WriterFreak001:
And here's the second part! :)
Title | His Lucky Charm
Fandom | Scorpion (CBS)
Description | It's finally time for Walter O'Brien to present his jet propulsion theory to the board of the Karman Line Prize, and for the first time in his life, he's nervous as hell. But somehow, after a short conversation with Ralph and a little pep talk from Paige (among other things), Walter regains his confidence before he steps onto the stage.
Rating| This fanfiction will be rated T for romantic themes. Enough said.
POV | Omniscient Third Person
Disclaimer | While CBS owns Scorpion, I am the owner of this masterpiece.
Claimer | I am human; there are bound to be mistakes. If you feel like something should be changed, you have the power to send me a review/private message. I can't guarantee if I'll change it every time, but I do read all of my reviews and all of my private messages!
His Lucky Charm
Written by WriterFreak001
Chapter 2
~ SCORPION ~
Paige had faith in Walter and knew he would present his jet propulsion theory to the audience flawlessly. She was sitting in the audience with a wide smile beaming from her lips as she watched Walter and her son move about the stage and demonstrate everything Walter had been preparing for in the last few months. Ralph did exactly as he was told as Walter explained his system; some people even laughed after Ralph had answered a few of Walter's questions as if he was a participating audience member. Paige fell in love with the way the two interacted in front of everyone and to think that her baby was on stage in front of a lot of important people made her a very proud mama. Even though she didn't understand a single thing her two favorite geniuses were saying, she thoroughly enjoyed watching Walter and Ralph present everything.
Every once in a while, Walter would steal glances with her, and she'd smile as wide as she could to assure him he was doing well. She knew he knew what he was talking about so she didn't have to worry about him not knowing what to do or to say; she just wanted to be sure he connected with the audience. Any scientist could stand up there and spell out theories and hypotheses, but what Walter needed to solidify his presentation was something to stand out – and Paige believed if he showed he could connect with the audience (by looking at her every so often), he would make a very strong impression. (At least, she hoped so).
And when he was done, he thanked everyone for their time and presence and then instructed Ralph to help him wheel his rocket off of the stage. Paige – not very discreetly – rose to her feet and exited the auditorium to find her two boys. As expected, they were still backstage with Walter's rocket. She strolled up to them and grinned. "See? I told you you'd do great."
Walter chuckled and scratched the back of his head as Ralph ran up to his mother with a big smile on his face. "Did you see me, Mom?!"
"Shush," Paige touched her index finger to her lips, "there's another presentation going on, honey."
Ralph instantly lowered his voice. "Sorry."
"It's okay, sweetie." Paige ran her fingers through her son's hair and grew warm when she felt Walter standing directly behind her. She was grateful for her son's distraction when he asked his question again in a much quieter voice. "Mom, did you see me on stage? People liked it when I explained parts of Walter's theory on jet propulsion."
"I did," Paige dropped to her knees and kissed her son's forehead. "You were very professional. I'm so proud of you, baby." Paige pulled him in for a quick hug and poked his nose. "After they announce the winner, we'll go out for ice cream."
Ralph's eyebrows lifted. "Scoop?"
"Scoop." Paige laughed, gave her son another fast hug and then released him from her mama bear hug; he immediately dug his hand into her purse and pulled out his Nintendo 3DS before racing off to a chair in the far corner to play one of his games. Paige rolled her eyes and giggled at her son as Walter circled around her and extended his hand to help her stand up. "Why, thank you," Paige muttered as she touched her palm to his; he pulled her up to her feet effortlessly. She began to wonder just how much muscle was actually hiding underneath those long sleeves Walter was always wearing. (She hoped she would someday find out.)
"No problem," Walter grinned and mindlessly squeezed her hand with no intentions of letting go. Paige's heart fluttered, and she gazed into his coffee-colored eyes as he brought her palm to his lips and lightly kissed the smooth skin below her thumb. Something Walter O'Brien had never done before. She did her best to hide her exaltations of joy as every cell in her body danced and tingled like mini fireworks bursting beneath her skin. "I, uh," Walter lowered their conjoined hands and eagerly grabbed her other palm, holding both of her hands within the space between them. Another thing Walter had never done to her before – not willingly, at least. "I should be the one thanking you, Paige."
"What for?" Paige let out a melodious laugh and shook her head. "All I did was sit in the audience and listen to you speak."
Walter swallowed the lump in his throat and focused on the words he wanted to say to the woman in front of him. He took a second to stare at their hands before finding her fluttering eyes again. "Because of you," he grinned, "I was, uh, I was able to maintain my concentration."
"Oh please," Paige lightly smacked his arm, "you could have done that presentation in your sleep."
