The Morning After
by Julie
Part One
The first thing that Laura Spencer woke to, that fateful morning, was a loud buzzing in her ear. Unperturbed, she kept her eyes closed and pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders. She had been dreaming about something golden and wonderful and, although she couldn't remember what it was she had been dreaming about, she knew it was much better than the major headache that she was now keeping at bay.
The buzzing kept going, as Laura snuggled deeper into the bed, until she belatedly realized something. It didn’t sound right. It sounded like a buzzer to an alarm, true. Hell, she even kind of recognized it. But, it didn’t sound like hers.
That was when Laura opened one eye and glanced over to see that the clock that sat directly in front of her face was not her alarm clock. And, the bed that she lay on was not her bed. Laura sat up in bed, suddenly, with that thought. She regretted the move a moment late, when she got a better view of where she was.
She was alone, in a darkly decorated bedroom that was not her own with mid-morning sunlight filtering through the sheer curtains. This was not what disturbed her. What bothered her was that Laura knew this room. She just couldn’t place it. Pushing her throbbing headache to the furthest reaches of her skull, Laura made a quick study of the bedroom. And then, without understanding why she hadn’t realized it before, Laura knew exactly where she was.
She was in Stefan Cassadine’s bed, with no memory of the night before.
Laura nearly pinched herself, to make certain that she wasn’t dreaming, but already knew the truth of the matter. She had been lying comfortably in Stefan Cassadine’s bed and she didn’t know quite how she had ended up there. One thing for sure; Laura knew she wasn’t staying. She swung her feet around to get out of the side of the bed, and was rewarded with a view of the earth spinning before her.
Laura decided that getting up could wait, and settled back into the bed. Perhaps if she went back to sleep, she would wake up back in her own room, in her own bed. Never mind that her bed would be a lot colder than this one, or that she had dreamed of sleeping in her (ex)lover’s bed again. Never mind that a part of her wanted to stay, even if she couldn’t remember how she had gotten there in the first place. Laura closed her eyes, and tried to concentrate on the level of darkness her eyelids afforded; on the motion of deep breathing; on...
On footsteps coming up the stairwell and hesitating by the door. “Laura? Are you awake?”
Damn. Laura decided she might as well play the game. Maybe he could tell her how she had ended up in his bed. “Yes, Stefan, I’m awake.”
“Can I come in?” he continued, polite as usual.
Laura had to wonder if that question had any underlying meanings, but figured she wouldn’t know until she let him in. “Of course. It is your room, after all.”
There was the briefest chuckle. “True.” Stefan let himself in.
He paused by the door, giving Laura leave to look at him. She had to wonder how long he’d been up. He was dressed for business; dark suit and straight tie. His dark gold hair lay flat and unmussed. He didn’t look any different than any number of times she had seen him since she had broken things off with him, nearly two years ago. Only, she thought she caught a spark in his green eyes that she hadn’t seen in ages.
Or, maybe it was whatever was causing Hell through her bodily systems. “Are you feeling better?”
Better than what? she wanted to ask. He couldn’t possibly know how she felt this morning. How had she felt last night? “Better?” she managed.
“Than last night?” he offered, helpfully.
She tried to smile in what she hoped was a sheepish manner. “I’m afraid that last night is paling. I can’t quite recall it.”
“You were upset.”
“Was I?”
“Distressed, I would say.” he paused, and studied her closely. Amazing how when he studied her she felt like the most beautiful, rarest piece of art ever to come his way - even when the look was slightly preturbed, as it was this moment. Even when he didn’t look like the hero in a romance novel should look. “You do recall what happened last night, don’t you?”
She wouldn’t dare admit that she didn’t. “Of course I do. It’s just a little hazy.”
“Side effect.” Stefan told her. “It shouldn’t last.” he paused, hesitating. “I came up just to check on you. Since you seem to be fine, I think I should go downstairs and get back to work on the estate files before Stavros tries to steal them again. Come down when you’re ready; we’re in no hurry.”
Not in a hurry for what? Laura smiled, and bid Stefan a short au revoir, before he left her blissfully alone in his bedroom. Upon his departure, the first thing Laura did was pry under the bedclothes. She didn’t see any slinky peignoir peek out at her, thank goodness, but Laura did dimly realize that she was wearing one of Stefan’s old shirts.
