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The Sheriff was the bane of Tango’s existence.

The stupid, frustrating, elusive hacker had destroyed Tango’s social life and fed it to work. The entire department had been pressed with finding their identity and overtime was now a meaningless word. He was so far beyond overtime that his office miraculously adopted a pillow and blanket. Tango had even bought a mini fridge and filled it with energy drinks. His friends were concerned there was a nervous breakdown in his near future.

When they were initially briefed on this case, their department head gave them a bare-bones file on the Sheriff. They knew absolutely nothing about them, and much of the file was left blank. Their information mostly consisted of: unknown gender, unknown country of origin, unknown method of entry. One thing it did include, though, was the list of businesses their attacks targeted.

There was no pattern to who they stole from. One day it was a major hospital business and the next week it was the CEO of a book publishing company. The only reason Tango’s department could attribute both attacks to the Sheriff was their sign off. In the gaping hole the stolen money left, they attached a file. When opened, it led to a badly drawn MS Paint drawing of a cat in a sheriff hat. Which is where the department's unaffectionate nickname came in.

Tango was truly at his wits end. He had tried everything. Predicting the Sheriff’s next attack led him in the complete wrong direction. Trying to trace their signature back to their location sent back a gif of a cat winking with the words ‘try again next time!’ blinking on the screen. Tango was deeply considering throwing his computer out his fifth floor window and quitting on the spot. 

Tango’s luck changed when he had almost given up hope. He had been checking over the accounts of a rich business man when they updated to millions less than had been there seconds before. Oh. This was his chance!

He quickly traced the deposit back to a computer. This was so much easier when the electronic heist was still in progress. Trying to find where the computer actually was, was a completely different problem. Tango managed to get access to their computer screen but froze when he saw a message waiting for him.

Hi, little FBI man. Welcome to my home! Did you like Norman?

Tango did not know what to do. He was speechless, or in this case, type-less. What was he even supposed to say to that? This was the slippery, money stealing hacker Tango had been searching for, for months. And they were asking Tango inane questions. 

Cat got your tongue? Norman got your tongue? Please tell me you laughed at that.

Tango hesitantly rested his hands on his keyboard. The blinking indicator for him to begin typing taunted him. Or maybe it was just the Sheriff. Who’s Norman?

My cat! I drew him with a small sheriff hat. He’s so cute, right?

Tango was certain he was having an out of body experience. The Sheriff was talking to him about a badly drawn cat. Who they named Norman. Sure? You know we’re closer to catching you now, right? I got this far. 

Only cause I let you! I was getting bored. You seemed the most interesting from my FBI hunters, Tango. It’s nice to finally meet you.

Immediately, Tango was unsettled. He stared at the screen with his jaw closer to the floor than his head. He closed the tab allowing him to spy with a shaky hand and shut his computer down. When he stumbled up to tell someone, his wheelie chair flew back so hard it hit the wall with a bang. He was certain he could hear giggles echoing around his office. 

“Tango? Is everything alright?” His supervisor Grian asked. His eyes darted to the abandoned chair and then back to Tango’s surely wild eyes.

“I spoke to the Sheriff,” Tango croaked.

“What?” Grian exclaimed, rushing forward. His loud shout brought the attention of others in their office, and Zedaph stuck his head in behind Grian curiously. “How?”

“I found them while they were actively stealing money,” he replied. “But they said they let me follow them. They knew my name, Grian. They called me Tango.”

Grian stared at him for a second. “Okay. Did you try to trace it?”

This was exactly why Tango loved his department leader. He was always so calm, compared to Tango’s impulsiveness. 

“Yes, first thing. It took me nowhere like usual,” Tango swallowed. “They spent half the time talking about their cat, who is apparently named Norman.”

“Oh! Is their signature Norman? So cute!” Zedaph said. Tango jumped. He had forgotten Zed was there. So had Grian, who turned to glare at him. Zedaph raised his hands in surrender but smiled mischievously.

“Zedaph,” Grian said, before the blonde man could leave. “Could you send Mumbo in?”

Zedaph nodded and it was only a few seconds before Mumbo popped into the room.

“Hey Gri. Tango,” Mumbo nodded at him. “I heard Zedaph say we’ve made contact with the Sheriff?”

