I Am Here.

seven - your secret's safe with me

"Satoria, I just happened to run into you–"

"Oh yeah, you just happened to. That's probably the biggest lie you've ever told. Nope, my mistake, the second biggest."
She nodded.

"The first one was that night on the phone, when you promised to take care of Simone and then ended up in Orlando twenty hours later."
She clarified.

"Anyway."
He shook his head.
"I just so happened to stumble across this coffee shop and you just happened to be in it. So since our kid shares both of our DNA, I thought I might be entitled to at least try to spark a conversation with you."

She chuckled, sipping her drink.
"Trust me, you don't."
She laughed.

"Well, even if you don't wanna talk to me, I'm still gonna force myself onto you. That's my job."
He grinned.

Tori went silent as she thought for a second.

"You do know that stalking is illegal in the state of Texas, right?"
She asked.

"Of course."
He grinned.
"But it's not stalking if you're willingly continuing the conversation with me. Think of it as a regular conversation, just with the added tension and discomfort."

"Oh yeah, real regular."
She whispered, letting out a small yawn.

"You should get some rest. Coffee isn't gonna help you stay up forever. All it does it keeps you alert, but after a while your body will struggle to fight it and you'll become drowsy."
He explained.

"Okay Derek Shepherd, I don't need a prognosis from you. I pay my doctor to tell me that–"

"Well then you should be happy, I'm offering my services for free."
He smiled.

"I don't want them."
She said slowly.

"Back to the original conversation at hand."
He cleared his throat.

Tori glanced around the shop.
"There never was one in the first place."
She mumbled, under her breath.

"I was just wondering if there was any way,you would possibly, be willing to, uh–"

"Spit it out."
She said, cockily drinking her drink.

"Meet with me Saturday. At Brome park near downtown. I know that you don't have to work, and Simone has karate in the morning instead of the afternoon."
He reasoned.

"We've been talking for over a month and she's been asking to see me every time we call and I think it's time."
He nodded.

"Ryan, you're a stranger. Not only to me but to my kid. As much as you don't want to admit it, I don't know you."
She said.

"But you say that every time. I don't have to be a stranger, and this is one of the ways that I can fix it."
He fought.

"I'm trying to better your understanding of where I'm coming from. I'm coming to you as her dad, who's missed out on her whole life, but I'm willing to fight to get back in it."
He argued.

"Now I've done a lot, a whole lot. I've contacted you, I've fought for your approval, I even bought her an iPad so that we could FaceTime, and you still don't believe that I want this."
He shrugged.