Hello everyone!

To all those who are reaching the end of their week off I hope you have enjoyed it!

This is written for XTimeGirlX's I-pod shuffle contest, I really hope you all enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Ashes to Ashes characters, I just like to borrow them occasionally =D

The song is One Republic – Sleep... Very good song.

Talk to myself again, all alone, on my own

She spoke into the tape as she did every night. Firstly she announced the date and then begun talking about numerous topics before finally ending with the same promise she enforced every night, the promise of returning to her daughter, but tonight was different. At first these tapes had been her only way of communicating with her daughter, they were her own saddened messages over being so far away from her, but as time went by and her distress decreased the tapes were no longer for her daughter, instead they were her own thoughts and feelings centred around one man.

Tonight however, she spoke to her daughter again and she cried into that small tape recorder over her sorrow and regret, but eventually she said her final goodbye, before finally placing the recorder away to gather dust, never to be touched again.

She touched up her cracked make-up before putting on her famous white leather jacket.

She walked down to their usual space; their circular corner table, tucked away, almost hidden from the peering eyes of CID. She looked, but he wasn't there. She glanced into the laughing faces of her friends and colleagues and smiled at the scene they were creating, but she couldn't join them, not now.

Walk by the scene again, just to see what people see

Upon seeing his vacant chair in Luigi's she knew that there was only one other place he could be.

Exiting the tiny restaurant the bitter night air invaded her lungs and attacked every inch of her skin, but she powered on. The moon cast an eerie shadow throughout the streets of London, her boots creating an echo throughout the concrete walls and her breath created a light fog in front of her. However she didn't notice any of this as he was her only thought.

Then she saw the building and she quickened her pace, her heartbeat tripled knowing that he was inside and her mind began to organize her thoughts of what she would say.

How she would tell him.

Once she was inside she stopped, suddenly realizing the true extent of what she was going to do and panic begun to settle in. It was never too late, she thought, never too late just to turn back and pick up that tape recorder once more. Her hands trembled subconsciously from the adrenaline that was rushing through her veins.

She took a deep breath, knowing that she was stuck with him and even if she did turn back now she would eventually find herself in the same position again in the near future because she knew that her heart now belonged to him.

Caught in your stubborn hold and I'm so far from home

She slowly made her way through the darkened corridors until she was stood against the double doors leading into his kingdom. A dim glow melted through the closed blinds of his enclosed office, his door ajar and all she wanted to do was see him and tell him what she had come here to say.

Her hands rested on the cold metal handle of the double doors and yet she didn't push them, despite wanting to see him more than anything in that moment, but that was the problem, what happens if this was only ever temporary and in months to come she ended up regretting her decision, worse, what if she ended up resenting, even blaming him. What would she do if this light that was burning within her dimmed and dyed out, leaving her with nothing?

So turn the lights on, turn the lights on, turn the lights on for me

He was her everything here, she had come to learn that, but before she could tell him she needed to be sure that he would keep this light within her burning. She needed to be sure she was making the right decision.

Keep the lights on, keep the lights on, keep the lights on for me. Don't go to sleep

Lightly she pushed open the wooden door and let it swing back behind her. She walked past the desks of her colleagues that overflowed with paperwork and cigarette ash and soon her hand lay against that of Gene Hunt's door. Her palms were sweaty as she pushed lightly on the door to reveal the man himself, with a pad in one hand and a pencil in the other in deep concentration.

He didn't even look up, didn't even notice she had entered his den.

Lost in your thoughts again, consciously you think of me

His forehead was creased in a deep concentration as he looked down at whatever it was that he was scribbling on the pad. He was also wearing what seemed to be a rather cheeky half grin, causing her heart to beat so hard and fast she could hear it beating and banging against her rib cage.

She wondered as she stood there, still unnoticed, if he was doing another doodle of her. She smiled at the thought. Ray and Chris had never been any good at keeping anything to themselves, as it took only one of her serious looks for both of them to come clean on the content of that piece of paper all those months ago.

Focus your perfect words with a pen you write me in

As she stood there and watched him she felt almost as if she were invisible and was looking in on the private life of Gene Hunt. She felt as if she was catching him at a moment in which he didn't surround himself with sarcasm and insults, he was calm, with no scum to catch, no suspect to beat a confession out of, he was just himself in his world, unaware that he world was being spied on by an invader.

She was so close to him, close enough that she could smell his cheap aftershave and yet in that moment she felt so far from him, he seemed different. She believed that she had seen a side to him that nobody else had been allowed to see; his softer side "but beneath it all you are, a good, kind, decent man" and yet looking at him in that moment he looked so very different and it excited her because she had thought that she had him all figured out, but she realised now that in fact she had only scratched the surface and she couldn't wait to dive in.

She was making the right decision, she was sure of it now.

