Title: A Little Respect
Author: Misty Flores
Teaser: Pursuing a relationship with Aiden after discovering Bianca in bed with Babe, Maggie begins to question even her own self worth when she finds herself delving deeper into a baby kidnapping mystery, and an intense love triangle.
PART ELEVEN
Everytime I see you
Oh, I try to hide away
But when we meet
It seems I can't let go
-- Fading Like a Flower, Roxette
Kendall might as well have been wearing a red and white scarf and a beanie - Where's Waldo was easier to find than she was.
Bianca sighed, flipping closed her cellphone as she stepped off the elevator and into the hospital waiting area. Too much of her life was spent in this hospital, and Kendall's recent habit of frequenting it had her coming by more often than she would have liked.
Still, thanks to Pine Valley's utter fondness for tragedy, it had always been a local hotspot. Bianca could always find someone she knew within these white walls, and it would appear today was no exception.
So far, she had run into Babe, David, Krystal, Maria and now, she spotted Anita, standing at the counter, unclipping a pen from her white coat and scribbling something on a clipboard.
Catching her eye, Bianca smiled, waving slightly. The pretty nurse grinned at her, offering a small salute, and Bianca clasped her clutch, weaving around the crowded waiting room to greet her.
"Hey!"
"Hi," Anita said, eyes zipping back down to her clipboard. "Looking for someone?"
"Kendall, actually," Bianca said, scanning the tons of people milling in and out of the hallways and rooms.
"Her, I haven't seen," Anita said apologetically, offering a grim smile. "Though, am I crazy, or is this place the new SOS? Every five minutes, I'm running into someone else." Bianca's grin widened, nodding her assent, ready to agree verbally when Anita caught sight of someone else, behind her. "Case in point," she added, nodding.
Bianca furrowed her brow, caught in mid turn when she heard Maggie's chirp.
"Hi! Bianca!"
Caught offguard, Bianca's smile was half frozen. It must have made her face weird, but Maggie didn't seem to notice. Her friend looked pretty today, darkened hair in wavy layers, falling over her bare shoulders. Maggie loved her halter tops.
Bianca hated the feeling that came now, with Maggie. Maggie used to be her safe place. The one person who would never judge her, who Bianca never to be on her guard. Now, Bianca found herself clutching the counter, heart beating erratically, a nervous swipe of her bangs practically giving her awkwardness away.
"Hey!" She said, accepting Maggie's hug for just a half second, before letting go, and stepping back. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh..." Maggie's eyes rolled upward, shrugging slightly as she smiled her greeting to Anita. "What else? It's almost embarrassing."
"Looking for Aiden?" Anita asked knowingly.
Maggie nodded her assent, blushing slightly. Bianca found the title at her feet utterly fascinating. "He's doing Ryan duty again. Though, it's awesome that he finally woke up, isn't it?"
"Oh, yeah," Bianca said, nodding like a duck. "Totally great."
Maggie smiled at her, and Bianca smiled back, suddenly not knowing how to follow that up. There was a second of silence, until Anita, darling saint that she was, cleared her throat.
"You know, I think I saw him down the hall," she said, pointing down a hallway, toward Pediatrics.
"Oh, okay. Thanks!" Turning to her, Maggie squeezed her forearm. "Good to see you."
"Yeah, you too." It was unfailingly polite, and Bianca sighed as Maggie walked away, collapsing against the counter and pressing a palm to her flushed forehead. Was it really just her that was thinking it was awkward and weird between them?
God.
"Her and Aiden," Anita said, as if remarking on the weather.
Bianca blinked, suddenly remembering the nurse still standing beside her. "Right!" she said, smile flashing on her face. "It's... great, right?"
"They make a very attractive pair," Anita answered diplomatically.
"Yes, yes they do."
"It's really great. He was single, she was single, I suppose it made sense."
"It's... awesome."
They continued nodding at each other, until Bianca, feeling slightly ridiculous, pushed off the counter, ready to say her goodbye and continue her search for Kendall, when Anita frowned, distracted by a paper handed to her by another attending.
"What's up?"
