Lilian was heading straight from therapy to a job, so she'd arrived in costume, and this was the first time, really, that her therapist, Greg, had seen her like this. He had to admit, she made a pretty good princess. The session went well, as expected. Lilian hadn't been having that many problems as of late, so really their sessions these days were primarily just her discussing her life, in a sort of open diary kind of way. Greg was fine with this. After being with her through some truly awful times, he was nothing if not thrilled to see her be steady and stable, happy. Lilian was packing her things, preparing to head out, as Greg did the same.

"You going to your second job?" Lilian asked, making Greg smirk.

"Yeah, those fryers aren't gonna work themselves," he said, the both of them laughing; Greg slung his bag over his shoulder and said, "come on, I'll walk you to the elevator, take it down with you."

"That sounds nice," Lilian said, the both of them heading out of the office. Greg's office was on the 9th floor of the building, his own little private practice, as he rented the space amongst a bunch of other people and companies. Walking together towards the elevator, Lilian couldn't help but chew on her lip, curious; she finally asked, "okay, so, off the clock...how crazy do you think I'd be to take that stuff she gave me and hand it into the proper authorities?"

"Have you looked through it yourself?" Greg asked, and Lilian nodded.

"Multiple times. Had Miranda look through it with me too," she said, "I'm just scared. I know it's the right thing to do, but I also know it'll change my life for a good while. I'll be expected to show up in court, probably, to testify since I was one of his near victims, and I don't wanna drag that poor women in with me, even though she's the one all this information came from. I just don't know what to do."

Greg and Lilian stopped at the elevator and Greg pressed a button, waiting for it to arrive.

"I guess, all we really can do," Greg said, clearing his throat, "is just try to accept that sometimes we need to put the needs of others in front of our own sense of safety. Lilian, your entire job is predicated on the belief that you're making the day better for someone, so why not do the same in your personal life? You want little girls to have the best birthday? Help give them a safe life as well. Take this guy down."

Lilian smiled and nodded in response. Greg had gotten to know her so well that she just took his advice at face value. He was so well put together, so sensible, she couldn't help but admire him. The elevator showed up and the doors slid open, surprising them. Inside was Vera, Tyler, Alexis, John and Helena. Lilian looked confused, but entered anyway, Greg by her side.

"What are you all doing here?" she asked as Greg pressed a button to go down to the parking lot.

"Meeting with an insurance agent," Helena said, looking through a folder of papers, "everyone had to show up, except you, seeing as you had a prior engagement."

"I had a prior engagement, you made me come," Alexis said.

"Eating chips while watching nature documentaries does not count as a prior engagement," Helena said, making Alexis scoff. Helena then shut the folder and looked up, smiling at Greg, holding her hand out for him to shake as she added, "Helena Langdon."

"Greg Arakki," Greg replied, shaking her hand.

"So how was therapy?" Alexis asked, "did you cry?"

"What happens in therapy is confidential," Lilian said, crossing her arms.

"You totally cried," Alexis replied, the both of them smirking at one another.

"Is everyone working today? Is that why we're all in costume?" Lilian asked, and everyone but Helena and John nodded. Lilian then turned her focus to John, who looked more than disgruntled to be here. John, after a few seconds, finally noticed and locked eyes with her; she asked, "and what about you?"

"I'm here to take Alexis to work," John said, an out and out lie. Sure, that was something he was going to do, but they had their own little meeting to stop off and take care of first. Lilian looked back at Greg, who was checking his watch.

"You gonna be late for something?" she asked.

"My daughters recital," Greg said, "but I'll be fine. It's not for another hour."

Just then the elevator creaked and came to a grinding halt, the light inside flickering. Greg turned to the button panel and started pressing the ground floor key again and again, muttering to himself. Everyone in the elevator groaned, and Greg then gave up and leaned against the wall, running a hand down his face. He sighed and looked at everyone, before noticing the cigarette in Alexis's shirt pocket and nodding at it.

"What's that about?" he asked.

"Something someone gave me," Alexis mumbled.

"Someone gifted you a cigarette?" Greg asked.

"It was this guy, at rehab. I won't smoke it. It's a long story," Alexis said.

"Looks like we got nothing but time, so please, regale me," Greg said, and Alexis rolled her eyes.

