A/N: hiiiii! So I've got a little one shot here. It's a bit different to some of the more recent stuff I've been posting. It's just a little fun, fluffy season 4 piece. Hope you enjoy it!

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it's no secret, I'm not who I used to be, anyone can see you're the difference in me.

-Difference in Me, Westlife

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Set post 3x24 Snow Day but pre 4x01 Can You Hear Me Now?

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Stretching his arms up in the air, he let the tension leave his back in a series of cracks. He moved his neck from side to side and then rolled his shoulders forwards and then back again. Usually, at this point, he'd be cracking his knuckles, however, as he glanced down at the bandage that still adorned his hand and he knew that might prove counter productive. Plus it'd be pretty damn painful!

"Coffee." He decided to himself, scooting his chair back from his desk. If he was completely honest; desk duty sucked. He'd had to endure a week or so of it now and he was dying. It was mindnumbingly boring. He didn't see anyone all day hardly. Lindsay was always out in the field, picking up the slack, and quite frankly he missed her. He enjoyed working alongside her. He liked their banter, their ability to work so effortlessly alongside one another. He also particularly liked the view when he was working alongside Lindsay. The last week had been, quite frankly, a load of crap. He grunted as he opened up the cabinet with his 'good' hand and grabbed a coffee cup. He then set it down on the counter before reaching for the coffee pot, he considered using his bandaged hand for a moment before swapping it out for his good hand. He rolled his eyes at himself. Sure, fine, whatever he couldn't use his hand perfectly right now and okay maybe he'd find it tricky out in the field. It didn't stop him from feeling precious about it though.

He looked down at his watch and furrowed his brow. He was sure Lindsay's shift started at noon and it was now five after. She said she'd had an appointment that morning and was pretty secretive about it, which he'd shrugged off. He scanned the lab with his eyes, looking for her bouncy curls and sighed outwardly when he realised he still couldn't see her. He knew Mac was still in London but it wasn't Lindsay's style to take advantage. Maybe she was caught up somewhere? Hell, for all he knew, she might have already been called out somewhere. He reached over to the fridge, ready to locate some creamer (a new addition to his coffee, courtesy of a certain Montana girl), when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Setting the creamer down on the counter top, he went digging in his Jeans pocket for his cell phone.

Montana

He smiled as he ran his finger across the screen of his iPhone, displaying the message.

Hey, can you come to the locker room? I need to show you something…

He glanced up and looked around him. Well; she'd officially got his interest. He quickly tipped some creamer into his coffee and took off for the locker room.

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She fluffed her bangs for a third time in as many seconds. She knew he'd tell her the truth. She had no idea why this was such a big deal all of a sudden. It would grow back! She was just so used to hiding behind it that she was feeling on edge now by being so on show. Plus, would he even like it? She knew it didn't matter, he liked her for her, not how she styled her hair, but still.

She shook her head. Stop it! She internally berating herself. She just… hoped he liked it.

Things had been going so well since she'd got back from Montana. They'd been enjoying spending time together. Dinner, drinks, laughs…. sex. Lots of sex, she mused. Him being held hostage had solidified a couple of things for her. First, she couldn't look at pool tables in the same way but she wasn't mad about it. Second, she had found a new love for daisies. Third, Danny Messer had taken her shift that day and saved her from god only knows what. Neither of them had ever really brought it up but she knew that had it been her sat in that bunker, things may have played out differently. Sure she was strong, smart and sassy but against the people that she would have been faced with? Something told her that the outcome would not have been broken knuckles, bruised ribs and a bust lip.

After that day they stopped flirting around the topic of them. She'd realised that life was short. Too short for some and she has wasted enough time not letting Danny in. She was enjoying this new chapter in her life. Things were good. Fresh. New. Happy.

"Hey, I'm looking for Lindsay." The voice behind her disturbed her thoughts. "You seen her?"

She turned round to face the voice with a nervous smile on her face. "You found her… surprise!" She waited with baited breath. "So I uh-"

"Oh my god! You cut your hair!" Danny exclaimed, quickly closing the distance between the two of them. He ran his fingers (on his good hand, of course) through her choppy hair and he grinned. "You weren't kidding when you said you had something to show me!"

