Morgan Household-
Dillon was the type of young man who was always worried about the people that he cared about. Compared to his mother it was a trait that he wondered where it came from, certainly not from Tracy herself. Perhaps it was inherited from his all-compassionate grandmother. Lila had taught the boy so much in the short few years that they were together. Lessons that Dillon would never forget, that he would try and teach to his own children. They wouldn't have the benefit of having Lila in their lives like he did, but he was going to make sure that, if he had any children, they would be the type of children that would do their great grandmother proud.
But there was only so much worrying a boy like Dillon could do. Even though he cared about so many people and wanted them all to be safe and happy he knew that he didn't have the power to ensure that it happened. Nobody did. The best he could do was be there for them when they needed it. He knew what Damian had been through the day before, and he chose not to push himself onto his friend, but Dillon couldn't lie to himself. There was a part of him that was hurt that his best friend had yet to even seek any sort of help from Dillon. When Lila died, Damian was right there with an open ear. Did he not think that Dillon would do the same thing?
Dillon did realize that his best friend was a private individual. Always willing to help out everyone else, yet forever against seeking out help himself. It was that trait that made him an obvious Corinthos. Sonny and Dillon weren't close, but Sonny had a reputation that was impossible to not be aware of, and even now that Dillon was living only a few feet away he could see just how true that reputation was. Sonny needed to be in control of everything. When that control slipped, so did Sonny's grasp on reality. Nobody ever spoke of it, but Dillon was an observant teenager. One needed to be able to see everything if they were to be a good director. It was a rule.
Despite his vision, Dillon found that making that vision a reality was much harder than he had anticipated. Even with the new equipment that he had at his disposal, even with the storyboards that were plotted out in his head and a few that were actually on pieces of paper in his room, Dillon knew that something was missing. He didn't know what, and that was something that irked him tremendously. Steven Spielberg never had such problems, did he? Then again, Dillon didn't have the millions of underlings that the other directors had. He was young. A fledgling. It all fell onto him to make everything happen. Then and only then would he establish the credit that he needed to make it in the world. Dillon understood the way that the movie world worked, and he wasn't about to fail. His dream was at hand, if he lost it then he didn't deserve anything.
It was with that gusto and burning passion for filmmaking that Dillon was able to silence the inner turmoil that came from trying to help his friend, if only momentarily. An ample distraction was still a distraction, and should Damian walk into the penthouse needing Dillon's help the reluctant Quartermaine heir would not hesitate in giving his friend just that.
Hearing the door open, Dillon stopped looking over the footage that he had recorded the day before, wondering if he had in some way jinxed himself. There were more than a few people who walked into the Morgan penthouse without knocking, something that Jason and Courtney didn't seem to mind. It was a change from the Quartermaine household, complete with people who had to be announced as to their arrival.
Dillon realized that the person that was walking into the house was not his best friend, but rather his cousin. "Late night?"
Jason's blank eyes peered directly into Dillon's soul. The boy was his responsibility now, and while Jason had been rather hesitant to even accept Dillon as a part of his home life in the beginning his mind had long since been changed. Dillon was good for Courtney, good for Damian, and quite possibly good for him as well. "You shouldn't be asking me questions like that, Dillon. You know better."
"You told me when I first came here that you wouldn't give me a job in Sonny's organization." Dillon remembered that altercation very vividly. He was just a young new face in town, looking to do something that would get him out of the shadows of his rich, socialite family. The only member of that family who had ever truly managed to somehow break from being a Quartermaine was Jason himself. So why wouldn't Dillon in turn try and emulate the success of his elder cousin? "At first I wasn't very happy with you about that…"
"Which is why you went and started working for Alcazar."
"Something that actually ended up helping you and Sonny out at the very end, didn't it?"
"You did a good thing when you helped us find Damian and Courtney, Dillon. Nobody, least of all me, is going to tell you that what you did wasn't good, but that doesn't excuse the fact that you were working for a mobster. It turned out in our favor once, but how can any of us be so sure that we'll always be that lucky?" Jason never wanted any of the children to follow in his footsteps. The last thing Jason needed on his conscience was the fact that he had set some sort of foolish example that what he did was 'cool' by the standards of the youth. Damian and Dillon weren't as impressionable as Michael and Morgan, but there was still some sort of impact that could be had because of the examples that he and Sonny set.
"I know, Jason." Dillon nodded his head. "Believe me, I know how much danger I was in…"
"I don't think you do." In fact, Jason was sure that Dillon was completely in the dark at how often his life was put in danger. All it took was one crossed wire and the people that Jason worked against wouldn't have any problem in ending a teenager's life.
"Would you please let me finish what I was going to say?" Dillon said firmly, for once actually attempting to stand up against Jason Morgan, something that he thought he would never have the nerve to do. "I didn't like it then, Jason, when you turned me down, so I went to the nearest available person that fit the bill. It was incredibly stupid and I shouldn't have done it. I should have listened to you and I didn't. You were looking out for me and you didn't have to. You had no reason to even want me to stay alive, but you tried to steer me in a path that would have kept me safe. And for that I'm always going to be grateful, but I don't think I've ever actually thanked you for it."
"You're welcome." Jason was touched by the sincerity in his young cousin's voice. "But you're wrong… I did have a reason for wanting to keep you alive."
