Returning to a Friend
by Cowgirl

Part 3

Alexis fully intended to drive back to her apartment and continue her brainstorming over how to get her life back on track, but found herself in the parking tower of General Hospital. She sat in her car with her now empty coffee cup in her hands.

"Why am I here?" she asked herself as she slowly got out of the car and headed into the building.

She made her way down the corridor and stopped when she came to a door, reading the nameplate. Cameron Lewis. She raised her hand and gave a gentle knock.

"Come in," came the husky voice from inside.

She turned the handle and entered the office.

Cameron looked up and arched an eyebrow. "Alexis. I didn't think we were meeting until later this week," he said as he searched for his appointment book.

Alexis entered the room. "We don't. I ... I needed to talk."

Cameron waved her to a chair. "Well, you're most certainly always welcomed," he folded his hands on his desk and gave her his full attention. "What can I do for you?"

Alexis took a seat in a faded green chair opposite his desk and looked at her lap.

"Someone I used to care about very deeply is in trouble."

Cameron tilted his head. "And you want to help?"

Alexis sighed and threw up her hands. "Lord knows why, but yes."

Cameron nodded. "Don't you think you have enough on your plate without taking on someone else's troubles Alexis?"

Alexis wrung her hands for a minute and then met his gaze. "Yes. Like I said I don't know why I would possibly want to help this person ... " She stood up and began pacing back and forth. "But when it comes to this person I'm always torn."

"Is this person in legal trouble?" he asked cautiously.

Alexis shook her head. "Not currently. No, this person ... it's complicated."

Cameron furrowed his brow and studied Alexis for a moment. "You said someone you used to care about."

Alexis stopped her pacing and looked at him. "We haven't exactly been on the best of terms lately."

He shrugged. "So why help ... this person ... does this person have a name?"

Alexis averted her eyes. "I'd rather not get into that right this minute." She made her way back to the chair and sat down. She sat silently for a moment, taking several deep breaths. "The person is Kristina's father."

Cameron raised his chin. "I see. Old feelings die hard?"

She snapped her head up. "I don't know what I feel for him." She rubbed her temple. "So much has happened since ... since Kristina was conceived and at one point I really thought I hated him." She stood up and paced again. "I blamed him for so many things, but as time went on ... " she shook her head. "I don't know anymore. All I know is that he's in trouble and I want to help him."

Cameron stood up and moved around to the front of his desk, leaning against the edge of it, he folded his arms across his chest. "Can you tell me a little bit about him?"

Alexis stopped her pacing and hugged her arms around herself. "He's ... he's a very dark man. He's a dark man with a complicated and dangerous life with more enemies than you can shake a stick at, and it's usually the people around him who get caught in the crossfire." She hugged herself tighter and walked over to the window in Cameron's office. "I've had my life in jeopardy more than once because of him." She turned back to Cameron and dropped her arms down to her side. "Do you see why I don't want him to know about Kristina?" She moved closer to him. "My sister died partly because of him, and if anyone knows he's Kristina's father then ... well, I'm not putting a target on my little girl's head for the rest of her life."

Cameron listened intently nodding his head. "It does make sense Alexis." He held up a hand. "But don't you think the father has a right to be in his child's life?"

Alexis shook her head. "Don't you hear what I'm saying? The man almost cost me my own life twice and I was just his .. ." She stopped short of saying the word attorney. She shook her head again. "No. I won't give him the opportunity to ruin Kristina's life too."

Cameron's eyebrow went up. "Is that what he did Alexis? Ruined your life?"

Alexis looked up as if she hadn't heard him. "What?" she asked, looking confused.

"You said that you won't let him ruin Kristina's life too. Were you inferring that he ruined your life?"

Alexis got quiet for a moment. "He didn't ruin my life. He made it very complicated at times, but he didn't ruin it."

Cameron pushed himself away from the desk and moved to the couch against the wall, taking a seat. When he was settled, he looked at Alexis earnestly. "Did you love Kristina's father?"

