Morgan stared out the window, his dark hair combed smoothly on either side of his crown. There had been a phone call a half hour ago, but he hadn't asked who it was. He wanted to talk to Robin, but she had explained to him that she needed to stay with Patrick for a little while longer. If it had been anyone other than Cameron, he might have been offended, or even jealous, but if renting out his mom for a little longer was all it would take to wake up his younger cousin, he supposed he could be nice about it.
Uncle Mac had come home early and, with a little help from his great nephew, had ended up burning a pan of brownies and then, an hour later, a batch of sugar cookies. He liked his Uncle Mac, but wished he could come over under different circumstances. Not that he minded going over and seeing Grandma Bobbie or his cousins. It had been a long time since he'd been able to play with Cameron and he hadn't seen Lance in even longer! He figured the Scorpio house was more exciting because his great uncle was a cop. Robin had explained it to him what he did, but the position was lost on the six-year-old. Morgan knew Uncle Mac was the leader of the Port Charles Police Department and, according to the aforementioned commissioner, that of his household too. Morgan hadn't been fooled, not when Cousin Maxie had shown up late last night and offered not a single reason for not calling or telling him where she had been.
Cousin Georgie was much nicer and she brought him presents when she came to the loft to visit Robin and Aunt Courtney. Robin had told him that she was flying to France of all places. Morgan, tears in his eyes, responded, "But she doesn't got no wings." He couldn't remember if she had laughed at his reaction or not because, the next second, they were coloring a picture of Winnie The Pooh. Georgie liked to compare her little cousin to Eeyore in that there was always sadness in his eyes but, with enough effort, they could make him smile. Maxie called him "Little Dude" and that was when Morgan had decided to learn how to ride Great Uncle Luke's motorcycle. He had heard the old man telling Lulu that he was going to do whatever he had to if it meant that Cameron got to ride it. Being three years older, Morgan assumed he was more than capable of riding it too.
"How about some hot cocoa Little Dude?" Maxie made sure to use the nickname to steal him from his engrossing thoughts, somehow realizing that his idea would probably send her cousin into early therapy and then she'd have to baby-sit way more often.
"It's not hot enough for hot cocoa." Morgan reasoned turning around so that his back was facing the window now. He didn't see the red '75 Ford Mustang pull into the driveway.
"Chocolate is chocolate." Maxie declared placing a yellow mug on the windowsill before bringing her own aquamarine cup to her lips and taking a cautious sip.
He couldn't argue that logic. If Georgie was here, she'd insist on reading him some kind of story with Disney characters splashed across the front. He worried about that one. Maxie, however, would let him be a kid without making him constantly prove the matter to her. She was the one who had told him not to take crap from anyone, especially when you knew you were right. Of course, Morgan already knew not to take things from other people, particularly strangers, but the meaning of her statement was lost on him. "Thanks." He said as he molded his tiny hand around the mug and peeking inside. "How many marshmallows?"
"Three." Maxie smiled and patted his hair softly watching him rush to fix it with his free hand. "Just like always."
"You should have brought your crayons. We could have made a picture." Maxie pointed out when he said nothing in response. She wasn't fortunate or unfortunate enough to be taking classes at PCU…some people had to work for a living. Some people had to fight for everything they had ever gotten. We can't all be Lulu Spencer, she thought abhorrently.
"We can still make one." Morgan perked up at the suggestion. "Got a pen? Or some colored pencils?"
"Actually, I think I do. Upstairs. From an art class last spring." Maxie recalled. "I'll be right back. Don't burn the house down." She missed Morgan's baffled expression and headed up the stairs.
"Ended world hunger yet?" Uncle Mac wondered as he passed his daughter on the stairs.
"I'll get right on that." She promised sardonically barely able to resist the urge to roll her eyes.
"Alexis is coming over for dinner. Can you at least show up for it?" Mac wanted to know.
"I'll check my schedule. What with saving the world from starving and these crazy shift changes Mike keeps signing me on for, it's anyone's guess really." Maxie paraded past him.