“Yeah,” Grian said. “Not that I don’t trust Tango, but could you look it over? Tango couldn’t trace them.”

Tango tried to settle in to watch, but Grian stopped him with a glare.

“Not you. Home, Tango,” he said. “You look like you’re going to fall over.”

Thinking back, Tango had only slept 3 hours in his desk chair last night. And his breakfast and lunch both consisted of an energy drink. He looked out at the dark sky. Maybe he could get dinner on the way home?

“Okay,” he sighed. “But please call if anything happens?”

Mumbo snorted. “Based on this conversation, they wouldn’t do anything without you here, buddy.”

Grian immediately focused on the screen, with one final firm order for Tango to head home. 

Tango stopped for Thai on his way home. While he waited for his order, his mind ran through his experience with the Sheriff over and over until he’d looked at it from every angle. And when he got home and sat on his couch to eat his dinner, his keys thrown haphazardly on the cushions next to him, he thought some more. 

It didn’t make sense. Why Tango? Their whole department was looking for them, Tango was just one of dozens. He had never done anything special. Mumbo had made more headway and discoveries with the Sheriff than Tango. 

Which led his thoughts to himself. Each bite of spicy Thai curry brought with it new, panicked ideas. They knew his name. Did they know where he lived? What he looked like? Did they know Tango had always wanted a cat, but felt he’d never be a good pet parent? 

Tango didn’t sleep well that night.

The next few weeks were a test of Tango’s patience. Work had mostly gone back to normal after what the department had taken to calling Tango’s Incident. The days were filled with surface-level, basic chats at the coffee machine and Tango staring at his computer screen with blank eyes. 

No one else had been able to make contact with the Sheriff, who had gone back to stealing like nothing happened. Like usual, there seemed to be no pattern. According to his department. 

Tango noticed the pattern almost straight away. He left work early to go to the dentist, who overcharged him an unfair amount. He had to skip out on a few groceries he really needed to make up for the drain on his bank account. And the next day, that same dentist was a target of the Sheriff. This time, Norman had a heart next to his sheriff hat.

It was a coincidence, though. Obviously. What else could it be?

It caused chaos in his office. His coworkers were speculating about the heart next to their signature, which had never changed before. Tango didn’t say anything about his dentist appointment, but he was disconcerted. Every time he thought of the Sheriff, a shiver went down his spine.

And then it happened again. Tango went to the store to get his weekly groceries, finally able to get what he needed after he recovered from the dentist. But their prices went up, after already going up last month. Tango’s budget was thrown off. He stood in the pasta aisle for ten minutes straight, staring at the prices despairingly. He put half of his cart back.

The grocery store he frequented for years was hit by the Sheriff the next day. The new sign off with the heart was there, but when Tango looked at his bank account again, the figures had many more zeros than before. Tango almost dropped his phone in shock.

He wasn’t sure what to do, at first. He made a token effort to track the deposit because it was expected of him, which led to nothing. Then, he didn’t tell Grian. For days. The thought of reporting this to his department made unease spread through his gut. But the idea of a disappointed Grian was equally as bad.

What pushed Tango to go to Grian was the thought that the Sheriff knew who he was. They knew his name, his bank account details, and presumably his address. The hacker had never done anything to make Tango uncomfortable, not really. But Tango knew nothing about the Sheriff in turn. His name, where he lived, what he looked like , was all unknown. And that made Tango anxious. 

“Grian,” Tango said, after he knocked on his lead’s door. “Can we talk?”

“Tango? Is everything alright?” Grian replied. He looked worried. Since ‘first contact’ - what his boss had started calling the time Tango and the Sheriff talked - he had hovered. Tango sometimes caught his apprehensive glances. 

“Yeah, I think. Do you have the files of the places the Sheriff has targeted the last few weeks?”

Grian’s eyes flicked across his face. Tango swallowed loudly and wiped his sweaty palms on the side of his pants. After a few seconds of silence, he pulled out the files. Tango crossed the room to sit in front of his boss’s desk.

“Pass me the dentist?” Tango set the folder down on the desk and pulled out his receipt for his appointment. “I had an appointment here a few days before the heist. The grocery store? I had to put half my groceries back because they raised their prices,” Tango said. On top of the grocery store file, he placed the screenshot of the deposit to his bank account.

