Written in 58 minutes.

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The Recovery Room: Storage Room

Jason hesitated in the doorway of the storage room, and watched Mike check off items on his clipboard. How many times had Jason watched Mike count inventory at Luke’s back in the early days? How many times had Jason sought Mike out in this very bar, looking for guidance and advice once Sonny had left? He’d been so grateful he’d named Mike as Michael’s godfather.

And now Jason had to face him, knowing that Mike, at the very least, suspected that Jason had hurt Mike’s daughter in the worst way possible. It wouldn’t be an easy conversation, but it was a necessary one.

“Been a long time since you came around here,” Mike said, not glancing up. His blue eyes looked at another shelf. “Not since Michael came home that last time. You didn’t have much need of me then.”

“Didn’t want to hear what you’d say to me,” Jason said, his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. “You never liked Carly much. Always said she’d get me into trouble. Easier to avoid you.”

Mike looked at him then. “I wasn’t wrong.”

“No, you weren’t.”

“Which of my children are you here to talk to me about?” Mike set the clipboard on the shelf, turned to face Jason more fully, his arms folded. “My son who’s clearly troubled and sliding out of control, or my daughter — who isn’t the woman you walked out with last night.”

Jason exhaled slowly. “Wherever you want to start, Mike, is fine with me. I don’t know if Courtney’s told you anything—”

“She’s avoiding me, too, so the news isn’t good, is it?” Mike walked past him, and Jason followed the older man back out through the hall to the small kitchen. He poured himself a cup of coffee, then handed another to Jason.”

“No, it’s not.”

Mike nodded, leaned against the counter, sipped the coffee. “You know, when I first found out about all of that—you and Courtney—I thought—well, that won’t last.” The corner of his mouth curved up in a half-smile. “She’s not for you. But I didn’t say anything. I don’t have a lot of power where my kids are concerned — or authority. My fault,” he added. “But then you were engaged, and I was okay with it. I wanted you to be a good match. Because I like the idea of you being my son-in-law.” He lifted his brows. “That’s not going to happen, is it?”

“No, I—I’m sorry. I won’t lie to you. I respect you too much for that.” Jason paused. “What Sonny said last night—about Elizabeth—it’s—it’s not the way he made it sound. But maybe it is. I don’t—” He stared down into the untouched cup of coffee. “We slept together,” he admitted. “And I know it was wrong because I’d made promises, but it didn’t feel that way. And…I wasn’t sorry.”

The words hung between them for a long moment, the silence lingering. Mike absorbed that. “I wondered,” he said, finally, “at how fast it was all happening. But I was just getting to know her, you know? I didn’t think I could say to this woman I didn’t raise and didn’t know — don’t you think it’s all too fast? Marrying one man, divorcing him six months later, going to his brother, getting engaged in a few months — it all seemed so rushed. And knowing you the way I do, having been around you since almost the beginning…it didn’t seem like you.”

“Mike—”

“If you’re waiting for me to castigate you, to judge you, to throw you out, well, you’re not going to find that here. Jason—” Mike paused until Jason reluctantly met his eyes. “I like Elizabeth, you know that. I always have, even when she was the young woman with the sad eyes, bringing Sonny brownies so he knew she didn’t blame him for that fire. Tammy liked her, too. Worried about her with that Lucky business. If she makes you happy, if that’s where you think you belong, then okay. But I’m not going to throw a punch. A man with my history, whose walked out on both his kids? Who I am to judge another man’s actions?”

Some of the tightness in Jason’s chest eased, and he cleared his throat. “I appreciate that.”

“Good. Now that we’ve cleared the air there—let’s talk about what really matters right now.” Mike set his coffee aside. “Tell me about my son.”

Port Charles Park

Courtney checked her watch, then sighed, leaning back on the bench and staring at the sky. She might not have had anything better to do, but Carly didn’t know that. Was Courtney supposed to waste her entire day waiting for her sister-in-law to show up?

“Hot date?”

Courtney lurched off the bench, whirling around at the sound of Ric’s voice. He stepped onto the path from behind a set of bushes. “What are you doing here?”

“Taking a walk. Just like you.” Ric tipped his head. “Waiting for Jason?”

“Carly. So you better not stay long,” she bit out. “She wants to do a lap around the walking track to stay active, and if she sees you, she’ll lose it—”

“That’s fine. This won’t take long. I feel like I owe you a slight warning—” Ric paused. “Elizabeth knows someone was slipping me information about her shifts. And she said as much in front of Jason, so—”

“Oh, I see you’re behind on the times—” Courtney raised her hand, wiggled her fingers with a bitter smile. “Turns out just telling you what time Elizabeth worked was the dealbreaker.”

