I CHOOSE YOU

A LL2, AR three-shot.

Part 1 of 3

Elizabeth Spencer hurriedly climbed out of the car and forcefully yanked the keys out of the ignition as she hurried up the front steps of the Quartermaine mansion. She was frazzled as all get out but she needed to see her best friend, seek guidance, and maybe find a warm shoulder to cry on. She had seen something so terrible tonight and had then almost done something even more terrible. She felt Emily was the only one she could talk to about it.

She pounded on the front door, loudly, frantically, as tears burbled up in her eyes like so many pinpricks to match the ones stabbing at her heart. She had cried for hours now and that wasn't going to stop. She cried out of pain for what she had lost tonight, how she felt she had lost the only man she had truly ever loved, and cried in shame that she had about thrown herself on another man to get through the darkest part of the night. Her heart was bleeding, it ached so much that it was physically constricting her breathing.

She kept pounding on the door, nearly dropping to the stoop she felt so disgusted and sick and worst of all, full of shame and regret about her own actions. The door finally opened and she looked up in the dark, way up, to see Alice Gunderson, the family maid standing there. Alice immediately reached a steadying hand out to Elizabeth. "Missus Spencer, what's wrong?"

"Em- Emily," Elizabeth choked out. "I need to talk to her please."

"She's up in her room. Is there anything I -" Elizabeth didn't hear the rest as she pounded up the long staircase and practically sprinted down the hall to Emily's room. She found the good doctor hunched over some type of medical manual, reading by candlelight. The blackout had apparently hit all over town.

"Em," she half-whispered, half-cried.

Emily's head immediately snapped up upon hearing Elizabeth's plaintive voice and she jumped out of her chair. "Elizabeth, what's wrong?" Emily asked, in just two brisk strides closing the gap between her and her friend and pulling the grieving woman into her thin but sturdy arms.

"Is it Cam?" Emily asked, leading Elizabeth over to the desk chair she had just vacated herself.

Elizabeth shook her head as Emily forcibly pushed her shaking form down into the chair. "No- ooo …" She choked out through her clenched throat.

"Okay let me get you a glass of water and then tell me what happened," Emily said, squeezing Elizabeth's shoulder comfortingly.

"I don't want a damn drink of water, Em," Elizabeth's voice came out harsher than she had intended.

"Okay," Emily said with a nod, dropping to her knees in front of Elizabeth and taking her hands in her own small ones. "Then is it Lucky?"

Elizabeth nodded mutely and Emily's eyes widened. "Ohmigod is he hurt? Did he relapse …?"

Elizabeth wiped her teary face as Emily held out a tissue to her. "You could call it that …"

"Elizabeth, talk to me! Be straight with me and tell me how I can help."

Liz nodded. "Tonight I found Lucky with Maxie Jones …" Her voice was low although the tears behind her words, the near-hysteria, were evident.

"Found him?" Emily asked, at first not understanding what she meant. Then the realization seemed to dawn on her. "Oh you mean …"

Liz nodded. "Yes. He's been sleeping with her for awhile now. I can't believe I didn't know …"

"Ohmigod. No wonder you're so upset …" Emily said, leaning over and holding her best friend close for the longest time before she gently pulled away and cupped Elizabeth's chin in the palm of her hand. "What are you going to do?"

Liz's shoulders heaved. "I don't know. I hoped you could tell me what to do."

"Gee, Liz …"

"Emily, please, my life and my son's life and Lucky's even, are hanging in the balance. And that's not even the worst part …"

Emily sighed. "I'm afraid to ask …"

"I went over to Jason's and we …"

Emily stared at Elizabeth in horror. "No, Liz, no. Please don't say that you and Jason - that you and him …"

Elizabeth shook her head, holding up a shaky hand. "No. No we didn't. But we almost did and I wanted to for a moment there. I really wanted to. Not because I'm in love with him or anything. Just because I wanted to forget for a moment seeing my husband in another woman's arms. He kissed me a few times and we were heading over to the sofa and as soon as he was setting me down on it, I started picturing Cameron's face. Thinking how would react if both of his parents abandoned him during a blackout. How he must be so scared but I just couldn't go home right then so I came here. I was determined to go through with it anyway though until I started picturing Lucky. As Jason went to remove my shirt, I kind of panicked and pushed him back really hard, he even stumbled back a little, and I just ran like hell out of there, never looking back once till I got here."

"Liz, you've had a hell of a night, haven't you?" Emily said, putting her hand on Liz's shoulders again. "If you came here to ask me what to do, I can't tell you that, Elizabeth. You have to decide although you have to ask yourself this question …"

"What is it?"

"Do you love Lucky? Do you still love him with all your heart and soul?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Of course I do, but …"

"Then there are no buts, Elizabeth. Unless Lucky tells you straight out that he doesn't want you anymore - and I sincerely doubt that he would - then you need to lay it all on the line and decide where you go - the both of you decide together."

"But you and Nikolas …" Liz said. "I mean, you two …"

"Maybe we weren't meant to be, Elizabeth, but I tell you if Nikolas still looked at me the way Lucky looks at you, I would take him back with open arms …"

"Its not that easy …"

"I know. I know," Emily agreed with a nod of her head. "But just don't give up. Not until you've heard Lucky's side of the story."

Elizabeth nodded. "I am so afraid to go back to the house. I am afraid when I look into Lucky's eyes; he's going to know what I did with Jason."

"Nearly did, Elizabeth. Nearly."

"Don't make excuses for me, Em," Elizabeth said, a tad huffily. "Two wrongs don't make a right."

"Of course they don't but you stopped yourself because you thought of Lucky. That has to mean something. In fact, it means a lot." Emily grabbed another tissue off her desk and dabbed at Elizabeth's tear-streaked face. "Go talk to him, Elizabeth. If you need me to drive you …"

"No, no, its okay I don't." Elizabeth said. "I will talk to him. It will be hard but it has to be done." She tried to sound resolute though she felt just the opposite. How was she supposed to stand there and look at the man who had stolen her heart so long ago and then just broke it and not want to run the opposite direction? But she was determined to at least hear Lucky out. If only for Cam's sake.

Elizabeth sighed and looked at Emily for a long moment as she began to gather up her purse and keys. "Thanks, Em, you always know the right thing to say."

"Well you're not going to like what I have to say now …"

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked.

"Be honest with him, Liz. Tell him about Jason. Don't keep secrets. In the end, they will destroy not only your marriage but yourself as well."