Nikolas and Emily paused at the door of Kelly's. After Jason left Nikolas
hustled Emily into the shower. It was time she got of that apartment and
got some air. A trip to Kelly's was a good start. But now Nikolas wasn't so
sure it was a good idea. He hadn't seen Lucky since that night at Luke's
and he was pretty mad at both of them. Not that Nikolas could blame him,
Sly was his cousin and Elizabeth was still important to him.
"Maybe if we're lucky he won't be working tonight?" Emily said hopefully.
"He's going to have to get over it." Nikolas scowled. "It has nothing to do
with him. Let's grab that table."
Emily slowly followed Nikolas to the table he pointed out. She felt like
everyone in the diner was staring at them, whispering about them. It was
crazy she knew but she couldn't help it.
"You know what you want?" Nikolas asked as he gazed at the menu he already
knew by heart.
"Mmm, I'm not that hungry." Emily shook her head.
"When was the last time you ate? Emily, you are skin and bones." Nikolas
chastised her gently. He took her hand in his. "Eat something, for me."
Before Emily could answer, Lucky showed up at their table. "I was wondering
when you two were going to come out of hiding."
Nikolas stared at him for a long time. He wasn't sure of Lucky's feelings
about them. He didn't seem like he wished them dead but he wasn't too happy
to see them either. Finally Emily asked the question that Nikolas was
putting off.
"Are you angry?" She whispered.
Lucky sighed and sat down at the table with them. "I was. I still am,
kinda. You guys were wrong and you already know it so it's not my place to
lecture you. You're supposedly adults and you went out and hurt two people
that I care about. But I care about you guys also and this put me in a
tough spot. I had to listen to Elizabeth cry her heart out to me and it
made me sick. Not because of what you did but because we were all friends
and friends don't do that to each other. But like I said it's not my
place."
"It's not like we did it on purpose." Emily argued.
"It just happened." Nikolas added.
"I know how that is." Lucky thought back to his kisses with Maxie. He
spread out his hands. "But I don't want to hear anymore about it. Since I'm
stuck in the middle I've got to be like Switzerland, neutral."
"So you don't hate us?" Emily pressed.
Lucky laughed. "I could never hate you. I'm just a little disappointed in
you. You guys have lousy timing. I always had a feeling you'd eventually
get together. Just not this way."
"What?" Emily's mouth dropped open.
He shrugged. "It was just a feeling then you and Sly hooked up and it kinda
went away."
"Why did you never tell us? It could saved us all a lot of grief in the
long run." Nikolas said.
"Like I said, it was only a feeling. You guys ready to order?" Lucky got
up from the table.
"Hear that, Em? Were we meant to be together." Nikolas joked with a warm
smile.
Emily froze. She glanced up at Lucky. "I think I'm hungry after all.
Whatever's the special I'll take it."
Nikolas frowned at her lack of enthusiasm. "I think I'll have the same
also."
"Be right up." Lucky took their menus and walked off.
Nikolas focused his gaze on Emily. He said softly. "Hey, what's going on?"
"Nothing's going on." She denied with a little laugh. "I'm just relived
about Lucky."
"If you were relieved you wouldn't be tensing up. What is the problem here?
Is it what I said about you and me being meant for each other?"
"Sort of, I don't want to think that way Nikolas. I just got out of a
relationship with a guy that I thought I was meant to be and look what
happened with that. I cheated on him."
He touched her cheek softly. "Maybe that's because you weren't meant to be
with him."
Emily took a deep breath. "I think we should slow down."
"Slow down? What are you talking about?"
"I don't want to rush into anything. What if the only thing between us is
the sex?" Emily voiced her biggest fear.
"What? Believe me, there's more to us than the sex. If we never have sex
again I wouldn't care, I'd still want to be with you." Emily arched a
disbelieving eyebrow and Nikolas laughed. "Okay, I like the sex
but it's not the only thing. I like you, Emily. Remember that day we spent
on Wyndemere?"
Emily nodded.
"Let's do another day like that. Just you and me, no pressure, no exes, no
*sex*. What do you say?"
Emily shrugged. "Alright."
"We'll take it one day at a time." Nikolas promised with a determined
glint in his eye.
~*~*~
"Come in, come in." Carly said as she let Sonny in her apartment later
that night. She reached around to help him take off his coat. She gave him
a quick peek on the cheek.
"So what's on the menu tonight?" Sonny asked.
"Pasta." She grinned at him and placed his coat in the closet. He quirked
his eyebrow and she frowned. "What? There's no way I can mess up pasta. You
just boil some water and open a jar of sauce."
"You did what?" His look of horror caused her to double over laughing.
She touched his arm sympathetically. "Calm down, I remember all your
lessons. I think I managed to pull off a decent homemade sauce."
He looked at her doubtfully. "If not, I can always take over."
"You are going nowhere near my kitchen, buster." Carly warned with a
growl.
"Is he here yet?" Michael's laughing voice floated out to them. Jason
emerged from around the corner. He carried Michael on his back. Michael
squirmed to get down and flew across the room to Sonny. "Sonny!"
Jason clenched his jaw in annoyance. He was getting damn tired of seeing
his son run to other men like that. He pushed down his anger and forced a
smile. "What took you so long?"
Sonny checked his watch. "I'm right on time."
"Oh. I must have gotten here a little early then." Jason said coolly.
Sonny narrowed his eyes. He didn't like the vibe he was getting from Jason
but he was going to ignore and enjoy his evening with Carly. Even if he had
to share her with two other people.
Carly frowned. The tension between the two of them was getting weird. Carly
couldn't understand it. She shook her head. "Michael, come help me set the
table."
"I'll do that." Jason immediately offered.
"No, you and Sonny sit down. You're my guests, so sit, talk, whatever."
Carly led Michael into the kitchen.
Jason started to walk into the living room but Sonny grabbed his arm.
"Hey, what's the matter with you?"
"With me? There's nothing the matter with me." Jason lied.
