Shaw lowers her gun from her temple and stores it safely in the waist or her pants. Root lowers her gun as well, but keeps it held casually at her side.

"Come on sweetie, let's get us somewhere safe," Root says wrapping her arm around Shaw's shoulders.

Shaw rolls her eyes and murmurs, "We'll never be safe," but follows anyway.

The pair sneak through the shadows, dodging cameras and anything that could give Samaritan a hint to their location. Eventually, they come to a back door to a tall brick building. Root starts to pick the lock.

"Where are we?" Shaw asks looking around. They're in a tiny back alley in a mostly abandoned neighborhood on the outskirts of the city.

"It's an old apartment building that was shut down years ago due to code violations. For some reason, no one has ever done anything with it. Lucky for us, that means it never got upgraded to contain a modern security system. Just good old fashion locks. It's one of the safe zones on our shadow map."

The lock clicks and the door swings open with a creak.

"After you," Root offers.

Shaw steps past Root cautiously, taking notice of the proximity of Root's body to her own. Memories of the simulations swim in her mind; she itches to be closer but is guarded in her actions. It isn't safe, Root isn't safe if she's with her. Shaw's thoughts are interrupted by a gentle hand on the small of her back.

"This way," Root's voice guides.

Up three flights of stairs and two doors down the hallway on the left, Root opens a door to reveal a simple studio apartment. There's a bed against one wall covered in pillows and blankets, a table on the opposite wall, and a shabby couch sort of haphazardly in the middle in front of an old television.

"Root, is this your apartment?"

"Please Sameen, I'd have a little more taste than this. It was set up as a safe house by Elias, I figured he won't be needing it right now," Root says, pausing before continuing. "You should get some rest; the boys are a little predisposed right now so we have some time."

Shaw sits down on the edge of the bed looking down at her gun in her hands. "You shouldn't stay with me. I told you already, I don't know if I'm in control anymore. You don't know if you can trust me…hell, I don't know if I can trust me."

Root walks over to Shaw and gently brushes a stray hair away from Shaw's temple. Shaw looks up, slowly, making eye contact. She can see just how serious Root is being in this moment.

"I know you won't hurt me Sam. And I won't let you hurt yourself. You and I, we're safe together. I'm not leaving you."

Shaw's eyes flicker back down to her gun resting in her lap. Root follows her gaze and takes the gun, placing it on the bedside table.

"Lie down, you really need some rest," Root urges, her concern written across her face.

"You do too…"

"Don't worry, I'll take the couch."

As soon as Root walks away, Shaw wishes she'd come back. Root's direct presence was undeniably comforting, despite Shaw's concern for their safety. But, Shaw's still guarded. So, she does as she was told and lies down under the soft covers of the bed.

The moment Shaw feels herself drifting off, it feels as if she is yanked back awake into a harsh white room. She looks around as her eyes focus to realize, horrified, she's back in Samaritan's prison like hospital. But, something's different this time. There's a second bed in the room. Shaw creeps over to see who her roommate is, but she doesn't have to get very close to recognize that wavy brunette hair.

"No…no…" Shaw murmurs, backing away.

"What's the matter Sameen, you didn't think we'd let your little girlfriend escape our grasps, did you?"

"Greer…what have you done to her? What have you done to Root?" Shaw says through clenched teeth, approaching Greer ready to attack.

"We've simply hacked her implant is all, we know it's her connection to the Machine. With it, we can find the rest of your silly team and gain control of the Machine once and for all."

"I swear to god, if you hurt her, I'll kill you."

"My dear girl, we don't want to hurt her. We want her to join us. She really would be a remarkable agent. And if she joins us, you'd be much quicker to follow."

"She will never join you and neither will I."

"Very well then," Greer says calmly, pulling out a gun. He aims it at Root without a seconds thought and shoots her through the head.

"No!" Shaw shouts, advancing on Greer ready to kill him with her bare hands when Root's body sits up and starts talking. The voice sounds muffled though, like it's coming from a distance.

