Tag Archives: set-2020

September 27, 2021

Inspiration

I was in the shower listening to the newest episode of Alright Mary, a RuPaul Drag Race recap show that was going over the premiere episode of Drag Race UK, Series 3. (Go with me here). They were talking about Choriza May, a queen who was talking about her experience in quarantine. One of the hosts — it might have been Johnny — was talking about how we have quarantine content, and that it will always be in the shows and media that did masks and talked about it.

I know that’s a strange piece of inspiration, but then my mind literally drifted to — how would Port Charles have handled quarantine? We saw some evidence of it in in 2006, but GH wisely did not tackle Covid-19, and once my mind had drifted, it kept going.

Timeline

This is set in April 2020 but it’s kind of out of GH time and space because I really wanted to focus on Elizabeth and not the rat in her life at the time. So Elizabeth is single, Jason and Sam are not together — she’s with Drew and not having any of the legal issues she was having at the time. Other than that, there isn’t much else needed.

Something med school did not cover
Someone’s daughter, someone’s mother
Holds your hand through plastic now
“Doc, I think she’s crashing out”
And some things you just can’t speak about
Only 20 minutes to sleep
But you dream of some epiphany
Just one single glimpse of relief
To make some sense of what you’ve seen
epiphany, Taylor Swift

April 2020

The house was dark and quiet when she pulled in the driveway, and for a long moment, Elizabeth Webber sat in the driver’s seat, staring up at windows. They were all pulled shut and locked—they’d never been opened even after spring had broken over upstate New York. In fact, she couldn’t even remember if she’d turned off the central heating yet.

Finally, she switched off the ignition and shoved the door open. She was still on autopilot, still moving forward, functioning even though her brain seemed to have turned off. Her body felt strangely small and unclothed, shed of the heavy hospital gowns, masks, and shields that had been her uniform for nearly a month.

The world had felt normal only weeks ago, chugging along at a normal pace. She’d gone to work, taken care of her boys, passed her son off his to his father for his weekends, and enjoyed life with her friends.

Elizabeth stopped in front of the door, staring at the key in her hand, almost forgetting how to use it. When had she last been home?

Finally, she was at the door. She dropped her bag by the coat rack and tugged the mask off her face, wincing at the straps that dug into her ears. She hadn’t found the time to buy comfortable masks, and they were so limited at the hospital that she’d grabbed some pediatric ones.

Hospital staff was expected to be completely masked up from the time they went off duty until they reached home.

Not that this felt like home right now.

Elizabeth looked around blearily at the cold fireplace, the clean floors, and the tables. She missed her boys. She missed the sound of them, the sight of them, the evidence of their lives. Books and toys and clothes—

A sob crawled up her throat, but she forced it down. She had one more thing she needed to do before she could crawl into bed for the next twelve hours.

Elizabeth sat on the sofa and reached for the tablet charging on the table. She cradled it in her hands, then clicked contacts.

A moment later, FaceTime connected, and her youngest’s son face appeared on the screen, his smile bright. “Mommy! Mommy!”

“Hey, baby.” Elizabeth smiled in return. “Where are your brothers?”

“Right here.” Ten-year-old Aiden shifted so that he could reveal he had a brother on either side of him—thirteen-year-old Jake and sixteen-year-old Cameron. “We waited for you.”

“Sorry,” she said. “I got stuck at work a little longer.” The world felt lighter and heavier all at the same time. There were her precious babies, the family she’d sent away to keep safe as she worked to save others. They were okay. They were healthy, and they had each other.

“Work okay?” Cam asked, reaching to hold the tablet steady. “You looked tired, Mom.”

“I am, but it’s okay. I get to sleep for a few hours.” And maybe she’d eat. She remembered Patrick shoving a muffin in her face at some point that day. Had that been today? “How’s school?”

Jake grimaced. “I hate Zoom,” he muttered. “Half the kids don’t turn on the camera, and my teachers spend most of the time telling them to do it, and then before you know it, we’re done. Plus, they didn’t even show us how to do these stupid equations—”

“Your teachers are trying—”

“I know, Mom. They hate Zoom, too—”

“Miss Tait said that I got a star,” Aiden said, poking his head in. “She showed me! She made a star chart in her house, and we’re all on there! It’s like school only not because we don’t get recess which is stupid—but—”

“They’re still making us take our AP exams,” Cameron said bitterly. “We need to get this stupid software and set up on our computers—”

“I missed my ELA Zoom,” Jake interrupted. “I didn’t mean to, but the teacher was late, so I thought I didn’t have it, so I left, but then she emailed me. She’s really mad, Mom.”

Elizabeth’s head swam as she processed all of that, tried to think of something to say. To remind Jake to have more patience with teachers who were trying so very hard, and for Cameron to have some grace with the world even though it sounded insane testing was still happening—

“Hey—” another voice came from behind them. “One at a time. Your mom’s tired.” Jason Morgan, Jake’s father, came into view over the sofa. “I talked to Jake’s ELA teacher; it’s fine. She had internet issues and was three minutes late.”