Sonny shook his head. "No, I can tell. What's going on?"
Jason shrugged and lied again. "I guess I'm little anxious about Carly's
cooking. I tried to sneak into the kitchen to check on the food but she
barred the door."
Sonny laughed relieved to see that nothing was wrong. He threw his arm
around Jason's shoulders. "Yeah, she gets a little vicious. The trick is to
set up a little diversionary tactic. Like get Michael to need her in
another room, something that will give you another time to taste and if
need be help her out a little."
"You sound like you've done this a lot." Jason said dryly. Yet another
reminder of all the years he lost out on.
Sonny smiled. "Yeah, I had to learn the hard way. But hey she's improved. I
can guarantee we won't have to visit the emergency room to get our stomach
pumped tonight."
Jason drew back in disbelief. "Don't tell me…"
Sonny nodded. "It was her first try. Frankly, I'm still scared to eat her
chicken but she learned her lesson."
Jason shook his head in wonder. Sonny noticed the dazed look on his face.
"I'm glad I'm not alone. Michael *likes* her cooking."
~*~*~
Stefan stepped off the launch and found Layla waiting for him. She smiled
sadly at him and held her hands out to him. He clasped them in his and
worriedly searched her face for any clue to why she was so sad.
"You sounded upset on the phone." He remarked.
"I'm leaving tonight." She said without preamble.
"Tonight?" Stefan arched his eyebrow. "I thought you had a few more days."
She shook her head. "No, I have to go tonight. It's the surgery for my eye.
Though I wish I could stay."
Stefan nodded understandingly. He swept back a lock of hair. "Your eye is
more important than pleasing me. After the surgery is over, come back to
Wyndemere to recuperate."
Layla looked away. She had a feeling that Katarina was going to send her
away until her eyes was better and then immediately send her on another
mission to get her mind off of Victor.
Stefan caught the look in her eye and nodded again. "Do not let another
twelve years go bye or else I shall come looking for you myself."
She laughed a little. "I promise Steffie. Tell Nikki goodbye for me?"
"He will be terribly upset that he wasn't hear himself." Stefan cupped her
face in his hands and brushed his lips across hers. "Goodbye, Layla."
~*~*~
"So dinner was good right?" Carly said as she settled down next to Sonny
on the couch. Jason sat across from them with Michael snuggled against his
side.
"It was…passable." Sonny said.
"Passable? Hey, I helped cook Thanksgiving dinner and that turned out to be
damned good." Carly protested.
"Exactly how many people were in the kitchen that day?" Sonny pointed out.
"I thought it was good, Carly." Jason said gallantly. He was out to score
points and ridiculing her cooking didn't seem the way to him. He smiled
when Carly grinned at him. "Thank you. See?"
"I thought it was fantastic, Mama." Michael piped up.
"You think everything I make is fantastic." Carly laughed. "But thank you
also. Aren't you tired, it's a little past your bedtime."
"I'm okay." Michael denied.
Carly nodded. In a few minutes she would take him to his room despite his
denial.
Sonny looked at Carly through heavy lids. He murmured. "Come here you."
Carly slid over the couch next to him and said. "Yeah?"
Sonny cupped her face and gave her a long slow kiss. He barely remembered
that Jason and Michael was watching them. "I meant to do that earlier."
"Better late than never." Carly whispered. She had actually forgotten that
Jason and Michael were there and was about to pull Sonny in for a kiss when
Jason cleared his throat loudly. She blushed and punched Sonny in the arm.
"Look what you made me do."
Sonny grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss to her fist. "It's not my fault
you find me irresistible."
"Do you mind if I put Michael to bed?" Jason asked suddenly. He stood up
quickly.
"I'm not tired!" Michael immediately said.
"It's still past your bedtime." Carly said. "Sure, if you want. The book
we're reading is on his nightstand. Just a few pages tonight, okay?
"Right." He nodded. He looked back at the little boy. "You want a piggy
back ride?"
"No, carry me upside down this time." Michael requested happily,
forgetting the fact that he didn't want to go to bed.
"No, that's just going to get him all worked up." Carly vetoed the idea.
Michael scowled and Carly arched her eyebrow. He quickly lost the scowl and
followed Jason out of the room.
Sonny waited until they were completely gone then turned back to Carly.
"Now, where were we?"
"You were feeling me up in front of my son and our best friend." Carly
made a face but still laid her head on his shoulder.
"They'll be busy for a while so I've got plenty of time for that. But first
I have to ask you something."
"Mmm, what?" Carly asked around a yawn. Lately she'd been feeling more
tired than usual. She was going to have start catching up on her sleep.
Sonny absentmindedly trailed his fingers up and down her arm. "I was
thinking that it was time…I want you and Michael to move back in with me."
"What?" Carly pushed herself up and turned to face him on the couch.
"What?"
"I want you back in the penthouse. Those few days you stayed after finding
out about the Cassadines were the best days I've had in a long time. It's
so empty and lonely there without you now."
"Jason is staying there." She pointed out needlessly.
Sonny gave her a pointed look. "That's different and you know it. He's
moving into the penthouse across the hall in a few days anyway. But the
point is, I miss you and I want you home."
"Sonny," Carly touched his face. "I don't know, I have to think about it."
"What's to think about? Just come home with me." He demanded.
"Don't try ordering me around Sonny, you know that doesn't work." She
snapped. "Look just give me time to think, okay. I have to see if this is
the best situation for everyone involved."
"How could it not be. You love me and I love you. It's simple."
"Don't push me." She warned. "Give me a few days."
"Only a few." He promised. "And then I won't take no for an answer."
~*~*~
Lucky looked up just as Maxie walked into Kelly's. How he knew she'd be
coming in at exactly that moment he didn't understand and he didn't want to
know. He frowned when he noticed that she wasn't as bright and cheery as
usual. She made her way over to the counter.
"Hi." She said muttered.
"What happened?" He started to reach out and touch her face but stopped
himself.
