Set mid March, 2003. The Sonny ordered breakup remained in effect between Jason and Courtney, and Jason left town. Now he's back, and he has a little message to pass along. Contains lyrics from Gary Allen's Man To Man.
Jason Morgan was a man on a mission. Funny how since his return to Port Charles after a month in exile he was more alert, felt more like a predator, than all the time he had spent in Brazil. He came back, not because Sonny had finally decided to summon him home, but because he had personal business to take care of. He wasn't expected for another three days and that suited him just fine. Because he was hunting prey.
His eyes flashed cold steel when he saw the man descend the stairs. Jason knew he would be alone; the one complication, the one distraction and the main reason he was doing this was still at work. Would be for another two hours. The timing was perfect.
Stepping out from his observation point, his heavy motorcycle boots echoed over the wooden pier and the other man's eyes shot up, searching the darkness. Jason let his teeth flash in a predatory grin and he felt some satisfaction when Ric's eyes widened and the lawyer took a half step back.
"Jason."
"Ric."
Terse, tense perfunctories. Jason felt that was enough time wasted on polite BS. It was time to get down to business.
"Been doing a little investigating while I was gone," he began.
"Yes," Ric nodded smoothly. "Sonny said he had you out doing a little grunt work. Guess he felt the need to make a little statement about your involvement with Courtney, or the work must have been a little unsavory. Because I do most of his research now, among other things.
Jason let out a slow, calculated chuckle. He knew Ric was trying to insinuate himself into Sonny's life, to replace him. But there were things that Jason knew how to do that Ric would never be capable of. "Well, it was unpleasant," he admitted. "See, I was researching you. And you couldn't very well do that for Sonny, now could you? I spent the last month tracking your past down, had a very interesting talk with your mistress in Brazil. She almost seems disappointed that you haven't come for her like you promised.
"But, I suppose that's a hard one to keep since you're a little busy trying to worm your way into Sonny's life. Plus, I'm sure the whole good-guy seduction routine you're pulling on Elizabeth would be a little hard to do if your lover was in town."
The lawyer was doing a dang good job of trying to keep calm, but the fine sheen of perspiration on his brow gave him away. Time to go in for the kill. "You know? I wonder what Elizabeth would say if she knew about your girlfriend. Or if she knew that you used to work for Alcazar, that you laundered his money and helped pay off officials to keep him out of jail. I wonder how she'd feel knowing that either directly or indirectly you're responsible for her getting kidnapped last summer.
"Has she told you she was kidnapped? She was, to get leverage on a piece of property Sonny and I now own. Not long after she was found and I killed the guy who took her, Alcazar swoops in and buys the pier, setting off a long chain of events in town. Have you told her you worked for him? Have you told her why you came to Port Charles? Why you're using her now?"
You're throwing around a lot of serious accusations
Ain't too hard to tell what you're insinuatin'
"Bravo," Ric said, clapping his gloved hands in mock praise. "Pretty good speech there. Been practicing that for a while?"
"It's the truth isn't it? You're using Elizabeth. First you tried to snow Carly, but you realized she's too loyal to Sonny and since he doesn't trust you, she's not going to get too close. So you go for someone who's just as loyal, but who's hurt and vulnerable. So she's easy to play. Well, I'm telling you now, you hurt her and you'll answer to me."
You think I'm the one who stole her away
And if not for me she'd still be yours today
We're both men here so why play games
Why don't we call a spade a spade
It was Ric's turn to chuckle and shake his head. "You know, Morgan, you're a pretty transparent man. You stand there in the big, noble protector role, when the truth is you're just jealous."
Jason wasn't going to dignify the comment with a response. But Ric just smiled knowingly and nodded.
"You're jealous that I'm dating her. That I'm Sonny's lawyer and I'm dating the woman you pushed away claiming it was too dangerous and that she couldn't handle your life."
Jason blinked, his emotions betraying him momentarily, but it was enough for Ric to latch on to.
"Oh yeah, she told me about that. She's kept you pretty close to the vest, hasn't talked a lot about your past. But one night when we were out having dinner Carly stopped by our table and started in on Elizabeth for being with me when she had walked out on you because of the life. That night Elizabeth finally shared a little of what happened between you.
"So here's my take on the situation. You saw how heartbroken Elizabeth was while you were with Courtney. So you probably figured now that Sonny had ordered you to end things with his sister you'd come back to Elizabeth. Am I getting warm?"
He was warm only in that he had seen how hurt Elizabeth had been, and probably still was. But nothing else was true. Because that would make it seem like he was settling for Elizabeth when he couldn't have Courtney. And Elizabeth was no consolation prize. She was the gold ring he always felt was out of his reach, that he didn't deserve. He would always love her, and he always protect her. Even if that meant he would never have her.
"No, what I see," he answered to Ric, "is a master manipulator who has lied to her. Preyed on her hurt by pretending to be what she's looking for."
"You mean the danger of you, without the pain?"
Man to man
Tell me the truth (tell me)
Were you ever there when she needed you
"Someone who will actually be there for her?" Ric went on.
"I was there," Jason defended himself.
"Sure when there was a bomb in her studio, or when she was stuck in a crypt. But what about when she was frightened, or she was worried about you, or when she was just lonely?"
Man to man
Look me in the eye, tell me
If you really loved her
Why'd you make her cry
Zander and the stairway. Sonny's death. Sitting alone in the penthouse while he was everywhere else but there. His shortcomings flashed through him, and it cut him to know that Elizabeth had told them to someone else.
