Chapter 6: The Worst Day Since Yesterday
Characters:
Rachel Janacek (Sam and Sonny)- 23
Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17
Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16
Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16
Katie Morgan (Sam and John; raised by Jason)- 14
Selena Morgan (Stella and Tyler; adopted by Sam and Jason)- 4
Morgan Corinthos (Carly and Sonny)- 29
Josslyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 22
Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 17
Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16
Jacelyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 14
Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17
Christian Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17
Lukas Spencer (Maxie and Lucky)- 16
Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15
Ava Zacchara (Maxie; adopted by Johnny)- 14
Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17
Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16
Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14
Izzie Zacchara (Claudia)- 23
Clay Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 22
Zack Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 17
Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16
Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16
Brenna Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 15
Lindsey Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 23
Nate Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 17
Noah Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 16
Spencer Cassadine (Nikolas and Courtney)- 28
Aiden Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 22
Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17
Aubrey Crowell (Nadine and Nikolas)- 16
Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15
Colton Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 14
Wes Janacek (Kristina and Kiefer)- 16
Haley Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 16
Logan Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15
Livvie Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15
Molly Lansing Webber (Ric and Alexis)- 28
Addie Lansing (Ric and Elizabeth)- 16
Cameron Webber (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 29
Jake Spencer (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 24
Brendan Webber (Elizabeth)- 17
Stella Hunter (Elizabeth and Matt)- 16
Alec Barrett (Brenda and Aleksander)- 23
Ashlyn Falconeri (Lulu and Dante)- 15
Lila Rae Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 28
Jamie Quartermaine (Dillon and Georgie)- 17
Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16
Julian Quartermaine (AJ)- 15
Grace Quartermaine (Skye)- 14
Tyler Drake (Lisa and Patrick)- 17
Ian Niles (Lisa)- 14
Carrie Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 15
Ryan Rosco (Faith)- 17
Dominic Rosco (Faith)- 14
Prue Webber (Molly and Cam)- 0
Henry Spencer (Lindsey and Jake)- 0
Sophia Janacek (Rachel and Kiefer)- 4
Kailey Franco (Franco)- 16
Reed Worth (Maggie)- 16
Rhiannon Deusa- 16
Lauren Grayson- 16
Brianna Edwards- 17
Deceased:
Bella Jacks (Jax and Brenda)- 15
Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15
Jazzie Corinthos (Sonny and Kate)- 14
Lola Zacchara (Claudia and Nikolas)- 14
Ben Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 15
Liam Drake (Elizabeth and Patrick)- 15
Matt Zacchara (Lulu and Johnny)- 17
Joey Falconeri (Dante and Brenda)- 17
Trevor Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 16
Taylor Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 14
Parker Ruiz (Manny)- 16
Corey Spinelli (Spinelli)- 15
Bailey Spencer (Lucky and Siobhan)- 15
Max Franco (Franco)- 15
Lily Mir (Leyla and Aleksander)- 15
The Cassadines
Sam walked into Davis and Haver with Paige and Nattie on either of her sides. It was the day that Nikolas's will was being read. They had learned that he didn't want to have a funeral, and since he was burned beyond recognition, everyone decided it would be for the best. The remains of his body were cremated (pretty ironic, if you asked Paige) and there was a stone now in the cemetery with his name on it next to Emily's.
"Colton!" Nattie ran forward and hugged her half-brother. She hadn't seen him since Friday and usually it wouldn't be a big deal, but after the tragedy their family had been through, it felt like so much longer.
"Hey." Colton hugged her back, and then Paige. "Let's sit down."
There was a table set up where all of the Cassadine children were supposed to sit. There was a couch on the other side of the office and Sam chose to sat there, holding in her grimace when she saw Elizabeth was sitting there too.
"What are you doing here?" Elizabeth sneered.
"Bringing Paige and Nattie. You might not have heard yet, but Jason and I have custody of them now."
"How convenient." She scoffed. "Paige should be with me. She's my godchild."
"Yeah, the godchild you harassed and made miserable at every cheerleading practice." Elizabeth's face paled. "Don't think I didn't hear about that, Elizabeth. I know that you were bullying my daughters, Chloe J, and Courtney. If something like that were to ever happen again, just know that I won't sit back and let it happen this time."
"You have no idea what you're talking about."
Sam chose not reply. Some things would never change, and Elizabeth's negative attitude towards her was one of those things.
"Hello." Nadine walked over, taking a seat between the two women. "This is all so crazy. Two months ago, my daughter was in the hospital nearly dying and now the only person who could save her is gone. She barely knew her father."
"You're the only person to blame for that. If you would have told Nikolas about her sooner, then they could have had a relationship." Elizabeth spat.
Sam had never been close to Nadine, but she didn't have a problem with her. She leaned over her to respond. "Like you know anything about that. You kept Aiden and Colton as far away from Nikolas as possible unless you were desperate and needed some attention. You use your children to get to their fathers."
"Oh, and you don't? If you had never gotten pregnant, then none of your brats with Jason would even exist!"
"Um excuse me, we would like to get started." Molly said, coming over to the three women. She leaned closer to Elizabeth. "And if you ever say anything about my nieces and nephew again, I'll make sure I dig up some information and get the rest of your kids taken away from you."
Molly joined Abby and Kristina at the table where the Cassadine children- Spencer, Aiden, Paige, Aubrey, Nattie, and Colton- were sitting.
"The first order of business would have been Spoon Island. Even though Wyndemere is completely burned down, Spoon Island is still intact and it will be possible to build a new house after the wreckage is cleaned up. The deed to Spoon Island has been left to Paige."
"I don't want it." Paige responded immediately. Her siblings looked at her in shock. "There are too many bad memories there. I don't want it."
"Paige, are you sure? You might change your mind." Kristina told her.
"I'm sure. I will never want to live in the house where my father burned to death, where I have a room down the hall from my dead sister, where I have to take a launch to get anywhere. I hated Wyndemere and I will never want Spoon Island."
"If she doesn't want it, then I'll take it." Spencer commented.
Molly looked at her cousin. "Is that what you want?"
"If Spencer wants it, he can have it."
"Okay, there will be some paperwork for you to sign to transfer the deed." Abby slid the proper papers across the desk and Paige signed them, followed by Spencer.
"40% of Cassadine Industries is left to Spencer, 20% to Aiden, and 10% to Paige, Aubrey, Nattie, and Colton." Molly read. "If you accept this responsibility, then you have to sign this paperwork. But know that you'll be responsible for attending meetings and being on the board."
"Not necessarily." Aiden stated. "Spencer and I can manage things until they decide if they want to be involved or not. Paige, we all know your dream has always been to be a doctor, so if you would rather go through with that, that's fine. You can sign to take some ownership of Cassadine Industries though, just so you have that added security behind you."
"I'll help if you need me to, but I'd rather not really be involved." Paige signed the papers. Spencer and Aiden did too, mostly since they had been working there since they were teenagers. Colton signed next, followed by Nattie, but Aubrey was hesitant.
