Raegan refolded the shirts in the suitcase. "Why is it that guys can't seem to pack their clothes right?" she thought to herself.
She felt a strong pair of hands reach around her waist, onto her belly.
"She sure is getting big," Adrian said.
Raegan turned her head towards his face and kissed him. Then she asked him, "How do you know it's gonna be a girl? You always say that!"
"I just know," he said, smiling. "I hate that I have to go out of town, with you so close to your due date. But, I promise, I will be back as soon as I can. If she does decide to come early, you give me a call as soon as you know she's coming, and I'll come back right away."
"She does still have another week," Raegan said. "Everything else has gone according to schedule, so she'll probably decide to come on time."
"I sure hope so," Adrian said. "But we need to get to the airport!"
Raegan zipped up the suitcase.
Adrian picked up the suitcase and they walked out to the car. The trip to the airport took longer than usual; there was lots of traffic. When they got there, they rushed to get Adrian's baggage checked and to get to the gate.
"Now, don't forget about the meeting with the real estate dealer tomorrow. Pick whichever of the houses we've narrowed it down to that you like. I want our little daughter to have a home when she comes; I want us out of the PC hotel. Then, call the movers and tell them where to bring our stuff, you tell them where to put everything, I know you'll do a great job," Adrian said.
"I though we moved to Port Charles so you wouldn't have to go out of town as much," she said with a little giggle.
"You know I'll be back as soon as I can," Adrian said. Bending down to the baby's level, he told it, "Now, you stay in there, I'll be back soon! Wait for your daddy!"
"Adrian, you really must get going," Raegan said as they called for his flight for the third time.
"I love you Raegan, I'll miss you," he said, kissing her.
"I'll miss you, too," she told him.
"I'll call you tonight," he said, giving Raegan another kiss, then bending down to kiss the baby. "Bye bye, little daughter."
"Goodbye, Adrian," Raegan said, leaving the terminal gate. She went down to a hall where she could watch his plane take off. After she'd seen it, she went back and caught a cab back to the hotel.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Scott stared at the invitation. Lucy'd promised him, she only had feelings for him.
"Guess not," he said out loud. "Lucy and Kevin will be married tomorrow."
"Hey Daddy!" Serena said, coming in the door.
"Hey Munchkin! How was school?"
"Great!" Serena said. "Eve's coming over soon to play with my hair. She's gonna fix it for me for the wedding tomorrow. Has she called?"
"No, honey, she hasn't called."
"What's wrong, Daddy?"
"I'm fine, sweetie."
"Are you upset that Lucy's gonna marry Kevin?"
"No, I'm happy for her."
"I miss Lucy living here at the firehouse."
"I miss her too."
"Eve's here!!!" Serena exclaimed, as she heard a car outside.
"Hey girlfriend!" Eve said coming inside. "I got the gear! We gonna do this upstairs?"
"Yeah, we are. Is that okay, Daddy?"
"Yeah, sure, that's fine."
"C'mon Eve!" Serena said, leading her upstairs.
Once they were in the bathroom, Eve asked, "What's wrong with your daddy?"
"He's sad that Lucy's marrying Kevin, but he won't admit it," Serena said. "Or, he's sad that Lucy and Kevin are back together, like they used to be and you and him aren't. He does miss you, Eve, and so do I."
"I miss your daddy, too, Serena."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As Raegan got ready for bed that night, the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hello, this is a representative from Port Charles Airlines. Is this Raegan McAndrews?"
"Y-Yes, it is. Is there something wrong?
"I'm sorry to have to inform you of this, but PCA Flight 157 has gone down."
Raegan was speechless for a while. Then she said, "Is everyone alright?"
"I'm sorry, ma'am, we haven't found any survivors. We've searched all of the wreckage, there's no way that anyone survived."
Raegan felt a sinking feeling inside. "Thank you." She hung up the phone.
Raegan layed back in the bed and closed her eyes. She didn't know what to think. Could Adrian really be gone? How could this happen, with their child so near? They were supposed to be starting the perfect life. Now he was gone.
Raegan felt a sharp pain. Could the baby be coming? Already? She couldn't think. This was all too much. How was she supposed to raise her child, without Adrian? She lay back in the bed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Wish You Were Here Written by: Skip Ewing, Bill Anderson & Debbie Moore
They kissed goodbye at the terminal gate She said, ''You're gonna be late if you don't go'' He held her tight, said, ''I'll be alright I'll call you tonight to let you know'' He bought a postcard, on the front it just said Heaven With a picture of the ocean and beach And the simple words he wrote her Said he loved her and they told her How he'd hold her if his arms would reach
Wish you were here, wish you could see this place Wish you were near, I wish I could touch your face The weather's nice, it's paradise It's summertime all year and there's some folks we know They say, ''Hello, I miss you so, wish you were here''
She got a call that night but it wasn't from him It didn't sink in right away, ma'am the plane went down Our crews have searched the ground No survivors found she heard him say But somehow she got a postcard in the mail That just said Heaven with a picture of the ocean and the beach And the simple words he wrote her Said he loved her and they told her How he'd hold her if his arms would reach
Wish you were here, wish you could see this place Wish you were near, I wish I could touch your face The weather's nice, it's paradise It's summertime all year and there's some folks we know They say, ''Hello, I miss you so, wish you were here''
The weather's nice, in paradise It's summertime all year and all the folks we know They say, ''Hello, I miss you so, wish you were here'' Wish you were here
Into the Heart, Chapter 2: "Two Teardrops"
"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy," Serena repeated, hovering over Scott's bed.
