When Alex awoke, it was to the sound of shouting in the next room. She pushed herself to sit up in bed, brow furrowing as she listened to Emily's voice, unable to make out the words, but hearing from her tone all she needed to know.
Not entirely certain she wanted to venture out of the safety of the bedroom and risk catching the overflow of Emily's anger, she spent several minutes just listening to Emily's increasingly irate tone before reluctantly climbing out of bed and tiptoeing into the living room.
"How could you not tell me!?" Emily shouted into the phone. She was pacing, clearly agitated, and she kept clenching and unclenching her fist at her side. "You had no right!"
Alex tried to catch her attention, concern on her face, but upon catching her gaze, Emily just shook her head in a silent signal that she shouldn't worry...even if they both knew she would anyway.
"No, you know what, Mother?" Emily snapped. "I'm done talking about this. Goodbye." She hung up, glaring at the phone like she was trying to set it on fire with her mind.
Several moments of heavy silence followed.
Then, Alex asked, "So, am I allowed to ask what that was about?"
Emily didn't say anything at first, crossing the room in a daze and dropping onto the couch. She just stared at the wall blankly, not reacting, even when Alex settled beside her, resting a hand on her thigh.
"Em?" Alex whispered when she failed to produce a reaction from her. "Are you okay?"
She shook her head, once, twice. She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't make words come out. She let out a shaky sigh, then shook her head again. She looked dangerously close to tears, but was fighting tooth and nail not to let them fall.
"Emily, you're scaring me," Alex whispered. She reached up to gently turn Emily's head to face her. "Tell me what happened," she urged, staring into Emily's eyes, sparkling with tears.
Her tongue flicking out over her bottom lip, Emily spent a few moments collecting her thoughts, then said, "Apparently, I'm adopted." In spite of her seemingly tremulous hold on her emotions, she said the words almost flippantly.
Alex's mouth hung open slightly for a moment as she absorbed the news. "You didn't know?"
She shook her head. "She had my entire life to tell me and she just... She didn't!" She blinked back the tears as they threatened to spill over. "How could she not tell me? I had a right to know!"
"Did she give you a reason as to why she kept it a secret?" Alex asked, still cupping her cheek, thumb softly stroking her skin.
She shook her head again. "But I know her well enough to know it was probably all about her image – I'm sure she thought I would tell people and she'd look unfit or something ridiculous like that."
Silently, she agreed that the assumption was probably accurate. Gently, she eased Emily to lean against her chest and wrapped her arms around her. "What are you going to do now?"
"I have no idea," she admitted. She gave a hollow little laugh because she didn't quite know what else to do. "What are you supposed to do when your entire world gets turned upside down?"
"I wish I had some advice," Alex said apologetically because she was honestly lost as to what advice she could possibly offer to someone whose sense of self had just been revealed as having been built on false pretences. "But whatever you decide, I'm here for you."
Emily sighed heavily. "I feel like I don't know who I am anymore."
"I know who you are."
Sitting up, Emily shot her a curious look, questioning what exactly she meant.
Alex nodded, leaning in to kiss her tenderly. "You're the most incredible woman in the world and I'm so lucky to have you in my life. Do you even know how amazing you are? Regardless of who your birth parents or adopted parents are, you're valuable and you are loved."
Emily's smile was soft, watery, as she leaned in for another kiss. "I love you, Alex. So much."
"I love you too," she assured her once again.
They managed to avoid the subject for approximately an hour and a half...until Emily, sullenly picking at her breakfast, obviously still dwelling on the news, burst out, "How could she do this? How could she just blow my life apart like this and not even have an answer for me?"
Alex offered a consoling smile. "If you want answers, there are ways to get them," she said.
"Somehow, I doubt Garcia would be capable of discretion if I asked..."
Alex laughed softly because, well...true. "I was actually referring to the adoption agency," she corrected.
Emily shook her head. "It was a private adoption," she said grimly. "There are no records. At least, according to Mother."
Alex couldn't quite fathom why the Ambassador was being so secretive with the details, given that Emily was an adult and deserved to know the truth...but she also wasn't surprised. "What about your father?" she asked. "Would he know?"
Humming a little note, Emily thought aloud, "It's possible – though I haven't seen him since I was five years old."
"Maybe it's worth finding him," Alex pressed. "If it will help you get closure."
Emily nodded slowly, thoughtfully.
"I know this is hard, Em," she said gently. "But you're going to get through it. You don't have to do this alone." She extended a hand, silently waiting for Emily to accept the comfort if she wanted it.
After a moment, Emily clasped their hands together, offered a faint smile. "At least now I know I don't have any of the Ambassador's DNA," she joked weakly, "My bitchiness is all my own."
Alex laughed, shook her head fondly. "Would you please finish up your breakfast? You have a rare day off and I plan to make good use of it."
Emily smirked. "Oh, really? What exactly did you have in mind?"
