CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The Penthouse is unusually sedate as they prepare to leave for Sonny's funeral. Morgan is dressed in a black suit with his hair gelled to manage his unruly curls. He is the spitting image of his father. Carly is dressed in a simple black dress. Jason completes the trio in his black suit.

"We're here if you need us." Gia hugs Carly then Morgan. Gia and Johnny chose babysitting duty for the afternoon rather than attend the funeral.

The ride to Queen of Angels is silent. Jason takes Morgan hand in his left and Carly's in his right and together they walk into the church. There aren't many in attendance. Max, Milo and Diane are seated behind Alexis, Kristina, Molly and Sam. Robin is crying softly into her handkerchief. Mike is trying to comfort her but failing. Kate sits alone in the front row of the middle pew. Carly's stride falters momentarily when her eyes land on Brenda Barrett in the front row of the left pew. Jason's hand on hers is the only thing that keeps her moving forward. They take a seat in the second row. Notably absent is Ric, Claudia and Johnny.

The service is short and sweet. Kristina, Robin, Kate and Brenda speak in memory of Sonny. Afterwards, Carly and Jason are getting ready to leave when Kate makes a beeline towards them. She leans down to hug Morgan but Carly intercepts before she can make contact.

"Don't touch my son!" She uses the quietest voice possible but there is no mistaking the venom in her tone.

Kate draws back. "Carly you can't…"

"I can." Carly narrows her eyes. "Jason, can you take Morgan to speak with his Grandpa?"

Jason looks between the two women, decides to stay out of it, and walks away. Carly waits until Morgan is safely out of earshot.

"You don't speak to, touch or even think about my son after today." Carly warns.

Kate looks down her nose. "Carly can you not be juvenile for once? I only wanted to console him. He lost his father."

"Where was your concern for Morgan when Sonny was handing over his rights to him so he could be with you?" Carly scolds in the same quiet tone. "Where was your concern for Michael when you took him out of my home and placed him in danger? You don't care about my sons Kate. Don't pretend like you do."

Jason returns with Morgan. "It's time to go."

Brenda and Robin make their way over. "Jason, we were hoping you'd come to dinner with us tonight."

"Why would I want to do that?" Jason gives them a puzzled look as he escorts his family from the church.

Once they're back in the limo, he takes Carly's hand in his. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She assures him. She wraps her arm around Morgan. "How are you holding up baby?"

"I'm not the baby mom." He reminds her in exasperation.

She kisses the top of his head. "I know but remember what I told you; you'll always be my baby."

Morgan is quiet for a while then he asks, "Are you going to miss daddy?"

Jason and Carly exchange looks then Jason takes his hand. "Yes, we will miss your daddy. He was important to me and your mom for a really long time."

"He gave me you." Carly locks eyes with Jason. "I will always be grateful to him for that."

"I'm going to miss him too." He whispers softly and starts to cry.

Carly eyes fill with tears. She hugs her little boy to her chest and comforts him until they arrive back at the penthouse. Jason is the first to notice he's asleep. He scoops him from her arms and carries him into the building.

After laying him in bed, he jogs back downstairs to find Carly staring out the window. He walks behind her and wraps her in his arms.

"Thank you." She squeezes his forearm.

He rests his cheek on top of her head. "For?"

"Making me go." She enlightens him. "Making me see past my own feelings. Morgan needed this. He needed to say goodbye. He needed to hear the good things people said about him today. It was all a load of bull but he needed it."

Jason sighs. "Sonny…wasn't the person I thought he was. What bothers me is that I couldn't see it until now. I excused his shit over and over again and it hurt the people I love most in this world. You, Michael, even Emily."

"Sonny was good at projecting but I think deep down he really wanted to be the person he pretended to be." Carly stares out at the water. "Sometimes it's just hard to find your way back."

"I told him Morgan is my son." He reveals. "He believed me. Morgan looks exactly like him but he believed me when I said he wasn't."

She exhales loudly, "Why doesn't that surprise me? Sonny will latch onto anything that makes him the victim." She turns and brings Jason's forehead to rest against her own. "I am so thankful that you are the man who will show Morgan what it means to be a man. If I've done nothing else right in my life I know choosing you to be the father of my children is the smartest decision I've ever made."

