Chapter Two
Toby and Happy just finished their coffee date and arrived at the garage for work. When they walked in the door there was a deafening silence throughout the garage.
"I would have thought that Walter would have been up by now and Paige and Sylvester usually get here before Ralph even goes to school, where is everyone?" Happy questioned, with a confused look on her face.
"I don't know, I'm gonna go wake up Walter. I'm surprised Cabe isn't here either, usually he has a case for us by now." Toby responded and then ran up the stairs. He quietly opened the door to Walter's bedroom. He wasn't expecting what was on the other side, Paige and Walter sleeping in each others arms, he snapped a picture and then quickly ran down to the lower level where Happy was.
"You have to see this!" Toby exclaimed as he walked over to Happy very quickly. He whipped out his phone and the screen had the picture of Walter and Paige.
"No way, since when were they together?" Happy asked, with an intrigued expression.
"I didn't even know they were, let alone sleeping in the same bed. I didn't even know Paige was here last night. I thought she left once we arrived." Toby replied.
"Well apparently, she didn't. We have to wake them up so they can be embarrassed." Happy mused.
"I like the way you think." And with that Toby and Happy ran up the stairs. They were standing besides Walter's bed. Toby shook him, "Walter wake up."
Walter opened one eye, "what do you want, get out of my room." He yelled. Paige's eyes fluttered open to the sudden scream.
"It's almost 10:00, if you didn't remember we have this thing we have to do called work, so get up Mr. and Mrs. O'Brien" Toby yelled back.
Walter and Paige looked at each other with an embarrassment in their eyes, "Cabe doesn't even have any cases for us, so why do we have to get up now, can't we sleep one more hour." Paige deadpanned.
"How late were you two up?" Happy finally piped in.
"Get out!" Walter ended the conversation.
Toby and Happy ran down the stairs and ran out of the garage.
"Maybe we can do something else today, don't want to bother 197." Toby teased.
"Ya, they won't need us at the garage it seems, anyway." Happy replied.
Paige and Walter sat in a comfortable silence, just enjoying each others company. Walter couldn't believe that he had spent the night holding onto the women he had fallen in love with and that he found the situation quite comfortable.
"I can't believe they just barged in your room like that, how rude." Paige said.
"Yeah, I wish I would have locked the door to keep out unwanted company, but it's too late now." Walter responded.
"Yeah well, they were probably right maybe we should get up, I'm a little hungry. We could go out to lunch and then pick up Ralph from school and then go to the museum or something. I mean if you want." Paige offered.
"I'd love to." Walter answered and kissed her forehead.
Paige got some clothes from her desk that she kept at the garage incase they ever had a case that damaged her clothing, and got ready, Walter got ready afterward and about an hour and a half later they left the garage. They decided to go to the diner that Paige used to work at because they both knew the menu fairly well and would be able to come up with a decision quickly. Once they got there they both ordered waters.
"So I was thinking maybe we could go to Six Flags after school instead of going to the museum, because Ralph and I have gone there so many times we basically memorized the entire museum." Walter chuckled. "Plus, he would have a lot of fun, it's only an hour drive and it's Friday so we don't have to worry about taking Ralph to school the next day. My treat." Walter was basically pleading.
"I'm sure he would love that and it's sounds like a lot of fun, but I don't want you spending all your money."
"Please, it's fairly cheap and I don't pay for very many things anyway. I mean I get free cable and Internet because of a software I developed and I only have to pay rent, electricity and gas." Walter added.
"Fine. He really does like that place, I took him there about two years ago because I got a bonus and had a lot of money already saved so I figured I had a little extra to spend, I just wish I knew what he was talking about when he was describing the roller coasters." Paige's mind flashed back to when she and Ralph had went to six flags and he kept talking about the velocity of the rides and how he knew the distance it would take to get to every ride.
"You know he really is amazing, he'll be able to do great things one day. I'm sure he'll have a great time. Not to mention their cotton candy is pretty good, so he should like that." Walter grinned at the smile on Paige's lips.
Shortly after, the waitress walked over to their table and took their orders Paige had a club sandwich and Walter had a cheeseburger. It took about 15 minutes for the food to get to their table, they passed the time with small talk. Once their food arrived they ate in silence, just enjoying their food. Once they were done eating, Walter payed the bill and then drove the two of them back to the garage.
"We have to leave to pick up Ralph in an hour, so we should probably make good use of our time." Paige said.
"We should probably get a bag ready for Six Flags. With a couple blankets, jackets and a snack for Ralph because he will probably be hungry after a day at school. Is it okay if we watch the firework show as well, it's will be fun and it's included in an all day pass." Walter explained.
Paige was a little disappointed at his response, she was hoping he would catch on to what she was offering considering they had an entire hour alone in the garage. But he was right that they had to pack a bag and a snack for Ralph so she decided not to say anything about it. "That sounds really fun, and we have no where else to be, so sure." Paige answered.
"Great!" Walter exclaimed.
Walter ran upstairs and got a bag and some blankets and both of their jackets, along with Ralph's. He packed a bottle of water and a bag of sun chips as an after school snack for Ralph.
