Chapter Seven
Ned just stared at Alexis. She looked away, shocked herself. Where the hell did that come from?
"What!? WHAT!!" Ned yelled and stood up. He was pissed, disgusted, mortified.
"Ned … "
"No ... don't 'Ned' me! Alexis! You love him?"
Alexis looked away again. 'I never stopped' she thought to herself but decided against revealing it.
Ned waited and Alexis just looked away.
He walked up and sat next to her. "You can't … after everything … you can't love him."
Alexis was tired. She thought back to the drama of the entire day and leaned back on her bed, facing Ned.
"Ned, you have no idea what I've been through. You've been gone - you left. You bailed - not me."
"Alexis, I love you more than he ever will," Ned admitted quickly and waited. He looked at her face as she closed her eyes. She looked as if she wanted to cry, but no tears came. Her eyes finally opened and met his instantly.
"There was a time, Ned, when that would have made my heart melt. There was a time when that's all I wanted to hear, but now, my love for you is gone. It died when you … "
"When I kept Kristina from you."
Alexis nodded. She could never get over that. She had forgiven him in a way, but she'd never forget. She'd never look at him the same.
"You thought you were doing it for the right reasons, but you weren't Ned. You weren't."
Ned down to her hands and took them in his. "I will be sorry for that forever Alexis." He met her gaze once more. "I will love you for - for the rest of my life. Alexis, no matter what happens - you get married - I get married - however many children we end up with - however much I love whoever else I'm with - no one will ever compare to you."
Alexis looked down to their hands … and she thought of Sonny, not Ned. She wanted those words to come out of Sonny's mouth. She felt horrible for thinking of Sonny when Ned was being so open, but she loved him, not Ned. She wanted to be alone.
"Ned, I will always love you too, you and I had something that was more special and … it was the most … comfortable time in my life … but that … it … Ned, it's all over. It's been over for so long now … and I've lived an entire lifetime since then. I've been beaten … " she started laughing, "literally and figuratively … for the past few years and … you have no idea … you're so … " she smiled up at Ned, "I don't know … innocent? You'll never know what it's like … this heartache … this pain … you'll never know it."
Ned nodded, "And Sonny does." It wasn't a question.
Alexis breathed in, but before she could agree or say anything, Ned leaned in and kissed her forehead. He backed away slowly with a smile.
"I'm here. I'm a phone call away at all times. If he hurts you … "
"Ned … "
"No, if he hurts you … "
"I hope to God you aren't talking about me hurting her, pretty boy..." Sonny boomed as he walked in the room confidently. Ned and Alexis' heads both jerked to him ... he had gone home to shower and shave. Alexis couldn't help but blush at the sight of him, but she remained in control of her emotions. Ned looked back to her and squeezed her hand, mouthing the words, "I love you" before he nodded to Sonny and left. Alexis watched him leave and turned her attention to her handsome roommate as he placed a manila folder on her bed next to her.
"You cleaned up well," Alexis said.
Sonny smiled and pushed the folder closer to her.
"What's this?"
He said nothing - just showed his dimples.
Alexis sighed and grabbed the folder, opening it to see picture after picture drawn by Kristina, Molly, Michael, and Morgan … more from Kristina. There were 'get well's', 'I love you's' and 'come home soon's' over and over and over … squiggly lines from Molly that Alexis had known was hers.
Sonny smiled down still at Alexis, his heart growing bigger each time she looked to the next drawing. Then she reached the last. He grew nervous.
It was a drawing of Greystone … there was Molly in her stroller, Kristina, Michael, Morgan, even Viola, Leticia, Max, and Milo … but Alexis focused on the two people standing to the side. Kristina and Michael had drawn Sonny and Alexis holding hands to the far left of the page … smiling. At the bottom of the drawing, was Sonny's handwriting, simply, "Please say 'yes'."
Alexis looked up to Sonny, letting her tears fall slowly down her face.
Sonny's smile faded. His heart was still breaking from what she had been through … and thinking of what she was going to go through with the chemo. Like hell he would let her do this alone.
Alexis let out a small laugh, "You're a horrible man, Sonny Corinthos."
Sonny looked worried.
Alexis smiled, "How can I say 'no' to this?"
