Do not own General Hospital or any of the characters.


The Flame of Franco

Sponge Bath...

"How's she doing?" asked a concern Alexis as she made her way into the penthouse and turned to look over at Jason. She had been a fit of nerves all day waiting to hear from Jason on how Sam was doing after coming home. She would have liked to been with her daughter when they had brought her home but she knew that was not what Sam would have wanted. She knew that Sam just wanted to be left alone and she was trying but it was hard. Sam was still her daughter and she would do anything to protect her, if she could.

"She is doing okay," replied Jason with a shrug as he closed the door and looked over at Alexis. It had been a few hours since they had arrived home. "She is upstairs sleeping at the moment," he added, "Do you want me to let her know you are here?" He knew that Alexis was worried about Sam, they all were.

Alexis opened her mouth for a brief second before deciding against it and shaking head rigorously from side to side. "No, don't do that. She needs her rest. I will come back another time," replied Alexis as she brushed her hair off of her face and took a step towards the door again. "Just tell her that I stopped by, ok?" she added as she met Jason's eye.

He nodded his head in agreement at this, "Of course."

Alexis then smiled a brief smile at the mobster before waving goodbye and leaving the apartment.

Jason waited for the front door to close behind her before turning towards the stairs. It had been a while since he had last checked up on Sam. He had the strongest urge to be with her at that moment. Letting out a deep breath, he slowly began to make his way up the stairs.

After arriving home, Jason had made sure that Sam was comfortable. He had gone to the trouble of going over to her apartment and getting some of her favourite movies and such for her to watch. He had also ordered in Chinese food the night before from her favourite restaurant. Sam loved Chinese food but she loved it the best when it was leftover and cold. This gesture had earned him a smile which he had been pleased to see.

After they had eaten, Sam had fallen asleep on the couch, just like old times it had seemed like. The pain medication she was on to treat her burns was pretty strong and made her drowsy. She hadn't been asleep for that long but Jason hated having her out of his sight now. He had this deep fear that somehow Franco would come back and kidnap Sam again.

He tipped toed quietly down the hallway, careful not to make a noise as he slowly pushed opened the master bedroom door. The light from the hallway casted a shadow into the darken room. His blue eyes appeared into the room, making out the small shape of Sam's body on the bed. She hadn't moved since he had last checked on her. He knew he should have shut the door and let her sleep but he couldn't help himself as he pushed opened the door further and stepped into the room.

Sam stirred at the creek of Jason's weight as he stepped onto the wood floor of the room. It was at that moment that Jason froze, afraid that he had awakened Sam. His blue eyes frequently looked over to the bed, where Sam lay still, deep asleep. This made him relax a little. He knew he the hospital Sam couldn't get a good night sleep. She was always awakening from the slightest noises. He was glad to see that Sam could get some comfort already from being back at home.

He walked over her side of the bed, and knelt down beside her. Feeling his presence, Sam eyes immediately fluttered opened . She looked a little surprised to see him. She had thought he was Franco for a brief second. She had been dreaming about the cube again. "Jason," she breathed out in relief. Her hand reached out to his arm, as if to see if he was really there. She was always afraid that she would wake up one of these days and find that she was still trapped in that cube.

Sensing her panic, Jason took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Your home," he whispered to her, "Your home," he repeated. He then leaned in and kissed her gently on the lips before pulling away. They stayed like this for a moment, Jason studying Sam's face. He hated seeing her like this. Her eyes were filled with tears. They were dark like wet oil paint. Taking a deep breath, he stood up. Her eyes watched him as he let go of her hand and walked across the room to the bathroom.

She sat herself up slowly, watching as Jason flicked on the bathroom light, flooding the bedroom with light. "What are you doing?" she asked softly.

"You said that one of the things you wanted to do after you got home was take a hot bath," he replied as he reappeared in the room and walked once again towards her. Sam hadn't had a proper bath in ages. In the hospital she had been forced to have sponge bath, which she had come to loath quickly.

Coming around to her side of the bed, Jason offered his hand to her. Sam looked from his face to his hand and back before, reaching out and taking it. Her fingers gently caressed the skin of his palm before intertwining with his fingers. He then helped her climb out of the bed.

The two of them walked hand in hand towards the bathroom.