Jake rolled his eyes. “In college—”

“You’re in eighth grade, not college,” Jason said simply. “And now you’ll remember to wait longer next time.”

“I know,” Jake muttered.

“It’s fifteen minutes in college,” Elizabeth said, but now she was smiling. Because, of course, her son had overreacted. He had her flair for the dramatic. “You should keep that in mind.”

“It’s fine about the test,” Cameron said. “Jason said he’d have Spinelli remote into the computer and make sure it was set up. The directions were confusing, but Spinelli loves that crap.”

“Oh, well, thank him for me.” Elizabeth took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I know how much Zoom classes suck. No one likes them. And I’ll make sure I thank Miss Tait for the stars the next time I see her, Aiden.”

“Jason did that!” Aiden told her. “But she likes you better.”

“That’s because she’s dating a cop, and Dad works at the warehouse,” Jake told Aiden.

“What does that mean?” Aiden wanted to know.

“Nothing,” Jason cut off his son with a look. The blond teen just snickered. “Hey, go upstairs and play some video games. I need to talk to your mom. I’ll call you when we’re done.”

“He’s gonna tell her that he caught you Zooming with Emma,” Jake told Cameron, who scowled. Jake jumped up and dashed for the stairs, the oldest chasing him. Aiden, who never wanted to miss any action, followed.

Jason sat on the sofa, the tablet in his hands. “Sorry about that—”

“No, no—” Elizabeth rubbed the side of her cheek. “I’m sorry. I should have—I should have taken a hotel room or something—the three of them are a lot to have around the penthouse—”

“It’s okay. They keep it from being too quiet,” Jason told her. “I stopped by your place today and put more groceries in the fridge. And I turned off the central.”

“You didn’t have to—” Elizabeth closed her eyes. “Thank you for taking them. Laura’s putting out so many fires—all these stupid protests over the shutdown, and your mom hasn’t left the hospital. I tried to get her to come home with me, but she’s still trying to track down more respirators and protective equipment—” She closed her eyes, her mind drifting as she lost track of what she was saying.

“You need to get some sleep—”

“I do, but I don’t—” She looked at him. “You and the boys are the first people I haven’t seen that don’t work at the hospital or aren’t dying in days.”

He was quiet for a moment. “It’s bad, isn’t it? I’m keeping Jake and Aiden from the news, but Cameron knows.”

“Um, we lost four more today in my ward.” She stopped. “Do you remember Father Coates?”

“Yeah—” His face creased. “Oh.”

“Yeah. He couldn’t even—” Her eyes were so heavy. “We couldn’t even let in anyone for last rites, so I found the Bible, and I did it for him. I don’t know if I did it right. Do you think it’ll work?”

“I do,” he promised her. “God wouldn’t—”

“I’m not sure I believe in God anymore.” The tears came then, the hot rushing release that streamed down her cheeks. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I just had a bad day—” She put the tablet on the table and put her head in her hands.

“Elizabeth—”

“I’m fine. I should have—I should have gone home with Patrick and Robin, but they haven’t had a minute to be alone in weeks—they’ve been working in different wards and opposite shifts—” She picked the tablet back up and looked at him.

“I hate that you’re doing this alone.”

“There was no other choice. I couldn’t do my job and stay with the boys. I might have brought it to them. I know kids aren’t getting sick right now, but that’s because we shut down the schools. They’re not in the world, and God, you don’t see what this does to people—there are no visitors.” She closed her eyes. “Do you remember the quarantine before Jake was born?”

“Of course.”

“It was different. I don’t know why it felt different.”

“Because it was just us, and it was done to us. We could work for a cure, for a vaccine ourselves. And maybe Cameron was too young then to know what was going on.” He paused. “I get it. Because I could help then. I went out, and I found the damn vaccine. I can’t do anything but stay here and keep the boys in school and not murdering each other. It doesn’t feel like enough.”

“It’s everything to me. When this is over—and I have to believe the day will come when it is—I know that my boys are safe. It’s everything,” she repeated. “Are you sure they’re not in the way?”

“No. No,” he repeated. “Believe it or not, everything is shut down. I don’t know how long any of that will last, but hopefully, until this is over.” Jason hesitated. “Have they come out with any new guidelines about transmission? I mean—are they sure that you can’t just really shower and disinfect at the hospital, then come home—”

“They’re doing studies, but we don’t know anything. We don’t know how to treat it—we don’t know why some people get it and show no symptoms—” Elizabeth rubbed her eyes again. “I’m sorry,” she repeated. “Robin’s working on that her end, but we just don’t know enough yet.”

“When do you go into work tomorrow?” he asked. “I can bring the boys by. We’ll just be in the driveway. They need to see you.”

