The Only Logical Move: post Once Bitten Twice Die

The morning after Scorpion successfully saved the Eastern European peace talks, Paige balanced a green smoothie and some of Walter's favorite fermented fish from Kovelsky's in her hands as she walked into the Garage.

She felt optimistic that her relationship with Walter had moved past the awkwardness of the meltdown in her apartment. He had been so thoughtful making sure that she got to her History exam with time to spare even as he was still recovering from the venomous snake bite. She hummed a bit of Mitsy Von Schneiden's lullaby, she was in such a good mood. She couldn't help it, it really was a lovely melody.

Paige saw Walter standing at his favorite whiteboard, concentration etched on his features. She doubted Walter even realized she had entered the room. Walking over to his desk and carefully setting down the food, she tried to get his attention. "Walter," she called, "Walter… Walter!"

Walter snapped his mind back to the room where he was standing. "Paige? I-I wasn't expecting anyone else to be here since giving everyone the day off."

"I just wanted to check on you, see how you're recuperating from the snake bite. I figured you might get a little bit lost in your mind and wanted to make sure you had something to eat today." She gestured to the smoothie and fermented fish.

"Thank you, Paige, that was very thoughtful. I am surprised to see you here, I thought you would want to spend the weekend with Ralph."

"Ordinarily I would, but I made plans for Ralph to spend the entire weekend at Billy's. We had no idea the peace negotiations would end so swiftly. And I didn't want to deprive Ralph of a trip to the science center and go-kart racing with his friend. I figured this way I could check in on you and get started on the next paper for my European History class." She paused, "I hope I'm not intruding."

"No, of course not. The company would be appreciated. Your company is always welcome." She wasn't sure, but she thought he might have placed just a bit of extra emphasis on the word your.

Walter picked up the container of fermented fish and took a bite. "I hadn't remembered to eat anything this morning. I'm glad you thought of it." He put the fish aside as he turned back toward the calculations on the whiteboard. "I applaud your dedication to education, even if the study of math or science would be a better use of your time."

"Thank you?" Paige shook her head in amusement.

But Walter didn't answer, he was already lost in thought.

Paige left Walter to wherever his mind had taken him. Determined to make good use of this rare bit of free time, she sat down at her desk and opened her notes from class as well as her textbook. She then proceeded to stare at a blank document on her computer screen for at least 30 minutes and get absolutely nothing done. Yesterday's misadventures at the senator's compound playing on a continuous loop in her brain.

Helping him out of the taco truck when he was barely conscious

His delirium

How pale he had become and how shallow his breathing was as she hoped –prayed– that the antivenom would work

How close he came to dying

The ride back to Scorpion Headquarters after the peace treaty had been successfully signed as she finally had the time to be still and feel how close she had come to losing him

The only thing that had kept her from breaking down sobbing on the way back to the Garage was the warm, comfortable weight of his thigh pressed against her own.

He cared for her.

She cared for him and she had almost lost him and neither of them had ever truly admitted their feelings for the other.

Walter had had close calls before, but this time it was different.

She was different.

Paige finally admitted to herself that she wasn't going to get any work done on her history paper today. She looked across the Garage and saw Walter still at the whiteboard, still engrossed in whatever equation he was working on. The sight of him absently pushing an errant curl out of his eyes made Paige's heart beat a little bit faster. She could see in his body language that he was stuck. He was unable to find the missing variable to balance his equation and his frustration was growing.

Making a decision, Paige stood up from her desk and called to him. "Hey, Walter, maybe it's time for a break. Giving it some time to get a fresh perspective."

Walter frowned and shook his head. "No, I just need to keep going. I know I can–"

Paige interrupted him. "I know you can too. But you've had a lot going on the last 24 hours, maybe cut yourself some slack." Paige smiled, "I have a different project we can work on." She silently sent a thought of gratitude to Megan and her perfect idea for Paige offering to give Walter a haircut.

Walter finally pulled his attention away from the equation on the board. He saw Paige and her smile. He had never seen her smile quite that way before and he wasn't sure what it meant, but he knew he wanted to find out. "Okay, I'm intrigued. What is the project?"

"It's a way to get out of your head for a bit. I was noticing that your hair is getting a little long. Maybe it's time for a haircut."

Walter looked at her, puzzled. "It is a bit longer than I find it for maximum grooming efficiency. But I don't have an appointment at the barber for today. I can call and see if Sam will take me as a walk-in. Are you offering to drive me? I don't understand how this is a project for the two of us." He gestured to the whiteboard. "Or how it will help me solve the equation."

Paige gave herself a mental shake. She can't hint. She can't allude. She can't hope he gets the message. With Walter, it's all straightforward. Just state facts. "No, that's not quite what I meant. I was actually thinking that I could give you a haircut. Here, in the Garage."

"Are you a licensed barber or cosmetologist?"

