Survivor - Connor x OC

Can't Help Falling in Love

Haley Reinhart – Can't Help Falling in Love

Connor shifted in his seat, watching Taylor as discreetly as he could in his peripherals. Since seeing Rachel off and leaving the church, she was definitely avoiding him again. He ran scan after scan on her elevated stress levels, heart rate, shallow respirations. The most logical conclusion he could come to was that she was nervous.

For that reason, he had not pushed her. She had told him that she would talk to him when they were alone, and though they were certainly alone now, she was still tentative. He had worked out, over time, the levels of her anxiety by her tics.

She would start by tapping her fingers against her leg. If she noticed what she was doing, sometimes she would tuck her hands under her thighs or into her pockets in an attempt to stop herself. Inevitably her fingers would start twisting in her lap, hands wringing. At her very worst, her fingers would clench and unclench, not quite making fists, grasping at something that wasn't there.

Right now, her hands were past tapping, twisting in constant repetitive motions. Her blue eyes were transfixed on the window, staring into the middle distance. He wanted to reach over, slide his hand into hers, still them. At this moment, he thought that might make it worse.

"Your conversation with Markus looked quite intense." Connor had not intended to say those words when he opened his mouth to speak. They had been eating away at him, however, since the moment in the church. He had heard what he thought was a noise of distress from Taylor, only to look over and find Markus holding her in his arms.

The hands working in her lap finally stilled. Taylor turned her head, her expression guarded as she stared at him. She chewed on the corner of her lip for a moment, before she said, "We were just talking. He didn't want to leave anything unsaid, I guess. Before I left. Same as Raj."

There was a halting, hesitant quality to her speech. Still nervous, even now. But she kept her eyes on his, until the familiar ringing of her phone pulled her attention away. She reached in her pocket and pulled the device free, her face draining of color.

"Hello?" Still, Taylor answered immediately. Connor watched her face change as she listened to the person on the other end of the line, not saying anything in response. Her free hand shot out, suddenly, and she gripped his arm. "Yes. Thank you, Secretary Headley."

He glanced down at her fingers, tight around his forearm, then back up to her face. She was looking at her darkened phone screen, but she glanced up at him, her eyes wide. "She has a thing for hanging up on me. Connor, she said yes!"

"What?" He couldn't fully process her meaning because she leaned into him, throwing her arms around his neck. The smell of her shampoo overwhelmed his senses. He slid his arms around her before she could pull away again, holding her closer.

"She gave us the CyberLife building." She pulled away then, her face lit up with excitement. His hands were still resting against her waist, her hands curled into the lapels of his jacket. "I have to call Markus."

Just like that, Taylor moved back into her side of the cab. Connor continued to watch her as she spoke to Markus over the phone, her features animated. When she hung up, she turned to him again.

"We leave for Washington in two days." She was still smiling, but the longer she looked at him, the more the previous moments seem to come back to her. He could sense the moment her nerves started to take back over. Reaching for her hand, he wanted to distract her, to comfort her, for the smile not to leave her face.

"Taylor—"

"I love you." Connor froze, his fingers splayed in the space between them. He looked up, meeting her eyes, wide and blue. She pressed her hand over mouth, like she couldn't believe the words had made it past her lips. The silence wrapped around them.