Apologies for not updating Analogous in nearly a week. Some really uncomfortable things happened in my real life (if you follow me on Tumblr you've seen the explanation post) and it's made writing or reading romance really really uncomfortably weird and I've basically had to disassociate from my entire life to even get to a place where I could write this potential mess (I can't even tell anymore these past three days have just messed me up beyond belief).
But I figured writing a short established Waige oneshot might help me, and hopefully reading it will help you, too.
Paige smiled as she crossed the room. "Hey, you're back."
Walter was limping – Paige noticed the slight hitch in his gait immediately. "Is there something you didn't tell me about this case?"
"Huh?" He put his bag down, just missing his chair.
"Your leg...hip?" Paige cocked her head. He had stopped moving. "Knee?"
"It was when Brubaker hit me. Toby implied that the hit was north of my knee because he was trying to gain sympathy from Aleta."
"Man," Paige said. "I mean I can't say I'm not a little relieved, but it sounds like everything was more intense than we thought. And that's saying something coming from us."
"Huh. Yeah."
Paige grew silent, watching as he slowly began to unpack. He was absolutely exhausted, having been awake for nearly two days straight, but she could tell that despite the case being over, he was still too keyed up to get proper rest. "Walter," she said gently, "what do you need?"
He turned to look at her. He didn't move for several long moments, but she could see him weakening, the professional, no nonsense façade he used on cases fading from his face. When he spoke, his voice was tired. "Can...can you just hold me?"
"Hey," she said again, gently, stepping closer and wrapping her arms around him. He leaned into her gratefully, burying his head in her neck. Paige closed her eyes and rocked him gently back and forth. She could feel the tension radiating from his body, and she turned her head slightly to the side and kissed him just above his ear. She heard him breathe in, and she pressed her palm against the back of his head, letting him know she wanted him just as close as he wanted her. She didn't know how long they stood there before she spoke again.
"Let's go sit on the couch," she said quietly, "okay?"
"Mmm hmm."
"Okay." She patted his back lightly as he straightened up, and rushed to beat him to the couch so she could toss one of the pillows onto the coffee table. Sitting down, she put the pillow in her lap.
Walter dropped down next to her, and she tugged him close, holding his head against her chest and running her hand through his hair. "Just relax," she whispered. "It's been a long day. But we're all okay. We're all perfectly okay."
He grunted, shifting his weight until his head rested on the pillow in her lap. "Oh my gosh, Walter, you're so tense," she said, voicing what she'd observed when he'd first walked into her arms. She ran her hand from his shoulder to his hip and then back again, repeating the motion slowly, and again. "Try to stop thinking about it."
"I – "
"I know that's difficult," she said gently. "I know it is. Just focus on me. Focus on my touch." She ran her other hand through his hair, then slid the hand that was on his shoulder over it, reaching down as he lifted his hand to meet hers. Their fingers linked together. "There you go," she whispered, curling her fingers in and out of his hair. "Just focus on me."
"You relax me," she heard him mumble. Paige smiled. She knew that. She knew it in his actions, and he told her often. He'd gotten a lot better at telling her things.
"Good," she responded. Leaning down as best she could with his head on her lap, she kissed him on the ear. "I love you," she whispered. "Rest your eyes."
He sat up abruptly, and she looked at him in confusion. "If I fall asleep, you'll be stuck sitting there until I get up."
Paige patted the pillow. "Walter, I don't mind."
"No." He looked warily at the stairs, and Paige opened her mouth to protest what he was about to say. Yes, he was perfectly capable of going up to the loft. But he wouldn't be able to fall or stay asleep without her.
"Walter," she said, hoping her voice sounded no nonsense and sweet. "I want to stay with you. We haven't seen each other in person in three days and Sly and I were really worried about you guys for a while there. I don't care if you're awake or asleep. I want to be with you. And you're exhausted. So come here and let me hold you while you rest." She could see in his eyes that what she was offering was exactly what he wanted. That was something he hadn't gotten good at yet – hiding when the realization of how much they meant to each other hit him. Paige hoped he'd never get good at that. "Come on, love," she said, reaching out and sliding a hand along his jawline, drawing his face close to hers so she could kiss him. When their lips broke apart, he shifted back as he had been, tucking his feet up on the end cushion and replacing his head in her lap.
"There you go," she said, smiling as he shifted to his back so he could look up at her. She placed her hand on his chest, smiling as both of his came up to cover hers. "Oh, Walter," she said with a smile. "Why would you ever think I'd consider this stuck?"
"If you're sure," Walter mumbled, smiling lovingly up at her. "Because we could be here a while."
"I know," she said. "It'll take a bit for you to wind down enough to sleep, but that's okay."
"Oh yes," Walter said, "That. That too, of course, I just meant..."
Paige smiled as she saw some color tinge his cheeks. Very occasionally, Walter O'Brien was a blusher. "Hmm," she asked. "You meant what?"
He smiled up at her. "Proper sleep requires relaxation, and..." his hands turned hers over in between them, squeezing gently. "I'm never more relaxed than when I'm in your arms."