Sushi Time [Closed to Sam]

[tarnishedbadge]

It had taken Levi a bit longer to arrange a time to have dinner with Sam but between the kidnappings and everything that had come with that, he just didn't have the time. As soon as he had some breathing room though, he had called Samantha and set up a time. He didn't want her to think that he was avoiding her. In fact, he would have liked to have more time to think through everything but he figured that he could just wing it when it came through working through how he felt.

He would have liked to talk to Lara about it too but she was so frustrated lately he didn't want to add to it. He'd mentioned that Samantha was in town but hadn't really gone into their history. Maybe after this meeting with Sam he'd have a better idea of how he felt and that would make the conversation easier.

For now though, he needed to get through this dinner with Samantha. He wasn't exactly nervous, he just hated the unexpected. Having completely over prepared everything he had arrived early and had to resist getting started on drinking before Sam arrived to calm himself.

When he saw Sam walk in he struggled to pin down the feelings he had. Some small part of him reacted almost out of instinct and was happy to see her. She was gorgeous and she looked so much happier and relaxed than she had when he knew him part of him was happy for her. Then he remembered how things had ended between them and he couldn't help but hurt.

Still, he smiled and waved as he stood up, letting her know where their table was.

Comments

[starting_over]

Taking full advantage of Siren Cove being a small town, Samantha took the extra time to dash up to the apartment for a quick wash-off-the-day shower and touch up to her makeup. She didn't imagine the sushi place was a dressy place, not that she'd have had any luck there if it was, but she wore a pair of black trousers, a pair of black pumps, and her favorite deep plum sweater that clung in all the right places.

She wasn't nervous about seeing him again - meeting his girlfriend had taken away any even fledgling she'd had about rekindling - but she was very excited for a night out and in the company of another. She'd eaten too many solitary meals over the last year.

"Hi," Samantha beamed when she approached and gave him a quick hug.

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"Hey, thanks for coming," Levi said, glad she had initiated the hug so that he knew what sort of greeting to give. This whole thing was fairly unfamiliar territory for him so he felt like he was floundering a bit. He never would have expected to be having such a genuinely civil meeting with Sam. Then again, he never imagined to see Sam like this.

Of course, he'd had time to read up on what had happened to her and there was no surprise that she had changed. Going through something like that would change anyone. A small part of him chastised him for not being there to save her, more out of his own mess of issues than any real expectation that he should have been there.

"I imagine it's not easy to get away from your shop this time of year."

[starting_over]

"Like I'm going to turn down sushi," Samantha returned with a laugh as she took her seat. She'd had several long conversations with herself today about tonight - that it was dinner with a friend, nothing more. Which meant she wasn't allowed to stare at him. It was her own bad luck that he was so ridiculously handsome. Really, couldn't the years have had some negative effects on him? Balding, maybe? Was that too much to ask?

Apparently, it was. Because he was just as handsome now as he'd been the last time she'd seen him.

She settled an easy smile on her face and put her napkin in her lap. "Customers tend to dwindle off on the boardwalk once the sun goes down, so it's not like I herded a crowd out of the place. Besides, if I can't close up for a few hours to catch up with a friend, what's the point of that whole life-changing thing?"

[tarnishedbadge]

It was difficult to hear her thinking about reconciliation. He knew that she wasn't hoping for it, pining away from him or anything, but he could also tell that a part of her was sad that it wasn't possible. Levi could also hear that she still found him attractive, which he could sympathize with.

"You look amazing, by the way. I read up on what happened to you," he said, saving her from having to explain what happened to her. "I- I didn't mean you look amazing considering that. Just... amazing in general."

[starting_over]

"Thank you," Samantha smiled at the compliment, "so do you. I was just thinking that it was really unfair that there isn't some sign of aging on you. Wrinkles, gray, a little balding. Something like that. But there isn't, and you look, if anything, better than you did back in Boston."

Samantha shifted, just a little, and shrugged. "It wasn't the worst thing that ever happened to me, but it was bad enough. Learning to walk again was probably the worst part. It's all in the past, though, and it gave me some needed time to reflect on how I'd been living my life to that point, and decide if I wanted to continue. Clearly, I didn't," she smiled, "and I've been happier than ever since I made that decision. So I suppose all's well that ended well, right?"

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"Damn. How am I ever going to be a grizzled detective if I don't age?" he said, appreciating the compliment. He had to admit that it meant a lot coming from her and he felt a sense of pride that he probably shouldn't have.

