Alex walked into the kitchen the next morning wondering what state Carly
would be in. When he woke up that morning he was surprised to see that she
was already up and out. She had scared him last night and he wanted to know
exactly what happened. He leaned against the doorframe and watched her move
around the kitchen.
She wore a big apron, had four pots bubbling on the stove top and
alternated between checking the turkey in the oven, stirring the pots, and
setting Michael and Lucas to various tasks. The scene was chaotic and she
was in her element. She whirled around and saw Alex. She grinned. "Hello,
you!"
Alex looked at her. She was incredibly chipper for someone who had
practically broke down just last night. "Carly?"
"Alex?" She mocked him then giggled. "Don't think you're going to spend
today watching football and parades. You have to chip in too."
"Mommy, I set the table, can I please go watch the parade now?" Michael
tugged at her apron.
"Hmm." Carly screwed up her face as she thought it over. "Alright, ten
minutes and then you report back here."
As Michael scampered off Lucas immediately began to plead his case. "Carly,
I—"
She shook her head. "Nope. Go see what Mama needs done."
"But—" Lucas started to object.
"Go!" She pointed at the door and Lucas reluctantly went. Carly turned her
attention back to Alex. She shook her finger at Alex. "Now you get to be my
little helper. Stir this pot." She handed him the spoon. "You might need an
apron for that. I have just the one. It's pink with frills." She smiled.
Alex put the spoon down and took her by the shoulders. He looked into her
eyes. "Carly, are you okay?"
She tried to avoid eye contact. Her smile seemed to be too bright and
strained at the edges. "Yes, I'm perfectly okay."
"Are you sure?" He pressed on.
"Yes, why? Alex, I really need to get back to the stove." She tried to move
past him but he wouldn't let her go.
"What about last night?"
"What about it? Were we fooling around or something and you didn't even
bother to wake me? Naughty." She grinned and finally succeeded in moving
past him.
He frowned. It was like she didn't remember what happened in the bathroom.
Or maybe she just decided to act like it didn't happen. "Something
happened last night, Carly."
Carly absentmindedly stirred a pot. "Really? What?" She asked casually as
if she didn't care about the answer.
"You honestly don't remember the scene in the bathroom…"
Lucas came back into the kitchen. "Mom says we need an extra chair and
another place setting."
"What?" Carly frowned. "I counted and recounted. I could have sworn I had
everybody on the list. Okay, get Michael to help you set the table and,"
She went over to the refrigerator and pulled out two covered trays, "see if
there's room in the oven upstairs for these hors d'oeuvres."
"Carly?" Alex prompted her.
But she ignored him and grabbed another tray from the refrigerator. "I
don't think you can carry this too so I'll help you with it. Hey Alex,
don't hang around the kitchen all day, go watch TV or something. Michael!
I need your help!"
Alex watched as she hustled out the room, set on her new task. He slumped
against the door and rubbed his face tiredly. She was obviously avoiding
the topic and he could see that it would take just about all day to pin her
down and find out what happened.
~*~
All day long the door was opening and closing as people kept pouring into
the Brownstone. Carly put Lucas in charge of answering the door and
collecting the coats. Carly and Bobbie would occasionally pop their heads
out the door to see who was showing up. Carly came out to say hello to the
newest arrivals.
"Eve! Chris! I'm so glad you came." Carly hugged them both.
"Hey, how are things?" Eve whispered into Carly's ear. Carly shrugged and
gave her a half smile. "Karen said that she and Joe might stop by after
dinner for dessert."
"Fantastic." Carly nodded.
Chris pulled two wine bottles out from behind his back. "For the
grown-ups." He smiled.
"I told you, you didn't have to bring anything." Carly admonished him as
she reached for the bottles.
"Couldn't help myself. Now, which way to the kitchen?" Chris asked. He
rubbed his hands together.
"No, no, no! I can't believe I'm saying this but you are going to go into
that living room and watch football with the rest of the men."
"Can *I* go watch football also?" Lucas grumbled. Carly had been bossing
him around all day long and he was getting tired of it.
Carly rolled her eyes and relented. "Go ahead before I change my mind."
"Why can't I get into the kitchen?" Chris asked.
"Because none of the men are allowed. Not my rules but they're the ones
we're going to play by today. Now go on. There are some hors d'oeuvres in
there. " Carly pushed him in the direction of living room. "Eve, you come
with me. We're going to go up to my place. That way we can talk in peace."
Just then the doorbell rang again. Bobbie stuck her head out the kitchen.
"Get the door, Lucas!"
"I'm watching the game Mom!" Lucas yelled back.
Carly started to say that she would get it but Bobbie came out of the
kitchen anyway. "I got it."
"What's Lucas doing watching the game?" Bobbie asked as she wiped her hands
on her apron. She smiled at Eve. "Hi."
"I gave him a little break." Carly opened the door. The whole Scorpio clan
was awaiting them: Mac, Felicia, Maxie, Georgie, and Robbie. Carly smiled
politely at them. They never were going to be the best of friends but they
weren't total enemies. Bobbie greeted her old friends.
"Hi guys!" Bobbie hugged Mac and then Felicia. She touched Felicia's
extended belly. "How's the baby?"
"The baby is sleeping I think." Felicia rubbed her belly also. "No kicking
or anything."
Bobbie leaned in. "And what about…Frisco?"
Felicia restrained from rolling her eyes. "He hasn't been around for the
past few days. I guess he finally got the hint. I feel bad for the girls
that he gave up so easily."
"We bought a pie." Mac changed the subject.
Bobbie took it gladly. "We said not to bring anything but thanks. Hi
Georgie, Maxie."
"Hi." They both mumbled their greetings. Teenagers, Bobbie thought.
Bobbie smiled at Maxie. "Did you do something different…with your hair?"
Felicia hugged Maxie to her side. "She looks like my baby again! The face
is clear of make up, the hair is blond again, she's normal." Felicia chose
to ignore the fact that the clothes were still black, there was still a
nose ring, and the right ear still held a dozen earrings while the left
held one.
"Mom…" Maxie grumbled.
"Felicia, want to come into the kitchen with me? Laura's in there and so is
Amy. Mac, the men go into the living room to watch the game and stay out of
the way. Maxie, Georgie, where do you want to go? Food or football?"
"I'll go into the kitchen, I guess." Georgie said.
"Who's watching the game?" Maxie chewed on her lip.
Carly thought it over. "Um, Jerry, Alex, Lucas, Luke, Lucky…"
"Football it is." Maxie grinned and took off.
"I guess I said the special word, huh?" Carly laughed.
"I do think she has a thing for Lucky." Felicia mused. "A harmless crush
I'm sure."
Bobbie slipped through her arm through Felicia's and laughed. "I hope so.
Come on let's go see what's been done to my kitchen so far."
~*~
Eve and Carly were in Carly's kitchen. Eve was fixing the salad. "Did
Bobbie say that *Amy* was here?"
Carly checked on the turkey once again. "Yup. She is Laura's sister after
all."
"Right. I just was wondering, you know what with the Mike thing… Is Mike
still coming? Does he know she's going to be here?"
"Of course." She said as she basted the turkey. "I couldn't *not* invite
either one. Amy's Laura's family making her Luke's family making her
Bobbie's family and therefore she's *my* family. And Mike's my family also
because he's Michael's godfather. We're just one big family."
"I just don't hope she doesn't make a big scene when Mike and Jake arrives.
Is Jake coming with Mike?"
"I don't see why not. She's his girlfriend. But Amy does like scenes… Do
you remember that time at Luke's?"