"Shaw? Shaw, wake up. Come on Sameen, sweetie, you're dreaming…"

Shaw gasps as she wakes up. Her brow is wet with sweat and her heart is pounding, not from fear but from the anger towards the dream state Greer. Root is at her side, gripping her arms lightly and guiding her to a sitting position. Her hands are cool against Shaw's flushed skin.

"Are you ok?" Root asks.

"I…I don't know."

"You were dreaming. You cried out in your sleep…you said my name."

"He was gonna kill you. That son of a bitch Greer found you because of me, he was gonna kill you…he did kill you. He shot you, in the head. But then, you were talking. I heard you…you told me to wake up. But was it a dream…or am I in a simulation…does he really have you…I have to wake up, have to…"

Shaw's words trail off as she fumbles to push Root away and stand up. Root grasps her hands to keep her seated and tries to reassure her that everything is alright.

"Sameen, I'm right here. I'm ok, nothing is going to happen to me."

Shaw's eyes seem to focus on Root, fully coming back from the dream and accepting her current state as her reality for the time being.

"You're shaking, Sam." Worry is dripping from Root's voice with every word.

"I'm just cold."

"Oh…this building doesn't have any heat, I'm sorry about that. Here, you should get back under the covers…"

Shaw flashes back to a moment in most of her simulations, herself muttering that she's cold and Root immediately wrapping her leather jacket around her shoulders. If this Root isn't reacting the same way as simulation Root, this must be real…right? She has to calm down and collect her thoughts.

"Actually, I think I might take a shower."

The hot water rushes down over her as Shaw tries to stop her body from shaking. She hadn't been lying when she said she was cold, but it wasn't the only reason tremors were running through her. The anger she had felt in her dream was so intense and now, calming down is proving to send her body into a sort of shock.

When Shaw returns from the shower, Root has pulled up a chair next to the bed.

"Feeling better sweetie?" she asks.

"Yeah, sure," Shaw answers before she gets back into bed, propping herself up with the pillows and letting the covers lay loosely near her waist.

Her hair is still damp and lays free around her shoulders. Root can't help but to stare at the beauty of the woman in front of her. Even now, with her eyes shadowed and skin paled from exhaustion and poor health, she would easily be the first place Root's eyes went in a crowded room.

Shaw is struggling with herself. Root is there with her…her safe place…the woman she essentially sacrificed herself for and would do so again in a second…the one person who somehow can make her feel something new…and yet she's keeping her at arm's length. Yes, it's out of concern for Root's safety. But, she can't deny that this building is probably as secure as Root says. And simulation or not, they should be able to enjoy their time together. They deserve that much.

"That chair doesn't look very comfortable Root," Shaw offers. "This bed is big enough for the both of us, if you want."

Root eyes widen and her lips fall slightly parted in a subtle lax jaw expression of surprise before she recovers herself with a smile.

"I thought you'd never ask," Root responds with an attempt at a wink.

Shaw rolls her eyes; she should have known her invitation would bring back Root's blatant flirting. She doesn't regret it though, Root's body beside hers feels natural. Although, now that they're in the same bed, neither of them seem to really know how to proceed. It's like they're two hopeless teenagers sitting next to their crush for the first time. Shaw accidently helps things move forward when she shivers slightly, her damp hair chilling her body despite the covers and Root's warmth.

"Still cold?"

"Yeah, a little," Shaw say, shifting a little closer to Root who wraps her arm around Shaw.

Shaw's head is perfectly positioned to rest on Root's chest and she smiles as she listens to Root's heartbeat. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Root began to talk.

"I never stopped looking for you, you know," Root says, almost whispering. "John and I, we thought we found you at one point…in this town controlled by Samaritan. I lost it when I realized it wasn't you. Finch said we should stop looking…so did the Machine. But, I couldn't…I walked away from them in order to try and find you. I was terrified I never would, but I never stopped looking."

