Chapter 38

"I don't know, Max. He sounds really mad," Milo told his brother, as his eyes were focused on the door behind him.

"Do. Not. Open. That. Door," Max repeated strongly, "No matter what you hear and no matter what he says."

The door shook behind Milo, as the doorknob was rattled from the inside, the force threatening to break the hinges.

"I CAN HEAR YOU, MAX!"

"Just ignore that, Milo. Pretend no one is there," Max instructed, cautioning his brother.

"OPEN."

"Ignore it?"

"THE."

"How am I supposed to do that? Maybe if we just unlock the door...Find out what he needs," Milo replied, trying to defuse the situation, as he reached for the key to unlock the door.

"GODDAMN."

"NO, Milo! Don't even think about it!"

"DOOR."

"But, it's Mr. C's son. How bad can it be? I'm sure if Mr. C just explains the situation to Dante-"

"You really are an idiot?" Max told Milo, shaking his head in disbelief, "That's it, I'm calling Mom. There is no way in hell that we are blood-related. Stupidity does not run in the family."

"What am I supposed to do while you're gone?" Milo asked his brother, as the door shook once again.

"Read a magazine," Max told his brother, reaching for one from the foyer cornerstand, and slapping it into his brother's hands.

"June 6th? Don't you have something more recent?" Milo asked, scanning the pages of the Entertainment Weekly, "Lost is going off the air. No one told me that."

"You really are an idiot, you know that right?" Max told his brother, smacking him on top of his head, "Just guard the door. No one goes in, and especially, absolutely, NO ONE goes out. Capiche?"

"Yeah, I got it," Milo answered his brother, leaning against the wall and perusing the magazine, "Don't let Dante out."

"And don't let Mr. C. inside! Don't forget that Milo. That's very important. You have to keep him away from Dante. What are you doing?" Max questioned Milo, as his younger brother was reaching for his cell phone.

"If I hurry I can still watch all the seasons in a row on DVD, before the finale," Milo replied, starting to dial a number.

"Give me that!" Max said, ripping Milo's phone from his hand and tossing it onto the table, while shaking his fist at his brother.

"I got it. Guard the door."

"See that you do. Only bad things can come from you opening it!" Max insisted, reiterating his instructions to his brother.

"Got it, Max. Don't open the door," Milo answered to Max's retreating back. He leaned against the wall, reading about the final episode of Lost.

"They're dead. THEY'RE ALL DEAD. What the hell, I waited years for that!" Milo said out loud, planting his nose back inside the pages of the magazine.

Lulu Spencer stood in the aisle of the local bookstore, books upon books of how to grieve staring back at her. It seemed that everyone had an opinion, a twelve-step program to how she was to cope with Dante's death.

The Twelve-Step Program to a New You, she read, a complete process to accepting your loss, finding the inner you and moving on.

Another book said that she should perform a séance, invite family and friends, summon Dante's spirit and unburden herself of every question she had about his death, forgive him for dying and then tell him goodbye once and for all.

Who the hell did these people think they were? Where did they get off telling her how she should grieve, how she should remember Dante, or how she should move on? She didn't want to move on. She didn't want to forget.

A quote jumped out at her from one of the books laying in a stack next to her, "Grief is the normal and natural reaction to loss of any kind."

There wasn't anything "normal or natural" about losing Dante: one minute they were laughing and planning tomorrow and the next minute he was gone. What was "natural" about that?

A few days ago, she had gone to see Dr. Lee with Maxie by her side, relieved to discover that her baby was fine. That their baby was fine. Dr. Lee had told her that she was nearly two months pregnant and Lulu had felt happy and sad at the same time. This was the time when she should be sharing her happiness with the one she loved, where they would window-shop for baby accessories and look over plans for the baby's room. She should be arguing with Dante over whether or not the baby wanted a mobile with zoo animals hanging from it, or Yankees players covering the walls. She should not be doing this alone. She didn't want to do this alone. She wanted to share each and every moment with Dante.

She sat down amongst the pile of books, completely overwhelmed and emotionally drained. Tears were brimming in her eyes and were slowly starting to trickle down her cheeks.

Breathe, Lesley Lu, she said to herself, as her chest rose up and down and her pulse quickened. One day at a time.

