I bring you fic on Valentine's Day...
Title: Where You Are
Pairing: Michael/Sara
Rating: Teenage-friendly
Spoilers: There's speculation on upcoming episodes based on loose spoilers I have read...but nothing concrete ;) Spoilers up to episode 2x16: Chicago.
Summary: "Things hadn’t gone well since Michael Scofield had entered her life, yet here she was, standing on the balcony of their roadside motel, forty miles outside of Chicago, with that exact man."
A/N: Written for bella_blu and her prompt 'trying' that she gave me like two weeks ago :P
“Three weeks ago I was a doctor…”
It wasn’t until she’d spoken the words that she’d fully understood them. Things hadn’t gone well since Michael Scofield had entered her life, yet here she was, standing on the balcony of their roadside motel, forty miles outside of Chicago, with that exact man and his brother sitting in the room behind her.
She’d decided a long time ago that nothing that had happened to her was directly Michael’s fault, that he had only been trying to do what was best. She knew that much. It wasn’t as though he’d chosen for his brother to be framed for murder, and it wasn’t like he’d gone into Fox River with the express purpose of ruining her life.
Yet somehow looking back, she felt as though her life had had little meaning. Everything she’d worked so hard to build up since she’d started group therapy suddenly seemed as though it had never mattered. She questioned why she had done it at all, and a nagging in the back of her mind told her it was probably because she had still been trying to seek the approval of her father.
And while she had basically ruined her own life by leaving the door open, furthering the damage by taking the morphine with her as she did so, deep inside she knew she had done the right thing. At first she hadn’t been sure, but now, seeing Lincoln reunited with his son and how neither of them really had anyone else, she knew.
She heard the soft click of the door shutting behind her and turned around.
“Sara…” Michael said softly, smiling at her.
They’d gone through so much in the last few days she’d almost forgotten about the kiss they’d shared aboard the train. Almost.
“Hi,” she smiled back, leaning against the railing behind her and crossing her arms.
He nodded back towards the shut door. “I think they’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”
“Yeah I figured they might,” she replied, finding herself smiling.
She met his eyes as he seemed to search for something in hers. She pondered all the things that had to happen so the two of them had even met, and then wondered what her life would be like if she'd never met him.
“Let me show you something,” he said after a moment, turning and heading for the staircase on her left.
She followed, curious as to what Michael could possibly have to show her in the parking lot of a remote motel on the side of the highway. He remained silent as they walked, and somehow she was comfortable with that. Michael had never spoken much, and when he did it was barely ever good news, so somehow the quiet was soothing.
She watched as he shoved his hands into his pocket, his breath hitting the cold air causing a mist. There were so many things she didn’t know about him, so many things she wanted to know.
“The questions you have about me? There are answers…”
Suddenly painfully aware that she still had as few answers about the man walking next to her as she had the day she met him she slowed her pace. He stopped as he noticed her lagging behind and turned around.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, and the tone of his voice betrayed his concern as he stepped towards her.
“Nothing,” she replied, shaking her head. “Sorry I was…thinking too hard.”
He touched her lightly on the arm and nodded down the slope. “Just down there…it’s a good place to think.”
She began to walk down the slope and he followed, his hand swaying by his side, occasionally brushing against hers. She couldn’t deny that a slight tingle shot through her body every time there was even the slightest contact. She wanted to go back to the bathroom on the train, to feel his lips against hers, but she knew they had been acting on impulse, on the knowledge that they might not have another moment of privacy for a good long time. If at all.
But now the urgency was gone her thought-process had returned to normal. Questioning her every move, his every move. She wished she were able to shut it off and allow herself to enjoy the fact that she was alone in the middle of nowhere with him.
He stopped and she realised she had taken no notice of where they were walking. They’d emerged on the other side of the small forest that backed onto the hotel to the edge of a small river. The moon was off to their right, reflecting its light into the river and right back up at them.
Michael walked over to a large boulder and sat down in a comfortable looking spot, something told her he had done that before.
“You’ve been here before,” she stated the obvious.
He nodded slightly, pulling a square piece of paper out of his pocket and beginning to fold it. She leaned against the rock next to him, fidgeting with the bottom of her jacket, she wasn’t going to ask for further explanation if he wasn’t willing to give it.
She’d learnt that when it came to Michael information was only given out on his terms.
“I was late getting back into Chicago one night after a work conference and I couldn’t quite make it, not having much money I picked the first place with a room for under $30 a night,” he paused as he concentrated on folding what Sara now recognised to be a crane.
The speed and precision at which he was doing it impressed her, but didn’t surprise her, considering how many of the things he had mailed to her.
