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Kelly's--midmorning**********
'There she is,' thought Nikolas
to himself. 'She's
so...no words can describe it.'
Nik had been in love
before, or so he had thought. With
Sarah, he really
wasn't sure what it had been. At
one point, he had
definitely liked her, a lot. But
there had always
seemed to be something missing.
With Robin, he had
just been mystified by who she
was. She had a
terrible hand dealt her, what with
all the loved ones
she had lost and being HIV positive.
She had the
allure of an 'older' woman, though
she wasn't but
three or four years his senior.
Robin was also
extremely lovely, as had been Sarah.
Things had
soured when Sarah became too clinging,
and Robin
hooked back up with Jason. Also,
of course, Robin
had a tendency to preach. 'Umph.
That's a nice way
of putting it.' Honestly, he liked
Robin. She was a
good listener. At one point, he
had seriously
considered striking up something
with Sarah again,
but last he had heard, she was
off in Bosnia, helping
her parents. Then he had started
noticing Elizabeth.
When she had first come to Port
Charles, she had
merely been annoying, with all
her pranks. But under
that facade of manipulation and
scheming, she was
vulnerable and affection-starved.
Then she was
raped. Though he thoroughly detested
the
circumstances that had forced her
change, the
assault had ultimately strengthened
and matured
Elizabeth, yet at the same time
retaining her
spontaneity and, as he put, 'bounciness.'
Not
irritatingly perky like her sister,
but vivacious.
'Enough of this, Nikolas. Just
go in there and talk to
her.' Easier said than done.
"Okay, here goes nothing," Nik said aloud.
He went into Kelly's, and approached
the table
where Liz had two books open, a
cup of coffee, and
a frown of frustration marring
her usually serene
face. She was so enraptured in
her studies that she
didn't Nik until he was standing
right in front of her.
"Uh, hem."
With the sudden distraction, she
yelped. "Geez,
Nikolas, don't scare me like that,
please."
"Oh, sorry. Are you busy?," Nikolas
asked, a bit
nervously.
"Well, sorta-kinda---"
"Oh, then, I'll go away--"
"No! No. Please. I could use a positive
distraction.
Please, sit down." Liz gestured
at the empty chair
across from her.
"Thanks. What are you studying?"
"Oh, simply boring stuff. I have
a MAJOR Business
Law test tomorrow. Over torts,
tariffs, all this legal
mumbo-jumbo. Horrible course, but
required for
graduation." Lizzie sighed.
"Mumbo-jumbo? I'm afraid I'm not
familiar with the
term. Does it hold legal or business
connotations?"
The look of sheer perplexion on
Nik's face caused
Liz to burst out laughing.
"No, no. 'Mumbo-jumbo is just a,
well, phrase, used
when something confuses you. You
really didn't
know what it meant?"
'God, she has the prettiest laugh,'
Nik thought. 'I
could listen to that sound all
day.' Caught in
amorous thoughts, Nik just sat
staring at Liz with an
expression that bordered on vacant.
Liz waved her
hand in front of his face.
"Earth to Nikolas? Hello?"
"Oh, sorry. Sorry. Anyway, what
were you saying,?"
Nikolas desperately hoped he wasn't
blushing.
Liz said, "Oh, nothing important.
So, what brings
you to Kelly's?"
'You.' "Oh, just passing through
the neighborhood."
'Real smooth. Ask her something.'
"Is that coffee
good?" 'God, ask her something
intelligent!!!'
"Actually, I just brewed it. Would you like a cup?"
"Sure."
"Great. I'll be right back." Liz
gracefully rose from
her chair and headed for behind
the counter.
"Oh, wait...." Nik trailed off as
he noticed the easy
elegance Elizabeth moved with.
'She should be
pampered and catered to in a castle
high in the Swiss
Alps, not holed up in this cesspool
of a town with no
better prospects than Spencer.'
Liz came back with the coffee, so
Nik couldn't
continue his tirade against a town
that HE had
insisted his uncle and himself
remain in.
Looking for something to talk about,
Nik asked the
first question that popped into
his head, "So how
was your and Lucky's 'celebration'?"
Liz couldn't help but notice the
over-emphasis on
the last word or the sarcasm dripping
from his tone
of voice. Warily, she said, "It
was fine."
