The first thing she sees when she wakes up is an empty spot on the bed.
It had been a week, almost two, since each move was finalized. Kristina's lived in the penthouse before, mainly crashing in the guest room, but living in it full-time brings a refreshing newness to the atmosphere. Dex being with her only furthered it. She was used to living in the same space as him, though his old apartment was a bit too small for two people. She hadn't lived with a boyfriend in years, and she's grateful that this move wasn't born out of spite. She's also grateful that she gets to wake up and fall asleep next to him, and the thought of his arms around her (as they usually were) makes her cheeks turn a bright red.
All that's left of him this morning, however, is the spot of the bed he normally occupies.
She sighs at the barely-dented spot to her left, running a hand over the cream-colored comforter. The light from the glass of the balcony doors causes her to squint, and she rolls onto her back. She takes a few breaths, staring up at the ceiling, counting each and every wooden beam she saw before willing herself to sit up. She manages to press her back against the white, sleek stone headboard as the bedroom door opens up.
"Hey," Dex greets her, his voice soft, "how'd you sleep?"
"Could've been better," she sighs, a hand on her torso as he sits at the foot of the bed, "Where were you?"
"Downstairs. I was getting some things together."
"Like what? Breakfast?"
"Kind of."
"Kind of?" Kristina looked at the alarm clock next to her, "It's almost eleven! How long was I out?! What did I miss?!"
"You didn't miss anything," he laughs, "Besides, even if you did, you deserve to sleep in. You're seven months along."
"Don't remind me," she runs a hand through her messy brown hair, "The sooner this baby's born, the better. Everything hurts: my ankles, my back, and now my head."
"Does everything hurt bad enough that you can't get dressed?"
"...Why?" Kristina squints her eyes at him curiously, "What did you make downstairs?"
"Well, get dressed and I'll show you."
"Deal," she smiles as he helps her to her feet. He stands by the door as she changes in the bathroom, donning a yellow sundress that drops down to just above her ankle. She brushes out her hair before tying in a long ponytail at the center of the back of her head. Dex takes her hand in his as she approaches him, and slowly but surely, they make their way down the stairs. The sight before her stops her cold at the turn of the steps.
"Surprise!" a small chorus breaks out. Kristina scans each and every one of their faces: Molly, TJ, Jordan, Alexis, Sonny, Sam, Dante, Danny, Rocco, and Scout. She then observes the streamers and flowers hung up around the living room: an assortment of oranges, reds, and yellows. Dex wraps an arm around her shoulders, hugging her against him.
"Oh my God," Kristina gasps, "What's all this for?"
"It's a baby shower," Molly takes a few steps, grabbing her sister's hand. She helps Kristina down onto the living room floor, walking her to the gray seat in the corner, the same one from Dex's apartment.
"Was this meant to be a surprise?" Kristina asks, her feet propped on a square, plush footrest, "Because I had no idea this was going on."
"Well, I was the one who planned it," Molly sits down on the corner of the coffee table, "I got everyone on board, and I asked Dex to sort-of 'rent out' your living room for it. And now that you're here, we can finally get things going!"
Scout walks up and hands her aunt a yellow lei, which Kristina happily puts on. Dex's lei matches hers while Molly and TJ wear red. The rest of the adults wear orange while the kids wear white.
"Okay," Molly chirps, "first and foremost, I want to thank you all for coming to the official baby shower for Baby Davis-Ashford!"
A small round of applause breaks out.
"This entire journey to parenthood has been filled with ups and downs, hope and heartbreak, but in a month or two, we'll have a new addition to the family, and we couldn't have done it without everyone's love and support. We really couldn't have done it, though, without Kristina."
She turns to her elder sister, "I couldn't be more grateful for you, Krissy. Sacrificing a year of your life for…for your niece, is a big deal, and I can't imagine how much you've gone through."
Kristina forces a smile. Part of her wants to cut in, to correct Molly over who the sacrifice's really for, but she stays quiet, relaxing a bit when she feels Dex's hand on her shoulder.
"I owe you. I owe you so much, and this obviously without saying, but I want you to be a big part of my daughter's life. You're just as much a mother to her as I am."
"Thank you," Kristina chokes out, resting her hand on top of Dex's while her thoughts race a mile a minute.
