My first story written for Jason and Elizabeth. Begins the night Jason told Elizabeth he couldn't be the friend he thought she was, and goes complete alternate reality from there. I was tired of Elizabeth chasing after Jason and wondered what he'd do if she actually listened to him and stayed away.

Chapter 1

The tears were finally gone, and so she sat perfectly still. The sound of the waves lapping at the shore was lost to her. Instead, all she could feel was the tightness of her cheeks from her dried tears. Tears that had carried her hurt, molten hot, at his rejection. Tears that she'd refused to let him see.

She waited until she could no longer hear the sound of his motorcycle, and then waited longer still. She warred with herself, glad when he didn't return and still utterly crushed. Only when she finally knew that Jason wasn't coming back did Elizabeth allow herself to rage. Her scream of anger, hurt and heartbreak shattered the silence and stilled the crickets. The scream was soon followed by gut-wrenching sobs.

Liz had wrapped her arms around her middle, in a vain attempt to keep her soul from shattering into thousands of pieces. Her heart was already gone. There was only an empty black void where it used to reside. The futile gesture of comfort was of no help. She cried until her throat was raw, her limbs weak and her gut was a twisting, tumbling pit of despair. She'd had to crawl to the edge when she knew her stomach was about to revolt.

Finally her body was still. She had no more tears to cry, and nothing left for her stomach to reject. If only her mind could fall into the same blissful numbness. It raced like a runaway train, faster and faster, churning the same thoughts over and over. It's too dangerous. You need to stay away. Don't follow me. You're only going to get lost. Do us both a favor. Do not end up there. I can't be the friend you thought I was.

She finally understood. She wanted more and he wanted nothing. She wanted a lover and he didn't even want to be her friend. She had truly screwed up any chance she had with him. She finally got the message he was sending. His kiss hadn't been a promise for the future; it had been a kiss good-bye.

Well, she refused to chase after him again. She refused to chase after any man again. She'd done that with Lucky and where had that gotten her? Right here. Alone yet again as another man rejected her love and walked away from her. She refused to play the fool once more. She'd at least learned something. Too bad she hadn't learned it sooner. Maybe then she could have kept her heart from breaking into tiny shards that were making her bleed inside.

It was time to come up with a plan. She was good at those, though it had been a while since she'd needed to come up with one as drastic. Even though she was still frozen in place, she'd managed to finally harness her mind's churning and focus it in a different direction. She needed to figure out how to change her life completely.

This wasn't a plan like her days as Lizzie the Terrible when she tried to cause as much trouble in order to get noticed. This plan was not to draw notice; this plan was to disappear. Disappear into a new life in Port Charles.

As she went through the steps of her plan, she failed to notice as it grew increasingly lighter. It wasn't until the crickets gave way to birds greeting the pale sky that she finally realized she'd been at Vista Point for hours. Slowly she rose, put one foot in front of the next and started walking home.

Step one: never go to Vista Point again. So without looking back, Elizabeth headed home in the pre-dawn light. As she reached her studio, the sun was just starting to peek over the horizon. She glanced down at her watch and calculated how many hours until she had to be to work at Kelly's.

As a yawn escaped her, and her legs wobbled from fatigue, she decided step two would have to wait until she had a few hours of sleep.

Finally, he signed as the door closed and he heard three distinct clicks as the locks slid into place. He'd nearly gone to her so many times over the last hours. The tears, the gut wrenching sobs, her throwing up from what he was sure was pure pain and heartbreak had nearly been too much to bear.

But it wasn't his place to comfort her. Somehow he doubted she would have accepted it anyway. She would have skittered away and proclaimed she was fine, but he knew she wasn't. Even a blind man would be able to tell that. What bothered him most was the eerie calm that had descended on her, even as her eyes continued to glance madly around.

Back out on the docks, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed. It ran only once and then there was almost a frantic hello.

"It's me. She's home."

"It's dawn. She just got home?"

"Yeah. She stayed up there quite a while." Even though he wanted to say what he'd witnessed, he kept silent. He also knew the man he was talking to would never ask.

"Thanks, Francis."

"Sure. Anything else?"

"No. Nothing else."

And so the calm, controlled facade had returned. Francis vowed right there that he'd keep an eye on Elizabeth whenever he could. Maybe he should talk to Max and Johnny. Three unofficial part-time guards would be better than nothing until his boss got his head out of his butt.

Stepping from the shadows, he watched Sonny Corinthos' guard walk away. No wonder his boss was getting the upper hand. He'd followed the two all the way home and never once had the guard suspected he was there. Apparently the lovely Miss Webber had wormed her way into more than just Jason Morgan's life.

Smiling, he dialed and waited for his boss to pick up. "Miss Webber was at Vista Point again with Morgan. He left her alone again. She just returned home. She seemed pretty distraught after the encounter. Morgan sent a guard, but not a very good one. I followed them the entire way home and he didn't know I was there. Any orders?"

After listening, he nodded his head. "I understand. I'll keep an eye on her, let you know if she goes to meet Morgan again."

Chapter 2

Jason walked into Kelly's shortly after noon, his eyes automatically scanning the area. The first thing he noticed was Elizabeth wasn't there. This is stupid, he chided himself. He knew she got home late. He knew she'd be tired. He was tired after waiting up all night for Francis to call him. By the time Francis finally had called, he'd been ready to drive back to Vista Point to find out what was going on. But he wouldn't allow himself to do that.

"Hey, hon," Tammy said as he sat down at the counter. "What can I get for you?"

"Coffee, black," he answered.

"Rough night?" she asked sympathetically. He'd seen his reflection in the window, and he knew he looked bad. Apparently she thought so as well.

"You could say that," he mumbled.

"Anything else?" she asked as he took a sip.

The ringing of the phone cut him off and he nodded briefly as she excused herself to answer it.

"Kelly's....Hey, Liz. Honey, where are you? I thought you were going to be here at noon."

Jason kept his head down, but listened to every word the blonde woman said.

"No, no, sweetie, if you can't make it today, I understand. Are you all right? You sound...I don't know, not like yourself."

Jason now raised his head halfway. Everything else was forgotten as he blatantly eavesdropped on Tammy's conversation and her concern about Elizabeth.

"No, no, we'll be fine. You just take care of yourself. Think you'll be in tomorrow? Okay."

She looked ready to hang up the phone, but obviously Elizabeth had decided to say more. Tammy was making soft listening sounds and nodding her head, though her eyebrows were knit together in worry. Jason had the cup of coffee raised halfway to his mouth, and was openly staring at Elizabeth's boss.

"Sure, sweetie. I can re-work your schedule. It may take a day or two, but if you want nights we can work that out. I'll see you tomorrow then, Liz."

Finally hanging up the phone she turned back to Jason. He could see her puzzlement clearly on her face. It only made his insides churn more. "Now, what can I get you?"

He wanted to ask about Elizabeth. Why she wasn't here, why she was obviously re-working her schedule, why Tammy was concerned. Something was definitely going on and he wanted to know about it. Instead he shook his head and pulled out a twenty and dropped it on the counter. "Nothing, Tammy. I gotta get going."

"Alright, Jason. See you later," she called out to his retreating back.

Liz hung up the phone and sighed. She hated lying to Tammy, but for her plan to work she had to start now. Before she lost her nerve. Pulling her hair back in a messy ponytail, she grabbed some change and her keys and headed out the door.

Once outside, she turned away from the docks and headed for the corner newsstand. She dropped a bill on the counter, picked up a newspaper from the top of the stack and smiled at the man while he got her change. Pocketing the money, she turned and quickly headed back to her studio.

By the time she was upstairs, she had freed the classified section from the center of the paper. Once inside, she dropped the remainder of the paper in the trashcan, grabbed a marker from her supply table and plopped down on the couch, pulling her legs up beside her.

"Step two: find a new place to live," she mumbled to herself as he folded back the pages.

She had decided last night that she could no longer live at the studio. It once held memories of her and Jason. When he stayed after he was shot, when he came back near Valentine's Day last year, the time they nearly slept together. But then she ruined those memories. Sighing, she looked down at the couch. She'd slept with Zander on this couch. The couch definitely had to go. Maybe even before she got a new place.

Hastily shifting off the couch like it would burn her if she sat there any longer; she leaned forward and began searching through the paper. Looking at locations, prices, and mentally debating the merits of one bedroom versus a studio, she circled several places to check out. She was just too tired to go trekking all over town today. She'd go out first thing tomorrow. For today, she'd start going through her studio and figure out how much she had to pack.

She realized that she also had to figure out how much of her stuff she still had the apartment she'd rented from Bobbie. When was the last time she'd been there? She couldn't even remember, or remember how much stuff was even still there. She realized she should start packing up that stuff and bringing it to the studio. No sense having boxes in two places, or alerting anyone of her plans prematurely.

She picked up the phone and called the hospital. She hung up as the nurse while the nurse paged Bobbie. She didn't want to talk to the older woman; she just wanted to make sure she wouldn't be there at the house when she went over. No good running into someone who would only ask questions she wasn't ready to answer. Bobbie would want to know why she was moving. Even if Elizabeth didn't say anything, she feared Bobbie mentioning it one day in front of the wrong person. Until she was in her new place, she didn't want anyone to know that she was up to something.

Grabbing her empty suitcase, she went downstairs and caught a cab. When she returned an hour and a half later with her now full suitcase and a brimming duffel bag, she debated the merits of adding another step to her plan; getting a car.

"First things first," she chided herself as she paid the cab fair and climbed out of the backseat. Slinging the bag over her shoulder and pulling the suitcase behind her, she then began the process of lugging it up the stairs to her studio. Next time, pack lighter.

When he saw the light come on in her studio he pulled out his cell phone and dialed.

"The Webber girl seems to be in the process of moving her stuff into the studio."

"Great. She'll be even more isolated there, and when we need her she'll be easier to get at."

"Want me to keep watching?"

"No, not much could change in a couple of days. I have some other things for you to do. Come back tonight."

"Be right there."

Chapter 3

Standing at the counter, Elizabeth couldn't remember a time when she ever felt so exhausted in all her life. She wearily looked up at the clock and wondered how she would ever make it another forty-five minutes until the diner closed. Even then she wouldn't be done, she'd still have another half hour or more of closing before she could go home.

Home, she snorted. Her home was a collection of boxes and mess and chaos. Much like her life. Kind of fitting she figured since she couldn't imagine that she really deserved more than the mess she was in at the moment. No customers were in the diner and she let her head fall forward onto the counter with a small groan. All she could think about was how tired she was.

Five days. Five days of pure exhaustion. Five days of frantic work and secrets since she came up with the plan that was now consuming her life. The plan was going good so far. She just had to keep it together a little more, but that would require staying awake and all she wanted to do was sleep.

She'd found a place yesterday just before work and signed the lease this morning. All of her belongings were out of Bobbie's and safely at her studio. When she'd turned in her keys, she'd told a surprised Bobbie that there was no sense in keeping two places when her studio would do just fine. Another lie that had just so easily rolled off her tongue. She hated herself and how much she was lying to people.

She hated when Lucky had lied to her about loving her. She hated Nikolas and Gia for lying to her about the accident and had hardly spoken to them since. Hated Lucky and Sarah for lying about their relationship. She had even called Jason a liar when he was the person that always told her the truth. And now she was right back in her Lizzie Webber days; lying to everyone and sneaking around.

