Emily was back in her hometown of Port Charles after an absence of two years. It was summer.
She had been at a rehab clinic in Switzerland for most of that time.
Slowly, painfully, she had finally learned to walk.
At first it had seemed so hopeless. She had called her boyfriend and broken it off with him, unable to continue when she believed she wouldn't walk again, or wouldn't feel anything having sex.
But the paralysis was gone now.
Finally, she had convinced her family to let her just go to PCU. They had all these ambitions for her, but realized it was all too much with what she had been through. So instead of being a junior at a first rate college, she was going to be a freshman at PCU.
AJ came by her bedroom. "Looking out the window," he observed. "Has anything changed?"
"My tree isn't here," she said.
"It was getting too near the house. Something about the roots affecting the plumbing. Michael will be here soon. I'll come up and get you when she brings him."
"She" was Carly, AJ's ex-wife. Emily had been surprised when she first heard of it, because she knew Sonny had adopted Michael. Apparently that had all been undone, and AJ now had regular visitation with Michael. It was really a miracle.
Emily had the feeling that AJ didn't want her to come down and see Carly. He seemed to make a big deal of saying she didn't have to come down, because he would bring Michael up to her.
This began to pique Emily's curiosity. In a few minutes, she sneaked down the stairs and out to the front of the house.
In a little while, a car drove up. Carly got out of the driver's seat. She looked more or less the same. She opened the back door and started to let Michael out.
As Emily approached the car, she saw that Carly had a baby in the back seat, too. A little girl.
"Oh, hi," Carly said. "How are you?"
"Fine," Emily said. "He sure has gotten big."
"Could you take him in, so I don't have to get the baby out?" Carly asked.
"Sure. I guess this is another one of yours?"
"Yes, this is my daughter Ginny. Named for my mother Virginia."
"She's sweet."
"Thank you," Carly said.
AJ came running out.
"Emily, what are you doing?" he said. "Hi pardner," and he picked up Michael. "This is Aunt Emily."
Michael looked at her with big eyes and laid his head on AJ's shoulder.
"Have fun, Michael," Carly said, "Ginny and I will see you when Daddy brings you."
Emily played with Michael and AJ. It was nice having a nephew. She had thought she would have to struggle to see this child, to have to get out and see Carly and Sonny, and that her family wouldn't like that. Instead, Michael was just here.
She got to read Michael's bedtime story. After he was asleep, she went down and found AJ in the living room.
"So now Carly and Sonny have a little girl. That's nice," Emily said.
"No, Emily, why would you think anything having to do with Carly is that simple?"
"I would think you would be happier with her now that she has let you back as Michael's father."
"I'm happier with her."
"She was friendly when she dropped Michael off. Why did she do it? It seems like a miracle."
"She got mad at Sonny once. When she was first expecting Ginny. Then he wanted her back. For some reason she finally saw the light about whether or not a child should have Sonny as a father. So I lucked out and so did Ginny's father."
"Ginny's not Sonny's?"
"No. That's what I mean that nothing's simple with Carly."
"I'll say," Emily said. "So she is with Sonny?"
"Yeah," AJ said. "He's out of town again. Hiding on that island or wherever it is he goes when he has to lay low. She's at her mother's."
"That makes it way easier for you."
"It really does."
Fortunately she did not ask him any more questions.
Emily wanted to look for Zander, but didn't want to discuss that with her family. She went to see Jake, and learned he had moved to the brownstone.
She knocked on the door, shaking.
But when it opened, it was a woman. Emily stared. It was Brenda Barrett.
Brenda recovered first. "Hey," she said. "Emily? How are you?"
"Fine," Emily said simply. "I was looking for Zander."
"He's at work," Brenda said. "Come in."
Emily was immediately stunned to see a little playpen, and baby Ginny in it.
"What's Carly's daughter doing here?"
"Visiting Daddy."
"What?"
"She's Carly's, and Zander's."
