Pretense: Chapter 5
It had been two weeks since her late night encounter with Jason. He had not returned, but she knew he was still watching her studio. She could feel him.
Jason was never far away these days. Whether it was knowing he was watching her studio or when she looked around it at the many memories they had shared within these walls, Jason was always in her thoughts.
Her studio was back to its former clean self except that there was nothing to remind her of her life up until this point. There were no paints, no brushes, no pictures of friends, even the old blanket across the back of the couch was gone. The drying rack stood empty with nothing to fill it and no paintings lined the walls. Any item that held a memory of her past was gone. There was nothing left to remind her of what had been. It didn't matter that everything had been destroyed or thrown out, Elizabeth still had her memories. And they plagued her night and day.
All the paintings had been destroyed, all but two. Two paintings that sat on easels mocking her with the memories. They sat by the window and Elizabeth felt like they were laughing at her. The paintings were the only things that she couldn't destroy.
In the past couple of weeks, Elizabeth had come to a decision. She couldn't stay on the current path she was on. She had a problem and it had to be fixed. She was going to fix it and she was going to fix it alone with no help from anyone else. Elizabeth knew that Jason wanted to help her, but she wasn't going to allow Jason to save her this time. This was something that she had to do herself. She didn't want Jason to be involved in her life in any way. It always just brought too much pain.
She didn't want to be hurt again and she didn't want him to see her this way.
Elizabeth needed a change and she knew just who to call for help. There was one person who would always help her if she asked, one person she could always count on. She knew he wouldn't judge her. Elizabeth walked from the couch to the desk where her phone lay before bending and plugging it back in. After the accident, her phone had been ringing off the hook with people checking up on her. She had unplugged it to escape from the noise and the outside world.
Elizabeth moved back to the couch dialing the familiar number as she went before dropping back on to the sofa. This was the first time she had made contact with anyone she knew other than Jason in weeks and she had to do it before she lost her courage.
"Yeah, what do you want?" the man who answered asked tiredly.
She had to smile as she heard his gruff voice come over the line. "Hey, it's me--it's Liz."
"Liz?" There was a pause as he seemed to digest the information. "It's sure good to hear your voice darlin'."
That was one thing she loved about this man. He wouldn't ask how she was or pretend anything with her. There was no attempt to ask her about her feelings or make her feel better. He was a man who truly understood loss.
"Yeah, you too. It's been awhile," Elizabeth said softly.
"What's goin' on?" he questioned curiously.
Elizabeth sighed before answering. "I need your help. I need you to help me with something."
"Liz," he said quickly, "you know I'll help you in anyway I can. What's the problem?"
"I don't really want to talk about it over the phone. Can we meet?" Elizabeth asked nervously twisting the cord.
"Sure, no problem," he replied. "Did you want to get together tomorrow?"
"No," Elizabeth said firmly. "I was hoping I could see you tonight."
"Okay," he answered. "Do you want me to come to your studio?"
Elizabeth looked around at the room she hadn't left in over month and made her decision. "How about I come to you. Will you be there for awhile?"
"Yeah, I got a lot of work and number crunching to go over yet, so I'll be around until the early morning hours." He answered.
She could hear the surprise in his voice that she was willing to come see him and leave her studio. It was well known all over town that she hadn't left since the accident. "I'll be over in a little bit. There are just a few things I need to take care of first."
"No problem darlin'. I'll wait for you," he responded quietly.
"Thanks. I'll see you later," Liz said before clicking the off button on her phone.
She sighed leaning her head against the cushions and closing her eyes.
Yes, it was time for a change.
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Eight months ago he had stood in this same spot with Elizabeth looking out at the ships lining the harbor. The sunlight had been shining and it had brought out the red undertones in her hair. She had smelled like citrus and her tank top had revealed a good amount of her beautiful pale skin that he knew felt like satin. Jason had wanted to touch her more than anything that morning and he had to physically keep himself from doing so. His fingers had itched to caress the soft skin of her neck. She always looked so beautiful in the morning. Hell, she always looked beautiful to him.
The time that Elizabeth spent living with him during the whole Alcazar problem had been one of the best that he could remember. Regardless of the fact that Zander had been there as well, his penthouse had felt like a real home. Having her there had made him feel complete; it gave him something to look forward to the entire day. The only other time Jason could remember feeling that way was when he had lived with Robin and Michael. Even then, he hadn't felt this overwhelming sense of peace. Elizabeth living in his penthouse was something that Jason had only ever dreamt of. Coming home at night to see her small body asleep on his sofa was perfection to him. Her presence alone was enough to make him happy.