“Around nine. That would—” Elizabeth forced herself to smile. “That would be great. Don’t they have meetings—”

“I’ll email their teachers. They’ll understand. Miss Tait asked about you. Wanted you to know Aiden is doing great. Cameron’s English teacher said his essay he wrote last week was his best all year, and Jake—well, he hates everything about this, but we’re dealing with it.”

“I hate everything about this, too,” she muttered.

“He has your resilience,” Jason told her. “He hates it right now, but he’ll get through it.”

“Resilience, huh?” She laughed. “You used to call it stubbornness.”

“It can be both.” They were quiet for a long minute. “I’ll call the boys back down—”

“No, no.” Elizabeth shook her head. “Cameron will know I was crying, and they worry about me enough. I’ll see them tomorrow. That’s something to look forward to. Maybe I can open a window, and we can talk if you keep them near the sidewalk.” She grimaced. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even—how’s Danny handling all of this?”

“Okay. We’re FaceTiming as much as we can, but I haven’t seen him since this started.” Jason paused. “We’re basically quarantining here, so Sonny and Carly are talking about doing a pod with their kids, and it’d be good for the boys to see Joss and someone other than me. I’m hoping Sam will let Danny come over and be part of it.”

“That sounds good. Really.” She sighed. “Is Sam still mad?”

“No,” Jason said quickly, which meant that she was. Sam hadn’t been happy Jason had agreed to quarantine with Elizabeth’s boys, claiming they’d been exposed thanks to Elizabeth’s job and had decided Danny wouldn’t come to Jason’s for the shutdown. That had been a month ago, and Elizabeth had all but forgotten about it with everything going on at work.

“I’ll let you deal with that since I don’t care,” Elizabeth said without thinking. Then winced. “Sorry—”

“No, you have more important things to worry about. It’s fine. Even if I hadn’t take Aiden and Cam, Jake would be here, and she’d have the same argument. She’s just scared because of Danny and the cancer.”

“I know. I know. She should be more cautious. I would be, too.” That didn’t change the fact that Sam could and would use any opportunity to take a jab at Elizabeth and Jake, but that was a problem for another day. “I’m going to head up to bed. Tell the boys I love them, and I’ll see them tomorrow.”

“Okay. Eat something first,” he said as her finger hovered over the red button to end the call. “I left soup.”

And now Elizabeth’s laughter was genuine and full-throated. Tears slid down her cheeks again. “You’ve been waiting twenty years to say that.”

“Couldn’t resist.”

She ended the call and then went to heat up the soup.

August 15, 2020

Inspiration

I’m not really sure how this happened, to be honest. I was watching the show week it came back after the Covid-19 shutdown, and I just found myself interested in scenes that might have happened between other scenes. Did Jason tell Elizabeth about making Carly his POA? Does Jake have shares in ELQ? And then — I wrote the original If Wishes Came True in which it’s revealed Jason and Elizabeth signed POAs for each other to go to Italy in 2008 (they weren’t married and would be in a foreign country). Even though they didn’t go, they simply forgot them and POAs don’t expire.

This was meant to be sort of deleted scenes series, but then Tania wanted some ELQ fall out and I lost any hope of the show giving that to us properly, so I’m gonna let myself just go on this one.

Timeline & Setting

I’m going to briefly recap Jason & Elizabeth’s storylines as they exist when the show returned from Covid. If I continue just writing cut scenes where they talk about their lives, I may add on to these recaps. Also I’m sure Elizabeth probably changed her last name to Baldwin but I’m not living in a world where I acknowledge that, so I’m referring to her as Webber.

Sonny’s dad, Mike, has Alzheimer’s and has been taken to GH to have a feeding tube put in. Watching Sonny struggle with this decision inspires Jason to make a decision about his own end of life decisions, and for various reasons, asked Carly to have his power of attorney. Elizabeth has been one of Mike’s nurses and counsels Sonny about the feeding tube. Earlier, Felix told Sonny about a patient with Alzheimer’s on a feeding tube and ventilator. The patient is Yvonne Godfrey, someone that Mike connected with at the nursing home and, in their dementia, had a marriage ceremony with. Jason and Carly came to the hospital to talk to Sonny about the feeding tube and came in at the end of Elizabeth’s conversation with Sonny and know that Elizabeth helped him.

Sam is currently on parole for killing Shiloh last year. Her parole officer is strictly enforcing the no association with felon part of Sam’s parole. Jason and Sam have broken up because Jason feels like it’s not worth the risk of Sam losing the kids and going to jail again. Sam has been increasingly desperate to get this parole lifted.

Valentin, meanwhile, lost control of Cassadine Industries when Nikolas returned from the dead and revealed that Valentin was not Mikkos’s son, but Helena’s bastard (I think). Valentin is trying to get control of ELQ through a hostile takeover. He has a lot of shares already and offered Sam a trade — he’ll get her parole conditions lifted in exchange for Danny and Scout’s voting proxy (knowing it was unlikely she’d sell outright).