She tried to tell herself it was for a good cause - her plan. But every time she told a lie or distorted the truth, she felt horrible inside. She just didn't want anyone to know she was moving until she was already in her new place. Then she hoped that everyone would see how happy she was and how perfect the place was and forgive her little white lies. But who would it really matter to now? There weren't many people from her old life that she was leaving that she even wanted to know where she was moving.

Now that she had finally found a place, all she wanted to do was get to her studio and finish packing. She'd done quite a bit of work there, which was why she was so exhausted. She'd go out in the mornings, look for a place, head to Kelly's where she'd work a full shift, and then head back to her studio where she would spend hours packing. She figured sleep didn't matter now, she could sleep when this was all over.

The ring of the bell above the door caused her to jerk her head up and she cringed. There stood Tammy looking at her very concerned. Why wasn't she out on a date? She wasn't supposed to be here to catch Elizabeth nearly asleep on the job.

"Sweetie, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Tammy. I'm just tired is all," Liz answered with a small smile. It was all she could muster at the moment.

"You look like you're ready to drop. Are you sleeping?" By now Tammy was sitting at the counter and Elizabeth had retreated to the other end to escape Tammy's scrutinizing gaze.

"Yeah, I've just been really busy. I've been organizing my studio." Not really a lie. She was organizing it in order to move out. She didn't lie; she just didn't reveal everything.

"Anybody been in lately?" Tammy asked. Elizabeth sighed softly in relief. It appeared that yet another person had just easily accepted her lies.

"Not for about fifteen minutes," she told her boss, as she grabbed a rag. "Mind if I clean up out front?"

"Go ahead," Tammy answered. "I'm going to close up for the night. I don't think anyone else will be coming by tonight."

Elizabeth walked outside and if she'd had more energy she would have been ecstatic. Closing early. Normally she would have been thrilled to escape early and would have thought what to do with her nearly extra hour of the day. Instead all she could think that it would be all the sooner until she could collapse in her studio and hopefully have a night without dreams.

He watched her from the gate of the courtyard and it was all he could do to not go over and make her tell him how she was. He'd seen her twice since the day she'd called Tammy. He'd made it halfway to her studio that day, but stopped himself from continuing on. His brain overrode his heart and refused to let his feet go any further. So the first time he'd seen her since Vista Point was three days ago. She'd been distant. A small, professional smile forced on her face as she'd only said the minimum amount necessary to take his order.

She'd looked tired then, dark smudges starting to show under eyes. Yesterday when he'd seen her the circles were more pronounced, despite the makeup she'd tried to hide them with. He wondered if she was sleeping and he hated not being able to ask. He'd asked her, before he really knew what he was doing and her face turned hard and brittle. She said that was a personal question, the kind friends ask each other and then walked away without answering. Then she had Courtney cover for her and refused to look at him the rest of the time he was in the diner.

Tonight he was ready to go over and grab her and not let her go until she answered him. Then the door opened, and he took a step back as Tammy walked out.

"Liz, sweetie, why don't you go home? I'll finish up here."

"No, Tammy, I'm fine. I can do my job."

Tammy gave a little laugh. "Elizabeth, I insist. You're ready to fall asleep on your feet. Here's your purse and the boxes you had in the back. Go home and get some sleep. I insist."

"Thanks, Tammy," she said softly, her shoulders drooping.

"What are all these boxes for anyway?"

Thank goodness for nosey women. Jason had been wondering the same thing and now Tammy was giving voice to his questions.

"I'm reorganizing my studio," Elizabeth answered with a shrug.

She was lying. The thought flashed through Jason, he could always tell when she was lying and holding something back. The only thing he couldn't figure out was why she would feel the need to lie about her studio. That was her place of refuge, she loved that place.

"All these boxes you've taken, you could pack your entire studio," Tammy joked. Bending down to pick up the boxes she missed Elizabeth's look of panic, but Jason saw it. What was she up to?

"I've just got a lot of stuff," Elizabeth answered. "Thanks, Tammy."

"Elizabeth, why don't you take tomorrow off?"

She adamantly shook her head. "I need Saturday off. But thanks. I'm gonna go to sleep, I'll be fine tomorrow."

"Alright," the blonde said reluctantly. "But don't hesitate to call if you change your mind."

"I won't," Elizabeth answered with determination. "Night, Tammy."

"Night, Elizabeth," she answered and then turned to go back into the diner.

Jason waited a moment and then followed after Elizabeth. He was only making sure she got home safely since she'd headed towards the docks. It wouldn't be right if he didn't make sure she got home safely. He could follow discreetly, making sure she never knew he was there, and then head over to the Oasis. He definitely wasn't looking forward to that. After tonight he knew he would certainly need a ride on his bike.

Coming around the corner, he stopped short at the scene in front of him. Elizabeth was stopped on the docks. His eyes narrowed into slits when he saw who she was with, but what really got him was the person standing by watching the pair.

Chapter 4

"Elizabeth."

"Zander," she responded, barely concealing the contempt in her voice.

"Headed home?"

"What's it to you?"

"I'll walk you."

"No thanks," she said stiffly and tried to move past him.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just want to go home."

"So let me help," he said as he reached for the boxes.

"No," she snapped. "I don't need anymore of your help."

"Liz?"

"Get it through your thick head, Zander, I don't want your help. I don't want you around me; I don't wand to see you. I meant it yesterday, I meant it the day before that, I mean it now."

"What's wrong with you?" he asked, his voice rising to meet her tone.

"Me and my stupidity. For thinking you were anything like that person in the crypt. Was it an act? Just another man playing my emotions? 'Cause once we got out of there, I barely saw any trace of that man you showed me, even though I looked really hard."

"I'm still that person," he declared.

"No, you're not. You lied to me, broke your promise, went after my friends, tried to set up Jason."

"There it is," he spat out. "What this is all about. Jason. You're mad 'cause he pushed you away. Wouldn't let you jerk him around like you did last year with him and Lucky."

"This isn't about Jason. It's about us and the mistake we made."

"I don't think it was a mistake."

"Well I do!" she shouted, and then turned and took a deep breath trying to calm down. She was too tired to get into this same fight with Zander. Finally in a more even voice she continued, "I think it was a mistake and you won't let it go. I don't want to be with you."

"You want Jason," he said contemptuously.

"I am not discussing Jason with you. In fact, I'm not discussing anything with you. I'm going home."

She moved to step past him when he grabbed her arm and spun her around causing the boxes in her hand to clatter to the ground. Lowering his voice he leaned in close, "you can deny it all you want, but this is about Jason, it always has been. So fine, I'll leave you alone, but when he breaks your heart don't come running to me."

"Let go of my arm," she demanded through clenched teeth.

They both turned their heads as they heard sudden, heavy footsteps on the stairs. "Miss Webber? Everything all right?"

Zander immediately dropped her arm and stepped back from her. Elizabeth looked back up at the man who now stood protectively at her side and glared down at Zander. She knew he was one of Sonny's bodyguards, she remembered seeing him recently. She just couldn't remember his name.

"I'm fine," she smiled weakly at him. "Thank you. I'm just going home."

Stooping to retrieve her boxes, she stopped when the man quickly reached for them and shifted them into the arm farthest away from her. "Let me walk you home. The docks aren't safe this time of night. Never know who you'll run into."

She almost laughed at the bitter irony of the words, but kept the mirthless chuckle buried. "That's alright. That's just my building right over there. Thanks anyway..."

She drew out the last part, fishing for his name and was pleased when he supplied it. "Max. And really, I insist."

Stepping to the side to let her pass, he started after her, only pausing long enough to glare at Zander. She knew he was non-verbally threatening the younger man to stay away from her. Jason would have done the same thing. Jason, she sighed, and then shook her head angrily for once again letting her thoughts drift to him.

When they reached the door of her studio, she unlocked the locks and then paused. "Thank you, Max, for stepping in with Zander and for seeing me home. But I can manage to get those inside," she said gesturing to the boxes he held. She peered up at him and then quickly spoke; "can I ask you something?"

He nodded his head and she continued on. "Did Sonny or Jason assign you to watch me?"

"No, Miss Webber. I was just on my way home and saw the Smith punk grab you. Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine," she insisted slightly annoyed. It was the third time he'd asked her and she was tiring of it quickly. "Thanks again, Max. Hey, can I ask you one more thing? Not that I think he'd care, but could you not tell Jason about tonight? Since he didn't assign you to watch over me, there's really no need for you to say anything, right?"

He nodded his head and then left after saying goodnight. When she could no longer hear his footsteps on the stairs, Elizabeth let out a relieved sigh and then opened the door and pushed the boxes inside. Boxes were stacked everywhere and there were only a few things left to finish packing up. She figured this would be the last time she would need to bring boxes home and she was glad. It was becoming difficult to walk around her studio and she didn't want to have to make too many trips to get all her stuff out and over to her new place.

Jason was waiting for him when he came down the stairs and out onto the dock. "Took you long enough to step in, Max. I'm curious though as to why you're here on your night off."

"Just walking around," the taller man shrugged.

"Uh-huh. Walking from Kelly's to Elizabeth's studio, when your apartment is across town? How come you're following her, Max?"

"Just keepin' an eye on her," he said. "How come you're here?"

"Just doing the same," Jason replied. "I think you and I need to have a little talk."

Once the enforcer and the bodyguard were gone, he stepped out from behind the dumpster and pulled his phone out. "Yeah, it's me. Miss Webber's home. Interesting encounter on the docks with Zander Smith, the kid working for DiLucca. She doesn't seem so taken with him now. One of Morgan's men broke them up when Smith grabbed her arm. Guard walked her home, then met up with Morgan afterwards. Seems everything about him pushing her away is a scam.

"One other thing, seems the lovely Miss Webber is moving. Her studio is full of boxes and she signed a lease for a new place this morning."

"Thank you. Come back to the yacht. You don't need to watch Miss Webber anymore tonight. It's time to step up our plans against Corinthos and Jax."

Chapter 5

Jason stepped into the elevator and punched the button for the parking garage. He'd gotten a tip that Alcazar was meeting with Roy at the Port Charles Hotel and now would be the perfect time to take a look around the yacht. Bringing his hand up, he rubbed the back of neck trying to ease some of the tension that seemed to have taken up permanent residence. Between surveillance on Alcazar and watching over Courtney, he'd had no chance to talk to Elizabeth. He tried shoving his thoughts into the back of his mind, but they were seeping out more and more.

It had been three days since he'd seen her and Zander on the docks. He hadn't been very close, but he'd heard everything she'd said. She tended to get loud when she was angry, and it appeared that Zander had sure ticked her off that night. Part of him had soared when she said that her involvement with Zander had been a mistake, but he still wouldn't allow himself to think about being with her. He just couldn't. It just seemed his subconscious wasn't listening to the rest of his brain right now, because he couldn't figure out why she was lying to Tammy and why she'd seemed to panic when the older woman had joked about Elizabeth packing up her studio. It bothered him because he couldn't figure out what was going on.

What bothered him most though, was Max, Johnny and Francis saying they'd taken it upon themselves to look out for her since he was pushing her away. Francis couldn't even look him in the eye as he told about her gut-wrenching sobs and throwing up after the last time he'd been at Vista Point with her. The eerie calm the bodyguard described bothered Jason as well, because Elizabeth was never still.

"Mr. Morgan?"

He looked up and blinked as Phillip called his name again. The elevator had stopped in the parking garage and Phillip had his arm out, holding open the door.

"You coming out, sir?"

Jason nodded and exited the elevator as he looked at the man. Was he one of the bodyguards who had manhandled Elizabeth up to Carly's doorstep? He shook his head angrily. He wouldn't have to worry about her waiting around by his motorcycle anymore, not after what Max told him.

