"I can't believe I have to deal with you today." He muttered, buckling up.

"Yeah well I didn't exactly want this either. I'd rather be by myself." I rolled my eyes, starting the engine.

I drove to the front of the building, seeing the captain get in his own personal squad car.

He waved for me to go ahead of him.

I turned on the GPS and typed in the address sent to me.

It was about a 20 minute car ride, and of course I knew what the house looked like, but I had to remember to act clueless.

The car ride was a silent one, as it usually is between Michael and I.

We didn't exactly get along, I've went to the captain about it, but he refused to assign me a new one.

It's not that Michael is a bad guy, he's just very grumpy, and likes to play bad cop.

Meanwhile I'm usually a friendly person, and don't like to go straight to violence and threatening people.

Despite those factors, Michael is a very attractive guy.

If he didn't have to be so moody all the time, I may have found myself enjoying being his partner.

But he was moody all the time.

Once we arrived to the neighborhood, police cars and crime scene tape was scattered everywhere.

Every house had a cop car in front of it, interviewing the families inside.

Our scene of the crime was very obvious, with at least 3 squad cars in front of it, and tape surrounding it.

Police officers were pushing nosy neighbors back who were trying to get a look at the inside.

I parked our car across the street, grabbing my note pad full of Jeff related incidents before exiting the car.

Michael took one last swig of his coffee before following me.

The officers moved the tape for us, granting us access to the house.

"Clear the people away, would you please?" I asked one of the officers.

He nodded curtly before beginning to shoo the neighbors like flies.

I already knew what awaited inside, and I'd smelled the stench of death before, but this was ridiculous.

The smell was vaguely recognizable from outside the house, but once you stepped in, it nearly choked you.

I gagged, pulling my shirt collar over my nose to try and filter the smell.

Michael's eyes began to visibly water, but he didn't react as I did.

The forensics team had already cleared the place, so the room was empty besides the two of us.

"God this is horrible." I commented.

"Pussy." Michael spat.

I glared at him before looking around the room.

The body had maggots in its wounds, and the blood was now dried.

The pictures had been removed right away as evidence, but the square outline of where they were was still evident thanks to the blood splatters.

"Have you seen the pictures?" I asked Michael.

"No. They took them all in already as evidence. I think they took the computer, too." He responded, stepping past me to get to the body.

He crouched down and shook his head, looking at the wounds.

"Damn, the monster really did a number on him, huh? Not that he didn't deserve it, but this is brutal." Michael said.

"By "monster" do you mean Jeff?" I questioned.

"Don't call it by its name. Remember what it's done to innocent people." He spat.

"He's still a human." I argued back, my voice clearly showing that I was getting angry.

"What the fuck is your problem? You're defending a cold blooded monster, (L/N)." He stood up and walked over to me, making me back up a bit.

"He's not a monster!" I yelled.

Michael now backed up, a certain look in his eyes.

"What do you know that we don't?" He asked, an accusing tone to his voice.

"Don't accuse me of something you know nothing about. You haven't worked on this case a single minute outside of field work. And don't forget who's been chasing this man for 5 fucking years, Michael! I have dedicated my entire career to solving these cases. And what have you done besides cheat on your wife with your coworkers?!" I was seething with rage at this point, seeing nothing but red.

"(L/N), when was the last time you took your pills?" He asked.

"What the fuck do you mean?" I questioned.

"You know what I mean." He said, his voice completely calm.

"I can't deal with you anymore." I shook my head and walked out the front door, making my way to the car.

"(L/N)! Where the hell do you think you're going?!" My captain yelled.

"Family emergency!" I yelled back, slamming the car door closed.

"Wha-" his voice got cut off when I started the car engine and began to drive off.

I sighed once I left the neighborhood, feeling my worries melt away as my brain reverted back to its happy place.

I dropped the squad car off at the station before getting onto the bus.

I plugged in my earbuds and clicked my playlist, letting the music drown out the voices around me.

The bus dropped me off at the station nearest to my apartment, much to my relief.

I waved at the attendant at the front desk and climbed into the elevator, going up to my floor.

My apartment wasn't locked, so I threw the door open and kicked off my shoes, instantly running and flopping onto the couch.

"(Y/N)?" I heard Jeff's voice, making me sit up.

He was holding his knife, standing in the doorway to my bedroom.

After one look, he could tell I hadn't had a good day.

"What happened?" He asked, setting his knife on my dresser and making his way over to me.

"Nothing. Just some asshole at work." I muttered.

He sat down next to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, pulling my head into his chest.

"Tell me all about it."