His slight smile faded. “What?”

“Oh, yeah, marrying you, having a child with you, choosing you over and over again—” Courtney huffed. “None of that seems to register with him, but I’m the devil and she’s the perfect angel. I’m out, and she’s definitely back in—”

“You had one job, damn it—”

“So did you!” Courtney cut in, slicing her hand through her hair. “You were supposed to keep her distracted so I could get Jason focused back on me and our future—I did everything right, okay? I forgave him for sleeping with her. I accepted it, and just because I wanted to rub her snotty little face in it, I’m out in the cold, you’re out of luck, and they get to ride off into the sunset together—”

“Damn it,” Ric muttered. He dragged a hand through his hair. “And Jason definitely knows you told me her schedule?”

“I wouldn’t have done that if you hadn’t assured me you’d get rid of her! I don’t know why I thought you’d be able to do it, not when she had Jason back on the hook. God, it’s just like AJ said, you know? He loves a damsel in distress, and I guess I wasn’t needy enough,” she retorted. Hot tears stung her eyes, and she squeezed them shut. “I didn’t know what a conniving, manipulative bitch she is—She managed to make me the unreasonable one, can you believe that—”

“Hey, watch it—” Ric snapped, jabbing his finger at her. “I’m not the one who just had to drag Jason to Kelly’s — that was all you, sweetheart. You watch how you talk to me—”

“Oh, what are you going to do?” Courtney said with a roll of her eyes. “Lock me in the panic room, too? You can’t lay a finger on me, and you know it. So go do what you were supposed to do and get rid of that little bitch. As long as she’s in the picture, Jason will never remember that he loves me.”

“I’m working on it, but maybe you keep your head in the game and focus on what’s important. Has her schedule changed?”

“No. She’s still on closings, but just be careful,” Courtney muttered. She folded her arms, looked away. “Jason knows, and she might get it changed. You better get out of here. Carly will be here any minute.”

Recovery Room: Kitchen

“Sonny,” Jason said slowly, “isn’t well. He’s…had issues for a long time, you know that. But it’s worse now than it’s ever been.”

“I’ve seen him talk to people like that before, but never Elizabeth. Not even when all that was going on with Ric last spring.” Mike furrowed his brow. “I know he feels strongly about loyalty, but there was something in his eyes—”

“I don’t know how much of that is Sonny or his paranoia. By the time we got back to the penthouse, he had started to lose time. He didn’t know what year it was. He thought it was last year, a few years ago—he thought Elizabeth was Robin—sometimes he forgets Carly,” Jason added. “And…he’s been seeing Lily.”

“Lily,” Mike repeated. He closed his years. “God help us. He’s seeing Lily because of Carly, isn’t he? Another pregnant woman he couldn’t protect.”

“Yeah. Yeah. I think Ric telling him about his mother—the story that Sonny pushed his mother when she was pregnant — that his mother left Ric with his father and went back to Deke—blaming himself all over again for that.” Jason’s mouth was tight. “With the kidnapping—it’s brought it all back. It was too much for him. He’ll be fine for days, even weeks, but then he slips and this last time, he didn’t recognize Carly. He was shaking her.”

“Jesus. What—”

“She’s all right. Max was there, and she’s staying somewhere else. He still—he never forgets me. That’s—that’s a relief, I guess. I can always bring him back.”

“That’s not fair to you,” Mike said. “It’s not,” he continued when Jason just shook his head. “And you must know that, Jason. It’s too much pressure on you to keep him anchored to reality.”

“I—” Jason didn’t know what to say. How to even think about it. “I know.”

“Do you? You’ve always taken the weight of the world on your shoulders, Jason, and sometimes I think you don’t realize it until it’s too late. It can’t be your job to keep my son sane. Not alone.”

“I—” His throat was tight, so Jason looked away. “It’s frustrating. Courtney knew what happened with Carly. Knew that Sonny was in this mood, and maybe she was hurt and she lashed out, but she set him off. And he went to Kelly’s. He did that in front of witnesses, Mike. What if I hadn’t shown up? What—” Jason cleared his throat. “It’s just…exhausting,” he admitted, “to feel like I’m the only one who can’t make mistakes. I’ve made a mess of my life, and I’m trying to dig it out, but I can’t do that alone.”

