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True Part 11 Sonny ran all the way back to the penthouse. When he got there, his heart was pounding fiercely in his chest, but it wasn't really from the physical exertion. Physically, he actually felt light and free; he was hardly even breaking a sweat. But emotionally, he was at a breaking point. Would Carly and Michael be there? Would everything be the same as it had been? The same sad, painful, half-life that he'd been living? Or would it be…could it be…that something different was waiting for him at home? Sonny scarcely dared to hope. There were no bodyguards, either on the ground floor or upstairs, when he walked out of the elevator. He found his keys in his pants pockets - even though he swore they hadn't been there earlier - and he unlocked the penthouse door. Pitch black. Nothingness. Sonny sighed. The darkness was a metaphor for the way his life had always been. Then suddenly, every light in the place came on. "SURPRISE!!!!" yelled twenty-odd voices. There, in the penthouse, were familiar faces. People who Sonny had known for a long time. But instead of looking at him with suspicion, hate, or disgust, they were smiling and laughing. Clapping for him. "Hi there," said Alexis, dressed in a sleeveless dress of shantung blue silk, that hugged all her curves closely. She wore her hair partially swept up, though most of it hung down to her shoulders in carefully styled curls. She looked so beautiful, Sonny ached with longing at the sight of her. Was she his friend, in this life, then? Had they never said all those horrible things to each other? Maybe, if she still cared about him, he would have a chance to convince her… Alexis walked right up to him and interrupted his thoughts with a soft kiss to his cheek. "Bet you didn't expect this, huh?" she asked, beaming with joy. Sonny smiled back a little uncertainly. He looked around again at the people looking at him, rather expectantly. Some kind of party for him? "No, I definitely wasn't expecting this," he said to Alexis. "Did you think your best friend would be able to keep it a secret?" Alexis asked. Sonny frowned…who could she mean? She held her hand out to someone - it was Mac Scorpio. As Mac came forward and grasped Alexis's hand, Alexis said, "Thank you, Mac, for calling to let me know." "Of course," said Mac, grinning as Sonny had never seen before. "Sorry, Sonny, but you know your wife. She would have forced me to confess under torture if I hadn't volunteered the information." His wife? He looked wonderingly at Alexis. She didn't contradict it. Sonny's smile grew wide, to match Mac's. More than match it. "Torture? Yeah, that does sound like something she'd do…" Sonny said, gazing into Alexis's eyes. Alexis socked him in the arm. "Hey, it's not every day that my husband is going to be promoted to the head of RICO. Sonny, that's incredible! You'll be running one of the largest anti-crime units in the country! Does this mean we're moving to Washington?" asked Alexis eagerly. Head of RICO? Sonny thought now, surely, this must be a dream. Holy Mother of God. Really? But Mac walked nearer to him and held out his hand. Sonny shook it, too stunned to do anything else. "I'll miss you when you go. But we couldn't both be keeping the streets of Port Charles safe forever, right? That'd be a waste of talent," said Mac. Sonny saw nothing but respect, trust, and friendship in Mac's eyes. So this is what he had done with his life: he'd become a lawman. He'd fought crime. He'd kept people safe, and helped bring justice when it was needed. And he'd done it at the side of a man as good as Mac Scorpio, and earned the right to be this man's best friend. It was incredible how much it made sense, at some fundamental, instinctual level. Even though Sonny had never even considered this for himself, not even one time, it felt completely right. And good. "Mac, if you ever want to come down to Washington…" Sonny said, earnestly. He'd never thought about it, but he supposed he and Mac *could* have had (and apparently, in this reality, did have) a great deal in common. "No, thanks, buddy. As long as Robin and Jason insist on staying on the staff at General Hospital, my place is here. And you know, we got word today that their petition to adopt will be approved soon." Mac looked over his shoulder at Jason, who had his arms wrapped around his beloved Robin. Sonny felt sheer happiness seeing them together. Could anything be more right? "Is that so, Mac?" Alexis asked. "How wonderful! You'll be a grand-uncle! Sonny, let's go and congratulate them." She put her soft hand in his, and Sonny gripped it more tightly than the situation probably warranted. But he couldn't help himself. Alexis kissed Robin on both cheeks and wished her all the best with the adoption process. As she chatted with Jason and Robin, Sonny noted the wedding rings on their hands. So, this is had happened in a world where Sonny had chosen to defend the law instead of break it. Jason had recovered his memory, and he became a doctor, as he was always