Fic: you and i, we can play this game (Bo/Lauren; PG)
you and i, we can play this game
lost girl, bo/lauren; pg. 1500 words.
characters do not belong to me. in response to the prompt "suburban espionage au" for grayjo here. written as part of the bo_lauren hiatus ficathon.
*
It’s all very ordinary, except for the part where it’s not.
She lives in a small house in the suburbs.
Two bedrooms, one dog, nosy neighbours.
She also works for a secret division in the government, but that’s on a need-to-know basis only.
*
There’s a new arrival in town.
She waits two days, and then, like any other good neighbour would, walks over to the newcomer’s house.
(It’s a four-bedroom, clearly made for a family, but so far Mrs. Johnson has only seen the one woman living inside, and a pointed isn’t that just a bit odd, Dr. Lewis?
Lauren doesn’t overthink the implications).
“Bo,” is what the other woman says by way of introduction when she answers the door.
Lauren offers her hand and some muffins with a shy smile, tries to disguise her surprise at the warm feeling traveling up her arm when her proffered hand is taken.
It’s something more than just the beginning of- whatever, she thinks, as she steps into the foyer, curling her fingers as she tries to rid herself of the sensation.
It’s not normal at all.
*
Work is uninteresting, and that’s the best way she can put it.
She knows it’s only a matter of time before they have the new lab up and running - and then she’ll be free to conduct research as she pleases - but until then, she’s stuck with a needle and a stethoscope, screening agents twenty-four-seven.
She has an hour left till her lunch break when she’s called into the director’s office.
“Dr. Lewis.”
“Director. You wished to see me?”
“We might have a… situation on our hands.”
Lauren doesn’t know what this means, exactly, but knows what her response should be.
“What do you need me to do?”
*
As it turns out, Bo is not just Bo, friendly next-door neighbour.
Lauren isn’t privy to the details; she never is, and everything is on a need-to-know basis with the Ash - that is, the director - but for once, she wishes she were.
For goodness’ sake, she’s the one tasked to this surveillance operation.
*
Saturday evening finds her over at Bo’s for the welcome barbeque.
The house is more of a home than it was the last time she was here, fire crackling in the hearth, pictures on the wall, even fairy lights in the garden. It’s almost like a dream.
She’s stuck in a conversation with Mrs. Johnson, discussing how lovely the place is, when she feels a light touch at her elbow.
And it’s not just relief that blooms up inside of her, that starts at her belly. She knows instantly who it is without turning around, and takes a hasty sip of her water in a half-hearted attempt to quell the feeling.
“I certainly don’t do anything,” Bo confides in Lauren as she takes a swig of her beer, and for a moment, Lauren’s not sure to what she’s referring. And then with an impish grin and a wink, Bo leans in and adds conspirationally, “I have a Brownie who does all the cleaning around here.”
The back of her hand brushes against Lauren’s, and that feeling is back, if only for a moment.
It’s strong enough to make her forget anything else she may have wanted to say in response, but not strong enough to shake the feeling that Bo isn’t joking - not about Brownies, at least.
She files that piece of information away, and slips off while Bo entertains Mrs. Johnson.
*
She tries not to feel guilty about it, spying on Bo.
But it’s difficult not to, when Bo has been nothing but warm to her - saying hi to her in the mornings when she takes Darwin out for a walk, engaging in friendly conversation, inviting her over for drinks.
And yes, it’s crossed her mind once or twice or maybe ten times that this is just a farce, something to lure her into a false sense of security. But she only has to look at Bo once, the openness in her eyes, the carefree way she conducts herself…
She finds it difficult to believe that this woman poses a danger to national security.
*
It’s a little too much, sometimes -
Lauren has always been a private person, and having someone genuinely interested in her life, interested in her, is a little unsettling.
They’re friends, almost, sort of.
(They could be, is the point she’s trying to make, if Lauren wasn’t spying on her).
*
Bo kisses her the fifth time she comes over.
She’s so shocked that the glass slips from her hand, tumbles to the floor.
Red pools around their feet, and she wonders if this is foreshadowing.
*
Every time she visits, she can see the red on the carpet, an imposing reminder.
She doesn’t let it happen again.
*
To put it plainly, she’s a terrible spy.
She’s not built for this. She doesn’t know how to separate her personal life from her professional spy life - if it even can be called that - and finds it exhausting to sneak around whenever Bo has her back turned.
She’s a researcher, through and through.
And so she deals the only way she knows how: She researches.
*
She tries not to think about how quickly time has flown.
It’s been three months - a whole season of getting to know Bo, of spending time with her, letting herself grow fond of her. It’s hot chocolate and cupcakes and warmth, and it’s… nice.
There hasn’t been anything to suggest that there’s anything even remotely criminal about Bo.
“She’s normal,” Lauren says, her voice carefully steady. “Just a regular young woman.”
What she doesn’t say is what she’s sure he wants to hear, and - she’s certain - the reason he’s assigned her to keep an eye on the other woman in the first place. The reason Lauren always feels a little something else whenever she shares even the most fleeting of touches with Bo.