Anita scanned them quickly, mouth curling down deeper. "Why would we get these?"
"Get what?"
Anita's gaze flitted up to Bianca, then back down at the papers. "These are for a Dr. Larry Wolek? I think he works at Llanview. I wonder why they would send this here?"
The name stuck a familiar twinge in her memory. "You know, I think that David is waiting for those?"
Anita glanced up.
"When I got here earlier, he was waiting for some results," Bianca explained. "Those might be it."
Anita considered that, before she sighed, shrugged, and nodding. "Care to walk with me while I deliver? We can catch up."
Kendall was nowhere to be found, and Bianca found herself suddenly eager to see Babe. "Sure."
--
"You want my wife."
It was a conversation he had had more than once with Bobby, a simpering weasel of a man who tried hard to get by on his good looks and charm, a plan Aiden thought might have been hampered by the fact that, in his opinion, Bobby had neither.
He was a lying, cheating scoundrel, of questionable intentions and character, who had somehow had the good luck to have a beautiful wife who for unknown reasons, had decided to stick with the simpering weasel.
Aiden didn't like him very much.
He also saw no reason to play the little wanker's game.
"You're right," he said frankly, "I do." Bobby's look changed considerably, and Aiden only smiled wider, showing glistening white teeth as he counted off Anita's many charms. "Anita's smart. She's funny. She's too gorgeous for words, really. Any man would want your wife." Bobby stared hard at him, and Aiden held his ground.
And suddenly Bobby smiled, eyes suddenly gleaming as his eyes shifted and he no longer looked at Aiden, but behind him.
"Maggie, isn't it?" he said, loud enough to enunciate the name.
FUCK.
Aiden almost didn't want to look. Already, his stomach was sinking low into the pit of his stomach, and his breath had shortened into a small, painful gasp, as he turned and discovered his beautiful girlfriend, staring at him with a horrified, horribly angry expression.
"Maggie..." She glared at him, face suddenly changing from the vulnerable hurt to that wall that Aiden had seen before. She turned, walking away. "MAGGIE!"
He ran fast, catching her elbow and holding on tight, not letting her shake him off.
"No, get off of me," she snapped, eyes on the floor, voice even and cold as ice.
"Maggie, no, you have to let me explain-"
"Explain what!" she snapped, jerking him off, terrific glare freezing him despite her smaller size. "That you're secretly still got the hots for Anita? Thanks, I got that thanks to your spiel on her many charms-"
"Maggie, stop-" He was almost near panic, as she turned away again, and he lunged forward, arms around her body, drawing her into him, holding her tightly as he whispered urgently into her ear, "Yes, I said that - to get at that bastard's goat."
"Please. Tell me you didn't mean it-"
"I meant it," he said quickly, "I meant it, but everything I said about her - you've got in spades, Maggie. That's what you would have heard if it had continued. I would have told that lying, cheating weasel that I already have a girl at home-"
"Just get off of me."
"Maggie, please, a month ago, he would have asked me that question and I would have meant every word, but now-"
"Aiden, I'm warning you-"
Shuddering, she pushed at his arms, ducking under his embrace, moving fast.
It was a curious feeling that coursed through him: real fear. Fear of losing Maggie, fear of losing whatever this was before he had a chance to really take hold of it.
It was the fear the prompted the next, rather stupid, but very honest, reaction.
Striding two large steps, Aiden once again grabbed hold of his girlfriend, jerking her wrist like it was a dance move, twirling her into his embrace and landing a passionate, desperate kiss against her lips.
He held her there, crushingly close, as he plundered her lips, savoring her taste, until he released her lips with a pant, discovering Maggie breathless, chest heaving against his.
The words got away from him.
"Maggie, I think I'm falling in love with you."
--
Really, it was the worst timing ever.
Bianca hadn't expected it. She hadn't prepared herself for it.
As a result, she felt everything - the drop in the pit of her stomach, the complete rip into her heart, the gasp inwards that came with watching Maggie french her boyfriend, a sight she had been fortunate enough not to see since they had started dating.
And, as a finale, Aiden expressed his love and undying devotion to Maggie for them all to hear.
