Nikolas stood watching Lucky holding Emily, trying to figure out when that had happened. His own arm was encircled around Elizabeth's waist, holding the pregnant nurse close to his body protectively. He glanced up into her gentle green eyes, which were pasted directly on her ex-husband and best friend. "Where's your head at?" he whispered softly, leaning down so that only she could hear his voice.
She shook her head silently as she turned away, looking back at the smoke still pouring from the Metrocourt. "Everything's a mess," she sighed, holding her hands out to indicate the scene around them. Her eyes shifted slowly back toward where their two friends were standing and smiled sadly. "I don't know what to do from here."
He knew what she meant without any further explanation. Slipping his hand into hers, they stepped carefully back to where Lucky was still holding Emily. "How are you?" he asked his brother.
Lucky reluctantly let go of Emily and looked at Nikolas. "I'm doing better now," he admitted, looking up at Elizabeth. "How are you? How is the baby?"
"I'm fine, we're fine," she assured him. "The pain has subsided. Nikolas took good care of me and managed to somehow keep my calm. I don't know what I would have done without him in there.'
Nikolas smiled at her genuinely. "She's giving me too much credit. Elizabeth here did all the hard work. I just reminded her of a few things."
"Speaking of which," Lucky realized aloud, "have you checked on Cameron?"
Elizabeth nodded. "Your sister called."
"How is Lulu?"
Nikolas looked between the two women. "Actually, Lucky, that's probably something we need to talk about. Lulu is really having a hard time dealing with everything psychologically. Dillon is with her now at the Quartermaines. She was so tired, and I think she needs to be with him right now. He might be the only one that can get through to her and reassure her that everything is going to be fine."
"I'll go by and see her tomorrow after she has had a chance to rest. I'm sure my dad will feel better knowing Lu is with Dillon," Lucky smiled. "You know, he really loves her. I saw it out there. Seeing the fear in his eyes, I knew that he was there for the duration. He was not going to leave without her."
"And he didn't," Nikolas replied. "He brought her out and has stayed with her through everything. He's taking care of her and giving her something that no one else could right now. He's given her a safe place, both physically and inside her own head."
Lucky looked at Nikolas, and they both knew they were sharing a single thought. They both were worried that she would end up like their mother, to become catatonic like Laura. "She's going to be fine," Lucky announced, more to comfort himself than anyone else.
Emily nodded confidently beside him. "She will be," she agreed. "And until you can go see her yourself, I think that we should take you to General Hospital to get you checked out. I want to have those ribs looked at." He started to argue but Emily quickly interrupted him. "No, you're going."
"We should go check on the kids," Nikolas said to Elizabeth, suddenly realizing that neither of them had been home yet to see Cameron and Spencer. "I had Alfred take Spencer over to Audrey's awhile ago. I'm sure she could use a reprieve."
"We'll come by when I'm done," Lucky told Elizabeth, reaching out and grabbing her hand. Swinging it between them, he felt sad when the familiar pangs of desire failed to come. Leaning across, he dropped a chaste kiss on her forehead.
"Whenever is fine," Liz declared before looping her arm through Nikolas'. "I really am glad that you're both okay. I don't know what we would have done if something happened to either one of you."
"We feel the same," Emily smiled, hugging her best friend tightly. She noted how Elizabeth didn't let go of Nikolas as they embraced. With a small wave, the two were gone a minute later. "It's weird."
"What is?" Lucky asked as they started toward where the police cars were lined up. He could see Sam holding onto Jason a few feet away, her dark hair almost blending into his blackened clothes. Taking Emily's hand, he realized how natural it felt to reach for her and actually have her be there.
"Nikolas and Elizabeth never let go of each other," she said, rubbing her thumb over his rough skin. "We were both standing there in front of them, and they didn't let go of each other. It was like the four of us were put into a deck of cards and mixed up, only to come out completely different than we were before."
"I guess they're like us," he said, squeezing her hand. "The four of us, we've been through so much over the years. Marriage and divorce, love and hate, health and sickness, birth and death. Tonight, we went through one of the hardest things I could ever imagine, and instead of going through it together, we went through it divided. Elizabeth was with Nikolas, and you were with me. You can't go through something like that and stay the same."
"I thought about Nikolas a lot in the beginning, but the longer you were with me, my focus shifted to us. I was worried about keeping you safe, about protecting you."
"I'm sure Elizabeth was somewhere in my mind, but in the moment, it just became about you and me. There was nothing else that mattered really other than protecting you. You were the only one I could count on."
"You've always been the only one I could count on," Emily murmured as they stopped. Mac handed Lucky a key, assigning him to a squad car a few feet away.