“No, you can’t. And you won’t. Do you have any plans? Or do we need to brainstorm—”

“Bobbie’s—she’s putting together list. Of doctors. Maybe someone can talk to him, or look at him, and tell us what to do. I don’t know, Mike. It’s all I’ve got right now.”

“Okay. Okay.” Mike stroked his jaw. “Okay. I like that. Bobbie will give you good recommendations, and we can take it from there. I’ll talk to Courtney. She gets to be angry with you, Jason, I think that’s fair to say. But you’re right. If she wants to vent — she can’t do something that makes Sonny’s situation worse.”

“I don’t expect her to forgive me, and I’m not looking for it. So if you could—thanks. And thank you for not…for not being angry about the rest of it.”

“The heart doesn’t listen to logic or common sense,” Mike said. “You love who you love, and we both know that life can be too brutally short to waste a moment. You say you’ve made a mess of your life. Let’s get you back on track, too. Just like my kids, Jason, you deserve to be happy, too. And I’m not going to let you forget that.”

When Jason got back into the parking lot, he felt lighter, and bit more determined. He wasn’t handling Sonny alone anymore, and after talking to Bobbie, to Elizabeth, to Mike, he realized he hadn’t needed to be alone at all. He should have brought Mike in sooner or talked to Bobbie. Or anyone.

But he was doing it now, and as soon as Sonny was on the road to recovery, Jason could get back to focus on what mattered most—

The phone in his pocket vibrated, and Jason pulled it out, wincing when he saw Carly’s name on the notification screen. He nearly ignored the call — but he already knew Elizabeth was at Kelly’s, and he’d made plans to see her later, and of course, Carly was near her due date.

“Hey. What’s up?”

Corinthos & Morgan Warehouse: Office

Jason’s heart began to beat faster when he came into the office, saw Carly’s tear-stained cheeks. “What happened—did you see Sonny?”

“It’s—” She pressed a hand to the small of her back and closed her eyes, wincing. “No. No. I—I was in the park. I was supposed to walk, and Courtney was going to meet me there but I was late—” She sucked in a sob. “Jason, when I got there, she was talking to Ric.”

Jason’s hands fell limply to his side, and he exhaled in a rush. “Talking to him how?”

“They—they were talking like they’d made a deal—” The words were halting, forced out, punctuated by sobs. “She told him Elizabeth’s s-schedule, and she was angry because-because Ric hadn’t gotten rid of her.”

Jason pressed his lips together, the rage crawling up his throat again at the thought of Courtney throwing Elizabeth to the wolves. “She said those exact words?”

“You had one job,” Carly said softly. “And he was angry, too, because I guess Elizabeth—I guess she figured it out, and Courtney was acting like you’d confronted her, so you know about this, don’t you?”

“I knew the basics. Not the rest of it. Elizabeth said Ric was always showing up when she opened, so she shifted to the closing shift. And he knew. Courtney admitted it to me the other night.”

Carly closed her eyes. “Why? Why would she do that? It—it sounded like Courtney thinks you’re sleeping with Elizabeth, but she’s wrong. You wouldn’t do that.” When Jason said nothing, she looked at him. “Jason?”

“The night we thought we were losing Emily, she and I—it just happened.” Jason shook his head. “No. No, I’m not going to act like it was an accident. I kissed her, and I wanted it to happen. We spent the night together, and I had made up my mind to break up with Courtney.”

“Oh.” Carly’s eyes were wide and she backed up a few steps until the back of her knees hit the sofa. She rested a hand on the arm of it and slowly sat down. “But you—you didn’t. I knew something was off, but I guess—” She rubbed her cheeks, pushing some color back into them. “I suppose that explains a few things,” she murmured. “Courtney did want to go to Kelly’s a lot these last few weeks. She knew.”

“I didn’t want to hurt, and I thought—I thought I owed it to her to try to fix things. I asked her to marry me. I thought that was supposed to mean something. But I already knew it wasn’t working when I found out what she’d done. That she’d told Ric Elizabeth’s schedule. She can be angry with me, but—”

“Giving Ric that kind of ammunition—and she must have told him about you two. He didn’t sound surprised when she said something.” Carly’s breath was shaky. “She wasn’t even scared of him. You know? She was…taunting him. Like they were actually—like she actually felt like they were on the same side. I don’t—that’s what I don’t understand. She’s…” Her eyes found him, and Jason swallowed hard at the shattered expression. “She said we were best friends. Like sisters. I wanted that to be true. I wanted to believe it. But how can she hold my hand through all of this—when she knows—she knows what he did to me.” She pressed two fingers to her lips. “She knows everything,” she murmured again.