“What did I do last night?” Laura wished she could recall. Instead, she simply stared at the door for a moment. If she couldn’t remember what happened, perhaps she could piece together her few clues and figure out what had happened. That couldn’t be too hard, right?
Laura tried to shake the percussion section in her head (rewarded by another dizzy spell and a pull in her stomach), and began to investigate. She was lying in Stefan Cassadine’s bed, wearing one of his old shirts, with no memory of the night before. It didn’t take Sherlock Holmes to figure out what had probably happened.
Of course, her conclusion couldn’t be right, could it? She had been hiding her affections for Stefan for so long; surely it wouldn’t come out in one night of pent up rage over... whatever? Right?
And, then again, what other answer was there? You didn’t just happen to end up in a war ally’s bed - and that was what Stefan had to be; he could be nothing more without causing the both of them heartbreak - in one of his old shirts with no memory of the night before. This wasn’t how one usually forged treaties, or anything of the sort.
It had to mean... No, it couldn’t mean that. Laura couldn’t even finish the stupid sentence in her head; it was so absurd. She wasn’t a wild, reckless teenager anymore. She wasn’t defying anyone. She was a well respected member of the Port Charles community; mother of three beautiful children; former wife of respected hero Mr. Lucas Lorenzo Spencer and present girlfriend (?) of respected lawyer Scott Baldwin. She had been the first head of the Outreach program at GH. She was the owner and C.E.O of Deception.
She was certainly not the type of woman who got drunk and had a one night stand.
Right?
Still, facts were facts. And, the fact was that Laura had no memory of the last night. All she knew was that she was lying on Stefan Cassadine’s bed, in Stefan’s Cassadine’s shirt (which was, oddly enough, not black - Laura didn’t even know that Stefan owned anything that wasn’t black) and she was comfortable. That was the major problem. If there really had been a... circumstance, Laura could just pretend she’d made a major blunder like half of the residents of Port Charles had (including Tony Jones, another respected member of the PC community); blame it on hormones or whatever and be on her merry way. She could’ve conceivably done that if she was uncomfortable. But she wasn’t. She would’ve been quite happy to stay in this bed for another hour or so, and then slowly tread down the stairs and catch Stefan in his office; sunlight making his hair seem golden and -
No. No. She couldn’t think about that. She couldn’t think about how handsome he could be; how gorgeous and sweet and charming and- Laura really had to stop thinking about him, lest she melt into an inappropriately dressed lump of putty.
On the bright side, her nausea was becoming less frequent. When she slowly swung her legs around to get up, she did not feel quite like retching all over Stefan’s decidedly expensive Persian rug. Her head still felt like the walls of a music room after a class of beginning freshmen had played a whole percussion piece, but other than that she was fine. Certainly fine enough to stand up and see if she could find her clothes.
Laura made searching glances around Stefan’s room. Since it was rather sparsely decorated, she was certain her clothes ought to be easily in view. Perhaps thrown on his desk chair? Laura glanced over - nope. Maybe folded neatly in a dresser drawer? No. What about strewn along the passage from the door to his bed? Maybe in the heat of passion...? Laura glanced all around the massive bedroom. Evidentially, not.
Great. Not only was she in Stefan’s bed (or had been a moment ago), with no memory of last night, dressed in one of his shirts - now she couldn’t even find her own clothes. She didn’t want to ask Stefan where they were, because then it would be obvious she couldn’t recall what had happened and it might not go well after that. But, there wasn’t a inconspicuous way for a girl to go back home wearing a man’s shirt and nothing else.
Which left Laura with the ultimate decision that she had to go downstairs. She had to face Stefan and ask him what had become of her clothes. Laura glanced down at herself. She didn’t look all that bad in a blue and white pinstriped shirt and socks. Actually, it looked slightly better on her than her worst fashion mistakes. Like that horrid green number that
she’d worn shortly before the Nurses Ball - what had she been thinking? Laura checked herself out in the mirror. She almost looked cute, like a well built version of Meg Ryan’s older sister. Maybe Mrs. Lansbury wouldn’t laugh out loud.