"I'm glad you found something that makes you so happy," he said, meaning it. Even when they broke up Levi knew that Sam was doing so to pursue something that she wanted to. It still hurt like hell but it was a reason that he could accept, even if he thought at the time they could still be together.

[starting_over]

"I have. Whether or not I can make a success of it or not remains to be seen, but I'm certainly going to give it my best shot. And if I crash and burn, and end up chasing ambulances to keep the rain off my head? At least I will have stepped out of the box, even for a little while."

Samantha ordered sake from the waiter, then turned to Levi with a warm smile. "Speaking of finding things that make us happy, I met your girlfriend the other day. She's beautiful."

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"I think you'll do well," Levi said. He wasn't sure if he believed in fate but it seemed like a whole lot of coincidences that brought Sam to Siren Cove to be doing what she was doing. Or maybe he just wanted it to be fate because she seemed so happy doing all of this.

At the mention of Lara, he ducked his head and his face flushed a bit. Lara was so incredible he always felt sheepish when people talked about them being together. He still had trouble believing it.

"She's pretty amazing. I'm lucky to be with her."

[starting_over]

The flush was all she needed to see and she nodded, the easy smile still on her face despite the last lance in her chest his blush caused. "No need to ask if she makes you happy; its practically a neon light over your head. I'm happy for the both of you. She's...and interesting woman. So much more than what you see on the surface."

She might not be practicing law any longer, but, hell, you can take the lawyer out of the courtroom, right? Doublespeak was practically in her blood.

[tarnishedbadge]

"She is a pretty spectacular woman," Levi admitted. He felt like he could say that without bragging. Sam was incredibly perceptive and it didn't surprise him the least that she had picked up on Lara being more than she seemed. Sometimes Levi felt like he was still finding all there was about her.

"What about you? Is there anyone you're seeing or interested in?"

[starting_over]

"Extraordinary, I'd call it," Samantha commented, remembering the way Lara's face and eyes changed right in front of her. Lost in that memory, she gave her head a shake and focused on the here and now. "Me? No. A few dinners out but nothing more than that. I was on the fast track, even more than when we were together. If anything, work got even worse after my colossal fuckup with you and there wasn't even time to meet anyone much less cultivate any kind of relationship. Then...well, after I woke up, life was about learning to walk and getting muscle tone back. Getting my life together again."

[tarnishedbadge]

"I think you'll find a lot of Siren Cove is... extraordinary," he said with a bit of a smile. Not that he thought for a moment any of them were as extraordinary as Lara was, but he thought Sam would understood what he meant. He had mentioned when he first saw her that she should keep an open mind and it sounded like she was doing just that.

"But I hope you don't see us going our separate ways as a colossal fuck up. Yes, I'm with someone and you were almost murdered so I can see how I might see the situation with rose-colored glasses more than you. And I think we both know what happened was painful. But I hope we can both admit that what we wanted out of our lives wasn't going to fit into our lives."

[starting_over]

"I appreciate the vote of confidence, Levi, but in spite of that, my letting you go, hurting you like that, was the stupidest thing I've ever done in my life. The fact that it took recovery from a coma for me to see it only makes the case even more ironclad. I didn't know what I had, didn't know what I let go of - not until I was lying in a bare, blank hospital room where no one much cared if I lived or died."

Her voice didn't waver - she'd long ago cried those tears - but the regret was clear enough.

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"Okay, I am a pretty awesome catch, I'll admit that," he said with a grin. He could feel how much she hated herself for doing what she had done. It seemed like both because she had hurt him but also for what might have been. He could help her in one area but unfortunately not the other.

"For what it's worth, I forgive you. I did years ago. And I'm glad your dart landed here."

[starting_over]

The tension left Samantha's shoulders at his words and she smiled. "Thank you. I don't think I knew how much I needed to hear that, to believe it, until just now. Maybe I can put it behind me at last and let myself move on, try again to have something besides the solitary life I thought I was supposed to want."

She poured a little sake into the cup and raised to him. "To friendship?"

[tarnishedbadge]

The change was palpable and he could hear it in her mind when he apologize. He felt bad that she was carrying around the guilt when she didn't have to be. To be honest he had been carrying some anger as well but seeing her now that all was gone. He just wanted Sam to be happy and was glad she was now.

"To friendship," he said, grinning as he raised the sake in a toast. He liked the idea of being friends with her.