"My father." She spat out. "He came by tonight looking for me and Georgie.
Georgie was out and I pretended like I was too. I overheard him telling my
mom that he was leaving tonight."
"Oh." Lucky understood how she felt about Frisco. This time he did gently
touch her cheek. "I'm sorry."
She shook her head. "Hey, it's no big deal. I knew he wasn't staying. I
should be happy that he bothered to say goodbye first."
"I know how hard it is," He began softly.
"No, you don't." She spat out. "You don't know what it's like to know you
have a father out there somewhere who'd rather be running around risking
his life than be with you and your sister. You have no idea! Mom says he
doesn't hate us that he loves us very much but sometimes I seriously
wonder. What kind of father just abandons his kids? Oh God."
Maxie slumped down on the stool and covered her face in her hands. Lucky's
heart crumbled as he listened to her start to cry. He walked around the
counter and pulled her into his arms. He soothingly rubbed his hands up and
down her back. "Maxie, it's going to be alright, you hear me?"
Behind them Frisco cleared his throat. Maxie pulled back from Lucky
slightly to see who was interrupting them. When she saw her father she
groaned and turned away.
"I figured you'd be here." Frisco began.
Maxie wiped her face with the back of her hand. "I don't want to talk to
you."
"Well I have to talk to you. This is urgent, Maxie." Frisco stressed.
"Oh, after six years suddenly it's *urgent* that you talk to me. Whatever
it is, I'm sure it can wait another six years." Maxie kept her back to
him. "Lucky, I don't want him here."
Lucky ran his hands through his hair. He didn't like seeing her hurt like
this but she would be better off listening to what Frisco had to say. He
touched her shoulder. "Come on, give him a chance."
"I already know what he has to stay and I don't want to hear it." She told
Lucky.
"Just listen." He urged her and touched the tip of her nose with his
finger. "For me?"
Maxie took a deep breath and stared into his eyes. "Fine, for you."
"Thank you."
Frisco looked at the two of them staring at each other. At first he thought
that they were only friends but seeing them together now he wasn't so sure.
Frisco shook his head. What was he thinking, she was only 17 and Spencer
had to be in his early twenties. Nothing was happening between the two of
them.
"Maxie, I wanted to tell you that I have to leave tonight." He began.
Maxie snorted and tossed a look at Lucky. "See? What did I tell you?"
"Listen." He hissed. He nodded to Frisco, "Go on."
Frisco frowned but continued. "However as soon as I'm able to, I'm coming
back to Port Charles to see you and your sister."
"Right, I remember the last time you said that."
"This I mean it. I realized how much I missed you girls. I mean you went
and grew up without me. You're not the same people and I want to get to
know you."
"And you do that by going away?" Maxie said doubtfully.
"I still have a job to do, Maxie."
"Because protecting the world is more important than your daughters."
Maxie said snidely. She turned back to Lucky. "Why did I bother?"
"He's still your father, give him that respect."
"Why, he hasn't earned it."
"I'll be back soon to do just that." Frisco promised. "I still want to be
your father."
"Don't bother, *Frisco*, I realized that the only father I have is Mac and
I should be grateful."
"Maxie." Lucky squeezed her arm warningly.
"No, it's okay, Lucky. Let her feel that way for now. I'll be back to prove
her wrong." Frisco said. He gave Maxie one last look then walked away.
"Go after him and apologize." Lucky told her.
"For what? For telling the truth? He hasn't bothered with us for six years
and now I'm supposed to kiss his butt because he remembered he has kids? No
way, I did that for a few days and then I find out he wasn't
staying anyway. When he really wants to be a father maybe I'll listen to
him but not now. Not when some adventure is more important."
"That's not true Maxie and you know it." Lucky said.
She shook her head. "It feels that way."
"It hurts but the hurt goes away, I promise." Lucky said gently.
"If you say it well, then maybe it will." Maxie looked down at her hands
and said shyly. "Could I get another hug, maybe?"
Lucky's eyes widened in surprise at a shy Maxie. "Sure."
Maxie flew into his arms. She murmured against his shoulder. "You're a good
friend." She drew back and looked into his eyes. "And if you would let
yourself, you could be more than that."
Lucky groaned. He should have known. But if it was something to get her
mind off her father… "Maxie…"
"I'm not saying anything." She said with a small smile. "But you can't
blame a girl for trying."
~*~*~
Jason made his way down the stairs to the docks. He shoved his hands into
his pockets and stared out morosely at the water. If he had had to sit
through one more kiss between Sonny and Carly he would have tore the place
apart. He was barely able to keep his temper in check as he made his
excuses and left soon after putting Michael to bed. He was going to have to
do something or say something soon because faking being happy for them was
killing him. He liked Sonny, he was his best friend but that didn't mean he
wanted to see him with Carly. Not when she was supposed to be with him.
Elizabeth wrapped her coat tighter around her. She had gone out that night
with a few friends from her art class and she tried to put on a brave face
but a half-hour into it she knew she couldn't pretend anymore. So she
excused herself and started the long walk back to her grandmother's. She
grimaced at the prospect of another night of her grandmother fawning over
her, trying to make her feel better even though she didn't know the whole
story. She finally remembered the reason she moved in with Emily in the
first place. One, she needed her freedom and two, after her grandmother
retired she devoted her life to hovering over Elizabeth. God, she missed
her apartment. Emily should have been the one to move out. She was the one
who messed up, not Elizabeth. Then again Elizabeth had forgotten another
reason she moved in with Emily, she couldn't afford a decent place on her
own. Emily was paying most of the rent.
Elizabeth's eyes glazed over. Just the thought of Emily angered her. She
hadn't seen her in days and that was just fine with her. She never wanted
to see her again. How dare she deliberately try to mess up her and Nikolas'
relationship? If she was bored with Sly then they should have tried spicing
things up instead of ruining her life. There had to be some way to get her
back for that.