Oh well. It wasn’t as if Laura had much of a choice, anyhow.
Bravely, she headed downstairs.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
As Laura headed for Stefan’s study, she elicited only a wide-eyed stare from Mrs. Lansbury and a short noise. All in all, it could’ve gone a lot worse. Laura walked past her near the foyer, feeling not exactly confident but not like a mouse scurrying across the floor.
She made it to Stefan’s study, and hesitated by the door. She took the moment to watch him. He looked like she had imagined him to look; hair slightly mussed, turned golden by the sunlight. His eyes weren’t on her but she could still see them - dark green that seemed somehow luminescent in the sunlight. Okay, so his suit wasn’t exactly black - it was, upon closer inspection, charcoal - but he was just as she imagined him. Almost how she remembered him from their past. At that moment, he didn’t look like he was worried about Stavros, his older brother raised from the dead like a phoenix. He didn’t seem concerned for Alexis or Nikolas or Kristina or anyone, really. He was just concentrated on the work in front of him, and Laura was briefly wistful for the romance they had once had. Sure, it hadn’t been careless but he had seemed more at peace when they’d been together.
Standing there unnoticed, Laura also decided that he was still pretty handsome - despite the fact that they had broken up and she was not supposed to think of him as cute. It bothered her that she couldn’t remember sleeping with him. If she was going to break her vow of denying her feelings towards him, the least thing she could’ve done was remember the whole experience. But, no. She had to forget the whole night and wake up without even the feeling of the night before.
Fate was cruel.
Laura made an involuntary sigh at the unfairness of it all and Stefan looked up at it. And, then he stared at her... ensemble for a good moment. Laura felt herself blush to the roots of her tousled blonde hair. He coughed and looked away. “You’re up, I see.”
“Yes.” Laura replied. “Are you busy? Do you want me to come back?”
“No. I-” he cut himself off, trying hard to keep himself from saying something. “You can come in.”
Laura let herself in and then closed the door for privacy’s sake, wondering if Mrs. Lansbury might know more than she did - which, of course, wouldn’t be very much. “You’re wondering why I’m dressed like this.”
“The thought had occurred to me, yes.”
“I can’t find my clothes.” Laura explained, playing with the edge of the shirt.
Stefan looked surprised and studied her through his reading glasses. Laura nearly
couldn’t stand how cute he looked in those glasses. “They’re where you left them.”
Laura couldn’t answer that. She’d just have to tell him the truth, she supposed. She really didn’t want to, but how else could she get out of it? Tell him she had gone temporaily blind? Maybe aliens had taken them. She could tell him about an alien named Casey and... No, better not look crazy again. “I don’t remember where I left them.” before he could respond, she continued not looking at him. “We might as well get it out in the open, instead of dancing around what happened. I’ve figured out that I slept with you last night. I wanted to, I guess, but I don’t really remember what happened. I don’t-”
He was staring at her, a little pale and took off his reading glasses. “What?” Laura managed.
“What happened last night.” Laura reminded him.
“I didn’t sleep with you last night, Laura.”
“What do you mean?”
“I didn’t sleep with you last night.” he repeated.
“You’re kidding me, right?” Laura took a seat on the leather chair, making sure she didn’t squeak. “It happened, Stefan. We should talk about it.”
“It didn’t happen, I assure you.” he told her.
“Then, can you explain this?” Laura indicated the long-sleeved work shirt that came mid thigh on her. “I am not oblivious, Stefan.” she was a little annoyed that he was trying to get out of it.
When he didn’t respond, she spoke. “All right.” Laura looked straight at him. “You tell me what happened.”
“Well, since you don’t remember...” he trailed off. “There was a big storm last night. I was on the phone with Alexis, trying to figure out how to corner Stavros, when you showed up on my doorstep. You were soaked to the bone, coughing and sneezing and decidedly intoxicated.”
“What did I say to you?”
“Nothing, really.” he paused. “I think you meant to tell me something, but you were too far gone to say anything much that made sense.” he didn’t tell her what she had said, deciding it was far too confusing and probably completely untrue. “I couldn’t take you home in the storm, so I made sure that someone could watch Leslie Lu and I asked if you’d wait until the storm blew over. When Mrs. Lansbury went to dry your clothes, you put it upon yourself to borrow one of my old shirts and fell asleep on my bed. That was the end of it.”
