"Don't even think about what, Sonny?" Carly spun around, and
smiled sweetly in an attempt to appear innocent. How had Sonny caught her,
unless…Had he been watching Emily? Had her words gotten to him?
Emily, too, spun around to look at Sonny. As soon as she made eye contact,
it hit her. The eyes she stared into were her father's, and hers as well. For
the first time she saw the similarities. Their eyes were almost exactly the
same, the shape, the color, and even some of the expression; it was like
looking into a mirror. How could she have missed that before?
Sonny bit his lower lip as the reality of the situation set in. He had seen
her a thousand times; each time was a treasure, however, this time was
different. The emotion he saw in her eyes shook him deeply. He always believed
he could read her feelings from the expression of her eyes, and what he read
now seared his soul.
Emily desperately wanted to break her gaze, however, she couldn't look away.
The awe she felt was quickly replaced with confusion, anger and trepidation.
She could feel a connection between them; she knew he felt it as well. How
could he have ignored it? How could he have let her feel so disconnected? She
couldn't help but feeling that he caused immeasurable pain for both her and her
mother. She wished she had the words to express it. As the silence that passed
between the group increased, she began to wish that she was able to say
anything at all.
Carly looked back and forth between the pair. The intensity of there stares
almost frightened her. Worried she was intruding on a highly personal moment,
she started to move away but found herself unable to move.
Nikolas watched the scene from afar. The surrealism of it all stunned him.
Sonny and Emily stood inches apart, simply studying one another. Carly watched,
fidgeted, and watched some more. The silence of the scene spoke volumes. It was
if everybody in the cemetery needed the time to put their world back into
order.
The serenity of the scene passed as quickly as it had come. "What do you
want from me?" Emily's voice tensed as she attempted to keep some control over
her emotions. The longer she looked at Sonny the more anger built up inside
her.
That anger caused Sonny to wince in pain. "Emily." He whispered.
Emily rolled her eyes. "That is the best you have?" She remembered the first
time she attempted to find her father. At four years old she snuck into her
mother's room looking for any evidence at all. When she first learned to read,
she searched very new phone book that came to their door. She never had a
prayer. Her father's last name was Corinthos, and he was not listed in any
book. No, he was standing in front of her; he always had been. And after at
least twelve years of searching, does she get tears, hugs, apologies, or explanations?
No, all she gets is her name. "Very paternal." She sneered sarcastically.
Sonny smiled involuntarily. Her strength always amazed him. As much as he
hated the rejection, he admired it all the same.
--
Fresh from reading Toad and Frog to Brooke, V descended the stairs happily. By
the time she reached the floor, her demeanor changed. "Hi." She whispered
nervously when she caught sight of Ned watching her.
"Did it go okay?" He asked softly. Sometimes Brooke maneuvered to stay awake
for as long as possible. He worried that V might have fallen victim to Brooke's
charm. Of course he had too, on more than one occasion. The dreams Brooke
experienced after coming to Port Charles frightened her so much that Ned often
decided to let her stay up for as long as she wanted.
V nodded. "She fell fast asleep." Starting to move towards him, V stopped
suddenly. "Are you sure this is okay?"
"Reading to my daughter?" Ned raised an eyebrow. "Of course."
"No." V fidgeted. "Are you okay with me staying here? I know you would do
anything to help her. You have become a really wonderful father." V sighed.
"But that doesn't mean you need to accept a stranger in your home."
"You are far from a stranger. You used to work here, remember? We were
friends, too. Ned pouted in his best attempt to appear hurt. "Am I that easily
forgettable?"
V looked stricken… "I…I… I never…" She couldn't make the words come out.
Ned flashed his dimples, stood and took her into a comforting hug. "V, don't
worry. I know what you meant." Moving back, he looked directly into her eyes.
"I am not going to lie to you, V. You deserve far more than that. I thought of
inviting you to stay because Brooke asked. And when she did, I realized you
would be perfect. You have a feminine touch that she has missed. Add that to
the fact that you are not a Q, and you are a perfect fit." Ned breathed in
deeply before continuing. "You are good for her. But I invited you to stay
because you are good for me."
--
Emily's words hurt. There was no denying it anymore. She knew. She knew, and
she hated him for it. Like father like daughter; Sonny sighed. He could just
hear himself saying exactly the same words to Mike, or worse. Caught between
pride that his daughter could stand up to him and pain that he warranted every
bad thought she harbored towards him, Sonny silently searched for a way to make
everything better. Not finding one, he remained silent.
