I've dealt with my ghosts and faced all my demons
Finally content with a past I regret
I've found you find strength in your moments of weakness
For once I'm at peace with myself
I've been burdened with blame, trapped in the past for too long
I'm movin' on

After she tucked the picture of her and Emily into her bag, Elizabeth took one last look at her room above Kelly's. A room she'd called home for so long now that it actually felt like one. Looking at the bare walls and furniture, she wondered if she'd ever really lived here at all. Certainly, her studio was more of a 'home' than her room above Kelly's. Besides, she reasoned, she'd stayed in Lucky's room much more in the last year than her own.

The calendar on her wall read February 21. Elizabeth closed her eyes briefly as she touched the necklace she always wore. She wondered if she'd always miss him this much. In the necklace was the only piece of the Italian glass she could salvage from the Valentine's Day gift Jason had given her. A gift she'd broken because of her anger and her refusal to accept that there was something wrong with Lucky.

"Hard to believe it's been a year, Elizabeth," she said to the empty room.

While she'd been on Sonny's island, she'd hoped Jason would come to her. She'd hoped she'd have a chance to make it right, but he never did. Then again, when she was in the hospital, fighting for her life, she thought maybe he'd come. But, he didn't come home when Emily was in her accident, and Elizabeth knew his feelings for her didn't compare to what he felt for his younger sister. When she'd visited Emily last month, the younger woman told her he was fine. That'd he'd been there until Elizabeth had called, then he promised to return after Elizabeth was gone.

The pain on Emily's face while she told her what Jason said had nearly killed Elizabeth. But it didn't compare to the pain she felt in her heart at that moment. It was then that she began to realize exactly how much she'd given up for Lucky Spencer.

But no more.

No, she was moving on.

I've dealt with my ghosts and faced all my demons
Finally content with a past I regret
I've found you find strength in your moments of weakness
For once I'm at peace with myself
I've been burdened with blame, trapped in the past for too long
I'm movin' on

Lucky took the stairs at Kelly's two at a time. Elizabeth had been discharged from the hospital, but he'd only just found it. It was Sarah who had told him, not Elizabeth. Which was curious to him. But what bothered him the most were the roses he'd brought her. She'd left them in the hospital room. As soon as he'd found Sarah, he'd grabbed the roses and took off for Kelly's.

Stopping in front of her room, he listened for any kind of movement coming from inside. But there was nothing. Hesitantly, Lucky reached for the door knob and when it turned, he knew she was in there.

"Elizabeth," he said even as he opened the door. The sight that greeted him was something he'd never be ready for.

"Lucky," Elizabeth answered him. There was no emotion in her voice.

"What's going on?" he asked. He looked around, the walls were bare, and the bed didn't have any covering. It didn't look like anyone lived there. And then he saw the suitcases packed up beside the chair and a letter lying on top of them. On the envelope it said Lucky. "It looks like you were robbed, Elizabeth. Where's your stuff?"

"In storage. Sonny's gonna send them to me when I get where I'm going."

"I didn't realize we were leaving, Elizabeth. I don't understand, Port Charles is our home."

"No," she disagreed. "Port Charles will always be your home and I'll always have a fond place for it in my heart, but it's not home. I'm not sure that I have a home."

"What do you mean?" Lucky dropped the roses he'd brought from the hospital in the chair and sat down on her bed. "I don't like this, Elizabeth."

She turned to face him, not really sure what she was supposed to say. How do you tell the person you've loved all of your life that you don't love them anymore? How do you tell them you haven't been in love with them in a long time.

"I mean what I said, Lucky. I'm moving out. I'm moving on, away from Port Charles. Away from this life." Away from you, she thought, but didn't say it.

"Port Charles? This life?" he questioned. "Why does it sound like you're leaving forever?"

"Because I am."

"We love each other, Elizabeth! You can't leave me!"

"No," she corrected him, "I loved the boy that you were. I don't think I'm in love with who you are now."

"I'm the same person," he argued. He grabbed her right hand and held the ring up so it reflected the light. "I'm the same person who put this ring on your finger, Elizabeth."

"No, you're not. The boy who put that ring on my finger was young and sweet. He would have never made me give up a friend. But the man you are? You didn't think twice about it. I love you Lucky, I love who you were. But no, I'm not in love with you. And you're not in love with me either."

"So that's what this is about, huh? Jason?" His voice rose, but he didn't care. "What'd he come riding back into town on his motorcycle, Elizabeth? Start whispering things in your ear, telling you how you should be your own person and all that."

"That's not how it happened. You don't under–"

"What I understand," he cut in, "is that you'd rather be Jason Morgan's whore instead of my wife. I understand that, Elizabeth."