She literally stopped breathing at that.
Bianca swallowed hard, suddenly overwhelmed. Unsure exactly what she was feeling, she suddenly swallowed, murmured a hurried apology to the shell-shocked Anita, and before she quite knew what she was doing, already began walking the other way, hurriedly moving from Maggie and Aiden and the declaration of love.
They were in love. Aiden loved Maggie. Aiden loved Maggie.
The words rang in her mind, constricting her breath, and forcing her to rub at her forehead, try hard to shake the image out of her mentality.
She hadn't been ready for it. She hadn't been prepared.
That was why she felt the simmering rage, the unnatural anger directed at Aiden. The compulsive urge to run back there and pull Maggie out of his arms, drag her away from Aiden and his inappropriate statement.
They had been dating for three weeks. Who loved someone after three weeks!
It was unnatural and stupid, and Aiden was just an overly romantic... fool.
Bianca stumbled, closing her eyes and taking in a sudden breath, filling her air with lungs, trying hard to bring back her careful constructive façade of at least being okay with Maggie and Aiden.
It upset her. Yes. It did. She was aware of that. It was out there. She admitted it to herself.
She had had Maggie to herself for more than a year, and now Bianca was being a selfish jerk because she wanted her best friend back. That was all.
Pure human instinct.
Her palms had formed into fists of their own accord, and when Bianca realized it, she swallowed hard, took in another breath, and released them.
She kept moving, intent on leaving Maggie and Aiden and the confusing emotion behind, and found, to her utter relief, she could hear Babe's excited voice, just around the corner.
Moving fast, she turned into the room, ready to announce herself, when Babe said something that completely floored her.
"It's my son? Oh, my God, Mama! It's true, it's true! Oh, he's my son!"
The words filtered through, struck her, and Bianca stepped further into the room, bewildered and confused.
"Your son? Babe, what are you talking about?"
Horrified stares met her all around.
--
"You love me?"
She repeated the phrase, tone a breathless whisper, heart hammering into a pound against her chest, reducing her defensive wall into absolute mortar.
Maggie tried hard to think, but for some reason, she found she couldn't. She couldn't breathe. She could barely walk.
Aiden, at least, looked just as terrified. He wore an expression that stated clearly that he hadn't expected THAT particular sentence to come rambling out.
"What the HELL am I supposed to do with that!" she burst.
"I don't know-"
"Aiden, we've been going out for three weeks!"
"I know! I know!" He tried to calm her, but unable to quite get her bearings quite yet, Maggie pushed him away, palm pressed against her chest, trying to sort this out. "Maggie, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to freak you out!"
"Hold on!" she held up a palm, keeping him at bay, as she bit her bottom lip, hard. "I just... I'm trying to digest this..."
"Well, you have to admit Maggie, it's been an intense three weeks! I mean - we've talked and cried and laughed and-"
"This isn't a movie, Aiden!" she stammered, heart banging so loudly against her chest she couldn't hear herself think. "And you're not Ethan Hawke! And this isn't Europe!"
That just confused him. "Was that supposed to make sense?"
Maggie shook her head, waving him away. "Okay, I just have to... sit."
"Allright." He led her to a chair, pressing hands on her shoulders, leading her down. "Water? Do you need water?"
"No, no - I just..." Opening her eyes, she discovered Aiden knelt before her, large hands gathered in hers, squeezing hard. He looked terrified.
"Maggie, have I ruined this?"
It was the look that got to her. She found herself able to breathe again. Not well, but at least she wasn't gasping anymore. The urge to panic was sated slightly, and she swallowed down the lump of frightened emotion that threatened to envelop her.
"No," she finally said. "It's just... it's a lot to take And I just..." Black Eyed Peas suddenly began to chant a dingy soundtrack, and for a moment, she was confused, unsure why 'Where is the Love?' was appropriate at all, until the synapses in her brain finally did their job and she remembered she actually had a cellphone. And it was on. And ringing. "I'm going to get my phone!" she said, overly chipper, digging a little too enthusiastically for her phone, pulling it out with a nervous fumble, and making a show of her caller ID. "Look!" she said, nearly flailing with relief, showing the window to Aiden. "It's Jamie! It's important! I'm going to get this!"