"What, what is it sweetie," he said, still not opening his eyes.
"Daddy!!!" she repeated. "GET UP!"
"Uh, yeah, sure," Scott said, rolling over.
"Daddy, Eve's gonna be here in thirty minutes to fix my hair for real for the wedding! You've gotta make breakfast!!!"
"Sure, honey, I'll be up in a minute."
"Errrr, Daddy!" Serena tugged at Scott's arm. He finally relented and got out of bed. Scott wasn't looking forward to this day. He'd rather have just stayed there in bed all day, like what was going on down at the church wasn't happening.
Scott went down to the kitchen and whipped up some pancakes and set them down on the table, along with all the normal toppings: syrup, whipped cream, chocolate syrup, strawberries, everything.
Just as Serena ate her last bit, the doorbell rang.
She jumped up and bolted to the door. "Eve!"
"Hey there Serena! You read for the wedding!?!"
"Yup, I sure am! C'mon, let's go upstairs, you can fix my hair just like how we agreed on last nite. Daddy, do you wanna come watch?"
"No, Serena, that's okay. Daddy's gotta get ready, too, you know," Scott told her.
"Aw, you know all you're gonna do is put on that old suit you only wear for weddings and funerals and mess up your hair a little, hehehe," she giggled.
"C'mon Serena, we better get a move on things!" Eve told her.
"Okay," Serena said, running up the spiral staircase.
About forty minutes later, Serena came down the stairs.
"What do you think, Daddy?" she said, twirling around making her dress poof out.
"What? Who's this? This can't be MY little Serena. My Serena is eight years old, this girl in front of me must be at least 12!" Scott said to her.
Serena giggled, "It is me, Daddy. You always say stuff like that."
"Okay, whatever you say. Why don't you run out and get in the car, me and Eve will be there in a sec, okay?" Scott said.
"Okay!" Serena headed out the door.
Once they were alone, Eve said to Scott, "You really don't have to go. I'll watch out for Serena."
"No, Eve, it's okay, Lucy and I are still friends, no hard feelings, she loves Kevin, her heart belongs to him." Scott left the firehouse.
As the door slammed, Eve thought, "Yeah, sure Baldwin. You say you don't still want Lucy, just like I say I don't still want you."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Raegan was still staring at the ceiling. The pain got worse, and more frequent, but she still just lay there.
She couldn't think. This was all just too much. The baby was coming, she knew that, but this was supposed to be the best day of her life, other than the day she married Adrian. Adrian was supposed to be here with her; he was supposed to be frantically gathering her clothes and driving her to the hospital.
But he wasn't here.
He was gone.
She knew she had to get to the hospital somehow.
She reached over and picked up the phone and dialed the number for the front desk.
"Hello! Port Charles Hotel," the person on the other line said. "How may I help you?"
"Um, yes, I'm in room 472, I need you to call..." the pain came again even worse, it was all she could do not to scream into the phone "...an ambulance. Or someone to take me to the hospital, I'm almost nine months pregnant and the baby is coming."
"Yes, ma'am, I'll do that right away, room 472, right?"
"Yes, please hurry."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Scott sat there on the back pew of the church. The wedding was over. Lucy and Kevin had said "I do" and everyone had left for the reception. Lucy had promised Scott that she loved only him. Lot of good promises do, Scott thought.
Scott stood up and walked slowly to the front of the church. He didn't notice that Eve had walked into the back of the church.
Scot sat down on the second pew, and slammed his hands down on the one in front of him. It made Eve jump; she almost gave herself away.
"Lucy, why'd you do this to me? You said forever. Just a month ago......just a month ago. Just a month ago, you were living at the firehouse. Just a month ago you said you wanted to be with me. Then, one day I wake up, I find all of your things gone, I find a note on the nightstand, you've left. You've decided that Kevin is the one for you and that you two are already headed to the Bahamas for a little vacation before your wedding. Seems that you'd already decided that you didn't want to be with me, you'd already been planning the wedding, behind my back. That's not what friends do, Lucy, it's not what friends do."
Eve had never seen Scott like this. He was crying, he was so upset. Eve had never seen him shed a tear, not even after Serena's accident.
"No hard feelings, huh?" Eve thought as she turned and left the church.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"What do we have here?" Chris asked as a patient was wheeled into the ER.
"24 year old female, Raegan McAndrews, she's at 39 weeks, she was in labor when we got to her hotel room," Frank (*note* yes, Frank is still an EMT, not working at the Recovery Room) said.
"Raegan, I'm Dr. Ramsey, I need to know a few things," Chris said, going over that list of things that they have to ask all conscious patients. "Is there anyone you'd like me to have called? Family?"
"No, I don't have any family in Port Charles," Raegan said.
"The baby's father?" Chris asked.
Raegan became frozen again, like she had been earlier. Adrian should be here. This wasn't happening. The baby couldn't come without Adrian here. Not without him.
The next thing that Raegan remembered was waking up in a hospital room, Dr. Ramsey beside her.
"W-what happened?" she asked him.
"You passed out there in the ER. After I asked you about the baby's father," Chris said.
"My baby....Where's my baby? How is she, or he?"
"You have a beautiful little girl, would you like me to have her brought in here?"
"Yes, please."
Chris picked up the phone and called down to the nursery.
"Baby girl McAndrews will be here in a few minutes."
"Thank you," Raegan said. To herself, she muttered, "Today was supposed to be one of the happiest days of your life..........."
"Did you say something?" Chris asked. "What's wrong, you can tell me."