Eve laughed at the memory. "I'm trying to forget about it. I never thought
Amy knew those kinds of words. She always seemed so sweet."
"Sweet? Yeah right. The minute you're back turned she was spreading tales
about you around the hospital."
"Did she ever—"
"You aren't about to ask me what I think you're about ask me? Eve, of
course, this is Amy Vining we're talking about."
"You're right. What was I thinking?" Eve smacked herself on the forehead.
Carly checked her watch and started to take off her apron. "I have to take
Michael over to the Quartermaines' for his slice of pizza and to get Emily.
We should be back really soon. I don't like to linger there. Keep an eye on
things."
"Sure, sure, go on ahead." Eve waved her off.
Carly was halfway out the door with Michael when they bumped into Jax, V,
and their three-year-old daughter Jessica. "Hey, glad you could make it."
She said. "Um, Jax, guys go into the living room. V, ladies hit the
kitchens unless you'd rather watch football. And kids…they go everywhere."
"I think I'll hit the kitchens." V smiled.
"Could you go up to my kitchen then? Eve's there by herself and…"
"Sure, no problem."
"Thanks, oh and Happy Thanksgiving." Carly called out over her shoulder as
she rushed out the door.
~*~*~
Keesha opened the door to her apartment letting in the trio of Layla,
Frisco, and Katarina. "Welcome." She said with a tight smile.
Since neither Keesha or Marcus would be able to get home for the holidays
Keesha decided that they would spend it with Marcus' WSB friends. They had
no family in town either so Keesha didn't think it would hurt. She didn't
have to like them to feed them.
"Melinda is in her room." Keesha told Katarina.
Katarina shrugged and made her way to the couch. Keesha frowned at her. She
didn't quite get the mother-daughter relationship between Katarina and
Melinda. Marcus tried to explain that even though last night it seemed like
the two of them hated each other it was quite the opposite. The two of them
were very close.
Keesha wanted to know if the two of them were so close why did Katarina
just let her child run out into the night the way she did and not even
bother to go out and search for her or at least look a little worried. And
when Melinda did return late last night there was no tearful reunion or
apologies. Melinda just went into her room while Katarina continued to
confer with Frisco about the Cassadine case.
When Katarina, Layla, and Frisco left to head for their hotel Keesha had
been surprised to see that Melinda didn't go with them and that Katarina
never even mentioned anything about having her daughter come with them.
Melinda just stayed in her room as they left. They obviously had a unique
mother-daughter relationship, one that Keesha doubted she'd ever be able to
understand.
"Layla?" She said politely. "Would you like something to drink?"
Layla didn't hear her however. She was thinking back to her run in with
Stefan down at the docks. She was waiting for Frisco and Katarina to hurry
up and met with her when she spotted Stefan getting off the launch.
"Steffie, hi." She smiled.
"Layla, where you on your way out to the island?" Stefan asked as he came
up to her.
"Actually no, I'm just waiting for some people. Going out?"
"To a…family gathering." He smiled hesitantly. "Are you perhaps free for
dinner this weekend?"
"I'd have to check my social calendar…" Layla said coyly. Who was she
kidding? With Katarina around dogging her steps there would be no time for
her to do her own thing. She might as well enjoy the rest of her time with
Stefan.
Stefan stepped closer to her. His gaze held hers and he murmured. "See that
it is clear. I would to like to spend more time with you before you waltz
out of my life for another twelve years."
Layla chuckled lowly. "And people say I am the manipulator in this
relationship. Fine dinner this weekend. I will give you a call."
Stefan brushed his lips across hers. "You do that."
His casual kiss sent a shiver through Layla and she knew it was time to go
even though she wanted so badly to stay. She had to force herself to walk
away from the man and toss a casual, "I will." over her shoulder as she
went.
"Layla!" Keesha said loudly. "I said would you like something to drink?"
Layla jumped back to the present. "What? Oh sure, what ever you got. And
make it strong."
~*~*~
Reginald let Carly and Michael into the Q mansion. "Hey Reggie!" The little
boy cried as he skipped into the mansion. He loved coming over for
Thanksgiving. They always had the best pizza. Carly barely nodded at the
butler.
"They're in the living room." Reginald told them.
Michael raced ahead of them and threw open the doors. "Hi!" His enthusiasm
brought a small smile to Carly's face.
"Hi, Michael." Monica said. She adored the little boy. He was all she had
left of Jason.
"Grandmother Monica." Michael went over for his customary hug and kiss.
"Monica." Carly said flatly.
"Carly." Monica's voice was like ice. She still hated Carly after all those
years and the feeling was mutual.
"Hey Carly." Emily sat in a corner looking very tired.
"Michael! Come over to me." Ordered Edward. Michael bounded over to Edward
and scrambled up into his lap.
"Hi Great-grandfather."
"Now that is just a mouthful for such a little boy. You should call me…"
Edward pretended to think it over. "Great Edward."
Carly choked back her laughter. " 'Great Edward?' Now that's a laugh."
Edward scowled in her direction. Michael leaned his head on Edward's
shoulder. "I *like* Great grandfather."
"See the boy has taste!" Edward nodded.
"I think he meant the term, not you personally." Carly sneered.
"Hi, Carly." Alan said from behind her as he entered the room. He gave her
a quick hug. Their relationship annoyed the hell out of Monica. She wanted
Alan to hate Carly as much as she did but the man actually liked the girl
and she liked him back!
"Happy Thanksgiving, *Alan*." Carly said pointedly. "How are things?"
"Great. Hey Michael." He called to the little boy who scrambled off
Edward's lap to greet his grandfather. "Grandfather Alan!"
Ned, Alexis, and Brooke came in at that moment. Michael ditched Alan in
favor of his cousin. It seemed that both of the kids had forgotten about
yesterday's incident. Carly smiled at Alexis and Ned.
"Is Lois going to be here this year?" Carly asked Ned.
"She's stuck out of town unfortunately." Ned said regretfully.
Alexis rubbed her hands together. "Did the pizzas get here yet? I'm
starved."
"They've just arrived." Reginald announced as he led in the deliveryman.
Reginald rushed around as he set up the pizzas. Carly waited until Michael
had eaten at least one slice of pizza before saying it was time to go.
"Emily, Michael, we should get going if we want to make the dinner back at
the house." Emily jumped up quickly. She was ready to go. She had to talk
to Carly.
"Can I have another slice?" Michael pouted.
Carly shook her head. "You don't want to ruin your appetite. We're having a
big meal."
Just then AJ came into the room. "Am I late?"
"As always, Junior." Ned sneered.
Michael was delighted to see his favorite uncle and Carly knew it was
really time to go. She hated AJ being around Michael for too long. How he
became his favorite uncle she would never know.
"Mommy, can we stay a little longer? Uncle AJ just got here."
"Yeah, what's the rush Carly?" AJ asked.
"I have a lot to do at the house and…"
"Michael could stay here and we'll send him over later in the car." Monica
offered.
"Well…"
Edward readily agreed. "It's a perfect idea."
Carly narrowed her eyes and looked at him. She never trusted the man. She
knew that with Alan, Ned, and Alexis around nothing would happen but with
Edward you never know…
"Look, if Carly wants to take her son home with her, let her take her son
home." Emily spoke up. "Now if this discussion is over, can we leave
already? Carly, I'll meet you by the car."
Emily stalked out of the room. Carly arched her eyebrow and smiled wryly.
"I guess that's goodbye. We'll see you tomorrow."
On the ride back to the Brownstone Carly questioned Emily. "What was that?
Back at the mansion?"
Emily rubbed the back of her neck. "I just needed to get out of there."
