;; Caveat Lector ;; For anyone with their hopes up that this is going to be even slightly JaSam centric, I regret to disappoint. It's actually not. I mean, they're both Delila's parents, but that's where it ends. Delila's also most likely going to be way closer to Jason due to my wishy washy relationship with Sam (she used to be a favorite of mine, now not so much I am.. actually teetering on strong dislike as of late?) so.. If you're reading this in hopes of a JaSam reunion, just know that's 100000 percent absolutely not going to be happening here. I wanted to get that off my chest before I go any further with this fic. I can tell you that given the fact that I happen to have had high hopes for Liason, if Jason gets with anyone in any of these fics / this universe, it will be Liz. And yeah, sue me.. Maybe there are smallish hints of that here.
I want to thank my one anonymous reviewer and I want to reassure you, my sweet kind soul... You're welcome to rant as much as you like about anything. I'm open to it. I'm not one of those fans who refuses to see other opinions, so honestly, I welcome it if you choose to rant, pretty sure that I'll be doing my own fair share of ranting up here in the notes because sometimes what I'm writing into something is NOT something I particularly even want to happen or even planned for as far as the process goes, but it's where the muse happens to take me... That being said, I appreciate your up-front honesty and I understand if you have to sit the duration of this one out. I respect that. Thank you for taking the time to read / review even this much, it means so much to me.
"Everything okay, Jase?" Liz slipped onto the barstool beside Jason Morgan, gazing at him in concern. Jason could only chuckle and shrug. Take another long sip from the bottle sitting in front of him mostly untouched. "Got out of therapy." he finally managed to answer.
Liz smiled a little, but then she eyed him, waiting on an explanation. "Therapy?"
"Remember when I lost Lila? And Monica gave me that therapist's card? I finally got around to calling."
"That's great, Jase! I'm so proud of you. How'd it go?"
Jason shrugged, raising a hand to wiggle it slightly. "Ah, it went."
"It takes time." Liz encouraged gently. This was a big step for Jason. She couldn't imagine how hard Sam must have been hit with the loss they'd shared but Jason had really taken it hard. And for the first time in probably years since she'd known him at the time, Liz had witnessed a Jason who didn't simply shut down and ignore the grief. That grief had been too real. Too much and too raw to hide well at all.
It irritated her to no end though, the way Sam had gone about handling the way Jason coped. Or rather, her total lack of regard in that aspect. She'd really shown Liz how selfish she could be deep down and Liz just hadn't ever been able to forget it. And oh how she worried every single time the two would try yet again and wind up exploding over the course of years. Thankfully, this time, Jason seemed to be absolutely done. He rarely spoke to Sam anymore. She didn't seem to care either, a fact that only further irritated Liz. At very least, despite of everything they'd been through, Sam could have the decency to try harder. To be civil instead of being cold towards Jason or outright ignoring him.
Liz had tried to be there as much as she could at the time and she still did so, to this day. She never forced her way in, she never demanded anything out of him. It's what he needed. God knows everyone else forces his hand and forces themselves on him more than enough, Liz thought to herself, sighing at the thought. Jason tried keeping her out, it hadn't honestly worked. They'd had a lot of long and deep talks about the way losing Lila made him feel. He poured everything into his love for the son they shared just as he always had, but after losing Lila, Jason spent every second he was allowed with Jake.
And he still did, to this day. And Jake was certainly better off for it. He looked up to his father. He enjoyed every minute spent with him. To Liz, that meant the world.
"If you don't mind me asking, what brought this on though?" Liz finally pulled herself out of her own internal musings and asked the question, eyeing Jason in concern. He'd had a rough few years.
"Remember how I've been looking for more mechanics for the garage?"
"Yeah. Jake's really looking forward to starting this weekend."
Jason smiled warmly at hearing what Liz told him about their son being thrilled to work with him on weekends and two days a week after school. "I'm glad. I'm looking forward to having him around. My arm and my aim are shit, at least we have this, huh?" Jason chuckled quietly, taking another sip of his drink and going quiet for a few seconds.
Liz was beginning to think he wasn't going to further explain what hiring another mechanic full time had to do with his decision to seek therapy for his loss after years of holding it all in, but to her surprise, after a minute or two, he continued to speak.
"I hired a young woman. She would've been around Lila's age.. And since she's been working there, Liz, it's just.. I dunno if it's the fact that I saw Lila before they took her down to the morgue that day and I know she'd have had black hair and I'm imagining that she'd have had the same eyes as me or what, but.."
Liz took it all in. First of all, Jason wasn't a man of many words. He never had been, even before the accident that changed his entire life when they were teenagers. The fact that he was saying this much at once clued her in to just how much this was truly eating at him and how he couldn't fight it anymore.
It made her feel so relieved for him that he was taking steps. Seeking therapy.
"Yeah?" she asked softly, gazing at him. Waiting on him to continue.
"I've never met her before and I swear, Liz, it's like I know her like the back of my hand." Jason shrugged, going quiet again.
Liz eyed him. A little concerned because at one point when he'd come back after being presumed dead years back, he'd been absolutely convinced that Lila was alive and she was out there somewhere.