"Maybe, but," Walter chuckled, "I, um, I don't think I could have pulled it off without you…." Paige bashfully smiled and curled a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and he continued. "Just, uh, just knowing you were there… in the back of my mind… helped my performance substantially. You were right before. Having a small sense of control granted me a successful demonstration, and, um, well, because of that, I…," he unknowingly squeezed her hand again, "um, I'm very grateful."
"You're welcome, Walter." Paige grinned as her heart pounded against her chest. She was sure the entire auditorium could hear the explosions popping inside her body. Hearing Walter O'Brien openly verbalize his appreciation of her efforts always seemed to make her blood bubble with so much happiness. Little did she know, Walter secretly liked making Paige feel appreciated because he enjoyed seeing the beautiful smile that always followed. "I'm glad I could help."
She did way more than just 'help,' in Walter's opinion, but he decided to keep that little piece of opinion to himself. "So, um," Walter reluctantly released her hand and shoved his hands into his pockets, "I believe there were only two other contestants after my presentation so, given that each contestant averages 20 minutes per demonstration, I predict that the announcement for the winner will be addressed in an hour. Is there, uh, something you want to do while you wait?"
Paige peered over the man's shoulder and glanced at his rocket. "What about you? Can you leave your rocket for too long?"
"Probably not…," Walter ran his hand through his curls. "I can hang back here while you and Ralph go do whatever you want while you wait."
Paige laughed and reached for the man's hand again. She laced her fingers with his and tugged him towards a row of seats not too far from where Ralph was sitting. "I'd rather stay here and wait with you," Paige rested their hands in her lap after sitting down and flashed Walter a small smile. "Ralph's content playing his 3DS, and I enjoy talking to you, Walter. There's no other place we'd rather be right now."
Walter, more flattered than he'd care to admit, wasn't sure how to reply to the woman's response. Feelings – good feelings – he couldn't interpret swirled inside of him, causing him to grin. For a woman who'd rather stay and converse with him rather than go off and do her own thing was a great feat for Walter. Paige telling him she enjoyed talking with him was just one of many reasons why Paige was so special… why she was incredibly different than other women… why there were so many times he had wanted to tell her the things he couldn't say from the cliff. He couldn't even count the number of missed opportunities he had had, wanting to pull her aside and tell her everything. Oh, did he want her to know…, but he didn't know how to tell her.
But… he guessed now was as good of a time as any.
"So, uh," he pursed his lips and inhaled a deep breath, wanting to start their impending conversation off with something simple, "what do you want to talk about?"
"Anything you'd like," Paige shrugged with a laugh and mindlessly squeezed his hand.
Walter's quick chuckle faded. "That's a tall order."
"Okay," Paige rolled her eyes and shook her head with a smile coloring her lips, "Let's talk about us."
"Us?"
"Us."
"O-okay," Walter really believed he had had a few more minutes to stall before segueing into the inevitable conversation that had been looming over their heads for several months, but Paige had always had a way of flipping his world upside-down when he least expected it in just a matter of seconds. He really shouldn't be too surprised, but the topic of choice wasn't something he was exactly excited about…. But… things needed to be said, and a decision had to be made. He just wasn't sure he was altogether ready to listen to something he didn't want to hear. There was a fifty-fifty chance she would want to remain as friends (which would be the most honorable decision despite how much the very thought made Walter squirm under his skin), but there was also the possibility of both of them wanting more. And if that was the case, no matter how much he wanted to be something more with Paige, he didn't know if having an established relationship was a smart decision. A lot of risk was involved. "W-what about us?"
Paige looked towards Ralph, who was still inside the world of his game, and then shifted her entire focus onto Walter. She bit her lip. "I think you know." Walter wasn't really sure what to say and was grateful when she continued. "Here's the thing," she looked at their hands, "I like you, Walter. A lot. And, for a while now, I've had an inkling that…," she looked at him and paused under the intensity of his eyes, "you like me too."
Walter swallowed the lump in his throat and released the breath he didn't realize he was holding. "Your, uh, your intuition is not wrong."
She slowly smiled and then glanced at her son again. "So… what now?" Walter cocked his brow, unsure if he understood her question properly. Paige took a moment to rephrase her question to something he would understand. She could go for a 'scientific-sounding' question, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to phrase one properly without misusing Walter's terminology. "When I see you," she finally faced Walter again and pointed to Ralph, "and my son interact, it melts my heart. I know you and Ralph have a strong bond, Walter, and I treasure your relationship with him above everything else. I don't want anything to jeopardize the way Ralph sees you; you're an incredible role model for him, and he looks up to you in every way. Ralph is my most important thing," she smiled, "and someone very wise once told me to always protect my most important thing. You understand?"