He looked up at the river, his eyes reflecting the light from the moon, and she continued to watch him. “I couldn’t sleep so I came out here and for the first time since I’d started my job I felt calm. While I was planning the escape I would come here, every time that part of my brain which told me the whole thing was impossible took over I would drive out here and just sit for hours.”
He stood up and walked towards the river, squatting at its edge and watching it for a moment. Sara watched as he reached forward and placed the paper crane carefully on the water, only for it to be whisked away by the rapids seconds later. A smile slowly spread across his face as he watched it float away, then he stood up and looked at her again.
“It’s free to go wherever it wants now,” he explained as though it made some sort of sense to her.
He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked back to her, stopping in front of her and standing still. She looked up at his eyes but he was avoiding hers.
“Michael…what happens now?” she asked.
He looked at her and shrugged slightly. “We go to Panama…”
“And then what?”
“We have nothing left here…none of us do…” his voice had gone quieter, that almost-whisper that no one else seemed to be able to speak in.
It was a tone that she associated only with Michael. And only when he was being incredibly serious. She looked down at the ground, taking note of exactly how close his feet were to hers.
“And what about us?” she found the courage to ask, looking back up at him.
He was dangerously close and they both knew it. “Us…” he repeated quietly, reaching forward with one hand and pushing her newly cut hair back behind her ears. “We can be whatever you want us to be, Sara…”
“I want us…” she paused, straightening herself up, moving away from the rock she was still leaning against, bringing them even closer. “I want us to be."
“We can do that,” he replied, his eyes dropping to her lips and then back up at her eyes.
She felt her eyes dropping to look at his lips and wondered if this was at all a wise idea. He remained stationary, not sure what to do at that moment, not wanting to push something she didn’t want. She reached her arms around his neck and pulled slightly on the beanie he was wearing.
He smiled slightly as she did so and finally he leaned in and kissed her.
“Wait for me…”
She kissed him back and as she did so she replayed a thousand moments they had shared in the infirmary, all those moments she had dreamed that one day this could be true, and again was reminded of how much things had changed in the last few weeks. She wondered if he knew, that she would have waited for him, those two and a half years until he was up for parol she would have waited for him.
Because she had fallen in love with him a long time before he’d ever kissed her.
“Stop thinking,” he muttered against her lips.
And she did.
Pairing: Michael/Sara
Rating: Teenage-friendly
Spoilers: There's speculation on upcoming episodes based on loose spoilers I have read...but nothing concrete ;) Spoilers up to episode 2x16: Chicago.
Summary: "Things hadn’t gone well since Michael Scofield had entered her life, yet here she was, standing on the balcony of their roadside motel, forty miles outside of Chicago, with that exact man."
A/N: Written for bella_blu and her prompt 'trying' that she gave me like two weeks ago :P
“Three weeks ago I was a doctor…”
It wasn’t until she’d spoken the words that she’d fully understood them. Things hadn’t gone well since Michael Scofield had entered her life, yet here she was, standing on the balcony of their roadside motel, forty miles outside of Chicago, with that exact man and his brother sitting in the room behind her.
She’d decided a long time ago that nothing that had happened to her was directly Michael’s fault, that he had only been trying to do what was best. She knew that much. It wasn’t as though he’d chosen for his brother to be framed for murder, and it wasn’t like he’d gone into Fox River with the express purpose of ruining her life.
Yet somehow looking back, she felt as though her life had had little meaning. Everything she’d worked so hard to build up since she’d started group therapy suddenly seemed as though it had never mattered. She questioned why she had done it at all, and a nagging in the back of her mind told her it was probably because she had still been trying to seek the approval of her father.
And while she had basically ruined her own life by leaving the door open, furthering the damage by taking the morphine with her as she did so, deep inside she knew she had done the right thing. At first she hadn’t been sure, but now, seeing Lincoln reunited with his son and how neither of them really had anyone else, she knew.
She heard the soft click of the door shutting behind her and turned around.
“Sara…” Michael said softly, smiling at her.
They’d gone through so much in the last few days she’d almost forgotten about the kiss they’d shared aboard the train. Almost.
“Hi,” she smiled back, leaning against the railing behind her and crossing her arms.
He nodded back towards the shut door. “I think they’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”
“Yeah I figured they might,” she replied, finding herself smiling.
She met his eyes as he seemed to search for something in hers. She pondered all the things that had to happen so the two of them had even met, and then wondered what her life would be like if she'd never met him.
“Let me show you something,” he said after a moment, turning and heading for the staircase on her left.
