Lucky was heading down the stairs from his apartment above Kelly's when he heard Courtney and Jason speaking. They had kissed; Elizabeth's suspicions were valid.

He could not remember loving her, but he did care about her. The last thing he wanted was for Elizabeth to be hurt. He walked down the stairs into the diner and made his presence known.

Both Jason and Courtney were silenced when they noticed he was there.

"Do you want something?" She asked causally, a moment later.

His eyes met Jason's.

"No. I'm just leaving." He said, and then started walking towards the door.

When he walked outside he saw Elizabeth walking away. He called out to her just as Jason left Kelly's. She turned, met by two sets of eyes.

"Are you okay?" Lucky asked, concerned.

Her eyes focused on Jason, "Just fine."

She then turned and left both men standing there. Courtney came out a minute afterwards.

"Did you ask-" She started as she came out the door.

She instantly noticed that Jason's eyes would not meet hers. His eyes focused on a spot previously vacated by Elizabeth.

"Jason?" She called to get his attention.

Lucky turned, "Are you going to answer her, Morgan?" He asked.

His gaze shifted to Lucky.

"Did you overhear our conversation when you were on the stairs?" He asked, Courtney waiting eagerly by.

"I heard enough." He said, distaste evident in his voice.

He turned and started to walk away but Courtney caught up with him.

"You cannot tell A.J.. Please, it was a mistake." She pleaded.

He turned around to face her. The guilty look on her face similar to that which he had seen on Elizabeth's face when he use to catch her with Jason. He always knew that the attraction was not one-sided in their relationship; he just didn't want to believe it then.

He focused on Jason, "To be loved by Elizabeth is the most wonderful thing in the world. I had it, and I lost it. And for so long I tried to get it back. You have it and you treat her like this? Morgan, do you ever think before you do anything?"

Jason did not have a chance to say anything because Courtney stuck up for him, "You don't even know the whole story . . ."

"I see why the two of you get along so well, you're doing the same thing to A.J. But what's worse is you're married to him. Did your vows mean nothing?"

She said nothing, the guilt suddenly becoming overwhelming. Jason stepped forward in her defense.

"Like you should talk, Lucky. Vows mean nothing to you. You were about to marry someone you didn't love." Jason voiced.

Lucky looked down in shame, realizing he had done something similar.

"The difference is, I did it to protect her."

"Protect her? All you caused her was pain, Lucky." Jason continued.

"But I did not go behind her back with someone else. My heart was not with anyone else." Lucky confessed.

"Until her sister came back." Jason said, remembering a night from long ago, vividly.

**"Don't even tell me to calm down. Okay, just don't!" Elizabeth screamed, furious.

"No, take your best short, rip this thing apart." He said, holding out a canvas in front of him.

"God, how could I be such an idiot? How could I believe Lucky and Sarah of all people? They both lied to me more than once, did I think about that? Did I ever doubt them when they said they wouldn't get together? No. Because I was too busy being a good sister for once in my life. God! God, what is wrong with me?" She asked, pacing the room because she was too angry to stand still.

"You wanted to believe them." He said, knowingly.

"No, I'm just such an idiot."

"No you aren't." He fired back.

"Oh, right. Little Elizabeth, loyal girlfriend, understanding ex- girlfriend. I've done everything right. I've played by every rule, and look where it got me!"

"Why don't I listen to you? Why was I so willing to shut myself down to be with Lucky? I signed my LIFE over to him. I wasted years waiting for Lucky to love me again. And for what? To find him in bed with my sister!"**

Lucky said nothing and stormed off after Elizabeth.

* * * Elizabeth did not want to be found by anyone. She did not want to be saved, or rescued. She just wanted to put everything behind her.

Before she knew it she was in the park, just feet away from where the worst event in her life had taken place. She knew that now that he was out it would always be on the back of her mind, but she had to try and stop herself from letting it consume her life.

She had won. He was off the street, for a period of time, and who knows what he could have done. But by the same token, he was back on the street and a threat to her once again. She was the one that had gotten him put away. What if he wanted to get her back?

She turned to look behind her and saw no one. She sat down on the bench, peeked behind the bush, and satisfied herself with the fact that no one was there.

"Elizabeth?" She heard, someone calling her from far away.

She looked around and finally met the brown eyes of Nikolas Cassidine.

"Hey." She said, half-heartedly.

"What are you doing HERE, alone?" He asked, taking a seat next to her.

"Trying to get more than one vision out of my head." She said.

"Explain."

Despite the fact that Nikolas knew how dangerous Tom was, Elizabeth did not want to lean on him. And to speak to him about Jason was out of the question.

"No, I don't want to talk about it. Anything else."

"Then tell me, why are you here of all places?"

"Do you ever just want to not be found? For a moment just get lost with no worries? Forget about your troubles and conflicts and just live?"

"Of course. Everybody has moments like that."

"Well, right now I would be happy to loose myself somewhere, for a while." She said, exhausted.

"Come live at Windamere for a little while." He offered.

"Are you serious?" She asked, almost laughing.

"Yes, I'm serious."

"You do remember what happened the last time I lived with you, don't you?" She asked.

He sighed.

"I know we're not as close as we use to be, and that is entirely my fault . . ."

"Nikolas, it's not all you. I. . ." She started.

"No, Elizabeth, it is. I want to make that up to you. Let me help." He interrupted.

