It's been two weeks since Walter and Paige had their serious talk and things were going slowly but no one was complaining. They weren't established as a real couple yet, but they would often hold their hands, they stayed together, sometimes with Ralph, after the cases to watch movies or just eat and talk. After two days Walter eventually became confortable enough to kiss her from time to time. He didn't do it when somebody else was around but when it was just the two of them, he sometimes made her stop talking by kissing her. At first it surprised Paige but it was really something she could get used to. She felt he was still insecure, his actions were clumsy and she overheard him talking with Toby more than once to ask him for some advices. But she loved him even more everyday for all the small attentions he gave her. She needed to reassure him a lot too. Every time she saw a sign that he was beginning to doubt again, when he would isolate himself for hours and be more distant with her, she armed herself with patience and made small gestures for him to indicate she wasn't going to let him down. When Ralph was passed out from exhaustion during their late nights together she cuddled Walter and whispered everything she knew he needed to hear.
The other members of the team all noticed that something had changed between them. But to Paige's surprise, they didn't do any comment. They didn't even have remarks or allusions from Toby, but she suspected Walter asked him not to be an ass about this because she noticed a few times that the behaviorist started sentences and never finished them, mumbling some 'Never mind'.
Paige's mother also saw that the two of them were closer than when she arrived so she tried to have a talk about it with her daughter but Paige wouldn't say much. She then turned to Walter who confirmed what she thought and Paige overheard him asking her mother for a few more advices but she didn't say anything because as much as she hated admitting it, her mom was rarely wrong about what would please her. Speaking of her, she took an apartment in town, saying that she needed her own place but that she wanted to stay close to the garage to be able to see Ralph and Paige when she wanted. Paige wasn't sure how she felt about this but Ralph seemed to enjoy more and more the time he spent with his grandmother so she gave up on fighting with her.
Concerning Tim, he accepted the job he was offered but still called the garage on Skype from time to time, to see how everyone was doing. He said that he would come check on them during his holidays and Paige was happy he was being so mature about their breakup.
As for the cyclone well… a lot of thing had change in a few time but things were still going as usual, with more and more cases for the team in this end of year.
—
This day had been a hard one for Scorpion. Once again, Walter put his life at risk to save a group of people trapped in an avalanche and once again Paige had been scared to death she would lose him. When he came back to her, she hugged him and clung to him, never wanting to let him go again, selfishly secretly wishing that he would stop taking such risks and put his life before the ones of strangers. But she knew he couldn't. Their ride back to the garage was quiet, mostly because they were both recovering from their emotions.
When they arrived, Paige said that she had to go pick Ralph to the sitter but that they would be back to have dinner with the rest of the team if everyone was okay. Of course they all agreed so she left, after kissing Walter on the cheek.
This one also excuse himself to the other members of the team for a moment, saying that he needed a well deserved shower.
With the hot water running down his spine, Walter started to think about the recent developments in his life. He had everything he always wanted, everything was perfect, and yet he was still scared that something would happen and ruin everything, also wondering if he willingly took bigger risks in the missions when everything else was great in his life, like if he was unconsciously seeking peril and danger. But lately, Walter was also starting to realize that this, Paige and him, was real and that he couldn't question the seriousness of their relationship any longer. He started to really trust her. Not that he didn't trusted her before, but he always thought that she would grow tired of him. However she proved him in more than a way that this wasn't true, so he decided to push his fears aside and put the faith she was asking for in her.
He thought about how they never said clearly that they were together yet, how they never discussed about where they stood, or if they should officialize the fact that they were dating, but how it was all natural. He loved the fact that they knew they belong to each other, and even if they put aside the kissing part, Walter knew they had some kind of unsaid pact where they swore fidelity to each other.
Ha also thought about the fact that Christmas was coming really soon, and how he wanted to make her feel special for this occasion. He still didn't know how but he would figure it out.
Even if he's already been close to death before, today's mission was the first time since Paige and him were a thing, and he saw in how she reacted that it was even harder on her than before. Maybe he should ask her to stay with him tonight. He wanted to do it two or three times but he never had the guts to. It was silly because he knew she would be more than happy to stay with him overnight, but he was afraid she would take it as a sign that he was ready for something he was still scared of. But after this hard day they had to spend some time together, and he had to reassure her the same way she reassured him every time he needed her to. He needed to say to her that he wasn't going anywhere and that no matter the mission, he would always think of her and Ralph before making irrational decisions.