But, it had been thirteen days and she still awoke looking for him beside her, some small part of her refusing to believe that he was gone. Even if she wanted to move on, she couldn't. Lucky still wouldn't release his remains and Sonny and Olivia were nowhere to be found. She didn't know what to do. Who was she supposed to turn to? Dante was always her safe place. Her rock.

"Is it too much to ask for a freaking road map?" Lulu cried out loud, not sure which direction was the correct one, or which program held the cure to heartache. She threw the nearest book in frustration, striking another and revealing another beneath.

My Photographic Journey: Accepting Loss and Finding Peace, Lulu read. The author's world journey to recovery and happiness.

Lulu didn't think that she would ever be happy again.

That she could walk into Kelly's, or go to Jake's, that she could stand on the pier, or watch a Yankees game and never feel that twinge of pain that gripped her heart every time she thought of Dante. Every time, which was every minute, every second of every day.

And some journal was supposed to mend all of that by traveling around the world with a camera?

Lulu didn't want to run from Dante's memories, she wanted to face them head-on, here in Port Charles. Not in some godforsaken country, trudging through the rainforest, or high upon a mountain somewhere, looking over the sea. Dante wasn't there, he was here.

The author's world journey to recovery? Dante wasn't something that she needed to recover from, he wasn't someone that she wanted to erase from her mind. He was and always would be the one person that she could count on, the constant in her life. That's what was so hard. How did you move on, how did you continue living without that best friend by your side?

My Photographic Journey, she reread, reaching for the book, hating the thought of going anywhere without Dante. She wanted to share all of her experiences with him, the pregnancy, their hopes and dreams, every last moment. But, seeing their old haunts, the places that held memories was too much for her right now. Would going to a new place, even for a little while, help to ease her pain?

She placed the book on the counter, reaching for her credit card, as the cashier rang her purchase.

"Anything else, Miss Spencer?" he asked, reading her name from her credit card.

"Do you know any stores nearby that sell cameras?" she asked, wiping the tears from her eyes.

Sonny sat across from Olivia, waiting for his pilot to announce their clearance for landing. The distance between them was only a few feet, but it seemed like miles. Her seat belt was fastened and her arms folded crossly in front of her, as she stared directly at him.

Sonny prided himself on being able to read people, the ability to step into a room and know by someone's body language, whether or not, he needed to spread the wealth, or lay on the charm.

Olivia's body was rigid and her knuckles white. Her eyes were focused on him, bolts of lightning threatening to pierce him at any given moment.

"So, let me get this straight. YOU had one of your goombas pull MY BABY from the fire and instead of calling me, or God forbid taking him to General Hospital, you decide to take him to your island?"

"He's fine. A few broken ribs, some minor burns to his hands. He's had the best of care," Sonny told her, trying to explain his actions, "I'm not sorry for what I did. I was thinking of Dante."

"You were thinking of Dante? How is faking Dante's death, helping him, huh Sonny?"

"You know as well as I do, Olivia, what would have happened if the cops had found him. He would be sitting in a hospital room with armed guards outside his door."

"You don't know that. And thanks to your brilliant move Sonny, you've made it worse. And Lulu, did you even consider how this was going to affect Lulu. Her entire family thinks he's dead. She loves Dante. He loves her. Did you think about that when you were hatching your plan Sonny?"

"I had every intention of bringing Lulu to the island with Dante. She wasn't supposed to be there?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa...You're telling me that Lulu believes my son is dead? Sonny, of all the hair-brained, convoluted, stupid things that you-" she said, unfastening her seat belt and lunging for him, smacking him on top of his head.

"Get off of me, Olivia. Max is taking care of it," he yelled, as she held him down on the leather seat, wanting so much to throttle the very life from him.

"Max is taking care of what?" Olivia fired back, "you tell me right now, Sonny. What is Max doing with Lulu?"

"Are you sure that you're ready to do this, Lulu? Lucky hasn't received confirmation on the DNA results," Maxie told Lulu, as she sat across from her desk at Crimson Catering.

"We both know what the results are, Maxie? My heart can't take hearing it for the second time. I won't go through that again, Maxie. I can't. Not for my sake, or the baby's."

"But, this just seems so sudden. Where will you go? You shouldn't go alone. I'll go with you," Maxie replied, looking down at the piles of folders on her desk, all new clients of Crimson.

