- Miracles Happen -

*Chapter Three*

Unexpected Reunions

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"What did you just say?" Rafe's mouth had dropped open in shock, and he wouldn't for one second take his eyes of Alison.. he couldn't. Especially not after what she had just said. Her words kept repeating themselves in his thoughts. 'I realize now that Jamal was never my one true love.. my soulmate. In fact, Rafe, that person was you.' No matter how much he wanted to act on Alison's confession, ..he knew that was impossible. In his opinion, everything was against he and Alison being together. The most important obstacle being that he was an angel, whether he liked it or not.

Alison studied Rafe's face carefully. She knew that something was definitely troubling him, she just couldn't figure out what. She looked down at their hands on the table, her small fingers were still laced within his. Looking back up at her 'angel', she pulled her hand back after realizing what Rafe must of thought she meant by what she said. "Oh, oh!" she covered her mouth with her hand, "Rafe, did you think?--" she watched his eyes carefully. "Oh my god. No Rafe, no! That's not what I meant. That's not what I meant at all."

Rafe's heart broke at Alison's outburst. As much as he wanted Alison to love him just as much as he did her, he knew that it would be for the best that she didn't. That's all Rafe could pray for at this moment, that Alison would never fall in love with him. Because if she did, it would change the course of the both of their lives. "Alright, Ali, so tell me then.. what did you mean?" he questioned expectantly.

As she had always done whenever she was nervous, Alison tucked her blonde strands tightly behind her ears, continusly. While searching frantically for the right words. "Well, I.. um, I just meant, that.. by saying-- saying that Jamal wasn't me soulmate, that you were. Well, Rafe.. I meant it in the way of how close we are, you know? Your my best friend, Rafe. I've never really had that, you know?"

"What about Livvie, or.. even Jack?"

"What about them?" she asked quietly, taking her eyes off of Rafe's and concetrating on her cup of mocha.

"Well, they are your best friends. Or are they?"

"Um, well, of course they are.. but they haven't been as good to me as you have." she admitted. "When I was going through that difficult time with Jamal and Valerie, neither of them were there for me. Jack and Livvie were caught up in their own little world, and their hatered for each other at the time.. and neither had time for me at that point. But you Rafe, you've always had time for me, no matter what. You were always there for me.. when nobody else was."

Rafe listened to Alison carefully, and never had he felt such emotion than he did at that point. That was when he realized that Alison was the first person to actually even care about him. She was right, their relationship was special.. but neither, Rafe, nor Alison realized just how special their relationship was.. and the reality was, if neither of them were willing to take a chance on it, they never will experience that once in a lifetime love.

"Alison," he began lightly, hoping he could get his words out right this time so that Alison would realize that he loved her. "that's what I'm here for. It's my job, to look out for you that is..." his voice trailed off as he had a flashback of Alison and himself. "So, are you like my own, personal guardian angel, or something?" Alison questioned curiously, with a bright smile on her face. Rafe smiled softly, and answered, "No, but I wouldn't turn down the job." He smiled softly at the sweet memory.

"Rafe." she called out. "Hello, Rafe! Are you there? Or do I need to leave a message?" Alison chuckled, snapping her fingers to get his attention. Snapping back to reality, Rafe's eyes landed directly on Alison's beautiful, angelic face. "Rafe?" her laughter ceased. Her voice more serious now. "Where were you just now?" she questioned softly.

Rafe's face's turned crimson red at Alison's questions, "It's stupid, really." he answered, nonchalantly. Pulling out his journal, he began to scribble.. refusing to look up and into Alison's eyes.

"What?" she questioned, her voice revealing her confusion. "How could it be stupid?"

He looked up for a moment, giving her a dumbfounded look, "It just is, okay?" his voice revealed a small amount of annoyance. "By the way, I found a place to stay this time. You know how Kevin and Lucy bought their own place, well.. they gave me the key to the lighthouse." he flashed a small smile, then went back to his journal.

"Rafe!" she yelled, frustrated at his attitude.

"What?!" he growled.

"I-" she stopped ahead of herslef for a moment before continuing. The room was filled with a dead silence, and she hated that. In fact, it wasn't just the silence she hated.. it was everything. Her realtionship status with Jamal, Jack and Livvie; her life; the way she felt everytime she looked into Rafe's passionate, blue eyes. "Rafe, what's going on with you?"

Rafe tried to ignore her questions by keeping himself occupied with writing in his journal, but he eventually found that ignoring Alison was an impossible task. He sighed roughly, closed his journal hard and looked up with burning eyes. "What do you want me to say, hmm? I know you think we have that kind of relationship where we tell each other absolutely everything, but you know what? Some things, I'd rather not just tell you, okay?"

Alison was beyond puzzlement. She had absolutely no idea what Rafe was talking about, or why he wouldn't want to tell her about it. "I, I'm sorry Rafe.. I know, you want your privacy, and I guess.. I haven't really respected that as of late. I just.. I wanted to believe that you and I, that we.." her voice trailed off slowly as tears had began to well up in her eyes. "Nevermind, it doesn't matter anymore."

