Hi everyone, I apologize to anyone who read ch 83 before I edited it. I originally had Danny help bring Jason to Elizabeth's, but he's in jail so he can't be in two places at once lol. So I edited him out and gave his line to Carly. Only Jake and Carly brought Jason to Elizabeth's. Sorry for the confusion.

Chapter 84- Friendship

Sam arrived at the hospital and found Kristina and Molly in the waiting room.

"How's Mom?" Sam asked.

"She woke up for Molly," Kristina said.

"She's coughing a lot and can barely talk," Molly explained. "And she seemed disoriented. Lucas is with her now."

"Did Lucas give any indication of her prognosis?" Sam asked.

"No," Molly said. "He just went in a few minutes ago."

"How's Danny?" Kristina asked.

"He's scared but trying to hide it," Sam said. "He didn't do this."

"We know," Kristina said. "He would never do that."

"I know it's Shelly Mest and I'm trying to prove it," Sam said. "How are Donna and Avery?"

"Donna still isn't talking, but since her therapy session I've noticed a change in her demeanor," Kristina said. "She's playing more with Avery and she even smiled at me during breakfast."

"That's a start," Sam said. "I remember it was gradual for you too."

Molly shook her head. "But Spencer…. He was approved bail. I don't know whether that's a good thing or not."

"I don't know what to think anymore either," Kristina said. "I miss my dad. But what my sisters are going through…."

"You can feel both at the same time," Sam said. "You can miss your dad and want good things for Spencer while at the same time being angry at both. That's normal and no one can fault you for that."

They all turned when Lucas stepped out of Alexis' room.

"How is she, Lucas?" Sam asked.

"Your mom has developed pneumonia," Lucas explained. "She is very weak. We're going to treat her with antibiotics and she'll need to remain admitted for a while. You can visit her but try not to over-stimulate her. She needs to rest."

GHGHGH

Spencer and Josslyn sipped on their hot cocoas and sat at a table at Bobbie's, surrounded by shopping bags.

"Freedom tastes good after being in a dingy jail cell, doesn't it?" Spencer said. "I'm glad Grandmother and your mom bailed us out."

"But this is just temporary," Josslyn said. "We still have to go to court again. What happens if I have to give birth in prison?"

Spencer reached for her hands. "I won't let that happen. We have Diane and she's the best lawyer there is."

"But she just lost our custody fight against Esme," Josslyn said.

"And you heard your mom this morning." He lowered his voice. "She said Jason is alive and he can fix anything. Listen, I'm going to protect you and our child. Let's just focus on him right now."

She raised an eyebrow. "Him?"

"I would like to raise him in my childhood home," Spencer said. "At Wyndemere. Since Ava is gone, I might have a chance of getting it back."

"I don't want to live at Wyndemere," Josslyn groaned. "It's dark and depressing there."

"But it's my home and it'll be our home too," Spencer said. "I promise to take care of both of you. About his name. I'd like to call him Michael Victor Spencrovich Cassadine. You thought of naming Ace after Uncle Sonny and I like that idea. I also want to carry the tradition of giving a middle name after the father—me."

"Spencer, we don't even know if it's a boy yet," Josslyn said. "I'm fine with the name Michael, but more so after my brother. I'm not okay with Victor though.

"We can think of an alternative to Victor."

"But you only bought boy clothes and toys today," Josslyn said. "What if we have a girl?"

"It's a boy," Spencer said. "I can feel it."

Outside, Cameron walked Esme and Ace up to Bobbie's.

"Thank you for driving us," Esme said.

"No problem," Cameron said. "I hope you have a good visit with your friend. Sorry I can't drive you home, but I have to go to work."

"It's okay. We can take the bus."

"You know, it's going to be hard carrying Ace all the time," Cameron said. "You should ask your mom to drop off his stroller. Unless you go back…. Mom did say you could only stay one night."

Esme took a deep breath. "Because we're in the way."

"No, don't do that," Cameron said. "You're welcome over anytime. But don't you think you'd be happier living with your mom right now? All your things are there and you have your own room. Our house is small and now Jason and Violet are staying with us too."

Esme shrugged. "I don't know."

