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“I’m happy. I’ve got Agnes back… I’m not gonna risk that to hunt for answers about a woman I’ve never really known. It isn’t worth it,” she said.
“Well, it’s nice. I mean, seeing you happy. It’s been a long time coming. Too long,” Ressler said as he walked over to his chair, peeling off his jacket, trying not to read too much into the fact that Liz had notably not included him as a reason she was happy.
Liz rose from her chair and started to grab her things. She was leaving early to take Agnes to a dentist appointment. A fact that Ressler knew because they very recently decided to share a Google calendar.
It was entirely unromantic and very not sexy, but they both realized if they were going to make this relationship work they had to figure how to do that within the confines of their busy work/life schedules and the new world of single parenting that Liz had recently entered.
So now Ressler’s NA meetings, Liz’s yoga classes, and Agnes’ ballet lessons were all mixed up together on one calendar.
Neither would admit it, but they actually both secretly enjoyed this new shared calendar that felt very much like a family calendar. Like maybe they could be a family. Someday.
Before leaving the office, Liz asked about Stark. Ressler debated for a moment, knowing he probably, definitely shouldn’t lie to her, but also recognizing that annoyingly Reddington was right… She would only worry if she knew the truth about Red’s medical condition, and with everything else going on in her life he thought it was probably the last thing she needed.
And so, he kept his promise to Reddington, and Liz left the office.
Ressler turned on his computer monitor and began to type up his case report, but quickly found his mind wandering.
Wandering to where exactly he and Liz were at the moment. Now that she had begun opening up more of her life with Agnes…
A few weeks back, their Saturday afternoon at the park with Agnes turned into a walk to the nearby ice cream shop (as predicted), and then later pizza and a Disney movie back at Liz’s apartment. Agnes warmed up to Ressler immediately and by the end of the night, she fell asleep cuddled against his side on the couch.
After carrying Agnes to her bed and gently laying her down, Ressler walked out of the room and quietly closed the door behind him. Liz abruptly grabbed his arm and dragged him into her bedroom.
“Liz!” he whispered, chuckling at her eagerness.
After getting him into her room, she closed the door behind him and hands on his chest pushed him back against it, kissing him firmly.
“You’re amazing,” she said quietly before kissing him again. “Really, this whole day. You were amazing with her.”
“It’s not hard, Liz. She’s a great kid,” he said pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, “You’re a great mom.”
Those words meant so much to her. So much more than he could possibly know.
Not just because Liz often felt like she was in fact a terrible mother, and not just because Ressler’s opinion mattered more to her than anyone else’s. But also because she had very recently started allowing herself to daydream… about them, in the future, becoming a family, a real family. And those daydreams often included a brand new bouncing baby with ginger hair…
She leaned in and kissed him again, sliding one hand down his chest, to his waist, lower…
“I don’t think that is a great idea, Liz. You aren’t very good at being quiet,” he said.
“You’re right, I’m not. But you are,” she answered back, undoing the button and zipper on his jeans, pushing them down off his hips, and dropping down to her knees.
In that moment Ressler decided that his first day with Agnes had been a resounding success…
Then, just last week, the task force helped out with a domestic terrorism case. It was long and intense and the last bit of it was a 36 hour negotiation that thankfully ended peacefully, with the suspect in custody.
When they finally wrapped things up at 12am, Ressler drove Liz home. Recognizing that he was in no condition to continue on and drive himself home, Liz persuaded him to sleep over.
“What about Agnes?” he asked, as he brushed his teeth in her bathroom.
“I’ll tell her the truth. We got home late. You were too tired to drive. So, you slept here. That is all that we’re doing tonight, right?” she asked with a smirk.
“It’s about all I have the energy for,” he answered.
And so they climbed into bed and they slept. Soundly. That is until a five year old human alarm clock woke them up at 7am.
“Mommy!!” Agnes shouted, jumping into Liz’s bed.
“Sweetheart! Good morning! I missed you so much,” Liz said squeezing her daughter in a hug.
Agnes peeked over her mother’s shoulder.
“Ressler? Why are you here?” she asked.
“Hey there munchkin,” he managed, still half asleep, panicked for a moment about what was happening, why was he in bed with Liz and her daughter, trying to decipher if he was wearing any clothing under the sheets. But slowly he remembered the plan… they were tired, they just slept, it was fine.
“We got done with work really late last night. Ressler drove me home, but then he was too tired to drive himself home. So, he slept here,” Liz explained.