"I've never been anyone's whore." Her voice was like ice as she fought to hold onto her temper. "I'll never be anyone's whore. And you were the person who didn't love me, Lucky. You didn't love me enough."

"And you didn't love me at all," he retorted coldly. There was a voice in his head screaming at him that she was right. But the rejection and the hurt was too much to handle. All Lucky wanted to do was lash out. He wanted to hurt her like she'd hurt him. "It's always been Jason, hasn't it, Elizabeth? Did you laugh at me while you fucked him?"

Her fist connected with his face before she had a chance to think about it. All she knew was that she'd never hated anyone more in her life. Not even Tom Baker. "Get out."

"Oh, the truth hurts, doesn't it?" His hand reached up to touch where she'd hit him. Damn, Elizabeth had quite a right cross. He absently wondered where she'd learned to hit like that.

"I never want to see you again, Lucas Lorenzo Spencer." Elizabeth picked the envelope up and shoved it and him towards the door. "Read this if you want to know the real reasons why I'm leaving. I'm sorry it turned out this way, Lucky. But please, get help."

And then she slammed the door in his face.

I've lived in this place and I know all the faces
Each one is different but they're always the same
They mean no harm but it's time that I face it
They'll never allow me to change
But I never dreamed home would end up where I don't belong
I'm movin' on

Elizabeth looked around the boxcar as she took each of the items in the shoe box and dropped them onto the fire. It was pictures of her and Lucky, her and Nikolas. But it wasn't really her, because she was happy then. The smile on her face wasn't the fake look she'd gotten so good at. In fact, she knew of only two people who could see through that smile. Sonny and…well, it hurt too much to think about the other person. Reaching up, she rubbed the smooth glass again and allowed herself one thought. And she chose to focus on where he was right now.

"Probably with Emily," she said to herself.

"Who's with Emily?" a voice behind her asked.

Elizabeth spun around on her heal and smiled when she saw the older, alleged mobster standing there. "Jason," she said quietly. Much to her surprise, it didn't hurt when she said his name this time.

"You're probably right," he agreed with her. "I didn't think you ever thought about him anymore."

"Every day," she answered honestly. "How's Courtney?"

"Very appreciative of you," Sonny told her. "I know how much it hurt you to tell the truth about Gia driving, but I really do appreciate it. I can never tell you how much my sister and I appreciate it."

"All I did was tell the truth Sonny. I once had a friend who taught me that it was important to tell the truth no matter what."

Sonny came closer to the boxcar and sat down on the edge. He patted the seat next to him and Elizabeth sat down. Sonny slung an arm loosely around her shoulder and hugged her. "I wasn't a very good friend to him the last time he was in town. I haven't been a very good friend to him in a long time, Elizabeth. But I know without a doubt that when I call, he'll come. You should know that too."

"I don't have the right, Sonny. I walked away from him and I'm haunted with the look of disappointment he wore that afternoon. He'll never forgive me."

"He already has, Elizabeth. Do you think I would have helped you fake your death had Jason not known about it? Jason and I don't keep secrets from each other, Elizabeth. That's not the way it works." Sonny turned so that he could see her eyes. In them he saw all the reasons his best friend loved the young woman. "Jason cares about you and once Jason cares, it's forever. You can't mess up so bad that he'll cut you out of his life. Elizabeth, I slept with the woman he thought he was in love with–"

"But that turned out for the best," she cut in. "Jason didn't love Carly. And it hurt him, I know. But…but, he forgave you, Sonny. And Carly too."

"How do you do that?" he asked. "Every time your name comes out of Carly's mouth, it's usually an insult. But you can still speak somewhat highly of her, no matter what she says about you."

"You and Jason see something in her. There has to be something good there."

Sonny nodded, not really wanting to talk about his wife. "So what now?"

"I broke up with Lucky."

"I know," he told her. "I was at Kelly's, looking for you. So I ask again, what now?"

"I'm leaving."

Sonny reached into his breast pocket and began to pull the bills from a gold clip. "Take this."

"No, no." Elizabeth shook her head, pushing the bills back at him. "I don't want your money. I can make it on my own."

"Consider it a loan," he insisted. Sonny folded the bills into her hand and refused to take them back. "You have my number?" When Elizabeth nodded, he said, "Call me if you need anything."

Elizabeth slid off the boxcar and Sonny stood next to her. She hugged the man who'd treated her like family more often than her own family did. "I'll miss you, Sonny."

"I'll miss you too, kiddo."

"Goodbye."

"No," he whispered into her hair. Sonny pulled back and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Not goodbye. I'll see you later, Elizabeth."

