Juliet wasn’t sure what to think. The last thing she expected to see when she walked down the hall to Declan’s elegant and tastefully decorated foyer was Shawn. That sight in itself set off a plethora of emotions that rarely came to surface unless Juliet was alone, at home.
She briefly caught a glimpse of a portrait of Declan, the picture hovering over Shawn’s shoulder. A more fitting scene could not have been found.
Declan...her boyfriend, someone who understands her and wants nothing in life but to make her happy, the man who was willing to give up his job in order to stay honest with her...and Shawn. The man who confused her, who made her heart race, who knew her better than anyone she’d ever known. The man who nearly kissed her at one point. And, of course, his other side. The snarky, goofy psychic who enjoyed teasing her.
She wasn’t dating him though. Declan claimed that honor. So why was she so incredibly happy to see Shawn? Sometimes, her emotions made no sense at all. Life should be simpler. It would be so much easier if it was.
“Shawn!” Did she really mean to make that simple greeting sound so...happy? You’re dating Declan, girl, she told herself sternly. Shawn is just a friend. Don’t forget that.
But she didn’t want to forget her feelings for Shawn. Nor could she. It was a part of her, and she had learned to keep that part tamed for quite some time now.
“Hey,” Shawn replied back. His voice caught in his throat, it seemed. Juliet could guess why, but she ignored that tiny voice in her mind. Instead she focused on Shawn...and why he was here.
“Hi,” Juliet said. “Why are you standing in Declan’s foyer...all by yourself?” It was a fair question, she thought. Although, she knew Shawn long enough to know that he wouldn’t give her a straight answer.
Shawn shrugged and nodded his head. “Creepy?”
More like refreshing and a total surprise. A welcome one, to be sure, but still a surprise...not that I care. Or do I? Juliet gave a slight shake of her head to clear her thoughts. At that, she thought she saw Shawn’s eyebrows rise slightly as if to ask her you okay?
She chose to ignore that.
“Sort of.” Juliet looked straight at him. Time to go the innocent route. “Shawn...” she began, “You have worked a lot of cases for the SBPD, but this one was particularly impressive. I mean, Bolivian Embassies and international espionage! How did you and Gus do it all by yourself?” Stop staring at him, Juliet. You’re probably freaking him out.
She couldn’t though. The intense gaze of the psychic glued her eyes to his like two magnets, close enough to attract but not enough to come together completely. To make matters worse, Shawn put on his “charming” grin that always melted her inside.
“Well, I’m not going to lie to you, Jules. It was difficult, but now that it’s over I’m going to put ‘freelance spy’ on my list of special skills—”
Suddenly, a thought popped into Juliet’s mind. She normally never interrupted people, but something about being in Shawn’s presence made her bolder than usual.
“Well, here’s a mystery you can solve for me.” The sarcastic and playful quality of her voice was not lost on either of them. “Yesterday, I came here after work, and I found three crème brule dishes by Declan’s computer. Any idea who could have eaten all of those?” Being the cop that she was, Juliet noticed a slight smirk grow on Shawn’s face and what she already suspected was instantly confirmed. The significance of what Shawn did confused her.
He tried to intentionally sabotage Declan. Make him break her trust, so he would get out of her life completely. Just for her. And this raised another question entirely, one that she had been wrestling with for ages, since she met Shawn at that diner five years ago: What did Shawn see in her? What was the attraction that bonded them together? It was a mystery to her.
Oblivious to her thoughts, Shawn gave his signature humorous reply. “Hmm...I would say that Declan has an enormous sweet tooth. And that shouldn’t be ignored Jules. Sugar is a gateway drug.” Juliet stifled a laugh at that statement. Sabotage: confirmed. How she loved Shawn.
Smoothing her face, Juliet replied, “Huh. Then I guess it will remain an open case.”
Was it just her, or did she clip her words at the end? Why was she feeling all of this longing? Why won’t her emotions leave her alone?
Shawn stared at her, struggling to say something in reply. Finally he managed to get out “Guess so.”
And then, there was a slight pause. Juliet hated awkward pauses, so she decided to break it after a few moments, nervously running her hand through her hair.
“Well, I was just about to head out and do some, uh, shopping for the trip.” Why did I say that? It would only hurt Shawn more. Juliet looked up and saw Shawn’s face was still unreadable. One could only imagine the turmoil going on inside.
“Right. The tr-trip.” He muttered, stuttering slightly. “Of course, uh, yeah. Have a- have a great four days off Jules.”
And now, Juliet was even more confused. Shawn never stuttered. He spoke clearly at all times. Something must truly be bugging him if he was beginning to crack like this. The tiny voice in Juliet’s head supplied the answer. He’s jealous. And in love.
“Two weeks Shawn,” she said softly, wishing she hadn’t corrected him at the moment the words came out of her mouth.
Astonishment crossed Shawn’s face. “Wow. That’s lengthy. That’s significant. That’s...a real amount of vacation time.” Juliet pretended she didn’t notice the crack in his voice on the words ‘vacation time’. She knew what he thought of her time with Declan. And there wasn’t any damn thing she could do about it.