Walter looked at his watch "Paige, we gotta go if we want to get Ralph on time. I'll drive." Walter told her.
"Okay, I'll get the bag and then we can head out." Paige grabbed the bag and headed towards Walter. "He's gonna love it!" Paige kissed him hard on the mouth and Walter cupped her cheeks in his hands. Paige pulled away and smiled, which got the same response by Walter, He pulled her in for another long, wet kiss and then she pulled away. "Well, we don't want to be late." Paige said, as she lightly smacked his cheek. Walter nodded in agreement and locked the garage once they were outside.
After about 10 minutes they arrived at Ralph's school and we're waiting in the car, for him to get out.
"He's not going to expect this at all, I can't wait to see his reaction!" Paige exclaimed.
"The bell rings in less than a minute let's wait outside the car so we can see his full reaction." Walter suggested.
"Good idea." Just as Paige said that, Walter unlocked the car, jumped out and walked to Paige's door to open it. They leaned against the car waiting for the bell to ring.
20 seconds went by and the bell buzzed. Ralph ran out the door and didn't stop until he was right in front of Walter and Paige.
"Hey Ralph, how was school buddy?" Walter asked.
"It was okay, how was work?" Ralph questioned.
Walter smiled, "well we actually didn't have any cases today so we just hung out at the garage. Me and your mother have some exciting news for you though." Walter said with excitement in his voice.
"Really?" A smile was plastered on his face.
"Yup, we decided since there are no cases and there's no school or work tomorrow we would go to... Six Flags!" Paige revealed.
"Uhh.. Cool, thanks mom!" Ralph ran and hugged his mom.
"Don't thank me, thank Walter he suggested it and he's willing to drive us right now." Paige replied.
Without another word Ralph held Walter in a tight hug, which Walter returned. "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Walter!"
Walter smiled, "Your welcome, buddy."
They all loaded into the car and rode in silence most of the ride. Ralph had noticed that his mom and Walter were holding hands and decided to note it, to see if they did anything else that they usually didn't do. Once they got to the park Walter paid for their tickets and they entered.
"The last time I was here I wasn't able to go on most of the roller coasters, but now I'm tall enough. I really wanted to go on Full Throttle, can we?" Ralph pleaded.
"Of course, let's go, the lines are pretty short today." Walter answered.
Paige, Walter and Ralph waited in line for about 15 minutes and then choose which car they wanted to go in. They choose the second car because you won't feel the intensity as much and the people in front of them would make sure bugs don't fly in their faces. Paige sat on the left, Ralph in the middle and Walter on the right. Ralph was getting a little fidgety which didn't go unnoticed by Walter. Walter grabbed Ralph's hand "It's okay, buddy, trust me it's going to be fun. How about to calm your nerves you focus on the curvature of the track and the velocity each car will go." Walter suggested.
Ralph nodded, "O-okay." Ralph began calculating the exact distance of the ride and how long the ride would be. When he was waiting in line he kept calculating how fast the line of cars went. Once he finished his calculations and made the conclusion that there is a slim chance anything horrible would happen, he loosened up his stance.
"The rides about to start," Paige said. "Are you nervous?" Paige had been turned the opposite direction staring at the sky, but she could hear what they were saying about Ralph being nervous and Walter helping him through the whole thing.
"No." Ralph said flatly. Walter ruffled the boys hair to show him he was proud he was able to come to a conclusion with the calculations he had made
The employee just listed off all the rules to the ride and flipped the switch. The ride began moving slowly. Ralph grabbed Walter's hand once the ride began moving, clearly the possible scenario still frightened him and Paige picked up on the sudden reflex and rubbed the boys back a couple times.
"Here comes the hill" Paige screamed.
Walter laughed at how she was trying to hide how scared she was. Ralph released Walter's hand just before they reached the top, he threw his arms in the air and screamed with joy. Then came another big hill and they raced through some bumpy areas for about twenty more seconds. They all exited the ride and Walter checked his watch to see what time it was, "hey, are you guys hungry at all?"
"Can I have a pretzel please?" Ralph asked.
"Sure, we can eat and then go on more rides until the firework show." Walter concluded.
They all walked up to the food area, Paige ordered a hot dog and Walter and Ralph got salted pretzels. It took them about 5 minutes to eat their little snacks and then they grabbed a map of the rides. They went on almost every roller coaster and time flew by.
"The firework show starts in 25 minutes let's go get some food and find a spot to sit." Walter suggested.
"Alright, I'll go find a spot to sit and you two can get the food, I'll have some nachos please." Paige said.
Walter nodded in agreement. Both Walter and Ralph walked to the food area and ordered what will substitute for dinner. The food was already done so once Walter paid they got their food immediately. He handed Ralph his chili, cheese fries and chili dog as they walked towards Paige. She had found the perfect spot on the grass, that would give them a perfect view of the fireworks. "Nice choice." Walter said as he sat down and handed her the trey of nachos.