Carly shot her a look. "You know, you look like hell."
"Gee thanks." Emily laughed without humor. "I feel like it."
"What's going on now?" The other day Carly and Emily finally got all caught
up on things.
"Things have gotten easier since Elizabeth went out of town. But then
there's Sly. I've been trying to avoid him. He keeps leaving message after
message on my machine. He wants to know why I won't call him, if there's
something wrong, if it's something that he did or said… How can I tell him
that I'm sleeping with Nikolas?"
Carly gave her a sympathetic look.
"I am so confused, Carly. I love Sly; I loved him for all these years. But
I don't think I'm *in love* with him anymore. You know what I mean? And
then there's my feelings for Nikolas."
"How do you feel about Nikolas?" Carly asked feeling like a shrink.
Emily smiled a little. "I don't know. Years ago I had this huge crush on
him and then it faded into just friendship. Now there's this whole new
confusing emotion. It's not the crush and it's not the friendship. It's
like it's a combination of them both with a little something extra thrown
in. Carly, you should have seen it on Sunday. We spent the day on Spoon
Island. Just talking and walking around. We had this great dinner in the
guesthouse and then…" Emily sighed as she trailed off.
"And you say that you're confused about your feelings for Nikolas?" Carly
laughed as she turned onto the street for the Brownstone.
"Nikolas is at the Brownstone." Emily said suddenly.
"What, you can 'feel' him now?" Carly asked sarcastically.
"No, I see his car right there." Emily pointed it out. "And right behind
him is Sly."
"Uh-oh."
"Uh-oh is right. Were they both invited?"
"Of course. They're family." Carly explained as she got out of the car.
Emily and Michael followed her in the house. Emily helped Michael out of
his coat while Carly shrugged out of hers. She shouted. "We're back!"
Bobbie popped in her head out. "Hey guys. Emily, if you're looking for Sly
he's in the living room with the guys."
Emily's eyes widened. "No, no, no, that's okay."
"Emily's going to join me in my kitchen." Carly jumped in to save her.
Bobbie pointed at her. "See if everything's done so we can start getting
the food on the table."
Carly nodded. "Right. We'll get everything together."
Before Bobbie went back inside she looked over her shoulder at Carly. "By
the way, Stefan is here."
"What's he doing?"
The corners of Bobbie's mouth quirked up a little. "Watching…football."
"Football? I wouldn't mind seeing that." Carly said. "But we better get
upstairs. Let's go." Carly hustled Emily to her kitchen. "Sorry I took so
long." She apologized to V and Eve who were leaning against the counter,
talking quietly. Eve was snacking on a carrot stick.
"We had everything under control." Eve said and V nodded in agreement.
"So…did anything interesting happen while I was gone?" Carly asked.
"You mean Amy versus Mike, Round 3,786?" Eve laughed.
V filled her in. "Nothing happened. Amy gave them the silent treatment."
"It must have killed her." Eve added.
"Mike and Jake stayed in the living room and Amy in the kitchen." V
continued.
"Though there was a little something-something when Jake went in for some
beer. I didn't see exactly what happened but I did hear about it." Eve
finished.
"That's it?"
"There was something else…but you'll find out soon enough." Eve said
secretly.
V nodded at the oven. "I believe the turkey is done."
"Perfect. It's time to get the food on the table." Carly said as she bent
down and pulled the turkey out. She put Eve, Emily and V to work putting
the food in serving dishes while she placed the turkey and stuffing on a
platter.
There was a discreet knock at the kitchen door. Emily called over her
shoulder, "Come in."
"Need some help?" Sonny asked from the doorway.
"What are you doing here?" Carly whined.
"Don't look so excited to see me." He murmured.
She repeated her question. "What are you doing here?"
"I was invited. By Bobbie." He said as he casually leaned against the door.
"Why?"
"He's family." Emily piped up. Carly shook her a look and Eve covered her
smile with her hand.
"Has Alex seen you?"
Sonny smiled. "He let me in. He looked like he was going to shut the door
in my face but Lesley Lu was with him."
Carly rolled her eyes and sighed. "Just what I needed. All right, the more
the merrier. Here." She thrust the platter at him. "Take that to the table.
We've got some hungry people out there waiting."
They quickly got everything set up. Everyone got situated at the dinner
table. There was a moment of confusion, as they had to stop and read the
place cards. But soon they were all sitting around waiting for the signal
to eat.
Since Luke was the patriarch of the family, he sat at the head of the table
and had the honor of carving the turkey. "Before I attack this here turkey,
which I hope is cooked all the way through seeing as how dear little Carly
cooked it," Carly smirked at him and he winked back at her. "I have a few
words I'd like to say."
"It warms my heart to look around this table and see loved ones, family,
friends, occasional enemies," this was said with a look at Stefan "…Jerry."
There was a smattering of laughter as Jerry glared at Luke.
"Just carve the turkey, man." Jerry grumbled.
"I'm trying to pour out my heartfelt emotions here and you're worried about
the food." Luke sighed. "Fine. I'm happy that we're all here today happy
and in good health. And I hope that come this time next year we'll all be
sitting around this table again. Maybe I'll even do the cooking this time."
"No thanks, Dad! We don't want food poisoning." Lucky piped up. Everybody
laughed again. Maxie, who had managed to snag the seat next to Lucky,
laughed the loudest.
"Everyone's a comedian." Luke muttered. "Alright, alright, who wants dark
meat."
After that it was a free for all. Everyone dug into the food. Bobbie smiled
brightly. Her Thanksgiving dinner seemed to be a success. She ignored the
fact that Lucas and Georgie were complaining about the fact that they were
stuck at the kids' table with Michael, Lulu, Robbie and Jessica. They
would just have to get over it.
Emily wished she were sitting at the kid's table. Somehow she ended up with
Sly on her right side and Nikolas on her left. Carly sent her a sympathetic
smile. She would kill whoever it was that switched the place cards. She had
Alex next to her, which was all right but right across from her sat Sonny.
Sonny kept sending her hot looks and secret smiles. She tried to kick him
under the table but ending up hitting Amy instead.
"Hey!" Amy was angrier about having to stop glaring at Jake than she was
about the kick. She reached down and rubbed her shin.
"Sorry." Carly mumbled. Sonny grinned at her. He knew what she was up to.
Carly quickly started shoveling food into her mouth.
"Looks like Carly agrees with me. Great dinner, luv." Jerry whispered in
Bobbie's ear and gave her a soft kiss.
Bobbie glowed. Oh yeah, dinner was a success.
~*~
Later That Night
Lucky was sitting out on the stoop, getting some air. He loved his family
but there were times when he just needed a little alone time. The front
door opened and Maxie peeked out. She grinned triumphantly. Found him!
"Hey, Lucky." She said as she sat down very close to him. "I was looking
for you. There are only a few pieces of pie left and my mom's on a binge.
She claims it's the baby but we all know the truth. You better get in there
if you want any."
"No, that's okay. I already had four slices." Lucky rubbed his stomach,
satisfied.
"You love to eat don't you?" Maxie smiled coyly and scooted closer to him.
Lucky cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably. This was going to be
hard. "Uh, I need to talk to you about something."
"Yes, Lucky?" She asked expectantly.
"You, uh, I think you're a great girl." Lucky began.
"And?" She asked.
"And I like you a lot, I really do." He looked away as she beamed up at
him. "But I don't want you getting the wrong idea. I think of you as
another little sister and nothing more." He cringed as he waited for her
reaction. He hoped she wouldn't cry.
She didn't. Instead she got angry, very angry. She jumped up from the
stoop. "What did you say?"
