Author's note: A very big thank you to xfilesfanatic for requesting this story and for giving me so much support in everything I do. You are such a great friend! :)
Fox had never been to Seattle.
He had been there for about the past week, waking until he could finally make it to New Mexico, and thus safety.
He missed Dana terribly.
Not only did he miss her, but he felt guilty that he had to leave her to take care of her baby all alone. He had been thinking about trying to contact her for the past few days, though he knew that doing so would be rather risky, not only for him but for her, too.
After all, he was in hiding.
When Fox awoke on that cold January morning, he knew he had to get out of his messy hotel room and go somewhere. He had been trying to limit his outings and stay inside, but it hadn't exactly gone as planned. There was only so much you could do in a hotel room, after all.
He got out of bed and got dressed, not bothering to brush his teeth or comb his hair. Grabbing the keys to his rental car and making sure his room key was safely tucked in his pocket, he walked out the door and into silent hallway.
There are been one place he had been going of late, a small coffee shop called Café Nervosa. It somehow felt safe inside, as if he wasn't on the run from the government like he actually was.
Once in the car, he recalled the route to the little shop and began to drive. The weather was cloudy and drizzly, and from what he had heard about Seattle, it was like this often.
Before he knew it, he had arrived at Café Nervosa. Once parked, he went inside out of the cold.
Upon entering, the smell of coffee grounds struck him. Fox liked coffee, but just the plain kind. He never ordered whipped cream or cinnamon or really anything to dress it up.
When he got to the front, he ordered his coffee black, then picked a table and started waiting. He looked around the room, observing the kinds of people sitting at different tables, talking, sipping, eating, smiling.
Suddenly a burst of laughter from directly in front of him grabbed his attention.
"Niles, you're so silly."
"Well, your beauty makes me rather giddy, my love."
Fox rolled his eyes at something so cheesy, but he continued to watch the couple.
The man was blonde-haired and blue-eyed, and he was wearing an expensive suit and tie. Fox noticed that his watch was top-of-the-line, and he sat up straight and tall. Fox knew that such high-society men like these were common in Seattle.
It seemed odd to him that he was with this sort of woman, who was rather pretty but not half as well dressed as the man. She had short brown hair and dark eyes and was thin, but not underweight. Another thing that Fox noticed was that a British accent fell out of her lips when she talked.
The two sat at the table directly in front of him, holding hands with one arm and drinking their coffee with the other.
"So, how are Dad and Frasier treating you?" said the man.
"Oh, pretty well all in all, though your father has been a tad whiny lately. He won't do his exercises, he refuses to eat the food I cook him, that sort of thing," the woman replied.
"Daphne, hasn't he been doing that for the past nine years?"
"Pretty much, yes." They laughed a little bit, then moved on.
"Niles, I've been meaning to ask you," began Daphne, "how are things going with your brother and his new girlfriend?"
"Karina?"
"Yes, that's the one."
"Oh, well I talked to him just yesterday and he said that they broke up."
"Well, no wonder he's been such a gloomy gus. It's sad, isn't it? So many dates after all these years and he still hasn't found the right person."
"I feel bad for him too, but it makes me feel even luckier to have you."
"Oh, Niles. I love you."
"And I love you."
They looked into each other's eyes in the most beautiful way, and Fox felt a pain twist inside him.
He looked down into the coffee that the waitress had just delivered to him, his thoughts again drifting to Dana.
He envied this man, this Niles, for his freedom to be with the woman he loved out in public without a care in the world to concern him. If only Dana could be as happy as Daphne was, for he knew that she was probably just as lonely as he was.
It was at that instant that he knew exactly what he should do.
He finished his drink and left the café.
When he was back in his hotel room, he grabbed his laptop and went to straight to his e-mail.
And then he started writing.
Subject: Dearest Dana
I've resisted contacting you for reasons I know you continue to appreciate. But, to be honest, some unexpected dimensions of my new life are eating away at any resolve I have left...