Elizabeth conveniently forgot the fact that at the time she had been unsure
about her relationship with Nikolas, she'd turned down his proposals and
basically broke up with him. No matter what she did, it was still Emily's
fault that she cried the whole night after Sly told her what he'd saw. And
hearing the confession straight from Emily and Nikolas didn't help either.
One thing Elizabeth knew for sure, she didn't want to go home right now.
She needed to think and the best place for that were the docks. Once she
got there she was disappointed to see that someone else had the same idea.
She bit her lip as she thought it over. Should she stay? Or should she just
turn around and leave? Who was that anyway?
She narrowed her eyes and concerted on the tall man staring into the water.
Was that? Yeah, it looked like Jason, Emily's brother. He looked pretty
upset, like he needed someone to talk to. A slow smile came to Elizabeth's
face.
Wouldn't it just *kill* Emily if she found out that her back from the dead
brother confided in her?
Elizabeth resisted the urge to rub her hands together like some cartoon
villain. Oh yeah, this is perfect. What better way to get back at Emily
than this?
She ran her hands through her hair, fixed a bright smile on her way, and
walked down the stairs towards him. He turned around at the sound of her
footsteps. She wiggled her fingers at him and said in a flirtatious tone.
"Hi Jason!"
Jason frowned. He came to the docks to be alone. The last thing he wanted
was company. "Excuse me?"
Elizabeth pouted. "I guess you don't remember me, huh? Elizabeth Webber? I,
uh, used to go out with Lucky Spencer?"
Jason slowly nodded, connecting the face with the name. "Right,
Emily's…friend."
"*Former* friend." Elizabeth corrected tersely.
"She told me what happened." Jason said sympathetically.
"What, is she running around shouting it from the rooftops?" Elizabeth
glowered at him.
Jason stared at her. "No, we were having a conversation. She's really
beating herself up over it."
Elizabeth held up a hand to stop his words. "Wait! I don't want to hear
anymore about poor little Emily's woes, okay? You know what, let's start
over. Hi, Jason, remember me? Elizabeth?"
Jason stared at her some more, this time his gaze was slightly curious.
"Hi, Elizabeth. Please don't say anything stupid like 'welcome home' or
'welcome back from the dead'."
"Getting a little tired huh? People just don't know what to say." Elizabeth
shrugged. "What would you say in a situation like this?"
"I wouldn't say anything."
"Well, you're not like most people." Elizabeth said coyly. She twirled a
strand of hair around her finger. "So you looked pretty deep in thought a
few minutes ago. What to talk about it?"
Right, like he was going to discuss his feelings for Carly with her. "I'd
rather not."
"Come on." She reached out and trailed her hand down his arm. Whoa, did he
work out or what? "Sometimes it's better to just let it all out. Release
the tension, Jason."
He stepped away from her touch. "I said, I'd rather not." He didn't get
why she was so determined to get him to spill all his problems.
Damn, this wasn't working, she thought. She shivered. "Brrr, it's cold out
tonight."
"It's December, we're by the water." He said tonelessly.
She rolled her eyes. "You know what would hit the spot right now? Some
cocoa from Kelly's. You want to get some?"
Jason narrowed his eyes. He was about to decline when Elizabeth smiled
brightly and taunted. "Come on, what else are you going to do tonight? You
got the whole night planned don't you? You're gonna stare at the water,
then maybe stare at that sea crane and then at the water some more. Whoa,
slow down party man!"
Jason frowned. She was right. What was he going to do all night? Moon over
lost opportunities with Carly? Devise ways to make her see he was the one
for her and Sonny was only a temporary replacement? He rubbed the back of
his neck.
"Okay. But you're buying." He told her.
Elizabeth looped her arm around his, surprising him. Then she surprised him
even more by smiling and saying. "If I didn't think you were so cute, I'd
make you pay for your own."
~*~*~
Nikolas had just dropped Emily off with a chaste kiss goodnight and a
smirk. He was determined to prove that there was more to them than sex.
Emily wasn't sure but she was going to let him play it out. She had just
stepped into her apartment when there was a knock at the door.
She smirked to herself. It was probably Nikolas. She opened the door.
"Couldn't last more than a few min—Sly?"
"Hello." He muttered.
"Sly, Sly! She repeated in shock. She recovered quickly. "Come inside."
He held up a hand. "No, I'm not going to be long. I just wanted to tell you
that I'm leaving Port Charles."
"Why?" She gasped.
"I think it would be better this way." He said.
"You can't just leave the city because we broke up. How childish would that
be?" Emily snapped. She was angry that it took him a week to finally speak
to her and the only reason was because he was leaving.
"I'm not leaving forever. Just for a few weeks. I need some time away from
you and this place. Everywhere I go I see you and me. Don't you? Or did you
get over me as soon as you jumped into Cassadine's bed?" He narrowed his
eyes at her.
"Don't be like this, Sly." Emily sighed. "Of course I still think about
you. I called you how many times this week?"
"Guilt." He shrugged. "But until I can see you and Nikolas together
without wanting to kill him I'm going to need some space and the best way
to get that space is to leave."
"Where are you going?" She asked softly.
"I don't know. Maybe I'll head down to New York. Wherever my car takes
me." He started to go but Emily called out his name. "Sly!"
She leaned over and brushed her lips across his. He closed his eyes and
returned the kiss then stepped back.
"Be careful please." She pleaded. "No matter what happened, I still care
about you."
"I know that. That's why it hurts so much."
~*~*~
Victor stood across the street beside his limousine and took one last look
at the Brownstone. He could see that the lights were still on in Carly's
apartment. Higgins appeared at Victor's elbow. "Sir? Our staying here any
longer isn't wise."
"Wait." Victor hissed.
Carly appeared at the open window. She paused and stared out at the night
for a few minutes. A smile appeared on her face and she nodded. Seconds
later Sonny Corinthos came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.
He kissed her ear and whispered something into it. She laughed and nodded
eagerly. Together they shut the window and drew close the curtains.