"You're the woman of the hour, and you're going to be treated like it," Molly dons a sickeningly sweet smile before turning to the rest of the crowd, "Let's get this party started!"
"We wanted to make sure this was a more lowkey event," TJ begins, standing next to Molly, "so we have just a few games in line before we get to the gifts."
"Like what?" Danny asks, crossing his arms.
"Danny," Sam swipes at him, frowning, "come on."
"I just want to know if the games are fun."
"They're fun," Molly nods, waving her hands out. The partygoers all sit down at various places: the couch, the other gray seat, the coffee table, the floor. Molly and TJ stay standing while Dex sits on the edge of the chair Kristina currently occupies, her head level with his chest.
"What's the first game?" Scout asks excitedly from her spot on the floor.
"It's a guessing game," Molly answers, "TJ and I have been back and forth on a lot of names for the baby, but we want to see if anyone has any better ideas."
"Well, what ideas do you have so far?" Jordan questions from the opposing gray chair.
"That's a secret," TJ laughs, "We want to see what other people have in mind."
"Here is an index card and a pen," Molly passes the items out one by one, skipping Kristina, "TJ and I will step out while you all write, that way we can guess who it belongs to."
Dex passes his card and pen to Kristina, who gives him a curious look but writes an answer anyway. Each person folds their card, resting them on the lone open spot on the coffee table. A minute later, Molly and TJ return to the living room.
"Let's see," Molly unfolds the top of the stack, "Irene."
"Mom," TJ nods Jordan's way. She raises her hand, a smile on her face, "I like it."
"It's good, but a bit old for a baby meant to be born in 2024," Molly sighs, "Maybe it can be modernized to…Irina?"
"The name runs in our family," Alexis points out.
"Okay, that's an option," TJ nods slowly, opening the first card on his stack, "Uh, Julia."
"Mine," Dante raises a hand from the sofa, "I just think it's nice."
"Come on, Dante," Kristina laughs, "You have to let them guess it's you."
"Yeah? No."
"Okay, okay," Molly giggles, opening her second card, "Dianna…with two 'n's."
"That's me," Rocco beams, "It's supposed to be for Princess Diana, but I made it a bit more unique. Plus, Aunt Molly, I know how much you like inspirational women."
"Good thinking," Molly winks.
"Yeah, so good that I did the same thing," Sam sighs, "I had Eleanor."
"I had Jane," Alexis shrugs, "I know how much you love Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and I thought Joan was too old-sounding, so her daughter's name was the next best thing."
"Not to mention the connection to Jane Austen," Molly nods, "I love it, Mom. Thank you."
"Okay…" TJ opens another card, "Gloria?"
"Me," Sonny says, "honoring the great Gloria Cerullo."
"Aw, I remember when you used to make her chicken piccata for us as kids," Molly places her hands over her heart, "It was always so good."
"Damn," Danny shakes his head, ignoring Sam's glare, "everyone's got all these meaningful names and I have just…Sadie."
"Sadie's a great name, man," TJ drops to one knee, giving him a fist bump, "It's number one on my list."
"Can mine be number two?" Scout scoots closer, "I picked Zoey."
"Absolutely."
"Well," Molly puts her hands on her hips, "there are a lot of great options. Picking a name is going to be pretty hard."
"Wait," Scout grabs the last folded card, "you missed one, Aunt Molly."
"Oh, did I?" she takes the card and opens it, "Morgan."
"That's mine."
All eyes land on Kristina, who rests her hands at the base of her bump. She scans the crowd, taking in the slight shock and infinite intrigue. Dex squeezes her shoulder gently.
"You wrote in?" Molly asks, surprised, "I thought I gave the card to Dex…"
"And he gave it to me."
"I wanted you to just sit back and relax…"
"It's just writing on an index card," Kristina shrugs, "It took no effort."
"Morgan, huh?" TJ takes the card and looks at the name.
"After my older brother. Molly and I were really close with him, and he passed away a few years ago. I just thought that it would be neat for him to live on somehow."
"Wow," Molly takes the card back and stares at it. She then looks up at her sister with sparkling brown eyes, "Thank you, Krissy. It's great."