A punch to the gut would have been more welcome instead of Max repeating Elizabeth's words. Not that I think he'd care, but could you not tell Jason about tonight? She didn't think he'd care that Zander had harassed her and grabbed her arm. The arm that she'd been shot in. Why wouldn't he care?

As he roared out of the parking garage, he growled in frustration. Of course she'd think he wouldn't care. He'd been cold, distant, telling her to stay away. He'd kissed her and then walked away from her. He was shutting her out, telling her it was the danger, but deep down he knew that wasn't he only reason. He was trying to protect his himself from being hurt if she chose another man over him again. Even after she seemed to want him, he pushed her away. And part of him wondered if he wasn't actually punishing her for sleeping with Zander. That's something Sonny would do. Push someone away in punishment for an action he didn't approve of. How many times had he kicked Carly out of the penthouse?

With an annoyed sigh, he stopped his motorcycle at the pier and shook his head to clear it. He had to stop thinking about Elizabeth while he did this job. Maybe tonight he could see her before he went to the Oasis. No. He'd see her tomorrow, when he wouldn't have to run off to go guard Sonny's little sister at the strip club. Taking a deep breath to get himself in the proper frame of mind, he pulled on his gloves and headed off to the yacht.

Elizabeth opened the door, a huge smile gracing her face as she walked up to the man sitting outside. "Hey, Johnny. What can I get for you?"

"Hey, Miss Webber. I'll take a number three and a Coke."

"Johnny, my name is Elizabeth. 'Miss Webber' makes me sound like an old maid school teacher," she laughed.

Johnny laughed until he caught sight of the man who entered the courtyard and made a beeline straight for Elizabeth. She noticed the change in his demeanor and cautiously turned around, hoping that it wouldn't be Jason that had prematurely ended the first real laugh she'd had in days.

"Gavin, what are you doing here?" Wrong thing to say she realized too late when she felt Johnny tense behind her and shift in his seat. "I thought you had today off."

"I do. My cousin just wanted me to give you this for your couch," he told her as he pulled some bills out of his pocket.

"Oh no," she protested and pushed the money back at him. "I gave it to him. Consider it my payment for helping yesterday and letting us use his truck."

"He said he couldn't just take it, especially after he saw how empty your new place is. You don't have a bed and now you don't even have a couch. So he insists."

"I said no," she stated firmly. "He's doing me a favor by taking the couch off my hands. I was going to just throw it away."

Gavin looked puzzled for a minute before he grabbed her hand and forced the money into it. Then he walked away before she could protest again. Elizabeth stood there and sputtered for a minute before she angrily shoved the money into her back pocket. "Why does every man treat me like I'm incapable of making a decision and that I don't actually mean what I say?"

"Elizabeth?"

She started and spun around, a sheepish smile on her face. "Johnny, I kinda forgot you were there."

"I could tell," he laughed. "What was that about? You moved?"

She twisted her fingers together as she looked down at him. She'd barely just told Tammy, hadn't even told her grandmother yet, but she couldn't lie to Johnny. "Yeah, I moved yesterday."

"You like it?"

"Oh, it's great, Johnny. Lots of light for painting."

"You gave up your studio?" he asked in surprise.

"My studio's not meant to live in, and I can't afford it and an apartment. So this new place works out great." She stopped and then gave a nervous chuckle. "I better get your order in."

After the door closed, Johnny pulled out his phone and dialed. When the voicemail kicked in he glanced once at the door to make sure Elizabeth wasn't going to come out and then spoke. "Jason, it's Johnny. Call me when you get this. It's about Miss Webber. She's moved."

That should get his attention, Johnny thought as he put the phone back in his pocket. Maybe now Jason would stop this foolish quest of his to keep Elizabeth away.

As she walked to the bus that evening, Elizabeth angrily swore under her breath. Why hadn't she remembered that Johnny was standing right behind her? Why hadn't she just taken Gavin aside and finished the conversation? And why, oh why, hadn't she just lied to Johnny about moving, or just pulled a Jason and ignored the question? Of course, hindsight was great for thinking about all the things that she could or should have done. It was just when she was in the moment that her brain could never think of those wonderful things. What she really needed was a pause button on her life so she could just freeze everything until she came up with the perfect solution.

So, newspaper in hand, she was now accelerating her plan. She'd hoped for a day or two to settle into her new place before beginning part three. Unfortunately, with Jason's co-worker knowing she'd moved, she no longer had that luxury. Not that she'd ever planned on just sitting around; she just hadn't planned on jumping from the frying pan into the fire. When was she ever supposed to sleep, to catch her breath? Although, being completely exhausted at night had its finer points. She rarely dreamed, and if she did, her body was too tired to wake up or fully remember the dream the next day.

As she sank into the hard plastic seat of the bus, she flipped through the paper until she found the want ads. Time to get a new job. A job where Jason wouldn't be stopping by nearly every day for coffee. A place where he would have no convenient excuse for just dropping by and making her life miserable. And once she had her new job, the most important parts of her plan would be complete.

Her new apartment was no where near Harbor View Towers or the docks, thus she didn't have to see or think about the shell of the warehouse. She'd physically distanced herself from Jason. Add a new job in, and the physical distance would be complete. A new job would mean new co-workers, new people to hopefully interact with. New people, new friends, new places to hang out. Once again, it was all about the re-invention of Elizabeth Webber. Pausing for just a moment, she wondered how many times a person could reinvent themselves until what was there originally no longer existed.

Get a grip, girl. You sound like a pop-psychology class. You're not losing yourself, you're just refocusing. Somehow, even as she said the words in her mind, she couldn't help but feel she was completely wrong. She was losing herself, because once again, she was twisting herself inside out for somebody else.

Shifting harshly in her seat and earning a glare from the woman in front of her, Elizabeth angrily shook her head. Thinking about who she was changing for wasn't going to do her any good. The sooner she got away from him, the better. Once she didn't have to fear seeing him everyday, she might actually have a moment to think about how to put her soul and her heart back together again. Until then, she could not allow herself to think about Jason Morgan and his too dangerous life, and the way he could apparently flip his emotions on and off like a light switch, or his motorcycle and the way he would smile when he offered her a ride.

Groaning, she dropped her head into her hands. She was never going to survive this if she didn't get a new job soon. The thoughts and feelings were threatening to overwhelm her every day and she just couldn't give into them. She had to throw her focus and energy into finding a job. So tonight, it appeared she was going to have to polish up the old resume and start the job hunt tomorrow morning. Because Elizabeth Webber had a plan, and nothing and no one was going to deter her from it now.

Chapter 6

Jason stood in front of the door to Elizabeth's studio and knocked with determination. He'd gone straight home last night after seeing Courtney home from the Oasis and then gone straight to bed. He didn't want to be tired when he tried to get her to talk to him today. The last thing he needed was to be short on sleep and then snap at Elizabeth. He already knew that after pushing her away and keeping his distance, the last thing she would want right now would be to talk to him.

He knocked again, this time louder and waited. Kelly's hadn't opened yet, so even if she had the morning shift she should be home. Knocking again, Jason began to feel frustration creep into his body. What was taking her so long to answer the door? The moment the thought entered his mind, another feeling took hold and squeezed tight around his heart. Concern.

"Elizabeth?" His voice echoed in the bare hallway, but still there was no answer.

Please just be asleep. Please be sleeping on your couch. The words entered his mind and he clung to them, repeating them over and over as he reached for his keys and the ones to her door. He put the first key in the lock and stared at it in frustration when it wouldn't turn. The frustration grew as the other two keys yielded the same result. The door was not opening. Had she changed her locks? Did she feel that much anger towards him that she couldn't bear the thought of him having a set of keys to her studio? Not caring any longer how angry she might be, he grabbed his lock picks and glancing briefly down the hall to make sure it was empty, set about picking the locks to her door.

Opening the door slowly in case she really was asleep, he felt his heart plummet. The artist's table was gone, and as he pushed the door open further, he realized that everything was gone. The place was completely empty. He didn't know what was worse. The thought that he'd feared she'd been kidnapped once again, or the sinking realization that she'd moved and he had no idea where she was. Had she left Port Charles and not told him? Is this how she felt the day she'd gone to Jake's to discover he'd left town?

Taking in a shaky breath, he pulled out his phone and realized it was off. He never turned it off. How in the world had that happened? Quickly turning it on, he discovered that he had one message waiting for him. Retrieving it, he suddenly wished it had been another message from Sonny sending him off on some fool-hearty personal errand. Anything but Johnny's voice.

Jason, it's Johnny. Call me when you get this. It's about Miss Webber. She's moved.

He glanced at the time stamp and saw that it was from yesterday afternoon. Had Johnny seen her, or had he discovered her empty place himself? Stepping dejectedly into the hall, he pulled the door closed behind him. Then he set off for the penthouse where he knew Johnny was on duty. This was not a discussion to be had over the phone.

Elizabeth sat on the floor of her apartment and hung her head, her hair hiding her face in the empty room. She had to get to work soon, and yet, all she wanted to do was cry. Why was this so hard? She was trying to do what he wanted, but all she wanted to do was to run to Jason and make him be with her. But she wouldn't do that; she couldn't. She'd promised herself a week and a half ago that she'd stay away and no longer go running to him with every problem or every time she was lonely. Of course, him telling her he couldn't be that type of friend to her helped immensely in her decision.

She would, however, allow herself a few moments of pity and perhaps even tears before she got back to the plan. The tears flowed freely and soon they were filled with overwhelming pain and grief. She barely made it to the bathroom before she was ill. The grief was becoming too all consuming when she gave into it. Which was why this was only the second time she'd allowed herself to cry since that night at Vista Point.

Pushing herself back, she collapsed against the side of the tub. She knew her legs wouldn't hold her at this moment if she tried to stand. She forced the tears, pain and despair back down inside where she kept it locked up. She couldn't do this anymore. She had to follow the plan. Nothing else mattered. Not her happiness, not the dull queasy feeling that had gripped her inside like a vice, not even Jason. She was doing this for him because this is what he wanted her to do. That was as much as she was allowed to think of him.

Finally pushing herself up on shaking legs, she made her way over to the sink. Taking a look at herself in the mirror, she cringed at the image. Her cheeks were hollow, her eyes listless and the dark circles underneath them stood out starkly against her pale skin. No wonder Tammy was always worried about her.

Walking to her phone, she dialed and then waited. "Tammy, hi, it's Elizabeth. I'm really sorry, but I don't think I can make it tonight. I'm feeling under the weather...Yeah, I'm just gonna get some sleep. I should be fine tomorrow."

Putting the phone back in its cradle, she grabbed her purse and headed for the drug store. She had to sleep and the only way she could do that and not wake up with nightmares would be if she got something to help. The entire time in the store, she barely raised her eyes off the ground, ignored the curious looks from the cashier and tried desperately to keep the tears at bay. She felt so weak because the tears pricked the backs of her eyes the entire walk back to her apartment, and she hated herself for it. She hadn't been this much of a wreck when everything was going wrong with Lucky, why should she feel this horrible over a man who hadn't even told her he loved her pushing her away? And why, oh why, did she allow herself to this twisted up over men?

Jason stepped off the elevator and turned right, headed straight for Sonny's penthouse. Johnny looked surprised to see him there, and even more surprised when Jason said he wasn't there to see Sonny, to see him.

"I got your message. Where's Elizabeth?"

"I don't know, Jason," he said, looking regretful.

"You don't know? I thought you three were watching her," he clenched his jaw, willing himself to remain calm. "How could the three of you not know she was doing this?"