Lucky was more than a little surprised by her. "I said I think of you as a
little sister."
"Little sister? Oh my God! You did *not* just call me your little sister.
Do I look like Lulu to you? Do I act like her? Huh?" She demanded an
answer.
"Well, uh, n-no." Lucky stammered out.
"That's right, I don't!" She jabbed her finger into his chest. "I am *no
one's* 'little sister'. Especially not yours Lucky Spencer. Would a little
sister kiss you like this?" She grabbed his face and pressed her lips
against his in a long hot kiss.
She finally pushed him away from her. He sat there stunned as she stalked
up the stairs and to the door. She paused, tossed her hair back and gave
him a look. "I didn't think so. Don't worry about it Lucky. By the time I'm
through you'll never think of me as a little sister again."
That said she pushed open the door and went inside. Nikolas passed her on
his way out and nodded at her. He sat down on the stoop next to Lucky.
"Hey, what happened to you?"
"I, uh, I told Maxie that I think of her as a sister." Lucky said slowly.
He was still coming out of his daze.
"The old 'little sister' routine, huh? Yeah, I've used it and regretted
it." He said softly as he reminisced.
"I regret it already." Lucky said.
"She take it that badly?"
He shook his head. "She kissed me. I mean really kissed me. Little Maxie
Jones should *not* know how to kiss like that."
Nikolas laughed. "That bad? Or should I say that good?"
"Shut up." He muttered. "What are you doing out here anyway?"
"Uh, someone was looking for Emily." He said vaguely. "Have you seen her?"
"Yeah, she and Sly went for a walk." He pointed down the block. "You could
probably catch up with them in you hurry. Is it urgent?"
"No, it can keep I guess." Nikolas muttered as he stared down the block. He
could barely make them out.
Down the block Sly and Emily were walking along quietly. Sly had insisted
that they take a walk and Emily couldn't come up with an excuse to get out
of the walk so she went. So far they hadn't said a word to each other. Sly
had his hands shoved in his pockets and Emily had her hands clasped
together in front of her. Neither made a move to touch the other.
Finally Sly stopped under a streetlight and faced her. "What's going on?"
"What do you mean?" Emily asked warily.
"With us, what is going on with us?" Sly said. "We were fine then all of
sudden we weren't. You stopped calling me. You stopped taking my calls.
You've been avoiding me. Did I say or do something wrong? If it's my fault
just tell me so I can know how to fix it. I can't fix it if I don't know
what it is. So what is it?"
Emily looked at the ground. "It's nothing you did okay. It's not your
fault. You are the best guy and no matter what happens I love you. I have
always loved you and deep down I always will."
"Emily?" He took her into his arms. "What's wrong?"
She kissed him softly and said. "I'm sorry."
Nikolas could see their figures entangle. It was obvious they were kissing.
He clenched his fist and narrowed his eyes angrily. What were they doing
down there? Why were they kissing? There should be no reason at all for the
two of them to be kissing.
"I'm heading inside. You going to stay out here all night?" Lucky asked as
he got to his feet.
"No." Nikolas said. He gave the couple one last look before going inside
with Lucky.
Inside the house Carly was in the kitchen helping clean up. She was just
tying up a garbage bag when Stefan walked in. "Hi, did you, uh, enjoy
tonight?"
"I never had an experience quite like this but yes, it was very enjoyable
and filling." He smiled. "The turkey was marvelous."
Carly smiled back. "You don't have to pile on the compliments. If the
turkey was good it was good. If it was bad it was bad. Just say so."
He nodded. "It was good then."
"Thanks." They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. "So you had fun huh?"
She finally asked.
"Yes. I had an extremely serious conversation with Michael."
Carly froze. She asked hesitantly. "About what?"
"He expounded on the merits of his favorite cartoon character and regaled
me with stories about all his adventures."
Carly stifled a laugh. She couldn't picture Stefan Cassadine listen to
Michael go on and on about a cartoon. Stefan saw her smile. "Actually, it
entertaining and informative."
"Sure, sure." She said.
Luke wandered into the kitchen. Sonny followed him. Luke ignored Stefan's
presence. "Hey Caroline, is there any more dessert? Felicia's in there
scarfing down all the pie. She almost bit my hand off when I reached for a
piece. Women get vicious when they're pregnant."
Carly rubbed her forehead. "Don't call me Caroline." She couldn't stand
hearing that name the day after The Dream.
"Why not, Caroline?" Luke teased her. "It's your name. Right Caroline?"
"I said don't call me that." She whispered.
But Luke kept on pushing for some perverse reason. "Come on, Caroline.
What's the problem here Caroline?"
She had had enough. "Don't call me Caroline!" She shouted.
"Whoa." Luke muttered. "Are you okay?"
"Spencer, what did you do?" Stefan demanded to know.
"I didn't do nothing."
"Carly, let's uh, let's take the garbage out." Sonny said gently.
Carly nodded calmly. She picked up the bag of garbage and stalked out of
the house. Sonny followed behind her. He waited until she stuffed the bag
into the garbage can then came back to the stoop. "What's wrong with you?"
He asked point-blank.
"What? There's nothing wrong with me." Carly said as she sat down on the
stoop. "I just need some…some air."
Sonny sat beside her. "There's something wrong and I know it."
"You don't know anything." She scoffed.
"I know you well enough to know when there's a problem." Sonny said.
Carly rolled her eyes. "My problem is you."
"No. That's not the only thing." Sonny brushed the air out of her eyes and
cupped the side of her face. "You've been too cheerful all night but I can
see that you're tired and the look in your eyes—"
Carly shook free of his hold. "You're just seeing things. Is it a bad thing
to be excited over a holiday? And if I'm tired it's because I spent the
whole day cooking and now I have to spend the whole night cleaning."
"You had that dream again." Sonny guessed. When Carly didn't answer him
immediately he continued on. "You had it last night right?"
"What are you talking about?" Carly finally said shakily. He couldn't know
about the dream.
"That dream, Carly. A dream that makes you wake up in a cold sweat and
sends you crying to the bathroom where you ended hugging the toilet for the
rest of the night."
Carly gasped. "How did you know?"
"We were together for two years, Carly. I noticed things. During that time
you must have had that dream at least three or four times. I saw how you
acted the day after. You tried to be extremely happy all the while having
this haunted look in your eyes."
Carly sighed. "Why didn't you ever say something?"
"You obviously didn't want to talk about it and you didn't want me to know
either. I sensed it was your personal demons and they weren't any of my
business. So I let you think you were getting away with it. Do you want to
tell me about the dream now?"
Tell him how I shot my father to keep him from doing the most horrible
thing imaginable to a child? She shook her head violently. "No. I can't—I
won't talk about it."
"You can tell me anything." He said sincerely.
She wrapped her arms around her knees and kind of folded into herself.
"It's just…I hate this dream. It's from the worst part of my life. You just
don't know how bad it is. I don't know what triggers it." Sonny there as
she finally poured every thing out. "It just happens, it just comes to me.
It reminds me of the fact that no matter how many times I think I've moved
beyond it my past will always be there."
"It's what made me what I am today. That sickens me because it was such a
horrible thing. I want to forget it but these damn dreams won't let me."
Her lip began to tremble and a few tears slipped out.
"What's in the dream? What is it about?"
"It…it has to do with my father, Frank." She whispered then began to cry.
Sonny took her into his arms and she went willingly. "I can't say anymore.
I just want them to stop and go away."
Sonny rubbed his hand on her back soothingly. "I know, I know."
