Author’s Note: SORRY! SORRY! SORRY! SORRY! SORRY! Thanks to my amazing reviewers! I love you all!

Chapter 8 Summary:Lincoln gives Jake an ultimatum: when the Corinthos-Morgan clan is predicted to fall (in five months’ time), he could choose to side with him or with the enemy (Corinthos, Morgan)- and therefore be treated like one. Meanwhile, it’s Adrianna’s birthday at the Morgan household. Jason is missing and everyone is wondering where he went. When he does appear drunk, Courtney confronts her husband. Jason and Courtney end up in another fight- Jason tells her that he knew of her meeting Jake behind his back. Jason leaves the house, saying that their marriage was a mistake.

Chapter Setting: TWO MONTHS LATER- still in past. Courtney is 6 months pregnant!

Disclaimer: not mine!

Sweet Redemption

By JD01

Banner Credit: By the LOVELY banner maker, Isabelle!

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Chapter 9-

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Winter had settled in the small town of Port Charles. The bare trees, the blinding white snow covering the town like a huge white blanket and the bright lights announced the arrival of the holidays. Holidays were a symbol of hope, especially to those who had lost so much. Who didn’t look forward to the holidays with the silly little traditions, the shopping frenzy, the great food, the family gatherings and the whole spirit of giving! The holidays’ good spirits were so contagious; they captivated everyone in its glee and excitement.

And so Jason Morgan licked his lips and lit the final candle. He couldn’t help but cringe as he oversaw his masterpiece. Yeah, this was really cheesy, but it wasn’t the décor that was important. Besides he wasn’t renown for his creativity. It’s not like he has much time to prepare. And wasn’t it the thought that counted?

A knocks suddenly emerged from the door.

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“I need to have a word with you,” she pressed on hastily.

Jason yawned and nodded. He let her into his new home..

Carly sat on the couch and looked about the penthouse. It was bare and the need for woman’s touch was becoming evident.

Jason stifled a yawn as he followed her to the couch.

“Jason. I know what tomorrow is,” Carly said and looked at him fondly.

Jason yawned. He hated having conversations with Carly. She never made any sense when she opened her mouth, and she stalled way too much. She could never get straight to the point. It was so frustrating, especially if you had just woken up.

“What about it?” he asked groggily as his eyes struggled to remain open.

“Be honest Jase, you’re having marital problems huh?” she inquired, twirling her thumbs around each other.

Jason gently sat down on the arm of the sofa.

“None of your business,” he replied coldly.

Carly looked up.

“Are you falling out of love with Courtney?” she boomed.

Suddenly all trace of sleep dissipated from Jason’s face. But he wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of a reply. He simply blinked, indifferent.

“I mean you are living in the penthouse, away from Courtney,” she pushed tentatively. Carly licked her magenta lips as she peered into her best friend’s sour eyes. Jason was always there for Carly. He had been her rock, her support, her everything, yet he was never one to open his soul. Carly equally wished to come to his aid in moments of distress. And much to everyone’s dismay, a special ironclad bond united them, one that could not be broken easily.

“Carly, is it possible for you to get to the point?” he asked annoyed.

“Tomorrow. It’s your day. If you still love her, you should make an effort… just my two cents.” And with that Carly walked past Jason. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and winked. She squeezed his shoulder gently and left, head high in her confident manner.

Jason blinked, trying to grasp what she meant. She could be so ambiguous at times. It was so thwarting.

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As Courtney hurried to Harbor View Towers, she couldn’t help but wonder…

Courtney’s stomach just seemed to grow, grow, grow and grow. It was becoming of such a monumental size, people were even speculating and mocking her about carrying twins. But the more times passed, the more she started to feel impatient. Courtney wasn’t feeling good these days… in fact she felt terrible. The daily nausea and morning illness scourged her days. She had constant mood swings, she had three guards tailing her every step, her marriage was falling apart, if not already over and she was eaten up with guilt. Days were excruciatingly prolonged and dreadful when you felt so worthless… Courtney figured that when the baby would come, things would get better. Maybe then she wouldn’t feel so lonely all the time. And frankly, this baby was all she had left now.

Well the baby and Jake. At least Jason followed through her demands. Ever since that fight two months previous, none of her guards had followed her when she went to visit Jake.

She was honestly surprised that Jason would abandon so easily. She figured that he didn’t see the point in trying anymore, in believing in their marriage anymore.

