Chapter 7: The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most
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
Chapter 7: The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most
Gabe and Hunter
Hunter pulled into his usual spot in the NYCS parking lot, seeing a familiar car just a few spots over. He slung his backpack over his shoulder and slammed the door, pressing the lock button on the remote attached to his keychain.
He waited at the back of his car until Gabe caught up to him. "Hey, what's up?"
"Just ready to get this day over with." Gabe said.
"Is everything okay? Is it Mia?"
"No, it's just dealing with everything at home. I'm trying to focus on football practice and being a dad and being the best boyfriend I can be to Mia and keeping my grades up, and on top of all of that, my mom is pregnant, my older sister is spiraling out of control according to Mia, and two of my cousins just moved in. It's a lot to handle."
"Sounds like it." Hunter agreed. "But Mimi's good?"
"Yeah, she's a lot better. The morning sickness is gone now, so she's a lot happier too. But she's been falling behind on her schoolwork."
Hunter frowned. "How? She just does the online stuff."
"She gets assignments that she's given a couple of days to finish, but she's got a lot on her plate too. She's been doing nothing but worrying about the baby, and then she's helping Chloe J with the cheer team and trying to teach Emma how to play volleyball."
"Wait, what? Em's playing volleyball?"
"She wants to tryout. Mia said that she told her that Brittany told her it would be a way to channel her energy into something else, so she wanted to try it. Apparently she isn't very good though. I think helping Emma and Chloe J has really been helping Mia though. Now she actually has something to do all day instead of just sitting around on a laptop." Gabe opened the front door to the school, letting Hunter grab it from him as they walked in. "Speaking of Britt, how's she doing? Mia told me she's suspended for a week."
"Life's not going so well for her right now. She's been getting bullied a lot lately because all the Madison punks know that she was dating Trevor before everything happened."
Gabe looked at him with a frown. "Zack and Connor aren't taking care of that?"
"The way Zack and Emma have been describing it, they can't do anything. The Madison teachers are backing their students one hundred percent. They want the PCH kids gone, even if it has to be from them deciding to transfer or drop out because of the constant bullying."
"That's disgusting."
"Yeah, haven't Maddie and Emma told you stuff about Madison? It's not a good place."
"Mads has been kind of keeping to herself lately, and I haven't talked to Emma much. It seems like she's always with Zack and Courtney."
"Well Britt, Zack, and Brenna have told me some stuff and it's bad. Did Mia tell you why Brittany was suspended?"
"Some kid from the football team said something about Jazzie."
"She punched him in the face and he told her that she's lucky he isn't her boyfriend or he would murder her and leave her in a diner, and then said isn't that how he killed your sister." Hunter explained. "After that is when she broke his nose and jumped on top of him. Haley and Addie were there and they stood by and let her hit him."
"Is that a good or a bad thing?"
"I think it's a great thing. Corinthos, Morgan, and Jacks kids have been taught their entire lives to defend themselves. To me, it doesn't matter if the PCH kids get kicked out of Madison because then they'll either have to come to NYCS or do online school and those options sound a lot better than being bullied."
"How's Britt taking the whole being grounded thing?"
"Well I heard my parents fighting last night about it. My mom doesn't think it's fair, but my dad says that they have to teach her that what she did is wrong. My mom knows that a lot is going on with Brittany right now and that she has some pent up aggression, especially with the Brenda stuff."
"What Brenda stuff?" Gabe tried to think of the last time he sat down and had a real conversation with Brittany, but it had been forever. He felt guilty that he hadn't been there for her for this tough time.
"Ever since Joey and Bella died, Brenda has been practically stalking her. She calls her constantly and shows up at the house, begging for Brittany to forgive her and to spend more time with her. Britt's fed up with it and she doesn't want anything to do with her, but Brenda keeps coming around. I don't know how much more of it she's going to be able to take before she completely explodes because she's already screamed at her a couple of times."
Gabe shook his head. "Why now? Why does she have to come and bother Brittany when she's going through the roughest time of her life?"
"Because she feels guilty about not being there for her other kids and they died, so she's pushing all of that on Brittany. We both know that Brenda Barrett cares about three things in this world- money, fashion, and herself. She never wanted to be a parent which is exactly why she pushed Joey, Brittany, and Bella off on their fathers and left." Hunter spat. He would never forgive the woman for how she had hurt his sister. "I don't know what to say to her to make it okay."
"It's a tough situation." Gabe agreed.
"Could you try and talk to her? You've dealt with stuff like this before with Mia."
Gabe scratched the back of his neck. "I helped Mia stop self-destructing after she was thrown out by her parents and her brother was murdered. This is a different situation."
"Not really. Brittany was abandoned by her mother, just like Mia was abandoned by her parents. And Mason died, just like Joey and Bella. Maybe Britt's not drinking and sleeping around, but she's hurting."
"I think Mia might be better at that."
"You already said that Mia has a lot on her plate right now. If you don't think you can do it, then that's fine, but I just think you could help her."
Gabe sighed. "I'll try."
"Thanks." Hunter reached his class. "See you at lunch."
"Bye." They parted ways.
Chloe J
Chloe J walked into the hospital room, hearing the beeping of the machines and immediately smelling disinfectant. Would it kill the nurses to put an air freshener in here or something?
She dropped her purse into the chair next to the bed and sat down. "Hey Stella, it's Chloe J. I was on my way home from cheer practice and I figured that I would stop by and tell you about my day.
