Part 3
Thanksgiving with the team, Ralph and Drew. My first Thanksgiving and my first time having cranberry sauce. We finished the night with everyone singing karaoke. Every one sang, but my favorite was listening to Paige. She was beautiful.
Walter had spent most of Wednesday's afternoon and evening making various dishes that would be served for a Thanksgiving feast. He got his hands dirty tearing bread for stuffing, and assisting in the prep of various pies. He had asked aloud why they couldn't just buy some pre-made dessert to which Paige gave him a dark glare. Paige laughed at his facial expressions when shoving the breaded mess into the turkey and snapped a picture. It was later in the evening when Paige was finishing the lattice crust of an apple pie that she felt the heated look from Walter.
"What?" Paige asked blowing the strand of bangs in her eyesight. Walter smiled and she repeated herself. "What?"
"You do this thing when you are concentrating." Walter said moving from his perch at the island. He had been sitting there, keeping her company with different little anecdotes of his life, and sharing in stories of his childhood. Paige was also forthcoming about her younger self, and telling little tidbits of when Ralph was a baby.
"What are you talking about?" Paige asked focusing her eyes on his and then moved to his lips because the side of his mouth quirked up. His smile spread further showing a thin line of white straight teeth. He moved about the island, and leaned up against her pie station. He took his index finger and placed it on the soft space between her eyebrow. A place he had become intimately known when Paige was concentrating. Her skin puckered under his finger. A small smile spread across his face. The smile that made Paige's heart beat a bit faster. It was the smile that he kept mostly to the things that he found fascinating.
"When you concentrate your eyebrow's thread together and it creates this crevice." Walter said moving his finger on the length. Paige's nose flared at the description.
"A crevice on my face?" She asked turning her face from his touch. Walter chuckled. "That does not sound very appealing." Walter moved his mouth to her ear, nuzzling the shell and his hand on the small of her back.
"Paige, everything about you is appealing." Walter whispered and placed a kiss on her ear, then to her cheek and then along her chin. Paige leaned into his touch stilling her hands as it laid the last strip of dough. Forgetting the last bit of weaving the lattice. Walter stopped trailing his lips along her skin, tucked his finger underneath her chin and tilted her face to his and Walter watched Paige's eyes move from his lips to his eyes and back to his lips. She closed her eyes and Walter smiled and placed his lips right on the spot between her eyebrows.
He took a step back watching the frustrated reaction of Paige's facial muscles. "I think you missed a weave." Walter teased and Paige rolled her eyes. Her fingers snapped back to the dough and finished the discarded work. "So what time is dinner tomorrow?"
"I told Cabe to come to the garage at about two." Paige said taking the finished pie and putting it on the oven rack.
"Isn't that a bit early for dinner?" Walter asked, he figured he would have most of the day to himself, working on his projects that have taken a back seat due to the business of the season. They had multiple missions for the federal government plus a few side jobs, and Walter was very thankful for the extra income especially to help pay for his sister's treatment but it did not leave him a lot of personal time.
Paige turned a questioning eye at the genius. He shrugged his shoulder to her silent probe. "We can push it to later." She offered wondering if Walter was getting annoyed of her and Ralph's presence at the garage. "Is there something else you are needing to do?"
"No, Paige, it's not that." Walter said shaking his head. He still had difficulty expressing his emotions. Plus, Paige tended to read farther in his reactions. Her brown eyes softened as he struggled with the words. He let out a sigh. "I just wanted to, ugh, I just figured that we, I mean the team, no not just the team." Walter stumbled when he caught her fallen look when he said the word team. Paige took pity on him and moved to the stool next to Walter. She put her hands on his face rubbing her thumbs along his cheek bones.
"Calm down, and just talk to me." Paige said, her voice low and she watched as Walter extracted his hands from the counter. He placed them on his knees and bent forward towards Paige's body. He remained with his eyes focused on the ground. Paige removed her hands from his face, down his neck and landing on his shoulder.
"I have just been so," He rubbed his jeans as if brushing away dirt. "I have been having this feeling."
