Challenge (from Soap Fan Ficiton): Take one day and change it.

What if Jason never answered the phone when Bobbie called before Carly left town with him and Michael?

Part I

February 2, 1999

"So this is it?" Carly asked, leaning forward to kiss Michael's forehead, and zipping his coat. She couldn't believe they were actually leaving. But if they wanted to hang on to their son, running was their best option. Running left nothing to chance, running meant they got to decide their son's future - not the courts.

"If you want to stay, just say the word," Jason said. He didn't really want to run, he thought they had a good chance at keeping Michael if they stayed and fought. If Carly was going to change her mind, she needed to do it now. Time was definitely not on their side. He had two weeks to comply with AJ's court ordered blood test. It was well within their rights to take Michael on a trip, but blatantly ignoring a court order was not going to look good for them.

Carly closed her eyes for a few seconds, "I do - but we can't," Carly said. She didn't care if running was taking the easy way out, it was the only way she could guarantee that Michael would stay with them. "I can't take it anymore. Every time I hear the phone ring or someone knock on the door, I think it's a judge or the Quartermaines, coming to take me or Michael. I can't - I can't be without him, not again." She'd made so many mistakes in her life, but if there were two things she could take back it was that she'd never left town after Michael was born and that she'd never shot Tony in court. Because those were the two things that took her away from her son. The Quartermaines would have to kill her to get their hands on Michael.

"You're not going to be without him." He'd promised Carly that he'd always keep Michael safe, and as far as he was concerned that meant making sure Michael never spent one second in the mansion. "Shh, it's okay," Jason quietly said, gently running his hand over Michael's back to calm him down. Michael had been pretty fussy the past few weeks and he knew it was because both he and Carly were on edge. A change of scenery was going to do all of them some good. Maybe after they had some time to clear their heads, he and Carly could come back and fight for Michael. But if they stayed gone too long they could never come back. Giving up everything they knew and everyone they loved was worth it to hang on to the one thing that meant the most to both of them. Jason lowered his voice, "Ready to go on a trip, buddy? We're going to go to the Casino, you've been there before. Your mommy is going to build sand castles with you on the beach."

"Pway?" Michael asked, turning to face Carly. "We pway."

"Later baby," Carly promised. She hated saying no to him, but they needed to leave. She looked at the small bag by the door and couldn't believe that they were leaving for good and Michael's diaper bag was contained more than their luggage. Carly walked across the room and picked up a photo of the three of them and smiled, "We can't forget this." She knew they had to pack light, and they could get whatever they needed at the Island, but there were some things she wasn't going to leave behind.

"Do you have everything?" Jason asked. Everything they were leaving behind was replaceable and on the off chance they'd forgotten something they needed, Sonny would find a way to get it to them. For now, they were just headed to the Casino. He wasn't sure of their final destination. He didn't know if they were going to stay there or go somewhere else, but either way Sonny would be able to get a hold of them.

Carly regrettably looked at her fur coat that Jason said she had to leave behind and put on her wool coat instead. She reached for Michael, "I do now," Carly whispered, kissing his nose and laughing when he grabbed hers. All she needed was her son, as long as she and Jason had Michael, they'd be okay.

"Okay, let's go," Jason said, picking up Michael's diaper bag and the overnight bag containing his and Carly's things. The phone rang and he saw Carly tense up, Michael started whimpering and in that instant he knew that running was the right decision. "Let the machine get it." He'd meant what he said earlier that Michael had a right to have a mother who wasn't scared and constantly looking over her shoulder.

Leave a message."Carly are you there? If you're there, pick up please. I'm at Ruby's packing up her things - " Bobbie paused, choking back a sob. " - and this is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Luke's here, he's downstairs with Lucky. But if you're there - I - I'd really appreciate it if you'd come by. Call me."

Jason set down their bags and reached for Michael, "Are you okay?" Jason asked. He knew how badly Carly wanted a relationship with Bobbie and this could be the start of one.

"I'm a horrible person," Carly said, gesturing to the answering machine. "You heard her - she's in pain, her heart is breaking and for the first time, she actually asked me for something and I'm going to ignore her."

"You're not a horrible person," Jason said.

Carly angrily wiped the tears from her face, "Yes, I am. I'm selfish," Carly said. "Bobbie needs me, she's asking for me and I don't care. I do care, but not enough to risk Michael." She closed her eyes, jumping when she felt Jason's hand on her arm.

"Do you want to stay?" Jason asked. "I told you that this is your decision, it still is. If we run, we can't look back. That means leaving behind the people we love. But we can also stay and fight." He thought they had a good shot at keeping Michael legally, but there was this part of him that worried that the pressure was going to get to them, both of them. He'd already lost it when he attacked AJ at the Grille, he'd keep a better check on his temper but couldn't guarantee he wouldn't lose it again. He also couldn't guarantee that Carly wouldn't lose it next time AJ taunted her about readmitting her to Ferncliffe.

"Yes, but we can't," Carly said. No matter how many times Jason told her the odds were in their favor, all she could picture when she closed her eyes at night were the Quartermaines showing up to take Michael and throwing her in Ferncliffe. "I don't care that it's selfish, that this is the best decision for me - "

"For all of us," Jason said. Being a parent, meant putting Michael first - tending to his needs before their own. What Michael needed more than anything was the chance to grow up with parents that loved him and a chance to be his own person. "Michael needs you."

Carly kissed Michael's cheek, "Mama loves you Mister Man," Carly whispered, running her fingers through Michael's hair as she looked up at Jason. "I can't lose him. Jase, the best thing I ever did was give Michael to you - he can't lose you."