Honest. Simple. To the point. The way Liz always tried to communicate with her daughter.
Agnes seemed to accept this as a perfectly reasonable explanation. She just smiled and nodded at Liz saying, “Okay.”
“But, he is still very sleepy, so let’s let him rest while we get some breakfast,” Liz said setting her daughter down on the floor.
“Yay!” Agnes cheered.
“I can get up,” Ressler offered, even as his eyes were drifting back closed.
Liz laughed softly. Adorable was not a word she would typically use to describe Ressler, but in that moment he was absolutely adorable. Struggling to keep his eyes open, hair sticking out in all directions.
“It’s fine. Sleep,” she said, before leaning down and kissing him softly on the lips and then once more on the forehead.
Liz climbed out of bed and grabbed a cardigan that was laying on a chair, slipping it on as she walked to the doorway.
“You kissed him!” Agnes exclaimed with wide eyes.
Ressler’s eyes shot open at that comment. The first day they spent together with Agnes, he and Liz had intentionally not been remotely physical with each other besides a quick hug hello at the park.
“Shhhh. Honey, come on,” Liz said, as she ushered Agnes out of the room.
She turned to Ressler and mouthed, “Sorry” as she pulled the door shut.
Ressler was still exhausted, but he was dying to hear how the rest of this was going to play out. So, he sat up in bed and listened.
“Why did you kiss Ressler?!” he heard Agnes ask.
There was a pause. He imagined exactly what Liz’s face looked like at that moment, trying to find just the right words, the right explanation for her daughter.
“Well… Agnes… I give you kisses. Why do you think I do that?” Liz asked.
“Because you love me!” Agnes answered.
“Exactly. We give kisses to the people we love,” Liz said matter-of-factly.
“So… you love Ressler,” Agnes half asked, half stated.
“I do,” Liz answered, and then, “How about some waffles?”
Their voices got quieter as they walked further away from the bedroom door, into the kitchen.
Ressler laid back down with a smile on his face.
Was it frustrating as hell that Liz couldn’t seem to find a way to actually tell him how she felt? Absolutely. But did he have any doubts about exactly where he stood, or what he meant to her? Not even slightly.
After staring at the screen for another unproductive thirty minutes, Ressler decided to call it a day and head home himself.
…
Later that night, on the couch, watching a hockey game, Ressler’s phone rang.
Liz.
“Hey,” he answered. “How did the dentist go?”
“Fine, actually. Agnes cried the whole way over, but the receptionist charmed her with a unicorn sticker, and then she did great… What are you doing?”
“Nothing. Watching the Maple Leafs game,” he answered. He paused knowing she must have something on her mind, something to get off her chest.
“Ressler… I wanted to apologize,” she said.
There it was.
“What did you do now, Keen?” he joked.
“Earlier. In the office. I said I was happy because Agnes is back.”
“But, you are happy because Agnes is back.”
“Yeah, but that’s not the only reason I’m happy,” she said gently.
Ressler smiled. “Oh no?”
“No,” she answered.
“Must be that new Mexican place that just opened up a block from the post office,” he suggested.
Liz smiled. “They do have amazing burritos, but no.”
“Aram’s current obsession with Downton Abbey?”
She laughed. “It is nice having someone to binge watch the show with, but no. That’s not it either.”
“Then what could it possibly be?” he asked with feigned ignorance.
Liz thought about answering him directly, but she so thoroughly enjoyed joking with him like this. She decided to keep it up.
“There’s a guy,” she answered.
“A guy?!” he asked in mock surprise.
“Mmm hmm. A really, really great guy,” she sighed happily.
“What’s this really great guy like?”
“He’s… well, he’s practically perfect. But I’d certainly never tell him that. He’s already cocky enough. Wouldn’t want it to go to his head.”
Ressler snickered. He hesitated for a moment before asking, “And how serious is it with mister practically perfect?”
“It’s serious. Like,” she took a deep breath, “I’m pretty sure he’s the one serious.”
Ressler took in her response.
The one.
“You make me incredibly happy, Ressler. I hope you know that.”
“You make me happy too, Liz,” he said sincerely.
“I’m gonna go to bed,” she said with a smile.
“See you tomorrow,” he answered back, before ending the call.
A moment later his phone pinged with a notification. An update to their shared calendar. A new event
“Saturday, 7pm — Date night with Mr. Practically Perfect (Ressler, you are welcome to join us too 😉)”