Warning for language. Hope you enjoy and will let me know.
Chapter Thirteen
"Douchebaggery"
Alan was ready to strangle his wife. Not only had she had the biopsy done three weeks ago, but the results had been back for almost two.
She had slowly been drinking herself to death and could have had the answers. If she would have pulled herself out of her pity party, she would have known there was nothing to fear.
He'd never had cancer or the scare of it, but he knew he would not allow it to beat him down, like Monica had.
Life came and went. From the moment one is conceived, they are dying. In the blink of an eye, things can change. A child born, a child dying, a wedding, a funeral, love, hate…or worse a child, even if he was practically grown, could be forever changed and renounce all ties, could find spite, anger and disillusionment in everything he ever was or could now be. He might look the same but everything else changed so drastically that it was as if you were looking at a stranger.
Those things don't diminish your love, but it puts it through many trials and you better hope you are a better man than some, else you could find yourself lacking.
Alan knew he was far from perfect, but standing there at General Hospital, waiting to hear word about your son, even though you know it most likely isn't fatal or that it will happen again and again, makes a man reflect. It takes you to all the good times and all the bad times, which live in memories, in laughs and smiles, in confusion and anger.
It was during the waiting and hoping that Alan made a promise to himself and to God or whatever deity there was, that he was going to stop sprouting his wants, his demands and listen to his son. He would embrace him as a man, a son, an acquaintance, perhaps even a friend or a potential one. It finally, did not matter.
He was ready to take what he could and give his all. He was the parent, his love was unconditional, it was his duty to make peace with Jason and show him it wasn't about heirs and sibling rivalry or loving one child more than another; it was simply the fact that he loved Jason and refused to continue to hide it.
The man he spoke to in the hospital room was different. He had some of Jason Quartermaine's free spirit, some of Jason Morgan's wariness and unease but he also had a new lightness to him, which Alan had here to for, never seen before.
Alan was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of his phone chiming. "This is Alan, what can I do for you?"
"Hi Alan, this is Mac Scorpio, I thought you'd like to know that Jason has been arrested."
"I know Mac; I was in the hospital when that idiot placed handcuffs on him."
"Yes, well… That isn't what I mean, Ric read him his rights and brought him into the station, he is currently sitting in interrogation room one. He requested that I call you."
"Holy Shit…"
"My thoughts exactly, do you think you can come down? He refuses to be moved to a cell until he speaks to you and while I would normally be all about getting him in a cell, this instance, I think it is unwarranted.
"Holy Shit…"
"Indeed, can I tell him you are on your way?"
"Absolutely, I have a call I need to make and then I'll be down. Thanks for phoning me Mac, I know this favor probably feels sour on your tongue, but thank you nonetheless."
"You are welcome and you are not wrong about the taste on my tongue." Mac said with a laugh.
Alan disconnected the call, took a few moments to get his thoughts in order and then dialed the number to the clinic where Monica was currently 'drying out' in.
"Hi, this is Dr. Alan Quartermaine, I was wondering if I could speak to Dr. Redgrave?"
"One moment please." An operator replied.
The tinny music coming from the phone was akin to nails on a chalkboard. If he was forced to listen to this drabble too much longer, he feared his brain would revolt and start dribbling out of his ears, just to escape.
"Dr. Quartermaine, Dr. Redgrave is currently in session and won't be able to take your call. I can have him call you when he is available if you would like, but he is a busy man."
Alan could hear the contempt in her tone but didn't feel like getting in a pissing match with the woman, so he simply said, "I would have preferred to share this information with the doctor, but since that isn't possible, can you please let him know that my wife, Monica Quartermaine's tests came back and the lumps are benign?"
"Not a problem, have a good day."
The joy of snooty, egotistical help, if it didn't affect them, it had no bearing on their life.
Alan quickly hung up the call and hurried from the house. For some reason his son needed to speak to him and he couldn't find a reason to make him wait.
The drive from the mansion to the police department seemed to take longer than it should have. It seemed that now that he was willing to put aside past differences and take it one day at a time, time seemed to both move quicker and slower.
On entering, Alan saw Mac standing near the interrogation room, heatedly speaking to what looked like a very drunk or stoned, Lucky Spencer. 'Now there is a waste of space if there has ever been. Much like his father and probably his father before him, of course Lucky's mother wasn't much better.' He thought to himself.
"Hello Alan, go on in, he's still waiting for you. I'll be in my office when you are done, we should talk."
"Sounds good and thanks." Alan replied as he pulled the door open.
XxXxX
"Dad, it is about time you got here, do you know how long I've been waiting?" Jason asked.
"Jason, while I love you, and I always will. Pull your head out of your ass, life doesn't revolve around you and your wants and needs. We all have a life to live and people that are important to us."
"There's the Alan I know. Thinks everything is about him and the family and we should all just bow down to you and yours."
"Oh for Christ's sake, would you shut up? You asked for me to come here, not the other way around. If you only wanted someone to spar with, I am sure Sonny, Carly, Sam or one of those other lowlife degenerates would be happy to take my place. Oh, how could I forget, the first three are all in jail cells here, so that might be hard. What did you want Son?"
Jason had the good sense to look chagrin but there were more important things to be doing right now, than bickering with his dad.
"I need you to phone Elizabeth Webber and get her to come home."
"Where is she?"
"She probably doesn't know that I know, but I overheard her when she was talking to me, in my room at General Hospital…" Jason replied before trailing off with a big goofy grin on his face.
"So, where is she?" Alan asked. Beyond shocked to see such joy, unadulterated happiness shining from his son's face, it was truly a sight to behold.
"Oh, yeah, umm… Sorry, she's in San Diego. Don't ask me where, I don't have a clue, that's all she said."
"Okay and when I do find her and talk to her, what exactly am I supposed to tell her?"
"Well…" Jason began and then stopped, unsure if he really wanted to share this news without Elizabeth's input, but he was bursting at the seams to share it with someone and he realized, who better to share it with than his own father. "Elizabeth, she's having my baby!"
"Wow, I think I kind of knew, but with you blurting it out like that and looking so… and… being all…I think my brain just abandoned me for a vacation in Bermuda."
Jason couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up. "I know I have been an ass, my douchebaggery is probably renowned by now, but, finding something like that out, it changes a man or it should and with me it, it really did. She's carrying my child and for the first time in possibly ever, I can kind of see where you were coming from."
"Wow…I'm… well it would seem that I am without words. I'd like a little time to process this all, not long but while I try to find Elizabeth, I'm going to try to grasp this change in you and trust it. I love you, I'll be back later today, whether I have information or not. I'd like to explore…I'm happy for you Jason, I'll talk to you later." Alan said before rushing from the room.
Jason just smiled. He knew he was going to be throwing people for a loop with his new found attitude and bluntness; some might even dare to say he was persnickety. It didn't matter much to him though, after all these years, it was time for a change.
XxXxX