Grian’s eyes widened. “They’re fixated on you?”

“I think so,” Tango said, and his next exhale was shaky. “They seem to know everything about me and– I don’t know.”

“Tango, we have to find someone to stay with you. They probably know where you live,” Grian said, and it was remarkably calm. Tango drew strength from his gentle, even voice. 

“No, I think it’ll be okay. They seem to want to help me.”

“It won’t stay that way. If you give in they’ll just want more,” Grian said. He stared at Tango intently, the barest hint of worry in his eyes. “Stalkers never stop, Tango.”

“Then we can handle it when it comes. I’ll keep you updated on it, I promise.”

As Tango stood up to leave, Grian hesitated. “Text me when you get home, yeah?”

On his way out of the office, his jacket thrown over his arm and his keys clutched in sweaty, shaky hands, Zedaph stopped him.

“Tangs? Are you okay?”

Tango gave him a weak smile. “Yeah. I’m just a bit anxious about this whole thing. It’s unnerving having someone this fixated on me.”

“For what it’s worth, I don’t think they’ll hurt you,” Zedaph said. “They have never been malicious before. Besides the stealing money thing.”

Tango laughed, and it was tinged with panic. 

When he got home, his shoes kicked off by the door, he immediately collapsed into his bed. His eyes closed, and he drifted off into a light doze. He was well on his way to falling asleep in his work clothes above the covers, when his phone pinged with a text. Tango sighed. 

He expected a text from Zed or Grian, to make sure he got home safely. What he didn’t expect was a text from an unknown number. And by unknown, he meant there were no numbers in the contact at all, just simply the word unknown. 

Hi, Tango. Did you get home safely?

Tango’s breath hitched. He stared at his phone screen until it dimmed in disbelief. His cursor blinked in the empty text space. His apartment was silent, but silent in a deafening way. 

Sheriff? Shouldn’t you know? You seem to know everything else about me.

There was no reply for several minutes. Tango threw his phone on the covers and got up to shower. He knew he wouldn’t want to in the morning, because he predicted he’d be staying up late tonight. When he got out and the steam was dispersed into his bedroom from the bathroom, he jumped to his bed, unlocking his phone. 

Yes, it’s me. I don’t know everything about you, Tango. You have privacy and I would like to get to know everything about you from you. We don’t know each other yet, but if I have my wish, we will.

Tango replied quickly, his fingers flying across his screen. His message was slightly scathing, but he didn’t realize it until after he sent it. I told my boss about you. You won’t get your wish if I know nothing about you.

The Sheriff was typing for several minutes, their bubble started and stopped repeatedly while Tango stared intently at his screen. That’s fair. But you do know things about me. My cat is named Norman. I’ll share something new with you. I’m a man.

Tango screenshotted the message to show Grian in the morning. The rush of energy that ran through his veins made his hands shake. He exhaled shakily. Well, hi then. Why do you steal from people?

I only steal from people that are corrupt. Never from good people. Why don’t you look into the businesses I’ve taken from?

This bombshell of a message was quickly followed with another. Goodnight, Tango! Norman says goodnight too :) We’re snuggling!

This time, Tango didn’t sleep at all.

Grian wanted to place a monitoring program on his phone. Tango managed to convince him not to, but it took several days of avoidance and begging. His boss only gave in after moving him off the case completely. The Sheriff made no further contact, so Tango tried to go back to normal life. 

Impulse attempted to placate him with assurances that Tango was just too close to this case now. Grian wasn’t doing it to punish him, he said. He was concerned for Tango’s safety. He didn’t reply beyond an absent-minded nod. Against his better judgement, he missed the Sheriff.

Though Tango wasn’t officially on the case, unofficially he was still researching. He knew the Sheriff was a man with a cat named Norman, which really meant nothing at all. The names of people’s cats weren’t typically listed in formal files. Which was stupid. If they were, Tango might be closer to finding his hacker’s name. The hacker. Not his. 

On a Wednesday, two days after Tango’s removal from the case, he met Zedaph in the kitchen by the coffee machine. Zedaph snorted when he saw Tango, but tried to smother his laugh.

“Sorry, sorry,” he giggled. “Tango you look like hell.”

