Where Loyalties Lie
"The only people I owe my loyalty to are those who never made me question theirs."
Happily ever afters don't exist, not in the real world at least, mostly a figment of imagination made true only through fairy tales and fictional stories. Sonny Corinthos knows this fact better than most people in the world yet he still held onto the belief that he could achieve it. In spite of the hell his life had been before he took claim to it, Sonny Corinthos still believed he could achieve what many others failed to. He is Sonny Corinthos after all, and if anyone could achieve something as illusive as a happily ever after it would be him. He was certain of it.
It would take years after Sonny set out on his own, nearly a decade, before he would find what he believed would be his happily ever after. From the ashes of the son of a bitch known as Jason Quartermaine was born his golden opportunity, the chance to create the best asset in his organization, a man with a completely blank slate. Right off the back, Sonny saw potential in what everyone else believed was one of life's wastes. Sure, the brain damage hindered the man in a lot of ways, but Sonny saw it as a chance rather than a complication. Like God had done when he created humans, Sonny would do the same for this man, he will create him in his image, turning him into the most perfect mobster to ever walk this earth.
Took a lot of hard work, tough love, and a decent know how to get him going, but before long Sonny had his perfect obedient mobster. By the time he was done with him, the new and improved Jason Quartermaine, now known as Jason Morgan, became the most efficient, skilled, not to mention loyal, mobster Sonny had ever seen. The one thing Sonny loved above all else, above his skill and his efficiency, was his silence. Despite how many times the police have cornered Jason, the man never spoke. He took his right of silence to a whole new level. Hell, you can damn well call it an art form the way he pulls it off.
For a while, Sonny believed that would be enough, that he had achieved what many could not and he accepted it. His business profits have gone up nearly ten times what he used to make and it only continues to grow with each passing day. Organizations have tried to step up to his, tried to take what he owns, but they never succeed. Not as long as Jason takes care of every threat that presents itself. Of course, his content only lasted for a couple years, up until he met her. The vivacious blonde with a temper only rivaled by his own.
Like many things that Sonny has wanted lately, Jason had been the one to secure his chance with the ever mouthy Caroline "Carly" Roberts. It was Jason's abrasiveness that had Carly falling head over heels for Sonny. Compared to Jason's hardened cold exterior, Sonny came out smelling like roses to Carly, his money didn't hurt his cause either. Even she would admit to being exactly what others have called her, a straight up, unashamed gold digger and Sonny found no fault in that. Who can blame anyone for wanting better than they've got?
The day they got married, he knew for certain that he finally achieved it all, happily ever after not only in his personal life, but his business, as well. In spite of all the hardships he had to face growing up, all the hardships he had to face while creating a name for himself in the world of organized crime, Sonny finally had everything his heart could ever desire.
What he hadn't known, what he wishes he had known, was how having everything you could ever want could turn you into a man of comfort. With nothing to challenge his standing, he grew comfortable in his life, in his stature. Had he known it could all come crumbling down around him, Sonny swears he would have done things differently. Fate's funny that way, how it hits you when you least expect it yet its timing is always right.
Of course, how could he have seen this coming? How could he have expected that, of all the things to bring his perfect happily ever after down would come in the form of a average sized brunette barely over the age of eighteen? How could he have known that his hardened, almost heartless, enforcer would find a reason to defy him and set off the chain reaction that would become his undoing? The answer is that he couldn't have seen it coming, any of it, yet he still feels like he should have. He should have foresaw it. He should have prevented it. Then again, everything is always much more clearer in hindsight.
.o.o.o.o.
The food at the local diner pales in comparison to Sonny's buffet meals at his estate yet Jason still finds himself sitting at the same wobbly table in the corner of the diner awaiting his second meal of the day. Like clockwork every day, he arrives at the diner for breakfast and lunch, dinner reserved for Sonny's estate, unable to pass up on the food he prepares all day for the last meal of the day. For a long while, he wondered why he felt so compelled to eat at the diner, finding no logical reason for it, until one day it all became clear.
It had been a warm summer day when she walked through the door, her hair put up in a loose ponytail, when she spotted him at his table and made a beeline to him. It wasn't really anything she said or did that had him captivated by her, but the way she carried herself while in his presence. She didn't judge him harshly like many in town have done at a first glance or try to sleep with him like many women have done. She was different than he was used to, that's for sure, which made him more than a little defensive in regard to her.
People are fundamentally basic. They all want something from someone or anything from anyone. They praise the police and then shun his kind. But not her. For some reason that he couldn't fathom, she was almost exactly the opposite. She never does what he or anyone else expects. Though she's confusing to say the least, he can also read her quite easily, despite her efforts to hide the truth from him. It wasn't until she stood up for him against the police lieutenant that he found the ability to trust her.
"Let me guess." she voices with a soft smile as she stands in front of him. "Your usual with a side of coke?"
"Yes." he smirks slightly. "Thank you."
"You know, if you ever want to live a little, the number five is really delicious." she voices, arching her eyebrow daringly. "Come on, what do you have to lose?"
