Note: Max lives! Time to celebrate!

Samsonlove- Yes, the way that Maxie always finds some way to screw up the good things in her life is worthy of feeling some sort of pity for the poor child. But, she brings it upon herself, which makes it easier to not feel much of anything. Ric's softer side is so much better than his evil side. Less scary, which isn't necessarily a good thing, but better on the whole.

Story-

Outside The Quartermaine Mansion-

He walked his motorcycle up the path as much as possible, trying not to give them the slightest idea that he was even on the grounds. Jason usually didn't even ride his motorcycle any longer. Before, it had been a part of his being, a huge passion that he thought he would never lose. But now, now it was only something that he did when he felt the urge to sit on the bike and go came to him, which wasn't nearly as often as it had been in the past. Sometimes it only took a few years for a person to grow up, or grow out of a specific stage in life and maybe that had happened to him. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he was married now, or married again, but this time to someone that he really cared about, someone who he wanted to be with. Before, with Brenda, it was just something that he did to save someone, but Courtney… Courtney was something special.

Jason would always remember the way that they would look at each other when they weren't together. The passion that existed between them even before it was spoken of, pulling them towards one another despite the fact that she was supposed to be with another person. On some level, Jason should have felt bad about stealing Courtney away from his brother, but AJ had decided to become the worst possible human being that he could be, and, because of that, Jason felt nothing in the way of pity for his older brother. Far from it, Jason, in some small way, reveled in the fact that he had taken Courtney from AJ, not because he needed to feel like he had one upped his brother, but because Jason knew that in doing so he pulled Courtney away from a life that nobody should have been forced to endure, especially someone with the hopes and dreams that Courtney had, with the love that she had in her heart. The Quartermaines would only find a way to squash that love and twist her into something else, something that he had once been.

The woman in question pulled up in her car and took a moment to stare at him. If he noticed that she had pulled up, which he probably had, he didn't let it show. No, instead Jason had chosen to remain stoic, as he often did, not letting the world around him see the vulnerabilities that rested inside. Courtney didn't think that it was fair, a person who was so passionate like Jason being forced to hide that passion from everyone just for the sake of his job seemed to be more of a punishment than anything else. But, Jason had made his choice, and if there was one thing that Courtney understood about her husband it was that when she tried to shape him, when anyone tried, he only pushed them away. If Courtney was one of the few people who saw the human side of Jason, then she would take that as the blessing that it was, not pity her husband for having to hide something about himself from everyone else.

After she was done looking at him, she walked out of the car, treading the pathway slowly and cautiously. Like Jason, Courtney didn't exactly feel the warmth that a person could feel from the house. Yes, it was beautiful. Even in the dead of winter, the mansion seemed to have a life about it, something that made it stand out from everything else. But, there was plenty missing from it as well. With Lila gone it seemed like a part of the light that beamed forth from the mansion had been forever dimmed out. Courtney remembered the woman well, the way that she would just smile at Courtney which caused Courtney to feel like everything was going to turn out okay. No matter the odds, Lila Quartermaine would find a way to remain positive. It was one of her best qualities, it was also one of the many qualities that seemed to be lost without her presence. How could people, even those that weren't related to Lila, continue to believe in hope when the symbol, the beacon that she was for the emotion was gone? They all did what they could, trying to become their own personal beams, but nothing would ever be the same.

Sometimes, Jason wished that he could remember what he had gone through while he was living with them. He knew that he spent a lot of his time away from the mansion, knew that they had sent him away to another school where he would occasionally visit from time to time, but, even with those gaps in time, Jason still wished that he could remember something. A feeling, good or bad. It would only seek to validate what he felt for them, for his family. He wished that he could remember everything that they were, everything that they stood for. If nothing else, in remembering those things about the Quartermaines he would find a way to make sure that he never emulated them again. Which, to him, was more important than a lot of things.

"Why are you out here?" Courtney finally asked, feeling that he had been given enough time to think about whatever it was that he was thinking about. Sometimes she could guess, other times it seemed to be something that only Jason could understand. After all, when it came to the Quartermaines there were so many possibilities, it would be impossible to think of just one. "Something didn't happen, did it? Alan, Monica, Emily… they're all right, aren't they?" Though he may have only treated Emily like a member of the family, Courtney knew that, at least on some level, Jason still cared about his parents. Perhaps Monica more than Alan, as she seemed to try and reach out more, even though she also kept her distance. But, Jason always knew that they were the people who had raised him, the people who would hold him when he needed to be held when he was little. Even though he might not have been able to remember it, that didn't mean it did not happen.

"I don't really know," Jason answered, because he could never be anything but honest, especially to the people that he cared for. Even the people that he hated, like the cops. Rather than flat out lie, Jason would say nothing. That was just the type of person that he had been, and it was probably because of his time at the mansion after the accident that he became that way. Jason saw the lies that they would tell each other, sometimes pertaining to him, the way that they would act a certain way, keep themselves from being honest with one another, and he hated that. He refused to allow himself to be that kind of person. In that way, they were perfect role models, because they taught him everything he needed to know about how not to be. "I just felt like I needed to see this place again…"

"Do you want to go back? I mean, you called me here, told me to come, but if you don't want to be here I won't keep you. Believe me, as much as you dislike this place I feel the same way. Maybe not as much, but the feelings are still pretty similar."

