Title: Take a chance
Author: thousand-miles
Disclaimer: Don't own any of these characters
Rating: K
Spoilers: none
Summary: Lizzie goes to visit Red, but things don't go as expected. Sequel to Lunchbox
A/N: I usually don't write sequels to my fanfics. However this came to me out of nowhere and I just had to write it down. It didn't expect it to go like this or end like this but this is where the story took me. I hope you like it. Reviews are greatly appreciated. And of course this is AU.
Take a chance
Why had she let Meera talk her into this? What was she going to do? March in and say stop messing with my head? Or stop making my eyes wander over your body? No, that wasn't going to work. But she had to think of something and quickly too because she was standing at the front door waiting for it to open.
"Agent Keen." Dembe said after opening the door.
"Is he in?" Lizzie asked when she realised he wasn't just going to let her in.
"He is unavailable at the moment." He paused for a moment. "I do not believe we had an appointment."
"Eeuuh we don't." She hesitated, thrown a bit by the formality of the situation. "I just…" What should she say? That she was here to jump Red's bones?
"Is it urgent?" Dembe asked.
"I…no, I don't think so. I just… well maybe…" Lizzie got flustered. She looked at Dembe for help but the big bodyguard stayed silent. "Never mind." She muttered. She was about to turn around and walk away when she heard female laughter. She realised then what Dembe had meant by Red being unavailable. He was entertaining. She bid Dembe goodbye and quickly made her way back to her car.
Later that evening Lizzie was sitting on her couch accompanied by the two she counted on whenever she felt down, Ben and Jerry. She needed it. Meera's encouraging talk about taking a chance certainly hadn't worked out. Well to be honest, she hadn't really given it a chance after discovering Red had been entertaining. She'd felt stupid. Stupid for thinking she had a chance. So at home, she'd changed into her sweatpants, sweatshirt and thrown herself on her couch. Hudson was cuddled closely against her, sensing her need for comfort. Though it might not do her current mood any good, she was watching chick flicks. After watching Jerry Maguire she had just begun watching While you were sleeping. To others it may seem strange, but watching chick flicks made her believe in love again. Just as she watched Lucy saving Peter there was a knock on the door. She chose to ignore it. She was in no mood at all for company. The knocking however didn't stop and that persistence meant there could be only one person at her door. The one person she didn't want to see at all. Stubborn as she was she kept ignoring the knocks and simply turned the volume of her TV up. Then her phone starting ringing. Without looking at it she knew who was calling. Just like the knocks, she ignored the phone too. She knew though, she wouldn't be able to keep this up for long. Raymond Reddington always got his way.
"Open the door, Agent Keen." The Concierge of Crime, Raymond Reddington stood impatiently outside the FBI agent's house. She was ignoring him. Why he didn't know. There was nobody who could push his buttons like she could. Something was going on though. She'd come to his safe house earlier that day but had left without talking to him. Dembe of course hadn't said much about it. He'd merely said that she seemed off. That worried him and that was why he was standing on her doorstep. He needed to know what was going on. He'd sensed a change in her for a while now. He sometimes caught her staring at him, but whenever he acknowledged her stare, she quickly diverted her eyes. He had even seen her blush after he'd caught her eye. He had his suspicion of what was causing her strange behaviour but he was afraid his judgement was clouded by his longing for her to reciprocate his love.
His Lizzie, it was what he secretly called her, was stubborn and he knew she wouldn't let him into her home. He really didn't know what he'd done to piss her off. Since she was already mad at him he didn't see any harm in letting himself into her house. It was her own fault. He carefully opened the front door and stepped inside.
At the entry to her living room Red stopped and looked at her sitting on the couch with Hudson at her side. Judging by her clothes and the ice cream she screamed comfort and it made him even more curious what was going on with her.
"Hello, Lizzie." He greeted her when she didn't acknowledge him.
She tried her best to appear calm and aloof. She kept watching the movie and watched Lucy being introduced as Peter's fiancée. She was waiting for that first meeting between Lucy and Jack.
Clearly she was doing her best to ignore him, but he wasn't one to be ignored. He walked to the couch and sat down next to her. Hudson left Lizzie's side and cuddled against Red.
"Traitor." Lizzie muttered.
Red smiled, glad to get a reaction from her. He scratched the dog behind his ear as a thank you. "What are we watching?" He asked.
Lizzie grabbed the remote control and paused the movie. "We aren't watching anything." She wasn't going to let him ruin her feel good moment. "Could you please leave?" She asked calmly and politely.
"Not until you tell me what your surprise visit was all about."
"Nothing."
"Must have been important enough for you to come visit me."
"Not really." She stood up and walked to her kitchen to put her Ben and Jerry's back in the freezer. She wasn't going to be able to enjoy the ice cream any longer. She hoped by walking away her message that she wanted him to leave would be obvious enough.
"Dembe said you seemed troubled." He'd joined her in the kitchen and watched her closely.
"Dembe was wrong." Keeping her back to him she started to boil some water for a cup of tea. She refused to offer him anything knowing he would see it as an invitation to stay.
Her reluctance to talk was getting to him. It was time to push. Quietly he walked up to her until he was only a step away from her. He closed that last bit of distance until his chest almost touched her back. He knew she'd sensed his presence when he saw her shoulders tense. "Tell me what's going on, Lizzie."