Two months ago, Jason had moved out of the house they had bought. He packed his things and moved back to the penthouse in Harbor View Towers that they had occupied before deciding to follow in the Corinthos’ footsteps and buy a house. Jason and Courtney always wanted children… The house was just more convenient for their future full of promise that they both had dreamed about. And now it felt like it was all going down the drain. Technically they were still married just separated. Jason never conveyed his desire for a divorce. In fact the only thing Jason told her after that was that they needed some time apart before deciding upon their next move. Besides she didn’t even understand why this was happening in the first place!

She knew to some extent that Jason still cared for her. Sometimes, she would look through her window and find Jason’s car parked on the side of the road, watching her. But as soon as their eyes would lock, he would drive away. Sometimes she just wantedt o run out after him and ask him to come over. He would always drive away before she had a chance to say anything. She had stopped looking out the window because every time she did she got filled up with hope. It consumed her so much. The more days passes, the more it pained her. Apparently he still came home when she was gone to work on the club, so he could finish the nursery… which she couldn’t access for it was locked with a key that was in Jason’s possession.

That is why she was so surprised when she received the call from Jason urging to meet with her. He didn’t divulge much else.

Courtney glanced down her purse at the little wrapped box. Maybe it was for…? I mean, what a coincidence that he called exactly on… maybe… but maybe not, she wondered.

When Courtney arrived she knocked on the door and waited anxiously for it to open.

Courtney started to wonder if it was a mistake to have agreed to come. Honestly why was she even here? What good could it do? What would they even say? What if he simply wanted her to sign the divorce papers? She chickened. She couldn’t help it, she chickened. She didn’t have high hopes, but she was afraid to get crushed. Her cowardice took over. Just as she turned around to leave, the door creaked opened, and there stood the epitome of her life, Jason, in all his glory.

“Going somewhere?” he asked lightly.

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Ever since his parents’ murder, Jake despised the holidays. Somehow the holidays seemed futile when as a young boy you lose everything that mattered to you in a heartbeat. What is there to be grateful for? What can you give when there is nothing left to give anymore? What can you receive when there is no room for fakes and materialistic gifts could never fill his hollow heart?

And the only year he believed that he might actually have a chance to get a modicum of happiness was shattered away by the fact that it was Courtney’s fifth anniversary. Her moronic manipulative husband conveniently wanted to ‘rekindle’ the marriage when for two freaking months he didn’t even give a rat’s ass about his wife, who is by the way bearing his child. Jake shook his head angrily. Why would a woman want to put up with such abuse and mistreatment? Courtney deserved better, much better. He could simply not understand why she insisted on running after him every time he called. But in the end, the good guys never won. No of course not, he was there for her at every breaking moment, supporting her through every tear that escaped her frail icy blues… and yet she still loved the one who hurt her the most.

But not for long. Jake was a patient and loyal man. He would wait forever if that’s what it took. He’d go to the end of the world. He would die for Courtney. Besides, maybe his luck was turning… maybe her jackass of a husband wants her to sign divorce papers, he thought merrily.

Jake sat by his desk in his luxurious suite, his laptop at hand, working. He was always working. But of course, his job required secrecy and many sleepless nights of work. He guessed it was better to be alone during the holidays, because this was he got more work done.

He popped in a toffee candy into his mouth and savoured the melting relish on the tip of his tongue. He closed his eyes and yielded in the comfort of his leather chair.

Just then, a knock resounded from the door. Jake fluttered an eye open and groaned. People had the worse timings ever.

“Who is it?” he called lazily from his desk.

“Room service,” replied the oddly unfamiliar voice coming from the other side of the door. Jake has lived here for about five months now and he knew all of the workers of the hotel.

Jake stared at the door with an erratic expression. Room service? He hadn’t ordered room service. Suddenly this eerie feeling started to spawn in the pit of his stomach like mould. But the door resonated with another furious sets of banging and loud pounding.

“Sir open up. Your food is getting cold,” said the voice… Jake recognized that voice from somewhere… he couldn’t quite put his finger on it and it started nagging him.

Curiosity got the better of him, and so he made the ultimate sacrifice and got up to answer the door… and he instantly regretted his decision.

He opened his mouth in shock, and before any coherent thought could form in his mind, everything suddenly became vacuum.

