Characters:
Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17
Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16
Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16
Katie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 14
Selena Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 4
Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16
Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16
Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17
Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15
Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17
Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16
Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15
Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14
Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16
Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16
Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17
Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15
Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16
Chapter 10: Mia's White Knight
Gabe
"I have to go." Gabe told Leah as he started to shove his books into his bag. They were at Kelly's, doing homework and talking. She pouted.
"Why?"
"Because. Mia needs me."
"Oh, so you're picking her over me. Again."
Gabe sighed. "Stop. She's crying and Mia hardly cries. It's serious."
"Then I wanna come."
"No way. You two will just fight and it will make everything even more awkward and tense."
"I just want to try and understand, Gabe. I don't get why she hates me so much."
He didn't really want her to go, mostly because he knew it would make Mia mad, but he needed to leave. "Fine. You need to sit in the back. Try not to start any arguments." She nodded and got into the backseat of his car.
The drive to Mia's was mostly in silence. "How do you know exactly how to get to her house?" Leah wondered.
"She's been my best friend for 11 years. I know where she lives." Gabe pulled onto her street and saw her crying in the driveway, her head buried in her legs. He parked quickly. "Stay here." he jumped out, going over to her.
A lot of people would say Mia is cold and mean. She doesn't really go outside her circle of friends and won't go out of her way to make others happy. Gabe thought that was part of the reason why she and Leah didn't get along. But he didn't see her that way. To Gabe, Mia is funny and happy and fun to be around. He kneeled in front of her.
"Mimi?"
She looked up at him, sadness in her dark eyes. He reached his arms out and she went into them, practically clinging to the boy.
"I need to get out of here, Gabe. Now."
"I know." He lifted her up bridal style. "Don't freak out, but Leah's in the backseat. She was with me and I didn't know what else to do with her. She's not going to say anything."
"I don't care. Just get me out of here. Please, Gabey."
"Okay." He walked towards the car and opened up the passenger's door. He set her inside and buckled her seatbelt. Gabe went around and got into the driver's seat. "Where do you wanna go, Mia?"
"Anywhere. Just far away from here."
"You wanna talk about it?"
"What's there to talk about? How my dad is a jerk who says that I shouldn't be friends with you, Maddie, Brittany, Hunter, or Connor because your parents are connected to the mob? Or how he told my mom to leave me alone because maybe if I got shot, I'd realize he was right about you guys?"
"Are you kidding me?" Gabe looked at her. "He shouldn't have said that to you."
"He doesn't care what he says anymore! All that he cares about is his retarded job."
"Does he not realize that your mom has kids with both Sonny and Johnny, who are also mobsters, so he's basically insulting them?"
"He realizes. He just doesn't care." Mia sighed. "I can't go back there, Gabe. One day, I'm just gonna flip out and knock him out. I can't stand him. Oh, and did I mention him and my mom want me to spend more time with Tanner? We fight when we're around each other for the small amount of time at school."
"Then why are you with him?"
"Honestly, I have no idea." She ran her fingers through her hair.
"It'll be okay, Mimi." She leaned her head against his shoulder. Neither of them cared that Leah was in the backseat. Right now, they just needed each other.
The Morgans and Mia
"Mia!" Selena ran to her older brother's best friend. The sixteen year old picked her up.
"Hey Sellie."
"I missed you." She hugged her.
"Missed you too." She held Selena in her right arm and then grabbed Gabe's arm with her left so she could slip off her shoes while Selena held onto her to keep herself up.
"Where is everyone, Selena?" Gabe wondered, putting Mia's purse on the desk.
"Mommy and Daddy are making dinner and Emmy, Maddie, and Katie are upstairs."
"I thought I heard you." Sam came in, hugging Mia. "Where have you been? I feel like we haven't seen you in forever!"
"I've just been really busy with school and cheer and stuff." She lied. Sam and Jason didn't know that Steve thought they would get his daughter shot.
