So this little collection has a LOT of Brenda/Jason Q emotions. KellyVanessaFan has a GREAT Youtube vid called "Hurt." So just cut and paste KellyVanessaFan Hurt into your youtube browser, if you weren't around waaaay back then or hell it's just been a really long time, you'll thank me for this vid (through the tears). You can see the images and feelings that go through Brenda's mind.
Ah one shots, how you break up the monotony of the same old stories.
Salena rocks. The Brazen screen caps she sent totally inspired this one shot (which makes me extra happy because it means I got to include this Brenda/Spinelli meet, which I've had in my head awhile). :-D
Thanks for reading, as always I'm sorry if it sucks. :-P
A Picture's Worth…
Harbor View Towers:
"You know what Jason," her voice full of antagonism, ready to give back as good as she was getting, "don't start. This wasn't my idea. Actually it was a hell of a lot more your idea; I was perfectly fine staying in Rome."
"You could have stayed in Rome," he said struggling with her numerous suitcases, there were two of them carrying them and they were still having issues, "if you could learn how to stay out of trouble."
"Seriously, I'm being blamed for this?"
"Can you just get the door?" he snapped.
She fumed, but opened the penthouse door because he had at least been decent enough to only force one bag onto her.
"You can just drop them here," he nodded at the guard, "she'll carry them up the rest of the way."
"You-" the guard was about to question that, then he realized he was about to be caught in their cross fire and escape seemed a wiser decision.
She glared at him for a moment, "You know I had a shrink once that tried to convince me that I didn't really hate you," she shook her head, "she was wrong," she turned. "I'm going to go shower."
"Can you make sure you put on clothing afterward, other people live here."
"Jackass," she muttered under her breath as she started up the stairs.
-o-o-o-
Jason survived Spinelli's greetings, apologies for his lateness and inquiries into the trip before he got Spinelli back on point with trying to track down those after her and calmly seated at the desk.
He was pacing while on the phone, and it all seemed to play out in slow motion before him.
"So you're Port Charles' boy wonder," Brenda said coming down the stairs, having obviously ignored Jason's clothing rule as she wore boy shorts and a cami.
Spinelli tuned and shot out of his seat.
"Sonny said you had a cool nickname, Coyote?"
"The…uh…The Jackal," he nodded his head vigorously and seemed frozen in his spot.
She smiled, "Like the Bruce Willis movie, all sneaky and stealthy."
"Uh," Spinelli nodded some more.
"Awesome," she smiled, "I'm Brenda," she put her hand out.
"Dami-" his eyes were torn between looking at her and looking at everywhere that she wasn't, except the floor. He took two steps forwards and the bags he had remembered were there a minute ago were forgotten and he tripped over one, tried to stop his fall, got his foot caught in between two more bags, he went sideways this time and didn't stop until his head came in contact with the floor after clipping the end table.
-o-o-o-
GH:
"Oh no, don't even try it. You didn't want to help me carry up my bags. You left them there to punish me and now you're mad that Damian got hurt instead of me."
'Do not fret Dear Princess. My head is harder than it looks.'
'Are you sure Spinelli?'
'You can call me Damian,' he promised the princess panicking over him.
'You better have a concussion,' Jason said heaving Spinelli to his feet.
"Brenda if you just put away your bags like a normal person," he countered.
"You're going to make me apologize for wanting to take a shower after a twelve hour flight? Are you serious?"
"Exactly it was a twelve hour flight; you couldn't take five more minutes and brought your bags upstairs."
"Five minutes? Have you lifted my bags?"
"I never thought I'd be so happy to hear you two fighting," Robin's voice broke as she meant to be lighthearted. There they were, a throwback to when shockingly enough her life was simpler.
'I didn't know how to,' Brenda responded to Robin's wondering of how they lost touch. How phone numbers and emails had been changed without the other being informed.
Robin frowned and stared at the woman who had been her closest friend for years, the joy left her friend's voice and it was filled with emptiness and sorrow.
'I brought the Alcazars to town.'
'I never blamed you, Brenda.' She leaned forward and took her friend's hands. 'Did you think that I blamed you for Diego?'
Brenda shook her head, 'I didn't need you to blame me Robin. I know if it wasn't for me. Diego and Luis would have never been in Port Charles. Georgie, Emily, Alan,' she shook her head again. 'I do these stupid things and-'
'No,' Robin shook her head again. 'I already lost Georgie and Emily because of Diego, I can't lose you too. Not when I just found you again.'
"Robin," Brenda smiled and launched herself at her.
"I don't care why you're here," she suddenly cried as her best friend pulled her into a tight embrace, "but I've never been happier to see you."
"What's wrong?" Brenda held her tighter.
"Robin?" Jason asked walking up to them.