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“Going somewhere?” he asked lightly.

Courtney bit her lip and cursed herself. Well it was too damn late now, huh? She shook her head in defeat. What had she gotten herself into? She turned around and smiled sheepishly as pink crept on her cheeks.

“Uh- Not anymore, I guess… hehe,” she said and laughed nervously, once more cursing her pathetic attempt at being funny.

But Jason seemed amused by her clear discomfort. In fact, he then proceeded to lean in on her ear. He was so close to her… His lips brushing her ear.

“Good… I would have been disappointed if you didn’t show-up,” he said ever so softly, sending chills down her spine as he motioned Courtney in the penthouse.

She turned her back to Jason and closed her eyes. This was going to be painful, very painful. Especially if he started acting provoking her like he just demonstrated so well… She wanted her husband back- she wanted him back damn it! She loved him. Oh, how she loved him! She loved him so much that she hated him, or was it the other way around? Either way, she knew that she couldn’t handle this. She wasn’t strong enough.

Jason took Courtney’s jacket, revealing an enticing emerald coloured dress that perfectly kissed her pale and rosed complexion, flaunting her ever-growing belly. The coffee table was decorated with tall candles and expensive china and wine glasses… Her heart melted. So he did remember! Her hand brushed up the little box in her purse. Maybe it hadn’t been such a bad idea? Oh what was he doing? She couldn’t let him hurt her like this. No! This irrational change of behaviour made absolutely no sense. No, none at all! She had to put a stop to this, for her own poor heart’s sake that couldn’t handle any more torment.

“Jason…” she lamented, “what are you doing?” Courtney asked slowly.

Jason stared intently at Courtney, his soft blue eyes burning her pallid skin. She couldn’t meet his eyes… she remembered how harsh and cruel those soft blue eyes had been to her the very last time they were together. It ached at her delicate soul. She couldn’t… if she did, she knew she would lose control, and she needed to compose herself. She didn’t need him impairing her judgement. But she couldn’t look away either. His eyes were forcing a magnetic pull on hers. His lustful blue eyes remained glued on her. It’s like he didn’t even hear her.

“What do you think?” she asked daringly, half twirling in her winsome dress.

“I think you look lovely…” he answered with an air of smugness as he kept staring in the eyes of his ravishing wife. She was truly a gem, one that Jason had to clutch with all his might. He had been an idiot, and now he was going to redeem himself. He had to. She was too precious to lose.

Courtney jerked back slowly, and then cracked a smile.

“What’s wrong?” Jason asked, as concern creased his forehead.

Courtney boldly grabbed Jason’s hand and put it to her stomach. She glowed as burst ecstatically.

“Little buddy is kicking!”

Jason’s body was so close to hers. She could feel the heat emanating from his powerful presence. She bit her lower-lip as she felt an ache growing in her breast.

“Little buddy? You’re insulting my daughter here,” he said, amused.

“It could be a boy.”

He didn’t respond and continued staring. Courtney peered in his soft blue eyes that she loved so, so much.

She looked back down at the coffee table. She was still holding Jason’s hand. It’s not like she hadn’t noticed, it’s that she didn’t want to let go. With all of the willpower she could muster, she reluctantly did let go. She had to.

“You didn’t have to let go.”

Courtney glanced up at her complicated husband.

“J-Jason, what are you doing?” she asked as sadness washed over her face. “You pack, you leave, you abandon me, you talk of divorce and you cut me off for two months! And now all of a sudden again I matter? Jason what are you doing to me? You cannot just toss me around like a ping pong ball! Do my feelings mean so little to you? You are going to be the death of me!” she choked in frustration. She tried to add a jot of humour in her last sentence, but failed miserably as aggravation crept over her face like ivy.

“I-I thought… I thought that we needed this,” he sighed as he swallowed the lump in his throat.

“Out of the blue?”

“I had never stopped caring! You always mattered to me! And I still love you, you know that!” Jason spewed, sounding more harsh than he would have liked.

“Do you Jason? Do you still love me the way you used to? If this marriage meant so much to you, you would have fought for it, not humiliate me at Dri’s birthday party and leave without an explanation,” Courtney said exasperatedly. For once, she seemed exhausted. Just purely tired and drained out. Jason could for once see the incisions his actions inflicted upon her.

“You know damn well why I couldn’t stay!”

