#also jfc i finally made something for what has haunted me for the last.. 4 months

[laurabenanti]

@usergif 1 year celebration: shuffle challenge ↳ day 2: blending | font pairing | otp

insp.

[meetmeatthecoda]

It certainly would be asking too much of the show (since, apparently, a canon Liz, even as a certified profiler she is, just has to fall for Tom's manipulations time after time again, ugh), but, please, consider this as an AU scenario that would get rid of Tom once and for good and improve relationship between Liz and Red:

In the 2.19, if Liz somehow came back to Tom's warehouse earlier – either with Caul or by agreeing to split with him so he could make a copy of the Fulcrum, just in case – when Red hasn't come to after his surgery yet and, therefore, had an opportunity to have a brief respite from all the turmoil of that day's events and sort through her feelings as she waited anxiously for Red to wake up (because you just know she would be there, not in any other part of the warehouse, not with Tom, but by Red's side, if things went a little differently like that), she would realize whom she truly loves – Tom or Red – because the panic she felt back when Zamani stabbed Tom pales considerably in comparison to the one she felt when she saw Red get shot (that "NO!" of hers will haunt my dreams, I'm telling you... if I didn't know already, when I was watching this episode, that Liz loves Red – Braxton and Kings episodes have good enough evidences of that – this "No!" scream of hers would certainly be that moment that would make me go "Yup, she's in love with him"), the terror she felt in the car and then at the first warehouse – when she saw the surgeon dead – at the though of losing Red, the pang in her heart when Nick updated her on his condition and legitimately told her that there was a bullet-turned-land-mine in his chest, fear and frustration she felt when Nick kept stalling time instead of helping Red and anxiety and bone-deep need to get back to Red's side as soon as possible mixed with fear that she would come back only to find out that he was no longer there she felt while she was away from the warehouse. Having had enough time to come to this startling realization and to calm down (both after this realization and in general) by the time Red comes to, she would tell him, when he tried to explain to her the situation with Tom (because you know he would, as soon as he saw her), that they certainly need to talk about that but later and for now she just wants him to focus on getting better.

And – once she terminated the immediate threat to Red's life by showing the Director the Fulcrum and, as a result, they could finally move him to a proper hospital and didn't need the warehouse anymore – Liz would finally end things with Tom for good and, instead of conspiring with him to find out the answers she seeks, she would spend that time by Red's side, helping him through his recovery in whatever way she can – from keeping him company at the hospital to taking walks with him as a part of his physiotherapy – and strategically avoiding talking about Tom and her mother and anything that has to do with their shared past until she's certain that Red is back to normal.

I can easily imagine her fretting over him more than is necessary simply because she loves him – as she finally admitted to herself but yet to admit to him – and nearly lost him and Red getting a little... overwhelmed because of it – especially, considering the fact that his last clear memory before he woke up after the surgery to her standing over him with genuine concern and breathtaking relief written all over her face is her telling him (or, rather, yelling at him) that she wants it (as in their relationship) to stop right that instant – and wondering quietly as to what could possibly make her change her mind so drastically (not that he minds) but coming up blank because he can't possibly fathom the possibility that she might love him but loving the attention he gets from her nevertheless and trying to enjoy it as much as possible while it lasts because he's certain that she'll eventually go back to how she treated him before.

I can also imagine Liz trying to convince Red to take it easy when he gets discharged from the hospital while he insists that he's right as rain and wants to go straight back to his work as both the Concierge of Crime and FBI's CI as if nothing had happened even though he struggles to catch his breath after as much physical activity as a walk in the park near the hospital and grimaces each time he moves the wrong way or takes too harsh of a breath and tries to sit down or lean against something for support as much as possible and Liz actually sees all that, no matter how good Red thinks he is at keeping his discomfort and clearly far from ideal state of health from her.

Also, Liz freaking out when Dembe informs her – because she made him promise that he would let her know about everything that happens to Red, especially if he makes big or possibly life-threatening decisions, but also because Dembe doesn't like that idea, either, and secretly hopes that Elizabeth will make Red reconsider it – that Red wants to fly to Boston and rushes to reprimand him because "no sane person would get on a plane just five days after being shot in the chest and getting his lung damaged, Red, and frankly I'm surprised I even have to tell you that!" (okay, maybe I'm projecting a little with this last one, because it honestly freaked me out a little when I was watching Quon Zhang, because he certainly shouldn't have been flying for at least a couple of weeks after being shot)

Wow, anon!! 🤯 What a beautiful essay of an ask!! 😍 I love, love, love basically any scenario that involves less T*m & MORE RED & LIZ enjoying a good relationship for once... so this was quite a joy to read!! It's so funny how you can change the one small detail of Liz just having some time to think & - from there - logically spin a much more lovely Lizzington story than anything we ever got on screen... and by "funny", I naturally mean "ridiculous", bc if wonderful fans like you can do it, TPTB should have been more than capable, jfc. BUT I love every detail of this, anon, including but not limited to: Liz analyzing her feelings like the profiler she was supposed to be & realizing both that she cares deeply for Red AND the first second he awakens after life-saving surgery might not be the best time to work through all their drama. Past that, I adore the idea of Liz ignoring their issues while Red gets better, fretting so affectionately over him that Red is thoroughly confused but intensely grateful, vehemently opposing him going back to work, finally opening her eyes enough to observe how Red manages to hide his suffering from her, & - last but not least - absolutely flipping her shit over Red wanting to fly 4 seconds after being shot cause, let's face it, you're right, anon - that shit's just not realistic 😂 Ugh, what a lovely & relatable AU scenario you gave us here, anon, thank you so much for sharing!! 🥰 Much love to you, of course, my friend!! ❤️