I do not own Scorpion! All characters belong to CBS! I also do not own the song - Black and Gold by Sam Sparro. If you guys haven't noticed, I love using songs in my fanfics! Also, I'm sorry if some of you guys like continuous storylines in fanfics. I rarely continue old stuff. I do all my stuff in short, concise, complete pieces. None of my fanfics connect really…sorry.

Paige sat in her small living room by herself. It had been hours since Drew had come to pick up Ralph at four for the evening. She had the stereo turned on it was playing light alternative music. Paige had hoped that the music could soothe her. She had been trying to sleep for hours, but the memories of the day had been circling around in her mind. She took another large swig from the wine bottle, pulled the blanket tighter around herself, and lied back down on the couch. She was not drunk, but she desperately wished to be if it allowed her to forget what was certainly one of the most painful experiences she had ever faced. She closed her eyes and even through her fight the images came flooding back to her.

8 Hours Earlier

"Paige, I wanted to thank you for your work on our case today." Walter said as he descended the staircase.

"Oh, you're welcome. It was no big deal, it's my job after all." Said Paige, turning to face him properly.

"Yes, but really the credit for this case goes to you. We could not have guessed that our bank embezzler was a heartbroken intern looking to gain - I don't know, respect? - from her boss." Walter shook his head as he said this, still clearly not understanding her motivation. Paige gave a half-hearted laugh.

"It was more than respect that she was hoping to gain. I know you guys don't really get emotion, but it can drive people to do crazy things." Paige turned back to the table and began packing up her bag.

"Well it's a good thing we all have a rational mind to protect us from doing stupid things."

"I think she was really in love, Walter." Paige watched as Walter stiffened and awkwardly stuffed his hands in his pocket.

"Well I don't really know what being in love feels like, so I can't relate."

"It's my job to help you understand." Paige waited for Walter to look directly at her before continuing. Walter spoke up instead.

"I don't need to understand it. This girl did foolish and illegal things all apparently because she wanted affection from her superior."

"It's seems foolish to you, but I have been in love before. There's a part of you that would do anything for that person, no matter how irrational it may be." Paige took a step towards him. "Think of when you were dating a girl, even if it was just for a short time. Think about what your emotions and impulses made you do."

"They…um…were pretty much under control." Walter said with as he held his breath. He could smell Paige's perfume and he could see the cascading colors dance in her brown eyes. He did not know what Paige was getting at, but he knew she had a hidden agenda. Was she trying to get him to admit that sometimes his emotions got the best of him, even when he claimed not to have any? Walter could not deny that Paige brought out the most wonderful feelings in him, but he would not allow himself to be vulnerable, not now.

"Can I show you what emotions can do?" Paige asked softly as she took his hands in hers. Walter because even more rigid and nervous. It was becoming clearer what Paige was about to do and he did not want to resist. In fact, he wanted to give in entirely. He wanted to do whatever she wanted him to do. He wanted to let his mind go for once and let instinct guide his action.

"I suppose we could test a theory." Said Walter awkwardly. And then, in one swift and clean motion, Paige's lips were pressed against his and her arms were wrapped around his neck, her hands finding their way through his thick hair. At initial contact, Walter had froze, partly from shock and partly from being unaware of what to do with his hands. But as she kissed him, he relaxed and his hands found her lower back and hips. He savored the moment for only a second more before he rather abruptly pulled away. He pressed his eyes closed as he gathered his breath, worried that if he looked at Paige for too long he would succumb to her again.

"No, no…we can't. I don't…this is not…" Walter attempted to form a comprehensible sentence, but the shock was still too great for his brain to process.

"I'm sorry, Walter. I didn't mean to ambush you like that. I just wanted to prove to you that emotions are difficult things to control. And also…I thought this is what you wanted." Paige's voice died out with this last sentence. Walter opened his eyes to look properly at her, thinking perhaps he had misheard.

"You thought this is what I wanted?"

"Well, ya. I think we've gotten really close and I just thought this was going somewhere." Paige looked to the ground in embarrassment. The shock in Walter's system was turning to defense. This thing with Paige could not go on. She was dangerous in ways that she was not even aware of. Her ability to change Walter's mind cloud his judgement meant that he was letting his EQ expand at exponentially fast rates, to the point that Walter did not understand how to control it.

