Author's note: CBS has officially renewed Scorpion for a 4th season!

CHAPTER TEN

With a sigh, she got to her feet and walked out of her bedroom, through the living room, not stopping until she reached the door to peer through the peep hole.

"Walter." Paige stared at him for a few moments as they stood in the doorway, relieved it had been the genius on the other side of her door. He looked as bad as she must. His eyes, which were aimed at her feet, were bloodshot, shadowed by dark circles. His clothes were rumpled and droplets of rain clung to his messy curls.

"Uh," he said, breaking the silence. "I know it's late. I'm sorry."

"No, it's all right. Come in." She opened the door wider and he walked inside, glancing around nervously as he actively avoided looking directly at her. "Do you want to sit down?"

"Okay." He waited until she sat down on the couch before sitting down on the opposite end, as far away as he could be and still be on the same piece of furniture. Paige tucked her legs up under her as she placed a pillow on her lap

"Uh. . ." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I, um, brought your car back for you. I-I thought y-you might need it."

"Oh, thank you, Walter. That was sweet of you."

He grunted in response before declaring, "I-I should go." He still stared at the floor, unable or unwilling to meet her eyes.

"Wait," she said as a thought occurred to her. "How will you get back to the garage?"

"Walk."

"It's raining."

"I know." He stood up. "I'm sorry. I should go."

Paige panicked as he took a step toward the door. He couldn't leave. Not yet. Maybe not ever. "Walter."

Coming to a halt, he kept his eyes trained downward. "What?"

Oh, God, he wasn't going to make this easy, was he? But then he'd finally taken the initiative and had come to her, which couldn't have been easy for him. "Please stay."

He shook his head. "I'm sorry." Taking another step, he turned his back to her. "By the way, you're not fired. I-I, uh, thought it over and. . . You still have a job at Scorpion on Monday. If y-you still w-want it, that is."

"I want it. I'll be there. Thanks."

"So, okay. . . I-I should go," he repeated.

"Walter, look at me."

"I can't." He raised his head to gaze at her ceiling. "I'm sorry. You're too painful."

Even though she was close to tears, her lips quirked into a smile. "And you're not?"

"I'm sorry."

"Stop saying that."

"But I am. I. . .I don't know w-what else to say. I'm sorry."

"Oh God, Walter." She dropped her head into her hands for a moment, squeezing her eyes shut as her vision began to blur. "Please, sit back down. We need to talk."

"Okay." He obeyed, letting out what sounded like a sigh of relief as he returned to his perch at the other end of her sofa.

The silence grew deafening as he stared down at his clasped hands. Clutching the pillow to her churning stomach, Paige knew she would have to start the conversation, but she didn't know where to begin. There were so many wounds between them, some fresh, some scabbed over, none of them completely healed. It was hard to choose which one to pick at first.

"Ralph's not here, is he?"

Walter's question startled her, taking the choice out of her hands, and it took her several seconds to respond. "No. He's still at Sylvester's. I didn't want to disrupt their plans. Sly went to so much trouble. . ."

"Good." She heard him take a deep breath. "I would have taken care of him this weekend. There's an exhibit at the Science Center I know he would be interested in."

"I think that was one of the places Sylvester planned to take him."

"Oh." He ran his hands over his face and up into his hair. "I've missed him."

Her heart twisted as his voice cracked with sadness. "I think he's missed you, too." Exhaling, she continued, "I've been a crappy mom lately. I didn't even realize how miserable my son was until. . . Well, until certain events opened my eyes. I have a lot to make up for."

"I don't blame you," he declared, still staring at the carpet. "You were. . .were. . . You're not a bad mother. You're the best one I know."

"Thank you, Walter." She unwound her legs and scooted a little closer to where he sat, fidgeting with his fingers. "That's very sweet, even though I don't deserve it."

"Yes you do." He shot her a glance so fleeting, she thought she imagined it.

That tiny bit of eye contact caused the wall around her heart to crumble. "No, Walter, I don't." Hugging the pillow tighter, she stared at his profile. "I've become a different person lately, one I don't like very much. I've become one of 'those' normals, the kind who doesn't see how special you and the rest of the team can be. I've let. . .let other, well. . .things. . .influence me and I'm really sorry. I. . .I just hope you can forgive me someday."

He didn't respond and she started to wonder if he'd even heard her. Then he leaned forward and cradled his head in his hands. "I can't forgive you."

A whimper escaped her lips. Oh, God, it was too late. She'd let Tim's normalcy affect how she'd treated the geniuses, including her own son. Shame bubbled up inside her as she recalled how impatient and unkind she'd been. And now Walter hated her. He was going to shut her out of his life forever. "Walter. . ."

"I can't forgive you because there's nothing to forgive," he said. "I don't blame you for any. . .any of this. It's all my fault. You need to forgive me. I'm the one who messed up. I'm the one who hurt you. Me. Me and my stupid non-existent EQ."

"It's not all your fault. You have every right to be mad at me. I've been a real bitch since I started going out with. . ." The ex-SEAL's name stuck in her throat as the parting image of his snarling face crossed her mind, his harsh words, and that last nasty taunt he'd thrown at Walter.

"I only agreed to go out with him because I saw you hugging Linda that night. You know, the day Ralph won his case. I had no idea you had just decided to end it. I didn't know until you. . .until you told me you two had broken up and I thought you were going to ask me to go to Tahoe with you. I was going to say yes, Walter. But you didn't give me the chance. You practically shoved me. . .into T-Tim's arms."

His face contorted into a pained grimace. "You think I don't know that? I've beaten myself up over it every day since. I w-was a coward. I was afraid of losing you, and that's exactly what happened. I-I lost y-you."

He didn't look up when she slid next to him, mere inches separating their bodies. "You didn't lose me. I'm right here."

