"I knew you'd come."
Ethan's smile falters, his heart skipping a beat at her words. He doesn't deserve her faith in him. If you asked him last night where he'd be this morning, he certainly wouldn't have said making a scene in terminal C. There's a part of him that wants to make her understand, if only for his own sake, that he's far from perfect and the longer she looks at him wide-eyed, the farther he would fall when he finally screwed up.
"Kristina …"
He trails off, waiting for the right words to come, the words that would make her understand. But they don't, and the moment stretches on until the bright smile slips from her face. A subtle understanding dawns in her eyes and she reaches out sympathetically, taking one of his hands in her own.
"You're here," she reminds him. "That's what matters."
Ethan stares down at their joined hands. Maybe he doesn't give her enough credit. She is the one who pointed out he hero-worshipped Luke, that it may have been the reason his world fell apart when Luke let him down. He just never wants her to feel that kind of disillusionment, like you've lost something you counted on not because it's been taken away, but because it never existed.
She begins to rub the back of his hand with her thumb and he relaxes back into the moment. He raises his eyes back to hers, a small smile gracing his face.
They're standing there, still holding hands moments later when the final boarding call sounds. Kristina looks at the attendant over her shoulder and squeezes his hand one last time, the bright smile returning to her face. She looks past him and waves. He can vaguely hear the shouted goodbyes and I-love-you's behind him as she turns to board her plane. He'd forgotten about them. He watches after her until she disappears and he can no longer ignore the six pairs of eyes burning holes into his back.
He turns and strides past them quickly, ignoring the anger coming off Sonny and the worry in Alexis' eyes. No one says anything until he catches Molly's voice, faint but clear, breaking the silence.
"Wasn't that romantic?"
:::
"Yeah, I bought all my books today. I decided to drop that economics class and keep that History of the Middle East class I was telling you about. It sounds like it will be really interesting and the professor seems pretty cool. There's a lot of reading but that's what I here for, right? Plus there's a girl from my floor in that class, too. She's also a freshman but she's from here so she knows where everything is – all the best restaurants, coffee shops, everything." Kristina paused to take a breath. "I'm boring you, aren't I?"
The phone is uncomfortably hot against his face and his hand is starting to cramp. "Not at all. I could listen to you all night."
:::
She's home for three days at Thanksgiving and two weeks at Christmas. Time flies and her time is in heavy demand.
He runs into her the day before Christmas, doing some last minute Christmas shopping. There's one bag already in her hand when he sees her walking down the street across from him. He's already accepted her invitation to meet the next day to exchange gifts but he still finds himself crossing the street to catch up with her. She's stopped at a window display, staring thoughtfully at the mannequin on the other side of the glass as he approaches. She tenses when she notices his figure in the window's reflection, unrecognizable in the glass and he stops, pausing a safe distance away. She turns her head slowly to look behind her, and he catches the fear in her eyes before she recognizes him.
She relaxes immediately and turns to face him fully. Though the fear is completely gone, replaced by the sparkling eyes and bright smile he's used to, it's far from gone in his mind. He doesn't ask. He's pretty sure he already knows the answer and instead offers to keep her company for the rest of the afternoon. Her face lights up and she laces one arm through his, leading him further down the sidewalk.
He feels the occasional chill run through her as they walk, and her cheeks and nose are already adorably red from the cold. She stops to look at another display, debating whether or not Alexis would like a crystal tulip vase for her office, and shivers again. He pulls his arm away from hers and wraps it around her, pulling her close. He can see the small smile playing across her lips reflected in the glass, the one she always bites her lip to try and hide. This time she doesn't try to hide it and the smile never leaves her face as they continue down the street.
:::
"I don't have anything to do with that," Johnny argues. "I already told the old man to stay away from Brenda and the kids."
"Maybe you should tell him again. Something's going on and I find it hard to believe your father isn't behind it."
"He's not targeting Brenda or the kids," Johnny repeated. "He's going after Sonny and if he and Sonny end up killing each other … well, excuse me if I don't care. Saves me a lot of trouble."
"Talk to him."
Johnny sighs but agrees with a short nod. "Fine."
Ethan turns to leave, opening the door as Anthony attempts to walk in, nearly running into him.