"Thanks, this is where Ralph and I sat the last time we came. He choose it and we could see the fireworks perfectly." She chuckled, "now that I know he's a genius I assume he choose it because of it's alignment."
"More than likely, yes." Walter laughed lightly. "Do you guys want anything to drink?"
"We'll have a water, please." Paige said with a smile.
"Okay, I'll be right back then." Walter said as he sat down his food on the blanket and walked to get them all water bottles from the other food cart.
Ralph sat down on the blanket, where he would be perfectly between Walter and Paige.
"Mom, do you like Walter?" Ralph asked, figuring it was the perfect time Walter was gone for a couple minutes.
"Of course, I like Walter. Why wouldn't I?" Paige asked, scared as to where this conversation was going.
"I mean as more than friends, on the way here you were holding hands, and you both are taking me to an amusement park, kind of like you both were my parents."Ralph responded.
Paige was trying to hold back her tears, not wanting any trace of the conversation when Walter returned. "Oh, um, y-yes, I do like Walter as more than friends, and Ralph, do you want Walter to be your dad?" Paige asked, craving to know if what she wanted would have a negative affect on Ralph.
"Yes, he pretty much already is. Always buying me things, hanging out with me, creating encryptions for me to crack, and helping me through things, like earlier when I was getting second thoughts about the roller coaster ride and Walter helped me through the whole thing and held my hand to make sure I was okay." Ralph said, he was emoting so much she almost couldn't believe it.
Before Paige could respond, Walter started walking toward them. "Here you guys go." Walter said as he placed a water in each of their hands. He noticed Paige's eyes were a little reddened and puffy meaning she was more than likely crying or was about to. He sat down next to Ralph and snuck his hand behind him to rub little circles in Paige's back. He had noticed her doing it to Ralph when he was upset and nervous about the ride, so he figured that she would enjoy the contact.
Paige smiled and mouthed 'Thank you' to Walter.
'No problem.' He mouthed back, glancing towards Ralph to make sure he didn't see the interaction. "The fireworks are about to start." Walter directed toward Ralph.
"I've been counting the seconds, they will begin in 47 seconds and we have been sitting here for 6 minutes." Ralph responded.
Walter smiled, "yup, you're calculations are perfect."
They sat in silence for about ten more seconds, finally the fireworks started to light the sky, with all sorts of colors and shapes and loud booms.
"Woah, look at that one." Paige said, pointing towards the most recent firework thrown in the sky.
Ralph just watched in amazement, completely satisfied with the display.
Walter moved his hand from Paige's back to her hand, that she had just put behind her back as an indication she wanted it to be held. Water looked at Ralph and then at Paige, realizing that the most important a things in his life were right in front of him. Suddenly, there was many loud pops and extremely bright colors. He turned back to see the display realizing it was the finale and the fireworks would be over in a minute or so.
The fireworks ended, but they still sat there so they could finish their dinners. Ralph started to yawn, "I'm getting a little tired." He pushed his empty tray to the bottom unused corner. He then returned to his spot and leaned his head on Walter's arm.
"Maybe, we should get heading back. I Don't know if we can have fun while so exhausted ." Walter said with a chuckle.
"Good idea, let's clean up this stuff and head to the car." Paige added, smiling to be sure Walter knew she wasn't disappointed.
Walter took the blanket he was using off of him and folded it up to create a pillow, he put it under Ralph's head and covered the boy with the extra blanket from the bag. He stood up and grabbed all the garbage and walked it to the trash can. When he got back he saw Paige putting their uneaten snacks back in the bag, along with their water bottles. He realized she needed to fold up the blanket that was laying on the ground. He went over to Ralph and picked him up as if he was a baby, making sure the blanket on his body was still cocooned around him. Paige grabbed the makeshift pillow and threw it in the bag, then she folded up the blanket sprawled across the grass and shoved it in the bag as well.
"Ready to go?" Paige asked, slinging the duffel bag over her shoulder.
"Yup," Walter responded. He would have held Paige's hand, but he was holding Ralph. Paige unlocked the car and opened the back door, so Ralph could be placed in the car. She quickly got out of the way, rounded the car, climbed in the passenger seat and placed the duffel bag on the floor in front of her.
Walter placed Ralph on the seat slowly, buckled him up and covered him with the blanket, before closing the door. He climbed in the drivers seat, Paige handed him the keys and he started the car, turning down the radio as soon as it blasted through the speakers. They exited the park and sat in silence for about five minutes.
"He, as anticipated, had a great time. Thank you so much Walter." Paige thanked him again. She never thought when she got the job, she would fall in love, Ralph would have a father figure and that the person responsible for it all was going to be Walter O'Brien.
"Your Welcome, those rides were really fun and I think he enjoyed the firework display, based on the fact that his eyes were huge." Walter replayed the event in his head, as he moved his hand towards Paige. Paige reciprocated quickly and leaned across the arm rest so her head was resting on Walter's shoulder. He kissed her forehead and turned his attention back to the road.
"I love you, Walter." Paige whispered as her eyes began opening and closing slower and slower by the second.
Walter gulped, "I.. Uh.. I-I love you, too." He finally admitted.