Big
Fat Happy Sunshine Day
Overcrowded Room
--Chapter Four--
.:Port Charles Park:.
"Good game, Jason," Nikolas called out as he grabbed his duffel bag and his water bottle.
"You, too," Jason agreed, tossing him the basketball across the court and waiting as his friend stuffed it under his arm. "You wanna do this again tomorrow?"
"Can't," came the reply. "I have an appointment with my uncle. How about Thursday?"
"Sounds good," Jason called, already backing away from the court. "Give Stefan my best. I'll see you then."
"Later, Jason," Nikolas responded, waving as he turned and walked toward his parked car nearby.
Wiping the sweat out of his eyes, Jason turned around and headed toward the park entrance, thinking that he'd go to Kelly's for a quick bite and then return to his hotel room. He was glad that he had allowed Nikolas to guilt him into a game of basketball with some of their old friends; he didn't get the chance to do things like that very often.
He was walking along the main pathway, admiring the overgrown trees, when he heard a few shouts in the distance. Curious, he kept on walking in the same direction, following the pathway as it turned a corner.
He heard her voice before he even saw her.
"Get back here, you dumb noodleloaf!"
Just then, a gray rabbit shot past him on the grass, followed closely by a large black Labrador Retriever. The dog was in hard pursuit of the little animal, and that was when Jason instantly recognized the voice of its owner.
"If you come back, I'll let you eat kelp," she promised, still somewhere in the distance. "Remember? You like kelp!"
Elizabeth appeared around the corner just then and the second her sapphire eyes connected with his, Jason took off running after the animal. The rabbit was zig-zagging like mad across the pathway, seeking a safe refuge from the overexcited dog, and Jason did his best to dodge other pedestrians and small, confused children as he ran.
Blinking at the strange sight before her, Elizabeth snapped herself out of it and ran after the older man and her buffoon of a dog, the leash swinging from her hand. "Noodle! Noodle, get back here!"
But her attempt to keep up with Jason's long, smooth gait as he ran was futile. Still, Elizabeth trotted after him, waving her leash as if poor, simple Noodle would suddenly remember that chasing rabbits in a public park and consequently mowing over small children was a no-no.
"Heel, boy! Stop! Roll over! Play dead – or do your Dukakis impression! Same thing! Damn it, Noodle!"
She blew her bangs out of her eyes, slowing to a halt when she saw that Jason had managed to grab her dumb dog by the collar. Noodle, however, wasn't about to let his cottontail prey off that easily; he strained against Jason's grip on the scruff of his neck, barking up a storm until it clicked in his oafish brain that something – or someone – was holding him back.
Elizabeth winced when her dog turned, half-leaping up onto Jason. The businessman, who had traded in those loathsome suits for a comfortable pair of track shorts and a wifebeater this morning, was powerless against the large dog. Noodle jumped up on him again, leaving two dark paw prints against his slim-fitting wifebeater, and succeeded in knocking Jason down.
The brunette rushed up just as her giant dog began slobbering all over poor Jason, yipping and barking with excitement. Huffing, she snapped the leash onto his collar and pulled him back as Jason managed to slip out from underneath.
"You dumb dog," Elizabeth muttered, pushing down on Noodle's rump in a vain attempt to get him to sit. "You were so tiny as a puppy – what the hell happened?"
Jason grunted, his back flat against the pavement, and hoisted himself up onto his elbows before sitting up. The movement caught Noodle's attention and the dog once again attempted to jump up onto Jason, licking his face and barking.
He heard Elizabeth yelling obscenities and something about kelp, and Jason managed to twist away slightly as he grabbed the dog by the scruff of the neck, petting him roughly. The large animal seemed to enjoy that, and actually calmed down as Jason scratched his ears and rubbed his muzzle.
Elizabeth watched, nonplussed, then gave up trying to figure her dog out. "Sorry about that, Jason. And thank you for grabbing him."
"Not a problem," he answered, still playing with the oafish animal. "Who is this guy?"
"This is Noodle Amadeus Drake," Elizabeth replied proudly, playing with the dog's tail as it wagged furiously.
"All that name belongs to him?" Jason smirked, letting the animal lick his face.
The brunette chuckled, picking a stray dandelion fuzzie off his shiny black coat. "I was on a Mozart kick when I got him. I call him Noodle for every day, and Noodleloaf when he's being bad."
"What's a noodleloaf?"
She shrugged, mildly enjoying the bewildered look on his face. "Synonym for lunkhead?"
He seemed to accept the answer. "Oh." Roughly playing with Noodle's ears, Jason winced when the animal continued his loud, obnoxious barking jag.
"He reminds me of you." The corner of his mouth hitched upward when the brunette glared playfully at him. "Does he get away often?"
Elizabeth shrugged. "Not really. I mean, he usually takes me for walks instead of the other way around, but I can handle him. He very rarely gets this worked up over rabbits, but squirrels are another story. He hates them – so do I. Damn kamikaze rodents."
He knew enough about Carly's little stepsister by now to know to leave that peculiar remark alone. "How long have you had him?"
"Oh, since he was a puppy," she replied, rubbing the dog's belly. "Our neighbor's dog in Philly had puppies and they couldn't keep them all, so my dad let me pick one. I picked this guy – but only because he tried to run up my dad's pant leg. I decided that was a mark of character."
Again, she had succeeded in confusing him with just a handful of words. Still, Jason just nodded and batted away one of Noodle's large paws when the Labrador took a playful swipe at him.
