A Few Moments of Peace

Freedom. It had been such a foreign concept for so long. He had spent the better part of his life struggling towards something like it, but he'd never known exactly what he was looking for. For as long as he could remember he'd been passed around, never staying in one place too long and without any say to where he would go next. When he had run, they caught him. When he had wanted to stay, he had been shuffled off. He had thought that Bud's offer would give him a chance at gaining control over his own life, but it had really just tethered him to one master that lent him out to many at his own whim. There was the illusion of freedom, but nothing real. Nothing like this. It was hard to imagine that he'd ever been stupid enough to think he wanted anything other than exactly what he had in that moment.

Tom found himself staring at Liz who had moved to take a seat on the bed in a small room, Agnes cradled in her arms. The little girl had begun to stir, finally, the sleepiness that had followed the plane ride lifting at least a little as she stared up at her mother in a curious sort of way. Liz, for her part, didn't seem to be able to look away, even as she settled in with a bottle for Agnes. "She's perfect," she murmured, not for the first time, as Tom took a careful seat next to her, leaning back with her against the headboard and she shifted just a little to the side, her shoulder leaned against his and the closeness was something he'd missed while they had been apart.

"Like her mother," he returned and he grinned as she rolled her eyes, shoving him as best as she could from where she sat.

"Smooth," she teased.

"Or true. Take your pick," he answered back and turned, pressing a kiss to her dark hair. "It's not a lie."

"Perfect may be a bit of a stretch for me."

"Not to me," Tom murmured, revelling in how close she was. He had dreamt of this, but a small part of him had been worried it would never come. That they had made the wrong call. Here they were, though, sitting on a bed with their little girl like it was something that they had been able to do together every day since she had been born. It could be their new normal, he promised himself. This really could be perfect.

Liz's half-groan, half-laugh pulled Tom out of his thoughts and he looked over to see the front of her dress covered in spitup, Agnes blinking up at her innocently. "Uh-huh. You know you're adorable, don't you?" she teased the little girl.

"Yeah, probably should have warned you that you need a towel or something."

"Guess I have a few things to learn."

"It comes pretty quick." He stood up and circled the bed to take Agnes from her. "I'll get her changed and put down for a nap so you can get some fresh clothes."

Reluctantly Liz handed him their daughter so that she could stand. Before he could move she tipped up on her toes and pressed a kiss against his rough cheek. "And you were worried you wouldn't know what to do without me."

"Only thing that got me through was this little one and the hope we'd see you sooner rather than later," he murmured honestly and she flashed him a smile.

"Missed me?"

"Every second."

He moved reluctantly to the room that Liz had shown him when he's first arrived. She'd gotten a few things together and he'd brought as much as he could for Agnes without raising suspicions. Tom was halfway through getting her changed when he heard his wife's voice from behind him at the door.

"I'm sorry."

"What for?" he asked as he finished buttoning their daughter into her onesie and set her down in the crib. When he turned, Liz was standing behind him, her white dress discarded for a pair of dark pants and shirt.

She reached out, her fingers touching his almost hesitantly. "Asking you to do that."

A small smile tugged at his lips and his hands closed around hers, their fingers threading together as she stepped closer. "We made the best call we could given the circumstances and we made it together. There's nothing to be sorry for."

"I know, but…" She glanced past him at where Agnes was drifting off to sleep and he nodded towards the door. She led the way, her hand never leaving his, and she waited until he pulled the door partially closed before looking back up at him.

If she had planned to say anything else, she didn't get a chance. Tom leaned in on impulse, his free hand moving to the side of her face and he felt hers snake around to the back of his neck to pull him deeper into the kiss. They were safe, their daughter was down for a nap, and in that moment he knew she'd missed him just as much as he'd missed her.

He felt her smile against his lips as he picked her up, her bare feet leaving the floor as he held onto her, spinning her around a little and pulling a laugh from her. The sound washed over him, soothing every fear that had been knotted up inside of him since they had been apart. Her fingers were in his hair and there was an urgency to the way she kissed him even as he set her back down, as if she wasn't quite ready for it to end.

They parted after a few moments, both breathless and caught up in in it. Tom leaned down, his forehead pressed against hers. "I love you," he said quietly and he felt her fingers playing at his hair at the base of his neck, sending chills down his spine.

"I love you too," she breathed. "I'm still sorry."

It clicked that maybe it wasn't just him she was apologising to, even if he happened to be the only one that could hear it. "They'll understand," he promised, the words leaving him on a breath. "If they ever find out, they'll understand. It was for Agnes."

"Am I that obvious?" Liz chuckled.

Tom offered her a reassuring smile. "Just to me."

"Because you know all my tells," she tried for a tease.

"Well, you've picked up on a few of mine along the way."

His wife snorted. "Or More than a few. I know you."

The words were light in tone, but they both knew the weight of them. She was the only person in the world that knew him like she did. "I have so much to tell you," he murmured. "So much happened while you were away."

"We have time."

"Finally," he answered with a grin. "First thing's first, I'm about half starved and if I know you-"

"I've been having things delivered."

"Groceries?"

"I didn't want to burn the place down by trying to cook."

Tom chuckled and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. "I'm going to go get food, diapers, and a few other things we're going to need. I'll make dinner when I get back and I have some things I need to tell you."

Her brows drew together. "Good or bad?"

"Neither anymore. It's not really going to affect us, but… We agreed no secrets, so you should at least know." If Scottie Hargrave was his mother or not didn't really matter anymore. He would never see the woman again, but not telling Liz felt dangerously close to keeping something she might think was important from her. "It's a long story, so food first."

She laughed at him and gave him a shove towards the door. "There's a little market just down the street. You can't miss it. And Tom?"

He stopped halfway out. "Yeah?"

Liz gave him a smile. It was real and it pulled the same from him. "Be safe."

"You too," he told her as he turned to start for the market. There was a sense of relief in knowing that they were safe. All he had to do was grab dinner and diapers and they would be together again. No Reddington, no Solomon, and no Kirk. It was a breath of fresh air. Finally, after everything, they could be a family, and maybe, just maybe, they could find some peace.

Notes: This was requested by anonauthor-a1023 and d-evils-advocate21, and I feel like I've had the request before from someone else as well. This can also work as a prelude to my new fic that I'll start posting once Everything Back to You is done (which, if all works well, will be tomorrow).

The hiatus fic has sort of taken off. It now has a name, and once it has a name I'm sunk and all in, so keep a look out for Deep in the Grey that should go up either at the end of this week or the beginning of next.