STROKE OF GENIUS

CHAPTER ONE: SON STROKE

AN: Call me crazy, cuz here I am again. Tell me what you think.

P.S. If the title made you think bad thoughts of Walter and Paige getting busy... heeheehee!

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"Hey, Walt."

On initial glance, he couldn't identify the youth who'd casually strolled through the door. The boy was several inches taller and his voice had deepened considerably since they'd last spoken face to face. All of their interactions in the past few years had taken place online. It was stupid to say his heart recognized the young man right away even if that's exactly what happened, because it leapt and began to pound rapidly in his chest. He stood to his feet and swallowed hard as a ball of useless emotion got lodged behind his Adam's apple.

"Ralph?" He voiced it as a question even though he already knew the answer.

A 100 watt grin spread across the familiar, if leaner, pale face that was now shadowed by patches of dark beard stubble. "The one and only."

Ralph walked over and came to an abrupt halt beside his former mentor's desk. Walter tilted his head to one side and drank in the sight of him, cataloging all the similarities and differences that time had wrought. A semi-awkward pause stretched between them then they suddenly embraced in their own odd way, clasping right hands and slapping each other's shoulders.

Workers in the office area looked up at the exchange with mild curiosity because they'd never seen their boss act more than stiffly cordial with anyone, let alone touch a person voluntarily beyond a quick handshake. But they swiftly got back to business when Walter met their stares with narrowed eyes.

Never one to make polite conversation, Walter jumped right into the middle of things in his unique, blunt way, "What're you doing here?"

One corner of Ralph's mouth tilted up wryly. "Looking for a job."

Instantly forgetting the other people in the room, the older genius couldn't disguise his delight at the news. "Seriously?"

Ralph leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, "We only state facts, remember?"

The two shared a laugh.

"Well, you're hired, obviously."

The youth chuckled again. "Easiest interview ever."

"I've always said you have a job here whenever you want one. Grab a seat. I do have a couple of quick questions for you."

Walter dropped back down onto his rolling desk chair and swiveled it to face Ralph as the teen wheeled a chair over from an unoccupied adjacent desk.

"What would you like to know?"

Walter grimaced and shifted uneasily, his eyes briefly scanning the room. He purposely lowered his voice to discourage any inquisitive listeners. "What will your mother say? It was my understanding you've barely completed your first year at MIT."

The boy snorted and tilted back, lacing his fingers behind his head in an attitude of supreme confidence. "And I just turned eighteen last week too, in case you've forgotten. So it really doesn't concern me what my mother thinks about things anymore. The second I became legal, I quit. It was boring. My experience with higher education can be summed up as a bunch of professors, whose IQs are roughly half to three quarters of mine on a good day, testing me on useless information most of which I already knew anyway. I mean, look at you. You never finished college and you manage to run a successful company now."

"True," Walter conceded with a nod, finding the logic sound.

"The only thing is, I, uh, won't have on-campus housing here in LA." He leaned forward again as his gaze and his hands fell to his lap. "I was kinda hoping the Air Stream was available for rent? You could take it out of my pay, of course." For the first time Ralph's expression turned somewhat uncertain.

Of course Walter caved. He could never deny his favorite boy anything. Not to mention, it would be an absolute pleasure having him around on a regular basis. No telling what collaborative projects their genius minds would dive into together. It was like Christmas had come early.

"Sure," the Scorpion leader agreed at once, "You're welcome to it. It's been empty for years so it likely needs some cleaning up and airing out. Consider that all the rent I require."

"Thanks," Ralph answered simply, but the admiration and gratitude on his face spoke volumes.

Walter had forgotten how addicting it was to be understood by someone who liked him. The whole exchange left him feeling uncharacteristically nostalgic and a little giddy, so he tried to shrug it off by elaborating unnecessarily, "Oh, it's nothing. I've considered selling that old RV on several occasions, but I always seem to have more important things to do." It wasn't that it housed too many precious memories. It was absurd to feel attachments like that to inanimate objects no matter the reason.

"I don't doubt it. I imagine you stay pretty busy since you added the second team and all."

"Yes. Things have picked up radically since..."

