Jason was the last one to walk out of the motel. He found Milo and Lulu in the back seat, Carly in the front, and Spinelli in the driver's seat.

Jason wrenched open the door and drug Spinelli out.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, mega harsh!"

"You aren't driving."

"I have my license! And the only accident I ever had, man, that was the fault of that suicidal deer."

Jason leaned close to Spinelli and whispered, in a no nonsense tone, "You see that woman in there?"

He nodded towards Carly. "I will never put her life in your hands. So forget about it. Now get in the backseat. And if you want to make it home in one piece I suggest you stay very, very quiet."

"I hear you, man. I smell what you are cooking."

"No," Jason said "no cooking, no eating, no more breaks. Just get in."

Once they were both inside, Carly said "Okay the first stop we need to make-"

Jason whined like a bratty teenager "Stop?" He drug the word out to five syllables.

"Is at a all night diner," Carly finished her sentence "where you can buy me coffee and Lulu can change out of her nightgown."

"Will Milo have to carry the princess in there too?" Jason asked

"You aren't getting to me, Morgan." Lulu said from the backseat. "I like being called princess."

Carly ignored them and told Jason, "And then after that you may drive us back to Port Charles."

"Oh, may I?" Jason asked "Thanks." He looked in the back seat. "Am I the only one in this SUV who actually wants to go home?"

No one answered.

Jason turned back around. "Unbelievable," he grumbled

If only Lulu had screamed a hour later than she did he would be too mellow to snark at them but being interrupted at that point, after waiting so many year, had him in a spin.

Spinelli said. "I don't have a home, man. I got a e-mail at my Grammy's house that said I was kicked out of the dorms because Professor Marquez rat finked on me about hacking. I was hoping, Stone Cold, you might let me stay with you?"

Jason looked at Carly, "Please tell me that he did not just ask me what I think he asked me."

"I am afraid he did," Carly answered.

Jason looked horrified. He barked "All right, buckle up, kids! Lets go! Now. Now. Now."

"I think you should let him stay with you." Lulu said "After all you got him in this mess with Alcazar."

"I did not!" Jason cried.

"You did so!"

He let out a breath, realizing their was no reasoning with her. "Okay, Milo buckle Spencer in. And all of you back there, no more talking."

"No talking for you!" Milo cried

Lulu and Spinelli looked at him.

"What? Are we not doing that anymore?" Milo asked

Jason started the car and peeled out quickly.

Lulu fell onto Milo. His gently righted her again. They smiled at each other.

LATER ON AFTER THE DINER, they were all in the car and driving north.

Carly turned on the radio and started to sing along to Gwen Stefani.

Carly sang, " If I could escape and

recreate a place that's my own world

I could be your favorite girl , forever,

Perfectly together

Tell me boy now wouldn't that be sweet?

the sweet escape"

Lulu joined in, looking at Milo, " If I could be sweet,

I know I've been a real bad girl

I didn't mean for you to get hurt

We can make it better

Tell me boy wouldn't that be sweet?

the sweet escape."

Jason smiled, despite himself. These Spencer girls could be adorable at times, he admitted to himself.

Then Spinelli joined in, badly out of tune, "So baby, times getting a little crazy

I've been getting a little lazy

waiting for you to come save me!

I can see that you're angry

by the way

you treat me .

Hopefully you don't

leave me.

Want to take you with me !

If I could escape

And recreate a place as my own world

And I could be your favorite girl,

forever,

perfectly together

Tell me boy, now wouldn't that be sweet?"

Jason switched off the radio.

"Fun Killer! Oppressor!" Lulu ranted

Jason answered his cell phone. "Yeah, hold on."

He passed it to Carly. "It's Jax."

Because her cell battery was dead Carly had been leaving Jax messages to call Jason's phone.

Carly's face fell into a sad expression as she took the cell phone and said, "Hello."

Jason pulled off at the next exit. He parked at a rest stop where buses, semis and other cars were jammed into all the other spaces. People milled around outside.

Carly said to everyone in the car, "I'm going to step outside to take this call. Be back in a second."

Lulu told Jason, "We should stop in New York City on the way home. I have always wanted to see TRL."

Jason ignored her.

She started to poke his shoulder. "Did you hear me? We have to go right past the city anyway, so why not? Just one more pit stop."

"I wouldn't mind seeing TRL," Milo said

"TRL! TRL!" Spinelli chanted

"Ja-son...please," Lulu whined

He was looking forward when he asked calmly, "You are kidding, right? You don't really want us five to go prancing around New York together, do you?"

"Prancing?" Lulu mocked "No, walking will do. We could make signs and stuff. We'd be on TV. You might even get interviewed. Though you are a little elderly for TRL."

"Whoever TRL is, he is going to have to get by without any of you seeing him," Jason told her.

"There is nothing exciting to go back to Port Charles for!" Lulu cried "You can do me one little favor, can't you, Jason? I don't ask for much from you!"

Jason turned around. "If you are good for the rest of the ride home, the next time I talk to Luke, I will ask him to take you to New York, okay?"

Lulu looked down and mumbled, "Thanks a lot."

Milo could see and felt every bit of her sadness over her father.

Carly got back in the car. For a moment her and Jason looked at each other, and then she shook her head slightly, no.

Jason knew Jax was not backing down on his ultimatum.