"About?" Paige asked softly, not to pressure an answer knowing that it was highly difficult for someone with low emotional quotient to properly express his emotions. She wondered at times if Walter even knew how to identify his feelings.
"Every one." Walter said looking up seeing the pained look flash across her face. "Shit, no. Not like that, Paige. It is nothing about you or Ralph. I hate this." Walter said wanting to stand and pace about the room. He wanted to put his hands to his hair and give a good yank but the pressure from Paige's hands kept him grounded. He sat for a good minute, silent and staring in another direction. "I feel like that turkey."
Paige raised an eyebrow and her hands dropped from his shoulder. He caught them in his hands threading their fingers. He gave them a squeeze and then rubbed his fingers across her hands.
"I am trying, Paige." Walter said lamely. "The turkey is the analogy for my feelings. It has been shoved to the brim of stuffing that is a concoction of celery, bread, onions and seasoning. I feel stuffed. By these emotions I feel for the team, my parents, my sister, Cabe, Ralph and You. I have these responsibilities that have been stacking up with the different jobs and missions. My once solitary existence, where I had no one to answer to has imploded and then exploded." He looked up and saw a tear escaping Paige's left eye. "Am I bungling this?"
"No." She croaked and launched herself into his arms. "Walter, everyone has breaking points and it is alright to need time alone." She whispered into his ear.
"But why are you having a lacrimal response." Walter wondered about the tear. "Crying is a complex secretomotor phenomenon characterized by the shedding tears without any irritation of the ocular structures. Do you have dirt in your eye?"
"Walter, shut up." Paige commanded for the second time that day. "I am awed at the emotional growth you just displayed."
"Thanks, I guess?" Walter offered and he felt her lips brushing across his skin as a responding welcome.
Walter left Paige's apartment about an hour later. He assisted with a few more feast preparations but he noticed that Paige was starting to tire, and it was getting to that awkward moment of if Walter would be staying the night or leaving. Walter took it upon himself to leave, so Paige was not put in the situation to make the decision. He kissed on her face crevice, whispering that he had a wonderful day and that he was looking forward to tomorrow. Paige pulled him into one last hug before releasing him to the brisk fall evening.
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He was fast asleep when Paige arrived at the garage to put the turkey in the oven to start baking. Walter woke up to the smell of roasting bird, but much to his disappointment, Paige nor Ralph were at the garage when he finally got to the main floor of the garage. He heard faint noises of Sylvester working in his lab. The garage bay was empty of Happy's occupancy and Toby's desk computer was not warm from the couple hours of online gambling. Walter retrieved his phone from the charging doc, and sent out a group text to the team and Ralph.
Where is everyone?—W
He waited a full minute before he got a response.
Paige texted us instructions for the plans of today. We are required to stay away from you and the garage until the festivities start. Not a minute before. If you have any further questions or requests, please direct those to the resident genius liaison.—Toby
Walther rolled his eyes but a smirk spread across his face.
Be a bit more melodramatic, Toby.—Paige
Oh liaison my liaison—Toby
NO GROUP TEXT NO GROUP TEXT—Happy
I think our resident mechanic is not a fan of the mass text messages.—Toby
NO GROUP TEXT NO GROUP TEXT—Happy
This is ridiculous. Aren't you guys both at Toby's apartment. -Paige
NO GROUP TEXT NO GROUP TEXT, haha just kidding, I wanted to see if there was any fun to texting the caps and the preference of not wanting a mass text—Toby
I literally hate you—Happy
I was just checking to see what everyone was up to. See you all later-Walter
Walter laughed and turned on the do not disturb on his phone, allowing calls from his favorites tab, which consisted of Cab, Ralph and Paige. Walter went to his private office space and began deciphering a program code so he could manipulate the program to run more efficiently. He lost himself in his word that he didn't realize the minutes slip away into hours, and it was the time for the feast to begin. Walter was pulled from his silent revelry by the firm hand of Cabe Gallo dropping to his shoulder.
Walter turned from his computer, pulling off the noise canceling headphones and asked, What can I help you with, Cabe?"