Having someone to come home to was a wonderful feeling. Elizabeth had made herself at home and that had been fine by him. He loved the way her perfume would hang in the air, the sight of her impossibly high-heeled shoes that she had kicked off by his door, and seeing her old ratty Goodwill blanket lying over the back of his two thousand dollar leather couch. He missed her sketchbooks and pencils that had littered the tables and the way her leather coat looked next to his in the closet. When she had left, she had taken everything with her. Everything but the memories and the thoughts of what might have been. Jason had gotten used to the small differences that Elizabeth seemed to have wrought in her short time living in his penthouse. He had gotten accustomed to them and now Jason missed them more than anything.
Well, almost more than anything.
Jason was pulled out of his musings when he heard someone knocking. He sighed, turning from the window and walked to the door, opening it to reveal Johnny.
"What do you need?" Jason questioned harshly.
Johnny raised a brow at his boss, but he was getting used to Jason's behavior ever since Ms. Webber's departure. Jason was sad and upset with himself, but he wouldn't talk about it. Johnny sighed and merely held up the phone replying, "It's Francis. He said that he needs to talk to you. He tried calling your phone, but he couldn't reach you."
Francis. Elizabeth's guard. Fearing that something was wrong, Jason quickly took the phone and thanked Johnny before slamming the door.
"What's going on Francis?" Jason demanded. "Is something wrong with Elizabeth?"
"No Jason everything is fine," Francis answered in response.
Jason blew out a sigh of relief. "Then why are you calling me?"
"I just thought you would like to know that Elizabeth has left her building," Francis responded quietly.
Jason's eyes flew wide in shock. "What?"
Francis' voice told of his astonishment as well. "Yeah, imagine my surprise when I saw her walking along the docks."
Elizabeth, outside. "You're following her right?"
Francis answered softly. "Yeah, I'm a ways behind."
"Where's she headed Francis?" Jason asked impatiently.
"I don't know man. She just seems to be walking." Francis' voice sounded muffled.
Jason sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, thanks for telling me. Keep an eye on her."
"You know it Jason," Francis replied before hanging up.
Jason grabbed his coat and keys from the top of his desk before opening the door and running past a confused Johnny. He waited impatiently for the elevator with one thought constantly running through his head.
Elizabeth.
She had left her studio. He had been waiting for a sign that Elizabeth was ready to talk, ready to rejoin the world. Jason hoped that this was it.
It had been two weeks since her late night encounter with Jason. He had not returned, but she knew he was still watching her studio. She could feel him.
Jason was never far away these days. Whether it was knowing he was watching her studio or when she looked around it at the many memories they had shared within these walls, Jason was always in her thoughts.
Her studio was back to its former clean self except that there was nothing to remind her of her life up until this point. There were no paints, no brushes, no pictures of friends, even the old blanket across the back of the couch was gone. The drying rack stood empty with nothing to fill it and no paintings lined the walls. Any item that held a memory of her past was gone. There was nothing left to remind her of what had been. It didn't matter that everything had been destroyed or thrown out, Elizabeth still had her memories. And they plagued her night and day.
All the paintings had been destroyed, all but two. Two paintings that sat on easels mocking her with the memories. They sat by the window and Elizabeth felt like they were laughing at her. The paintings were the only things that she couldn't destroy.
In the past couple of weeks, Elizabeth had come to a decision. She couldn't stay on the current path she was on. She had a problem and it had to be fixed. She was going to fix it and she was going to fix it alone with no help from anyone else. Elizabeth knew that Jason wanted to help her, but she wasn't going to allow Jason to save her this time. This was something that she had to do herself. She didn't want Jason to be involved in her life in any way. It always just brought too much pain.
She didn't want to be hurt again and she didn't want him to see her this way.
Elizabeth needed a change and she knew just who to call for help. There was one person who would always help her if she asked, one person she could always count on. She knew he wouldn't judge her. Elizabeth walked from the couch to the desk where her phone lay before bending and plugging it back in. After the accident, her phone had been ringing off the hook with people checking up on her. She had unplugged it to escape from the noise and the outside world.
Elizabeth moved back to the couch dialing the familiar number as she went before dropping back on to the sofa. This was the first time she had made contact with anyone she knew other than Jason in weeks and she had to do it before she lost her courage.
"Yeah, what do you want?" the man who answered asked tiredly.
She had to smile as she heard his gruff voice come over the line. "Hey, it's me--it's Liz."
"Liz?" There was a pause as he seemed to digest the information. "It's sure good to hear your voice darlin'."
That was one thing she loved about this man. He wouldn't ask how she was or pretend anything with her. There was no attempt to ask her about her feelings or make her feel better. He was a man who truly understood loss.