"Yep. All you have to do is save one big-time celebrity. The video goes viral and suddenly your name is everywhere and you can charge whatever you want for your services. I must've watched that footage a couple hundred times myself. I gotta say, it was awesome!"

They exchanged a knowing smile.

Toby picked that exact moment to stroll mock-casually through Team Two's office area. "Is that the dulcet tones of Ralphie-Boy I hear? What're you doing in our neck of the woods, Little Big Brain? Last I heard you were blowing minds and blowing up labs at MIT. What're you home on Winter Break or something?"

"Or something," Ralph answered noncommittally while offering Walter a wink.

Walter's brow furrowed in consternation. He sincerely hoped by hiring Ralph he wouldn't get pulled into any messy personal matters.

As far as he knew Toby and Happy were still in contact with the boy's mother even after the collapse of Centipede Partners. He'd never asked.

Sylvester, Happy and Toby had come back to their jobs at Scorpion after their joint business venture had failed abysmally. Paige, however, had taken a job elsewhere and ended up married to a much older, extremely wealthy man a few months later. Her genius son didn't adjust well to the new circumstances. Reading between the lines during some of their IM chats, Walter had gleaned the marriage was a big contributing factor in Ralph's decision to graduate high school early at sixteen and ultimately influenced his choice to attend a top tech school three thousand miles away as well.

Walter had never discussed any of his concerns about Ralph with his colleagues. He never shared anything with them beyond the job. Even though the original Scorpion crew still worked well enough together, Walter wasn't close with his teammates anymore with the exception of Cabe. The Homeland Agent was constantly trying to get him to relent, but he absolutely refused to allow it. He simply couldn't afford to let anyone close to him again. They worked together each day then they all went their separate ways. He was no more than their boss and they were no more than his employees. That was the way he intended to keep it. Anything else invited a repeat of the worst disaster of Walter's life.

"Is it alright if I start cleaning the trailer out tonight? I'd like to move in right away if you're good with that, but I probably won't be able to start work until next week sometime. I have some stuff to settle first. Okay?"

Ralph's question pulled him out of his reverie. "Oh, of course. With your skills? I'll take you as soon as I can get you. We can discuss your starting date, work hours and a fair rate of pay…"

Toby was plainly eavesdropping as he stood at the bookshelf pretending to thumb through a psychology periodical he'd probably written or at least memorized long ago.

"Hours and pay?" The behaviorist couldn't help himself. He butted in. "Here at Scorpion? In LA? What about school?"

Ralph rolled his eyes. "It seems my new employer is willing to work around it."

"Quite a long commute though. Don't you think?"

Walter ground his teeth in irritation. "I'm conducting an interview right now, Toby. Would you mind not interrupting for once?"

It had occurred to Walter over the years that he probably should've fired his nosy, ex-friend long ago, but he'd never been able to do it. Ever since Toby had come back to Scorpion, his favorite activity was spying on and throwing out random, uninvited observations about Walter's personal life. He rationalized to himself he couldn't possibly let Toby go because he wasn't willing to lose both the doctor and his engineer wife all at once. It would be too jarring for the team and too hard to find adequate replacements for them in a timely manner. It certainly wasn't because of some misplaced sense of sentimentality.

The smart alack shrink held up both hands in a gesture of surrender, his expression all innocence. "Sure, boss. Whatever you say."

"How 'bout we meet up later to discuss terms? Maybe over dinner?" Ralph invited, his eyebrows raised hopefully.

These days Walter had a hard and fast rule about not socializing with his colleagues, but apparently Ralph would always be an exception for him under any conditions. It appeared he was still incapable of turning the young genius down.

"Okay," he heard himself agreeing, cutting his eyes toward Toby, "Text me the time and place and I'll meet you."

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Later that afternoon, Cabe cornered Walter in the cramped kitchenette.

"Do you think this new situation is appropriate?"

Walter maneuvered around Cabe and refilled his coffee mug. He opened the refrigerator and pretended to be looking for creamer to avoid meeting the Homeland Agent's sharp eyes.

He didn't even bother to ask what Cabe was referencing because he surmised Toby had run straight to Scorpion's patriarchal figure with the latest news hoping he could get more details or the older man might have some influence over the final decision. The shrink's plan was doomed to fail though as Walter's mind was already made up.