“Where did you sleep?”
He indicated the foyer across the hall. “On the couch.”
Laura felt her throat constrict. “You mean we didn’t-? You didn’t-?”
“I wouldn’t take undue advantage of you.” he replied.
“I wasn’t accusing you of raping me, Stefan.” Laura replied. “It wouldn’t have been rape, anyhow because-” she cut off right there. Better not finish that sentence, lest she be faced with the consequences.
“Because why?” Stefan replied, studying her.
She grinned, sheepishly, hoping she might lead him off the track. “Ignore me. I think I’m still drunk.”
“Hung over, you mean?”
“Yes.” she tried to nod vigorously and Stefan’s study spun in turn. She put one hand on the mahogany desk, steadying herself a moment before looking up.
“Laura, are you all right?”
“I think so.” she swallowed.
“I didn’t sleep with you.” he told her, finally.
“I believe you.” she replied.
“Why would you suspect I did otherwise?”
Laura had trouble answering that question. Of course, she knew that Stefan would never rape her. No matter what came between them, what betrayals she had imagined or how far apart they became, she knew he would never hurt her. She couldn’t break his trust like that. But, she couldn’t tell him the truth of her suspicions. “It was a logical assumption. I wake up in your bed, in one of your old shirts with no memory of the night before. And, considering how I feel it wasn’t too far-”
She stopped short, again, when she saw his eyes on her. Damn. She hadn’t meant to say that. She had meant to make up an excuse, not nearly lead him to the truth of the matter. It was the stupid alcohol in her system; it slowed her down. Her mind told her to say one thing but her heart was the one connected to her voice box, evidentially.
“How you feel?” he repeated.
Laura tried to make a big show of exiting. “I should leave. You should deal with Nikolas’s estate; I should get back to Lulu. I just need to find my clothes and get dressed and then I’ll go.”
His hand came out, resting firmly on her wrist. “Leslie Lu is with Nikolas. She’s safe. As for this-” Stefan vaguely waved at his desk. “Stavros can wait.” he moved slowly to look at her, to capture her eyes in his - although that probably wasn’t his intention. “What did you mean by how you feel?”
She shook her head, glad that the dizziness was starting to subside. “I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m just still a little hung over; you shouldn’t pay me much attention. Just let me go.”
“No.” his voice was soft. “Tell me what you’re hiding, Laura.”
“Me?” Laura didn’t squeak, but she felt like it. “I’m not hiding anything.”
He looked at her. “You’re starting to sound like Alexis does when she’s anxious. I know you, Laura. You starting sentences and stopping them halfway. Tell me what it is you
keep stopping yourself from saying. What did you mean by how you feel?”
“It’s nothing.”
“it’s something.” he replied. “You showed up on my doorstep last night, soaked to the bone, completely drunk and saying-” now, he cut himself off.
Well, this was getting interesting. “What did I say?”
He looked uneasy. “I tried to dismiss it. You told me that you’d come because you missed me. When I told you I didn’t understand, you said that you were sorry that you had been unfair to me. I asked you what you meant; you told me that you had done some ‘really dumb things’ to me and that you were sorry because the truth was that you were scared to trust and that you...” he trailed off.
Laura was on the edge of her seat, wondering why she was anxious to know what she had said to him. “That I?”
He let out a breath. “That you loved me.”
Laura couldn’t believe she was hearing this. Her drunken mind really must want to dig her into a ditch. She assumed she slept with him; she nearly told him that she wouldn’t have minded it if they had done it and now this. Really, how did Luke do it all the time? She knew he drank and yet she could never really tell. And, here was his wife who only had a couple (a few? - Laura was really hazy on the details) of shots of scotch with Scott Baldwin - she finally remember that part, kind of - and blew off a charade she had been playing well for over a year.
“I told you what?”
“I dismissed it.” Stefan replied, quickly. “I assumed that you were too far gone to make any sense and just tried to get you upstairs, so you could sleep it off.” he paused. “Was I wrong, Laura? Were you -are you trying to tell me something?”