"Snappy comeback." Emily shook her head in near disgust. "Jesus, say
something!" She yelled. "Talk to me." Angry tears flowed freely from Emily's
face. "Why? Sonny, Why? Tell me the truth; you owe me that."
"And so much more." Sonny whispered, finally breaking his self-imposed
silence. "I thought it was best for you, my job, it is dangerous. It always
was. Your mom and I wanted you safe, carefree, and secure, so I left."
"Better me than your precious job?" Emily backed away from him. "You chose
criminals over your wife and daughter? Some prince you are."
"I never said I was, Emily." Sonny sighed. "I got myself into a lot of trouble,
and if I stayed, you and your mother would be in trouble too. I didn't want
that. Leaving you was the hardest thing I ever did. You don't know how that
hurt."
Emily's nostrils flared in anger. "You want me to feel sorry for you?"
Stunned by his audacity, Emily almost laughed. "I grew up entirely without a
father. When my mother got sick, I had nobody. I watched her worsen, weaken,
and die. The whole time knowing that I didn't have anybody else. It was she and
I, forever. And then she was gone." Emily shook her head in anger. "Can you
imagine that, being a little girl all alone in the world? Can you?" Tears stung
her cheeks as they began to fall.
It took all of his strength to stand there and listen to Emily's words. Knowing
she was right caused him more pain than anything he had ever imagined. "I…."
"Don't, Sonny. There isn't anything you can say." Emily interrupted. "I
dealt. My mom died; I was left with the Quartermaines, and I survived, I don't
need your sympathy. I don't want your apologies, and I can't take your
insufficient explanations. You had a wife; you had a daughter, and you threw
them away. You don't get another chance. I'd watch out if I were you, Carly.
He's brutal."
Enraged by her words, Carly started towards Emily.
Sensing motion out of the corner of his eye, Sonny reached an arm out, and
calmly shook
his head. Emily had every right to her reaction; he would do nothing to
dissuade it. He watched silently as Emily turned and walked away. As destroyed
the encounter left him, he almost smiled at the irony of it all. In her
dismissal of her father, she resembled him more than she ever had before.
"Don't even think about what, Sonny?" Carly spun around, and smiled sweetly in
an attempt to appear innocent. How had Sonny caught her, unless…Had he been
watching Emily? Had her words gotten to him?
Emily, too, spun around to look at Sonny. As soon as she made eye contact,
it hit her. The eyes she stared into were her father's, and hers as well. For
the first time she saw the similarities. Their eyes were almost exactly the
same, the shape, the color, and even some of the expression; it was like
looking into a mirror. How could she have missed that before?
Sonny bit his lower lip as the reality of the situation set in. He had seen
her a thousand times; each time was a treasure, however, this time was
different. The emotion he saw in her eyes shook him deeply. He always believed
he could read her feelings from the expression of her eyes, and what he read
now seared his soul.
Emily desperately wanted to break her gaze, however, she couldn't look away.
The awe she felt was quickly replaced with confusion, anger and trepidation.
She could feel a connection between them; she knew he felt it as well. How
could he have ignored it? How could he have let her feel so disconnected? She
couldn't help but feeling that he caused immeasurable pain for both her and her
mother. She wished she had the words to express it. As the silence that passed
between the group increased, she began to wish that she was able to say
anything at all.
Carly looked back and forth between the pair. The intensity of there stares
almost frightened her. Worried she was intruding on a highly personal moment,
she started to move away but found herself unable to move.
Nikolas watched the scene from afar. The surrealism of it all stunned him.
Sonny and Emily stood inches apart, simply studying one another. Carly watched,
fidgeted, and watched some more. The silence of the scene spoke volumes. It was
if everybody in the cemetery needed the time to put their world back into
order.
The serenity of the scene passed as quickly as it had come. "What do you
want from me?" Emily's voice tensed as she attempted to keep some control over
her emotions. The longer she looked at Sonny the more anger built up inside
her.
That anger caused Sonny to wince in pain. "Emily." He whispered.
Emily rolled her eyes. "That is the best you have?" She remembered the first
time she attempted to find her father. At four years old she snuck into her
mother's room looking for any evidence at all. When she first learned to read,
she searched very new phone book that came to their door. She never had a
prayer. Her father's last name was Corinthos, and he was not listed in any
book. No, he was standing in front of her; he always had been. And after at
least twelve years of searching, does she get tears, hugs, apologies, or
explanations? No, all she gets is her name. "Very paternal." She sneered
sarcastically.