Just then, the door opened, and a bassinet was wheeled in.
"Here she is, Raegan, would you like to hold her?" Chris asked.
"Yes, of course," Raegan said, for the first time smiling.
Chris carefully laid the newborn in Raegan's arms. Raegan smoothed the blanket out of her daughter's face. Adrian had known it was going to be a girl, she thought to herself. She has soft, light brown hair, like her father's, Raegan thought.
"Do you have a name picked out?" Chris asked.
"Yes, yes, I do," Raegan said, a tear of joy of seeing her beautiful baby girl rolled down her cheek. "Kaitlyn McAndrews."
Another tear fell, this one sad. "Kaitlyn Adrianne McAndrews."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Two Teardrops" (Steve Wariner)
Written by: Bill Anderson/Steve Wariner
TWO TEARDROPS WERE FLOATING DOWN THE RIVER; ONE TEARDROP SAID TO THE OTHER, "I'M FROM THE SOFT BLUE EYES OF A WOMAN IN LOVE. I'M A TEAR OF JOY SHE COULDN'T CARRY SHE WAS SO HAPPY SHE JUST GOT MARRIED...I WAS ON HER CHECK WHEN WHE WIPED ME AWAY WITH HER GLOVE... I COULD TELL FROM THE LOOK ON HER FACE SHE DIDN'T NEED ME, SO I DRIFTED ON DOWN AND CAUGHT ME A RIDE TO THE SEA." THE OTHER TEAR SAID, "WE'VE GOT A CONNECTION...I'M A TEAR OF SORROW BORN OF REJECTION. I'M FROM THE SAD BROWN EYES OF HER OLD FLAME. SHE TOLD HIM THEY WOULD BE LIFE-LONG COMPANIONS..LEFT HIM WITH QUESTIONS AND NOT ANY ANSWERS. I WAS ON HIS CHEEK AS HE STOOD THERE CALLING HER NAME. I COULD TELL HE HAD A LOT OF MY FRIENDS FOR COMPANY...SO I DRIFTED ON DOWN AND CAUGHT ME A RIDE TO THE SEA." OH, THE OCEAN'S A LITTLE BIT BIGGER TONIGHT... TWO MORE TEARDROPS SOMEBODY CRIED, ONE OF THEM HAPPY AND ONE OF THEM BLUER THAN BLUE. THE TIDE GOES OUT AND THE TIDE COMES IN... SOMEDAY THEY'LL BE TEARDROPS AGAIN, RELEASED IN A MOMENT OF PLEASURE OR A MOMENT OF PAIN. THEN THEY DRIFT ON DOWN AND RIDE TO THE SEA AGAIN. (TWO TEARDROPS) (TWO TEARDROPS)
LAST NIGHT I SAT IN THE WAITING ROOM. A NURSE WALKED IN AND GAVE ME THE NEWS: "IT'S A BABY GIRL AND THEY'RE BOTH FINE." AN OLD MAN SITTIN' NOT TEN FEET AWAY JUST LOST HIS WIFE AND HE SAID TO ME, "YOU'VE GOT A BRAND NEW ANGEL AND I'VE LOST MINE. I GUESS THE GOOD LORD GIVETH AND THE GOOD LORD TAKETH AWAY" AND WE BOTH WIPED A TEAR DROP FROM OUR FACE.
OH, THE OCEAN'S A LITTLE BIT BIGGER TONIGHT... TWO MORE TEARDROPS SOMEBODY CRIED, ONE OF THEM HAPPY AND ONE OF THEM BLUER THAN BLUE. THE TIDE GOES OUT AND THE TIDE COMES IN, A WHOLE NEW CIRCLE OF LIFE BEGINS WHERE TEARS ARE A PART OF THE PLEASURE AND PART OF THE PAIN... TILL THEY DRIFT ON DOWN AND RIDE TO THE SEA AGAIN...
TWO TEARDROPS FLOATING DOWN THE RIVER... (TWO TEARDROPS) TWO TEARDROPS FLOATING DOWN THE RIVER... (UHHHHHHHHH) TWO TEARDROPS (MMMMMMMMM)
INTO THE HEART Chapter 3 "No Place that Far"
"She's so adorable!" Raegan said, as she peered through the glass at the nursery window.
"She is," Chris agreed. "Are you ready to go back to your room?"
"Yeah, sure."
Chris walked with Raegan back to her room and told her, "I'll be by within the hour with your discharge papers, okay?"
"Discharge? Already?" Raegan asked. "I remember when my sister was born, Momma stayed in the hospital for several days, I've hardly been her 24 hours."
"Well, things have changed, I guess," Chris said. "There's no need for the two of you to stay, you're both perfectly healthy."
"Well, okay, Dr. Ramsey," Raegan said.
"Chris, please."
"Chris, I'll see you in an hour, then."
Chris left Raegan in her room. Out in the hall, Lark came up to him.
"Who was that patient I just saw you with?" she asked.
Chris pointed to the nameplate by the door and walked off down the hall.
"Raegan Mc-" Lark read. "What is she doing in Port Charles?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Serena was over at Karen's, so Scott was home alone.
He went outside and looked up at the sky.
"Even though it is day, I know your star is up there, Dominique. I need your help now, it can't wait till tonite. Well, it could, but you know me, you know me better than anyone. Look at this mess I'm in! Lucy swore she'd be with me, and now she's off somewhere on her honeymoon, with Kevin."
"It's really not as bad as you think, Scott," a voice said, seemingly behind him, but at the same time, in front of him, he always seemed to be able to hear Dominique when he needed her.