"So NYCS has a cheerleading team and everything, but they're not very good. I went to the tryouts and I was just watching, but when I made some suggestions, the two captains, Lauren and Rhiannon, kind of challenged me so I had to show off, of course, and I made the team and they made me captain. Ever since then, I've been trying to find a routine that would work for them because their skill level isn't very high. Lauren and Rhiannon are juniors and they were amazed by how good the PCH freshmen are. It was funny to see their faces.
"Five of the girls quit, so we decided to have tryouts. Mia's been helping out with the team too, I forgot to tell you that part. So it's the two of us and these NYCS girls and at first, I didn't think I would like them because they're kind of nosy, but they're growing on me. But we decided to take six new girls- Paige, Nattie, Katie, Leah, Ava, Jacelyn, and Aubrey. We're at 20 girls now and it's already kind of rough. I can tell that the PCH girls are frustrated with having to do something so easy, and the NYCS girls still think the routine is too complicated. It's gonna be a lot of work, but I think Mimi and I can handle it.
"I don't know if anyone told you this, but there was a big fire at Wyndemere. The entire place burned down and Nikolas was killed, along with the whole staff they have there. Everyone thought that Paige was gone for a second, but she had gone to spend the night at Aubrey's so she was safe. I'm really glad that her and Nattie are gonna cheer because I think it'll get their minds off of things."
Chloe J sighed, deciding to just continue telling her half-sister about everything else going on in her mind.
"Then there's Emma. We've drifted apart because she's at Madison and she's in an all-out war with their queen bee, some girl named Brianna, and I'm at NYCS and focusing on cheer. But I'm really worried about her. Everyone keeps coming to me and telling me that she's not doing good, but I don't know what they expect me to do. Emma has to want to listen, and if she's as bad as everyone says, then I don't think she's ready. I can't make her do anything."
Chloe J hesitated, but reached out and touched her hand. "Dad really misses you, Stella. You need to wake up soon." She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry that I was such a horrible person to you. I feel so guilty for not being around when you were actually awake and okay. But I promise if you wake up, no, when you wake up, all of that's going to change. I know now that life's too short and I'm done worrying about the petty stuff."
Addie
Addie walked around the kitchen with her niece in her arms. Prue just stared up at her with the biggest smile as she sang along to the radio, trying to keep the baby happy. Molly had to go to the grocery store and Cam was at work, so she was on babysitting duty.
Addie had never thought that she would enjoy babysitting, but she really did. She absolutely loved living with Molly and she wished that she had moved in a long time ago. Not to say that she didn't love her father, because she did, but he had never been a very hands-on parent. He always thought that she could handle herself while he went out of town for business, and she could, but she shouldn't have had to.
Now, she actually felt like she had a family. A lot of teenagers complained about being forced to do stuff with their family, but she loved it. She loved eating in the dining room every night, helping give Prue a bath, watching romantic comedies with Molly after the baby and Cameron had gone to bed, and even just having someone to talk to. When she lived with Ric, she talked to Molly a couple of times a week on the phone, but it was completely different than seeing her sister every day.
"I'm home!" Molly brought in a couple of bags with the stuff she had bought. "You love Aunt Addie, don't you, Prue?" Molly kissed her daughter's forehead. "How was she?"
"Perfect, as always." Addie turned the radio down. Her cellphone rang and she wasn't surprised to see a text from Elizabeth. She rolled her eyes and put her phone back down without responding.
Molly noticed her expression. "Who texted you?"
"Elizabeth." Addie sighed. "She's been calling and texting me constantly. She keeps saying she wants to have a relationship with me."
Molly began putting away the groceries. "And how do you feel about that?"
"I don't really know. I've grown up for sixteen years without a mother so I feel like it's a little late to have one now. Besides, I'm happy with you and Cam and Prue."
"That doesn't mean anything, Addie. If you want to have a relationship with Elizabeth, then that's fine. It doesn't mean you have to go move in with her and cut all contact with us."
"I know, but she's just being so…persistent. I feel like it's all just because she doesn't have Stella to form into her little clone anymore, so now she wants to replace her with me."
Molly shrugged. "It could be possible. From what I've heard, Elizabeth has always been a little, for lack of a better word, crazy. She's borderline psychotic when it comes to her kids and monitoring every aspect of their lives."
"I don't know if I could handle that. I'm used to being able to do my own thing because I never really had anyone hovering over me."
"If she makes you uncomfortable then you can stop talking to her, Addie. We can get a restraining order or something."
"I just don't know what I want." She sighed.
"Well if Elizabeth is really honest about her intentions, then you have all the time in the world to figure it out." Molly smiled at her. "Wanna help me make shrimp pasta?"
"Yes!" Addie quickly agreed since it was her favorite meal. "You know, everyone who says that having an older sister is terrible has clearly never had one like you."
"Oh stop it, you're making me blush." Molly joked. "I learned from the best though. Sam and Kristina were great sisters growing up, so you have them to thank for me being so amazing."
Addie rolled her eyes with a laugh. "I'll have to remember to thank them next time I see them."
Tyler
Tyler had never felt as nervous as he did in that moment. He walked up the last flight of stairs and took a deep breath to calm himself down. He raised his fist and knocked gently on the door.
The first thing he noticed when it swung open was Sam Morgan's large stomach. He brought his eyes up to her face and saw her hesitant smile.
"Hi, Tyler." She greeted, opening the door to her PI office a little wider. "Come in." He came in and sat down in the chair that she gestured towards. "Can I get you something to drink? Water, coffee?"
