December 2015 -
It is said that every artist has a muse. If that is the case, then there shouldn't be an issue for a writer to have one as well. It was interesting though, when one's muse was only five years old.
Lulu pushed her glasses up on her head and rubbed her eyes. She'd been at it for almost five hours, she thought, and still there was nothing. She sighed, rose and walked to the window. Looking out over the water, she mused at how lucky she'd been. It was not every single mom's luck to have a prince for a brother who could provide her with a house and the ability to successfully raise her child.
She was grateful for what her family had done for her, for what they'd given her. But she knew that despite the material items, she'd worked her ass off to get where she was today. Even though it hadn't been easy, it had definitely been worth it.
To know that, she only had to look at her little girl.
Lulu remembered how she had felt when she'd first stepped foot on the island. She'd been young, naïve and cynical. And while she was still relatively young and still very much a cynic, she knew that she wasn't naïve.
Having a child and being a single parent had cured her of that.
Not that she didn't regret her daughter. There was no way for that to happen. From the moment her baby was placed in her arms, she had been the center of Lulu's life. There was just no other way to explain it.
So Lulu had set out to be the best mother she could be. And in Lulu's opinion, she'd succeeded. Even at the young age of five, Amelia Laura Spencer was reading at a third grade level. She was funny, playful and smart. And best of all, she'd inherited her mother's sense of adventure.
She was, in simple terms, the apple of her mother's eye.
Of which she was well aware and often attempted to exploit the fact in hopes of getting her way in arguments. But Lulu, who had been just like her, knew better and always managed to stay one step ahead.
For now anyway, Lulu thought with a hint of a smile; because if she turned out to be anything like her mother, Amelia would without a doubt give Lulu a run for her money.
But for now, Lulu was content to be the best mother she could to her little girl, which included making up for the fact that Amelia had no father.
That she was aware of anyway. Lulu had made a promise to herself that someday, when Amelia was old enough, she would tell her who her father was. But for now, it didn't matter.
For now, they had a good life. They lived on a gorgeous island, in a quaint little village and in a beautiful compound. All of which were on loan from Nickolas. Lulu had a houseful of servants, yet refused help when it came to the raising of her child. She knew that she had to do it herself.
She did this and more. In addition to raising her child alone, she had managed to become a published author. It had happened by mistake mostly. Writing had become something she did when she needed to de-stress. It had started when she had a squalling infant and somewhere along the way, she had finished something halfway decent. Her cousin had convinced her to send it to a publisher and to her amazement, it had been accepted.
So today, almost four years later, she had two novels under her belt and was currently attempting to write the third, albeit with difficulty.
For some reason, it was troubling her. Lulu told herself that she just needed to focus, but something was keeping her unsettled. She couldn't figure out what or why though. But something was off. She knew that Amelia was okay so that couldn't be it. She'd already checked all the locks, so everything was fine there.
But still, something was different.
And she evidently would be able to write until it was right…whatever the hell it was.
Lulu sighed, ran her hands through her hair, frowning when she knocked her glasses off her head onto the floor. Maybe she just needed a good night's sleep. It was, after all, after two in the morning.
Yes, she decided, that was it. She just needed to get some rest. Lulu turned, started walking out of her office toward the front stairs. She was nearly at the first step when she heard the first ring.
She leaped for the phone, snatching it up before it could ring again. "Hello," she asked, only a little breathless.
"Lulu, it's Lucky."
She frowned, rubbed her eyes as she mentally calculated the time difference between Port Charles and Greece. "What's wrong? It's only a little after two in—"
"Dad had another heart attack," Lucky interjected, throwing her off slightly.
"Oh my God, is he okay," she breathed. She leaned up against the wall, not quite believing what her brother was saying.
"They don't know," Lucky admitted. "They're taking him to surgery right now, to open the blockage. It's pretty bleak."
"I don't know what to say. I thought that he was trying to be healthier and everything."
Lucky snorted an answer. "You know that, he will never change." Then he sobered. "But really Lulu, his prognosis isn't good."
She closed her eyes. She knew what he was going to ask her to do and right now she wasn't sure if she could do it. "Lucky, I don't know if I can come back. I-I don't know."
"You have to, Lulu. If Dad doesn't survive this, he should at least see you and Mel before…"
Sighing, she glanced at the clock again and calculated that if she could buy tickets on the next plane to Port Charles and be there by that next afternoon. "Fine. I'll be there as soon as possible."
"Nickolas is sending his plane as we speak. It'll be a lot faster than flying commercial. And right now, we don't have any time to waste. Call me when you guys get in. Someone will come pick you up. But please hurry. We may not have much time."
"All right, Lucky. We'll be there, both Mel and I. Thanks for calling," Lulu said as she hung up the phone. She knew that before she did anything she needed to get some sleep. But as she walked up the stairs toward her bedroom, she sent up silent prayers that her father would be okay.
Right now, from halfway around the world, it was the best she could do.
GH*GH*GH*GH*GH
"Mommy? Where are we going?"
Lulu glanced over at her daughter who was still rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. It was half after seven in the morning and they were halfway over the Atlantic, speeding toward Port Charles. Amelia was rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, as Lulu had woke her up at five o'clock to leave.
"We're going to see grandpa and Uncle Lucky and Uncle Nickolas, baby," Lulu said absentmindedly. Even though Amelia had never been to Port Charles for obvious reasons, she was no stranger who Lulu's family who often visited the compound.
Amelia smiled brightly. "Are we going to see Spencer? And Jake and Cam?"
Lulu smiled now. Amelia loved spending time with her cousins. She been recently asking if they could go visit them, rather than them coming to visit her. Lulu had had to explain that they couldn't go to Port Charles because Greece was so much better. Fortunately for Lulu, Amelia hadn't questioned the reason too much. "Yes, we will see all three of them. And Uncle Nickolas' new baby Victoria." Nickolas and Rebecca had managed to put aside their differences and realized their love for each other. They'd gotten married a year before and only four months ago, had welcomed their baby daughter.
Amelia's eyes widened in excitement and she bounced in her seat, twisting to look out the window. "Yay!"
Lulu glanced down, knowing that she needed to explain the real reason for their sudden visit after she'd been so adamant when Amelia had asked before. "Mel, we're not visiting just because. We're visiting because Grandpa is very sick. And he needs us," she said gently.
Amelia turned, stared hard at her mother. "I-Is he going to be o-okay?" she asked, her bottom lip trembling.
Lulu sighed, set aside the book she'd been reading. Rising, she moved to gather the little girl in her arms, knowing that it wouldn't be too much longer before she was too big to hold like that. "Oh sweet pea, I wish I could say that he will be. But no one knows right now. He's in a hospital, where there are people to help him. We just need to pray."
Amelia shifted to look at her mother. "Okay, Mommy." She allowed her mother another moment of cuddling before she started squirming. When Lulu let her go, she raced to the little kitchenette. "I'm hungry," she called out behind her.
Lulu blinked back the tears that threatened and rose to follow her daughter. Every so often she questioned her choices. Was she right to run when she found out that she was pregnant? Should she have told Johnny? Was she right to keep her daughter sequestered away on a Greek island instead of surrounded by her cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents? It was the times when there was a crisis that the questions ran through her head.
But she knew that right now, she needed to focus on the fact that her father was sick and that she needed to get into and out of Port Charles without Johnny seeing Amelia.
That would be the real test amongst all her choices.
