| Chapter 3 Carly slowly opened her eyes looking at the clock by the bed. She turned to Sonny, who was still sleeping. He looked so peaceful. She, too, was feeling at peace. Carly could now leave knowing that Sonny would be okay. And so would she. They had hurt and healed each other and now it was time to move on. Carly carefully slipped out of Sonny's embrace and collected her clothes. "I love you Sonny. Always remember that," Carly whispered as she closed the door. Once the door closed Sonny rolled onto his back with tears in his eyes. He had been awake and heard her words. "I love you too, Carly," Sonny whispered to the empty room. Love had never been the problem. Everything else had been. Abby’s death had put so much distance between them. But he had forgiven her. She just hadn't forgiven herself yet and until she was able to, they didn’t have a future together. She needed a reason to believe in herself and in their love. * * * * * Carly walked in Jason’s penthouse. There were boxes throughout the room. Everything was ready to go. Everything but her heart. It wanted to run back across the hall and into Sonny arms but deep down she knew this was the best thing. She needed to leave and get away from Port Charles and the memories. She and Sonny both needed to move on. She had caused him enough pain, she thinks to herself as she pulled out a picture of Sonny holding Abby. "Carly, where have you been? I was worried," Jason said, wrapping his arms around her waist. Carly wiped away the tears that had fallen. "I'm sorry Jason, I didn't mean to worry you," Carly said quickly putting the picture back in the box. Jason noticed but said nothing. He knew her so well and knew now was not the time to question her about her whereabouts. He leaned in and kissed her. Carly pulled away. "Where’s Michael?" "Upstairs," Jason replied. "I better go check to make sure he hasn't forgotten anything," Carly said as she started for the stairs. Jason grabbed her arm. "Are you sure you want to go?" Jason asked. "Yes Jason, I'm sure. I can't wait to start our life together," Carly said before kissing him. Before the kiss could turn into something more, the phone started ringing. Carly went to check on Michael, while Jason answered the phone. * * * * * "Ned please wake up. I need you so much. I love you," Alexis said. She turned just in time to see Jax walking away. New tears filled her eyes. She had hurt Jax and that was the last thing she ever wanted to do. She looked back to Ned’s bruised face. A part of her wanted to go to Jax and try to make him understand. But how could she make him understand something that she didn’t even understand herself. The choice was made for her when Tony came in and said he needed to run more tests on Ned. * * * * * Jax walked into the hospital chapel, thinking about Alexis and the words of love she had spoken to her husband. He was so lost in his thoughts and what her words meant, that he hadn’t noticed her standing next to him, until she spoke. "Jax." He looked down at her, seeing tears in her eyes. "Why aren't you with your husband!" Jax asked bitterly. "Jax please..." Alexis said, sitting down on a bench. He sat down beside her and closed his eyes. The last thing he wanted to do was be jealous at a time like this. Ned was fighting for his life and Alexis was his wife. But he *was* jealous. "Jax, I'm sorry," she said, looking down at her hands. She wasn’t able to look into his eyes. "Sorry about what Alexis?” "About everything. I never meant to hurt you," she whispered. "Why did that sound like goodbye?" Jax whispered knowing that it was. He had heard Alexis’s promises of love to her husband. "Jax, there’s one thing I will never be sorry for and that’s being with you and loving you, even if it was only for a short time," Alexis said in soft voice, full of emotion. "Alexis I love you. I'm sorry about what happened to Ned and I'm praying that he makes it, for your sake as well as mine. Our future depends on Ned’s recovery," Jax said as he knelt down in front of her. Alexis looked at Jax in confusion. "Alexis I love you and I'm not going to let you go because I know that you love me too," Jax said as he wiped a tear from her cheek. "Jax, I love Ned. He's my husband. My future is with him. We, you and I, have no future. What happened between us can never happen again," Alexis vowed. "You don't not mean that," Jax said taken aback. Alexis once again looked away from his eyes, for two reasons; she didn’t want to see the pain in them and she didn't want him to see the truth that was in her eyes. "I don't love you, Jax." "I don't believe you. Something special happened between us last night. We connected in a way most people never experience in a lifetime. And I know you felt it too. I saw it in your eyes and felt it in your touch," he said, lifting Alexis’s face and forcing her to look into his eyes. "Jax, I..." But before Alexis could say anymore, Emily came rushing in. "Alexis, it's Ned!" |