Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters related to 24.

A/N: Hey everyone. I've ended "Winding Down" for now, but I may come back to it at a later date. I've had this story started for a while so I thought I'd try posting it. I know there are a lot of really excellent post-season 2 stories out there right now so be honest if you don't like it or want to read it. Hopefully this is a somewhat different take on the whole thing though…And if you do enjoy it I promise the next chapter will be longer, this is just the ice-breaker. Thanks for reading!

Chapter One – Genesis

Michelle stepped out of CTU into the parking garage and hot, muggy L.A. air surrounded her like a vacuum. The climate only heightened the feeling of exhaustion she was now experiencing after a long 16 hour day. President Palmer was now hospitalized after the attempt on his life and everyone was working like mad processing Intel on potential culprits. The almost-full day off Michelle had received after the nuclear bomb/Cyprus recording catastrophe felt like it had been weeks ago, even though, really, it had been barely a day. Uneasiness settled in as she made her way across the parking lot. "Disappointed" didn't even begin to describe one of the emotions contributing to Michelle's fatigue. She was genuinely upset; despite the fact that she really had no right to be. Or at least, that's what that irritating conscience of hers felt the need to constantly reiterate. The truth was though, Tony's subtle, if not endearing, 'See ya tomorrow' had not amounted to anything and it was tearing her up inside.

It wasn't fair that she'd expect it to…considering the pressure he'd been under the last three days…But when she'd left CTU the last time it had been with practically youthful optimism and giddiness that maybe, just maybe, there was a chance it might work. Whatever "it" was…The hours she had lay in bed afterwards waiting for sleep to overcome her had been spent thinking of Tony; the smile he'd given her when she'd asked him about Nina, their kiss, the time spent in the holding room…Michelle had clung to the few pleasant memories she could tear from that dreadful day. Otherwise, sheer exhaustion wouldn't have been anywhere near sufficient enough to allow herself to pass out and not think anymore.

Digging through an unnecessarily large purse for her keys and walking at the same time seemed to require too much effort for Michelle at this point. So, instead, she continued to walk purposefully towards her car. Sighing when she finally reached her spot, Michelle leaned against the small black sedan and opened her purse; an action accompanied by a fresh wave a panic that consumed her when she couldn't find her keys immediately. They had to be in here. There was no way she could go back into CTU. Not after the way she'd left.

Tony had been in a briefing with Ryan Chappelle, Brad Hammond and a couple of other 'key people', including the White House reps. Relieved, realizing that the meeting was not over and her replacement had finally arrived Michelle had snuck away without telling Tony, glad she had an excuse for doing so. For once, it hadn't been the tension between them that had seemed unbearable...It had been the lack thereof. Michelle felt like Tony was avoiding her. She'd barely seen him at all. Requests had been given over the phone whenever possible and any face to face interaction had been short and to the point. No lingering looks from his end, no small jokes and crooked smiles…Strictly business. Michelle, on the other hand, had fought to keep her heart rate under control with every ounce of strength she possessed on more than one occasion. When Tony had leaned over her shoulder to check something on her computer screen the smell of his aftershave had been intoxicating. It was understated, but noticeable enough for someone who was paying attention to notice; which translated to "enough that Michelle would notice". She'd caught her breath and willed herself not to turn her head habitually when he spoke. His lips were inches from her ear and the slightest movement could put them in the kind of awkward situation they, especially Tony, did not need or seem to want.

Michelle expected something, anything! Tony seemed so impervious. She clearly wasn't having the same affect on him. Her stomach dropped at the thought that the kiss they'd shared might be a one shot deal. She'd made a move, the first move, which was totally uncharacteristic of her to begin with; she wasn't going to throw herself at his mercy again. Not yet anyway…she'd see how desperate she was after another week of this less than ideal treatment. Resisting the urge to wipe the thin coat of sweat from her brow and scream 'Eureka!' Michelle scooped her keys out of her purse and moved her thumb swiftly across the remote to unlock the doors. In the millisecond she hesitated before pressing down on the button she heard her name.