So he answered dryly instead, "I pay your wife a more-than-adequate salary to advise me on appropriateness. Perhaps you should leave it up to her to do her job."

"Give me a break, Walter. You know what I'm getting at, here. You're a genius. I don't have to spell it out. Isn't encouraging Ralph to drop out of college a little like kicking a hornets' nest?"

Walter straightened and leaned an elbow on the refrigerator door. "I didn't encourage him. In case you don't remember, he's also a genius and he's of age. He weighed all the options and withdrew from school on his own."

"You hired him. By doing that you handed him an alternative option on a silver platter."

Walter made a fuss of pouring cream into his mug as he formulated a suitable reply.

"Scorpion is fortunate to have Ralph. I have no doubt he will be an invaluable asset. If I hadn't hired him, someone undoubtedly would've snapped him up eventually. He'll be safer here where I can keep an eye on him. Trust me. If he chooses to go back and finish his college degree, he can re-enroll at Cal Tech at any time in the future. What have you got against Ralph, anyway? Why should you object to him working here?"

He carefully set the carton back inside and closed the door then began to fiddle around in a drawer as if searching for a spoon when he knew perfectly well the utensils were in the exact spot they had always been, thanks to Sylvester's OCD.

"I've got nothing against Ralph. I love that kid. You know that. But do you really want what's best for him or is this maybe motivated by something else? It just smacks of revenge if you ask me," Cabe shot back. The agent snatched a spoon out of its slot and thrust it under Walter's nose.

"Well, I didn't ask you," Walter snapped, aggravated mostly because he feared Cabe had a fair point. He buried that inconvenient detail in his go-to arrogance while he grabbed the offered spoon and stirred his coffee as if his life depended on the mixture being just so. "In fact, I made sure after the whole Timothy Armstrong fiasco that our Homeland contract stipulates Scorpion and Scorpion alone has the authority to hire and fire individuals on this team. Since I am head of Scorpion, that authority belongs exclusively to me. I will hire at my discretion. Other employees are allowed to voice concerns, but the ultimate decision is mine. So thank you. Your opinion has been noted." He dropped the spoon into the sink with a satisfying clatter.

He could see Cabe clenching his jaw to control his impatience right before the older man growled, "When this blows up in your face, and it will, don't say I didn't warn you. This one is all on you."

As the man stalked away, Walter shrugged. It seemed the blame was always heaped 'all on him' no matter how things worked out.

oOoOoOoOoOo

It almost felt good to be furious.

She hadn't been so passionate about anything in a very long time.

After her bloodless marriage destroyed what was left of her relationship with Ralph, she'd gone numb, plodding through life one awful hour at a time. No sense wishing she could go back and change things. Paige hadn't only burned those bridges, she completely annihilated them.

Trying for a sliver of good will, she'd allowed her resentful sixteen year old son to graduate high school early and move as far away from her as he could without actually leaving the country. She'd made herself feel somewhat better about her decision when she'd asked Drew to look in on him from time to time even though she knew full well the absentee father never would.

It hurt incredibly when Paige had to hear this latest news from Toby and Happy.

Ralph had recently quit college and moved back to LA.

When she'd called the school to find out why she hadn't been notified, they told her they were no longer authorized to give her that information. Apparently, once a student turns eighteen, it is considered a violation of privacy for the institution to notify the parent of anything regarding said student… even if that parent is paying the tuition and exorbitant fees.

Later she'd discovered where exactly Ralph was working and living. After that particular conversation, she'd hurled her phone across the room in frustration.

To say Paige was livid was a huge understatement.

For a while, her anger eclipsed her anxiety about returning to the last place she could remember being happy, but as she traversed the familiar streets, her heart grew heavier. She hoped to channel the nerves and the sadness into some strong words she meant to use when she confronted her son as well as her child-stealing, genius ex.

When her car swung into the parking lot, Paige's palms became slick with sweat and her heart tried to beat its way out of her chest. It had been such a long time, but everything still looked the same from the outside and the sight was slowly extinguishing her anger, swamping it with acute longing for a past she couldn't reclaim. If just being in the same neighborhood with Walter was causing this much emotional upheaval, what would it do to face the man himself? Maybe she could speak to her son and leave without seeing Walter? That thought held little comfort. It occurred to her she had no idea what she really wanted.