"I'm sorry I stopped." Jason admits softly. "I never should have left my family in Sonny's hands."

Carly shushes him with a kiss. "We're together now and that's all that matters."

Carly takes the bag of takeout from Penny with a huge smile. "Thank you! Finally someone agrees with me. I keep telling Jason that his son looks exactly like him but he thinks he's a mini me." She waves as she leaves Kelly's. She slows when she spots Maxie and Felicia. It's obvious from their body language the conversation is not a pleasant one.

"You never wanted anything to do with me or Georgie before." Maxie rants. "I'm sorry but I'm not going to let you use me to ease your guilt. You decided you didn't want to be a mother. Fine! I'm deciding I don't want to be a daughter."

Felicia grimaces and reaches out to her. "Maxie, sweetie, you don't mean that. I know I messed up a lot when it comes to you girls but I'm trying to make it right. Please, won't you let me at least try?"

"How many times am I supposed to let you try?" Maxie throws up her hands in frustration. "Every time I let Georgie or Mac talk me into giving you another chance you threw me away again. I'm done."

She turns and strolls briskly towards the docks. Felicia sighs and walks in the other direction. Carly contemplates for a moment then follows after Maxie. She finds her crying on a bench.

When Maxie sees her she hurriedly wipes away her tears. "Hey Carly."

"Maxie." Carly greets as she takes a seat next to her. "Are you okay?"

Maxie squares her shoulders. "I am fine. I am better than fine. I am great actually. I told Spinelli I was going to come by later and see the baby. He is so freakin adorable. How can you stand it?"

Carly drapes her arm along the back of the bench as she swivels towards Maxie. "Okay before you try to con me into believing that? I should tell you I overheard you and Felicia outside Kelly's. I get what you're trying to do but trust me I've been there. Mama issues 101 over here. I just want you to know if you need someone to listen or bitch with or whatever…I'm a pretty good friend to have contrary to popular opinion."

Maxie says bitterly. "At least Bobbie thought she was doing right by you. My mother… mothered between lovers. I'm just grateful Mac was one of them. He is THE best dad but it doesn't change the fact that neither of my parents wanted me."

Carly commiserates. "My mama Virginia was my Mac. She did the best she could. I wasn't always the best daughter to her but she never stopped trying."

"I'm sure Lulu has filled you in on the stunts I've pulled over the years." Maxie rolls her eyes. "Mac, he sticks by me. I hurt him but he sticks."

Carly sighs. "Yeah but it doesn't quite fill the void does it?"

"No." Maxie confesses. "Then I feel like crap because at least he's here. Why do I keep wishing for people who don't even want to be here?"

Carly touches her hand. "It sounds like Felicia wants to be."

"For now." Maxie scoffs. "Until she runs off again for whatever reason that only makes sense to her. I'm tired of getting my hopes up. I won't let it happen this time."

"Is everything okay here?" Johnny Zacchara walks up to them slowly so Carly's guard can witness his movements.

Maxie eyes dart quickly between the two. "Yes, everything is fine."

Carly nods in greeting. Her eyes take on an inquisitive nature as she observes the body language between Maxie and Johnny.

"You've been crying." He states the obvious as he stoops in front of her. "Did something happen? Is it Spinelli?"

Maxie exhales loudly. "No. Spinelli and I are great. Thank you for your concern."

Johnny reads the glare Maxie is giving him as well as the curiosity radiating from Carly and realizes he may have overplayed his hand. He nods to the ladies and continues across the dock.

"So how long have you been sleeping with him?" Carly asks.

Maxie scoffs. "Carly you are way off. Johnny and I are just friends."

"I know that kind of friend well." Carly eyes narrow. "Do me a favor and don't lie to my face."

Maxie starts to lie again but the look in Carly's eyes stops her. "Please Carly, you cannot tell anyone."

"You expect me to keep quiet about you screwing over one of the sweetest guys I've ever met?" Carly's eyes blaze with fury. "I thought you loved him?"

Maxie eyes fill with tears. "I do love Spinelli. I honest to god love him."

"Then why?" Carly folds her arms across her chest.

