Okay, this is my first GH fanfic and only my second story ever, so bear with me. A little background information…Mattie was born in October of 2008 and was not born with HIV, much to everyone's relief. Robin and Patrick married the following year and proceeded to have two more children (daughter Mackenzie Anna in 2012 and son Andrew Robert in 2015). Neither child contracted HIV during birth. Robin's HIV status changed to AIDS in 2026, when Mattie was 18 years old. She later died in 2029. This story begins in 2036, when Mattie in 28 years old, although it may contain flashbacks. Mattie is now a doctor at General Hospital. Mackenzie is 24 and is in medical school at PCU and Andrew is 21 and is in college. Please read the story and review. Thanks so much!

Matilda Georgianna Drake stared at the snowy ground. Biting her lip, she held back the tears that threatened to fall. She wasn't about to let them fall, not for a second. She couldn't, she just couldn't let herself grieve. She would not let herself cry over the mother she'd loved. At least not where anyone could see her.

She jumped as a hand touched her shoulder. Turning around, she saw her Aunt Maxie Jones- Spinelli standing behind her. "Are you alright?" she asked, concerned over her niece.

Mattie shrugged. "I don't know. It's so hard. Even after all these years, I still can't help but wish she was still here."

Maxie nodded and reached over to hug the young woman. "I know what you mean. There are still times when I think 'oh, I should call Georgie and tell her this or that'," she said quietly. "But in your case, it hasn't been that long," she reminded.



"I know. But it feels like it's been years," Mattie said, turning around and walking out of the cemetery. Maxie caught up with her.

"Wait…Mattie…where are you going? Wait, I'll go with you," Maxie huffed, catching her breath as she raced after her long-legged niece. Obviously, Mattie had gotten her height and long legs from her father because Robin had been only a couple inches above five feet.

"I have to be at the hospital in an hour. I agreed to work the night shift tonight," Mattie replied, striding to her car and opening the door.

"Why are you working tonight? You should be with your dad tonight. You can't bury yourself in your work and hope to forget. It doesn't work, Mattie—I should know," Maxie chastised. She hurried around to the other side of the car and opened the door. Sliding in just as Mattie gunned the engine, she sighed. Obviously, the hiding and burying was working for Mattie.

Mattie arrived at the hospital and raced inside, Maxie at her heels. She hurried into the elevator and stabbed the button. Half a minute later, she arrived on the fifth floor and stalked into the locker room to change her clothes, completely ignoring the pleasant hello of Elizabeth Morgan.

Mattie practically ran through the door and toward her locker. Whipping it open, she reached for her scrubs. Furiously biting back tears, she tugged off her jeans. Nothing would stop the tears. She covered her face and leaned against the locker. As the tears fell, she lost all feeling in her legs and collapsed to the floor. Her sobs filled the room as she cried for herself, for her father, for all the time that she'd refused to cry since that day.



Flashback…

Mattie watched from the doorway. She couldn't bear to go in any further. It wasn't the disease that scared her. After all, she was a mere years of schooling from becoming a doctor. It was the blatant fact that the patient wasn't just a face in a room or a name on a file, it was her mother. Her own mother, in that bed, dying from that disease. A disease that had always been a reality in her own life.

From the moment, she had been born, Mattie had been told that she was a miracle child. Robin had suffered from HIV since her teenage years and had defied the disease by going to college and becoming a doctor and ultimately becoming a mother. Everyone knew that a pregnancy when the mother was HIV positive was a risk. Even with drug therapies and good prenatal care, there was still a chance that the baby could contact HIV through the birthing process.

But Robin had defied the odds, by not only choosing to become a mother, but by becoming a mother three times over. And somehow, none of her children had contracted the dreaded disease. Everything had been perfect…until the odds changed and fate caught up with her.

And now, she lay on the bed, as white as the sheet. Robin's eyes were closed and her breath was labored. The doctors said not too long now. It wouldn't be too long before she was gone. Mattie blinked back tears and leaned against the door jam.

As if she heard her, Robin's eyes fluttered open and she turned toward the door. She smiled a tired smile. "What are you doing out there? Come in here," she said softly.



Mattie took a tentative step inside. For the first time in her life, she hated the hospital. She hated the sterile cleanliness of it, the sadness and sickness. But giving in to the illness, she walked, heavy-footed, over to the bed. Taking a seat in the chair, she reached for her mother's frail hand.

Robin reached over and brushed a hand down her daughter's cheek. "Oh my girl, it's okay. It's okay to feel sad. You need to grieve. I know, I went though it with Stone all those years ago. You will get past it—my-my death," she finished breathlessly, as if she'd just run out of steam.

"I can't Mom, it's not fair. Why does it have to happen? Why now?" Mattie sobbed; break her personal rule of not crying in front of her mother.

"Oh Mattie, you knew that this would happen someday. It was inevitable. Even I knew that I would be here someday. And no, it isn't fair, but it's not your fault. It was a choice that was made for me a long time before you were even born," Robin whispered. She reached up touched her daughter's hair. This precious child was the child that she had wanted for so long and now she was being forced to give it all up.

Mattie nodded, but continued to sob. "I know, but it's still not fair. I need you. I can't lose you. Not yet."

"Mattie, you are not losing me forever. I will always be with you. Remember that, sweetheart," Robin's voice died as she grew tired.

"I love you Mom."



"I love you too, sweetheart. You need to be strong, for your dad, your brother and sister, for Mac and your grandparents. Please don't cry over me," Robin asked, wiping the tears from Mattie's face.

Mattie leaned over and placed a kiss on her mother's cheek as Robin's eyes closed again. She grew tired easily these days, a sure sign that the end was near. She stood up and walked toward the door, wiping her tears as she went. She would do what her mother had asked and be strong for her family…at least on the outside. Someday, she would be able to cry over her loss, but now was not the time.

End Flashback…

Even after all these years, Mattie still couldn't bring herself to cry. It was as if she wanted to honor Robin's wish for strength. Even if it was to the extreme.

Mattie huddled on the floor and let her tears fall. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder. Glancing up, she looked into the eyes of her father. Patrick gave a small smile and knelt on the floor beside her.

"I was wondering when this would happen," he murmured, pulling her into his arms and stroking her back.

"Oh Daddy, why?" she sobbed, leaning into him.

"I wish I knew, baby," Patrick said, rubbing a hand down her sable colored hair—identical to her mother and the love of his life. Her question baffled him. It was one he'd been asking himself since Robin's death. And it was one, he knew, that would continue to perplex him for as long as he lived.



Okay, that was a corny ending, I know. But I just couldn't figure out how to end this chapter. That was the one question that was perplexing me for a while. Anyway, is it horrible? I hope not. This story is about Robin's child with Patrick (the one that she is having this coming October). But it will also include the future of General Hospital (the children of the main characters). Please read and review. It helps me be more creative.