"No, I'm good, but thank you." He figured he needed to just say what he came to say. "I'm trying to get a job, and I've been focusing a lot on my schoolwork. I know that you've never really known me that well, besides from me dating Courtney and being the same age as your daughter, but I'm really trying here, Sam."
Sam bit her lip. "It sounds like you're making a lot of progress."
"I never had a choice in this. I didn't get to decide if I wanted to give the baby up for adoption because I didn't know a baby existed. I know that this whole thing is kind of scary for you, and it's terrifying for me too. But I can't just go through life and ignore the fact that there is a child out there who has my DNA. I'm not trying to take her away from you, but I want to meet her so badly. Since the moment I found out about her, that's all I think about. And it sucks, especially since I can't question Stella on anything."
"Have you gone to see her yet?" Sam asked.
"No. I just don't know what to say."
"It's no secret that I've been in the same position that Stella's family is in many times with Jason. But trust me; it makes you feel a lot better to say what you're thinking to them, even if you're not sure if they can hear you or not. I think if you talk to Stella now while she can't object or interrupt you, then it'll be a lot easier to talk to her once she wakes up."
"Maybe." Tyler agreed uncomfortably. The truth is, he wanted to see Stella. He just wasn't sure how Matt and Elizabeth would react to the boy who had gotten their twelve year old daughter pregnant randomly showing up to her hospital room after breaking up four years ago.
Sam reached over and grabbed something off of her desk. She put it in Tyler's hands and he saw that it was a picture of Selena. It looked like it was pretty recent and he couldn't help but study it. She was sitting on a swing at the park, her curly blonde hair all around her and her blue eyes sparkling with happiness.
"She's gorgeous." Tyler said. "I'm trying to find myself or Stella in her, but I don't see it."
"I do." Sam came over and stood next to him. "I think the hair came from your mother since she's super blonde and that's the only blonde I can think of in your families. She's got your eyes and Stella's nose and smile."
"I guess she does." Tyler agreed after looking for another moment and seeing what she had been pointing out.
"I'm assuming you know that Paige and Nattie are living with us now, so our house is starting to get really crowded, plus there will be two new babies coming in a couple of months. Jason and I are going to buy a new house and Selena had all these crazy ideas. At first, all she wanted was a swing set, but then she heard the older kids naming big stuff and then she insisted on a playroom, a closet door in her bedroom that opens up to a waterslide into the pool, and a slide instead of stairs leading to her room. Her favorite color is purple, so of course she wants her bedroom decorations to be purple."
Tyler couldn't help but smile. "That's actually Stella's favorite color. She kind of sounds like her. Stella was always dreaming big."
Sam looked at the teenager. "Tyler, if you keep going on the path you're going and you work on being responsible and a good influence, then I don't see why you and Selena wouldn't be able to meet."
He grinned. "Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me."
Sam smiled. "I think I do."
Haley
Haley rolled her eyes when Wes walked around and opened the passenger side door for her. "Seriously? You're gonna be that guy?"
"What? I thought girls like it when guys open doors for them after they take them to dinner."
She shrugged. "I'm perfectly capable of doing it by myself, and now we've wasted time because I had to sit here and wait for you to open the door, and you had to walk all the way around the car to open it. We could have been inside by now."
Wes laughed. "You know, you're not like other girls, Hales."
"So I've heard."
They walked to the front door together and Haley pulled out her keys to unlock it. As soon as the door opened, they heard yelling. She and Wes looked at each other before hurrying to the living room.
"…and I'm sick and tired of dealing with you, Kristina!" she heard her father scream just as they got to the living room.
"Seriously? You're just gonna stand there and yell at her with your kids right in the room?" Logan was yelling, one of his arms wrapped around Livvie, who was crying.
"Then LEAVE!" Kristina shouted back to her husband. "You don't care about me! You've never cared about me!"
Haley was never close to Livvie, but something inside of her snapped at the sight of her sister crying. She didn't remember a time when Ethan and Lisa were together, but it still hurt her to know that her parents were divorced. Livvie and Logan had lived with their parents being married and happy for fifteen years and things couldn't suddenly change now. Even Haley couldn't imagine them not being together since they were the only family she had ever known.
"Stay out of this, Logan." Ethan said, stepping closer to his kids. "You don't understand."
"How do I not understand? The two of you scream so loud that the whole neighborhood can probably hear you! Mom thinks you don't love her anymore and you think she's annoying for saying it all the time, but you never prove her wrong!"
"I said stay out of it!"
"How about you back off?" Haley stepped protectively in front of Logan and Livvie. "They just want their parents to be together."
"Oh really, and what's your motivation for stepping in? Up until a couple of months ago, you could hardly stand Kristina. The two of you argued about every little thing." Ethan looked at his oldest daughter. "Don't think that we don't all know what's going on between the two of you." He glanced at Wes, and then back to Haley. "You just want us all to live together so you can keep screwing your stepbrother."
The slap echoed throughout the room and Haley didn't even realize she had hit him until she saw the shocked look on his face. She saw the anger set in and Ethan stepped closer to her. He had never raised a hand to any of his children, but she could still feel the fear race through her veins.
"Stop, Ethan." Kristina ran over, throwing herself in front of her stepdaughter. "You had no right to say that to her, and you need to back up."
Haley felt a hand wrap around her arm and Wes pulled her back so she was standing next to him and further from her father.
"It's funny that you think I'm such a slut." Haley said, yanking her arm away from Wes and going to stand next to Kristina. "Wes and I have never slept together, never even been close to sleeping together. I've only slept with one person, and he was my boyfriend for seven months and we had been talking since way before then. I'm nothing like you, Dad. Remember when you had two girls pregnant at the same time?"
