Work Text:
It had been well established early on that the Institute didn’t particularly care much about the ethics surrounding how they got their information and Sasha couldn’t say she minded it. For her, it usually meant hacking into a few people’s Facebook accounts or making up a lie about being a private investigator or someone’s close, but not too close, relative. For Tim, however, it usually meant laying down the charms on some poor records clerk or receptionist who would find him very hard to resist.
And every time he came back to brag about his exploits, Sasha felt a tiny pang of jealousy in her heart. And it didn’t get any less annoying with time.
Her lunch was laid before her, some reheated leftovers from the night before that were still just a little cold in the middle, as she picked at it with her fork. Martin was home sick and Jon rarely left his office which left her alone, scrolling idly through her phone. Tim hadn’t texted her asking desperately for help yet in some time, so he must have found someone at the police station willing to give him what he was looking for.
Good for him, she thought, trying not to think of reasons why he had taken so long if he hadn’t run into trouble. It wasn’t her business anyway. They weren’t dating. She’d made sure of that.
It was only when she had put her dishes in the sink that he finally made his appearance, strolling into the break room with a grin so wide she imagined his face must hurt. His hair was messier than usual and his shirt was unbuttoned just a little too low to be considered proper work attire, just barely hiding the low, pinkish purple bruise on his collar bone.
“Subtle.” Sasha managed, eyes trained on her mug as she refilled it with coffee.
“Guess what I’ve been doing.” He leaned against the counter beside her, sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
“Doing your job and following up on the statement Jon gave you?”
“ Besides that.”
She rolled her eyes, turning to lean on the counter. “Doing something that would make Jon blush to hear?”
Tim tossed his head back in a laugh, leaning in just a little too close for her own liking. At least, while he was talking about that subject in particular. Sasha sipped her coffee, recoiling a little as she likely burnt her tongue.
“Let me tell you, the hands on this guy--”
“Mm-hm.”
He didn’t stop there, but she had stopped listening some time ago, eyes fixed on her shoes instead. It was… nice that they were still friends. When she thought she was about to become Head Archivist, she’d told herself that it would have to come to an end, knowing she would be his boss and it would be inappropriate for them to do their usual flirty back and forth. And after they’d ended up in bed together after a long night of drunk karaoke that was everything she’d dreamed it would be in more, she’d told him that she wasn’t looking for a relationship at the time. Even if they had gotten together, she would have broken it off for the sake of being professional. Better to avoid it all before it even began. That wasn’t what she told him though, just that she wasn’t ready for something serious at the time. His sad little puppy dog face following after was still etched in her mind.
But then Jon got the promotion and there was no conflict of interest stopping them. And Tim had moved on quite well, it seemed, and he had no problem bragging about his more interesting ways of getting information to all would hear. And she was supportive, because they were friends.
It didn’t get any easier to hear with time. The same, dull ache in her chest came back every time and she told herself to stop, because they weren’t dating and he had every right to go and sleep with whoever he wanted.
“...Sasha? Sasha, you’re spilling!”
She blinked, suddenly being brought down to the earth by the burning feeling of hot coffee dripping down the front of her shirt, forming a big stain over her front. Tim grabbed the mug and set it back down on the counter, reaching for a stack of napkins. She took them from him before he could do the honors of patting her down, giving a huff of annoyance.
“Are you sleeping much these days?” His tone was light, but she couldn’t manage a laugh just that once.
“Yeah. Same as usual.”
She left abruptly before he could say anything else, trying to ignore the guilt she felt.