Alexis started to pace again, but faltered and stopped. She chewed nervously on the corner of her bottom lip. Rubbing her hand across her mouth, she sighed. I don't know if I ever figured it out." She started her trek back and forth across the office once more. "I mean, how do you know you're in love with someone really? Do you just say I love this person and that's it?" She stopped and looked at Cameron.

"Alexis, surely you've been in love before. You were in love with Ned at one time weren't you?"

Alexis nodded. "At one time. I still love him ... just not in that way."

Cameron tapped absently on the arm of the couch. "Then your answer to my question was an avoidance tactic ... " he waved his hand. "What is love? How do you know when you're in it? It's a simple question. Did you love Kristina's father?"

Alexis felt her chest constricting. She moved to the couch and flopped down on the other end across from Cameron. She stretched her neck a couple of times, finally rolling her head to the side to look at Cameron. "I had feelings for him. I wasn't supposed to. I mean think about it. I realize that you don't know me all that well, but do I really seem like the type to fall for someone like the man I described?"

There was a silence in the room as they both mulled over her question. "You mean the human kind of person?" Cameron finally asked. "We've all heard the old adage you don't pick who you fall in love with. I believe it's relatively true."

Alexis waved her hand. "I wasn't supposed to have feelings for this man. I wasn't supposed to become his friend or let him become mine." She closed her eyes.

"Maybe you weren't supposed to fall into his bed and conceive his child either Alexis, but you did. Why?"

Alexis snapped her head up and looked at him.

Cameron continued. "You don't appear to me to be the type of woman who delights in one night stands ... especially with someone who you say was a friend. So why did you?"

Alexis' head fell onto her chest. "Because I fell in love with him," she said quietly.

She leaned forward, bent in half at the waste, putting her head into her hands and wept.

She felt Cameron's hand on her shoulder and sat up straight taking a deep breath. "I didn't mean to fall in love with him." She shook her head. "It was the furthest thing from my mind." She stood up and started walking. "We somehow became friends and spent more and more time together. He could be so gentle when he wanted to be. He could be caring and sweet. We had fun he and I ... sometimes."

"But this dark and dangerous part of his life didn't bother you then?"

Alexis turned and looked at Cameron. "I guess not. I mean there were times when I had to bail him out of trouble or talk him out of doing something reprehensible ... but that didn't bother me ... not until I became pregnant. Then it wasn't about me, it was about my child." She pointed to herself. "I could deal with his lifestyle, I could protect myself ... but a child shouldn't have to."

"You said you had to bail him out of trouble ... talk him out of doing reprehensible things ... "

Alexis moved to the chair that she had first occupied and sat down, her back now towards Cameron. "He's ... some people call him a criminal," she stated bluntly.

Cameron's eyes widened in surprise. "A criminal? What would make you get involved ... " It suddenly dawned on him. "Kristina's father was a client of yours."

Alexis nodded her head. "Yes, he was also my neighbor across the hall, my landlord and my confidant. I started out representing him. You see, even though he's been accused of things, he's never been convicted of anything. When I agreed to represent him it was because the PCPD had a nasty little habit of violating his civil rights every chance they got. I have no tolerance for that. I believe that everyone has certain unalienable rights." She turned her head slightly. "At one time I did have morals."

"When did you start sleeping with him?"

Alexis' back went rigid. "I didn't sleep with him ... I mean I did, but only once, and it was two years after we became friends."

"What made you take that final leap between friendship and ... well ... sex?"

Alexis sighed. "I guess it was inevitable. There was always a tension between us ... flirtations." She made a gesture with her hands. "Things between us ... when they were good, they were very good. When they were bad ... then things were very volatile. One night we had an argument over something that he was going to do ... and ... it happened."

"What happened after that?"

"Too much to talk about right now. He was still in love with his ex-wife for one thing."

"He slept with you when he was still in love with his ex?"

Another sigh heaved from Alexis' shoulders. "In short."

"And you still love him and that hurts," Cameron said bluntly.

Alexis turned in her chair to face him. "It's not that. I mean ... I could deal with the fact that he didn't feel the same way." She stood and went back to the couch taking a seat next to Cameron. "I think what hurts the most is that he knew I loved him. Kristina, my sister Kristina, blurted it out to him one day and she told me about it later. She had a habit of blurting things out."