"A lot of good your advice did this time. You told me I needed to move on, I needed to get over you, I needed to love someone else, so that Serena would know what that is. I did, I loved Lucy, I mean, I love Lucy, and look where it got me!"
"Maybe Lucy isn't who you're supposed to love."
"What?!?! Who else other than Lucy? We were stuck down there in Florida for a reason last fall, we rediscovered our love. If not Lucy, who?"
The voice didn't answer.
"Who?" Scott repeated. "Who?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Raegan, I have the papers here, all you have to do is sign," Chris said, coming back into her room.
Raegan took the papers from him and signed them.
"Is someone going to come pick you up here?" Chris asked.
"There's no one to pick me up," Raegan told him.
"Are you sure? You need someone to stay with you for the first couple of weeks, with you and Kaitlyn, there's no one in Port Charles for you? No family?" Chris asked.
"No."
"Not even Kaitlyn's father?" Chris asked. She could tell that he didn't approve that Adrian hadn't been here with them.
"Adrian, my husband, Kaitlyn's father, he was....he......." she couldn't finish.
"What?" Chris asked. He could tell she was upset.
"He......he died, in a plane crash, the nite that Kaitlyn was born, that's why he's not with us."
"I'm so sorry," Chris said, hugging Raegan. "Is there anything I can do for you and Kaitlyn?"
"Well, we really need a place to stay, we'd been at the PC Hotel, I was supposed to go yesterday to finalize the contract on the house, but that didn't happen because Kaitlyn decided to come a week early, so, all of our stuff is in storage, and we don't have a house, do you know of somewhere we could go?"
"You don't have any friends or anyone in Port Charles that you can stay with?"
"No, we just moved here less than a week ago, I haven't gotten to meet anyone, except you."
"Well then, that settles it!" he said.
"What?"
"My roommate, Eve, moved out a while ago, so I'm kinda lonely, I'd be happy to have you and Kaitlyn come stay with me until you can get your own place," Chris offered.
"Really, Dr. Ramsey, I can't accept."
"It's Chris, and you can," he said, flashing that beautiful smile of his.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Eve sat out on the balcony of her new apartment that nite, looking at the stars. She saw the really bright one, the one that Serena calls "Mommy's Star."
"Dominique, if you're really up there, we need some help down here! I guess you know it's totally not like me to have conversations with stars, so that must mean I'm pretty desperate for help! Well, see, Lucy and Scott were together and me and Kevin were together then all of a sudden Lucy and Kevin decided they wanted to be back together and they went and got married. Well, Kevin and I had discussed this, and we'd decided that we were happier being friends, and I wanted him to be with the woman he really loves, so I was totally okay at letting him go off with Lucy. But, Lucy never told Scott about any of this, she just up and left him, with just a little note on the nightstand. Well, I guess you already know all this.... I'm rambling.... Okay, so, we need a little help! I still have feelings for Scott, and it seems Serena thinks he might still have feelings for me, would I be crazy to try to go ahead with things?"
"Everything will work out for the best," Eve heard a soft voice whisper.
Eve looked all around. No one. There was no one there.
"I hope the best is what I want. There's nothing that could happen that could ever make my feelings for Scott go away, I'll always love him. No matter how stubborn he can be, he will see that."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Here it is!" Chris said, opening the door to his apartment.
"It really is too kind of you to let us stay here," Raegan said, probably for the millionth time.
"C'mon, I told you, you need a place to stay, I have room, you and Kaitlyn are welcome as long as you need," Chris told her.
"Where did this stuff come from?" she asked him.
"This baby stuff? I had a neighbor bring it over, her kids are in school now, she was happy to lend it to us until we get your things for Kaitlyn."
"That was nice of her," Raegan said.
"I'll go lay down Kaitlyn in the bedroom, she looks tired."
"Okay," Raegan said.
After Chris had left the room, Raegan sat down at his desk and found a piece of paper and a pen.
Adrian, I never thought this would happen. I never thought that we would be apart. There was nothing that would have ever driven us apart. Nothing. No matter how far you were away on business, no matter what, I knew you would come home to me. This was the only thing that could ever take you away from me, and it happened. I miss you already, Adrian.
I love you, Raegan
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"No Place that Far" Sara Evans (with Vince Gill) Written by: Sara Evans, Tom Shapiro, and Tony Martin
I can't imagine any greater fear Than wakin' up without you here And though the sun would still shine on My whole world would all be gone But not for long
If I had to run, if I had to crawl If I had to swim a hundred rivers Just to climb a thousand walls Always know that I would find a way To get to where you are There's no place that far
It wouldn't matter why we're apart Lonely miles or two stubborn hearts Nothing short of God above Could turn me away from your love I need you that much
If I had to run, if I had to crawl If I had to swim a hundred rivers Just to climb a thousand walls Always know that I would find a way To get to where you are There's no place that far
If I had to run, if I had to crawl If I had to swim a hundred rivers Just to climb a thousand walls Always know that I would find a way To get to where you are There's no place that far
Baby, there's no place that far.
"Into the Heart" Chapter 4 "Can't Be Really Gone"
Raegan slipped the key card into the door and waited for the green light to come on. She opened the door and entered the hotel room.
"You don't have to do this, you know," Chris told her.
"Yes, yes I do," she said softly.
"Well, is there anything I can do to help you?" he asked.
"Just being here for support is help enough."
Chris sat down on the bed, holding Kaitlyn.
Raegan went over to the closet and started taking down her and Adrian's clothes. The suitcases were open on the table and she loaded them into them.