On the other side of the oafish dog, Elizabeth was watching her sister's friend carefully. This Jason – the one dressed in a pair of worn PCU track shorts and a pair of scuffed sneakers – was a far cry from the stiff, distant businessman in those damn Italian suits. It was true that he looked great in either ensemble, but she had to say that she preferred the demeanor that went along with the more casual outfit.
She was still caught up in her silent reverie when Jason hesitantly glanced up. "You run a really nice club," he blurted out, Noodle's head captured between his two large hands. "I meant to tell you that the other night, but…I couldn't catch you before we left."
A small, easy smile curled her lips and Elizabeth nodded bashfully. "Thanks. Yeah, I was kinda busy with this one scout that showed up for the Battle of the Bands. A couple of my regulars signed with a recording label that night."
His eyebrows rose at the unexpected information. "That's impressive."
"It is," she agreed emphatically, ignoring Noodle's hopeful eyes as he wiggled on his back, requesting a belly rub. "I've known the guys from Of Luxembourg for about three years – ever since we moved to Port Charles – and they've been regulars at Jake's since I first bought it and fixed it up. They'd do gigs all the time if I was having a slow night, and they helped a lot when it came to getting the other bands around town to perform. I'm really glad that they got their big break – it was a long time coming."
Jason eyed her curiously as she prattled on. "What about your band? Sweet Revenge, right?"
She nodded. "What about us?"
"…Well, wouldn't you like to be signed to a label?"
Elizabeth surprised him by laughing. "God, no! Who the hell has the time these days?" She shook her head again, seeing that he wasn't following.
"Me, Lulu, Kelly, Lainey – we're not nearly devoted enough to make Sweet Revenge the real deal. Lainey's got school, Kelly's got to help run L&B, Lulu's pretty much being groomed to take over Luke's Bar, and I've got Jake's and Carly to keep me busy. This is just what we do in our spare time, here and there. I don't think any one of us wants a real musical career."
"You all play very well, though," Jason responded, scratching Noodle's exposed throat. "I'm sorry I had to leave in the middle of your set – I didn't want to, but I was paged about an emergency at ELQ and-"
"ELQ, that's right," Elizabeth nodded. She couldn't fully explain it, but part of her felt much better about that evening knowing that Jason hadn't left of his own volition. Rattled slightly by that, she did the only thing she could think to do and changed the subject. "How's that going for you? Do you like it?"
Jason just shrugged. "I used to work there before – back when I lived here in Port Charles. It's pretty much the same…except now Edward Quartermaine's actually paying attention to me."
She quirked a brow at him. "You make that sound like a bad thing."
This time, it was his turn to surprise her. Jason leaned forward and quirked a brow back at her, still playing with Noodle. "Have you ever met Edward Quartermaine? It's definitely a bad thing."
Her lips relaxed into an amused grin, and Elizabeth focused her attention on Noodle, uncomfortable with the new feeling that was coming over her – the feeling of actually enjoying Mr. Big Fat Happy Sunshine Day's company. "Yeah, Carly doesn't like him, either. She and AJ are always plotting together about him – they even have a list going called Sixty-Three Ways To Give The Old Goat A Heart Attack."
"We're up to sixty-seven now, actually," Jason smirked back. "Edward's a problem, but as long as Junior, Tracy, Nikolas and your sister stay on at ELQ, the company will be fine."
Elizabeth tilted her head to the side, nibbling her lip and debating over whether or not to respond to that. Finally, her impulsive side won out, as always. "I'm sorry – I didn't think you liked Carly."
His cerulean orbs twinkled in the sunshine, and his serious baritone actually gave way to laughter when Noodle tried to jump on him again. "Don't tell her this, but I don't mind Carly at all. I do think she's abrasive and impulsive sometimes, but your sister is just what ELQ needs. If nothing else, she keeps Edward, Alan and Monica on their toes."
The brunette laughed along at that. "Yeah, she doesn't like them either. She calls them the Manson family."
Jason chuckled but said nothing to disagree. A long silence passed between the two of them as they focused on Noodle so they wouldn't have to deal with the faint awkwardness that began to settle in. The dog dealt with it for them when he soon spotted a squirrel and pulled away from Jason to stand at full attention, growling menacingly at the 'kamikaze rodent'.
Elizabeth flashed the businessman a small smile and pushed herself up, taking her dog's leash in her hand. Jason followed suit and stood as well, dusting off his shorts and shins. "Thanks again for stopping Noodle, Jason. I'd probably be chasing him through Amish Country by sunset if you hadn't gotten a hold of him. I'm sorry if we made you late for an appointment or something…"
He shook his head, roughly playing with the dog's head before letting him go and stepping back. "No, I had the day off today. Actually, I was just with Nikolas and Junior and a couple of the other guys, and was about to head over to Kelly's for some coffee or something."
The statement was phrased casually, but Jason watched the petite brunette like a hawk as he tried to catch even the subtlest reaction. But Elizabeth didn't pick up on any of that. Instead, she shrugged her shoulders. "Sounds like a plan. Hey – be sure to try their mint sweet tea. It's a new item on the menu, and it's perfect for this heat wave right now."
Jason nodded slowly, idly playing with the lanyard that held his keys. "I think I will. I'll see you around, Elizabeth."
She held Noodle back when the oafish animal decided it would be a great idea to ditch his stuffy owner who wouldn't let him chase rabbits and instead follow his new friend, and stood still as Jason tipped his head and walked around her on his way to Kelly's. With a sigh, she jiggled her dog's leash and prodded him to walk forward, ignoring the lingering looks Noodle cast in the businessman's direction.
"Yeah, it sure turns out that way, doesn't it?"