When Jason got back to his penthouse, he stood outside the door, the key in his hand for a long time. The words his daughter had said to him were echoing in his head, telling him that this wasn't where he needed to be any longer. They needed him there, not here. And well, the only thing for him here was an annoying cuckoo clock and a drippy kitchen faucet.

And Sonny.

Pivoting on his heel, Jason went to his best friend's home and stood in front of his door. He didn't know why, he just wanted to see him. To talk to him. Not bothering to have the guard announce him, Jason just opened the door. "Sonny?" he called.

"Yeah?" the mobster's voice drifted from downstairs. "I'll be down soon."

Jason seated himself on the couch as he waited for his friend. A few minutes later, Sonny came downstairs a towel around his shoulders catching any extra drops from his wet hair. "What's up?"

"Did you just get up?" Jason asked. Concerned, he checked his watch. It was almost noon.

"No. I've been up since five. I just got home, though."

"Oh?" Jason cocked an eyebrow. He didn't want to pry, so he sat there expectantly, just staring at Sonny.

"I went to see Carly." Sonny went to the drink cart and poured himself a glass of water. "I didn't plan it, I just ended up over there."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Sonny sipped his water and turned to study his friend. "And what about you? Those are the same clothes you left in last night."

"I stayed at Elizabeth's."

"Oh."

Jason didn't notice the deflation in Sonny's voice, so he continued talking. "It was…amazing, Sonny. We talked, and I mean we finally talked. About everything. Then, this morning, waking up next to her, then having Abby and Isabelle with us. It was more than I could have ever hoped for."

Sonny turned his back on Jason and sighed in defeat. He had hoped this jealousy would go away once he reminded himself of all Jason had done for him; of how much Jason deserved to be happy. But there it was, eating at him. "I'm leaving town."

"W-what?" Jason's blue eyes looked up sharply, and saw his friend watching him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean just what I said. I'm leaving town. As soon as Alexis has the baby, I'm going to the island."

"Why?"

"There are a million reasons, Jason." Sonny sat down on the couch and crossed his legs. "You really don't need me to spell them out for you."

Jason sat across from him in the chair. "Maybe I do. I…I don't understand, Sonny."

"There's nothing to understand, Jason. There's nothing for me here."

Jason closed his eyes at the pain that squeezed in his heart. "Sonny–"

"I didn't mean that how it came out. You, and Elizabeth, and your family...they're here. But they're your family, Jason, not mine. And it kills me to watch you with them." Sonny looked up, his dark eyes pained. "I've never been jealous of anything in my life, Jason. And I'm afraid I'm not dealing with it very well."

"Jealous?" the younger man echoed. "What do I have that you're jealous of?"

"Everything I've ever wanted." Not able to sit, Sonny stood and began to pace. "The wife, the kids…the family who loves you. Everything I wanted from the time I used to hide in the closet and watch Deke hit my mother. I would promise myself if I ever had a chance like that, I'd never walk away from it."

"You will."

"I'm beginning to wonder," the mobster admitted. He picked up his glass and returned to the wet bar for more water. "The closest chance I really ever had was with Carly. With Michael… the same family you once had. I could have had a real life with Lily, if I could have stayed away from Brenda. And Brenda…" Sonny closed his eyes as he thought of his lost love.

"What can I do?"

"You can let me go." Sonny looked up at his friends and smiled briefly. "Things have been okay here, you know? No one has moved in on the territory. We've managed to keep drugs off the street. We're doing okay. You're doing great with Elizabeth, and you don't need me here. I'm not leaving for permanent, Jason. I just…I need to remember how to breathe again."

"I do need you." Jason's voice was just a whisper as he tried to digest what his friend was telling him.

"I need you too, Jason." Sonny took a step towards Jason, but stopped. "And I always will. In the beginning, you were like a lost kid who needed a father. Now, you are that father to two little girls who adore you. You're a grown up, Jason. You have to make decisions for you, Elizabeth, and your family. You can't put my interests first. Hell, I'm not even sure if my interests even factor into the equation."

"If you're trying to get me to walk away, it won't work." Jason's mouth was set with determination as he stared at his oldest friend. "I won't quit."

"I know," Sonny sighed. "Your loyalty has been unshakable. I'm only saying that you're loyalty lies with someone else, now. It has for awhile."

"She's my wife Sonny!" Jason stood and faced his friend. "And you aren't the type of person to make me choose between the two. This job…it's all I know how to do. It's what I'm good at. But I do have a family. One that I love and want to be with. Elizabeth isn't going to make me choose… Elizabeth understands that this is part of who I am. I thought you did, too."

"I do."

"Then why are you doing this? Why are you walking out?"

"I'll be back," Sonny promised. He sank into the couch, defeated. "You're making this hard."

"I'm supposed to make it easy? I'm supposed to pretend that my best friend didn't just tell me he was leaving town, and he wasn't sure when he'd be back. It's not about the business; you know I can run it. I have before. You've always been there for me, Sonny. Why can't I be there for you now?"

"This isn't a problem you can fix, Jason. You are the problem!" Sonny raged. He stopped, shoved a hand through his wet locks. In a quieter tone, he continued. "I have all of this blackness inside of me, and I have to figure out how to live with it. I hate that I'm doing this…I hate that I hate you, Jason. So please, just let me fix this. I have to fix it for me."

Jason opened his mouth to argue more, but shut it promptly. The clock on the wall chimed, announcing that it was noon. "I'll still be here, when you get back, you know that? Nothing's going to change while you're gone."

"I'm going to change." Sonny said it with enough conviction, as if he was still trying to convince himself. "I have to. Because I can't continue like this, Jason."

"You'll be back? You'll come if I need you?"

"Yes," Sonny said without hesitation.

"When are you going?"

"Alexis has the baby at any time. I want to see her before I go…I want to talk to her. She's important to me. You'll watch out for them?"

"Yeah, I will." Both men stood, staring at the other. There was nothing more to say, nothing left to do.

"I don't like this Sonny, I want you to know that." Jason started towards the door, but stopped just short of it. "I hope you figure out whatever you need because we need you here. And you do have a family."

"I know," Sonny whispered. He closed his eyes and listened as Jason softly pulled the door shut behind him. He sighed when the door opened again, and Jason peeked back in. "Did you forget something?"

"Yeah…can I tell Elizabeth? She'll want to know."

"Yeah, you can. Jason…just make sure you love her all she'll let you. Don't ever walk away from her. Because at the end of the day, she and those girls are all you have."

"Thanks, Sonny." Jason looked up at his friend and sighed inwardly. There were so many things he suddenly wanted to tell him…so many things they always left unsaid. Instead of saying them, he pulled the door closed behind him. They could be left for another day.