"He didn't mess it up? I mean, Lucky's
never been
one for tact or decorum--"
"Look, if you came just to rattle
on about how much
you dislike Lucky, you can just
leave. I know that
sometimes Lucky shoots his mouth
at the wrong
time, but I also know that he usually
does it because
somebody provokes him." By the
time she had
finished, Liz was irate. 'Talk
about tact and
decorum. At least Lucky doesn't
pretend friendship
to Nik's girlfriend and then talk
trash about him.'
However, her anger died as suddenly
as it had risen
at the immediate look on shame
on Nikolas' face.
"I'm sorry. I see I have offended
you. Please,
understand that was never my intent.
I honestly
approached because I genuinely
like conversing with
you. I'll leave now. Please take
my profuse apologies
into consideration before you ride
me off
completely." Nik rose to leave.
Liz reached for his
arm, and as soon as her flesh made
contact with his,
Nik froze, transfixed her touch.
Not noticing her effect on him,
Liz said, "I'm not
offended or angry anymore. Your
feud with Lucky is
none of my business. Please, don't
go. I'll have no
one to talk to."
It was at that point both of them
realized that except
for them, the restaurant was completely
empty. That
particular piece of knowledge didn't
make Liz feel
very secure, especially when she
noticed the
intensity with which Nikolas gazed
at her.
"Hum. Please, stay. You could help
me study for my
test. Please." Liz decided that
being with Nik in an
empty restaurant was better than
being completely
alone in an empty restaurant. Besides,
he probably
really could help her with the
test material.
"Uh, okay," came the unsteady reply.
"Great. Drag your chair over here."
The two immersed themselves in the
material.
Because of the smallness of the
table, they had to
lean in towards one another, making
the simple
tutoring session seem more intimate
than in was in
actuality. Perhaps this was the
reason why the next
figure to walk into Kelly's flew
into such a rage at
the sight of them. Whatever the
explanation, one
moment Nik was explaining to Liz
once again the
workings of stocks and bonds, the
next moment his
face was being smashed into a brick
wall.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING,
CASSADINE?!?!" The scream was one
of pure
rage.
"Lucky! LUCKY! LET HIM GO!!!" Pleading,
Liz
pulled frantically at the arm Lucky
was using to pin
Nik to the wall. "He was only helping
me study!"
Thankfully, the sound of Elizabeth's
voice brought
Lucky back to reality. Unfortunately,
though, he
wasn't interested in details. "Sweetheart,
with the
Cassadines, nothing is 'only' something.
Little Boy
Fauntleroy, here, is up to something."
Because he was momentarily distracted
by the love
of his life, Nik was able to break
Lucky's hold. He
immediately turned and landed a
punch in the
unprepared Lucky's gut. Despite
the having the wind
knocked out of him, Lucky managed
a
counterattack, which Nikolas met
with full force.
The two continued using each other
as punching
bags until a gunshot froze both
of them in their feet.
Because she had run off to find
help, neither could
see Elizabeth. However, Lucky was
the only one to
notice her absence.
"ELIZABETH!!! BABY, WHERE ARE---"
"QUIET!!!" Ruby's voice boomed over
his. Both
brothers immediately turned to
her voice and noticed
the twelve-gauge braced between
her hands. The
shot had been fired above them,
plaster and dust
particles were floating around
the pair. A scared and
confused Elizabeth peeked through
the hole in the
ceiling. In the melee, she had
run upstairs to see if
Ruby was anywhere around.
"I'm right here, Lucky," her voice
called out. Now
over the shock of the blast, she
was madder than
hell.
"Sweet Mary, I thought you two were
burglars with
all the raucous goin' on. Just
look at the mess you've
caused," Ruby said angrily.
The pair looked around at their
surroundings to see
overturned tables, broken chairs,
and other various
debris left in the wake of Hurricane
Lucky meets
Tropical Depression Nikolas.
"Uh, gee, Ruby. I'm sorry?" asked Nikolas said.
Lucky, however, was halfway across
the room,
attempting to talk to Elizabeth.
"Come on, Liz. What was I supposed
to think? You
and the prince sittin' here, nice
and cozy? Surely you
knew what that'd do to me!" Lucky
pleaded.
"Oh, I see! So this was all MY fault?!?"
Elizabeth
asked enraged.
"Well, indirectly, yeah....."
"I DON'T think so! I'm going home!
Lucky, when
you grow up and learn to control
your temper, still
don't call me!
With that, Liz ran out the door.
Realizing it was
futile to follow her right then,
Lucky turned his fury
back onto to Nikolas.
"Man, you are so dead!"
As the two approached each other
yet again, Ruby
stepped between them. "Oh, no.
