A Tender Christmas Moment
Jan. 24th, 2015 05:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
katleeptWorking Title: A Tender Christmas Moment
Author: Kat Lee
Fandom: Scorpion
Character/Pairing: Toby/Happy
Rating: G/K
Challenge: This is for the![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
tv_universe Big Bang Inspirations challenge. If you join, be sure to tell them Kat Lee of Team Bunny Ears sent you!
Warning(s): SPOILERS, up to and specifically including the Christmas episode
Word Count: 1,245
Summary:
Disclaimer: All characters within belong to their rightful owners, not the author, and are used without permission.
"Why?"
Her quiet question after their Christmas party takes him by surprise. He stops pretending to clean and looks at her, his hands raised into the air. He turns them over, showing her that he has no tricks up his sleeves and is innocent of whatever she's about to accuse him. "Why what?" he asks.
She steps closer. He is an expert at reading faces, but Happy's still sometimes gives him trouble. She's so adept at masking her feelings that he thinks -- no, in fact, he knows she sometimes manages to even hide her true emotions from herself. "Why didn't you give up on my whole Dad thing?" she demands.
He stares at her. His eyebrows come down, but he watches his tone. It's Christmas. She was so happy earlier; he doesn't want to piss her off now. "I thought you were happy with him."
She shrugs, but a smile tugs at the thin line into which her mouth is set. "I am," she admits, "but I might not have been. I could've been setting myself up for a huge disappointment. He might not have wanted me. I didn't have any reason to believe he did."
"Happy," Toby says simply, "any man who doesn't want you would have to be crazy."
Her dark eyes roll toward the ceiling. "Can't you be serious for a change?"
"I am," he answers and moves swiftly enough that he manages to catch her hand before she can move away.
They hear the sound of something dropping elsewhere in the warehouse and whirl together to face Sebastian. "Sorry, sorry!" he sputters. "I'm going now. I'll see you guys in the morning." He smiles at them, and Toby sees the hope in the kid's eyes for them, even if Happy doesn't. "Merry Christmas."
With Sebastian gone, and Paige's family and Cabe already having left, that leaves only the two of them and Walter in the warehouse. Their gazes flick over to where Walter is absorbed in his latest project. Content that he won't be eavesdropping, Toby looks back to Happy just in time to see her watching him with wide and curious eyes. She's already whipped her hand away from him, though, but he tries to catch her with his eyes instead. "I was being honest," he tells her.
"Yeah, right," she scoffs and rolls her eyes again.
He steps closer; she steps back. He measures the amount of steps to the wall behind her and calculates her possible movements to duck around him. "I was," he persists. "Happy," he continues and takes a deep breath. It's been a while since they've been so close together when not under fire, and it's been even longer since he's been completely honest with a woman except on that overseas mission when they thought they were going to die.
"He'd have to be an idiot not to want you. You're smart, beautiful, cunning, quick, more caring than you let on -- "
"Just because you want to get in my pants, Toby ?, does not mean that my father would want me."
"It doesn't mean he wouldn't," Toby shoots back with a grin. "But, seriously, Happy, any man would be lucky to have you as his woman, or as his daughter. And I wasn't wrong now, was I?"
"No, but he could've -- "
"But he didn't. Happy, I saw the look in his eyes when he was around you. He is so proud of you. I would've killed to have had my father look at me just once that way."
He sees her anger let up just a tad in the softening of her beautiful facial features. "I did everything I could to make that old man happy, everything I could to lighten his load -- " She listens, remembering Toby telling her he had even chosen the psychiatry field over medicine in order to help his father with his mother's mental disability. "It wasn't really that he didn't love me or he didn't care about me. He just didn't have time for me, not with caring for Ma so much." He didn't have time for him even before his mother got sick, but he doesn't tell Happy that. He doesn't need to rehash all his history tonight.
"Is that why you never called them?" she asks softly.
"Yeah. Kinda. I've tried to help them, Happy. I've done everything I can for them both." His shoulders slump, and for just a moment, she sees through the man to the hurt child within. "It's not enough," he says sadly. She's touching him before she realizes it, her gloved hand resting slightly, comfortingly, on his shoulder.