"Maggie!"
Planting a distracted kiss on her boyfriend who loved her, Maggie rose out of the chair. "I have to take this call! I'll see you!"
"Maggie, please-"
She was already moving, brushing past Anita, and jerking open the phone.
--
Aiden watched her go, suddenly planted to the floor, as if a block of cement had suddenly been poured and mixed around his boots without his knowledge, watching Maggie's retreating back.
It had been too much, too soon. He knew that.
Wincing, Aiden lowered his head in recrimination.
"She'll come around." It was Anita, mouth creasing in a sympathetic smile, arms wrapped around herself. "She'd be crazy not to. You just scared her, that's all."
Aiden blew out a shaky breath. "I scared myself."
Anita cocked her head, gentle expression soothing. "Give her some time. Let her sort it out."
Sort it out. Sort out why the guy who knew she was getting over a broken heart had just handed his to her to juggle -
Idiot.
Still, he was thankful for Anita's calm reserve, her certainty.
"Thank you," he said sincerely.
--
They had stuttered, stumbled, and then like a cartoon, tried hard to convince her that she had actually heard wrong. Basically, acting like Bianca was a moron.
She wasn't in the mood.
Bianca had a temper - it was rarely showcased, but she had Kane blood, and already, her mind was a fragmented mess. Being treated like an idiot by David, Krystal and Babe was not what she needed at the moment.
After yet another snap at David, Babe had finally gotten the message, pushing both her mother and father out of the room, trying to deal with it herself.
Another ten minutes, and Bianca still hadn't gotten any answers. Instead, she was just getting more and more irritated.
"You're still not telling me anything," she said frankly, watching her friend as Babe turned her back to her, wringing her hands together.
Turning back, Babe's eyes were bright, vivid. "Believe me, Bianca, everything that I'm doing - it's for my child."
Right. "Which one?" she snapped. "Bess or your son?"
"I love Bess more than I ever thought that I could ever love anyone."
Bianca shook her head, trying to shake all this into a coherent explanation. "So everything that you're doing is for her?"
Babe came forward, took her hands in hers earnestly. "For all of us."
Bianca tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "Babe, you're still not making any sense."
Babe let her go, tone off. "I know that Bess is going to end up with the right parent, and I know 100 in my mind who that parent is."
Why the hell was she talking in riddles? Bianca sighed, throwing hands up as she just shrugged. "Well, with the tape that we made in the casino suite, we can pretty much guarantee that that's not going to be J.R."
Babe actually smiled at that. "Chances are better than pretty much. I'm going to see to it that it happens. But, first, I just have to nail the lid down on this."
"This what!" Bianca snapped. "You're not telling me anything!"
"Look, Bianca, I promise you it's all going to make sense and in the end everything's going to be all right."
Bianca found that hard to believe. "And in the meantime?"
Again, her hands were gathered in hers, as Babe fingered her palms, bottom lip bit down daintily. Her friend was obviously struggling.
"You just have to trust me," she whispered finally. Bianca just stared, suddenly unsure, as she realized with a sinking heart, she was actually considering not trusting Babe. Babe must have seen the indecision, because Babe's eyes welled with sudden tears, and she whispered, "Come here." Suddenly Bianca was enveloped in Babe's embrace. Instinctively, she held on to it, breathing in heady warmth and soft scent. "I promise you I'm going to make everything work out for all of us. Can you just go with me on this?"
Pulling back, Bianca studied her, heart warring with her more reasonable head. Babe's emotion caught her, and against her better judgment, she found herself giving in.
"All right," she relented, ignoring Babe's sigh of relief. Squeezing Babe's shoulders tightly, she shook her head, "Just swear to me that if there's anything that I can do you'll let me?"
Babe smiled through a tear-stained face. "I swear."
"Okay," Bianca said after a moment. "And be careful. Don't trust J.R."
"Never."
"Take care of yourself -- and Bess."
"I will."
Another long glance, and Babe hugged her again, brushing a kiss along her cheek before she rushed away from her, leaving Bianca behind.