Not again. Lucky,
you stay right there. Nikolas,
go home. I'm
expecting you to be here tomorrow
bright and early
to help clean up. Now get."
As soon as Nikolas left, Ruby looked
at Lucky.
"You better think of a really good
apology to that
girl. She's the best darn thing
that ever happened to
you, and I'd hate to have to beat
you for losing her,
especially to that Cassadine kid."
Confused, Lucky asked, "You're not mad?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm mad, but it ain't
the first time boys
fought over a girl, and it won't
be the last. So long
as your here tomorrow to help clean,
I won't
mention it to Luke, though he'd
probably be proud
that you pounded Nikolas. You only
have one
shiner, Cassadine's got two and
a scraped face."
"Thanks, Ruby, you're the best."
Lucky immediately left then to make
preparations to
win over Lizzie. He was too occupied
to notice the
crouched figure in the alley that
had just found a
method in which to kill two birds
with one stone.
The Hardy's--early afternoon**********
'How could he? I thought he and
Nikolas were at
least being civil to one another.'
Stretching herself
out on the living room sofa, Liz
gave up studying for
her test as she pondered her beloved
and his fierce
hatred of his brother. 'Well, its
not as if they've ever
been confidantes. Even when there
merely talk to
one another, there is always an
undercurrent of
tension.' She just didn't understand
them. She wasn't
truly mad at Lucky for fighting.
After all, she herself
didn't quite feel that comfortable
in Nicholas's
presence. However, Lucky had no
right to blame the
entire affair on her. She hadn't
done anything to hurt
Lucky, and she didn't mean to make
him jealous. 'It
was just an innocent study session.
Oh, God, what
am I saying?' Even if she and Nikolas
had been
making out, he had no right to
attack Nikolas like
that. The look of sheer hatred
and coldness on
Lucky's face had frightened her
a great deal. 'What
am I going to do?' She still loved
Lucky fiercely.
'Oh, what am I going--'
KNOCK. KNOCK.
The sudden noise knocked Elizabeth
out of her
reverie. Untangling herself from
the notes and books
scattered around her, Liz went
to the door. Opening
it cautiously, she didn't see anyone.
However, a
small package wrapped in satiny
paper tied with a
violet ribbon sat in front of the
door. Picking up the
package, she looked out onto the
porch, but didn't
see anyone. Shutting the door behind
her, she
returned inside and unwrapped the
package. Under
the paper, was a white box that
said 'Wyndham's.'
'Oh, what is it?' Opening the box,
Liz discovered to
her delight a tiny, gold cherub
holding pure ice-blue
aquamarine. 'Oh, my! What a lovely
necklace!'
Dropping the box to the floor,
she hurriedly fastened
the delicate chain around her neck
and peered into
the hall mirror. The angel rested
at the hollow of her
throat. 'Its breathtaking? I wonder
who sent it?'
Looking down at the box on the
floor, she noticed
that a piece of paper had fallen
out of the box.
Picking it up and opening it, she
read a short
message written in a definitely
masculine script:
A small reminder that you will always
have a
guardian angel to protect
and watch over you.
A Secret
Admirer
Though the whole 'secret admirer'
bit was somewhat
cliche` she was also extremely
flattered. 'I wonder
who it could be?' The first person
she thought of
was Lucky, but she immediately
discarded that
theory. Not only could he have
afforded such a piece
of jewelry, but hidden messages
were not his style.
Also she hoped that he had more
common sense
than to think that she could be
won over by a gift,
no matter how beautiful, without
any form of
explanation or apology. 'If not
Lucky, who else?'
Her vague reaches as to the person's
identity were
interrupted by an assuredly more
important thought.
'What if Lucky finds out?' If Lucky's
reaction to a
mere conversation with another
guy sent Lucky into
a murderous rage, how would he
take to a secret
admirer? Elizabeth was not wholly
unfamiliar with
Lucky's temper or his jealousy.
During the last two
years, whenever and whereever a
boy approached
Liz when Lucky was around, he would
immediately
become cold and withdrawn, completely
brushing
off the poor guy until he left.
A few times the more
persistent prospects received a
taste of Lucky's fist,
but that was only when she seemed
threatened. At
first, Liz hadn't truly minded
Lucky's
overprotectiveness. It gave her
the opportunity to
breath and deal with the rape.
However, as the
months turned into a year, Liz
had slowly begun to
realize Lucky's attitude stemmed
not only from
concern, but also jealousy and
a bit of possessive.
