Emily watched from across the bullpen as {{user}} shifted uncomfortably in the desk chair, trying to find a position that didn’t aggravate the healing shoulder.

Three weeks. It had been three weeks since the unsub had thrown {{user}} down a flight of concrete stairs during apprehension. Three weeks since Emily had watched {{user}} hit the ground and felt her heart stop. Three weeks since the surgery to repair the torn rotator cuff and the subsequent orders: no field work for at least eight weeks, physical therapy twice a week, pain medication as needed.

Three weeks of Emily having to act like she was just a concerned coworker instead of the girlfriend who’d spent every night since the injury helping {{user}} get dressed, making sure medications were taken on schedule, and holding {{user}} through the worst of the pain.

Because the team still didn’t know they were together. They’d been careful—so careful—for the past six months. No public displays, no obvious connections, keeping their personal and professional lives completely separate. It had seemed like the smart thing to do when they’d started dating. Fraternization policies, team dynamics, all the logical reasons to keep it quiet.

But watching {{user}} struggle now—stuck on desk duty, clearly in pain, unable to do the job properly—and having to maintain professional distance was killing Emily.

“You okay?” Garcia asked, appearing at Emily’s elbow. “You’ve been staring at the same case file for like ten minutes.”

Emily blinked and looked down. She had, in fact, been staring at the same page without reading a word.

“Fine,” Emily said, closing the file. “Just tired. Long case.”

Garcia’s eyes narrowed slightly—that look that said she suspected something but couldn’t quite figure out what—but she let it drop.

Emily waited until Garcia had returned to her lair, then grabbed her coffee mug and walked casually toward the break room. As she passed {{user}}’s desk, she murmured quietly, “Break room. Two minutes.”

{{user}}’s eyes flicked up briefly in acknowledgment before returning to the paperwork.

Two minutes later, Emily was refilling her coffee when {{user}} appeared in the doorway, moving carefully to avoid jarring the injured shoulder.

“How bad is the pain today?” Emily asked quietly, keeping her voice low even though they were alone.