"Michelle!"

Spinning around quickly she saw Tony jogging towards her. The voice in her head cautioned her not to get too unnerved by this. He would simply explain that he needed her to come back to finish something, or that in the 10 minutes since she'd left the building something horrible had happened that required her presence once again. Tony finally reached her, panting slightly.

"Eileen said you left…" He rested an arm against Michelle's car, inches away from her head.

He looked so serious, and Michelle tried not to let any thought of how appealing this made him cross her mind. Words caught in her throat, and she knew she'd failed miserably. It was her embarrassing little secret. Michelle Dessler was a sucker for a man with a five-o-clock shadow. Especially when he was wearing the aftershave that had quickly become her new favorite smell…

"Yeah." She found her voice. "Rob's here now and everything was pretty much under control. I was just gonna go home and get some sleep…but if you need me back in there its no problem…you were in the briefing so…"

Tony shook his head. "No that's not it…I uh…when I said…um…" he contorted his face into something painful. Michelle furrowed her brow which caused him to hang his head in defeat. Fumbling with words wasn't something he was used to. Tony always knew how to get a point across, in some way or another. Communication with someone was never an ordeal, it came naturally to him, or so he liked to think. He had a feeling after this encounter he was going to have to eat the praises he'd mentally sung to himself about this skill on previous occasions. Being able to articulate his position in high-stress situations no longer seemed to be something Tony could boast about.

It was amazing how anxious he was at that very moment. Tony Almeida could remain totally unruffled when pinned against the most intimidating of people; whether it be high-power government officials or his commanding officer in the military. These individuals, who were virtually employed for their experience and innate ability to scare most people out of their skin, could never manage to shake him…And yet here he was, Tony Almeida, assured-leader extraordinaire, standing with an obviously debilitated woman and he could barely form a coherent thought. He looked up at Michelle and gave her an awkward grin.

There it is…Michelle felt her knees buckle underneath her and was thankful her car was there to support her. She prayed he hadn't noticed.

"You're better at this than I am." He said, the nervous smile never leaving his face.

Michelle felt her lips twist into a somewhat surprised smile of her own. Her reaction seemed to give Tony the little confidence boost he needed.

"So…it looks like we saved L.A. from a nuclear bomb…and war…I think that means I owe you at least dinner and a movie…"

Michelle laughed.

"I guess you thought I forgot our…y'know…agreement." He paused letting the words sink in. Michelle felt her face grow flushed. "I'm sorry today was so crazy." He finished sincerely.

"It's okay." She said quietly. "I'm just…really glad you didn't."

A curl sprung out of her ponytail when Michelle nodded reassuringly and fell in front of her eyes. She made to push it back, but Tony was quicker. He shifted the hand resting on the car towards Michelle swiftly and then took his time tucking the tendril behind her ear. He steadied himself by resting his other hand next to Michelle's opposing shoulder, surrounding her in an almost-suffocating way, much like the air had done a few minutes prior, but much more inviting as far as she was concerned. A few seconds passed where neither dared breathe, let alone speak; it was Tony who finally broke the silence.

"How 'bout Friday at 8?"

Michelle's response was quick in coming. "It's a date."

Tony grinned fully this time and turned to look back towards the main building. "I guess I'd better get back. I'll…see ya tomorrow." The pause showed the words struck the same cord in Tony's brain that they did in Michelle's. He turned and started to walk back towards CTU and Michelle climbed into her car. She had a feeling if she kept smiling like this her cheeks would be sore by the time she got home.

Tony resisted the pressing urge to turn around and watch Michelle drive away. There was still work to be done. Chuckling quietly to himself as he pushed his way back into the building, he thought of how much he would suffer trying to last until Friday. At least now the theoretical "hard part" was over. The date was set, and even more importantly, they both knew how the other person felt. They'd kissed for Christ's sake! This shouldn't be that nerve wracking. Should it?

