A/N A few reviews to respond to:
Railman- yes Walter did well for himself with his planning. As for Centipede, something will have to give at some point.
Grykon - can't go wrong with some chicken parm for dinner. Ever.
Margaret - glad you are enjoying the tale. The couple has plenty more fun times ahead.
Pearliegirl - thanks for the reviews. I'm glad you are liking it so far. A lot still to come for our favorite couple.
On to chapter 9. Hope everyone is still enjoying the story. Leave a review if you get a chance. Let me know what you like or don't like. Working on a few more stories as we speak. And as always, thanks for reading my attempts at writing.
Part 9 Saturday May 10, 2018
The next few weeks were wonderful for Walter and Paige. Their relationship was completely restored and better than ever and business was booming. Ralph had finished school and was out for summer vacation. He was excited to step into his role as one of the owners at Scorpion. He had wanted to be a real part of Scorpion somehow ever since the first time he stepped foot into the garage four years earlier. It had always been a dream of his. And now it was finally a reality. Thanks again to the biggest single influence on his life, with the exception of his mother. And if you asked her, she would argue and say possibly more than herself. Ralph always knew how much Walter cared for him. How much he taught him. He pushed Ralph to excel, he wanted him to go above and beyond what even he himself was able to accomplish. Ralph knew how much all of the team had helped him, but Walter in particular was always his biggest advocate.
Walter and Paige had also met a few times with Toby, Happy and Sylvester as well. They were still operating under Centipede Partners. But the trio was struggling to find any work to do. Especially with Paige no longer keeping everyone on task. The geniuses had no one directing them what to do and they struggled listening to each other. CP had even broached the possibility of asking Florence to join forces with them, but Happy was able to sway Toby for once and they eventually decided to keep it just the three of them. Happy had told both Toby and Sylvester that if they ever wanted to re-establish a working relationship with Scorpion this was for the best. Even Sylvester agreed. He was still talking with Florence, and when she found out they were thinking of hiring her on, she told him she would have declined the offer anyway, out of respect for both Walter and Paige.
The friends were slowly trying to mend their fractured relationships and there was more progress made. Sylvester was able to fully accept the fact that Walter had done nothing to make Florence develop the feelings she had. Florence had told him the same thing, several times. And she had also told Sly that those feelings towards Walter had gone away as fast as they came up. Happy had gotten back on good terms with Walter quicker than the others. She was always the most similar to him in the way they both thought and acted anyway.
Toby was still having the most difficulty with the meetings. At least he wasn't thrown out of any of them. Not for lack of trying. His snarkyness could never be completely turned off and he had gotten so used to saying whatever it was he wanted to for years. At some point he did admit to himself at least, that most of the so-called advice he had given Walter about Paige for the past couple of years was purposefully confusing and not very helpful. Toby always resented Walter for both his higher IQ and the fact that he was married to Happy. Even knowing it was a loveless marriage never made it any easier for him to accept.
Paige was able to work through her issues with them much easier. They all apologized to her for keeping the info from her. The fact that she had reconciled with Walter was their true saving grace. Ralph was still having issues with them for what they did to Walter by walking out on him. Being so similar to his idol, he took it personal and refused to let them off the hook right away.
Walter and Paige had gone out on several dates the last couple of weeks as well. Five to be exact. Having an extra set of coding hands around the office had helped them to fly through some of the jobs they had lined up and gave them some more free time to enjoy each other's company.
On each one of their date nights, they continued their tradition of reading another letter and set of notes from the time they were apart. The notes that Walter had written down over this timeframe continued to question his belief that he was worthy of being in a relationship with Paige. Never once questioning his love for her or her son. He continued to write down how much he missed both her and Ralph. He worked through a lot of his other earlier thoughts and was able to relax his mind some and get some actual work accomplished. His biggest realization during this time was the advice he had received from Toby over the years on his attempts to get into a relationship with Paige. He thought back to all the times he interfered with them and gave him contradicting advice. One day telling him to go after her, and the next telling him to back off. Almost like he was using Walter as a puppet in a fun game for the behaviorist. Paige was quick to point out that over the same time Toby had given her advice she now wished she never listened to either. She still got emotional with every set of notes she read. Reading through them continued to let her see how Walter never once wavered from how he felt about her and Ralph.
Paige's letters to Walter started to become more and more personal towards him. She wrote down how much she realized she needed him in her life. She had been so independent for so long and the realization started to set in that she didn't want that anymore. She was able to see just how much she leaned on him in every part of her life. With herself and with Ralph. The man had become the center of her and her son's world. She had never felt about anyone the way she felt about Walter. And she realized that she never would again. After a week apart from him, she knew she had made the biggest mistake of her life. Now she just had to find a way to let him know she never wanted to be away from him again.
