I wasn't sure what I was expecting when we pulled into the busy parking lot. City bars were different to country bars, but this wasn't a country bar. This was a small suburb in between city and country, it was bustling, but not in an overwhelming sense. The music could be heard the moment we stepped out of the car, a deep beat bouncing through the brick walls. Towards the back of the building, lights flashed, strobes of white and neon blue mimicking the song playing.

At the front of the entrance, four men stood against the green hedges lining the brickwork, chatting lowly with two of them puffing away despite the very obvious NO SMOKING sign directly behind where they loitered. The moment we passed them, a distinct smell ran up my nose and I suppressed a laugh, holding my head down to hide it as we entered the doorway

"What?" Dawson had noticed

"Does that bother you?" I nodded my head in their direction behind us

He shrugged "I can't be a cop all the time"

If I had been him, I couldn't have imagined being as lenient as to pass people doing something illegal without saying something. I had always viewed Dawson as a firm and no-excuse kind of officer, but that image was starting to crack and I could see the human side of him more and more each day.

Moving through a narrow hallway, it opened into a spiderweb of spaces. To our left was a large restaurant, various family friendly groupings seated inside the quieter area for dinner. To our right were two sliding closed doors, a sign on the front to warn those who were underage of the consequences of their entering. This was the gambling den, poker machines inside flashing with bright colors through the almost transparent glass doors.

Directly in front of us, two entrances split, one into a decking area which was family oriented, a playground on soft fall to keep the kids entertained while the parents sat at the wooden tables, drinking and eating meals from the small buffet to the side. The other entrance was hidden by a single door, and when a merry couple strolled out, I peaked through the gaps between them spying the dancing lights of blue and white, this was where the party scene was.

Following closely beside Dawson, I hadn't had time to be curious of which one we were going to enter, out direction headed into the party scene. I was nervous, it hadn't seemed like the kind of environment I had usually involved myself with, and I couldn't understand that it had been Dawson's kind of crowd either.

The music was loud, but when we set foot inside the doors, I realized there was much more to it than just a dance floor with a DJ. Appreciating the low light settings, I could see that on the far right side of the room was a bar, booths and tables set up for those over 21 to use. It was early, so it was relatively quiet, comfortable spaces to move freely without pushing and shoving. Come 11pm, I could imagine that the room would be entirely different.

Taking a seat on the black leather stools at the bar, we were approached by a middle aged bartender, his tie crooked, off center when he greeted us

Expecting Dawson to flake out, my mouth near dropped when he had ordered himself a beer, both he and the bartenders eyes turning casually to me to make my order. I mentally shook myself to focus, stumbling slightly before deciding on a gin and tonic.

"A beer.." I tapped my fingers against the wooden oak bar

"My first and last for the night" He revealed

Looking around the room, I took in the many bodies and faces. Few patrons were dancing, but there were the few, already keen to get their night started, stumbling and laughing. Most were doing as we were, sitting and taking it easy with a drink or two.

I recognised the original beat and lyrics of the remix song being played, knowing that Camille would have most definitely gotten herself up to dance along. She was always a lot more outgoing than I was, social and bubbly, she was good to be around, I wasn't as outgoing as I had wished, but I knew how to have a good time when the time was right.

When the door to the club opened, it caught my eye, my attention captured. One after the other a group of mid-twenties entered, they were drop dead gorgeous, three women two with long dark curled hair, one blonde, professionally styled makeup and tight cocktail dresses, one red, one black and one navy. Following closely behind were 4 men. They were each styled differently, but were matched perfectly with the women.

I wasn't an insecure person, but these people suddenly had me feeling like the size of an ant. I was underdressed and the lack of normalcy had me a little more sensitive than usual.

The group began towards the bar behind where we had moved to a tall circular table, they were lowly chatting, laughing, eager for a good night.

One by one they kept their heads forward, uninterested in anyone else within the club, confident and reassured within themselves. Jealousy ran through me, why couldn't that have been Camille and I? Why had I been chosen by the universe to be the one in the store the moment the brothers decided to rob it? I was a firm believer that everything happened for a reason, but that reason was still unknown, I was still trying to figure that part out.

"You okay?" Dawson asked, his eyes on me carefully, noticing my mental distancing

Shaking myself off, I gave him a small smile "Yeah, I'm good"

Seeing his face, his eyes, it pulled me back to reality. This wasn't so bad, not with him beside me, I was glad it was him, I was comforted by him just being there.

"So you and your cousin, what did you do when you snuck into here?" I tried to create conversation

He suppressed a smile looking into the forming crowds, always aware of our surroundings "Cause trouble.."

"You? Cause trouble? I don't know if I believe that" I scoffed as I took a sip of my drink

He turned to look at me, this time his smile visible, pulled gently at the corner of his lips "I'll spare you the details, I wouldn't want you to think otherwise of me"

Now I was the one forcing back a smile, fully invested "Oh c'mon, you can't leave it like that.."