Chris was trying to amuse Kaitlyn. He kept tickling her tiny feet. He was so good with her, like he was born to be a father.
Raegan then went to the drawers and took out more of their belongings. It still didn't seem true to her that Adrian was really gone. Being back in their room was like he wasn't gone. All of his things were still here.
Kaitlyn started to fuss a little. Chris held her in his arm (she looked so tiny up against him) and rubbed her back a little. She quieted right down.
Raegan went over to the nightstand and took their things off of it.
Chris looked down at Kaitlyn. She'd fallen asleep in his arm.
Raegan zipped up the suitcases. There was a knock on the door.
She went over, looked through the peephole, and opened the door.
"Mrs. McAndrews, here is your mail," the hotel worker said to her, handing her some envelopes.
He left as she sifted through the mail. A postcard caught her eye.
On the front of it was a picture of the beach. It said "Heaven." On the back, there was a message from Adrian. It said how he loved her, how he already missed her, even though he hadn't even left the airport yet. It said how he'd hold her, if he were there with her.
"What is it?" Chris asked.
"It's a postcard, from Adrian," she said, as tears started to fall.
Chris lay Kaitlyn down on the bed and went over to Raegan. "How?" he asked.
"He must've sent it before he left," she said as she sat down in a chair.
"It's okay," he said softly, wiping away a tear, brushing her deep red hair out of her face.
Chris called down for a bellhop. They waited as her luggage was loaded onto the cart and they went back to his apartment.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Daddy, can Eve come over?" Serena asked.
"Hasn't she been over enough lately?" Scott asked back.
Serena gave him a devilish little smile. She was determined to make him realize he still had feelings for Eve. "Nope! Eve promised me that she'd teach me a card game, can she PUH-LEASE come over???"
"Alright, you go call her. Do you have her new number?"
"Yup! I set it as number one on the speed dial!"
He shook his head at her, as she ran off to the kitchen to call Eve. He knew she was up to something.
Serena came back after a few minutes.
"She'll be over in a few minutes! She said she just got home from her shift."
"Okay, but I know one little girl that better go clean up her dolls in her room!"
"Okay, Daddy," Serena said, going up to her room.
About ten minutes later, Eve knocked on the door.
Scott went to answer it.
"Hi, Scott," Eve said, looking kind of nervous.
"Hello, Eve," he said, looking about the same.
"EVE!!!" Serena yelled from the top of the stairs. She went over to the fire poll, slid down, and ran over to the door.
"Hey girlfriend! You ready to play some Spit?"
"Spit?" Scott asked. "No spitting in the house."
"You don't really spit, Scott, it's the name of the game," Eve reassured him.
Eve and Serena sat down at the coffee table and Eve began to teach her how to play.
Scott kept walking back and forth behind the couch, looking over their shoulders.
"Okay, I think you're ready to play!" Eve said to Serena.
They played their first game. Eve let Serena win.
"Wow, you're really good at this!" Eve told Serena.
"Thanks!" Serena said. "Daddy, do you want a turn?"
"Aww, Serena, I don't think so," Scott said.
"C'mon Daddy, please?"
"Yeah, c'mon Daddy, please??" Eve said, mocking Serena.
"Oh, alright," he said, sitting down on the other side of Serena.
Eve and Scott began their game.
At the same instant, they both went to slap the cards. Scott's hand landed on top of Eve's.
They both looked up. They sorta smiled at each other; Serena gave them a big smile. Scott's hand still lingered on top of Eve's.
He looked down and mumbled something and took back his hand.
They finished their game in silence.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chris had been called into the hospital shortly after he and Raegan had returned to his apartment.
"Hey Chris," Karen said to him as he studied a chart.
"Hey Karen," he said, not looking up.
"So, who was that woman I saw you with earlier at the Port Charles Hotel?"
"How did you see us?"
Lark walked up near them. She was putting some mail in the mailboxes and couldn't help but overhear them.
"I was at the Grille, having lunch with Joe," she said. "Was that her baby you were holding?"
"Yeah, the baby's name is Kaitlyn. Her mother is Raegan McAndrews; she's a friend of mine. She needed a place to stay for a while, she's staying at my place, we had to come back to the hotel to get her things."
"Uh, huh," she said, raising her eyebrows a little.
"Stop it," he said. "Eve and I lived together for a long time, we never did anything!"
"Yeah, I'm sure you didn't want to, did you?"
He shook his head at her and left to go see a patient.
"She's staying at Chris's?" Lark asked herself, making a mental note of that.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Eve, Serena, and Scott sat down on the couch to watch a movie later that afternoon.
"Can we have some popcorn?" Serena asked.
"Sure, Applesauce," Scott said, jumping up from the couch.
"I'll help," Eve said. Any chance to be alone with Scott. :)
Scott got out the popcorn maker pan thingy and sat it on the stove.
"No microwave popcorn?" Eve asked.
"I like it better this way," he said.
"Okay..." Eve said. She went over to the pantry and got out the popcorn kernels.
Scott poured some oil into the pan.
"I've never used one of these before, or at least not in a long time," Eve told him.
"Well, here, you just add the popcorn," Scott said, pouring it in. "Then you turn the handle on the lid and that keeps the popcorn from sticking to the pan."
He turned the handle.
"Let me try," she said, with a little giggle.
She took hold of the handle and tried to turn it. It stuck a little.
"Here, let me help," Scott said, putting his hand on the handle with hers, helping her turn it.
She loved the feeling of his hand on hers, and him leaning over her. She wished they could be this close always.