Sam was not suppose to have a full on bath, do to her sever burn marks, which were still healing. But Robin had told them that Sam could have shallow bathes where she was not submerged in water fully. The doctor had advised her to take it slowly and not to push her body.

Taking his advise, Jason only filled up the tub a quarter or so before turning off the faucet. Straightening his back, he turned and looked over at Sam who was seated on the toilet seat, biting her bottom lip. He could tell she was nerve. This would be his first time seeing her naked since the incident really. "Are you ready?" he asked gently towards her.

She looked up at this and met his eye. She wasn't really sure if she was ready. She was scared not only for the pain that might accrue but for Jason seeing her marked up body. She had not really had let herself see it fully herself. She then slowly began to nod her head.

"Look away," she whispered at him as she stood up. She didn't want Jason to see what her body had become.

Jason opened his mouth to say something but soon closed it. He knew that arguing with Sam wouldn't help anything at the moment. He just simply held her gaze for a moment before slowly turning around.

She wanted until his back was turned towards her before standing up and undressing herself. Tears rolled down her cheeks as a wave of pain crept through her lower back. It hurt to move sometimes. This was her first time undressing by herself. She bit down on her lower lip, stopping herself from crying out in pain as she lifted the sweatshirt she was wearing over her head. Her back muscles protecting at her every move. Removing the pjamama bottoms she was wearing was a lot easier. They just slid down her skinny legs as she undid the draw string of them. She then removed her underwear and socks.

She now then stood completely naked. Goosebumps formed across her bare skin as she stood there in the bathroom. Her eyes drifted towards her reflection in the vanity mirror but she quickly looked away. She didn't know the person that stared back at her anymore. "I'm ready," she whispered towards Jason.

Tears slowly ran down her cheeks as she watched as Jason turned around and took in the sight of her. His face did not give anything way but deep down she knew that he thought of her as ugly now. How could anyone love her now for what she had become?

Jason knew that Sam was a shamed of her body for what it had become. But he didn't think of her as ugly. She was still breathtakingly beautiful to him. He just hated how she would forever been reminded of what she had to go through every day when she looked at her self. She was permanently marked. He took a step towards hers. "I love you," he spoke to her as he reached out and wrapped his arms carefully around her. She tried to step away from him but he was too quick for her.

She tried to push him away but Jason wasn't going to let her go so easily. A moment later, she had given up and was sobbing against his chest.

They stayed like this for the longest time with him holding her in his arms before breaking apart. He looked down at her, "The bath is getting cold," he commented.

"Oh," she whispered, "Oh I'm sorry," she apologized.

Jason shook his head at this. She didn't need to apologize. Then taking her hand once again he lead her to the edge of the bath tub where she took a seat. Their eyes locked with one another as Jason's hands reached out and caressed the side of her face before helping her get into the hot water.

She couldn't help but whimper a little as the water brushed up against her burns and cuts on her legs. The 3rd degree burn mark on her calf was bandaged up and would have to be changed but she carefully made sure that water did not get into it as she brought her knees up to her chest. There wasn't much water in the tub anyways, about 3 inches or so in height it seemed.

"You okay," asked Jason softly, watching her with caution.

She looked over at him and nodded her head. They then sat in silence as Jason began to wash her. He took a face cloth which was resting on the edge of the sink and dipped it in the bath water as he knelt down beside the tube. He then began to gently brush the wet towel across her arms, sort of like what she had down when he had been shot in Mexico. It was an intimate moment between them. During the whole thing, Sam had cried softly to herself. No matter how hard she tried not to, she found that she could not stop the tears from falling.

Jason washed Sam's body with gentleness and patients, like one would wash a newborn baby. He was afraid to hurt her and did not was to cause her anymore pain then she was already going through. He was carefully to not wash to closely to her more serious burn marks like Robin had told him too.

After he was done, Jason place the wet cloth on the edge of the tub, before unplugging it. As the water drained, he stood up and got a towel from behind the bathroom door. Turning back towards Sam, he then bent down and wrapped her up in the towel at the same time as he took her in his arms. He cradled her like a baby as he carried her back into the bedroom.


Okay, I hoped you enjoyed! Thanks for reading and please review!

Julie

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