His worry went away and he smiled. He wanted to reach down and take her in his arms, but he just smiled. He wasn't quite sure Alexis was ready to know that he had been slowly falling back in love with her. He laughed inside himself at that - he wasn't falling back in love with her - he was just realizing that it hadn't left to begin with. He, too, didn't feel like being rejected, so he was silent. If it was meant to be, which he thought it was, then it would happen eventually.
--
Five days later …
"Mommy!! Alexis!! Maaamaaa! Alexis!!" yelled Kristina, Michael, Molly, then Morgan. Alexis walked into the living room followed closely by Sonny, Carly, Jason, Max, and Milo. She was weak … but the bruises were healing nicely and Robin finally said that it was okay to go home. Her first chemo session was that day at the hospital and Sonny didn't leave her side for a second.
Jason and Carly came in after about an hour and Jason handed Alexis his cell phone.
"Hello?"
"Alexis? It's Sam."
Alexis gasped. She couldn't speak. It had only been a few days since she'd seen or heard from Sam, and she was beginning to really get worried.
"I called Jason - he said you have chemo today?"
"Yeah … um … yeah, I'm actually in here now … where are you?"
"On the ocean … it doesn't matter where … I'm okay Alexis. Are you?"
Alexis wanted to cry. Why the hell did Sam do this? Alexis wanted this girl as her daughter and now she was acting like the perfect one. Alexis wasn't angry at her for leaving … she would have done the same … but she was still reeling from the discovery that Sam wasn't hers. No matter what happened to them in the past … no matter what Sam did to destroy their relationship … whether on purpose or by mistake … no matter how Alexis pushed and pushed Sam away … from Jason and herself … there was a love there that was different from any other … and Alexis would NOT give that up.
"I miss you, Sam."
Alexis heard nothing from the other end … she thought she heard Sam sniffle, but she wasn't sure. She heard waves … a few seagulls … and then her voice.
"I um … I have to go. I just wanted to um … I wanted to just talk to you … "
"Sam wait. Please."
"I have to go."
"No! Sam, damnit! Wait a minute!"
"Alexis," Sonny interrupted … he didn't like her getting this worked up. Sonny stopped talking the moment Alexis glared at him … she returned to the phone.
"Listen to me. Sam … I'm glad that you're okay … and I'm fine … but listen … you can't run from me. You can't run from Jason." Alexis looked up to Jason, who's eyes were closed. Carly's hand on his shoulder. "Sam, you take as long as you want, but you're wanted here. It's not just me and Jason … Kristina and Molly … they want you back … Sonny, hell, even Carly's here and she's acting nice. Sam … Carly's being nice to me … I think you might want to see this."
Carly rolled her eyes and smiled.
"Okay … I'll let you go Sam, but you have to promise me something."
Sam was obviously crying on the other end, but she managed to reply, "Okay … "
"Promise me that you'll call me … or write me. Sam, I refuse to go a week without knowing where you are … if you're okay. You can stay where you are … go where you want, but you will not forget me … or Jason, or our girls … Sam, I told you … blood or no blood … "
Sam nodded on the other side, then finally agreed.
Alexis smiled, looking up to Jason.
"Sam … I'm serious. If you don't, Jason is going to bring ME to find you. You wouldn't do that to him, would you?"
Sam laughed, "No … no, I will. I'll call you tomorrow to see how you're feeling."
"Okay. Sam - I know how strange this must be, but I love you."
This was too much for her … she wasn't use to being treated this way … so she had to go. She said 'I love you' once more and hung up, walking then to her room on the boat to cry.
That phone call meant the world to Alexis and she looked from Sonny to Jason to Carly and was baffled by the way her life was turning out. These three people who wanted nothing to do with her a few weeks ago … are now her three rocks. Carly … not so much … but it did amaze Alexis how different she was becoming.
Now sitting on the couch in the living room in her 'new' home, surrounded by hyper children from the ages of one to twelve, Alexis was ecstatic. She watched as Michael, Kristina, and Morgan played Michael's new 'educational' video game that Kristina bought him for his last birthday. Molly had been crawling around her big sister, but once she saw a clear pathway to her mother, she was on her way. Alexis smiled as she saw her youngest beauty try with all her might to crawl as fast as possible to her Mommy. Sonny stopped Alexis from bending over to scoop her up. He stood and intercepted Molly from her goal. He swung her around in the air. At first, Molly screamed in disgust as she was taken away from her mother, but then squealed in delight as she flew in the air, landing of course, in her mother's lap. Alexis smiled up to Sonny who smiled to her. Things were going to be okay.