Morgan considered screaming for his Uncle Mac or Maxie when he made a mess of his hot chocolate on the Scorpios new living room carpet. He pondered calling Robin in tears and swearing that he hadn't meant to do it. The mug had been too hot when he'd made a grab for it and his fingers had refused to grasp it correctly. The end result was an ugly brown spot on the white carpet, a stain that Morgan knew would not come up easily if at all.
Hurrying to the kitchen, he pulled a chair from the table and pushed it into the counter, unable to reach the cabinets any other way. He remembered his mommy's list of cleaning supplies she had kept in the bottom cabinet to the far right of the refrigerator. What would she have used? The list played across his eyes as if it was hanging from the ceiling and he took out the vinegar along with the cow timer on the kitchen windowsill. Hopping off of the chair, he got the dish detergent. He only needed one more thing. Getting to the bathroom in two point five seconds, he found a spare toothbrush, never opened, and added it to his supplies.
This would work. He would clean up the stain before Uncle Mac ever noticed it. He wouldn't get in trouble because there wouldn't be any evidence of any wrongdoing. It would work. The stain would come up. Mommy had showed him how to get stains out of the carpet because Daddy hadn't liked them. Brushing back a few tears with the sleeve of his X-Men t-shirt, he pushed the memories back. He didn't have time to cry about it. He had to get this stain up and out! He would scrub until his fingers came off if that's what it took.
"Morgan, what's the matter Buddy?" Uncle Mac startled him and he dropped the toothbrush. It was soundless against the carpet, but the child could hear his own heartbeat pounding in his ears.
"I'm sorry. It was an accident." Stop it, Morgan! You have to clean up this mess you've made! Clean it up now! No excuse will change what you've done. "I'm so sorry." Stop blubbering! You think that's how a great man is allowed to act? Well, it's not. And I'm raising both my boys to be great men just like Daddy.
"It's just a spill. What are you doing with this stuff? You could make yourself sick." Mac didn't care if he sounded like an overprotective mother hen or not. If he hadn't found Morgan when he had, who knew what the boy might have done with the powder or the liquid? He could have mistaken it for something and put it in his mouth, up his nose. Mac didn't want to think about what might have happened, only that that he had shown up when he had.
"I have to clean it up!" Morgan screamed when Uncle Mac took the toothbrush from him and helped him to his feet. "Let me go! Uncle Mac, I have to clean up my mess! Daddy doesn't like messes!" With every word, the old commissioner's heart broke. He had never suspected and he felt like a fool for not noticing it before. How many shut-down children had he talked to in his profession? And how many of them had been abused?
"Shh." Mac bent down in front of his distraught nephew and hugged him tightly to him. "Messes happen. Just ask Robin. She could tell you that. She was very messy."
"She was?" Morgan asked in a hushed, shattered voice.
"Absolutely! I had to wait for her to move out before I could even think about getting white carpet!" Mac's chuckle worked through the child like a security blanket.
"And I've messed it all up." Morgan whispered.
"No. You've done nothing wrong. You hear me?" Mac stressed each word, moving back so that their eyes could lock. "Be messy. Be a kid. That's what being a Scorpio is all about. And that's what you are now Buddy."
Robin paused in the doorway, not even bothering to shut the door behind her. She was stuck in her spot her lips parting as she smiled warmly, her heart growing a few sizes larger at the sight in front of her. Uncle Mac was a true charmer both with her and her cousins as well as anyone who had ever come into contact with him. And to see him with her son brought immediate tears to her eyes.
She wanted to speak but at the same time she didn't want to entreat on the moment. From where she stood, she couldn't hear what was being said, but it was clear that Morgan was distraught. Instinct told her to make her presence known and take him in her arms, to never let him go. Uncle Mac would probably accuse her of smothering him and, after Cameron's accident, she'd be the first to admit how much more protective she was where Morgan was concerned. And now he was awake. Patrick had phoned her and her next call had been to Uncle Mac. She had called to tell him that she was coming to take her son to see his little cousin.
Clearing her voice, she watched them break apart slowly, Morgan's hand still tugging on Uncle Mac's shirtsleeve. "What's up?" She asked in a shaky voice, unable to ignore Morgan's tear-filled eyes.
"Morgan and I were just talking about how much fun making messes are!" Mac replied enthusiastically.
"I love making messes." Robin emphasized, taking off her coat and enveloping her son in what her own father would have referred to as a "bear hug."