She wanted to say “no.” No, she wasn’t trying to tell him anything - at least, her brain wasn’t. But, what would be the point of lying to him again? It wasn’t as if he would fall for it, anyhow. If she didn’t tell him the truth, he would just try and find it out some other way. If she told him now, at least she might have some control over the reaction or the repercussions. She looked down and stared at his hand. “I wouldn’t have minded if we had slept together.” she told him, quietly.
It was his turn to look at her in disbelief. “Laura?”
“This is going to come out one way or another, whether I want it to or not. Obviously, my brain and my voice aren’t functioning together.” she looked up. “I woke up this morning and I was comfortable lying in your bed. I didn’t know how I had ended up there but I had a decent idea and I wasn’t ready to rush out the door. A part of me wanted to stay. And, I
guess that what I said to you last night was probably true, too.”
His face was kind of pale, Laura noticed. He was breathing oddly. “What are you saying, Laura?”
She had never meant to do this. Never meant to retreat back to him. Sure, it was okay
to dance between Scott Baldwin and Luke Spencer but not to him. And, yet, this was what she was doing. She couldn’t help but feel awkward. “There was one time, years ago, when you took a chance and told me that you had loved me - loved me still, even though you knew the chance was that I would tell you I loved Luke and always would. I guess it’s finally time for me to take that leap.” her throat felt dry; she wondered if Stefan could tell that her palms were sweaty. Was this how guys felt when they told girls how much they cared? Poor men. Laura didn’t want to repeat this feeling ever again. “I still love you, Stefan.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Upon Laura’s sudden confession, the room became utterly still and completely silent. Laura could’ve heard the Earth moving, had she been listening. But, she wasn’t listening for that. Instead, she was hoping to get a response from him of a similar nature and when he didn’t automatically declare his undying love for her, she kept going. “I probably should’ve told you this ages ago. But, I just couldn’t. At first, I was mad at you because I thought you had kidnapped Lucky. When I finally realized I was wrong, I was annoyed with you for knowing where my son was and not telling me. I didn’t enjoy it when you told me I was just like Helena.”
“I didn’t mean that.” Stefan interjected, very softly.
“I know.” she replied and then continued. “And, then I was beginning to try and understand where you had come from - where you had always come from - and you go and fake your death. And, I pretty much decided to give the whole idea up. It was better to be with Scott. He tries so hard to make me happy. Whatever is going on with me; whatever I need to do...it doesn’t matter. He never asks me questions I can’t answer. He never wants to know what I can’t tell him.” she paused. “He’s perfect and I don’t love him.” before he could respond, she rushed in. “Things are easy with Scott. And, they’re easy with Luke because I know what to expect. I thought I had a handle on things; that I had it figured out. I guess I was lying to myself.”
He said nothing but his eyes were curious; confused. Laura shrugged, wishing she had just stayed in bed this morning - even if it had been his bed. Better than digging herself into a ditch. But, she was this far. She couldn’t just turn and run. “You used to give me every chance to redeem myself; for Nikolas...for you. You gave me chances to explain myself and my actions. And, I’m sorry I never tried to give you the same thing - not really. I couldn’t accept what you did. Instead, when I found out that you had lied to me about Lucky and wouldn’t tell me what I assumed you knew, I ended the relationship.” she laughed at her foolishness. “You’d think I would’ve learned to stop assuming things, right? Of course, if I hadn’t assumed what happened last night, we’d be having a very different conversation.”
“Or none at all.”
Laura sighed. “I’m sorry, Stefan. I didn’t like the explanations you sometimes gave me. I didn’t understand why you acted like you did. I wanted you to win my approval; to prove yourself and I didn’t realize that I wasn’t proving anything of myself when I dismissed your feelings or spoke of Luke. I treated you badly. And, yet, you’re still nice to me. Like when
I was afraid that there was a prowler around my house weeks ago - I nearly accused you, and yet you still checked around and made sure I was safe. And, this whole things with Luke...”
“There are bigger things out there than my feelings.” Stefan told her. “You are important, Laura. I’ve never said otherwise.”
