A/N: Thank you to starlight guardian for the review on chapter 20. lol they are going down yes. Thank you to trini12180, notenoughlove, arcoiris0502, starlightguardian, and guest for taking the time to review the last chapter. I appreciate it. Let's just say you will be surprised who Josslyn takes the recording to and what they do with it.

Title: Rewrite the Stars

Chapter 22

***Half Hour Later***

(Cameron, Jake, and Aiden come home from school. Elizabeth asks them to sit down in the living room. Franco and Elizabeth wanted to talk to them. Cameron is sitting on the couch farthest away from the front door. Jake and Aiden are sitting on the couch with Elizabeth on the far right. Franco is sitting down on the chair that's by Elizabeth closest to the front door)

Liz: (calmly asks) "Jake and Aiden, do you feel anxious or nervous at home where you feel that you can't talk to me or Franco?"

(Jake looks a bit nervously at his mom, causing Elizabeth to reach for her son's hand)

Liz: "Honey, I promise you. There is no wrong answer here. We just want you to tell us the truth."

Jake: (sighs) "I see you and Franco fighting sometimes. I don't go in the room because it makes me feel uncomfortable."

(Aiden looks down briefly in fright before looking at Cameron. Cameron nods his head and assures his baby brother it's okay, to speak from the heart)

Aiden: "I don't like it when Franco raises his voice at mommy."

(Elizabeth felt heartbroken for Aiden. She takes Aiden, who is sitting next to her, in her arms and hugs him. He's still sitting on the couch)

Liz: "I'm so sorry you feel that way, baby."

(Aiden feels a bit relieved after getting comfort from his mother)

Franco: "I'm sorry for doing that, Aiden." (shakes his head) "I didn't mean for you to hear that, Aiden."

(Cameron raises his eyebrows as he can't help but say his next comment)

Cameron: "So, if none of us were here, would you still raise your voice at mom?"

(Franco is speechless! What the hell was he supposed to say to that? He has his eyes slightly widened as he didn't want to lie to the boys, but he didn't know what to say. He looks to Elizabeth, who was on his right side, for help. Elizabeth shakes her head and speaks in a low voice)

Liz: "Don't lie."

(Franco sighs deeply as he slides his hands through his hair before answering)

Franco: "Sometimes, yes, I accidentally raise my voice. But, it's not intentional."

Liz: "I want you guys to know something. I can take care of myself. I've done it for years and that won't change. Franco would never hurt me. However, yes, we are having money issues."

Jake: (offers) "What about asking dad for help? Dad always offers to help if we need it."

(Franco rolls his eyes and bites his tongue at saying something negative against Jason since Jake is right there. Franco offers a polite smile as he speaks)

Franco: "We need to depend on ourselves. We can't always rely on others for help." (nods) "I'll be getting a 2nd job and I'm hopeful it works."

Cameron: (points out) "If the 2nd job doesn't pan out, what then?"

Liz: "We'll deal with it when it comes to that. I want to make something clear to you guys. Cameron, Jake, and Aiden? You can come to us…me and Franco whenever you need to. We're always here for you."

(Cameron shakes his head and sighs deeply as he spoke)

Cameron: "Mom, Jake and Aiden come to me because they've been uncomfortable going to Franco as he's been mean towards you lately. I'm not going to turn them away when they need someone to talk to if they feel they can't trust Franco."

(Cameron gets up from his chair and raises his hands to his sides as he vents)

Cameron: "We used to be such a happy family together. What happened, mom? Franco?"

(Elizabeth puts her hair behind her ears as she shook her head in defeat)

Liz: "I honestly don't know."

Jake: "One thing we all noticed…Cameron, Aiden, and I…Franco doesn't seem to be interested in our lives like he used to be before."

Aiden: (nods) "He used to bake cookies with me and chat with me." (shakes his head sadly) "He doesn't do that with me anymore."

Cameron: "He's short with us now and barely has a conversation with any of us."

(Franco sighs deeply as he didn't realize he was doing this. He knew it was true, though. Elizabeth knew privately that it was time for a change)

Liz: "I want to ask you guys something. Would it help if we all went…meaning all of us…went to see a therapist? Unless you boys went separately to see one? If you'd rather see Kevin Collins, being you know him? What do you think?"

(Franco rolls his eyes and mumbles under his breath)

Franco: "Great, then everyone will know about our problems."

Cameron: "Can I think about it?"

Jake: "I'll let you know."

Aiden: "I'm not sure."

Liz: "Think about it and let me know. No rush, okay? Remember, this is to help you guys."

(While the boys go upstairs, Elizabeth asks to speak to Franco in the kitchen. Once they're in the kitchen and are alone, she points at him in anger)

Liz: "You may not have thought I could hear you, but I did. I don't give a shit if Kevin or any other therapist finds out about our problems! If it'll help the boys out, that's all I care about. That's all you should care about, too. If not, that's just too damn bad!"

(Elizabeth walks out of the kitchen while Franco sighs deeply)

(Meanwhile, outside of Sonny's office, Sonny is talking to Carly about the kids and other unrelated topics when Jason bursts through the doors in a huff. Carly and Sonny briefly face each other before focusing on Jason)

Carly: "Jayse, what's wrong?"

Sonny: "Is it business or personal?"

Jason: (angrily) "I wish Elizabeth would see Franco for who he really is!"

Carly: "As much as you don't like it, Franco and Elizabeth are together and Elizabeth loves him." (scoffs)

"Why? I'll never understand it. He's an idiot who doesn't deserve her."

Sonny: (to Carly) "Are you sure about that?"

Carly: (puzzled) "What do you mean by that? I hate Franco, but I know Elizabeth loves him."

Jason: "Franco is bad news and doesn't deserve her."

(Carly studies Jason's facial expressions during this before speaking)

Carly: (narrows her eyes) "Jason, does Franco know how you feel about Elizabeth? That you're in love with her?"

(Jason stops pacing around and first looks at Sonny, as if to ask Sonny if his best friend said a word to Carly. Sonny shakes his head in response. Jason looks at Carly, wondering how she pieced it together)

Sonny: "Carly, Jason didn't say a word about how he feels towards Elizabeth. What makes you so sure he's in love with her?"

(Carly widens her eyes and raises her hands to her sides before speaking)

Carly: "You guys, come on! I'm not an idiot! It's all over Jason's face and the way he's talking about her!"

(Carly points at Jason while she speaks)

Carly: "Jason, you know I love you and that you're my best friend. But, if it's this easy for me to see how you feel for Elizabeth, it won't take Franco long."

(Jason rolls his eyes and pinches his nose in frustration as he briefly closes his eyes)

Jason: "Franco probably already knows, hence the friction between the jackass and Elizabeth."

Carly: (warns Jason) "You need to stay away from Elizabeth because it's pissing Franco off."

Jason: (weird look) "I don't give a shit about Franco."

(Carly puts her hands on her hips and raises her eyebrows before speaking)

Carly: "Okay, how about Elizabeth? If you care about her, then you need to stay away from her for her sake."

Chapter 22 Done

I don't remember how old exactly Aiden is on the show. I know I can google it. I'm writing him how I picture him in this story. If I'm writing him too young, please bear with me. Looking forward to your thoughts. Thanks for reading.