"Remember when you tried to make mud pies and bake them in the oven?" Mac smiled at the fond memory. Robin blushed at the mention of her early childhood.
"How could I forget? The girls tried to eat it!" Robin giggled, stroking the back of Morgan's head.
"Only the fire alarm going off stopped them." Mac recalled.
"Yep and the entire stove went up in flames." Robin nodded.
"You didn't get in trouble?" Morgan challenged, leaning back so he could catch her relaxed expression.
"I think I had time-out, but Uncle Mac and Aunt Felicia were so relieved to see that I was okay, they couldn't punish me any more than that." Robin clarified.
"You were an easy kid. Now Maxie and Georgie? Had to throw out the old rule book and write one of my own." Mac assured his niece.
"Could be a best-seller." Robin mused.
"Could be." Mac agreed.
"You ready to go, Kiddo?" Robin asked, addressing the startled six-year-old in her arms.
"Where?" Morgan wondered.
"To the hospital. Cameron woke up." Robin explained.
The contrast between the enthusiasm of the waiting room and quiet of Cameron's room was startling. When she had started her way down the hallway, Elizabeth had to avoid crying grandmothers, exhausted aunts, relieved cousins and gleeful friends to just make it through the door. The swell of emotion that had raced through the family had been all encompassing and impossible to ignore. She had a feeling they would both deny it, but Elizabeth had caught both Luke Spencer and Tony Grimes blinking back tears of relief when Patrick had rushed back to tell everyone Cameron had woken up.
The last time she had been in this room, the silence had been charged with the tension, worry, and fear of every person that stepped inside. Every concern they had bit back in an effort to keep Lucky calmed had seem to hang suspended in the room. Now the silence was relaxed, as if the air had been let out of a balloon. Before stepping into the room felt like walking into a potential war zone. Now she almost felt as if she was intruding on a private moment she had no right to see.
The last time she had seen Lucky, he had sat stiffly, as if he could keep his body awake by sheer will alone. He hadn't even tried to hide his fears from the world as he normally did. Now his body was slumped into the chair, his head lolled to one side. The weight of his worries had been released from his shoulders and they slumped forward in a way she was certain his mother would hate.
Cameron seemed no different but it was strange how just the knowledge he was only sleeping made the exact same sight less frightening. The bruises remained but the terror had left, hopefully for once an for all.
Elizabeth approached carefully, not wanting to wake either of them if Lucky had been sleeping as well. It had been Laura's mission to make sure he was sleeping. There was no way Elizabeth wanted to face her wrath if she found out he had been and she disturbed it. Some battles were not meant to be fought. She rested her hand on his shoulder gently and smiled when he reached up and held it lightly.
"I thought you would be sleeping." She whispered.
"Not tired."
Elizabeth was glad he couldn't see her roll her eyes. Judging by the way he was practically falling out of the chair, she gave him five minutes top before he was snoring. "Sure you aren't." she teased, moving up slightly to kneel down at his side. "What did the doctors say?"
"Too early to tell anything for sure but so far it looks ok. They'll run more tests in the morning." He glanced at her quizzically. "Not that I am complaining but I was expecting the whole family to come crashing in here. How did you get back here alone?"
Elizabeth laughed lightly. "You owe Patrick. He convinced them all the doctors would keep you two tied up in tests for hours on end."
"And somehow you are the only woman in the world that doesn't believe everything he says? How did I get so lucky?"
"No." Elizabeth admitted. "But I am friends with her."
"Oh." Lucky laughed, pulling her closer. "Robin."
"Yeah Robin." Elizabeth rested her head on his arm. "It's weird."
Lucky looked down at her and tilted her face towards him. "What's that?"
"He looks the same but it's just different knowing that he's going to wake up soon. I mean nothing's really changed but it's just different."
"Yeah. But different good."
Elizabeth laughed. "Yes. For sure it's different good."
"For the record, I'm glad you're the only one who made it back here."
"For the record, I'm glad too." Elizabeth glanced up, fully expecting to meet his green eyes. She bit back the laugh that threatened to escape when the sight of his closed eyes met hers. Glancing at her watch, she chuckled in appreciation. "Six minutes. I'm impressed Spencer. I only gave you five."