Paige tapped her forehead against her steering wheel and gave herself a bracing pep talk. 'Get it together, Dineen'. Her inner voice sounded suspiciously like Happy.

Faking bravado she didn't feel, she marched to the door and yanked it open. It still squeaked then slammed and the sound brought with it a flood of emotionally charged memories.

As her eyes adjusted to the interior light, she noticed right away things inside were no longer the same. There were loads more desks for one. And they were situated in rows instead of facing one another. There was a large, round conference table in the very center. Everything looked neat and professional. No more Proton Arnold. No more shark's head on the wall. No more plants adorning the window sills.

And no more people? Where was everyone?

"Ralph?" She called, her voice coming out more hesitant than she liked.

Paige took a few more steps toward the desks and nearly had a stroke when she spotted a pair of legs jogging down the stairs. She looked up.

And there he was. Walter.

Holy crap. He was even more attractive than she remembered.

Paige stood anchored in place and momentarily tongue-tied, all thoughts of stern words and demands forgotten.

Walter didn't appear to react at all. Any emotions he may have been experiencing were hidden behind a grim expression as he paused half way down.

"Ralph's not here," he said shortly.

"Well, where is he?" She managed to choke out.

A strange noise from the loft interrupted before he could answer. Walter glanced over his shoulder and frowned.

"He's out on assignment with his team."

"Could you come down here, please? I need to talk to you too," she asked, congratulating herself because her words were sounding much more steady and firm even if her insides were wiggling around like Jello and her knees felt wobbly.

The unmistakable wailing cry of an infant echoed around the garage. Walter squeezed his eyes shut and he cringed. "This is not a good time."

With those dismissive words, he whirled around and trotted back up where he came from.

Was Walter babysitting? Whose kid? Happy and Toby had recently started home visits with another foster child, but that kid was almost two. These cries were definitely coming from a young baby.

Curiosity got the better of her. Paige crept up the stairs and cautiously peered into the loft.

An astounding sight met her eyes. Walter was holding a baby against his shoulder, bouncing him up and down, pacing and talking to him like an adult.

"I don't understand what you want." Bounce. Bounce. "I can't feed you the way your mother did." Bounce. Bounce. "I know you don't like the bottle, but you have to eat." Bounce. Bounce. "You will continue to be hungry unless you take what's offered."

Walter draped a kitchen towel over his shoulder and picked up a bottle from the counter. Maneuvering the squirming, distraught child into the crook of one arm, he jiggled the nipple of the bottle in the wide open mouth. The baby gargled a little as some milk dribbled into his mouth but he continued to cry unabated.

"He can tell you're tense." Paige walked into the loft and held out her arms. "He won't settle down until you relax."

Without a word, Walter handed the baby off to Paige. He appeared frustrated and annoyed and a little bit worried. The man was clearly way out of his depth.

Paige cuddled the child close and swayed side to side, crooning and shushing softly until his cries quieted to whimpers. When the little boy started rooting around Paige's bosom for obvious reasons, the seasoned mother took the bottle from Walter and slipped the nipple into the baby's mouth. For an instant, he screwed up his face at the unfamiliar feel, but soon began to suck eagerly as Paige continued to hum and sway calmly.

Paige edged herself down onto a chair and settled back. After the child had taken about half of the contents, Paige propped him upright against her shoulder and patted and rubbed his little back. The baby fussed some more, but with much less volume and attitude this time, until he finally burped. Then Paige laid him back down and let him finish his meal. It wasn't long before the satisfied baby's eyelids began to droop.

Walter sat on the couch observing the whole feeding process with a frown of intense concentration on his face as if he was mentally taking notes, but he didn't utter a single word.

It had been quite a long time since Paige had cared for such a precious innocent. She admired the little face and the tiny hands, the soft skin of his dimpled cheeks and the downy dark curls on his head. This little boy certainly had a temper, but he was also very sweet.

Paige looked up at Walter and smiled. "So, who it this little angel?"

"He's my son," he replied without batting an eyelash.