June 10th, 2019:
Everything had been leading up to this day. Tens of thousands of man hours had been spent trying to figure out exactly how when Paige was disintegrated she was then merged into Walter and somehow remained alive. As well as how they might reverse it.
While reworking Dr Phillip's technology had led to advances in Richard's teleportation technology, they were still a long way from capitalizing on using it for the intended purpose. Let alone to try and separate the couple.
It was the work that Ralph had done with Florence and Toby that made today possible. They had everything set up to try and separate them. The group of family members and friends were standing together, taking a last few minutes to express any feelings they wanted before Walter would enter the tub. Even Paige's friends had taken time from work to be there.
Veronica voiced her feelings and hope before taking Emma from Louise to let her have a few minutes.
"Are you sure my boy?" Louise asked a bit emotionally.
Walter nodded as they looked into each other's eyes.
"Not really." Walter smiled with a chuckle at his contradiction. "If this doesn't work, then nothing but time is lost. But Emma has a good start and if this goes wrong then she'll hopefully still have one of us to grow up with. And if not, then she'll have all of you."
"Oh dear." Louise fretted. "I thought I was ready and wanted you separated all this time, but now, I feel like my feet are chunks of ice and it is running up my spine."
Sean stepped up and put his arm around her back, hugging her to him.
"But, I don't want to lose either of you." Louise finished before looking at Sean.
"Well neither of us are crazy about this either." Walter smiled. "But our son has done some phenomenal work these last six months." Walter smiled at Ralph. "We trust his thoughts on it."
"Thanks Dad, Mom." Ralph smiled.
"And yes, Paige says she agrees with me." Walter grinned as Paige took control of their left arm and reached out to caress Ralph's cheek. "That's your Mom if you are curious."
"I love you too Mom." Ralph smiled.
"Not to interrupt you guys." Florence said as she came out of the small enclosure they built inside the Garage and installed the tub to use to separate them. "But the water is now the right temperature and the medium is properly mixed, it's now or never."
Walter smiled at Florence.
"Thanks." Walter told her before looking at everyone around them. "Okay then, if everything goes well we'll see you individually in a bit over an hour."
Cabe had been held up at Homeland and he had just arrived while Veronica was talking with Walter and Paige. He stepped forward quickly and hugged Walter. Since he was late, this was the first chance to say anything.
"After my little girl, it has been my greatest joy to get to know the both of you. I love you both so much." Cabe told them.
"We love you too Cabe, thank you for believing in and being there for us." Walter said as a tear ran down their cheek. Walter turned quickly as they broke their hug and started to move through the curtain.
Emma grunted from Veronica's arms and Walter paused and looked back at the little girl watching them.
Walter stepped over and kissed Emma's cheek.
"It'll be okay, our little one." Walter said. Everyone could hear the fear in his voice. Walter quickly turned again and moved through the curtain before anything else could delay them.
Toby and Florence stood beside the readout panel. They were watching the displays of the various monitors within the system as well as the biometrics placed on Paige's body.
Ralph sighed and Louise put her hand on his shoulder. He smiled weakly at her before looking at his laptop. On one side of the computer screen he had all the variables set and then the readouts across from them. There were adjustments for each one in case any of the readouts varied from his calculations and he could adjust them to keep the system in balance. He wasn't trusting anyone else to run the procedure.
Richard and Dr Robert Phillips were there and began pacing the floor.
"I didn't expect this to be so nerve wrecking." Katherine Cooper told Allie as they stood together.
Allie nodded her agreement.
Walter inhaled deeply as he removed the robe they wore.
"I guess it is my turn to get cold feet." Walter thought to Paige.
"It isn't just you that is having second thoughts. I can feel your fear as well as my own." Paige thought for a moment. "Would it really be bad to just stay as we are?"
Walter grinned as he got a grip on the edge of the tub.
"Never. If you want, just say the word and I'll put the robe back on and we can forget this." Walter told her.
"No, you were right. Our son did amazing work on this and we'd repay that hard work badly if we didn't go through with it." Paige told him.
Walter nodded as he climbed up and over the edge of the tub. He slowly slipped into the water. Immediately they both felt tingly.
"How do you think it will manifest first?" Paige asked as the water rose up covering them to their chin.
"I'm unsure." Walter sighed. "Going by your memory of when your body switched places with mine I kind of expect us to fall asleep before it happens."
"I'm really going to miss this with you." Paige sighed. Her feelings caused Walter to sniffle back the emotion that tried to make him cry.
"Me too." Walter sighed. "I'm going to miss everything about this."
"I'll try and remember everything I've learned since this began." Paige promised. "I never understood how difficult things were for you. How slow and tedious everything felt, and why you wanted people to just say what they meant."
"I'll do my best to remember all these emotions and how I've learned to work with them." Walter promised.
"Am I feeling the electrical current?" Paige asked.
"Yes." Walter told her.
"I guess that means it is time to close our eyes." Paige sighed.