Tipping his head back, he groaned softly. "I know. But that's not w-what I mean. . ." He exhaled before lowering his eyes, finally looking directly at her. The pain and sorrow she saw in their dark depths shouldn't have shocked her, but she was.

"Then what do you mean?" she asked, hoping he didn't think he'd lost her because she'd had sex with Tim. He knew she wasn't a virgin; she had a child, for heaven's sake. Even Drew wasn't her first. Surely, he wouldn't be so petty. . .

"I mean I keep pushing you away," he said, cutting into her thoughts. "I pushed you away again today. It's what I do. I push people away before they can distance themselves from me. It's a defensive mechanism, according to Toby, so they can't hurt me. And I know you'd never hurt me, but I've pushed you so far away. . .I'd understand if you never came back.

"I'm sorry for this morning. I let my emotions cloud my reason. It's still no excuse for what I said. . .what I did. I know it was unforgivable and. . .and I-I'll understand if y-you hate me for being such an asshole. I don't like myself very much right now either."

Walter returned his gaze to the carpet covering her living room floor, trying to focus on its patterns instead of the pain and sorrow he'd seen in her hazel eyes. Instead of how she was sitting so close, the heat of her body seared his skin, the lavender she always wore sending shivers down his spine.

"Walter," she said after a long moment. "What happened this morning wasn't your fault. I shouldn't have dragged you into my. . .my intimate problems with. . .with T-Tim. I should have faced him on my own instead of running away and hiding then using you as a shield. I knew you weren't emotionally equipped to handle such an personal situation. I made some stupid decisions, but that doesn't excuse what I did either.

"I do need you to forgive me. I've forgiven you for the speed dating, and Linda. . .and even Simone. . ."

"I didn't have sex with her." Walter jerked his head up to stare at her.

"I know you didn't.." She averted her gaze. "It made me sick though, the thought you would. . ."

"The thought of you and. . .and. . .T-Tim. . ." Disturbing images filled his head again and bile rose in the back of this throat. He swallowed, tamping down his nausea. "You're really okay? He d-didn't hurt. . ."

"I'm really okay, Walter." She glanced up at him and smiled shyly. His insides twisted again, but this time with longing. He shook his head. He'd be no better than an animal if he gave into his desire for her. Sex had to be the last thing on her mind. Taking several deep breaths, he changed the subject.

"So what do we do now?" he asked. "Where do we go from here?" He knew what he wanted. He just hoped her answer matched his.

"Wouldn't it be nice if we could just start over," she said with a sigh. "Wipe the slate clean and go back to the beginning. Too bad that can never happen in real life."

"Why can't we?" Paige turned to stare at him. "Start over, I mean," he added.

"We can't just. . ."

Walter interrupted her, holding out his hand. "Hello, my name is Walter O'Brien.

"Paige Dineen," she said, shaking the offered hand as her lips twitched. "Nice to meet you."

"I have an IQ of 197."

"I think I heard that somewhere before." She grinned at him then. "I have an amazing son named Ralph."

"He is amazing." Walter tried to keep a straight face but failed as the corners of his mouth curled up. "Or so I've heard."

"What else have you heard, Mr O'Brien?"

"I hear his mother is pretty amazing too."

"Thank you," she said, ducking her head before meeting his eyes. "So, do you think we can be friends again? I miss being your friend."

Walter winced, the idea of just being friends caused his chest to tighten. He wanted so much more than mere friendship. But deep down, he knew he'd agree to anything she wanted. And if it meant being just friends. . . "Yes. I miss you, too."

"Good." She let go of his hand, which he forgot she'd been holding. The loss of contact unraveled him, reminding him how much he craved her touch. It would be pure agony to be just friends with her when he wanted her as badly as he did. When every time she put her hand on him, he'd burst into flames and could never ever do anything about it except masturbate alone in his room at night. That pathetic picture made him jump to his feet.

"I'm sorry. I can't be your friend." He began to pace in front of the sofa, averting his gaze from her stunned face.

"Walter?" The pain he heard in her voice brought him to a halt. He had to explain. He wasn't sure if he could, but he had to try.

"I can't just be friends with you. I should have recognized my feelings for y-you for what they are a long time ago. But I didn't. I've been so stupid." He paused to exhale, realizing his next words were the most important ones he'd ever uttered. "I love you and I always will. I saw something special in you the very first day we met. Something I'd never felt before. I didn't know what it was then. But I do now. You're the love of my life."

"Oh, God, Walter." Helplessness swamped him as he watched tears rolled down her cheeks. "You can't just. . ." She sucked in a breath. "You don't play fair."

"I tried to play by the rules," he said. "I didn't do so well."

"I know." Paige wiped at her face. "And some of that is my fault. I tried to change you into someone you could never be."

Walter opened his mouth to protest, but she continued before he could get a word out. "Which was stupid because I'd already fallen for the man you are."

"But I wanted to change," he said. "My life was a mess. Scorpion was on the verge of going under, I'd just wasted three months of someone else's life, and I dumped her before she could dump me. I couldn't connect with people, and I constantly pissed off everyone around me

"Then I met you. . .and Ralph. You made me want to be a better person. A better human."

"Walter, you've always been human. You're just a little weirder than most. And like I said before, that's okay."

She rose up from the couch, moving close enough she could reach out and touch his face. He closed his eyes as he turned into her hand, reveling in the contact, desire shooting through every nerve of his body. He gulped as she breathlessly said his name, anticipation making him shudder as she slid her fingers to the back of his neck and into his hair.

"Paige." Her name spilled from his mouth like a plea, whether to beg her to stop or beg her to continue, he didn't know. His brain had ceased all activity except for the basic functions he needed to survive.

"Walter." She gazed into his eyes. "I love you, too."

Then she lightly pressed her lips to his.