Her eyes filled and Elizabeth didn't trust herself to speak. She wondered if Jason had told Sonny about their goodbyes. Shifting her backpack on her shoulder, Elizabeth turned and walked away.

Sonny watched as she walked before he took out his cell phone and hit the first memory button. The phone rang three times before Jason answered.

I'm movin' on
At last I can see life has been patiently waiting for me
And I know there's no guarantee's, but I'm not alone
There comes a time in everyone's life
When all you can see are the years passing by
And I have made up my mind that those days are gone

The nurse in Emily's room glared at him when his cell phone rang. Emily had made up some lie about why he always had to have it on him to appease the hospital staff. Jason had stood by and grinned as he watched his baby sister weave her web.

"Answer it," she told him, "it might be important."

Jason nodded. Leaving her bedside, Jason stepped into the hall. "Hello?"

She's leaving town.

"What're you talking about Sonny? Carly? Is Carly leaving town?" In his heart, Jason knew it was Elizabeth Sonny was talking about.

Elizabeth. Elizabeth is leaving town, Jason.

"And you want me to do what?" he asked angrily. He'd told Sonny to not tell him about her. "You want me to leave Emily so I can see what's up with Elizabeth? So I can listen to her cry how much Lucky doesn't love her anymore? I don't think so."

She broke up with Lucky.

His heart soared. That was the only way to describe it. She was…free. She'd finally chosen herself. "And that means what to me?"

You love her.

It was a statement, not a question. But Jason still treated it like one. "I care a lot about her, but Elizabeth made it clear she doesn't want me in her life. Time after time she told me she didn't want to see me anymore. I'm not stupid, Sonny."

Don't let pride stand in the way of your heart, Jason. You'll never know what you're missing out on. She's heading back to Colorado for a little while to visit with her brother. Her bus is arriving in Denver at seven o'clock Saturday morning. You need to make a decision.

And then Sonny was gone. Jason pushed the 'end' button and stared at his phone for the longest time. Once again, Jason had a decision to make, and Elizabeth Webber was at the heart of it.

I sold what I could and packed what I couldn't
Stopped to fill up on my way out of town
I've loved like I should but lived like I shouldn't
I had to lose everything to find out
Maybe forgiveness will find me somewhere down this road
I'm movin' on

Elizabeth stepped off the bus in Chicago and went to where the driver was unloading their luggage. After she grabbed the one large suitcase she'd brought with her and shifted her backpack on her shoulder, she turned towards the building the bus station was housed in. She had a two hour wait until the next bus came, so she headed for the travel shop. Hoping to grab some travel maps and books, she wanted to settle in and read about all the places she hoped to see.

She broke out into a wide smile when she saw a book about Italy. It was sitting alone, out of place. And she knew instinctively that it didn't belong there. The other books were about the United States and cities within. Grabbing it and a few crossword books, she headed to the checkout counter. When the cashier scanned the book the computer screen read Not Found.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but I can't sale you this book."

"What?" Elizabeth asked. She reached for the book even as the woman started to put it under her station. Elizabeth reached into her bag and pulled out one of the fifties Sonny had given her. "Please, I'll give you this for it."

The young girl eyed the fifty in the woman's hand and began to slide the book towards her.

The man behind the girl put a hundred dollar bill on the counter. "I want that book."

The hair on the back of Elizabeth's neck stood up as she recognized the voice. She looked down at the hand and instantly recognized the large, calloused hands. Hands she'd held and hands that'd held her.

The cashier looked up at the blue-eyed man and smiled shyly. She'd never seen anyone more handsome in her life. Taking the hundred dollar bill, she shoved the book into a bag. "Will there be anything else for you, sir?"

"I came to find the woman I love," Jason said calmly. "She's about this tall," he motioned with his hand to just below his chin, "and has brown, curly hair. She has eyes so blue I get lost in them every time I look into them. Her skin is like alabaster and she's…" he searched for the appropriate word, "perfect. Have you seen her?"

Before the cashier could answer, Elizabeth turned around to face him. "How'd you find me?"

Jason lifted a hand to her cheek and smiled. "I followed my heart. And Sonny traced your bus route. He called me."

"Can we talk?" Elizabeth asked. She was aware that the people in line were staring at her and she thought she saw the cashier smile widely. "My bus is leaving in about two hours."

"Well then," he said smoothly, "I have exactly one hour, forty three minutes, and twenty seven seconds, to convince you to come with me." He smiled at her again as he took her hand. "So what're you doing in Chicago anyway?"

"Well, you see…I'm movin' on."

I'm movin' on
I'm movin' on

Song Credit: I'm Movin' On by Rascal Flatts