Chapter 32
Rae and John's house
Skye sat on the couch, hunched over and crying into a wad of tissues. Rae sat beside her, rubbing her back. Skye sobbed out all the details of what had happened the day before. Rae shook her head in amazement. "You two are so alike, it's scary." Skye blew her nose. "You mean because we both were willing to sacrifice our own happiness to protect our siblings?" Rae smiled ruefully. "Yes, that is certainly a major part of it. But I was thinking more along the lines of you both deliberately sabotaging your relationship." Skye lifted her head and stared incredulously at her mother. "What do you mean, sabotage?" Rae sat back and sighed. "The two of you, as you said, are very protective of your siblings. But there is a such thing as going too far. Was Sonny so convinced you were going to hurt Courtney's feelings that he was willing to break it off with you because of it? And was confronting Courtney right that minute so important that you were also willing to break it off with Sonny? Granted, AJ and Courtney breaking up is a serious and stressful issue for you and Sonny to face as a couple. But for goodness sake, you've weathered bigger storms than that."
Skye frowned, and stood up to pace. "I'm still confused. Just what are you getting at?" Rae stood up and stopped her daughter by taking Skye's hands in hers. "I'm saying that I think the two of you are already very scared about the level of trust you've placed in each other, despite all the obstacles you've overcome to get to this point. I think that maybe the fight between AJ and Courtney spooked the two of you. Subconsciously you both feared that there would always be something coming between you, and it wasn't worth the risk of getting your heart broken yet again." Skye hesitated, as if struck by Rae's theory, then rolled her eyes. "You and your psychobabble, mother. You come up with some really wacky stuff sometimes." Rae looked at her sternly. "Skye, I know you and your self- destructive tendencies. This whole situation reeks of it. But I suppose the reason why you broke up is not as important as coming to terms with the fact that you did. I'm here for you. Always." Skye nodded wordlessly, too exhausted to say anything more. The front door opened and John walked in carrying a paper sack. "The grocery stores were practically cleaned out, but I did manage to find some egg nog. Glad you could make it, Skye." Skye smiled wanly. "I'm glad to be here, John." And she meant it.
Kelly's Diner
Sonny tapped his fingers on the table. Alexis still hadn't responded to his call. Sonny knew that she was going out of town for Christmas with her new significant other, but it had been three days. He didn't need her legal expertise – everything was fine on the business front. What he really wanted was a friend, someone to talk to. He briefly thought about talking to Carly, but knew she would just ream him out for tossing away yet another woman he loved. Not that he wouldn't blame her. He saw Elizabeth come downstairs and go out the door, and he suddenly remembered that Kristina was renting one of the rooms upstairs. Maybe she would know when Alexis was coming back. He climbed the staircase, hoping that she was home. He knocked on her door. The door opened a crack and Kristina's face peered out at him. She looked startled to see him. "S..Sonny. Um…to what do I owe this pleasure?" Sonny cleared his throat. "I was wondering if you knew when Alexis is coming back to town." Kristina paused in thought. "I think her flight comes in later tonight." Sonny noticed she hadn't opened the door further than a crack. He thought he heard sniffing noises. "Do you know specifically what time she is scheduled to arrive?" Kristina looked impatient. "Not off the top of my head, no." Sonny was getting impatient too, and he thought he heard a sob. "Don't you have it written down somewhere?" Kristina sighed. "Yeah, I do. Hold on, I'll go get it." She closed the door on him. Apparently someone was in her room crying, and Kristina was trying to maintain the person's privacy.
Sonny was suddenly struck with the thought that the crying person was Alexis, and that her new male friend had hurt her somehow. He grabbed the door handle and walked into the room. He was surprised to see his sister Courtney sitting on the bed, her face wet and her eyes red and puffy. Kristina glared at him. "Get out of my room! I didn't give you permission to barge in here." Sonny ignored her and closed the door. Courtney glanced up at her brother and sighed heavily. "Its okay, Kristina. He can stay." Sonny went over to the bed and sat down. "What happened? Did AJ come after you? Did he hurt you?" Courtney winced and shook her head. "He hasn't been anywhere near me. He left a message on Christmas Eve saying that he was sorry, and hoped I would forgive him. He also said that he would back off and not approach me unless I wanted him to. I haven't heard from him since." She burst into tears again. "I miss him so much! I know its only been four days, but it feels like an eternity. Christmas was awful. I know I acted like I was fine, but I was dying inside. I should be angry at him, I should never want to see him again. But all I can think about was how much I love him and how happy he made me." She put her face in her hands and sobbed.