meant to be. Jason and Robin never broke up; instead, they married, and were well on their way to becoming adoptive parents. Then Jason said something that grabbed Sonny's attention like a clamp around his gut. "Not all of us can be as lucky as you two, you know - to have a baby as beautiful as Kristina biologically. Some of us have to find other ways to have children." Jason said this without any shame or regret, it was just a statement of fact. He and Robin looked lovingly at each other, obviously thrilled that they were about to get a child of their own. But Sonny was focused on what Jason had said. Kristina, his child? So Kristina existed in this lifetime…and she was his? Alexis said, "If you'll excuse me, I should probably look in on Kristina. It's almost time to feed her." Turning to Sonny, she said, "Will you entertain our guests while I'm upstairs?" "I can go check on her," Sonny said, his heart in his throat. He was desperate for a look at his daughter. "Sorry, but if she needs to be fed, you're not well-equipped," Alexis laughed, and kissed him again on the cheek before she walked upstairs. Sonny scanned the room, taking stock of who else was there. There was Lucky, his arm around Elizabeth's waist, and Nikolas with Gia, and Zander and Emily. The rest of the Quartermaines were milling around, too. Nothing too surprising, although it was strange to think of them all as friends, rather than enemies. In the corner of the room, Jax was sitting on an armchair, and Brenda sat on his lap, laughing at something he'd whispered in her ear. Sonny and Brenda's eyes met briefly, and somehow he could tell instantly that they had never been anything but friends in this reality. Sonny felt relieved at the thought - one less woman whose life he'd ruined. Then another couple caught his eye. It was Miguel and Lily. They were kissing. And Miguel had his palm splayed across Lily's belly - she was pregnant. Tears came to Sonny's eyes. Lily was alive. He had never broken her heart. He had never betrayed her. He had never caused her to die. She was here, with the man who was the love of her life, and happy. The tears escaped Sonny as he considered her swollen stomach. He had never had the chance to see her so far along in her pregnancy, in that other, awful life he'd led. Sonny wiped his eyes and approached Lily and Miguel, and Miguel shook his hand. "Congratulations, Sonny! What a wonderful promotion. No one could deserve it more, considering all you've done." Lily smiled. "We were lucky that Miguel's tour ended yesterday, otherwise we wouldn't have been able to come tonight." Sonny said, "I'm so glad you could both come." He focused intently on Lily's face. She was smiling as only someone free of any serious troubles could smile. "I'm really happy to see you. In fact.." Sonny debated whether to go down this road with them, but then realized he had to. In this life, they were his friends. "I have some good news for both of you. It's about your child." Miguel embraced Lily protectively over her enlarged midsection. "Our baby?" "No, I mean your first child," Sonny said. "Juan. I think I may know where to find him." Lily and Miguel looked at each other in utter surprise. Lily made a small sound of happiness and Miguel's eyes went wide. Lily said, "Our Juan?! You know where he is?!" "I have a few leads. I'll start following up on them tomorrow, I promise," Sonny said. "Sonny, thank you so much. You don't know what it would mean to us to find our son!" Miguel exclaimed, and he and Lily began talking in frantic whispers about what they would do if they managed to get back the boy they'd been forced to give up when they were teens. Bobbie Spencer walked past, and Sonny joined her as she poured herself a glass of wine. "Hi Bobbie, how are you?" "Sonny! I'm sorry, I didn't see you there! Hey, congratulations. I'm not all that surprised, I mean, with all that you've done for the WSB here and in New York. But it's great news!" Bobbie said in her enthusiastic way. "Thanks. Um, hey Bobbie, how's your daughter?" Sonny asked somewhat hesitantly. He almost didn't want to know what had become of Carly in this life, if she had never had Jason or him to run to, but he knew he had to find out. "Well, it's always one thing or another with Carly," Bobbie said, rolling her eyes. "But I think she's been a little bit better since she moved back to Florida. She's finally letting A.J. go and spend time with Michael next week, so that's something I guess." "Right, right. Well," Sonny said, smiling, "good luck with that!" "Yeah, thanks. And congratulations!" said Bobbie, walking off to talk to Felicia and her girls. Then someone tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey you," a somewhat familiar voice said. When Sonny turned and saw who it was, he was overwhelmed with emotion. He was so stunned, he didn't say a word. But he didn't have to. "Congratulations to my favorite, and only, brother-in-law!" Kristina said, smiling joyously and giving him a hug. When she pulled back, she looked mortified to see Sonny silently