Cameron held the door open for her and they saw Spencer take Josslyn's arm and help her out of a chair.

"I'm fine," Josslyn said. "You don't need to do everything for me."

Spencer lifted all the bags. "I don't mind. Everything's going to be perfect. The three of us are going to be so happy together."

Esme furrowed her eyebrows and held Ace close as Spencer kissed Josslyn passionately.

Spencer and Josslyn turned and saw them.

"The three of you?" Cameron asked. "You're not going to drop this, are you? You need to leave Esme and Ace alone."

"What are you talking about?" Spencer asked.

"Not everything is about Esme." Josslyn looped her arm through Spencer's. "We're having a baby."

"You are?" Cameron asked.

"Oh, well, congratulations," Esme said and moved past them to get a table.

"And you're not getting anywhere near him, Esme," Spencer practically shouted and Ace started to cry. "I'll get a restraining order if I have to."

"She moved away from you, man," Cameron said. "And she's the one with the restraining order against you."

Esme rocked Ace gently. "What would I want with your child?"

"You are stressing my wife out." Spencer shifted all the bags into one hand and opened the door. "Come on Joss, let's get you home to rest."

Josslyn rolled her eyes. "I'm fine." But she left with him anyway.

Cameron shook his head. "I'm sorry about that. Spencer needs to leave you alone."

But Esme was smiling. "Cam, that was amazing."

"What was?"

"He didn't acknowledge Ace once," Esme said. "I'm not happy that he made him cry, but he's all about his new baby now."

Cameron grinned. "I never thought of it that way. Maybe he'll back off you and Ace now."

"And even better that he doesn't want me near the baby," Esme said. "Maybe he will get a restraining order against me too. Then it's double the blockage of him coming near us."

GHGHGH

"Thank you for meeting me, Anna," Felicia said when they sat down at the Metro Court.

"My pleasure."

"How are you?" Felicia asked.

Anna sighed. "Okay, I guess. Someone vandalized my car last night."

Felicia gasped. "Oh my gosh. What happened?"

"There's a wide scratch that encircles the entire vehicle," Anna explained. "And my mirrors were shattered."

"That's awful," Felicia said. "Can I do anything to help?"

"I've got the PCPD on it. But I'll let you know if I need anything, thanks."

"Okay. And how are Robin and the kids?" Felicia asked.

"They're fine," Anna said. "Patrick and Robin are adjusting back to GH and they're looking for a house. Noah gets his cast off next week. He's a little sad about that though. He enjoyed everyone signing it. But we keep telling him he'll get to keep it as a souvenir. Emma's been feeling a little lonely. She misses her hang outs with Esme and she was very disappointed to learn that Jake is dating Charlotte."

Felicia frowned. "My daughter doesn't believe Emma actually likes her. She thinks she only puts up with her because of me."

"You introduced them and encouraged it, yes. But she does like Esme. She thinks she did something wrong and that Esme is mad at her since she won't return her texts."

"Poor Emma," Felicia said. "I'm so sorry. Esme isn't trying to hurt her. She just has trouble trusting anyone's intentions with her. Even mine."

"Robin and I have tried telling her that she didn't do anything wrong and Esme is just really struggling, but she still thinks she's upset her somehow," Anna said. "Anyway, why did you want to meet me?"

"Well, I actually needed some advice about my girls and Mac."

There was a huge gasp and they turned as Lucy walked in. "You're going to Anna for advice and not me?"

Anna took a sip of wine. "Here we go again…."

Felicia sighed. "Lucy, this was very last-minute. I just needed to talk to someone. You're usually working around this time and Anna is first on my contacts, so I just called her quickly—"

Lucy scoffed. "Why is Anna first on your contacts? And I have the day off just so you know. I'm meeting Christina for a late lunch. But I would've had plenty of time to give you advice, even if I was working."

"Anna is first because my contacts are alphabetical," Felicia said. "I didn't make it that way, my phone sets it that way by default."

"Well, you need to go into your settings and make it alphabetical by last name so that I'm listed first," Lucy said.

"Oh, I'll get right on that, Lucy," Felicia said sarcastically. "It'll be my top priority right now."

Lucy pulled a chair over to their table and sat down. "Good."

