Gulp, That's your client?

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

Nick was arguing with none other than Eileen Anderson. Defense attorney for Whitmore Technologies. Why was she here again? Sticking her nose into places it didn't belong? "No one is accusing your 'clients' of anything" Nick pointed out flatly. The woman was defending one of the prime suspects AND the victim. Did the water really get any muddier. Nick didn't want to know. According to his partner Eileen was the tamer of the two nut jobs.

"No but I don't see you arresting the person who did do this detective" she mused. No instead she had heard that they'd tried to get a search warrant for Vanessa's place. "You seem intent on wanting to search the victim's place of residence. That's how you do things Detective?" she fired off.

"If Ms. Whitmore would open up about events we wouldn't have to do so." he added. "Nor does she remember anything. So you excuse us for doing our jobs to make sure we are being thorough and not violating your clients' rights" This was beginning to be a three ring circus these days. Eileen went walking out and Nick tossed his pen across his desk in anger as it skipped onto the floor. He'd get it in a little while.

⎃ @rebgates

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

[Deleted]

Barba came walking past Nick's desk just as his pen hit the floor. Barba glanced at the pen, then Nick. Barba arched an eyebrow. "Was that Eileen Anderson that I saw on the way in?" he asked, though he already knew the answer was yes. He wanted Nick to confirm it, and maybe explain why she was here. Because whatever the reason was, it had pissed Nick off.

Barba had come in to work a plea bargain for a case, he was early, he had yet to be told the other attorney and their client was present or waiting. So Barba could spare a few moments to talk to Nick. Barba went over, scooping the pen off the floor as he went, and placed it on Nick's desk. Barba stared at Nick. This should be interesting.

They had talked a week after the incident at the bar, Barba refused to really call it a date since Nick had gotten in a fight and been drunk before anything had happened, so not a date in his book. Once sober, they had met and talked, well sat in long silences followed by some eventual meandering to the issue at hand--what they wanted from each other. The conclusion was boyfriends, they could finally go on a proper date. Of course though, typical to form, Barba hadn't let anyone know about it. Then again, there wasn't really anyone he could tell, except Olivia, but the relationship was so new, he didn't want to trouble her with it just yet.


@nick

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

Nick wheeled around in his chair hearing Barba in the room. It was awkward having him assigned to major case unit, but Nick was adjusting. He was always glad to see Barba, even if the two did snark back and forth at each other. “Unfortunately” Nick replied in response to Barba’s question. That woman as as much a pain in the ass as her client.

“I mean what do you want me to say?” Nick questioned as he stared back at Barba. There were days that Nick really hated lawyers and today was one of them. Barba just happened to be the exception to the rule, for now. He trusted Barba but he also had a feeling he was about to get an earful on how the law worked.

“She’s pissed because I want a search warrant for the Victim’s house, home, car, and business. The victim doesn’t remember anything but the boyfriend is a prime suspect and has been staying with her. Now I’m being accused of violating her rights by the other attorney” Nick knew he was well within his rights. Evan was a suspect and he went ALL of these places and they’d already proven that. “We’ve got evidence that LINKS him to staying with her after she’s been released from the hospital. We’ve already got the warrants for his stuff; but I don’t need defense lawyers pretending like they know stuff. She’s got no brain cells working”

“I’m trying to do my job and it’s like this woman doesn’t care what happened to her.” He took the pen from Barba and looked towards him and sighed. Nick would go and see about getting the warrants later. He shifted through his paperwork and looked up towards his boyfriend and set the paper down in his hand. Yes, Nick was now worked up.

⎃ @rebgates

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

[Deleted]

Barba hummed and then shrugged. He nodded along as Nick explained the situation. "Sounds like you're doing everything by the books. Doesn't mean she can't make it hard for you." He snorted. "I'm going to pretend like I still have no biases to other lawyers and not agree with you even if I think other wise."

"You know how victims react, it's not always straight forward," Barba said, leaning on Nick's desk. "It may be frustrating but as long as you're doing and the job and it's the right thing..." He shrugged. He wasn't exactly trying to give a pep talk, but he hoped it was what Nick needed to hear. Nick was tense though.

"¿Necesitas algo más?" Barba asked softly. (Do you need anything else?) "¿O puedes esperar hasta más tarde?" (Or can you wait until later?) Barba wasn't sure if Nick would ask for a way to ease his tension, but Barba figured if anything the offer was on the table now if Nick wanted it. "Or do you want me to go talk to Ms. Anderson?" Barba smirked. "A chewing out might be just unexpected enough for her to rethink her options." It would be risky though, particularly if Eileen put it together that Barba had heard of this from Nick.


