Title: Speed Gen Ficlet
By: Caroline Crane
Pairing: gen
Rating: PG

This job isn't his life. That's what he told himself when he took it, and it's what he tells himself every time he finds himself spending the night in the lab, dragging himself home after a too-long shift with too many unanswered questions.

It's not his life – he can't let it be, because one day it might be gone. He learned a long time ago not to count on any one thing too much, not to count on anything to be there when he really needs it.

So he goes through the motions, puts in his time and doesn't complain about long hours and double shifts. He takes pride in his work, doesn't understand how people can do what they do to each other and hopes he never does, but at the end of the day it's just a job.

It has to be; he can't afford to let it be more than that.