“Thanks,” Tango glowered, then sighed. “I know. I’m trying to convince Grian to let me back on.”

“How’s that going?” Zedaph eyed him, a knowing glint in his eyes.

“I’m sure you can imagine,” Tango said with a scowl. 

“He thinks he’s doing the right thing.”

“You don’t?” Tango said, interested. He angled his body fully toward Zed, considering.

“I never said that,” he said, avoiding eye contact. When Tango answered with silence, he sighed. “No. I don’t. He should know by now that when you’re interested in something, you’ll never drop it.”

Tango smirked, satisfied. “Exactly. Why don’t you tell him that? He clearly won’t listen to me.”

“I’m not getting involved. You’re on your own buddy.”

Sometimes, Tango hated his friends.

He started receiving messages from the Sheriff again. Tango liked to think he missed him. He never responded, but he read every single one. With each message, his heart grew fonder.

I gave Norman extra treats today, because he was being too cute. He’s spoiled!

My best friend told me you probably think I’m creepy. I’m sorry if I’ve scared you before. :(

I thought of you in the grocery store today. They have a new flavour of Kit-Kat, do you think you’d like it? 

In between these messages, Tango became a regular in Grian’s office. He figured if he annoyed Grian enough, he would tell him about the case. Specifically, the research into the businesses the hacker targeted. But he never told him about the recent texts. 

“No, Tango. I’m not going to tell you more about a case you’re not on,” Grian said firmly. 

“But I was on it! It would barely break protocol,” Tango replied. He wasn’t above begging to get what he wanted.

Grian softened. He watched Tango for a while, indecision in his frown and downturned lips. “I’m leaving a file on my desk. If you stole it while I was looking away, did I really know you stole it?” Here, he pushed a file forward toward Tango and turned back to his computer to begin typing. 

“Grian, you’re the best!” Tango snatched the file and ran out of the room, slamming the door behind him. On his way out, he saw Grian’s fond smile.

Tango opened the file when he got back to his desk. Each targeted business had their own section, which Tango had seen before. What was new, though, was the addendum tacked onto the bottom. Added to the hospital heist, was a whole page dedicated to evidence of their board overcharging the patients to put them into debt with the hospital. Tango hastily flipped through until he found the book publishing company. Their CEO had been skimming off the top and severely underpaid his employees to make up for it. 

Tango closed the file and exhaled roughly. His brain moved too fast for him to keep up with, shifting his new information around to change his opinion of the Sheriff. The whole time, he had been stealing from corrupt businesses. But what did he do with it? Tango’s memory flashed back to the surprise deposit in his bank account weeks ago, right after the dentist had been hit. He reached for his phone. What do you do with the money you steal, Robin Hood?

The reply was instant. I’m the Sheriff, not Robin Hood! It took you long enough to notice :) I keep some for myself to survive and the rest is donated to charities that need it.

Tango leaned back in his wheelie chair until he stared directly at the ceiling. He spun in circles until he was dizzy, around and around and it still didn’t make sense. No one had picked up on this before the Sheriff told Tango to look into it. They were the FBI, noticing it was their job. He sat up and ran his hands down his face, strands of blonde hair falling in his eyes. For some reason, his hacker was fixated on Tango. And for some reason, he wanted Tango to know about him in turn. 

Never before had he been so invested in a case. Maybe Tango was fixated on him too. 

The beginning of Tango finally considering them friends started with a picture of a cat.

The Sheriff sent a pic of his cat Norman, on his back on a bed. His paws were up, as if he was about to give a hug. Over the top, he had drawn another bad cowboy hat. Norman!!!!

Tango zoomed in on the photo and tried to see every angle of it. The blanket below him was a fuzzy white and he had a worn soft toy on his stomach. This is Norman? He’s very cute.

This was him this morning. So cute right? The Sheriff followed it with several cat emojis and paw emojis.

Tango laughed out loud. This was the hacker that had half the FBI chasing him. It was comical.

You haven’t told your supervisor about me.

It wasn’t a question but it needed a reply. And Tango didn’t know what to say. No, because I am starting to care about you? Or, no, because you fascinate me? The list was endless. In the end, he went with, No, I haven’t.

Would it be too much to ask if you want to call?

