Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Elizabeth takes a long drink of water before looking at the progress she has made on the backyard. A part of her had thought to hire a cleaning crew to get the backyard back to its former beauty, but the idea of restoring the home herself was just too tempting to pass up. After feeling like she had abandoned her home for so many years, she just wants to be the one to restore it to its former glory.
By nightfall her backyard will be filled with a bunch of people she barely knows and, for once, that doesn't terrify as much as it used to. These people whose lives she has somehow found her way into are unlike anyone she has ever known before. They don't judge her or whisper about her behind her back. They don't give her the usual look of disgust or hatred.
For the first time in such a long time, Elizabeth has been accepted by people without a moment of hesitation, something she can't help but hope won't end. To be welcomed with open arms, not a single nose turned up, made her want to do more for them. To prove that they hadn't made a mistake in welcoming her into their inner circle.
"Elizabeth?" Jason voice sounds off from inside the house. "You here?"
"Backyard." she shouts back, surprised by the fact that she's no longer surprised by his presence, somehow beginning to expect it.
The moment he stepped through the door and out into the backyard, she knew that all her hard work has paid off, the surprise on his face evident of that. Obviously she didn't have to do all of this, Jason having told her so before he left the other day, but she couldn't help it. She wanted to make a good impression on them. What kind of impression would she make if she allowed them to have their barbecue in a backyard that hasn't been tended to in so many years? Besides, the yard work has been good for her, a productive way to get all her pent up emotions out.
"Need help?" he voices after a long moment, turning to meet her eyes.
"Sure." she replies, smiling a soft smile as she hands him a pair of garden gloves. "You can start by moving that pile over to the compost bin."
"Got it." he shakes his head. "Before I forget, the guys will be here to set everything up in about another hour or so."
"I guess we should probably get to work then."
Watching him get started on transferring the leaves and branches, Elizabeth's mind takes her to a place that she has never truly allowed herself to go in regard to a man. Sure, she's had crushes here and there over the years, but none of them ever took. Trust doesn't come easy to her and it has caused her to push people away before they can even really get to know her. Watching him, though, as he works on her yard, she was beginning to think that letting someone in might not be as frightening as she had once believed it would be.
Sliding her hands back into her gloves, once her mind was able to function again, she gets started on raking up the rest of the leaves that are scattered around the yard. As hard as they are working, she's more than confident that they'll be able to have the backyard in a good enough shape for the barbecue. If only her brother could see her now. He'd probably want to light some kind of candle at the fact that his little sister was actually doing yard work. Something she had adamantly insisted she was allergic to.
Francis could see that his boss wasn't all that thrilled at knowing where the latest weekly barbecue was being held. What he couldn't understand was why he was getting so worked up. Obviously there was more to this little tale that his boss is weaving, but he knows better than to push past the truths that his boss offers. There was definitely something there, though. If only he could figure out just what that was.
Leaving his boss to do what needs to be done, Francis makes his way out of the warehouse to get prepared for the barbecue. With Johnny on drink duty, that left him with the basic essentials; plates, spoons, napkins and such. The other fellas are tasked with meat and rice, as well as other main dishes that no good barbecue could ever go without. In their opinion at least.
"What's with the face?" Francis questions his friend as Johnny slides into the passenger seat of his SUV, thoroughly confused because he hadn't expected his friend to join him on his trip to the market.
"She's not coming." Johnny says simply, reclining back before lowering his cap to cover his eyes. "Again."
"Didn't she tell you that from the jump?" he counters, starting up the car before heading out of the parking lot. "I wasn't aware there was even a possibility that she'd change her mind."
"Didn't stop me from trying." he says plainly, unable to stop it from affecting him this time. "Just drive."
Accepting that his friend would need time to accept that, in some cases, his world and the one his girlfriend resides in are a lot farther apart than he had initially allowed himself to believe. Every part of him had thought that they would be this epic love story. That they could somehow overcome their obstacles and be together. That their love would rise above it all. Apparently he was just blinding himself to the truth.
As much as Francis can't understand their relationship, there was once a time that he, too, had believed in their relationship. A time when he had defended their relationship. Rooted for it, even, but there was no turning a blind eye to it all anymore. Johnny gives and gives, constantly doing whatever it takes to please her, regardless of how humiliating or degrading it may be. For her to not see just how much Johnny does for her sends a level of anger through Francis that not even he knew was possible. Especially in regard to a woman. Sooner or later, she's either going to have to wake up and fight for her relationship or allow it to fall apart and lose Johnny for good.
Stepping out of her bedroom, fully dressed for her grandmother's tea party, Emily takes a deep breath before descending the stairs, meeting with the two brothers at the bottom. She'd be lying if she said that her heart didn't ache a little to not see Johnny at the bottom of the stairs, having hoped he'd change his mind and show up for at least a few minutes.