Alex frowned from the doorway. Luke had told him that Carly was upset so he
came to comfort her. Obviously he was too late.
would be in. When he woke up that morning he was surprised to see that she
was already up and out. She had scared him last night and he wanted to know
exactly what happened. He leaned against the doorframe and watched her move
around the kitchen.
She wore a big apron, had four pots bubbling on the stove top and
alternated between checking the turkey in the oven, stirring the pots, and
setting Michael and Lucas to various tasks. The scene was chaotic and she
was in her element. She whirled around and saw Alex. She grinned. "Hello,
you!"
Alex looked at her. She was incredibly chipper for someone who had
practically broke down just last night. "Carly?"
"Alex?" She mocked him then giggled. "Don't think you're going to spend
today watching football and parades. You have to chip in too."
"Mommy, I set the table, can I please go watch the parade now?" Michael
tugged at her apron.
"Hmm." Carly screwed up her face as she thought it over. "Alright, ten
minutes and then you report back here."
As Michael scampered off Lucas immediately began to plead his case. "Carly,
I—"
She shook her head. "Nope. Go see what Mama needs done."
"But—" Lucas started to object.
"Go!" She pointed at the door and Lucas reluctantly went. Carly turned her
attention back to Alex. She shook her finger at Alex. "Now you get to be my
little helper. Stir this pot." She handed him the spoon. "You might need an
apron for that. I have just the one. It's pink with frills." She smiled.
Alex put the spoon down and took her by the shoulders. He looked into her
eyes. "Carly, are you okay?"
She tried to avoid eye contact. Her smile seemed to be too bright and
strained at the edges. "Yes, I'm perfectly okay."
"Are you sure?" He pressed on.
"Yes, why? Alex, I really need to get back to the stove." She tried to move
past him but he wouldn't let her go.
"What about last night?"
"What about it? Were we fooling around or something and you didn't even
bother to wake me? Naughty." She grinned and finally succeeded in moving
past him.
He frowned. It was like she didn't remember what happened in the bathroom.
Or maybe she just decided to act like it didn't happen. "Something
happened last night, Carly."
Carly absentmindedly stirred a pot. "Really? What?" She asked casually as
if she didn't care about the answer.
"You honestly don't remember the scene in the bathroom…"
Lucas came back into the kitchen. "Mom says we need an extra chair and
another place setting."
"What?" Carly frowned. "I counted and recounted. I could have sworn I had
everybody on the list. Okay, get Michael to help you set the table and,"
She went over to the refrigerator and pulled out two covered trays, "see if
there's room in the oven upstairs for these hors d'oeuvres."
"Carly?" Alex prompted her.
But she ignored him and grabbed another tray from the refrigerator. "I
don't think you can carry this too so I'll help you with it. Hey Alex,
don't hang around the kitchen all day, go watch TV or something. Michael!
I need your help!"
Alex watched as she hustled out the room, set on her new task. He slumped
against the door and rubbed his face tiredly. She was obviously avoiding
the topic and he could see that it would take just about all day to pin her
down and find out what happened.
~*~
All day long the door was opening and closing as people kept pouring into
the Brownstone. Carly put Lucas in charge of answering the door and
collecting the coats. Carly and Bobbie would occasionally pop their heads
out the door to see who was showing up. Carly came out to say hello to the
newest arrivals.
"Eve! Chris! I'm so glad you came." Carly hugged them both.
"Hey, how are things?" Eve whispered into Carly's ear. Carly shrugged and
gave her a half smile. "Karen said that she and Joe might stop by after
dinner for dessert."
"Fantastic." Carly nodded.
Chris pulled two wine bottles out from behind his back. "For the
grown-ups." He smiled.
"I told you, you didn't have to bring anything." Carly admonished him as
she reached for the bottles.
"Couldn't help myself. Now, which way to the kitchen?" Chris asked. He
rubbed his hands together.
"No, no, no! I can't believe I'm saying this but you are going to go into
that living room and watch football with the rest of the men."
"Can *I* go watch football also?" Lucas grumbled. Carly had been bossing
him around all day long and he was getting tired of it.
Carly rolled her eyes and relented. "Go ahead before I change my mind."
"Why can't I get into the kitchen?" Chris asked.
"Because none of the men are allowed. Not my rules but they're the ones
we're going to play by today. Now go on. There are some hors d'oeuvres in
there. " Carly pushed him in the direction of living room. "Eve, you come
with me. We're going to go up to my place. That way we can talk in peace."
Just then the doorbell rang again. Bobbie stuck her head out the kitchen.
"Get the door, Lucas!"
"I'm watching the game Mom!" Lucas yelled back.
Carly started to say that she would get it but Bobbie came out of the
kitchen anyway. "I got it."
"What's Lucas doing watching the game?" Bobbie asked as she wiped her hands
on her apron. She smiled at Eve. "Hi."
"I gave him a little break." Carly opened the door. The whole Scorpio clan
was awaiting them: Mac, Felicia, Maxie, Georgie, and Robbie. Carly smiled
politely at them. They never were going to be the best of friends but they
weren't total enemies. Bobbie greeted her old friends.
"Hi guys!" Bobbie hugged Mac and then Felicia. She touched Felicia's
extended belly. "How's the baby?"
"The baby is sleeping I think." Felicia rubbed her belly also. "No kicking
or anything."
Bobbie leaned in. "And what about…Frisco?"
Felicia restrained from rolling her eyes. "He hasn't been around for the
past few days. I guess he finally got the hint. I feel bad for the girls
that he gave up so easily."
"We bought a pie." Mac changed the subject.
Bobbie took it gladly. "We said not to bring anything but thanks. Hi
Georgie, Maxie."
"Hi." They both mumbled their greetings. Teenagers, Bobbie thought.
Bobbie smiled at Maxie. "Did you do something different…with your hair?"
Felicia hugged Maxie to her side. "She looks like my baby again! The face
is clear of make up, the hair is blond again, she's normal." Felicia chose
to ignore the fact that the clothes were still black, there was still a
nose ring, and the right ear still held a dozen earrings while the left
held one.
"Mom…" Maxie grumbled.
"Felicia, want to come into the kitchen with me? Laura's in there and so is
Amy. Mac, the men go into the living room to watch the game and stay out of
the way. Maxie, Georgie, where do you want to go? Food or football?"
"I'll go into the kitchen, I guess." Georgie said.
"Who's watching the game?" Maxie chewed on her lip.
Carly thought it over. "Um, Jerry, Alex, Lucas, Luke, Lucky…"
"Football it is." Maxie grinned and took off.
"I guess I said the special word, huh?" Carly laughed.
"I do think she has a thing for Lucky." Felicia mused. "A harmless crush
I'm sure."
Bobbie slipped through her arm through Felicia's and laughed. "I hope so.
Come on let's go see what's been done to my kitchen so far."
~*~
Eve and Carly were in Carly's kitchen. Eve was fixing the salad. "Did
Bobbie say that *Amy* was here?"
Carly checked on the turkey once again. "Yup. She is Laura's sister after
all."
"Right. I just was wondering, you know what with the Mike thing… Is Mike
still coming? Does he know she's going to be here?"
"Of course." She said as she basted the turkey. "I couldn't *not* invite
either one. Amy's Laura's family making her Luke's family making her
Bobbie's family and therefore she's *my* family. And Mike's my family also
because he's Michael's godfather. We're just one big family."
"I just don't hope she doesn't make a big scene when Mike and Jake arrives.
Is Jake coming with Mike?"
"I don't see why not. She's his girlfriend. But Amy does like scenes… Do
you remember that time at Luke's?"
Eve laughed at the memory. "I'm trying to forget about it. I never thought
Amy knew those kinds of words. She always seemed so sweet."