"This isn't like what I know you're thinking about, okay? And if it is, that's why I'm seeing the therapist. To stop.. Something.. Before it happens."
Liz nodded, letting out a sigh of relief.
The door to the sports bar opened and almost as if he'd summoned the young woman he'd been telling her about, Delila Rossi wandered in, her son holding her hand, her daughter asleep with an arm thrown around her neck.
Jason nodded towards her and told Liz in a quiet whisper, "That's her. Her name is Delila Rossi. Moved here from Idaho with her kids."
Liz followed Jason's gaze and she may have gaped just a little when she saw the dark haired female. She could see in an instant precisely why Jason's sudden resurgence of grief was happening.
But something about the similarities between the two of them caught hold, nagging at her. It was a feeling in her gut. A feeling that only grew when Delila wandered right over, plopped herself down at the table right behind where the two of them sat on barstools and Jason turned, striking up a conversation.
A conversation that to Liz flowed utterly seamless. As if the two had known each other for years. Delila was left -handed as was Jason, Liz noticed when she was settling in the two little blond twins she had with her to their seats.
Jason chuckled as Delila told him that she'd just come from picking up Dallas at youth hockey. That he hadn't got the hang of it yet, and right now, all he liked to do was zip around and smash the puck whichever way his heart led.
Liz spoke up, smiling at Delila. Delila smiled back and the smile was so similar to the smile that Jason and his deceased sister Emily had in common that it had her pausing a second, struggling to find words.
She tried to keep a practical mind about it. But that nagging feeling only grew.
She introduced herself and then explained with a smile that her son Cameron, he was assistant to the coach. Delila laughed softly, nodding. "I think he's the one who has been working with my little lefty here on his aim. Dallas talks about him all the time."
"Cameron's mentioned Dallas too." Liz smiled.
Jason nodded to Delila's sleeping daughter and Delila laughed. "She'll wake up when she smells chicken strips. She's just worn out from cheering and running around. She saw the ballet class down the hall and she watched for a little bit, I'm kind of wondering if I should sign her up."
Jason chuckled, shrugging. "Can't hurt. I mean she's always dancing and skipping when they come in at the end of your shift."
The conversation died down and when Delila and her twins were distracted with eating the food that arrived for them, Liz smiled at Jason, leaning into him a little. "I definitely see what you mean. That even threw me for a loop."
Jason gave a weak smile and nodded, responding back quietly that his initial gut reaction after getting to know Delila was what drove him to look into finally dealing with the loss of Lila years before.
"I can definitely see why. If I didn't know you, I'd almost swear you two were family." Liz admitted, glancing at Jason. Jason wiped the back of his hand over his mouth and nodded. Chuckling when he heard Delila and Dallas both come to life at a crappy ruling in the hockey pre-season game being shown on one of the screens scattered through the bar.
"It's just time to deal with it." Jason mused. Shrugging a little as if trying to shrug it off.
"I'm glad you are. I need to pick up our food. Don't have too many, okay? And if you do, call me. I'll come get you. If you need to talk at all, Jase, I'm here."
"Thank you." Jason muttered, holding her gaze for a few seconds. "I'm trying to handle it. But I might have to take you up on that offer, Liz."
"It's just a shot, Dallas. Just close your eyes and focus on Mommy, sweetie and it'll all be over." Delila coaxed her son. Liesl Obrecht gazed from mother to son for a moment as she stepped into the room, the medical charts belonging to the set of blond blue-eyed twins in hand. She managed what she hoped was a slightly improved version of a smile because according to Ephiphany, her people skills left a lot to be desired.
And since she was trying to be a different person for the sake of her son Nathan and daughter Britt, at last, Liesl was attempting to improve on said people skills.
"We are here for the vaccinations, yes?"
Delila nodded. "Dallas is a little nervous, ma'am. I'm sorry. Afraid he takes after me in that he's not scared of much but if you show the kid a needle, he freaks."
"Perhaps we start with sister?" Liesl nodded in the direction of the little girl sitting on the rolling stool, swinging combat boot footed legs over it's edge, the sounds of The Clash playing at a low volume from lime green earphones.
Delila smiled, nodding. She reached out, sliding an earbud free from Della's ear. "Sweetie?"
"Yeah, momma?"
"Can you show brother how to be brave?"
Della mulled it over. Catching sight of the nurse waiting with a needle for their required booster shot. Grinning at the solemn faced old woman. "I can. But I gotta introduce myself cos Officer West, he said it's not good to talk to strangers."
"Sweetie, it'll be fine. This sweet lady is a nurse. You can always trust nurses."
"But momma! Officer West said.." Della insisted, slipping off of her stool and wandering over to where Liesl Obrecht stood, preparing to administer the booster.
"My name is Della. What's yours?"
"It's Liesl." Again, Liesl tried to attempt this smiling, people friendly thing she kept being told she needed to try harder at being. But it wasn't so hard with the little girl. The mention of her son's name had her curious, so as she let the little girl scramble up onto the exam table and prepare to take her booster, she asked, "Who is Officer West?"
"He's so dreamy." Della giggled. "He came to talk to our class about strangers. And he lives across the hall!"