"I don't know why you think you have the right to disrespect me."
"Why should I respect you?" Haley questioned. "You've hardly been there! As much as Kristina and I have had our difficulties, at least she's been around and if I need her, I know I can talk to her. You bury yourself in work and try and stay away from us as long as possible. You hardly even know your own children!"
"I'm not listening to this." Ethan grabbed his jacket and started towards the door. "Just remember that I'm the only one who is gonna be on your side, Haley. If Kristina and I get a divorce, you'll be living with me since your mother never wanted you."
"That's funny because I had a talk with Lisa and she told me that she wanted me more than anything in this world and you took me away!"
"And you're just going to believe that deadbeat? She never wanted you, Haley!"
"Shut up."
"What, you don't like hearing the truth?"
"Ethan!" Kristina yelled, trying to get him to stop. "Just leave her alone!"
"Stay out of this, this is my child, not yours!" he shouted.
"Come on." Wes wrapped his arm around Haley's shoulders and she didn't fight him. He led her upstairs with Logan and Livvie following behind.
Haley didn't know what to believe. What if Ethan was right and Lisa had just been telling her what she wanted to hear?
What now?
The Quartermaines
Jamie absolutely hated that the Quartermaines had to eat dinner together every single night. It was always quiet and awkward, and if people talked, it usually ended in a fight.
He always sat in the same seat with his brother, Tanner, to his left, and his father, Dillon, to his right. On Tanner's other side was Julian, then Julian's father AJ, followed by Lila Rae, then Grace, then Skye, then Monica, and then Tracy. Two seats that had previously been occupied by Edward and Trevor were empty.
He couldn't wait to get out of here. He was already eighteen, but he wouldn't leave until he graduated and went to college. After that, he knew he would never come back to live at the Quartermaine mansion. There was so much dysfunction and he didn't think he could handle it for the rest of his life.
"So, how has school been?" Monica questioned, trying to clear the quietness.
Grace smiled slightly. "Better."
Jamie was glad that his cousin had decided to transfer to NYCS. She didn't deserve the bullying she went through at Madison.
"Fine."
"Good."
"Okay."
The three boys answered, though they all hated that they were being forced to attend Madison. A lot of people in Port Charles perceived the Quartermaines as being snobby, but they were nothing when compared to the kids at Madison.
"You know, I can't help but wonder how school would have been for Trevor." Skye practically whispered.
"It would have been the same because we would still be at PCH if he had never burned it down and murdered all of those kids!" Julian shouted, slamming his fists against the table as he stood up. "Don't you ever mention him because he's ruined all of our lives!"
"Julian, sit down." AJ scolded his son.
"No. I can't sit here and listen to this." He walked away from the table.
Jamie, Tanner, Grace, and even Lila Rae watched him go, understanding where his feelings were coming from.
Not another word was said for the rest of their dinner.
Ashlyn
Ashlyn didn't know where she had planned on going when she decided to take a walk, but she didn't imagine that it would be the docks. The place didn't exactly hold good memories; it was right by a lot of the places that PCH kids had been murdered, and it had a perfect view of where Wyndemere had been before it was burned down.
She sat down on one of the benches and just stared at the water. She only had three months left to decide what she wanted to do with these babies, and keeping them didn't seem like an option. All she knew was that she couldn't stay here and be trapped into a life she didn't want.
She heard loud footsteps and couldn't stop her heart from jumping into her throat. Things had been calm for the past two months, but she had been conditioned to freak out at every little sound.
Ashlyn glanced over and was surprised to see Julian Quartermaine walking down the stairs. When he saw her, he hesitated, but came over anyway.
"Hey." He greeted quietly.
"Hi." She noticed his disheveled appearance. "You okay?"
"Yeah, I just ran here."
"Why?"
"We were having some stupid dinner and Skye had to bring up him." He didn't have to say his name; Ashlyn already knew.
"I'm sorry."
"I just hate that I have to walk around this town with everyone knowing that he was my cousin. He was disgusting and now we're all paying the price for his mistakes."
"What do you mean?"
"Don't pretend you don't know that the Madison kids are bullying all the PCH kids."
"I didn't know, but I'm sorry." She said sincerely.
Julian sat on the bench next to her. "So, how's everything going with…that?" he gestured towards her stomach. "Are you keeping them? It's twins, right?"
"Yeah, they're twins. I don't know what I'm going to do." Ashlyn sighed. "You know, there's still a chance that they could be yours."
"If you're saying you're going to want money…"
"No, that's not what I want." She shook her head quickly. "I just…I don't have anyone to talk about with this, Julian. Corey was the one who wanted the babies, even though he only ever knew that there was one. He was going to keep it, even if the baby wasn't his, so that it would have a good life. I knew that I couldn't handle all the pressure."
"Then why don't you give them up for adoption? You'll still get to live like a teenager if you do."
Ashlyn had briefly thought about adoption, but now that Julian was saying it, it seemed to make sense. She would be able to hand them off and make another couple happy, while making herself happy too.
"I better get going. Thanks for listening to me ramble." Ashlyn stood.
"Did you walk here? Do you want me to walk you home?"
"No, I'm fine, it's pretty close and exercise is good for pregnancy. Thanks, though." She walked away with thoughts of adoption swirling in her head.
Brittany and Gabe
"Gabe, what brings you by?" Sonny questioned when he saw his best friend's son walk into Greystone. "If you're looking for your sister, it seems that she actually went home for once."