"Hey, you're not my therapist, okay?" Alexis said, "besides, nothing left to tell beyond that. Just another interpersonal relationship I couldn't salvage. Story of my goddamned life. Between my parents and now Rick, I've got a pretty good track record of wanting to be close to certain people who simply can't be close to me because drugs are more important."

John smiled a little. To hear Alexis say such a thing, with such a hint of vitriol, made him proud. She'd come a long way. He knew she'd never be outright judgmental to those who used, but it was nice to hear her, for once, acknowledge that maybe, just maybe, relationships were more important than getting fucked up.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to press the matter," Greg said.

"You're not pressing anything but her buttons," Helena said coldly, "and frankly, while I understand the sentiment of keeping something from someone who meant something to you, I also think it's ridiculous to carry that memento around as much as she does."

"It's not the only thing, he also gave me this necklace," Alexis said, grabbing at the gem hanging around her throat.

"Exactly, so why do you need the cigarette?" Helena asked.

"Maybe she doesn't need it, she just wants it," Vera chimed in, surprising Alexis who looked at her in near shock. Vera? Fucking Vera, of all people, was coming to her rescue? Unheard of. Vera continued, "there's nothing wrong with simply wanting something, without a need for it. For example, my parents are alive and well, but I still wear this ring my mother gave me for graduation simply because it's hers and it makes me feel good to have her close to me everyday. It isn't for closure, it isn't for any reason other than I want to."

"...thank you," Alexis said.

"I agree," Greg said, "I don't think there's a need for necessity or explanation. I think Alexis is perfectly fine just wanting to have it, regardless of anything else."

"I'll be honest, I don't get it, but I won't judge her for it," Tyler said.

"That's rich, coming from you," Vera said softly, surprising everyone, including Tyler, who looked at her with big eyes; she rolled her eyes and sighed, continuing, "I mean, you know what I want, but you judge me for it all the time. Even though you said you wanted the same thing."

"That's different, for one, I'm not judging you, and for two, I'm just trying to make sure we're ready is all, okay?" Tyler said sternly, "you know I want it too, it just isn't the right time yet. We're barely making enough to support ourselves, let alone support a-"

Tyler caught himself, and glanced around the elevator at the others before exhaling and going quiet.

"What, you don't even want to tell others I want a baby with you?" Vera asked, before looking at the others and adding, "yeah, that's right, we've been talking about having a kid. But Tyler, despite telling me he wants it for a good while, won't actually commit to the follow through, and I know that financial difficulties is a legitimate reason but for god sakes we're not as strapped for cash as you think, dude."

"Tyler?" Greg asked, and Tyler looked at him as Greg asked, "if I may? Uh, could your reasoning stem from being around kids all day, and maybe the last thing you want to do is come home and be a father too?"

"No, not at all, I'd love to be a dad," Tyler said.

"Except you clearly don't," Vera said quietly, looking at her shoes.

"Is it to do with the dead kid?" Lilian asked, catching everyone off guard; Lilian sighed and explained, "about two years ago, Tyler worked at a party where a little boy died. It shook him up pretty bad. Is it that? Are you just scared that that kind of thing could happen to you? You're scared to be held responsible for anything bad that might happen to a child you bring into this world? I know what it's like to feel responsible for kids..."

Tyler sniffled. He didn't ever want to revisit that, but it was, in fact, the correct answer. Tyler put his hands over his face and groaned as he slid down the wall to the floor of the elevator.

"I had to watch it happen," he whimpered, "I had to stand here and watch it happen, and nobody asked me how I was afterward. Never really talked to anyone about it. I've been around so many dead kids. When I was a kid, my aunt got into an accident and her son died, and then when I was a teenager I had a cousin who got pregnant and lost the kid a year in due to SIDS. It's like...it's like if kids even come into remote contact with me their mortality chances go up exponentially."

"That isn't true," Vera said, reaching out and rubbing his back, "hey, that isn't true. Look at Maddie. You've been around Maddie ever since that incident and she's thriving, if anything."

Tyler couldn't deny this, thankfully. Maddie was, in fact, thriving. She'd come so far, thanks to the support of them all, and he'd been a big part of that. The truth was, though, that Tyler was afraid he'd screw up. He'd have a hand in something awful happening to whatever kid he helped bring into this world. He glanced over at Vera, who just smiled warmly at him.

"Don't you want a baby with me?" she asked, and he nodded.

"Trust me," John said, "that isn't what'll bring you peace the way you think it will. Families fall apart all the time, sometimes without any help."