Walter got out of the shower, feeling the cool air on his skin, getting him out of his thoughts. He rapidly got dressed and went downstairs where a large table was all set and everybody was sitting around it, even Paige and Ralph already came back, which made him realize that he was in the shower longer than he thought. He gave the liaison a little sign but first went to Sly to talk, trying not to speak too loud to him because he didn't want Toby to draw conclusion about what he was asking and to start what would be a very embarrassing questioning.
« Hey Sly, do you think you could watch Ralph tonight? I… »
« Need some alone time with Paige. I totally get it Walter, and it would be a pleasure to spend some time with Ralph. »
Walter gave him a half smile, a bit stressed by the fact that his motivations were so obvious. He just told Toby and Cabe about the recent development in his relationship with Paige but he knew that all of the team was well aware of the situation. But still, he never imagined being such an open book.
« Nice, thanks Sly. »
Then he went to sit next to Paige and grabbed her hand under the table, with himself being the only one thinking that nobody would notice. Paige leaned into him a little to whisper in his ear.
« Are you okay? »
« Yeah, I'm fine. Actually I have to ask something to both of you. »
Walter turned to face both Ralph and Paige who were looking at him with curious eyes. He looked at the others to see if they weren't listening but they all seemed absorbed in conversations on their own.
« I wanted to ask you, Paige, if you wanted to… maybe stay with me tonight… Sly told me he could watch you Ralph and… I hope that's okay with both of you, I don't want to impose anything… I mean I don't want it to look like I don't want to spend time with you too Ralph it's just… there are some things I need to discuss with your mother… »
Paige felt her heart beat faster. She expected him to ask her to stay at night a few times but he never did and she didn't want to push him. And she loved to spend time with her two favorite people in the world, but it was true that Walter and her had very few moments alone together. It wasn't easy concealing this new relationship and still being a good mother to her son. Of course she knew that it was easier considering that Walter was already Ralph's father figure, but her boy and her only had each other for a long time so they still had a very exclusive relation.
« What do you say Ralph? »
Ralph first instinct was to be disappointed by the fact that Walter didn't want him to also stay this night. But then he analyzed the situation : since her mother and Walter had clearly become partners, he had always been here in every moment they spend out of the team, and he could conceive that they needed some private time. And he was more than happy to let them have this time if this meant that Walter would be in their life permanently. Besides, he loved spending time with Sly, they always had fun together.
« That's perfectly fine with me, Sylvester and I were actually working on a new project so this will be a great opportunity to move forward with it. »
« Then I guess this means we are spending the night together Walter O'Brien » concluded Paige, giving Walter this beautiful smile which made him fall deeper in love every time he saw it.
The dinner went perfectly well, everybody seemed to be slowly forgetting about all the stress and emotions they had been through to let place to happiness and laughter. Soon, everybody started to excuse themselves to go back home : first Cabe, then Happy and Toby, and then Sylvester asked Ralph to grab his stuff before they left. Just when they were saying goodbye, Walter remembered something he wanted to give Ralph and he figured this would be a good time, because after all the little boy needed reassurance too that Walter wasn't going to ever leave him.
« Wait Ralph, I know this isn't Christmas yet but I just couldn't wait to give you this present. »
He handed a little box to the boy who opened it rapidly, eager to see what his mentor got him. It was a beautiful set of chess pieces, with the name of the members of the team inscribed in some of them. Ralph was the king, Paige the queen, Happy and Sly were the rooks, Toby and Cabe the bishops and Walter and Tim were knights. Paige's face flushed a little when she read Tim's name and Walter noticed so he quickly added.
« I uh… made it before he left so… Anyway we all still care about him so I didn't… remove the piece. »
« This is perfect Walter, thank you. » said Ralph.
« You know I did it because… when Scorpion first met you, you were playing with salt and pepper and that's how I knew you were a genius so I figured… that it would be best if you had your own set you know… »
The little boy jumped in Walter's arms to give him a hug and he was first surprised but he reciprocated, happy that the one he considered as his own son was physically comfortable like this with him. Paige was watching the two of them with her eyes becoming wet with affection. She was so glad they found each other and became almost the only thing she needed in her life.