"Because we're all busy, too, Jason," Johnny said, and then looked down to take a breath. "The only chance we get to watch her is a few hours here and there when we're not on duty. Since no guard was assigned to her, what do you want from us?"

And for the second time that day, Jason felt like he'd been kicked in the teeth. He didn't put a guard on Elizabeth, even after knowing that Johnny, Francis and Max were working on their off time to try and keep tabs on her. This day was just getting better and better and it wasn't even noon yet. "You're right. So, what do you know?"

"She moved Saturday. Yesterday she was at Kelly's and a kid who works there, Gavin, tried to give her money from his cousin for her couch. Miss Webber didn't want it, said she didn't want the couch anymore. The kid was insistent, said she didn't have a bed or a couch, and then shoved the money into her hand and left before she could give it back."

"So, she's still in Port Charles?" The question seemed redundant since Johnny said she was at Kelly's after her move, but he had to ask just to make sure.

"Yeah, just found a new place. Said the studio wasn't meant to be lived in, and she couldn't afford it and an apartment, so she found a place where she could live and paint."

She gave up the studio and stayed in Port Charles. He was wrong, his day could get worse and it looked like there was no relief in sight. After all their time in that studio, she'd just given it up.

"Did she say where she was living?" He hoped that question sounded casual, but he wasn't so sure.

"No," Johnny said with regret. "Seemed to forget I was even there. After this Gavin kid left, she was angry. Muttering something about men and why they treat her like she can't make a decision and doesn't mean what she says. I couldn't follow her 'cause I had to get back to the warehouse. I'm sorry, Jason."

Jason didn't even know if he acknowledged Johnny's words. All he could concentrate on was the feeling of breathlessness as his friend repeated Elizabeth's words. He turned and slowly headed for his penthouse, his brain working overtime and calling himself every name in the book and then coming up with a few new ones. He was making decisions for her, telling her to stay away, not listening to what she said. He'd become the kind of person she hated most and he hated himself for it. He tried to tell himself that her hating him was a good thing, because then maybe she'd finally stay away and she'd be safe. That's all he ever wanted for her. What he hadn't counted on, or even thought of, was the red-hot pain that was shooting through his stomach now that it seemed he was finally getting his wish.

Standing in the middle of his empty penthouse, Jason knew he couldn't stay there and stare at those four walls. He would lose what little of his control he had left. He opened the door and walked to the elevator ignoring Johnny peering around the corner. Hopefully a long ride, followed by a game of pool at Jake's, would clear his head. But somehow he got the feeling it would only torture him more.

Chapter 7

"Okay, you can do this," Elizabeth said to herself as she got off the bus and walked toward the large glass and brick building. She carried a folder in her hand and lightly held onto her purse with the other. Just outside the door she paused, and took several deep breaths in order to calm herself.

Step three of the plan wasn't going as easy as the first two. For over a week she'd been calling regarding wants ads, knocking on doors, and leaving her resume. And so far she'd found nothing.

She knew it was way past the time to get a different job. Apart from having to get away from Jason, she reasoned it was good to move beyond the job she'd had in high school. Besides, Jason had come into the diner five times since she'd moved. She wasn't sure how much more of his piercing gaze and soft words she could take. He was driving her crazy. Telling her they couldn't be friends, but he was always there. Saying she had to stay away from him, and then turning around and asking how she was doing. And peopled accused her of sending mixed signals.

Opening the door she strode inside, hoping to project more confidence than she really felt. She didn't want another waitressing job, and didn't want to be a receptionist or secretary, but she was getting desperate. Sure a gopher job in an art gallery wouldn't really be a step up pay-wise, but moving into the art field would hopefully be a good thing in the long run.

Smiling warmly at the receptionist, she said, "I'm Elizabeth Webber. I have an appointment with Mr. Randolf regarding the runner job."

The receptionist buzzed Mr. Randolf and soon Elizabeth found herself following him through gleaming corridors and into his richly furnished office. Sitting in a comfortable chair across from him, as he sat behind the heavy desk skimming over her resume once more, she let her gaze lift to the paintings mounted on the wall behind him. All she could hope was that her mouth didn't completely go dry before she could speak.

"I see," he said, looking up and setting his glasses to the side, "that you worked for Chloe Morgan. The Chloe Morgan?"

"Yes," she said, her brain telling her she could do this without looking like a complete idiot. "She needed an assistant to help color in her sketches, review fabric swatches and designs and help around the office."

"And you attended PCU and were taking art classes. Are you an artist?"

"I paint," she said casually. The last thing she wanted to appear to be was a local artist more interested in showing her portfolio than getting a job. "I don't know how good I would say I am, but I enjoy painting and art. I hope to be able to go back to college and finish my degree. Right now I'm just looking for a job that's in my field of passion and study. I do not want to be a waitress forever. I'm just looking to get my foot in the door."

"Well then, Miss Webber, I admire your enthusiasm," he said as he leaned back against his chair. "And I think you'll be great here. You can start out as a runner and general help around the gallery, but I have to tell you, I'd like you to work closely with my assistant. She getting married and heading off to Paris in November. If things work out like I think they can, I'd like to groom you for her job. You'd be working with the local artists, organizing showcases and exhibitions. Think you'd be interested in that?"

Elizabeth could barely speak, so she settled for nodding her head enthusiastically until she could manage to get the word 'yes' to come out. Mr. Randolf smiled and stood from his seat. Walking around his desk, he shook her hand as he steered her towards the door.

"Great. Then we'll see you next week. Regina at the front desk will have the necessary forms for you to fill out. Oh, and when you have a moment, I'd love to see your portfolio. Good afternoon, Miss Webber."

"Good afternoon, and thank you, Mr. Randolf. Thank you."

He waited until she was out of the building before he opened the door to the gallery head's office.

"I hired her," Randolf said evenly.

"Wise choice," he said, moving closer to the desk. "Mr. Alcazar appreciates your cooperation, and wishes to make an anonymous donation to your fine gallery."

Reaching into his coat he pulled out a thick envelope and placed it on the desk. Then he turned and left before Randolf even had a chance to open it and count the fifty thousand dollars he'd just earned for hiring Elizabeth Webber.

Saturday morning, Jason Morgan had a scowl etched so deep on his face that even people in the organization were trying to avoid him. So when Sonny opened the door of Penthouse Four and asked Max if Jason was home, the tall bodyguard admitted with some reluctance that he was. Sonny patted him on the shoulder and said he was going over there, and not to worry, the bodyguard didn't have to go in.

"What?" Jason growled when he wrenched the door open after Sonny knocked on it.

"Well, good morning to you too, Jason," Sonny answered as he walked in.

Jason closed the door and crossed his arms across his chest as he looked at Sonny. "What? Come to yell at me again? Question my loyalty?"

"No," Sonny said with a wince. "I came to find out why most of the men are pulling straws to see who's going to have the misfortune of dealing with you."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Jason said through clenched teeth.

"Look, I was out of line for what I said to you the other day. If A.J. had gone to jail, Courtney would have never forgiven me. This way, he'll screw up again all on his own, and she'll see what he really is. I know I don't have to question your loyalty."

"I'm not upset about that," Jason said dismissively.

"Then what are you upset about?" Sonny quickly asked. Jumping in on the opening Jason made.

"I'm not upset about anything. I'm just doing my job, nothing else."

"That's bull and we both know it. You've been growing edgier and angrier for the past two weeks. I think that's also the time I started seeing and hearing less of Elizabeth."

Jason stared icily at Sonny, and the older man knew he was on the mark. He also knew by the way his friend walked away and glared out the balcony doors, that he was trying to end the conversation. Well Sonny was not going to be deterred this time. "What happened?"

"Nothing happened," Jason ground out. "There's nothing to discuss. Is there anything you need me to do?"

"Nope," Sonny said, as he put his hands in his trouser pockets. "So, she's finally staying away is she? And it's driving you crazy because deep down you didn't expect her to do that. You figured she'd fight harder."

He knew from the brief shudder that went through Jason's shoulders before he quickly squared them, that he had spoke the truth.

"She's safer this way," Jason said, his voice not quite as strong as it had been minutes earlier. "She's out of the way, people won't go after her now."

"After the way you acted when she was kidnapped, I don't think people are just going to believe the two of you mean nothing to each other," Sonny softly reasoned.

"Which is all the more reason she should stay away," Jason declared as he turned from the doors.

"And why you wanted her to leave with Zander." He paused when his friend quirked a brow but didn't say anything. "But she didn't leave town, she wanted to stay. And the reason she wanted to stay was because of you, whether you want to admit that or not."

"It doesn't matter," Jason said softly.

"Yes, it does. She's here in Port Charles and she's not with Smith anymore." When Jason looked him surprised, Sonny shrugged slightly and grinned. "I know Elizabeth wouldn't be pursuing you if she were. So now my question is why are you really pushing her away? Are you protecting yourself or her? Do you want to take the risk that she might care about you and you could have something great or do you just want to throw it all away and be miserable for the rest of your life?"

Jason just stared at him, and Sonny nodded slowly expecting as much. "Think about it, Jason. Because alone is a pretty miserable way to live, especially when there's someone who could make you happy. Do what's right for you, not everyone else or your pig headed ideals."

With that, he turned and left his best friend standing in the middle of the living room. As he went back to his penthouse, he looked at Max and shook his head in dejection. "I don't know, Max. I just don't know."

Chapter 8

The following morning, Jason took a long drive, hoping to find some answers to the questions Sonny posed the day before. Questions that had plagued him the entire day and into the night. Questions that he was no closer to having an answer to now than he was nearly twenty-four hours ago.

As he slowed his bike and took in his surroundings, he realized his heart had overridden his brain this time. He took in the red brick walls of Kelly's and let out a ragged breath. He still felt tense and uneasy, but he also felt a small measure of peace creeping in. Peace that he knew was because she was near. Peace that he knew would increase once he walked through the doors and saw her.

With each footstep that took him closer, Jason knew that this was the right thing to do. He knew it wasn't going to be easy, but he was going to talk to Elizabeth. No more dodging the issue and avoiding the questions, it was time to lay everything on the table. Even if the process wasn't pleasant, it needed to happen.

Then he saw the sign in the window and his heart dropped. Help Wanted And he knew. Knew that she was gone. But still he opened the door and stepped inside, making his way to the counter.

"What can I get you?" Courtney asked, a hint of discomfort in her voice.

"Is Elizabeth here?"

"No," she said softly. "She quit."

"Quit?" The word was barely above a whisper and he cleared his throat. "When?"

"Yesterday was her last day," Courtney told him. "Her new job starts tomorrow."

"Where's she working at?"

"I'm sorry, Jason," she said shaking her head. "Unlike my brother, I will respect her decision to apparently not tell you where she's working. Now, can I get you something? Because I have a job to do and other customers to serve."

"I'll take a coffee to go," he said as he stood up and pulled a twenty from his pocket. When she handed him the coffee, he thanked her and headed out the door with no real destination in mind. He wasn't surprised when he ended up on Banister's Warf and took a seat on the bench he had sat with her so many times before.

He took a sip of coffee and allowed his head to fall back, casting unseeing eyes towards the sky. Jason had always prided himself on not thinking about what-ifs, because in his mind there was no point. The past was the past and nobody could change it. But he couldn't help but look back over the past several weeks and think of all the things he would have done differently.

Looking up at the window of her ex-studio, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed. "Benny, it's Jason. I need you to find out some information for me. Elizabeth Webber moved and has a new job. Find out where and report back to me only. Any spare minute you have, you're working on this. Thanks, Benny."

