The Son of a Genius
The "Date" of a Genius
'cause there's nothing
that your mind can't do
-Helpless, Hamilton
The thin fabric of the dress slid over her body and stuck to her body like glue. She ran her hands over the navy blue fabric that ended mid thigh. It was surprisingly soft and Paige would admit that she hadn't worn anything that nice in ages.
Paige looked at herself in the mirror. The navy blue dress was strapless and her hair fell in waves down her shoulders. She felt beautiful and even if it wasn't technically a date, she was still going to dress up nicely.
She would admit to herself that she had only a tiny crush on Walter, but that could be only due to the fact that he is the father of her child. It was the only reasonable option. Paige wouldn't dare entertain the thought that she might like him in a different way, not seriously. It just wasn't possible.
The sound of the doorbell ringing caught her attention. He was here. Walter had texted her that it would be more efficient for him to pick her up rather than meeting her at the restaurant.
Paige walked out of her bedroom to see Ralph's babysitter, Lauren sitting on the couch.
"I'm going to get going. Phone numbers are on the fridge. And Ralph need to go to bed at eight him that I said good bye." reminded Paige. She didn't fully trust Lauren and hoped that she would follow those rules. Paige didn't want to interrupt Ralph from whatever he was working on and she figured that she would most likely see him when she got back.
Paige pulled the front door open and Walter stood there, his hands were stuffed in his pockets with a nervous look on his face. She smiled reassuringly at him and grabbed her purse. With ease she slid it over her shoulder and walked out into the hall. Walter rocked back and forth on his heels and Paige found the little habit funny.
"Are you ready?" asked Paige with a small smile gracing her face. Walter turned to face her a confused look on his face for a moment before he nodded.
Paige walked further out into the hall and glanced behind herself to see Walter walking behind her.
"You look nice." His voice says from behind her. A blush finds its way to Paige's face and she is now thankful that she isn't facing him. The simple compliment was a surprise and she wasn't sure if he was even capable of it. The fact that he had complimented her meant the world to Paige and she didn't think that Walter realized exactly what he did.
"Thanks." Paige said just loud enough for him to hear.
They arrived at the elevator and Paige pressed the button and leaned back. She glanced over at Walter to see him staring intensely at the floor. The elevator opened with a ding and Paige stepped in and Walter followed right after her.
The elevator ride was silent and Paige wished that anything could happen just so they could escape the sea of awkwardness. Walter stood there staring straight forwards and Paige wondered how they could go from this to talking about the child they had together.
The elevator opened and they both stepped out walking through the lobby. No one spared a moment to look at them as they walked past. The cold air ambushed her as they stepped out. Paige led him to her car, she spotted his junked car parked across the street.
They drove down the streets of Los Angeles, the night life was alive and Paige could feel a faint thrumming in her veins. They pulled up to the restaurant that Walter had put a reservation for.
It was far fancier than she had imagined. She hadn't known what to expect from Walter, but she didn't expect a place whose food most likely cost more than her rent.
She stepped out of the car and numbly followed Walter into the restaurant. Paige tried to ignore the dimmed lighting and how well dressed the waiters and waitresses were. She hated that she couldn't afford this for her son. He certainly deserved it.
"Reservation under O'Brien." Walter said to the hostess.
The woman nods and motions for him to follow. Walter follows the woman and Paige stays close on his heels.
The woman leads them to a table and Paige quickly sits. Walter does the same and idly looks at the menu. Paige tries to look over the menu, but finds that she cannot focus on it. She is only focusing on the man in front of her.
Walter looks up to catch her staring at him, she quickly looks away and stares at the menu.
"What do you think is good?" Asked Paige as she glanced up at him.
"The fermented herring is good. Their Omega 3's neuroprotective properties are amazing." Walter spouted off as he kept eye contact with her.
Paige nodded. She had no intention on eating that, but she wasn't possibly going to tell him that. He had seemed surprised that she had even wanted to hear his opinion. Was he not used to that?
"Hello, I am Amana and I'll be your waitress tonight. Is there anything I could start you off with this evening?" The bubbly woman asked as she pulled out a notepad.
"Just a water," ordered Walter.
"I'll have the same." Added Paige.
The woman nodded and walked away. Paige toyed with the edge of menu and hoped that Walter would say something. She hated the deafening silence between them.
Not too much later the waitress came back to get their orders. Walter ordered his herring and Paige decided on a salad. They made small talk as they waited for their food.
Both of them were avoiding the topic at hand. Paige didn't want to bring the monster out of the closet. She wanted the partial peace between them. It was better than the tension that was building up between them as time passed slowly.
Their plates hit the table as the waitress returned. They glanced at each other as if they both knew that it was finally time to address the reason that they were there that night.
"I think-"
.
.
The car had soft hum to it as they drove along the city roads. Paige felt at least relatively at peace with their situation.
They had decided, with most of the coaxing from Paige to slowly introduce Walter as Ralph's father. With small things such as sleep overs and spending the day together.
Walter had first thought that they should tell him point blank and Paige refused. She didn't know how Ralph would react and even if Walter thought it was illogical. She was Ralph's mother and she had insisted that she knew best for her son. Even if Ralph had the same thought processes as Walter, she didn't think that his approach would have better long term effects. And when she had finally convinced Walter what would be best for Ralph, she would cherish the way that he accepted and she thought that a part of it changed him.
The car pulled to a stop in front of Paige's apartment building. Paige looked over at Walter, his hand was tapping the wheel near the keys.
"Would you mind if I um, walked you uh to your apartment?" His voice stuttered and Paige could feel an odd fuzzy feeling in her chest at the words. He was so nervous that it was nearly funny. She resisted the urge to laugh, as she was sure that if she did he would think that it would be for a whole different reason.
"That would be fine." Replied Paige with a smile. He relaxed in his seat and turned off his engine.
Paige stepped out of the car into the cool night air that had dimmed over the time she had left. They through the lobby in a comfortable silence. It seemed odd to let her boss/ father of her son, to be this close to her.
A part of her wanted to resent him for all the years alone she had spent. But for some odd reason she just wasn't able to. There was something holding her back from being able to. And whatever it was, she would love to figure it out/
All too soon they approached her apartment door.
"Thanks for tonight." She said shyly. Walter nodded and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I had an um good time."
Paige smiled at his confession. It felt nice to hear him say that. He seemed to be always high strung and for a moment he was letting his guard down.
"Could I say goodnight to Ralph?" Asked Walter timidly. Paige smiled and nodded.
Paige put her key in the lock and turned the key. She opened the door to find the living room lit dimly. When Paige saw a man's body sitting on her couch she nearly screamed. Piercing blue eyes met hers.
"Andrew?"
A/N: Thank you all for the reviews. I feel so loved. I've read all of them and look forward to reading the different responses. As it is summer now and classes are over until September I should be updating a little more frequently.
Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing her, yet...
6.17.16
