Disclaimer: Only the fic is mine.
AN: I was planning to do some writing for a fic idea in another fandom when this took over instead.
***
Alan snickered as Ellie showed him the link to an article from TMZ a follower had sent to her Twitter account.
Alan had refused to do social media, who actually needed all that BS?
If he had something to say he could do it himself.
The headline said: Mark Degler outraged as Dr. Grant attends his daughter's softball game, trying to steal her affections away.
Mallory, Mark and Ellie's daughter played on a local softball team in her spare time. But she and Charlie had a great relationship with Alan, as he'd seen them from time to time growing up.
Also in the four months since he and Ellie had started their new relationship.
"Hey Mark!" Ellie stood up with a grin on her face and greeted her ex-husband with a friendly kiss on the cheek, which he returned on hers.
"Hey Ellie, hey Alan. " The two men smiled at each other and shook hands.
The three of them were meeting at Ellie's house for lunch, they had nothing to prove to the media or public.
"So what's new?" Mark asked.
"I'm trying to replace you in your daughter's affections. " Alan told him.
Mark quirked an eyebrow, "Oh? An unnamed source told TMZ I'm going to use my State Department and CIA connections to secretly have you killed."
"Now that one I like." Alan replied with a huge grin.
***
Ellie smiled as she watched her two favorite men interact with each other, Mark was a good man and she was glad for what they had shared, even though it didn't work out they was they thought.
She and Alan had broken up a year after Jurassic Park, the stress of everything was just too much to handle, plus they weren't in the same place on their goals.
She wanted kids but he didn't, the worry they would bring, plus his age was an increasing worry.
He was content with Paleontology, while her interests were expanding. They were going to different places and evolving.
The breakup had been mutual, both had known it was coming and wanted to part as friendly as possible.
She had met Mark in 1996 and they had married on Feb 30, 1997
Charlie had been born on April 5. 1998.
Alan had attended the wedding and called to congratulate her about Charlie, they had finally seen each other in person when Mallory was a few months old.
It had been awkward but it had helped them regain their friendship.
They stayed in contact on and off, but as friendships did they drifted apart as people got busy with things going on in life.
She became passionate about the environment and soil science; she also began to study climate change.
Mark had begun working with the CIA more and was gone a lot, they drifted apart and they did try martial counseling.
But they had become good friends more than anything else, they knew they had tried to save things but they agreed a divorce would be best.
The kids were grown but still took the news hard, but quickly adjusted.
Then a year after that Malcolm made contact with her about Biosyn, which eventually led back to Alan.
***
Alan and Mark had gone through all the rumors about them and we're now making small talk about sports they'd seen on TV.
It had been hard when Ellie left but he was glad she ended up with a great guy like Mark.
Contrary to tabloid belief he hadn't lived like a hermit only coming out at random times to dig up dinosaur bones.
He had had some relationships, some had been brief dates, then there was Morgan who had been three years.
Then Kath, she had been five years and they had talked about marriage, but she was a fashion photographer who did a lot of traveling so toward the end they hadn't seen each other much.
And then there was Melissa, she had been a social worker and they were together for ten years, the final four as a married couple.
She had died from breast cancer and he grieved of course and then resumed his paleontology digs.
Two years later Ellie had come to recruit him for her mission to Biosyn.
And they had resumed a new relationship, bringing different life experiences and getting to know the new people they had become, as well as retaining traces of the couple they'd once been.
***
Mark's phone went off and he looked at it and grinned, "Leslie will soon be here."
Leslie was Mark's wife for the last five years, red hair, green eyes, and very much Irish to the core.
Soon she pulled in the driveway and got of the red car she came in and came to join them in the deck. She and Mark shared a brief kiss.
She grinned, "Hey guys hear the rumor that Mark wants to have Alan buried where Hoffa is? Apparently someone actually knows the location of where he is."
"Oh for crying out loud." Alan groaned.
Ellie grinned and took out her phone, "I got an idea."
She took a selfie of the four of them, after getting Alan to cooperate of course, he had always hated photos.
He and Mark had happened to end up next to each other in the photo.
She soon sent the photo to her Twitter where it quickly caught attention and was shared by many.
A great day to spend with great friends. #OneBigHappyFamily. 😀