Chapter Two

'Evening' She smiled as she approached the silhouette sitting on the bench before her. She rubbed her palms together in the cold of the evening, an attempt to create friction to warm her. She glared behind and noted the position of her DS agents before taking a seat on the bench.

'Sorry I'm late' she shivered and he smiled

'It's ok, I suspected that the state department doesn't always run on time' he teased and she rolled her eyes.

'Oh and Doctors do?' She quipped. Henry laughed and bent over pulling a drink up from his feet.

'As Promised, a Hot chocolate' his grin was intoxicating, she felt a feeling arise in the pit of her stomach as he smiled at her, it was something she felt in the hospital a week ago too. She pressed her lips together and smiled, gracefully accepting the offer.

'Thanks' she called wrapping her hands around the warm takeout cup, allowing the heat to transcend through to her core.

'So, are you impressed that it only took me a week to schedule this with you?' He laughed

'Not really, if I know Blake, as soon as you mentioned that you were the doctor who treated me he would have given you special treatment. I am actually surprised it took you as long as a week' she giggled and Henry scoffed as he mocked being hurt.

'Well, you can't know Blake that well' he paused and sipped his drink raising an eyebrow at her. She threw Henry a sideways glance and narrowed her eyes on him, the confusion evident on her face. '- Well If you did you'd know that I didn't have to introduce myself, He already knew who I was' he winked and Elizabeth rolled her eyes, slowly sipping her hot chocolate.

'Have you got coffee?' She asked, part of her filling in the blanks not knowing what to say to him, and the other half of her just wanting a 'normal' conversation with someone who wasn't a politician.

'Maybe… Have you stayed off it?'

'Yes' she replied sarcastically 'The withdrawal has been awful. Blake won't even let it in the office. Can I smell it? Is that weird?' She bit her lip and sniggered. Her whole hardened exterior instantly reduced around him, something both had noted.

'Is it weird that you want to smell my coffee?' Urm… Just a little, Yeah' he shook his head in disbelief. She was beautiful. Not much else could be said, she was Elizabeth McCord, and she was beautiful. He watched as she frowned at his remark and laughed at her childlike ways. Henry slowly stood to his feet and turned towards her;

'Come on, Let's walk' he smiled. Elizabeth soon followed suit and stood at his side, walking aimlessly through the park as night began to fall.

'Do you come here often?' She asked.

'Yes I do actually; I like to clear my head. There are a few local parks I walk in, this one was closest to state and I figured would be most approved by your body guards given its more open and less remote'

'They're not bodyguards they're my security detail'

'Too protect you…so bodyguards'

'DS agents' she quipped back and he shrugged

'Look like bodyguards to me' he winked at her and continued walking.

'So, how have you been?' And there it was the question she didn't want to come. She just wanted to walk and not think, not have to conjure up some lie about how she was fine and doing ok and not at all struggling, she was fed up with that. She took a slow sip of her drink and paused, trying to give herself the time to muster up and answer but it was no use, her brain was too clouded these days, full of state department secrets, decisions, life altering decisions, confusion, and flashbacks of her time in Iran, a time she wish she never endured.

'Fi-'

'Don't say fine. Don't lie to me. I won't do this if you lie to me' He cut across her and with his hand that was holding his drink he raised one, softly warning her as he pointed. She smirked and took a deep sigh.

'I'm…' she chewed her lips as she thought… 'I don't know how I feel actually' she admitted. Elizabeth glanced down as they continued to walk, almost ashamed that she was unable to describe her feelings.

'I think that's normal' he replied. After a few steps he noticed her pace had become slower, physically dragged down by the heaviness of recent events, her shoulders tense and her posture changed, his heart ached for her, a woman so lost before him. 'Elizabeth, Not all those who wander are lost'

She glanced up in his direction as her soft gaze fell upon his face, the street lamps perfectly igniting the contours of his features as his soft brown eyes reassured her. She wanted to question him, she wanted to understand his comment which appeared random to her but at the same time she almost didn't want him to explain everything to her, not in one go; for that might have meant they wouldn't share a walk again.