“No Jason, that’s the thing! I don’t know! It just doesn’t make any sense!”

“We’ll talk about that later.”

“What, Jake? Is that what this is all about?”

“You know what? Forget it! I-I don’t even know why I even bothered. I guess I thought it’s our fifth anniversary so maybe this marriage could get another chance, but clearly-” he said, voice rising and nose flaring as hurt became apparent in his flushed face.

“Jason… I’m grateful for this. It’s very sweet of you. I love you, and if you don’t want to talk about this now then I’ll comply. But we WILL talk about it. We have to,” she surrendered dourly as she tried to mollify his temper. “So you cooked:

“Just for you, milady,” he said and bowed mockingly.

“Try not to poison my child and I,” Courtney warned sceptically as she raised a protective hand to her stomach.

Jason glared at his dramatic wife, before cracking an irresistible grin. And so complicated husband held a hand to his dramatic wife.

Courtney smiled as she took his hand. She adored him, more than he could ever know.

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Darkness befell on the little town of Port Charles as the little children counted down another day until Christmas. The tree was absolutely lovely. It was huge and green and the fresh scent of forest pine beguiled the residents of the Corinthos’ household. Big ornaments adorned its thorny branches. It stood augustly in the corner of the massive living room, clearly becoming the epitome of beauty.

“Daddy waz wong?”

Sonny leaned against the couch, his head in his heads. He looked up at his beauteous little girl and smiled heartedly.

“Dri quit bugging dad,” whined Michael with a hint of spite in his voice. He stared up from his heap of toys, clearly envious by the attention his little sister was getting.

“I’m not bugging dad!” shot back the wavy-haired girl, as she placed a hand on her hip and stuck out her tongue mischievously.

“You are too!”

‘No!”

“Uh-huh!”

“Stop it,” whined Dri, hands on her hip, just like her aunt.

“Bogger bottom.”

“Carrot-head!” yelled Dri at the top of her lungs causing her big brother to become very red with anger. He opened his mouth about to retaliate with further profanity.

“ENOUGH! Just go to bed! NOW!” thundered Sonny, rubbing his temples with a terrorizing voice he never once used in front of his children.

Carly contemplated her frightened children. She rubbed Michael’s shoulders and nodded her head solemnly. He grabbed his sister hurriedly and ushered her upstairs, far from their father’s unpredictable wrath.

Carly crossed her arms and sighed. She came towards her overstressed husband and took a seat beside him.

“You’re so tense lately. Honey, what’s wrong?”

“Work,” he exclaimed as he propped his back to the plush surface of the couch.

“The explosion at the warehouse two months ago?” she suggested.

He grunted as response.

“Its- ahh- the business has only been going downward… arcane explosions of warehouses, destruction and disappearances of shipments. And I’m getting this bad vibe about tonight…” he said earnestly. “I’m going to call Jason and have him make sure-”

“No!” urged eagerly Carly, suddenly getting up, caught up in her excitement. She later cursed herself for her lack of subtlety. She knew her husband inside out, and she knew what his reaction would be. Sonny looked at his wife in confusion. He waited for an answer and would not be disappointed.

Carly sighed and pleaded with her soft brown eyes.

“Come on, Sonny. Not tonight. He’s with Court and-”

“Yeah? And what did my sister EVER do for Jason? If she truly loves him I’m sure she’ll get over it. Besides he’s done too many sacrifices for her- she can at least be grateful enough to wait for Jason. Can’t she do this one sacrifice? Can’t she stick up for her family? FOR ONCE? If she’s not even able to do that, then Jason deserves much better,” said Sonny sourly. He scrunched up his nose at the mention of his sister. Ha! His sister. Frankly, Sonny couldn’t grasp how someone as selfish as Courtney could be related with him. It came to no surprise that she was just like Mike. They both had the same disappointing gene. What angered him most was the power she had over people, Jason In particular. She had the strength to hurt him so much, she could literally destroy him. And Sonny couldn’t sit and watch her raze everyone he loved. Unfortunately his family was also her family. Maybe he abhorred the fact that she represented his father’s betrayal, which ultimately for everything that went bad in his life. Maybe he loathed the fact that she resembled Mike so much, or that she had a pretty healthy relationship with the father he never really got to know, aside from his letdowns that is. Or perhaps it was her constant undermining and judging everything and he said or did that ticked him off. Either way, sonny and Courtney were never really close. He may love his sister, that didn’t mean he had to like her.