I can't be reached, so far from here, I need you near

She coughed to gain his attention and gain his attention she did, in fact he jumped about twenty foot in the air.

"Jesus Drake"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you"

"Scare me? Yer almost bleeding killed me"

While speaking she noticed his rushed hiding of the notepad, trying to secretly put it away in his draw and yet he couldn't have been more obvious if he had even tried.

"What's that, what you've put in there?"

He ignored her question. She smiled knowing instantly what it was.

"What do yer want Boll's? Past yer bed time isn't it?"

"I um... well I came here to tell you something"

"Oh joy..."

"This is important"

"Oh is it? Well please tell me then" the sarcasm dripping from his voice.

She couldn't help but smile at him, despite the flicker of aggravation she felt at his sarcasm.

She stared into his crystal blue eyes and wondered if she had ever met another man who could cause her to feel such fiery anger as well as absolute safety, if any other man could drain her of all power as well as give her indescribable energy, but she knew that no other man could come close because he made her feel more alive than she had ever felt and he filled her with something that was so real and she knew nothing could ever replace it. Nothing could ever replace him.

Yet, despite her thoughts and feelings she had to be sure he felt the same.

"Tell me something Gene – "

"Go 'ome Bolly it's bed time. There done my bit"

"If... If I were to stay, how would you feel about that?"

So turn the lights on, turn the lights on, turn the lights on for me

"Well we'd break out the bubbly, do a little dance and a sing a little song all 'bout the wonders of Drake. Now go 'ome, it's too late for chit-chat"

"Please for once can you just... just be honest. Please it's important to me"

"Well seein' as its important to yer – "

She stopped him in his tracks with one of her looks, while fluttering her big eyelashes at him she could see that she had won.

He sighed.

"Well it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, in fact I would go so far as to say that it would be a good thing. 'Appy now? I'd like ter go 'ome and get some sleep, if that's alright with you?" he struck alight one of his cigarettes.

So keep the lights on, keep the lights on, keep the lights on for me. Don't go to sleep

"So you want me to stay?" she was having fun with this. The Gene genie didn't do feelings and she loved watching him squirm.

He gave her a stern look "What I want is ter go 'ome and 'ave some piece and quite"

She kept her eyes on his, waiting for him to answer her and eventually he caved "Yes Bolly I want yer ter stay"

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Well I need a good enough reason; I need to know that I'm leaving everything there for something better here"

He simply stared at her; she knew he was wondering if she was being serious, maybe if she was even sane. The silence continued before she couldn't take it anymore.

"I'm waiting" she smiled at him.

I wait for you

He look a large drag in of his cigarette and slowly let the smoke seep through his nostrils before speaking.

"I want yer ter stay because... because I need yer"

"You need me?" her heartbeat tripled.

"Yes" she felt prickles of sweat appeared on her forehead.

"Why?" adrenaline sped through her veins.

"What is this, a bloody interrogation?"

"Gene"

"I wanna lawyer"

She looks at him again, only this time she didn't flutter her eyelashes, but she tried to give him her serious look, however she was certain that he could see through it and could see the deep vulnerability that lay underneath.

"Okay yer wanna know why I want yer ter stay" he stubbed out his cigarette, rose from his seat and moved from behind his desk so that he was opposite her.

With him so close she could barely breathe.

"Despite yer girly, posh, pernickety way of doing things 'round 'ere I know the team wouldn't be the same without yer, It would be quieter no doubt about that but... but it would be broken" A deep silence fell across them before he continued "now our team may be the lowest of the low in the Supers eye's, 'ell even the public think were scum, but together we are a family and you Lady Bolls is what keeps this place running at times, what keeps me on me toes, fighting my every decision, and despite what I may say at time I wouldn't 'ave it any other way." She smiled at him "Yer once asked me ter let you in, well truth is Bolly I did a long time ago and if yer left me well I'd be buggered really."

She slowly ascended on him, but he remained in his place.

"Yer one of a kind Bollyknickers, a bloody fruitcake most of the time don't get me wrong, but that's what I..." he hesitated "Well, that's what I like about yer and that Bolly is why I need yer ter stay"

"That and I'd miss looking at yer arse in yer tight jeans, now can I go 'ome and get some sleep?"

I stay for you

"So you really do want me to stay?" Her voice teasing.

"Nah not that bothered really" this caused them both to chuckle.

"I hope you know what I'm doing for you Mr Hunt"

She let her hands reach out and lightly play with the rim of his tie.

"What apart from making me sleep deprived?"

"I'm staying for you"

She then pulled on his tie, pulling his face to hers and crushing her lips against his and in that moment they both knew that they were not going to be going to sleep any time soon.

Thank you for reading and I really hope you liked it! Please, if you would be so kind, I would love to know what you think.