"Aubrey? Are you going to sign?" Kristina questioned.
"I just don't feel right about it. I barely knew Nikolas, and now I'm taking ownership away from the kids he has raised since they were born."
"It's not your fault you didn't know him, no offense Nadine." Nattie said. "Besides, this is the percentage we would have had if Lola…" she trailed off, but everyone knew what she was saying.
Aubrey sighed, but signed the papers. She didn't really have an interest in business, but she figured she might as well do it.
Molly sorted through the papers, putting some down. "Sorry, it's kind of hard to see what needs to be said and what doesn't since a lot of stuff didn't survive the wreckage." She found another paper. "Paige, I don't know if you knew this, but your father had a storage unit with a bunch of your mother's stuff. Full ownership of all of that goes to you." Paige signed that paper without hesitation. "There's also a security box at the bank with family jewelry in that. It's to be split between you three girls."
"Paige and Nattie can have it all. I barely knew the Cassadines, so I don't really need it." Aubrey said.
"How about you come look with us?" Paige suggested. "If there's anything you really like, you can have it. Just because you didn't know the Cassadines doesn't mean you might not like their jewelry."
"I just don't want to overstep."
"You're not overstepping at all." Aiden assured her. "Aubrey, the truth is that the Cassadine kids aren't close. Sure, Paige and Nattie are, and Colton and Lola were before she passed away, but we don't think of you as being an intruder because half of us barely even know each other. Just because you weren't raised with us doesn't mean that we don't consider you family. I don't know about the rest of you, but I already consider her my sister." Spencer, Paige, Nattie, and Colton nodded their agreement.
"Thank you so much. I consider you all my family too." She signed the papers saying she would accept some jewelry.
"$100,000 will be given to Alexis Davis, though she isn't here today. He has it written that there are college funds in place for any of his grandchildren, but there haven't been any. There is enough to provide for ten grandchildren, so the first ten born will already have their college paid for."
"Wow, I better get on that." Colton said, lightening the mood.
"Actually, I was about to tell him that he was going to be a grandfather. Izzie is due in July with my child." His siblings started to clap happily.
"Congratulations, Spencer. Once the child is born, his or her name will be placed on one of the college funds. They will not have access to this money until they are 18. Also, there are college funds set in place for the four of you." Molly looked at Paige, Nattie, Colton, and Aubrey as she spoke. "You won't be able to access them until you turn 18. Paige, you will have access to yours, but it can only be used for college expenses."
"Who will be in charge of their money?" Aiden questioned. "I know that some parents," he turned around and looked, clearly talking about Elizabeth, "may get a little greedy."
"Davis and Haver, or more specifically, Kristina will handle all of your money. She was Nikolas's primary lawyer, so she has been dealing with this stuff since she came out of law school. She knows all about it, so if you have questions, talk to her."
"How much money is it?" Colton asked curiously.
"Enough to get you through medical school and some extra." Kristina stated. "The remainder of Nikolas's money is to be divided between his six children. You're all looking at a couple million dollars. You won't have access to it until you're 21, unless it is under extreme emergencies, which I am to be the judge of. Spencer and Aiden, if you talk to me after this, we can discuss where you want your money to go since you're over the age you have to be to inherit it." She made the teenagers sign papers saying that they agreed to accepting their inheritance at 21. "Nikolas has also left behind a large allowance to help care for his youngest four children. Sam, Nadine, Elizabeth, you will each receive monthly checks to cover the expenses of raising Paige, Nattie, Aubrey, and Colton."
"Can I ask a question?" Nattie wondered.
"Sure." Kristina agreed.
"Will any money go to my mother?"
"She will receive 50,000 dollars. That amount was set by your father when they signed the pre-nup."
"Is there any way that can be taken away? She doesn't deserve anything after she abandoned us."
"I'm sorry, Nattie, there's not."
"Is she going to be able to fight for custody of me?"
Molly took over from there. "There is a possibility, unless she signs over her rights."
"How could that happen?"
"She would have to sign paperwork saying that she no longer takes responsibility for you. Then, if you wanted them to, Sam and Jason could adopt you."
"Would they have to adopt me?"
"Not necessarily. They could just have sole custody of you. Right now, they have temporary custody of you until everything with Brook Lynn is taken care of. We've been trying to get into contact with her and there is a court hearing set a month from now. If she doesn't show up, it'll be rescheduled and if she doesn't show up to that one either, her parental rights will be terminated and Sam and Jason will get sole custody of you."
"So if she shows up, there's a chance she could take me away?"
Molly hated to say it, but she wanted to be completely honest. "Yes."
After that, things ended pretty quickly. Everything else was distributed and the kids left with their guardians.
Paige was still pretty surprised about Izzie's pregnancy. She wondered if maybe Spencer was just covering for the fact that the baby was Kiefer's. She didn't really care though, as long as her older brother was happy. They may not be close, but she wouldn't wish anything bad on him. Honestly, she was just glad that all of this legal stuff was over.
Emma
Emma shoved all of her books in her locker so she could go to lunch. It was her favorite part of the day, only because she got to sit with all of her friends. She closed her locker and headed towards the cafeteria.
As she was walking, she saw a familiar face. "Tate!" he obviously didn't hear her, so she walked up to him. "Hey Tate."
"What do you want?" he questioned with a glare.
"What happened with that party the other night? Why was it cancelled?"
"Stay away from me, you freak. I would never want to be seen with someone like you." He turned around and went the opposite way.
Emma stared after him in confusion. What had she done to make him so upset with her? Why would he call her a freak?
She turned to walk the other way and slammed into someone. She started to apologize, but then realized who it was.
"What's wrong? Why do you look so upset?" Zack asked, studying her for any visible signs.
That's when she remembered Tate's black eye on Friday. "Do you wanna explain to me why Tate had a black eye the other day and why he just called me a freak?"
Zack's eyes darkened in a way that she had only seen Sonny's do. He was certainly becoming more and more like his father every day. "He called you what?"
"That's not important! I just…I need you to stop fighting all of my battles for me."
"Princess, I can't stand seeing you upset. You mean more to me than anyone else in this world and if someone messes you, I'm going to take care of it."
"Well I don't need you to! Everyone is going to think I'm even stranger than they did before!"
"You know, you used to not care about what other people think of you."
"Now I do. I'm sick of you messing everything up. Don't you understand that I'm tired of being the weird girl who was buried alive and beaten by her boyfriend? I just want to put all of that behind me but I can't when you're constantly putting me in these situations."
Emma stormed away. Why did Zack always have to get involved? She wasn't some damsel in distress that needed his constant protection. She spotted Courtney, Brittany, and Maddie standing near Brittany's locker and went over.
"Hey." She greeted.
"What's wrong with you?" Courtney wondered. "You look annoyed."
"I am. Zack's constantly ruining everything for me."
"How?"
