AN: Thank you for the comments on Blast From the Past! This is a little follow up of that story, so if you haven't read it then, you won't understand this. Please enjoy this little fluff from Blast From the Past!
It is about a week after they found Cabe, and the team has not officially started working since then, but there has been papers piling up on their desks that they haven't gotten to, and the geniuses have their own projects that they have not tended to in days.
Paige is filling out her share of paperwork from their last case, alongside Tim as Sylvester worked on one of his latest equations, Happy began to enhance her motorcycle, as Toby bombarded her with random side chatter. Walter had left not too long ago for the pet store since the whole time they were gone, Ferret Bueller had not been fed.
Cabe had gotten there a little earlier than usual that Monday morning. He had gotten a mug full of coffee from the pot, and sat down at his desk to a rather large stack of papers for him to fill out, and file for Homeland. His memory is not fully restored, and he is missing a few more recent memories such as non substantial cases, and missions. He sighed at the large stack of papers, took a swing of coffee, and began the tedious task of paperwork.
Walter then walked into the garage with a bag of ferret food in his grip, expecting not to see Cabe yet but he was at his desk, with a cup of coffee near his right hand as he filled out some of his paper work that he needed to catch up on from the case where he originally sustained his head trauma injury. Walter gave him an odd, and confused look as he shut the door then proceeded to walk over to the stairs that lead to his apartment, so he could feed the ferret that he thought would've passed by now.
Cabe noticed Walter walking up the stairs, and looked over at the team to be sure that they were occupied with their work, he got up from his desk, and proceeded to walk up the stairs to Walter's apartment. When he got up there, he walked over to where Walter keeps the ferret which is on the small table where his couch is, and books that he calls the living room, and saw Walter feeding the ferret.
Walter had the cage open to the ferret's habitat, and had his hand in section where the ferret food was with a portion in his hand as the ferret began to much down on his food, and Walter grimaced every time the ferret bit down on the food since the ferret would get a small section of the skin on his hand every time he bit down. He felt a presences in the room either than that of his own or the ferret's so he looked up at the doorway, and saw the older man standing there with a serious complexion to his face. Walter threw the rest of the food in the ferret's cage, and closed the door, remembering what happened last time he forgot to, and looked over at the older man.
There was a moment of silence between the two of them, as if it had been a whole decade since they last saw each other. The two of them had not had time to talk after what happened in the hotel room since Paige, and Toby had been carefully watching over Cabe since he got away from them until they had the comfort that his memory was restored enough that he would not get away from them in relation to what had just occurred.
Cabe took a deep breath to clear his mind of all the other thoughts that were going through his mind, since every time he looked at the younger man, he would still see the little boy who needed him, and the little girl who needed her daddy to come home, tuck her in, and give her a kiss good night.
"Why don't you sit down son, I have something very important I need to tell you."Cabe told Walter as he took a seat on his couch, and Cabe sat down next to him.
There was another moment of silence between the two. Walter had no clue what Cabe wanted of him as he observed his surroundings, and listened to the ferret much down on his first meal in about a week. He knew it had to be something about what he said in the hotel room that day when he emotionally deteriorated in the presences of the team in relation to what happened to himself when he was a boy.
Cabe finally broke the silence.
"You know son how when I saw you there, back at the hotel when you guys came, and told me about… About Amanda. When I saw you, I knew who you were, I knew that you were, like a son to me."Cabe began to tell Walter as Walter looked at him.
Walter looked into Cabe's eyes. He saw the tears beginning to form in his eyes. He knew that thinking about that early morning in the hotel room, when all his memories of the past, came over him like a wave over rocks as Toby had put it, caused pain. Not external, but internal. He was still gaining knowledge about emotions, and was still trying to understand them, but he knew enough to know that still even the slightest thought about what went down in that hotel room, caused Cabe a great deal of emotional pain.
"When I was getting those visions."Cabe began to say."I had one of you, when you were boy. The day I first met you, you were just a boy, a boy who needed someone that understands him. I remember when we were in the car pulling into the army base, and I saw the look in you eyes, it was fear, fear that you weren't gonna admit to anybody. I talked you out of it, and when we stepped out the car, you forgot your stuffed bear, and I unlocked the car for you, and you got it out, and took my hand."Cabe continued to tell Walter then, Walter interrupted him.
"I remember that day, I still I have the stuffed bear, and I don't know why. I guess that it reminds me of the days I spent with you, and Megan, the days when you were the good Cabe I knew."
Cabe was shocked by what Walter just told him. He never told anyone anything in relation to what to he just told Cabe, about his emotions, about what he feels, deep inside of the shell of that emotionless genius was his emotions, he just needed to find them, and he just did.
Then there was another moment of silence between the two men.
"I was, uhh, umm, scared, that umm, I was, never gonna get you, uhh, back."Walter awkwardly stuttered.
Cabe looked at Walter, confused.
"What do you mean son?"Cabe asked Walter as he shifted in his seat to look at Walter.
"I, didn't want to lose my father, I didn't want to lose you."Walter continued to tell Cabe as his eyes shifted from the floor to Cabe.
"Son, I'll never leave you, purposely, I'll always be here for you, as long as you need me. I know that logically you're bound to outlive me, but I'll still be here for you, you've always been like a son to me, and I want to help you, and be here for you."Cabe told Walter as tears began to swell in the young genius' eyes.
Walter did not know what say after what he had just heard Cabe say. He did feel reassured, he had just gained the knowledge that Cabe has always felt as if he were Walter's father, and that he would always be there for him. Walter knew before, while Cabe was in search of his old family, that he would never find them, but he didn't know if the team would ever find Cabe. He needed the reassurance of his father figure that he would always have him, and never lose him.
"Umm, thank you for that, Cabe."Walter awkwardly stuttered.
"You're welcome son."Cabe replied with a smile.
Walter gave Cabe a slight smile then, he did what no one, not even Toby would ever guess he would ever do. Walter gave a Cabe a hug. He didn't know why, but went into the older man's arms.
Cabe hugged Walter, with a confused look on his face. He didn't know why Walter was hugging him, but at least he knew that Walter wasn't a complete robot, or emotionless man, and that he did have some human qualities.
Walter had no clue why he was hugging Cabe, but it felt right, it felt just as good as it did when he was with Paige that night, before Tim woke up, or back almost year ago when him, and Paige experimented with their feelings towards each other, and kissed. This moment though, felt a little different than the feelings he has for Paige though.
Walter pulled out of the embrace, and Cabe did as well.
Cabe smiled at Walter, and Walter returned the smile with a slight grin.
"I'm glad I could be here for you son."Cabe told Walter.
"I am glad that you're here for me as well."Walter replied.
"C'mon, kid, the team's probably wondering where we are."Cabe told Walter as he arose from his seat, and they began to leave the room.
Walter then knew at that moment that he had his father back, and that he would be there for him, forever.