"Aren't you meeting your daughter for lunch?" Anna asked.

"I have a few minutes." She glared at Anna, then held Felicia's hand. "What advice do you need about Mac and your daughters?"

Felicia grinned at Anna who rolled her eyes. Then Felicia got serious. "Esme and Ace moved out. I don't know if it's permanent or if she's coming back."

"Oh no, I'm so so sorry," Lucy said. "You see, experiencing empty nest syndrome is very, very normal." She looked over at Anna. "I've been through it twice, so I will help you through this, Felicia." She turned back to Felicia. "It is very difficult and you go through a wide range of emotions. But once you see your kids are happy and making a difference in the world, it makes it that much easier."

Anna smacked her. "I don't think she's talking about empty nest syndrome, Lucy."

"You're not?" Lucy asked.

"No," Felicia said. "Esme is really struggling. She… tends to run away when she can't handle her emotions. It's happened several times. Last night we had a party to celebrate Esme winning custody of Ace. It started out really good. But I didn't realize Esme invited Nelle Benson. You see, Nelle has this creepy fascination with wanting to be Esme's mother. Poor Esme thinks she just wants to be friends. So when she showed up to the party, Maxie didn't respond well. Mac told Nelle to leave. Then Esme got mad at us. She thinks I don't want her to have any friends. Next thing we know, Esme is gone and she left Ace. She returned over an hour later in distress and she cried in my arms. Before I could ask her about it, Mac started yelling at her for leaving again without telling us. After that Esme shut down and wouldn't talk to me the rest of the night. I was—AM—mad at Mac, so I made him sleep on the couch. Then Mac and I sort of had a fight this morning. Then Esme announced to us that she and Ace are leaving. I followed her outside and found Frisco talking to her at the bus station."

"Wait—Frisco?" Anna asked. "Frisco is back?"

Felicia nodded. "Maxie sent him a message to tell him Georgie is alive. He came to see her. So, Esme left and she said she was going to Elizabeth's since she's friends with Cameron. And she refuses to live with Mac anymore. I brought Frisco inside to meet Georgie. Mac was livid. Georgie said she wanted to talk to Frisco alone. Mac and I got into it again. He's mad that I brought Frisco in to see Georgie in her condition, and I'm mad that he scared Esme off. After the visit, Mac walked Frisco out. Poor Georgie broke down in tears. She's so confused about Frisco. She told me she knows Mac will never leave us. She and Maxie love him so much. And I think Mac was right. I shouldn't have allowed him inside. I just didn't know when he'd be back again and I wanted to give Georgie a chance to make up her own mind about him.

"So anyway, I don't know what to do," Felicia continued. "I'm scared to death for Esme and Ace out there with hardly any money and no plan. I don't know how long she can stay at Elizabeth's. As much as I love Mac, I would choose Esme over him in a heartbeat. But this isn't a Mac vs. Esme thing. I feel like I have to choose between what's best for Esme and what's best for Georgie. Do I kick Mac out so Esme feels more comfortable at the expense of Georgie losing Mac? Do I leave things as they are and hope Esme will come back on her own? Or do I leave Georgie again with Mac and go get a place for just me, Esme, and Ace? This is just a lose-lose situation, and either way one of my daughters is going to suffer because of it."

"Well, you can't kick Mac out," Anna said. "That wouldn't be fair to Georgie, that wouldn't be fair to Mac, and that wouldn't be fair to you either. I know that Esme has been through a lot, but she needs to understand the difference between abuse and healthy discipline. I know this is hard for you to hear, Felicia, but Esme is in the wrong here. You kick Mac out, then Esme will think she can control other areas of your life too. And she'll also see that maybe she's right and he is a threat. I know you're worried about her, but if the only way for her to learn is by hitting rock bottom, then she's got to learn it somehow. You can still reach out to her, but it was her decision to run off, so she has to live with the consequences of it. Georgie is struggling too, and in someways more than Esme is, and it's not fair that she has to pay for Esme acting out."

Felicia shifted uncomfortably.