He guided her over, helping her into the passenger seat. When they were inside, he pushed the key into the ignition but didn't turn it. He looked over at her, resting his palms on the steering wheel. "I need to tell you something."
As soon as she looked at him, she knew what his words were. "Me, too," she assured him. Lucky knew that there were people all around him, but he didn't care. As he leaned across the seat, taking her face gently in his hand, he didn't care about anything other than the fact that her lips were against his. Sensually caressing her mouth with his own, he felt her sigh against his lips as her body went limp in his arms.
"I love you, Em," he whispered as they pulled apart, his forehead resting against hers. "I know that this is about to get a whole lot more complicated, but before it does, I wanted you to know that. The fact that I love you, that's simple."
Elizabeth's leg was shaking as Nikolas turned his dark sports car onto her block. She could see her grandmother's cozy cottage just ahead, a soft amber light pouring from the porch. As he killed the motor, she paused for a moment, grinning at him widely. "We're home," she murmured, relief finally setting in. "We're actually home."
"Yes, we are," he agreed before slipping out of the car. He jogged around to the other side before lifting her gently from the vehicle. Her body was close to his as they stood their, the sun casting a brilliant pink glow over her face. He reached up and tugged on the end of her hair playfully. "Let's go see our kids."
"Grams!" Elizabeth squealed as she rushed into the living room and into the older woman's arms. They held onto each other fiercely, tears slipping down both their faces. Nikolas watched the very private moment, knowing that he was apart of it and not an outsider. A minute later, Audrey was pulling him into their embrace, sandwiching Elizabeth between them.
"I am so glad you are okay," Audrey told Elizabeth, stroking her chestnut hair gently. "Cameron is just upstairs in his bedroom. I put Spencer in there as well. He fell asleep a few minutes ago."
"We'll be just a minute, I want to peak in on them," Liz called over her shoulder as she started for the staircase.
"Take all the time in the world," Audrey assured her. "I'll be down here when you're finished. I will make us some tea."
"Thanks, Audrey," Nikolas said as he followed Liz up the steps. When they reached the end of the dark hallway, Elizabeth leaned against the doorway as she watched her son sleep. Nikolas stepped behind her, wrapping his arms around her body until his hands rested on her womb. She rested her head back against him, and for a minute, she could pretend that they were a family and that this was natural. They were just a mother and a father, checking in on their children and waiting for another baby to come.
Cameron stirred in his sleep, rustling his blankets just enough to wake Spencer. A soft cry quickly filled the room as Nikolas' paternal instincts kicked in. Letting go of Liz, he walked into the room and effortlessly lifted his son into his arms. Cradling him next to his body, he took in the familiar scent of the child and thanked God for letting him have this one more time.
"Mommy!" Cameron squealed, throwing back his bedspread as he leapt from the bed. Cartoon trains grinned up at Elizabeth as she pulled her son into her arms.
"Oh, baby, I missed you so much tonight," she whispered, tears welling in her eyes.
The little boy laughed as he reached up and wiped tears from her green eyes. "Don't cry, silly," he bubbled. "You don't have to miss me anymore. You're home now."
"Yes, I am," she murmured, holding him tighter so that he wouldn't see the next wave of tears. Nikolas watched her for a few seconds before her eyes met his. "How's Spencer?"
"As perfect as always," he retorted proudly, "and asleep." Laying Spencer back into his crib, he went over to hug Cam. "We're really glad to see you."
"Yes, we are," Liz said, "but you should probably go back to sleep. I will be here when you wake up, and we are going to have so much fun tomorrow. We're going to go to the park to play all day and to Kelly's. You can eat as much ice cream as you want."
"Okay, Mommy," he bubbled, sloppily kissing her cheek. "Goodnight, Mommy. Goodnight, baby."
"Goodnight, Sweetheart," she replied, kissing his forehead one last time. Heading toward the door, she led Nikolas out of the room. In the hallway, she finally allowed the flood of tears to flow freely. "Nikolas," she whimpered.
He nodded knowingly, taking her into his arms again. They fell to the floor, her body wracked with sobs. "I know, just let it come," he murmured soothingly.
"I'm so tired," she cried. "I just want to go to bed."
"Then, let's put you to bed," he said. Lifting her into his arms, he carried her toward her bedroom. Discarding her in the middle of the bed, he sat next to her and drew her feet into his lap. Undoing one heel and then the other, he dropped them heavily on the floor before going toward her bureau. Pulling a nightgown from the top drawer, he handed it to her. "I'm going to go get you some tea while you change. I'll be right back."
