Disclaimer: Anything remotely recognizable as being a part of the cannon General Hospital.
Claiming any artistic creativity thought up by yours truly. Copy Writers be fore shamed.
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ITS NEVER REALLY OVER TILL ITS OVER
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Regardless of the fact that they are standing in an interrogation room, separated from police officials by nothing but a door, Sonny was more than ready to pull out his gun and shoot AJ Quartermaine where he stood. This time, making sure that the son of a bitch stayed dead. The look on his son's face, however, put a stop to any form of violence that Sonny could think of at the moment.
"Shut up, AJ!" Carly shouts, having heard enough, tired of rehashing the past. "That was a long time ago! You have no right bringing this up to him! He was just a baby when this all happened and you're not innocent! Far from it!"
"All he knows is what I've done." AJ counters, not raising his voice, knowing that it was finally his turn to have the upper hand and it felt good. "I'm simply giving him both sides of this story. What he does with it...well, that's his choice."
"I know what you're trying to do!" Sonny snaps, glaring daggers at his best friend's brother. "You're trying to do what Jason does, but its not going to work! There is no way that you can make yourself look better to our son than we do! We're his parents!"
"I'm his father." AJ says with conviction, staring right back at Sonny, no longer afraid of him. Not after gaining the support of someone he had thought he lost long ago. "And until the day I die, I will do whatever it takes to prove to him that I can be a good one."
Michael, the son in question, simply stands off to the side, watching the entire interaction, completely unsure of what he was supposed to do. How he was supposed to react. Thankfully, for the sake of his sanity, he wasn't alone amid this chaos. Turning to the side, he smiles slightly at the girl who volunteered to join him in this chaos. His girlfriend, Starr Manning.
"I'm sorry you have to see this." he whispers to her, stroking her hand softly with his thumb.
"Nowhere I'd rather be." she says wholeheartedly, smirking slightly with her next comment. "Plus, your turn will come...my family is just as crazy as yours."
"I'll look forward to it." he smirks, knowing what she was doing and thankful for it.
They remained lost in their little moment for a little while longer before they were forced to tune back into the fight happening in front of them. Michael was confused as it was, completely lost about how he should feel about his biological father, knowing what he knows and all the complications that his conception had created. Seeing his father standing there, clearly fighting to be a father figure in his life, Michael's decision was finally made.
"Enough!" Michael shouts, successfully gaining the attention of all three of his parents. Knowing the whole story like he does now, Michael was tired of seeing them fight. "The past doesn't matter! You've all made mistakes, that's your problem! I'm not going to let it affect me now! Not after losing Jason!"
"Oh, Michael." his mother is the first to walk towards him. "I know you're hurting over losing Jason, but that doesn't mean that you should let that man into your life."
"That man is my father." Michael says sternly, needing her to see where he stood. "And I'm going to give him a chance to be a part of my life. You can either accept that or not, but its my choice and I've made it."
"Michael, please think about this." Carly pleads with him. "He's messing with your head like he does with everyone else. You don't know the AJ Quartermaine that we all do. He'll use you until you no longer have anything he needs...please, you have to trust us."
"Michael, listen to your mom, please." Sonny steps forward, standing in front of his son. "You don't know the kind of hell that man can bring onto you."
"Dad, you've always been the only father I've ever known. You took me in and you always treated me like your flesh and blood." Michael says seriously, smiling slightly. "Because of that, you've had my undying loyalty. No matter what happened, no matter what you did, I always saw through it. I always saw through you, right into the man that I love as my father."
"You're my son." Sonny says without hesitation. "DNA doesn't matter...I love you!"
"I love you, too, dad!" Michael says wholeheartedly, letting his smile fall. "But AJ is my father and I need the chance to know what I never had a chance to know before...I need to know him."
"Mister man, you have to see that this is a huge mistake." Carly pleads with tears in her eyes. "Please don't do this. Jason fought just as hard to keep you away from him."
"Jason taught me that forgiveness is something you choose to give and he's forgiven a lot of people for a lot of things over the years." Michael says plainly, looking at his mother intently. "If I know Jason like I think I do, I know he would be okay with this."
"With all due respect to you and Michael's dad, it is his choice to get to know Mr. Quartermaine." Starr finally speaks up, standing flush against Michael's side. "He deserves the chance to get to know his biological father and he's finally has that chance to do it now. You can't ask him not to."
"Michael..." Carly pleads, as if she didn't even hear Starr talking. "Please don't let that man into your life."
"I've made my choice." Michael releases Starr's hand to walk over to the door and pull it open. "Now you both have to leave. Diane's waiting outside and you know how she hates that."
Knowing when to fight and knowing when to back down, Sonny escorts an irate Carly out of the interrogation room, turning to watch Diane walk inside. For a brief moment, Michael holds their gaze, but not for long.
Soon enough, he smiles slightly, almost apologetically, before shutting the door and taking his place beside AJ. His girlfriend soon taking his hand as the meeting of minds began.
"Francis is back." Johnny points out as he sticks his head into the room, smiling slightly when she turns to look at him. "How's the patient doing?"
"His fever is starting to break...not by much, but still." Elizabeth turns her focus back to Jason. "I think the antibiotics are finally kicking in."
"Out of curiosity, would you be needing to go into town anytime soon?" Johnny questions, now standing in the doorway, the door opened fully.
