~The Wrong Blonde ~

It's just something you know. (3/5)

I disclaim

~~~

November 27, 2003

They were staring at her, again.

" They're always staring." Maxie muttered as she sat down at the vacant table in the center of Kelley's. Ever since town gossip had leaked her pregnancy to everyone else, they had been staring at her. The gossiping old women and catty girl were always looking at her, whispering about her, and giving her that 'poor girl' smile, all the while thinking she was a tramp.

" Hey Maxie." Lucky stopped by her chair, dropping his overnight bag, and spoke hesitantly, he didn't want to give her false hope to keep pursuing him, but he also couldn't just ignore her while the rest of the diner judged her. " How's it going?"

She took off her coat, and shook out her hair, before granting him a blinding smile." Well, good news for you is that they're not mentioning you as the father anymore, apparently some new guy in town, got out of prison right before I got knocked up, and so all fingers are pointed to him."  " Other then that both my fathers are threatening to disown me if I don't tell them who the father is."

Lucky nodded, and sat down across form her." Can I ask why you won't tell them?"

" Because this is my problem, I was headed this way, before I even saw him, so there's no need to take him down with me." It was the most honest thing Maxie had said in months. She had started telling her family outrageous lies, every time they asked after the first four times she told nothing. She didn't want to bring Sly into this, she never should even bothered him in the first place, he had only been trying to help, and she had to drag him into her screwed up little cycle of self-abuse. He was close to being a doctor, and she knew he would be a really great one, juts as long as she stayed out of his life. " He's better off."

" Shouldn't he get to decide that?"

" No I make the decisions."

" What about his right to know?"

" Look Lucky, I appreciate you being concerned about it and everything, but…." It was hard to explain, but somehow she just knew that Sly would understand. She couldn't imagine him not forgiving her." He would understand."

" How do you know?"

" It's just something you know, he would get what I'm doing."

 Lucky his hand through his hair, and rolled his eyes. For all her act and posturing, he knew that Maxie didn't really understand how the guy would see this. It was like she had completely ignored the trouble Alexis and Carly went through, like she was immune to it." Okay fine, but remember what you felt like not to know you dad." " Happy Thanksgiving."

Maxie watched him walk away, and shook the thoughts form her mind." He's wrong, I would have liked it more if I just never knew Frisco Jones."

~~

" Happy Thanksgiving." Sly said as he opened the door to allow Emily in, he took the small suitcase form her hand, and shut the door." You're traveling light this year, what happen airport loose you other eight bags."

The tall brunet turned and glared at him, and gave a very unladylike gesture with her hand." Bite Me, Eckert." She looks around the small apartment, and notices that it still pretty bare, expect for the furniture she brought him, and the couch he aunt forced on him." Nice décor, you trying to get a coffee table for Christmas."

He threw up his hands in surrender." Please no, I promise I'll get a more stuff."

"  That's all I'm saying." She walked over and gave him a hug." Now pack a bag, we're leaving."

" What? Why?"

" Because we'll be dining in Chicago, with an old friend of ours." Emily dropped own onto he couch, and then quickly stood, when she felt something in her back, she moved, and picked up a small pizza box, and threw it at her stunned ex." You could f cleaned up a bit for me, you know?"

" Why we're not sleeping together so what's the point?"  

" The point is you're an ass." She wiped the crumbs form his couch off her coat, and leveled an annoyed look at him." Hurry, the jet leaves in an hour."

Sly gave a frustrated sigh, and opened his closet, taking out the small overnight bag, before walking over to his bedroom." I don't like it when you get all aggressive."

" That's cause you've become a wimp, now chop chop, and don't bring that ugly shirt, we're might be seen."

Twenty minutes later he was seated in an ELQ limo, on his way to a private airstrip." What's going on?"

" My grandfather wants me to come home for thanksgiving, so he sent the jet, even thought I told him I couldn't, so I'm using to fly to Chicago, and hang out with people I know he'll hate."

" You know I keep thinking what happened to the sweet little e girl, I first had a crush on, you know, what happened to little Emily Bowen?"

" Emily Bowen lost her mind in the House of Quartermaine, it's not like you didn't change either, you use to be confident and a little conceited, now you're one step away from reading self-help books with titles like 'I like me'." Emily watched out the corner of her eye, he was getting worse, ever since his little one night stand, he's was becoming more and more withdrawn and shy. His once infrequent phone calls, were now coming twice a week. She just hoped she and Lucky could pull him out of this funk. " How's your little friend?"

" I haven't heard from her." He plucked her in the shoulder." You gave bad advice."

" NO." Emily punched him, in the forearm." I gave accurate advice for an insecure girl, you're just interested in a psycho, and for that I suggest you call up your cousin Carly, see what her kind likes."

Sly rolled up his sleeve and turned toward her ready to fight." You know of course that I can't let you call one of my family members crazy, with out retribution don't you?"

The car came to a stop, and Emily stuck her tongue at him, before she threw open the door, and took off toward the plane." Got catch me Eckert."

~~

Three hours later

Miles' Bistro, Chicago

Lucky sat at the table and began fidgeting with his tie, he hated wearing one, but Emily laid down the law, and there were just some instances where you didn't argue with her, the subject of Sly was one of them. He wasn't bitter about their closeness, as he had once been, he understood now, how when they thought he died, and their friendship had deepened. Now he was glad for it, he knew for sure that if not for Emily, he never would have seen this depression of Sly's coming on.

" Hello handsome."

He stood, and turned catching his friend in his arms." Quartermaine, you clean up nice." She stepped aside, and then pushed him toward the man standing behind her." Eckert, nice shirt, Em dress you?"