"You know that if she's bothering you, you can always send her home, right?"
Sonny waved his hand dismissively. "You know that you all are family. We love having Emma here. Are you here to see Hunter?"
"No, I actually came to talk to Brittany."
"I'm sorry, but she's grounded."
"I know that. Hunter told me this morning about how she's dealing with everything with Brenda and what's happening at school. I just don't want her to keep bottling everything up until she explodes and it might help her to have someone new to talk to."
Sonny seemed to consider it. "She's in her room."
"Thanks." Gabe offered him a small smile and then went upstairs. He knocked on the door twice before pushing it open.
Brittany was sprawled out across her bed on her stomach, her head near the foot of the bed and her feet at the top. She had headphones in her ears that were connected to her phone, and her phone in her hand as she stared at it intently.
Gabe went over and stood in front of her, catching her attention. She seemed confused when she saw him and pulled the headphones out.
"Hey, did you sneak in? The warden isn't letting me have any visitors." She rolled her eyes.
"No, your dad knows I'm here."
"Wow, you Morgans really can charm your way into anything."
"Yeah, we get it from my mom." Gabe sat next to her. "Tell me about your life. What's going on with you?"
Brittany sighed. "Who told you to come here?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Gabe, I know you. You wouldn't just randomly show up to my house and ask me what's going on with my life unless someone asked you to. Was it my dad?"
"No, it was Hunter."
She shook her head. "I should have known."
"He's worried about you, Britt. We all are. It's not like you to get in fights."
"I don't know what happened. It all started with him calling me 'Whacko' and then he said something about Jazzie and all I could see was red. I didn't even realize that I was on top of him until the teacher pulled me off. What's wrong with me?"
"There's nothing wrong with you. It's in your instincts as an older sister to protect your younger siblings and that's what you were doing."
"But what's to stop me from being like Trevor?" her voice was so tiny that Gabe just wanted to pick her up and protect her.
"Um, a lot, starting off with the fact that you actually have a heart." He hugged her. "Britt, you're nothing like him. Just because you got mad and defended yourself for a really good reason doesn't mean that you should compare yourself to a serial killer."
"Serial killers have to start somewhere!"
"Yeah, they kill little animals and stuff like that when they're kids. They're not sixteen year old girls who break a kid's nose for insulting her little sister that recently passed away. You did nothing wrong."
"Did you feel guilty after you beat up Joey for Emma?"
Gabe knew that this could be a touchy subject. Joey, despite all of his flaws, was Brittany's half-brother and he was sure that she had some kind of love for him deep down inside of herself.
"Honestly, no." he sighed. "You didn't see her when she got attacked. She came into the house and she fell on the ground because she couldn't walk. She started sobbing and begging us to help her. Emma's older than me, but she's still my sister and I'll protect her the same way I'll protect Mia, Maddie, Katie, Selena, you, Paige, Court, Chloe J, any girl that I love." He looked down at her. "If you want me to beat up that guy for you, I'll do it."
"I think there's been enough violence." Brittany decided.
"I agree." Gabe smiled at her. "But you're not crazy, Brittany. You're just human."
"Thank you for coming here." She hugged him tightly.
"I'll always be here for you. I know that Mia and I have been kind of busy with the baby and everything, but we love you and if you need anything, you can come to us."
"That means a lot." She kissed his cheek. "I love you, Gabe."
"Love you too."
Emma
"Emma…Emma, wake up."
Emma shot up in her bed. She could feel herself gulping for air and the familiar panic after a nightmare set in. She rested her elbows on her legs and her head in her hands, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down.
"Emma, are you okay?"
She looked up, completely forgetting that she now had to share her bedroom and there was someone else sleeping in there. Her parents had to rearrange everything to be able to fit another bed in and it was really tight. Emma hated that she had to give up the one space that was hers.
She met Paige's eyes and could see the worry on her cousin's face and it just made her angrier. She didn't need her to feel sorry for her.
"I'm fine." Emma pulled back the blankets and went to the bathroom attached to her room. She shut and locked the door, sliding her back down it until she was sitting.
"I can't stand what you've made me become! Before I was with you, I was happy and life was good. But you screwed everything up!"
She covered her ears, desperately trying to get his voice out of her head.
"Don't you understand this is all your fault? You just make me so mad, Emma!"
Those were the last words he ever said to her, though she hadn't known it at the time. It was her fault. She destroyed him.
And now, she paid the price for it in every single nightmare, every shove from a Madison student, and every dirty look from people who knew that her boyfriend beat her up.
And she knew she deserved it.
Chloe J
Chloe J locked her car door and shoved her keys into her purse as she walked towards NYCS. She could tell from the parking lot that Paige and Nate had already arrived and she was glad; she hated when they were late and she had to sit in the cafeteria by herself before school started.
She stopped by her locker first, grabbing the books for her first two classes and then went to the cafeteria. She quickly found her friends at their usual table.
"Good morning." She greeted, sitting down across from Paige and Nate.
"Morning." Nate said back with a slight smile. Paige just waved, but Chloe J could tell something had happened.
"You okay, P?"
"I'm good. It's Emma that I'm worried about."
Chloe J pressed her lips together, waiting for Paige to explain what had happened with her cousin. She had tried to let Courtney and Zack handle Emma's problems; she had a very in-your-face kind of way of dealing with things, and she didn't think that Emma needed confrontation right now. But considering that the other two were letting her run wild and practically drink herself into a coma, Chloe J figured it might be time for her to step in.
