Introduction: This story is a team project. I had this rough idea in my head — inspired by a scene in msnewwriter's "This Time" — but didn't have the time, courage, or motivation to put down all the details and work out the story on paper. I ran the idea past my new friend, Lante Lover, who had both the skill and the drive to take the idea and run with it. She is carrying the idea forward in her usual, fabulous manner and I have the luxury of throwing in my ideas and suggesting "embellishments" as the story progresses. Without Lante Lover, you would not be reading this. She is the one who is making it into a story. She also had the insight to seek the counsel of another friend, Zou2, who has contributed some terrific suggestions as well.
We enjoy Dante and Lulu because they are strong and complex, and we applaud their destiny as a couple. The story lines that can be generated by the pairing of Luke's daughter with Sonny's son are truly unique and set them apart from the average "soap opera couple." Together, they are pure gold for the future of GH! So, inspired with excitement for their future we decided on the pen name, TeamLante. We truly are having fun with this and hope you enjoy it...
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Chapter One
As Ronnie, Lucky and Dante came running out of the burning building with their victims still breathing and basically uninjured, all Dante could think about was helping this family get their father out alive. He knew what it was like growing up without a father and knew he had to do everything possible so that these two children didn't lose theirs now. Dante laid the young boy he had cradled in his arms on the grass outside the structure and, against the opinions of the other men, ran back inside the burning building to retrieve their father.
Dante had only a flashlight to help him guide his way back to where he thought the father was at, but the thick, dense smoke was making it almost impossible to see anything. Despite the choking smoke that was burning his lungs with each breath Dante continued further into the structure, calling out to the man several times. Finally, he heard faint moaning coming from what he thought was the back of the building. He followed the sounds and at last, found the man lying face down on the floor. Even with only the meager lighting of the flashlight Dante could see that he was severely burned, but alive. Knowing there was no time to be gentle and that they probably didn't have much time before the structure started to collapse on them Dante grabbed the injured man, slinging him over his back in a fireman's carry and started back toward the entry.
At the front of the building, several beams had started to lose their strength and buckled under the heat of the fire. Ronnie came as close to the opening as possible, continuously yelling out Dante's name. Ronnie only heard the crackle of the fire and Lucky franticly calling for back up on his radio. The front portion of the house collapsed as the fire department drove up with their sirens blaring, turning the grim situation even more desperate.
The firemen rolled out their hoses and hooked them to the hydrants. Almost immediately, water was pouring on the blazing fire. Ronnie ran over to the fire lieutenant and gave him a general description of where they thought Dante and the homeowner were located. Both Lucky and Ronnie paced as several firemen ran into the building to find the trapped men.
Lucky wasn't sure how he was going to tell Lulu if Dante didn't make it out. Lulu and Dante had been through so much since Sonny shot him, and Lulu loved him with all her heart. Lucky worried that the fears that Lulu had recently shared with him about Dante were coming to fruition. As he watched he fire continue to consume the building before him his mind went back to that conversation he'd had with her.
Lulu said things had been wonderful with them after the shooting, almost like she and Dante were in their own little bubble. Then slowly, after several months, she noticed a change in Dante's attitude and couldn't shake the feeling that he was taking more risks at work. He wouldn't talk about this change and when Lulu questioned Dante, he said it was just part of his job. But, Lulu felt this increasingly reckless behavior was connected to his finding out that Sonny was his father. The stresses between Sonny and Dante continued to build until one night, Dante, on his way home from work, ran across a car accident. A car was teetering on the edge of the embankment on highway 11. Dante snaked his way on his belly to the driver's side and was able to pull the woman out of the car before the car plunged over the side. Dante received 11 stitches on his wrist for that heroism. Lulu couldn't take it anymore and she moved out of his apartment and back into Maxie's. That was three months ago.
Since then, Lulu and Dante had barely spoken, each of them retreating from the other in a desperate attempt to avoid their worst fears. Dante inwardly raged against the paternal demons that choked him and threatened to ruin all his dreams, while poor Lulu franticly backpedaled to reestablish her defenses before she was forced to watch Dante self-destruct. Watching the menacing flames, Lucky knew this recent act of selflessness, or rather recklessness from Dante, would shake Lulu to her core. She could never fully let go of her love for him.
Lucky came out of his reverie as there was a commotion at the front of the building as the firemen came out of the building carrying the two men. They were alive, but barely. Both men were suffering from burns and severe smoke inhalation, but an ugly gash on the left side of Dante's head and a menacing bruise to his rib cage told them that Dante appeared to have taken the brunt of the structure collapse. The EMT's strapped an oxygen mask onto Dante's face and carefully immobilized him on a backboard. They assessed his vital signs, bandaged his head, started him on an IV, and loaded him into a waiting ambulance.