She turned to look at him, to really look at him. And for the first time in a while she saw the friend she use to have in Nikolas, the old Nikolas. The Nikolas who helped her escape from Tom, the Nikolas who helped her win back Lucky's heart, if only briefly, the Nikolas whom had saved her from herself too many times to count.

She smiled.

"Okay. I'll come over after my shift tonight."

* * * "What if he tells A.J.?" Courtney asked Jason.

"He won't." Jason said, confident.

"How are you so sure?" She asked.

"He only wants to destroy one relationship tonight and it isn't yours. But I'm not sure that Elizabeth will not tell A.J."

"He wants to destroy your relationship with Elizabeth? I thought that was already over?"

"It will be if he talks to her." He said, turning back towards the direction that Elizabeth had left from.

Courtney put a comforting hand on his shoulder. He felt it first and then turned to look at her with his crystal blue eyes. Her eyes met his for a moment and neither person knew just what to say.

Jason broke the silence, "Your married."

She pulled her hand away, the look of guilt appearing on her face.

"I know." She said simply, and for a moment lost herself in his eyes.

A noise startled her and once again she realized what was going on. She turned and walked back inside without giving Jason any explanation, he didn't need on.

His eyes followed her until she was out of sight. He looked down at his cell phone and remembered the call from earlier; the one he thought was Courtney.

When the call came in, he was too worried to look down and see whom it was. Since Courtney had been calling so much recently, he just assumed it was her.

He recognized the number on the phone display. But what he couldn't figure out was why Elizabeth called. She never called unless she was in trouble, and if she had been in serious trouble she would have talked to him when she saw him, wouldn't she? Or was she too upset and forgot for a moment her own problem and just wanted to get away?

He took off in the direction she went and hoped to find her before anything happened. If something occurred, he would blame himself. It was his fault she ran.

* * * After packing up all she would need, Elizabeth went back to Kelly's to cover the late shift. She had called Nikolas ahead of time and he planned on picking her up after her shift.

When she came in, Courtney was busy with a customer so she easily avoided her for the time being. She made her way to the counter, hid her suitcase underneath, and put on her apron.

Courtney came over and went behind the counter for some coffee. Elizabeth ignored her entirely by walking in the kitchen and starting to wash the dirty dishes.

Courtney followed her into the kitchen a moment later.

"I'm sorry. I know that I lied to you before. But kissing him was a mistake, and I promise it won't happen again. It happened when A.J. was away and since then I have felt horrible. And I'm the one that kissed him so don't blame him. He is really concerned about your relationship . . ."

Elizabeth turned towards Courtney and soon enough Courtney was aware of her mistake.

"Lucky didn't tell you?" Courtney asked, unsure.

"You kissed Jason and Lucky knew?" She asked.

"Yes, but like I said it was a mistake and I swear it will never . . ."

Elizabeth knocked the plates she was cleaning into the sink. They broke but it didn't register immediately.

As soon as she realized, "I am such a klutz. You know, sometimes I do stupid things. . ."

She started picking up the pieces of glass off the floor, but stopped to shove some of the pieces in the garbage.

"But never ONCE did I kiss someone by accident. . ."

"I'm sorry." Courtney said, leaning into the sink to help clear the broken dishes.

"I can do this myself, go help the customers." She said.

"No, let me help you. You wouldn't have knocked them down if . . ." Courtney started as she picked up more of the broken dishes.

Elizabeth pulled Courtney's hands out of the sink, "You've done enough."

Elizabeth let her grip on Courtney's hands loosen and Courtney left for the front of the diner, leaving Elizabeth in the back alone.

A moment later, Bobbie ventured in from the front of the diner.

"Thank you so much for covering this shift," She said as she picked up her purse, "I owe you. It's just that Jill called out last minute. . ."

"No problem." Elizabeth said, despondently, as she picked up the remainder of the broken dishes.

Bobbie turned and noticed the broken pieces.

"What happened?" Bobbie asked.

"Courtney had an accident." She said sarcastically as she loaded the last pieces into the trash.

"Well, accidents happen. You just got to pick up the pieces and move on." She said, oblivious to Elizabeth's hidden meaning.

Elizabeth mumbled a reply as she started washing the dishes that had not been broken. Bobbie left without a clue as to what had happened.

As soon as Elizabeth was done the dishes, she noticed that she had cut herself without realizing. The blood was already on her shirtsleeve. She quickly doused the cut in water and pulled out the first aid kit. She found the alcohol and quickly put some on the cut. The cut stung miserably to the point where Elizabeth's eyes started to tear up.

The tears started to fall but she brushed them away just as quickly. She refused to cry, to let her emotions take her over, to appear weak and childish.

The tears were tears of pain, but not for her cut, for her broken heart.

Courtney came in; her plan was to avoid Elizabeth and just get what she had come into the kitchen for. But her eyes instantly went to Elizabeth and the guilt set in heavily.

"Elizabeth . . ." She started, not sure exactly what to say to convince her she was truly sorry.

But Elizabeth was not in the mood to hear anything, especially from Courtney. And the fact that Courtney had walked in on her in a moment of weakness proved to be the catalyst that transformed her pain into anger.

Elizabeth got up, looked Courtney straight in the eyes, and slapped her. Confident with her solution, she wiped her eyes and went out into the diner. Courtney was left standing in the kitchen, shocked.