Author's note: this is a direct continuation from chapter one. just a few minutes later.
Nikolas and Claudia had their foreheads pressed together, and entwined hands on their laps when they were interrupted. Upon finding Nikolas and a young black-haired woman kissing, Helena snidely reprimanded, "Nikolas, I see what has distracted you from your studies and taken all of your time." Removing her hand from his cheek and backing away, Claudia asked confused, "I'm sorry… Who are you?" Looking at her as if she were completely stupid, Helena answered, "I'm his grandmother" before turning her attention to Nikolas, who was pulling Claudia closer with the arm he had wrapped around her waist, "What do you think you are doing? I told you to find an appropriate suitor not to go off with the first tart to catch your fancy." Claudia wanted to say something to defend their relationship and herself but didn't know exactly what to say. Fortunately, Nikolas cut off Helena's rant quickly, "what I do and who I choose to do it with is none of your concern."
Unsatisfied with his response, Helena continued, "Nikolas, you need to think about your future…" Not wanting this to be how he proposed to Claudia or how she found out about his family and their heritage, Nikolas interrupted, "I am thinking about my future. I love Claudia" as he got up from his seat. Getting angry with Nikolas, Helena went on, "You are not thinking with your brain. You will need to take an appropriate wife." Pulling out Claudia's seat so that she may get up to leave with him, Nikolas insisted, "I am thinking just fine. You don't even know Claudia." As Nikolas helped Claudia up, Helena interjected, "I don't need to know her. I have chosen a few candidates appropriate for a prince. You will review and take one as your wife." With the cat out of the bag so to speak, Nikolas picked Claudia up exclaiming as he left before Helena could say anymore, "No, I won't. Good Day."
Once they were away from Helena, Claudia asked, "What was your grandmother talking about?" She even used a questioning tone when she said grandmother. Of course he picked up on this and confirmed that Helena was his grandmother but insisted that she was insane. Sensing there was more Claudia goaded him into tell her the rest. Without much trouble Nikolas explained in more detail than he had previously with Claudia, his family dynamic including life with his uncle and grandmother instead of his parents. Although Nikolas tried to get around telling her about his family heritage, Claudia knew there was something he wasn't telling her. When she went to leave upset that he would not sure, Nikolas finally told her that his full name and title was Prince Nikolas Mikhail Starvosovich Cassadine. Nikolas tried to explain why he didn't tell her and that he was going to give it up for her but Claudia just left. She said she needed to go home and think about things. Nikolas worried that he was losing her but didn't force her to stay. He knew it would just make it worse so he returned to his family island and prepared how he would tell Claudia everything.
It was still early in the evening when Claudia got back to her uncle's compound but she felt sick. And sick she was. She skipped dinner because she was in her bathroom throwing up. When her stomach finally settled down a little, Claudia got into the shower to clean up but just ended up thinking about Nikolas. She didn't know what to think. While she loved him, he had kept secrets from her. Claudia was never comfortable with people she loved lying to her and keeping secrets. Although her world meant that everyone lied and kept secrets, she loved that Nikolas was different. For some reason she found it very hard to lie to him and even told him about her family. Maybe it was not everything but it was more than she had ever told anyone and he got the idea; her family was dangerous. But that didn't help her now, she felt hurt. It wasn't a huge betrayal but it still made her cry and feel sick again. So she just went to bed and curled up in a ball to hide her pain.
It was late afternoon when Helena slipped into the compound after bribing some guards. Further into the compound Helena found more guards and servants but was unable to slip by them all. With bribery not working, Helena killed those that openly refused her and drugged the others just for good measure. Finally finding Claudia's room Helena prepared to kill her if the girl didn't see reason. What Helena didn't expect was to find Claudia still lying in bed asleep. Chuckling to herself at how easy this was going to be Helena approached the bed with her knife outstretched.
Although Claudia still felt ill she heard her bedroom door open and was about to tell them to leave her alone when she heard an unfamiliar chuckle. Realizing that it was Helena she got up to distance herself from the elder woman just before Helena went into slit her throat. Unable to get out of her bedroom, Claudia grabbed the gun in her nightstand prompting Helena to lower her knife and claim that she just wanted to talk. While Claudia didn't believe Helena she wanted to know about Nikolas so she agreed but kept her gun close. Helena explained the royal Cassadine family and Russian heritage. All the while making sure Claudia knew that she didn't fit into Nikolas's life.
Claudia didn't know how but Helena knew things about her, and her family. Helena even got Claudia to agree that Nikolas didn't fit into her life, because Claudia knew her family wouldn't take to him. Claudia tried to argue that he would be safe but then Helena brought up Claudia's father Anthony. With no response from Claudia, Helena told her, "You will stay away from Nikolas because you don't fit into each other's lives. He is a Russian prince and has obligations. You are the daughter of a mobster, who would kill Nikolas if he learned of your affections." Getting angry Claudia argued, "My father won't find out and even if he did he does not care about me…" Sensing that Claudia was getting ready to fight her, Helena interrupted, "But you care about your family. You will stay away from Nikolas or your brother will die." Her brother, Johnny was just a child and Claudia had loved him as her own son even though he was only her half brother and their father regarded him differently than her. Claudia's instincts told her to protect Johnny but Helena had already gone saying, "Don't give me a reason to have my men kill John. You will leave Nikolas alone or I will kill you and your family I would love to do nothing more."