Lulu had been at the hospital to drop off some papers from Kate for a community project Crimson was going to do with the hospital. She had stopped by the ER to talk to Liz, when the ambulance pulled up. They brought the young man out; he was unrecognizable to most people. But when Lulu saw him, she knew who it was. It was Dante.
Dante was covered in soot and sweat. Barely conscious, he seemed to be struggling for the air supplied by his oxygen mask—his breaths coming in a ghastly combination of feeble gasps and coughs. He looked burned and bloodied. Though strapped to a backboard, he shifted restlessly, his eyes unfocused until they seemed to fall on Lulu. Those beautiful, soulful eyes appeared to lock on her while the EMT's recited the litany of details that described his vital statistics to Dr. Webber. Then, Dante was gone. They whisked him to a treatment room as Dr. Webber barked out orders for what seemed like dozens of tests.
Dante was in a surreal mixture of pain, confusion and profound exhaustion. Dazed and struggling for air, he could hear Dr. Webber's voice, but he couldn't make sense of what he was hearing. His head felt like it had exploded and something deep in his chest felt crushed and heavy. His back and shoulders felt seared and nausea was hitting him in waves. He fought for consciousness, but slowly and seductively, pain and dizziness were teasing him into the arms of darkness. Drifting in and out of consciousness, Dante was afraid, for once in his life, he could die. He was afraid he would die without being able to tell Lulu how much he loved her and missed her. For some strange reason, he felt Lulu's presence around him. It was willing him to live.
Lulu watched helplessly as Dr. Webber's team carefully removed what was left of his clothing. His shoulders were red and blistered, his ribcage badly bruised, and blood was starting to seep through the bandage covering his head. And through all the noise and activity of the medical staff all Lulu could hear was Dante's continued struggle to breathe. A single tear dropped from her eye. She felt Dante's pain as she watched him from outside his room. Lucky approached her from behind and announced his presence with a hand on her shoulder. "What happened?" she asked softly.
Lucky started to tell Lulu how at the end of their shift, the three men had decided to go to Jake's for a beer. They had been putting in a lot of hours on the Corinthos case and just needed some down time to relax. On the way to Jake's they noticed thick, black smoke coming from a row house two streets from the bar. Dante was the first to notice and asked Lucky to call in the address to 911. They pulled up to the house and immediately noticed two young children standing by the fence. Ronnie asked the kids if anyone was in the house and they told him about the family who was still inside. Without even thinking or talking to anyone, Dante ran into the burning building. Naturally, Ronnie and Lucky followed. They found the mother and the two children in the front room, so getting them outside wasn't difficult. However, Lucky said that then, without hesitation Dante had run back inside for the father. Lulu knew she had heard this story before.
After completing his assessment, Dr. Webber emerged from the treatment room to prepare for surgery and to make sure Dante's family was contacted. As he walked out of the room, he noticed Lulu standing there, her eyes fixed on Dante, waiting for any word on his condition. Somewhat reluctantly, Dr. Webber told her that Dante would need surgery to repair a punctured lung and stitches for his head. He likely had a concussion or possibly a skull fracture, but Dr. Drake would assess that. He also had serious burns that would have to be treated as well. Dante was currently listed in critical condition. Steve apologized to Lulu, telling her because she wasn't family she would have to wait for more details until his family arrived. He followed that information with the usual comments that were supposed to make people feel better: "He's young and he's strong. They'll do everything they can to save him."
Lulu was stunned by the severity of Dante's injuries. "Can I go in and stay with him until the orderlies take him for surgery?" she asked. Steve allowed it, knowing Lulu had stood by Dante every time he had come to GH with injuries. As Lulu walked through the curtain, she put on her 'best face' because she didn't want Dante to know how scared she was for him. As she approached him, she noticed about the only thing that didn't look injured was his hands. She gently took one of them and squeezed it to get his attention. Dante opened his eyes and tried to say something, but Lulu stopped him.
"Don't try to say anything. You just need to keep breathing that nice fresh oxygen there." Lulu continued, "I come here to drop off some paperwork and look who I run into." She tried to conjure up a shaky smile to calm him.
Dante squeezed her hand as tightly as he had ever squeezed. He wanted to tell Lulu how much he loved her, how much he needed her, how much he'd missed her. But the words wouldn't come. Simply breathing was an immense effort. The pain was too great and his body just wouldn't cooperate with the feeble impulses of his heart.
Epiphany placed her usual call to Olivia to tell her that Dante had once more been admitted to the hospital. But unlike the last few calls, this one is serious, even more serious than when Dante was shot. As much as Epiphany didn't want to be the one to tell Sonny, her next call was to his father.
