Chapter 18

Alexis had had it with the Miss Davis stuff. She looked down at Michael as he sat beside her.

"Okay, but first can I ask you to do something for me? Can you please call me by my first name? I would really like to be your friend and it would be awful funny if we went around calling each other Miss Davis and Mr. Corinthos all the time, wouldn't it?"

She was rewarded with a laugh from the child.

"Yea, okay, Alexis,"

"Great. Now, where were we? Oh yea. My mother's favorite flower was the gardenia and all of these flowers you see around you are gardenias. And the last time I saw my mother before she died was on a warm day just like today. She decided to take me to the park for a picnic, just like we are doing today. When I saw what you and your dad did up here, it brought the memory of my mother back to me. You see, I miss my mother every day of my life and you helped me today by helping me to remember her. You gave me a very special gift and it's not even my birthday. It's yours. A little boy has to be very special to be able to do that for someone he hasn't known very long. So, can I tell you thank you from the bottom of my heart?"

Michael was struggling with a thought that had come into his head and somehow he knew he could only talk to Alexis about it.

"Alexis, why couldn't my mother love me like your mother loved you?"

Alexis' heart broke at the pain in his small voice.

"Michael, moms make mistakes. They sometimes get lost and have trouble finding their way back to little boys who love them and need them. Your mom needs help right now. And as much as you would like to help her yourself, right now there's nothing you can do. Little boy's shouldn't have to tend to the problems of grown-ups. They have enough to do just making sure each day is filled with enough fun and laughter that it spills over into the next day. Your mom will come back to you some day and she will be well. For now, you just concentrate on you and fill today with as much happiness as you can. The rest will take care of itself. And always remember, your dad loves you and will never leave you. If you have a problem, talk to him about it, he'll understand. Okay?"

Alexis waited for a reaction from the precious child that sat beside her. And was overjoyed as she felt a small tiny hand sneak its way into hers.

"There's something else though, Michael." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small embossed card and handed it to him. He looked at it and then looked up at her waiting for an explanation.

"Michael, this is a very special phone number. It's my home number. Every time I meet a very special little boy who becomes my friend I give him a card just like this. It has my name on it right above my number. If you ever get into trouble, or get frightened about something... and your dad or Johnny isn't around to help, you can call me. I'll come to you as quickly as I can. Is that ok with you?"

Alexis watched as the child held the card reverently in his hands and looked up at her as if she had just given him the world. As he hung onto the card he slowly stood beside her and wrapped his tiny arms around her neck. She felt a shudder run through his tiny body as she help him close. She rocked him gently for a few minutes as he released the pent up tears he had been afraid to let his dad see. He was just a little boy who needed the love of his mother. And he secretly, moved his mother to a place in his heart where he could handle her and looked to the woman who held him now as a substitute until his own mom could come back to him.

Sonny and Johnny witnessed the whole scene and stood together with their arms across each others shoulder as they watched this amazing woman soothe the fears of a little boy. As they slowly watched the two get up and head back their way, they jumped guiltily and tried to hide the fact that they had been very moved by what they saw.

Alexis met Sonny's eyes with her own and she knew he overheard her with Michael and she almost didn't make it back to him. Her knees began shaking at the bare emotions of the man. She knew what it was costing him to not let his son see the tears that threatened to engulf him. He clearly had not known how much his son was hiding from him. He didn't know how much his son was hurting. It took this woman to open his son's heart just enough to see that the feelings that were frightening him were okay. Sonny would make it his business to see that his little boy felt secure, but more than that, he wanted his son to know that no matter what, he would be there for him. Sonny closed the distance between himself and the love of his life and wrapped his arms around her.

"Thank you, Alexis. Thank you for helping my son." He quickly let go because if he held her any longer he would not have been able to control his emotions and he was getting a little tired of his lack of control lately.

"Okay, everybody. How about we have a picnic?"

They were all laughing and having a good time. So far it had been a good day. Alexis was sitting off to the side a few steps away from Johnny who was talking to Sonny about who knew what. She noticed Michael shyly step closer to her. She could see that he wanted to ask her a question.

"Hey, little guy. What's up?"

"What if I lose it?"

"Lose what, sweetheart?" It suddenly dawned on her what he was talking about. But before she could answer she felt Johnny sit down beside her.

Johnny reached behind him and took his wallet out of his pocket. He overheard Michael's question. Johnny pulled his card out of his pocket and showed it to Michael.

Michael's eyes widened as he saw what Johnny held in his hand. He couldn't believe it. He reached into his own pocket and pulled his card out to make sure they were the same.

He looked up at Johnny. "You got one too?" he asked in amazement.

"Yes I do, Michael. And you just remember one thing, if you ever need your card and you can't get to it, you can always use mine."

Johnny had just provided Michael with a bridge to Alexis. Johnny had always been in his life and as far as his little mind could comprehend always would be. Johnny would help him get to Alexis if he ever needed her.

Michael shoved his card back into his pocket and trotted off. Finally completely secure with those around him.

Alexis again was having trouble with her water works and threw up her hands in complete frustration. "You guys are killing me. Am I going to have to strap a box of tissue to my waist from now on around you two?"

Sonny stepped closer and laid his hand on Johnny's shoulder. "Thanks, man." It was all he could give Johnny and Johnny didn't want any more than that.

Sonny looked at his watch knowing that Alexis needed to have some time to herself to prepare for what lay ahead of her. He turned and called Michael back to him.

"Son, I believe you and I have somewhere to be this afternoon."

Michael didn't know what Sonny was referring to and he really didn't want to leave the roof. He was having too much fun. His little heart hadn't felt this free in a long time and he was enjoying himself.

"Well, Michael, I could call the launch Skipper and cancel our boat ride if you want." Sonny was ready, he knew Michael was about to launch himself into his dads arms. "Yippee. See ya later guys. Come on dad."

Sonny looked at Alexis before turning to go. "Call me just as soon as it's over." Without taking his eyes from Alexis he turned his words toward Johnny. "Johnny, she's my life take care of her."

"Right boss." Johnny had no intention of doing anything else, but he knew Sonny needed to say the words anyway.