"What do you think?" She asked nervously. She took the coffee cup from his bandaged hand and took a sip. "Tell me honestly. I'm kind of freaking out about it."

He rolled his eyes as he put both of his hands on her arms and held her at length as he examined her new hairstyle. "It's so different, I didn't even realise it was you." He commented, running his fingers through it again. "It's short."

"Do you hate it?" She cringed.

"I like it," he smiled. "A lot" he quickly added. "It suits you. You look…" he trailed off for a moment before finishing his sentence, "you look like a New Yorker." He grinned.

She rolled her eyes as she held the coffee cup in both of her hands, warming them up. She took another sip and held it against her lips. "Danny, do I look-?"

"Beautiful, sophisticated, cute, hot?" He mused. "Yes to all." He took the cup from her hands with a pointed look as to say you always do this. She couldn't help but smile at his annoyance. What could she say? His coffee always tasted better than hers. She watched him as he took the first sip of his own coffee. "Honestly? I love it Montana. Looks cute on you. Suits you. What made you cut it?"

"I wanted a change," she shrugged. "Something fresh, something new… you know?"

He pulled her into his side and buried his nose, inhaling her scent. "I know." He paused for a moment. "The new you."

Yeah, something like that… she thought to herself as his hand took hers as he led her through the locker room towards the lab. He squeezed her hand softly. As they pushed through the doors from the locker room, their hands naturally slipped away from one another, adopting the professional exterior they'd both promised each other they'd display whilst at work.

They walked in time to one another, steps in sync as she headed to the break room to get her own cup of coffee. They separated as she reached the break room, although he made a point of giving her a quick wink as she turned away from him. She quickly arranged herself a cup of coffee. As she stirred the creamer, she felt her cell phone buzz in the pocket of her blazer. She dug it out and saw the name of the sender of the text she'd received

Danny

She glanced up and locked eyes with him. He was stood by the glass wall of their office, watching her. She unlocked her phone and began to read the message.

Hey, so you know, I think you look beautiful.

Short and sweet. She mused to herself. She glanced up at him and mouthed thank you to which he smiled before turning back to his desk. She picked up her cup and went off in search for Stella to see if she'd heard anything back from the DNA results she'd been waiting on for the last couple of days.

She felt a spring in her step. A smile tugged at her lips. She wasn't sure, but she felt like today was going to be a good day.

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Shoving her bag on her shoulder, Lindsay Monroe pressed the elevator button. It'd been a long shift and she was definitely ready for her bed.

She learnt forward and pressed the elevator button again in haste. She wasn't up for messing around right now. She had to battle the subway and walk the ten blocks to her apartment after an nineteen hour shift and she quite simply wasn't feeling it.

She reached up to smooth her hair down. She had to admit, it was weird not to have her styled curly hair anymore. She was so desperate for a change but a small part of her missed her length and the comfort it brought. There was no hiding behind this hairstyle, that was for sure!

She'd gotten so many compliments over the course of her shift but really, the only one that genuinely mattered was the one she'd gotten from Danny. He'd been so sweet to her and had made a point of trying his best to reassure her that she had made the right decision. And if she was completely honest? He'd done a good job. A part of her really liked her decision... it really had been exactly what she needed. A change.

She was a little bit disappointed that they'd been on opposite shifts recently. Work was always better when he was around. Time moved faster when he was there. He made work, despite their usual tasks of death and devastation more enjoyable, if it could even be described as enjoyable... She loved their banter and enjoyed how effortless it was to work with him. She hadn't realised it when she first started but they had just clicked. She'd clicked with him in a way that she'd never clicked with anyone before. He had quickly turned into a very special person in her life.

Even more so now.

At last, the elevator announced its arrival. Feeling the relief course through her, Lindsay stepped onto the empty lift and pressed the button for the ground floor. She stepped back as the doors closed and laid her head against the wall. She let her eyes flutter shut for a moment as she felt the descent begin.