"Hey! Where's the fire, son?"
Seeing Anthony agitates Ethan, and he glares at him before glancing back at Johnny. "Remember what I said." He turns back to the door to leave but Anthony stays in place, blocking the doorway.
He studies Ethan thoughtfully. "It might be time."
"For what?" Ethan asks impatiently.
"To prove your …" Anthony hesitates, looking past Ethan to Johnny. He leans in closer and whispers, "loyalty to the organization."
Ethan rolls his eyes and gestures instead to the hallway. "Excuse me. I was just leaving."
:::
Kristina barely makes it through the door, her vision almost completely obstructed by an armload of books. It's the end of the week, the end of Spring Break, and she will be leaving tomorrow. They've met each day for lunch at Kelly's and spent most nights together strolling through the park. He tells himself it's because he knows there's danger here, lurking a little more clear and present than usual, but knows it's because he's missed her as well.
Ethan quickly rises to help her, taking most of the books out of her arms and setting them on their table. "I thought this was supposed to be a vacation."
"I know. But I have a test coming up in that law class I told you about, and my mom thought these would be helpful." She looks down at the books on the table. "She really wants me to be a lawyer."
Ethan smiles playfully at her. "So … regret not going to Cancun yet?"
"No," she says. "I'm happy right here."
:::
The drive into Port Charles is dark, the roads mostly empty save for the stray car that passes, its headlights illuminating the car as it goes by. He uses each as an opportunity to sneak a glance at Kristina, her thoughts clearly weighing heavily on her.
She re-scheduled her finals to come home a week and a half early, anxious to see her family. She somehow convinced Alexis to let him pick her up and drive her back from the airport.
He thought it might be because she wanted to talk to him first, find out what happened, all the details everyone else tries to keep from her, a job easier done now that she's miles away. But she doesn't ask any questions and they're mostly silent on the drive back, the only words spoken a quiet greeting back at the airport.
She catches him looking over at her and tries to muster a smile but it never makes it to her eyes. She gives up, sighs and turns back to face the window. The scenery is growing more and more familiar when Kristina abruptly turns back to him.
"Will you take me to see my Dad first?"
He's not sure it's a good idea but it is what she came home to do. He nods and turns toward Harbor View Road.
:::
They both agree he should wait in the car.
He waits for almost an hour, growing more and more uncomfortable with each passing minute. He doesn't know how long something like this is supposed to take, but he has to fight the urge to get out of the car to check on her. He's looking down at his watch, checking for the millionth time when he hears a door slam.
She's coming toward him, practically running from the house. He jumps out of the car, running up to meet her half way.
"What's wrong?" He looks past her, glancing at the house. "What happened?"
It's dark but he can see see the angry tears, shiny and threatening to spill from her eyes. She shakes her head, the smooth skin of her forehead creased with the effort of fighting back the tears. He pulls her toward him and hugs her tightly. She wraps her arms around him and he can feel her shudder in his arms. She still doesn't answer.
"Hey, it's ok," he says, running his hand up her back comfortingly. "Come on, I'll take you home."
"No!" She pulls back, out of his arms, eyes wide. "I can't go back home. That's what he wants me to do."
"What?"
"Permanently. He wants me to move back to Port Charles, transfer to PCU. He said he needs to protect me and he can't when I'm so far away. Nothing's changed, he's still trying to control my entire life."
"Kristina, I'm sure by the time summer ends he'll change his mind. It's just now -"
"No, he won't. He said as long as I'm living at home, living off his money, he can tell me what to do. He's been saying it forever and now with Brenda gone … You didn't see him, Ethan. He means it this time."
"What are you going to do?"
"Well, I have a scholarship covering tuition. He can't take that away from me. I can get a job this summer and I can get a part-time job on campus when I go back."
"And where are you going to live?"
She looks up at him silently, the question clear in her eyes.
Ethan takes another step back from her. "Oh, I don't know if -"
"Please. Just until I find somewhere else to stay?"
He continues to stare down at her, sure this is a terrible idea.
"Please," she repeats. "I can't be his prisoner."
He sees relief flood her eyes before he even realizes he's nodding.