Their current relationship was blossoming as well. Both at work and at home. Walter surprised Paige with tickets to Disneyland for a week. He knew Paige always wanted to take Ralph there when he was younger, but she never could afford it. It was something she had told him about when they first started to become best friends shortly after she started to work at Scorpion. So not only did he get tickets, but he also procured VIP passes for all the rides and shows, as well as a stay in one of the hotels they had on site and unlimited food and drinks. The all-inclusive package was a part of the negotiations Walter added in when he won the bid to install the software going in at the planetarium they were building. The second he found out about the opportunity he instantly called and was able to finalized the contract with them before anyone else had a chance to compete for the job.
He told Paige what he had done for both her and Ralph privately. The smile on Paige's face that night when he showed her all the details of what he had done was magical. And the rewards he got later that night and well into the morning were priceless. For Walter, Paige was always the happiest place on earth.
For Paige, this had always been a dream she never thought would happen, although she always desperately wanted it for Ralph. She had scraped together every penny she had for years to try to support Ralph. Begged and borrowed for him when she needed to. For over seven years she was on her own with her son and she made the best of every situation she could with him. But she knew she would never get to take him to Disney with the way things were for them. And at some point she stopped torturing herself and kind of gave up.
Not understanding Ralph had taken its toll on her, and then one day with the wi-fi guy changed everything. Sugar packets, salt and pepper shakers and a guy who didn't make the greatest first, or second impression on her. But he sure made some kind of impression on her son; she saw that instantly. Walter was the first person Ralph ever talked to outside of her. It was like nothing she could have ever dreamed of. It was just another crappy day waiting tables praying again that she could somehow or someway connect with her son. And then in a matter of seconds this complete stranger bonded with him. Told her how to connect with him and later that night offered her not only a way out of her situation but the opportunity to watch her son flourish. She jumped at the chance, and over the next several years her life turned around. Ralph opened up to her and to everyone he was around. She grew just as much. Paige got to experience things most people only dreamt about. Flying all over the world helping people and making a real difference. And most of it was owed to the man she fell in love with somewhere along the way. The same man who her son idolized and wanted to be his dad from the day he first met him.
And now knowing how close she came to both being able to spend the rest of her life with him as well as losing him forever, she was determined to never be without him again. Time after time he surprised them with his kindness and generosity. Allowing them to be a part of everything he had. Showing them both unconditional love and support. Never wavering from either one of them. Ever.
And here he was, ready to do it all over again.
"Hey Ralph come here; Walter has something to talk to you about." Paige yelled to him while she was trying her hardest to contain her joy.
"Be right there." Ralph yelled back.
"Depending on what he's playing, this could be a while…" Paige was starting to say as she saw her son come bolting out of his room.
"Sorry, had to pause my game." Ralph told them.
"That's the quickest you've gotten here in years." Paige said with a smile. "Who knew all I would have to say was you have something for him, and he would come running." Paige winked to Walter.
"Me and your mom have a surprise for you." Walter started. He would always include Paige in anything he did for Ralph, and not for any other reason than to let her share in the thanks that Ralph would offer. It was just another way to show her how much he loved her. Telescopes and laptops and everything else, even if it came from Walter, he made sure it was always from the both of them.
"We had to make an executive decision at work without you the other day. We had a job opportunity come up and we had to act fast to procure it." Walter started to explain to him.
"What kind of job?" Ralph asked.
"Oh, it's a pretty big one." Walter said trying to add more suspense.
"Walter, enough, tell him what is going on." Paige told him with a smile. Almost unable to stand the suspense anymore herself and she knew what it was. She was that excited for the surprise.
"OK, okay, me and your mom won the bid to install all the software for the new planetarium they are building at Disneyland. And just so you know right now, this trip will not be all fun and rides young man, we expect you to work alongside me as we get to install everything and test out the third most powerful telescope in the entire world." Walter told him with a big smile, now he was almost too excited.
Ralph lunged himself at Walter without saying a word, thanking him. Paige marveled once again at the image of her son hugging Walter. One she never tired of. Paige wasted no time in joining in on the hug, and after Ralph let go of Walter, he gave his mom a hug with just as much intensity as the one he had given to his dad.
"Can I tell my friends we get to go to Disney and help install the telescope?" Ralph asked his mom.
"Of course you can sweetie." Paige told him with tears still in her eyes.
"Are you okay?" Walter asked her.
"I'm better than okay. Thank you so much for everything. I can't even begin to tell you how much I love you and what this means to me." Paige told him, "You just made that boys year. Mine too."
"We did!" He told her before wiping the tears from her eyes and hugging her tight like her son just did. "I know how much you always wanted to take him to Disney. I should have found a way to get us there sooner, I'm sorry you had to wait this long to be able to take him. I promise it won't be the last time either."
