A/N: My take on how the SamLexis scene at courthouse in April 2006 should have played out.

"Maybe loss is more of a common ground than you originally thought," Alexis said sadly to Sam before opening the door to leave.

"Wait!" Sam blurted out.

"Sam, it's late, you're not stuck here with me anymore, and I'd think you'd want to leave."

"This won't take long." Sam took a pause, not really knowing what told say next. Was she really doing this? Was she going to trust that Alexis meant what she said just now? That she was sorry? That she thought about her daughter all the time? That she loved her little girl? Sam had to know.

"I was given up for adoption as a baby."

That's good, she thought, subtle but a way into the subject

Alexis looked at her in shock. Out of the few years she'd known her, she had no idea that Sam was adopted. All of a sudden, she felt very uncomfortable. "I'm sorry, I had no idea."

"Me neither, until after Danny died. They ran a DNA test, and that's when I found out."

"That must have been very difficult for you. Your parents never told you?" she asked, now curious to learn about Sam's experience.

"I had no idea. They never gave any hints or anything."

"Can I ask you something?"

Sam nodded.

"Do you resent your birth mom for giving you up?"

Sam stared at her for a few moments, not sure of how to go about answering the question. "I did, for a while, after I found out, but I think I understand now why she did it. It was probably the only solution she had at the time. I forgave her."

Alexis nodded at her response, and thought about her own daughter. Had she still been alive, would she have come to the same conclusion?

"Thank you for sharing that with me. Oddly enough, it makes me feel a little better. I'm going to go now, it's late, I have a long day in court tomorrow, but maybe we can talk about this some more another time."

"Okay."

"I'll see you around," Alexis said, smiling at Sam, as she opened the door to leave for the second time that night.

Sam was panicking. If she didn't get this over with now, she more than likely would leave things unsaid for days, if not weeks to come. But Alexis really seemed to want to get out of that room; perhaps just sharing their experiences was enough for one night.

"I was born May 11th, 1980," Sam said in a shaky voice.

Alexis turned around, dumbfounded. "What did you say?" Tears were quickly forming in her eyes.

"I was born May 11th, 1980," Sam repeated. Alexis stared at her, and she went on. "I was born at the Belmont Clinic in Chatham, Maine."

Alexis didn't know what to think. This was Sam McCall after all, and she'd hated Alexis for years; she wouldn't put it past her to lie about something like this.

"Wow, this is low, even for you Sam. I know you blame me for all that's wrong in your life, and I'm sorry you feel that way, but using something this personal against me, did you have a P.I. dig up some dirt on me so you could use it to get back at me? And now that I'd already told you the truth you figured you had to use what little you had left?" Alexis was outraged, and had to mentally refrain herself from slapping the girl standing in front of her.

"No, I'm not lying. I know it's hard to believe, right? Sam McCall telling the truth, but I am," she said, pleading to Alexis to believe her. "When I found out I was adopted, I started looking for my birth mom, and it led me to the clinic in Maine. The guy there gave me the last known address for what he believed was my mom. I showed up at this woman's door, and turned out she'd had a boy, but on the same day. She did remember another girl there that day, and she was wearing her school uniform from Briarton-Griggs Academy."

Alexis sat back down, staring at Sam in disbelief as she continued her story.

"She didn't have her name or any other information though, so we went to the school to see if they had the girl in question on record. We found a yearbook from 1980, and one of the sophomores had no picture in the yearbook. Her name was Alexandra Davidovich. Jason recognized the name right away, but I didn't make the connection."

Alexis was still staring at her, tears falling down her cheeks.

"Alexis, your daughter didn't die in a car accident." Sam paused. "I'm your daughter," she said, waiting for a reaction from Alexis. She couldn't read whether Alexis believed her or was just remembering that part of her life. "We can take a DNA test if you want, but I wouldn't lie about something like this."

Alexis stood up to face Sam, walking closer to her, oblivious to the last comment her daughter had made. "You're my daughter?"

Sam nodded, her own eyes starting to well up. Alexis inched closer, observing her features, brushing a strand of hair away from her face, before pulling her into a hug. Both women cried, as a weight lifted from their shoulders.

Sam was realizing just how much she needed her mom in her life, grown up or not, and she was quickly understanding that everything she'd reproached Alexis about her dedication to her daughters was pure jealousy.

Alexis pulled away from Sam, still looking at her intently. "Sam, I ... I don't know what to say to you."

"I understand ... I've never been your favorite person."

"No, that's not what I meant. I'm just trying to grasp this, that's all."

Alexis' mind was racing. Her father had betrayed her once again, even from the grave. Her dead daughter wasn't dead after all; she was standing one foot away from her. One foot away from the little girl Alexis thought about every single day, wondering what she had become. She now knew. It was Sam. Would she be able to have a relationship with her? Their past relationship had been nothing but hurt and anger, but she was just hoping this revelation would be enough to get them past it.

"You're my daughter, I can't believe it. All this time, everything that's happened between us, I just, I can't believe it. How come I didn't realize it sooner or recognize you ..." She took a long pause, not sure what to think; what to say. "What happens now?"

"Alexis, what I said before, about me understanding the reasons why, I meant it. I've done a lot of thinking about whether I should tell you or not since I figured it out and I honestly wasn't going to, because of our past history. I wouldn't have told you tonight if I thought nothing would come of this. I want to try to forget about everything that's happened between us in the past and build some sort of normal relationship."

Sam found herself surprised by her own words, but that was what she wanted. She never could have guessed, even a day ago, that she would say that to Alexis, but listening to her and seeing the pain in her eyes as she talked about her dead daughter, and the dedication she felt for her, made her see how wrong her conclusions about her mother had been.

"You should go, it's really late now," Sam said, needing some time to think, and deciding it was best to end the night there.

"Oh, okay." Alexis felt a pang of disappointment: there was so much she wanted to know, and so much to say to Sam.

"We could have dinner sometime if you want, you know, to talk. It would give both of us some time to get used to this," Sam offered.

"That sounds wonderful. You can come over; Kristina will be delighted to see you."

"Good."

"Sam ... thank you for telling me. And forgiving me. You will never know how much this means to me. And I know I don't have the right to ask anything of you, but please give me a chance to be your mother," she said, as her eyes filled with tears once again.

Sam walked up to her and hugged her once more, before watching her mother grab her coat, glasses, and briefcase and leave the room that had allowed for a new beginning.

The End.