AN: After watching episode two last week, it was 5am for me, I tried to go back to sleep because I had to get up for work in the morning, but I just couldn't sleep. Because TBL gives me feels and I can't handle them and I get all excited and then I suddenly feel the need to write a new fic... So this is what happened. Special thanks goes to jackandsamforever for beta-ing this!
Disclaimer: My feels are mine
You Will Always Have Me
When he opened the door to her hotel room and quietly made his way inside, he could see her lying in bed, turned on her side, with the covers pulled up her chest. He slowly walked up to her side and gently sat down on the mattress. Careful as to not to disturb her, he stroked the tips of his fingers over her temple, pushing loose strands of her hair away from her beautiful face. The blinds weren't closed all the way, and the moonlight illuminated her features in a captivating way. He leaned down and placed his lips to her brow in a gentle kiss. She hummed at the feeling as her body slowly came to awareness.
"Red?" She mumbled.
"Shh…" He stroked his fingers over her cheek. "Go back to sleep," he said in a low voice. She made a noise he couldn't quite identify as agreement nor disagreement. "I just came to thank you… and apologize for what I said on the phone," he spoke quietly.
She nuzzled into his hand, but didn't open her eyes. "s'okay. You were right… I was only thinking about my job. Thinking like a cop," she said, slowly becoming more and more alert.
"You are a cop." He smiled.
She seemed to think otherwise. "I don't know what I am anymore… I hope she's worth it," Liz said, a faraway look in her sleepy gaze.
Red palmed her cheek. "Lizzie… I would burn down the world for you, you know that, right?" He asked, and looked deeply into her half opened eyes, trying to make her understand his feelings and his actions.
Her eyes danced over his face. Seeing nothing but truth in it, she shuffled to the side and out of his reach. "Hold me?" She asked tentatively.
A smile came to his lips at her words. Oh how much he loved this woman. He put his hat on her nightstand and shrugged off his jacket while toeing off his shoes. Looking at her, he could see that she was watching his every move through heavy lidded eyes.
"D'you need help takin' off your pants?" She asked in a sleepy voice and he knew that she was close to passing out cold.
"I got it this time, sweetheart, but I will gladly take you up on your offer next time." He smiled as he unbuckled his belt and pulled it through the loops before getting rid of his trousers. After slipping off his dress shirt, Red lifted the covers only long enough so he could slide in next to her.
Before he had even fully settled in, Lizzie was already half on top of him and snuggling into his warmth, her nose buried in his neck. He sank further into the mattress and put his arms around her, pulling her deeper into his chest. Her lips were soft against his skin as she kissed the crook of his neck, and he hummed quietly at the feeling.
"Red?" Liz whispered, her warm breath tickling him slightly.
"Yes, sweetheart?"
Her arm wound itself around his waist and held onto him tightly. "You may not have any friends... but you have me. You will always have me," she said softly, and although he could barely make out her words, he instantly felt the warmth spreading through him at her confession.
Even though he hadn't wanted to disturb her, he found himself unable to stop as his hand reached down to slowly tilt her head up. Her eyelids fluttered open and she looked at him in question. "That is all I need," he replied in a thick voice. He nodded once and blinked away the wetness that was threatening to leave the safety of his eyes, and then leaned in to kiss her softly. It was a slow and gentle kiss, and Red tried to put his feelings for her in it; the feelings he hadn't managed to share with her yet. She would probably never know just how much she meant to him. How much it meant to him that she wanted him.
He pulled back after some time and kissed the tip of her nose, then each of her eyelids; effectively making her shut them before he moved on to her forehead. After placing a last kiss to her skin there, he gently tucked her head back under his chin, and buried his nose into her hair. The arm she had wound around him was already lax, signaling to him that she had fallen asleep already. It was a wonderful feeling to know that she trusted him, trusted him completely; even after all those bumps they had hit during their ride.
Red could feel sleep starting to pull at him as well and so he closed his eyes, still breathing in her wonderful scent. He would never let her go again, would fight tooth and nail for her. He hadn't been kidding when he had told her that he would burn down the world for her. He would. If something like what happened to his ex-wife were to happen to his Lizzie, no one would be safe from his wrath. She was his, and people should know better than to mess with what was his. Yes, she made him vulnerable. Weak even. But he'd gladly let her be his weakness; he had never been this happy in a relationship before, and having her made him feel alive. A feeling he hadn't had in two decades. She was his. His Lizzie. And no one could change the feelings he had for her.
"I love you, sweetheart," he whispered into the darkness, and Red could have sworn he felt her smile into his neck at his confession.