"What's taking you all so long?!?" Serena yelled from the living room.
"It's almost done, sweetie," Scott and Eve said in unison.
They both turned their heads and smiled at each other.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Raegan sat at Chris's apartment, all alone. Well, Kaitlyn was there, but she was asleep in the bedroom.
There was a knock at the door. She got up and looked through the peephole.
"What?" she asked herself, shocked at who was on the other side.
There was another knock. "Raegan, are you there?"
"Yeah, just a sec," she said, unbolting the door.
"Raegan, it's so great to see you!" Lark said, giving her a hug. "Why didn't you tell me you were in Port Charles?"
"How did you know I was here?" Raegan asked. "I didn't know you were still in Port Charles."
"I overheard Chris telling Karen that you were staying here. I saw you with him the other day at the hospital, are you okay?" Lark asked.
"Of course I am. I was there because my daughter was born," Raegan told her.
"You and Adrian have a little girl?" she asked excitedly.
"Yes, she's a week old today."
"What's her name?"
"I named her Kaitlyn, Kaitlyn Adrianne."
"Where is Adrian? You aren't having problems, are you? Or is he just on another business trip?"
"Lark..." Raegan said, sitting down on the couch, "Adrian died last week, in a plane crash."
"Oh, Raegan, I'm so sorry! How are you doing?" Lark asked.
"I'm doing a little better. Chris has been a big help. And, keeping care of Kaitlyn helps."
Lark and Raegan heard a little cry from the bedroom.
"Could you go get her up?" Raegan asked.
"Sure," Lark said, going to the bedroom.
She returned a few minutes later, carrying Kaitlyn.
She sat down on the couch again, next to Raegan. She held Kaitlyn on her lap.
"She's adorable, Raegan," Lark said, smiling.
"I know," she said, taking hold of Kaitlyn's tiny fingers. "Kaitlyn, this is your Aunt Lark."
Kaitlyn sorta looked up, at Lark.
Lark and Raegan heard the jiggle of a key in the lock at the door. They both looked up as Chris came in.
He looked surprised. "What are you doing here, Lark?"
"Chris, Lark is my little sister," Raegan explained.
"Really?" he asked. "Sisters?"
"Is it that hard to imagine?" Lark asked.
"I thought you said you didn't have any family in Port Charles, Raegan," Chris said.
"I didn't know that Lark still lives here. I hadn't seen her since last spring when she came visit me in Texas," Raegan said.
"You went all the way to Texas last spring when you ran away?" Chris asked.
"You ran away?" Raegan asked. "No one knew that you were out there with me?"
"Well...no," Lark said. "Actually, some people thought I was dead."
"Why?" Raegan asked.
"Frank, he was my foster father then, he was on this experimental drug, DL-56, at the time. He'd fallen off the hospital roof trying to save me and they didn't think he'd live, so one of the doctors gave him that, but the side effects were awful and he destroyed the living room at the house. It was really scary, so I took off and flew down to be with you and Adrian. There was a serial killer going around at the time, some people thought it was Frank, it turned out to be his girlfriend, Julie, so some people thought he'd killed me. Well, when I returned to Port Charles, I never told anyone where I'd gone, I told them I'd stayed here in Port Charles."
"Where are you staying now?" Raegan asked her.
"I still live with Frank," Lark told her. "Frank adopted me, the papers went through on my eighteenth birthday."
"Is he better now?" Raegan asked.
"He's off of DL-56, if that's what you mean. He's not violent anymore, that was just because he was having trouble getting DL-56. Some of the side effects are permanent, but he's done a good job at dealing with them."
"As long as you are happy," Raegan said.
"I am," Lark told her. "And I'm happy that you and Kaitlyn are here in Port Charles."
"Uh, excuse me while I barf," Chris said.
"Chris!" Raegan and Lark both yelled, reaching for pillows to hurl at him.
"Okay, okay!" he said. "It's getting a little late, Lark, Daddy Frank's gonna start getting worried about you."
"Yeah, I better get going," Lark said, looking at her watch. "It was great to see you, Raegan, and to meet my little niece. If you need anything, just call, okay?"
"Okay," Raegan said, giving Lark a hug.
Lark gave Kaitlyn to Raegan and started towards the door.
Chris followed her out and told her, "It was good of you to come over, I haven't seen her this happy."
"She is my sister, Chris, I should be here for her."
"I want you to know, you are welcome here, at any time."
"Thanks," she said, heading down the hall.
Chris went back inside the apartment to see Raegan playing with Kaitlyn. He just smiled.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Can't Be Really Gone Tim McGraw
Her hat is hanging by the door The one she bought in Mexico It blocked the wind-it stopped the rain She'd never leave that one So, she can't be really gone
The shoes she bought on Christmas Eve She laughed and said they called her name It's like they're waiting in the hall For her slip them on So, she can't be really gone
I don't when she'll come back She must intend to come back And I've seen the error of my ways Don't waste the tears on me What more proof to you need Just look around the room So much of her remains
Her book is lying on the bed The two of hearts to mark her page Now, who could ever walk away At chapter twenty-one So, she can't be really gone
Just look around this room So much of her remains
Her book is lying on the bed The two of hearts to mark her page Now, who could ever walk away With so much left undone So, she can't be really gone No, she can't be really gone
"Into the Heart" Chapter 5 "What Makes You Stay"
Scott lay in bed that night, staring at the ceiling.
After today, he just did not know what to think.