"Oh yes I can" He lifted his beer to his lips. I watched the movement and released a grin

"What?" He asked once he'd swallowed his mouthful

I shrugged "It's nice to see you like.." I waivered a hand over him "This, relaxed.."

"I genuinely wish I could say the same for you" He was watching me intently, his smile straightening out

"Maybe one day.." I turned my gaze back to the room, anywhere but his face

There was no relaxing for me, not entirely anyways. I was always on edge, I always needed to be carful and aware of what could happen to my life at any point. The moment I allowed myself to relax, was the moment I would probably come face to face with my maker.

"Jasmine.." Dawson spoke my name, urging me to look back towards him. He sounded serious, and when I met his eyes, he appeared serious, he opened his mouth to speak when two men entered our space behind Dawson, shouting in greeting to him.

Dawson was startled, his hand briefly moving to the small opening of his shirt at his chest to reach for his weapon, but his demeanour changed when he met their faces.

Standing, Dawson gave them each a brief hug whilst patting their backs "Adam, York, you guys still coming here?"

"Yeah of course we are man" The taller man smiled, a small gap between his front two teeth "Did not at all expect to see you here though" He told him, a beer in one hand, his dark eyes noticing me sitting awkwardly at the table

Dawson had also noticed "Adam, York, this is.. this is Jasmine, a friend of mine" He introduced, the two men nodding to me in greeting, quickly and not so subtly looking me up and down "Nice to meet you Jasmine" The dirty blond man known as York spoke, his tone quieter than his friend Adam

"York and Adam grew up here, my cousin Wes and I met them in this club when we were young" Dawson informed me

"So what are you doing back here? I mean, you're still a cop on the big city aren't you?" Adam pulled a chair from another table, joining us

"Yeah, yeah I am" I could see that he hadn't expected to be put on the spot, was he going to tell them the truth? "I have a pile of available leave, hadn't been here in a while so thought I'd come down for a visit" He shrugged casually

"And Jasmine, you aren't a cop too are you?" Adam turned to me, the inevitable questions beginning

I shook my head "God no" A small scoff escaping "I'm a.. I'm actually studying planetary astronomy"

"No way, that sounds interesting" Adam nodded, intrigued as most people were

"So how did you two meet then? I can't imagine that those two jobs would intersect.." York looked in between Dawson and I.

I held my drink between both hands, nervous, I didn't know how to lie, I didn't know what I was supposed to say, and thankfully Dawson could see that, answering for us

"A friend of hers was involved in one of my cases, Jasmine was her support during an interview" He shrugged

Adam and York seemed to have bought it and allowed themselves to believe it. They continued on with their questions, only shooting a few in my direction, most of their attention was on their friend, Dawson who they hadn't seen in over a year. I listened carefully to the conversation, focusing on the things that Adam and York were revealing about Dawson unknowingly. I enjoyed knowing more about Dawson, I liked hearing about his past, his life, I always felt that I needed to know more about him, about who he was beneath the badge.

I had finished my drink quicker than intended and as the night progressed, the music became louder, the crowds thicker. I was becoming overwhelmed, so I stood and waved my empty glass in note to Dawson that I was headed to the bar to get another. He could only nod, not having the opportunity to shadow me without raising questions with his friends.

Squeezing between two bodies at the bar, I tapped the empty glass with my fingers, waiting to be served. Voices were loud around me, talking over one another, barely understandable. I was enjoying being out of the house, but I was starting to grow agitated.

When the bartender reached me, he took my order and turned to fill it when a body beside me twisted forward, their eyes on my face, pulling my attention to them

"Kyle" He told me with his hand outright, his deep green eyes taking in my features

"Jasmine" I responded as my drink was returned, full, my fingers digging into my jacket for the notes packed inside

"On me" Kyle had briskly reached forward, paying for my gin. I knew where it was going instantly, I knew what men assumed would happen when they paid for a woman's drink. Usually I wouldn't have been mad about it, I probably would have leaned into it, but I knew that a few meters away sat Dawson, probably watching me

"Thanks" I told him with a small smile when he began his attempt

"You aren't from around here are you?" He smiled, his teeth straight and white

I shook my head "No I'm not, just visiting"

I needed to escape, but a small part of me wanted to talk to him. He didn't know who I was really, he didn't know what I was running from, to this person, I could be whoever I wanted him to see me as.

"You live here?" I asked

He nodded "Born and raised, so are you here with friends or you just made an independent trip?"

"I actually-.." I was cut off when Dawson appeared beside me, his hand instantly on my back

"Hey, you okay?" He asked, his eyes only looking to me for a split second before returning to Kyle in front of me

"I'm fine" I told him, unmoving, unsure of what he was doing. I had hoped he would take my unwillingness to move as a sign that I was genuinely okay and move on, but he didn't. Suddenly I was irritated that he was standing beside me like he owned me. I understood that he had a job to do, but I was in a nightclub full of people, there was no way someone would do anything where we were sitting.