Lulu asked, gently, "You okay, Carly?"

"I can deal. I always do, somehow."

"What did he say?" Lulu asked

"Jax gave me one week to move to Australia or else it is over between us. I understand why he thinks he can't love me in the same town as Sonny but that doesn't change what I have to do."

"You don't think he's worth moving for?" asked Spinelli "Is he a loser?"

Lulu gave him a dirty look that said Shut up!

Carly answered, "Not at all. Jax is wonderful. But he is just one of the dreams I had for my future. The rest of them all live in Port Charles, and even if I could take my boys, I can't pack up the rest of my dreams in a box and move to the other side of the world." She glanced at Jason. "And I can't leave them behind."

Jason started the car.

Lulu cried, "Wait! Wait!"

"No LTR," Jason said

"TRL," Milo corrected helpfully.

" I need to get out of the car for a minute," Lulu said

Jason's hand shot out and locked all the doors.

"I have to pee!" Lulu ranted at him "Is peeing allowed still?"

Jason unlocked the door. "Milo escort her there and back."

Spinelli jumped out of the car. "I could use a smoke.. I mean air break...uh, yeah."

Jason watched them all walk toward the tourist center, getting lost in the crowd of people until he couldn't see them anymore.

He looked at Carly, "Are you plotting a way to get Jax back?"

She asked him, "Are you plotting a way to get me back?"

Jason just held her eyes. He could tell she wasn't joking, and in that moment realized that never before had he done that for her. She kept putting herself out there for him, but he never tried to win her heart over some other guy or choice.

He had let her down.

But because he was so worried about his own damn heart getting hurt he couldn't see that before.

Carly looked away.

"I'm sorry." And in the tone of his words, without even looking at him, Carly knew what he was referring to.

"Okay."

So he was forgiven, but still not hers. Carly figured she should count this whole trip as a battle won. Jason saw her in a new way, loved her like in the old days for a few minutes, and realized all his running meant she was constantly the one fighting for them.

But all the little battles won over the years still never brought him all the way home. Carly knew she had to keep fighting... but she was so very tired now.

Still she couldn't give up.

Jason stared through the windshield, at the people milling about, all those families. His family started with Carly. If he couldn't see the Quatermaines again, he would be fine. He would only miss a few of them anyway. If Sam left him, he would mourn but go on.

But Carly had to be by his side from now till the end.

And still, he knew, he was letting her down every minute he pretended he was not in love with her.

"Hey," he said softly holding out one hand toward her. She linked their fingers.

Jason continued, "I'm going to make everything right. I will do that. You believe me?"

"Without a doubt." Carly said, but her eyes were still clouded with pain. "One of these days."

"Soon," he promised

She smiled. "Yeah?" Right then, the burden on her heart lifted. Jason was starting to fight for them too, she could see it in his eyes.

Milo got back into the car, alone.

Jason tore his eyes away from Carly and asked, "Where are they?"

"On a bus full of high school band members on the way to New York City," Milo said, matter of factly.

"That can't be!" Jason said, reeling from this news.

"Yes it is, sir. I watched Spinelli and Lulu get on and ride away myself."

"WHAT BUS? WHERE?" Jason looked all around.

He threw the car in reverse and got out of the parking space.

"Is there some reason Lulu wants to go to New York?" Carly asked

"To see TRL," Milo told her

"Makes sense."

"How can you say that?" Jason asked her "It makes zero sense. Anyone see that bus?"

He was flying down the expressway past cars and semis.

"How does she plan to get home?" Jason asked, more panicked than usual. He could cope with killers, with thieves, with cops, but not defiant teenage girls. "She doesn't even have any cash or a phone."

"She does now, sir."

"Why, Milo? Why? Why would you give that to her?"

Milo told his boss, "She's awfully pretty, sir."

"Do you hear this guy, Carly?"

"She is very pretty, Jason."

"You are seeing a doctor when we get home, Milo. Lulu has stolen all your good sense. She's made you insane and you don't even realize it."

Carly smirked at Jason's idea that love could be cured with a visit to Lainey.

She asked Milo, "Why didn't you go with them?"

"Lulu said Jason would probably fire me for that and that I shouldn't." Milo said

"Oh, Jason wouldn't do that," Carly said

Jason grunted.

"There's the bus." Milo pointed off ahead of them. "In the third lane on the left."

Jason sped up until he was behind it. "Carly, I don't like your cousin very much."

"I think you do, Jason, secretly."

"That must be a secret that I am keeping even from myself then."

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"Please, don't go there now. Can't you see this is a crisis? Lulu has run away from home!"

"No, just from the SUV." Carly told him, then busted up laughing.

"If you think this is so funny then you can be the one to tell Luke about it," Jason said

"Fine. The next time he is in this hemisphere I will do that."

"You have to punish Lulu, too. Tell her she is grounded." Jason commanded

"She's eighteen."

"She can be grounded until she is twenty one then."

"Wouldn't talking to her be easier than locking her up?" Milo asked "She just needs to know someone cares about her."

Jason glared at him in the rearview mirror. Just the fact Milo would speak so boldly proved, in Jason's mind, that he was now certifiable and would soon be in a room at Shadybrook.

"You are not part of this punishment planning," Jason said "You have your own grounding coming."

" But sir,"

"And no talking till we get to the city."