Hey everyone ! Here I am after a very, very long pause on the writing and this time : in English !
Today I came with a Blacklist story focused on the one and only ship (finally) rising, I nominated : KEENLER !
After watching that second episode of season 8, I have expectations for these two in the future, but we actually have to wait until….JANUARY 22 (still don't know what to do with my life until then) to know what will happen.
So I wrote a little something to help with the wait. I think it's going to be a one shot.
The story takes place litterally after the last scene of the episode, so if you still didn't watch it, well, it's time to close this page. I added some elements from the 8x03 promo
PS : English is absolutely not my first language, so please go easy on me :)
Disclaimer : I own nothing from this show.
She's sitting on the cold floor alone and can't stop crying. « He did it. Red did actually kill my mom » she kept telling herself. Liz had tried, she did her best so this won't happen, but she failed. Again, Red won and got what he wanted and what he wanted was Katarina's death : now he had it.
Her sight was all blurry because of the tears, and she was so into her sadness that she didn't notice that a car had pulled over across the road.
- Keen ! Come on let's leave.
Alina Park was kneeling in front of her, put a hand on her friend's shoulder, the other on Liz's hand, looking with sadness at her coworker. Liz finally looked up.
- Come on, we can't stay here, repeated Park.
So she followed blindly her younger colleague that gently opened her the car's door and put her on the back sit before going back to the passenger's sit. The SUV took a quick start and left the park, Elizabeth knew Ressler was the one driving, but she couldn't look at him nor tell him a word even tho she knew he had a billion questions.
The car drove during what looked like to be 15 minutes before arriving in a parking lot that the agent knew too well. They all got out of the SUV and that was when their eyes meet, hers were red and her mascara was all over her cheeks. Ressler's look was devastated for her, he couldn't bear to see her like this, so in an automatism he gently stroked his hand on her arm before entering the familiar yellow elevator.
The door opened on the Post Office where Aram and Cooper were standing in the middle waiting for the three agents. Well, mostly waiting for her actually.
They start walking until the task force was reunited and the atmosphere was suddenly heavy, they all could feel it.
- Keen, started Cooper breaking the awkward silence. You and I need to talk.
She knew they did, she also knew he wasn't the only one with whom she had to talk. Telling by the way Aram wasn't able to look at her in the eye, she thought he should be the next to have a discussion with.
- Sir, with all your respect, I'm lost right now…My mother just got killed in front of me by Red. So, if we could just…
- And with all the respect I still have for you Keen, right now I don't want to hear about this. I need you to listen to me, he interrupted her brutally.
Cooper never had been this rude to her, Liz knew she wasn't in a position to ask for indulgence. So she accepted and started to follow the director to his office. But at a moment he turned back to the rest of the team like he remembered they were still there.
- Go home. All of you. This day has been rough on all of us, you need rest. We'll see each other tomorrow morning.
Aram and Alina noddeed and started to pack up.
- You too agent Ressler, said Cooper noticing his agent didn't move a finger.
- I'm good sir, I'm staying.
Liz and Cooper paused on their walk to the office while Park and Aram froze on their packing. All of them knew : he wanted to stay, not for extra work but to wait for her.
- Agent Ressler, it's not a proposition, Cooper started to get pissed.
The blond man went to the desk and sat on the chair.
- Thank you sir, but as I said : I'm fine.
His stubbornness shocked them all.
- Agent Donald Ressler, let me remind you that you're actually in a bad position here for few decisions you made these last few days. Don't put yourself in a worst situation. So, if you don't want me to take your badge and gun and put a rapport on you for insubordination, grab your gear and go home. Now.
Ressler looked at Liz who said silently « I'm going to be ok » before smiling sadly to him. So he got up and took his bag leaving toward the elevator with Park and Aram.
- One last thing Agent Ressler.
Cooper was almost screaming to make himself hear from the stairs to where the three agents were.