Sonny awkwardly put his arm around her heaving shoulders. "Look, I may not be the best person to talk to about forgiveness and second chances. After all, I blew my marriage with Carly because I couldn't trust her not to betray me again. I held Mike at arms length for years because of his abandonment. The list goes on and on. Its always been very difficult for me to see past the hurt to the person who wants desperately to love me. I don't want you to have those same difficulties. It is true that AJ started out using you to get revenge on me. I despised him more than ever for it, and I still don't like him at all. But a lot of things have happened in the past year and I eventually came to realize something very important. AJ loves you. He no longer sees you as my sister, as a pawn. He sees you as the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with. I truly believe that. If you feel that you can forgive him for his past crimes, then I think you should try to salvage your marriage. I want you to be able to succeed where I failed." Courtney looked up after awhile. "I appreciate your advice. And I will think about it." Sonny squeezed her shoulder and stood up. He nodded wordlessly at Kristina. She nodded back, her gaze filled with respect. Sonny left the room.
Sonny's Penthouse
Later that evening, Sonny sat on the sofa, stroking Mocha's fur and thinking about Skye. She had left the cat behind with a note saying that she would fetch him when it was more convenient. A plausible reason, since she couldn't exactly tote the enormous cat tree out the door. But Sonny tried to decipher the real reason she had left her precious pet behind. Had she done it to taunt Sonny with a constant reminder of her former presence? Or had she done it because she didn't want to abandon Sonny completely? He knew that she had moved in with her brother, so she had company. He, however, was utterly alone (if one doesn't count his guards). He sighed. Who knew what her real motivation could be. Skye was such a complex woman that it could be all of the above. There was a knock at the door and Max poked his head in. "Courtney is here to see you." Sonny waved her in, and Mocha shot out of the room. He stood up and hugged his sister. "Are you feeling better?" She shrugged. "Depends on your point of view. I thought about what you said and decided to try and reconcile with AJ. That made me feel better. But then I tried getting ahold of him and couldn't. I finally found out from the Quartermaines that he and Skye flew down to Pine Valley, Pennsylvania earlier today. Apparently they are going to visit some people down there for New Year's Eve. So now I'm going to spend another holiday without him." Her face crumpled.
Sonny led her to the couch as she started crying again. "Why did he have to leave town? Who the heck is in Pine Valley anyway?" Sonny cleared his throat. "Skye's adoptive father lives there. We were supposed to go there for New Years so I could finally meet him. I guess she took AJ with her instead." Courtney looked over at him in anguish. "Oh Sonny! I'm so sorry! Here I am feeling sorry for myself and you have your own breakup to deal with. And its all my fault too. I drove the wedge between you with that lie I told." Sonny shook his head. "Your lie had nothing to do with it. Skye knew that I wasn't the one who told you the truth about AJ. We talked about it and worked it out. The reason we broke up is because family comes first to the both of us. And in this case, our families were once again on opposite sides of the conflict." Courtney stood up and paced. "See, it is my fault. If I hadn't broken up with AJ, you'd still be together. But I'm going to fix it. AJ and I will patch things up, and so will you and Skye." Sonny stood up and shook his head. "It isn't that simple, Courtney." Courtney stopped her pacing. "Yes it is! If family means so much to you and Skye, then the best thing for you to do is get married, and then you will be family. I read somewhere that when two people get married, they leave their family behind and become a family of their own. So then, no matter what happens, you stick together." Sonny stared at her, wanting to believe it could be that easy. Courtney was so idealistic. If she keeps that idealism, maybe her and AJ can actually make it work. He sighed. "Lets concentrate on one thing at a time. You and AJ are already married, so you are the priority. Lets see what we can do to make things right."