Jason crouched in front of her. “I’m sorry. I know this has to hurt. On top of everything else.”

“Was she…was it a lie?” Carly asked. “Why didn’t I see it then? I—I should know when someone’s using me. I should know when I’m being played, don’t you think? I used to know that.”

“You’re a little off your game right now. It’s okay—” Jason scowled when his phone rang. “It’s—It’s Bobbie. She said she’d call when—” He answered it. “Hey. Yeah, yeah, I’ll come by and get it. Thank you.”

“What did my mother want?” Carly held out her hand, and Jason hauled her back to her feet.

“She’s going to get us a list of doctors. Sonny needs more help than I can give him. I don’t want you to worry about Ric, okay? He’s in the ADA’s office, and it’d be suicide for him to do anything to screw with that. Right now, anyway. As soon as I’ve got Sonny sorted, believe me, Ric’s the top priority.”

“Good. Good. You go ahead, get that list from my mother. I’ll call Rocco and get the car brought around.”

“Are—are you sure?”

“Sonny’s a danger to himself, and God knows who else like this. For all our sake’s, we need to figure that out. And I really want you to focus on getting rid of Ric. Especially when it seems like he’s focusing on Elizabeth again. He’s obsessed with her, Jason. No, I don’t mean like he loves her. I mean, obsessed. He won’t stop at anything to get her back.” Carly’s mouth trembled. “And I’m afraid of what he might to do to you if he thinks you’re a threat. Or even to her if she refuses to go back.”

“I’m handling it,” Jason promised. He kissed her cheek. “Call Rocco. And I’ll let you know what Bobbie says.”

Carly watched him go, then, still troubled, she reached into her purse and removed her phone. She punched in a few numbers, then waited. When the other phone went to voicemail she said, “It’s Carly. I think you and I should have a conversation. I have some information that you should know.”

Written in 53 minutes.

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Vista Point

It had been a nightmare from beginning to start, and not even the ride up to the observation deck with Elizabeth on the bike with him was able to clear his head this time.

He’d asked her to come with them. He’d spent the entire day thinking about Elizabeth and the incredible, out of left field news that their night together had created a baby, and what had Jason done the first time he’d had to choose between her safety and the insanity of his life?

He’d chosen Sonny. He’d looked directly at Elizabeth, at her quiet, shaken expression, and asked her to go with them, making it clear to anyone who had been there — including Mike, Courtney’s father — that Sonny’s accusations were based, at least somewhat, in fact.

He coasted the bike to a stop, then switched off the engine and waited for Elizabeth to climb off. She removed the helmet, shaking her hair free, running her fingers  through it with one hand, handing the helmet to him with the other.

Jason stowed it on the back of the bike, then stood there an extra minute, his hands curling into fists, his chest still tight, his head aching.

“I sort of told Emily.”

He frowned, then turned to look at her. “What?”

“This morning.” Elizabeth reached for his hand, and bewildered, Jason let her draw him up the short of flight stairs to the observation deck where the lake lay below them, the lights of Spoon Island winking in the distance. “I woke up, and I felt absolutely terrible.” She leaned over the guard rail, wrinkled her nose. “I thought it was the Doritos and Mountain Dew until I came back and listened to my answering machine. Dr. Meadows’ office wanted to a follow-up, and it all popped into my head. Something that should have happened and hadn’t—” Elizabeth turned back to face him, leaned against the railing. “I bought the test, took it, and went straight to Emily. I wasn’t going to say anything, but she sort of thought I looked happy.”

He moved next to her, also leaning against the railing, looked down at the ground. “What did she say?”

“I just told her that I’d suspected it and took a test, but that you needed to be the first person to hear the results. I don’t think she missed my point.” Elizabeth bit her lip, but she was smiling slightly. “It’s crazy, I know, but I didn’t even know I was happy, you know? And then she said it, and it was like a light bulb was on in my head — like, oh, right, that’s what this feeling is. It’s been so long since I really felt truly happy, I couldn’t recognize. Even before…when I was…” Her smile slipped. “Before. I had moments, but I wasn’t happy. I wanted to be. This is so not what I was planning when I woke up this morning. Any of it. But then again, I never did plan for you.”

The corner of his mouth twitched. “You think I planned for you? All I did was go to Jake’s and think about starting a fight. You’re the one that yelled at me.”