Running after Helena, Claudia boarded a ship but stayed out of sight because she didn't know who else was there or what Helena had planned for her family. Claudia thought I could kill her right now. She told herself she could because she had to protect Johnny. But she was afraid that Helena had men in New York that could and would kill Johnny whether Helena called or not. She couldn't be certain whether the order was to watch and wait for the order or to kill him if I don't check in. That was a common order or addition to the order because the boss could be in danger. The entire way all Claudia could think about was Johnny and Nikolas. She realized that the best way to protect John was to listen to Helena but she had no guarantee that her brother would be safe. And something told her Nikolas was not safe with Helena. Realizing that her family's saying was true: Love Kills. Claudia decided she had to leave Nikolas, if only until she knew Johnny was safe. She told herself that it was only going to be a little while. She would find out what Helena was up to and make sure that everyone she loved was safe. While Nikolas could be in danger, at least Helena seemed to want him alive.
When they stopped, Claudia found that they were at a beach. All she saw was one large house in the distance with a few smaller houses near it and some rocks and alcoves along the edge of the water. Claudia searched for Helena so she could continue following her but Helena was nowhere in sight. Suddenly, Claudia felt sick again so she snuck over to one of the alcoves in the rocks and threw up. Cursing the bumping boat ride here while she was cramped in a small hiding place, Claudia hated being seasick. But she blamed Helena for this. She was fine yesterday until she met Helena…and found out what Nikolas had been keeping from her. Taking a this time while she recovered to think about Nikolas, Claudia tried to gage how she was going to do what had to be done. While Claudia was in the alcove it started to rain. Muttering that this couldn't get any worse Claudia left to go search for Helena because she knew her best chances were in the darkness.
Clearing all the smaller houses before entering the large one, Claudia had no luck finding Helena. The last thing Claudia expected to find was Nikolas, who had heard someone sneaking around and awoke to investigate. Seeing that it was Claudia, Nikolas went to kiss her hoping that everything was alright between them. Startled by his presence and loving the feel of him holding her and kissing her, Claudia was torn for a moment before she stepped back sneezing. Taking in her soaking wet appearance, Nikolas grew concerned, "You must be freezing cold from travelling here in this weather… Wait how did you get here?" But Nikolas's attention was diverted when she started coughing, "Are you alright? Let's get you to bed in some dry clothes and I will go get you some soup." Nikolas escorted her into his bedroom, turned on the lights and headed to the dresser for some clothes. But moments later someone else started to stir, "What's going on, Nikolas?"
Surprised by the woman in his bed wearing only one of his dress shirts, Nikolas dropped the clothes he had just grabbed for Claudia and backed into the dresser nearly knocking over its belongings. Before Nikolas could say anything to the strange woman, Claudia left his bedroom. More concerned about Claudia Nikolas ran after her, "Claudia, Please wait." Catching up to her Nikolas tried to explain, "this isn't what it looks like. I have no clue who she is?" Interrupted by the mysterious woman, "Nikolas, aren't you coming back to bed?"Claudia took off again. Nikolas told the woman, "Go Home. And Leave me alone. I never want to see you on my island again" before he ran after Claudia.
Grabbing her arm before she got out of the house, "Claudia, Please, You have to believe me. I didn't sleep with that woman. I have no clue who she is or how she got here." Starting to cry, Claudia pulled away from him. Holding onto her face so that she was looking up at him, Nikolas continued, "Claudia, I Love you. You have to believe me. I wouldn't ever hurt you like that. I Love you more than anything." Out of habit she answered quickly "I Love you too, Nikolas, but…" Sensing this might by going south, Nikolas interrupted, "please say you believe me." Seeing the sincerity in his eyes Claudia said, "I…I believe you…" Relieved Nikolas immediately went into kiss Claudia. Crying again but kissing him with everything she had, Claudia knew she had to stop now if she wanted to save herself and John or she never would.
Stepping back Claudia repeated herself, "I Love you and I believe you,… but we can't do this… not right now" and she went to leave. Wanting to argue with her and make her stay, Nikolas stepped in front of her, "Claudia. I'm sorry. I didn't tell you sooner. Please just stay and I will tell you everything. I Love you." Starting to waiver, Claudia turned away from him, "Please, if you love me, just let me go." Hearing the pain in her voice and seeing in on her face as she turned from him, Nikolas felt the pain coming off of her and stepped aside so that she could leave, "Please, come back when you are ready. Our love could and should survive this bump in the road. Just think about things and please give me a second chance when you can."