He had thought that he knew that his heart belonged to Lucy, but with her off with Kevin, and she was so happy, he knew that their relationship wouldn't work. She'd hurt him too badly by leaving like that.
But then there was today.
It was almost like old times. Him and Eve and Serena had used to have such fun just hanging out together, being together.
Now he was so confused.
How could he think his feelings for Lucy were so real, but then, he enjoyed being with Eve so much?
Scott rolled over and tried to sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The next morning, Raegan was still asleep in the bedroom, but Kaitlyn had woken up. Chris had slipped in and gotten her up and now was sitting on the couch with her.
Kaitlyn was a little fussy, she wanted her mommy, so Chris began to sing to her, "Beautiful dreamer, Wake unto me, Starlight and dewdrops, Are awaiting thee, Sounds of the rude world, Heard in the day, Led by the moonlight, Have all passed away, Beautiful dreamer, Queen of my song, List' while I woo thee, With soft melody, Gone are the cares of, Life's busy throng, Beautiful dreamer, Awake unto me, Beautiful dreamer, Awake unto me."
Raegan awakened to the beautiful sound of Chris's voice.
As she closed the door to the bedroom, Chris looked up.
"Oh, I didn't mean to wake you," he said.
"Don't worry, you didn't," she said. "I didn't know you knew any lullabies. It was beautiful."
"Well, with the losers for parents that I had, I was always taking care of my little sister Marina when she was little, and the only way she'd calm down was if I sang to her," Chris told her.
"It was good you were there for her," Raegan said, not wanting to stick her nose into Chris's business.
Someone pounded at the door. "CHRIS!!! Open the door! I know you're here!!" Eve yelled.
Raegan went over and opened the door.
"Chris, you'd never believe..." Eve started to say. "Oh, you're not Chris..."
Eve looked around the room, at Raegan and at Chris, holding Kaitlyn.
"Umm...I guess I came at a bad time...I'll just come back later, okay?" Eve said.
"No, Eve, it's okay. Eve, this is my new roommate Raegan McAndrews and her daughter Kaitlyn," Chris said.
"Hi, nice to meet you, sorry I yelled like that," Eve said.
"Nice to meet you, too," Raegan said as the phone rang.
Chris answered it. "Hello?....Sure, just a sec."
He handed the phone to Raegan. She looked a little surprised.
Chris went back over to Eve as Raegan talked on the phone.
"So, how did this happen?" Eve asked him.
"This?"
"You, Raegan, Kaitlyn?"
"Oh, well, Raegan's new in town, she didn't know anyone and she needed a place to stay, so I invited her to stay here for a little while."
Raegan hung up the phone and came over to Chris and told him, "That was Lark, she invited me and Kaitlyn to breakfast with her. She said she'll be here in about ten minutes to pick us up."
"Lark?" Eve asked.
"Lark's my little sister," Raegan explained.
"Do you know she's living with the Scanlons'?" Eve asked.
"Yes, I told her that as long as she's happy there, then she should stay there."
"You advised your sister to stay in a home where her adoptive father used to be a drugged up maniac and a serial killer used to live downstairs? Not to mention that wacko Courtney, what kind of role model can she be on such an impressionable teenager?"
"Eve, I just found out yesterday that Lark still lives in Port Charles, if I think that she should not be at the Scanlons' then I'll tell her that she should move out. She is eighteen; she can make her own decisions. She's gotten through her life pretty well making her own decisions, our mother was such a drunk and a nut case and our father was never there for us, the first chance I got I was out of Port Charles and never looked back. I didn't see her again till last spring when she showed up at our house in Dallas."
"She went to see you when she ran away?" Eve asked.
"Yes!!! Am I the ONLY one who knew where she was?"
"I think so, Raegan, why don't you go get ready, Lark's gonna be here any minute," Chris said.
Raegan went back into the bedroom.
"I'm sorry Chris, I didn't mean to make her mad, what is wrong with me?" Eve asked.
"Nothing's wrong with you, Eve, you just seem like you've been having a hard time, so now you're taking it out on others," Chris said. "You want to talk about it?"
"Isn't that why I always come to you?" Eve smiled.
"Yeah, it sure is," he said.
Lark knocked on the door.
"Raegan, you ready? Lark's here!" Chris yelled.
"Yeah, just about!" she yelled back.
Chris opened the door for Lark.
"She'll be out in a minute," Chris told her.
"Okay. Hi Eve!" Lark said.
"Hi Lark."
"Okay, I'm ready!" Raegan said, coming out, holding Kaitlyn's car seat and her diaper bag.
Lark took Kaitlyn from Chris.
"Bye Chris. Bye Eve," Lark said.
"Bye Chris, Eve," Raegan said.
"Bye!" Chris and Eve said together.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Raegan held the door to Kelly's open for Lark, who was carrying Kaitlyn.
The sat down at a table and looked at the menus.
A few minutes later, Liz came over to their table and asked for their orders.
"Hi Liz!" Lark said. "How are you doing?"
"Hi Lark. I'm doing good, a little better every day."
"That's good. I hate that since school let out, we haven't seen as much of each other."
"Yeah."
"Liz, this is my big sister, Raegan, and her daughter Kaitlyn. Raegan, this is my friend Liz, Elizabeth Webber."
"It's nice to meet you," Liz said.
"You too," Raegan said.
Liz got their orders and went back to the kitchen.
"Liz's boyfriend, Lucky Spencer, was killed in a fire a few months ago," Lark told Raegan.
"How awful! Were they really close?" she asked.
"As close as any two people could be after how short of a time they'd known each other. They were really soulmates. They were going to be together forever, and in an instant all their plans and hopes for the future were gone," Lark told her.