« Thanks again Walter, have a good night. Good night mom. »
Ralph kissed her mom and Sylvester also hugged Walter and Paige goodbye before leaving.
« So… were you seeing Tim as the dark knight while you were the white knight in shining armor who came to save the queen? » teased Paige.
Walter laughed but didn't mind answering, knowing it was more of a rhetorical question.
The two of them finished cleaning the few last dishes before going up in Walter's loft, saying only a few words to each other during this time but the silences weren't uncomfortable because they knew they would have plenty of time to talk now. When they were finally done with the chores and they found themselves in Walter's bedroom, Paige couldn't restrain herself anymore. Without warning, she pressed her lips against his and started to kiss him vividly. Walter was first surprised but he reciprocated the kiss, letting himself get lost under her spell. As Paige never broke contact with him, she gently pushed him backwards, until his legs hit his bed. Feeling the contact, he sat down and Paige then sat on his lap, now kissing behind his ear, rewarded with every single moan Walter made.
« I was so scared to lose you today. » she murmured into his ear. She could already feel his hardness under her so she started to roll her hips to make him even more aroused.
« I… I know but… please stop Paige. »
His words acted like a cold shower and she got off his lap to sit next to him.
« Is this… too soon? »
« I don't know Paige… I don't want you to think that I don't want you because I do. It's just that… »
He couldn't find his worlds, feeling ashamed of pushing away a girl that a lot of guys would dream of having in their bed. Even more when he was sure she felt that his body was more than ready for it. His mind just couldn't follow.
« Hey I get it Walter, if you're not feeling ready then I'll wait. I promised you I would wait for you. I just… got caught up in the heat of the moment you know. And it's true that I've never been this scared of losing someone so… »
« Yeah that's actually why I asked you to stay with me tonight. You always tell me that you will be here for me no matter what, that you're not going anywhere and I want to be able to promise the same things to you. I know I take too much risks during the missions, I do things that could leave you and Ralph alone but… just know that I'm fighting these inner voices which keep telling me to push you away before I screw things up and make me do stupid choices sometimes… I really want to be there for you Paige, and I don't want you to worry about me not living long enough to see the light of the next day. »
While he was talking, Paige took Walters hand in hers, encouraging him by pressing them and sometimes lifting them to her lips.
« I know that you will never hesitate to sacrifice yourself for the greater good Walter. That's part of this job and I didn't chose to be a part of this team to prevent you from doing it. But I very much appreciate that you're telling me this. I know we can make this work okay? »
Walter nodded and Paige kissed him again, but slower and with more tenderness than the first time. Then Walter got up and took his pajamas from under his pillow.
« I… am going to change in the bathroom now. You can pick anything you want to wear in my cupboards. »
Paige wanted to tell him that they could change in the same room, that she was a grown up and she wouldn't jump on him. But she smiled to herself, thinking that she wasn't so sure she could keep this promise. Besides she shouldn't push him too much on their first night together so she just said « Okay » and started to look for something to wear.
When Walter got out of the bathroom, Paige was already changed and under his bed sheets, waiting for him with a teasing smile. He smiled back and went under the sheets too, passing an arm under her and letting her position herself against him. She had her head on his chest and he was mechanically brushing her hair and it wasn't long until she just fell asleep on him, probably still exhausted by the events of the day. Not so long after, Walter joined her in sleep, with a smile on his lips at the idea that the clothes she chose to wear was one of his flannel shirt.
This one was a little shorter than the first one, anyway I hope you liked it :) Thanks for the review on the first chapter, it really warms my heart to see that I can trigger emotions in people with my writing. I also wanted to do a shoutout to all the amazing writers in here, I read almost all of the stories and review a lot of them, as a guest because I'm on my phone, but keep doing awesome stories, I think we never have enough :)
As for my brother, he's been going to a psychologist for a while now, and he met a few people like him. He found out he was more confortable with people older than him and he has ups and down but things seem to be okay for now.
Anyway, after Monday's episode I'll do a regular one shot with the others and I may continue this story if I have the time during the holidays but I can't promise that I'll post regularly. Take care of you :)
Ps: Merci à cleoboune pour ton review, je ne peux pas trop me prononcer encore sur mes exams, verdict le 6 janvier…