He looks back at her from underneath the brim of his new hat. "I know what my chances are with them, but you had a chance, Happy. I found your father. I found out that he was actually a pretty good guy, and I found out why he gave you up. It wasn't that he didn't want you. He wanted to give you the best chance he could after your mother passed."
Her face falls. She looks to the floor and their shoes, but her hand lingers on his shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asks.
"Would you have believed me? Would you have listened?"
Her mouth twists as she considers his questions. "Probably not," she admits at last.
"I saw two people hurting," he tells her earnestly, "one of whom I care for more than I want to admit." He takes her hand from his shoulder and holds it in both of his. "I saw a way I could help them, if I could get one of them to listen pass her bullheaded stubbornness."
"You could have gone to him instead."
"I could have," he admits. "But he wasn't my friend. I didn't even know the man. He had no reason to believe me. I figured I could wear you down eventually. I did get you to start visiting him." She nods but doesn't speak. "And," he continues, "if you hadn't given him that card tonight, I was going to take it from you and give it to him myself."
"Toby!"
"I was."
"And I would've kicked your butt!"
"You might have." He lifts one shoulder in a shrug. "We both know you can do it. But it would have been worth it, Happy, to see you, for once, have the chance to live up to your namesake. None of us have a lot to be happy about it. We deserve it. You deserve it most."
Her lips again twist; he can tell she's fighting down a smile. "I don't know about that."
He squeezes her hand. "I do. You deserve to be happy, Happy Quinn."
She releases the smile into a smirk. "I'm glad somebody thinks so."
"I know so," he says, and there and then, on Christmas night, he lifts her hand like a gentleman of olden times and kisses her glove. She looks up at him, actually meeting his eyes, and realizes he's meant everything he's told her. She steps closer; his heart quickens. She wraps her arms around him and hugs him tightly, and for one rare moment, both their souls are filled with joy. "Thank you, Toby."
The sound of metal striking metal causes them to jump apart. They look at Walter, who's cursing now and still completely ignorant of their presence or this tender moment they've shared. Happy smiles at Toby, then backs away and leaves, taking his heart with her every step of the way.
The End
Author: Kat Lee
Fandom: Scorpion
Character/Pairing: Toby/Happy
Rating: G/K
Challenge: This is for the
tv_universe Big Bang Inspirations challenge. If you join, be sure to tell them Kat Lee of Team Bunny Ears sent you!Warning(s): SPOILERS, up to and specifically including the Christmas episode
Word Count: 1,245
Summary:
Disclaimer: All characters within belong to their rightful owners, not the author, and are used without permission.
"Why?"
Her quiet question after their Christmas party takes him by surprise. He stops pretending to clean and looks at her, his hands raised into the air. He turns them over, showing her that he has no tricks up his sleeves and is innocent of whatever she's about to accuse him. "Why what?" he asks.
She steps closer. He is an expert at reading faces, but Happy's still sometimes gives him trouble. She's so adept at masking her feelings that he thinks -- no, in fact, he knows she sometimes manages to even hide her true emotions from herself. "Why didn't you give up on my whole Dad thing?" she demands.
He stares at her. His eyebrows come down, but he watches his tone. It's Christmas. She was so happy earlier; he doesn't want to piss her off now. "I thought you were happy with him."
She shrugs, but a smile tugs at the thin line into which her mouth is set. "I am," she admits, "but I might not have been. I could've been setting myself up for a huge disappointment. He might not have wanted me. I didn't have any reason to believe he did."
"Happy," Toby says simply, "any man who doesn't want you would have to be crazy."
Her dark eyes roll toward the ceiling. "Can't you be serious for a change?"
"I am," he answers and moves swiftly enough that he manages to catch her hand before she can move away.
They hear the sound of something dropping elsewhere in the warehouse and whirl together to face Sebastian. "Sorry, sorry!" he sputters. "I'm going now. I'll see you guys in the morning." He smiles at them, and Toby sees the hope in the kid's eyes for them, even if Happy doesn't. "Merry Christmas."
