Chapter Two

~ . ~

One True Solace

~ . ~

School. The thought of suffering yet another year in this public prison made her stomach churn in ways that would bring any normal man to his knees. All schools are the same with the same lame cliques and clichès. It was no surprise to find the idiot among the popular group. The way he held himself, it was obvious he was stuck up enough to fit in.

The girl, however, sits alone at the other side of the cafeteria. Strange. The way they acted you would have assumed they'd be joined at the hip. Curiosity getting the best of her, Elizabeth slings her bag over her shoulder before walking over to the girl. As she got closer, she could see girls giving her the side eye as if she were the school's pariah. Walking up to the girls, Elizabeth stares the head girl right in the face, clearly displaying her displeasure, truly sick of the high school elite.

"Leave." Elizabeth states sternly. "Now."

"Psh. What are you?" the girl countered, though clearly shaken. "Her body guard or something?"

"What I am is none of your business." Elizabeth replies simply. "What I'm capable of, on the other hand, well...stick around and you'll learn real quick."

The girls glanced among themselves before the lead girl rolled her eyes and walked off, her pack of sluts trailing right behind. Clearly they had believed themselves untouchable for too long to realize that they had little true affect on the real world.

Turning to look at Emily, she found a look of confusion and appreciation on the girl's face. At a glance, Elizabeth doesn't see what Zander sees in this girl. She's not like the girls that she's used to seeing him with. Average height. Average weight. Subtle beauty. She obviously comes from money, but not enough to keep the wolves at bay. So what could he possibly see in her? Deciding she'd rather not know, Elizabeth moves to walk away, but is instantly stopped by Emily's words.

"Why did you do that?" Emily questions as she rises to her feet. "Why stand up for me like that?"

"Would you believe I was simply fulfilling my good deed for the day?"

"No." Emily shakes her head. "Not really."

"Fine." Elizabeth shrugs. "Then I was fulfilling my duties as a friend."

"I'm your friend?" Emily asked in shock before shaking her head at Elizabeth's look of disbelief. "Right...Zander."

"Whether he'll admit it or not, it's clear you mean something to him." Elizabeth says simply. "Till he can figure out if you're in or out for good...think of me as your friend by association. Cool?"

"You can do that without knowing what happened between us?"

"I'm not a relationship guru. Details are not my concern." Elizabeth says plainly. "So...we good?"

"Yeah." Emily smiles slightly. "We're good."

Elizabeth could see a sense of ease spread through the other girl's features. She wasn't sure what good it would do for her to be friends with this girl, but she doesn't see the harm in it. If Lucky was any indication as to what her friends were like, it was clear that some variety in her friends has become warranted. As if hell's ears had been burning, the idiot approaches, misunderstanding the entire situation like idiots do.

"Lucky, it's not like that." Emily defends, getting between them. "She was just helping me out."

"Seriously?" Lucky questions in disbelief.

"Yeah. We're...friends now." Emily says carefully. "We're okay."

"Friends?" he looks at her like she had suddenly grown another head. "You can't be serious, Emily. Come on, you can see what she's doing can't you?"

"Why don't you enlighten her?" Elizabeth counters before Emily could respond. "What is it I'm supposedly doing?"

"You're trying to get into her head." Lucky says as if it were obvious. "Trying to get her to go back to that loser friend of yours."

"I couldn't care less either way." Elizabeth states firmly. "Whether she gets with him or not, I'll still have him, so, it's whatever."

"Right!" Lucky scoffs. "Don't tell me you're falling for this crap, Em, come on. She's playing you."

"Lucky..." Emily sighs before glancing at Elizabeth and then meeting Lucky's eyes. "Liz and I have decided to be friends. I need you to respect that...even if you can't accept it."

"Fine." Lucky states after a long moment. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

"Okay." Emily smiles slightly. "You're still coming over later, right?"

"Yeah." Lucky glances at Elizabeth irritably before focusing on Emily. "Just...watch your back."

Elizabeth, having enough of the weirdness, makes her exit. She's said her piece where Emily is concerned. It's on Emily to decide what she wants in her life. She hardly knows the girl, she's not about to stand there and defend their friendship like it meant the world to her. Its like she told Emily, friendship for the sake of her friendship with Zander. Nothing more, nothing less.

