The Architect. [The Blacklist. Donald Ressler X Oc]

Portrait.

Maggie.

Ever since I was eighteen, I'd worked. My first job was at a hair salon, just booking appointments and cleaning and the likes. In there I learned how to do the hairstyles you see in the magazines, the ones you think 'oh, her messy bun looks better than mine', yeah, that takes hours, 'messy' it's a misunderstanding. I learned and became almost obsessed of taking care of my own hair, and even stopped applying crazy dyes to it and embraced my light blonde natural color.

That lasted a good year, then it became increasingly more difficult to work and study architecture. I stopped doing that and worked part time helping one of my professors with assistant work, I worked in the mornings, went to class after lunch, did my homework whilst eating dinner and sometime staid up all night in the dinning table doing plans, models, papers, research. I worked a lot during college, then worked a lot after college, and I continued to work a lot until a month ago.

Now, being at home, I felt a deep void in my chest because I had nothing to do. It wasn't like when I had Alma and wasn't working, or when I got fired from my first job in DC, I was working for Raymond at that time, I could hop back on after those times ended. But now there really was nothing, because I wasn't going to work back at the firm after this one, and even if I did put up my own firm like I'd planed, that wouldn't guarantee instant work.

Alma was still being taken care of by Carol, she was good keeping up with her, and that always seemed to take a little bit more energy the closer she got to being three years old.

Donald and I had talked about maybe enrolling her into some activity before her starting daycare, so we were searching that, and even through he wasn't given any cases, he was still going to work, leaving me alone at the house, doing nothing.

I was almost three months pregnant, so I figured I could go to the mall and pick up the frame portraits I wanted to send to my family to announce the new baby.

I loved coming to the mall, I loved going through the shops, I loved buying things for my house, for my daughter, for me. Even though it hadn't been more than ten minutes since I arrived, I already had a cup of mixed berry smoothie, and was looking down on my phone on the Instagram page of the mall, looking if they had any maternity clothing shops.

I was mindlessly sipping on the smoothie as I sat in one of the benches that was strewn around in the mall when someone sat next to me. I could only look up with a frown, but it quickly disappear when I saw a cheeky smile peaking from the man's face.

"Hi James" I saluted.

"Hi Mags" he saluted back.

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh" he quick searched for his phone "Nordstrom has some good discounts today" he said showing me the picture of an add on his Instagram feed. I nodded and led this straw back to my lips "and you?" He said, his eyes leaving mine for a second.

"I had nothing better to do. And since I'm close to twelve weeks, I came to choose some portraits to brake the news to my family"

"Oh really?" He asked with a quick pull of his eyebrows, then stood up "well, wanna join me?" He motions with his hand at me.

I smile a little, then stood up.

"So, what corny thing do you have planned?" He asks as we walk around, sneaking both his hands on his jacket pockets.

"So-" I began excitedly, lifting my hand at him "I'm getting a frame, like a picture frame with a picture of the ultrasound, and I'm writing on them things liked "hey auntie!" Or something like that"