Ressler, Listen To Me

Part 8

Author's Note: I am thinking we need to get into the criminal world soon with Don and Liz figuring out their path, but there were a couple of things they needed to discuss first. That's this chapter.

Please let me know what you think.

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Don and Liz were on a date, which is a strange concept, as they had been living together for almost two months.

"What did young Donnie do in the summertime?" Liz asked as she leaned forward and played with his hand as it sat on the table.

"Please don't call me Donnie," Don said. "It's bad enough everyone in my family does and all the kids I know from the neighborhood."

Liz chuckled.

"Fine, Ressler? Don? I've been going between the two, which do you like better?" Liz asked.

Don smiled at her. "Both."

She smiled back.

"Have you always been called Liz?" Don asked. "Never a Beth or a Betty?"

"Eww, Betty," Liz's face contorted.

"Yeah, Betty is sooo old lady and not sexy at all," Don said as he reached for his drink.

"Betty is the insecure girl who lets you get handsy even though she has no interest in you," Liz chuckled as she watched him swallow. She seriously couldn't keep her hands off the man.

Don almost spit out his wine at her assessment of Betty.

"It's true though, isn't it?" Liz laughed.

"Yeah," Don said with a short nod. "Never Beth? Beth is nice."

"No," Liz said. "Always Elizabeth, Liz, or Lizzie."

Don nodded. "It suits you though. You're not really a Beth either."

"True," Liz nodded.

"What does Beth do, if Betty let's guys get handsy…"

"Beth is pure and innocent, maybe she holds hands, maybe she'll kiss you on the cheek…"

Don smiled.

"What about Donnie?" Liz asked,

Don smiled and turned a little red.

"What?" Liz teased.

"Donnie is the one happy Betty is letting him get handsy," Don chuckled.

Liz laughed with him.

The waiter arrived with their plates of schnitzel.

"This looks amazing, thank you," Don said to the waiter before he left.

"I think this could feed me and Agnes," Liz said as she looked at the huge piece.

"It's really thin," Don said. "That's the way they do it here."

Liz smiled at him.

"I forgot how much you travelled," she said. "You spent quite a bit of time in Europe chasing the man that now lives down the hall."

Don chuckled at her joke and cut into his food.

"The irony," Don said.

"Where else were you besides Brussels and Japan?" Liz asked. Surprised they'd never really spoke about it as she cut into her own food.

"Spent a few weeks in Lyon. The south or France. We were in Frankfurt for 3 months? Czech for almost six months, Singapore for maybe five months…"

"That must have been a really exciting time for you," Liz said as she ate.

"I was the youngest person on the Reddington file," Don said with a smirk. "Proud of that, but because I was so young, I was doing a lot of the physical stuff."

"Physical?" Liz asked. "Oh my god, this is delicious."

"I know, right?" Don smiled at her enjoyment of the food.

"Seriously, we need to learn how to make this," Liz said as she ate some more. "Agnes would love this."

"I can't believe we have lived here for almost two months, and this is your first-time trying schnitzel," Don chuckled.

"Now I'm regretting that," Liz chuckled.

Don laughed with her.

"So, physical?"

"Yeah, running, chasing, cuffing, shoving…" Don said. "All the old guys stood back and I…I was trying to prove myself. Stupidly."

"Stupidly?" Liz asked.

"I put my body through a lot," Don said. "They were all drinking beers, going places and relaxing when we could, and I was going for runs, boxing, doing push ups…"

"And that's stupid?" Liz asked.

"No, just not the best use of my time," Don said. "I went to those places, but I didn't see them beyond the case. I couldn't tell you anything about Singapore that didn't have to do with hunting Reddington. I should have actually taken some off hours to be a tourist."

"You were hunting one of the most notorious criminals," Liz said.

"Yeah, and we never caught him," Don chuckled. "Had I gone on a city tour, visited a museum, or went to some of the sites, it wouldn't have made a difference."

Liz nodded, now she understood.

"You and Audrey broke up because of all that travel," Liz said.

"It was more than travel," Don said. "I was relentless. I was no fun to be around, and she was right to leave. I'm glad I got her back for a while…but she was right to leave when she did."