Liesl realized immediately that this was the little trio her daughter Britt and the woman Nathan had grown up with, Nina seemed to keep trying to intervene and cause interaction with.
Delila barely hid a laugh, her hand raising to her mouth to stop it. "Della.." she shook her head. The statement she muttered to herself next did not go missed by Liesl.
"Kid, you have mommy's taste in men and I don't know whether to be proud or freaking terrified.." Delila mumbled. Gazing at the nurse as she explained, "He made quite the impression on my little girl. Dallas too, which says a lot. Dallas is more the wary one."
Liesl smiled, proud to hear what she was being told. She withdrew the needle from the little girl's arm and dug around in a drawer, holding out a box of band-aids. Insisting that she try guessing which one the little girl would choose. When she chose the Captain America band-aid and the little girl's eyes widened as she giggled out "How'd you know?", Liesl merely shrugged. And then she gave a little wink and muttered to the little girl, "I shall tell my son that he has himself a fan when I see him tonight."
By now, Dallas was irritated at himself for letting Della seem to be the braver of the two. He slipped out of Delila's lap and wandered over, hopping up on the table. "You're Officer West's momma?"
"Mhm, yes I am." Liesl answered proudly.
"Cool! I wanna be strong like him when I get bigger. Or like Roman Reigns, he's my favorite wrestler."
Liesl gave an amused snort. "Look at your mother, little one."
Dallas did as instructed, sucking in a breath. "It can't be too bad, Della didn't even cry." he mumbled as he tensed just slightly.
"Your sister is a strong little girl. I suspect you are a strong little boy." Liesl told the little boy, making him smile. She was pulling the needle out before he even realized that the shot was happening and over with.
Noting the fact that he wore a Punisher shirt, Liesl dug around and produced a matching bandaid, making him laugh and clap. "I like her, momma. Can she be our nurse?"
"We'll try, little Chief." Delila smiled at the older woman, mouthing a grateful thank you because normally, anything involving Dallas and doctors or nurses made the kid panic. But things had gone really smooth today, not like Delila had been fearing.
"Do I still gotta cut my hair though, momma?" Dallas pleaded.
"Sweetie, as much as I love the little curl you get, yeah. It's falling right in your eyes."
"Can I at least see if they'll buzz it like Officer West or Frank Castle?"
"We'll see, sweetie." Delila promised. As she went to step out the door, Liesl called out with a solemn tone, "I know it can be difficult. If you need anything. My son is only across the hall. He is a very good man. Very helpful."
Delila nodded. "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you again for today. It is literally never a breeze like it was today."
"You are welcome."
Delila stepped out of the exam room with her kids and started towards the elevator. Just as she and the kids went to step on, Nathan West was stepping off. The two lingered in the opening and Nathan chuckled. "Everything okay?" He asked in concern.
"Just boosters for school. Since I left Idaho in such a hurry that I didn't have time to go and get it done then. What about you?"
"Just bringing my workaholic mother lunch. Otherwise, she wouldn't remember to eat."
"Ah, yeah. That's probably something I have in common with her then." Delila answered. Trying not to stare too long or too hard into bright blue green eyes and get lost. Because the last time you let yourself drown in a pair of deep eyes, Delila, you went on to have hell on Earth. Literally the only good that came of it are the two little angels with you right now. The thought was enough that she stepped out of the way to let Nathan step off the elevator fully and then she gave him a little smile and hurried onto the elevator with her twins in tow.
Nathan stood there for a few seconds, a hand raised and resting against the back of his head. Trying to ignore that magnet's pull he felt again for the thousandth time.
His mother cleared her throat from behind. Nathan turned around to face her, quickly trying to center himself and not give any indication that he'd been watching Delila Rossi get on the elevator and kind of entranced.
But moms know these things. Liesl smirked and nodded towards the elevator. "Lovely young woman. Her little girl seemed to be quite smitten with you, son."
Nathan chuckled at the gentle teasing. Trying to shrug, pretending it didn't affect him one way or another. "Oh yeah? What'd she say?"
"I believe the little one's words were that you were quote unquote, dreamy. And mommy didn't seem to be in a hurry to shut down the assessment. I believe I heard her mumbling about the two sharing taste and the young woman being unsure whether to be proud of that or terrified for her little girl."
Nathan's brow quirked.
By now he'd learned just a little about Delila Rossi from Lulu, who apparently met her because Rocco had hockey practice the hour after the team Dallas was playing on had their own. And Lulu mentioned a time or two that the only thing she'd heard about the twins father was that Delila had point blank told her that the man was absolute scum and that if he showed up in New York, she was not aiming to injure this time.
It really did have Nathan concerned for her. What the hell had the three of them been through before their arrival in town?
"I am concerned about her, my son."
"And you want me to keep my eyes open. Gotcha, Mom." Nathan promised, barely hiding a smirk. Now apparently in addition to Britt and Nina trying to push him in her general direction, he was going to have it coming from his mother too.
"Thank you. You know my gut instinct is hardly wrong. And you feel it too, I can see it on your face."
Nathan nodded, not disagreeing, not at all.
And he made a mental note to check in on the three of them now and then. It couldn't hurt to be safe, right?