"What happened?"
"This morning, I woke up and Emma was screaming. Like full out screaming and sobbing. She was still sleeping, so I tried to wake her up and then when I did, she just brushed it off like nothing happened. She went into the bathroom and I could hear her crying. She's having nightmares."
"It's not unusual for people who experience trauma to have nightmares." Nate said carefully. Chloe J noticed the detached way he spoke and knew that it was because of the distance between himself and Emma, which was caused by Emma.
"It's more than that, Nate. I've never seen someone look so scared when they're sleeping."
"Emma had a lot happen to her."
"I just don't want her to spiral out of control."
Chloe J scoffed. "It's a little too late for that." Nate and Paige turned to her in surprise. "What?"
"Nothing. I'm just surprised that you haven't really been helping Emma get through all of this. At first, I figured you were kind of oblivious since you didn't really mention it, but I know that you're a lot smarter than that, Chloe J." Paige said carefully.
The blonde took a deep breath before answering. "You're not the only one who has had some tension with Emma, P. We're good now since the whole pregnancy scare thing, but we're not as close as we used to be. It hurts to say, but I know it's true." She shrugged. "She would rather spend her time with Zack and Courtney."
Nate shook his head. "I just don't understand why."
"I do. Courtney has always been extremely laidback. She's the friend you go to when you don't want someone to judge you because she's had her fair share of experiences that she isn't proud of, so she doesn't judge. Zack would do anything to make Emma happy and I'm assuming that he doesn't realize how serious this problem could become since he hasn't stopped it. Emma has to know that what she's doing isn't right; she just went through this a couple of months ago with Mia and she was worried about her, and I know that she's smart enough to see the similarities. Nate, you've never been one to sit back and let her do what she wants. You've always told her the truth, even if it's not what she wants to hear, and I'm not saying that Zack doesn't do that, but he's blinded by the fact that they've been friends literally since she was born and he's probably just trying to be what she wants right now instead of what she needs. I'm more of a hands-on person and I know that I wouldn't be able to let Emma figure things out alone. I would be constantly watching her, trying to get her to stop drinking, and making her do her school stuff. And Paige, no offense, but you're the most judgmental."
"I am not!" Paige huffed.
"I'm not saying it's a bad thing. Like I said, Courtney has had a lot of experiences and that's why she doesn't judge as much. You just haven't experienced as much as the rest of us, so you don't really have the same understanding with certain topics, so you are slightly more judgmental."
"Well what are you going to do about Emma?" Paige changed the subject. "You have to try."
"I'll talk to her, but I doubt it'll help."
"I hate that things are so awkward between everyone." Nate sighed. "Emma won't talk to any of us, Paige and Zack don't talk…"
"Which is understandable." Paige interrupted, referring to their break-up after dating for so long.
"…Courtney hardly talks to anyone anymore." Nate continued as if she never spoke. "And it's like the juniors barely even exist anymore, besides Hunter and Gabe."
"It sucks." Chloe J agreed. She really hoped that when PCH was rebuilt, things would go back to normal.
Haley
Normally, Haley paid no attention to everything going on around her. When they were at PCH, everyone respected her and in turn, she respected them. Here, things were a lot different. Even though she has never done anything rude to a Madison student (unless provoked, of course), they were all determined to bully her. Not that it was only her; that was their mission for any PCH student.
For some reason, she happened to look up just as a sophomore slammed Brenna Corinthos into one of the lockers.
Haley isn't close to her family. She hadn't ever really had a relationship with her mom, and her dad was always working. For a long time, the only family member she really even claimed was Ben. But there was still the fact that her stepmother, Kristina, is Brenna's half-sister, which technically makes Brenna her aunt by marriage. And even if she's not close to her family, Haley still isn't going to let anyone bully them.
"Hey, how about you leave her alone?" she said to the random girl, grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around to face her. Haley wasn't extremely tall, but she was taller than the girl standing in front of her and she could see some of that power slide out of her.
"Excuse me?" the girl scoffed.
"You heard me. Go before I embarrass you in front of all of these people."
Haley saw the fear flash in the girl's eyes before she changed her expression to a smirk. "You're not worth it anyway." She turned and walked away.
Brenna let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Haley."
"Welcome." Haley felt a rush of pride at the fact that she had stopped Brenna from being bullied and it reminded her of why it was important to stand up for herself, even if that meant she risked getting in trouble with the Madison principal. They didn't deserve to be treated this way. "You okay?"
"I'm fine." Brenna started walking with her down the hallway. "I just wish that we could leave this place."
"Me too." Haley agreed. "But we've gotta start fighting back. I know it's gonna be hard and there will most likely be consequences, but I'm sick of just sitting around and letting them say whatever they want to me."
She could see that Brenna didn't feel as strongly as she did about the subject, probably because she was small and it wasn't as easy for her to stand up to someone since she wasn't very intimidating. But Haley vowed right then that, from now on, she wasn't just gonna sit back and take it anymore.
She was gonna fight.
Chloe J
As soon as the bell rang, Chloe J grabbed her books and shoved them into her bag. The classroom was overcrowded, so she knew it would take a little longer than usual to get out of the room. She shifted her backpack to over her shoulder and stood in the line for the door, rolling her eyes at the people who tried to cut to get out faster. She was going to lunch next, so she wasn't in as much of a hurry.
"Well hello there, beautiful lady." She looked to her right when she finally exited the classroom and saw Brendan was waiting for them.