Their argument last night still rings through her mind like a scary movie on replay. It had been the first real argument the two has ever had in their entire relationship. The look in his eyes as he told her just how important it was to him to have her with him when he's with his friends, how badly he wants for them to know her, to know just why he loves her so much, haunts her as the two escort her into the gathering.
"Smile." Lucky reminds her on a whisper as they enter the room, all eyes turning to them as they make their way over to her grandmother.
Taking a deep breath, she tries to remind herself that she loves attending events like these, regardless of whether or not her boyfriend joins her. Greetings are passed around before the three of them head off to find their seats, knowing that tea was about to be served. Unlike most tea parties, however, the buffet to follow is definitely worth the trip to the event. One of the main reasons why Lucky and Nikolas even bother attending at all.
"Hey." Nikolas voices to gain her attention. "Everything okay with you? You're usually radiating with excitement by now."
"I guess I'm just not into it today." Emily admits, stirring her cup of tea absentmindedly. "Sorry."
"Emily Quartermaine not into a tea party hosted by her own grandmother?" Lucky looked at her in complete shock. "Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?"
"Lucky." she sighs, shaking her head before dropping her spoon back onto the napkin laid beside the saucer. "I'm just not feeling it, okay?"
As the usual opening speech is delivered, Emily can't help but wonder what her boyfriend is up to and if he's having as rotten a time as she is. As much as she tried to prevent it, they had gone to bed angry at each other last night and were unable to resolve anything that morning because he was called in at the break of dawn. If only she could just talk to him, hash everything out, maybe she'd feel better.
Jason could hear the words coming out of Sonny's mouth, but he couldn't understand a single word he was saying. Introducing Elizabeth hadn't been intended, having run into Sonny by chance at the market as they were getting table covers and a decent sound system for the barbecue, but now he's kind of glad he did.
Initially, he had thought nothing of Elizabeth's mention of Sonny, believing that Sonny conducts all kinds of business with all kinds of people, finding no issue with the fact that he had conducted some form with Elizabeth's father. For Sonny to go out of his way to order Jason not to bring Elizabeth around the business in any way, his estate included, had Jason rethinking the whole connection between his friend and Elizabeth's family.
"What was that about?" Elizabeth questions as she approaches Jason, still a little put off at the sight of Sonny. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah." he assures, turning to face her as she tosses in a few more things into their cart. "We should be heading back."
"Okay, well, I'm pretty sure we've got everything we need." Elizabeth says as she looks over the contents of their cart. "You sure you're okay?"
"I'm sure." he puts on a slight smile before guiding her over to the registers, unable to get Sonny's words out of his head.
Paying for all the items, he loads up the car before driving them back to the estate, his mind actively trying to dissect the very confusing conversation that he had just had with his friend. By the time they arrived, the men had the tables all set up and the grill ready to go. From the look on Elizabeth's face, he could tell that seeing them there made her happier than even she had thought she'd be.
"Wait." he says, stopping her from walking out into the backyard. "I know this is probably the wrong time to offer this, but I'm going to anyway."
"Okay." she looks at him confusedly. "Offer what?"
"If you still want me to, I'll help you look into what happened to your family." he voices, almost certain Sonny was involved in some shape or form, a part of him fearful of the truth that lies behind the deaths that have plagued this town for years. "I'll help you find out what really happened."
"So you believe me?" she counters, meeting his eyes seriously. "You believe that Sonny Corinthos might be responsible?"
"I don't know what I believe." he admits. "But I will help you find the truth."
"That's all I want."
"Lizzie!" Johnny's voice sounds off from the beverage area. "Come check this out!"
"I should probably..." she gestures to the man across the yard. "We'll talk more later?"
"We'll start tomorrow." he assures. "Tonight's about having fun."
"Fun...right." she smiles brightly, hearing the sound of her name being called again from across the yard. "I said I'm coming, John!"
"Go ahead."
"I will, but first..." she leans up, placing a soft kiss upon his cheek. "Thank you."
"I haven't done anything."
"You believe I'm innocent." she says simply, walking backwards as she talks to him. "After all these years, you're the first...so, thank you."
Watching her turn around and run across the yard to the welcome of the men, Jason had to admit that it was a beautiful sight to see. He can pretty much imagine what it must mean to her to be welcomed so easily by a group of people without any accusation or rumors floating around. To be brought into the thick of it without a second of hesitation. Something he's thankful to be able to give her.
A large part of him knows that he'll probably regret helping her find the truth, but its not only for her benefit. He wants to know the truth. If Sonny had been the one behind it, Jason would never be able to see his friend the same way again. To do something so despicable and leave a young woman to take the fall...its unspeakable. Unforgivable.