Laura couldn’t believe this. She finally tells him how she feels, and he picks now to be quiet? She really should’ve just stayed in bed. “Important as what?” she replied. “Nikolas’s mother? Luke’s... Scott’s ex-wife? What am I important as to you, Stefan?”
He look surprised by the question. “As Laura. Just Laura; that’s all you ever had to be. I care for you and -”
He was lying, she knew. She didn’t just have to be Laura. She never “had to be” Laura. She had to be the mother, the concerned (ex)wife, Scotty’s girlfriend... But, wait. What else hadn’t he said? “And?”
“You have to understand my hesitation, Laura. I promised myself not to do anything of this sort anymore, with you, after you allowed your husband to lock me in a closet.”
She offered him a teasing smile. “This coming from the man who faked his own death.”
“Who faked her death first and failed to inform me about it?” he retorted, briefly playing along.
“I wasn’t planning on returning.”
As if that made it any better. “Neither was I, until I realized that Chloe needed a doctor.”
“We can cover all of this later.” Laura felt anxious; impatient. Like a teen-ager with her first boyfriend. “What else were you going to say, Stefan?”
I’m going to regret this. He was certain of that and yet somehow this felt...right. “I love you, too.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Laura didn’t think she had heard him right. Could he have been hiding his secret nearly as long as she? And, if so, why? She didn’t say that she didn’t believe him, although he could hear it in her voice. “What?”
He seemed to know what she was asking. “Did you think I could not stop loving you in eighteen years and be able to give it up in eighteen weeks? Laura, you left me with your son on an island, promised to return and never did. If that couldn’t stop me from loving you - abandoning Nikolas; abandoning us - than nothing will.”
Laura’s head was starting to hurt again but this time she knew not to blame the alcohol. “Then, why did you say otherwise?”
“Laura, it’s not easy to love you.” it wasn’t even easy to speak to her, but Stefan could not mention that. “I love you, openly and tell you as much. You lie to me, fake your death, suspect me of lying, leave me for Luke, lock me in closets... When I love you, you don’t
trust me or anything I have to say.” he hesitated, seeing how wide her eyes were. “But, when I pretended to hate you, I suddenly got stronger in everyone’s eyes. That seemed a better choice - to lie and be respected than to tell you the truth and have my heart broken.”
Laura looked at him and saw his eyes; how dark they were. “Stefan, I never meant to-”
“Hurt me?” he finished her sentence for her. “Of course not. I’ve never suspected you
of being malicious, Laura. I knew who you were on that island and I know you couldn’t have changed that much in my absence.” he shrugged. “Actually, I didn’t think you’ve changed much at all. You couldn’t commit to me; you always put Luke first.”
Laura defended herself. “I didn’t put Luke first when I told him about Nikolas.”
“You told your husband about Nikolas, originally, because I threatened to tell him otherwise.”
Laura wanted to answer that but found that she couldn’t answer. He was right, in a way. And, while she didn’t like it, she couldn’t disclaim it.
He continued, slowly. “I know you love your son. I’m not questioning that. I’m just trying to help you understand why I lied to you. When I finally realized that you couldn’t return my feelings the way I needed you to, I gave it up. I had to let it go.”
“So, what about Chloe?” Laura couldn’t help but ask. “If you loved me all along, why did you go to her?”
He sighed, thinking of the lost Chloe Morgan. “Because I couldn’t have you. I left and you were remembering your past with Luke. I came back, and you were dating Scott Baldwin. Laura, you were telling people I was dangerous. How else could I react?” before she could ask him how he knew, he spoke again. “Chloe was nearly perfect. No matter what transgressions I made, she forgave me. It was what I needed, I think. And, in the end, I think I really cared for her. And, I believed that I could make a family with her and still have some sort of happiness. But, I didn’t love her.” he spoke uneasily. “I only loved you.”
Her blue eyes were still wide and uncertain. It was one thing to tell someone you still loved them; it was another to hear the sentiments returned when you weren’t expecting them. He couldn’t tell if she believed him, yet. But, he couldn’t have left her where she was. He knew what it felt like to tell someone your feelings and be told that they didn’t care for you in return. He would never hurt her like that, especially when the truth beckoned. “May I show you something?”
She glanced down at the shirt, numbly. “Dressed like this?”