"No. No, this is supposed to be strictly professional. There's nothing between us. I don't have relationships, I don't need relationships. They are illogical and a waste of our energy." Walter took a deep breath, preparing for words he did not want to say. "I really think you should go now."

Paige looked up at him, taken aback and with sorrow in her eyes.

"I'm really sorry, Walter. I guess I'm not so good at reading you after all." She grabbed her purse off the table, turned on her heel, and headed quickly for the door. Walter stared at her as she left and was unable to move for several minutes afterwards. He did not know the full consequences of what he had said, but he knew that this would not work itself out on its own.

— SCORPION —

Paige had not fallen asleep. The scene replayed in her head over and over and it was relentless in its pursuit. She could not erase it. She dabbed at her eyes, which were damp from tears. She thought of Scorpion and the family that was built there for her and Ralph. Ralph. What would she tell him if it turned out that she was not welcome back? It was all her fault. She had let her feelings for Walter get in the way of something that was extremely important for the wellbeing of her child. She cursed herself for being such a selfish mother. The music was still playing in the background, except now, rather than soothing her, it was giving Paige a horrible headache.

"And the stars fell out the sky, and my tears rolled into the ocean. And now I'm looking for a reason why, you really set my world into motion.

Because if you're not really there, then the stars don't even matter… If you're not really there, then I don't wanna be either.

I wanna be next to you…"

She did want to be next Walter. To think that she might not be welcome back to Scorpion because of what she had done gave Paige the most horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. Scorpion was where she finally felt like she was a part of something and her son felt like he fit in. Paige could not deny that what she was feeling for Walter was real. She had just been too anxious. She should have known that Walter would not take such an approach very well. It was Walter that she already missed…

Paige sat up at the rattling noise. She looked around her apartment, confused.

"Paige?" A voice called to her, but it was unclear where it was coming from. There was enough alcohol in her now that her sense of awareness was terribly altered.

"Paige, please. If you're in there, I really need to talk to you."

Paige managed to get herself off the couch and find her way to the door, where she had determined the sound was coming from. When she opened the door, she immediately snapped into consciousness.

"Walter?" Paige asked in shock. Walter stood in the doorway awkwardly, not totally convinced that he should in fact be here and looking like he would take off at any moment. But in the end he pushed through the door and turned to face her directly.

"Paige, there's something I need to tell you." Walter caught her gaze and tried to tell if she was in a state well enough to absorb his words. She nodded feebly, telling Walter to continue.

"You were right. To be honest with you, I did want that. I just…I didn't know how to tell you or show you that I wanted it. And I don't think I actually knew that I wanted it. Well, I did know that I wanted it, I've been wanting it for a while now, but I just couldn't comprehend what I was feeling. And I was scared. I was scared that this relationship we have could be real. I don't know how to have a relationship. I'm scared that I'm actually feeling things but at the same time I never want these feelings to stop. I don't want you to go. Do you get what I'm saying?" Walter looked desperately to her, hoping that she was understanding his apology so that he would not have to attempt to explain his feelings for her anymore.

"Walter…I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have tried to force something on you when you weren't ready. I know that this is a big step for you."

"No, Paige. Don't you see? I am ready! I just scared. I was making excuses because I didn't want to admit that I really care about you. I want to feel emotions."

"I want to feel them, too." Paige said with a weak smile. Walter stepped closer to her, wanting to see into her eyes, which always made his mind melt.

"Emotions make people do crazy things." Walter said as he cupped Paige's checks in his hands and leaned down to kiss her passionately. It was Paige's turn to freeze in shock, but in an instant she released the tension and surrendered to the emotions that had been eating at her since she had danced with Walter at the gala. Her arms moved on their own as they wrapped themselves around his neck and played with his hair.

In that moment that they shared, both Walter and Paige let go of all their reservation and fear and simply allowed the natural and raw emotions they felt control them. For Walter, he knew that he had to let his emotions guide him and his soul told him this was right. And based on the way that Paige kissed him back, the feeling was mutual.