With Sebastian gone, and Paige's family and Cabe already having left, that leaves only the two of them and Walter in the warehouse. Their gazes flick over to where Walter is absorbed in his latest project. Content that he won't be eavesdropping, Toby looks back to Happy just in time to see her watching him with wide and curious eyes. She's already whipped her hand away from him, though, but he tries to catch her with his eyes instead. "I was being honest," he tells her.
"Yeah, right," she scoffs and rolls her eyes again.
He steps closer; she steps back. He measures the amount of steps to the wall behind her and calculates her possible movements to duck around him. "I was," he persists. "Happy," he continues and takes a deep breath. It's been a while since they've been so close together when not under fire, and it's been even longer since he's been completely honest with a woman except on that overseas mission when they thought they were going to die.
"He'd have to be an idiot not to want you. You're smart, beautiful, cunning, quick, more caring than you let on -- "
"Just because you want to get in my pants, Toby ?, does not mean that my father would want me."
"It doesn't mean he wouldn't," Toby shoots back with a grin. "But, seriously, Happy, any man would be lucky to have you as his woman, or as his daughter. And I wasn't wrong now, was I?"
"No, but he could've -- "
"But he didn't. Happy, I saw the look in his eyes when he was around you. He is so proud of you. I would've killed to have had my father look at me just once that way."
He sees her anger let up just a tad in the softening of her beautiful facial features. "I did everything I could to make that old man happy, everything I could to lighten his load -- " She listens, remembering Toby telling her he had even chosen the psychiatry field over medicine in order to help his father with his mother's mental disability. "It wasn't really that he didn't love me or he didn't care about me. He just didn't have time for me, not with caring for Ma so much." He didn't have time for him even before his mother got sick, but he doesn't tell Happy that. He doesn't need to rehash all his history tonight.
"Is that why you never called them?" she asks softly.
"Yeah. Kinda. I've tried to help them, Happy. I've done everything I can for them both." His shoulders slump, and for just a moment, she sees through the man to the hurt child within. "It's not enough," he says sadly. She's touching him before she realizes it, her gloved hand resting slightly, comfortingly, on his shoulder.
He looks back at her from underneath the brim of his new hat. "I know what my chances are with them, but you had a chance, Happy. I found your father. I found out that he was actually a pretty good guy, and I found out why he gave you up. It wasn't that he didn't want you. He wanted to give you the best chance he could after your mother passed."
Her face falls. She looks to the floor and their shoes, but her hand lingers on his shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asks.
"Would you have believed me? Would you have listened?"
Her mouth twists as she considers his questions. "Probably not," she admits at last.
"I saw two people hurting," he tells her earnestly, "one of whom I care for more than I want to admit." He takes her hand from his shoulder and holds it in both of his. "I saw a way I could help them, if I could get one of them to listen pass her bullheaded stubbornness."
"You could have gone to him instead."
"I could have," he admits. "But he wasn't my friend. I didn't even know the man. He had no reason to believe me. I figured I could wear you down eventually. I did get you to start visiting him." She nods but doesn't speak. "And," he continues, "if you hadn't given him that card tonight, I was going to take it from you and give it to him myself."
"Toby!"
"I was."
"And I would've kicked your butt!"
"You might have." He lifts one shoulder in a shrug. "We both know you can do it. But it would have been worth it, Happy, to see you, for once, have the chance to live up to your namesake. None of us have a lot to be happy about it. We deserve it. You deserve it most."
Her lips again twist; he can tell she's fighting down a smile. "I don't know about that."
He squeezes her hand. "I do. You deserve to be happy, Happy Quinn."
She releases the smile into a smirk. "I'm glad somebody thinks so."
"I know so," he says, and there and then, on Christmas night, he lifts her hand like a gentleman of olden times and kisses her glove. She looks up at him, actually meeting his eyes, and realizes he's meant everything he's told her. She steps closer; his heart quickens. She wraps her arms around him and hugs him tightly, and for one rare moment, both their souls are filled with joy. "Thank you, Toby."
The sound of metal striking metal causes them to jump apart. They look at Walter, who's cursing now and still completely ignorant of their presence or this tender moment they've shared. Happy smiles at Toby, then backs away and leaves, taking his heart with her every step of the way.
The End