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Courtney laughed at Jason’s attempt of a joke… a really pitiful attempt might I add. But Courtney was still laughing. Her sapphire blue eyes scintillated with joy and life. She was actually happy, and Jason cracked a smile. At that instant, watching her laugh heartedly, he realized just how much he loved this woman.

Courtney, tired, laid down horizontally on the couch.

“This place needs a woman’s touch,” she said, but then damned herself for it. The last thing she wanted was to sound like a desperate wife hinting for reconciliation.

Jason lifted her legs and sat down on the couch, toppling her legs over his. He put his feet over the coffee table and propped his hands behind his head.

“Jase?” Courtney asked lazily.

“Mhmm?” he inquired.

“Technically we’re still married, right?”

Jason furrowed his brow. He didn’t quite get where this conversation was leading, but he became intrigued.

“Er, yeah”

“And it is our fifth anniversary.”

“Y-yeah…” he said slowly, “where are you getting at?”

“Well I guess I wanted to be sure if it was appropriate,” Courtney laughed. She smiled mischievously and Jason was even more befuddled now, amused at her clueless husband. She slowly took out a small wrapped box from her purse. Courtney held it and offered it to him hesitantly.

“For you,” she whispered, anxiously.

Jason smiled and took the pretty little box. Discarding the lovely little wrapper adorning the box, he opened it slowly and laughed.

“ A key?” Jason smiled as he took it out from the box. A copper coloured metallic dentate key.

“Yeah, I never understood why you gave up every single one of your motorcycles after we got married,” Courtney said playfully.

Jason’s heart skipped a beat as he grinned from ear to ear.

“You got me a motorcycle!” he asked excitedly, like a child discovering his own ‘Holy Grail’.

“Happy?”

“Ecstatic… I guess I saw marriage as the pathway to children, and motorcycles and kids did not fit in the portrait,” he said, which was a first for Courtney. She never would have fathomed that Jason- a man who prided himself for living in the moment- would have given so much thought to their marriage and their life as husband and wife.

“Well, I thought they made you look much sexier…” Courtney said licking her lips, then laughing, knowing that she must look ridiculous.

“I’ve got a present for you too.”

Jason dug in the back pocket of his jeans and took out a key. Obviously Jason wasn’t one to decorate extravagantly his presents because a) he barely gave gifts; b) he thought that wrappers were pointless- it all came down to the same present with or without all the fluff and c) Jason could hotwire cars and possessed amazing math and calculation skills yet gifts were insurmountable challenge for Jason Morgan. He handed the key in her delicate white palm. Pregnancy had made her tone much paler. She looked like a ghost, almost as though she would fade away if he breathed too hard.

Courtney stared at it in awe.

“A key?”

“The nursery is finished,” he announced proudly.

“Really?” Courtney smiled with fervour.

“Come on, let’s go see it,” he said getting up and holding a hand out to her.

Courtney contemplated his hand for a moment, before looking up and meeting his icy blues.

“Once we’re there… will you actually stay?” she asked hesitantly.

“Courtney…” interjected Jason wearily. He couldn’t handle another breakdown, he simply couldn’t.

“Stop avoiding the subject. I had a lovely evening and you know that, but we need to-”

“To what? Be honest? Talk? We’ve been talking! And it has ponly ended up in fights. It got us nowhere!”

“No, we need to communicate Jason, like why all of this started, and why you keep blaming Jake…”

Courtney sighed. She mentioned the taboo word and now all hell would break loose. She was very well aware of that fact, but for some reason this thought brought a taunting joy to her.

“Don’t-bring-him-up,” Jason said through his clenched teeth. His eyes narrowed and his breathing became dangerously shallow.

“Jason-” Courtney rolled her eyes. Her husband was so unreasonable at times, the man was so hot-headed.

“If you were having such a lovely evening why ruin it then?” he shot back harshly.

“Thanks for not letting the guards follow me when I go to the loft to meet Jake.”

“You met Jake at our loft?” Jason suddenly dropped his hand. His heart stopped. He didn’t know if this was all some horrible joke or a terrifying nightmare. But Jason knew it wasn’t real. It couldn’t be… It was like a knife daggered through his heart. His mind went blank. This unbearable pain mixed with jealousy surged in his body.