“Well, actually I would prefer it if you changed. Your clothes should be in the laundry room.” he told her, his smile winning.
Laura didn’t say anything - it was as if she couldn’t. She disappeared around a corner, and Stefan took his moment to wait for her.
Conclusion
After Laura changed into clean jeans and a sweater, Stefan took her on the launch without telling her where they were going. She didn’t question him, as he led her off of the boat and
around the back corners of Port Charles. She was content to just have him lead her, his hand around hers. But, when they past the railroad tracks, Laura couldn’t help but speak.
“Stefan, where are we going?”
“It’s just a little further.” he told her, his voice full of promise.
Laura followed him, past Lucky’s boxcar. deep into the wilderness. She couldn’t say for the life of her where they were going and yet...she vaguely recognized the surroundings. She focused her eyes on the wildlife that surrounded the path. The area was gorgeous. She felt stunned.
And, then Stefan stopped suddenly. “Laura, look.”
Laura looked up at Stefan’s command, and she almost felt her heart stop beating. She realized where they were. “The house,” she whispered. In her mind’s eye, she could remember him talking to her of building the house - windows and light - his voice full of hopes for the future. Their future had seemingly vanished, but the house had been built. Laura couldn’t find the words to express her feelings. She wasn’t sure she understood.
Stefan was quick to explain. “I wanted to show you what I meant, Laura. I wanted to give you a visual; I couldn’t tell if you believed just my words.” he hesitated. “Do you recall when I told you I was having a house built for us?”
She nodded. “Of course. It was right before I found out about Lucky.”
He looked up at the house. “When I finally came home, I had to deal with the land and the house I was having constructed. I could have - I should have let it go. It was a waste of money to build a house that nobody was ever going to live in. And, I certainly wasn’t about to move by myself.” he nearly shrugged. “But, I couldn’t make myself stop it from happening - even if I knew nothing would really come of it.”
He turned to look at her. “Laura, I always have. I probably always will.” he paused. “I thought it would be better if I showed you.” he gently lifted her chin to look at him. Her eyes were full of silent wonder. “I love you.”
And, finally, she smiled at him. “I love you, too, Stefan.”
She moved into his embrace and kissed him, feeling excited and comfortable all at once. He held her close, never wanting to let her go. But, finally she did pull back and glance up at the house. “The house is gorgeous, Stefan.”
He shrugged. “it’s only a house. I didn’t think I’d live to see the day you saw it.”
She giggled and looked at him. “That was an odd way for our feelings to come out, huh?”
“I had imagined better.” he teased. “You must learn to stop jumping to conclusions, Lasha.”
Laura realized that she loved hearing that name come from his lips. And, she didn’t even care how corny that would sound if she said it aloud. She was happier than she’d been in months. “Well, what would you think if you woke up in bed in somebody else’s shirt without any memory of the night before?”
He chuckled. “Amazingly enough, Laura, that’s never happened to me and I doubt it ever will.”
“Touché.” she replied. Her eyes glistened in the late fall sunlight.
“Although, I have to admit, you looked much better in the shirt than I ever did.”
“No wonder I didn’t recognize it.” she teased. “Do you want to see me in it again?”
“Perhaps later.” he paused, and turned serious. “What will you tell Scott?”
She shrugged. “The truth.”
He raised an eyebrow at her. “That you ended up in my bed, drunk and stumbled?”
She laughed. “Well, I might not tell him every detail.” she took his hand. “But, if you’re so much in love with me, you can prove it to me in another way.” she glanced, meaningfully, at the house.
“And, how would I manage that?”
“Take me home.” at the look in his eyes, she corrected herself. “Take me to your home, I mean.”
He paused, appraising her up and down. “Am I to trust you, Laura?”
“You can trust this.” she kissed him, deeply on the lips and appreciated the electricty that she felt.
He pulled back. “I hate to ask it, but... you sound like a romance novel heroine.”
“They really aren’t all that bad, you know.” she told him.
“Laura,”
She smiled and offered him her hand. “Please don’t speak. Just trust me and let me show you that I said the truth last night.” she smiled, sheepishly. “Even if I don’t remember it.”
And, with that, she led him into the light.
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