@nick

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

Nick raised a brow when Barba started getting mixed up in lawyer talk. Sometimes it never quite made sense to him. “I’m not asking for biased or unbiased opinions counselor” he noted. “Sólo un oído de alguien que sé que escuchará.”¹ Nick slipped into Spanish, it felt more comfortable expressing himself that way if he had to express himself at all. At least this was the case around Barba.

Nick’s eyes wandered as he watched Rafael lean on his desk. “Except there is troubled and then there is pain in the ass” he stated with a smirk. “Y sólo hay un dolor en el culo que aguanto.”² There was a light tease to his voice but to say that Nick was tense was an understatement. It helped to talk but Nick really needed to get out of the office and take a moment to go get lunch.

“¿Qué te parece ir a comer? Cuando terminas lo que has vagado por aquí, ya que sé que no iba a venir a ver mi cara hermosa.”³ he offered. Nick was glad that Barba had walked in when he had. It made the day a little more bearable. Eyes glanced over the lawyer after a moment.

Nick appreciated the thought of Barba giving Eileen a firm talking too, it even brought a smirk to his face. “She couldn’t handle you amorcito” He was being a bit on the cheeky side, but he meant that. Barba could easily tear into Eileen. The woman had no sense. Though the thought of watching Eileen be torn verbally to ribbons by Rafael brought a smile to his face. "Gracias."⁴ Nick did show his appreciation for even the little things.

1 - just an ear from someone who I know will listen
2 - and there is only one pain in the ass I put up with.
3 - how about lunch? when you finish whatever you wandered in here for, since I know it wasn't to come see my gorgeous face
4 - Thank You

⎃ @rebgates

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

[Deleted]

Barba hummed. Of course. "Afortunadamente, pasé por aquí," he muttered. (Fortunately, I passed by here) He fought a grin, he knew Nick was grateful to be able to talk to him right now. That didn't mean Barba wasn't going to be a little shit about it though.


Barba turned to Nick. "¿Oh enserio? Podría haber un tercero si no tienes cuidado." (Oh really? There could be a third if you're not careful) Barba didn't mean that in any ill will. "Es un buen culo," Barba muttered with a matching smirk. (It's a good ass)

Barba nodded. "Sure," he answered. He noticed Nick's wandering eyes. Barba snorted at the nickname. "Eres muy bienvenido." (You're very welcome) "Lunch sounds great." He could practically feel how badly Nick wanted out of here.


@nick

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

At Barba mentioning that the passing by Nick chuckled matching the grin he could see trying to form on Barba's face. It caused him to smile, how could someone so much of a pain in the rear end be... yeah no he wasn't going to think about that. If they weren't bickering, someone might think something was wrong with them.

Cue comment about the ass. "No estoy discrepando contigo allí."¹ He replied coyly, oh he was trying to go back to his work and failing something miserable. Watching Barba turn shades of red was oddly amusing, and Nick tried to do things like that on a usual basis.

All Nick could think to dowas smirk. He was glad to be able to steal a bit of Barba's busy schedule. Even if it was just a quick lunch. It meant something a little bit more than Rafael realised. "Your choice" okay he'd invited him to lunch, he may as well give in somewhere.


1- I am not disagreeing with you there.

⎃ @rebgates,

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

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Barba chuckled. "Good." He saw Nick glance at the work on his desk, then away, then back. "I'm not keeping you am I?" As much as Barba wanted to stick around, he didn't want Nick to get in trouble because they were talking. And even if he was early, he still had a job to do too.

"Hmmm," Barba pondered the numerous places they could go. It depended on what they wanted really. "Is this a date or just lunch?" Barba found himself asking though. That changed the situation as well. Though he was sure either way they would need reservations, he would forgo eating on the run or in his office to spend some time with Nick.

"Do you know what you would be in the mood for?" Barba asked, pulling out his phone, scrolling through the saved entries of restaurants. He was vaguely aware he was still leaning on Nick's desk and didn't care. "Or does that not matter?" He glanced at Nick, hoping the rigidness of just planning lunch, or a date, whichever it was, didn't bother Nick too much.


@nick

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

"I'm not keeping you am I?" Nick shook his head. "Even if you were. I wouldn't be complaining about it." He pointed out as he rested his hand on Barba's back. There was so much more that he could say about that but... no he would rather not. At least not while they were at work. Though outside of work? That was totally off limits.

"Is this a date or just lunch?" Nick raised a brow. Leave it to him to find the most socially in tune guy there was. The type that probably had rules still about wearing while after labor day. Nick stood up and put his lips to Barba's ear so that he only had to whisper. "¿Está usted sugiriendo que somos complicados?"¹ it was easy to tell that Nick was teasing him.