Shaw can feel the shakiness in Root's breath, she sits up and turns to see Root's eyes tearing up.

"I know you didn't give up, and honestly the message you sent helped me to keep trying to find a way out…to find a way back to you," Shaw says, reaching out to touch Root's face.

Root smiles and leans forward, slowly bringing her lips to be nearly touching Shaw's. She waits there for a second, waiting to see if Shaw is going to pull back. Instead, Shaw closes the gap and presses her lips firmly against Root's. The connection is like electric through their bodies and Roots hands travel up into Shaw's hair while Shaw's arms wrap around Root's mid-section bringing them closer together.

It isn't like how Shaw had imagined…or like how it was in her simulation. It's a lot clumsier; Root's shaking hands fumbling to unhook Shaw's braw, Shaw misjudging her own strength and accidentally bumping Root's head on the wall as she shoves her back to get at the buttons on Root's black jeans. But, once things get going, everything seems to smooth out. In the end, they're both naked wrapped in the blankets on the bed. Shaw's arm is draped lazily across Root's stomach and Root is tracing Shaw's scars on her back with a gentle finger.

"We should probably get ready to meet the boys soon, want to grab a bite to eat first?"

Now it was Shaw's turn to say, "I thought you'd never ask."

The pair get dressed and go to Parks Deli. Root orders Shaw her favorite (pastrami with extra mustard (spicy and yellow), tons of pepperoncini's, and no mayonnaise) and orders herself a simple turkey club.

"Ya know, the last time I had this sandwich, it was part of a simulation. Greer's twisted attempt to convince me that Samaritan is the good guy," Shaw says between bites. "Simulation food could never live up to the real thing." With a wink she adds, "And the company is much better too."

Root smiles and blushes. She isn't used to Shaw offering conformation of her affections besides the multiple circumstances Shaw had come to Root's aid out of unspoken concern for her well-being. That and the rare smile Root could manage to bring to Shaw's face. Root has always been well aware that Shaw's feelings will never be expressed like most people's are. After all, she's technically a sociopath. But, Shaw is unique. No label, not even the label of sociopath, accurately describes her. And being cared for by someone like Shaw, that's something incredibly special.

"Well, I'm glad you're able to have the real thing now," Root says, not even knowing that there's more to that statement than the food.

After they both finish their sandwiches Root says, "We should get going, the guys are waiting for us."

Suddenly, Shaw isn't ready to see them…isn't ready to expose them to that kind of danger. Even with Root by her side, it feels risky.

"Can't we wait just a little bit longer?" Shaw tries to say it like she's flirting, like she doesn't want to share Root's company. But, Root can read her better than that and can see the concern in her eyes.

"Hey, what are you worried about?" Root asks. "We've all missed you, they're eager to see that you're ok!"

"I just, I don't know if it's safe."

"We aren't going to the Machine and I'll be there with you the whole time sweetie. It's gonna be alright."

"It's not just the Machine I'm worried about Root. It's all of you. Do you know how many times I shot John in the simulations? I lost count…but I know that I killed him. Over and over again. When I say that the only person I was never able to kill was you, I mean it. Only you."

"You aren't going to hurt them Sameen. I know you won't and if you try, I won't let you."

"But what if I expose them and their identities somehow? You get a new one every day. They've only got one shot…"

"If that happens, then we'll take care of it. But, for now, we've gotta go," Root says, taking Shaw's arm in her hand and pulling her to a standing position. She lets her hand slip down to grasp Shaw's as they walk to meet up with the rest of their team.

When they arrive, Shaw lets go of Roots hand and stops in her tracks. Root walks a few more steps before looking back.

"You coming sweetie?"

"Yeah, just give me a second. I'll be right there, go ahead."

Root walks forward and greets everyone and Shaw takes a deep breath, preparing herself. They all turn to look at her as she walks forward from the tree line making her feel even more uneasy. But, by the time she reaches them, she feels home.