Late at night as the other house guests lie asleep, Jason glances over at his fiancee, who's fast asleep like the rest of them. His life has changed so much since he walked away from Elizabeth all those years ago. For a while he had completely given up on dating, then came the Carly fiasco and he wanted to just stay single.
Sam. Well, she snuck her way in when he wasn't looking and somehow he has never been able to get her out of his mind or heart. So...instead of fighting it, Jason decided to do the opposite and gave into her. She had helped him move past a lot of the crap in his life and she helped him open himself up to life again.
Now, as his life was finally gaining a sense of balance, she comes back into his life and disturbs the calm that has taken place. It seemed that she still has the habit of dropping in when he least expects it. Touching the tattoo on the side of his neck, Jason lets out a weary sigh before pulling himself out of bed.
Life had a funny way of paying him back for all the crap he's done over the years. The most recent kick in the ass being his first love and he's certain life's torment on his world has yet to be over with. Jason didn't know what to make Lila's failing health, not that he could think much on it without completely aching inside, but he also didn't know what to make of Elizabeth.
She seemed to be switching between hot and cold with him. When she was yelling at the family in the dining room, she looked at him with that slight smirk that had him almost laughing. She always did have a way of handling the family that had him enjoying his little stints among them.
"Yeah?" Jason answers his cellphone, making his way into the living room, hating the echo that resounds through the house.
"How're things going?" Sonny's voice replies.
"As well as expected." Jason sighs, shaking his head. "A bunch of Quartermaines in one house."
"Enough said." Sonny chuckles, plopping down into his club chair.
"What's going on?" Jason counters, not wanting to talk about what's going on with the family.
"Just checking in." Sonny admits, relaxing against the plush cushion. "How long do you think you'll be living there?"
"Until Lila says otherwise." Jason says seriously.
"And how's Sam handling it?"
"She's fine."
"Even with Elizabeth Webber living there?"
And there it was. The real reason for the call.
"Spit it out, Sonny." Jason states. "I don't have time for your psychological crap."
"I just find it unusual that your ex-girlfriend shows up mere months after you get engaged." Sonny points out. "Are you sure this is merely a coincidence?"
"Lila means a lot to Elizabeth." Jason snaps. "She's like a grandmother to her. Stop making trouble where there isn't any!"
"Relax." Sonny shakes his head, knowing exactly what the reaction meant and not liking it. "I was just making an observation."
"Well stop." Jason says through gritted teeth. "And stay out of my personal life unless you want me passing judgement on yours."
Ending the call, Jason walks over to pour himself a glass of Edward's strongest stuff before plopping down onto the couch. He knows it wasn't right to snap at Sonny like that, but he had no intention in giving a play by play on things going on in the house. Or with Elizabeth.
The last time Jason allowed Sonny to pass judgement on his personal life, Jason almost passed up on Elizabeth. It took everything he had in him to keep going and see if there was something in Elizabeth that he could trust.
"I'm just saying, man." Sonny pours himself a drink before handing one to Jason. "She's in tight with the Quartermaines. Just because she's not one, doesn't mean she's not loyal to them."
"She's different." Jason states, looking at the man that has given him a chance, a life away from 66th and its inhabitants.
"I know you want to believe she is, but how can you be sure?" Sonny counters, sitting down on his club chair. "Robin seems to think otherwise."
"That's her opinion."
"Don't be so quick to wave away her advice." Sonny insists. "She knows them better than anyone...including that girl."
"Its my life." Jason rises to his feet, more confused than he's ever been and needing to get away. "If I want Elizabeth in it, she'll be in it. Are we done talking business?"
"Yeah." Sonny shakes his head. "We're done with business."
Granting Sonny a nod, Jason walks out of the penthouse and rushes to his bike. Straddling it, Jason started it up and put the petal to the metal. He had to clear his mind, think clearly, before he made a decision in regard to Elizabeth.
So far all she has done is listen to him, never giving advice or suggesting anything, just how he liked it. She listened to him think and she left him alone when he needed it. Why wouldn't he want that in his life? Why wouldn't he want someone in his life that actually thinks of him for a change?
Spotting Elizabeth in front of a building, carrying a bunch of stuff, Jason pulls his bike over to park by her car. The moment she looked at him, he saw something in her eyes that had him almost stunned, but his body still moved.
"Jason, hi!" Elizabeth greets him with such happiness. "Out for a ride?"
"Yeah." he replies before gesturing to her things. "Need help?"
"Sure." Elizabeth hands him a couple bags before shutting her trunk. "Thanks."
Walking up to her new studio, Elizabeth tells him all about finding it and how excited she was to finally have an art studio to call her own. He tells her about her dreams to be an artist and how much she loved dreaming of one day making her own dreams come true.
Getting to her rundown studio, all Jason saw was a studio that shouldn't have been torched, but she looked at it like it was made of gold. Which made him wish he could see things the way she did. She seemed to see potential in things that otherwise didn't have any.
"You can just set those down over there." Elizabeth gestures to the desk. "I know it doesn't look like much..."
"I can see you like it." he cuts her off. "If you can see something in it, I'm sure there's something more to it than I can see."
"The Quartermaines wanted to buy me one of those extravagant studios, but I just couldn't let them." Elizabeth explains, setting her stuff down on the desk. "I know they mean well and all...and I probably offended them on some level...but it wouldn't have meant as much if I wasn't the one that bought it."
"You have to do what feels right to you."