"He's not going to lose either of us," Jason said. "Carly, I promise you that we're going to keep our son." He'd told Carly once, that you can't own a person and he still believed it. Making sure that Michael stayed with them wasn't about owning him, it was about making sure he kept every promise he'd ever made to Michael. He'd promised Michael that he'd keep him safe and make sure he got a future and as far as he was concerned, his future and best chance at being safe and happy was with him and Carly, not AJ.

"You keep asking me if I want to stay," Carly said. "Jase, I'm asking you to give up so much for us."

Jason shook his head, "No, no you're not," Jason quietly said. His family, his job, his friends - those were all secondary to Michael. "Keeping Michael with us, safe and happy, that's all I need." He handed Michael back to Carly, "Are you ready? If we're going to leave, we need to leave now."

Carly handed Michael his stuffed giraffe, smiling when he hugged it. "I'm ready," Carly said. She trusted Jason, he promised her that they'd keep their son and he'd never let them down. She knew he wasn't about to start now, definitely not with Michael on the line. She took one last glance around the penthouse, when she showed up that rainy December day looking for a place to stay, she had no idea that this would become her home and that the lie she told to buy some time, would be the best decision she ever made in her life.

Jason picked up their bags, and led Carly and Michael out of the penthouse for the last time. "Let's go," Jason said. He looked at Carly, remembering the day that changed his life forever. She turned his life upside down, but she'd also trusted him with her son. She believed in him and didn't judge him. So maybe his life was less complicated without her in it, but she made his life better. As far as he was concerned, Carly gave him a life.

Carly sat down on the couch and closed her eyes, this had been a long day. Michael was finally asleep after being read two chapters. She wasn't sure if he was restless because of the trip or the unfamiliar surroundings.

"Here," Jason said, handing her a drink. They both needed to unwind, it had been a hard day for both of them.

"Thanks," Carly said, taking a small drink.

"Tomorrow, I'll show you around the casino and introduce you to the security team," Jason said. He hadn't decided if Carly and Michael needed guards here. Maybe for the next few weeks, but things were a lot safer down here than in Port Charles.

"Okay," Carly said. "Do you - " She paused and her eyes darted around the room when she heard a knock at the door.

Jason placed his hand on Carly's shoulder before standing, "Stay calm," Jason said, walking over to the door. He looked out the peephole then opened the door when he noticed it was a casino employee.

"Mr. Morgan - I have the crib you asked for," he said. "The rest of the items you asked for will be here in the morning."

Jason stepped aside to let him bring in the crib and he tipped him, "Thanks," Jason said.

"I think we should wait until tomorrow before we put it in Michael's room," Carly said.

"Yeah," Jason said, not wanting to wake up Michael. He sat down again, "No one is going to find us here."

"I know - it's just - " Carly paused and shook her head. "I heard the door and for a moment I thought someone found us - "

"No one knows where we are, no one but Sonny," Jason said. "He's not going to tell anyone, especially AJ, where we are."

"I know," Carly said. "It's just going to take me some time to get used to being here. It's not always going to be like this is it?"

"No," Jason said. This was one of the reasons they left, so that Carly wouldn't have to look over her shoulder. "After we get settled and get used to being here, we'll relax." In his mind, he knew that no one knew where they were. He knew that no one was going to show up and take Michael away from them, but that didn't stop those thoughts from running through either of their minds every time someone knocked on the door.

"I'm looking forward to that," Carly said. She just wanted to be with her son, to be a good mother and have Michael grow up with a family that loved him, not one that wanted to use him. The odds of that happening here were much greater than in Port Charles. There were so many thing she wouldn't have to deal with here. She wouldn't have to live with people looking down on her and tolerating her because she was Michael's mother. She also wanted to make sure that Jason stayed Michael's father. Jason was Michael's father in every way that counted, not AJ. There was no way in hell AJ was getting his hands on their son. The three of them were family and they were going to stay that way. They had a chance to start over and start a new life together. "You know, once everyone finds out we left - I know they're going to say I manipulated you into leaving. That this was my idea and I did it to hang on to you. Jase, I need you know that's not why I wanted to leave."

"I know," Jason said. He knew who Carly was, he knew she manipulated people into getting what she wanted. But he also knew how much she loved Michael and how afraid she was of losing him or getting sent back to Ferncliffe. He knew she would do anything to keep their family together. Maybe their family wasn't the most conventional one, but they were a family.

Carly smiled at Jason and they sat in a comfortable silence until Michael's cries came through on the baby monitor. Jason started to get up, but Carly stopped him. "I'll get him," Carly said.

Jason watched Carly head upstairs and smiled when he heard Carly softly talking to Michael through the monitor, then he heard silence for a few moments before hearing footsteps on the stairs. He turned around and smiled when he saw Michael. "Hey buddy," Jason said.

Michael squirmed in Carly's arms and reached for Jason, "He wants his daddy," Carly said as she handed him to Jason. She knew that she should've left Michael upstairs, but this was his first night here.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Jason asked.

Carly laughed as Michael crawled out of Jason's arms into hers, "I love you," Carly whispered and kissed Michael's forehead. She looked at Jason and then back at Michael, as much as she had given Jason to Michael, he had given him to her. Without him, she wasn't sure if she would have had an opportunity to raise her son.

Carly handed Jason Michael's book and he opened it to the animal section, "One chapter?" Jason asked. He glanced at Carly and Michael and she mouthed thank you. He smiled at them, leaning over to kiss Michael and he put his arm around Carly, pulling both of them closer. Carly didn't have anything to thank him for, he would do anything for Michael. His life had been turned upside down since he agreed to be Michael's father, but he wouldn't change a thing.

Carly shifted Michael so he could see the pictures and smiled at Jason, "Just one," Carly said.

Jason reached behind him and dimmed the lamp, "The giraffe is the tallest living animal, uniquely adapted to reach vegetation inaccessible to other herbivores. Giraffes have a..."