She looked around the room, trying to find anything that would make it more comfortable for him. Thrown in the corner she found a blanket and a pillow. She assumed Lucky had thrown them there at some earlier point, determined not to sleep until Cameron was better. Gathering the items in her arms, she pushed his head up just far enough to sandwich the pillow between his head and shoulder. After carefully draping the blanket over him, she dropped a kiss on his forehead before heading towards the door.
"Sleep well sweet prince. Sleep well."
It must have rained last night, Lucas declared, as his tennis shoes made contact with the soft, squishy grass of the neighborhood park. His old neighborhood. Lucas often snuck back to play at this park because it was the one place he could feel BJ's presence all around him. It didn't hold the rotten memories that the cemetery did. He liked to think that wherever his sister was, she was warm. He didn't want to think of her little body pressed against the cold earth layers beneath the surface.
She had preferred the swings, Lucas recalled. She had told him that one day the swing she played in would shoot her all the way to the moon like a rocket ship. They would sit out here in the middle of the playground hours after the other children left with their parents and count the stars, name the planets. Lucas had claimed Venus because he figured every little boy was already from Mars but BJ had wanted to live on a star. And not just any star, but the brightest star in the sky. After her death, Lucas had taken an interest in astronomy…one that later turned into an obsession. He had taken countless books from the library wanting to find the one star BJ was waiting for him on. If he could have just seen her face, just have one more conversation with her…
Mom and Dad had tried to explain her death, but it had made almost as little sense then as it did now. Death hadn't exactly been a foreign concept to him, but, at his age, he hadn't been able to actually imagine what Heaven was like, no matter how many different ways his parents and relatives tried to explain it to him. They had made it sound like she was on a permanent vacation and, for a little while, he had thought maybe he had driven her away.
But he was not that naïve any longer. He understood, dealt with, and lived in fear of death. He had lost so many people in his life, people that had literally just gone away one day. Maxie and Georgie complained of their mother's long absence, but at least they knew she was still alive. She could come and visit voluntarily; BJ could only visit Lucas in his prayers and he hadn't prayed in a very long time.
The day his son was born, he realized. That was the last time he had actively prayed. Lance had come to them prematurely and Sage's immune system was not what it should have been for a girl her age. If she hadn't already been in the hospital when her water broke, Lucas had no illusions that their son would have died that very night. He had been with her when both she and the baby flat lined and he had felt his own heart failing. Hearing a soft, melodious voice call to him he turned to see BJ standing next to the window, her cinnamon hair pulled back into a braid with a green bow. She had looked the same way as she had the last day he had seen her, the way she would always look to him for his mind preserved the memory. She was at his side that second grasping the hand that didn't hold Sage's and whispered a funny little poem they had made up together, one that involves turtles and Christmas trees. It hadn't made a bit of sense or even rhymed, but it had calmed him down to the point of screaming for the doctors and getting Sage the help she needed in order to save her life as well as the life of his and Dillon's son.
"Do you really know what you're doing?" He asked aloud, pretending his mother was right there with him. "Do you?!" The park was silent in its response and he had to choke back a fresh wave of tears. It wasn't bad enough that she was dating a guy half her age; now she was having his damn child too! Their entire family was a joke...but that wasn't what had him so upset. Ever since his talk with Dillon, he hadn't discussed the matter further. Cameron's accident had driven a large hole in his relationship with his mother, made it easier to not focus on his anger, his resentment, and his fear.
"I thought you might be here." Bobbie forced a cheerful tone into her voice as she approached her son. Lucas had not spoken with her since he had found out about her pregnancy, a feat made even more impressive considering they had been all but three feet from each other during the vigil at the hospital. Looking around the park, she was assaulted by the memories of BJ that had been haunting her since she had received Laura's call. "The memories this place brings back."
"Yeah." Lucas agreed noncommittally. He didn't want to see her right now. He wanted to be alone with his sister, as it should have always been.
She had hoped for a longer answer but Bobbie supposed it was better than a grunt or a shrug. Squaring her shoulders, Bobbie placed her hand on Lucas's shaking shoulder. "Are you going to ignore me for the rest of your life or are we going to talk about this?"