Michelle was just exiting the highway when her cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey Michelle I was just watching the news…is everything okay?"

The distress in the caller's voice was more than obvious. After all, the person on the other end of the phone was probably the most protective of Michelle, with good reason; it'd been this way since her birth and had only elevated in the years since she took the job with D.O.D. It was her dad.

"Yeah dad everything's under control. I'm just heading home now." She reassured him.

"Well how are you doing? Danny called me this morning and told me what happened on the day…"

"I'm fine dad." She cut him off. "I can take care of myself." It got irritating that her father never eased up. She knew he was just acting like any caring father would but she was almost thirty! She could take care of herself. She always had.

Her father sighed audibly. "I know you are Michelle. I just don't like that you're all alone out there."

"I'm not. Danny's here. And I have lived here before, remember?" She said knowing immediately what her dad's response would be.

"That's not exactly reassuring…"

It was Michelle's turn to sigh. "Really dad, I'm okay. It's not like I don't know anyone…"

"I'd just feel better if you weren't three thousand miles away."

"That'd be one hell of a commute then…" she said sarcastically.

"Michelle…"

"Dad I miss you but this is my job and this is what I'm good at and it just so happens that means right now I've got to be in L.A. You always said there was no where else you'd rather be…"

"I know. You're right. It's just hard since your mom…"

Michelle's eyes stung with tears but she quickly blinked them back. "I know. But I'm happy here. And I am fine on my own."

"I know you are Michelle. But I guess it's my job to worry."

Michelle laughed a little now. "Look dad I've gotta go. I'm home now and I really need some sleep. It's been a long day…"

"Alright, night…" he paused for a few seconds before adding. "I love you."

Michelle smiled a sad smile and brushed back a few stray tears that managed to leak out of her eyes.

"Love you too dad."

Michelle quickly got herself under control before exiting the car and making her way towards the elevator to her apartment. That had been one of the hardest parts of moving back to L.A.; leaving her dad. They'd always been close. Especially since Michelle wasn't exactly your typical girly-girl growing up. Her mom had constantly bugged her about it but her dad had insisted they leave her alone. Now it seemed he was getting more and more like her mom. Constantly bugging her about being independent…alone…whatever way he wanted to twist the scenario. It just wasn't right that he never let up. She was more than capable of taking care of herself and her dad had advocated that more than anyone over the years. It wasn't fair that he'd changed so much. She missed how he used to be.

A few minutes later she clamored into the shower and relished in the feeling of the hot water beating against her still-tender skin. She had a few bruises from the bomb but compared to everyone else, she'd come out of the whole ordeal practically unscathed. Her traditional end-of-day shower regime was something she'd grown accustomed to. It washed away the problems that she'd encountered during the day and left her feeling rejuvenated enough to do it all over again. No matter what happened during the day, she always knew when she finally did come home she could be normal for a few hours. Shower, eat dinner, watch T.V., read…regardless of what it was she could forget that her days were as "not normal" as could be.

With her hair spiraling into freshly washed curls Michelle dressed in her favorite flannel pants and a lose-fitting tank top and fell on top of her bed. She rolled over and set her alarm for the next morning before pulling the covers up to her chin. The conversation with her dad replayed in her head. If something happened with Tony one definite bonus would be the fact that her dad wouldn't worry about her as much anymore, and things between them would start going back to how they used to be.

Snuggling more deeply into her pillow Michelle thought of Tony again, unable to remember the last time she'd been so excited about a first date. There clearly was a physical attraction between them but it was so much more than that. Working in close quarters with someone taught you a lot about them and from what Michelle could discern, as colleagues they definitely clicked. That might not say much about how they would do in a relationship but they got along well, they were friends more or less. Any small opportunity they had to talk about more casual things had been comfortable…there was potential, and that was all that could be expected right now. Anything else would have to wait…at least until their first date was over.