Title: Dare You To Love Me
Author: Skylarcat
Classification: One shot. Angie Flynn, Oscar Vega. Short with fluff.
Rating: PG 13
Feedback: I would like that very much, thank you.
Summary: He knew instantly that tiger lilies were the right choice, knew the moment the florist had informed him that they meant 'dare you to love me,' and that was exactly what he was going to do; he was going to dare Angie Flynn to love him.
Note: Flynn and Vega are characters that do not belong to me. Yes, I have used them without permission. However, no copyright infringement is intended. And I will return them intact and a lot more satisfied.
"You were a risk, a mystery, and the most certain thing I'd ever know."-Beau Taplin
He rounded the corner, taking quick deliberate steps, each one with a purpose; to lead him to her. He counted each one, like seconds in a lifetime, stretching before him like an eternity. He caught his breath, swallowing down the lump that suddenly formed in the back of his throat. Despite his calm exterior, he was nervous. His palms were sweaty and his hands were shaking slightly. It wasn't every day that a man reached a decision that could affect the rest of his life.
He entered the precinct in the early hours, while it was still practically empty and quiet. In his hands he carried a bouquet of tiger lilies; large fiery orange flowers with tiny dark specks, wrapped carefully in parchment paper. He knew instantly they were the right choice, knew the moment the florist had informed him that they meant 'dare you to love me,' and that was exactly what he was going to do; he was going to dare Angie Flynn to love him.
He knew he was taking a risk; that it was a long shot, but she simply meant everything to him, everything he ever wanted if not more. She was his best friend, his confidant, his partner. She knew him inside and out, completely. She knew him better than any other person in the whole entire world. Somehow, she had managed to strip him bare, to see all of him, to see him at his best and at his worst. She accepted every facet of him and in return he accepted her completely as well. But she could be so stubbornly guarded at times, so resistant at allowing anyone in fully. But he wanted her, all of her.
He knew with certainty that there was something between them. He could feel it. It was in the sentiments behind her words, in the tremble of her hand whenever they would touch. It was in her hesitation when she paused, looking at him thoughtfully, like there was so much more that she wanted to say, but she never did. And sometimes, when she walked away, he would catch her looking back. That was a dead giveaway; her turning back around.
And in those moments where time suspended around them, heavy and thick and ever so promising, where lines became unclear and boundaries pushed aside; he could feel it then. Where only she and he existed, everything and everyone else only a muted ghost, he could see it in her eyes. It's what prevented him from making a move, because he knew she wanted him just as badly as he wanted her.
She was different. There was something about her. And whenever he thought about her, it was her spirit that always came to his mind first; her reckless nature. Angie Flynn wasn't easily tamed or captivated. She needed to be challenged, never still for too long. He always tried to keep up because he was scared that one of these days she would leave him behind.
And though she was one of the strongest people he knew, she still had this false perception of herself. She saw herself as damaged goods, of underserving of happiness. He could never quite understand where it came from. But the moment anything felt too safe or represented forever, she would sabotage it. It terrified her and it terrified him that she might not allow him to offer it to her.
For so long, he had loved her from a distance, in the dark, among the shadows. It was safer that way. No risk of her running away or leaving him behind, because that was what she would do, because that is what she always did when she was scared, she ran. She would put up her guarded walls, resisting him every step of the way, believing she didn't deserve love, but she did. He just needed to find a way to prove it to her.
He had too, because in a way, she had saved him; took all his broken pieces and made him whole again. He was so closed off when he had first met her, sort of lost and struggling to find himself. He wasn't sure of anything anymore and then she came along. And everything clicked and made sense, and he was sure that she belonged in his life. Without her, he would be empty, would be lost again. She made him a better person. She grounded him. She calmed him. He loved her. Though in secret, he loved her.
He was about to place the arrangement on her desk when he stalled. Maybe he had it all wrong. Maybe he was underserving of her. Maybe she deserved better than him. He glanced down at the tiger lilies in his hands sadly. What was he thinking? Tiger lilies? She would hate them. He kicked opened the small trash bin by her desk and dropped the flowers into it.
A small voice came from behind him. "Why are you throwing them away?"
His body grew rigid at the sound of her voice. He hadn't heard her come in. He didn't dare answer her. Instead, he just stared at the trashcan, praying that the tiger lilies would just disappear.
"Who are they for," she asked when he didn't answer. When he still didn't answer, she walked over to the trash bin, pulling out the flowers. She carefully made sure there was no damage to them, her hands smoothing over the parchment paper. She tilted her head, glancing at him with a puzzled expression.
He avoided her eyes, instead focused on her attire. She wore dark-washed jeans and a white t-shirt and that classic blazer that he loved whole heartedly. Her hair blonde and framing her face in soft curls, and then he caught her eyes. They were round and bright blue, regarding him curiously. She glanced between the flowers and him, waiting for an answer.
His heart was pounding against his chest and he waited, expecting it to explode at any moment. He didn't know what to say, so he said the truth. "They're for you." His voice came out in a whisper and when she didn't reply right away he repeated it. "I got them for you."
She scrunched her face at his admission, arching a brow indicating her confusion. "Why were you throwing them away?"
He sighed, shoving his hands into his pockets and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. I guess I didn't think you would like them." She was right in front of him, so close that they could share the same breath. He was about to take a step back when she took a step forward and his breath caught in his throat. He never been more terrified, all his years as a detective, all the dangerous situations he had faced, nothing came close to how he felt at that exact moment.
"You didn't think I would like them," she questioned. "I love them. They're tiger lilies, my favorite flower. The corner of her lips turned upward and before he knew it, she was smiling broadly at him.
The irony of the situation slapped him across the face and he was tempted to roll his eyes. Out of all the flowers in the world, he had managed to pick out her favorite. If that wasn't fate, he wasn't sure what was.
"Do you know what they mean?" She suddenly asked and he glanced up locking eyes with her. "They mean 'dare you to love me', she continued, and then he saw it; the realization as it crept across her features.
"I did know that," he admitted.
And her eyes instantly began to water. "Oscar…"
"Remember that time we were on that stake-out and we were talking about truth and dare? You told me you always picked dare because you could never turn them down. Well I'm asking you to prove it. I'm daring you to love me, Angie."
She stepped closer to him, cupping the sides of his face with her hands. Her thumbs caressed his cheeks softly. And to him, she never looked more beautiful. His hands found her shoulders and clung there, willing her to speak. A few tears fell from her eyes and he reached up, brushing them away. "What do you say, Angie?"
"Dare accepted," she said. And then her lips found his.
He knew then that tiger lilies were defiantly the right choice.