“Well, you should have told me you wanted a fight. I’d have helped you with it.” Their eyes met, and his smile was a bit bigger now. “It’s insane. The timing is so wrong. I had a minute where I thought — maybe I should hold on to this. You’re dealing with so much, and I didn’t want to give you one more thing—”

“This isn’t—”

“That’s what I thought. This wouldn’t be one more thing to you. You’d take it seriously. No, that’s not—” She made a face. “That’s not the word I want. I don’t know how to describe, but as soon as I thought it, I knew I was wrong. You’d never see a baby that way. You’d…you’d see it like you see Michael. And I just—I knew I had to tell you. I wasn’t planning on the alley, but it just fell out.” Elizabeth reached out, traced a pattern on chest with the tips of her fingers. “And you were so happy.”

“I told Bobbie,” Jason admitted,” and her eyes widened. “I didn’t mean to, but we were talking about Sonny, and she asked about the tension she saw with Courtney, and I just—I don’t know. I wanted to say it out loud. You’re right. This is terrible timing, but I just don’t care.”

“Me either.” She leaned up, brushed her mouth against his in all too brief kiss, but was already walking down towards the next level and the bench. He followed. “That being said, I was hoping you’d understand if I say we should keep it to ourselves for a little while. You and I might see this as the blessing it actually is, but…”

“Not everyone will.” He sat next to her, took her hand in his, liking the way her soft skin felt against his. “Yeah, I get that.”

“It was…the miscarriage was harder maybe than it had to be. People knew, and I had to say it over and over again. And there’s—I mean, that happened because I fell, but there’s always a risk,” Elizabeth admitted. “I just…I don’t want to go through that again.”

“I—” Jason exhaled slowly. “Yeah. I agree. Courtney…she had a miscarriage in August.” He grimaced. “I didn’t know she was pregnant until it was over,” he added when she just blinked at him. “She found out, and she didn’t tell me. Then she came to Venezuela, and—something—it went wrong. The doctors told her she wouldn’t be able to have kids.”

“Oh. Oh, I’m so sorry, Jason—”

“I feel guilty,” he admitted, “because…when she told me, I couldn’t—” He looked away, unable to face her as he continued. “I really don’t know. I didn’t feel the way I think I was supposed to. She was upset, and I understood that, but I don’t know. It was never real to me. And—since the accident,” he forced out, now looking at his own hands. “Sometimes it’s hard for me to connections to that kind of thing. It was over before I knew it existed, and I was sad for that. But I also—I didn’t grieve the way she was. And I think that bothered her.”

“I’m sorry. I know that must have weighed on you. People feel things differently. Of course you’d be sensitive to how this would feel for her.” Elizabeth reached his hand, but said nothing until he finally looked at her. “Did you think I would be upset that you wanted to keep this quiet for her sake?”

“I—no, but—”

“You’re a good man, Jason, who was in a difficult position, and I know you did the best you could—”

“Did I?” he muttered. “I took the easy way out — I stayed with her—”

“I stayed with Lucky, didn’t I? You never slammed the door in my face even when you should have. And I needed to know for sure. I needed to know that it wasn’t just the way I felt about you that was destroying that relationship. Lucky and I were broken before you came home, I just didn’t see it. I couldn’t. I don’t blame you for staying.”

“You should. I don’t know why you don’t. It’s different. I told you I loved you. We slept together. I told you I was leaving—”

“And I knew it would never be that simple. It couldn’t be. You went back, and only you know for sure if you tried. And maybe—” Elizabeth bit her lip. “Maybe I knew that it wasn’t going to last. Even with you keeping your distance, I knew if Courtney felt secure, she wouldn’t have come in so often talking about the wedding. She wanted me to feel threatened, but all I did was feel sorry for her. Which would probably piss her off.”

“You’re a better person than me,” Jason said. “If we’d…if we’d been together, and you’d gone—”

“Lucky took a knife to your throat, Jason, and I accused you of assaulting him. I believed him. I don’t blame you for any of this, Jason. Even if I had a doubt, it’s all gone now.” Elizabeth touched his face, her fingers brushing against his jaw, pressing gently so that he’d look at her. “Because you don’t lie. Not with your eyes. And I saw the way you felt when you looked at me today. When I told you I was pregnant. I know you’re excited about being a father again, but I could see you were happy that we were doing this, and it let me feel free to feel that way, too. But we’re both aware of the circumstances that exist outside all of this. I have no need to rub any of this in Courtney’s face, and that’s all it would be if we told anyone now.”

He nodded, then brought her hand to his lips. “Thank you.”

