a makeshift bed out of the many chairs within the office and a few blankets she had borrowed form one of the other offices within the complex.
"I can't hardly find shit on this guy. He makes the tenants pay rent in cash and never deposits it! So whatever this guy is doing and for whoever, he doesn't leave a paper trail." Sage groaned, throwing her head back as she tossed her glasses onto the table. Taking another sip of her cold coffee, she rubbed her eyes before looking around the room at her friends.
"I thought I had something. Tulley had posted about a month ago about needing someone to help renovate one of his complexes. Some guy named James Wesley replied with a phone number." Foggy groaned, rubbing his eyes as well as he glanced out the window. The street lights illuminating the scarce crowd below, people with their own lives, people who had no idea what was happening in their own backyard.
"Have you tried looking up the number?" Sage asked, still staring at her own screen. Her cursor blinking as if it was taunting her, mocking her for not knowing what to do next.
"Yeah. Dead end. It must have been a burner." Everyone groaned as they hit another dead end. Their hope quickly put out like a flimsy candle in a wind storm.
"Maybe we call it a night. Start fresh in the morning after we get some rest." Matt suggested. The group all hummed as laptops shut all around. Groans filled the offices as the four of them stretched, their tired muscles needing to move after having sat all day looking at practically nothing.
"Better see you two in the morning," Foggy said, his lips turning into a downwards smile as he pointed his pen at Sage and Matt. Waving off their friend, Matt laughed as he promised Karen and Foggy that they would indeed be here in the morning.
Slipping his and Sage's laptops into his case, he took her hand in his and allowed her to turn the lights off.
"How are you feeling?" he asked, his hand dragging along the wall as they made their way down the stairs.
"Better surprisingly," she admitted. She had been a bit groggy after fainting but after half an hour, she felt like herself again.
"Are you up for tonight?"
"Matthew Murdock, is this your way of asking for sex?" She laughed, looking to him as she helped him down the rickety stairs. Matt laughed and shook his head; as much as he wanted to have her all over again, he most definitely meant something else.
~~~~
"There's my Goddess," Matt smiled as he heard Sage starting to climb onto the roof he was on. It felt good to finally be back to what he felt they did best.
"Hello Devil," her sultry tone was back, and his heart fluttered at his nickname that he had heard hundreds of times. Walking away from the roof edge, Matt took her hand in his and brought it up to his lips. Kissing her knuckles, he could hear how her heart still began to pick up.
"Are you sure you're okay to be doing this?" He wanted to double check, worried for her and what had happened at the office earlier.
"I'm sure. I'll call for you if I'm not." She reassured. Nodding, he still held her hand in his and brought her to where he was previously sitting.
"I've heard a few things since I've sat up here. But I've heard Fisk's men, about three blocks east. They seem to be setting up something with some Russians."