Tango physically jerked back from his phone. To hear the Sheriff’s voice? He was already starting to daydream about what it sounded like. It couldn’t be anything less than warm and comforting, of this Tango was sure. He wondered if he’d hear the jingle of Norman’s collar in the background, or maybe music from speakers. I’d like that a lot.

They set a time to call after Tango got home from work. The day, after that, was the slowest he had ever experienced. Time passed in a haze. He was distracted from every task with thoughts of the Sheriff, and Zedaph kept sending him suspicious glances. It got so bad that even Mumbo asked if he was okay. Tango’s response was as absentminded as everything else that day.

When the clock finally hit 5:00, Tango scrambled out the door. Zed called out to him, but Tango waved him off as the door shut behind him. He expected to get a text from him later. 

Tango became familiar with the ticking of his clock from the moment he got home. 5:15 to 5:30 passed like molasses. At 5:31, one minute late, his phone buzzed.

“Hi,” he said breathlessly. The single second between his greeting and the Sheriff’s response was so full of anticipation Tango shook with it. 

“Hi, Tango. It’s nice to hear your voice instead of seeing your typed words,” the Sheriff said. His voice was low and smooth, but playful enough that Tango started sweating. He swallowed in a way he knew was loud enough to hear. 

“Yeah, yeah. It’s um- It’s nice,” Tango stuttered.

“I know you have to make a token effort to try to find me, so go ahead and try tracing this call. We can talk until the results come back negative, okay?”

Tango laughed and it was only slightly hysterical. They both knew he hadn’t truly tried to catch the Sheriff in weeks. He’d much rather just keep this phone call between them and pretend it didn’t happen in front of his department.

“Your laugh,” the Sheriff said, and awe coated his voice. “It’s so lovely.”

Tango could so get used to this. He knew he could fall in love with the cadence of his voice, the warmth like sunshine sandwiched between words. He had already imagined himself in his life, petting Norman and hugging him after work. Tango didn’t know what he looked like, or his name, but he knew his voice and how he spoke. And it was captivating. 

Tango might or might not have been constantly texting the Sheriff to the point of obsession. They were acting the way someone in a new relationship acts, though they were not dating. No matter how much Tango wished the opposite. 

Their texts had evolved from simple chats about their days. Now, they texted about everything. Messages about their future and what they hope for in life. How Tango had always wanted a cat, but was always scared he wouldn’t be able to look after it properly. How the Sheriff’s favourite food was anything sweet. 

His coworkers started to notice. Their suspicious glances whenever he took his phone out were becoming more common, Grian included. His furrowed brow and his concerned eyes when he looked at Tango’s phone had him feeling paranoid. 

“Tango,” Grian said, appearing behind him. Tango jumped, flipped his phone around on his desk, and spun around with a forced nonchalant expression on his face.

“Grian! Hey,” Tango replied, his voice cracking at the end. He winced.

“Mhm,” Grian considered him. “Anything to tell me, bud?”

“Not at all! Everything is great,” his reply was high pitched and shaky. 

“Alright,” Grian eyed him. “Well, I’m sure you’d be happy to hear we’ve almost caught the Sheriff.”

“Really? What?”

Grian smiled smugly. “No, Tango. But your reaction tells me everything I need to know.”

Tango grimaced, avoiding his boss's eyes. 

Grian lingered in the door for several seconds, silent. “You’re being careful, right?”

“If I was hypothetically doing something, yes I would be careful.”

“Right. We didn’t have this conversation.”

Tango adored his department head.

“Tango,” the Sheriff’s voice was slow and sleepy. 

It was close to midnight. Tango shouldn’t be awake because he had work in the morning, but the last thing he wanted to do was end the call. He was growing addicted to the Sheriff’s voice, in all its facets. His favourite was when they had been talking for hours, early into the morning, when his hacker’s voice was soft. 

Tango hummed instead of responding, his eyes drifted closed.

“My name is Jimmy,” came the response.

Tango’s breath hitched. His eyes flew open and he reached for his phone to look at the contact name. It still read unknown. Everything was silent, only the sound of Jimmy’s oh my god careful breaths and Tango’s fast ones. 

“What?” Tango replied, voice faint. 

“My name is Jimmy. You’re very important to me, it’s something you deserve to know.”