Liz heard the hurt in his voice and placed a comforting hand on his thigh. He kept saying he wanted to have real and honest talks about them, their lives, things they needed to share that didn't have to do with Reddington. But, maybe Audrey wasn't one of those topics she could broach—everyone was allowed some privacy about certain topics and hurts.

"I'm sorry, should we not…" Liz started.

Don covered her hand with his on his leg and met her eyes.

"No, I'm good talking about her," Don said. "I've come to terms with what went down and grateful I had the time I did with her."

Liz nodded and then dipped into territory that she hoped wouldn't bring him down more.

"What would you be doing, right now, if you and Audrey stayed together and she hadn't…"

Don smiled. "We'd have a six- or seven-year-old and probably another kid, maybe two. At this time of night, I imagine they'd be in bed, and I'd be doing something around the house. Audrey would be watching some reality TV show that I'd hate. Nothing special, just normal."

Liz nodded, she was a glutton for punishment knowing he'd never have normal with her.

"Do you think you'll miss that? Normal?" Liz asked. She addressed the elephant in the room; it would never be normal for him if he stayed with her.

Don sighed and sat back, placing their joined hands up on the table and rubbing his thumb across the back of her hand.

"I've never thought in terms of one path," Don said. "I learned chasing Red that you can do everything right, think you are on one trajectory and find yourself on another that is just as good, interesting, fulfilling…"

Liz gave him a small smile.

"What about you?" Don asked, thoughtfully.

"You mean if Tom hadn't died?" Liz chuckled.

"Yeah," Don said. "You took his death really hard. I'd think…"

"He'd be dead by now or we'd have divorced," Liz shook her head. "I feel like I've grown a lot the last few years and he and I…we wouldn't have worked with me as I am now. Does that make sense?"

"You outgrew him?" Don asked.

"Maybe I just finally grew into me," Liz said softly. "I think he kept me a certain way and I allowed it. With him gone, I found me."

Don nodded then looked suddenly introspective.

"Do you feel I…do I hold you back?" Don asked.

Liz laughed. "No."

Don looked at her seeking more elaboration.

"You accept me as I am," Liz smiled at him. "That doesn't make this easy for you, for either of us…"

"I think you're right there," Don agreed.

"But with you, it's always been about honesty," Liz said. "I know you don't approve of or like everything I say or do…but you accept me. Does that sound stupid?"

"No, I get it," Don said with a soft smile. "And as hard as conversations like this are…I need this level of honesty if…"

"If?"

"If I'm throwing my life into a blender and seeing what comes out on the other side," Don chuckled.

"I hope it's not all scary," Liz said.

"Not all of it," Don said with a quirk to his lips.

"What part?" Liz asked, intrigued.

"I've got the real deal here," Don smiled before he leaned forward and kissed her softly on the lips.

Liz returned his kiss and felt that familiar sensation of her heart racing whenever he was this close.

"We need to finish eating," Don said, his voice low as he pulled back from her.

Liz smiled and they sat back and started to eat again.

"I was thinking," Liz started. "After Townsend is dealt with, how about a vacation, you, me and Agnes?"

"I thought Reddington wanted to get started on the details of…"

"He can wait a couple of weeks," Liz chuckled.

"How do you feel about what he's shared so far?" Don asked, knowing that part of Liz's deal with Reddington entailed finding out about their connection.

"He's been honest," Liz nodded. "Do I feel like I know everything?"

They both laughed.

She had also told him that she was sharing anything he told her with Don; their relationship was not going to be coated in secrets like all her others had been.

"Exactly," Liz said. "But am I happy with what I do know? Yeah."

"I think he's got more to tell," Don said.

"Yeah, in time," Liz said. "But at least I know why me. And why Agnes. It makes sense now and I'm no longer guessing or wondering or worried…"

Don nodded.

"I have to say, I am glad you got your answers," Don said with a soft smile.

Liz nodded.

Don called the waiter over to pay their bill and they rose from their seats and walked hand and hand down the dark streets of Graz past many cafes with patrons drinking coffee and laughing.

Neither of them knew where they were headed beyond the apartment they shared with others, but that would be figured out along the way.

To be continued…