- Don't think those decisions you made will be unpunished. You're the one I'm talking to tomorrow.
And then he left closing the door behind him and Liz.
Elizabeth Keen was finally leaving her boss's office after hours of talk that she wished she never had. But he let her leave, not able to put her in a cell eventho that was where she was supposed to be. The open space was in the dark, nobody was working anymore except for two or three people probably doing extra hours.
In half an hour she went out the building, took an Uber, since she didn't know where her car was anymore, and ended up at the only place she wanted to be and needed to be.
That golden number 5 was so conforting, and she knew she will find support and softness behind that door. Elizabeth knocked, he opened.
- Liz ? He said mid surprised, mid relived to see her.
She deeply looked at him and suddenly jumped to his arms in a hug crying in his embrace.
- Shhhhh, I'm here.
He closed the door behind them.
After five minutes of non-stop crying in his arms, she looked up, he softly put his right hand on her cheek wipping up her tears.
- What did Cooper said ?
Liz shook her head in sign of négation : it wasn't about that.
- I'm tired Ress…I feel like this will never end…I really am tired of everything.
Again, her tears started to run down her face.
Seeing that she needed to talk, the loyal agent took her hand and lead her to the couch where she took a sit before he brought her a glass of water. She took her time and drank slowly, calmed herself before starting to speak.
- My life is falling apart : my grandfather died. And I might have something to do with that…
- No ! Stop ! You have nothing to do with his death, Ressler couldn't let her think that.
- Ress, he was sick…very sick and I pushed him to answer me…
She took a deep breath remembering how hard she went on the old man.
- And in the same day, my mom was killed. And by whom ? By the man who made me think during a long time that he was my father and that seem to have a real interest on me.
- Red will pay for this…I promise you Liz.
She smiled and took his hand knowing him that he would do everything to keep his promises to her.
- I betrayed my coworkers, my friends, my actual family. I might lose my job, my carrier, Aram hates me…
- No he doesn't. Just give him time and talk to him.
- You didn't see the way he looked at me..
Remembering her friend's hate toward her, Elizabeth felt her heart hurting her. A silence took place and the two adults were staring at each other, knowing that they'll have to talk about the elephant in the room.
- And worst of all, I blew up the only good thing happening to me since a while.
Again she took his hand and that time crossed her fingers with his, giving another meaning to this hold. In front of her, Ressler seemed relieve that this talk was finally happening.
- I swear to you, you didn't blew anything. Quite the opposite : you started something that needed to come out a long time ago...Well, for my part at least.
Elizabeth knew this was their moment, she took a step ahead and got closer to him.
- I know Red might had made you think I was playing you or you might think I was using you.
She knew everyone around them had this impression.
- But it's not that Don. I swear, my feelings for you are what's truest in my life. It's been a while now, but I've never found the moment, the time to express that and didn't know what would have been your reaction. Until that night on that parking lot…The way you looked at me, what you said…I knew. That kiss was not a strategy, I wanted it, and I wanted you. Still do actually….
He didn't wait for her to finish her sentence and placed his lips against hers. This time, she's the one responding to it. Out of air, they split, staying forehead against forehead.
- I've been waiting for years Liz, he admitted. I thought I was crazy to have feelings for you but with the time I started to tell myself that it might be real one day. I don't care what Reddington or anyone thinks, I felt that moment, still feeling it.
Liz laughed : boy he really was into her. She gave him another kiss, softer this time before saying in a breath.
- Donald Ressler, I think I'm in love with you.
He felt like a teenager having butterflies in his stomach. And his response was obvious, but this time the physical contact stayed longer. They started to let it go and automatically walked through the apartment without interruping the kiss.
- Wait, are you sure ? Asked Ressler.
- What ? You don't want to ? Liz responded.
- You're kidding ? I've never wanted anything like this so bad but if we do this, we're taking a road that will change our relationship.
She smiled, why was he so uncertain about this ?
