"Who are you involved with, Alan?" Raisa asked, as she got up from the bed and began pulling on her dress.
Alan Fitch sat up, putting his undershirt back on, "Do you mean besides my wife?"
"Yes, I'm referring to whoever you're in bed with that seems to be stressing you out so much? My task force seems to be running into your name more then I'd expect," she replied earning a frown as she slipped on her shoes.
"Are you leaving already?" he asked, beginning to button his shirt, "We usually have a little more time together."
"I have a case to solve," she answered, "I have a feeling I'll be seeing you again before the day ends unless you'd like to tell me who has you so worked up."
He shook his head, "I wish I could but this one is just too sensitive. Be safe today," he cautioned, his tone serious.
"You too," she replied walking to his side of the bed and placing her lips slowly against his, "Do you ever think you'll be with me full time? You're old, my love and I just hate that we won't have more time," she added, too much depth for her normally.
He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close, his face resting against her chest, "I have to maintain my image in this world and a divorce followed by a public relationship with a young woman would destroy me."
She leaned her head and kissed the top of his head, "You be careful today too. I don't want to lose you," she confessed as she exited the hotel room and went straight to the Post Office for her task force's next case.
Raisa left work for the day and found herself being summoned back to the same hotel she'd been at earlier that day. She walked in and found Alan sitting in a large chair by a roaring fire in the lobby. She made her way over and took a seat in the chair across from him but found herself surprised when he opened his arms, gesturing for her to join him.
Raisa stood from her seat and moved to his, sitting down gingerly on his lap, "This is a little public, don't you think?" she asked, her face filled with curiosity.
He nodded, "Yes but I don't care anymore. My whole world is on shaky ground and I'm not going to waste another moment away from you. I'm sorry it took you so long for me to see the truth between us," he revealed, his confession the most vulnerable she'd ever seen him.
"What's going on?" she asked, "Did something happen today that caused you to feel like this? I'm so happy you want to be with me but it seems so out of character especially after this morning," she explained her concerns over his sudden attitude shift.
He shook his head, "It's nothing in particular just a general feeling I have about my business and my associates."
"Alan," they were interrupted by a voice Raisa knew well, "I wasn't aware you were sleeping around on Margaret and with an agent of mine, no less."
Raisa turned to see Raymond Reddington in the seat she'd been in just minutes earlier then she looked at Fitch, "This is who's been turning your world upside down? You should have said something."
"He's your informant?" Alan asked, his own voice displaying surprise, "We knew he'd turned himself in but I never thought your increased missions correlated. You might be of some help with this situation," he added moving his attention to Red. "Ray, why did you call this meeting? I've told you they won't help you. You've played all your chips," he explained while Raisa still sat on his lap in complete shock.
Red sat forward in his chair, his fedora in his hands, "Alan, I'm under attack and if this person is able to get me then all you and your organization's secrets will come out. If you don't value your privacy, especially of the variety that could ruin you if exposed, then I suppose we are at a stalemate," he explained causing Raisa to give him a look.
"What are you two arguing about?" she asked, hoping she could mediate between these two strong willed men.
Alan sighed before taking a sip of his scotch, "Ray claims to be under attack but unable to pinpoint the identity of the person. He wants my organization's aid but what he has is not worth us getting on the bad side of a criminal Reddington, himself, fears."
She looked between Alan and Red before finally speaking, "Is this about Berlin?" she asked, dropping the curtains surrounding each man's secrecy to get to the bottom of the problem.
Red nodded, "She knows what a serious threat Berlin poses for both my business and yours, Alan. Listen to her, perhaps the way she communicates with you is more persuasive then anything I can offer."
Raisa rolled her eyes and looked back at Alan, placing her hand on his cheek, "Babe, he's not lying or being dramatic. This 'Berlin' has evaded, not only Reddington and his associates, but my task force and we are experts in each of our fields. The resources needed to pinpoint this man's location are only available through your connections. I'm looking forward to your sudden change of heart regarding us and it'd be a shame for it to end prematurely over something like this," she shared, pulling out every word she could to appeal to his mindset.
Alan shook his head, not speaking, and the three sat in silence for, most likely a few minutes, but what felt like an hour. Alan finally spoke, squeezing Raisa's arm as he did, "Alright Ray, if you are this insistent along with Raisa being able to corroborate your fears, we will help. What exactly do you need?" he asked.
Ray and Alan continued to converse late into the evening regarding their plans for Berlin while Raisa fell asleep on Alan's shoulder, oblivious to everything except the sound of his heartbeat.
Raisa's task force, really the Reddington force, disbanded as the summer months krept up on everyone. Cooper, their director, was in a coma, Mira had been killed and Reddington disappeared leaving no reason for anyone to work on the force's goals.
Alan and Raisa got married over the summer after he'd left his wife, realizing life was too short to be miserable.
She was in their kitchen, one early September morning, when her phone rang as she was eating a bowl of cereal. Alan entered the room as she answered the phone, "This is Raisa," she said. She nodded multiple times before she ended the call and looked at Alan.
"Who was that?" he asked, walking over to her and placing a kiss on her forehead.
"The task force," she replied, still taken aback, "Reddington is back and we have our first lead in months."
He nodded, "Are you going to go back to that work? I have to admit that it's been nice having you around more, especially now that we're really together, finally," he admitted, his eyes staring tenderly at her.
"I have to go in at least once even if it's just to say goodbye," Raisa answered, "But, don't worry. I won't devote all my time to their cause because my main goal is to be by your side, not running all over the country to help Raymond Reddington."
"Help him?" Fitch asked, his eyebrow raised at the way she phrased her work.
Raisa exhaled, long and hard, before she spoke again, "I don't have any proof, because Reddington, but I have a theory that he kills the blacklisters that stand in his way and recruits the rest because we rarely get to lock any of them up."