Rae and John's house
Skye sat on the couch, hunched over and crying into a wad of tissues. Rae sat beside her, rubbing her back. Skye sobbed out all the details of what had happened the day before. Rae shook her head in amazement. "You two are so alike, it's scary." Skye blew her nose. "You mean because we both were willing to sacrifice our own happiness to protect our siblings?" Rae smiled ruefully. "Yes, that is certainly a major part of it. But I was thinking more along the lines of you both deliberately sabotaging your relationship." Skye lifted her head and stared incredulously at her mother. "What do you mean, sabotage?" Rae sat back and sighed. "The two of you, as you said, are very protective of your siblings. But there is a such thing as going too far. Was Sonny so convinced you were going to hurt Courtney's feelings that he was willing to break it off with you because of it? And was confronting Courtney right that minute so important that you were also willing to break it off with Sonny? Granted, AJ and Courtney breaking up is a serious and stressful issue for you and Sonny to face as a couple. But for goodness sake, you've weathered bigger storms than that."
Skye frowned, and stood up to pace. "I'm still confused. Just what are you getting at?" Rae stood up and stopped her daughter by taking Skye's hands in hers. "I'm saying that I think the two of you are already very scared about the level of trust you've placed in each other, despite all the obstacles you've overcome to get to this point. I think that maybe the fight between AJ and Courtney spooked the two of you. Subconsciously you both feared that there would always be something coming between you, and it wasn't worth the risk of getting your heart broken yet again." Skye hesitated, as if struck by Rae's theory, then rolled her eyes. "You and your psychobabble, mother. You come up with some really wacky stuff sometimes." Rae looked at her sternly. "Skye, I know you and your self- destructive tendencies. This whole situation reeks of it. But I suppose the reason why you broke up is not as important as coming to terms with the fact that you did. I'm here for you. Always." Skye nodded wordlessly, too exhausted to say anything more. The front door opened and John walked in carrying a paper sack. "The grocery stores were practically cleaned out, but I did manage to find some egg nog. Glad you could make it, Skye." Skye smiled wanly. "I'm glad to be here, John." And she meant it.
Kelly's Diner
Sonny tapped his fingers on the table. Alexis still hadn't responded to his call. Sonny knew that she was going out of town for Christmas with her new significant other, but it had been three days. He didn't need her legal expertise – everything was fine on the business front. What he really wanted was a friend, someone to talk to. He briefly thought about talking to Carly, but knew she would just ream him out for tossing away yet another woman he loved. Not that he wouldn't blame her. He saw Elizabeth come downstairs and go out the door, and he suddenly remembered that Kristina was renting one of the rooms upstairs. Maybe she would know when Alexis was coming back. He climbed the staircase, hoping that she was home. He knocked on her door. The door opened a crack and Kristina's face peered out at him. She looked startled to see him. "S..Sonny. Um…to what do I owe this pleasure?" Sonny cleared his throat. "I was wondering if you knew when Alexis is coming back to town." Kristina paused in thought. "I think her flight comes in later tonight." Sonny noticed she hadn't opened the door further than a crack. He thought he heard sniffing noises. "Do you know specifically what time she is scheduled to arrive?" Kristina looked impatient. "Not off the top of my head, no." Sonny was getting impatient too, and he thought he heard a sob. "Don't you have it written down somewhere?" Kristina sighed. "Yeah, I do. Hold on, I'll go get it." She closed the door on him. Apparently someone was in her room crying, and Kristina was trying to maintain the person's privacy.
Sonny was suddenly struck with the thought that the crying person was Alexis, and that her new male friend had hurt her somehow. He grabbed the door handle and walked into the room. He was surprised to see his sister Courtney sitting on the bed, her face wet and her eyes red and puffy. Kristina glared at him. "Get out of my room! I didn't give you permission to barge in here." Sonny ignored her and closed the door. Courtney glanced up at her brother and sighed heavily. "Its okay, Kristina. He can stay." Sonny went over to the bed and sat down. "What happened? Did AJ come after you? Did he hurt you?" Courtney winced and shook her head. "He hasn't been anywhere near me. He left a message on Christmas Eve saying that he was sorry, and hoped I would forgive him. He also said that he would back off and not approach me unless I wanted him to. I haven't heard from him since." She burst into tears again. "I miss him so much! I know its only been four days, but it feels like an eternity. Christmas was awful. I know I acted like I was fine, but I was dying inside. I should be angry at him, I should never want to see him again. But all I can think about was how much I love him and how happy he made me." She put her face in her hands and sobbed.