"Is it okay if Mia hangs out for a while?"
"Of course! You know you're always welcome here, Mia." Sam smiled and then went back to the kitchen.
"Sel, we have homework to do, so we're gonna go upstairs, okay?" Gabe said, grabbing his best friend's shoes and purse.
"Okay." Selena sat on the couch, turning on one of her shows. Mia and Gabe went to his room.
"I've really missed your family." Mia stated, sitting on his bed. "You're really lucky, Gabe."
"I know." He layed down on his bed. Mia followed and they both just stared up at the ceiling. "What are you gonna do?"
"I dunno. I guess go to Dante's and see if he'll let me stay there tonight. I can't go back home."
"Stay here. I'm sure my parents won't mind."
"But I don't wanna put them in an awkward position. What if my dad comes here yelling about how your dad was a mobster and all that?"
"Mia. Your dad would never come here. He's too scared."
"But my mom's not and if he gets her mad enough, she'll come here and demand that I go home."
"Then I guess we'll just wait and see if that happens." Gabe kissed her forehead. "You're always welcome to stay here."
"Thank you." She turned and hugged him, burying her face in his chest because she knew the tears were coming. Gabe just stroked her hair with one hand and rubbed her back with the other.
"Gabe, it's time for…" Maddie trailed off. "Mia, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, Maddie. We'll be down in a minute." Gabe replied, giving his sister a look that told her to let it go. She got the message and nodded, walking out. "Are you okay?"
"Better." She replied honestly. Gabe could always make her feel better. "Let's go downstairs."
"Okay. I'm gonna ask about you staying the night."
"Gabe, don't. Talk to your parents privately. I don't wanna put them on the spot or make them feel obligated to take me. I can always just go to Dante's."
"Yeah, cause I'm gonna make you go deal with Lulu." He stood, pulling her to her feet. "Come on."
When they got downstairs, everyone was already seated. Jason and Sam were at opposite ends of the table. Selena was in a chair on the right Sam, then Emma, then Katie. On her left was Maddie, then two empty seats. Mia took the one in the middle and Gabe sat next to Jason.
"Mia. It's seriously been, like, decades since you've been here." Emma told her. "I've missed seeing your lovely face across the table from me."
Mia laughed. "Thanks, Em. I've missed seeing yours too."
Jason passed out the steak, mashed potatoes, rice, and rolls. Everyone said thank you and then started to eat.
"How have you been, Mia?" Jason wondered.
"Good, thank you. Busy with school and cheerleading. But Emma's a really great captain, so she makes it easier."
"You're making me blush." Emma joked.
"When are we doing the vote?" Maddie wondered.
"It's kind of pointless. Everyone's gonna vote for Emma." Mia responded.
"We're doing it on Friday." Emma answered. "Thanks for your confidence, but I'm not so sure. Paige and Chloe J and Courtney are all really great cheerleaders too."
"They're great cheerleaders, but you're a great captain." Katie corrected. "Chloe J and Courtney are bossy and mean when they lead practice, and Paige is a pushover."
"Sounds exactly like her mother." Sam chimed in. "I remember when we were in high school, Emily wasn't ever a good captain because of that."
"I think you guys should talk to Paige about her mom." Emma told her parents. "She's been thinking about her a lot lately, especially since Nikolas is out of town and now she and Nattie are staying with the Quartermaines. Nattie told her to ask Brook Lynn to adopt her, but Paige is scared that she won't want to and that it'll be disrespectful to Aunt Emily. Paige has been worrying a lot about Nikolas just abandoning her and then she'll be alone."
"We'll talk to her." Jason replied with a nod. "This Sunday is brunch at the Quartermaines. All of you are expected to be there, even you Mia. Edward really likes you, since you're dating Tanner and best friends with Gabe."
"Personally, I believe you're wasting your time with him when you could have my beautiful boy." Sam said to the teenager, making both Gabe and Mia blush.