"Sweet? Yeah right. The minute you're back turned she was spreading tales
about you around the hospital."
"Did she ever—"
"You aren't about to ask me what I think you're about ask me? Eve, of
course, this is Amy Vining we're talking about."
"You're right. What was I thinking?" Eve smacked herself on the forehead.
Carly checked her watch and started to take off her apron. "I have to take
Michael over to the Quartermaines' for his slice of pizza and to get Emily.
We should be back really soon. I don't like to linger there. Keep an eye on
things."
"Sure, sure, go on ahead." Eve waved her off.
Carly was halfway out the door with Michael when they bumped into Jax, V,
and their three-year-old daughter Jessica. "Hey, glad you could make it."
She said. "Um, Jax, guys go into the living room. V, ladies hit the
kitchens unless you'd rather watch football. And kids…they go everywhere."
"I think I'll hit the kitchens." V smiled.
"Could you go up to my kitchen then? Eve's there by herself and…"
"Sure, no problem."
"Thanks, oh and Happy Thanksgiving." Carly called out over her shoulder as
she rushed out the door.
~*~*~
Keesha opened the door to her apartment letting in the trio of Layla,
Frisco, and Katarina. "Welcome." She said with a tight smile.
Since neither Keesha or Marcus would be able to get home for the holidays
Keesha decided that they would spend it with Marcus' WSB friends. They had
no family in town either so Keesha didn't think it would hurt. She didn't
have to like them to feed them.
"Melinda is in her room." Keesha told Katarina.
Katarina shrugged and made her way to the couch. Keesha frowned at her. She
didn't quite get the mother-daughter relationship between Katarina and
Melinda. Marcus tried to explain that even though last night it seemed like
the two of them hated each other it was quite the opposite. The two of them
were very close.
Keesha wanted to know if the two of them were so close why did Katarina
just let her child run out into the night the way she did and not even
bother to go out and search for her or at least look a little worried. And
when Melinda did return late last night there was no tearful reunion or
apologies. Melinda just went into her room while Katarina continued to
confer with Frisco about the Cassadine case.
When Katarina, Layla, and Frisco left to head for their hotel Keesha had
been surprised to see that Melinda didn't go with them and that Katarina
never even mentioned anything about having her daughter come with them.
Melinda just stayed in her room as they left. They obviously had a unique
mother-daughter relationship, one that Keesha doubted she'd ever be able to
understand.
"Layla?" She said politely. "Would you like something to drink?"
Layla didn't hear her however. She was thinking back to her run in with
Stefan down at the docks. She was waiting for Frisco and Katarina to hurry
up and met with her when she spotted Stefan getting off the launch.
"Steffie, hi." She smiled.
"Layla, where you on your way out to the island?" Stefan asked as he came
up to her.
"Actually no, I'm just waiting for some people. Going out?"
"To a…family gathering." He smiled hesitantly. "Are you perhaps free for
dinner this weekend?"
"I'd have to check my social calendar…" Layla said coyly. Who was she
kidding? With Katarina around dogging her steps there would be no time for
her to do her own thing. She might as well enjoy the rest of her time with
Stefan.
Stefan stepped closer to her. His gaze held hers and he murmured. "See that
it is clear. I would to like to spend more time with you before you waltz
out of my life for another twelve years."
Layla chuckled lowly. "And people say I am the manipulator in this
relationship. Fine dinner this weekend. I will give you a call."
Stefan brushed his lips across hers. "You do that."
His casual kiss sent a shiver through Layla and she knew it was time to go
even though she wanted so badly to stay. She had to force herself to walk
away from the man and toss a casual, "I will." over her shoulder as she
went.
"Layla!" Keesha said loudly. "I said would you like something to drink?"
Layla jumped back to the present. "What? Oh sure, what ever you got. And
make it strong."
~*~*~
Reginald let Carly and Michael into the Q mansion. "Hey Reggie!" The little
boy cried as he skipped into the mansion. He loved coming over for
Thanksgiving. They always had the best pizza. Carly barely nodded at the
butler.
"They're in the living room." Reginald told them.
Michael raced ahead of them and threw open the doors. "Hi!" His enthusiasm
brought a small smile to Carly's face.
"Hi, Michael." Monica said. She adored the little boy. He was all she had
left of Jason.
"Grandmother Monica." Michael went over for his customary hug and kiss.
"Monica." Carly said flatly.
"Carly." Monica's voice was like ice. She still hated Carly after all those
years and the feeling was mutual.
"Hey Carly." Emily sat in a corner looking very tired.
"Michael! Come over to me." Ordered Edward. Michael bounded over to Edward
and scrambled up into his lap.
"Hi Great-grandfather."
"Now that is just a mouthful for such a little boy. You should call me…"
Edward pretended to think it over. "Great Edward."
Carly choked back her laughter. " 'Great Edward?' Now that's a laugh."
Edward scowled in her direction. Michael leaned his head on Edward's
shoulder. "I *like* Great grandfather."
"See the boy has taste!" Edward nodded.
"I think he meant the term, not you personally." Carly sneered.
"Hi, Carly." Alan said from behind her as he entered the room. He gave her
a quick hug. Their relationship annoyed the hell out of Monica. She wanted
Alan to hate Carly as much as she did but the man actually liked the girl
and she liked him back!
"Happy Thanksgiving, *Alan*." Carly said pointedly. "How are things?"
"Great. Hey Michael." He called to the little boy who scrambled off
Edward's lap to greet his grandfather. "Grandfather Alan!"
Ned, Alexis, and Brooke came in at that moment. Michael ditched Alan in
favor of his cousin. It seemed that both of the kids had forgotten about
yesterday's incident. Carly smiled at Alexis and Ned.
"Is Lois going to be here this year?" Carly asked Ned.
"She's stuck out of town unfortunately." Ned said regretfully.
Alexis rubbed her hands together. "Did the pizzas get here yet? I'm
starved."
"They've just arrived." Reginald announced as he led in the deliveryman.
Reginald rushed around as he set up the pizzas. Carly waited until Michael
had eaten at least one slice of pizza before saying it was time to go.
"Emily, Michael, we should get going if we want to make the dinner back at
the house." Emily jumped up quickly. She was ready to go. She had to talk
to Carly.
"Can I have another slice?" Michael pouted.
Carly shook her head. "You don't want to ruin your appetite. We're having a
big meal."
Just then AJ came into the room. "Am I late?"
"As always, Junior." Ned sneered.
Michael was delighted to see his favorite uncle and Carly knew it was
really time to go. She hated AJ being around Michael for too long. How he
became his favorite uncle she would never know.
"Mommy, can we stay a little longer? Uncle AJ just got here."
"Yeah, what's the rush Carly?" AJ asked.
"I have a lot to do at the house and…"
"Michael could stay here and we'll send him over later in the car." Monica
offered.
"Well…"
Edward readily agreed. "It's a perfect idea."
Carly narrowed her eyes and looked at him. She never trusted the man. She
knew that with Alan, Ned, and Alexis around nothing would happen but with
Edward you never know…
"Look, if Carly wants to take her son home with her, let her take her son
home." Emily spoke up. "Now if this discussion is over, can we leave
already? Carly, I'll meet you by the car."
Emily stalked out of the room. Carly arched her eyebrow and smiled wryly.
"I guess that's goodbye. We'll see you tomorrow."
On the ride back to the Brownstone Carly questioned Emily. "What was that?
Back at the mansion?"
Emily rubbed the back of her neck. "I just needed to get out of there."
Carly shot her a look. "You know, you look like hell."