She’s not sure what Bo is, not really. She just knows that she’s not normal.
*
“You okay?”
“What?” Lauren is startled out of her thoughts, and quickly focuses her attention on Bo and the plate of pasta in front of her. She shakes her head briefly and picks up her fork. “Yes. Yes, of course.”
“It’s just that-” Bo picks up her glass, takes a sip. When she sets it back down, Lauren can see the beginnings of a smile on her features. “-I said I was a succubus working for a special unit of the RCMP, and - call me spoiled, but I’m used to getting a better reaction than the one I just got.”
Lauren doesn’t know how to hide her amusement, and so she doesn’t. She smiles wide instead, and twirls the spaghetti around her fork. “Right, and I’m a researcher in a top-secret sector of the government.”
There’s a slight pause, and then Bo grins. “Well, I’m glad we got that out of the way. How’s dinner?”
Lauren laughs, but the way Bo looks at her later that night, before she bids her goodbye -
It makes her wonder if she wasn’t the only one telling the truth.
*
Another month passes, and it’s the annual Welcoming Spring party.
They’re in the kitchen - Bo’s kitchen, of course, as Lauren is still a private person, and only allows company over every once in a while. Bo, on the other hand, doesn’t really seem to care who traipses around her house - probably something that should have been a giveaway that she wasn’t anything to worry about, all those months ago.
“So?”
“Hmm?”
“Aren’t you going to reward me for rescuing you from Mrs. Johnson again?”
Lauren smiles at that. “I was doing just fine.”
Bo has a hand wrapped around Lauren’s arm, and Lauren can feel her touch acutely, the way her insides warm, but starting from this point of contact, from Bo’s hand, and this… this feeling. There’s more to it than just a silly crush.
“We really shouldn’t be doing this,” Lauren sighs as she pulls her hand away, though her voice lacks conviction.
Bo must pick up on this, because instead of backing off, she leans forward and whispers, “Doing what?”
For a moment, Lauren considers it - considers pushing at Bo’s shoulders, telling her to stop. But it’s been months, months since she met Bo, months during which she’s wanted Bo. Months during which - she’s almost positive - Bo’s wanted her.
And maybe they have a lot to talk about. Like how Lauren actually does work for a secret division of the government, and how Bo is probably a succubus and may or may not also be working for the government. And how this is most likely not going to end well. It’s a lot, Lauren realizes.
But that’s really not the point right now.
Because right now, Bo is standing in front of her, lips parted, breath warm, eyes expectant, and all Lauren wants to do is give in.
So she does.
*
lost girl, bo/lauren; pg. 1500 words.
characters do not belong to me. in response to the prompt "suburban espionage au" for grayjo here. written as part of the bo_lauren hiatus ficathon.
*
It’s all very ordinary, except for the part where it’s not.
She lives in a small house in the suburbs.
Two bedrooms, one dog, nosy neighbours.
She also works for a secret division in the government, but that’s on a need-to-know basis only.
*
There’s a new arrival in town.
She waits two days, and then, like any other good neighbour would, walks over to the newcomer’s house.
(It’s a four-bedroom, clearly made for a family, but so far Mrs. Johnson has only seen the one woman living inside, and a pointed isn’t that just a bit odd, Dr. Lewis?
Lauren doesn’t overthink the implications).
“Bo,” is what the other woman says by way of introduction when she answers the door.
Lauren offers her hand and some muffins with a shy smile, tries to disguise her surprise at the warm feeling traveling up her arm when her proffered hand is taken.
It’s something more than just the beginning of- whatever, she thinks, as she steps into the foyer, curling her fingers as she tries to rid herself of the sensation.
It’s not normal at all.
*
Work is uninteresting, and that’s the best way she can put it.
She knows it’s only a matter of time before they have the new lab up and running - and then she’ll be free to conduct research as she pleases - but until then, she’s stuck with a needle and a stethoscope, screening agents twenty-four-seven.
She has an hour left till her lunch break when she’s called into the director’s office.
“Dr. Lewis.”
“Director. You wished to see me?”
“We might have a… situation on our hands.”
Lauren doesn’t know what this means, exactly, but knows what her response should be.
“What do you need me to do?”
*
As it turns out, Bo is not just Bo, friendly next-door neighbour.
Lauren isn’t privy to the details; she never is, and everything is on a need-to-know basis with the Ash - that is, the director - but for once, she wishes she were.
For goodness’ sake, she’s the one tasked to this surveillance operation.
*
Saturday evening finds her over at Bo’s for the welcome barbeque.
The house is more of a home than it was the last time she was here, fire crackling in the hearth, pictures on the wall, even fairy lights in the garden. It’s almost like a dream.
She’s stuck in a conversation with Mrs. Johnson, discussing how lovely the place is, when she feels a light touch at her elbow.
And it’s not just relief that blooms up inside of her, that starts at her belly. She knows instantly who it is without turning around, and takes a hasty sip of her water in a half-hearted attempt to quell the feeling.