"Soon, my dear." Victor murmured. "I'll return for you soon."
hustled Emily into the shower. It was time she got of that apartment and
got some air. A trip to Kelly's was a good start. But now Nikolas wasn't so
sure it was a good idea. He hadn't seen Lucky since that night at Luke's
and he was pretty mad at both of them. Not that Nikolas could blame him,
Sly was his cousin and Elizabeth was still important to him.
"Maybe if we're lucky he won't be working tonight?" Emily said hopefully.
"He's going to have to get over it." Nikolas scowled. "It has nothing to do
with him. Let's grab that table."
Emily slowly followed Nikolas to the table he pointed out. She felt like
everyone in the diner was staring at them, whispering about them. It was
crazy she knew but she couldn't help it.
"You know what you want?" Nikolas asked as he gazed at the menu he already
knew by heart.
"Mmm, I'm not that hungry." Emily shook her head.
"When was the last time you ate? Emily, you are skin and bones." Nikolas
chastised her gently. He took her hand in his. "Eat something, for me."
Before Emily could answer, Lucky showed up at their table. "I was wondering
when you two were going to come out of hiding."
Nikolas stared at him for a long time. He wasn't sure of Lucky's feelings
about them. He didn't seem like he wished them dead but he wasn't too happy
to see them either. Finally Emily asked the question that Nikolas was
putting off.
"Are you angry?" She whispered.
Lucky sighed and sat down at the table with them. "I was. I still am,
kinda. You guys were wrong and you already know it so it's not my place to
lecture you. You're supposedly adults and you went out and hurt two people
that I care about. But I care about you guys also and this put me in a
tough spot. I had to listen to Elizabeth cry her heart out to me and it
made me sick. Not because of what you did but because we were all friends
and friends don't do that to each other. But like I said it's not my
place."
"It's not like we did it on purpose." Emily argued.
"It just happened." Nikolas added.
"I know how that is." Lucky thought back to his kisses with Maxie. He
spread out his hands. "But I don't want to hear anymore about it. Since I'm
stuck in the middle I've got to be like Switzerland, neutral."
"So you don't hate us?" Emily pressed.
Lucky laughed. "I could never hate you. I'm just a little disappointed in
you. You guys have lousy timing. I always had a feeling you'd eventually
get together. Just not this way."
"What?" Emily's mouth dropped open.
He shrugged. "It was just a feeling then you and Sly hooked up and it kinda
went away."
"Why did you never tell us? It could saved us all a lot of grief in the
long run." Nikolas said.
"Like I said, it was only a feeling. You guys ready to order?" Lucky got
up from the table.
"Hear that, Em? Were we meant to be together." Nikolas joked with a warm
smile.
Emily froze. She glanced up at Lucky. "I think I'm hungry after all.
Whatever's the special I'll take it."
Nikolas frowned at her lack of enthusiasm. "I think I'll have the same
also."
"Be right up." Lucky took their menus and walked off.
Nikolas focused his gaze on Emily. He said softly. "Hey, what's going on?"
"Nothing's going on." She denied with a little laugh. "I'm just relived
about Lucky."
"If you were relieved you wouldn't be tensing up. What is the problem here?
Is it what I said about you and me being meant for each other?"
"Sort of, I don't want to think that way Nikolas. I just got out of a
relationship with a guy that I thought I was meant to be and look what
happened with that. I cheated on him."
He touched her cheek softly. "Maybe that's because you weren't meant to be
with him."
Emily took a deep breath. "I think we should slow down."
"Slow down? What are you talking about?"
"I don't want to rush into anything. What if the only thing between us is
the sex?" Emily voiced her biggest fear.
"What? Believe me, there's more to us than the sex. If we never have sex
again I wouldn't care, I'd still want to be with you." Emily arched a
disbelieving eyebrow and Nikolas laughed. "Okay, I like the sex
but it's not the only thing. I like you, Emily. Remember that day we spent
on Wyndemere?"
Emily nodded.
"Let's do another day like that. Just you and me, no pressure, no exes, no
*sex*. What do you say?"
Emily shrugged. "Alright."
"We'll take it one day at a time." Nikolas promised with a determined
glint in his eye.
~*~*~
"Come in, come in." Carly said as she let Sonny in her apartment later
that night. She reached around to help him take off his coat. She gave him
a quick peek on the cheek.
"So what's on the menu tonight?" Sonny asked.
"Pasta." She grinned at him and placed his coat in the closet. He quirked
his eyebrow and she frowned. "What? There's no way I can mess up pasta. You
just boil some water and open a jar of sauce."
"You did what?" His look of horror caused her to double over laughing.
She touched his arm sympathetically. "Calm down, I remember all your
lessons. I think I managed to pull off a decent homemade sauce."
He looked at her doubtfully. "If not, I can always take over."
"You are going nowhere near my kitchen, buster." Carly warned with a
growl.
"Is he here yet?" Michael's laughing voice floated out to them. Jason
emerged from around the corner. He carried Michael on his back. Michael
squirmed to get down and flew across the room to Sonny. "Sonny!"
Jason clenched his jaw in annoyance. He was getting damn tired of seeing
his son run to other men like that. He pushed down his anger and forced a
smile. "What took you so long?"
Sonny checked his watch. "I'm right on time."
"Oh. I must have gotten here a little early then." Jason said coolly.
Sonny narrowed his eyes. He didn't like the vibe he was getting from Jason
but he was going to ignore and enjoy his evening with Carly. Even if he had
to share her with two other people.
Carly frowned. The tension between the two of them was getting weird. Carly
couldn't understand it. She shook her head. "Michael, come help me set the
table."
"I'll do that." Jason immediately offered.
"No, you and Sonny sit down. You're my guests, so sit, talk, whatever."
Carly led Michael into the kitchen.
Jason started to walk into the living room but Sonny grabbed his arm.
"Hey, what's the matter with you?"
"With me? There's nothing the matter with me." Jason lied.
Sonny shook his head. "No, I can tell. What's going on?"