"You know how Tate had that black eye on Friday?" Maddie and Brittany shared a look; they had seen Tate walk away from Zack and knew that he had caused it, and they were pretty sure Courtney had put the pieces together too. But all three girls nodded for Emma's benefit. "Zack's the one who gave it to him."
"Why?" Maddie asked.
"Because he said I looked fat when I was looking for outfits to wear to the party. I guess Zack told him to uninvited me and that's why he said it was cancelled cause when I asked him about it this morning, he called me a freak!" Emma groaned. "He's just making all of this worse! Can't he understand that I don't want any more attention on myself than necessary?"
Courtney studied her. "Have you ever considered that maybe Zack isn't being overprotective because he wants to draw attention to you? Maybe it's because he likes you."
Emma froze. "What?"
"C'mon, Emma. We know you're not this dumb. You and Zack clearly have feelings for each other and I doubt he likes seeing you hang out with all of these other guys." Brittany stated.
"He's my best friend."
"So? Connor's my best friend, Mia and Gabe are best friends. Things happen." Maddie reminded her.
"Not with us. It would ruin our friendship."
"Not if your friendship is strong enough." Courtney pointed out. She was sick of having to play mediator between Zack and Emma. She was ready for them to discover that they were in love with each other.
"I'm so annoyed. I just need a drink."
Brittany could see that Emma's frustration with everything else was what was leading her to party and drink all the time. "Maybe you should channel your energy into something else."
Emma looked up at Brittany, but saw a bright yellow flyer behind her head. She could see that it was talking about winter volleyball tryouts. "Maybe I should try out for a sport."
Chloe J
"Alright girls, let's run through it one more time! 5…6…7…8…" she watched as the NYCS cheer team began to go through her routine. She felt like it had a good balance with difficulty, but clearly the girls weren't picking it up. "No, no, no!" she turned to Rhiannon. "What's that girl's name with the dark hair?"
"Arielle."
"Arielle, you're behind in all of your movements! You need to pick up the pace! You in the yellow, you're alternating between your left and right hands and it's extremely distracting and not pretty to look at! It's not that difficult, guys!"
"You know what? We quit!" the girl named Arielle threw down her pompoms and grabbed her cheer bag. Four other girls followed her.
"What do we do now? We've only got nine girls! Is that enough?"
Chloe J sighed. "I'll have to rework the routine, but it should be okay."
"I think the practices are too intense." Lauren commented. "We're not used to this kind of workout."
"I agree. Chloe J, this isn't PCH. We can't run mile after mile, or do a bunch of tumbling, and hardly any of our girls can even be flyers. This is the end of the cheer team." Rhiannon moaned miserably.
"Not necessarily." The blonde bit her lip, thinking over all of her options. The two former cheer captains watched her pace back and forth. "Let me make some calls."
Mia walked into the gym at that time. "What's going on? I just saw five of the girls leaving."
"They quit. They said practice is too intense. I've only run through the routine five times, and they ran three laps around the gym."
"Oh my God, and you think that's intense? It's a good thing none of you were around when Elizabeth was the cheerleading coach at PCH or you would have fallen over and died." Mia sat down on the floor. "So what's the plan? I'm sure we can think of something with nine girls."
"Yeah, but I don't think we'll have to. I've got an idea." She stopped pacing and faced the team. "Girls, no practice tomorrow. Rhiannon, Lauren, you better be ready for some cheerleading try outs."
"This is gonna be great!" Mia and Chloe J high fived, both of them with huge smiles. The other two girls couldn't help but be a little nervous, wondering what they had gotten themselves into with letting Chloe J be their captain.
Paige
After the will was read, Sam and Jason took Paige and Nattie out to lunch. They had walked around at the park for a little bit, just discussing everything about Nikolas. By the time they finally got home, it was after four o'clock.
Paige walked in the direction of the kitchen and heard voices coming from inside. She stopped in the doorway to listen.
"…and you guys need to fix this. Zack, it's okay for you to be worried about Emma, but you can't give people black eyes every time you don't like something they say. Emma, you can't be mad at Zack. At least he loves you enough to protect you." That was Courtney's voice.
"I'm sorry. I forgive you." Emma.
"I shouldn't have hit him, but I don't regret standing up for you. No one should ever put you down, Princess." Of course, that was Zack (who else would call Emma 'Princess'?).
"Good. Now hug it out."
Paige came into the room just as Zack and Emma hugged. They were both smiling, and Courtney started laughing. Paige opened the fridge and they all turned to look at her.
"Hey, P." Emma greeted from where she was sitting on the counter. Zack was standing next to her and Courtney was sitting on one of the barstools by the breakfast bar.
"Hi."
"How was the will thing?" Courtney wondered.
"Good. We found out that we'll all inherit money when we turn 21, plus college funds when we turn 18. Obviously I can't use mine right now since I haven't started college, but everything will be completely paid for."
"That's nice." Emma smiled at her.
"I'll see you guys later." Paige grabbed a water bottle and went upstairs. It was so awkward talking to them. Things weren't the same with her and Zack ever since their break-up, or her and Emma since their fight. She and Courtney didn't really have a reason for the awkwardness besides the fact that they went to different schools and drifted apart.
She hated feeling like she couldn't come to them with anything. The three of them seemed like they only spoke to each other, and she knew Nate and Chloe J were starting to feel the divide too.
It was only a matter of time before the Dream Team was split up altogether.
Mia
"How about…Humphrey?" Gabe suggested.
Mia glared at him. "If you think that's a serious option then I'm breaking up with you right now. What would we even call him for a nickname. Hump?"
Gabe smiled. "I guess it is pretty terrible. How about Ramona for a girl?"
"That's almost as bad as Humphrey!"
"Vivienne?"
"Not as bad, but still not good."
"Rose?"
"Too classic."
"Ella?"
"Too trendy."
"Marcella?"
"No. And what has you so convinced that this baby is a girl? Why can't you say some boy names?"
"I thought we had decided on Gabriel Jr."
Mia started to laugh. "Yeah, definitely not. I'm not really a big fan of the whole junior thing. I think it takes away a child's identity, plus then we would have to come up with a nickname for him because calling him 'Little Gabe' when he's thirty will be kind of awkward."
"That was way too long of an explanation."
"Shut up. What else?"
"Um…Carlton?"
Mia stared at him. "You know, it honestly scares me that these are the names you are coming up with off of the top of your head. How many Carltons and Marcellas do you know?"
"I'm just trying to get an idea of what kinds of names you like." Gabe looked at her. "How do you feel about Isaac?"
She thought it over. "It's not terrible. It's just not the one."
"How about you tell me your ideas then?" Gabe suggested.
"I don't have any."
"Really? Mia, you are one of the most opinionated people I know. You had to of thought of some names for this baby." Mia had one in mind, but she was pretty sure that he would judge her for it. "What is it?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Mimi, you have that look on your face. You just don't want to tell me. I won't laugh."