“Oh. Okay,” Tango was definitely floating. Was he still in his room?

“Please say something,” Jimmy said. His voice wavered and his breaths were deliberately slow, as if he was forcefully slowing them down.

“Hi, Jimmy. My last name is Tek,” Tango replied. “Does that make you feel more comfortable?”

Jimmy laughed and something eased in his chest. He sounded relieved. As though Tango might’ve reacted badly, abandoned him because he knew more. But Tango already knew Jimmy, at his core. Knowing his name and what he looked like was important, but nothing could make Tango live his life without Jimmy in it. 

“Go to sleep, Tango,” Jimmy said, his voice fond. Tango wanted to burrow in it, sleep in its warmth.

“Okay,” Tango’s voice was quiet and already half-asleep. He wasn’t awake to hear Jimmy hang up the call.

The next day, Tango was an amazing mix between elation, giddiness, and disbelief. Thrilling adrenaline seemed to race through his veins and every time the word Jimmy rang in his ears, his heart almost leapt out of his chest. He was distracted the whole day, to the point where he dropped his mug while he attempted to make coffee. It hit the floor with a thud and lost a chip on the rim, but remained mostly intact. 

This was a relief, because Tango refused to drink out of anything else. Zed, Impulse, and Skizz had it custom made as a joke birthday gift, and World’s Best FBI Agent! was inscribed on the side. Each of his best friends had drawn a heart surrounding the letters. It was stupid and frankly quite ugly and Tango loved it.

As he tried to leave the small kitchen with his coffee, he was cornered by his best friends. 

“Oh! Hey guys,” Tango said nervously.

Impulse narrowed his eyes. “Tango. You’ve been acting strangely.”

“No, I haven’t,” Tango replied reflexively and too fast.

“Right,” Impulse said. 

Skizz shouldered past him. He appraised Tango, but when he only looked back with wide eyes, his expression softened. “Top, buddy. We just want to make sure you’re okay. We’ve talked to Grian about this and he’s worried too. You don’t know anything about the Sheriff and everything he has told you could be a lie.”

“He wouldn’t do that. You don’t know him like I do,” Tango said with conviction. His eyes flicked between Impulse and Skizz. “He told me his name already.”

Impulse took control again. His tone was doubtful, as if he couldn’t see anything good in Jimmy and Tango’s relationship. “But do you know anything else? You don’t know anything real. I’m sure it feels nice hearing about his cat, but what does he look like? Where does he live? Who did he grow up with, does he have siblings?”

“Jimmy would never hurt me,” Tango said, frustrated.

“No one is saying he would, Top. We’re just worried he might be lying to you,” Skizz said placatingly.

Tango felt a pressure in his chest, a need to defend Jimmy. “I know him and that won’t change just because you don’t like him. I don’t need to know every single detail about him to know who he is!”

Impulse took a half-step back and raised his hands in front of him. “Okay-”

“No, you don’t get to accuse him of awful things and just say you’re worried! That’s not fair to me or Jimmy,” Tango panted. His anger was building faster than he could keep up with, and his next sentence exploded out of him. “I’m not stupid and I’m not a child. You’re supposed to support me, as my best friends!”

His anger fizzled out when he realized the whole office was gaping at him. Impulse looked taken-aback, and more concerned than he did before.

“ Tango, ” Grian called from across the room. He pointed to his open door. “My office, now.”

“Close the door.”

Tango sat in the chair across from Grian apprehensively. His sweaty hands twisted together shakily. “Hey, Grian,” he trailed off as Grian only looked at him in frustration.

“I’ve been very patient with you about the situation with the Sheriff,” Grian held his hand up when Tango went to interrupt. “ Listen. I trusted you to know your limits and keep yourself safe and I still do. But this has started impacting your work life too. You just yelled at your coworkers in a common space.”

Here, he stopped. He evaluated Tango’s reaction. Tango didn’t meet his eyes, instead looking at the desk by Grian’s clasped hands. His own fingers tapped his leg, over his pants. He resolutely stayed silent. Grian sighed.

“Take a week, Tango. Stay at home for a week to figure this out. You need a break.”

Tango swallowed past the lump in his throat and nodded in response. The room remained silent for several seconds before Grian slumped in his chair. “I’m not punishing you, Tango. Please don’t think that,” he said tiredly, as if the stress of the entire case weighed down his words. 

