Author's note - For all those out there that have a medical background I'm sorry if I didn't make things realistic...truth be told the most I know about human medicine is that I have an alergic reaction to the sun and what they show on ER...I know how animals react to being hit and that is kinda what I am going off of (I've spent more summers as a vet assistant than I care to remember.)Updates are going to be slow in coming with this story and with Aftermath for a while. While I know where this story is headed and may have a slight idea where Aftermath is headed school may not allow time for more than weekly or bi-weekly updates. I'll try my hardest to at least manage a chapter a week. Thank you to all who have been reading this, comments are always appreaciated.

Keys to Happiness - Chapter 2

Jason reached the hospital in record time, having broken every law concerning speed that stood between Harborview Towers and General Hospital. He was more than slightly surprised he didn't have a police escort when he pulled into the hospital's parking lot. As he rushed through the doors towards the Elevator bay, he couldn't help but think of how much he detested hospitals. Especially since Emily had died. Instead of waiting the few minuets for the elevator to reach the ground floor, Jason dashed up the stairs to the floor housing ICU.

The phone call from Monica had demolished the wall he had tried so hard to build between himself and his feelings for Elizabeth. Not that it had been an overly effective wall, it had still hurt. It had hurt to see her seeminly move on with Ric. It had hurt even more to see her get hurt because of Ric. The embolism had scared him in more ways that he could say. While it had hurt to see her go about her daily life without him in it, the thought of never being able to see her again hurt more.

Since Emily's death he had isolated himself, not stopping to consider that there might be other people who had been hit just as hard by her death. He had forgotten that Emily's friends, Nikolas, Lucky, Zander and Elizabeth had loved her too. He vowwed that once Elizabeth was well enough that would change.

In his haste to find out Elizabeth's condition Jason almost collided with Monica and Bobbie. The fear and desperation he was feeling must have been evident in his appearence, for Monica immediatly laid a comforting had on his arm.

"She's alive Jason. She has a concussion, some broken ribs, a broken wrist, a wrenched knee and ankle and some bruising. She had some internal bleeding so we had to operate but she cam through that seemingly fine."

"So, she is going to be ok?"

"Well, hopefully. She isn't out of danger just yet. Because she hasn't regained conciousness since the paramedics brought her in we don't know if she has any nerological damage as a result of the head trama. We won't know until she wakes up and talks to us."

"Can I see her?"

"Of course, she has her own room, it's down this way. Be prepared Jason she looks pretty bad right now."

Jason was emotionaly numb as he followed Monica down the hall. Elizabeth was alive, but they didn't know if she would be okay. Inside he just kept repeating, "she's alive, she'll be ok", over and over again like a broken record. Before losing Emily he had never given a thought to losing anyone, let alone Emily or Elizabeth. Of the three most importent women in his life he had already lost one to death and it looked as if he might lose the other two as well. Emily, Elizabeth and Lila were his only real reason for coming back to Port Charles.

Standing outside the doorway to Elizabeth's room Jason hesitated, did he really have a right to be there? Did he have a right to ask her to fight when he wasn't even fighting for his own life? He might have just stood there and never stepped inside if Monica hadn't stepped up behind him and pushed him inside, before shutting the door.

The gental shove was enough, Jason let his feet carry him across the room to where Elizabeth's small form lay dwarfed by the hospital bed. She was so still it scared Jason, if not for the rhythmic rise and fall fo her chest he would have thought her dead.

Reaching out a shaky hand to snag a chair he drug it as close to the bed as possible. Sinking into the chair Jason took in all of Elizabeth's various bruises, cuts and scrapes. There were far too many marring her delicate porcaline skin. Holding her hand with one hand he reached up with the other to lightly trace the features of a face he held so dear.

Settling himself with his chin on the bed and their joined hands inches from his face Jason started to ramble. He hoped that his voice would help her to find her way back to the world, to him. He talked about Italy, Ireland, pretty much any and every place he had ever been. He told her about the people, about the land and about his impressions of their lives. By midnight he ran out of countries ans started telling her about almost every aspect of his life since the day she had left. He talked about Emily's death, his feelings and his lack of courage to fight for what he wanted in his own life. About 4am he ran out of things to say and instead started crying, telling Elizabeth she had to fight, to find her way back, because without her he was lost. Tears running down both cheeks Jason told every reason he could think of for why she couldn't give up. Exhausted he told her the most importent reason she had to fight, he cared for her too much to ever willingly let her go. On a broken whisper he told her that if she didn't come back to him soon he would follow her to the ends of eternity, because between them there was no such thing as good bye.

At 5 minuets after 6am he got what he wanted. Elizabeth opened her eyes, squeezed his hand right enough to make him flinch and whispered, "Jason?"