"I disagree," Lucy spoke up. "Your daughter needs you right now, Felicia. She has good reasons to be uncomfortable around Mac. I believe your marriage to Mac is strong enough to handle Mac leaving for a bit. He can still visit Georgie. Esme will see that you're putting her first and in time she will see that she is safe around Mac and he will come back. He would never abandon you and the girls. But if you turn your back on Esme, you might lose her forever. I think you need both Georgie and Esme with you."

"Do you actually believe that or are you just saying it because you want to give the exact opposite advice I gave?" Anna asked.

"Of course, I believe it," Lucy said. "I have been with Mac and Felicia through thick and thin. I know they can overcome anything."

Felicia rubbed her temples.

"I never said they can't overcome anything," Anna said. "But we have to consider Georgie's needs and she's the innocent one in all of this. Esme needs to learn some lessons."

"Well, I think you're both wrong."

They all looked up to find Holly standing over them.

"Holly?" Anna said. "When did you get back?"

"A little over an hour ago," Holly said. "And I heard everything. You and Lucy are putting too much pressure on Felicia. As mothers we believe that we can solve everything for our children and that it's our job to do so. But not everything can be blamed on us. We do the best we can and still our children don't appreciate it. But this right now isn't Felicia's issue. What happened is between Mac and Esme and it's up to them to fix it."

Anna turned back to Felicia. "Did any of this help you at all?"

"No," Felicia said.

"Well, I know what will." Lucy pulled out her cell phone. "I have decided on an opener for this years' Nurse's Ball."

Everyone groaned.

"I don't know if any of you have ever watched I Love Lucy—and no, I don't mean me." She laughed. "But there was one episode where Lucy and Ethel danced to a song called Friendship. So, I was thinking Felicia and I would come out on stage, dancing and holding hands. We'd sing, 'If you're ever in a jam, here I am. If you're ever in a mess, S.O.S. If you're ever so happy, you land in jail I'm your bail. It's FRIENDSHIP, FRIENDSHIP. Just the perfect blendship. When other friendships have been forgot—' then the spotlight will shine on Anna."

Anna gave her a dirty look.

"Then Christina, Esme, Serena, Maxie, and Georgie if she's up for it, will come out next and we'll all sing 'Ours will still be hot. La da la da la da dig dig dig."

"You really think we're all going to be up for that?" Felicia's lips went tight and stood. "I'm leaving."

"Oh, wait, you can't leave yet." Lucy waved. "There's Christina. Hi chickadee."

"Hi everyone," Christina said.

Lucy wrapped her arm around her. "I have an important task for you, Christina. Felicia needs our help. Will you go to the Webber house and talk to Esme? Tell her that Mac is a good guy and that her mom misses her. And that she should go home."

"You are not pressuring my daughter," Felicia said. "That will only make things worse. I'm sorry I asked you here, Anna, but I think this was a mistake. I'll handle this on my own." She went to the elevator and pressed the down button.

"Wait, Felicia." Holly walked over to her. "I was hoping to get some parenting advice from you as well."

"I'm sorry, Holly, but I don't think I can" Felicia said. "I can't even give myself advice right now. I'm very overwhelmed and I feel really edgy at the moment."

"I understand. But you are a wonderful mother, one that I strive to be like."

The elevator doors opened.

Felicia sighed. "All right. Come on. I'll try."

Holly climbed in beside her. "Thank you. I see that Robert and that lawyer woman are quite smitten."

Felicia nodded. "Yes. Robert seems quite happy with Diane. Holly, is there something going on with Ethan?"

"Ethan? Why would something be going on with him?"

"Uh, because you said you wanted parenting advice," Felicia said.

"Yes, I do. But this is about my daughter."

"Wait, you have a daughter?" Felicia asked.

"Yes, I do. She wants little to do with me, but she lives here in town. Do you think I should approach her?"

"Well, that's a tough one to answer, Holly. It depends on who your daughter is and also on the circumstances. I think it's always good to reach out, but you need to respect her boundaries. Maybe try contacting her and see how she responds? You can tell her you're here and would love to see her but leave the ball in her court."

"Yeah." Holly nodded. "That is a good idea. Thank you, Felicia."

The elevator doors opened to the parking garage.

AN: Do you guys agree with Anna, Lucy, or Holly? Or bits of what each said? Or what do you guys think Felicia should do?