Walter nodded and mumbled, "You're worried a romantic entanglement between you and me may endanger my relationship with Ralph."
"Essentially, yes." Paige ran her hand through her hair.
A voice that sounded a lot like Toby shouted at Walter to take a damn risk, but he ignored the annoying voice inside his head and pressed his lips together. "So… to avoid that scenario altogether… the most logical solution would be for us to remain as coworkers and as friends…." Walter hated the way the words tasted in his mouth, but he was trying to make sense of whatever Paige was trying to tell him.
"Yes," Paige's voice trailed, "that would be the most practical thing to do…."
"But…."
"But," Paige brought his hand to her lips and kissed his knuckles. "It's not the solution I want."
Walter felt his heart pounding in his throat. "It isn't?"
She shook her head. "No. It isn't."
"What is, then?"
Paige smiled and hooked her arm around his, pressing her cheek against his shoulder. "This." She looked at him with daring eyes and then kissed his shoulder. "Us… You and me."
Walter didn't know what to say, and he wasn't entirely convinced that Paige knew what she was saying, either. As though she could read his thoughts, she casually touched his leg, bringing his attention back to her. "Hey," she brought her hand up from behind him and grazed her fingertips through his hair. "You trust me to know what's best for my son, yes?"
"Absolutely." Walter didn't hesitate. Paige always had Ralph's best interest at heart even if Walter didn't always agree with her decisions (like the boy going to school or meeting Drew many months ago).
"Good." Paige smiled ear to ear. "Because what's best for Ralph, in my opinion, and what's best for me, also in my opinion, aren't altogether mutually exclusive. We both want you in our lives."
"But…," Walter inhaled a deep breath and looked away from Paige, "what if something goes wrong? There's risk involved."
"There's risk involved in everything, Walter," Paige laughed and cocked an eyebrow. "Since when does the Great Walter O'Brien back away from a challenge?"
She did have a point.
"Besides," Paige muttered as she leaned dangerously close to him and hooked her arms around his neck, "weren't you the one who once said that when risks were involved, they occupied your entire brain?"
"I did… say that." Walter's breath hitched as she inched closer to him. Their proximity was almost unbearable, and he was tempted to solve things right then and there by doing what he had wanted to do for many, many months, but he controlled himself for the sake of his dignity and sanity.
"So, maybe," Paige grinned wickedly as her voice hummed in his ears, "we should test out that theory…."
Walter nearly lost his resolve and mumbled, "I… do… like experiments."
"I know you do," Paige uttered and leaned in to close the distance between them when –
"THE ANNOUNCEMENT FOR THE WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED IN TEN MINUTES. PLEASE FIND YOUR SEATS AND REMEMBER TO SILENCE ALL MOBILE DEVICES."
Paige slumped away from Walter and sighed as he schematically ran his hand through his hair. "I guess Ralph and I should head back to our seats, yeah?"
"Yeah… That's probably a safe assessment." Walter nodded and closed his eyes. "I have to stay back here with my rocket so I'll meet up with you afterwards."
"Okay." Paige softly smiled and grabbed her bags. She couldn't believe she almost kissed Walter! (Actually, she could believe it and was thoroughly disappointed that she couldn't deliver.) Paige needed a distraction and shot a look towards her son. "Come on, Ralph. We need to get going."
The boy scooted off of his chair but didn't put down the Nintendo 3DS. He mindlessly walked towards her with his nose still buried in his game. "Let me save my game really quick." Paige rolled her eyes. Same old, same old. "Done." Ralph said quietly and closed his Gameboy, dropping it back into his mother's purse. "Bye Walter," Ralph smiled at the flustered genius.
"Thanks, buddy." Walter grinned, giving the boy a high-five. "See you around, okay?"
"Yep." Ralph beamed and then raced to the door.
Paige waved goodbye and started to follow her son out when something forced her to stop. The next thing she knew, she was in his arms, kissing him passionately. She weaved her fingers through his hair, and he held her as close to him as possible. Their kisses were brief but fiery, punctuated with sweet nothings and breathy bids of good luck from Paige.
And when the woman remembered her son waiting in the hallway, she lightly pushed Walter away and whispered, "I've gotta go…"
"Okay," Walter pursed his lips to keep himself from doing anything he might regret later. He forced a smile, unhappy to see her leave. "I'll see you later, then."
"Yeah." Paige nodded slowly before sharing a brief kiss with him. "Later."
"Bye."
"Bye."
And then, without another word, she was gone.
~ SCORPION ~
WriterFreak001:
Guess what! One more chapter!