"My life is completely falling apart and I don't know what to do," she cried into Brenda's neck.
"Oh honey," Brenda's face fell completely, "I'm sorry. I'm here. We'll figure it out."
-o-o-o-
"Hey how are you-" her smile fell and it was replaced with disgust, "you," she said seeing Patrick with Spinelli.
"Brenda don't," Jason launched a hand onto her arm.
She continued to glare forward.
"Brenda," Patrick nodded, "I-"
"You're disgusting. How is he?"
"He's fine just going to have a hell of a bruise and a headache.'
"He can leave?" Jason asked worried what else would emerge from Brenda's mouth if they remained.
"Yea just finished the paperwork."
"Let's go," Jason ordered Spinelli.
Patrick hesitated for a moment as Spinelli walked away, "Look wait, I know-"
"Don't," Jason ordered.
"No, I think we should hear him explain how he could do this to Robin-"
"I didn't-" he began trying to defend himself.
As Jason started to walk forward Patrick stopped. Jason spoke softly, "She's already been arrested for murder twice. She might actually do it the third time."
-o-o-o-
Penthouse:
"That is-" Spinelli's eyes were wide as he sat on her bed as she unpacked. A gold frame containing a picture of Brenda and his mentor, their faces slathered in a green mask, Jason's hair held up with several hair ties, giving the illusion of a crown, laughing as their faces cracked.
"Original," she stopped him.
"Quartermaine?" Spinelli stopped and stared at the other man as best he could. Jason looked like that didn't he? He smiled like that, not often, but every once in awhile…
"The one and only."
"You keep a picture of Jason Quartermaine in your bedroom."
"Actually it used to be in my walk in closet," she frowned looking around the room and missing her apartment. "Shrink thought it was a good idea."
Spinelli continued to look puzzled.
"Em sent me a batch of pictures when she moved home. Mentioned them to the shrink, next thing I know she's having me write a eulogy for that Jason and apologizing to this Jason."
"Apologizing?"
"Apparently I was taking out my anger at that Jason for getting into the car at this Jason. Can't be angry at him for who he isn't. Only who he is. Which actually when I thought about it longer, I can do with no problem."
"Did it work?"
"Hmm?" she looked up from the clothing she was unpacking.
"The eulogy?"
She shook her head, "I don't know. I ended up getting drunk one night and throwing it across the room." She shook her head and closed her eyes," Look at the back of the picture."
Spinelli carefully undid the back. He was that amazing. He deserves to be remembered.
"Emily," Brenda supplied, "after her first run in with cancer."
His fingers traced the words.
"So I cried and I screamed at him and everything we didn't do when it happened and then-" she shrugged.
"And then-" Spinelli prompted.
"I started to think about who I was and what I was doing and if there was a point to any of it," she shook her head.
"Hence ASEC," Spinelli finished.
She nodded, "I don't do good person. I pretty much suck at it. I need the reminder to at least try. Trying to be more seemed like the best way to remember him."
"I think he would be proud of you, Brenda Sparks."
"Sparks? That's my thing?"
"Jenny Sparks," Spinelli smiled at her, "never ages, controls moods, loud mouthed, not at all shy, aggressive, sexy, electrical. Completely atypical heroine."
She smiled at him. "You're kind of amazing yourself Damian."
-o-o-o-
Alleyway (months later):
Brenda beat against Jason's back as he carried her, his hand somehow managing to keep her mouth covered.
"You'll be quiet?" he asked once he was sure they were far enough away.
She grunted out a yes.
"We were together Brenda," he ordered her as he put her down.
"What about Robin?" Lisa's body…So still…
"Robin hasn't threatened to murder Lisa, you have. Now tell me, where were you?"
"With you," she nodded.
"I need to make some calls, get us an alibi away from here."
-o-o-o-
Penthouse:
"A motel?" Brenda screeched, Jason flinched while Spinelli rubbed his ears not the first time since they returned to the penthouse.
"Br-"
"You want them to think we're having an affair?"
"There were cameras where our cars were parked. Spinelli's right, the best way to look like we didn't do this, was to look like we were doing something wrong and trying to hide it."
"Sam will-" she began.
"Sam understands," Jason stopped her. "If it keeps us out of prison." Lisa had made a few not too veiled threats about Robin's ex and the potential threat she faced because of him, adding Brenda and their lack of alibis to the mix...
"How is this happening again?" she declared in shocked misery.
-o-o-o-
A few weeks later, Sam's place:
"What's going on between Brenda and Jason," Sam asked the moment Spinelli came through her front door.
"What nothing, did you hear something?"
"No," she sighed loudly and rubbed her face, "I saw that this morning," she flung her finger accusingly at the paper.
Brenda turned into Jason as they left the police station. Jason doing his best to block her from the reporters,
"I keep seeing them everywhere together," her paper, the tv, news reports calling them Bonnie and Clyde.