Elizabeth has been renewing her friendship with Nikolas since his return from the dead in the fall of 2019. Nikolas was forced into a marriage with Ava Jerome. If he divorces her, she gets pretty much everything. Ava commissioned Franco to paint her a portrait and has been using his past to drum up publicity for the gallery. Obviously, Elizabeth is struggling with Franco embracing his past because it involves murder and sexual assault. Franco, however, seems to think Elizabeth should be super supportive of this. Because he’s a narcissitic piece of–AHEM. Pardon me.

Hopefully that helps situate this!

And if my wishes came true
It would’ve been you
In my defense, I have none
For never leaving well enough alone
But it would’ve been fun
If you would’ve been the one

 

Strong Enough

August 5, 2020: After Elizabeth helps Sonny come to the difficult decision not to go forward with the feeding tube, Jason talks to her about Mike and what he wants for his own end of life.
This Is Me Trying

August 6, 2020: After Valentin offers Sam a deal for Danny and Scout’s proxy shares, Sam wants to ask someone else for advice about ELQ and voting proxy.
Would Everything Be Different?

August 8, 2020: After Jason is brought in requiring surgery, Diane informs Carly that Jason’s new power of attorney hasn’t been signed yet which means his previous paperwork is still in effect. Sam and Carly are stunned to learn just who that POA belongs to.
All My What Ifs

August 14, 2020:  Before Elizabeth leaves for the portrait unveiling at Wyndemere, she checks in with Jason over the problems with ELQ.
Ruining Everything

August 21, 2020: Jason and Elizabeth meet with Diane to finally change the POA, and she talks to him about the conversation she overheard at the Nurse’s Ball. 

August 12, 2020

This entry is part 3 of 5 in the Wishes Came True

Inspiration

All this talk of Power of Attorneys on General Hospital recently made me wonder how I could make it slightly more interesting. I tried to think of a reason Carly couldn’t have POA or who else might have it. And I’m a Liason fan, so you know where that led me.

Timeline

If you haven’t read Strong Enough or This Is Me Trying, my other 2020 Episode Tags, both of those give in depth recaps. To save myself some time and space here — Jason asks Carly to have his power of attorney for medical decisions. This happened on, canonically on GH, the day before his motorcycle accident. He had a few reasons for not giving it to Sam. Elizabeth’s story on GH is non-existent so there’s really not a lot you need to know. This takes place during August 7, 2020’s episode — after Jason was brought to General Hospital in the accident. Enjoy!

If one thing had been different
Would everything be different today?

 Thursday, August 6, 2020

 General Hospital: Emergency Room

 There were few things that Diane Miller liked less than delivering bad news to clients who lacked the capacity to understand that screaming at the messenger rarely changed anything.

As her heels clicked on the linoleum floors of General Hospital, Diane girded her loins, touched her carefully coiffed red hair, and stepped up to the group of people waiting for her.

“It’s about damn time,” Carly Corinthos snapped, her eyes flashing as she whirled on the lawyer. Tears stained her cheeks. “I need to sign the paperwork—why couldn’t you just fax or email it—”

“Well—” Diane pursed her lips. “As you might know, Jason only asked me yesterday to draw up the new paperwork—he hasn’t signed it—”

“That shouldn’t matter,” Elizabeth Webber said softly. Diane turned to find the nurse standing at the hub, a clipboard in her hands. She looked nervously between Diane, Carly, and Sam Morgan. “Should it? You know his wishes, and it’s not as though the hospital would be liable—”

“Exactly—” Carly stabbed a finger at Elizabeth. “Thank you for being useful for the first time in your life—”

“Carly, shut up, and just sign the damn paperwork!” Sam retorted. “Diane—”

“Well, that might work if Jason didn’t already have a POA in existence.” Diane grimaced as Carly frowned at her. “POAs don’t expire,” she clarified. “Even if they were signed a decade or more ago.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Diane saw Elizabeth’s eyes widen briefly before closing in resignation.

“I don’t understand—I thought Sonny had Jason’s POA before—” Sam frowned, looking at Diane with confusion. “That doesn’t—I don’t—”

“He did have his POA until Jason was preparing to travel internationally in 2008 with another person to whom he did not share any legal ties,” Diane explained carefully. “As I said — they don’t expire—”

“Who was Jason going to—” Sam closed her mouth. She looked at Carly, who shook her head, indicating it wasn’t her. Then, in unison, they both turned to Elizabeth, whose cheeks were flushed.

“They don’t expire?” Elizabeth asked faintly.

“No, they don’t. So…” Diane set the paperwork on the table. “Here is the paperwork for the file, and I suppose you ought to sign that form you’re holding—”

“Wait, this can’t—” Sam scowled, then shoved herself forward, smacking the clipboard out of Elizabeth’s hand. “This can’t be—I was married to him—it should have been null and void—”

“Well, it might surprise you, but a spouse is only the default next of kin,” Diane said. She sniffed. “A person can name anyone they want to be in charge of their decisions—”

“Sam, this isn’t worth arguing about,” Carly hissed. “Just let her sign the damn form so Jason can go into surgery—”

Sam glared at Carly, then at Elizabeth before releasing her grip on the clipboard. Elizabeth hastily signed it and handed it to the waiting doctor.