Sonny smiled involuntarily. Her strength always amazed him. As much as he
hated the rejection, he admired it all the same.
--
Fresh from reading Frog and Toad to Brooke, V descended the stairs
happily. By the time she reached the floor, her demeanor changed. "Hi." She
whispered nervously when she caught sight of Ned watching her.
"Did it go okay?" He asked softly. Sometimes Brooke maneuvered to stay awake
for as long as possible. He worried that V might have fallen victim to Brooke's
charm. Of course he had too, on more than one occasion. The dreams Brooke
experienced after coming to Port Charles frightened her so much that Ned often
decided to let her stay up for as long as she wanted.
V nodded. "She fell fast asleep." Starting to move towards him, V stopped
suddenly. "Are you sure this is okay?"
"Reading to my daughter?" Ned raised an eyebrow. "Of course."
"No." V fidgeted. "Are you okay with me staying here? I know you would do
anything to help her. You have become a really wonderful father." V sighed.
"But that doesn't mean you need to accept a stranger in your home."
"You are far from a stranger. You used to work here, remember? We were
friends, too. Ned pouted in his best attempt to appear hurt. "Am I that easily
forgettable?"
V looked stricken… "I…I… I never…" She couldn't make the words come out.
Ned flashed his dimples, stood and took her into a comforting hug. "V, don't
worry. I know what you meant." Moving back, he looked directly into her eyes.
"I am not going to lie to you, V. You deserve far more than that. I thought of
inviting you to stay because Brooke asked. And when she did, I realized you
would be perfect. You have a feminine touch that she has missed. Add that to
the fact that you are not a Q, and you are a perfect fit." Ned breathed in
deeply before continuing. "You are good for her. But I invited you to stay
because you are good for me."
--
Emily's words hurt. There was no denying it anymore. She knew. She knew, and
she hated him for it. Like father like daughter; Sonny sighed. He could just
hear himself saying exactly the same words to Mike, or worse. Caught between
pride that his daughter could stand up to him and pain that he warranted every
bad thought she harbored towards him, Sonny silently searched for a way to make
everything better. Not finding one, he remained silent.
"Snappy comeback." Emily shook her head in near disgust. "Jesus, say
something!" She yelled. "Talk to me." Angry tears flowed freely from Emily's
face. "Why? Sonny, Why? Tell me the truth; you owe me that."
"And so much more." Sonny whispered, finally breaking his self-imposed
silence. "I thought it was best for you, my job, it is dangerous. It always
was. Your mom and I wanted you safe, carefree, and secure, so I left."
"Better me than your precious job?" Emily backed away from him. "You chose
criminals over your wife and daughter? Some prince you are."
"I never said I was, Emily." Sonny sighed. "I got myself into a lot of
trouble, and if I stayed, you and your mother would be in trouble too. I didn't
want that. Leaving you was the hardest thing I ever did. You don't know how
that hurt."
Emily's nostrils flared in anger. "You want me to feel sorry for you?"
Stunned by his audacity, Emily almost laughed. "I grew up entirely without a
father. When my mother got sick, I had nobody. I watched her worsen, weaken,
and die. The whole time knowing that I didn't have anybody else. It was she and
I, forever. And then she was gone." Emily shook her head in anger. "Can you
imagine that, being a little girl all alone in the world? Can you?" Tears stung
her cheeks as they began to fall.
It took all of his strength to stand there and listen to Emily's words.
Knowing she was right caused him more pain than anything he had ever imagined.
"I…."
"Don't, Sonny. There isn't anything you can say." Emily interrupted. "I
dealt. My mom died; I was left with the Quartermaines, and I survived, I don't
need your sympathy. I don't want your apologies, and I can't take your
insufficient explanations. You had a wife; you had a daughter, and you threw
them away. You don't get another chance. I'd watch out if I were you, Carly.
He's brutal."
Enraged by her words, Carly started towards Emily.
Sensing motion out of the corner of his eye, Sonny reached an arm out, and
calmly shook
his head. Emily had every right to her reaction; he would do nothing to
dissuade it. He watched silently as Emily turned and walked away. As destroyed
the encounter left him, he almost smiled at the irony of it all. In her
dismissal of her father, she resembled him more than she ever had before.
--