Jason shrugged and lied again. "I guess I'm little anxious about Carly's
cooking. I tried to sneak into the kitchen to check on the food but she
barred the door."
Sonny laughed relieved to see that nothing was wrong. He threw his arm
around Jason's shoulders. "Yeah, she gets a little vicious. The trick is to
set up a little diversionary tactic. Like get Michael to need her in
another room, something that will give you another time to taste and if
need be help her out a little."
"You sound like you've done this a lot." Jason said dryly. Yet another
reminder of all the years he lost out on.
Sonny smiled. "Yeah, I had to learn the hard way. But hey she's improved. I
can guarantee we won't have to visit the emergency room to get our stomach
pumped tonight."
Jason drew back in disbelief. "Don't tell me…"
Sonny nodded. "It was her first try. Frankly, I'm still scared to eat her
chicken but she learned her lesson."
Jason shook his head in wonder. Sonny noticed the dazed look on his face.
"I'm glad I'm not alone. Michael *likes* her cooking."
~*~*~
Stefan stepped off the launch and found Layla waiting for him. She smiled
sadly at him and held her hands out to him. He clasped them in his and
worriedly searched her face for any clue to why she was so sad.
"You sounded upset on the phone." He remarked.
"I'm leaving tonight." She said without preamble.
"Tonight?" Stefan arched his eyebrow. "I thought you had a few more days."
She shook her head. "No, I have to go tonight. It's the surgery for my eye.
Though I wish I could stay."
Stefan nodded understandingly. He swept back a lock of hair. "Your eye is
more important than pleasing me. After the surgery is over, come back to
Wyndemere to recuperate."
Layla looked away. She had a feeling that Katarina was going to send her
away until her eyes was better and then immediately send her on another
mission to get her mind off of Victor.
Stefan caught the look in her eye and nodded again. "Do not let another
twelve years go bye or else I shall come looking for you myself."
She laughed a little. "I promise Steffie. Tell Nikki goodbye for me?"
"He will be terribly upset that he wasn't hear himself." Stefan cupped her
face in his hands and brushed his lips across hers. "Goodbye, Layla."
~*~*~
"So dinner was good right?" Carly said as she settled down next to Sonny
on the couch. Jason sat across from them with Michael snuggled against his
side.
"It was…passable." Sonny said.
"Passable? Hey, I helped cook Thanksgiving dinner and that turned out to be
damned good." Carly protested.
"Exactly how many people were in the kitchen that day?" Sonny pointed out.
"I thought it was good, Carly." Jason said gallantly. He was out to score
points and ridiculing her cooking didn't seem the way to him. He smiled
when Carly grinned at him. "Thank you. See?"
"I thought it was fantastic, Mama." Michael piped up.
"You think everything I make is fantastic." Carly laughed. "But thank you
also. Aren't you tired, it's a little past your bedtime."
"I'm okay." Michael denied.
Carly nodded. In a few minutes she would take him to his room despite his
denial.
Sonny looked at Carly through heavy lids. He murmured. "Come here you."
Carly slid over the couch next to him and said. "Yeah?"
Sonny cupped her face and gave her a long slow kiss. He barely remembered
that Jason and Michael was watching them. "I meant to do that earlier."
"Better late than never." Carly whispered. She had actually forgotten that
Jason and Michael were there and was about to pull Sonny in for a kiss when
Jason cleared his throat loudly. She blushed and punched Sonny in the arm.
"Look what you made me do."
Sonny grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss to her fist. "It's not my fault
you find me irresistible."
"Do you mind if I put Michael to bed?" Jason asked suddenly. He stood up
quickly.
"I'm not tired!" Michael immediately said.
"It's still past your bedtime." Carly said. "Sure, if you want. The book
we're reading is on his nightstand. Just a few pages tonight, okay?
"Right." He nodded. He looked back at the little boy. "You want a piggy
back ride?"
"No, carry me upside down this time." Michael requested happily,
forgetting the fact that he didn't want to go to bed.
"No, that's just going to get him all worked up." Carly vetoed the idea.
Michael scowled and Carly arched her eyebrow. He quickly lost the scowl and
followed Jason out of the room.
Sonny waited until they were completely gone then turned back to Carly.
"Now, where were we?"
"You were feeling me up in front of my son and our best friend." Carly
made a face but still laid her head on his shoulder.
"They'll be busy for a while so I've got plenty of time for that. But first
I have to ask you something."
"Mmm, what?" Carly asked around a yawn. Lately she'd been feeling more
tired than usual. She was going to have start catching up on her sleep.
Sonny absentmindedly trailed his fingers up and down her arm. "I was
thinking that it was time…I want you and Michael to move back in with me."
"What?" Carly pushed herself up and turned to face him on the couch.
"What?"
"I want you back in the penthouse. Those few days you stayed after finding
out about the Cassadines were the best days I've had in a long time. It's
so empty and lonely there without you now."
"Jason is staying there." She pointed out needlessly.
Sonny gave her a pointed look. "That's different and you know it. He's
moving into the penthouse across the hall in a few days anyway. But the
point is, I miss you and I want you home."
"Sonny," Carly touched his face. "I don't know, I have to think about it."
"What's to think about? Just come home with me." He demanded.
"Don't try ordering me around Sonny, you know that doesn't work." She
snapped. "Look just give me time to think, okay. I have to see if this is
the best situation for everyone involved."
"How could it not be. You love me and I love you. It's simple."
"Don't push me." She warned. "Give me a few days."
"Only a few." He promised. "And then I won't take no for an answer."
~*~*~
Lucky looked up just as Maxie walked into Kelly's. How he knew she'd be
coming in at exactly that moment he didn't understand and he didn't want to
know. He frowned when he noticed that she wasn't as bright and cheery as
usual. She made her way over to the counter.
"Hi." She said muttered.
"What happened?" He started to reach out and touch her face but stopped
himself.
"My father." She spat out. "He came by tonight looking for me and Georgie.