"Really? What reason was that? Was it because you could see the potential that I had for greatness?"
"Lila." Whenever Jason said her name there was both a sense of pride and sadness in his voice that he knew he wouldn't be able to hide if he tried. "She cared about you from the moment you were born, Dillon, the same way that she cared about all of us. It would have crushed her to bury you. I couldn't live with myself if I had knowingly caused such pain on her."
"You know what, it's funny… my mom, even my brother, they would always comment about how you abandoned the family and that you weren't ever going to come back. But Lila was different. Even though she might have kept it to herself it was easy to see that she always believed in you, maybe more than she believed in anyone else."
"Jase…"
Jason turned around the moment he recognized Carly's voice. He could tell that there was something wrong. "Carly, what is it? Did something happen to Morgan again?"
"No…" she leaned her head against his body. If anyone even saw it they would not question what it meant. She loved Jason in ways that she would never love any other person, but at the same time Jason was not the person that she was in love with. "Just tell me that everything is going to be okay…"
"You need to tell me what to do so I can fix it, Carly."
"I don't think you can fix it, Jason. I don't know if anyone has that power. Not even you."
Dillon felt the wave of discomfort wash over his body. The bond between Carly and Jason was unspoken of yet completely capable of surviving anything and everything that could have tried to break it. "I'm just going to go into my room and… listen to some music or something."
Upon realizing that Dillon was in the room, Carly backed away instinctively. She hated showing herself at her most vulnerable state around people that she didn't complete trust. She didn't hate Dillon, in fact she was rather fond of him, but that didn't mean that she trusted him in the way that she trusted Jason or Courtney.
Jason was surprised at himself. He'd forgotten that his cousin was in the room as well. It only showed how quick Jason was at forgetting everything around him and focusing only on the person who needed his help. When that person was Carly it was even more awe-inspiring to see how quickly Jason switched modes.
When he heard the door shut he was certain that it was safe to speak, but he lowered the amplitude of his voice just in case Dillon was trying to listen in. "Are you going to tell me what it is that I can't fix so that I can try?"
"You would try… wouldn't you?" Carly said with a soft laugh. That was why she loved Jason as much as she did. He never gave up, especially on her. He had plenty of times where he could have. She'd given him so many chances where it would have been perfectly understandable for Jason to just walk away from Carly and never look back, but even if he tried he would always end up being there for her. That kind of loyalty was something that Carly cherished but knew that she could never hope to emulate herself.
"I always try to help you, Carly. You know that."
"But sometimes you can't…"
"I hate it when I can't."
"So do I…" she lowered her eyes, finding the strength to continue to express her desires and her regrets. It was so hard to keep on doing it. She was already emotionally numb. "I'm trying to find out who my real father is."
Jason had feared that the day would come when Carly would actually get the drive to find the answer to that most obvious question. He knew how irrational she could get, and depending on the motivation that she had for seeking out the answers that she wanted it could have been something very dangerous for everyone involved. Carly's plans had a very high rate of backfiring and putting everyone in danger, even Jason and Carly themselves.
Carly knew what the silence meant. "You don't think I should go look for him, do you?" Of all the people that she wanted to have her back, Jason was the one that she needed the most. Even more than her own mother. Without Jason's support Carly knew that she couldn't do anything. She needed that support. It was what helped her get up in the morning.
"I don't want you to get hurt."
"Why does everyone keep on saying that?" She wondered. "Everyone tells me that I'm going to get hurt. I'm not looking for a relationship, Jason! I just want to know who the man is, maybe have a meal with him, tell him about his grandchildren. That's it. If I see him a few times a year, if he sends the kids a Christmas present, great. If we never see each other again at least I'll know who he is in case I need to find him again."
"You don't believe that any more than I do, and you know it."
"What do you mean?"
"You can keep on telling yourself over and over again that you don't want a relationship with your father, Carly, but deep down you know that you do. Who doesn't? You've never met this man who you are related by blood to. Maybe you're not conscious of it, but in some part of your being you're looking for a man who you can hug, who will tell you that everything is going to be all right, who will say how much he loves you."
"Maybe you're right…" he was right, even if she refused to say so with complete certainty, she knew he was right. Jason was almost always right. One of his best qualities as well as one of his most infuriating was how sure of himself he was. "But the only reason I'm even doing this is in case I need him for something or Michael does…"
"You're letting your mind wander…"
"I'm protecting my children, Jason!" Carly almost shouted. "How can you look at me and tell me that I'm doing something wrong when I have the wellbeing of Michael and Morgan in my head. That's the main reason why I'm going to look for him. Not for me, for them. Are you going to tell me that you wouldn't do the same exact thing if you were Michael and Morgan's parents?"
"You're right…" Jason's voice was soft. Carly's words cut into him. He was Michael's father once, and aside from the time he had spent with Courtney it was the happiest time of his life. "This would help them and if they needed it I would make sure that they got it."
"Jase… I didn't mean… you know how I get when I worry about my sons. I lash out at the nearest person, even when they don't deserve it."
"It's all right, Carly. I understand."
"Can I ask you one last favor?"
"What is it?"
She hugged him as she let her emotions run out of her body. "Just tell me that everything's going to be all right…"