His low and soft voice sent shivers through her body. Was he doing this on purpose knowing the effect he had on her? She realised if she took a small step back she could lean against him. She wanted him to wrap his arms around her and just simply be in his embrace. Would it feel as wonderful as she imagined? "Nothing's going on." Did she really sound so breathless? She needed to move.
She moved to her right to get away from him but he blocked her path by placing his hand on the counter. Not one to give up easily she moved just as fast to her left. Red predicted her move and blocked her escape to the left too. Now she was trapped between the counter and his arms. This was not good she thought. Best to keep quiet and not move.
"I have no problem standing here for the rest of the evening." He gently bumped against her back with his chest for a brief moment. "However you seem to have a movie waiting for you."
Once again he didn't get any reaction from her. "What was so important for you to show up at my doorstep unannounced?" He demanded. He wasn't one to be toyed with and she was really testing his patience. "Elizabeth." Gone was the gentleness in his voice instead he sounded menacing.
Lizzie recognised it and knew she had to thread carefully now. Though she knew Red would never hurt her, she also knew not to continue to push his buttons. But she was stubborn and she wasn't just going to give in to him.
"Let me go, Red." She said with some force. Maybe with some distance between them she would be able to talk to him.
"No."
"Red."
"No because if I let you go, you're going to leave. I want an answer Elizabeth."
With all the strength she had she pushed against his chest with her back. He stumbled backwards and it gave her the chance to escape.
"It was nothing okay. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" She pored herself a cup of tea. Before leaving him alone in the kitchen she really looked at him for the first time. That was a mistake. He looked so incredibly charming in his suits. He wasn't wearing his suit jacket this evening. She also noticed he had the top buttons of his shirt unbuttoned revealing some skin and just a tiny bit of chest hair. Of course her eyes wandered lower, enjoying the way those pants fit him. She slightly shook her head and told herself to focus at the task at hand, getting rid of him. With a final look she left him alone in her kitchen.
He wondered what had just happened. For a moment she seemed to have forgotten their argument and simply looked him up and down. She had his full attention already but now he was really curious. Something was definitely going on. He followed her to the living room and watched her sit down. He would let her have this moment. He decided he wanted a cup of tea too and went back to the kitchen.
She had turned the movie back on, but it didn't have her full attention anymore. No her mind and body were focused on the man in her kitchen. She sighed in frustration. She hated that he could do this to her even more so because he wasn't doing it intentional. That was the worst of it.
He joined her back in the living room and on her couch with his own cup of tea. In silence they both watched the movie. But there was no fun to it anymore. Lizzie stopped the movie. She deserved to see Lucy and Jack get together when there were no distractions.
Red took it as a sign that she was willing to talk. His patience was paying off.
"Can we forget about my visit, please?" She pleaded with him. She wanted to see him gone because her resolve was faltering.
"Sure we can."
Lizzie sat up immediately. Was he really giving her an out? "Thank you."
"As soon as you tell me what it was all about."
She groaned in frustration. "Why do you always want to know everything?"
"Not everything." He knew he had to change his strategy. "When Dembe told me you came by and you seemed troubled you worried me."
"Why?"
They were actually starting to talk even if she still didn't look at him. His voice was soft and caring. "Why what?" He wasn't really sure what she was asking.
"Why were you worried?"
Did she really have to ask? Did she not know? "Because I care about you."
"Why do you care?"
The answer to that question was as easy as it was difficult and he doubted she was ready for his honesty. "I don't want to ask again, Lizzie."
She knew she had to tell him. "Meera said something to me that got me thinking." She started playing with an imaginary thread on her couch. Anything to avoid looking at him.
Red smiled. She didn't want to look at him. He didn't mind. He was glad she was finally talking.
"She told me to take a chance. I… so I showed up at your safe house. Dembe told me you were occupied. I lost my nerve. Especially when…" She stopped. She really didn't want to continue.
"When what?" He asked gently.
"When I heard your company." She whispered. It was then that she realised how foolish she had been to take a chance.
He remembered his appointment with Meredith. She had needed him to sign some papers. Meredith was a joy to work with. Not only was she good at her job, she also had a great sense of humour. He knew Lizzie still hadn't told him what had truly bothered her. "That's not what bothered you though."
"No." She looked up at the ceiling, laying her head on the back of the couch. "I heard her laughter and I… I assumed." She shook her head. She couldn't do this. "Never mind."
He wasn't going to let her get away with it, but knew he had to be careful. "And you assumed the meeting was personal instead of professional?"
She closed her eyes and nodded slightly. She didn't want to see his reaction. It would make the rejection easier.
"Why would that bother you?" His voice was gentle but rough. This was a make or break moment. This would decide their future. He needed to keep any indication of what he wanted her answer to be out of his voice. "Tell me." He whispered.
"Because it would mean that I lost you before I even got to have you." She admitted and swallowed thickly.
Red's breath caught in his throat. His heart was beating wildly in his chest. Was she really offering what he'd been longing for?
When the silence between them lingered Lizzie accepted it as his rejection. Way to go Meera, she thought, making me think I had a chance and I end up getting shot down. "Could you please leave?" Her voice quivered. She was trying her hardest to hold it together. If he stayed any longer she would break down. She didn't want him to see her like that.
Seeing her struggle to hold it together he knew he had to take his leave. She was far from ready to have this conversation. In time though they would talk. "As you wish." Standing up he walked out of her living room. Before leaving he glanced back at her and uttered his final words. "You have me, sweetheart."
The End