“Good luck,” Portia Robinson murmured as she and Finn disappeared, leaving Elizabeth alone with Carly, Sam, and Diane.

“When Jason wakes up, we’ll get this sorted,” Carly told Elizabeth. “Don’t think this is your ticket back in.”

“No one wants a ticket to that circus, Carly,” Elizabeth said with exhaustion. “I will happily surrender this to you—I didn’t even know—”

“It wasn’t relevant prior to today,” Diane said with a shrug. “Jason had always been able to consent to treatment before now. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” She left the area, returning the elevator.

“I can’t believe this.” Sam folded her arms and stalked forward—she made it three steps before spinning and walking back those three steps. “Why would he do this to me?”

“Sam, I really don’t think this is a big deal,” Carly said. She eyed Elizabeth. “I need to go update Sonny. He had to step out and check on the nanny—”

“Yeah, sure, I’ll text you if there’s any news.”

Elizabeth looked over at Sam, who was staring at the floor. “Sam—I doubt Jason even remembered we signed that paperwork—I forgot it, too, which means I have to get my paperwork fixed—”

“It’s not even—” Sam exhaled sharply. “He just never seems to put me first,” she murmured. “Even now. It should be me. It shouldn’t be Carly.” She raised her eyes, red with tears. “You get it, don’t you? How would you feel if Franco had put Ava or someone else he used to love in charge of everything?”

“It would hurt,” Elizabeth said carefully, “but it’s not like Jason asked me to do this last week. It was twelve years ago, Sam. You and I both know things were different then.”

“Yeah. He still hated me and loved you.” Sam rubbed her chest. “But he chose someone else yesterday—”

“I know, but—”

“I just—can you text me when you know anything?” Sam walked away before Elizabeth could answer, and finally, she was alone.

With a lot to think about.

General Hospital: ICU

Jason’s surgery was a success, and he woke up twenty-four hours later. His first visitor was, naturally, Carly, who could not wait to tell him that his first priority would be fixing the paperwork.

“I mean, how could you not sign the paperwork before you got on the bike without a helmet?” Carly said with a roll of her eyes as she tucked Jason’s blanket in. “And why didn’t you mention it was a revised POA?”

“Carly.” Jason’s eyes closed as he winced from the pain. “I didn’t remember—I was dead for a few years—”

“You know, this is Port Charles. You only get to the play the I was dead card twice,” Carly told him. She turned when she heard the door open, finding Elizabeth in the doorway. “I called Diane. She’s on her way to get Jason to sign the paperwork.”

“Can’t wait to be in complete control, huh?” Elizabeth said with a smirk. Carly narrowed her eyes, then nodded.

“Can’t wait to make sure you’re out of his life.” She stalked out, likely to hunt Diane down and drag her in kicking and screaming.

Elizabeth shook her head, turning away from Carly’s exit. “Sometimes, I think about asking her why exactly she hates me, but I’m not entirely sure she’d remember anymore.”

“Carly rarely needs a reason,” Jason managed. He opened his eyes, found hers. “I’m sorry. I forgot—”

“Me, too.” Elizabeth checked his vitals and made a note on his chart. “I guess I didn’t even think about it because we never made it to Italy.” She paused for a moment as the pain of it passed again—the faint wisp of memory, waiting at the gate so close to the dream—

“I’m sorry,” Jason repeated, and this time it sounded more like he was apologizing for something more than forgotten paperwork. She looked at him.

“Me, too,” she echoed. She tapped her pen against the clipboard. “Your vitals are stable, so if you could avoid doing this again for a while, that would be great.”

“I’ll try.” Jason hesitated. “Did you go to Italy?” he asked.

Elizabeth shook her head. “No, I, uh, thought about it a few times, but it wouldn’t have been the same.” She went to the doorway, then looked back at him. “Get some rest. I’ll bring Jake to see you later.”

“Thanks.”

On her way down the hallway, she ran into Carly and Diane. “Hey, I guess you’re here to get Jason to sign the revised POA?” Elizabeth asked.

“I’ll meet you in there,” Carly told Diane. “I made sure she brought the paperwork for you to rescind yours,” she told Elizabeth. “Just a little favor from me to you.” She left and went into Jason’s room.

“I know she’s paid for a great deal of my designer wardrobe, but I really don’t like her,” Diane said with a sigh. She held out a clipboard. “Here is the revocation of your POA. Sign this, and Jason will no longer be responsible for your medical decisions in the event you can’t consent.”

Elizabeth took the clipboard from her and the pen. The tip hovered over the signature space, but for some reason—she couldn’t quite bring herself to sign.

“Elizabeth—”

“You know—” Elizabeth looked at Diane. “All things considered, I think I’d enjoy annoying Carly a little longer.”