"I know and that's why I chose this place." Elizabeth turns to him with a smile. "Its just in my price range, with my salary at the diner, and it feels amazing knowing that I'm the one that did it. I don't owe it to the Quartermaines or to my gram...this is all me."
And that's when he saw it. That's when he saw just how much this place meant to her and then, he too, could see the gold where there wasn't any. This was a place for her to call her own, a place that she found for herself to help her start off and accomplish her dreams.
Before he realized it, Jason was telling her about what Robin and Sonny have said. How she didn't see him for him, but as Jason Quartermaine, hoping one day she'll be able to get him back into the thick of the Quartermaine family. What he wasn't ready for was her anger that bubbled to the surface.
First came an onslaught of curse words towards both Sonny and Robin. Questioning their right in saying what she wanted and what she didn't. What she expected or that she was playing him. She states how he always comes to her and not the other way around.
How she doesn't search him out, but her door is always open to him. In that moment, in the middle of all her rantings and cursing, Jason found what he had been looking for. He found the ability to trust her. To accept her in his life and to actually want her there.
"Just wait until I get my hands on those two, I swear..."
Before she could finish her threat, Jason closed the distance between them, stopping her from pacing by pulling her into his arms and claiming her lips swiftly. He could tell she was shocked at first, even allowing her to pull away for a moment to look him in the eyes.
Her eyes went soft, her lips turned up into a slight smile before she reached up to gently touch his cheek with the backs of her fingers. In that moment, he could tell that she felt the same way about him. He didn't need to read her mind because it was vibrant in her eyes.
Then, once he knew she was ready for him, Jason claimed her lips again, kissing her soundly. He tried kissing Robin once, but it was nothing like this. This was different somehow, he wasn't sure how, but he was sure of it.
"Wanna go for a ride?" Jason questions when they finally pull away from each other.
"Definitely." she whispers, laying her forehead against his. "A ride sounds perfect."
Shaking his head, Jason downed the rest of his drink before pouring himself another one. Elizabeth wasn't the first woman he ever kissed, but she became a lot of his firsts after that. With a slight smile, Jason moved to sit on the chair again when the door opened up and there she was.
"Can't sleep?" Elizabeth guesses, leaning against the doorjamb.
"Something like that." Jason concedes, smiling slightly. "What about you?"
"I was just finishing off a painting." Elizabeth admits, gesturing to her blouse. "Lila's letting me use the shed outback for my studio."
"That's good." Jason shakes his head. "I'm glad you can still do your art while you're here."
"Me, too." she admits, pushing away from the door. "I'd hardly be able to fathom what my life would be like without my art."
"I understand that."
"Anyway, I'll leave you to it." Elizabeth says simply. "I'm sure you'd rather be alone."
"Actually..." Jason stops her from leaving. "I'd really rather not...maybe we can catch up...its been a while since we just talked."
"About a decade, I'd say." Elizabeth points out, but follows him into the living room, accepting a glass of water. "So...you're getting married, huh?"
"Yeah." Jason smiles slightly. "What about you?"
"Nothing that serious." Elizabeth admits, sitting down on the club chair while he sits on the couch. "I have a boyfriend, but he's too busy with his career to be here...he's a prosecutor."
"He should be here."
"Yeah...he should." Elizabeth agrees. "But, like I said, its nothing serious."
"Still..." Jason takes a drink before setting the glass down. "He's your boyfriend...he should be here for you."
"I'm used to being alone." Elizabeth shrugs, downing the rest of her water before setting the glass down. "I'm glad you found someone to spend the rest of your life with...that's really good."
"Yeah." Jason eyes her intently for a moment, curious about the look in her eyes. "But you know that you're never really alone, right?"
"Sure." Elizabeth smiles slightly. "I have Lila, Emily, Brenda, AJ...the rest of the family...my family..."
"Right." he lets the topic drop for now. "So, I'm sure you made it to Italy by now...tell me what it was like."
"You've already been there." she reminds him, wondering what he was getting at.
"I know." Jason smiles slightly, shaking his head. "But I want to know what it was like through your eyes."
"Oh." she looks at him for a moment before smiling slightly. "Okay."
They spent hours talking about Italy and other places she has been, sometimes flipping it around and making Jason talk about places he's been over the years. It was the most they've spoken to each other in a long time, both enjoying that they still had that ability. Talking to each other without letting anything else weigh in. Not the past, not emotions, just them talking like old friends.
"Well, thanks for walking me to my room." Elizabeth says gratefully. "See you for breakfast in the morning?"
"I have something to handle in the morning, but I'll be back by lunch." he concedes. "Thanks for staying and talking to me."
"It was good to talk to you." Elizabeth admits. "And don't worry...I won't tell your fiancee about us...what we used to be."
"Elizabeth, I didn't mean it like that." he says firmly, needing her to understand. "Its always been hard for me to talk about us...what we used to be...and I just never knew how to put us into words. I will tell her, I swear, I just need to figure out how."
"Just tell the truth." Elizabeth says simply. "Tell her what we were and that we'll never be. That she's your future and she's all you'll ever need."
"Right." he shakes his head. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Jason." she replies, leaning over to place a kiss upon his cheek. "I'm glad you're happy with her."
Waiting long enough for her to walk into her bedroom, Jason leaves the house and straddles his bike. It looked like it was going to be one of those nights that he just needed to get away. So, putting the petal to the metal, Jason speeds off into the night. Leaving all the complications behind him and just embracing the feeling that his bike would always bring out in him.