She understood these emotions could
turn
dangerous if in too much quantity,
but Lucky
genuinely loved her. He had NEVER
threatened
violence unless she was in danger.
His reaction to
her talking to Nikolas was an extension
of this, but
that still didn't give him the
right to blame it on her.
Her musings were postponed as the
doorbell rang.
Opening the door, she saw a delivery
man holding a
clipboard and about two-dozen red
roses.
"Please sign here, ma'am," said the man.
Liz signed and took the flowers from the man.
"Thanks." 'More gifts?'
Seeing a card attached, she removed
it and began to
read, immediately recognizing the
handwriting:
Your wonderful presence is sincerely
requested at
Luke's Club tonight at 8:00 for
a private dinner and
dance. Dress is formal. Please
attend.
Love,
Lucas Lorenzo Spencer, Jr.
Seeing Lucky use his entire name
brought tears to
Elizabeth's eyes. He only used
it when he knew he
was in big trouble. 'Well,
if I'm ever going to talk to
him, I might as well go.'
Noting the time was almost four,
Liz went upstairs
to begin to change.
Wyndemere**********
'She should have received the package
by now,'
Nikolas thought. 'I hope she likes
it.'
Embarrassed by his lack of control
in front of
Elizabeth, Nik had immediately
went to Wyndham's.
He knew it was only a paltry offering
when she
really deserved diamonds and gold
and other such
baubles, but he had only a few
hundred on him in
cash. 'Later, I'll buy her something
better.' Actually,
he didn't think he would have to
take an active role
in ridding himself and Liz of Lucky.
His violent
reaction to his meeting with Liz
earlier that day had
been more than he could have hoped
for. He had
approached Elizabeth with the idea
that sooner or
later Lucky would happen by, and
that when Lucky
saw him with Liz, Lucky would shoot
off his mouth.
However, Lucky had attacked Nikolas,
though Nik
couldn't tell if was out of jealousy
or that he had felt
Liz was in danger. When he
and Lucky usually
fought, Lucky was always angry,
but never cold.
The look in Lucky's eyes today
had been like hard,
foggy ice. 'I would never harm
Liz, surely Lucky
would realize that.' In reality,
Lucky had no way of
knowing such a thing. 'Perhaps
Lucky thinks I'm
only using Liz as a means to get
close to Lucky, and
then hurt him. I don't know...'
"Nikolas, what HAPPENED?!?"
The feminine screech sent Nikolas
flying through the
air off the couch as he was knocked
from his
thoughts. He had been contemplating
so deeply, he
had not noticed Emily walk into
the room.
"Oh, hey, Em," Nik tried to sound
enthusiastic.
Emily was nice enough, she just
had a tendency to
act too ditzy. "Uh, I just got
into a fight, that's all."
"Oh, dear. With who?"
"Who do you think?"
"Uh, I really don't know," Emily said earnestly.
"Lucky. I got into a fight yet again
with Lucky,"
Nikolas said resignedly.
"Oh, well, you look awful. Want
me to get you
something?," Emily asked.
The true concern in Emily's tone
softened Nikolas a
little. He really had nothing against
Emily. Finally
looking at her thoroughly, Nik
couldn't help but
appreciate her long, lithe figure
and lovely face. 'Not
as beautiful as Elizabeth, but
she's definitely going to
break some hearts one of these
days, if she hasn't
already.'
"What are you doing back so soon?
I thought your
photo shoot didn't end until next
month?"
"Oh, it wasn't supposed to, but
Ned insisted I return
now so I'm rested for school. It
starts next week,
you know?" Emily replied, a little
disappointed that
Nik didn't know this little fact
about her life when
she knew everything about his.
Nik was immediately reminded, though.
Emily
would be a senior at PC High, while
he himself, if he
were in college, would be a sophomore.
He assumed
that both Liz and Lucky would enter
the freshman
class at PCU.
Emily's voice once again pulled
Nikolas from his
reflections, "How 'bout some dinner?"
Though Nik was tired, he was also
sick of sitting on
his butt doing nothing. "Sure,
why not? I need to do
a little shopping anyway."
"Great." With that, both left for
an evening of dinner
and shopping.
Luke's--that night**********
The club was empty. Tables had been
cleared away
to make a dance floor, except for
one. It was
centered in the club and covered
with a white linen
tablecloth and formal diningware.
Dozens of softly
glowing candles were the only illumination
in the
room. Almost inaudibly, slow music
drifted from an
unseen stereo system. 'Man, I owe
Dad a lot,'
thought Lucky. Luke hadn't been
terribly thrilled
when Lucky had requested his father
close the club
to the public. It meant the loss
of quite a bit of good
business, but when Luke had heard
Lucky's reasons,
he happily obliged. 'Where is she?'