“I’ve always liked you, Elizabeth Webber.” Diane smiled at her, then took back the clipboard. “Now, excuse me while I go get Carly off my back.”

“Good luck.”

August 8, 2020

This entry is part 2 of 5 in the Wishes Came True

Inspiration

On Tuesday or Wednesday (August 4/5 2020), my Twitter timeline was lit up with fans wondering why Jake didn’t have ELQ shares. I didn’t see the scene until Friday and realized then that we have no evidence for Jake not having shares — the way Valentin’s conversation was set up, it just looked as though he was more interested in Danny and Scout. I started to think about why that was — I think Jake either has shares that Valentin knows he could never get his hands on (controlled by Liz or Jason, both are no a go for him) or Jake doesn’t have shares which I guarantee Liz could spin as not having shares until he’s an adult or having a trust fund or something. Anyway — I just wanted to put my own spin on it.

ETA: On Tuesday, August 11, 2020 — Michael voted Jake’s shares at an ELQ Board meeting. So…VICTORY IS MINE. I wrote this on Saturday, August 8. No way I could have known it except I KNOW ELIZABETH WEBBER

Timeline and Setting

For those of you not watching the show, this could be loosely set after my Strong Enough episode tag, and I’ve written it as if Jason and Elizabeth did, at least, briefly discuss the POA at the hospital. Check out that episode tag for some information about Jason’s storyline at this point on the show and Elizabeth’s participation. For Sam, she’s currently on parole for killing Shiloh last year. Her parole officer is strictly enforcing the no association with felon part of Sam’s parole. Jason and Sam have broken up because Jason feels like it’s not worth the risk of Sam losing the kids and going to jail again.

Sam has been increasingly desperate to get this parole lifted. Valentin, meanwhile, lost control of Cassadine Industries when Nikolas returned from the dead and revealed that Valentin was not Mikkos’s son, but Helena’s bastard (I think). Valentin is trying to get control of ELQ through a hostile takeover. He has a lot of shares already and offered Sam a trade — he’ll get her parole conditions lifted in exchange for Danny and Scout’s voting proxy (knowing it was unlikely she’d sell outright.

Note: I, uh, realize that I keep referring to Elizabeth by her maiden name in these tags. I…am going to do my best to avoid any mention of the man with whom she has currently entered a legal contract. I think we’ll all be happier the longer we can pretend it isn’t a thing

I hope that helps give you guys context!

They told me all of my cages were mental
So I got wasted like all my potential
And my words shoot to kill when I’m mad
I have a lot of regrets about that
I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere
Fell behind all my classmates and I ended up here
Pourin’ out my heart to a stranger
But I didn’t pour the whiskey

Thursday, August 6, 2020

 Metro Court Hotel: Restaurant

Martin Grey took a seat across the table from Valentin Cassadin and reached for the carafe of coffee in the center of the table to fill his cup. “Well, how did your meeting with Sam Morgan go?”

Valentin pressed a napkin to his lips, dabbing gently. “Encouraging. It might take a day or two for her to think it over, but I’m confident that she’ll come around.” He lifted his brows. “Were you able to find out about the last Quartermaine great-grandchild? Jake Webber?”

“I was. I’m afraid that’s likely a no go,” Martin reported with a shake of his head. “You were correct—his shares are not controlled by his mother.”

“That would actually be good news for me.” When his lawyer merely raised his brows, Valentin picked up his own coffee. “His mother despises me. That’s precisely why he was at the bottom of my list. There’s very little I can offer Elizabeth Webber.” He grimaced. “Five years ago, I could have handed her the world. I could have given Jake and Jason back to her—”

“You knew Helena had kidnapped them both?” Martin leaned back in his chair. “Just how involved were you with all of that?”

Valentin merely smiled. “That’s not important. Who controls his shares now? Jason? That’s the most likely.”

“Not Jason. As I said,” Martin replied, “it’s a non-starter.”

Kelly’s: Courtyard

“Aiden—” Elizabeth sighed as her ten-year-old son blinked at her, his ice cream cone dripping down his wrist. “Why are you like this?”

Aiden shrugged and sat on the bench while she searched through her purse for the wipes she carried around, even though her children were half-grown.

“Elizabeth—”

She glanced at up the familiar voice, then managed a smile as she saw Danny and Scout hopping onto the bench beside Aiden, and Aiden showed off his melting ice cream. She looked over at their mother, ambling up with her hands in her pockets.

“Hey. Sam. Uh—” She squinted. “What’s up?” She honestly couldn’t remember the last time she’d talked to Sam—

And Elizabeth actually liked it that way. Jake got to hang out with his dad, brother, and cousin, and Elizabeth could avoid all contact with Sam — finally. Drew—when they’d thought he was Jason—had seemed to think it was time for them all to move on.

Jason didn’t share that opinion.

“I was hoping you had a minute to talk about something. I—I’m having kind of a problem, and I feel like—” Sam made a face. “I feel like you might be the only person that can give me the perspective I need.”