"Promise?" She held out her pinky.
"Promise." He locked pinkies with her.
"I was looking on a baby name website the other day, which I know is stupid since we don't even know what we're having yet. But I found a name and I really like it."
"Well what is it?"
"Finn." She could see him thinking it over. "Well?"
"Finn Morgan." Gabe smiled. "I like it. It's not typical."
"It's extremely hard to pick out names when you know someone with literally every single name you like."
"One of the downsides of being part of such a close-knit town." Gabe agreed. "What about a middle name?"
"I did some research and I found the name Madden. I wanted something to honor Maddie considering she's my best girl friend and your twin sister. How do you feel about Finn Madden Morgan?"
"It sounds like a football player in the making." Gabe said dreamily.
Mia punched him in the arm. "If my son doesn't want to play football, then you're not making him."
"What makes you so sure it's a boy?"
"Wishful thinking, I guess. I just want a boy."
"So I think, for now, we have Finn Madden Morgan as a boy name. Do you wanna talk about girl names?"
Before Mia could respond, his bedroom door opened and Emma walked in. Courtney and Zack were behind her and they waved from the doorway.
"Hey Mimi, remember when you were a kid and you were, like, a volleyball prodigy?"
"Yeah." As a child, Mia had done both cheerleading and volleyball. For a long time, volleyball had been her passion and she had been on select teams and won tournaments all around the country. After a while, she started to get bored with it and once middle school came around, she gave it up to do cheering all the time instead.
"Do you think you could teach me how to play?"
Mia raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"Because I saw a paper for winter volleyball tryouts and Brittany told me I need to channel my energy into something else and it's like a sign! Plus, maybe those girls will be nicer. I need to get along with someone from Madison."
"Sure, I'll teach you."
"Thank you!" Emma squealed, hugging her tightly.
"Not so tight, Em." Gabe scolded lightly. Mia rolled her eyes. He had been so overprotective and while it could be cute at times, it was annoying.
"Sorry." Emma placed a loud kiss on Mia's forehead. She walked out, taking Zack and Courtney with her.
Mia looked at her boyfriend, who seemed confused. "Why did you agree to that? You're already helping Chloe J with the cheer team."
"Emma needs to get her mind off of everything. Maybe if she's dedicated to volleyball then she won't worry as much about drinking, or about everyone bullying her."
"You're a good person, Mimi."
She gave him a big smile, showing off her one dimple. "I know."
Brittany
Brittany finished blow drying her hair and ran her brush through it. She put the hair dryer away and flipped off her bathroom light, going to sit on her bed. As soon as she sat down, her phone rang. She groaned, but went over and picked it up. The name on the caller ID made her even more annoyed, but she answered.
"Hello?"
"Brittany, it's Mom."
"Yeah, I have caller ID. Everyone does."
"I don't appreciate the attitude."
"And I don't appreciate you calling me at eleven o'clock when you know I have school tomorrow." Brittany didn't go to bed until at least midnight every night, but she wanted some reason to be mad at her mother.
"I'm sorry, but I had to talk to you. I miss you so much and I want you to come spend the night this weekend."
"I have plans."
"You can't break them for me?"
Then, just like it did every other time, the anger erupted. "Oh, like you used to break your plans for Bella, Joey, and I? You would fly all across the world on your weekends with us like it was nothing! You never wanted to be a mom."
"I regret everything that I've done and if I could change it, then I would. But I know that I've been a good mother, Brittany."
She couldn't help but laugh. "Are you being serious right now? A good mother is someone who has been around for every major moment since her child's birth, not someone who glorifies her children after their deaths. You don't even know the definition of the word 'mother'. You're nothing but a deadbeat."
"That's not true."
"Really? Let's ask Joey and Bella. Oh wait, we can't because they're gone. Who knows? Maybe if you had stepped up and actually taken care of your children, then they would still be here. Goodbye, Brenda."
Brittany hung up, putting her phone on the table next to her bed. She didn't know why she kept talking to Brenda when it only made her angry. She couldn't stand the woman, and she was done listening to her excuses.
She was sure another fight with her would push her past her breaking point.
Zack
Zack watch Emma climb into his bed next to him. Her hair smelled like her coconut shampoo and he smiled. The smell was comforting to him now, and he always identified it with his best friend.
He looked down at her and saw the troubled look on her face. She looked angrier more times than not, and he couldn't help but feel like that was partly his fault. Maybe he should have let her go to that party with Tate.
But then he remembered that the guy had called her fat. She deserved to be with someone who treated her like the princess she was. Someone like him.
He froze. Where did that come? He couldn't like Emma like that.
Could he?
Sure, there were always feelings there, but he hadn't been able to ever admit them to himself. With everyone pointing them out though, it was getting kind of hard to avoid it.
"Can I ask you something?"
Emma looked up at him. "Always."
"I don't want you to get mad though."
She sighed. "I'll try my best."
"Why do you drink so much? Before everything happened, you would drink, but never to the extent that you do now. Why do you have to do that to yourself?"
He could see her biting her lip and knew that she was debating on telling the truth. By the scared look in her eyes, he knew she had decided to be honest.
"I like to be numb. For those couple of hours, I'm so drunk that I can barely remember my name and it's relieving. It's hard being Emma Morgan and living with all of this pain that's inside of me. I know that I survived it all, but sometimes, I would rather be dead. It's so hard living with all of this guilt."
"What are you talking about? What do you have to feel guilty about?"
"A lot of things. Why couldn't I save Matt before he was killed? I blame myself for Joey's death. He wasn't a good boyfriend by any means and I hate him for what he did to me, but he was still only 17 years old and he didn't deserve to die so young. I blame myself for you, Gabe, Nate, Connor, and Hunter having to go to jail."
"We chose to go after Joey. That's not your fault."
"It might not be rational, but I still think it. And almost every night, I get to relive it all. So that's why I drink. I like to be numb and be able to forget all of these demons inside of me."
Zack understood a little bit more. He knew Emma very well, but she had been getting harder to decipher these past two months. He would get new information about her in little chunks, and this was definitely a big one.
"It's okay now." He kissed her forehead. "You don't have to fight the demons alone. I'm always going to be here."
Emma rolled over so she could rest her head on his chest. "I know."
Emma
Emma walked down the hallway of PCH, looking around for any sign of another person being there. That's when she saw the large puddle of blood.
She ran in that direction, shocked when she saw it was coming from Joey. He turned his head and saw her and immediately frowned.
"This is all your fault!" he choked out, sitting up and causing more blood to pour from his stomach. "You did this to me!"
"Joey, just lie down. Somebody help us!" she tried to get him to lay down, but he grabbed her wrist. She felt a bolt of pain run up her entire arm and cried out.
"It should have been you! You should have been killed instead of me!"
"You're not dead. Don't talk like that!"
"Emma, we both know I'm dying, just like we both know it's your fault. And you're going to live with that forever." He smiled. "Too bad your forever isn't going to be much longer."