"You're welcome," Kristina claps her hands together, "Now, if this game is over, I could really use some food."
People break off into groups after they fill their plates with an assortment of breakfast foods: fruit, eggs and bacon, waffles, pancakes. Each item is fresh and fluffy, with most of the crowd filling their plates. While Jordan and Alexis stand by the front door, Sam and Dante with their kids on the steps, and Sonny and Dex by the balcony, Molly and TJ situate themselves by Kristina.
"How is it?" TJ questions, biting into a strawberry.
"Good. Olivia's food never disappoints," Kristina swallows a piece of pancake.
"Have some fruit," Molly hands her a slice of melon. Kristina looks it over and frowns, "Please?"
"...Fine," she huffs, eating the slice. Molly smiles and rests a hand on the bump, gently rubbing it back and forth.
"Hi, baby girl," the youngest sister moves closer, which causes Kristina to slightly, instinctively recoil, "It's Mommy."
TJ drops to one knee, "And it's Daddy."
"We're so, so excited to meet you, and we're hoping these next few months fly by. Starting our 2024 with you is practically a dream come true."
"I'm sorry we haven't been around as much as we should be, between my shifts at the hospital and your mom's work as an ADA-"
"But we know that Aunt Krissy and Uncle Dex have been taking really good care of you," Molly's smile carves a hole in Kristina, and she averts her eyes as her sister continues, "You are so…special, and so, so important to your dad and I. Once you're born, you're going to have the best life a kid could have. You have no idea how much you're loved and wanted, baby girl."
A knock at the front door stops everyone in their tracks, with Molly and TJ pulling back from Kristina. Alexis scans the room before opening the door, disgust on her face when she sees the man on the other side.
"It seems my invite got lost in the mail," Victor Cassadine looks past the woman and at the decorations. He walks inside the penthouse, hands in his pockets as he gazes down at Kristina, "Hello, Kristina."
"Back off, Victor," Sonny's voice is deep and firm as Dex walks over, hands on Kristina's shoulders.
"Why are you here?" Alexis crosses her arms, "How did you get this address?"
"Well, I heard there was a little get-together for the newest member of the Cassadine family, and I thought I'd pay a visit."
"Who told you?" Jordan questions.
"That's not important," Victor drops to one knee right in front of his niece, "How are you, my dear?"
"I'm okay," Kristina answers, feeling Dex's grip on her shoulders somewhat tightening. She rests a hand on one to relax him.
"How's the child?"
"She's doing fine," Molly remarks from behind.
Victor slowly gets up, turning her way, "That's right, this baby is yours and your husband's."
"Domestic partner."
"Of course."
"You need to go, Victor," Sonny takes a step forward, "Now."
The man drops back down on one knee, "If you ever need anything, my dear, don't hesitate to contact me."
He reaches a hand out towards Kristina. She retreats back in her chair, her arms crossed against her bump. He sighs and gets up, making his way out of the penthouse with Alexis slamming the door behind him.
"Are you okay?" Dex crouches down, letting Kristina's shoulders go to gently rub the top of her arm.
"I'm fine," she says gently, "we're fine."
"If he comes back," Alexis approaches them, "you tell me and you tell your father."
"We will," Kristina nods, rubbing her torso. She takes a deep breath that comes out in ragged sighs, a feeling of dread gently gnawing at her from the pit of her stomach, "we…will."
"Something wrong, sweetheart?" Sonny walks over. Molly and TJ raise their eyebrows and hover over her.
"I'm just…tired," she rubs her fingers against Dex's hand, "Could you take me upstairs?"
She holds onto his shoulders as he helps her stand up. Molly walks by them before cutting in front.
"Krissy, wait," she says, "we still have a lot to do-"
"Molls, I need to lay down. I know you want me to stay and finish the shower, but I don't think I can. I'm sorry."
"Maybe you should see Dr. Navarro," TJ chimes in.
"No, it's fine."
"Excuse us," Dex says softly as he walks his girlfriend up the stairs. Everyone stands around for a few minutes, looking between one another until Dex appears, walking down the stairs.
"Well…now what?" Danny questions, scratching the side of his head, "Do we do this without Aunt Kristina?"
"That's your call," Jordan looks at Molly and TJ, "Do you want to continue the baby shower?"