Hitting the end button, he stood and threw his cup in the trash. Then he walked back to the parking lot of Kelly's to retrieve his bike and head home. Pausing in the courtyard, he took one last look at the help wanted sign and felt the headache that had settled behind his eyes throb to life with blinding intensity. Where was she?

Her body humming with excitement and nerves, Elizabeth gathered her things to head off to her first day at the Port Charles Gallery. Confidently walking down the street, she paused briefly at the corner deli to pick up an apple cinnamon muffin and a container of juice, before continuing on. The muffin was gone by the time she reached the bus stop, and as she saw the bus crest the hill she finished off her juice and tossed the container in the trash.

The trip to the gallery was pleasant, but Elizabeth found herself nervously twisting her fingers together and fidgeting with her purse with nothing to do but stare out the window. She decided she would need to bring a book with her. Then she shook her head, how could she forget that reading in a car made her extremely ill? She had a Walkman, she'd check out some books on tape from the library. That would keep her occupied.

The bus finally reached her stop, and she got off to walk the two blocks to the gallery. A slight nervousness settled in her stomach and she wiped her suddenly moist palms on her pants. She was so focused on calming her nerves that she missed the man push away from the car and step towards her.

"Miss Webber," he said, his low voice resonating off the shop fronts.

Elizabeth peered up at him, hoping she looked calm despite the fear that suddenly clenched her stomach. The man before her seemed vaguely familiar, but he unsettled her more than she wanted to admit. "May I help you?"

"I just wanted to introduce myself, Miss Webber. We have some mutual acquaintances," he said as a decidedly predatory grin crossed his thin lips.

Elizabeth felt her knees quiver as she suddenly realized who he was. His voice came back to her from the night she heard him talking with Roy outside of Kelly's. Luis Alcazar was standing in front of her. Oh, this was a bad, bad situation. Walk away now, her brain screamed at her. The gallery was just down the street, there were people on the sidewalk, he couldn't hurt her here.

"Excuse me," she said, finally finding her voice and amazed that it sounded halfway calm. "But I have to get to work."

"Yes, of course," he said, stepping aside to let her pass. "Enjoy your first day of work, Miss Webber. By the way, tell Mr. Morgan I look forward to seeing him again. But next time he comes to my yacht uninvited I won't be as friendly as I was last time."

She snorted, a decidedly unlady-like sound, and looked at him. "You obviously have been misinformed. I am no longer friends with Jason Morgan and have not seen him for several weeks except at my previous job. So, any message you have for him, deliver it yourself."

Then stepping past him, she briskly walked towards the gallery hoping that she looked like she'd been unruffled by the entire experience. However, once she was inside and knew he wouldn't be able to see her, she rushed towards the back and put her things down. Her head was pounding and her heart was beating so fast she was sure it would burst from overexertion. Luis Alcazar knew where she worked, knew it was her first day, had stopped her and talked to her, and had wanted her to deliver a message to Jason.

If Jason knew any of that he would absolutely flip. He would probably scold her, as if it was somehow her fault that Alcazar stopped her, and then lecture her on how dangerous the man was. If she hadn't known that already, she certainly knew it now after hearing his hard as steel voice and seeing his cold, unfeeling eyes. She wasn't stupid enough not to be scared, but she wasn't going to run to Jason. Screw that. Alcazar didn't threaten her. He just wanted to frighten her, and he did that. But that wasn't a reason to go running off to Jason or anyone else, she was through with that. It simply meant she needed to pay better attention to where she was and her surroundings. And maybe buy a really large can of pepper spray.

Chapter 9

Walking home from the bus stop, Elizabeth tightly gripped the strap of her purse as her eyes furtively glanced at her surroundings. She looked at the people on the sidewalk, people lounging in doorways, and the cars on the street. She figured it was highly unlikely Alcazar would stop her twice in one day or order his men to grab her right off the street, but that didn't mean her nerves weren't on edge. They'd dulled while she was at work, but the moment she left the gallery they'd surged back into full force.

She'd simply been too busy at work to think about her encounter that morning. Between learning her job, performing her tasks, and spending time with Mr. Randolf's assistant to learn those tasks, she simply didn't have time to worry about the man who was trying to bring down Sonny and Jason and in the process reeking havoc on her life as well. She'd been too worried about failing at her job. But when she said goodnight to everyone and started down the street, the fear came flooding back.

Why, oh why, didn't she have a car? She could be safely ensconced inside, instead of looking at every person passing by as a potential threat. Of course, she realized that in a car she could held up at gunpoint or forced off the road, but the thought of being surround by steel gave off an illusion of safety. Suddenly she flashed back to being surrounded by the imposing walls of the crypt and she paused, shook her head and took several deep breaths. She was fine, she wasn't trapped, Jason had rescued her. Letting out a groan of frustration, she hung her head towards her chest. She'd be having nightmares tonight if she let herself think too much of the crypt and Jason.

So, forcing all those thoughts out of her head, Elizabeth walked into her apartment building and stopped at the rows of mailboxes. There were a couple of bills, some junk mail, but what had her most definitely intrigued was the thick envelope wedged in the small box. Finally pulling it free she looked down and a new set of nerves took hold. The envelope was from the admissions office of Port Charles University.

One day while out job hunting, she'd been close to the university and decided to stop in. Part four of her plan was to go back to school in the spring. She'd missed the deadline for the fall semester and financial aid, so she was forced to wait for the spring. Now, she was hoping that the envelope in her hands would tell her she'd been re-admitted to the school.

Cresting to the top of the stairs, she shifted the mail to one hand and sifted through the keys on her key ring with the other. She gripped the one to her apartment between her fingers and looked up. Stopping dead in her tracks she closed her eyes, not wanting to believe the sight in front of her. Dropping her mail on the floor, she turned and pounded on the door of her nearest neighbor. Oh, this could not be happening to her.

Sitting in his penthouse with Sonny, Max, Francis and Johnny, Jason was fighting quite possibly the worst headache in his life. It began yesterday when he learned Elizabeth had quit working at Kelly's. It intensified during his sleepless night, as all he could think about her and how much they seemed to have hurt each other lately. So much pain that they no longer spoke and Elizabeth moved away. When had things gotten this out of hand?

They used to be able to tell each other anything, and now they were both so guarded with their words. Lately though Elizabeth had tried to talk and he would shut her down. They once could talk about everything, or sit together in comfortable silence, but that was gone now. And he missed it. Missed her laugh, especially since all she did around him was cry and look sad, missed her smile that could brighten the room and his day, missed just being around her.

But instead of being honest with her, he'd been hurt and angry and frightened and utterly foolish and pushed her away. He tried to tell himself that her safety was important and it didn't matter if he was miserable. He couldn't bear it if she were targeted and hurt once again because of him. She deserved so much more than him, she just needed to realize it. And what will you do if she does?

He struggled to bring his focus back to the men and the meeting around, but it was indeed a struggle. Zander had been brought into Kelly's after some fisherman had pulled him out of the harbor several nights ago. Johnny had been there while Carly was picking up dinner and when Smith mentioned he'd been on a boat but couldn't remember anything else, the bodyguard had called Jason and Sonny in case it had been Alcazar's yacht. He was now in a safe house, unable to remember anything, but obviously in danger. People getting shot in a hospital obviously couldn't just go walking down the streets of Port Charles with amnesia.

But everyone was anxious for him to remember and Zander was getting frustrated that he couldn't. The bump on his head had apparently not changed him for the better; he was still irritating everyone, Jason especially.

"You know, Elizabeth seemed to have a connection to him. Do you think she could get through to him?" Sonny asked, clearly grasping at straws.

Jason's head snapped around to look at his boss so hard that his teeth clanked together. Sonny wasn't seriously considering asking Elizabeth to get involved in this, he wouldn't. Sonny never pulled women into the business, he was the one who told Jason women were supposed to be protected and kept from the business always. He was just about to voice those objections when Max snorted.

Irritated, Jason glared at him, while Sonny looked at him perplexed. "Care to share something, Max?"

Ignoring the looks Jason was sending his way, Max looked straight at Sonny. "Miss Webber wants nothing to do with Zander Smith."

"How would you know that?" Sonny questioned.

"Max," Jason cautioned.

"They had a...confrontation a couple of weeks ago. She told him to stay away. Got pretty intense."

"Think she might consider it?"

"No." The word was hard as steel and everyone looked at Jason. "Don't ask Elizabeth. She wo- she shouldn't be anywhere near this. You always say that, Sonny."

"Look, I want to know what Alcazar's planning. Elizabeth may be the only one who can get through to Zander."

"I don't want her involved in this. She's staying away; she's away from me, all this danger. Just let her be, Sonny. Don't drag her back into this."

The two men stood, staring at each other, the guards looking back and forth between them. Sonny took a deep breath, while Jason clenched his jaw and his hand curled into a fist. The tension that hung over the room like a wool blanket was broken by the shrill ring of Jason's cell phone. He briskly crossed to his desk and grabbed it.

"Morgan," he ground out.

As he listened, he turned his back on the others in the room. He could feel their stares, but he didn't care. His heart was beating too frantically at the words Benny was telling him. Grabbing a pen and sheet of paper, he asked, "What's the address?"

Writing furiously, he hit the end button and spun around. "I need Francis, now," he spat out before Sonny could even ask about the phone call.

"Why?"

"We're spinning our wheels here, Sonny, and you know it. We're not going to decide, let alone do anything against Alcazar tonight."

Ignoring the stunned looks on the three bodyguards' faces, Jason focused solely on Sonny who had narrowed his eyes. When he spoke Jason knew clearly how close he was treading to thin ice. "And so why exactly do you need Francis?"

"Because Benny found out where Elizabeth moved to. He found out from our snitch at the PCPD. It was real easy for him to lift her address from the report she filed after her apartment had been broken into and ransacked."

Dark, forbidding eyes met light, lethal ones and Jason saw the understanding pass through them. "Go. We'll take care of things here. And...you're right. Elizabeth shouldn't help out with Zander, I don't know what I was saying. Just throwing out ideas."

Jason nodded stiffly and glanced at Francis who was already up and standing by the door. He was halfway out the door when Sonny's voice called him back. "Jason, I hope she's alright. Y-you take care of her."

Saying nothing, he merely nodded at his boss and friend as the words faded in the room. Then he turned and sprinted to the elevator where Francis was waiting for him.

Chapter 10

Walking up the stairs, Jason couldn't help himself, he wanted to punch everything in sight. On the drive over Francis had never said a word, and that suited Jason just fine. When Benny had given him the address over the phone, his first thought had been that Elizabeth had picked a safe neighborhood. But that apparently wasn't true, because she'd been robbed. He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed; when did she ever get a break?

Walking down the hall, he instantly knew which door was Elizabeth's. Even before he saw the 2B on the door, he saw the yellow police tape crisscrossing the door in a big X. Approaching the door, he and Francis looked at the doorjamb, and the two men looked at each other. The door obviously hadn't been kicked opened, and there were minimal marks suggesting it was a professional job and not petty criminals.

Just as Jason was taking another look at the lock, a door opened behind them. "What are you two doing here? Get away from that door or I'll call the cops."

Standing slowly, Jason nodded at Francis and the two turned around and blinked. A wrinkled old woman shorter than Elizabeth was standing there looking very determined and stern despite the curlers in her hair.

"We're just trying to find out what happened," Jason said calmly.

"Why?" she asked tersely. "And who are you?"