"What?"
That's when she saw the knife clutched in his right hand. He raised it high above his head, bringing it down right into her chest…
Emma shot up, not realizing she was screaming until at least five seconds after. Her eyes were wide open and her body was shaking. She immediately looked down at her wrists and saw that they were fine, and then ran her hand over her heart to feel for any stab wounds. That's when she figured out that it had all been a dream.
She looked around and saw that Sonny, Claudia, Hunter, Brittany, and Brenna were standing around Zack's bed, and Zack was sitting next to her and staring at her in concern.
"Are you okay, Emma?" Claudia asked.
Emma's breathing was still pretty wild, so she took a deep breath before answering. "I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" Sonny ran a hand over her head. "You were screaming."
"I'm okay. Thank you." She smiled at them reassuringly. They clearly got the message that she didn't want to talk because they walked out. Hunter, Brittany, and Brenna looked confused. "Guys, I promise that I'm fine." She glanced at the clock. "You might as well start getting ready for school."
Emma felt Zack running his hand up and down her back. She would never admit it to him, but it was extremely comforting knowing that he was right there. After the younger three Corinthoses left, he started to question her.
"What was all of that about?"
She sighed. "Joey."
"What happened?"
"I don't wanna talk about it."
"Em…"
"Please, Zack. I don't want to talk about it." She got out of the bed and went into the bathroom to get ready for school.
Zack
Ever since her nightmare this morning, Zack had been practically glued to Emma's side. He knew that he was probably annoying her, but he needed to know that she was okay. It was terrifying to be woken up by your best friend screaming in her sleep.
"Hey guys." Courtney met them in the parking lot, locking her car doors before joining them.
"Hi Courtie." Emma gave her a small smile and Zack knew that she had to know something was wrong. She looked at him in confusion, but he just shook his head.
"How's it been living with Paige?"
"I don't know, I haven't been home really. My parents told us all about how they're going to custom build a new house and we get to have whatever we want, so we came up with all of this crazy stuff, so maybe they'll actually let us have it."
"What do you mean by 'crazy stuff'?"
"An in-ground trampoline, inside/outside pool, and bowling alley, just to name a few."
"Wow. How are they going to fit all of that in? There's like," Courtney started to count on her fingers, "twelve of you living there."
"It'll be custom so they can make it as big as they want." Emma stopped walking. "I need to get my math book out of my locker. Can you guys wait for me?"
"Uh-huh." Zack answered. As soon as Emma was out of hearing range, he turned to his blonde best friend. "So at like five o'clock this morning, Emma woke up screaming and I mean screaming. My whole family heard and ran in. She finally woke up and she seemed really freaked out, but she told my parents that she was okay and told Britt, Hunter, and Brenna to go get ready for school. When I asked her about it, she said that it had something to do with Joey but she didn't want to talk about it. Do you know anything about that?"
"Not anything about the dream specifically, but the same thing happened the last time she spent the night at my house. And it's so scary because you can see just how scared she is while she's screaming." Courtney sighed. "It seems like she has nightmares about Joey every night that she doesn't drink."
Realization dawned on Zack. The reason Emma drank so much was to feel numb, like she told him last night, so that she wouldn't have to experience these nightmares every night. Everything made a lot more sense now because he knew that she wasn't the type of person who liked to constantly drink.
"What are we gonna do, Court? We can't let her go on like this."
"What can we do? I guess there's always therapy, but how are we gonna talk her into going? I don't want to pressure her into anything because that's going to push her away and she needs us right now, even if she doesn't realize it."
"I just don't know what else to say to her. She's not going to stop drinking because it helps her cope, but this isn't good for her."
"We'll figure something out. I don't know what yet, but we have to."
Emma rejoined them. "Ready?"
"Yep." Courtney linked her arm in Emma's. "So, are you starting your volleyball training today?"
"Yeah. Mia's going to try and teach me the basics."
"No offense, Princess, but do you even know how to play sports? You've only done cheerleading your whole life."
Emma gave him a dirty look. "First of all, cheerleading is a sport. I'd like to see you try and do back handsprings and be lifted in the air. Second, it can't be that hard. Plus with Mia as my teacher, I'm practically guaranteed to do well."
"Okay, okay I'm sorry." Zack held his hands up in surrender. "I just don't want you to get overwhelmed. You're dealing with a lot right now."
"Stop." Emma interrupted. "I can do this, okay?"
"Okay." He agreed.
"Okay?" she looked at Courtney.
"Okay."
"Now, let's stop talking about this and get to class before we're late."
Brittany
So far, Brittany's day had been alright (even though she had only had first and second period). She had managed to lay low and hardly anyone had even glanced at her in the hallway. It was kind of relieving.
She went to her locker to change books. She had her chemistry class next period and even though it was her least favorite class of the day, she had to be prepared.
She saw Haley and Addie standing near her locker and waved to them. They were in the same class as her, so they usually walked there together. But before she could get to her locker, she heard a voice from the other side of the hallway.
"Well if it isn't Whacko. Please don't assault the lockers today, sweetie." Brianna sneered.
Brittany whipped around, raising her fist and nearly hitting her. The only thing that stopped her was the fact that Haley ran forward, wrapping her arms around her waist and yanking her back.
"Trust me, I would usually let you do whatever you want, especially to someone like her, but you're going to get in a lot of trouble."
"I'm fine." Brittany shrugged her off and went over to her locker, hearing Brianna laughing as she walked down the hallway.
"Are you okay, Britt?" Addie questioned.
"I can't handle this anymore. Either I'm going to kill her or kill myself because if one more person calls me Whacko…"
Right as she spoke, some guy that she recognized from the football team walked by. "Oh look, it's Whacko!"
Before Haley and Addie could even process what had happened, Brittany punched the boy right in the face. "You wanna say that again?"
The boy's nose was gushing blood. "Hey everyone, Whacko is secretly a man! Did you see how she punched me?"
"No everyone, Brittany is Sonny Corinthos' daughter and was taught how to actually defend herself and I'm done letting you all walk all over me."
"Wow, you're lucky I'm not your boyfriend or I probably would have murdered you in a diner and left your body there. Isn't that how he killed your sister?"
Brittany punched him again, this time jumping on top of him and knocking him to the ground. Normally she probably wouldn't have been able to, but since he was clutching his most likely broken nose, he was caught off guard.
Another guy ran forward, grabbing Brittany's arm to try and yank her off of the first one. Haley quickly shut that down by pushing him away. She wasn't going to hold her back this time; once you insulted family, then you deserved whatever you got.
"What is going on out here?" a teacher ran out of her classroom and saw the scene in front of her. "Excuse me, young lady, I don't know what kind of school you think we have here, but this isn't PCH. We don't condone violence. You need to go to the office."
Brittany stood up and stared at her. "What would you do if someone just told you that you're lucky he wasn't that serial killer or he would have murdered you the same way that your sister was killed?"