"Did you tell Kristina you were in love with him?"

Alexis shook her head. "No. Kristina was always trying to get me to open up ... share my feelings. I'm not that kind of person. I'm private with my thoughts and feelings. One day she goaded me about my feelings and I got so mad that I just blurted out that she was angry because I was in love with a man she couldn't stand." She squeezed her eyes shut. "Anyway, he knew I had feelings for him and he became more flirtatious. He sent me flowers on Valentine's Day, we went to Puerto Rico on business and one night he made me go out with him and have fun, and I did. He knew my innermost thoughts and fears. We told one another about our horrible childhoods and we bonded over it. I thought that I could trust him. I thought I knew him."

"And when the opportunity arose he went back to his wife."

Alexis sat up straight. "How did you know that?"

"It's not an uncommon story."

"Don't you see, it took everything that I had to trust this man the way I did? I never trusted anyone completely ... but I did him."

"And you gave yourself to him."

Alexis nodded and stood up once more. "I don't understand what's happening to me Cameron. I used to be so sure of myself. I used to be so damn in control and now I've lost everything." She paced the room. "How in the world could I let things get so out of control, how could someone as intelligent as I am let this happen to her ... " she closed her eyes. "How could I ever get involved with a man like Sonny?" Alexis' eyes burst open wide at the realization that she had said his name. She looked to Cameron who looked something just shy of incredulous.

He stood up slowly. "Sonny Corinthos is the father of your child?"

Alexis put her hand to her forehead. "Sonny Corinthos is the father of my child." She looked at him carefully. "Pretty clever of me huh?"

Cameron managed to wipe the shocked look off of his face. "Well, I can see where you would want to keep Kristina safe from him." He looked away for a second and then swung his gaze back to her. "The Sonny Corinthos?"

Alexis glared at him. "Do you know another one?"

He rubbed his jaw and let out a puff of air. "Wow little lady. When you get yourself into trouble, you get in good and deep, don't you?"

Alexis narrowed her eyes. "Is this something that you say to all your patients or am I special?"

Cameron held out his hands. "No, no, I'm sorry. It's just that ... I can't picture the conversation we just had being about Sonny Corinthos."

Alexis waved her hand. "Well, get over it ... it's true."

"And you feel an obligation to help him once more?"

Alexis sank back into her chair. "Yes, I do," she said quietly. "He ... has a tendency to go into these depressions. In the past I have always been able to help him out of it. Carly, his wife, begged me the other day to go and talk to him, that she's tried and gotten nowhere." She shrugged. "So I went." She stopped and collected her thoughts. "He was in the worst shape that I've ever seen him in. He wouldn't talk ... at all. I'm worried about him Cameron. If he doesn't pull himself out of this ... his enemies will get him very easily ... if he doesn't just waste away before even that happens." She turned her gaze to Cameron and he could see the desperation in her eyes. "What do I do?"

Cameron tapped a finger on his temple for a moment and thought this through. "Are you sure you want to get involved Alexis?"

Alexis nodded slowly. "I still love him Cameron, and even though it's quite evident that he and I will never be together, I want to try and help him. I can't just turn my back on him."

"Okay, is there a possibility that you can get him to come in and see me?"

Alexis laughed. "Not even at gun point."

"Well, then, you have to just keep talking to him. Don't let up, make him hear what you're saying." He stood up and walked to Alexis, bending down so that he was eye level with her. "Alexis, I know that our sessions are for all purposes a mockery until the courts let me convince them that you're better and award you your daughter again, but I want you to be careful with this. You've had a hell of a year from what I can fathom and I don't want anything to happen to you."

Alexis nodded. "I'll be careful." She stood up and pulled her purse strap over her shoulder, walking to the door. "Thank you Cameron."

He nodded and lifted his hand to wave. "Anytime."

Alexis pulled the door open but stopped and turned around giving Cameron a weak smile. "Does this mean I don't have to show for our regularly scheduled appointment this week?"

Cameron emphatically wagged his had from side to side. "It means nothing of the sort. Be here when you're supposed to."