Summary: It's all about perception. Mostly anybody could tell you that, but there were two people who truly knew it: Sam McCall and Jason Morgan. Sam/Jason, folks!
by Sarah Peabody
It's all about perception. Mostly anybody could tell you that, but there were two people who truly knew it: Sam McCall and Jason Morgan. They could tell you, each from their own experiences, how someone's perception can change a situation entirely. For Jason's part, he really did care about Sam, even if Sonny had never been a part of the equation. And for Sam's part, she really did think of Jason as the only person she could trust, maybe even as the only person who truly understood her.
As for Sonny, well, both Jason and Sam knew - no matter how much Jason respected him, or how much Sam loved him - they knew that Sonny would always see what he wanted to see. It didn't matter if someone were telling the truth; all he wanted to hear, know, and feel was his truth. Suffice to say, this fact didn't make matters any easier.
"No matter what you do, Sonny's gonna find out!"
The clicking of shoes could be heard just outside the doorway, and Jason turned around, shock in his eyes as he saw who it was. He should've expected it, really, and he silently admonished himself for not preparing for the inevitable. Sam merely wiped her eyes quickly, and looked to Jason and then Sonny, unsure of what to do, or who to speak to.
"Jason... what're you doing here with Sam?" It was a simple question, and one that should've been quite answerable, except that Jason could already hear the gears in Sonny's head turning. He knew that anything he said could be misconstrued. Sam sacrificed herself to save Jason from the full frontal attack, and spoke.
"We were just talking, Sonny..."
"About what?"
Sam hesitated, and that's when Sonny looked at the table next to the door. She silently cursed herself for leaving around such sensitive materials in such an open place, but then again, it really wasn't her fault; she had been emotionally distraught at the time. Still, she blamed herself, like she did for so many other things. What Sonny found when he looked at the table were the pamphlets about pregnancy, and he did not look pleased, to say the very least.
"What... what's this?" He waited a moment, as if the silence would confirm his suspicions. "Sam...? Jason? What's going on here?"
Jason remained silent, knowing that he should speak up, say that it wasn't what it looked like, even though denying it might only make him seem guilty. Sam didn't know what to think at that moment; she didn't know what Sonny was thinking, but she had an incling of what it might be.
"So, Jason, was she good?" The pure rage building up in Sonny's eyes caused Sam to flinch as she took a step back. "Did you enjoy screwing around behind my back?! Sam?!"
Jason stepped forward to defend himself.
"Sonny, you need to calm down, an-"
"Calm down?! Calm down?!" Sonny picked up the pamphlets, and threw them at Sam. "You! I trusted you, you little slut! And Jason... Jason, how the hell could you do this to me? Some goddamn best friend you are, huh?" Silence permeated the room as Sonny made to leave. "Never again," he fumed with his back to them, "I never want to see either of you ever again. From now on, you're out of my life, for good."
To Sonny, this was the ultimate punishment. This was the only punishment he knew for 'betrayals', imagined or otherwise. To get cut out of his life completely, one must be ashamed. Jason knew this, and hated it, because it was sad, really. After all of his efforts, one day Sonny would be left with nothing.
Two breaths were exhaled at the same moment, as soon as Sonny was out of hearing range. Sam was the first to speak, in a trembling, tear-soaked voice.
"What are we gonna do?"
The question hung there for a moment, and then it was answered. Jason stepped up to Sam, and embraced her small, warm frame. She collapsed into him, sobbing freely. She trusted him, and he understood. He cared about her, and that was what she needed.
"We'll figure it out..."
It's all about perception, because just one wrong perception can change everything; it can alter an entire future. Sonny perceived the situation at it's worst, because that's how he expected things to be. And as for Sam and Jason, well... they may have let him believe what he perceived to be truth, maybe just a little bit.