The teacher shook her head. "That still doesn't call for violence."
"Whatever. I'm so done anyway." She looked at the guy who was still on the ground, holding his face in his hands as some of his football buddies helped him to his feet. "It's sad that you're a football player and you couldn't even get me off of you."
"I didn't want to hurt you." He tried to say.
"Really? Cause if you punched me in the face it would have hurt a whole lot less than you bringing up my sister." She started to get mad all over again and walked towards him. The teacher grabbed her arm, pulling her in the opposite direction and towards the office.
"See ya, Whacko!" the boy called after her.
Brittany fought against the teacher's grasp, trying to get back to him to do something that would make him hurt as much as he was hurting her.
Maddie
Maddie was running late to her third period and she knew she had less than a minute before the bell rang. She walked quickly, turning down the hallway that her class was on. She was surprised to see Brittany walking past her, her shirt and hands covered in blood, a scowl on her face, and a teacher's hand wrapped around her arm.
Before everything happened, you could always count on Brittany to be in a good mood. She was the group's sunshine in even a way that Emma couldn't be; she always had something positive to say or something to do to make a person feel better about whatever situation they were in. Now, she was angry a lot of the time because of all of the bullying, and Maddie knew that she probably got it the worst out of all of them now that Grace had transferred.
She saw Haley and Addie standing near where a guy in a bloody shirt was walking down the hall, gripping his face in both hands. She went over to them.
"Um, what just happened? Why was a teacher taking Brittany down the hallway?"
"Because Brianna Edwards called her 'Whacko' again. I didn't let her hit her, even though I should have, and she said she can't handle being called that anymore. Right as she said it, that guy walked by and called her it again and she completely snapped. She punched him in the face and I think she broke his nose. He said something about how she's lucky that he's not Trevor or else he would have killed her the same way that he killed Jazzie." Haley informed her.
Maddie's mouth dropped open. "Seriously?"
"After that, we just let her attack him." Addie continued. "She knocked him down and punched him another couple of times and he couldn't even get her off. It's pathetic that he's a football player. But another guy tried to move her and Haley got him off of her, then that teacher came out and acted like the guy saying all that wasn't a big deal while, of course, Brittany got dragged down the hallway to the office."
Maddie groaned. "This isn't good." She pulled out her phone.
To: Emma; Zack; Connor; Courtney
Britt just got in a fight. A teacher's dragging her down to the office.
The bell rang, but Maddie didn't care about making it to class on time anymore. She slowly walked in that direction, waiting for the replies. They came almost instantly.
From: Emma
Was it Brianna? I swear to God that I will have Dad take her out if it was.
From: Zack
Is she okay?
From: Courtney
Did she win?
From: Connor
What happened?
To: Emma; Zack; Connor; Courtney
No, it wasn't Brianna, it was a guy. I don't know his name, but he's on the football team. Haley and Addie said that some guy called her Whacko and she snapped and punched him, then he said something about how if he was Trevor then he would kill her the same way that he killed Jazzie. Addie said that the guy couldn't get Britt off of him and they think she broke his nose, plus there was a lot of blood on him so I'm gonna say that she won. And I only saw her for a second, but she looked okay physically. He didn't touch her.
From: Zack
Connor, we need to find out who this guy is and pay him a little visit.
From: Courtney
I think this is enough violence for one day. We're just gonna have to try and lay low for a couple of days because they're going to be extra crazy about PCH students doing anything wrong now.
Sadly, Courtney was right. The PCH students would have to pay the price for one of them finally defending themselves against the bullying.
Mia
"Hey Emmy." Mia greeted. They had agreed to meet at the Enchantment and practice in the backyard, so Jason had sent some guards earlier to set up a volleyball court.
"Hi."
Mia could see that something had happened and knew that that was more important that volleyball for now. "What's going on? Did something happen today?"
"Britt got suspended for a week."
"Why?"
"She got in a fight with a guy who called her 'Whacko' and said something about Jazzie."
"Did she get him good?"
"Broke his nose."
"That's my girl." Mia smiled. Before all of this, she had been known as the violent one, but it seemed like the other girls were giving her a run for her title. "Is she okay?"
"I haven't talked to her. It happened right before third period, so we all still had to go to class and then I called her on the way here but she didn't answer. I'll text her later."
Mia figured that it was best to just drop the subject. "Okay, are you ready to learn the basics?"
About ten minutes into their training, Mia realized that Emma had absolutely no natural talent for volleyball. She couldn't hit very hard, partly because of the fact that one of her wrists was still really sensitive at times from the last time Joey beat her. They had originally thought he broke her entire arm, but after her parents forced her to go to the hospital, they learned she had sprained her wrist and broke the lower part of her arm, which she had gotten a cast for and it had healed.
"Em, you put your arms together like this." Mia demonstrated. "Try again."
But as soon as she threw the ball to her, Emma's arm position changed. Mia could see that she was a little scared to put that pressure on her wrist.
"I know that you're worried about your arm, but if you wanna play, this is the way you have to hit." Mia explained gently. "If you want, we can wait a couple more days so you can get used to the idea. Maybe you can start hitting the ball around by yourself so you can get more of a feel for it."
"Okay." Emma sighed in defeat. "I just wanted to try something new to get my mind of things. It doesn't look like volleyball is really my thing."
"Then we'll make it your thing." Mia promised. "I'm going to NYCS to help Chloe J with the cheer team. Wanna come? We're doing tryouts today and we could use your help."
"No thanks, I'm just gonna go home. Thanks for being patient with me, Mimi. It means a lot."
"You tell me anytime you want to practice, okay? I'm here to help you, Emma."
"I know. Thank you." Emma went to her car.
Mia went to her car slower. She didn't understand why Emma was so against the idea of helping out at NYCS. She didn't think she would ever live to see the day that Emma would willingly turn down the chance to run cheerleading tryouts.
Things had definitely changed.
NYCS Cheer Team
"This is how you guys did cheer tryouts? This is like something out of Bring It On!" Lauren commented as Chloe J directed her and Rhiannon on where to set up the long, white table where they would be sitting. It had four chairs behind it.
"It's more effective than just mindlessly showing girls a routine and expecting them to copy it." Chloe J replied absently, smiling down at one of the messages Brendan sent her.
"Oooh, who are you texting?" Rhiannon wondered.
Chloe J clutched her phone to her chest. She wasn't one for sharing private information, unless it was to her closest friends. She figured that everything around her was changing, so why not just change that fact too?
"Do you know who Brendan Webber is?"
"The tall, dark haired senior?" Lauren asked. Chloe J nodded. "Yeah, he's cute."
"You think everyone is cute." Rhiannon said with an eye roll.
"I can't help it that I appreciate the male species!" she looked back at the blonde. "What were you saying, Chloe J?"
"That's who I'm texting."
"So are you guys, like, a thing?"