Emily's stomach started to sink. She realized she must have expected everything to have stayed the same. At first she had felt lucky Zander was still in town, half expecting to find him gone to where no one knew.
But a thing like this had simply never occurred to her.
Brenda picked Ginny up and went over to the couch.
There were textbooks and spiral notebooks on the coffee table. A three-ring binder.
"Did Zander finally start school?" Emily asked.
"Yep. One whole year behind him. And now we are on summer session."
"We?"
"I'm in college too, believe it or not!"
Emily was silent awhile. She stared at the coffee table. She looked up to see that Ginny was staring at her. When Emily turned to look at Ginny, Ginny's face broke into a smile.
Emily smiled automatically. "She's cute," she said.
"Adorable," Brenda said. "Daddy's girl. See?" She shifted Ginny to her other arm, and looked at her. "Looks just like him."
"I have trouble thinking of Zander and Carly - getting together. I mean, she's so much older than Zander."
"You're too young for a younger man yet," Brenda said. "But someday you might appreciate one."
"I don't know."
As Emily was leaving, she passed Carly and Bobbie's door. She stopped and knocked.
They were both home. She allowed Bobbie to make a fuss over her. Bobbie had not seen her in awhile.
Carly was sitting at the table, reading. It looked like she was reading a textbook.
"Hello," Emily said, slowly, "Are you studying, too?"
"I'm taking interior decorating classes," Carly answered.
"I went to see Zander," Emily said. "Your baby daughter was there. I never thought he'd be the father of your daughter. I'm so amazed."
"So am I," Carly said.
"How?" Emily asked.
"The usual way," Carly answered.
"I know, I mean, I guessed," Emily said. "How though? Were you together, or what?"
"He was my bodyguard for awhile."
"Oh, so it was just -just - just a."
"An affair. And I was reckless. But after you have the baby you can't think of it that way. I wouldn't have it any other way now."
"Oh."
"Can I get you a cup of tea?" Bobbie asked. Emily looked pale.
"Did he tell you his mother came up? Ginny's grandmother," Carly said.
"No, he wasn't there. Just Brenda Barrett."
"I can't believe he did that again!" Carly addressed this complaint to Bobbie.
"Leave it alone, Carly," Bobbie said. "You could use the free time you get when your kids are with their fathers."
"She said he was at work," Emily said.
"I just don't see why he can't bring Ginny down here. It would be so easy. Rather than leave her with that witch."
"The wit-Brenda is fine with the baby," Bobbie said. "I'll drop in for a minute, in a little while."
"Ugggghhh!" Carly fumed. "I can't believe she hasn't moved on to whatever millionaire playboy awaits her! When will she disappear again?"
"She's been here awhile," Bobbie said. "Devil you know is better than the one you don't."
"All right, mother," Carly said. "So how is school, Emily?"
"I haven't gone yet," Emily said.
"You've been in rehab this whole time?'
"Yes."
"That accident really put a halt to your life."
"It did, but it's over now."
"Do you feel back to normal?" Bobbie asked. "Can you walk like you could before?"
"Yes," Emily said. "I can hardly believe it when I remember back to when I first got there."
"That must be scary, not to be able to walk," Carly said.
"Yes."
"I'll be right back, Emily, stay put," Bobbie said.
"I can hardly picture Zander with a baby," Emily said.
"I was worried for awhile, too," Carly said. "But I knew it would work out when he came to my hospital room, and I remember, I said, 'she's over there' and he went over and looked down, and she grabbed his index finger. You know, how newborn babies do? Their hands automatically close back up. And I saw him looking at her and I knew he was a goner, and that little girl would come first with him, over any, any - well, you know, like that bitch upstairs."
"What do you mean, Carly? Sonny's still with you, right?"
"Sonny? Oh, yes. I mean with Zander."
"She's up there studying with Zander? What's that got to do with Zander and Ginny?"
"She's studying, all right. It's what she's studying that's the problem," Carly answered.
"What?"
The door opened. "He's home already," Bobbie said to Carly, "everything's fine."
"I think I have to go," Emily said.