"Kate will never let you have the time off, Maxie. Besides, I need to do this. Something inside me is telling me that I need to get on a plane and...just go somewhere. I'm not sure where, but I can feel it pulling-"

"Running away isn't going to fix this, Lulu."

"I'm not running, Maxie. Don't you see, he surrounds me here. Every step, every breath, I can't...I just need to find a place where the memories don't hurt so much."

"At least let me book your travel arrangements, maybe an all-inclusive resort somewhere, a spa where your body can regenerate?"

"I've already taken care of it. I'll let you know when I get there," Lulu told Maxie, "I promise to send you pictures."

"Lulu, I don't like not knowing where you-"

"I'll be fine, Maxie. Trust me," she said, hoping that one day she could believe those words too.

"Will you at least let me call you a cab?" Maxie replied, sniffing, as she tried to hold the tears back.

"I'm going to miss you, Maxie," Lulu said, hugging her good friend.

"You're only leaving for a few weeks, right? So, it's not goodbye, just see you later."

"Only a few weeks, Maxie," Lulu lied, embracing her friend. Honestly, she didn't know when she would return, only that she needed to get out this town and away from the painful memories.

"Will you tell Lucky that I'll call him when I land?" Lulu asked, tearing up at the thought of leaving her best friend behind, "I have some last minutes errands to do before I head for the airport."

"Sure. I can do that. But, Lulu, he's not going to like it."

"I know. But, it's what I need to do. I love you, Maxie. You're practically my sister, and I'm...I'm really going to miss you."

"Me too," Maxie answered, hugging Lulu. Her cell phone began to ring and she pulled it out of her pocket, opening it and placing it next to her ear.

"Lulu Spencer," she replied, surprised to hear the caller on the other end. She nodded, her eyes widening as she listened to the caller.

Are you sure?
It won't be a problem?
No, that's great.
I needed to get away.
How are you holding up?
I know you were close.
Yeah, me too.
Well, thanks again.
I really appreciate it.
I will.

"Lulu, who was that?" Maxie asked, as Lulu snapped her phone closed.

"A family friend. She's going to help me out. I'll be fine. You'll see."

Milo leaned against the wall, shaking his head and tossing the magazine aside when he was finished. This was why he stopped watching television. No one finished anything anymore. Viewers spent years and years devoted to a favorite character or couple and then Poof, some big shot came along and pulled the rug out from underneath everyone.

Whatever happened to good, honest storytelling, a character that made the audience stand proud and take notice, a hero that had a purpose and dammit got the girl in the end. Scrapped, erased and rewritten over and over, that's where and for what, so the entire plane could realize that they were living one fat lie. Living, hell, Max thought, they weren't living, they were all dead. He still couldn't believe it.

"Everything all right in there, Dante?" Milo asked, but was surrounded by silence, he put his ear to the door and listened for any sign of Mr.C's son.

Nothing.

What if something was wrong.

He could be injured.

He could be lying prone on the floor.

What if Mr. C's son died on his watch. Really died.

I should open the door.

But, Max said not to. No, he ordered him to keep the door closed.

But, what if something were wrong. Mr. C. would be very upset.

I could unlock it and open it just a crack.

Milo used his key to unlock the door, the sound of the mechanism's click, a resounding boom in the silence.

Still nothing.

Maybe he is lying on the floor.

Milo pushed the door further, one foot stepping inside, as the door was suddenly ripped from his fingertips and he found his back pressed against the wall, a very angry Dante Falconeri glaring back at him.

"Where is Max?"

"She's not here. Where is she?" Max asked Maxie Jones, who stood with one hand perched on her hip, while the other was wagging a finger in his face.

"I can't believe that you have the nerve to show up here. Do you have any idea what you have done, Mr. Giambetti?"

What had he done? Max thought, raising an eyebrow at her and trying to think how he could have wronged her. Did she know about Dante? Nah, she couldn't have, could she?

"I spent weeks, nearly two months working on your so-called wedding, Mr. Giambetti," Maxie scolded him, pacing back and forth in front of him, shaking her head in disbelief, "and how do you pay me back? You blow me off! And your poor fiancee, well we won't even go there."