"Like me and Adrian," Raegan said.
"Sort of. But you have Kaitlyn," Lark said.
"Yes, I do have Kaitlyn," Raegan said, looking down at her daughter.
Liz brought them their breakfast a few minutes later and they started to eat it.
"So, I wanted to ask you something, about last spring," Raegan said.
Lark looked up from her plate, uneasily.
"What was going on here in Port Charles?"
"How far back do you want?" Lark asked.
"Lark, you're my sister, of course I want to know everything."
"Okay, well, you know that our mother was awful to us, she just couldn't take care of you and me. Frank was one of my teachers and he became my foster father. Everything was fine for a while, until, see, I was sorta dating this intern named Jake, but he didn't know I was only seventeen at the time, he thought I was in college, but then he found out how young I was and that on top of all the other problems I was having, Raegan, I tried to kill myself. I was up on the roof of GH and was about to jump off. Frank got me back off the ledge, but he slipped and fell off. He was hurt really bad, and Julie's father gave him DL-56, he thought it would help him to make it through, and it did. But like I said, the side effects were awful. After Dr. Devlin was murdered and Frank couldn't get DL-56 anymore, he had to go to a drug dealer and get it made for him. Even that wasn't working out and Frank got more and more violent because of the drug. Then, one night, I guess I sort of startled him, and he accidentally knocked his last bottle of DL-56 off of the mantle and it broke on the hearth. It really set him off; he blamed me. It was so scary. He took a fire poker and ripped apart the couch and broke the mirror on the wall. He came at me like he was going to punch me, but he beat a whole in the wall. At that point, all I could do was just sit there on the floor where I'd collapsed. I watched as he destroyed the room. Afterwards, he went and threw a bunch of my stuff into a suitcase and told me to get out of there, and to never come back. So, that's when I went to see you."
Lark looked up at Raegan, who had tears streaming down her face.
"Raegan, it's okay," Lark said, taking her sister's hand.
"Lark, why didn't you tell me any of this before? I would have told you you could have stayed there with me and Adrian."
"After that night, I was really sort of in shock, I couldn't believe that Frank had been like that. The whole impact of what he had done didn't set in till much later. I was scared and just wanted to be somewhere that I was safe, and I felt safe with you and Adrian. But then I knew I had to come back to Port Charles. If I'd have told you then, you'd have never let me come back."
"That's for sure!"
"But things are okay now, Raegan."
"Whatever you say."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So, what did you come over to talk about?" Chris asked Eve.
"What do you think?"
"Scott."
"What else could it be?"
"So, what is it?"
"I don't know what to think! He says he's all hung up over Lucy, but yesterday seemed so perfect, him and me and Serena hanging out like old times. But then when I left her barely even said 'bye'!"
"Maybe he's just as confused about this as you are."
"Well, he needs to get unconfused really quick! But what if he can't get over Lucy, what if I'm hanging onto our connection and nothing will ever come out of it? Why am I hanging on to this?"
"You're hanging onto it because that's what you do, Eve. You aren't a quitter."
"You're right. I just can't walk away from him. But why can't I just try to be happy without him, without any other man?"
"I can't answer all your questions, Eve. You didn't have anyone for nearly a year after you moved to PC, not anyone seriously at least, well, you did have me." Chris flashed that adorable grin at her.
"All my life, I've been scared of a true commitment, I've had my share of men, but as soon as it got too serious, I left. But, with Scott it was different. With Scott it seemed real and now walking away is the last thing I can do."
"And you think I'm the guy for advice in the love department? It's not like I have much luck either!"
"It doesn't matter that your advice stinks, Chris, it's just good to have such a great friend."
"Oh, be quiet, you're starting to sound like Lark and Raegan last night."
"So, what's up with that? I didn't know that Lark has a sister!"
"I didn't know either! Raegan didn't know that Lark lived here in Port Charles, and Lark didn't know Raegan had moved here. They were pretty surprised themselves. Did you know that Lark went and stayed with her sister last spring?"
"No, I didn't know that. I thought she'd stayed in town."
"Seems she didn't tell anyone. Well, they're happy to be back together."
Eve's cell phone rang.
"Hello?.....Hi Scott....sure, that'd be great!....I'll see you then!.....bye!"
"What did he want?" Chris asked.
"That was weird. He said that he has to take Serena to the movie theater to meet some friends of her's tomorrow, and he wants me to meet him up there so we can see a movie together. I completely did not expect that!"
"Maybe he's not as hung up over Lucy as you think."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"What Makes You Stay" Deana Carter Written by Mike Reid and Tena Clark
Look at me I'm in a place I never thought I'd be
Don't have the strength To fight anymore Or a reason not to leave
So tell me why I still keep holding on To something I just cannot see
What makes you stay When your world falls apart What makes your try one more time When it's not in your heart At the end of your rope When you can't find any hope You still look at her and say I just can't walk away Tell me what makes you stay
I'm not afraid Of living alone I was alone before he came
I've been in love Many times before But this time's not the same
I've always been the first to say goodbye Now it's the last thing I can do
What makes you stay When your world falls apart What makes your try one more time When it's not in your heart At the end of your rope When you can't find any hope You still look at her and say I just can't walk away Tell me what makes you stay
When it goes this deep And feels this strong I can't convince myself That this love is wrong
What makes you stay When your world falls apart What makes your try one more time When it's not in your heart At the end of your rope When you can't find any hope You still look at her and say I just can't walk away Tell me what makes you stay