Alexis walked briskly into her apartment. Kristina closed the door
softly behind them.
"You're mad now aren't you?" Kristina stated more than
questioned as her mother stood with her back to them trying to regain
some composure.
"Please go upstairs. I need to talk to your fa...Sonny alone."
"Tell me you're not mad!"
"I can't tell you that, and don't raise your voice to me young
lady. Now go to your room," Alexis told her trying to keep
it together. Kristina took off in tears as fast as her legs would
carry her. She flung herself on the bed, and cried into her pillow.
"Alexis," Sonny said softly.
"What did she tell you?" she asked.
"Nothing much. I thought it was you calling. She used your
cell phone."
"Clever girl."
"She wished me a Merry Christmas, and called me Daddy when
she quickly said goodbye. You were calling her to come eat dinner."
"The day after Christmas."
"Yes."
Alexis shook her head in earnest. She should have known Kristina
wouldn't just let it be. Maybe in the back of her mind she wanted
her to spill the beans, and get it out in the open because she didn't
believe she'd ever have the courage to tell him herself.
"So go ahead scream and yell at me. Tell me how I betrayed
you yet again."
"I think you did Kristina the disservice Alexis. She is the
one you betrayed."
"I did what was best for her at the time. I won't regret keeping
her safe from the life you lead."
"Led. Past tense. I've been legit for years, but I'm sure you
know that. Why didn't you come to me. We could have handled this
together."
"You can't be serious Sonny. You hated me; you were still married
to Carly and had a family of your own. You didn't need me or Kristina
complicating things," Alexis told him.
"Was that not my choice to make?" he asked.
"Your right to anything regarding my baby died the day the
one person I trusted most with my life and my heart threatened to
break me."
"I regret saying those things, but you gotta admit you could
have prevented all of the ugliness that went on between us."
"How so?" she asked her voice rising an octave higher.
"You washed your hands of me the moment your precious Carly
staged her own death. I was just convenient that night we were together.
Can you honestly tell me you saw anything happening with us beyond
that!"
"Yes!"
"Liar," Alexis scoffed. Though there was a spark of hope
in her heart that he meant that.
"Don't ask questions you don't want the answers to."
"Well then I thank you for fighting for me. You did an excellent
job."
"Yea I fought for us about as hard as you did I'll give you
that, but you ran too Alexis. As far and as fast as you could. You
can't blame me for everything."
"Oh I don't. I blame myself for thinking you ever gave a damn
about me. My friend," she said her voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Don't you dare de-value our friendship. It was real and it
was true, and you know it!"
"What are you here for? What do you want?"
"I want my daughter!"
"She's my daughter Sonny! You only made the deposit that allowed
her to be brought into this world."
"And whose fault is it that I don't know my own child!"
"Yours!"
"Like hell it is!"
"STOP IT! STOP IT! PLEASE I'M SORRY I LIED MOMMY I JUST WANTED
TO KNOW WHO HE WAS. YOU TOLD ME HE WOULD LOVE ME. THAT'S ALL I WANTED
WAS FOR HIM TO LOVE ME! PLEASE STOP FIGHTING. I'LL BE GOOD I PROMISE!"
Kristina yelled with tears streaming down her face at the top of
the stairs before turning and fleeing to the safety of her bedroom.
She turned on the radio to drowned out the loud voices below.
"Oh god what have I've done?" Alexis cried as she hurriedly
went upstairs to get to her little girl. Sonny followed on her heels.
"Kristina please let me in," she said as she found the
door locked. Kristina didn't answer her. "Please sweetheart,"
she said starting to cry harder.
"Give her some time Alexis," Sonny whispered as he eased
her white knuckled grip off the doorknob.
"She needs me."
"We're fifteen stories up and she's locked herself in her room.
She's not going anywhere." Alexis turned around and slid down
the door. She brought her knees into her chest and rested her head
on them. She couldn't leave her baby.
Sonny joined her on the floor and leaned his head against the door
next to hers. "She's beautiful."
Alexis nodded in agreement. "Inside and out."