"It is." Walter said as he closed them. Walter pressed a small button which caused a light pattern to begin flashing on the large computer screen before them. It was followed by alternating sounds from the speakers. Both designed to enhance the process.
"I love you, Walter." Paige told him.
"I love you too, Paige." Walter replied. "And if I don't make it, I hope you do and that you find love again."
Paige felt Walter's warm feelings even as he felt hers.
They both began remembering all the times they'd been together starting from the first glance at Nemos' diner.
"Walter." Paige called out as she woke up and sat up in their bed in the Loft. She looked frantically to her right but Walter wasn't in the bed with her. "Was it all a dream? Or did it not work?" Paige fretted as she tried to orient herself.
She looked and saw Emma's crib.
"Oh, good, at least it wasn't a dream." Paige sighed happily that it hadn't been a dream. But then she began to feel dread. Was Walter okay? Were they still merged together?
Just as she started to panic there was a knock on the door and she jumped.
"Paige?" Walter called out.
"Walter?" Paige gasped hearing his voice for the first time in nearly a year. "Get in here." Paige demanded.
Walter pushed the door open and she saw him grinning as he walked into the room. He pushed the door closed behind him.
"I almost can't believe it worked." Paige said as she scrambled across the bed and into Walter's arm.
"I felt the same way when I woke up, but it did work." Walter nodded before they kissed hard and passionately.
Paige frowned as they broke their kiss.
"Wait, your arm?" Paige said as she looked at it, now realizing it was back in the sling.
Walter shook his head.
"What happened to it, seems to be permanent." Walter told her.
"Walter." Paige teared up. "I'm so sorry."
Walter shrugged. "To have you back, I'd do it again."
"This isn't the sling you had before." Paige said as she studied it.
"No, Happy made it. She was worried that my arm might still be like this. So she created this one so I can do this." Walter said as he reached up and loosened the straps holding his arm to his chest. Then he made several adjustments to different metal rods built into the sling. They adjusted his arm's position and then secured it again so his arm was in a natural position to hold Emma safely and still be able to use his left hand to tend to her. "Now I can hold Emma safely like this to feed or play with her with my left hand."
"Oh Happy." Paige grinned.
"Speaking of her, where is Emma?" Paige asked.
"Mom has her." Walter told her.
"What's wrong?" Paige asked, seeing something in his eyes.
"She doesn't seem to like me very much." Walter told her softly.
"Nonsense." Paige frowned. "Why wouldn't she like you?"
"Because, she's never known me as me, only as you." Walter sighed.
Paige smiled as she nodded. "We'll fix that." She got up and grabbed her body lotion and walked back over.
"Umm, how are you feeling?" Paige asked cautiously as she rubbed some of it into Walter's skin around his neck and hands.
"Pretty good overall." Walter smiled. "How do you feel? And what's this for?"
"Cautiously optimistic." Paige said. She realized something was off within herself now as her senses began to fully register everything. "This is so you have a familiar scent to you. It will help with Emma. Let me change clothes so we can go see our family."
Walter nodded before he kissed the tip of her nose.
"Hey." Paige said as they walked around the corner arm in arm.
"Paige!" Everyone yelled while grinning as they moved over and inundated her with hugs.
Walter frowned watching Paige as she was hugged. He quickly stepped in and stopped everyone that hadn't hugged her yet.
"You guys are overwhelming Paige." Walter said authoritatively causing everyone to back up and look surprised at Walter.
"Thank you." Paige whispered. "It's all a bit overwhelming guys, sorry. Where's my Emma-bug?"
Veronica moved past everyone and Emma's face lit up seeing Mommy.
"There's our baby." Paige said happily. She took Emma and kissed her and snuggled her a moment before she hugged her Mom.
"Emma, this is your Daddy." Paige told the little girl as she turned and stepped up to Walter's side. "You never have to fear when you are around him. He'll always love and protect you."
Emma seemed to sense something different about Walter. And she suddenly reached out towards Walter. Walter's eyes teared up as he took her up in his left arm. Paige assisted until he had her firmly in his left arm.
Paige smiled as a tear ran down Walter's face as Emma hugged at him and mouthed at his shirt.
Toby looked at Happy and Sylvester standing there with him as they watched Walter, Paige and Emma together. He had a suspicion about Paige as he watched them. Toby gestured to Ralph and Ralph walked over to join them.
"I'm going to ask a question, but I don't want you guys to answer it." Toby whispered to them.
The three geniuses nodded.
"Anyone know the square root of 197?" Toby asked.
"14.0356688476." Walter and Paige both rattled off at the same time. They both froze and looked at each other even as everyone but Toby gasped.
"I knew it!" Toby crowed. "Somehow you guys being merged like you were have caused some changes in your brains. Totally explains Walter's emotions after waking up as well."
"Is it permanent?" Paige asked quickly.
"Unknown at this time. It will depend on your individual neuroplasticity." Toby told her even as he took her hand and led her to a chair so he could check her vitals.
"Is that a problem?" Happy asked.