Maxie swipes at the tears streaming down her face. "Because." She takes a shuddering breath. "All his declarations of love and his grand gestures…its classic him and while he's doing it…I'm blown away that someone could actually love me that much. And people actually look at him like he got the upgrade. As if somehow he's not worthy of me. He's geeky and awkward and I'm so put together but it's all an illusion. Its designer clothes and fantastic shoes. But the craziest part is that if that was all it was I could deal. If I thought he just wanted my body maybe this would work but he doesn't. He wants it all. He wants me. I'm a walking mess on the inside and for some oddball reason that is perfectly Spinelli he wants me anyway. But deep down I know, I KNOW, it will never last. It can't. I don't get that fairytale ending. That dream died on a webcam years ago."

Carly eyes sadden. "So you try to wreck it before it can wreck you. Because it's not possible for someone to love you that much you decide not to wait for the other shoe to drop; you drop a hammer instead." Carly feels her heart ache. Although Johnny is a helluva better guy to crash and burn with than Sonny was for her, she gets the place it came from. As pissed as she wants to be at Maxie for what she's done to Spin she can't help but feel sorry for her. "You have to tell him."

"I can't." Maxie cries. "I can't. I broke it off with Johnny. It will never happen again."

Carly shakes her head. "You still have to tell him. You owe him that much."

"Carly I can't lose him." She pleads with her. "I don't deserve him, I know that, but I can't lose him. He is my essential person. My best friend."

"Your Jason." Carly acknowledges. "Maxie, I understand. It's scary how well I understand but you HAVE to tell him. If he really is all that to you then you owe him that much. In our family loyalty is the one thing we ALL stand behind and what you're doing isn't loyal. Tell him. Let him deal how he deals."

Maxie cries. "You know how he's going to deal. He's going to leave me."

"If it's meant to be it'll work out. Jason and I are proof of that. Just try to avoid all the marriages and remarriages and near marriages if you can. It just makes things a helluva lot more complicated."

"I can't believe you of all people is preaching honesty is the best policy." Maxie shakes her head. "Would you have told Jason about you and Sonny if he hadn't caught you? Would you have willingly lost all the time the two of you could have had together?"

Carly looks her in the eye. "Yes, I would have. One because Jason needed to know who Sonny was and what he was capable of. Two because I owed Jason honesty after all he'd done for me. Three because if it came out some other way besides me telling him then I'd lose whatever we had left. He could hate my actions but never my heart because my loyalty is always to him…even when I fuck up. Plus it's a simple as this Maxie, John and Spin travel in the same circles. It's not fair to Spinelli to be around the guy that's nailing his girl and smiling in his face like he's the village idiot."

Maxie heart races at the thought of confessing to Spinelli and she takes a seat on the bench as she struggles to catch her breath. "This is going to be bad. Like really really really bad."

"Yep." She doesn't sugarcoat it. "He's going to be pissed, hurt and underneath the computer speak and quirks he's a guy so he's probably going to get nasty. You know he loves you though. Love and time forgives a lot. Trust me, I know."

Maxie closes her eyes. "I'll tell him. I just need time."

"You have tonight. I don't keep secrets from Jason so by tomorrow I have to tell him what I know and it goes from there." She warns.

"Carly, I want to talk to you!" Lucky trudges down the steps. He barely acknowledges Maxie as he hones in on his cousin. Maxie uses the distraction as an opportunity to escape.

Carly tosses her hair over her shoulder and sends her cousin a toothy grin. "Hiya doin cous?"

"Cut the crap." Lucky glares. "I know what you and Jason are trying to do. I will never let you take Jake away from us."

Carly loses the grin. "Lucky much as you must hate to admit it…Jake is Jason's son. He has the right to know his son." She sees he's about to go there and cuts him off. "Yes, I know how that sounds coming from me but that's what gives me to the right to say it. I was wrong for what I did to AJ, I admit that, but I was scared. He threatened to take Michael from me over and over and he wasn't even born yet. I was broke, alone and scared. Liz is none of those things. We aren't trying to take him away from you. Jason just wants to spend time with him. That's it."

"Elizabeth said he wanted full custody." Lucky's eyes narrow.

Carly shrugs. "Well your wife is a liar. Haven't you figured that out by now?"