Where Loyalties Lie
"The only people I owe my loyalty to are those that never made me question theirs."

Sitting at the dinner table with Sonny and Carly, he subtly watches the way they interact, trying to get an idea of what couples are supposed to do together. Though he has gotten a lot of pointers from Sonny over the years, he begins to doubt that Sonny's relationship with Carly is something to imitate. Carly, on her better days, is still more than he can bear. Of course, Sonny's solution with Carly is to buy her something expensive and over the top, something he knows won't work with Elizabeth. She's not the type to be swayed by money. He learnt that the day one of her friends tried to apologize by buying her a weekend at the spa.

Once dinner was over, Jason decided to make a trip he hasn't made it quite a while, needing it now more than ever. Shutting off his bike, he skillfully makes his way to the patio just outside his grandmother's room. The moment her eyes landed on him, he saw the same brightness shine through them as it did the first day he came to her. Leaning down to place a kiss upon her cheek, he allows her to take a moment to just look at him, something he has grown used to whenever he finds himself in her presence.

"Hello, grandmother." Jason says softly. "I need your advice."

"It must be important if you chanced coming here." she comments as a soft smile touches her lips. "What has you troubled?"

"Love." he says carefully. "Relationships. All of it."

"I've never heard you speak of love before." his grandmother searches his eyes before continuing. "She must be some kind of lady."

"She is." he admits. "But I don't know the first thing about being with someone. Not like this."

"Love isn't really something you can explain." she replies lovingly. "If she matters, you will figure it out. I know you will."

"But where do I start, grandmother?"

"Well, it is love, after all, my dear. Start with the heart." she smiles softly before placing a soft kiss upon his forehead. "You are capable of more than you think. More than anyone thinks. Remember that."

Taking a moment to let that sink in, Jason thanks her for her time, promising that he will see her again before making his way back to his bike and taking off. Though she never seems to tell him exactly what he wants to hear, she always finds a way to tell him what he needs to know and he's grateful for that. From the moment he awoke from his coma, his grandmother had been the only solace he was granted and he's thankful to still have that in her.

Shutting off his bike, he walks over to the doorway of the diner, knowing that she had the closing shift today. For a moment, he simply watches her as she dances around the empty diner, wiping the tables as she goes about. The happiness displayed on her face puts a smile on his, realizing in the moment just what his grandmother had meant. Knocking slightly on the door, he watches as her eyes light up at the sight of him before she makes her way over to the door to let him in.

"Hi." she says softly once she finishes locking the door behind him. "I didn't expect to see you tonight."

"I thought we could talk about our first date." he says carefully. "Any ideas of where you'd like to go?"

"Our first date, huh?" she looks at him curiously. "Okay. How about here?"

"Here?"

"Yeah." she shakes her head. "Have a seat. I'll be right back."

"Elizabeth..." he gently grabs the hook of her arm to stop her from walking away.

"Trust me." she says with a soft smile. "I'll be right back."

Releasing his hold on her, Jason takes a seat, as instructed, watching as she walks into the kitchen and out of sight. When he thought about asking her where she wanted to go for their first date, he hadn't expected her to make their first date that very moment, in the diner no less. From what he remembers of Sonny and Carly's first date, nothing short of a five star restaurant was necessary. Though, he should know better by now, having said it many times before, she just never seems to do what he expects.

"I thought you said you weren't expecting me." Jason voices when she comes out with his usual order and what he has learnt to be hers as well.

"Expect you? No." Elizabeth says as she set the plate down in front of him. "Hope? Yes."

"Are you sure this is where you want to have our first date?"

"The where is irrelevant. As long as we're together, that's all that matters." Elizabeth says simply as she sits down across from him. "Besides, this is where we met."

As they ate, Jason couldn't help but watch her, almost certain that he could stare at her face for as long as he lived and it still wouldn't be long enough. Over the last few years, he has met more than enough beautiful women, but none that shined as brightly as her, uncertain of just why that is. Maybe it was because she's as kind as she is beautiful or maybe it was something else entirely, all he knows is that he's glad its her. Through the night, he listened as she went on and on about her life, probing where he felt he needed more information, and giving some when she asked for it. The more time he spent with her, just the two of them, he gains more confidence in the fact that they just might make this work. Being with her seems so effortless that he just didn't want it to end.

Knowing it was time to end the night, Elizabeth slips a quarter into the jukebox before holding out a hand to Jason, smiling softly as he accepts her hand and rises to his feet. He warns her that he hasn't danced a single day in his life, but she doesn't care. Dancing with him is the perfect end to their first date and she won't let the possibility of bruised toes stop her from getting her dance. As she wrapped her arms around him and he around her, Jason could literally feel his heart pounding against his chest. If this is what love is, he swears he can get used to it.

"Elizabeth?" he voices as they stand outside her studio, knowing that this is where their night ends.

"Yeah?"

"I know you've done this before..." Jason clears his throat trying to get his question across correctly. "What can I do to not screw this up?"

"No one's ever asked me that before." Elizabeth admits before shaking her head. "There's no definite answer to making a relationship work, but I do have one must. If we're going to be together, really together, I need to know that I can trust you. With my heart and with my life. I need to know that I can trust you not to hurt me. The rest we can figure out along the way."

"I can manage that." Jason whispers, reaching up a single hand to gently touch her cheek. "There's nothing I want more than this...us."

"Me too."

Closing her eyes, she lets out a soft sigh when his lips touch her forehead in a gentle embrace. Wishing each other a good night, the two go their separate ways, knowing that this was just the beginning. Neither know if this thing between them will grow into something permanent or not, but neither are willing to walk away until they know for sure it can't be. Walking into her studio, Elizabeth makes her way over to her memory box to pull out the postcard that Jason had sent, a soft smile touching her lips as she held it in her hands. Who knew that all this could happen from such a simple gesture.

"See you soon." she whispers before nibbling her bottom lip in idle thought. "Count on it."

A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and messages. Have a safe and joyful Christmas!