''Interstellar Destiny''

Properly Meeting You

It's been a week since Evan saw Lara and now he is sitting on a bench, in a local park, near a playground, his leg bouncing like crazy, waiting for Lara and Ava to arrive.

Lara had sent word to him, through Jack, to meet her at the park so he could meet Ava properly, just the day before. Evan has to admit that he never thought this would happen, at least not so soon, since Lara seemed so unsure about letting him meet Ava and now that she agreed to it, he can't wait to meet his daughter the right way.

He spots Lara and Ava walking hand in hand from the other side of the large expanse of grass and stands up, rubbing his hands on his legs before waving at them, Lara waving back. Evan looks between Ava and Lara, noticing just how similar they look, with the exception of Ava's eyes that are exactly like his. He greets them as they approach him, the little girl smiling and waving at him.

Lara kneels beside Ava and Evan follows her lead, wanting to be eye to eye with Ava.

-"Bug, do you remember what I told you a few days ago about your dad?" - The little girl nods and looks back at Evan, still smiling. -"Well, Ava, this is your dad, Evan."

Evan waves at her, not sure how to greet her, but is tackled by Ava, who hugs him tight, making him and Lara laugh softly.

-"Why don't you go play a little while I talk to Evan, bug?"

Evan feels the grip loosen, before Ava takes off running towards the swings. Lara stands, Evan following suit, and they sit on the bench next to each other.

-"I talked to her a couple of days ago and explained to her that you were no longer missing and that you wanted to meet her. I waited to let you know because I wanted to make sure she was okay with meeting you. She asked about you yesterday, so I called Jack and set everything up."

-"Thank you, Lara, really. Are you okay with me being a part of Ava's life?"

-"I am. All that I ask is that you're serious about being in her life."

-"I am, Lara. I want to be there for her at all times, no matter what she needs. I hope that's okay with you."

-"If I wasn't okay with it, I wouldn't be here with her. There's something else we need to talk about. Something I didn't know how to tell you when we first talked."

Evan wonders why he is feeling like someone is about to punch him in the gut, as he looks over at Ava, who is swinging as high as she can with her arms completely stretched out to the sides, making him smile.

-"What is it?"

-"I am seeing someone." - Lara sees him look at the ground as she says that. -"I have been seeing him for a few months now and he knows about you and our history together."

-"I get it. I honestly didn't expect for you to wait for me. I mean, I was supposed to be dead, so..." - There it is, the punch.

-"I appreciate that, Evan. This doesn't mean we can't be friends."

-"I would like that."

Evan looks back at her, smiling softly. They sit in silence after that, Evan thinking that, at least, he will still have both Ava and Lara in his life, which is more than he had been expecting after all that happened.

Now he needs to focus on being a good father to Ava and making sure that that little girl knows just how much he loves her, and that there's nothing he won't do to protect her.