“I certainly don’t do anything,” Bo confides in Lauren as she takes a swig of her beer, and for a moment, Lauren’s not sure to what she’s referring. And then with an impish grin and a wink, Bo leans in and adds conspirationally, “I have a Brownie who does all the cleaning around here.”
The back of her hand brushes against Lauren’s, and that feeling is back, if only for a moment.
It’s strong enough to make her forget anything else she may have wanted to say in response, but not strong enough to shake the feeling that Bo isn’t joking - not about Brownies, at least.
She files that piece of information away, and slips off while Bo entertains Mrs. Johnson.
*
She tries not to feel guilty about it, spying on Bo.
But it’s difficult not to, when Bo has been nothing but warm to her - saying hi to her in the mornings when she takes Darwin out for a walk, engaging in friendly conversation, inviting her over for drinks.
And yes, it’s crossed her mind once or twice or maybe ten times that this is just a farce, something to lure her into a false sense of security. But she only has to look at Bo once, the openness in her eyes, the carefree way she conducts herself…
She finds it difficult to believe that this woman poses a danger to national security.
*
It’s a little too much, sometimes -
Lauren has always been a private person, and having someone genuinely interested in her life, interested in her, is a little unsettling.
They’re friends, almost, sort of.
(They could be, is the point she’s trying to make, if Lauren wasn’t spying on her).
*
Bo kisses her the fifth time she comes over.
She’s so shocked that the glass slips from her hand, tumbles to the floor.
Red pools around their feet, and she wonders if this is foreshadowing.
*
Every time she visits, she can see the red on the carpet, an imposing reminder.
She doesn’t let it happen again.
*
To put it plainly, she’s a terrible spy.
She’s not built for this. She doesn’t know how to separate her personal life from her professional spy life - if it even can be called that - and finds it exhausting to sneak around whenever Bo has her back turned.
She’s a researcher, through and through.
And so she deals the only way she knows how: She researches.
*
She tries not to think about how quickly time has flown.
It’s been three months - a whole season of getting to know Bo, of spending time with her, letting herself grow fond of her. It’s hot chocolate and cupcakes and warmth, and it’s… nice.
There hasn’t been anything to suggest that there’s anything even remotely criminal about Bo.
“She’s normal,” Lauren says, her voice carefully steady. “Just a regular young woman.”
What she doesn’t say is what she’s sure he wants to hear, and - she’s certain - the reason he’s assigned her to keep an eye on the other woman in the first place. The reason Lauren always feels a little something else whenever she shares even the most fleeting of touches with Bo.
She’s not sure what Bo is, not really. She just knows that she’s not normal.
*
“You okay?”
“What?” Lauren is startled out of her thoughts, and quickly focuses her attention on Bo and the plate of pasta in front of her. She shakes her head briefly and picks up her fork. “Yes. Yes, of course.”
“It’s just that-” Bo picks up her glass, takes a sip. When she sets it back down, Lauren can see the beginnings of a smile on her features. “-I said I was a succubus working for a special unit of the RCMP, and - call me spoiled, but I’m used to getting a better reaction than the one I just got.”
Lauren doesn’t know how to hide her amusement, and so she doesn’t. She smiles wide instead, and twirls the spaghetti around her fork. “Right, and I’m a researcher in a top-secret sector of the government.”
There’s a slight pause, and then Bo grins. “Well, I’m glad we got that out of the way. How’s dinner?”
Lauren laughs, but the way Bo looks at her later that night, before she bids her goodbye -
It makes her wonder if she wasn’t the only one telling the truth.
*
Another month passes, and it’s the annual Welcoming Spring party.
They’re in the kitchen - Bo’s kitchen, of course, as Lauren is still a private person, and only allows company over every once in a while. Bo, on the other hand, doesn’t really seem to care who traipses around her house - probably something that should have been a giveaway that she wasn’t anything to worry about, all those months ago.
“So?”
“Hmm?”
“Aren’t you going to reward me for rescuing you from Mrs. Johnson again?”
Lauren smiles at that. “I was doing just fine.”
Bo has a hand wrapped around Lauren’s arm, and Lauren can feel her touch acutely, the way her insides warm, but starting from this point of contact, from Bo’s hand, and this… this feeling. There’s more to it than just a silly crush.
“We really shouldn’t be doing this,” Lauren sighs as she pulls her hand away, though her voice lacks conviction.
Bo must pick up on this, because instead of backing off, she leans forward and whispers, “Doing what?”
For a moment, Lauren considers it - considers pushing at Bo’s shoulders, telling her to stop. But it’s been months, months since she met Bo, months during which she’s wanted Bo. Months during which - she’s almost positive - Bo’s wanted her.
And maybe they have a lot to talk about. Like how Lauren actually does work for a secret division of the government, and how Bo is probably a succubus and may or may not also be working for the government. And how this is most likely not going to end well. It’s a lot, Lauren realizes.
But that’s really not the point right now.
Because right now, Bo is standing in front of her, lips parted, breath warm, eyes expectant, and all Lauren wants to do is give in.
So she does.
*