"Not that I know of." she says simply, starting to wipe Jason down once again, hoping it was helping with the fever.
"Can you pretend you need to go into town and just go with me?" Johnny asks after he shuts the door, hoping Francis wasn't anywhere close by.
"You're up to something." Elizabeth states, it wasn't a question, she could see that he was up to something. "Spit it out."
"Come on...just let me take you into town."
"Only if you tell me why." Elizabeth says firmly, glancing over at Jason. "He's barely hanging in there...the only way I'm leaving is if its a damn good reason."
"Fine." Johnny relents, taking a deep breath before confessing. "I want to knock Sonny on his ass."
"Okay." Elizabeth sighs, shaking her head before walking over to Jason. "We'll go."
Johnny watches as she leans over, placing a soft kiss upon Jason's forehead before whispering something in his ear and standing upright. Without another word, Elizabeth walks out of the room, prompting Johnny to follow behind.
Francis watched them leave the house after being told to call her if anything changes with Jason. A part of him knew that this was a bad idea, but Johnny deserved the chance to face Sonny for betraying him and Francis will give him that much. Its the least that he deserved.
"I'm gonna talk to my building super about my studio." Elizabeth tells Johnny when they find Sonny cursing to himself on the docks. "I'm sure Francis gave you conditions in coming into town...don't make me regret agreeing to coming with you."
"You go settle your studio issue...I'll be just fine." Johnny says with a slight smirk, kissing her cheek. "And thank you for coming with me."
"I'm sure Francis wouldn't let you come to town otherwise." Elizabeth shrugs, turning on her heels to walk up the steps.
Watching his former boss for a moment longer, Johnny could tell that he was in a world of pain all on his own, not that he thought Sonny deserved any less. After the hell that Sonny put him through on a daily basis, then betraying him and leaving him hanging out to dry, Johnny wanted him to suffer. Even if it wasn't by his hand.
"Long time no see." Johnny says aloud, walking down the steps once he's gotten Sonny's attention. The look of seeing a ghost graces his former boss's face and that brings a smirk to Johnny's.
"Johnny O'Brien?" Sonny stutters out, looking at him as if this couldn't be real. "But...but you're dead."
"Unfortunately for you, I'm not." Johnny steps closer and closer, waiting to get into hitting range. "Nice job on the frame up, by the way. If it wasn't me, I'd have believed it, too."
"It wasn't personal." Sonny uses as his defense. "It was just business."
"I laid down my life for you...over and over again." Johnny states, getting even closer to Sonny. "Take your business line and shove it! Your betrayal was personal...and so is this!"
Cocking his arm back, Johnny slammed his fist against Sonny's face, knocking his former boss on his ass, busting his lip wide open. After all these years, after imagining seeing Sonny in so many different ways, Johnny had to admit this was the most tame encounter of them all, but still just as satisfying.
He threw all his anger, all his hatred, and all his pain into that one punch. Years of dedicated service, risking his life time and time again, Johnny couldn't feel more betrayed if he tried. Of course, if it were Francis or Jason, it would have been more painful, but they'd never do that to him.
Sonny, on the other hand, was definitely more than capable. Johnny had just believed he was too important to Sonny to be betrayed like that. Shows how blindly stupid he was. How stupid he had been to blindly follow each and every order, never questioning his boss, never talking back. Something that Johnny was glad Jason has outgrown or he'd have to lay out Jason's ass, too.
"Ready?" Elizabeth says, walking up to him, watching as he simply squats down beside Sonny. "He's still alive, right?"
"Unfortunately." Johnny sighs, standing upright before turning to look at her. "And to answer you're question...yeah. I'm ready."
"He's living through hell right now, Johnny." Elizabeth assures him, placing a soft hand on his arm. "Let him live it."
"I know you're right...but still." Johnny slings his arm across her shoulder before walking with her up the steps. "Doesn't stop me from wanting to be the one to cause him pain."
"I know." she says softly, wrapping one arm around his waist, snuggling into his side. "I know."
Walking together, they decide that it would be best to grab some food, making sure that they order some for Francis. Even though he would never admit it, Elizabeth knows that he misses the food at Kelly's. By the look on Johnny's face, he obviously missed it, even going as far as to say it.
They had just gotten their food and was about to pay for it when Sam walked through the door with John McBain by her side. The moment that Sam saw Elizabeth, a look of pain and anger crossed her face, something that McBain didn't fail to notice.
For a brief moment, Elizabeth thought Sam would confront her there, like she has done a lot lately, but McBain guided her away and Sam followed, taking a seat at an empty table.
"You okay?" Johnny asked her, seeing that there was a spark, of the old Elizabeth, starting to form in her eyes.
"Yeah." Elizabeth shakes her head, waiting long enough for Johnny to pay for the food before grabbing the bags and walking out the door. Forcing Johnny to sprint just to keep up.
Getting to the car, they take off back to the safe house, in silence. Francis looked up at the sound of them walking through the door, readily catching his bag of food when Elizabeth tossed it to him before she walked off to Jason's room, causing Francis to smirk slightly.
Like Johnny, he could see the spark of Lizzie starting to push itself forward. Soon enough Port Charles will have a whirlwind of chaos on its hands if anyone even tries to get in her face. Something Francis was more than glad to be back home in time to see. As far as he was concerned, Lizzie's return is a return that's long over due and he couldn't wait.
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