A/N: I don't own Eureka I just play with the characters a bit.

Zane lay in bed looking at his ceiling. Something had changed with Jo tonight, something he couldn't quite put his finger on. Whatever it was he couldn't complain about feeling like a piece of meat*, at least not tonight. His plans to spend the night celebrating his good news with Jo had definitely not come to fruition. Instead of spending the night listening to those breathy moans of pleasure she made when he touched her he was lying there listening to the late night traffic drive by his place.

"This is so not how I pictured this night going." Zane ground out frustrated.

Shortly after he'd thanked her for pushing to get him considered for a full pardon Jo had left Café Diem telling him she needed to get some sleep. He couldn't really blame her it had been a long day, especially for her. Jo had been yanked out of bed in the middle of the night to take her test and then put into the isolation chamber. True to a typical day in Eureka they had spent most of their time trying to escape the isolation chamber instead of taking their test. No, he couldn't really blame her for saying she was tired.

"Damn it!" Zane swore as he got of bed and headed for his living room. "Jo being tired is not the reason I'm spending the night alone, not sleeping."

Maybe she was still angry with him for allowing her to believe, even if only briefly, that he'd hacked her test and taken it for her. No, Zane didn't think that was it. He hadn't been able to maintain that little subterfuge for very long anyway. When she'd made that comment about not taking a spot she hadn't earned it had been like she'd punched him in the stomach. The sight of her earlier that morning doing her celebration dance in her pajama's, her hair down and flowing freely around her shoulders, had both taken his breath away and made him chuckle. It wasn't often that Jo let herself show her emotions unchecked and she'd been so happy and proud of herself. He hadn't been able to take that away from her.

She also wasn't angry with him for being Senator Wen's mole during their test. No, Jo wasn't angry with him, he knew angry Jo and tonight that was not angry Jo. "Evidence, I'm still breathing."

"So what the hell happened tonight?" Because something definitely had. She'd taken it good naturedly when he'd tricked her into admitting she was the reason behind him even being considered for a pardon. She'd said all the right things to him about deserving the pardon and deserving to be eligible for the Titan mission. But she'd shut him out.

That was it "She shut me out again. Why?" Frustrated and realizing he was pacing around his small apartment Zane stopped short and sat down at his desk. Whatever the reason Zane knew this is what had happened. It hadn't been anything Jo had said to him, it had been in her eyes and her body language. Jo had closed herself off and put that wall of hers back up between them.

What had he done now? He'd been sincere when he'd thanked her for what she'd done for him. That she had stood up for him frankly blew him away, no one had ever stood by him the way Jo did. Not just by threatening people to help get him considered for a pardon, but the time he'd crashed the sky cruiser. She'd put her own career at GD on the line for him that time.

Having Jo on his side was like being given a precious gift. Zane didn't take it lightly and he'd tried to let her know that tonight. Jo really had no idea what she'd done for him and how much it meant. She was giving him back control over his own life. He could make his own decisions; do what he wanted, go where he wan….

"Oh, Fuck!" Zane banged his head on the desk. What did I say to her? "If I stay in Eureka.. Shit! For a super genius I can be incredibly stupid sometimes."

Of course Jo would pull back after he said something as moronic as that to her. Hell if he thought Jo might just up and leave Zane sure as hell wouldn't let himself get too emotionally involved. He needed to fix this fast.

Jo had to know that leaving Eureka was never really an option for him. Sure it was a great feeling to know that he could leave if he wanted to but it was so not on the table. The mission to Titan might just be the single coolest thing to happen in his career and he was not about to pass up his chance to go. Then there was Jo herself, why did she think he'd spent all that time tutoring her. Zane had always been confident he'd find a way to get put on that mission, but he hadn't liked the idea of spending six months away from Jo. As long as Jo was in Eureka that is where Zane would be, the thought of being without her left him feeling cold and empty inside. He couldn't say that he loved her yet, but he had a strong feeling he was falling hard and fast.

Tomorrow, he'd find Jo first thing tomorrow morning and make sure she understood he wasn't going anywhere and why. "I just need to get some sleep and be on my game tomorrow."

Having decided on a course of action Zane stood up and grabbed his motorcycle helmet wondering how he was going to sweet talk SARAH into letting him enter in the middle of the night.

A/N: * I threw the line about feeling like a piece of meat in there simply because it bugged me when he said it. It almost sounded like whining a little.

I haven't written anything in a while so let me know what you think, I love reviews. I am still working on Without Trust There is Nothing but life and a massive computer crash got in the way.