-Chapter 6-
This is my take on a Karen Cartwright (Smash) merges with Paige Dineen! I know I'm not alone in missing Katharine McPhee's singing and dancing! And I just read she may be singing in season 2! I thought it might be interesting to see how Walter would process that side of Paige. Let me know what you think. Disclaimer: I own zip.
Right now I'm thinking of just one more chapter after this….and I'm thinking chapter 7 might take us into an M rating if that's ok. For now, please enjoy the "after the performance moment." Thank you for all of your feedback! I appreciate it!
-Chapter 6-
As the crowd milled out of the theater, Walter waited with Cabe, Sylvester, Toby, Happy and Ralph at their table, as had Paige had instructed them to do. Ralph had his arms around the heaping bouquet again, clearly anxious to present them to his mother, but he was fading fast. The performance had run well past his bedtime.
As the teammates commented on various aspects of the performance, Cabe pulled Walter into a private conversation. "Have you thought about what you're going to say to her about the show tonight?" Cabe asked, placing his hand on Walter's shoulder.
Walter shook his head, "Anything I say will not do her justice. She doesn't need any validation from me. The entire audience clearly loved her performance."
Cabe gripped his shoulder more tightly and leaned in. "Now listen to me, son. I may not be the best person to solicit advice from when it comes to women, but what I can tell you, is that a little compliment goes a long way. I know you have a hard time with this stuff, but I'm going to try to think about what Paige might tell you to do in this situation." Cabe dropped his arm from Walter's shoulder and placed his hands in his pockets as he thought for a moment.
"I think she'd tell you to pick one moment that you found extraordinary, and start there. Focus on something specific and the rest should follow. I could have sworn she was singing her heart out to you tonight, kid. And if you didn't hear that, you need to get your ears checked. This night is a big deal for her. It could be a big moment for you too I think. Don't blow it."
As Walter puzzled over the advice he'd just been given, Paige appeared from a side entrance in her stunning green dress. It had been one thing to see her on the stage, emotionally and physically out of reach, but to see her approaching their table looking like a movie star made Walter weak in the knees.
Sylvester was the first to approach her, embracing her in a bear hug that lifted Paige off the ground. He released her and began to applaud all over again, and the rest of the team followed suit.
Paige blushed. She was so happy they were here, and they were smiling at her! If they'd hated it, they were doing a stellar job of hiding it from her, making her wonder if perhaps, just perhaps, they'd enjoyed an evening of music and dance. They were supporting her the same way a family would and at that moment, Paige quickly counted her blessings. She started to thank them all for being there, but was quickly interrupted by Ralph who bombarded her with an enormous bouquet of quite a variety of flowers. She knew in an instant that he must have picked them out himself, and she quickly knelt down next to him and hugged him with all her might. The fact that he didn't resist or squirm out of her arms tugged at her heart and made her tear up a bit. "Ralph these are so beautiful!" she finally managed as she released him. "I can't believe you got me flowers. Thank you so much!" Ralph grinned from ear to ear and said, "You looked really pretty on stage tonight, mom. I didn't have a decibel meter to measure the applause you got, but I'm 99.7% sure your songs got the loudest audience response." He quietly added, "I'm so proud of you."
That unleashed the floodgates for Paige, who pulled him back into a close embrace. This time Ralph sank into her arms with the weight of a child who was ready for bed. She pulled back, wiped her tears and said, "I guess it's time to get you home, kiddo."
"We can take care of that, Diva Dineen," said Toby smoothly, holding out his hand to help her to her feet. As she rose, Toby bowed, "I am humbled by your presence. Genius can lie in many forms and tonight, you outshone us all."
Paige found herself in another hug. "Thank you, Toby." She squeezed him. "That's so sweet of you to say." As she pulled out of his hug, Happy was right there. Not much for physical contact, she settled for offering Paige a fist pump, which the liaison quickly reciprocated. "I said it to these guys earlier tonight - that was badass, Paige." She pointed a finger at Paige. "No one earns that term easily from me. Next time we need to climb up or swing over a building, you are coming with me!" Paige laughed and murmured another thank you to her.
Cabe was next, along with another hug. "I couldn't be prouder of you if you were my own daughter," he choked. Paige was overwhelmed and tears started to flow again. "Paige, you are such a rare gift to our team in so many ways." He kissed her cheek. "I get the feeling I still don't know the half of it, but woohoo, do you have some pipes, my dear!" He chuckled and pulled away, trying to end on a light moment. "Cabe, thank you, I don't know what to say," she sniffled, so touched at the warmth they were all displaying. She knew this behavior didn't come easily to them.
"Oh, and one more thing," Cabe pulled her close so he could whisper in her ear. "I don't know what Mr. 197 is going to say to you, but I know him well enough to be afraid he might botch it, so let me tell you this, kid: He didn't take his eyes off of you for a moment. I even caught him literally gripping the edge of his seat at one point. Now that's the truth. Don't forget it, ok?"
"I promise," whispered Paige, smiling, as she patted his cheek. Cabe then stepped aside, so only Walter was left in Paige's impromptu receiving line.
Walter had witnessed his friends complimenting Paige with charm and ease he envied. Sure, Toby always knew how to say the right thing to the ladies (when he chose to), and Sylvester was always able to express himself in his own way that made him likeable to everyone, although sometimes a victim in the wrong setting, since he was a bit of a sap. But tonight, Sly had expressed himself perfectly. So had Happy in her own way, and Cabe, well, Walter hadn't been privy to the whispered sentiments between them, but based on Paige's smiling expression, Cabe had also managed the perfect response.
Paige stood in front of Walter, wiping away happy tears, quietly smiling, and thanked him for coming to the show tonight. "Did you like it?" she asked shyly peeking up at him.
"Paige, you…." Walter started, but was at a loss. He looked down for a moment. Something small…Cabe said to find one moment and comment on it. Walter was at a loss. There were so many moments…he didn't pride himself on flowery overtures and was scrambling for the right thing to say. He knew he was putting too much pressure on this singular moment, but he believed this instant was monumental. He had to let her know just how amazing she was. He resorted to science. He resorted to facts. He resorted to one simple truth. He looked up into her eyes. "Paige, you…took my breath away."
She looked at him for the briefest of moments with an astonished expression on her face before they were interrupted by "PAIGE!" Her name resonated through the house as her cast mates bombarded her and lifted her into the air.
"Come on, honey! It's time for the after party!" Paige was surrounded by actors and actresses, many still in costume, who were literally dragging her away from her Scorpion family. She was trying to protest, reminding them of her son, who had given up and was admirably sleeping soundly in a chair.
"Go on and have fun!" Cabe bellowed. "One of us will get him back to your apartment and wait for you there!"
"Umm…thank you!" Paige cried, over the shoulder of a male dancer that Walter had already decided he was none too fond of after her second number. She found Walter's eyes again and kept her eyes on him as her entourage carried her out one of the doors.
Cabe faced the team. "Ok, one of you gather up Ralph and I'll drive us back to the garage. Walter, I'll drop you and Ralph back at their apartment." Cabe winked at Walter. "Something tells me you could use a quieter place to talk to Paige tonight."
Walter couldn't agree more. Waiting for Paige in her apartment would also give him time to sort through the multitude of thoughts swimming around in his head.
With a horde of considerations already in motion, Walter scooped up a sleeping Ralph and followed Cabe.
Well? One chapter left….I like the "slow burn" that so many authors are honoring, but I'm kind of picturing this story well into season 2, maybe 3, when lots of slow but intense moments have been building. Am going to attempt to change the rating to M now, in preparation for chapter 7 in case that's where the characters take us! Please let me know your thoughts and thanks again for reading!