Despite her best intention, Elizabeth nodded. “Let me just give these to Aiden before he takes a bath in that ice cream.” She gave the wipes to Aiden, then left the three kids on the bench, and joined Sam at the table.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah. Um, yeah. Mostly. You know, it’s been hard since I got home.” Sam bit her lip. “Since we got the parole conditions.” She tucked her hair behind her ears. “Did Jason tell you he’s giving his power of attorney to Carly?”

“Yeah, he mentioned it at the hospital yesterday.” Elizabeth tipped her head to the side. “Is that what this is about? Because, honestly, Sam, I’m really not here to get in the middle of it. Jason and I are friends—I have no dog in this fight—except, of course, hoping none of us ever have to worry about it—”

“Oh. No. I’m okay with all of that.” Sam waited. “That’s a lie. If it wasn’t for this stupid parole, Jason and I would be together. And this wouldn’t be happening—”

Well, this turned out to be a great idea. Elizabeth leaned back slightly. “Sam, I really—”

“But that’s not why I’m—that’s not the point. And you’re right—that has nothing to do with you.”

“Exactly. So let’s just—” Elizabeth made a circle with her finger. “Get to the point, you know? Is something wrong?”

Sam took a napkin out of the stand and started to shred it into pieces. “I remember when Jason first went into the pier. Like five minutes later, AJ came home, and he and Tracy were fighting over shares, and they wanted Jason and Danny’s shares—God, it was awful. I hated it.”

“Is there a problem with ELQ shares?” Elizabeth frowned. “I haven’t heard anything. I wasn’t involved back then. Jake got his shares a few years later—”

“That’s kind of what I wanted to ask you about. Jake’s shares. Um, he can’t control them until he’s eighteen, right? Would you—” Sam met her eyes. “Would you ever trade their proxy? For something you knew would help your entire family?”

Alarm bells began to ring in Elizabeth’s head as she took a hesitant breath. “Sam—look, you really gotta be careful. The shares—you think what happened eight years was terrible—I’ve watched the Qs use these shares as weapons for decades. Honestly. I didn’t want to be part of it—I signed away Jake’s proxy almost as soon as I took control.”

Sam furrowed her brow. “What? Why? To who? Does Jason have them? He didn’t want them when I—”

“No, I gave them to basically the only Quartermaine I actually trust,” Elizabeth told her. “I gave the proxy to Michael. He loves ELQ, and it’s his last link to AJ. I knew he’d always have ELQ’s best interests at heart, and he loves Jake. Having that out of my hair, knowing I never have to be involved—that Jake doesn’t have to think about it—it’s the best decision I ever made.”

“Michael,” Sam repeated. “That’s—you’re right. He—he loves ELQ,” she murmured. “And Jason loves Michael.”

“Sam, if someone is offering you something in exchange for the proxy—I want you to think very carefully about who’s offering it and what you’re being given. No one does anything without an ulterior motive.” She made a face. “I know you’re not supposed to talk to Jason but talk to Alexis. Or Ned. Or someone else. I’m not involved with ELQ.”

“No, but you know what it’s like to make a sacrifice for something you really want.” Sam arched a brow. “Sometimes, it’s worth it.”

“And sometimes,” Elizabeth said gently, “you learn that if you have to break someone else to get it—what I did five years ago, Sam, I paid a heavy price. Be sure you’re ready for it.” She got to her feet. “Don’t do anything you can’t take back.”

She looked over at Aiden. “Let’s get going, Aiden, Gram is expecting us for dinner.”

August 7, 2020

This entry is part 1 of 5 in the Wishes Came True

Inspiration

I watched four episodes of General Hospital today (August 7, 2020) and I was inspired to write three different stories. It’s upsetting, and I’m gonna need you guys to support me through this strange moment of liking the show. I’m sure it will pass. It was so lovely to feel like — oh, the episode’s over but man I have just this one idea that could have made it better!

Timeline & Setting

If you haven’t watched the show in a bit, here’s a brief recap. Sonny’s dad, Mike, has Alzheimer’s and has been taken to GH to have a feeding tube put in. Watching Sonny struggle with this decision inspires Jason to make a decision about his own end of life decisions, and for various reasons, asked Carly to have his power of attorney. Elizabeth has been one of Mike’s nurses and counsels Sonny about the feeding tube. Earlier, Felix told Sonny about a patient with Alzheimer’s on a feeding tube and ventilator. The patient is Yvonne Godfrey, someone that Mike connected with at the nursing home and, in their dementia, had a marriage ceremony with.

Jason and Carly came to the hospital to talk to Sonny about the feeding tube and came in at the end of Elizabeth’s conversation with Sonny.

Maybe that’s the point
To reach the point of giving up
‘Cause when I’m finally
Finally at rock bottom
Well, that’s when I start looking up
And reaching out

Wednesday, August 5, 2020

General Hospital: Nurse’s Hub

“I think I broke a law today.”