She pulled her phone out to check the time. Seven fifteen. Danny's shift started at nine and whilst she wanted to text him, she figured he'd be sleeping. She'd catch him later. She pocketed her phone again and pushed up off the wall: ready to exit the elevator.

As the doors flung open, she stepped off the elevator and couldn't help the smile that quickly crept across her face.

"Hey you." She beamed as she closed the distance between them. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I figured you might like one of these." He handed her a coffee from the cardboard cup holder he was holding.

She accepted the cup and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Thanks, this is a really nice surprise."

Danny smiled in return. "How was your shift?"

"Long." She shrugged. "Boring."

"Yeah," he nodded. "Nineteen hours is a bitch of a shift. You tired?"

She shrugged again. "No more than usual."

"Wanna go get some breakfast?" He asked. "My treat."

"I'd love to." She smiled, she glanced at his hands and her eyes widened. "Whoa! Where's your bandage?" She tugged his hand towards her carefully. She examined his fingers and although they still looked sore; they were certainly healing.

"Had a check up yesterday. Doctor said that I didn't need it no more. Plus I figured it was better just to let it breathe."

She smiled as he pulled her to into his side and pressed a kiss to her tiny scar that lined her hairline. "So breakfast?" He whispered against her forehead.

"Breakfast." She nodded.

He handed her his coffee as he tossed the cardboard cup holder into the trash can nearby. He then held out his hand, allowing her to lead the way out onto the street from the lobby.

The cool morning air hit her and she felt refreshed as she pushed through the door. She turned and handed Danny his coffee as he followed her through the door. He accepted it quickly and raised the cup to his lips.

Her eyes absorbed him as he walked beside her. Despite how her eyes burnt and her legs ached, she felt a warm, happy feeling spreading through her, and it wasn't the caffeine.

It hadn't quite sunk in that he'd met her as her shift finished. He'd always had a caring side; she'd seen it countless times over the couple of years she'd known him. He cared fiercely about the people around him and would move mountains to help them. She'd even been on the receiving end of it when he'd followed her to Montana on a whim. She couldn't believe her eyes when he'd walked into the courtroom that day. To this day, he wouldn't tell her what made him catch a red eye to be with her. A part of her wondered if he even knew himself... but she'd be forever grateful for what he did for her. Partly because it had opened her eyes as to what was right in front of her the whole time.

Her mind floated back to their current situation. She didn't even know how he knew she'd finished her shift. She had no idea how long he'd been waiting or what time he'd woken up to make sure he was there in time. Like when he burst into the courtroom, it was like he just knew. If she was being completely honest, she hadn't ever really pegged him as being romantic, but she was beginning to question her first impression of him. The more she thought about the things he did for her, the more she realised that actually he was everything she could ever want for herself.

"Where do ya wanna go for breakfast?" He asked, pulling her from her thoughts.

"I don't know." She shrugged, "I'm starving though."

He nodded in understanding. "I know a place."

She raised her coffee to her lips and took a sip.

"I still can't get over your hair." His voice broke her daydreams before she could slip back into them. "It looks cute."

She smiled, "Thanks." She rain her fingers through her hair. "I feel like I spent most of last night getting comments about my hair. I didn't think people cared that much."

"A lotta people care about you Montana. It's about time you start realisin' that."

She glanced up at him and he offered her a sheepish smile. Deciding she'd had enough of just walking alongside him, she took his recently unbandaged hand tentatively, squeezing it softly. He squeezed her hand back in response and smiled at her. As they fell in step to one another, she couldn't help the smile creeping across her face.

Danny's comments weren't lost on her. She already knew that he cared about her: he wouldn't turn up at work at the crack of dawn for just anyone. But just how much he cared about her? That she was still figuring out.

As they walked hand in hand she let out a long, contented sigh. Life, she thought, for the first time in as long as she could remember, was finally pretty good.

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And there we have it! A cute season 4 one shot. I don't know about you, but I always wondered what Danny's reaction would have been to her hairstyle change! Hope you guys enjoyed this one! Any thoughts are, as always, muchly appreciated!

See you next time!