"How in the world did I ever doubt you, Walter O'Brien? Thank you so much for this. Oh my gosh, I love you so much." Paige told him. She really did love that man.
A few days later they were packed up and on their way to the happiest place on earth. They got to spend an entire week at Disney and get paid to be there. That is the epitome of efficient. Their VIP passes let them skip all the lines to any ride they wanted. As well as getting them seats front and center at any show they wanted to see. Even with all that, Ralph's favorite part was working alongside his best friend. They spent between three and four hours each afternoon working on the software uploads and by Thursday afternoon it was finished. All that was left to do was test it out.
Seeing the planetarium come to life with all the images of the stars was breathtaking. Some of the added programs that Walter and Ralph installed were better than any of the ones the people at Disney had ever seen. And when they got to mess with the telescope, the grins on both of their faces were almost too much for Paige. At one point Walter stepped back and let Ralph take full command of the multi-million dollar telescope. Walter had shown him how to use it earlier. And he fully trusted Ralph. Paige couldn't have been a prouder mom seeing her son amaze all the adults around him. And again, she had Walter to thank for it.
After spending the better part of four days working on the planetarium and telescope job, they now got to enjoy the rest of their time walking around the park. Walter reminded Ralph that whenever he got hungry, he could get something to eat anywhere he wanted. Walter and Paige walked hand in hand throughout the park and watched Ralph get to be a kid. And more than anything, that also melted Paige's heart. While they were walking through the park, several little girls came up to Paige and asked her if she was one of the princesses there. She politely told them she wished she were and would always try to help them find someone who was.
"Just so you know, you're much prettier than any of the other princesses that are here. Maybe I should just start calling you Queen Dineen." Walter told her before putting his arm around her.
The last night at Disney, after Ralph had fallen asleep, Walter and Paige stayed up to talk. They sat out on the balcony of the hotel room they were staying in. She thanked him again for making the whole trip possible.
"What an amazing week." Paige started out saying.
"It was pretty special, wasn't it?" Walter replied.
"That kid in there is very lucky to have someone like you always looking out for him." Paige told him.
"I'm the lucky one. I get to be a part of his life and his mother's. And I owe all of that to you."
"Can I ask you something?" Paige asked.
"Anything." Walter replied.
"Did you ever imagine any of this? I mean not before we met, but after we met and got close and then decided not to stand in the way of our feelings for each other. Did you ever imagine anything like this?"
"Um, honestly, this is better than anything I could have ever imagined. Not being here per say, I mean me and you, and Ralph. Before you both became a part of my life, I never had a um single thought about anything like what we have. My life was all about math and science and pushing the limits as far as I could. Megan always told me there was so much more out there to see and feel and experience, and I listened to her, but I didn't ever believe her."
"And now?"
"Oh, she was right. One hundred percent right. I only wish she could be here to see how right she was." Walter said.
"About what Walter?"
"You." Walter told her.
"Me? What do you mean me?" Paige asked.
"Well, you heard the video where she told me to not be afraid of who I was, and to not be afraid to love. Do you remember that?"
"Yes, of course I remember that. You also shared the story of her pulling a fire alarm to save you from your math teacher that night too."
"She always knew it was you." Walter said with tears welling up in his eyes. "That I loved."
"Walter." Paige said barely above a whisper, tears flooding her own eyes.
"I have um several other videos she recorded for me. And they uh all are her telling me she can see how much I love you. And that we were meant to be together forever. Why did I fight my feelings for you for so long? I'm so sorry I did Paige." Walter told her.
"Walter, look where we are now. So, it took us a little longer to get here than it should have, right. A lot of that is my fault too. I could have told you how I felt a lot earlier. I was crazy about you too. Do not blame yourself for any of that. And if it took all we went through, to get to where we are now, it was worth it. It was so worth it. We have plenty of time left to be what Megan knew then. Hey, I love you so much." Paige had tears running down her cheeks the whole time.
"I watched all the videos several times while we were apart. And they reaffirmed to me that I never wanted to be away from you again."
"I want to tell you something okay?" Paige told him holding his hands.
"OK."
"When we first started talking again, you told me you wanted us both to be back where we needed to be. That you were ready. Do you remember telling me that?"
"Yes, I do."
"Just so you know, I'm ready too. And as much as I want you to read the rest of the letters I wrote to you to see how much you mean to me, and I want to still read the notes you wrote down, I already know what I want. We can always read them some other time. So whenever or however you decide, I'm ready. And in case I haven't told you recently, I love you so so much. And I'm even more in love with you than that." Paige told him with full sincerity.
"I love you too Paige. I promise you, you won't have to wait long."
Walter held her tight in his arms and didn't ever want to forget this moment. And luckily for him he never would.