Declan or Shawn? Why did there have to be a choice?
At the sight of Shawn’s tortured gaze, tears began to spring to her eyes. Not quite ready to overflow yet, but close. Too close.
Shawn noticed. She knew he did, he was Shawn Spencer, psychic detective.
“Have an amazing...trip. Okay? Promise me.” Shawn’s voice was deeper, more husky. Emotion clogged his words. Juliet’s pain for him grew more and more intense. It obviously was showing on her face, judging by his reaction.
Only one thought could form at that moment. Why?
Why?
Ignoring her turmoil, Juliet managed to nod slightly, blinking heavily.
“Because you know, they- they say that, um these- these kinds of trips are a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and that they’re even better when you have someone you care about to share them with and...” Shawn took a breath. Juliet braced herself. For what, she didn’t know.
“...You do.” At that, Juliet gazed at the ground, pressing her lips together to hold her tears and herself in.
Shawn continued. “Take lots of pictures. Not of sights. Don’t take pictures of buildings. Take pictures of moments. That’s what matters. Capture them here,” Shawn held his hand to the side of his head. His favorite psychic pose.
Juliet knew what that was symbolizing. What it meant. Shawn. Her. Together.
Oh dear.
“And hold on to them here.” Finishing his monologue, Shawn dropped his hand to his side and grinned sheepishly. “At least, that’s what I would do.” He coughed a laugh.
Juliet looked at him, unable to form coherent words or thoughts. Shell-shocked. Yes, that was a great description of what she was feeling right now.
And still, Shawn continued. “I don’t know, you might take blurry photos of your- your espresso at a random café...”
At that’s when Juliet couldn’t take it anymore. She couldn’t take this deluge of emotions plaguing her consciousness anymore. Impulsively, inexplicably, she did the one thing she had wanted to do for a very long time now. Pulling herself up to Shawn, she kissed him.
The world spun. Consciousness faded. For some reason, the first day she ever met Shawn, that fateful day at the diner jumped to the front of her mind, the memory as clear as crystal.
She knew Shawn would be an important part of her life. Why? Still undetermined. She just had a feeling...a cop feeling. That was one of her strongest points—intuition. And guess what? She wasn’t wrong.
She was glad she wasn’t wrong.
This moment, it took her away. It reminded herself of who she truly was.
After a few hundred hours...seconds...milliseconds...she managed to pull away, not wanting to, but knowing she had to helped a little. Another awkward pause followed, and Juliet and Shawn stared, amazed and shocked at each other. Neither of them knew what to say. Even if she did know what to say, she wouldn’t have the courage to speak up and break this fragile moment.
“Hey, honey? Honey!”
Oh, no. Declan. The triangle was complete.
Declan and Gus came walking around the corner and stopped suddenly when seeing the two of them. Going over to Juliet, Declan grinned happily at her. “Uh, you’re not going to be able to worry about that hotel in Almalfi being overbooked.” He drew closer to her, too close for her to be comfortable with.
Stop looking at Shawn. Stop feeling guilty. It’s what you wanted, right? And Declan’ll never know. Pull yourself together, Jules!
She managed to break her confused gaze from Shawn and transferred it to Declan, putting on a fake, cheery grin. “Oh?” She chirped in reply. “Why’s that?”
“Because I just bought it!” Declan slung his arm around Juliet and squeezed her shoulders, planting a small kiss on her cheek. She gave a small laugh, slightly amused by how annoyed it sounded. Although Declan claimed the honor of her embrace, not by her choosing, her eyes stayed focused on Shawn, who calmly returned her gaze.
Poor Gus looked back and forth at the two of them. She knew he suspected something happened; he was a surprisingly intuitive guy. I hope Shawn tells him later.
Shawn broke the silence finally. “Well, good luck with that man. If we ever make it out that way, we’ll look forward to stealing some towels,” he joked.
Juliet welcomed the refreshing humor from Shawn, but one thing about that statement bothered her. “We’ll.” He used the word “We’ll.” As in, he and Gus? Or was he making a hint to their future—he and Juliet?
He was psychic, after all. Could he have known all along? The thought was too much to wrap her head around, so Juliet resolved to figure things out later.
Shawn turned and left, Gus following him. “I’ll have them monogrammed!” said Declan to their backs, jokingly.
As Shawn reached the doorway, he turned and looked her way. At that moment, Declan wrapped Juliet in a huge hug that she barely even felt. She barely even cared about it.
The only thing she could think of was Shawn. That moment. The meaning behind it. And, returning Shawn’s final glance, full of meaning, Juliet was completely sure about only one thing in life.
Love may take a detour once in a while, but it is never truly gone.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Okay, so here's Juliet's POV. I still like the way Shawn's turned out better, but I had fun writing this one.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything Psych related.
SPOILERS FOR ONE, MAYBE TWO WAYS OUT!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything Psych related.
SPOILERS FOR ONE, MAYBE TWO WAYS OUT!
Chapter End Notes:
I think I'm going to have one final chapter for this collection of OMTWO shorts...Shawn telling Gus. Who knows? It may spark a spin-off story.
Please review! :)
Please review! :)
You must login () to review.