“And give yourself a break for how you’re feeling about the baby she lost. You don’t give yourself enough credit for the way you’re rebuilt your life since the accident. For what you’ve been through.”

He exhaled slowly. “Maybe I would have deserved that once, but I don’t feel that way now. If it wasn’t for you — or Michael,” he admitted, “after a night like this — I might just get on my bike and keep going.”

Her brows drew together, and the corners of her mouth dipped. “I don’t want to be the reason you stay—something that holds you down—”

“No. No, that’s not what I mean—” He shifted, turning towards her, taking both her hands in his. “You make me remember why this is my home. Why running would just be the coward’s way out. To run away from the problems I created for myself. But I don’t want to do that again. To leave you. I talked to Bobbie, and she’s going to get some doctors that can give us some ideas what to do next. It’s…it’s not all the way fixed,” he admitted, “but I have hope. Even as bad as tonight was, you know? I think maybe I can finally see an ending.”

“I’m glad. And you know Bobbie is solid. She won’t give up.”

“I’m sorry,” Jason said after another moment. “We didn’t—I spent all day thinking about seeing you tonight. About what we’d talk about, what happens next. And that’s—we didn’t get to do that.”

“Sure we did. We decided we’re both deliriously happy about this,” Elizabeth said, and he smiled slightly. “We decided to keep it to yourselves for a lot of reasons. Maybe I’ll go to Mercy for my appointments just to be on the safe side. And you’re going to focus on getting Sonny better because you’ll feel better when he is. He looked so lost, Jason, when he came back to himself, and it broke my heart.”

“It’s hard to know,” Jason said slowly, “what’s Sonny and what’s not. Or if it’s all in there. He came to Kelly’s tonight because of what Courtney said. Did he mean to do that? Or was that whatever gets in his head? He accuses Carly of having an affair with Lorenzo Alcazar, you know that? Because after the panic room, she looked rested and healthy when we found her. Sunshine. Walking. Good food. He thought she was too happy.”

“Oh, oh, that’s awful—”

“He knows when he’s clear that it’s just his paranoia, his guilt over not finding her faster,” Jason admitted. “But he keeps forgetting. So did he do that tonight? Did he just come to talk to you, and forget? Did it start when we got back? I…I just don’t know.” He sighed, looked down at their hands. “I have to talk to Mike.”

“I figured. He’s always been so good to me, and I know you’re close to him, too. He’s Michael’s godfather, right?”

“He was…a good friend when Sonny was gone. I’ve always respected him. I just—I don’t want to lie to him—”

“Then don’t. Mike’s always struck me as a realist. He cares about you, Jason. Tell him the truth about what Sonny’s going through. And what…you and I are. Or about Courtney. You have my blessing to tell him whatever you need to. Even the baby. I hope he isn’t angry with you. Or me,” she admitted. “I’ve always liked him.”

“Thank you.” He sighed. “We should get back.”

“I know, but hey, you know—” Elizabeth followed him back towards the parking lot. “I’m not fragile. Maybe we can take the turns a little faster. You know it kills you to go slow.”

He grinned, handed her the helmet. “You sure?”

“I’ll let you know when I can’t handle it.” She fastened the strap beneath her chin, her eyes sparkling. “And hey, when we have that conversation about my studio I know you’re itching to get into, I promise to be reasonable.”

Jason laughed, got on the bike, waited for her slide on behind him, her arms sliding around his waist. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Studio: Hallway

Jason stopped Elizabeth as she fit her key into the lock, wrapping his hand around her wrist. “I know…I know you said we should take some time before…before we decided anything about us, but—”

“I think we’ve sort of skipped that step again,” Elizabeth said, smiling as she turned back, leaned against the door. “But I still want us to be careful. To be thoughtful about what comes next. I don’t want us to just crash into each other when things go wrong. You know?”

“I do, it’s just—” He rested his arm above her head. “When I’m with you, everything is in focus. I can see clearly, and I know what has to be done. I know I can do it. It’s hard to watch you go inside and not be with you.”

“I don’t love it either,” she admitted. “But I meant it. I don’t want to rush into this. We have months before we have to be parents. I want to get it right this time. That being said…not rushing doesn’t have to mean we don’t get to have our fun…” Elizabeth gripped his shirt, pulled him towards, and he sank into her embrace, drawing out the kiss until their breathing was shallow. “I’m just a phone call away,” she murmured, placing her hands on both his cheeks. “We’ll be okay. I’m not going anywhere.”