The orderlies arrived to take Dante for surgery. Lulu leaned over Dante and whispered in his ear, "I'll be waiting for you when you come out of surgery. You stay strong once more for me, do you hear me?" She found a clean spot on his forehead, gave him a kiss, and reluctantly let go of his hand.
Dante did his best to communicate his love for her through his eyes and hoped it was enough for her to see. He prayed he'd get the opportunity to tell her later. As they rolled him away from her, he closed his eyes and focused on the comfort and warmth that still remained from where she held his hand.
Olivia and Sonny arrived together at GH. Lulu ran to Olivia and hugged her. The tears started to flow from Lulu easily and she told Dante's parents about what had happened this time and what kind of injuries he had sustained. Sonny grimaced thinking about the risks Dante was taking lately. Olivia knew what was going on in Dante's head, but tried to fight off the thought that this whole reckless attitude was her fault. All three of them went into the waiting area to wait out the surgery.
After what seemed like forever, Patrick came out to tell everyone the surgery went well. Steve repaired the lung, and at this point, tests were showing that Patrick's services might be reduced since it looked like Dante only suffered a severe concussion. Because of the severity of his other injuries, Patrick decided to place Dante in a drug induced-coma to allow the brain to recover quicker. Then, in what appeared to be an effort to lighten the mood, he also said that it would make it easier to keep Dante in the bed that way since they all knew what a restless patient he tended to be.
As Dante was wheeled into the intensive care unit, Dr. Webber came out to advise Dante's family the next 24 hours would be very important. He told them about Dante's head injury and then went on to list his other injuries that Patrick had not addressed. He informed them that Dante's lungs had been severely compromised not just by the smoke itself, but also by the toxins in the smoke from all the burning materials. His lung had been repaired, but they had inserted a chest tube to drain the lung and keep it clear. He also had second-degree burns to his back and shoulders as well as three broken ribs. However, it was the damage to his lungs that had Dr. Webber the most concerned. His compromised ability to breathe left him vulnerable to pneumonia, so they had him on a respirator.
Steve described what they were going to see when they went in to Dante's room. He wanted to prepare them for the shock they were about to receive. But no amount of forewarning could have prevented the horror on all their faces when they walked in. Dante looked like a train wreck. Hooked up to several machines, with a breathing tube running out of his mouth, Dante didn't even look like himself. He was bruised and battered and bandages wrapped his head, shoulders and chest. Dr. Steve explained most of the unsightliness was due to superficial wounds that would heal quickly. But to his family and Lulu, after the initial shock of seeing Dante wore off, he looked as beautiful as he always did. They were just relieved he was alive.
Olivia was the first to talk to Dante. She knew he was in a coma, but remembered Carly's words about Michael hearing everything when he was in his coma. Olivia took Dante's hand and kissed it. She wanted to feel the warmth of his skin, but was somewhat shocked that it didn't seem to be as warm as she thought it would be. As unsettling as that was, Olivia told Dante not to worry. He'd be just fine and to make sure, she was going to go to the hospital's chapel to pray for his recovery. It was hard for her to even think about leaving his side, but her instinct told her that Lulu's being there might make all the difference for him. She knew the love Dante had for Lulu. Olivia gave him one final kiss before she left and said to him, "Dante, I am so proud of you. You saved lives tonight. You've been through so much, and you will get through this too. I love you so much."
Sonny walked over to the man whom he'd recently learned was his son. The relationship hadn't gotten any better since the shooting, but Sonny had decided, after several failed attempts, he would let Dante make the next move. It frightened him to think he may not have that chance to reconcile their differences. Sonny knew, right now, Dante didn't need to hear any kind of pep talk from his father, but felt he might just want to know he was there. So, Sonny leaned down and tenderly said "Son, I'm here." He swallowed hard and continued, his voice shaking, "I, uh, I just want you to know that I'm proud of you too and I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure you get the best care possible." He then turned and headed for the chapel as well. He might not have a great relationship with God, but he figured God would listen to even his prayers where Dante was concerned. Dante had, after all, ended up in this condition trying to save another life, which should at least entitle him to some "grace" and answered prayers.
Olivia and Sonny left Lulu alone with Dante with instructions to let them know if Dante's condition changed. Fighting to control the panic she felt gripping her heart, Lulu sat down in the chair next to his bed and gingerly took Dante's hand in hers. She listened to the steady beeping of his heart monitor and the soft, regular "whoosh" of the respirator and tried to wrap her mind around the fact that this broken man, her love, was once again poised to leave her forever. She drew as close to him as she could, and quietly pleaded, "Please Dante, come back to me. I won't leave this time. We will make it through this, I promise." Deep in her heart, Lulu knew that Dante heard her plea.
