(Author's Note: Hey, could this be considered a mini-roll? I've updated 2 stories within 2 months! It's amazing! I miss updating and hope my loyal readers are still reading. Well here's a new chapter! I hope you like!! Please review!! -E.B.F.R.)

Chapter #9- Hospitals, Animals, and Competitions

Emily came home to the Quartermaine Mansion in a sweat. She literally ran all the way from Lucky's house to hers, despite her still sore ankle. She wasn't being chased, she just felt like running to clear her head.

"What in the world did I ask Lucky to do yesterday? I just had to be delusional." Emily said to herself.

As she let herself into the mansion, she was surprised. Surprised at the silence that was her home. "Okay. This is too weird." Emily mumbled to herself.

She walked into the den to find her brother AJ and Grandfather quietly eating breakfast. As far away from each other as they could of course. If AJ wasn't shooting daggers in Edward's direction every time he had to look at him, then AJ was ignoring him.

Edward looked up and was about to ask Emily where she'd been the previous night, obviously not believing AJ's cover story.

"Edward! Don't you dare even try to chastise my granddaughter! Emily, how are you doing my dear?" Lila said.

"I'm doing alright Grandmother. How are you?"

"Alright dear."

"Where is everyone?" Emily asked AJ.

"Mom and Dad are at the hospital Em…Mom's getting treated. She didn't want you to worry, but knew you should know." AJ replied.

"I'm going to go see her. You coming AJ?" Em asked. "I told Mom that I'd be by during my lunch break." AJ replied. "Okay. I'll see you there. Thanks AJ."

"Anytime Em. Love you."
"Love you too AJ. Bye Grandmother." Emily called as she walked back out the door, not even acknowledging Edward.

General Hospital –

When Emily got to the hospital, she found her father and mother in the distance in one of the hospital rooms. Something inside of Emily snapped. She didn't know what it was, but all she could see in front of her was her mother (Monica and flashbacks of Paige) and she couldn't take it.

Without warning or a conscious thought in her brain she sprinted forward, wanting to stop the pain that she saw in Monica's eyes due to the medical treatment she was receiving.

"No! Stop! Stop hurting her, leave her alone!!" Emily cried as she got closer to Monica, closer to the wires that had her hooked up to machines. Emily wanted to take them out and just let Monica go home. She wasn't thinking that the medication her mother was receiving was helping her. Em just wanted everything to be okay again.

"Emily, Emily no. It's okay. She's getting treatment." Alan said, holding her back as best he could.

Elizabeth, who had been there to help out her grandmother Audrey, heard the commotion, and wandered in.

"Take her outside please?" Alan asked, while Monica just watched in shock.

"Em, Emily…come on. Let's go. It'll be okay." Liz said softly to her as she wrapped an arm around her best friend's shoulders, leading her out the door and letting her cry.

"No, no…She has to come home. Please don't keep her here." Em sobbed.

After the door to her room was shut, Monica laid her head back on her pillow, her eyes closed. Alan gave her hand a tight squeeze. This wasn't easy for any of them.

Monica was scared. She wasn't sure if she'd make it though. None of them did. Monica just hoped for the love of her husband, her daughter, and her family that she would be alight.

Outside her mother's room, Emily was now sitting against the wall, still sobbing. "I can't lose her Elizabeth. I can't." Elizabeth, unsure of what to do or say, just rested her head alongside her friend's, and rubbed her arms, trying to rid Em of the chill that had crept it's way into her body.

Emily had soon stared at the wall that was across from her. There was a light above her head. Continually staring at the wall, a shadow soon blocked that light.

"What do you want?" Emily said curtly as the shadow that now blocked her light had been the last person she wanted to see.

"I wanted to see how your mother was doing." A quiet Tracy replied.

"Like you care." Emily spat.

"Believe it or not, little girl I do care. Not even my worst enemy deserves something like this."

"That's not hard to believe considering I'm sure you have many enemies."

"Maybe my father is right, you need to grow up and be taught some respect."

"And you're going to be the one to teach it to me, oh 'master?' Ha, I think not." Emily sarcastically.

"Why you little–"

"Hey! Both of you stop it. You both are acting like two year olds. This isn't helping any of you. If you guys can't say anything nice, then just don't say anything." Elizabeth replied.

"Fine." Emily replied as she laid her head on her knees.

"Fine." Tracy said and walked passed her into Monica's room.

After a few minutes, Emily rested her head against the wall. "Thanks. Elizabeth."

"For what?"

"For making sure we didn't tear each other apart…"

"Not a problem. I'm sure you'd do the same for me."
"Of course."

Soon Tracy walked out of Monica's room. Emily didn't really care what was said between them, just as long as it didn't hinder her mother's health.

"Did I mention how much I hate hospitals?" Emily muttered.

"Come on Emily, what do you say we go to Kelly's?" Elizabeth offered with a slight smile and a light squeeze to Emily's shoulder.

"Yeah sure, if I stay here I'm liable to go stir crazy…" Emily replied as she gave a hug to her parents and she and Liz left.

Kelly's –

Emily and Elizabeth were both drinking hot chocolate when Lucky, Nikolas, and Lulu walked in. Lulu was carrying a stuffed lion, Nikolas held a Tiger, and Lucky held a bear. (A/N: any resemblance to "The Wizard of Oz" is purely a coincidence, I did not intend for the characters to have those specific animals, they just came to me, and yes in that order.) Elizabeth and Emily both looked at the trio, then each other and broke out laughing.