Her insides were humming with emotion, frustration, anger, and something weirdly like panic.
Bianca pressed her palm against her forehead, tried to focus her thoughts, come up with some answers.
All that came were more questions.
--
"Jamie? Hello?"
"Where the hell are you?"
Maggie turned a corner, heart skipping a beat as she rushed further into the hospital, ignoring the glare from the doctors when they saw the phone.
"The hospital! Geez! Hello, nice to hear from you too, roomie!"
"Did you forget?"
"Forget about what?" she snapped, jerking her head back, making sure her lovesick boyfriend hadn't followed.
"Llanview! We're all here, Dani -Reggie, Lily - you're supposed to be here to help us figure out this Babe thing!"
Right... the Babe rescue thingy. Maggie closed her eyes, shoulders dropping. "Okay, sorry! I got... overwhelmed." Once again, she jerked back to Aiden's direction, clucking her tongue.
"Maggie, I thought I could count on you."
"You can, Stupid! Look - I forgot, I'm sorry - believe me, you have no idea how sorry I am," she muttered. "Just put me on speaker phone and we can do the big Scooby meeting now!"
"Fat lot of good that'll do!" he sniffed. "Look, are you in or not?"
"I'm in!" she said, nodding her head. "But not for her. For you." It was an unnecessary, but relevant detail she felt she had to point out.
"Allright." Satisfied, Jamie's tone had softened significantly. "I'll call you when we're done here."
"Good luck, Inspector Clouseau," she quipped. "Make me proud."
Snapping shut the phone, Maggie took the breather to collapse against the wall, trying to massage the ringing out of her head. Crossing her arms, she tried to focus on the people, anything but remember what had taken place not five minutes ago.
It was how she recognized her best friend, stalking right past her. "Bianca!"
Startled, Bianca almost didn't stop. Only when she turned her head and actually registered Maggie, did Bianca actually make a complete turn.
"Oh, hey, Maggie."
Bianca wore a haunted, frustrated expression, and her movements were jerky, impatient. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out something was wrong.
"What's going on?" she said immediately, coming forward.
Bianca licked her lips, staring hard at Maggie. When Maggie only waited expectantly, her friend gave in. "I just walked in on Babe and David and Krystal talking? Babe said she had a son."
Maggie blinked, trying to understand the statement. "She said she had a son?"
"Yes," Bianca said, nodding emphatically, voice a furious whisper. "And then they tried to convince me that I heard wrong-"
"But that doesn't make any sense."
"I know!" Maggie frowned, arms crossed. "I just tried to call Jamie, see if he could make any sense out of it-"
"Wait, he's in Llanview, I just talked to him," Maggie fumbled for her phone, flipping it open to hit the redial button. "She had a son!"
"I swear, Maggie, that's what she said."
Jamie's voicemail picked up, and Maggie grimaced, shutting it off. "He's not answering now."
"I'm just so confused, Maggie."
Bianca looked severely distressed, and instinctively, Maggie reached for her, catching hold of her hand and squeezing. "Hey, relax, okay? We'll get to the bottom of it!"
"She's hiding something, and she won't tell me, and I'm just worried for her-"
"I know." Maggie smiled supportively, thankful when Bianca squeezed back, tangling her fingers in hers in her desperation. "We'll help. I promise."
Bianca's brown eyes were beautiful and huge and caring, just like her soul. They locked with Maggie's, and it was all it took, for Maggie to smile again, feel the small serenity flood into her heart.
Truthfully, she had missed her best friend.
"God, I must look like a basketcase," Bianca said suddenly, laughing self consciously, letting go of Maggie's hand.
"No," Maggie said immediately. "You just care about your friend. And you care about Bess."
Bianca's returning smile was small, hesitant. "We haven't had a chance to catch up, have we?"
Maggie took in a deep breath, sighing it out with a half hearted shrug. "I guess we've been busy."
Bianca nodded, agreeing silently. "How's Aiden?"
The mention of her boyfriend was still too soon for Maggie's frazzled nerves, and now it was her turn to laugh nervously, eyes closing in frustration as she sank down into a waiting seat, knees weak. "He's... scary."