Paige bit her lip uncertainly, she hadn't quite anticipated how difficult this was going to be. "No, but I do have experience cutting hair. I worked in a salon for a brief time when Ralph was younger."

Walter considered Paige's words. He had never considered asking her if she knew anything about cutting hair. Paige did have a unique and often surprising skill set. It didn't surprise him that she would have worked at a variety of jobs while raising Ralph as a single mother with no help from friends or family or…Drew…

Walter mentally skittered away from any thoughts of Ralph's biological father.

If Paige said that she knew how to cut his hair, he believed her. There was a brilliance to having Paige cut his hair here at the Garage. He wouldn't need to waste time in traffic on the way to and from the barbershop. He wouldn't need to pay attention, or more accurately, pretend to pay attention, to the banal conversation that Sam inevitably got involved in with other customers or fellow employees.

Walter was still feeling the physical effects of his recent brush with death and knew that his brain wasn't working at peak capacity, though he was loathe to admit it. Thank goodness Toby wasn't here to observe this behavior. Walter would never hear the end of it.

He could take a break from his calculations while Paige trimmed his hair. It would be an efficient use of time. Getting a necessary task checked off his to-do list while he gave his mind a bit of time to wander and be able to return to the equation with the benefit of time away from thinking about the elusive missing variable.

It was only after thinking through the entire idea logically that what it all meant emotionally occurred to Walter. If Paige cut his hair, she would touch him.

He recalled the disastrous manicure attempt at her condo a few weeks previously. Walter's reaction had caused him a great deal of embarrassment, though he denied he ever felt such an emotion. Fortunately, their relationship had slowly returned to its normal parameters and Paige had never spoken of the episode. He was hesitant to upset both his working relationship with Paige as well as this tentative personal bond they shared. But there was a small voice in the back of his mind firmly declaring that Paige's touch on his skin was exactly what he wanted.

Paige shifted nervously, watching him think through all the angles and outcomes, uncertain of how he would respond.

Finally, Walter spoke. "Do you mean that you would touch m-me?"

Paige spoke softly, as if afraid to spook him. "Yes, I would touch you. Is that something that you're okay with?"

Walter considered her question. The first time they had attempted such a connection, he had been unprepared for the sensation of Paige's touch. This time would be different, Walter decided. He knew what was coming and he knew how to control his reaction. He would welcome the opportunity to show Paige that her touch didn't affect him negatively.

Walter noticed that Paige had lost her smile and was looking at him uncertainly. "I would be very grateful if you would cut my hair."

Paige let out the breath she didn't know she was holding in a sigh of relief, hoping that Walter hadn't noticed.

It appeared he didn't. "There are no barber tools in the Garage. I think the closest thing we may have are Happy's tin snips and I don't think she would appreciate the unauthorized appropriation of her tools. Let alone how useless they would be for the task at hand."

"Walter, did you just make a joke?" Paige asked in amusement.

Walter made a noise in the back of his throat that Paige took as an affirmative to her question. "Don't worry about the barber tools. I have a kit in my desk drawer that I keep for just such occasions." She pulled open a little used drawer at the bottom of her desk and reached for a black plastic storage case tucked away at the very back.

Walter lifted his eyebrows in astonishment. "It looks like you have had this project planned in advance."

Paige blushed in embarrassment. "Yes, I have. Ever since the time you gave me a ride to see Megan," she whispered.

Walter filed that bit of information away for consideration at a later time. But he decided not to pursue that line of inquiry at the moment. He felt flattered that she had been thinking of doing this for a while. But what surprised him the most was how he found himself looking forward to the experience of the touch of her fingers in his hair. Walter crossed the space between them and picked up the case. "Let's get started."

Walter found a stool of an adequate height while Paige set up the clippers and scissors on the table in the kitchen. It seemed to be the area of the Garage with the best light for their project. Once Walter was seated on the stool, she deftly covered his clothing with a barber cape.

Paige met Walter's eyes. "Ready?"

He swallowed thickly, his throat suddenly dry. He nodded. As she picked up the scissors, Walter mentally steeled himself for the sensation of her fingers grazing his scalp.

Paige tried to work as quickly and efficiently as possible. But once her fingers touched his curls, she couldn't help herself. She slowed her motions to give herself time to luxuriate in his beautiful hair.

The feeling of Paige's fingers in his hair was unlike anything he had ever experienced. He had never known the touch of another human being to be anything other than something to be endured. He visibly relaxed and Paige smiled to herself.

Paige enjoyed watching the look of contentment on Walter's face. He even occasionally allowed himself to close his eyes in what looked like pleasure. Whenever his eyes opened they would search for hers and the look of vulnerability on his face when their gazes met nearly took her breath away. The two enjoyed a companionable silence as she worked. Paige felt the knot of fear that she had been carrying since the moment Walter had been bitten by the adder finally begin to dissolve.