"Acutally, you know what.. it does matter." he answered, hesitatnly with a smile. "Your right about one thing, Ali, we do share a special relationship, and you know what, we can tell each other absolutely anything. But on the other hand, your wrong.. the reason I don't want to tell you what I was thinking about earlier isn't because of my privacy.."

"Okay," she began softly. "then tell me, Rafe, what were you thinking about? It had to be something pretty big if you don't even want to tell me about it."

Rafe debated if whether or not he should tell Alison that he was thinking about the time she asked if he were her own, personal guardian angel.. but, even he knew.. chanced were, she'd discover he had feelings for her through that flashback. "Alright, but be fore-warned.. I told you it was stupid."

She flashed an angelic smile, and answered, "I'm listening."

"I was remembering something.." he answered shortly.

"Such as?" she questioned, expectantly.

"Do you remember the time you realized I was an angel, and you asked if I was your own, personal guardian angel?"

She was silent for a short moment or two, which caused Rafe to believe he had just made the biggest mistake of his life, er, afterlife. But soon thereafter, her silence was covered with a bright, beautiful smile. "Of course, I remember. How could I forget? I mean, something like that isn't all that easy to forget, you know?"

"Yeah, I know," his voice sounding quite distant. "Nothing that happens between us is all that easy to forget..." he replied in a tone that he was hoping she wouldn't hear.

"Um, what was that?" she questioned in a baffled tone.

Rafe's face turned red at her remark, he honestly had thought she hadn't heard him. "Uh, nothing.. I was only remarking on how right you were." he quickly covered. Standing up, Rafe dug through his pockets and found three dollars, he threw it on the table and left it for the waiter's tip. "Are you ready?" he questioned.

Alison knew that something was up with Rafe, otherwise, why would he be acting so differently? She shook off the feeling she got off his remark, because she, in fact, knew he was lying. Yet, she decided not to question his motives for lying, because there was absolutely no way she wanted to go down that road again. She smiled brightly up into his eyes, and stood up with him. "Let's go."



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Rafe and Alison left the Recovery Room, heading on a road to nowhere. Neither of them had said a single word to another since leaving, yet they'd glance over at one another every few seconds with a bright smile. Rafe wanted to take Alison back to Jack and Livvie's, only because he knew if he had spent another moment with her, the chances were, he probably wouldn't be able to resist temptation.

They continued their walk of silence for a few more moments before Rafe finally spoke up, "So," he began slowly, and hesitantly. "should I take you back to Jack and Livvie's?"

"Um, actually," her tone was quite hesitant. "I was sort of wondering, and I was thinking.."

"Why am I not suprised?" Rafe remarked with a slight chuckle.

Alison rolled her eyes at Rafe's remark, "Anyway.. as I was saying, I was thinking about my living arrangements with Jack and Livvie, and well.. the three of us aren't exactly getting along as we should. And well, I was wondering, if I could.. um," she paused for a moment before continuing. "If I could stay with you at the lighthouse?" she added quickly. So quickly, Rafe hadn't even realized what she said until the silence took over.

"Alison, I think you should give-" he quickly cut himself off, realizing what Alison had said only moment before. "You what?!"

Alison took her eyes off of Rafe's, she hadn't even known what had possessed her to ask such a question. "I, I'm sorry, Rafe. I shouldn't have even asked, I mean.. I know you want your privacy, and I just thought maybe we could.." she stopped shortly, taking a deep breath. "Look Rafe, your pracitucally the only true friend I have left in this town, and I thought maybe I'd have a happier time being with you then being with Jack and Livvie.. but since you seem to feel so strongly about not wanting me to live at the lighthouse with you, you might as well just forget I ever asked."

"It's not that, it's just.."

"It's just what?"

Rafe sighed lightly, "I'm not so sure this is a good idea."

Alison knew she was being selfish when it came to Rafe, but the truth was.. he was all she wanted. To just be with him. Yet, things had definitely changed.. from the arguement at the Recovery Room to this.. she pondered for a conclusion of what could possibly be happening between them, yet, everytime she came up empty handed. "Why wouldn't it be a good idea, Rafe? I mean, come on, we're as close as two friends could possibly get. It's not like we're going to actually fall in love, or anything."

Both Rafe and Alison were haunted by her words. Rafe was full aware of his feelings for Alison, and just thinking about what she had said, it pracitucally scared the hell out of him.. but for her, she hadn't even discovered what she felt for him at this point-- yet, everytime, her feelings were revealed through her emotions, whether she knew it or not.

Rafe's nervousness was revealed through his slight chuckle, "Your right.. what are the possibilities of that happening, hmmm?" he flashed a cheesy smile, as Alison nodded her head in agreement. Rafe knew from the minute he opened his mouth to speak, he was going to regret this decision for his remaining time on earth. "Okay then, shall we go over to Jack and Livvie's and get your stuff?"

Alison's eyes were practicually glowing at Rafe's decision, she was happier than she had ever been, and she showed her emotions in the unexpected embrace when she wrapped her arms around Rafe's neck. "Thank you, Rafe." she whispered softly in his ear, as she ran her fingers along his neck.