“Yeah so your goons wouldn’t constantly harass me. What’s the big deal?” said Courtney casually.

“It’s our loft, Courtney,” Jason spat bitterly, half incredulous.

“Our loft? Our loft? Jason tell me this, how many times did we go there? Yeah that’s right Jason, ever since we got married we NEVER went to the loft! Never! If it meant anything to you, you sure as hell didn’t show it! Jason, ever since we got married, we-we just started to drift apart, too preoccupied with our own lives, with Sonny’s problems, Carly’s problems, our nephew, our niece, your job, my club… When was the last time we were actually alone without interrupt-”

And conveniently, Jason’s cell phone rang.

Courtney rolled her eyes at the irony of the situation. She pleaded Jason with her crystalline blue eyes not to answer.

“Jase…” she called his name softly, thick with meaning.

He looked away and answered the accursed device. And all he had to say was ‘hello’ and ‘I’m on my way’ for Courtney to guess who was at the other end.

“Courtney, I have to go. It’s… Sonny- it’s important,” he huffed grabbing his leather coat as forgetting the intense conversation they were having only but a minute before.

Courtney rolled her eyes. Sonny. Her brother. No… her ‘brother’ because no real brother would portray his sister as to being so ungrateful and selfish to her own husband. In his mind only Jason ever made sacrifices. Yes, forget all the times she came through for his sorry ass! How could the man who believes Courtney to not care for her family when all she EVER did was fix their problems and vouch for them be her brother? Courtney laughed bitterly and looked Jason straight in his intense blue eyes.

“Are you doing this to spite me?” she demanded acerbically.

Jason shook his head in disbelief. It couldn’t be! Not another fight. The night of their anniversary to top it off! He held up his hands to stop her from talking furthermore and he just shook his head.

“I must go,” he said at once before leaving.

Courtney watched him leave. She watched her husband once more place her helpless child and herself second to the feet of her brother. Her narcissistic brother that didn’t give a rat’s ass about anyone but himself. And yet Jason insisted on rushing to his aid. Maybe no one could ever match his love for her brother? Maybe something was wrong with her? If Carly could tolerate the business, why couldn’t she? Why couldn’t she comprehend her husband’s undying devotion to his boss? Should she be supportive? More loving? Maybe she wasn’t devoted enough to her husband… or maybe she just couldn’t see Sonny’s hidden greatness.

She bit her lower-lip as a thought crossed her mind… Or maybe, just maybe, Jason didn’t love her enough to put her first. Even with their child.

Her heart skipped a beat at the thought of such betrayal. Oh, why was she in denial? Her marriage was a failure and she deluded herself into believing that their wedding anniversary could possibly reignite their spark or rekindle their love, so that the journey to their salvation could thereby begin.

Courtney wiped a warm tear that slid down her cheek. She was done crying. It was over. The hard work, the pain, the struggle, the sweat, the tears, the nights of worry. Nothing would ever change.

Jason was probably right anyways. Though the thought of being alone terrified her, maybe it wasn’t so bad? She didn’t know who she was anymore without Jason. What was her identity aside from being a pregnant wife? Maybe it was time to get her independence back. And with the club finally done, the opening would be right around the corner in about three months’ time…. Her heart wrenched.

A tear pearled down her pink cheek. Maybe she wasn’t quite finished with the crying yet, she told herself sadly.

She sat upright on her couch, placing her head in her hands, when her cell phone made an interesting noise.

She furrowed her brow. Jake sent her a text message. Why would Jake send her a message demanding to meet her, when he knew she would be with her husband? She wrote down the address on a piece of paper left crumpled in her purse. Jake needed her. It was her duty to come to his aid. Besides Jason abandoned her for Sonny. She doubted that he would mind much.

Courtney shook her head of soft blond curls and put the device back in her purse along with the nursery’s key. She got up. It’s not like she had anything left here anyways. Once, she belonged here. Once, this used to be her home. Once, Jason was her husband. She grabbed her things, and sighed.

“Be brave Court. Walk away,” she told herself solemnly.

And that’s exactly what she did. She didn’t look back. Her marriage was over. There was no room for regrets, but before leaving a final salty tear hit the ground of the cold, empty penthouse.