"You're so weird." Chloe J said, though she had to hide her smile. If someone told her four months ago that she would actually like Brendan Webber, she would have punched them in the throat. But now, it was nice.
"What class did you just have?"
"English." She absolutely hated the actual academics aspect of NYCS. Due to the lack of funding, they had almost no honors or AP classes. Now, Chloe J is no Einstein, but she was in honors classes at PCH and the ones she was in now were so easy that they were boring.
Brendan, on the other hand, had never really been in the smart classes, so he didn't mind as much. But he knew that it bothered her, so he smiled sympathetically.
"PCH will be built before we know it."
"It's already January, Brendan. By the time it's built, it might be too late for us. We might not get to walk across that stage with all of our friends."
"Is it really that important?" she looked at him questioningly. "I know NYCS isn't great, but it's not so bad either. We can actually be who we want to be without living under the stereotypes we've been forced into for the past eighteen years since we've all known each other since we were born."
"I just want to be at the same place as all of my friends."
"Maybe you are." Chloe J knew he was trying to be gentle, but she was still getting annoyed anyway. "The people that transferred here hardly speak to the people who transferred to Madison. If everyone was really that good of friends, you would think we would make more of an effort."
"Can you just drop it?" she asked, not wanting to get mad at him.
"Yeah." Brendan poked her in the side. "Remember when you almost hit me with your car?"
"Excuse me?" Chloe J stopped walking in the center of the hallway to look at him. "You jumped in front of my car!"
"And you punched me in the face." Brendan said, putting a hand over his heart and talking like it was an important, happy memory. "I'll never forget that day."
Chloe J couldn't help but laugh. "You're such a dork."
Brendan smiled. "It's good to see you smile. You haven't been doing that much lately."
She shrugged. "I haven't really had a reason."
"Chloe J, I know that things have been rough, but they really will get better. Maybe you should sit down and talk with Emma and tell her how you feel. Don't even try to deny it because I know that's why you're upset; you miss her."
"I miss her so much that it hurts. I know that might sound weird or clingy, but…"
"It doesn't." he interrupted. "She's been your best friend for forever and suddenly you guys are torn apart and going to different schools and you're both going down different paths. Whether you like it or not, you need her, and I'm betting that she needs you too. Talk to her."
"I'll try." They walked into the cafeteria.
Maddie
Connor's hand tightened around Maddie's as he led the way out of the cafeteria and into the madness that was the hallway. Lunchtime was one of the most common times that bad things happened between the PCH and Madison students, so Maddie knew that he was always a bit weary. Though it wasn't at the same extreme as Gabe or Zack, she knew that Connor had that natural protectiveness and worried over the littlest things.
"I wanna tell you something but you can't tell anyone." Connor told her quietly, pulling her so that they were walking next to each other.
"Okay…"
"I'm serious, Mads."
"You know that I wouldn't tell anyone something that you wanted me to keep a secret. What's going on?"
"I don't know if this is true, but I just have a really bad feeling."
She frowned. "Connor, you're scaring me. What's wrong?"
He moved so that he was standing in front of her by her locker and they were facing each other. "I think Court might be throwing up again. She's been acting really weird and…"
Maddie had heard the first part of what he said, but something behind his head quickly caught her attention. "Look." She pointed over his shoulder.
Connor turned around and they both saw Jamie standing in front of Addie and screaming at a Madison boy. Both Maddie and Connor sighed and went over to where they were, knowing that if someone didn't break this up, then the principal would get involved and the PCH students were already under a microscope because of Brittany's suspension.
"You okay?" Maddie asked, going to Addie immediately. She nodded her head.
"Jamie, quit. It's not worth it." Connor tried to tell him.
"No. This guy was hitting on Addie and making her feel uncomfortable."
Maddie immediately saw Connor's back go rigid and knew this wouldn't go well. "What?" he looked at the guy who Maddie thought looked really familiar, but she couldn't think of his name or why she knew him.
Before anything else could happen, Brianna came over to the group. She wrapped an arm around the boy in front of them and gave Jamie, Connor, Maddie, and Addie a fake smile.
"Um, that's impossible. Thomas is my boyfriend; why would he ever hit on some fake redhead when he could have me?"
A bell went off in Maddie's head. The boy's name is Thomas Ashby and he's a senior. He had been Livvie's boyfriend a couple years ago and he came to dinner at Alexis's with everyone. He had said something rude to Livvie and Mia dumped mashed potatoes down his pants. He literally cried for twenty minutes and then sent her the dry cleaning bill (which Mia never paid).
Out of nowhere, Emma appeared. Maddie held in a groan; there was no way that this would end well.
"What's going on here?" she asked, standing in front of Jamie and Connor and giving Brianna a dirty look.
"Oh, this ugly little whore here is trying to say my boyfriend was hitting on her. It doesn't really surprise me though, considering everyone knows about PCH's track record with being faithful in relationships. Remember the little chlamydia outbreak that happened a few months ago?"
"Um, it was like five people. I wouldn't really call that an outbreak."
"Yeah, but your brother was one of the people who got it. Promiscuity must run in the family. I heard his little girlfriend is knocked up too. That kid will probably come out deformed…"
Emma stepped dangerously close to Brianna. Jamie reached out and grabbed her arm, gently pulling her back since he knew that this would escalate quickly.
"You can say what you want about all of us, but you are a disgusting person for talking about an innocent little baby. You're lucky I don't tell my brother because his girlfriend, pregnant or not, would come up here and strangle you."
"Oh, I'm so scared." Brianna laughed. "What's her name? Mya? Tell her to bring it."