"I wouldn't call it a problem." Paige sighed. "And while I am used to the faster thoughts, the rapid and near perfect memory recall, I was looking forward to being myself again."
"I hadn't thought of that." Ralph said softly. "If you want, we could probably experiment with some medicines to slow your thoughts."
Paige shook her head as she held an arm out towards Ralph.
Ralph stepped up and they hugged for a moment as Toby listened to her lungs.
"I know I've said it before, but I do understand Walter and your touch sensitivity so much better now. I am sorry things were so tough on you until we met your Dad." Paige told him.
Ralph smiled.
"Before we found Dad, I might have wished to have been normal, but after that there hasn't been very many times I would have. Between the two of you I've come to find my place in the world. I can run with the highly intelligent and I can feel with those who aren't. I owe you for that, you took the chance that Dad was telling you the truth that night in our old apartment. But no matter what, you always made me feel loved and valued." Ralph told her.
A tear ran down Paige's face before she hugged him fiercely.
"So what's the plan moving forward?" Richard asked cautiously.
"Well…" Walter said slowly. "I think we're going to take a month off now. We're going to take a week together as a family."
Richard nodded his agreement with that.
"Thanks to Homeland, we'll have Paige's death rescinded during that week. Paige and I have talked a lot leading up to this day. We want to get married. So we'll do that in the second week and then we're going to take a one week honeymoon, just the two of us. Then we'll pick up our kids and take a week as just the four of us." Walter explained.
Paige nodded before getting up and walking to him.
"So what did it feel like?" Sylvester asked.
"What?" Paige asked.
"Being separated." Sylvester said almost like that should have been the obvious answer.
"Oh, I know I don't really recall it." Paige looked at Walter who nodded. "We had speculated we'd fall asleep before it happened. Like when my body first took over in the bathtub that day."
"Oh." Sylvester sounded disappointed.
"But getting back to our plans." Walter looked back to Richard. "Once we're back and settled back in we'll resume our contract with you to help develop your transporter technology."
Richard nodded.
"Well, now that you are separated, you don't have to come back right away. If you want to take a little more time, feel free. I mean, I would love to have it developed as soon as possible." Richard laughed. "But I'm more than willing to give you guys time to acclimate back to being yourselves and being married."
"Oh, may I make a suggestion?" Richard asked.
Walter and Paige nodded.
"Keep going to Dr Rizzuto. I don't want you guys flying apart again." Richard smiled.
Everyone nodded their agreement.
Greetings! I hope this finds you all well! Happy but sad day as this story draws to its close. Next Sunday we return to Callan to finish the rest of 2005 and see a bit of 2006.
Railman - hehe No worries there, now you know how they are going to do it. lol Wouldn't that have been a sight..."What do you mean HE is in labor?" LOL The hospital wouldn't know what to do. Yeah, Toby knew how underhanded Walter could be to get his way sometimes...he just didn't figure Paige could be as devious. lol Glad you liked Emma's name.
2LawDog - Thank you! Glad you liked the name and Ralph out front! Yes, the did it!
PearlieGirl - Thank you! So glad you enjoyed it! I certainly hope you are here to read out it turned out! Yep, I think it was 2 years ago I read an article that he went to work for Amazon Prime Video in development. I had kind of hoped he might work out a deal for them to take over Scorpion but to be honest, I've kind of realized I've given up hope over the last year and maybe that is why my Muse has grown so silent. Nothing else really sparks either though, so...Well I wouldn't call it addicted to the med but dependent on it. My sleep is finally back to what it usually has been over the last 4 years or so.
DaToad - hehe That would be an interesting separation...expelling 2 bodies at once. lol I'm not sure they would have risked Emma in such a manner though. Thankfully there was no reason to even risk it.
LouBe - LOL Ralph loved that, but said he did use some lavender in the mix. hehe One thing I've learned over my 60+ years is, almost any situation can be adjusted too. lol I'm sure Walter wouldn't be the first person to want to discuss the designed process of labor with the designer. lol Sounds like Toby better get used to Paige being a bit more like Walter. LOL He'll really be upset if Paige is permanently a genius like Walter, he'll be low man on the totem pole AGAIN! lol Maybe that's what I should name this chapter...that would cause some head scratches unless people read the notes here. lol Walter and Paige said "Thank you". Glad you got the time to read it when you did! Hope you did enjoy it, yep, always a sad day to end a story.
James - I hear you, it is always a bitter sweet day. I keep hoping one of the other stories will start talking again so I can continue one of them. Glad you liked it. I think their biggest worry about the separation was if her body would actually survive the separation. That outweighed their desires to be their own person again. And actually when I first started down this rabbit-hole, the plan was to leave them as 1 person and just like them figuring out how to work together at the same time, they would eventually even find a way to switch which body was "active". But in the end, it made more sense to separate and hope they both survived. Walter definitely agrees with you over how Paige forced the switch, but he also admits he wouldn't have done it had he known that was what she was doing. Yup, it is Sunday.
To the Adventure! -Tim