"Gee thanks." Emily laughed without humor. "I feel like it."
"What's going on now?" The other day Carly and Emily finally got all caught
up on things.
"Things have gotten easier since Elizabeth went out of town. But then
there's Sly. I've been trying to avoid him. He keeps leaving message after
message on my machine. He wants to know why I won't call him, if there's
something wrong, if it's something that he did or said… How can I tell him
that I'm sleeping with Nikolas?"
Carly gave her a sympathetic look.
"I am so confused, Carly. I love Sly; I loved him for all these years. But
I don't think I'm *in love* with him anymore. You know what I mean? And
then there's my feelings for Nikolas."
"How do you feel about Nikolas?" Carly asked feeling like a shrink.
Emily smiled a little. "I don't know. Years ago I had this huge crush on
him and then it faded into just friendship. Now there's this whole new
confusing emotion. It's not the crush and it's not the friendship. It's
like it's a combination of them both with a little something extra thrown
in. Carly, you should have seen it on Sunday. We spent the day on Spoon
Island. Just talking and walking around. We had this great dinner in the
guesthouse and then…" Emily sighed as she trailed off.
"And you say that you're confused about your feelings for Nikolas?" Carly
laughed as she turned onto the street for the Brownstone.
"Nikolas is at the Brownstone." Emily said suddenly.
"What, you can 'feel' him now?" Carly asked sarcastically.
"No, I see his car right there." Emily pointed it out. "And right behind
him is Sly."
"Uh-oh."
"Uh-oh is right. Were they both invited?"
"Of course. They're family." Carly explained as she got out of the car.
Emily and Michael followed her in the house. Emily helped Michael out of
his coat while Carly shrugged out of hers. She shouted. "We're back!"
Bobbie popped in her head out. "Hey guys. Emily, if you're looking for Sly
he's in the living room with the guys."
Emily's eyes widened. "No, no, no, that's okay."
"Emily's going to join me in my kitchen." Carly jumped in to save her.
Bobbie pointed at her. "See if everything's done so we can start getting
the food on the table."
Carly nodded. "Right. We'll get everything together."
Before Bobbie went back inside she looked over her shoulder at Carly. "By
the way, Stefan is here."
"What's he doing?"
The corners of Bobbie's mouth quirked up a little. "Watching…football."
"Football? I wouldn't mind seeing that." Carly said. "But we better get
upstairs. Let's go." Carly hustled Emily to her kitchen. "Sorry I took so
long." She apologized to V and Eve who were leaning against the counter,
talking quietly. Eve was snacking on a carrot stick.
"We had everything under control." Eve said and V nodded in agreement.
"So…did anything interesting happen while I was gone?" Carly asked.
"You mean Amy versus Mike, Round 3,786?" Eve laughed.
V filled her in. "Nothing happened. Amy gave them the silent treatment."
"It must have killed her." Eve added.
"Mike and Jake stayed in the living room and Amy in the kitchen." V
continued.
"Though there was a little something-something when Jake went in for some
beer. I didn't see exactly what happened but I did hear about it." Eve
finished.
"That's it?"
"There was something else…but you'll find out soon enough." Eve said
secretly.
V nodded at the oven. "I believe the turkey is done."
"Perfect. It's time to get the food on the table." Carly said as she bent
down and pulled the turkey out. She put Eve, Emily and V to work putting
the food in serving dishes while she placed the turkey and stuffing on a
platter.
There was a discreet knock at the kitchen door. Emily called over her
shoulder, "Come in."
"Need some help?" Sonny asked from the doorway.
"What are you doing here?" Carly whined.
"Don't look so excited to see me." He murmured.
She repeated her question. "What are you doing here?"
"I was invited. By Bobbie." He said as he casually leaned against the door.
"Why?"
"He's family." Emily piped up. Carly shook her a look and Eve covered her
smile with her hand.
"Has Alex seen you?"
Sonny smiled. "He let me in. He looked like he was going to shut the door
in my face but Lesley Lu was with him."
Carly rolled her eyes and sighed. "Just what I needed. All right, the more
the merrier. Here." She thrust the platter at him. "Take that to the table.
We've got some hungry people out there waiting."
They quickly got everything set up. Everyone got situated at the dinner
table. There was a moment of confusion, as they had to stop and read the
place cards. But soon they were all sitting around waiting for the signal
to eat.
Since Luke was the patriarch of the family, he sat at the head of the table
and had the honor of carving the turkey. "Before I attack this here turkey,
which I hope is cooked all the way through seeing as how dear little Carly
cooked it," Carly smirked at him and he winked back at her. "I have a few
words I'd like to say."
"It warms my heart to look around this table and see loved ones, family,
friends, occasional enemies," this was said with a look at Stefan "…Jerry."
There was a smattering of laughter as Jerry glared at Luke.
"Just carve the turkey, man." Jerry grumbled.
"I'm trying to pour out my heartfelt emotions here and you're worried about
the food." Luke sighed. "Fine. I'm happy that we're all here today happy
and in good health. And I hope that come this time next year we'll all be
sitting around this table again. Maybe I'll even do the cooking this time."
"No thanks, Dad! We don't want food poisoning." Lucky piped up. Everybody
laughed again. Maxie, who had managed to snag the seat next to Lucky,
laughed the loudest.
"Everyone's a comedian." Luke muttered. "Alright, alright, who wants dark
meat."
After that it was a free for all. Everyone dug into the food. Bobbie smiled
brightly. Her Thanksgiving dinner seemed to be a success. She ignored the
fact that Lucas and Georgie were complaining about the fact that they were
stuck at the kids' table with Michael, Lulu, Robbie and Jessica. They
would just have to get over it.
Emily wished she were sitting at the kid's table. Somehow she ended up with
Sly on her right side and Nikolas on her left. Carly sent her a sympathetic
smile. She would kill whoever it was that switched the place cards. She had
Alex next to her, which was all right but right across from her sat Sonny.
Sonny kept sending her hot looks and secret smiles. She tried to kick him
under the table but ending up hitting Amy instead.
"Hey!" Amy was angrier about having to stop glaring at Jake than she was
about the kick. She reached down and rubbed her shin.
"Sorry." Carly mumbled. Sonny grinned at her. He knew what she was up to.
Carly quickly started shoveling food into her mouth.
"Looks like Carly agrees with me. Great dinner, luv." Jerry whispered in
Bobbie's ear and gave her a soft kiss.
Bobbie glowed. Oh yeah, dinner was a success.
~*~
Later That Night
Lucky was sitting out on the stoop, getting some air. He loved his family
but there were times when he just needed a little alone time. The front
door opened and Maxie peeked out. She grinned triumphantly. Found him!
"Hey, Lucky." She said as she sat down very close to him. "I was looking
for you. There are only a few pieces of pie left and my mom's on a binge.
She claims it's the baby but we all know the truth. You better get in there
if you want any."
"No, that's okay. I already had four slices." Lucky rubbed his stomach,
satisfied.
"You love to eat don't you?" Maxie smiled coyly and scooted closer to him.
Lucky cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably. This was going to be
hard. "Uh, I need to talk to you about something."
"Yes, Lucky?" She asked expectantly.
"You, uh, I think you're a great girl." Lucky began.
"And?" She asked.
"And I like you a lot, I really do." He looked away as she beamed up at
him. "But I don't want you getting the wrong idea. I think of you as
another little sister and nothing more." He cringed as he waited for her
reaction. He hoped she wouldn't cry.
She didn't. Instead she got angry, very angry. She jumped up from the
stoop. "What did you say?"
