Message: II

"How's it... aw, shit, Aria, everything's okay?" one of her colleagues asked in the very moment he saw her throwing furiously a pack of cigarettes on her desk. The cardboard box bumped off of the computer screen and smashed the desktop with a loud thud. "Callaghan?"

"Don't you even fucking start." She growled at him, throwing an empty box on the desk, opening the drawer and taking out everything from there, packing it to the box.

"Oh my god, don't tell me you got fired."

"Bardel, you'd be better off if you'd closed your mouth." She snarled, giving him a death glare. He swallowed, but didn't step back. Somehow she admired it, but she wasn't sure if he was brave, or just plainly stupid. "No, I wasn't fired. I've been moved."

"Where?" he seemed surprised, but she shrugged, diving under the desk, seeking something she didn't know about. Maybe she was doing it just not to look at him?

"The fuck if I know." Her voice, muffled, reached him in the moment when her fingers finally found what she was hoping to find, and when she wanted to go from under the desk, she hit it with her head. "Fuck my life! ARGH!"

"You having fun, miss Callaghan?" she heard from behind her, and, rubbing the bumped part of her head, she looked around, not even standing up. She saw a woman, clearly older than her, not much, though, dressed in elegant suit, without even one wrinkle. Aria raised her eyebrow.

"You can say that, if it wasn't for the fact that it's mrs. Callaghan." She shrugged.

"Ah, pardon, I didn't know you were married." The intruder didn't seem to be even interested. Aria shrugged again, rolling her eyes, and then putting two bottles of Jägermeister into the box. One of them was half empty.

"As if it was even concerning you." Callaghan scoffed, looking at her. "To what don't I owe the pleasure? I kinda am in the middle of something." She almost growled, but the woman didn't seem to care. "So? Can I help you with something? At the same time be aware I warned you that I don't have time, so it better be something that others can do for you."

"I'm Toussaint." She stated, but Aria just raised her eyebrow and opened her eyes wider in a mocking way, waving her hands.

"So? Is that supposed to tell me something? Fucking Frenchies, always thinking they're better than the rest." She scoffed, opening another drawer to empty it to the box.

"I think it had come to your attention that commander Rogers moved you under my wings."

Aria stiffened for a split of a second. No, that couldn't be it. She looked at the woman.

Ironed, perfectly shiny suit, straight outta chemical laundry. Polished leather shoes on not that high heel. Poker face contrasting with Callaghan's permanent bitchface. This Toussaint looked like she was even waking up glued to a ruler. That had to be a joke.

Aria snorted with laughter and then she shook her head, pretending she was wiping out the tears.

"Good one. Now, what do you really want? And if anyone else can assist you in that, please, do use them."

"Oh, after three minutes in your company I can say that I'd be delighted to be taken care of by anyone but you, although I'm afraid it's not possible. Chyler Toussaint, criminal investigator. You're my partner from now on."

Callaghan looked at her again, seeing Toussaint wasn't joking. She groaned.

"Jesus fucking Christ, and I thought crimes were about murders, not catwalks."

"Excuse me?" Toussaint raised her eyebrows, but Aria just shrugged.

"You heard it, Frenchie."

And she ignored her, since she needed to finish gathering her belongings.