"It won't be the same," TJ sighs.
"But, um," Molly looks around, going from the decorations to the food on the dining table to the presents behind the couch, "all this stuff shouldn't go to waste."
"Okay, then we'll keep going."
The partygoers all take their seats around the coffee table, with TJ bringing each gift forward one-by-one. Molly takes a small box wrapped in sky blue, carefully taking off the wrapping paper to unveil a set of mostly-white baby onesies.
"Congrats on your little girl," she reads the card attached to the clothing, "Here's some comfortable onesies for her. We hope she loves them! Sam and Dante."
"Thank you, guys," TJ smiles as he opens a large pink bag, pulling out a few teddy bears: one pink, one aqua, and one purple.
"Those are from us," Rocco says, "Scout picked the colors and I picked the toys. Danny paid for them."
"Team effort," Dante nods.
"They're great," TJ replies, "thank you."
"And now…" Molly opens a smaller white bag, pulling out a pack of yellow, circular rings, "Oh, teething toys!"
"I'm just being proactive!" Jordan playfully puts her hands up, "There's also some pacifiers in there too."
"Thanks, Mom," TJ bends down to hug her, squeezing her tight.
"Alright, there's…two more gifts?" Molly raises an eyebrow, looking at the red bag and green wrapped box.
"Yeah, um," Sonny rubs his chin, "I…ordered a crib, and it was supposed to come today, but, uh, it hasn't."
"Oh, that's okay," Molly waves him down, "we actually already have one."
"Well, it needs to go somewhere-"
"There's an empty room here," Dex cuts in, "I can put it in there for storage."
"Thanks, man," TJ slaps his shoulder. Dex gives him a half-formed smile.
"Wait, so which gift is from you and Kristina?" Molly asks. Dex points to the red bag, and she pulls out a light yellow doll, a bunny with floppy ears hugging a blanket stitched into it.
"Oh, it's perfect," Molly hugs it to her chest, "thank you."
"Which leaves mine," Alexis remarks. Molly rips the paper off and opens the box, marveling at the collection of items inside, "It's a gift basket full of things: bottles, diapers, wipes, some extra clothes, and I left you a good gift card to get some other things."
"Wow," Molly stands up, locking hands with TJ, "just…wow. All these gifts are amazing. I can't thank you all enough for them."
"We're so lucky to be with such good family and friends, and to know that no matter what, our daughter's in good hands. We love you all, truly."
"We love you too," Jordan responds, a wide smile on her face.
After another hour or so, the shower dwindles to an end. Jordan and Alexis make their way to work while Sam tries to get her children to leave, with Danny swiftly exiting, Rocco taking too long in his talk with Molly, and Scout giving Dex a goodbye hug. Sonny and Dante exit on their own as well, retrieving the crib from the lobby the second the former gets the email that it arrived. With Dex's help, they manage to get the box upstairs and into the dark, empty spare room. Each man shakes the others' hands before Sonny and Dante leave. Dex looks around the apartment and takes down the streamers and decorations, piling that and miscellaneous trash into a bag before taking it to the dumpster just outside the building. He hears the sound of footsteps against the stairs as he comes back, the warm colors of the sunset pouring in through the glass on the balcony doors.
"Kristina?" he asks, standing right by the structure.
She pokes her head out from around the corner, "Hey."
"Feeling better?"
"Way better," she takes his hand when he offers it, helping her finish her walk downward, "How was the rest of the shower?"
"Good. Molly and TJ opened their presents."
"Did they like ours?"
"Oh yeah, they loved it."
"What did everyone else get the baby?"
"Clothes," he counts on his fingers, "other toys, teething rings, bottles, diapers, a crib-"
"A crib?" Kristina raises an eyebrow, making a face at him, "There wasn't a big enough gift box."
"Well, your dad ordered it, but it didn't come in on time. Turns out, though, that they already had a crib set up, so…uh…we have it. It's in the pink room."
"It's just gonna sit there?"
"You don't think it should?"
"Well, Molly did say she wants me to be a big part of the baby's life, and that I'm just as much a mom as she is. Maybe we can…make the pink room a nursery?"