She bit her lip, thinking it over. "I'm not really sure what we are. You see, up until about two months ago, we kind of had a love-hate relationship, as in I hated him with a burning passion and he was in love with me, of course." Rhiannon and Lauren rolled their eyes at her conceitedness. "We're more on the same page now."
"But I heard that you used to date some other guy, what was his name, Rhi?"
"Ryan, maybe?"
"Ryan Rosco." Chloe J confirmed. "We dated for a year, but it didn't work out."
"Did he cheat on you?"
"No, it was actually my fault."
"Did you cheat on him?" Lauren asked incredulously.
"No."
"Then what happened?"
"It's complicated." The gym doors opened and Mia walked in. Chloe J gladly accepted the distraction. She may have been trying to open up a little more, but she definitely wasn't going to tell these two girls that she barely knew about her pregnancy scare and attempted abortion. "Mia! So good to see you! Come on in!"
Mia made a face. "Why are you acting so weird?"
"I'm not."
"Yeah, okay." Mia came over to where Chloe J, Rhiannon, and Lauren were standing. "You need to talk to your best friend."
Chloe J sighed. "What happened now?"
"She's drowning, Chloe J. She hasn't said anything to me, but I can tell. She's trying to distract herself by playing volleyball and let me just say that Emma was born to be a cheerleader because she absolutely sucks at volleyball. And things are going crazy at Madison right now."
Chloe J sat down on the edge of the table. "Did someone get hurt?"
"Yeah, a football player."
"What relevance does that have to us at all?"
"Brittany broke his nose, Chloe J."
Her eyes widened. "Are you kidding me?"
"No, apparently all the kids at school are calling her 'Whacko' and the football player mentioned Jazzie's death and Brittany went crazy and attacked him. She's suspended for a week."
Chloe J shrugged. "Sucks that she's suspended, but she did the right thing. You know that if someone mentioned Mason, we would act the same way."
"Wait, I'm so confused. I'm really trying to follow here, but you guys are bringing up so many names." Rhiannon said, Lauren nodding in agreement.
Chloe J rolled her eyes. She wished that she could hate these girls for how nosy they were an how they always inserted themselves into her business, but she actually really liked them.
"Emma is Emma Morgan, Gabe's older sister and my best friend. She was like the Queen Bee of PCH and the head cheerleader. We should try and get her to help us out, Mia. I think it would benefit her and the team."
"I tried to get her to come today but she flat out refused and walked away."
"Brittany Corinthos is one of our best friends. She's a junior, and she's Sonny Corinthos' daughter, if you didn't guess by her last name. Do you guys know Hunter Corinthos?" both girls nodded. "She is his half-sister."
"Who's Jazzie?"
"Jazzie Corinthos, another one of Sonny's kids."
Lauren looked down. "She's the one that got killed in the diner."
Chloe J and Mia glanced at each other sadly before the dark haired girl nodded. "Yeah, she is."
"And Mason?" Rhiannon wondered.
"He was our brother."
"Wait, you guys are sisters?" Lauren asked. "I'm confused."
"My mom is Olivia Falconeri. She had two sons, my brothers Daniel and Mason, with Johnny Zacchara. Johnny is married to Chloe J's mom, Maxie Jones. So he was my half-brother and Chloe J's stepbrother."
"Was? So he was…" Rhiannon trailed off, not sure how to phrase it.
"He was pushed off of the Port Charles Bridge and he drowned." Mia finished for her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Can we start tryouts, please?"
"Yes." Lauren quickly answered. "What do we do first?"
Chloe J put a hand on Mia's shoulder, silently asking if she was okay. Mia nodded and went over to the second chair at the white table. Chloe J sat in the first, Lauren in the third, and Rhiannon in the last one.
"There's going to be a mix of NYCS and PCH students here. We're not going to let bias get in the way of who we choose, and we're choosing based on who is the best, regardless of experience." Chloe J informed the girls, who all confirmed that they understood. "Then let's get started. Katie Morgan, freshman."
Lauren leaned over to Mia. "Who is she? Her last name is Morgan, so she must be related to Gabe, right?"
"I feel like we're about to give a major PCH history lesson." Mia said to Chloe J before turning to Lauren. "She's Gabe's little sister."
"Ready?" Chloe J asked.
Katie gave her a cocky smile. "I was born ready."
Mia groaned. "Oh my God. She's turning into a little Emma already."
Chloe J just laughed and started the music. Unsurprisingly, Katie went through the routine perfectly. The oldest of the group looked down the table, seeing that Lauren and Rhiannon's mouths had dropped open. She nudged Mia, who saw them and laughed.
"You guys okay?"
"She's-she's a freshman."
"Yeah…"
"She's amazing!"
"Yeah." Mia said again. "Thanks, Katie."
Rhiannon looked at her best friend. "How are their freshmen that good? We have seniors that aren't even that good!"
"Probably because you guys are lazy." They looked at Chloe J in surprise. "The PCH cheerleaders have all been doing this since we were in kindergarten. We do football in the fall, basketball in the winter, competitions in the spring, and conditioning in the summer. Cheerleading isn't just fun; its life." She looked at the list. "Aubrey Crowell, junior."
"Aubrey used to date our good friend Connor Jacks. Do you know who Paige Cassadine is?" the two NYCS girls nodded at Mia's question. "She and Aubrey just found out that they're half-sisters a couple months ago."
"Hey guys." Aubrey greeted with a small wave.
"This is Rhiannon Deusa and Lauren Grayson." Chloe J introduced.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Aubrey."
Chloe J started the music and she went through the routine. It was amazing to her and Mia to see the progress Aubrey had made from her first audition in September.
"Thanks, Aubrey." Chloe J studied the list. "Jacelyn Jacks, freshman."
"Remember when I mentioned Connor Jacks before? This is Jacelyn, his younger sister. She and Katie are best friends, along with Chloe J's little sister Ava, and her older sister Courtney Jacks is one of our closest friends."
Jacelyn looked surprised when she came in. "Mia? What are you doing here?
"I've been helping out with the cheer team. Is that gonna be a problem, Jace?"
The fourteen year old laughed. "Of course not. You know, out of the junior girls, you would have been my pick for cheer captain."
"Flattery isn't going to get you anywhere. Now show these girls right here everything we've taught you."
As expected, Jacelyn did just as well as Katie and Aubrey. Ava was next and her performance was flawless also. A couple of NYCS girls went too, though they weren't as good as the PCH cheerleaders.
"I still don't understand how your freshmen can be so skilled."
"It helps that they all have older sisters who have been cheering forever." Mia reminded the girls. "Emma, Chloe J, and Courtney were three of our best cheerleaders, so it isn't surprising that their sisters are amazing too."
"It's too bad Brenna doesn't go to NYCS." Chloe J said. "She would have brought our skill level up a lot. Can't you just get out of your online stuff and enroll in NYCS and join the team?"