"Trust me Stone Cold would not be doing this unless it was absolutely necessary. All they've been doing is fighting upon their return."
"I think she's falling in love with him," Sam said collapsing onto the couch.
"Sparky and Stone Cold?"
Sam didn't even smile at one of Brenda's numerous nicknames, Brenda Sparks, Spirit, Sparky, Sparkles and BS.
"He's her protector," she stared blankly down at the paper, "he's saving her and she starting to look at him…Like he's everything."
Spinelli automatically laughed, "Fair Samantha, the Jackal would not have placed upon her the nickname of BS were it not well deserved. Protector or not she cannot wait to be free from Stone Cold."
"I hope you're right Spinelli."
-o-o-o-
Spinelli's room (a few days later):
"Oh my god what are you doing?" Lulu asked as her eyes nearly came out of the socket as she walked into Spinelli's new room to discover Brenda's photo albums torn apart.
"The Jackal has uncovered something," he said shifting a few photos around.
"The fastest way to a painful death?" she asked still in shock as she took a few steps further into the room.
"No," he shook his head, "see at first it as just curiosity. Though Fair Samantha's concerns lingered in my mind, I truly did not give them much credence. Princess and Stone Cold seemed to share a more antagonistic relationship like siblings."
"You don't think they do anymore?"
"Come," he ordered with a hand wave over.
"Oh god I cannot believe you took out all of her photos," she finally said the words aloud as she saw them up close on the bed.
"Not all," he corrected, "Nor did the Jackal did not embark on this journey haphazardly, do not fear, they are in such an order that she will never be the wiser."
Lulu still planned to avoid Brenda for a very long time in the future.
"Look at these pictures," Spinelli spread out a stack across the bed.
"What am I looking at," she asked as she leaned forward. Wow and she thought Jason was cute now.
"How can you not see this?" Spinelli got agitated and quickly scooped up a photo, Brenda wearing Jason's letterman's jacket, they were sitting together on a bench laughing.
"What am I-Oh no," she saw some of his PI books out, it was the body language one again. "Spinelli come on, you can't interpret anything based on that book."
"The genuine smile, how they're leaning into each other, the fact that she's wearing his jacket."
"Sp-"
"The body language while they dance," he said shifting to another one. "That looks as if she's in his bed sick," he said on the next. "These are not just friends," he informed his dear friend.
"Okay fine Spinelli, maybe Jason Quartermaine and Brenda had something going on once. I don't know. I was kid."
"That's what I thought," he nodded, "that she has transferred those feelings onto Jason. Then I started to notice something." He pulled out his laptop.
"Brenda and Jason in Rome."
He was smiling down as she was looking up laughing as they were dancing. Jason smirking at her in another.
"Emma's birthday."
Laughing again. Then icing on Jason's face, then Brenda locked in Jason's arms, purple frosting covering her face.
"Thanksgiving."
More smiling when talking. Bodies leaned in. Natural laughter and smiles.
"You're suggesting that Brenda and Jason are no longer faking it," she nodded and tried to ignore the evidence before her.
"Oh no," Spinelli shook his head, "they're still faking it." He clicked to a photo of Jason stiff with Brenda and her unnatural smile.
"So they-" she shook her head slowly.
"I think that it's growing back."
Her head hurt. "Huh?"
"Whatever was there before, I think it's returning."
"One, Jason and Brenda were never a couple. Two, Jason's head not possible."
"Not the head the soul," he shook his head at her, still annoyed it was taking so long for her to agree with him.
"So Brenda and Jason are soulmates?"
Even he frowned.
"You realize you sound ridiculous right? Look maybe Brenda and Jason liked it each other, they probably thought the other one was cute. They were young and flooded with hormones. And now, I mean they're still kind of hot, but soulmates Spinelli? I think we would have realized that by now. I need to get back to the office, I'm expecting a call. I'll talk to you later; you better not let Brenda catch you with this stuff."
He frowned, but followed her to the door anyway. He returned to the room to begin replacing the photos, he didn't call her Sparky for nothing. He looked down at the photo in his hand, a sleepy looking Brenda pressed into Jason's side as they walked, similar to the ones he had found on the newspaper's website, taken seconds before the one that had given Sam worry.
"I think Fair Lulu that we didn't know because they didn't." He looked back down at his laptop to see Jason smiling and realized he didn't need to worry about the other man quite so much anymore.
He caught a glimpse of the clock and realized he would have to worry about himself if Princess Sparkles returned and found him with her stuff.
Thanks for reading guys!
PS-
How much longer until we have Brazen on the screen? We only have one guaranteed year, we've already wasted a month!
The air around her was electric. It was as if the current she put out was bringing everything back to life. Brazen One Shot.