~ . ~

Jason enters Sonny's office after having met with Benny. Letting out a deep sigh, he shakes his head to clear the clutter, refusing to let Sonny's absence affect him. Things needed to get done and right now the responsibility lands on his shoulders. If he's going to get this done, however, he needs the cooperation of the two lieutenants.

"Enter." Jason says firmly when a knock sounds at the door.

"You called." Francis Corelli voices when he opens the door. "What's up?"

"O'Brien?"

"Here." Johnny O'Brien voices from behind Francis,side stepping to come into view. "I'm here."

"Good." Jason says simply. "Door."

"Can you tell us what's up now?" Francis asks once the door is closed.

"Sonny's out of town." Jason replies. "Its on me to keep things running until he gets back."

"Where do we fit in?" Johnny questions curiously.

"There's too much going on." Jason explains. "I need you both to help me keep things running smoothly until Sonny can get back."

"Okay. Until Sonny returns..." Francis says after a moment of thought. "Whatever you need."

"O'Brien?" Jason looks at him questioningly.

"This is like some Three Musketeers kind of shit, right?" Johnny chuckles before shaking his head. "I'm down."

"Forgive the kid." Francis shakes his head. "He runs at the mouth, but mostly means well."

Jason waves away the explanation, having known that about Johnny, but knowing that there was a reason Sonny allowed him to climb the ranks like he has. These two are the only men that Jason truly respects as far as their abilities. If he's going to pull this off and keep things running for Sonny, these two men will come in handy.

Finishing up with the two men, having their word that they'd do what needed to be done, Jason straddles his bike and heads to the Quartermaine estate in need of some clarity. Knowing his grandmother's routine, he makes his way to her garden, knowing she'll be there shortly. The moment she rolls into view, Jason felt a wave of calmness wash over him, something he has come to appreciate when in her presence.

"Jason, dear." Lila says at the sight of him. "What a pleasant surprise. How are you?"

"I'm okay, grandmother." Jason assures, knowing she worries for him. "I'd like to keep you company while you work on your garden, if you don't mind."

"That would be lovely." Lila says wholeheartedly.

With a slight smile, he helps her over to her roses before helping her tend to her garden in silence. Time spent with his grandmother come too far apart and never last nearly long enough. He's not sure why it was easier with her than the others, but he finds that he appreciates having her as his family. Between her and Emily, he has more than enough family, never wanting to see a day where they become like the others. He spends a couple hours with her before he inevitably has to leave, promising her he'd be seeing her again.

~ . ~

After school is over Elizabeth meets up with Zander at the park. Telling him all that transpired between her and Emily, she's surprised when he thanks her for trying with Emily. Things between him and Emily have been rough, but he appreciates that Elizabeth is willing to make nice for him. It just proved to him what he already knew and that's that Elizabeth is his true best friend. After hanging out for a little while, Elizabeth says goodbye, needing to finally see her gramps after having put it off long enough. Arriving at the house, she waits for her sister, Sarah, to leave before she knocks on the door.

"Elizabeth," her grandfather greets her when he pulls open the door. "I hadn't expected you to come by so soon."

"I can come back..."

"No..no, dear. What I meant is that I thought it would take you longer." her grandfather explains as he steps aside. "I'm glad you're here. Come in. Its just me home."

"You're making dinner." Elizabeth comments as she walks with him into the kitchen.

"Always a good pass time," her grandfather admits. "Would you care to help me?"

"I..."

"We'll be alone for at least a few hours." he explains, holding out an apron to her. "Humor an old man's request?"

"Sure, gramps." she smiles slightly. "Sounds like fun."

For the next few hours they made dinner while talking about her emancipation and her life since moving to the small town. She tells him how she believes the decision to move there was based on her need to be close to the only family she has left. He feels pained by her belief that he's all she has while assuring her that she'll always have him, no matter what. Spending time with him, Elizabeth realizes something she hadn't known before and that's that he's the only family that she needs. As long as she has her gramps, life will always be bearable.


Note: Thank you for the reviews, favorites, and follows. It means a lot that you are enjoying my little fic. I also liked the connection between Liz and Zander. Mostly after a Liason fic I read that portrayed them as married. Anyway, thanks and I hope you enjoy this update.