Wow, it's been a while. No excuses this time, just a lack of inspiration on my part. Also, I wanted to write a few more chapters for this collection but I'm gong to go ahead and call this finished. I may revisit it in the future, but I make no promises, none. So here's the last chapter, enjoy.

Under the Mistletoe

The bright artificial lights that were stung haphazardly around the room paled in comparison to the moonlight that shone through the window. Not for the first time, Cho wondered what he was doing here.

The noise they called music was flooding his senses. He'd be surprised if he woke up the next morning with his hearing intact. Some of the people surrounding him were looking at him expectantly. They must have posed him a question. Why they would do such a thing when the decibel of the bass completely overpowered any musings of conversation they could muster. Cho simply nodded his head in response, resulting in more than a few confused glances. Obviously his nod wasn't the correct answer. Well, you win some, you lose some, Cho thought.

With that, he turned on his heel and left the conversation. Some may have seen it as rude, but Cho was sure that with the amount of alcohol they'd been consuming and would be consuming, they wouldn't remember it by the end of the night.

He made his way over to where Rigsby was standing at the far side of the room. He wasn't talking to anyone, perfect. No words were exchanged upon their meeting, none were needed. They would both just have been forced to pretend to hear the other's bland greetings and pointless attempts at small talk. With all the years they'd spent working together, they didn't need the pretence of conversation at this social gathering they deemed a Christmas party. They stayed like that for ten minutes, just enjoying each other's silence before Rigsby was whisked away by members of the arson investigation unit. Those ten minutes of relative quiet were probably going to be the best ten minutes of the night. Cho let out a small groan, well he thought he did. He couldn't be sure, what with the noise as thick as fog in the room.

A nice-looking lady dressed to the nines was eyeing him from across the room. She caught his eye and smiled a half-grin that was obviously meant to look sexy. Cho just thought it made her look like she was trying unsuccessfully to wink and grimace at the same time. Remaining as stoic as ever, his inner musings were not reflected in his expression. Unfortunately for him, she must have taken his lack of reaction for a come-hither look. She strutted up to him, putting all her charm into her approach, Cho was sure. Cho walked away, pulling his second disappearing act of the night. He needed to get away from all the madness.

Cho heard a few steps behind him, alerting him to someone's approach. He tensed ever so slightly and listened for ay indication of danger, unable to suppress his instincts even for a Christmas party, especially for a Christmas party. The offending footsteps belonged to none other than Madeleine Hightower who came to a stop beside him. She said nothing for a few minutes, choosing instead to join him in staring out the window at the dark curtain fractured by thousands of bright jewels. The sky really was beautiful at this time of night.

"Sorry, to disturb you, Agent Cho," Hightower apologized. "I just had to get away, get some air."

"Completely understandable," Cho said curtly.

"I suppose you were looking for the same thing," Hightower said with a small, polite smile.

"Yes Ma'am," Cho said.

"These Christmas parties can get a little overwhelming," Hightower commented.

"Yes Ma'am," Cho repeated. Footsteps indicated that one or more persons had made their way over to the alcove in which they were talking, but neither Cho nor Hightower acknowledged them in any way.

"I wonder why we even have them," Hightower muttered. She looked down at her hands, the beginnings of a memory forming in her mind's eye. Back when Christmas meant more than just fighting and arguing and expenses. Back when her family was happy, all of them.

"To give people an excuse to get dressed up, drunk, and act like children again," Cho said simply. He could hardly hear himself over the buzzing coming from the other guests; he wouldn't be surprised if Hightower had missed his last comment. He hazarded a glance in Hightower's direction and saw that she did in fact hear it and, if the small smirk was any indication, thought it amusing.

"That it does Cho, that it does," Hightower agreed. She had to speak a little louder for the people behind them had started cheering at something. Someone was probably more than a little tipsy and trying out some trick or attempting to tempt another into a drunken kiss. She didn't bother turning around to check it out, but she couldn't help but notice in the reflection on the window that there were quite a few people gathered. She met Cho's eye in the reflection and knew that he'd seen it too. He'd also seen that the crowd that had gathered were cheering in their direction.

Cho looked up and saw the reason for the crowd's stares and cheers. An innocent sprig of mistletoe had been placed in the alcove under which they were talking. Had he less control, Cho might have let out a small groan. As it were, he was embarrassed to admit that a slight, barely noticeable blush had crept up on him. It was a little reassuring to see that Hightower hadn't fared much better upon her recognition of the plant above them.

They looked at each other, and they could have been looking into a mirror. A silent understanding passed through them, both knowing that their feelings were mutual. Cho's jaw twitched slightly and Hightower gave an almost imperceptible nod. His mind made up, Cho made his move.

The crowd was shocked, but not entirely surprised. Cho simply walked away, his expression as impassive as ever. Hightower remained as professional and in control as she'd been before. They should have known those two would never kiss under the mistletoe.

I hope that I haven't become too predictable and that you were at least a little bit surprised by this one. If you were, I'd love to hear it and even if you weren't, let me know if you liked it or not? Please leave a review on your way out. :)