Title | Hope is a four letter word
Fandom/Pairing | Rookie Blue, Marlo + Luke + Gail
Word Count | 1396
Rating | PG-13
Summary | How do you deal with the fact your boyfriend is in love with someone else?
Author's Note | I wrote this before 4x06 but I think it can kinda still fit? I just really need these three to get together and have conversations!

"Hey, Officer Cruz!"

Noticing the dilated pupils, slightly slurred speech and the faint blush creeping up the pale white column of her neck, Marlo can tell Gail is drunk and not doing a very good job of hiding it. She warily glances around for one of Gail's friends but doesn't see any of them, although she does notice a tall scruffy guy a couple tables away constantly looking in their direction.

Marlo smiles tentatively at her. "Hi Gail. What's going on?"

"I need more tequila!" Gail slams her empty shot glass down, startling one of the retired regulars who had been passed out with his forehead pressed against the bar. Looking around once more in vain, Marlo places a hand over Gail's glass, preventing the bartender from refilling it.

"She's done for the night." She explains with a polite smile. The bartender nods and moves down the bar to his other customers.

"You are such a buzz kill." Gail pouts. A strand of platinum blonde hair falling over one eye, which she fails to blow away.

"And you look like you need a cab home." Marlo responds, searching through her cell phone for the number to a cab company.

"Can I ask you something?" Gail abruptly spits out, rubbing her nose with the back of her hand.

"You just did." Gail ignores the rebuff, and Marlo has a feeling it's something she does regularly.

"How do you do it?"

"Do what?" She asks, a look of confusion on her face.

"How do you deal with the fact your boyfriend is in love with someone else?"

Marlo's heart momentarily stops, before speeding up double time. "I don't know what you're talking about." (Although a tiny part of her did. She just refused to listen to it.)

Not the answer she is looking for, Gail blows a raspberry into Marlo's face and laughs hysterically at her reaction.

"Are you five?!" Marlo responds angrily, wiping her face with a napkin.

"Oh, I think you know exactly what I'm talking about." Gail then leans in close, like she's about to tell her a secret. "It's okay, I'm in the same boat. Nick's in love with Andy too." Stunned into silence, Marlo can do nothing but listen to her continue her drunken spiel.

"Right before he dumped me and kicked me out of his truck, Nick told me he had a crush on Andy. He practically admitted his undying love for her." Gail teeters precariously as she pulls away from Marlo's side, eyes glossy with unshed tears. Tears Marlo instinctively knows she will manage to keep from falling...in public at least. (She was the same way.)

Not even knowing the first step in how to respond, always having a policy of staying away from other people's relationship drama, she's saved from having to say anything when she suddenly feels someone behind her. Turning around, Marlo sees the guy from across the room, the tall scruffy blonde, with his eyes locked onto Gail.

"Hey Gail. You alright?" He asks conversationally, doing a terrible job of hiding his appraisal of her. Before Marlo can tell this stranger to beat it for trying to pick up a drunk and vulnerable target, Gail's eyes dart up at the mystery man and her face suddenly brightens, a large smile showing her glee.

"Homicide!" She squeals and flings herself into the blonde's arms. "Where've you been Callaghan? I haven't seen you in forever!" When Marlo sees Gail wrap her legs tightly around his waist, in a way like they've been there before, she begins to wonder if everyone in this bar has hooked up at one point. Even though the look on his face is mostly annoyed, there's a tiny bit of affection in his features as he holds her, and Marlo can tell these two have some sort of history together.

"Gail, I saw you yesterday." He answers, a hint of amusement in his voice. Finally noticing Marlo standing there, this Callaghan person looks as uncomfortable as she feels with Gail wrapped around him like a vine on a tree. He sets Gail down on her own two feet. The silence becomes awkward and since Gail seems to not be interested in normal social interaction, Marlo introduces herself.

"Marlo Cruz. I work with Gail at fifteen." She sticks out her hand, waiting for him to reciprocate.

"Luke Callaghan. I used to work with Gail at fifteen." Luke gives her a polite smile. "Nice to meet you."

"You too." Marlo returns the smile, relieved that the awkwardness seems to be dying away. At least it was until Gail decided to pipe in.

"Luke's also in the same boat as us." Gail says, arm awkwardly draped over his shoulder due to their height difference. "His fiance was in love with someone else too." Despite the beard, Marlo can see the blush on his cheeks. But this time it seemed to be from anger instead of embarrassment.

"Gail..." He says in a low warning voice, jaw clenching with unspoken words. Gail ignores him, and continues to divulge his past love life to Marlo.

"Andy was actually his fiance but had feelings for Sam the whole time." Gail whispers loudly, doing a terrible impersonation of a stage whisper. She then throws her arms over both their shoulders, cheerfully looking back and forth at the two of them. "Look at us! All victims of the 'Andy the Heartbreaker' club under one roof! I think this calls for a celebratory drink!" She then slams her palm onto the bar repeatedly, once again startling the retired cop two bar stools down.

"Bartender! Three shots of tequila please!" Luke immediately shuts the order down, shaking his head at the bartender.

"Gail, maybe you should give the tequila a rest and go home." Marlo can see he's trying to minimize the amount of self-destruction Gail can accomplish tonight.

"Did you know that she's dating Sam Swarek?" Gail tells him, again ignoring any attempt to reign her in.

Marlo doesn't like the strangely pitying look that has suddenly appeared on Luke's face, like she's just gotten a death sentence and everyone knows it but her. But before she can say anything, before any of them can say anything, Sam enters the bar...with Andy following close behind. They look like they are having a normal and friendly conversation, but now a seed has been planted and Marlo can't shake the feeling she's missing something important.

"Can I trust you to get her home safely?" Marlo asks Luke, hoping she can trust him with Gail and wanting like hell to get out of this situation as fast as possible.

"Luke is like a burnt marshmallow." Gail interrupts. "He's all tough and hard on the outside but inside he's got a soft gooey center." Gail's hand is swatted away by Luke when she attempts to poke his stomach.

"Come on, Peck. Let's get you home." He says, hand outstretched to help her out of the bar. Taking a look first at him and then at the exit, Gail wags a finger in front of his face. "I'm not gonna make that. You'll have to carry me." She says, a mischievous smile on her face. Luke sighs but acquiesces and picks her up bridal style. Automatically wrapping her arms around his neck, Gail presses her face against his jaw and sighs wearily. An unreadable expression crosses his face and Marlo feels even more right in her assumption of their past.

Telling Marlo goodbye, Luke makes his way to the exit. As she watches the crowd swallow the two up, a strange urge to join them fills her. She suddenly wants to be anywhere but where she is, but it's too late. Sam has already spotted her across the room.

"Hey." He says when he reaches her, dimples showing and the corners of his eyes crinkling like they always do, and presses a kiss to her temple.

"Wanna get a table?"

"Yeah" she answers, a warmth suffusing her body when she feels his hand at the small of her back.

Nothing's changed. He's still the same loyal and devoted boyfriend he's always been. She won't let Gail's drunk and bitter ramblings get under her skin; won't let those poisonous words ruin the best relationship she's ever had.

So, she takes a deep breath and follows Sam.

It's 2am where I am and this probably has a ton of mistakes but I wanna post it cause I love these three and there needs to be more fic where they interact. (Also, I was tired of seeing this UNFINISHED in my drafts.)