"Scary?"
"He um..." Bianca stared at her, right beside her, and Maggie found her throat suddenly dry. This was Bianca, and ... Maggie swallowed, and shook herself again, forcing the words out for her best friend. "He told me loved me. About ten minutes ago."
"Wow."
"Yeah," she agreed, bobbing her head automatically. "I think I freaked out." She remembered the scene, her fight or flight syndrome coming back to haunt her. "God, I just... left him there. Ran away like a complete coward... Crap."
"Well... it is a big step, Maggie, and it's... really soon, right?"
"Right!" Maggie opened her eyes, caught her friend's hesitant stare with an emphatic shake of her head. "I mean, right? It's only been three weeks, and before that he knew-"
"Knew what?"
She trailed off, words dying in her throat, suddenly overwhelmed by her fading sentence. He knew about Bianca...
It was a sentiment she wasn't ready to share yet. Her heart still bruised from Bianca's unintended betrayal, and Maggie's work to overcome her foolishly broken heart and still be the friend Bianca deserved was still shaky at best.
"He just... knew I wasn't... ready for... that." Embarrassed, Maggie felt a flush of shame, glancing down at her hands, blowing out her breath raggedly.
"Maggie... it's okay."
"How?" Maggie asked frankly, looking up, meeting Bianca's gaze intently. "Why did I do that? I mean, how is Aiden loving me a bad thing?" Bianca's mouth opened, but she didn't answer, instead did a weird shake of her head. Maggie bit her lip, swallowing moisture back into her mouth.
"Well, if you pursue this..." Bianca finally began.
"What do you mean, if?"
Bianca blinked, and Maggie frowned, staring at her intensely. "Well, I just mean, that... it's really fast, Maggie."
"I know, but... I'm not going to end things with Aiden because he might love me after three weeks. That's... stupid." Bianca looked away. "Aiden might love me," she said again, letting herself get used to the idea, heart warming suddenly, a great contrast to the ache Bianca always presented. "How am I going to turn my back on that? More importantly, why should I?"
She was actually asking. It was a testament to her stupidity, as she presented the question to her best friend, that she was hoping for an answer - something, anything from Bianca that would give her dying hope an ember to begin again.
Deep down, she wanted Bianca to tell her exactly why not -
Maggie felt like a fool when she realized that's what she was waiting for, when her heart sank unexpectedly as Bianca shrugged half heartedly as she broke their stare, and mumbled to her hands, "I can't think of a reason."
It was amazing that after all this, Bianca could still do that to her. Sink her heart into her stomach as if she had shot it out of the sky.
Maggie hid it well though, she had to admit. Smiling ruefully, she let out a short laugh, nodding. "That's that, then."
All comfort and familiarity was gone, and Maggie fidgeted in her chair, suddenly desperate to be away from her best friend and all her consuming emotion. "I better find Aiden. Apologize for freaking out."
"What will you tell him?"
She sighed. "I don't know. I won't lie to him - I'm not sure I love him yet, but..." she trailed off, rolling her shoulders, letting the sentence infer what it would. Rising out of her seat, she kept her hands to herself. "We'll be fine. Look - we'll talk to Jamie," she said, "We'll figure this Babe thing out."
"Maggie..." Bianca looked almost guilty. "You don't have to."
"I want to," she assured her. "Obviously, not a charter member of the Babe fan club, but I'm willing to pay my dues." She smiled painfully. "I'm a heck of fan of the president."
Bianca stared up at her, looking so lost and beautiful and haunted.
Maggie could so easily get lost in that face.
"I gotta go. Find my boyfriend." Thumbing behind her, she forced herself to turn, walk away.
"Maggie."
She closed her eyes, trying hard to suppress the jerk of hope, the stutter of her heart. "Yes?"
Bianca was standing. "Thank you."
Maggie shouldn't have expected anything else. "You're welcome," she said, with a smile. She kept walking, away from Bianca, back to Aiden.
End Chapter
coming soon
Aiden makes Maggie a deal, Bianca and Jamie worry about Babe, and Maggie gets suspicious.