Disclaimer: Character not mine, no copyright intended

Just a short one, I'm loving angsty!Evan and he keeps distracting me from other stuff I want/need to write! This is a "missing scene" from episode 1 x06. Please comment if you enjoy! (and if you're only discovering me from Primeval New World, please take a look at some of my other fics for the original Primeval series)

Evan felt naked as he stood in line waiting for his Chinese Take out. Without his wedding ring, he felt exposed, vulnerable and afraid. He glanced at the others in the queue, wondering if they were looking at him, judging him - "the man who was betraying the memory of his dead wife by removing his ring". It was ridiculous of course, he was the only one who thought that.

He'd sat in his home office for several hours, twiddling the ring around on his finger and thinking about the conversation he'd had with Ange yesterday. She'd said that she thought he would've moved on by now. She'd been incredibly patient with him and had been there at some of his lowest points, taking care of him, holding him when he needed to be held and covering up when he wasn't at his best.

Truth was, he'd taken all of that for granted. Ange looked after the business in the immediate aftermath of Brooke's death and allowed him time to ease himself back into life. Her being there meant he didn't actually have to move forward though. He could hide behind his mission to find the anomalies, pretend that he was actually doing fine. The reality was that it was easier to remain in this rut than step out back into the real world.

Now Ange was threatening to leave him. She'd had enough and she'd grown tired of waiting for him to start living again. He couldn't handle that. She was his rock and he'd be completely lost without her. Why hadn't he realised before now just how much he needed her?

He looked down at the photo of Brooke on his desk. What would she want him to do? She'd want him to be happy of course. If he lost Ange now, happiness would be so far out of reach he'd never find it again. Somehow he had to keep her here. He had to prove to her that he was moving on at last.

Suddenly, it hit him. The ring; the symbol of his marriage to Brooke. He slid it from his finger and held it in front of his face. A perfect circle with no end and no beginning, glinting in the light from the desk lamp. If he stopped wearing it, it would show the world, and more importantly Ange, that he was ready to get back out there. A single man who needed to be loved and give love in return. It was probably the hardest thing he'd ever done, but deep down he knew it was the only right thing to do. He placed the ring in the drawer next to where he kept a few other items that belonged to Brooke, then took a deep breath and stood up to go and find his jacket.

"Sir?" The man behind the counter said, "Your order's ready."

"Sorry, I'd like to order something else too, if that's OK?"

"Sure. I can put the rest of your food behind here to keep warm. What else would you like?"

Evan smiled. "Wontons," he said determinedly. He would take them for Ange. It was their secret code. Pot Stickers for bad news, Wontons for good news. And he was certain that the removal of his ring would be good news indeed.