As if able to read his thoughts Ric spoke. "Yeah, you were there for those great hero moments, but what about the little ones? When she wanted you more than truly needed you? Or that she needed to know she mattered in your life? When she wanted to know that she ranked somewhere better than dead last?"
Man to man
Who cheated who
You're the one to blame
Tell me it ain't true
Man to man
Man to man
"She told me how you promised to try."
Jason's eyes hardened, even as his heart swam with guilt.
"That's right, Morgan. Said I needed to know why she was taking it slow. The last man that had made her grand promises, spouting off trust, respect and honesty, had walked out the door the very next day and ignored her. You lied to her, you broke her trust, you had her heart completely and yet you trampled it and made her cry."
"Is that what she said?"
"Unlike you, Elizabeth speaks from her heart. She believed your words and when she found out that you lied to her, she was hurt."
And then walked away from him. Bailed on him when she said she wouldn't. She lied when she said her face wouldn't change because of his job. All these months later it still got to him, still cut him deep. Even though he knew everything the other man way saying was true, it didn't stop the anger from rising in him.
"I know. I was there that night. The night she walked out."
Well you think all your anger is justified
Me, I think it's just your wounded pride
What did you really think she was gonna do
She's a real woman (a real woman), not a doormat for you
"Right, she walked out because she was hurt, and you just let her go. Never tried to explain."
He had tried the next day and she shot him down. Again.
"So you closed off, figured she meant what she said when a blind man could have seen she was lying."
"You weren't even there," Jason said, sick of hearing Ric go on about something he didn't know anything about, had never seen. "So how would you know?"
"Because I saw you two at Luke's Club. Her emotions were all over her face. But you were hurt and you wanted her to the say the words first, didn't you? You weren't about to put your heart out there."
He had done that once with her, had given her power he didn't want her to have. And she had used that power to hurt him.
"All you saw was her walking out the door, right? So you shut down. What about the times you walked out the door?"
"She knew it was my job."
"Of course," Ric scoffed. "It was your job to let her worry herself sick for days without a phone call. You could stay at Courtney's while Elizabeth got a guard. You knew she was waiting there, and you figured she'd just wait there forever. You could ignore her, put her behind everybody in town, and she would just wait patiently for whatever crumbs of affection you'd throw her way."
Ric shook his head in loathing at Jason. "If you cared half as much as you claimed, you would have moved Heaven and Earth to tell her yourself that Sonny was alive instead of letting her find out from someone else. That's what a man does. He never makes the woman he claims to care about feel like she's an afterthought."
"Is that what you do?" Jason demanded. "Call when you're going to be late? Make sure she knows how you feel, why you do the things you do? Is that why you've told Elizabeth about your connection to Alcazar?"
You want her back, but it's too late
Why don't we just cut to the chase
"You can beat that into the ground if you want," Ric shrugged. "Better yet, go tell Elizabeth. Tell her I'm too dangerous, tell her she shouldn't hang around me, tell her that you're just concerned about her and want her safe. What do you think she'll say?"
That he was jealous. That he had no right to tell her what to do with her life. That he was a hypocrite. That he was too little too late to act like he cared. And all of those would be true.
"It's killing you, isn't it?" the dark haired man smirked. "You know that she wants nothing to do with you. You figured you'd just waltz in, show her a little interest and walk out with her on your arm."
"No." He knew it wouldn't happen like that. He just wanted a chance.
"No," Ric confirmed. "Because even if you begged, groveled and promised it would be different, that she mattered, it still wouldn't help. She's moved on. And she'll never let you back in."
Man to man
Tell me the truth (tell me)
Were you ever there when she needed you
Man to man
Look me in the eye, tell me
If you really loved her
Why'd you make her cry
Man to man
Who cheated who
You're the one to blame
Tell me it ain't true
Man to man
"Because you had your chance, and you blew it. You can be mad at her all you want, claim you only were with Courtney because Elizabeth walked out on you, but have you thought about why she walked out?"
Jason had thought about it often. All the time, in fact. He'd wanted to talk to her, was halfway to her studio dozens of times before he stopped. He was hurt, he was angry, he was afraid to face her; it was all of those and more.
"So any other accusations? Anything else you need to say? Any other way I'm to blame here?"
Jason said nothing, his shoulders dropping slightly. Ric smirked at him then turned and left, walking away proudly in the direction of Kelly's. Then Jason was alone, with only the sound of the water against the pier.
Part of him said he should just walk away. Leave Port Charles before anyone else knew he was back, and just disappear. Elizabeth was probably better off without him. She laughed with Ric, and all he seemed to make her do was cry. He loved her, he knew that, but why should he try and win her back if all he was going to do was bring her pain?
But looking in the direction Ric had gone, he knew that he had to try. He had promised her that once before and he hadn't. He had tried to move on, tried to fill the space in his life that had opened red and raw when she left. But it didn't work. He needed Elizabeth. Needed her like he needed air and water. More than that, he wanted her.
She had asked him once what he wanted, and he told her it didn't matter. But now he knew it did. Because he wanted her. Her laughter, her smiles, her sweet and caring nature. This time he would be honest, and he would trust her - with his life and his heart, and he would try. He would do more than try. He would do. He would show her she was important, that she did matter, that she was in it and she counted.
This time would be different. Ric had unknowingly given him the information he needed, and a good dose of reality. Ric may have thought that he was going to just give up, but if anything Jason's resolve was strengthened all the more. The lawyer was going to have to have a fight on his hands. Because this man was going to give it to him.
Man to man
Man to man
*Man to Man - Gary Allan CD - Alright Guy (Lyrics by Jamie O'Hara)
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