"Emily, Lizzie! Look what I won, and what Lucky and Nikolas got for me! We went to the zoo first. I loved all the animals, though I think the lion was my favorite." Lulu had given her stuffed animal a squeeze, then continued. "Then afterward we went to the carnival that was right next to it." Lulu said happily, holding her up stuffed lion. "Lulu, that's great! Looks like your brothers won stuffed animals too." Emily commented.

"Yep! Though I still don't get why you had to pay that person $10 to win the bear Lucky…"

Liz and Emily held in their laughter…for now anyway. 'What?" Liz asked. Before Lucky or Nikolas could defend him, Lulu spoke up. "Yeah, for some reason, Lucky couldn't hit the target. Nikolas tried, but he couldn't either. So after Nikolas took me to get cotton candy, we came back and Lucky said he won it…though I saw him give the guy money…Nikolas did the same when Lucky took me to get ice cream."

"Aw, are you guys up for another try? Elizabeth and I will be glad to kick your butts."

"Very funny Emily. Very funny. And just so you know we can kick your butts."

"Right Nikolas, at what?" Elizabeth quipped.

"Fencing."

"Doesn't count." Emily teased.

'It does too!"

"No it doesn't Nikky. Though I bet you could be them at….at….hmm…"

"Lulu…" Nikolas said.

"What?" Lulu asks questioningly.

"Looks like all three of them got ya there." Lucky added.

"I could have used your help ya know." Nikolas said half sarcastically.
"Sorry, I didn't have anything…except…horseback riding!" Lucky said brightly.

"Now that's a race I want to see." Elizabeth replied.

"Hmm…Okay, I'm in. Nik, when and where?" Emily challenged, she loved horses when she was a young child, and fondly remembered horse-riding lessons.

"Wait a second, can you horseback ride with your arm bandaged like that?" Lucky asked in concern, no one wanting her to injure herself further.

"Yeah, it's just bandaged. Besides, I'm going to put ointment on it to help heal it before I rewrap it both tonight and tomorrow. I'll be fine." Emily assured. "Okay, just making sure." Lucky replied.

"Okay, lets see…Wyndamere. Stables…3pm tomorrow?" Nikolas suggested.

'You're on." Emily agreed with a competitive grin. This was not something she was going to turn down. Nikolas gave her an equally competitive grin of his own as the friends shook hands.

As the 5 sat down, Nikolas' cell phone rang.

"Hello…yes...can't it wait? Uncle surely these things can wait, even if it is for a mere few hours more….fine, I'll be right there." Nikolas said with a sigh and roll of his eyes.

"Is your uncle being a party pooper again?" Lucky commented.

"When does he not? Sorry guys, I'll catch up with you later. Lulu, Lucky, we have to do the zoo and carnival combo again."

"Definitely." Lucky said as he gave a wave to his brother and Lulu hugged Nik goodbye.

"Emily, tomorrow at 3?" Nikolas asked before he fully left the diner.

"Tomorrow at 3, you better be prepared to lose." Emily kidded.

"We'll see…Talk to you guys later." Nikolas replied as he left.

Just then a slew of customers came into Kelly's which meant Elizabeth could no longer stay and chat. Grabbing a fry before she left, she went to the counter to get her pen and pad to being taking orders. This left Emily and Lucky alone.

Emily took Lucky's hand as they bid Liz a quick goodbye and led them outside. Finding a secluded area, Lucky and Emily sat down at one of the tables. "Are you okay?" Lucky ased.

"I just wanted to apologize…for everything the past couple of days. Half of me has just been really rotten to you and the other half, well I don't know what that is. I'm sorry for leading you on, then backing out...I shouldn't have asked you what I did last night…I don't know where my head was and chances are it would have been a mistake if we had gone through with it…"

"Emily." Lucky simply said.

She stopped for the moment, and looked up at him.

"You're babbling." Lucky smiled

"Sorry." She replied softly.

"And don't apologize. I can understand most of your frustrations, and confusion, etc. Though I'm glad we didn't go through with it either, because you're right. Neither one of us would have been ready for it. Plus, Nik and my dad would kill me, and Dad almost gave me the sex talk again."

Emily couldn't help but giggle at that last statement.

"Yeah, you laugh now. But he was seriously considering it, but I was able to tell him to relax." Lucky gave her a soft smile. "What did you do today?"

Emily bit her lip, and Lucky was able to guess exactly what she did with her morning.

"I went to the hospital to see my mom…I almost took the chemo treatments out of her arm…Liz was there and helped me out into the hall where I ended up almost getting into another argument with Tracy. Liz thankfully broke that up before anything could get out of hand…I just hate hospitals so much! Why does this have to happen again? I know I'm sounding like I'm 5 years old but this isn't fair."

Lucky pulled her close and held her tight. He knew that right now his words wouldn't do much so he settled for holding her. The tension and stress in Emily lessened as she left Lucky comfort her. Soon she felt a wave of exhaustion hit her. She needs to catch up on sleep and both of them know it. Soon Lucky stands and extends his hand to Emily who takes it as they both head to his house for her to rest.

(Author's Note- Please Review! Thanks!)