"Yeah but isn't it worthwhile to have a child?" Alexis asked, looking over at John, who shrugged. Alexis felt hurt. She scowled, then added, "I mean, isn't that why you're..."

She stopped, looked at everyone in the elevator, then sighed.

"...isn't that why you're adopting me?" she asked, taking everyone by surprise.

"It...it is, yes," John said, "I'm just saying that loving someone and having a baby isn't the happy ending we've been sold on. Every piece of media, it seems, is intent on making us believe that the delivery is the start of a happy family, the marriage the start of a happy romance, but more often than not they're signifiers of things falling apart, with or without our effort."

"So Hollywood lies to us, big surprise," Alexis snapped back, "it's still worth it to try, isn't it?!"

John didn't realize it before, but his statement had hurt Alexis, and he felt bad now. He'd just been struggling so much with Star lately, with debating whether or not to get a full apartment, take her out and bring her to live with him. He didn't know what to do and it'd been stressing him out. On one hand, at the hospital, she was guaranteed good help and security, but on the other, living with her father would make them both so very happy.

"I didn't...I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything negative by it," John said, "I just wanted to speak from experience."

"But your past experiences don't dictate your whole life, there's more to come," Alexis said, standing up, sniffling, "do you not want me as a daughter? Were you just doing that to placate my doubts about whether or not someone in this world actually wanted me? I thought you cared!"

"I do care!" John said, brushing past Helena and holding Alexis by the shoulders, "Alex, I do care, so much. I'm sorry. Of course I care. Of course I want you as part of my family. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, that all came out wrong. I love you very much, and I want to do this with you."

"It seems to me that you people have a problem with not talking about your problems," Greg said, everyone looking at him. He smiled weakly and scratched at his nose, adding, "after all, communication, whether it's romantic or platonic, is a necessity. You can't expect to build something with someone if you don't talk to them, openly. Trust me, I know."

Lilian looked at Greg with one eyebrow raised, confused as to what he meant by this. She opted not to pry, and just listen.

"Talking, honestly and willingly, is the key to making connections with others," Greg said, "you can't solve anything with silence. Silence just deepens the already growing trench. So Vera, Tyler, if you're looking to have a family, you need to have a lot of discussions about, no matter how uncomfortable. And John, Alexis, if you're looking to make a family together as surrogate father/daughter, then you too need to talk about it because there's more to being family than just being related, whether by blood or by paper. Helena," Greg said, catching her attention now as he said, "I think you're pushing too hard. I know you're trying to be the boss, but I think you're making everyone slightly unsure of themselves, and you need to maybe approach things with a sense of softness. I know it might not be how you're used to handling things, but this isn't your usual group of workers."

Helena nodded slowly in recognition. Greg checked his watch and sighed.

"I'm a bad father," he whispered, catching everyone off guard. Lilian put a hand on his shoulder.

"No, you're not, don't say that," Lilian said, and Greg smirked.

"I appreciate that, but I find simply expressing my thoughts in the moment, even if they're untrue, to be helpful in navigating them," Greg said, "but thank you, Lilian. I just promised I would be there and so far it's looking like I won't be. Again. This is the third time recently I've missed something of hers."

Alexis squeeze past everyone and balled up her hand into a fist and smashed the button panel, causing the elevator to start up again to everyone surprise, even her own. She shrugged as the elevator started heading further down. As it reached the bottom floow and everyone filed off - Tyler and Vera to their respective jobs, Helena back to her office and John and Alexis to the lawyer for the adoption papers - except for Greg and Lilian.

"Are you okay?" Lilian asked, sounding genuinely worried.

"At the moment? No. But that's the thing, it's a moment. I will be okay," Greg said, smiling before Lilian leaned in and hugged him.

"I'm here for you," Lilian whispered, and Greg patted her on the back, thanking her. Greg then went the opposite direction of her, got into his car and headed to the 'recital'. He pulled into the parking lot, he walked into the massive building, and he headed for the correct room. When he finally found his daughter and wife, his daughter was asleep in the charm, hooked up to various tubes. He'd promised he'd be here for this round of chemo, and he'd kept his promise. His wife looked up as he entered and stood up, approaching him.

"Elevator at work got jammed, I'm sorry," Greg said, "how is she?"

"She's doing fine," Kristen said, "she'll be happy to see you."

"That's what I'm here for," Greg said, smiling, "to help."