Lucky was
beginning to think Liz wasn't coming.
Deciding to
go check on the cooking meal, he
left the main room
for the kitchen.
Right at that moment, Liz walked
into the room,
dressed in her best. Not seeing
Lucky anywhere, she
slowly moved towards the center
table. She looked
at the lavish but tasteful decorations.
The crystal
stemware, delicate china, sterling
silverware. 'My,
goodness, he must truly by sorry.'
It was then that
she noticed the bucket of ice and
bottle standing at
the end of the table. 'Oh, surely,
not..."
"Miss, I'm sorry, but we're closed
to the public..."
Lucky's voice trailed off as Elizabeth
turned around.
At first he hadn't recognized her,
but now he did,
and he was speechless. Her hair
was pinned loosely
in a French twist with many tendrils
framing her
face, similar to the hair style
she wore to Max and
Felicia's wedding. Her gown was
of the deepest
violet. Thin straps held a tight
bodice with a semi-
daring neckline that looked to
be made of the softest
velvet. Her skirt was a full, billowy
cloud of gauze
that fell to the floor. She looked
indescribable.
Lucky felt his throat catch as
he realized what he
had almost lost, still could if
the night didn't go the
way he planned.
Finding his voice, he said, "Liz,
I, uh, geez, uh..."
The words 'gosh darn purty' drifted
trough his mind,
but he was still powerless to form
words more than
one syllable.
At the same time, Liz seemed to
be afflicted with the
same disorder. She was stunned
by the look of
Lucky in his all-black suit. The
slacks fit him
perfectly. His jacket hung snugly
on his shoulders,
and his collarless shirt made him
look all the more
sexy. His longish hair had been
slicked back, and a
diamond stud twinkled in his ear.
Both were so caught up in each other
that when they
felt their lips melt together they
didn't remember
walking towards one another. It
that one kiss all was
forgiven and forgotten. After a
few moments, they
stopped only because of a mutual
need for oxygen.
Holding Liz tightly to him, Lucky
said, "I know
today wasn't your fault. I'm so
sorry! To think I
could have lost you, could still
lose you! I was so
scared!"
"Shh. Hush," Liz whispered. "Lucky,
look at me.
Look. At. Me."
Reluctantly, Lucky gazed into her
eyes, tears
streaming down his face. "Listen
to me. Nothing,
NOTHING you ever do could ever,
ever make me
stop loving you! NOTHING! I LOVE
YOU! Do
you understand?" By this time,
both were crying.
"I love you, too," Lucky managed
to choke out.
Together, they both clung to one
another, swaying
gently.
Suddenly, Lucky asked, "Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why do you love me?"
Liz was momentarily stunned. 'Because
you make
me feel wonderful. I'm complete
with you. Your
funny, honest, loving, tender,
passionate, and a
myriad of other things I could
go one about for an
eternity. You stuck by me when
I was alone. You
saved me. You make me ME.' However,
Liz said
none of these things.
Instead, she simply said, "You helped
me to see the
stars again."
With that said, she asked him why.
"You are my star. How could I not love you?"
They kissed again and again and
again. Finally, they
both decided they were hungry.
Lucky brought out dinner,
which of course, was a
hamburger and fries.
"Your favorites, madame," Lucky
said in a mock
English accent.
"Thank you, milord. Its simply divine,"
Liz answered
back in the same bad imitation.
It wasn't until dessert that Lucky
once again began
to get nervous. 'Well, here goes
nothing.' Reaching
for the chilled bottle in the bucket
of ice, he poured
its contents into two goblets.
Handing one to Liz, he
said, "Bottoms up!"
"Wait! Its not champagne, is it?" Liz asked.
"Of course not. Its ginger ale."
"Oh, well, then. Bottoms up."
It was at this point Liz noticed
something through
the glass. Confused, Liz reached
into the glass and
pulled out the object. It was a
simple gold solitaire
diamond ring.
As Liz gazed at it in fascination,
Lucky rose from his
chair and got on bended knee in
front of Liz.
He said, "Liz, will you do me the
honor of taking me
as your husband?"
A street in Port Charles' shopping
district**********
At the same time, a lone figure
walks home carrying
a shopping bag. In this shopping
bag are three
special items: a red dress, a bottle
of spicy cologne,
and a black ski mask.