Sly took his cousins hand and gave him a firm hand shake, and nodded sharing a similar grimace with the other man." She the reason, you wearing a tie?"

" You know it."

Emily sat down, and thanked the waited that pushed her chair in, before she snapped her fingers at both men." You know if it wasn't for me, you'd both still be in Port Charles, working on some damn worm farms, so you better just thank your lucky stars that the two of you have me."

Lucky sat down, and gave her his best Spencer smile." You're right, we're eternally grateful for you presence in out life, right Sly?'

" Yup."

" As you should be." She looked at the table and noticed that Lucky's cloth napkin had been pulled and tugged, a sure sign that Lucky was worried about something. Nodding toward the napkin, she asked him." What's wrong?"

" Nothing, I just ran into someone, I couldn't help."

" Anyone we know?" Sly asked as he picked his water glass.

Lucky leaned forward, and nodded." Maxie Jones is pregnant." He heard a struggled gasp, and turned to see Sly hitting his chest." You okay?"

Emily caught the look in her exes' eye, and answered quickly." He's just shocked, I mean come on little Maxie Jones, it's just surprising, I didn't know she was married."

" She's not, and isn't going to get married, no one in towns knows who the father, because she won't tell, I don't even think the guy knows." He looked down, not able to meet his friends eyes." I feel bad, like I was responsible, I mean if I had just told her in no certain terms that I wasn't interested maybe she wouldn't have tried to make me jealous."

Sly put down the glass, as felt his jaw tightened, before he pushed his chair back, and stood." I need some air."

Lucky watched him, go and turned to Emily for answers." What's with him?"

" Nothing I can't handle, get us some appetizers, we'll be back okay." She didn't wait for his response; she just began following Sly's path. She caught him just as he reached the balcony doors. " Hey Eckert, where's the fire."

" Emily, you heard, and you know."

She nodded, and laid her head on his shoulder." Yeah, so Maxie Jones, is your mystery girl, and…"

" Now she's pregnant, and did I mention in love with my cousin."  

"She young, she doesn't know what love is, it's a small crush."

" Bull, you've been talking about Lucky's stalker for years, it was her, the mother of my child is my cousins stalker."

" Sly…" Emily retort was drowned out by the ringing of his cell phone, she knew because she turned heir's off, to avoid the Q's." That's you."

He pulled out the phone ands blanched at the caller id, before meeting Em's eyes." It's Maxie."

" Then I'll just leave you tow alone." She gave him an encouraging smile, and headed back inside.

" Hello?"

" Sly, it's Maxie."

" Hey Maxie, what's up?"

Sly look I need to tell you something, and I'm just going to say it, and then you can hang up okay?"

" Okay."

" I'm pregnant, I found out three months ago, but I was afraid to tell you, and then I just thought you'd be better off, but someone told that you had a right to know, and you do, so I'm telling you." " Sly I'm pregnant with your child." " Sly?"

" Yeah?"

" You didn't hang up."

" Nope, uh… I guess asking you to marry me, would sound stupid huh."

" Yeah, I'm not marrying you just because we got carried away one night, but I appreciate the thought." " It's just one of those things I expected form you."

" What else did you expect?"

" Well, I'm guessing that you holding your tongue to keep form offering me money and child support, and you're probably thinking how you could transfer to be closer to Port Charles right?"

Sly took the phone form his ear; it was almost like she was reading his mind, because that's exactly what he was doing. Trying to figure out how far it was from Columbia to Port Charles, and how to transfer money from his trust in Maxie's name." Well it is my child, what did you think I was going to do, just say 'thanks for the heads up, bye'. I'm not like that Maxie, and I think you know that. You told me I'm about to become a father, I want to be involved."

" NO, that's why I didn't want to tell you, because you'd start wanting things. My fathers would kill you if they knew who you where, you probably be blowing everything you did at Stanford by transferring, and you'd just be know as the guy the got trapped by Bad Old Maxie Jones. " " This is for your own good, Sly, I'm doing what's best for you…"

" What's best for me, or what's best for you and Lucky?"

" Sly, listen to and really hear me. I don't want to hurt you or ruin what you've done with your life, and that's exactly what will happen if you keep trying to be involved, I'm promise that I'm not going to screw this kid up, okay?" " I'm not saying that I'm just not going to let you in, okay, I'll write and call, and send you pictures, but you shouldn't be in this."

" It's my kid. I am in this."

" Sly please trust me on this, please."

She sounded panicked, like Emily did right before she ran away with that fool Zander. It was in that moment that he knew she would run; Maxie was one of the people that go to the ends of the earth to protect a decision they made. " Promise me something, promise me and I'll stay in California."

" What?"

" That'll you call me every week and tell how things, that you'll call me when my child is born, that you will keep in touch with me, like you said you would, and that you won't let my child call anyone but me Dad."

" I swear, to all of it, and you'll be the only father our son ever knows."

Sly felt his heart flutter as the new information, a son; he was going to have a son. " Thank you, you'll call if you need anything?"

" I promise, it's for the best Sly." " I call you later, Happy Thanksgiving."

" Happy Thanksgiving." He heard the dial tone, and shut off his phone. He felt alive, like he had been given the great gift imaginable, like he should celebrate, but he couldn't because he also felt like he just lost everything that ever mattered to him.

*** Someone wrote me asking how Sly had money, (because I called him rich in the last chapter), and it's very simple and an odd little piece of GH history. Here we go, Sly's father Bill was a self made man, he was partners, with Brenda's father Harlan, the both of them made a large amount of money when they hooked up with Tracey to take over ELQ, which they did for a short while. In the end Bill was killed leaving his son, with several millions dollars, and some ELQ stock. That's the story at least according to my mother.