"We're friends of Elizabeth," Francis said, stepping forward. Jason knew he was trying to prevent an escalation of an already tense situation and he was grateful for that. He was not in the mood to suffer an old woman that was looking at him as if he was there to finish the robbery.

"Then how come Elizabeth hasn't mentioned you, or you haven't been here before?" The woman was like a mother bear defending her cub, suspicious and completely untrusting of the two men before her.

"We just got here," Francis said. "And we found this. What happened?"

Jason could tell the woman was falling for the typical Francis charm. The man could charm the socks off anybody. She was beginning to soften and wasn't quite as standoffish as she'd first been. "Poor dear was robbed. Got home and found her door open. Really shook her up. She used my phone and waited for the police to arrive."

"Do you know where she is?" Francis asked, gesturing to the door behind him. "Doesn't look like she's here."

The woman sadly shook her head. "I told her she could stay with me, but she turned me down. Said she had some friends she was going to call. She packed a bag while the police were there and called a cab."

"Thank you, ma'am," Francis said with a kindly smile. "We appreciate your help."

Jason stayed silent and tipped his head at her and then led the way down the stairs and out to the car. Once outside he cursed long and loud as he punched the roof of the car repeatedly. Francis came around the car and grabbed his arm, trying to calm his raging boss down.

"Jason, Jason, stop. This isn't going to help anything."

"I know...I know," Jason said as he dropped his head to the roof of the car and tried to calm his ragged breathing. "I just-"

"Feel helpless," Francis interrupted. "Johnny, Max and I feel the same. We tried to watch out for her and we lost her. But it's got to be worse for you; we all know how you care about Miss Webber. She called a cab, so we'll find her."

Jason raised his head and looked over at Francis. "Thanks."

"Just doing my job," he said with a shrug. "Now come on, let's call the cab companies and find out where she went."

"Okay, let's get to work."

The cab stopped in the parking lot and Elizabeth paid the driver and stepped out. She slung her black bag over her shoulder and made her way to the door, the gravel crunching under her feet. Pulling open the door she was assaulted by the music, the smoke, stale beer smell and worst of all, memories. She wasn't exactly sure why she came here, except she hadn't forbidden it as part of her plan. She also didn't want to go to her grandmother's house because she just wasn't in the mood for the sad, disappointed looks and the small statements that she'd told her this would happen. Besides, going there would be an admission of defeat; that after working so hard for her independence it would be a major step back.

Making her way over to the bar, she was surprised to see a man with bad hair hanging down in his eyes standing behind it instead of Jake. Frowning, she wondered what was going on. Right now she could use a familiar face in the madness of her life.

"What can I get you?" Bad Hair asked.

"Where's Jake?"

"Sold me the place 'bout a week ago," he stated. "What can I get you?"

"Jake used to rent rooms, you still do that?"

"You want to rent a room here?" he asked with a laugh. She knew he was taking in her black slacks and peasant blouse she wore to work that morning. With her hair clipped back, she didn't look like most of the normal patrons.

"Yes," she said with determination. "A fr- someone I knew once rented here. I used to know Jake. So, do you have a room or not?"

"Sure," Bad Hair finally relented. He pulled a key out and slid it across the bar as he told her the price per night, per week and per month. "Second door on the right."

"Thanks," she said as she clutched the key tightly in her hand, and then placed several bills on the bar. "Shouldn't need it more than a couple of nights, I'll let you know if that changes." Then she turned and wove her way through the crowd to the stairs.

Once upstairs she refused to let her gaze wander over to the door to Jason's old room. Already the memories of that February and the months that followed were flooding into her mind. She couldn't deal with the way she ran to him, then pulled away and ripped his heart out. She knew she probably shouldn't stay here, but apparently she was just a glutton for punishment tonight.

She pushed the door open to her room and stepped inside. She made short work as she unpacked her bags, hanging up her clothes so she didn't look like a wrinkled mess tomorrow at work. She then sat down on the edge of the bed and dropped her head into her hands. She was in a living nightmare. That was the only explanation for the mess she was in.

Knowing she would just go crazy if she stayed in her room, she pushed off her bed and stalked over the dresser where she'd deposited her clothes. She was above a bar, perfect opportunity to drown her sorrows. She could forget about Luis Alcazar, being robbed and Jason, who at this moment she wished would come into the bar so she could tell him how scared she was.

The minute the thought crossed her mind she was filled with anger. Anger at anybody and everybody, but most of all herself. She'd promised herself she was no longer going to go running to Jason every time she hit a bump in the road. She had once been strong and dealt with life on her own. She could do it again. She just needed a little courage in a bottle.

When she made her way back downstairs fifteen minutes later, she looked more like someone who belonged in the smoky bar. Tight black jeans molded to her trim legs and her chunky black boots gave her height. Her purple tank top ended several inches above her pants and her hair was now down around her shoulders. She made her way back over to the bar where Bad Hair was still standing. He looked her over appreciatively and Elizabeth fought the urge to tell him to put his eyes back into his head.

"Vodka gimlet," she said before he could speak. "Set 'em up and keep 'em coming."

"Anything you want," he smiled.

Chapter 11

Two hours after she sat down at the bar, Elizabeth had managed to forget Alcazar and the fact that a stranger had been inside her home and destroyed her belongings. What she hadn't managed to do was forget about Jason. Maybe she never would, but she was well on her way to numbing her pain into a dull ache.

Currently she was involved in a lively and fun game of pool. It didn't matter that Jason had taught her how to play, or that she could still remember the feel of his arms around her, she was having fun. The men she'd been playing with were nothing like Jason. They talked to her, complimented her, and in general let her know how much they were enjoying her company. She warmed to the feelings like a flower turning towards the rays of the sun.

She knew the men were letting her win and she didn't care. As long as she could keep concentrating on the pool table she wouldn't have time to sit around and wallow in her memories. They were also doing a great job of keeping her well supplied in drinks and they made her laugh. She was feeling something besides sadness and she was taking it. Nobody was telling her what to do or how to feel. She made the rules tonight and she loved it.

"Thanks for the game," College told her as he set his stick down on the table. "Guess I owe you a drink."

"Guess you do," she smiled at him, even as her eyes strayed to Suit was gathering the balls to rack them.

"Your usual?"

"Surprise me," she purred, and then bent to line up the cue ball to break for the next game.

When Jason walked into Jake's, he felt ready to burst out of his skin. It hadn't taken Francis very long to find out which cab company had picked her up and where they'd taken her. Jake's. Jason couldn't believe she'd gone there. What on earth had she been thinking? She gets robbed and she goes to Jake's instead of her grandmother's? Only Elizabeth.

Stepping into the bar with Francis behind him, he wasn't sure what to expect. Considering their first meeting here, he figured things weren't going to be good. So when Francis nudged his shoulder and nodded toward the pool table, he almost dreaded looking. There stood Elizabeth, drink in one hand, pool stick in the other, while some guy in a cheap suit was lining up his shot.

Jason took a step towards the pool table when he was suddenly confronted by Coleman. "Hey, man. What are you doing here? Mr. Corinthos wants to destroy my new business?"

Jason shot him a look that was equal parts frustration and annoyance. "What?"

"I own this place now. And suddenly you and the suit show up. So after what happened last time, I'm wondering if Mr. Corinthos has another sister I'm unknowingly employing."

"I'm not here for Mr. Corinthos," Jason ground out. "I'm here for a friend."

Coleman looked over his shoulder where Jason's gaze was riveted on the pool table. "Ah, her. Yes, you do seem to be friends with the pretty ladies. She rented a room from me tonight and now the drinks are just flowing from the crowd she's attracted."

Jason's icy glare silenced Coleman's glee over the money he was making hand over fist. "Cut her off. She's had enough."

He didn't wait for a reply; he simply brushed past the bar owner and strode towards the pool table with Francis behind him. The crowd that had gathered around saw them approaching and quickly scattered. All that was left was Elizabeth who was lining up her shot; oblivious to the lecherous looks the suit and a dockworker were giving her. Jason stopped, planted his feet slightly apart and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Elizabeth."

She looked up through her hair, confusion passing over her face. "Jason?"

"Yes. Come on, Elizabeth, let's go."

She straightened and peered at him. "Where?"

"Anywhere but here."

She shook her head and glared at him. "No. I'm not going anywhere, especially with you. I'm having fun. Right boys?"

The two men looked at her and then at Jason who narrowed his eyes as he glared at them. Murmuring hasty excuses and apologies, they beat quick exits from the bar. Elizabeth frowned at their departure and the empty space now around her.

"You are such a killjoy. Here I was having some fun and big, bad Jason Morgan swoops in and scares everybody away. Do you enjoy ruining my life?"

"Elizabeth, you're drunk. Let's just go."

"No," she said stiffly. "I'm staying here. In fact, I have a room here. So why don't you and Francis-" she paused as she looked over Jason's shoulder, and smiled broadly. "Hey, Francis. It's good to see you again."

Jason sighed and shook his head. "Elizabeth."

Her head snapped back to him and her anger returned. "Go away. Go home to your penthouse, because in case you forgot, it's too dangerous for me to be around you. Besides, we wouldn't want Alcazar to think I mean something to you after I told him this morning that I didn't."

Jason blinked and took a step towards her. "You talked to Alcazar today? What were you thinking, Elizabeth? Did he threaten you?"

"Whoa, tone it down, Tarzan. He stopped me on my way to work and wanted me to pass a message on to you. I told him his information was faulty since I don't see you anymore and he should find a new messenger."

Jason stood there stunned as she turned her back on him and moved away, focusing on the pool table. Alcazar knew where she worked, he'd stopped her, wanted her to pass on a message, and Elizabeth had just told him about it like she was going over her grocery list. Alcazar this morning, her apartment this afternoon, and now she was in a bar getting very drunk and acting like it was no big deal.

Taking a deep breath and rubbing his hand across his forehead trying to relieve the tension he felt, he focused back on Elizabeth. "What about your apartment?"

She turned, looking at him across the pool table and her brows furrowed together in confusion. "My apartment?"

"Yeah, you know. You were robbed today."

She placed the pool cue on the table and folded her arms across her chest in a perfect imitation of his stance. "How do you know about that?"

"I had Benny trying to find where you'd moved to. We found out from the police report," he told her. He watched several emotions flash across her face, but he wasn't prepared for the black cloud of anger that settled there.

"For crying out loud, Jason," she yelled as she threw her hands up in the air. "That was not part of the plan! Why did you have to do that? I had everything all worked out, but noooo you had to come along and screw everything up!"

She turned and came around the table straight for him. He had no idea what had suddenly transpired there, but she was angry. No, she was beyond angry and for a woman who had just been robbed it made absolutely no sense to Jason. Stopping a foot away from him, her eyes narrowed into tiny slits. "See, I had the perfect plan going. The Reinvention of Elizabeth Webber. It was all about getting me out of your life and you out of mine; starting all over. Why would you go and do something so stupid like trying to find out where I live?"

He looked at her, digesting her words. Plan. Reinvention. Out of your life. Out of mine. "Elizabeth, what are you talking about? Why wouldn't I look for you?"

She laughed derisively and he briefly was glad she'd finished the last of her drink already because he probably would have ended up wearing it. "Why wouldn't you look for me?"

There was complete and absolute disbelief in her voice and it cut him. "Yes, I was worried."

"Well, worry no more. I'm no longer in your life, therefore, no longer your concern. I'm not safe around you. It's too dangerous," she said with mock fear heavily laced with sarcasm while fluttering her hands by her shoulders. Then glaring at him she continued, "You don't want to be my friend anymore, remember? Don't you realize that's why I'm doing this?"