"You've done a great job. I can see how much she loves you."
"She's my life Sonny."
"All I want is for her to be a part of mine."
"If Kristina agrees we'll go to the courts and work out some
sort of custody arrangement."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me."
"So tell me about our daughter," he said.
"Where should I start?"
"Wherever. I don't know anything about her."
Alexis took a deep calming breath and began. "Well she's smart;
brilliant actually. She's sweet, sensitive but not overly so. Compassionate,
loving, articulate, and graceful. Kristina is a bon-a-fide tomboy.
She has plenty of girlfriends, and likes most girly things, but
prefers to hang with the boys playing sports, and just running wild
in general. Loves clothes and shopping, absolutely hates dresses.
Adores a good pedicure, loves Italian food. It's always spaghetti
or lasagna around here; catered of course. She likes all vegetables
except cauliflower and brussell sprouts. Her favorite TV shows are
re-runs of Benny Hill and the Carol Burnett show. She has the cutest
laugh Sonny. It's more like a cross between a giggle and a snort
than a laugh, but...well you'll just have to hear it for yourself
some time. She's so fun, and...
"It's been eight years. Nothing is the same. We're not the
same."
"Yes we are. At the heart of it all we're still the same old
Sonny and Alexis. Maybe a little older and hopefully a lot wiser,
but still the same."
"I'm definitely older. Wiser is debatable."
"You look great. Not that you never did look great."
"Thank you. Kristina keeps me young," she said nervously.
"She'll be in no danger around me Alexis."
"She'd better not be."
"I'm clean and legit one hundred percent. I've severed my mob
ties. You can count on it."
"Swear on your stupid code, that I can believe what you're
saying."
"I swear on my stupid code that you can trust me."
"I didn't say anything about trusting you." Alexis looked
over and tried to wipe the smirk off her face as he flashed a familiar
dimpled grin her way. "You're impossible."
She turned away from him, and closed her eyes. A yawn escaped and
she apologized, but didn't open her eyes. "Alexis?" She
had fallen asleep propped up against the door. Her head tilted to
the side, and rolled his way. He gently eased it onto his shoulder,
and rested his against it. If Kristina was as stubborn as her mother
they could be waiting her out until the end of time. Taking advantage
of the situation he too relaxed into sleep.
Kristina turned down the radio. She no longer heard shouting voices
from downstairs. She crept to her door and unlocked it. She quietly
turned the knob and pulled it open. Her mother and father were laid
out at her feet in a daze.
"Hi sweetheart."
"Hey."
"What are you two doing down there?"
"We we're waiting for you," Alexis told her as Sonny helped
her up off the floor.
"Did you two work anything out?"
"Yes we did. If you'd like to get to know your father it would
be ok with me. I'd actually encourage it."
"Thank you!" she squealed flinging herself into her mother's
arms.
"Don't thank me. You put all this in motion Little One."
"Please tell me you're not mad."
"I'm not mad." Alexis said softly. "Now let me introduce
you to your father. Sonny Corinthos. Kristina Adela Davis. Your
daughter."
Her radiant dimpled smile slammed into his chest and actually made
him ache. She was perfection. Something he had longed to achieve,
and he had achieved it with Alexis. Kristina held her arms up to
him. "Pick me up Daddy."
"You'd better do it. Soon she'll be to grown up for you to."
Sonny lifted her into his arms. Her legs wrapped around his waist
and her arms twined tightly around his neck. She brushed a kiss
across his cheek and hugged the life out of him. Alexis let her
tears flow freely. It was a beautiful picture she had waited so
long to see. Sonny returned her hug as silent tears slipped down
his cheeks. This feeling was unlike anything he'd ever known. Holding
his other children had not evoked this feeling of joy, happiness,
and all consuming love. There was something about Kristina that
touched him to the depths of his soul. It was the same something
that her mother possessed, and still did to this day.
"I love you Daddy."
"I love you too," he choked out.
Alexis backed quietly from the room leaving father and daughter
alone to get acquainted.