Georgie was out and I pretended like I was too. I overheard him telling my
mom that he was leaving tonight."
"Oh." Lucky understood how she felt about Frisco. This time he did gently
touch her cheek. "I'm sorry."
She shook her head. "Hey, it's no big deal. I knew he wasn't staying. I
should be happy that he bothered to say goodbye first."
"I know how hard it is," He began softly.
"No, you don't." She spat out. "You don't know what it's like to know you
have a father out there somewhere who'd rather be running around risking
his life than be with you and your sister. You have no idea! Mom says he
doesn't hate us that he loves us very much but sometimes I seriously
wonder. What kind of father just abandons his kids? Oh God."
Maxie slumped down on the stool and covered her face in her hands. Lucky's
heart crumbled as he listened to her start to cry. He walked around the
counter and pulled her into his arms. He soothingly rubbed his hands up and
down her back. "Maxie, it's going to be alright, you hear me?"
Behind them Frisco cleared his throat. Maxie pulled back from Lucky
slightly to see who was interrupting them. When she saw her father she
groaned and turned away.
"I figured you'd be here." Frisco began.
Maxie wiped her face with the back of her hand. "I don't want to talk to
you."
"Well I have to talk to you. This is urgent, Maxie." Frisco stressed.
"Oh, after six years suddenly it's *urgent* that you talk to me. Whatever
it is, I'm sure it can wait another six years." Maxie kept her back to
him. "Lucky, I don't want him here."
Lucky ran his hands through his hair. He didn't like seeing her hurt like
this but she would be better off listening to what Frisco had to say. He
touched her shoulder. "Come on, give him a chance."
"I already know what he has to stay and I don't want to hear it." She told
Lucky.
"Just listen." He urged her and touched the tip of her nose with his
finger. "For me?"
Maxie took a deep breath and stared into his eyes. "Fine, for you."
"Thank you."
Frisco looked at the two of them staring at each other. At first he thought
that they were only friends but seeing them together now he wasn't so sure.
Frisco shook his head. What was he thinking, she was only 17 and Spencer
had to be in his early twenties. Nothing was happening between the two of
them.
"Maxie, I wanted to tell you that I have to leave tonight." He began.
Maxie snorted and tossed a look at Lucky. "See? What did I tell you?"
"Listen." He hissed. He nodded to Frisco, "Go on."
Frisco frowned but continued. "However as soon as I'm able to, I'm coming
back to Port Charles to see you and your sister."
"Right, I remember the last time you said that."
"This I mean it. I realized how much I missed you girls. I mean you went
and grew up without me. You're not the same people and I want to get to
know you."
"And you do that by going away?" Maxie said doubtfully.
"I still have a job to do, Maxie."
"Because protecting the world is more important than your daughters."
Maxie said snidely. She turned back to Lucky. "Why did I bother?"
"He's still your father, give him that respect."
"Why, he hasn't earned it."
"I'll be back soon to do just that." Frisco promised. "I still want to be
your father."
"Don't bother, *Frisco*, I realized that the only father I have is Mac and
I should be grateful."
"Maxie." Lucky squeezed her arm warningly.
"No, it's okay, Lucky. Let her feel that way for now. I'll be back to prove
her wrong." Frisco said. He gave Maxie one last look then walked away.
"Go after him and apologize." Lucky told her.
"For what? For telling the truth? He hasn't bothered with us for six years
and now I'm supposed to kiss his butt because he remembered he has kids? No
way, I did that for a few days and then I find out he wasn't
staying anyway. When he really wants to be a father maybe I'll listen to
him but not now. Not when some adventure is more important."
"That's not true Maxie and you know it." Lucky said.
She shook her head. "It feels that way."
"It hurts but the hurt goes away, I promise." Lucky said gently.
"If you say it well, then maybe it will." Maxie looked down at her hands
and said shyly. "Could I get another hug, maybe?"
Lucky's eyes widened in surprise at a shy Maxie. "Sure."
Maxie flew into his arms. She murmured against his shoulder. "You're a good
friend." She drew back and looked into his eyes. "And if you would let
yourself, you could be more than that."
Lucky groaned. He should have known. But if it was something to get her
mind off her father… "Maxie…"
"I'm not saying anything." She said with a small smile. "But you can't
blame a girl for trying."
~*~*~
Jason made his way down the stairs to the docks. He shoved his hands into
his pockets and stared out morosely at the water. If he had had to sit
through one more kiss between Sonny and Carly he would have tore the place
apart. He was barely able to keep his temper in check as he made his
excuses and left soon after putting Michael to bed. He was going to have to
do something or say something soon because faking being happy for them was
killing him. He liked Sonny, he was his best friend but that didn't mean he
wanted to see him with Carly. Not when she was supposed to be with him.
Elizabeth wrapped her coat tighter around her. She had gone out that night
with a few friends from her art class and she tried to put on a brave face
but a half-hour into it she knew she couldn't pretend anymore. So she
excused herself and started the long walk back to her grandmother's. She
grimaced at the prospect of another night of her grandmother fawning over
her, trying to make her feel better even though she didn't know the whole
story. She finally remembered the reason she moved in with Emily in the
first place. One, she needed her freedom and two, after her grandmother
retired she devoted her life to hovering over Elizabeth. God, she missed
her apartment. Emily should have been the one to move out. She was the one
who messed up, not Elizabeth. Then again Elizabeth had forgotten another
reason she moved in with Emily, she couldn't afford a decent place on her
own. Emily was paying most of the rent.
Elizabeth's eyes glazed over. Just the thought of Emily angered her. She
hadn't seen her in days and that was just fine with her. She never wanted
to see her again. How dare she deliberately try to mess up her and Nikolas'
relationship? If she was bored with Sly then they should have tried spicing
things up instead of ruining her life. There had to be some way to get her
back for that.