Too many things she just said needed to be addressed, but Jason could only pick one at this moment. "Doing what, and why?"

"Changing my life once again for someone else. Lucky wanted me to be a model and not see you anymore. You want me to be safe and not be around you anymore. So, I packed up my life and I'm putting it back together without you in it. No more going to our places, a new apartment, a new job, nothing left of my life from when you were in it. Except for tonight...I-I never figured you'd be here. So go home," she told him with a dismissive wave of her hand. The anger was starting to ebb and desperation clouded her eyes for a moment.

"My plan isn't going to work if you're here. It's too soon to try for casual acquaintances...it hurts too much. M-maybe in a few weeks...maybe never," she said with a small, painful looking shrug. "But...I-I can't do it tonight. So, so please go," she finally finished on the barest of whispers.

"Elizabeth," he said softly, taking a step towards her. "Elizabeth, we need to get you some place safe."

"Safe," she choked out like it was a bitter word stuck in her throat. "That's a laugh. No where is safe. Alcazar still stopped me; my apartment was broken into. Apparently my life without you isn't a whole lot safer than my life with you, or even before you."

She was loosing her fight, and all that was remaining was a sad, cloudy look from the pain and the alcohol. Her voice dropped even more. "If you won't leave, then I will. Good-bye, Jason."

She turned for the stairs as Jason called for her. "Elizabeth, wait. Can we please talk?"

She paused, but didn't turn. "No. I'm all talked out and I'm all planned out. I'm tired and I'm going to bed."

She started for the stairs once again and Jason and Francis were right behind her. No one said a word as Elizabeth walked into her room and closed and locked the door behind her. Jason looked at the door and slowly closed his eyes. Turning to Francis he said, "get me a chair, some coffee and then you can go. Tell Sonny I'll call him tomorrow and unless it's an absolute emergency he better not call me. And Elizabeth gets guards full time now, not negotiable."

Francis nodded and turned for the stairs. When he was out of sight, Jason turned back to Elizabeth's door. "Elizabeth? I don't know if you can hear me or if you care, but I'm not going anywhere tonight. Tomorrow we are going to talk. No more running away, no more skirting the issue. We are going to talk."

Then he sank to the floor as his heart broke even more than it was. He could feel her pain because he recognized it as his own. Softly he whispered into the hall, "This isn't good-bye, Elizabeth. Not by a long shot."

Chapter 12

..police are still searching the area for clues, but a spokesman says an APB has been issued for Luke Spencer. And now back to Max for the traffic and weather."

"Thanks, Mary. We'd give you our Eye on the Sky traffic report, but the weather has grounded the plane. Rain is expected for the rest of day, so don't forget your umbrellas because it's comin' down out there. And we're getting several reports of accidents around town, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get to work. We'll be back after the commercial break with Lynard Skynard on your station for classic rock...WHTZ."

Elizabeth groaned and slowly snaked an arm out from beneath the scratchy blanket to hit the offending radio and it's shrill noise. She was in no mood for Max and Mary and their pathetic attempts at humor. What she wanted was to go back to bed and sleep off her hangover, but that wasn't going to happen.

This was her second day at her new job and she was going to show up with a hangover. Just perfect. She should have just gone to her Grams' house last night, then she would have never gotten drunk and she would never have run into Jason. She groaned again, louder this time and didn't care that it set off a symphony of jackhammers in her head.

He was seriously messing up her plan. He wasn't supposed to come looking for her. He was supposed to just let her move, get a new job and never see her again. Instead he showed up at Jake's looking decidedly unhappy with her. Why was he unhappy? She was doing what he wanted.

"Oh, forget it," she mumbled to herself as she stood and watched as the room pitched and rolled. "I'll go crazy if I try and figure out that stubborn, pig-headed, completely frustrating man."

She grabbed her clothes to hang in the bathroom in order to steam while she showered. A nice, hot shower would go a long way to clearing the muddled state of her mind. Twenty minutes later she finally turned off the water and grabbed a towel. Her head now felt like only half the cast members of Stomp were giving her a private performance. Popping a couple of aspirin into her mouth that she found in the bottom of her purse, she downed a large glass of water and then grabbed her clothes so she could get dressed.

After she was dressed and had finished braiding her hair in two French braids down the side of her head, she grabbed her purse and her keys. She looked back at the room, and decided to leave her belongings. She told herself that it was because she didn't have time to drop her bag off at her apartment before work, but she knew that was a lie. She wasn't sure she'd be ready to stay in her apartment that night, so it was a relief to have an excuse to come back to the bar.

Sighing, she opened the door and choked back a scream when she came face to face with Jason leaning against the doorjamb. He looked rumpled and tired, but had a soft, tender smile on his face. It was a smile she hadn't seen recently and she felt an odd flip in the pit of her stomach that she was certain had nothing to do with all the alcohol she'd consumed the night before.

"I know you don't normally drink coffee, but I thought you could use it after last night," he said as he handed her a coffee to go cup from some place she didn't recognize. "And some plain toast. Figured it would help settle your stomach."

He handed her a paper bag and then stepped back. "You can eat in the car on the way to your work. If you want anything else, we can stop and get it."

Elizabeth just stared at him mutely. Jason was there in the hallway bearing coffee and toast. Had he been there all night? She vaguely remembered hearing his voice after she went to her room saying he wouldn't leave, but she thought she'd imagined it. Surely after pushing her away for so long he wouldn't sit outside her door all night.

She realized she hadn't said anything yet, and that was completely unlike their relationship. He'd done all the talking so far, and quite a bit of it actually.

"Jason, what's going on? What are you doing here?"

"I told you last night, Elizabeth, that I wasn't going to leave. And I meant that. We need to talk."

"Why?" she asked, feeling anger suddenly rising up in her. "Because you now suddenly decide you want to talk we're going to? Well, sorry. I can't right now. I have to go to work."

"That's fine," Jason said. "Francis and I will take you. One of us will be with you all day, and then we'll bring you home afterwards. I'm not-I'm not trying to pressure you, Elizabeth. I would just like to talk to you."

Elizabeth stepped out into the hall and shifted the paper bag into the hand with her coffee, and then closed the door behind her and locked it. She walked down the hallway and down the stairs and would have headed out the front door if Jason hadn't placed his hand on her elbow to let her know Francis has the car waiting outside the back door. Once she was finally settled into the back with Jason beside her, she opened the paper bag and pulled out a triangle of toast. Taking a bite, she nearly gagged on the dry sawdust taste.

"There's some butter and jam packets in there," Jason said next to her ear, which nearly caused her to jump at his close proximity. She had been quite focused on not saying anything to Jason and generally trying to ignore his presence. Ignoring him wasn't easy because every movement he made she was painfully and acutely aware of. She just hadn't expected him to speak so close to her ear.

"Thanks," she murmured and dug into the bottom of the bag.

"Elizabeth," Jason said softly, "where do you work?"

It was only then that she realized they hadn't moved. "Oh. Sorry. The Port Charles Gallery. I figured you knew since you figured out where I live."

Then she turned and looked out the window. The streets were wet and glistening from the rain. The sky hung low and oppressive, dark gray clouds releasing blinding flashes of lightening. Absently she took note of the impressive scene, but the oppressive silence of the car took away any thoughts of beauty she might have had at the sight. She could feel the frustration mixed with unease rolling off Jason, which only added fuel to her own anger and frustration. Every time she thought she was getting a handle on her life, something always came along and upset the proverbial apple cart. Right now she just couldn't tell if Jason was the one upsetting her life, or the one person who could finally help calm it down.

"Here you go," Francis said as he slid his tall frame into the car and handed over the bag of food and a cup of coffee.

"Thanks, Francis," Jason said, taking his eyes off the gallery long enough to look at the bodyguard. Because of the rain pelting down, they couldn't stand outside the gallery. While both men were concerned about Elizabeth, neither one had a particular desire to get soaked in the process of waiting all day for her.

Francis had walked her inside the building that morning, casually checking it out looking for potential safety concerns. Hidden access points that they couldn't guard and such. He wasn't able to spend all day inside, because there were only so many times he could look at the same paintings without making himself crazy or arousing suspicion.

Elizabeth had taken a brief moment to come and tell him that he was making her nervous and she was finding him distracting, so could he please wait outside. She promised that if anything seemed suspicious she would get out right away. It was all he could do, and when he got back to the car Jason had agreed. Then Jason told Francis to stay with the car and watch the gallery while he ran a quick errand.

Less than an hour later he was back with a cell phone which he then programmed with a significant amount of numbers. He knew Francis was curious, but to his credit, the bodyguard said nothing. That had been hours ago, and Jason was not looking forward to the remaining two hours until Elizabeth got off work. More than that, he was not looking forward to trying to get Elizabeth to sit down and talk.

While Francis had been off getting food, Benny had called. Since then, all Jason could do was think over the things Benny had told him. Somebody else had been checking into Elizabeth's activities. That could only be one person. Alcazar. He had stopped Elizabeth on her way to work, and her apartment had been ransacked. His gut said Alcazar was behind that. He knew she wouldn't like it, but he wanted to look at the apartment with Elizabeth. The police report said nothing was taken, so the only explanation he could come to was it was meant to rattle her.

As he finished his food he looked over at Francis. The blonde man was scanning the street and the few cars and people that were out and about in the rain. As if sensing Jason's gaze on him, he slowly shifted and turned his focus to his boss.

"What's your take on things, Francis?"

The bodyguard took a deep breath and another glance of the street. "I think Alcazar is getting desperate. We didn't know where Miss Webber was, he could have taken her and we would have never known until it was too late. Stopping her was meant to spook her. Now, she hasn't told us everything they said to each other, but my impression is she didn't act as he expected. She said she didn't talk to you anymore, so the break-in was meant to spook her more.

"But," he said, a confused look crossing his face, "that seems like a dumb thing to do. Why try and spook her more? Make her run to you? She still didn't do that, she did everything to stay away from you."

Jason's gut was clenched in pain, like he'd eaten glass as Francis talked. Alcazar's desperation could be making him misread Elizabeth, heck; he seemed to have misread her. But Francis was right. Alcazar could have just taken Elizabeth already and they wouldn't have known until it was too late, and that was Jason's fault because in an effort to not make her a target he hadn't put bodyguards on her. Well that was rectified now. But things still didn't make sense.

"The only thing I can think," Francis continued on, "is he was counting on you going after her. And you did. You found out she moved and had a new job and you put people on finding her. We're here now watching over her."

"Misdirection?" Jason pondered softly. "Things have been quiet since I went on the yacht, there have been no real threats against Sonny or Jax. So, he makes mild threats toward Elizabeth knowing we'd focus on her."

"You think things are gonna happen soon?"

"It's very possible. I've been distracted lately, you've seen it, so Alcazar's had to have seen it." Jason closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He slammed his fist onto the dash in utter frustration and swore harshly under his breath. Checking his watch, he saw that there was only an hour left until Elizabeth got off work.

He needed to talk to Sonny, he needed to check in with Benny, he needed to talk to Elizabeth, but more than that, he needed to keep her safe. That right there made his decision clear about the choices he'd been mulling over. She wasn't going to be happy, but there was no way he could let her go back to her apartment or her room at Jake's. He stifled a groan. The only place that he wasn't going to worry about her was if she was at his penthouse. Oh yeah, Elizabeth was going to put up a fight about that.