Sonny awkwardly put his arm around her heaving shoulders. "Look, I may not be the best person to talk to about forgiveness and second chances. After all, I blew my marriage with Carly because I couldn't trust her not to betray me again. I held Mike at arms length for years because of his abandonment. The list goes on and on. Its always been very difficult for me to see past the hurt to the person who wants desperately to love me. I don't want you to have those same difficulties. It is true that AJ started out using you to get revenge on me. I despised him more than ever for it, and I still don't like him at all. But a lot of things have happened in the past year and I eventually came to realize something very important. AJ loves you. He no longer sees you as my sister, as a pawn. He sees you as the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with. I truly believe that. If you feel that you can forgive him for his past crimes, then I think you should try to salvage your marriage. I want you to be able to succeed where I failed." Courtney looked up after awhile. "I appreciate your advice. And I will think about it." Sonny squeezed her shoulder and stood up. He nodded wordlessly at Kristina. She nodded back, her gaze filled with respect. Sonny left the room.
Sonny's Penthouse
Later that evening, Sonny sat on the sofa, stroking Mocha's fur and thinking about Skye. She had left the cat behind with a note saying that she would fetch him when it was more convenient. A plausible reason, since she couldn't exactly tote the enormous cat tree out the door. But Sonny tried to decipher the real reason she had left her precious pet behind. Had she done it to taunt Sonny with a constant reminder of her former presence? Or had she done it because she didn't want to abandon Sonny completely? He knew that she had moved in with her brother, so she had company. He, however, was utterly alone (if one doesn't count his guards). He sighed. Who knew what her real motivation could be. Skye was such a complex woman that it could be all of the above. There was a knock at the door and Max poked his head in. "Courtney is here to see you." Sonny waved her in, and Mocha shot out of the room. He stood up and hugged his sister. "Are you feeling better?" She shrugged. "Depends on your point of view. I thought about what you said and decided to try and reconcile with AJ. That made me feel better. But then I tried getting ahold of him and couldn't. I finally found out from the Quartermaines that he and Skye flew down to Pine Valley, Pennsylvania earlier today. Apparently they are going to visit some people down there for New Year's Eve. So now I'm going to spend another holiday without him." Her face crumpled.
Sonny led her to the couch as she started crying again. "Why did he have to leave town? Who the heck is in Pine Valley anyway?" Sonny cleared his throat. "Skye's adoptive father lives there. We were supposed to go there for New Years so I could finally meet him. I guess she took AJ with her instead." Courtney looked over at him in anguish. "Oh Sonny! I'm so sorry! Here I am feeling sorry for myself and you have your own breakup to deal with. And its all my fault too. I drove the wedge between you with that lie I told." Sonny shook his head. "Your lie had nothing to do with it. Skye knew that I wasn't the one who told you the truth about AJ. We talked about it and worked it out. The reason we broke up is because family comes first to the both of us. And in this case, our families were once again on opposite sides of the conflict." Courtney stood up and paced. "See, it is my fault. If I hadn't broken up with AJ, you'd still be together. But I'm going to fix it. AJ and I will patch things up, and so will you and Skye." Sonny stood up and shook his head. "It isn't that simple, Courtney." Courtney stopped her pacing. "Yes it is! If family means so much to you and Skye, then the best thing for you to do is get married, and then you will be family. I read somewhere that when two people get married, they leave their family behind and become a family of their own. So then, no matter what happens, you stick together." Sonny stared at her, wanting to believe it could be that easy. Courtney was so idealistic. If she keeps that idealism, maybe her and AJ can actually make it work. He sighed. "Lets concentrate on one thing at a time. You and AJ are already married, so you are the priority. Lets see what we can do to make things right."