Lucky was more than a little surprised by her. "I said I think of you as a
little sister."
"Little sister? Oh my God! You did *not* just call me your little sister.
Do I look like Lulu to you? Do I act like her? Huh?" She demanded an
answer.
"Well, uh, n-no." Lucky stammered out.
"That's right, I don't!" She jabbed her finger into his chest. "I am *no
one's* 'little sister'. Especially not yours Lucky Spencer. Would a little
sister kiss you like this?" She grabbed his face and pressed her lips
against his in a long hot kiss.
She finally pushed him away from her. He sat there stunned as she stalked
up the stairs and to the door. She paused, tossed her hair back and gave
him a look. "I didn't think so. Don't worry about it Lucky. By the time I'm
through you'll never think of me as a little sister again."
That said she pushed open the door and went inside. Nikolas passed her on
his way out and nodded at her. He sat down on the stoop next to Lucky.
"Hey, what happened to you?"
"I, uh, I told Maxie that I think of her as a sister." Lucky said slowly.
He was still coming out of his daze.
"The old 'little sister' routine, huh? Yeah, I've used it and regretted
it." He said softly as he reminisced.
"I regret it already." Lucky said.
"She take it that badly?"
He shook his head. "She kissed me. I mean really kissed me. Little Maxie
Jones should *not* know how to kiss like that."
Nikolas laughed. "That bad? Or should I say that good?"
"Shut up." He muttered. "What are you doing out here anyway?"
"Uh, someone was looking for Emily." He said vaguely. "Have you seen her?"
"Yeah, she and Sly went for a walk." He pointed down the block. "You could
probably catch up with them in you hurry. Is it urgent?"
"No, it can keep I guess." Nikolas muttered as he stared down the block. He
could barely make them out.
Down the block Sly and Emily were walking along quietly. Sly had insisted
that they take a walk and Emily couldn't come up with an excuse to get out
of the walk so she went. So far they hadn't said a word to each other. Sly
had his hands shoved in his pockets and Emily had her hands clasped
together in front of her. Neither made a move to touch the other.
Finally Sly stopped under a streetlight and faced her. "What's going on?"
"What do you mean?" Emily asked warily.
"With us, what is going on with us?" Sly said. "We were fine then all of
sudden we weren't. You stopped calling me. You stopped taking my calls.
You've been avoiding me. Did I say or do something wrong? If it's my fault
just tell me so I can know how to fix it. I can't fix it if I don't know
what it is. So what is it?"
Emily looked at the ground. "It's nothing you did okay. It's not your
fault. You are the best guy and no matter what happens I love you. I have
always loved you and deep down I always will."
"Emily?" He took her into his arms. "What's wrong?"
She kissed him softly and said. "I'm sorry."
Nikolas could see their figures entangle. It was obvious they were kissing.
He clenched his fist and narrowed his eyes angrily. What were they doing
down there? Why were they kissing? There should be no reason at all for the
two of them to be kissing.
"I'm heading inside. You going to stay out here all night?" Lucky asked as
he got to his feet.
"No." Nikolas said. He gave the couple one last look before going inside
with Lucky.
Inside the house Carly was in the kitchen helping clean up. She was just
tying up a garbage bag when Stefan walked in. "Hi, did you, uh, enjoy
tonight?"
"I never had an experience quite like this but yes, it was very enjoyable
and filling." He smiled. "The turkey was marvelous."
Carly smiled back. "You don't have to pile on the compliments. If the
turkey was good it was good. If it was bad it was bad. Just say so."
He nodded. "It was good then."
"Thanks." They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. "So you had fun huh?"
She finally asked.
"Yes. I had an extremely serious conversation with Michael."
Carly froze. She asked hesitantly. "About what?"
"He expounded on the merits of his favorite cartoon character and regaled
me with stories about all his adventures."
Carly stifled a laugh. She couldn't picture Stefan Cassadine listen to
Michael go on and on about a cartoon. Stefan saw her smile. "Actually, it
entertaining and informative."
"Sure, sure." She said.
Luke wandered into the kitchen. Sonny followed him. Luke ignored Stefan's
presence. "Hey Caroline, is there any more dessert? Felicia's in there
scarfing down all the pie. She almost bit my hand off when I reached for a
piece. Women get vicious when they're pregnant."
Carly rubbed her forehead. "Don't call me Caroline." She couldn't stand
hearing that name the day after The Dream.
"Why not, Caroline?" Luke teased her. "It's your name. Right Caroline?"
"I said don't call me that." She whispered.
But Luke kept on pushing for some perverse reason. "Come on, Caroline.
What's the problem here Caroline?"
She had had enough. "Don't call me Caroline!" She shouted.
"Whoa." Luke muttered. "Are you okay?"
"Spencer, what did you do?" Stefan demanded to know.
"I didn't do nothing."
"Carly, let's uh, let's take the garbage out." Sonny said gently.
Carly nodded calmly. She picked up the bag of garbage and stalked out of
the house. Sonny followed behind her. He waited until she stuffed the bag
into the garbage can then came back to the stoop. "What's wrong with you?"
He asked point-blank.
"What? There's nothing wrong with me." Carly said as she sat down on the
stoop. "I just need some…some air."
Sonny sat beside her. "There's something wrong and I know it."
"You don't know anything." She scoffed.
"I know you well enough to know when there's a problem." Sonny said.
Carly rolled her eyes. "My problem is you."
"No. That's not the only thing." Sonny brushed the air out of her eyes and
cupped the side of her face. "You've been too cheerful all night but I can
see that you're tired and the look in your eyes—"
Carly shook free of his hold. "You're just seeing things. Is it a bad thing
to be excited over a holiday? And if I'm tired it's because I spent the
whole day cooking and now I have to spend the whole night cleaning."
"You had that dream again." Sonny guessed. When Carly didn't answer him
immediately he continued on. "You had it last night right?"
"What are you talking about?" Carly finally said shakily. He couldn't know
about the dream.
"That dream, Carly. A dream that makes you wake up in a cold sweat and
sends you crying to the bathroom where you ended hugging the toilet for the
rest of the night."
Carly gasped. "How did you know?"
"We were together for two years, Carly. I noticed things. During that time
you must have had that dream at least three or four times. I saw how you
acted the day after. You tried to be extremely happy all the while having
this haunted look in your eyes."
Carly sighed. "Why didn't you ever say something?"
"You obviously didn't want to talk about it and you didn't want me to know
either. I sensed it was your personal demons and they weren't any of my
business. So I let you think you were getting away with it. Do you want to
tell me about the dream now?"
Tell him how I shot my father to keep him from doing the most horrible
thing imaginable to a child? She shook her head violently. "No. I can't—I
won't talk about it."
"You can tell me anything." He said sincerely.
She wrapped her arms around her knees and kind of folded into herself.
"It's just…I hate this dream. It's from the worst part of my life. You just
don't know how bad it is. I don't know what triggers it." Sonny there as
she finally poured every thing out. "It just happens, it just comes to me.
It reminds me of the fact that no matter how many times I think I've moved
beyond it my past will always be there."
"It's what made me what I am today. That sickens me because it was such a
horrible thing. I want to forget it but these damn dreams won't let me."
Her lip began to tremble and a few tears slipped out.
"What's in the dream? What is it about?"
"It…it has to do with my father, Frank." She whispered then began to cry.
Sonny took her into his arms and she went willingly. "I can't say anymore.
I just want them to stop and go away."
Sonny rubbed his hand on her back soothingly. "I know, I know."
Alex frowned from the doorway. Luke had told him that Carly was upset so he
came to comfort her. Obviously he was too late.