"No, I think I should stay for a little while longer. So should you. I guess I came here to remind myself of what I'm taking away from Dillon." His light blue eyes, eyes that were his and his only his, turned over to look at his wife. "Or at least what I'm taking him away from. Look at this place, Courtney. Look at it from the outside and look how nice it appears to be. The way that everything seems to be perfect, like there isn't a thing wrong with the house, or the people that are inside. Something that nobody could ever hope to aspire to. The Quartermaines, the example of perfection…"

"We both know that isn't true."

"Yeah, we do, but what about the world around us? You know that there are people, even here in Port Charles, who look at Alan and Monica and think that they can make it through everything. They don't realize what those two have gone through. And Edward… all the times he cheated on Lila, and the way that she stayed with him…"

"She believed that he was sorry. She believed that she loved him too much to stay away from him. I can't say that I blame her. In fact, I look up to her in a way. Someone who can let the love that she has for her husband trump all the things that he had done in the past that hurt her… on some strange level that is a very admirable trait."

"You remind me of her… a little."

"Jason…" Courtney blushed. "That's one of the nicest things you've ever said to me."

"And I mean it… when I think of the kindness and selflessness that you have inside of you, I'm reminded of Lila. And, because you remind me of her, I can't believe that someone would ever risk losing something like that. Edward's a fool for even thinking about taking that chance. I would never do it."

"Thank you." She walked over and leaned against his chest as they both looked at the mansion. "So, what's this have to do with Dillon?"

"He was upset that I never made him feel like he was truly welcome in the house. I don't mean that I ever made him feel unwelcome, at least not intentionally, but I never really made it seem like I wanted him there… and he felt that maybe, just maybe, I didn't want him to be. He said that if I wanted him to he would move back into the mansion, no questions asked, he would pack his things and leave."

"I can't believe that…"

"I can," Jason remarked. "Because he was telling the truth. On some level, I distanced myself from Dillon, even though he was right there, even though I could have just as easily embraced him and everything that he was to both of us… but I didn't. I don't know why I didn't, probably because of what I do and how much it could impact my job if I let someone else get in, but I chose to keep him at arms length. I do that with a lot of people… and I never knew that it could really hurt them until I saw the pain in Dillon's eyes…"

"You didn't mean it."

"That doesn't mean that I didn't do it."

Courtney sighed, "I don't see why you're blaming yourself, you didn't do anything wrong. I trust you, and so does he."

"He shouldn't, I haven't done anything to earn his trust…"

"But he does trust you, and he respects you."

"I just thought that maybe it would have been a good idea for him to leave. For a second I thought about it, Courtney. I really did. I thought about telling him that he needed to come back to the mansion… but I couldn't do it."

"Because you know what happens here, Jason," Courtney replied. "You know what they do to him, you know what they do to anyone who lives there… what they almost did to both of us."

"And I couldn't let them do that to someone that I cared about, just like, when you lived there, I didn't want them to break your spirit, too. Like they broke Ned, like they broke AJ. I managed to get what I wanted with you, I managed to see you get out of there before it was too late, but there was a chance that Dillon could have been stuck in that position, and a part of me was all right with that. I don't want to feel that way anymore… I don't want to worry about having to think that maybe he's too much of a handful…"

"He isn't really a handful, though," she said, taking a few steps away from him. "Dillon's a good kid. I'm not going to say that he doesn't have moments where he does something that I don't understand, but that doesn't make him a bad person, it makes him unique, it makes him special. How can anyone hate someone who is special?"

Jason shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know… all I know is I can't. And I can't knowingly allow him to be in a situation that would destroy his individuality. I just can't do it… it would be wrong, too wrong."

"So… you worked everything out with Dillon?"

"I hope so… if nothing else, I think we got to the point where we don't have to worry about hiding things from one another anymore. I think we can be more open and honest about things…"

"Some things…"

"I can't break the vow I took with myself, Courtney. Just like with you, there are things that I can't talk to anyone but Sonny about. You know that."

"I'm not the one you have to convince now, Jason." Courtney wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes. "I'm just happy that you two managed to work things out. I like having him around… it makes things better for all of us, I think."

"I think so, too…" Jason rested his chin on her head. "Come on, let's get out of here… I've done what I needed to do."

Port Charles-

It didn't take him very long to find out the place where the boy that was old enough to be a student happened to attend school. John had connections, and he wasn't afraid to use them. What he was afraid to do was even see the child. Much like Carly before, John had never 'seen' a picture of the child. Michael Corinthos… he had an idea of who it could be, but he needed to prove one way or the other if the child that he thought was his grandson truly was the child he had in mind. For the sake of argument, John certainly hoped against it.

"I have to admit, it's a little odd that you're even here, Mr. Durant," one of the teachers said as they walked with John through the halls. "This isn't exactly something that we do with just anyone."

"Yes, well, I'm hardly just anyone, now am I?"

"Of course… we make exceptions for people who have a little more influence with others."

"That's the way this country works…"

The man opened the door to where the children were playing for their break. So many children, so many different activities. From the usual games of tag to the more advanced activities like chess. There was one thing that was relatively universal, however: the children were enjoying themselves. The man scanned the students, looking for the boy in particular. "There he is," he pointed in the general direction of Michael. "The redheaded child that is playing kickball."

John scoured the area until he saw the boy in question, and when he did he saw that it was the same child that he had encountered at the docks. That boy was his grandson. John nodded his head, "Thank you… that's all I needed to know." John left the school, with the man that had helped him in complete bewilderment as to why John even came around in the first place.