"It wasn't working. And believe me, my ex-fiancee is not going to be poor anytime soon," Max replied, thinking of the tidy sum he had to bribe her with to keep her silence. Working for Mr.C was a risky business, one that required the utmost of discretion. Something that his ex-fiancee did not possess.

"Maxie, just tell me where to find Miss Lulu?" Max asked her, waiting to hear which family member she was staying with.

"I can't."

"What do you mean, you can't. Of course you can. Just tell me. Believe me it is in her best interest," Max answered, wishing to God that Maxie Jones would just hurry up.

"She's gone. Left on some journey. She didn't tell me where she was going. So, unless you've had a sudden change of heart and want me to start arranging the catering for your wedding again, I have work to do."

"Gone? Where is Miss Lulu?" Max tried to question Maxie, but to no avail. Mr. C. was not going to be happy about this. Miss Lulu had left Port Charles and had no idea that Dante was alive and well. If he didn't find her...well, Max didn't think that he would be so lucky if he returned to the island without Miss Lulu in tow.

"How long ago?" Max questioned Maxie, standing fully erect, using his most intimidating stare.

Maxie replied with a look of humor, "Seriously, is that the best that you can do."

"Maxie? If you don't tell me where she has gone-"

"You can probably still catch her at the airport."

"The airport? Right, well ok-" he answered, racing out the door. He needed to stop Lulu Spencer from leaving Port Charles. His very life could depend on it.

Absolutely, Mr. Spencer. Yes, we'll take really good care of her. Yes, sir, I give you my word. The best of treatment, Sir. Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir." the woman behind the counter said, handing the cell phone back to Lulu Spencer, "He wants to speak with you."

"Dad, thanks again. You have no idea how much-"

"Princess, I don't know about this. You should be with family right now. I don't like the idea-"

"I'll be fine, Dad. Just a few hours away. I need this. You always said that you couldn't take me on your adventures with you and Lucky, because I wasn't strong enough, because I was too afraid. Dad, I don't want to be afraid anymore. I know that I am strong. I know that I can do this. I have to. It's not just me anymore. Can you understand that?"

"Cupcake, next to your mother, you are the bravest, strongest woman that I know. I have no doubt that you will beat this. But, sometimes your old man just wants to feel needed. I should be taking care of you."

"You are, Dad. More than you could possibly know. I love you. I'll call you when I land."

"Wait, Lulu-" Luke Spencer shouted through the phone, as she disconnected. He still hadn't figured out where it was that she was heading.

"Here's your ticket, Miss Spencer? Will you be checking any bags?" the airline attendant asked.

"No, just my carry-on," Lulu told her, as the woman handed her the ticket and directed her to the left.

"They're boarding now. It's last call, so hurry. Enjoy your trip, Miss Spencer."

"Thank you. I think that I will," Lulu Spencer replied, walking toward the embarkation area and handing the ticket to the another flight employee. Her eyes were focused on the ramp in front of her, each step onto that plane, a move closer to a new beginning. It was bittersweet. She wanted to make this journey with Dante. She wanted to share these new memories with him by her side.

She glanced behind her and saw the doors closing, signaling that she was the final passenger and as she turned toward the plane and ducked her head to board, she was unable to see the man who ran swiftly through the airport, stopping at nearly every terminal and asking if a Lulu Spencer had boarded.

Lulu waited anxiously for the plane to take off, reaching for her phone to make the call before the plane lifted.

"Hi, it's Lulu. I just wanted to tell you that we'll be taking off soon. I should be there in a few hours," Lulu told the caller's voicemail.

"Miss, the pilot's about to turn on the seat belt sign. Sorry, no cell phones while in flight. You'll have to turn it off now."

"I will," Lulu told the flight attendant, "I have to go now. See you soon. Thanks again, Graciella." Lulu replied, disconnecting her phone and placing it in her purse. She took a deep breath, fastening her seat belt and placing her hand against her flat belly.

"Here we go, baby. I don't know about you, but I'm excited. This will be our first journey to a tropical island together," she whispered, slowly stroking her stomach as the flight attendant mumbled the flight instructions. Lulu drowned the attendant's voice out, secretly wishing that Dante were sitting beside her, sharing looks of happiness as they awaited their next adventure. She smiled, leaning her head back, resting against the seat, as she continued to stroke her abdomen, cherishing the child within.