Emily smoothed back her hair and plastered a smile on her face outside the L&B studios. She hadn't slept at all the night before. Lucky was on her mind all night. However, she had promised Juan that she would come to his recording session. She would visit Lucky later in the day.
Juan was relieved to see Emily walk into the lobby at L&B. It was clear that she had not slept at all. "Emily, I am so glad to see you!" he said as he took her in his arms.
Emily stiffened. "Hi, Juan," she sighed.
Juan stepped back. "Taggert told me about last night."
Emily was almost relieved. "Yeah. I'm just glad Lucky is alright."
"But Emily, you could've been hurt!" Juan protested.
"How? I wasn't the one up on the bridge with him. Sly got him down."
"You put yourself in that situation, though."
"Gee, was I supposed to just let him die?"
Juan sighed. "No. This is coming out all wrong. I am worried about you. That's all."
"There's nothing to worry about. Can't you understand that?" Emily turned her back to Juan.
Jon, the steel guitar player, approached Juan. "Hey, Juan, do you want to go over the songs that we've decided on? I can teach you them."
Juan looked at Emily and sighed. "This isn't over," he said. "Sure, let's go into one of the offices," he said to Jon.
Emily sighed. What was she going to do now? Then she remembered that Sly would probably be there. She walked back to one of the studios and sure enough, she heard the sounds of acoustic guitar and fiddle. She peeked in the door and saw Sly playing the guitar with Cris, whom Emily normally thought played keyboards. Nevertheless, he was pretty good on the violin, too.
Sly began to softly sing:
Staring out the window at the sinkin' sun
Another painful day is done
If I could convince myself I was over you now
I'd find a way to go on somehow
Emily thought Sly looked like he was in a lot of pain. The words of the song seemed to match the look in his eyes. Cris joined in on the chorus:
But the pain just grows stronger every day
I think of you and I'm on my way
Down memory lane with your hand in mine
Guess I'm just not the healing kind
Cris resumed his fiddle part as Sly played. Emily tried to stay back from the door, but close enough where she could still see. It almost felt like she was intruding on a private moment, but she couldn't turn away. Sly started to sing again.
Another December and the cold winds blow
And nights without you are so long
I stare at our picture through the firelight's glow
And where you are right now I just don't know
Emily was surprised when she felt tears spring to her eyes. The lyrics hit close to home today.
But the pain just grows stronger everyday
I think of you and I'm on my way
Down memory lane with your hand in mine
Guess I'm just not the healing kind
Emily was sure she heard Sly's voice crack slightly when he sang the last line.
Guess I'm just not the healing kind
"Wow, Sly, that is incredible. We should definitely cut it," Cris enthused.
"I'm glad you liked it. What about you, Emily?"
Emily silently cursed herself. He saw me, she thought. "I thought it was beautiful."
Cris moved out of the studio. "I'm going to work more on my part. Somebody come get me when we're ready to start."
"Ok, Cris." Sly looked at Emily. "So, is eavesdropping an acquired Quartermaine trait?"
Emily blushed. "I couldn't help but listen. Sorry."
"No, it's ok. How are you?"
"I feel like hell. You look about the same."
"I didn't sleep at all. I was up writing this."
"It really gets to you. You're really talented. I have a feeling that song just wasn't about last night, though."
Sly looked away. "You'd be right. So, did you hear anything about Lucky?"
"Nothing yet. I hope he's going to be Ok." Emily sighed. "But you're changing the subject. What else is the song about?"
"You know, love and heartbreak, the usual stuff."
"Why are you being so vague, Sly? I know nothing about you anymore. What were you and Lucky referring to on the bridge last night?" Emily asked, cutting right to the chase.
Sly's eyes clouded over. "The past."
Emily moved closer to Sly. "Well, it must have been pretty important. You used it to help Lucky, but I can tell it's hurting you. Let me in. Maybe I can help."
Sly looked up at Emily, one of the few people in his life that he ever really trusted. He thought for a moment. Should he risk telling her? He looked at the ground for a moment, then decided to take a chance.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Nikolas Cassadine rushed down the hallway at General Hospital. He saw Laura and Elizabeth sitting on one of the couches in a lounge area. It looked like they hadn't slept at all.
"Mom?" Laura's head jerked up to see Nikolas approaching.
"Nikolas," she sighed, pulling her son into a hug.
"I came as soon as I heard. Why didn't you call?"
"I'm sorry, honey. I just wasn't thinking clearly last night. I'm sorry I didn't let you know."
"Well, that's understandable." Nikolas stepped back. "How is he?"
"Alright. Dr. Collins is evaluating him. He thinks Lucky may be able to go home, though."
"Liz, you were with him?"
Liz nodded in response.
"Why didn't you call for help? I could have been there…" Nikolas trailed off. There was no point in even asking the question. Liz wouldn't ever need him.
"Nikolas, don't worry. Lucky's cousin Sly was there. He got him down."
"The famous cousin that we've heard so much about but never seen?" Nikolas asked with a hint of bitterness in his voice.
"Well, he seemed nice when I finally met him yesterday," Liz said.
Kevin suddenly approached the group. "Laura, may I speak with you?"
Laura followed Kevin. "How are you holding up?" he asked.
"As well as I can. What's happening?"
"Well, I've done an initial evaluation of Lucky, and I no longer think he is a danger to himself or others, so I am discharging him. However, I don't think he should be alone right now. I think you should take him to your home."
"But Lucky hasn't lived there in years. I don't know how he'll take it."
"I told him that he had a choice; go home with you or stay here, and he chose to go."
Laura sighed. "Any suggestions about how to deal with him?"
"Don't push him. He may not want to talk about this right now, but he will someday. Don't judge him when he does. I have made an appointment for him to come in tomorrow to start therapy with me. We'll see what happens from there. When I was told Lucky willingly got off that bridge last night, I saw it as a good sign that he could recover. Coming here willingly was another step in the right direction. Now the hard work begins. It won't be easy, but I am confident Lucky will pull through this."
"Thank you, Kevin. When can I see him?"
"Well, the paperwork has already gone through. Lucky will be out any minute. If you have any problems, don't hesitate to call me." Kevin handed her his card.
"Thanks again!" Laura called. She walked over to where Elizabeth and Nikolas were standing. "Lucky is being released."
Liz smiled. "That's good news."
Nikolas sighed. "What happens to him now?"
They turned their attention to a door that just closed. Lucky was standing in front of it. "I'm going home."
Song Credit: "The Healing Kind" by Ronnie Bowman and Greg Luck. Copyright
1994 Heart Rhythm Music (Adm. by Bug Music) BMI. Sung by Lee Ann Womack on her
new album, "I Hope You Dance."