"Mom!" Gabe groaned. "Stop. Now."
"Okay, okay! I'm just saying, Tanner's kinda funny looking. And Leah's great, I love her, but she's not Mia."
"Thanks, Sam." Mia smiled at her.
"I'll go get dessert." Jason stood to go to the kitchen.
"I'll help you." Gabe followed, leaving the girls alone.
"What's up with Mia? She's being really quiet." Jason said as he took the shortcake out of the pantry.
"She just got into a big fight with her parents. Her dad doesn't like that she's friends with me, Mads, Brittany, Hunter, and Connor because he thinks the mob is dangerous and all that."
"I've been legitimate for almost five years now. I mean, there's always the threat of danger, but pretty much all the illegal dealings are out of Port Charles. At least with Sonny and I, and Johnny and Claudia."
"I know that, but Steve doesn't understand. Mia said she was leaving and Olivia asked her to stop, but Steve said to let her go because maybe she would understand he was right when she got shot. She really doesn't want to go back home. Could she stay for tonight? She could sleep in Maddie's room. Please, Dad. If she goes back, I know she'll do something stupid and get in more trouble."
"That's fine, but she needs to call Olivia first and make sure it's okay."
"Thanks." He grabbed the strawberries and whipped cream and they went back to the dining room.
"Extra whipped cream for Mia and Emma because it's both of their favorites." Sam said as she squirted it on top of the strawberries and shortcake.
"Mia, Gabriel, Madelyn. I'd like to talk to you in my office when you're done." Jason told them. They nodded.
Soon, everyone was done. Sam stood up. "Bath time, Sellie." She lifted up her youngest daughter. "Katie, Emma, could you clear the table?"
"Sure Mom." Emma answered. Jason motioned towards his office and the three juniors followed.
"Mia, Gabe told me what is going on with your family. You can stay here tonight, but you need to call your mom and make sure it's okay with her. Maddie, would it be alright if she slept in your room?"
"Yeah, of course." Maddie agreed, even though she was really confused.
Mia pulled out her cellphone and dialed her mother's number. Olivia answered on the second ring. "Hello? Mia?"
"It's me, Mom." Olivia sighed in relief.
"Are you okay? Where are you?"
"I'm at Maddie and Gabe's. I'm gonna stay here tonight, okay? I'm just really upset and if I come home, I know I'll say something I'll regret."
"Are Jason and Sam okay with that?"
"Yeah, Jason said it was fine."
"Could I speak with him, please?" Mia looked at Jason, who nodded. She handed him the phone.
"Olivia? It's Jason."
"Are you really okay with her spending the night? You can send her home, or I can send Dante to pick her up."
"It's fine. Listen, Gabe told me about Steve's fears. We're completely legitimate. If we weren't, I would never risk your daughter's life. She's safe here."
"I understand that, but he doesn't. I'm sorry, Jason."
"It's okay. And we'd be happy to keep Mia. She's like a member of our family. We've really missed her around here."
"Thank you."
"You don't need to thank me. If Steve has any concerns, tell him he can call me at any time. And Mia will be sleeping in Maddie's room, so you don't have to worry about any of that."
"Alright. Thanks again."
Jason said goodbye and gave the phone back to Mia. "Mom?"
"I love you, baby. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Love you too. Bye." Mia hung up. "I can't stand this."
"What?" Gabe and Maddie asked at the same time.
"My parents. My dad couldn't care less if he hurts my feelings or not and my mom always tries to make it up to me by being super nice. I don't want her to think she has to make up for him being a jerk. Why can't they just love me for me? They have no problem loving Allie, or Mason and Daniel."
"Because you're special, Mi." Gabe told her. "They might not see it, but I do."
"Thanks, Gabey." She hugged him. Jason and Maddie looked at each other, both seeing the connection that the best friends couldn't. They just wondered how long it would take before they realized they were in love.