"Do you know what you would be in the mood for? Or does that not matter?" So many questions for a lunch date. "Somewhere the both of us can forget about work for a little while?" that just meant somewhere that wasn't full or cops or lawyers. Barba was smart enough to figure that out he presume. Nick's hands were definitely not keep to himself as he laid one hand on Barba's leg while his better half was on the phone.

1- Are you suggesting that we are complicated?

⎃ @rebgates

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

[Deleted]

Barba hummed. "I'm glad to know that, but I shouldn't take up any more of your time then necessary." He half turned as he felt Nick's hand on his back. The detective's hand was warm and solid and maybe Barba leaned into it a little. It was a nice reminder that they were there for each other, at least that's how Barba saw it.

Barba heard Nick stand. He was still looking at his phone, just for the moment, for something to do and something to hold. He wasn't nervous about this being a date, why should he be? "¿Somos complicados? ¿Estás seguro de que la situación es simplemente complicada?" (Are we complicated? Are you sure the situation is simply complicated?)

Barba nodded. "That still doesn't answer the question of if this is a date or just lunch though." He scrolledthrough a list of restaurants that he had saved on his phone, to mentally check off which ones they could have some peace and quiet in. He paused as Nick put his hand on his leg though. Barba turned, arching an eyebrow. "¿Qué estás haciendo, detective?" (What are you doing, detective?)


@nick

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

Nick was there for Barba and he knew it was vis versa, but sometimes it was nice to be reminded. Nick knew that simply from past relationships. Nick tried to learn from those mistakes though, use those lessons to fix things rather than repeat the mistakes of himself or others. His dad had been the best example of showing him how to navigate that.

Nick looked towards Barba and shook his head. "Usted puede ser complicado, yo soy bastante fácil."¹. Nick was full of snark but he was just trying to make it such that things were all alright with him. He did not like dealing with lawyers and Eileen had really gotten under his skin.

Nick shook his head. "Must everything fit into a nice neat box?" he inquired. Though when Barba gave him an arched eyebrow and started asking questions... Nick retreated some. Right, they were at work. Nick was probably projecting some of his need to talk in last action. There was simply no answer. Avoidance all around. The detective just went back to his paperwork. "What about that place on the corner you like?" he was fumbling for the name of it as he set his pen back down and twirled his chair to face Barba.

1 - You might be complicated, I am pretty simple

⎃ @rebgates

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

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Barba rolled his eyes. "¿Estás seguro de eso?" (Are you sure about that?) Barba arched an eyebrow, turning to Nick. "No, labels are annoying, but that wasn't the point of this conversation was it?" Barba smiled. "Sure." He got off Nick's desk and walked across the room to have some privacy as he reserved a spot. It couldn't hurt and would be better than wasting a lunch break waiting in line.

Barba glanced back over at Nick while he waited for someone to pick up. He noticed Nick going back to work and felt a little guilty about trying to be so professional. Barba couldn't help himself, he didn't want to run any risks of ruining his hopefully blooming career in Chicago, and he didn't want to ruin Nick's new career either, not after having crossed the country again. Well there was something they could talk about at lunch then. Barba was pulled out of his thoughts by the voice chirping in his ear.


@nick

[Deleted]

I wanna see you run Anywhere you want Never let the darkness hold you back No fear of getting lost I wanna see you fly Way beyond the sun Anything you're ever gonna dream I pray that it will come But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom And you can't get back where you started Any place anytime. You gotta know for you I'll fight

Nick

Watching Barba roll his eyes. "Si"¹ There was a well placed smirk on Nick's face. "Who said anything about labels? You are confusing me now" Nick just shook his head. It was a mess. They were dating but not putting a label on it but neither one saw their relationship as complicated. Then again would it be professional to bring their "relationship" to work by putting a label on it. No, probably not.

Nick was watching Barba make lunch arrangements, well if that didn't make him feel like he should be doing something. Though he kind of just busied himself with his work until Barba got off the phone. Who was he kidding keeping his eyes off of Barba was impossible. There was work and...yeah things were complicated in those regards; but really what was complicated about any of this?

1 - yes

⎃ @rebgates

template by Sammy @ Adox 2.0

[Deleted]

Barba finished his phone call, catching Nick staring at least once. Nick looked like he was waiting for Barba to get off the phone. Barba made the call as quick as he could. Once finished, he put his phone away and went back over to Nick. "I thought I heard you say you were confused, did I catch that?"

He went back to leaning on Nick's desk. "Do we want to continue this conversation? Or should we talk about something nicer?" He smirked. He figured he was earlier than he had realized and was going to take the opportunity to be with Nick while he could. "¿Qué me harías si estuviéramos solos?" (What would you do to me if we were alone?) Barba's smirk was fixed on his face. He kind of was getting back at Nick for the hand on his thigh.


@nick