"Paige asked me to come get you for dinner. The team has been assembled downstairs for the past ten minutes." The federal agent explained his intrusion and waved to the door. Walter followed closely behind. He may have been blocked off from the world of noise, the smells had left him salivating. He was excited to taste the spoils of his cooking war.
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It was two hours later, the team had devoured the feast, or had accomplished at making a dent of the schmorgishborg that Paige and Walter prepare the pervious day. At the table, Cabe to the head, having Walter on his left, and Ralph on his right. Paige sat next to Walter mostly because Sylvester had claimed dibs to sit next to her son. There was one point during the feast that Walter let his hand rest on the inner side of her thigh. This caused paige to knee jerk reaction, and hitting her patella on the bottom of the table. Toby smirked and was about to make a smart remark when Happy kicked him in the shin. Paige shot her tiny mechanic a thankful smile.
Walter removed his hand only after smirking at her discomfort. Paige rolled her eyes, and continued pouring gravy over another helping of mashed potatoes. So now it was later, and everyone was taking turns at the karaoke game. Cabe had 'Viva Las Vegas' by Elvis. Happy and Sylvester sang a duet from Grease which brought everyone to tears. Paige sang the 'Crazy' by Patsy Cline, making everyone feel inadequate to sing after her performance. Walter had stumbled through the lyrics 'Shake it off' by Taylor Swift. This was a random selection chosen by the video game since he had no clue to picking a song. But the song of the night belonged to Ralph and Toby.
"Tonto, jump on it, jump on it, jump on it." Toby started with the chorus, and Walter stood from the couch wanting to be ready to intercept the embarrassment of the young genius. He barely spoke comfortably, singing would be something different. But before he could make it two steps, the first verse came and Ralph rapped to perfection.
"I'm Big Bank, I am the Chief. I got a lot of raps but I'll be real, I never need a horse I like to chill. So, I drive up in my new Seville." Ralph started his verse. Toby and Ralph must have practiced before hand because they had a choreographed dance. There were twists, leg kicks and high five at random moments. The pair switched off between versus, but sang together during the chorus. Before the song ended, Walter turned his eyes to Paige who was having another lacrimal response, but the smile on her face made him realize that these were what Paige called "happy tears."
They finished the song and the group rushed forward to embrace the boy. Toby smiled because Happy seemed to be mesmerized by his performance. He tried to do a fancy microphone twirl like he was holding a baton, and it fell the floor. Breaking whatever confidence mojo he had going. The sly smirk showed he was not deterred.
Cabe started another song, it was Elvis, but was singing duet with Sylvester. The group resumed their spots throughout the living room, but this time around Walter sat closer to Paige with only Ralph between them. A few rounds later, more singing by everyone but Walter and Ralph, did Walter feel a heavy weight on his torso. Ralph had fallen asleep leaning against Walter. Walter wrapped his arm about the boy's shoulder. It was Ralph's subconscious apologizing for the previous days outburst. Walter knew Ralph did not mean the emotions he put on Walter. He was a boy of nine, that was dealing with the abandonment of a father, and then having him thrust back into his life at such a precocious stage. Walter knew the boy was torn between the love of the two male influence in his life. He didn't have the tools to understand that it was alright to have more then one person that could love him like a father. Also that it was so difficult to relate to his lower intelligence quotient jock of a father.
Walter felt cherished by the gesture. Paige returned to the couch to see her son. Walter raised his finger to his mouth to silence her words. She smiled, resumed her spot on the couch and tucked her hand into Walter's that was wrapped about her son's body.
It was an hour later, the team had settled down for a movie, when Walter leaned close to Paige's ear and whispered, "For my first celebrated Thanksgiving, this has been near perfection. I am thankful for finding you at the dinner and for making the team wonderful and for bettering me as a person." He felt her shift close, and he felt her lips on his skin.
"Thank you, Walter." Paige whispered.
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Thank you everyone for being so patient for me. I truly struggled to get this out. I am going through a bit of a creativity block, so the posts will be coming but maybe only once a week, maybe twice. I hope this was closure enough to Part 1. Also, thank you absolutely to everyone that has reviewed, favorited and followed me and my stories. It does push me to keep up with the posts.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving to everyone!
Ema