She followed, curious as to what Michael could possibly have to show her in the parking lot of a remote motel on the side of the highway. He remained silent as they walked, and somehow she was comfortable with that. Michael had never spoken much, and when he did it was barely ever good news, so somehow the quiet was soothing.
She watched as he shoved his hands into his pocket, his breath hitting the cold air causing a mist. There were so many things she didn’t know about him, so many things she wanted to know.
“The questions you have about me? There are answers…”
Suddenly painfully aware that she still had as few answers about the man walking next to her as she had the day she met him she slowed her pace. He stopped as he noticed her lagging behind and turned around.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, and the tone of his voice betrayed his concern as he stepped towards her.
“Nothing,” she replied, shaking her head. “Sorry I was…thinking too hard.”
He touched her lightly on the arm and nodded down the slope. “Just down there…it’s a good place to think.”
She began to walk down the slope and he followed, his hand swaying by his side, occasionally brushing against hers. She couldn’t deny that a slight tingle shot through her body every time there was even the slightest contact. She wanted to go back to the bathroom on the train, to feel his lips against hers, but she knew they had been acting on impulse, on the knowledge that they might not have another moment of privacy for a good long time. If at all.
But now the urgency was gone her thought-process had returned to normal. Questioning her every move, his every move. She wished she were able to shut it off and allow herself to enjoy the fact that she was alone in the middle of nowhere with him.
He stopped and she realised she had taken no notice of where they were walking. They’d emerged on the other side of the small forest that backed onto the hotel to the edge of a small river. The moon was off to their right, reflecting its light into the river and right back up at them.
Michael walked over to a large boulder and sat down in a comfortable looking spot, something told her he had done that before.
“You’ve been here before,” she stated the obvious.
He nodded slightly, pulling a square piece of paper out of his pocket and beginning to fold it. She leaned against the rock next to him, fidgeting with the bottom of her jacket, she wasn’t going to ask for further explanation if he wasn’t willing to give it.
She’d learnt that when it came to Michael information was only given out on his terms.
“I was late getting back into Chicago one night after a work conference and I couldn’t quite make it, not having much money I picked the first place with a room for under $30 a night,” he paused as he concentrated on folding what Sara now recognised to be a crane.
The speed and precision at which he was doing it impressed her, but didn’t surprise her, considering how many of the things he had mailed to her.
He looked up at the river, his eyes reflecting the light from the moon, and she continued to watch him. “I couldn’t sleep so I came out here and for the first time since I’d started my job I felt calm. While I was planning the escape I would come here, every time that part of my brain which told me the whole thing was impossible took over I would drive out here and just sit for hours.”
He stood up and walked towards the river, squatting at its edge and watching it for a moment. Sara watched as he reached forward and placed the paper crane carefully on the water, only for it to be whisked away by the rapids seconds later. A smile slowly spread across his face as he watched it float away, then he stood up and looked at her again.
“It’s free to go wherever it wants now,” he explained as though it made some sort of sense to her.
He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked back to her, stopping in front of her and standing still. She looked up at his eyes but he was avoiding hers.
“Michael…what happens now?” she asked.
He looked at her and shrugged slightly. “We go to Panama…”
“And then what?”
“We have nothing left here…none of us do…” his voice had gone quieter, that almost-whisper that no one else seemed to be able to speak in.
It was a tone that she associated only with Michael. And only when he was being incredibly serious. She looked down at the ground, taking note of exactly how close his feet were to hers.
“And what about us?” she found the courage to ask, looking back up at him.
He was dangerously close and they both knew it. “Us…” he repeated quietly, reaching forward with one hand and pushing her newly cut hair back behind her ears. “We can be whatever you want us to be, Sara…”
“I want us…” she paused, straightening herself up, moving away from the rock she was still leaning against, bringing them even closer. “I want us to be."
“We can do that,” he replied, his eyes dropping to her lips and then back up at her eyes.
She felt her eyes dropping to look at his lips and wondered if this was at all a wise idea. He remained stationary, not sure what to do at that moment, not wanting to push something she didn’t want. She reached her arms around his neck and pulled slightly on the beanie he was wearing.
He smiled slightly as she did so and finally he leaned in and kissed her.
“Wait for me…”
She kissed him back and as she did so she replayed a thousand moments they had shared in the infirmary, all those moments she had dreamed that one day this could be true, and again was reminded of how much things had changed in the last few weeks. She wondered if he knew, that she would have waited for him, those two and a half years until he was up for parol she would have waited for him.
Because she had fallen in love with him a long time before he’d ever kissed her.
“Stop thinking,” he muttered against her lips.
And she did.