"I would if I could, but you know pregnancy doesn't really mesh with cheerleading." Mia told her. "Who's next?"
"Nattie Cassadine, sophomore."
"Nattie is Gabe's cousin, and Paige and Aubrey's sister."
"Hi." Nattie smiled at them all. "I'm Nattie."
"I'm Lauren and this is Rhiannon. I'm assuming you already know these freaks."
Nattie actually gave them a genuine smile and it was good to see. Mia knew she had been extremely upset since Nikolas's death and the reveal that Brook Lynn wouldn't be coming home. Hopefully, cheering would help her get through it all.
"Nattie, are you going to be coming back to school tomorrow?" Chloe J asked gently.
"I think so. It's time to get back in the routine of things."
"If you need anything, we're here."
"I know. Thanks, Chloe J."
The blonde started the music and Nattie did her routine well. There was a mistake or two, but Rhiannon and Lauren didn't even seen to notice. Mia and Chloe J let it go; she had a good reason for being distracted.
"This is our last one. Leah Zacchara, sophomore."
Lauren and Rhiannon waited for Mia's description, but it never came. They noticed that the girl's eyes dropped down to the table as she traced invisible patterns on it.
"Hey, Chloe J." Leah greeted. "Mia." Mia just nodded her head towards the girl in acknowledgment.
Leah ran through the routine and did it perfectly, probably the best that they had seen. Lauren and Rhiannon even started clapping.
"Thanks, guys." Leah smiled and started to walk out.
"Do you and Ava have a ride home?"
"Yeah, I'm going to Kelly's with Lukas, Brenna, and Nattie and Carly is taking Ava, Jace, and Katie to her house."
"Kay." Leah walked out.
"Who is she?" Lauren demanded.
"My younger sister."
"Wow, you PCH kids all have like twenty siblings. Are there any of you that don't have siblings?"
"Not that I know of." Chloe J responded, starting to organize all of the notes she had taken.
"So I'm guessing there are some problems between Mia and Leah. What is it?" Rhiannon wondered.
Mia sighed. "We've just never gotten along. Things aren't as bad as they used to be, but she is Gabe's ex-girlfriend and she broke up with him because she knew that he was in love with me, so there's that."
"There won't be any problems though, am I right, Mia?" Chloe J gave her a pointed look.
"Nope, no problems."
"Good. So I think it's pretty obvious who we're going to take."
"The NYCS girls aren't cutting it compared to the PCH ones. I say that we just take all of them." Rhiannon stated. "How many is that?"
"Six."
"So that brings us up to, what, nineteen girls?"
"Yeah. I was hoping that we could get to twenty, so we'll have to look through everything and try to find one more."
Just then, they all heard the sound of footsteps entering the gym. The four girls turned to look. Rhiannon and Lauren saw a brunette that they instantly recognized.
"Is it too late for me to try out?"
Chloe J pulled back out the radio. "Of course not." She started the music.
The teenager did her routine just as perfectly as she did every other one she had ever been presented with. When it was over with, Rhiannon and Lauren were still in shock that she had managed to move so in sync with the music. Mia just smiled knowingly.
"Paige Cassadine, senior." Chloe J announced unnecessarily. She went over and hugged her friend. "I knew you would come around."
"I think she makes the cut." Lauren went over, extending her hand to the older girl. "I'm Lauren Grayson."
"Paige Cassadine."
"Rhiannon Deusa." She shook Paige's hand. "I can't wait to start this team! It's going to be amazing!"
"It's also seven new girls who are at a completely different skill level than the rest of the team. Just warning you now, they're going to get frustrated, but we can't make the routine harder because then the NYCS girls won't be able to keep up." Mia stated. "Something's going to have to change."
"It will." Chloe J promised. "Trust me. Once the NYCS girls see that there is actually a chance of their team winning, they'll shape up."
"God, I hope so."
Brittany
After being picked up from school by Claudia, Brittany had been grounded for the week. Her parents' understood her frustration, especially after they heard what the football player said about Jazzie, but they couldn't let her get away with breaking the guy's nose. She thought she was being unfairly punished, so she decided to sneak out when Claudia was in the shower.
She had been walking for the past two hours with no destination in mind, just turning around corners and finding random side streets. Brittany knew that as much as she was dreading it, she had to go back home and face the consequences of her actions.
She wasn't proud of herself for what she had done, but in that moment, she could only see red. She hated that she had the ability to hurt someone and it made her wonder if everyone had a little bit of crazy in them. A little part that could snap and they could turn into much worse of a person.
Stop, Brittany, she chastised herself. You're nothing like him.
She heard the rumble of thunder as she walked up the stairs and entered Greystone, not surprised to see that her parents were sitting on the couch. Unfortunately by parents, she meant Sonny and Brenda, and she automatically wondered where Claudia was.
"Where's Claws?" she demanded.
"Where have you been?" Sonny shot back.
"I took a walk to clear my head."
"You see, that wouldn't be a problem if you weren't grounded, but you are."
"Brittany, how could you do this?" Brenda asked. "Why would you hit that boy?"
"Because he said something about my sister!" Brittany finally erupted. She knew part of her anger was towards Brenda and that's why she was screaming right now. "I am so sick and tired of you trying to tell me what to do and act like you know me! YOU DON'T KNOW ME!"
"Brittany Julia Corinthos…"
"Stop." Brittany put up a hand. "You don't understand what it's like to go to a school filled with bullies after you just dated a serial killer for a year. They take any chance they get to rip me apart and they actually enjoy it. Am I sorry that I hit that kid? Kind of. Am I sorry that I defended myself? No, and I won't apologize for it."
"You need to come and live with me. If you were living with me, then I could help you through these problems."
"I would rather be dead than live with you." She turned around and walked right back out the door. She saw that it was now pouring down rain and just sat down on the stairs.
Brittany could hear the front door open from behind her and she sighed. "I'm not in the mood to talk anymore, Brenda."
But it wasn't Brenda. Claudia lowered herself down next to her stepdaughter and put her arm around her shoulder. Brittany leaned her head against her arm.
"I'm sorry that you have to go through all this. I tried to get your father to understand and to not ground you, but you see how that worked out."
"I'm so mad at myself." Brittany admitted. "I can't believe I snapped like that. I don't fight. I've never been the type of person to get physical with people. It makes me feel like-like him."
"Britt, you are nothing like Trevor." Claudia reassured her. "There is a difference between getting mad because someone is talking about your dead sister and killing teenagers for fun or revenge or whatever his reasons were."
"I don't want to live with Brenda."
"I will divorce your father and kidnap you before I let that happen." Brittany knew that even though she was joking, there was some seriousness to her statement and she was glad that she had someone in her corner. "You don't have to listen to anything she says."
"She never cared before. I don't understand why she's pretending like she cares now."
"You don't have to worry about that, okay? You're always going to have me." Claudia kissed her forehead. "I love you."
"Love you too."
