"We're...-I'm going to have a...a baby. I'm pregnant," she said watching his reaction. 'Breathe, Alexis, just remember to breathe' she said silently to herself.
Suddenly he got up and hugged tightly. "This is wonderful," he whispered into her hair, his voice thick with emotion.
He pulled back and looked into her eyes with a smile, he held her face in his hands and kissed her.
Alexis was surprised but she let herself melt into the kiss, feeling safe and warm. She wrapped her arms around him and ached for the comfort that his arms provided.
He pulled away and hugged her again. "I can't believe it, we're going to be parents, together. I love you so much," he whispered into her hair.
Alexis wiped her eyes, where tears threatened to fall, this was the worst part, breaking his heart. "Ned," she said slowly, "we can't just stay together for a child."
"Of course not, we'll stay together because we love each other."
"I-I'm not so sure that's a good idea, I was thinking about joint custody."
"Are you crazy? Alexis, I love you, I want to marry you and raise this child...our child... together."
"That's not what I want, not right now, Ned." she moved away from him and started to pace, this was so hard.
"We've grown apart, you don't like my work...my devotion to it anyway...but it's part of my life and I just can't give it up. If we get back together we are going to fight about my working schedule, because I'm going to work up until this baby is born and even afterwards, I'm dropping some clients and hiring some help but I'm still going to work and I know you aren't going to want that, you are going to try to make me drop Sonny and when I don't we are going to fight and I don't need that."
"What about being a single parent? Do you need that? I love you and this baby and we all belong together, as a family."
"Not right now, I--" she was going to say 'love you too' but the words wouldn't come out, "-maybe in a few months or after this baby is born we can try to resolve things and figure out our relationship, but I just…I can't do that right now. You can come with me to all my appointments and everything, I really do want you to be a part of this pregnancy."
"It's because of him, isn't it?" asked Ned angrily.
"Sonny has nothing to do with this, he thought I should tell you and he thought we should work it out."
"I'm not talking about him, I'm talking about that baboon of his, the one you were having dinner with."
Alexis sighed, this was ridiculous, "Johnny is just my bodyguard and this is not about him, why would it be?"
"Well, you think about that," said Ned as he left and slammed the door.
Alexis just stared at the door. It had gone just about as she expected. She sat down on the couch and sighed, laying her back. She was roused by a knock on the door so sighing again she got up and opened it.
"Mr. Cassadine-," said Johnny trying to restrain Stefan.
"Alexis, this is of dire importance, it's about Nikolas," said Stefan as he let himself into the Penthouse.
"Thanks, Johnny, it's all right," said Alexis closing the door.
"Nikolas has decided to go back to the family. He'll listen to you, we must get through to him."
"You have to be joking, I helped Nikolas with the papers to renounce the family-."
"I know this already, but something is not right, we must go talk to him."
"You don't think Helena has done something to him?"
"I don't know but we must get to the bottom of this."
"Stefan…" she said about to tell him no but then she saw the worry on his face. "Okay, I'll get my coat, let's go." Alexis grabbed her coat. On the way out she quickly told Johnny where she was going so he could follow and they went to Nikolas' cottage. When they got there Alexis saw Gia storm out of the house with a box in her arms and she threw it into a car.
"Gia, are you okay?" Alexis asked as Gia spun around with fury in her eyes.
"Oh I'm fine, so much better than I was wasting my time with that stuck up asshole. If I were you I wouldn't waste my time on that damn prince of nothing," she said getting in the car and slamming the door so loud Alexis almost jumped. She and Stefan shared a look and then walked up the stairs. Alexis knocked on the open door and peaked in. He was leaning against a table with his head down. "I'll get some one to take the rest of your things to the hotel," said Nikolas.
"Nikolas, it's me. Are you okay?" she questioned as she walked into the living room.
He looked up and saw her and Stefan and his face twisted in a snarl. "Let me guess, my dear Uncle told you I was going back to the family and you want to save me from my evil grandmother, too late. It's where I belong."