Elizabeth conveniently forgot the fact that at the time she had been unsure
about her relationship with Nikolas, she'd turned down his proposals and
basically broke up with him. No matter what she did, it was still Emily's
fault that she cried the whole night after Sly told her what he'd saw. And
hearing the confession straight from Emily and Nikolas didn't help either.
One thing Elizabeth knew for sure, she didn't want to go home right now.
She needed to think and the best place for that were the docks. Once she
got there she was disappointed to see that someone else had the same idea.
She bit her lip as she thought it over. Should she stay? Or should she just
turn around and leave? Who was that anyway?
She narrowed her eyes and concerted on the tall man staring into the water.
Was that? Yeah, it looked like Jason, Emily's brother. He looked pretty
upset, like he needed someone to talk to. A slow smile came to Elizabeth's
face.
Wouldn't it just *kill* Emily if she found out that her back from the dead
brother confided in her?
Elizabeth resisted the urge to rub her hands together like some cartoon
villain. Oh yeah, this is perfect. What better way to get back at Emily
than this?
She ran her hands through her hair, fixed a bright smile on her way, and
walked down the stairs towards him. He turned around at the sound of her
footsteps. She wiggled her fingers at him and said in a flirtatious tone.
"Hi Jason!"
Jason frowned. He came to the docks to be alone. The last thing he wanted
was company. "Excuse me?"
Elizabeth pouted. "I guess you don't remember me, huh? Elizabeth Webber? I,
uh, used to go out with Lucky Spencer?"
Jason slowly nodded, connecting the face with the name. "Right,
Emily's…friend."
"*Former* friend." Elizabeth corrected tersely.
"She told me what happened." Jason said sympathetically.
"What, is she running around shouting it from the rooftops?" Elizabeth
glowered at him.
Jason stared at her. "No, we were having a conversation. She's really
beating herself up over it."
Elizabeth held up a hand to stop his words. "Wait! I don't want to hear
anymore about poor little Emily's woes, okay? You know what, let's start
over. Hi, Jason, remember me? Elizabeth?"
Jason stared at her some more, this time his gaze was slightly curious.
"Hi, Elizabeth. Please don't say anything stupid like 'welcome home' or
'welcome back from the dead'."
"Getting a little tired huh? People just don't know what to say." Elizabeth
shrugged. "What would you say in a situation like this?"
"I wouldn't say anything."
"Well, you're not like most people." Elizabeth said coyly. She twirled a
strand of hair around her finger. "So you looked pretty deep in thought a
few minutes ago. What to talk about it?"
Right, like he was going to discuss his feelings for Carly with her. "I'd
rather not."
"Come on." She reached out and trailed her hand down his arm. Whoa, did he
work out or what? "Sometimes it's better to just let it all out. Release
the tension, Jason."
He stepped away from her touch. "I said, I'd rather not." He didn't get
why she was so determined to get him to spill all his problems.
Damn, this wasn't working, she thought. She shivered. "Brrr, it's cold out
tonight."
"It's December, we're by the water." He said tonelessly.
She rolled her eyes. "You know what would hit the spot right now? Some
cocoa from Kelly's. You want to get some?"
Jason narrowed his eyes. He was about to decline when Elizabeth smiled
brightly and taunted. "Come on, what else are you going to do tonight? You
got the whole night planned don't you? You're gonna stare at the water,
then maybe stare at that sea crane and then at the water some more. Whoa,
slow down party man!"
Jason frowned. She was right. What was he going to do all night? Moon over
lost opportunities with Carly? Devise ways to make her see he was the one
for her and Sonny was only a temporary replacement? He rubbed the back of
his neck.
"Okay. But you're buying." He told her.
Elizabeth looped her arm around his, surprising him. Then she surprised him
even more by smiling and saying. "If I didn't think you were so cute, I'd
make you pay for your own."
~*~*~
Nikolas had just dropped Emily off with a chaste kiss goodnight and a
smirk. He was determined to prove that there was more to them than sex.
Emily wasn't sure but she was going to let him play it out. She had just
stepped into her apartment when there was a knock at the door.
She smirked to herself. It was probably Nikolas. She opened the door.
"Couldn't last more than a few min—Sly?"
"Hello." He muttered.
"Sly, Sly! She repeated in shock. She recovered quickly. "Come inside."
He held up a hand. "No, I'm not going to be long. I just wanted to tell you
that I'm leaving Port Charles."
"Why?" She gasped.
"I think it would be better this way." He said.
"You can't just leave the city because we broke up. How childish would that
be?" Emily snapped. She was angry that it took him a week to finally speak
to her and the only reason was because he was leaving.
"I'm not leaving forever. Just for a few weeks. I need some time away from
you and this place. Everywhere I go I see you and me. Don't you? Or did you
get over me as soon as you jumped into Cassadine's bed?" He narrowed his
eyes at her.
"Don't be like this, Sly." Emily sighed. "Of course I still think about
you. I called you how many times this week?"
"Guilt." He shrugged. "But until I can see you and Nikolas together
without wanting to kill him I'm going to need some space and the best way
to get that space is to leave."
"Where are you going?" She asked softly.
"I don't know. Maybe I'll head down to New York. Wherever my car takes
me." He started to go but Emily called out his name. "Sly!"
She leaned over and brushed her lips across his. He closed his eyes and
returned the kiss then stepped back.
"Be careful please." She pleaded. "No matter what happened, I still care
about you."
"I know that. That's why it hurts so much."
~*~*~
Victor stood across the street beside his limousine and took one last look
at the Brownstone. He could see that the lights were still on in Carly's
apartment. Higgins appeared at Victor's elbow. "Sir? Our staying here any
longer isn't wise."
"Wait." Victor hissed.
Carly appeared at the open window. She paused and stared out at the night
for a few minutes. A smile appeared on her face and she nodded. Seconds
later Sonny Corinthos came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.
He kissed her ear and whispered something into it. She laughed and nodded
eagerly. Together they shut the window and drew close the curtains.
"Soon, my dear." Victor murmured. "I'll return for you soon."