Elizabeth Webber frowned, looked over at her co-worker and friend. “Again? Felix, I don’t have bail money—”

“Funny,” Felix DuBois said dryly. He leaned against the counter and folded his arms. “I might have violated a few privacy laws.”

“Felix—”

“I swear, I had a good reason. Let me explain, and then you tell me whether or not I gotta find a lawyer, okay?”

“Let’s hear it—”

“I saw Mike Corbin’s name on the schedule for a procedure today,” Felix began, “and, well, I got curious—you know, I really like Mike—” He hesitated. “He was supposed to have a feeding tube put in—”

“You took Sonny to see Yvonne Godfrey.”

Felix winced, then nodded. “Yeah.” He scratched his temple. “I made it seem like casual conversation, but I kind of spilled, uh, everything. I just didn’t want Sonny to do the feeding tube—”

Elizabeth picked up a chart. “Don’t do it again,” she told him. “I’m serious—these patients trust us, and it’s not like Yvonne and Mike actually got married. Sonny wasn’t entitled to that information—”

“I know—”

“But—” She offered him a faint smile. “I might have done the same thing if I had thought of it.”

“I knew you’d have my back.”

“I don’t think Sonny’s gonna tell anyone, so you’re probably in the clear.” She checked her watch. “I have to drop these off. I’ll see you later.”

After leaving the charts with the resident on call, Elizabeth walked past the waiting room again. She stopped when she saw Jason sitting alone on the sofa, where she had spoken to Sonny earlier. “Hey—I thought you’d left earlier. Are Sonny and Carly still here?”

“Uh, yeah.” Jason blinked, looked up at her, then stood. “Hey. Yeah, they’re still with Mike. I was just thinking about—” He exhaled slowly, looked at the floor, put his hands at his waist. “Thank you. For talking things over with Sonny.” He looked up, and their eyes met. “He’s been struggling with this, and it’s hard for Carly to really—I don’t know. Whatever you said—”

“He was already halfway there. I think I just helped him be okay with it. I meant it—I always liked Mike.” She smiled. “He always told me I’d have a job at Kelly’s if I needed to go back.”

“I almost—” Jason smiled. “I almost forgot you’d worked there. It’s been so long—” He looked off in the distance, towards the elevators. “Feels like another lifetime.”

“Sometimes, I think it was.”

“Uh, do you have a minute?” Jason asked. “I wanted to talk to you about Jake.”

“Yeah, sure. What’s up? Do you need to cancel this weekend—”

Jason shook his head, folded his arms. “No, it’s just—with Mike—I’ve been thinking about my own decisions. You know? Who would—I don’t want anyone to worry about what I’d want,” he told her. “To see Sonny dealing with this decision—I don’t want it for anyone.”

She wanted to tell him that it didn’t matter—but the life he lived—of course, it mattered. How many bullet wounds and injuries had she patched up for him in the twenty years they’d known one another? “Are you thinking about a living will?”

“Yeah, but also—” He paused. “I don’t have a legal next of kin,” Jason told her. “Jake and Danny—they’re not old enough—and I know there’s Monica—but after everything she’s gone through, losing Emily and AJ—Alan—”

“You don’t want her to have to make that decision about another child. Yeah. I—I know we got a miracle with Jake,” Elizabeth said, and they shared a look—both remembering that terrible night and the fight they’d had about turning off life support. “But I’ll never forget what it felt like. So—is it Sam? Is that what you wanted me to know—”

“It didn’t—” Jason shook his head. “We’re not married, and we’re not—” He grimaced slightly. “We’re not going to be together. At least—not for a long time. And giving her that responsibility when we’re not married because she’s Danny’s mother—it doesn’t feel fair to you—”

“Oh—” Elizabeth put up a hand. “No, Jason. I wouldn’t even think of that way—”

“I know I made a lot of mistakes,” he continued. “And I wasn’t always fair—to either of you—I love both my sons. I don’t want them to ever think I chose one over the other, and I thought—” He looked away. “And it also can’t be Sonny after all of this.”

Elizabeth nodded, and with a slight laugh, she said, “It’s Carly, then? Last woman standing? You know she’ll never turn off the machines.”

“She might have trouble doing it,” Jason admitted with his own hesitant smile. “But I’m sure you’ll be there to remind her that it’s what I want.”

She rolled her eyes. “And then I’ll have to hear about how I killed you for the rest of my life. Gee, thanks.”

His phone buzzed, and he pulled it out. “I’m sorry, I have to go—there’s someone I need to meet.” Jason paused. “Thanks. For understanding about the POA.”

“I know how much you love Jake, Jason. And he loves Danny, too. I’m glad you’re thinking about the future and making sure that they never have a reason to doubt how much you love them.” She waited. “Let me know if Sonny needs anything. The next few days—if Mike doesn’t start eating—” Elizabeth sighed. “You know where to find me.”

“Always. And—” Jason studied her expression for a moment. “You know where to find me, too, if you need anything.”

They traded a smile before he went to the elevators, and she went back to work.