Chapter 13

The storm had momentarily lessened to light drizzle as Elizabeth walked out of the gallery. Jason was standing next to the door under the protection of the royal blue awning; his hands clasped together, his eyes on the sidewalk. He looked up immediately as she exited the building, and if she hadn't reminded herself that she was mad at Jason for messing up her plan she would have been thrilled to see him standing there. And she wouldn't have squelched the way her stomach fluttered and her heart raced as the sight of him lounging against the glass building in his leather jacket.

Heartburn and a hangover, she tried to tell herself unconvincingly. Instead, she stopped several feet from him and shifted from foot to foot as she fiddled with the strap of her purse. He took a step towards her looking slightly uncomfortable.

"How...how was work?" he asked, and then shook his head as if he couldn't believe he'd just said that. "We should get in the car."

Silently she walked to the car and smiled as Francis held open the door for her. Once Jason was inside and Francis had directed the car into traffic, Elizabeth shifted slightly and spoke for the first time. "Are we going back to Jake's?"

She watched as Jason looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, no...well, yes."

"You know," she said tonelessly, "why did I expect a straight answer from you?"

"Look, Elizabeth, I need to explain some things to you. I realize now that I handled things badly, especially by not putting a guard on you. Alcazar is out there and he's obviously targeting you. I could put a guard on you twenty-four seven, and you really should have a guard on you while you're at work, but I still don't feel comfortable with you staying in your apartment or at Jake's."

She sighed as he once again stopped speaking and looked away in discomfort. "Jason, please just say whatever it is. I'm really too tired to scream and rant, so stop tip-toeing around things."

She felt bad at her stilted tone and the slight flinch Jason made, but she really was too exhausted for their normal verbal tap dance. Her hangover had faded, but after the previous night and a full day's work, she barely had the energy to hold her head up. She'd found it hard to concentrate on her job and continue in her training with Francis wandering around inside the gallery. Even after Elizabeth had asked him to wait outside, the mere knowledge that he and Jason were out there and that Jason wanted to talk made it difficult to get through the day.

"Alright," he said on a sigh. "I'd like you to stay at the penthouse while Alcazar is still out there. I'll know you're safe and then I'll be able to concentrate on finding and stopping him."

"Stay at the penthouse?" she asked. "Until the problem with Alcazar is over?"

"Yes."

"And once the Alcazar problem is over we go back to ignoring each other and pretending we don't know or mean anything to each other?"

Jason dropped his head and refused to look at her. Taking his silence for agreement, Elizabeth turned away as tears suddenly filled her eyes. Nodding stiffly she said, "Right. But if your next enemy is watching you now they'll see you moving me into your home and putting guards on me. Then I'll be unprotected again and a target once more. So, no, I won't move into your penthouse and I don't need your guards."

Her shoulders rose and fell on a tearful sigh. "In all my planning I missed a glaring flaw. I should have realized that staying in Port Charles would never work. I should have just left and told my gram afterwards. I mean, she's really all I have left in this town that's brought me nothing but hurt and heartache."

Francis turned onto her street and she squared her shoulders and turned back to Jason. "I'm not going to move in with you, Jason. I'm going to leave town. It really will be the best for everyone."

The car stopped in front of her building and silence reigned in the car. Jason got out of the car and walked around and opened the door for Elizabeth. Exiting the car, she refused to look at Jason, because his body language made it clear that he didn't like her plan to leave Port Charles. She refused to look at his face or worse, his eyes, for the fear she might see something there that she'd foolishly grab onto and think that he wanted her to stay. Why should she stay and be tortured by the sight of him if he was just going to ignore her? Nope, it was definitely time to leave Port Charles whether Jason Morgan approved or not.

Standing outside Elizabeth's apartment building waiting for her to climb out of the car, Jason called himself ten kinds of fool. Another step in the great Elizabeth Webber plan had been announced. She planned to leave Port Charles. Over his dead body. Oh, he knew she would insist, but there was simply no way he would let leave.

Watching her as she kept her eyes firmly on the sidewalk, he could see she was hurting. He'd seen the tears in her eyes in the reflection in the window of the car after she turned away from him. How could he make her see that he hadn't wanted to discuss their relationship in front of Francis? He didn't want to have someone else present when he explained to her that when he said he couldn't be the friend she thought he was, didn't mean he no longer wanted to be her friend but that he wanted to be the man she loved and who loved her in return. That was a conversation that only needed to be between them.

As Elizabeth moved toward the door of the building, he moved towards the car. Francis lowered the window and Jason leaned in. "This may take a while. So go get some food or something. I'll call you when we're done."

"Okay," Francis nodded, and started to close the window.

Then Jason turned and quickly caught up to Elizabeth as she headed inside. Silently they walked up the stairs and down the hallway to her apartment. He stood back as she stopped before her door, seemingly transfixed by it. Absently he noted the yellow police tape was gone; someone, he really didn't care who, had taken it down.

He heard her take a deep breath and saw her shoulders firm as her hand reached for the doorknob. He wanted to touch her shoulder to reassure her, but he resisted in part because he felt she would shrug off his touch, and because he knew she needed to prove to herself she could do this. Walking into the room, his eyes scanned the area, searching for hidden danger while he kept his hand ready to grab his gun. The place had been thoroughly tossed, but it didn't feel like a robbery. This was definitely a scare tactic thought up by Alcazar.

His eyes scanned the room, noticing the artist's table and shelves, her easel by the large windows, the golden evening light streaming in. Elizabeth kept her back to him as she absently wandered the room, her downcast head slowly shaking from side to side. Knowing that she would never speak first, he unzipped his jacket and took a deep breath.

"Can we please sit down and talk?" he asked, taking a step towards her.

"I've said all I have to say," she shrugged dismissively.

"Well, I haven't," he said gently. Claiming another step he continued, "You said a lot of things last night that I think we need to talk about. Please, no more running and one-sided conversations."

"My, my," she said hollowly, "you've sure turned into Chatty Cathy. But fine, if it will get you out of my apartment and my life, let's talk."

She perched on the stool at her artist's table and crossed her arms over her chest. Jason looked around the apartment and noted a distinct lack of other furniture except for a folding chair that looked second-hand and decidedly wobbly. Sighing softly in resignation, he grabbed the back and carried the chair over to her. Then he carefully lowered himself onto the seat and prayed it wouldn't snap like a twig.

"First, what is this about your plan?"

Her smile didn't reach her eyes and her voice was deceptively bright. He could see she was into the mode she was last year; convince everyone she was all right and maybe she'd believe it herself. "It's the Reinvention of Elizabeth Webber. Recreate myself into a brand new person who never knew Jason Morgan. It's what you wanted after all."

His lips pinched together as he breathed deeply through his nose. "Elizabeth, I have never asked, nor wanted, you to be anybody but yourself."

"Of course," she scoffed. "The great, noble Jason. King of Be Yourself. Well, being myself was having you in my life. You're my friend...or at least you were. I know I screwed that up, I know I hurt you...I tried to explain, to apologize, but you shut me out. So what I was supposed to do? Stay in the same place, see you on the docks, at Kelly's, try to pretend you meant nothing to me? I did the only thing I could do."

"I'm sorry," he sighed. "I-I stopped listening to you."

"Yes, you did," she cut in. "I thought we had a chance this time."

"Then what about Zander?" he asked, giving voice to the question that had plagued him for over a month. He knew he was taking the conversation a place that they might never recover from, but he had to know.

"Zander," she said, her voice filled with scorn he knew was directed at herself. "Zander was a mistake. I regretted it as soon as it happened."

"Then what happened?" he asked, standing up and rolling his shoulders.

"I got locked in the stairwell. The power went off. I-I flashed back to the crypt. My phone was dead or I would have called you. So I ran because I couldn't stay in my studio, it felt like the walls were closing in on me. I got trapped in the stairs and I panicked until Zander found me."

He wanted to tell her to stop. He didn't need to hear anymore. He couldn't take the feral look that had crept into her eyes, the way her breathing was becoming faster and erratic, but he was suddenly unable to find his voice. All he could do was stand there as she continued.

"You said you'd come back, but you never did. Carly called and you dropped me like yesterday's garbage and went running off to her. Like always. And when Zander found me I was petrified. I was having flashbacks of the crypt and all I wanted was you. But you weren't there and I made a mistake. It was my fault; I'm not blaming you. It was my fault entirely. My fault for believing you'd come back. My fault for building my hopes up about you. My fault for being weak and needing somebody."

She flung herself off the stool and stalked towards the window, angrily swiping at her face. "As soon as it happened, I wished I could undo it. And then to have you find out the next morning...w-well I was mortified."

"Actually," he said uncomfortably. "I stopped by that night and saw you two kissing."

"What?" she screeched as she turned to face him. "Why didn't you do something? Knock on the door? Anything?"

"Oh, never mind, it doesn't matter," she said shaking her head. "Can't change the past, right? I-I'm just so sorry you had to see that. I know I hurt you and I can't take that back."

"And I hurt you by shutting down on you. We've both hurt each other," he said softly.

"Right," she nodded. "That's why I came up with this plan. All we do is hurt each other. So I knew the only way to stop that was to remove one of us from the sphere we seemed to be trapped in."

"And look at how that's working, or not working," he said as he took a step towards her. The foolish way he'd handled the situation twisted at his gut. When had they stopped being able to talk to each other?

"Right," she said, breaking into his thoughts. "So that's why I'm leaving. I have the least to leave behind. Besides, I think it's time for a fresh start. My life needs a 'do over.'"

"Elizabeth," he said, dreading this next part of the conversation. "You can't leave town."

"And why not?" she snapped. "Because you decree it to be so?"

"Because it's not safe," he said, and then cringed at the words.

"Oh, make up your mind!" she raged at him. "You pushed me away and wanted me to leave town with Zander because it was too dangerous to be here. Now it's too dangerous to leave? Which is it?"

"Elizabeth, Alcazar has people watching you. I made a mistake earlier when I didn't put guards on you full time. Francis, Johnny and Max watched you on their time off - I never knew that - but I should have had them on you. Alcazar knows you matter to me. You leaving town isn't going to stop him. He'll think I sent you out of town to protect you and he'll come after you."

He stepped closer, needing to be near her. His hands ached to touch her, so much so that he finally had to stuff them into the pockets of his jacket to keep them from spasming. "If you leave, I am going to send someone with you. And even then I'll spend the entire time worrying about you, being afraid for your safety. I know it's not fair to say that to you, but that's how I feel. I need to do my job, people are depending on me, but you're important to me. I need to know you're safe."

"So, let me see if I've got this straight," she said, arching a disbelieving brow. "For weeks you push me away, won't give me the time of day, kiss me on a whim and then walk away, ignore my feelings, and now suddenly because you're worried you want me to stay with you?"

"Would you rather stay here?" he asked, gesturing to her apartment. "I'll put a guard in your hallway. Explain that to your neighbor across the hall."

"That sounds suspiciously like blackmail."

"It's simply the way it needs to be. Elizabeth, you're a target. I tried to keep you safe before, this-this is the only way I know how to do it."

"And after Alcazar is no longer a threat?" Elizabeth asked, her posture and tone softening only slightly.

"I don't know," Jason admitted, feeling as defeated as she sounded. "We'll take it one day at a time and figure it out. No more making decisions for the other person, no more taking the other person's choice away. We'll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it."

"That's quite philosophical of you," she smirked, a hint of a twinkle entering her eye.

"So?" he asked, drawing his hand out of his pocket and extending it toward her. "Will you come stay with me?"

Hesitantly, her small hand rose toward his and met in the space between them. He said nothing, holding his breath in anticipation of her answer. Finally, she said the one word that made his heart soar and gave him cause to hope.

"Yes."

The End

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