"Nikolas, you know that's not true, is Helena holding something over your head? Is she threatening Lucky to make you go back?"
"There you go again, Alexis!" he said his voice rising as he threw his arms in the air. "You always assume the worst, I don't know why I expect my grandfather's bastard daughter to know any better."
Alexis couldn't help her sharp intake of breath as the words registered in her head. "Nikolas, what did Helena do to you? Did she threaten Gia, is that why Gia left?" she pressed forward.
"NOTHING!" he yelled.
"Nikolas," rang Stefan's strong imposing voice. "You were not raised this way. I command you to stop this insanity at once!"
"Yes, Uncle I wasn't raised this way and I'm worse off for it, you taught me to hate Helena when she did nothing to me, she is my family, I don't need misfits like you two."
Alexis desperately wanted the old Nikolas back so she tried to forget his harsh words and smiled, desperately trying to hold onto the nephew she new . "Nikolas guess what, you are going to have a new cousin in a couple of months, I'm pregnant," she said trying desperately to see the old Nikolas, the one she loved, in his eyes. For a moment she saw the old Nikolas in his eyes but it was quickly replaced with something like annoyance.
"Alexis, Alexis, you yourself was raised a bastard, obviously your offspring will suffer the same fate," he said in a biting cold voice.
For a moment Alexis didn't even realize he had said it, it was something Helena would have said, not Nikolas, he couldn't hurt her like that.
"Maybe some terrible accident will befall you and history will repeat itself and your child will end up being raised with us, in the family."
"Over my dead body." Alexis had to stop herself from crying out at the harsh insensitive words. She ran outside to Stefan's car but she couldn't wait that long, she wanted to leave, now. It was dark outside but she saw Johnny's car parked down the drive and she practically ran to it.
"Please take me home." Were the only words that would leave her mouth. He obeyed wordlessly as a tear made it's way from the corner of her eye. After Stefan had left if either one of them had come back minutes later they would have found Nikolas collapsing on the sofa in sobs.
Suddenly he got up and hugged tightly. "This is wonderful," he whispered into her hair, his voice thick with emotion.
He pulled back and looked into her eyes with a smile, he held her face in his hands and kissed her.
Alexis was surprised but she let herself melt into the kiss, feeling safe and warm. She wrapped her arms around him and ached for the comfort that his arms provided.
He pulled away and hugged her again. "I can't believe it, we're going to be parents, together. I love you so much," he whispered into her hair.
Alexis wiped her eyes, where tears threatened to fall, this was the worst part, breaking his heart. "Ned," she said slowly, "we can't just stay together for a child."
"Of course not, we'll stay together because we love each other."
"I-I'm not so sure that's a good idea, I was thinking about joint custody."
"Are you crazy? Alexis, I love you, I want to marry you and raise this child...our child... together."
"That's not what I want, not right now, Ned." she moved away from him and started to pace, this was so hard.
"We've grown apart, you don't like my work...my devotion to it anyway...but it's part of my life and I just can't give it up. If we get back together we are going to fight about my working schedule, because I'm going to work up until this baby is born and even afterwards, I'm dropping some clients and hiring some help but I'm still going to work and I know you aren't going to want that, you are going to try to make me drop Sonny and when I don't we are going to fight and I don't need that."
"What about being a single parent? Do you need that? I love you and this baby and we all belong together, as a family."
"Not right now, I--" she was going to say 'love you too' but the words wouldn't come out, "-maybe in a few months or after this baby is born we can try to resolve things and figure out our relationship, but I just…I can't do that right now. You can come with me to all my appointments and everything, I really do want you to be a part of this pregnancy."
"It's because of him, isn't it?" asked Ned angrily.
"Sonny has nothing to do with this, he thought I should tell you and he thought we should work it out."
"I'm not talking about him, I'm talking about that baboon of his, the one you were having dinner with."
