I don't own White Collar and never will. No copyright infringement intended.
Diana and Christie never expected to run into each other again, let alone in a park, but that's exactly what happened five years after their break-up. Diana wanted Noah to burn off some energy so he'd sleep that night and figured taking him to the park would help with that – it was one of her son's favorite places.
"Can we go see Uncle Neal tomorrow?"
Diana snorted. Noah had Neal (and the others) wrapped around his finger. "Maybe. He might be busy doing something with Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Peter, kiddo."
He looked sad for a second, but then perked up. "Okay. Maybe another day?" Then he went back to playing. This was one of Diana's favorite things to do – hanging out with her son always made her day, even if it hadn't been a good one.
And that's when she spotted Christie, walking a dog. She did a double take and then waved at her ex-fiancée. Christie waved back and then headed her way. Diana panicked for a few seconds before calming down and she smiled. "Hey."
"Hi. How are you doing, Diana?" Christie hadn't expected this to happen, but she was glad it had.
"Great. You?" She hated that she was feeling this awkward. It had been five years and they had both moved on. They should act like responsible adults.
"I'm fine. This is my dog, Solo."
And that's when Noah decided he was done playing on the swings. "Hi, Mommy! Who's this?" He looked up at Christie in confusion and curiosity.
That was not how Diana expected to tell her, but whatever. "Noah, this is Mommy's old friend, Christie. Christie, this is my son, Noah."
Christie looked shocked and Diana couldn't blame her. They had talked about having kids for a while, but it had never happened for them. The fact that she still wanted them after the break-up was the catalyst for her decision to have the baby by herself. And she had never once regretted it. "Wow. It's nice to meet you, Noah."
"You too. Mommy, can we get pizza for dinner?" He loved pizza more than any other food and begged for it quite often.
Diana didn't give in all the time, but she did today. "Of course we can. And we can go see Uncle Peter and Aunt Elizabeth, too!"
He squealed in excitement and went to go play again. "So how old is he?"
"He's four. And no, there's not another mother. I decided to use a donor and did it on my own. Best decision I ever made in my life," Diana told her.
"Good for you. I'm serious, Diana – I can barely handle the dog on my own."
They both laughed at that. "So, do you have a girlfriend or you married now?" Diana didn't know why she was prying, but she didn't see a ring either (of course that could mean nothing).
"No, I don't. Just broke up with my girlfriend about two months ago. You?"
Diana shook her head. "I haven't had many serious relationships since we broke up. A lot of women don't like that I came with a kid, and quite frankly, I don't have time for that shit. So it's just us."
"It's nice to see you again, Di. I've missed you." Christie still loved Diana, but she didn't want to get back together. They had never really talked about the problems that drove them apart.
"I've missed you, too. You want to go with us for pizza later? Just as friends?" Diana didn't want to get back together with Christie either. Friendship was a definite possibility, though. She'd be happy if they became friends.
Christie wanted to say no, but she agreed to Diana's request. She would love to get to know her ex-fiancée again and this was a start. "So we'll meet at your favorite place?" she teased.
Diana rolled her eyes, but laughed. "It's also Noah's favorite place. Probably because I ate there a lot when I was pregnant and took him there with me whenever I got hungry for their pizza."
"Of course. Well, I'll see you later. It was nice catching up."
"See you later!" Diana waved goodbye and then called Noah over to her so they could go home. He was filthy and needed a bath, so that took priority when they arrived back at the house. He complained about his bath, but Diana was used to this and didn't give in to his whines.
"Mommy, were you and your friend girlfriends?" Noah's pretty perceptive and Diana's not surprised that he picked up on her and Christie's past.
"Yes, we were. We were going to get married, too, but broke up before that could happen. And after that, I decided to have you."
He laughed. "I'm glad you wanted me, Mommy."
"I'm glad too, kiddo. Okay then, up and at him in clean clothes. We gotta go."
He complained about having to get out of the bath after getting comfortable in it, but did as he was told and got dressed. After that, Diana and Noah headed out. By the time they got to the restaurant, Christie was already there.
"Hi, Christie. You and Mommy almost got married!" Noah realized he probably should have kept that to himself, but he was a four year old boy and didn't quite have a filter yet.
Christie's eyes widened, but she shook it off quickly. "Yes, we did."
They ordered the pizzas (Diana and Christie shared one, but Noah got his own, since he was picky) and settled in to talk. They talked about what they had been up to the past few years and other, random assorted shit. It was actually pretty nice.
Noah fell asleep in Diana's lap after a while, and the two women continued their conversation. "Di, I'm really sorry for the problems in our relationship."
"Don't apologize, Christie – I'm sorry, too." She and Christie had let their problems take control and just fought until their relationship imploded. It hadn't been a good situation in the end.
"Do you think we can be friends?" Christie was hopeful about this, especially since they had been talking for hours.
"Of course. Noah adores you, you know? He also wouldn't shut up about your dog."
Christie tried hard to stifle a laugh, but failed. "Well, he can come over and play with him some time."
Diana grinned at her. "He'd like that."
Diana and Christie fell into a friendship pretty quickly after that – another stab at their relationship was off the table for at least a year – and it was really nice. They enjoyed their time together, and Christie and Noah bonded, too, which Diana was grateful for.
Fourteen months after they reconnected (and one failed relationship on Christie's part), Diana and Christie reconciled. Everyone in their lives saw this coming and were thrilled for them.
"I love you," Diana murmured as she pulled away from a kiss.
"I love you, too." Christie was thrilled they had gotten back together. She and Diana had worked through their problems and were stronger for it now. They were determined to talk through their problems instead of letting them blow up this time.
Ten months after their reconciliation, Diana proposed and Christie accepted. Diana asked Noah to walk her down the aisle, a job he happily accepted.
Five months later, they were married in a small ceremony with only their family present. Noah was joined by a little sister only seven months after that (shotgun wedding jokes ensued as a result of this, mostly from Neal).
Diana and Christie were glad they accidentally ran into each other in the park that day.