“Okay,” Tango rasped. He left the building in an anxious stupor, and found himself at home, laying on his bed before he even realized it. Jimmy? Are you busy?

Are you okay?

Tango rolled over and shoved his face into his pillow. He was trying so hard not to cry. No, he replied. Not at all. His phone vibrated with an incoming call. 

“Jimmy,” Tango’s voice sounded wet, even to his own ears. Knowing Jimmy was here, with him, was comforting. He just wished it was in person. He imagined his hacker next to him, holding his hand. He imagined feeling Jimmy’s slow breaths ruffling his hair gently. It ached. Maybe his friends were right. 

“What’s wrong?” Jimmy’s voice was panicked. “Darling, what happened?”

Tango choked on a sob. His breaths were rapid, too fast for him to calm down. “ Jimmy. They suspended me for a week.”

“Oh,” he breathed. “Because of me?”

“Not just you. I yelled at Impy,” Tango laughed, but it was fake. After a few seconds of tense silence, Tango asked, “What do you look like?”

Jimmy exhaled roughly. “Tango, I’m sorry-”

“Yeah, no, that’s fine. You don’t have to show me.”

“Darling, I never said that,” Jimmy’s voice was gentle. “I’m sorry that I didn’t show you sooner. If I knew it was bothering you this much- well, all you had to do was ask. You’re so important to me, Tango.”

Tango’s phone buzzed with a new message. He blinked through the tears in his eyes to see a photo. His heart beat faster than it ever had before when he opened it, and when he looked at Jimmy for the first time, he thought he would choke on the fondness he felt. He was smiling, looking down at Norman held in his arms. His eyes were so brown, warm like honey, and Tango thought he would die if Jimmy ever looked at him like that.

This new, real version of his Jimmy would make his daydreams endlessly better. Instead of making up what he expected the shade of his eyes to be, he had the real thing. Instead of imagining what colour hair he ran his fingers through, Tango knew it was blonde. 

“Oh,” he gasped. “ Oh, Jimmy. I want to kiss you so bad.” 

Tango froze when he realized what he’d said, but relaxed at Jimmy’s easy laugh. The fear that he ruined their entire relationship almost knocked him back to the bed. Relief like he’d never felt before ran through his veins.

“One day I’m going to kiss you so hard you feel how much I adore you.”

Tango closed his eyes. He felt like he was going to float out of his body, away and away until Jimmy found him and brought him back to Earth, by his side. Tango belonged at his side, a fact that he knew was true down to his bones. Jimmy not only being receptive of his feelings, but sharing them was surreal. Tango was filled with warmth with the knowledge that soon, he’d be able to call this hacker his.

There was a knock at his door, three days into his exile. Against his better judgement, Tango was the most relaxed he’d been in years. Jimmy didn’t have a regular job, so he was able to spend every one of those days talking to Tango. Making him laugh, and sending him pictures that made him swoon.

When Tango opened the door, Zedaph pushed his way in immediately. Skizz and Impulse followed more sedately. 

“Top,” Skizz said evenly, before grinning. “You look so relaxed! Completely different from when you were yelling at Dipple Dop.”

Tango groaned. “You didn’t have to remind me. I’m sorry Impy, by the way.”

Impulse waved him off. He turned wide eyes behind Tango, who spun around just too late to avoid Zedaph’s wrath. Wrath in the form of a big, warm hug and lighthearted beratements. 

When they were finally all sitting in his living room, Zedaph next to him and Skizz and Impulse on the floor next to each other, Tango took in a breath. “He showed me what he looks like. I think I’m in love with him.”

Here, his friends shared a look. Tango was sure they’d talked about this between them, where he couldn’t hear. He loved them, but sometimes they could be so nosy. It came from a place of love. Something must have been conveyed, because Zedaph snorted. “I could’ve told you that. You aren’t very subtle.”

Tango glared at him, then sighed. “Yeah, okay. You haven’t spoken to him, so you don’t get it. He’s captivating, amazing, and so beautiful.”

“You have heart eyes, buddy,” Skizz said.

“I’m not trying to change your mind or warn you away, but what are you going to do moving forward?” Impulse held out his hands placatingly. “He’s an illegal hacker and you’re an FBI agent. You see the problem?”