XXXXXX

She carefully walked down the empty street, wrapping her coat tighter against her body. Courtney took the piece of paper from her purse, and gazed at the dilapidated building. Staring at the crackled walls of the whitewashed building sent bad vibes to Courtney. No, horrible vibes. She shouldn’t be here... But she took a step forward.

“For Jake… he needs me,” she muttered to herself as if to give her more strength.

She shivered in the cold winter twilight. It was dark, and she was scared. The three-storey building was small and shady and it was cornered in the port of Elm Street Pier. It was right beside the open cold waters. It resembled one of Sonny’s warehouses that had exploded “accidentally” two months previous, though this had three levels. Courtney shivered. The hair on the back of her head elevated. What if this was a trap?

She rubbed her belly. It always gave her a little more courage knowing that she wasn’t completely alone. Her nose was freezing and she felt as though her fingers would fall off. She hurried her pace.

Placing ah and on the cool metallic knob, she carefully pushed it open. Surprisingly, it opened… No locks? Either the security was really horrible or… was someone waiting for her? She stopped for a split second. Why would Jake want to meet here of all places? Didn’t they specifically designate the loft for such ‘emergencies’?

She entered the building. Obscurity blinded the view. She took a few steps and scanned the room. A small dark room with only a desk decorating the chamber. Suddenly, her eyes fell upon a… a… body? It was so pale, it looked nearly blue. It was lying lifeless on the floor.

She was about to shriek, to run or to call for help when she recognized the expensive long black jacket…

“Jake!” Courtney cried out as she rushed to his side. She kneeled beside him, her hand to her mouth to choke the sobs. She shook him, she desperately called out to him.

“Jake! Wake up! You can’t leave me now!” she called out as she began losing it. No, Jake was all she had left in the world. Jake, and the baby. He couldn’t leave her alone in this cruel world. She had to help him. Al ump formed in her throat. She was shaking with distress.

She checked his pulse. It was faint, but it was still there. She sighed and wiped away the tears in her eyes. He was alive!

In an act of desperation, she grabbed Jake’s cold hand and leaned in on his body.

“Jake, can you hear me?” she asked softly as her other hand brushed up his soft skin.

He moved his head. Oh thank goodness, he was coming back to consciousness. Courtney smiled as Jake’s eyes fluttered opened.

It took a while for him to adjust to the darkness, but focusing his chestnut eyes Courtney. Jake stared at Courtney hard, before understanding where he was. He immediately dropped her hand. He backed away and a look of complete horror washed over his features. Courtney was taken aback by his harshness, but she assumed it was simply the effects of his delirium.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!” Jake demanded.

Courtney furrowed a brow, honestly confused.

“GET THE HELL OUT!” he ordered.

She came by his side in a calmness that irritated Jake. Why was she so serene? Did she not get the urgency of the situation?

“Jake, what happened? Look you’re just-”

“Why the hell are you here?” he interrupted with force. His eyes were bloodshot. He was nowhere near his amicable self.

“Jake, what’s wrong with you?” Courtney asked, shocked by his scythe reaction.

“ANSWER ME DAMNIT!” he yelled. He was out of control. He tried getting up, but he had gotten a nasty blow to the head, and his leg was causing him a lot of pain.

“You asked me to come… you sent a text mess…” she said slowly and suddenly unsure… it didn’t seem like he was expecting her to come. Her stomach churned… “Oh fuck” she thought in complete horror.

Jake shook his head.

“Courtney, you need to run!” he said. And for once she saw fear in his deep chestnut brown eyes. His face contorted… Courtney turned around to see what made his face twist in such agony… And Courtney stopped breathing. Her face became ghastly white. Everything went blank. All thought and air was sucked out her body. She sat beside Jake in complete consternation.

There on the side pillar, a timer connected to a wide range of rainbow coloured wires, counting down…

The air ripped in flamboyant colours as a majestic roar thundered the sky, deafening the population. The port was erupted in black clouds as the fiery mixture of dazzling red, yellow and orange flames propagated the wooden surfaces like plague dancing. The building had imploded, sending jets of flames on the water. It was such beautifully horrifying sight.

XXXXXX

End’s Note: Ahhh a cliffhanger! I hope you enjoyed my longest chapter ever! (even though it took me such a long while to post it!) I kinda merged two smaller chapters into one but I’m worried maybe this might make it hard to follow?

Next Chapter Hope, and Nothing Else - ahh I’ll ruin the chapter if I leak even the slightest information