Pulling away from the too-comfortable embrace, "You know that I'd do anything to make you happy." he replied with a small smile. "By the way, exactly how much do you have to pack?"

"Well, I.. um," she paused for a moment after thinking about it. She glanced up at Rafe, noticing the smirk on his face. She knew exactly what he was thinking from his previous remark, "Why, Rafe, are you implying that I'm a pack-rat?" she grinned.

"Why, no! Did I say that you were?" he chuckled.

"No, you didn't.. but I know you Rafe, and I almost always know what your thinking." she paused for a moment, immediately getting the feeling that he definitely had her on this arguement. "Okay, would it make you feel better if I just admitted that I was a pack-rat?

"Maybe.." he grinned mischeviously.

"I can't help it.. I see something I like, and I have to have it!"

"In your case, Alison, that's everything."

"Hey! That wasn't even funny!"

"Acutally, yes, it was."

"No, it wasn't." she stated matter-of-factly. She watched as Rafe tried to control his laughter, and as he was about to open his mouth to say something, she stopped him. "Just shut up, Rafe. There's nothing remotely funny about a girl that's into fashion and beauty products. So, with that said, let's go!" she roughly grabbed his hand, as the two head in the direction of Jack and Livvie's place.



Entering the driveway of Jack and Livvie's new home, Rafe and Alison proceeded towards the doorstep. Alison peeked through the window and saw Jack sitting on the couch, looking as if he were deep in coversation with another person. "Jack's here, I think he's talking to Livvie." she replied, glancing up towards an uncomfortable Rafe. "Don't worry about it, Rafe, if Jack or Livvie start something with you.. you know, you have me on your side."

"It's not that, Alison, I just don't feel comfortable around them because they are your and Jamal's friends. They think that I'm the reason you and Jamal broke up! Tell me, if you were in a similar situation, wouldn't you too, feel uncomfortable?"

"First of all, your NOT responsible for my break-up with Jamal, the two of us just weren't meant to be together. Besides, we're all pass that point. It's history. And secondly, I probably would feel uncomfortable if I were in a similar situation, but that's not the case. If Jack and Livvie want to continue being my friends, then their going to have to accept the fact that Jamal and I are history, and that your my best friend.. and that you'll be around, regardless what they have to say about it."

"Thank you, Alison." he smiled softly. "Your friendship does mean alot to me."

"..And yours too." she returned the smile, reaching for the doorknob. Twisting it gently, she and Rafe entered the house. "Hey Jack-" Alison began, before shortly cutting herself off. Jack looked up with a half smile on his face. He was delighted to see Alison, but seeing Rafe.. no words could describe what he wanted to say to that boy. Rafe and Alison froze in shock as they saw whom Jack had been talking too.. it wasn't Livvie, it was someone whom neither had planned to come across anytime soon. "Jamal!"



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Livvie didn't know why, but once she left her and Jack's place, she quickly found herself at the one place she had vowed to never go to since, well.. since Caleb's death. A death that happened because of her foolishness.. her nieveness.. her obsession. Caleb was dead, and buried-- because of her. And there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it, but feel guilty for having to be the one who killed him.

"I am so, so sorry." she whispered, with tears soon coming to her dark, brown eyes. "I loved you, you know I did. I gave up everything for you; my love, Jack.. my hopes, my dreams.. my family and my life! And still, you kept hurting. You wouldn't stop, you couldn't! You made Eve think she was a bad mother to Danny.. you made Lucy think that she had gotten Christina back; and if my father hadn't brought Julie back to Port Charles, who knows what sort of depression Lucy would be suffering from? And most of all, you almost succeeded in ruining the relationships of everyone. I shudder to think what everyon'e life would be like at this point if Rafe hadn't put his heart and soul into getting everyone back together..." her voice slowly trailed off into the night, as she stared out into the waters with a distant look in her eyes. "As much as I want to say I'm sorry for.. everything, I can't. I'm not sorry for falling in love with you.. for marrying you.. and especially, killing you."

Livvie sat still, just looking distantly out into the water for minutes on. As wet tears dried in place on her porcelin-like skin, more tears fell from the corners of her eyes. Just being at this one, special place brought many memories rushing back for her. From the time she met and fell madly in love with Jack.. this had been the place the two had first made love, and to her, that was the most special of memories. Then there was the time after Jack's motorbike accident, after she thought he had died, she met an most intriguing man.. a man she knew she should stay far away from, but couldn't resist falling for.. a man that would forever change her life. That man was Caleb.

"My god, Caleb, why can't I stop thinking about you?" she wondered aloud. For months, Caleb had been dead.. yet still, Livvie couldn't get him out of her mind. It was almost like, he still held some sort of spell over her. Yet, the more she thought about it, the more she came to the conclusion that it were impossible. Caleb was dead, and he was never coming back. "I can do this, I know.. I can stop thinking about you. All I have to do is devote anything and everything I do to my relationship with Jack. If I just focus on that, I know I can forget about you and what an impact you had on my life, once and for all!" she quickly stood up, prepared to leave when she was caught dead in her tracks by an all-too familiar face.

"Do you actually think that would ever be possable, Olivia?"



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