Alexis sighed, this was ridiculous, "Johnny is just my bodyguard and this is not about him, why would it be?"
"Well, you think about that," said Ned as he left and slammed the door.
Alexis just stared at the door. It had gone just about as she expected. She sat down on the couch and sighed, laying her back. She was roused by a knock on the door so sighing again she got up and opened it.
"Mr. Cassadine-," said Johnny trying to restrain Stefan.
"Alexis, this is of dire importance, it's about Nikolas," said Stefan as he let himself into the Penthouse.
"Thanks, Johnny, it's all right," said Alexis closing the door.
"Nikolas has decided to go back to the family. He'll listen to you, we must get through to him."
"You have to be joking, I helped Nikolas with the papers to renounce the family-."
"I know this already, but something is not right, we must go talk to him."
"You don't think Helena has done something to him?"
"I don't know but we must get to the bottom of this."
"Stefan…" she said about to tell him no but then she saw the worry on his face. "Okay, I'll get my coat, let's go." Alexis grabbed her coat. On the way out she quickly told Johnny where she was going so he could follow and they went to Nikolas' cottage. When they got there Alexis saw Gia storm out of the house with a box in her arms and she threw it into a car.
"Gia, are you okay?" Alexis asked as Gia spun around with fury in her eyes.
"Oh I'm fine, so much better than I was wasting my time with that stuck up asshole. If I were you I wouldn't waste my time on that damn prince of nothing," she said getting in the car and slamming the door so loud Alexis almost jumped. She and Stefan shared a look and then walked up the stairs. Alexis knocked on the open door and peaked in. He was leaning against a table with his head down. "I'll get some one to take the rest of your things to the hotel," said Nikolas.
"Nikolas, it's me. Are you okay?" she questioned as she walked into the living room.
He looked up and saw her and Stefan and his face twisted in a snarl. "Let me guess, my dear Uncle told you I was going back to the family and you want to save me from my evil grandmother, too late. It's where I belong."
"Nikolas, you know that's not true, is Helena holding something over your head? Is she threatening Lucky to make you go back?"
"There you go again, Alexis!" he said his voice rising as he threw his arms in the air. "You always assume the worst, I don't know why I expect my grandfather's bastard daughter to know any better."
Alexis couldn't help her sharp intake of breath as the words registered in her head. "Nikolas, what did Helena do to you? Did she threaten Gia, is that why Gia left?" she pressed forward.
"NOTHING!" he yelled.
"Nikolas," rang Stefan's strong imposing voice. "You were not raised this way. I command you to stop this insanity at once!"
"Yes, Uncle I wasn't raised this way and I'm worse off for it, you taught me to hate Helena when she did nothing to me, she is my family, I don't need misfits like you two."
Alexis desperately wanted the old Nikolas back so she tried to forget his harsh words and smiled, desperately trying to hold onto the nephew she new . "Nikolas guess what, you are going to have a new cousin in a couple of months, I'm pregnant," she said trying desperately to see the old Nikolas, the one she loved, in his eyes. For a moment she saw the old Nikolas in his eyes but it was quickly replaced with something like annoyance.
"Alexis, Alexis, you yourself was raised a bastard, obviously your offspring will suffer the same fate," he said in a biting cold voice.
For a moment Alexis didn't even realize he had said it, it was something Helena would have said, not Nikolas, he couldn't hurt her like that.
"Maybe some terrible accident will befall you and history will repeat itself and your child will end up being raised with us, in the family."
"Over my dead body." Alexis had to stop herself from crying out at the harsh insensitive words. She ran outside to Stefan's car but she couldn't wait that long, she wanted to leave, now. It was dark outside but she saw Johnny's car parked down the drive and she practically ran to it.
"Please take me home." Were the only words that would leave her mouth. He obeyed wordlessly as a tear made it's way from the corner of her eye. After Stefan had left if either one of them had come back minutes later they would have found Nikolas collapsing on the sofa in sobs.