"The contents of my stomach."
"Funny." she shakes her head. "Okay. Make you a deal. If you try the number five, I'll try something new, too."
"Like what?"
"That's up to you." she says simply. "Deal?"
"Sure." Jason replies, unable to pass up on a deal like that. "You're on."
"Great." she smiles brightly, jotting down his order. "Number five with a side of coke, coming right up."
He watches her walk off, his mind almost trying to memorize her entire being, unable to describe just why that is. Jason has met his fair share of women since he awoke from his coma, some more decent than others, but none that have ever made him feel things he couldn't even dare to describe. All he knows is that Elizabeth Webber intrigues him, keeping his mind constantly switching gears as he tries to comprehend all that she is, and he really couldn't ask for more than that. She sees him unlike anyone else and maybe, just maybe, he needs that in his life. Someone that can see him, really see him, for all that he is.
"So, how was it?" she questions him a little while later, once his plate is empty. "Good, right?"
"Better than expected."
"See!" she smiles brightly. "Sometimes its good to try new things."
"Sometimes."
"So...lay it on me." she says expectantly. "What new thing am I going to try?"
"Don't know yet."
"You'll let me know when you do?"
"Sure."
"Okay." she smiles simply taking his empty plate and glass. "I should get back to work. You know where to find me when you figure it out."
Pulling out forty dollars, Jason places it on the tray before smiling slightly and making his way out of the diner to get back to work. As he's walking out the door, he comes face to face with one of the blasts from the past. Not his past, of course, but close enough. Robin Scorpio had to be the most frustrating person in his life at this point. Not that she's actually in his life per se, as if he'd let her in even an inch, but she's the only person from the past that just can't seem to let go the idea of him accepting her in his life now.
The Quartermaines, while a pushy bunch, have called it quits where he is concerned. If only she'd follow their lead and accept what is. If not for Sonny, he would have drilled a few hard truths into the petite brunette, but Sonny ordered him to take it easy on her, so, he will. According to Sonny, he can't blame her for missing the man she knew as her close friend, especially after the loss she had endured in losing the love of her life. While that's true in a sense, Jason countered that with the fact that Sonny couldn't blame him for just not caring.
.o.o.o.o.
Smiling down at the money he put on the tray, Elizabeth shakes her head slightly before shoving one of the twenties into her apron, amazed that he seems to always tip her the same amount as the cost of his meal. The other patrons are generous, but none as generous as Jason and that had her more than a little curious about him. Ever since the first time he stepped foot in the diner, Elizabeth had been completely captivated by him, a captivation that came to be the moment their eyes met. There was just something about his icy blue eyes that had her wanting to know more.
At first, his answers to her questions were all one word answers, not exactly easy to keep a conversation going with only one word to work with, but she managed. It took a few weeks before his one word answers turned into somewhat decent short sentences and that had her that much more eager to get him to open up to her. Sure, people have warned her against dealing with men of his stature, but all their warnings fell upon deaf ears. She doesn't care what anyone thinks of him, there having been a time when they regarded her in a dimmer light, and she won't let anyone's opinions cloud her own.
If she had to pick an instance when things really changed between her and Jason, she'd have to say it was when Taggert started to lay into Jason something fierce and she couldn't take it anymore. Jason was just sitting down, enjoying his breakfast and minding his own business, when Taggert storms into the diner and acts like he has to right to badger Jason for no apparent reason. The police are supposed to uphold the law not take it into their own hands and she's certain that harassing people with no probable cause isn't legal.
For the rest of her shift, Elizabeth's mind began to think up all the different things that Jason could possibly come up with for her to try. Some kind of strange food? Something more adrenaline based? There are just so many different ways that this could go that she literally couldn't wait to find out just what he comes up with. Ending her shift, Elizabeth heads back to her studio for a nice long painting session, feeling inspired to create a painting or two. All the while creating a list of possible new things she could try with him.
.o.o.o.o.
Arriving at the warehouse, he checks in with the men that are unloading the shipments, making sure everything is going smoothly before making his way up to his office. With the latest assignments handled ahead of schedule, Jason just needs to balance the books and his job will be smooth sailing for the rest of the week. He was just finishing up with the last of the books when Sonny comes walking into the office, ordering his guards to wait outside as he shuts the door in their face.
"Books balanced?" Sonny questions as he drops down onto the chair across from Jason.
"Yeah."
"How're things?" Sonny questions intently. "Did everything go smoothly?"
"Its handled." Jason says plainly. "It'll be here tomorrow."
"Good." Sonny shakes his head with approval. "The rest of the week's yours. I don't need you to handle much of anything until next week."
"I know."
"Try to have some fun, huh?" Sonny says as he rises to his feet. "Go for a long ride or something. Don't just sulk in your penthouse."
"I don't sulk."
"Sure." Sonny chuckles as he pulls open the door. "Regardless, take a ride up the coast, you deserve it. I'll see you next week."
"Sure."