"Yeah, you too. It's been awhile," Elizabeth said softly.
"What's goin' on?" he questioned curiously.
Elizabeth sighed before answering. "I need your help. I need you to help me with something."
"Liz," he said quickly, "you know I'll help you in anyway I can. What's the problem?"
"I don't really want to talk about it over the phone. Can we meet?" Elizabeth asked nervously twisting the cord.
"Sure, no problem," he replied. "Did you want to get together tomorrow?"
"No," Elizabeth said firmly. "I was hoping I could see you tonight."
"Okay," he answered. "Do you want me to come to your studio?"
Elizabeth looked around at the room she hadn't left in over month and made her decision. "How about I come to you. Will you be there for awhile?"
"Yeah, I got a lot of work and number crunching to go over yet, so I'll be around until the early morning hours." He answered.
She could hear the surprise in his voice that she was willing to come see him and leave her studio. It was well known all over town that she hadn't left since the accident. "I'll be over in a little bit. There are just a few things I need to take care of first."
"No problem darlin'. I'll wait for you," he responded quietly.
"Thanks. I'll see you later," Liz said before clicking the off button on her phone.
She sighed leaning her head against the cushions and closing her eyes.
Yes, it was time for a change.
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Eight months ago he had stood in this same spot with Elizabeth looking out at the ships lining the harbor. The sunlight had been shining and it had brought out the red undertones in her hair. She had smelled like citrus and her tank top had revealed a good amount of her beautiful pale skin that he knew felt like satin. Jason had wanted to touch her more than anything that morning and he had to physically keep himself from doing so. His fingers had itched to caress the soft skin of her neck. She always looked so beautiful in the morning. Hell, she always looked beautiful to him.
The time that Elizabeth spent living with him during the whole Alcazar problem had been one of the best that he could remember. Regardless of the fact that Zander had been there as well, his penthouse had felt like a real home. Having her there had made him feel complete; it gave him something to look forward to the entire day. The only other time Jason could remember feeling that way was when he had lived with Robin and Michael. Even then, he hadn't felt this overwhelming sense of peace. Elizabeth living in his penthouse was something that Jason had only ever dreamt of. Coming home at night to see her small body asleep on his sofa was perfection to him. Her presence alone was enough to make him happy.
Having someone to come home to was a wonderful feeling. Elizabeth had made herself at home and that had been fine by him. He loved the way her perfume would hang in the air, the sight of her impossibly high-heeled shoes that she had kicked off by his door, and seeing her old ratty Goodwill blanket lying over the back of his two thousand dollar leather couch. He missed her sketchbooks and pencils that had littered the tables and the way her leather coat looked next to his in the closet. When she had left, she had taken everything with her. Everything but the memories and the thoughts of what might have been. Jason had gotten used to the small differences that Elizabeth seemed to have wrought in her short time living in his penthouse. He had gotten accustomed to them and now Jason missed them more than anything.
Well, almost more than anything.
Jason was pulled out of his musings when he heard someone knocking. He sighed, turning from the window and walked to the door, opening it to reveal Johnny.
"What do you need?" Jason questioned harshly.
Johnny raised a brow at his boss, but he was getting used to Jason's behavior ever since Ms. Webber's departure. Jason was sad and upset with himself, but he wouldn't talk about it. Johnny sighed and merely held up the phone replying, "It's Francis. He said that he needs to talk to you. He tried calling your phone, but he couldn't reach you."
Francis. Elizabeth's guard. Fearing that something was wrong, Jason quickly took the phone and thanked Johnny before slamming the door.
"What's going on Francis?" Jason demanded. "Is something wrong with Elizabeth?"
"No Jason everything is fine," Francis answered in response.
Jason blew out a sigh of relief. "Then why are you calling me?"
"I just thought you would like to know that Elizabeth has left her building," Francis responded quietly.
Jason's eyes flew wide in shock. "What?"
Francis' voice told of his astonishment as well. "Yeah, imagine my surprise when I saw her walking along the docks."
Elizabeth, outside. "You're following her right?"
Francis answered softly. "Yeah, I'm a ways behind."
"Where's she headed Francis?" Jason asked impatiently.
"I don't know man. She just seems to be walking." Francis' voice sounded muffled.
Jason sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, thanks for telling me. Keep an eye on her."
"You know it Jason," Francis replied before hanging up.
Jason grabbed his coat and keys from the top of his desk before opening the door and running past a confused Johnny. He waited impatiently for the elevator with one thought constantly running through his head.
Elizabeth.
She had left her studio. He had been waiting for a sign that Elizabeth was ready to talk, ready to rejoin the world. Jason hoped that this was it.