She nodded. "I'll be here," she said as she watched him disappear. Standing up, she stretched her arms above her head before removing her silk dress. Throwing it over the rocking chair, she pulled her nightgown over her head. Slipping into bed, she was only coherent for a few more minutes before falling asleep.
By the time Nikolas returned, she was in a deep slumber, her brown curls splayed over the white sheets. Sitting the cut next to her bed, he sat in the rocking chair and watched her sleep. Clutching the gown in his hand, he brushed the silk against his fingertips. The dress was ruined and smelled of smoke, but it held a great significance to him now. As she turned over, he heard her whimper faintly, her body writhing as though she was trying to fight someone in her sleep. Quickly, he came to her side, stroking her hair as she woke up. "Bad dream?"
She nodded. "I don't want to be alone tonight," she told him, reaching up and pulling the collar of his grayed shirt. "Please stay with me. Spencer is asleep upstairs with Cameron, you can't take him home now. Just stay with me tonight."
"I guess I could sleep on the floor," he agreed.
"I'm asking you to stay with me, Nikolas. Sleep with me, just this one night. We're not going to do anything, and I know that all of this is going to be gone tomorrow. I just want us to have this." He didn't say anything as he slipped out of his shoes and threw his smoke-scented trousers in the corner. Pulling off his white button-up shirt, he stood in front of her with only a white undershirt and boxers. "It's okay," she assured him, pulling back the edge of the quilt so that he could slip in next to her. He went to lock her bedroom door, afraid that Cameron would walk in on something that would hurt him. Crawling in next to Elizabeth, he felt her body relax in his arms as he sidled next to her. Resting his chin on her shoulder, she reached down and covered his hands with her own on her stomach. "It's finally okay."
Lulu stirred in her sleep, unsure of where she was for a moment. Looking around the dark room, she wasn't sure if she was still at the Metrocourt briefly before remembering that she was at the Quartermaine mansion. Next to her, she could feel the heaviness of Dillon's body on the mattress. Lying back down, she turned toward him and watched him sleep next to her. Running her hand lightly down his smooth cheek, she was in awe of just how beautiful he was. It was strange to think of a man as beautiful, but Dillon Quartermaine was absolutely the most breathtaking thing she had ever seen.
"Hey," he greeted her sleepily, his fingers reaching up to intertwine in hers. "You're awake. How are you feeling?"
"Better," she avowed, bringing his hand up to kiss his knuckles. "You took care of me."
"I got us this far, and now, you're going to have to help me with the next step. You're going through a lot, I know that, but you're going to have to fight for us, too. You need to stay here with me, Lu. As much as I wish I could, I can't love you enough for the both of us."
"I love you so much, Dillon," she confessed. "I'm going to try to fight. I know that's not perfect, but I'm praying that it's enough."
"I love you, too."
"I know, and I'm not sure how that happened. After this summer, I didn't think that you would ever be able to even look at me, but you did. You didn't abandon me, even after I ruined your marriage and aborted our child. You stayed by my side, helping me deal with losing my mother again. You worked with me to solve Rick Webber's death, even though it ruined any last chance you had with Georgie."
"It didn't ruin a chance I had with Georgie. It gave me this chance with you," he told her. "When you were in there, there was a single moment that flashed through my mind. I remembered the day when you told me you wanted an abortion and that I called you a selfish bitch. I hate that I said that to you, I wish that I could take it back. I didn't mean it, even then, but I regret that those words ever passed through my lips."
"Out of everything that has happened between us, I think that's the moment that killed me the most," she admitted. "I felt like you hated me, and that scared the hell out of me. If I didn't have you, I didn't have anyone. My father was gone, Lucky was strung out and Nikolas was dealing with finding out that he was a father. You were the one place I could go, the one person I could count on. And you know what, even after you said that, a part of me knew that you still were."
"You are the most important person in the entire world to me, Lesley Lu Spencer," he retorted. "We have a bond that no one else will ever be able to understand. We are apart of each other. You have hurt me more than anyone has ever hurt me in my life, pushing me far beyond limits I didn't even know I had. But you've also made me happier than anyone else, giving me more love than I knew was possible."
"I need you, Dillon, and every time I've needed someone in the past, they've left me. But not you, you've stayed the entire course. Every single time I have ever needed you, you have been there, even when you were angry and didn't want to be."
"I've always wanted to be there," he promised. "And I can pretty much guarantee that I will always want to be there."
"How do you do that?"
"What's that?"
"Love me in despite of everything I have ever done to you," she said.
"Because I do," he said simply. "And that's all there is. I just love you."
"God, I love you so much," she whispered, her lips crashing to his, initiating a familiar pattern. "I love you," she repeated. "I love you, I love you, I love you."