Later that day, Marissa made her way into the penthouse that her father had been living in for years before they had made the move to California. She let out a tired sigh and plopped down on the sofa turning the TV on.
"It's about time my beautiful granddaughter came home", a familiar voice spoke causing her to turn her head in surprise.
"Grandma! I didn't know you were here!", Marissa gasped as she ran to hug Monica.
"Oh! Hi, sweetheart. It's so good to see you", her grandmother said happily.
"When did you get here?", she wondered.
"I've been here for awhile. I thought your father could use some help unpacking."
"That's true. And maybe he'll let you help decorate. If Dad gets his way, this place is going to be looking like a total man cave. There is like no color going on", Marissa pointed out.
"Well, I would rather have no color than everything be hot pink", Jason spoke up as he came downstairs.
"I didn't say everything had to be hot pink. But we could have a little bit of color."
"Come on, Jason. Why don't you let Marissa and me put a couple new things here and there. Nothing loud. Just to brighten the place up a bit", Monica suggested.
"I don't know…"
"Please, Daddy", Marissa implored as she gave him that look that he absolutely could not say no to.
"Ok…just please don't come up with anything too crazy", he gave in. But he had a sinking feeling that he would regret letting his mother and daughter decorate the place.
"How about we go shopping tomorrow?", Monica suggested.
"Sounds good to me", Marissa agreed.
"So, how was the first day?", Jason asked his daughter.
"Pretty good considering it was my first day and I didn't know a single person", she answered.
"That's good. First days are always the hardest. But you'll get adjusted soon", Monica assured her.
"Yeah, and I met some nice people. So, I think I'll be ok."
"Any new friends?", Jason asked curiously.
"Actually yeah. There was this one guy…"
"Wait a minute. Guy? Why can't you make friends with girls, Marissa? I don't have the time to be stressed out about you and some boy."
Monica tried to stifle a laugh while Marissa just sighed. She should have known better than to mention a guy around her father.
"Chill out, Dad. Aiden's a really nice guy", she remarked when she noticed the frozen look on her father's face. Jason felt his body go numb. It couldn't be, could it?
"Aiden?" he and Monica repeated in unison as they exchanged a knowing glance.
"Uh…do you know Aiden's last name, sweetheart?", Monica enquired.
"Spencer. Why? You don't know him, do you?"
"Not personally, but we're very familiar with his family. That's all.", Jason answered.
So, Elizabeth was still here. After all this time. He was sure she had moved on by now. Especially since Lucky was no longer in town. Or maybe he was back now. Jason wished he didn't have so much to catch up on. He wanted to go see her. It was impossible to count the number of times she had crossed his mind while he was gone. But he had made the decision to marry Sam. He had to live with the consequences.
But Marissa had made his miserable marriage worth it. His daughter had been the reason he woke up every morning. She still was. He had dedicated himself to being the best father he could possibly be to Marissa. She was his second chance. He had failed so horribly with Jake. He would not make the same mistakes twice. Still, he always felt like something was missing. Not just Jake, but Elizabeth as well. He wondered about her many times through the years. Was she happy? That was all he wanted for her. But he couldn't help but wish that he could be the one to make her happy. That was all in the past though. He had his chance and he blew it.
Elizabeth was sitting on the couch going through the mail when she heard a knock at her door. With a lazy sigh, she got up to answer it.
"Luke?", she said in surprise. "I'm sorry. Aiden isn't home."
"I love my grandson very much, Elizabeth. But I'm here to see you. Can I come in?", he wondered.
"Um…yeah", she agreed as she shut the door behind him. "So, what's going on?"
"Nothing. I just thought I'd come by and check on you. See how you were doing."
"Oh. Well, I'm fine. Why? Did Aiden tell you I wasn't?"
"He may have mentioned that he was concerned about you", Luke remarked.
"Why would he be concerned about me?", Elizabeth enquired.
"I don't want to overstep here. What you choose to do with your life is none of my business. But I do know that burying yourself in your work can't possibly be healthy. And it certainly can't make you happy."
"I don't bury myself in my work!", she said defensively.
"Look, the last thing I want to do is get involved in your business. I know how that feels. Let me just ask you something. What's your reason for waking up each morning?"
"Aiden, of course."
"Ok. So, what's going to be your reason when Aiden goes off to college and moves out? What are you going to have to live for then?", he asked.
"Why do you care so much, Luke?", she snapped. What was he getting at?
"You know I've always considered you a part of my family. I want you to be happy. And you can't have happiness without someone to share it with. I always thought I could. But you just can't be."
"Do you think I like being alone? But there's no point in me going out with guys that I know I don't have a future with. Dating is a waste of time and energy. Especially when you're constantly comparing them to your ex", Elizabeth sighed.
"I've been there too. Laura is always going to be the love of my life. But that doesn't mean that I can't be happy with Tracy. And I can promise you it beats being alone by a mile", Luke pointed out.
"Maybe you're right. Maybe it is about time to put myself out there again", she said thoughtfully.
And she owed that much to herself. Luke was right. She didn't want to spend the rest of her life alone and miserable. Maybe she could be happy again. She doubted that she would ever be able to love anyone the way she loved Jason. That was a once in a lifetime kind of love. One that obviously wasn't meant to be. She supposed it was time to give dating another try. After all, what did she have to lose?