Tango exhaled, nodding. He could feel every eye in the room trained on him and the pressure was extreme. “This is going to sound crazy-”

Zedaph cut him off with a laugh. “Sorry, sorry. It’s just- this whole thing is crazy, has been from the start,” he said. He slouched back into the couch cushions when Tango glared at him.

“As I was saying, this is going to sound crazy, but I think I might quit. Jimmy is skilled enough to support us both until I find a new job. I really want to be with him, and that’s just not possible when it’s my job to catch him.”

Tango expected immediate backlash. He anticipated them to try to convince him otherwise, to stay at his job and stop talking to Jimmy. But they didn’t. Instead, they looked thoughtful.

“You’re serious about this? About him?” Impulse said. 

Tango nodded vigorously, but took the time to think about his response. This would be so much easier if they supported him. “I am. He’s the best kind of person and I think you’ll see that when you meet him one day,” he replied carefully.

“We’re with you,” Skizz said, laughing. Zedaph and Impulse agreed. Tango sighed in relief and beamed. 

Zedaph pounced on him with no warning, tackling Tango off the side of the couch to the floor. He squawked and tried to push Zedaph off of him, but gave into the ground-hug when Impulse and Skizz just laughed. 

Tango considered himself lucky to have his best friends.

Later, when he was telling Jimmy about the surprise visit, he was struck again with the urge to see his laugh in person. Did his smile take over his whole face? Or was it small and gentle?

“Jimmy? I’m quitting the force.”

Jimmy was silent. Tango could feel his shock through the phone screen. “What? Why are you doing that?”

“I can’t be with you when I’m expected to catch you.”

“Yes, but darling. That’s your job!” Jimmy sounded genuinely confused, as if Tango wouldn’t do anything for him. Tango hummed.

“I’ll find something else. You’ve told me before that you adore me and I obviously feel the same way about you, so why is this a surprise?”

“Is it too early to say I love you?” Jimmy said, awe in his voice. Tango wanted to wrap himself in the way his voice sounded right now. It was warm like a blanket, like a marshmallow in a fireplace. It was everything.

“No,” Tango said, voice choked. “I love you too.”

“Do I have permission to find your address? I need to kiss you tomorrow, desperately.”

Tango barely slept.

When he eventually did wake, he sat up abruptly. Jimmy. His apartment. Today!

They agreed to him coming over in the morning, because otherwise anticipation would kill them both. Tango dressed in his coziest red jumper with grey cargo pants and refused to change outfits in a panic. Jimmy loved him and what he wore wouldn’t change that. 

Jimmy knocked on the door. Tango watched the door with wide eyes, heart in his throat. When he turned the handle, his hand was shaking. He refused to meet Jimmy’s eyes, at first.

Jimmy tilted his head up with a hand under his chin. And when Tango finally met his warm honey eyes, a slow smile took over his face. Tango sighed dreamily.  He had imagined this, infinite times over countless nights. Jimmy looking into his eyes, touching him gently, had been stars in his daydreams. The real thing was so much better than he ever could’ve imagined. 

“Hi, darling,” Jimmy smiled. “You’re so perfect in real life.”

Having an actual real-life face to put to his fantasies made this whole meeting worth it, even if they never kissed. Jimmy’s smile and soft eyes replaced their half-formed, picture versions from his daydreams. How he had ever lived without this was a wonder. Will kissing him be better too?

“Can I kiss you?”

Tango’s ‘yes, please’ was smothered by Jimmy’s lips. He kissed Tango with quiet intensity, like he couldn’t get enough of him. Like Tango was precious and worth caring for and deserving of adoration. He’d never been kissed like this before and he was already addicted.

Jimmy swiped a thumb under Tango’s eyes, cradling his face gently. He eventually pulled back, but left a kiss on his nose as he retreated. “Wow,” Tango said breathlessly.

Jimmy just grinned and left another soft kiss, on his cheek this time.

Tango still had to talk to Grian and to tell his best friends about Jimmy, but each new time Jimmy kissed him, these things seemed less urgent. Tango had Jimmy forever, yes, but he also had him now. He was right there, ready for Tango to kiss to death, and it would be a crime not to.