All too soon, Paige's fingers left his hair as she finished up Walter's new haircut by shaving the nape of his neck and then brushing the stray hairs off his neck. Walter had to stop himself from grunting in displeasure at the loss of connection between his scalp and her fingers.

"If you like, I can rinse the loose hairs out in the sink so you won't have them irritating your skin." Paige offered.

Walter nodded, not trusting his voice to reply, and removed the barber cape. He found a clean towel on the shelf next to the counter as Paige busied herself sweeping up the locks of hair on the floor.

Walter sat in a kitchen chair he had pulled up to the edge of the sink, fondly remembering the last time he and Paige had been alone in the kitchen together. The first night he had given her a manicure.

Paige helped Walter gently tip the chair back so that his neck was resting comfortably on the rim of the sink. Paige's thoughts also drifted to that night when she and Walter had ended up in a puddle on the kitchen floor. She gently sluiced the water through his curls catching the loose hairs and massaging his scalp. Walter closed his eyes to better focus on the sensation. A small sigh of pleasure escaped his lips before he could stop it. Paige continued her ministrations as long as she dared. Reluctantly, she turned off the water and Walter stood, curls dripping water onto his shoulders.

He picked up the clean towel from the kitchen table and began vigorously drying his hair with it. "Thank you, Paige. Your barbering skills are commendable."

"You're welcome, Walter."

Satisfied that his hair was dry enough not to leave a trail of water droplets in his wake, Walter dropped the damp towel on the kitchen table. "I guess I can get back to my equation now..." his voice was flat and his disinterest in turning his attention back to the calculation in his whiteboard was palpable.

Paige swallowed her own elation as she realized that he was as reluctant for this moment to end as she was. "Just one more thing." She gestured to the stool. "Now that all the loose hairs have been removed, I just need to take a minute to check the length and that I didn't miss any spots."

"Seems logical." Walter did his best to seem uninterested, but he just couldn't stop the surge of warmth that filled his chest at the thought of Paige continuing to move her fingers across his scalp.

As he settled on the stool once again, Paige stood in front of him, running her fingers through his damp curls, eyeing them with a critical gaze. Walter watched her, enjoying seeing the concentration on her face, enjoying the feeling of her fingers touching him, enjoying being with her. Almost done, Paige slowed her fingers on his scalp and styled a few of his curls so they would dry in the proper direction.

Paige heard a hitch in Walter's breathing and her eyes flew to meet his. When she saw the look in his eyes, her own breathing became more rapid. She felt a flush of desire expand through her entire body. She closed her eyes to center herself.

Walter's hungry gaze dropped to her lips. For the first time in his life, he allowed himself to be ruled by primal emotion and desire instead of logic and efficiency. With one swift movement, he stood and pressed his lips to hers.

As many times as he had tried not to envision this moment, he had seen it in his mind anyway. Even with his 197 IQ, Walter O'Brien had never in his wildest dreams imagined the touch of Paige's lips on his would feel like this. It was a maelstrom of sensation that wasn't meant to be analyzed and evaluated. It was meant to be experienced and savored.

Paige moaned softly as she returned his kiss, spurring Walter to wrap his arms around her waist and pull her close, the lengths of the bodies melting into each other. Feeling his desire build, he gently sucked her bottom lip. Paige gasped in surprise and began exploring his mouth with her tongue.

As he continued to explore the softness of her lips and mouth, Walter's hands trailed up her back leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake as he moved to cradle her head.

Paige clung to Walter's shoulders, unsure if her legs would support her weight if she let go. She had really hadn't thought about what could happen between them beyond this little experiment. She had merely hoped that Walter would allow her to touch him as she cut his hair. She didn't know what she had expected, but the experience of kissing Walter, of being kissed by Walter with more passion, intensity, and care than she had ever been kissed by anyone in her entire life was beyond anything she had dreamed of. Paige longed to stay in this moment forever, but she knew that she couldn't.

Walter felt Paige shift and with a ragged breath, Walter dragged his lips away from hers, his eyes burning with pent-up emotion and desire. He stroked her cheek with his thumb. "Paige, I…"

Paige stepped back from Walter's touch, dropping her hands to her sides, tears filling her eyes. "I have to go." She turned and ran out of the Garage, slowing only to grab her purse from its usual spot on the floor next to her desk.

Shocked by Paige's disappearance into the bright LA afternoon, Walter stood rooted to the spot, trying to process her abrupt departure. He had no idea what the ache building in his chest was. What he did know was that he hated the feeling and had no desire to continue feeling it. As the seconds ticked by and Paige did not reappear to help him sort out his confusion or explain her abrupt departure, Walter did what he always did when emotion threatened to overwhelm him.

He moved back to his whiteboard and the troublesome equation whose solution had previously eluded him. He picked up a fresh dry-erase marker and contemplated the numbers. Slowly he began to solve the equation.