- I want our relationship to change knucklehead. I just told you I'm in love with you, of course I'm sure of the road we're taking here.
Donald smiled with happiness and lead her to the other side of the corridor where his room was, closing the door behind them.
Elizabeth Keen hardly opened her eyes that morning. When she finally emerged, an arm was surrounding her waist and her hand was holding his. She smiled, remembering the night she spent and whith whom. The agent rolled over to face the man next to her.
The ray of sun coming out the window was reaching Ressleer's face showing his freckles and giving a golden color to his hair. Liz freed her left hand, put it gently on his right cheek. In a sweet move she started making soft circles on his skin while he was still deeply sleeping.
« Why did we take so long to end up here ? » She asked herself now that it seemed this moment was an obviousness.
After five minutes of smoothness, Elizabeth got herself together, knowing that she had something to do, a promise she did to herself : revenge for her mother. But she had no intention to bring the loving man next to her into this.
« He already did so much for me. » she thought. Keen knew that it will be a fight, a battle between her and Reddigton and she also knew he could use Donald to hurt her. « I will never forgive myself » the voice in her said.
So in a sad resignation, she slowly kissed the blond agent trying not to wake him. In a moment of hesitation, she paused and put her forehead against his. « I really have to do this. » she tried to give herself courage. A tear fell in silence from her eye. « I have to do this alone…I am so sorry ». That was what she would have liked to tell him, but she knew him too well. He would never have let her go on that road by her own.
With the little energy she had left, she got up and walked out of the bed, went to the bathroom where she dressed up, washed her face. During a second, she looked at her reflexion in the mirror. « Red will not get away with this ». Elizabeth Keen was now motivated. After two minutes of silent thinking, she went back to the room where she left her gun on the nightstand when she undressed herself few hours before. Determined, the FBI agent took the weapon and put it back in its holster. Lastly, she slowly reached for the room's door and in a last look glanced at Ressler who was still sleeping.
« I'm really walking out on the man I love » she couldn't believe what she was doing. After closing silently the door she ended up in the living room where her shoes were. Sitting on the couch while putting them on, she throws a look around her, analyzing for the first time the place. Her eyes stopped on a little notebook on the table.
Five minutes after, Elizabeth Keen was outside the apartment she had spent the night in. She took a deep breath and pushed away the tear ready to run down her cheek, before walking determined outside of the building.
Donald Ressler opened his eyes on the alarm clock on his nightstand : 7 : 55 am. Still a little bit tired, he turn over to reach for the woman who slept next to him that night.
- Liz ?
No one was here, the side next to him wasn't cold that gave him an indication that she didn't leave a long time ago.
Full of hopes, he walked out of bed, opened his door and started to look for her in the apartment.
- Liz ! He kept calling.
Finishing his search in the living room, he found a paper on the couch. He knew it was from her. Not really knowing what he will read, Ressler sat and, trembling, he opened the note.
« Don, last night was a dream coming finally true. Something I was imagining since a long time ago. But I have to come back to the reality I'm living in for seven years now. Red killed Katarina and I won't let him get away with it. So I have to leave, this revenge is mine and I won't let you get into it, I won't let Red hurt you.
My feelings for you are stronger than never. And if until then I was fighting for Agnes and I, now I'll also be fighting to come back to you and live that story of ours.
Please forgive me. With all my love for you my dipstick,
Liz. »
Donald raised his head up breathing deeply . « She's going to get herself killed » , he knew Reddington will harm her since she's ready to kill him.
« I won't let this happen, not in my watch ». The agent was furiously determined. He prepared himself, put the note in his pocket and left for work where he knew he would find help to find her.
Thanks everyone for reading this, I tried to do my best in a language that is not mine.
Hope you liked it, let me a comment for any reflexion if you have one.
Have a nice week and take care of yourselfves and our loved ones during this weird time we're living 3
Be safe and see ya next time for more stories !
XOXO