"Talk about what?" He didn't care if he was being childish or not; he didn't care that this was the exact way he would have responded to her question if he was still ten years old.
"For starters we could start with the baby."
"I'm not comfortable discussing that." His voice lowered at the mention of his mother's baby.
"You'd rather start with my relationship with Cruz? Your choice."
"I'd rather not talk about any of it. But since you're being stubborn, let's talk about why I was the last to know that my mother is having a baby."
"Technically that's Lulu. She still doesn't know."
"Why didn't you come to me about this? I mean, I'm used to the family favoring Lucky and Patrick, but I'm your son. Or maybe you feel closer to them because they actually share your blood and I'm just some stray you got saddled with." Lucas said in a condemning voice.
"Lucas that's not true. I love you." Bobbie reached to pull him closer but Lucas pulled away. "I chose you."
"Like you chose to keep this baby." Lucas whispered harshly, his eyes darting to his hands.
"Why would you think I wouldn't?"
"I guess it makes sense. You lost your one and only real child. Why wouldn't you want another one?" Lucas suggested coldly.
"That's not what this is about. This baby is not a replacement for Carly."
"What were you thinking?" Lucas demanded staring back at her with confusion. "Bringing a baby into this world at your age."
"It's not like we planned this. Trust me no one was more surprised than me or Cruz."
"Do we need to have the sex talk, Mom?" He wasn't smiling, but the joke eased some of the tension between them.
"You barely made it through the first one without running out of the room if I recall." Bobbie smiled at the memory of Tony trying to explain the facts of life to their adolescent son. "It was more of a question of not even sure it was possible rather than being safe."
"You are safe though, right? No problems?" Lucas couldn't keep the concern out of his voice.
"Dr. Lansing is keeping a close eye on me." She reassured him. "And Cruz is taking everything very seriously."
"Good...that's good." Lucas nodded unsure of what to say.
Bobbie shook her head softly and pointed towards a nearby bench. "Let's sit down. I know you have more you want to say and we may as well get comfortable."
Lucas followed her over to the aforementioned bench. "How far along...?"
"About two months."
"Two months. Oh. That makes what? Seven more?"
"Has it been that long since Lance that you don't remember?" she teased gently.
Lucas went pale. "Yeah, I guess. Have you and Cruz talked about it?"
"It?" There were many its floating between her and Cruz at the moment. Even more between herself and her family at the moment. Lucas was going to have to be more specific if he wanted an answer. "You're going to have spell it out for me there."
"The birth. The baby. Life." Lucas answered a little lost himself. He needed guarantees his mother obviously didn't have.
"We've not talked specifics. He's still adjusting to the whole baby idea. He didn't exactly find out in the best way possible. So for right now we are taking this day by day. The same way we always have."
"He's offered you nothing then." He knew it should have been a question but the look in his mother's eyes proved it to be a fact. "Do you know if he's going to stick around?"
That was the question that Bobbie hated to admit had haunted her since the moment she discovered the pregnancy. Cruz had shown no signs of wanting to leave, but then some men never did. Carly's father hadn't. All she had from Cruz was the purchase of a pregnancy book and attending her doctor's appointment. More than some women had she knew. "I have faith he will."
"You can't bank on faith, Mom." Lucas assured her. "I need to know that he's going to take care of you."
"He will." Bobbie carefully laid her hand on Lucas's arm, relieved when this time he didn't pull away. "You know he's a good man Lucas."
"I know he's a young man...not that much older than me. I can't even tell you how much this whole thing scares me."
"Scares you? Lucas honey it terrifies me."
"I told Dad I would take care of you and I don't feel like I've been doing very well lately." Lucas admitted quietly.
Bobbie pulled her son close to her. "You've done a wonderful job honey. You just have to a little faith that I know what is good for me. Who is good for me."
"Does he love you?"
"Yes."
"This is going to take some getting used to. Don't expect miracles on my part okay?" Lucas barely smiled.
"As long as you actually talk with me and you give this a chance, take all the time you need." Bobbie leaned her head on Lucas's shoulder. "I'm happy sweetie. Why don't you try accepting that first and work up to the rest?"
"It's all I want for you."