"That would not surprise me for even a second," he laughed, "Well, don't stay too long because I have the entire day clear and I'll be waiting for you," he finished with a mischievous grin crossing his lips.
She stood, wrapping her arms around his waist, placing small kiss at the base of his neck before she whispered, "Would it make you feel better if we had a little fun before I left?" Alan didn't reply but, instead, attacked her lips, with his, running his hands over her body while lifting her onto the counter, behind them, knocking her cereal bowl into the sink. Raisa was laughing hysterically as he assaulted her with his lips.
"Raisa, you need to come to the Post Office, as quickly as you can," was the voicemail Keen left on her phone as Raisa raced to work, knowing only that Alan's life was in danger and Reddington tried to warn him.
She pulled up and got out of her car, almost sprinting into the office where Agent Keen was waiting for her.
"Agent Fitch," Keen began, "We found Director Fitch but there's been a complication and we aren't sure how long he has left," she attempted to explain without sharing the fact that a bomb was locked around Fitch's neck.
Raisa shook her head at Keen's delicate speech, "Just take me to him, please," she urged to which Keen quickly nodded and led Raisa through the Post Office to the box that once held Reddington but now Alan was in it, keeping the rest of them safe from the bomb, if it wasn't disabled.
"Alan," Raisa whispered, unable to find her voice as she saw him, "Can they disable it?" she asked, finally able to speak just slightly louder noticing the pain that crossed his face once he saw her.
"My love," he said, his tone ever stoic, "They haven't been able to, but there's still a small sliver of hope. I wish you hadn't come and seen me like this," he said, regret evident in his voice, just slightly.
Raisa shook her head, "There is no universe where I sit at home while something like this is happening. Is Reddington in charge of our sliver of hope?" she asked, now able to speak normally from adrenaline coursing through her veins to save him, her love.
He nodded, "He has a lead and informed me this morning that Berlin was after me now, instead of Ray. You can attempt to call him for an update, but I fear all of this may be useless," he finished, his tone defeated but only Raisa could hear it.
She shook her head, "Alan, I'm not letting you blow up in that box, at least not by yourself. If we can't stop it then I will join you and die with you," she said indignantly, "I refuse to live in a world where you aren't," she added, tears starting to threaten her eyes but she held them back.
"Under no circumstances are you to enter this box," he demanded, his tone firm once again, "I will not allow you to waste all the life you have left to live by dying by my side. I've lived my life but you have so much yet to do," he explained, wishing he could kiss her lush lips and caress her ivory skin one more time.
Raisa moved toward the glass and placed her hand to it, her own mind wishing for the same things his was. She pulled out her phone and dialed Reddington's most recent burner, praying he still had it.
"Reddington," he answered, his tone calm and calculating as always.
"Red, it's Raisa Fitch," she introduced herself, "Where are you on disabling this bomb? The bomb squad is coming up empty."
She heard him sigh before he spoke again, "I've almost got it. Don't worry, I won't let him die," he said vaguely before ending the call, leaving Raisa more concerned then before.
Raisa looked back at Fitch, her heart breaking at the sight before her eyes, "He said he's almost got it so let's hope almost is still enough time for us," she shared, her tone melancholic before she looked at the camera above, "Cooper! Can I go in for just a few minutes?"
Alan was shaking his head but Cooper could see the pain on her face and activated the box's latch allowing Raisa to enter.
She walked through the entrance and placed her hand on his face, "Alan, why is this happening to us? We finally have what we've wanted for all these years and now…" she couldn't finish as she felt the tears begin to freefall.
"Sh," he soothed, wishing he was able to move to comfort her, "It will be alright even if, right now, this is the worst thing, in time, you will recover," he tried to reassure her that she'd get through this.
She looked into his eyes, hers still blurry with teardrops, "I understand that someday this won't be the thing that keeps me from getting out of bed and fighting for life, but I am not ready to let you go, I'll never be," she confessed.
"You need to get out of here, in case the bomb detonates," he changed the subject, near tears himself, "Please, for me."
Raisa nodded as she bent over and placed a gentle kiss to his lips, ensuring he didn't move, then she stood back up and locked eyes again, "I didn't want to mention this, here, but you deserve to know in case things don't go our way," she began, her voice shaking from a combination of heartbreak and nervousness.
He looked at her, his own eyes glazing over from emotions threatening to break free, "What is it?" he asked, fearing the worst like an affair.
"I found out this morning that I'm pregnant," she confessed taking in the look of surprise mixed with even deeper heartache, "My plan was to surprise you tonight but this will have to do," she finished as she exited the box and moved out of the way so the door could close once more. Once it was secure, she turned to look at him and saw a small tear rolling down his cheek, "I'm so sorry," he said, regret evident in his voice now. "I would love nothing more then to watch you grow as our child forms within you and then raising it with you. You will be ok, my Love," he uttered, his own voice failing him from the news she'd shared.
Raisa couldn't speak anymore so she moved to the glass and sat down on the floor, placing her hand against it, looking at him, hoping to give him any strength she could rally.
The minutes ticked by slowly until the bomb made a noise which caused Raisa to close her eyes, unable to face the results of the potential explosion. She didn't hear the boom she'd expected and she opened her eyes to see the bomb had unlocked and he was able to take it off and gently place it on the ground.
Cooper opened the door allowing Alan to race from the box and lock the bomb back inside just in case Berlin changed his mind.
Alan looked at Raisa, where she sat on the floor, and lowered himself to join her, "I don't know how I was able to escape that but I have never been more grateful for my life as I am," he said joyfully as he pulled her to him, her head against his chest as her full emotions from the day left her and she sobbed against him.