A/N: I imagine Lassiter would go through something similiar to the five stages of grief as he figured out he liked Shawn. That's what this chapter is trying to express. I hope you like it! :)
A/N 2: Anyone interested in being a beta for this story?
The first time his heart started racing when Shawn brushed against him, Lassiter thought it was because he was annoyed by the fake psychic's constant presence while he was trying to get work done.
The second time it happened, he told himself that he was just startled by Shawn's sudden presence.
The third time, he blamed it on indigestion.
When it kept happening, he considered seeing a doctor about his 'heart condition' because he wasn't about to admit that his racing heart could be caused by anything less than some horrible, fatal heart disease.
--
After the cardiologist blamed stress, Lassiter was a little relieved. It wasn't exactly the horrible, fatal heart condition he imagined but it made sense. A certain someone was making things very stressful for him.
In fact, the source of his stress just bumped into his desk, causing a stack of papers to fall to the ground.
"Spencer! Get away from my desk right now before I have you arrested for vandalizing police property!" he yelled. He realized he might have been over-reacting slightly when he noticed the whole station staring at him.
Shawn paused for a second before bending down to clean up the mess. He must have sensed Lassiter was on edge because instead of some snippy comment he said, "Sorry, my bad. It was an accident."
"Yeah, whatever," Lassiter snapped as he pulled the papers out of Shawn's hands. "Just go away."
"Are you okay?" Shawn asked softly.
Something about Shawn's concerned look made Lassiter's chest tighten, he could feel the colour rising in his face and it made him more angry. "I'll be fine once you leave," he replied coldly. He stared blankly at his paper work until he heard Shawn walk away.
--
Lassiter woke up feeling unsettled. "Not again..." he moaned, kicking the blankets away.
He made his way to the bathroom and turned on the shower. It was frustrating enough having dreams so hot and vivid that he needed to take a cold shower, but it was even worse when he kept dreaming about the same person.
"Anyone but him..." he mumbled to himself.
He bit his tongue to keep from yelping when the icy water hit his body. The shock to his body was worth it to feel his head clear. He just needed to clear his head and he would be okay.
"I'd give up anything to stop having these dreams..." he tried to reason with whatever force planted those thoughts in his head. "Well, except for my badge, or my gun, and... Well, I'd give up almost anything..."
--
"Are you okay?" Juliet asked, looking concerned.
"I'm fine," Lassiter replied, looking down at the file in his hand.
"You seem... sad."
"It's just been a slow week. I guess I'm just disappointed we haven't had any interesting cases."
"Jules!" Shawn exclaimed excitedly as soon as he saw her. Lassiter felt something in his chest twist painfully at the sound.
"Are you sure?" Juliet asked quietly, before Shawn got closer.
"Don't worry about it. I'm fine." He glanced at Shawn, who had bounced over and was now leaning against Juliet's desk. "I'm just going to go... do something... elsewhere..." he said before quickly walking away.
--
"Hey, Lassie," Shawn said cheerfully.
"You shouldn't be in here," Lassiter replied without looking up. He didn't have a real reason to be looking through the filing cabinet; he was just in the records room to avoid Shawn. Though, to his disappointment, that plan wasn't working and Shawn didn't seem in any hurry to leave.
With a frustrated sigh, he slammed the drawer shut. If Shawn wasn't going to leave, he would. "Move!" Lassiter ordered when he turned and discovered Shawn blocking the doorway.
"I sense you've been avoiding me," Shawn said, completely ignoring the order.
Lassiter wasn't sure how to respond to that so he repeated his request. "Move."
Instead of moving, Shawn closed the door. "Come on, Lassie. We can work through this. Just tell me what's going on."
"There's nothing going on."
"I'm sensing..." Shawn stepped closer and put his hands by Lassiter's head.
Lassiter tensed but didn't move away. "Spencer..." he warned in a low voice.
"I'm sensing..." Shawn gentle touched Lassiter's face. He looked like he was going to say something else, but instead he pressed his lips against Lassiter's.
"Yeah, I'm definitely sensing something," Shawn said with a smirk when he pulled away. He looked a little worried when Lassiter didn't respond. "You're not thinking arresting me for assaulting an officer or something, are you?"
Lassiter finally smiled. "What do you think?" he asked before pulling Shawn closer.