"Actually, it's Mia. Mia Webber." Maddie watched Emma look at Thomas, whose face had suddenly gone pale, and knew that her older sister recognized the boy too. "Tommy knows all about her, don't ya, Tom?"
Brianna turned to her boyfriend and saw his expression. "What is she talking about, Thomas?"
"Nothing. I don't know her."
"Oh, you don't? I'll give you a little refresher here." Emma said. "You see, Thomas dated my cousin Olivia. He came to one of our family dinners and Mia dumped mashed potatoes down his pants because he was being a jerk. Your big, strong boyfriend here cried like a baby for twenty minutes and if that wasn't annoying enough, then he tried to send the dry cleaning bill like she was actually going to pay for it. Congratulations, Thomas, you've been a joke for my family for the past couple years.."
"You know what…" Thomas stepped closer to Emma, making Connor and Jamie step in front of her.
"I know you're gonna back up." Connor stated.
"Wow, you've got such a loyal little army here, Emma. Are you sleeping with all of them? What would Joey say?"
It all went downhill from there. Maddie wasn't even sure what they were saying anymore, but both Emma and Brianna were screaming at each other and people were starting to stare.
Maddie brushed past Connor and grabbed Emma's arm, pulling her away from the situation. Emma kept yelling until Maddie opened up the door to an empty classroom and shoved her inside, shutting the door behind her.
"Seriously?"
"Seriously what?" Emma questioned.
"You need to take some anger management classes or something."
"Why?" Emma laughed dryly. "Because I'm sick of letting them walk all over me? Or because I'm sick of them always bringing up Joey like they actually know what happened between us? I'm not gonna just sit back and let them say whatever anymore, Madelyn. I'm done."
"Standing up for yourself is one thing. Standing in the middle of the hallway and having a screaming match is another. You need to learn to control your temper."
Emma shook her head and opened the door. "Whatever." She stormed off. Maddie watched as she walked right out of the front doors.
She went back over to where Connor was standing. She saw that Jamie and Addie had left, probably to go to class, and Courtney and Zack were approaching.
"You okay?" Connor wondered.
"Fine."
"Hey, have you guys seen Em?" Zack asked. "After lunch, she just kind of disappeared."
"Yeah, there was just a bit of a situation with Brianna Edwards. Mads and Emma got into it and Emma left school." Connor explained for Maddie, who was now trying to focus on getting her books ready instead of what had just happened.
"What happened with Brianna?"
"She said something about Mia and Gabe's baby, and then Joey."
Courtney cracked her knuckles. "I'll kill her for talking about that baby. What did she say?"
"It's not important." Maddie replied, closing her locker. "Let's just get to class, okay? We don't need any more incidents today."
Emma and Chloe J
Emma didn't know where she was going until she had already sat down and she was staring out at the water. Spoon Island wasn't nearly as enchanting with Wyndemere in ashes. The same could be said about Emma; she wasn't nearly as happy without all of her friends by her side, and she was definitely having a hard time with that right now.
The Dream Team was a complete joke. Hardly any of them were speaking, and when they were all together, the atmosphere was awkward. Emma didn't want things to be weird between her and Paige, but it was and she couldn't help it. Then there was Nate's constant questioning and Chloe J's complete avoidance of any subject that could actually be serious (which she was kind of grateful for, but that wasn't the Chloe J she knew and she didn't want to be treated like a child).
She touched the top of the water lightly with the bottom of her shoe and reflected on everything that had happened with Brianna earlier that day. Emma didn't regret anything she said, especially when it came to defending her unborn niece or nephew, but she was making it way too easy for the other girl to get to her. She needed to stop getting so upset and figure out a way to get Brianna back.
Emma heard a clicking noise and didn't even have to turn around to know what it was. She had heard it so many times in her life that she could identify the noise Chloe J's heels made anywhere.
The blonde sat down next to her, letting out a sigh. She studied Emma's profile, but didn't speak. Maddie had called her after school and told her what happened, so Chloe J figured that now was as good a time as any to try and talk to her best friend. She knew that Emma would talk when she was ready, and she would wait because she wasn't exactly sure where her head was at right now.
"Do you remember when we were younger and we thought it was so cool that Paige lived in a castle? For a while, we all called her Princess Paige and we would bow whenever she walked by. But then Aunt Emily died and now everything is different and I just don't know how to handle this, Chloe. I want to be ten years old again and not have to worry about nightmares and drinking and being bullied every single day by a school full of rich kids who never wanted us there in the first place. I just want to get away from here."
Chloe J pulled Emma into her arms, feeling the smaller girl bury her face in her shoulder. "I know, Em. I'm so sorry."
"It hurts so much." Emma sobbed.
She just kissed her forehead and stroked her hair, not really sure what else she could do. This was one situation that even they couldn't fix.
Do you think Stella will ever wake up? And if she does, will she and Chloe J get closer? Do you want Stella to wake up?
Do you think Tyler will stay dedicated to doing whatever it takes to see Selena?
Thoughts on Kristina and Ethan and their kids? Do you think Lisa just told Haley what she wanted to hear, or do you think she genuinely wanted her?
If Ashlyn were to give the twins up for adoption, who would you want to take them?
What are your thoughts on Gabe and Brittany?
Everyone complains about how they are drifting apart, but they never do anything to stop the distance. What's something that could bring the Dream Team back together?
Do you like Chloe J with Brendan, or would you rather see her date someone else, and who would you want that to be?
What will happen when Mia and Gabe find out about Brianna insulting their baby?