'I'm not lost, I'm just trying to deal with too many things and I don't have coffee to help me function' she turned to humor, her perfect escape pod, a signal that she had enough of talking and needed the mood lifted.

'Here' he handed her his drink and she furrowed her brow at him

'Henry you said-'

'Just sip it' he laughed and pushed the drink closer to her lips. He tilted it slightly as she drank from it, the warm liquid hitting her lips, tingling every fiber as she pressed them inwards, licking them.

'That's chocolate' she stated and he laughed

'It would be mean of me to drink coffee when you're not allowed. Plus it would have meant I couldn't have shared my drink with you' His eyes glinted as a smile crept across her face. A rare moment of affection gestured and shared between them. That feeling arose in her stomach once again.

'I don't walk in this park often, despite it being right on the doorstep. I tend to find walks alone daunting and, well I don't ever have the time to simply walk. If I am waking it is usually walking and chewing gum.' She huffed as they continued walking down the gravelled path.

'Walking and chewing gum?' he repeated, and she giggled softly

'That's POTUS's little catchphrase, basically walk and do business and make important decisions all at the same time. So walking for me is normally a very structured thing, with a linear way of thinking.'

'Oh but there is so much beauty in walking. Not only is it good exercise, it clears the mind, it heightens the senses, it's a great thing to share and a good thing to selfishly take' Elizabeth watched as he spoke passionately about the simple prospect of walking.

'See no matter the season there is beauty in walking, breathing in the fresh air, looking at the aesthetic of nature, just being; it's calming. And as I said it's a great thing to share' he winked. They walked in silence for the rest of the way, a comfortable silence.

Each one of them sipping at intervals on their drink and taking stolen glances. Neither of them knew just what was happening but both equally enjoyed the simplicity of walking with one another.

'Thank you for sharing this walk with me Henry' she spoke up as she spotted the bench in the distance; the one they started on.

'No you're not running away just yet, come and sit' he nodded and took a seat on the bench in front of them. Elizabeth was once again perplexed by his actions but followed, something about him constantly incising her. She tucked her coat under her as she sat down next to him.

'So why do we have to sit?' She asked and he smiled.

'Well firstly, we need to decide when we're going to do this again considering it was supposed to be about you opening up but we didn't get very far-' he paused and stopped her from interrupting, his hand gently placing on top of hers and lowering it back down as she went to speak - 'Its ok, it takes time to open up to people' he reassured her. The warmth of her hand flooded him, her soft skin and gentle movements incised him more.

'Secondly; well my grandmother always taught me that you should sit on a bench or a wall before you do any walk, and you should finish on that very same object you sat on' he sunk back into the bench and glanced out into the park before him.

Elizabeth's body was angled towards him, her knees pushed close to his body as she listened.

'Did she ever explain why?' She pondered and watched as Henry grinned and nodded.

'Because the bench has been exposed to the elements of many seasons, and sitting on a bench in a park is vastly different, because you do not sit with the impatience of waiting for a bus, but with the feeling of savouring the moment.' He glanced over to her DS agents and back to her, his mind intoxicated with her earlier actions of licking her lips following a sip of his drink. He pressed his lips together and swallowed hard as he drank in the essence of her under the night sky.

'So Elizabeth, I would like to start all of our walks, on any path we choose by sitting on a bench, and end them in the same way-' this time Elizabeth cut him off and whispered softly into the nights air,

'To savour the moment' she glanced at him and smiled softly as her hair fell, framing her face. She took a final sip of her hot chocolate and drank in the evening coolness as they sat in a brief silence before finally admitting they have to say goodbye.

'Goodnight Henry, Same time next week?'

'Same time next week' he echoed "Goodnight Elizabeth'