This is dedicated to the lovely Ashton aka jackandsamforever. She gave me the idea and she has been beta-ing for me. Thanks!
I own zilch of The Blacklist - just playing with the characters.
Hope you enjoy! :)
Liz walked into her apartment and closed the door with a sigh. It was Friday evening and she was ready for the weekend. They finally caught the blacklister that they'd been chasing. Somehow he had always been one step ahead of them and would get away right before they could apprehend him. They had played cat and mouse for a few days but he had finally slipped up and they were able to nab him. In other words, it had been a really long week.
She changed into some comfy clothes and laid down on the couch with a groan of relief. She was still relaxing a few minutes later when there was a knock at her door. She walked to door and opened it to see Jill, a neighbor from a few doors down.
Liz smiled. "Hey Jill, come on in." Jill walked in and sat on the couch as Liz shut the door. Jill looked apologetic. "I know it's kind of late, I hope I didn't interrupt anything." Liz smiled as she sat down beside her, "No, it's fine I was just winding down after a grueling week at work. What's up?"
Jill pulled an envelope out of her purse. "These are two baseball tickets for the Baltimore Orioles for tomorrow afternoon. Shawn and I have to go out of town for the weekend and were hoping to find someone to take them so they don't go to waste." Liz took the envelope and pulled out the tickets as Jill continued, "I know it's last minute but you told me one time you liked baseball so I thought you might want them."
"I would love them," Liz said and started to reach for her wallet, "What do you want for them?" Jill shook her head. "Nothing. Shawn won them at work so we didn't pay for them either. We just thought it would be nice to find someone to use them since we can't."
Liz smiled widely. "Thank you so much!" She said as they stood up, then leaned over and gave Jill a hug. As they walked to the door, Jill asked, "So who are you going to give the other ticket to?" Liz opened the door. "I have someone in mind," she said with a blush, hoping Jill didn't see it; but of course she did.
She leaned in close, "Well you'll have to tell me all about it when I get back," she whispered as she stepped out into the hallway. Liz blushed deeper. "See you later," she said, then shut the door.
She sat back down on the couch and looked at the tickets. She thought about asking Meera but knew it would be hard for her to get a sitter for her daughter at the last minute. She really did want to ask Red, but was hesitant; she wasn't sure where their relationship stood and he didn't seem to enjoy common activities like this. However, the more she thought about it, she realized if she didn't take risks nothing she wanted would likely ever happen.
With determination giving her courage, she pulled out her phone and dialed with shaky hands. It rang a few times and she was just about to hang up when his low voice came over the line, "Lizzie, what a pleasant surprise." When she didn't respond, he continued, "What can I do for you?"
"Can you come over for a few minutes? I wanted to ask you something." She heard Red give Dembe instructions to turn around and said, "I'll be there shortly." She hung up and took a deep breath.
A few minutes later she heard a soft knock on the door. "Lizzie, is everything ok?" she heard Red ask loudly through the closed door. She opened the door to let him in and noted his worried expression. "Nothing's wrong," she reassured him, "I just didn't want to have a long conversation over the phone." She shut the door and grabbed the tickets as they both sat down on the couch. He took his hat off and laid it on the cushion between them, then looked at her expectantly. Liz suddenly felt nervous and asked shyly, "My friend gave me these baseball tickets for tomorrow and I wanted to see if you'd go with me."
Red looked at her dumbfounded for a few moments. "What?" Liz answered sarcastically, "Baseball, Red. You know where the guy hits a ball with a bat and then he runs around the bases?"
Red answered sounding a little irritated, "I know what baseball is, Lizzie, I just wasn't expecting you to ask me something like that." He sighed, "I really don't understand that sport. It seems so...neanderthal."
Liz rolled her eyes. Only he could make it sound so barbaric. "Please, Red? I've never been to a baseball game and I'd really like to go, but I don't want to go alone."
Red grimaced. "Lizzie, why on earth would you want to go? The seats are horribly uncomfortable, it's always so crowded and the food is atrocious."
Liz's expression sobered. "My dad and I used to watch games on tv and he would make me laugh during the stories he told about times he went when he was a boy. He wanted us to go, but whenever we tried, something would always come up. Then he got sick and it just never happened. After he passed away, it hit me that I'll never get a chance to go with him."
Red expression softened as he answered gently, "I'm sorry Lizzie, I never knew." Liz looked at Red and smiled sadly. "It's ok, but I always knew that that's one thing I wanted to do to remember him."
Red looked at her for a few seconds. "Ok Lizzie I'll go with you. If nothing else, to honor Sam's memory. What time is the game?"
Liz looked at the tickets, "Two PM. I figured you could pick me up around noon. That should give us plenty of time to get there, find our seats and then maybe have time to look around a little bit in case we want to buy any souvenirs."
Red thought for a moment. "Why don't we make it eleven? It's a Saturday, so who knows what the traffic will be like, and if we get there too early we can take our time and shop around like you wanted."
Liz smiled. "Sounds like a plan."
Red nodded as they stood up. "I'll have Dembe drive so he can drop us off." He put his hat on as they walked to the door. As he was about to leave Liz said, "You're going to wear something other than a suit though, right?"
Red looked down at his clothes and then back up at her. "What's wrong with my suit? I thought you liked the way I dress."
Liz smiled as she reached out and tugged on his coat. "I do, very much, but I really don't think it would be comfortable at a baseball game; especially since we'll be outside all afternoon."
Red heaved a dramatic sigh that caused Liz to roll her eyes internally. "Fine. I'll figure something out. The things I do for you, Lizzie," he said with a teasing glint in his eyes. He pulled her close and kissed her on the cheek, then moved back and looked her in the eyes. "Until tomorrow, then," he said with a small smile.
Liz smiled as she watched him walk out, then closed the door and leaned against it. She let out the breath she hadn't realized that she'd been holding, and went into the kitchen to grab a snack, then realized that she couldn't wait for tomorrow.