"Uh, I suppose we can," Dex furrows his eyebrows, "but I don't know if your niece will be around here all that often."
The dread re-emerges, and Kristina does her best to not let it show, "Something tells me she will. Aunt's intuition."
"...Okay," he stuffs his hands in his back pockets, "Hungry?"
"Always."
They walk to the kitchen together, Kristina leaning against the countertop next to Dex, who pulls out a few potatoes, a bottle of olive oil, and a mix of materials, from salt to paprika to tomato paste.
"What are you making?" she asks, watching him turn on the oven.
"A little Spanish treat called 'patatas bravas,'" he answers, proceeding to chop up the potatoes into similar-sized wedges.
"Oh, really? Where did you learn that?"
"It's a recipe from when I was a kid."
"Cool," she nods slowly, turning away ever-so-slightly. She then whips her head back, "So, uh, why didn't you write a name down earlier?"
He shrugs in response, dumping the potato slices into a boiling pot.
"You really had no ideas?"
"I mean, I did have one, but it's a name that I want to give my own daughter someday."
"Wanna tell me what it is?" she approaches him, hands on his right shoulder as she admires his work. He stops for a moment and gazes at her sweetly, his blue eyes somewhat shimmering.
The name leaves his mouth like it's made of pure honey: "Ciara."
Kristina blinks a few times, processing it. Her cheeks glow a bright pink the more she ruminates on it, taking in his wistful expression.
"Ciara," she repeats as he turns back to the food, sprinkling salt in the pot and proceeding to stir, "It's lovely."
"A lovely name for a lovely woman," Dex takes a deep breath, "There was…this lady I knew when I was a kid: Ciara Reyes. She lived right next door. She was this…older Hispanic woman who worked as a nurse at the local hospital, and she was childhood friends with my dad, so we knew her pretty well. One day, I was maybe…seven or eight, and she found me outside after my brothers beat me and took me in."
"Did she know that your brothers beat you?" Kristina asks in a soft, sad tone.
"No, she just saw all the bruises and the black eye. I don't think she ever found out, honestly."
"How did she treat your wounds?"
"Bandages and an ice pack. Once I looked halfway decent, she sent me home, and she told me that if I ever got hurt again, I should go to her for help."
"Did you?"
"Absolutely. I'd have all these…cuts and scars and she took care of it right in her house, and when I ended up in the hospital because of my brothers, she was my primary nurse."
"You said you went to the hospital about five times."
"Five times that I can remember, yes."
Kristina winces at the sentence, rubbing Dex's back. Her words come out laced with sadness, "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I'm away from them now, I'm alive…and I have her to thank for that," Dex's eyes slightly burn with tears, "Y'know, sometimes I'd just…go next door and hang out with her. I'd eat her homemade churros and watch her favorite telenovelas, and she was the one who taught me this recipe. It was a nice escape from my own home…and I just wish it didn't get cut short."
"What happened?"
"She moved back to Spain when I was in high school to take care of her mother. I haven't seen or heard from her since. I mean, thankfully, my brothers ended up being too busy to terrorize me, but…it still sucked."
"Maybe one day you two will reunite," Kristina backs up as Dex places the wedges into the oven.
"I hope so. I just hope she's doing okay."
"Me too. Thank you for telling me about her, about her importance to you. Honoring her through your own children: I bet she'd be over the moon."
"Yeah," Dex looks down, "One day, it'll be a reality…but not today."
Kristina's breath hitches in her throat, lacing her fingers with Dex's as he extends a hand to her. He pulls her into him, wrapping his arms around her, hands at the small of her back. Her hands lay flat against the back of his shoulders.
"You're going to be such a great father," she says under her breath, the back of her mind screaming at her. Dex doesn't respond, leaning over a bit to kiss her. Her hand rests at the nape of his neck as they push against one another. He pulls back first, running a thumb past her cheek.
"Those are going to sit for a little bit," he explains coolly, "and then we can decorate it with as much sauce and spice as you can handle. Whatever you want to do."
"A good man and a good chef?" Kristina purrs, "How did I get so lucky?"
Dex laughs in response, which causes Kristina to plant a kiss on his lips. They keep their arms around one another, and as time ticks away, the day coming to a close, they drink in the pocket of serenity they presently have.