It was only a few weeks later when Nikolas received word of his half sister Lesley Lu needing a donor. He had never met her but she was just a child and he couldn't refuse to help because of the choices their mother made. Looking around at the life he had here, Nikolas felt that going to Port Charles would be best for him. Greece felt lonely without Claudia to make it feel like a home. He had tried to see her but just watched from the distance as her uncle brought her to meetings. It seemed to Nikolas that he was trying to use her to close business deals. When she pulled away from these men trying to touch her, Nikolas hoped that it was because she still loved him. But she never came back to the island and when he thought she saw him in Italy watching her she just ignored him. Without much hope at a future with her in Greece Nikolas left to go save his sister and meet his maternal family for the first time in his life.
When Claudia had asked Rudy if she could go away to school, Rudy had thought it was weird but agreed to think about it. Looking back Claudia seemed interested in the family business a little when she first got to Italy but as time went on she seemed less and less interested. She was hardly ever around and never had any questions about the family or the business. A few weeks ago she had asked about her brother Johnny but she was not allowed to see him. Rudy had some men check in and told her John was fine which seemed to comfort her. But she was still distant and didn't spend much time with him except dinner sometimes. She had definitely gotten the Italian stomach. She loved food especially pasta. To think of it he had only seen her sleep and eat the last three weeks. While she went to lunch or dinner meetings with him she was rude to their associates after she ate. And she was refusing to be part of any of his business deals.
Figuring that going away to school was best for her, Rudy agreed to let her go. She had a high school education well more than its equivalent being home schooled. But Anthony was never going to let her be a part of the business and Rudy was not having much luck getting her to fit into their world in a way appropriate for a woman. Yes she seemed braver and more outspoken since she got here but he suspected that was more because Anthony wasn't around than himself. Letting Anthony know she was going to school was just a matter of etiquette. While Anthony didn't like it, he let her go as long as she stayed away from John, who now had extra guards.
Moving in with her Aunt Lynn and uncle so that she could go away to school, Claudia thought what the hell I am 18 years old and I can't even go to college without having a babysitter. The only good thing about it was that Anthony didn't know Lynn and being her mother's maternal half sister meant that she wasn't close with Rudy either. With Lynn helping her settle in, it didn't take long to unpack her stuff. Lynn's house was nice and they were great with her. Encouraging but not demanding. Starting to feel like home, Claudia adjusted quickly without a lot of stress.
Having been at her aunt's house for the past four weeks Claudia realized that she had bigger problems than just attending school for the first time. She still found that she didn't have a lot of energy and spent too much time sleeping. Her eating habits had changed causing her to put on some weight. So she would exercise more but it didn't help. No matter how hard she tried to deny it, she knew she was pregnant. She had missed her last two periods and all the excuses she could come up with didn't work. When you combined her lack of energy, increased sleeping and eating habits, the weight gain and the length of time she hadn't had her period.
She was starting to worry again. Claudia didn't know what a baby would mean for her new life at school with her aunt. Let alone what would happen when everyone else found out. Nikolas would be the father but she couldn't see him. She knew her father was a threat to any child she had but she was not sure what would Helena do. Sure she suspected she was pregnant before she left Uncle Rudy's compound but she just brushed it off as stress from her breakup with Nikolas and Helena's threats. Nothing had happened to John but Helena had disappeared so she couldn't be certain. Nikolas was around. She felt him even when she didn't see him staring at her from a distance. But she never said anything. She couldn't no matter how much she missed him and wanted a future with him.
When her aunt found her throwing up again, she insisted that Claudia go to see the doctor. Lynn accompanied her to make sure she didn't leave. Claudia wasn't surprised when the doctor said she was about 11 weeks pregnant. What did surprise Claudia was that her aunt was willing to help. Lynn didn't judge Claudia for getting pregnant without getting married first. She didn't tell her she was too young to have a child or that she would be a horrible mother. Once Claudia told Lynn the general details about Nikolas and Helena, Lynn encouraged her to tell him about the baby but never forced her.
As the months went by Claudia prepared for the baby with Lynn's help. Lynn had never had any children of her own but she knew a lot about them for which Claudia was grateful. Once when her aunt and uncle went to visit family, Claudia went to see Nikolas but nobody was on the island, so she went home. Claudia wondered where he was; she hoped he was alright. She didn't think Helena would do anything to him without an appropriate heir. If Helena had her way, Nikolas was probably married to some woman with a title like princess, duchess, or some other crap like that. While the idea of Nikolas with someone else saddened Claudia, she hoped that he was happy and that whomever he was with loved him and wouldn't end up hurting him. He deserved someone who was worthy of his love that could make him happy not just someone Helena wanted him with.
please review. I wanted to end it on a positive note. I may write this into another story or crossover but thought i would try to get some feedback on this first. I haven't really decided if i want claudia to have a boy or girl. i know gh says she had a boy (johnny) but i think that sucks to put it politely. they were only a few years apart according to them (the show) and even the actor/actress were close in age so i say he is her brother. if she had a child johnny is covering for said kid and changed all relevant information. (age/paternity/gender - maybe)