weeping. "Sonny, what's wrong? I thought you wanted this position!" "I do!" Sonny said quickly, running his sleeve against his face, embarrassed. "It's just…a lot to take in at once, you know?" "Oh, I know what you need," Kristina said sagely, nodding. "Some hot ginseng tea. You know, I put some in your pantry last week, when Alexis wasn't looking. Do you want me to brew you some?" "No, no thanks," Sonny said, laughing. Of course, Kristina was alive, and her same self. Of course. He was not to blame for her death. The thing that had caused a rift the size of the Grand Canyon between him and Alexis had never happened. Because here was Kristina, happy and well. And his sister-in-law. "You look great," he said. "It's good to see you." "Thanks! I just had a reflexology session. It's so good for helping to release all that bad energy, you know? Hey look, it's my beautiful namesake!" Sonny's gaze flew to the stairs, and there was Alexis, radiant and almost too gorgeous to look at, with a bundle in a pink blanket in her arms. Alexis came closer, and closer, and then before Sonny was even ready for it, he saw her. His daughter. Tiny Kristina. "Do you want to say hi to Daddy?" Alexis asked her little daughter, and since no answer would be forthcoming from that beautiful baby mouth, she simply handed the infant over to Sonny. He handled her like the most precious jewel in all the world, which indeed she was, to him. He looked closely at the baby's face - and knew right away, this was the same baby Kristina as he'd seen in the other reality. So, that child had been his, after all, and that Alexis had gone to great lengths to prevent him from knowing it. But in this world, Alexis was snuggling up to his side, and his daughter was gurgling gleefully in his arms, and he had his family. The loves of his life. They spent a pleasant evening with their guests, and bid them farewell one by one, and then finally, Sonny and Alexis were alone with their little girl. "Why don't you get ready for bed while I give her her bath?" Alexis offered. "I'd rather watch you two. Can I?" Sonny asked, almost shy. Alexis reached out and stroked his cheek. "Of course," she said, warm lights dancing in her golden-brown eyes. Alexis lay Kristina on their bed as she changed into her nightgown. Sonny, following her lead, changed into his pajama bottoms as well. They made small talk, and since Sonny honestly had nothing to say about how he had spent his day, and had no idea what to tell her about his promotion or their future, he kept asking Alexis questions about what *she* had done. Evidently, she was very much the same as the Alexis he had known in his other existence: a brilliant attorney, successful and highly sought-after, constantly busy and respected by all. Sonny guessed her salary was probably paying for their penthouse, in fact. He couldn't be making as much as she did, working for the government. As Sonny looked on with wonder at Alexis bathing their daughter, he realized there was one important difference in this Alexis: she was happy. And free. He had known an Alexis who was beautiful and sad, almost tragic. The Alexis before him was glowing with contentment. Not even the slightest whiff of tragedy polluted the air around her. Sonny wondered if he had had something to do with that, if his loving her and supporting her from the time they were teenagers had helped her overcome some of the devastating events of her life. He hoped with all his might that had been the case. "Well, what story shall we tell her tonight?" Alexis asked, walking with Kristina to the second bedroom, which Sonny saw right away was a nursery. Sonny took Kristina from Alexis's arms and laid her gently in her crib. "I have a request. Can you tell her the story of us? When we were young?" Sonny's eyes beseeched Alexis's. "You mean, how we met? When we were sixteen?" asked Alexis. "Um, how about if you start when we were eighteen. Right about the time you went to college?" That was, after all, the part of the story Sonny hadn't gotten to experience, although he hoped there were memories somewhere in his consciousness from this other life he'd led, and that the memories would surface someday. Alexis laughed. "Oh, you mean, The Grand Romantic Gesture." "Is that what you call it?" Sonny laughed too, wondering what he'd done. Alexis looked down at Kristina and said, "Well, darling, I had just gone off to school, heartbroken because I thought your father and I would never see one another again, and about ten or eleven days after I'd arrived there, your daddy showed up with a box of gardenias and the engagement ring he'd tried to give me before, and knelt on the grass outside my dormitory, and shouted up at my window until I opened it. He held out the flowers and the ring, and recited verses of romantic poetry, and yelled that he'd stay there all night if he had to, until I came downstairs and agreed to marry him." "So what did you do?" asked Sonny, then realized it sounded as if he really didn't know. "You have to tell Kristina," he added a little belatedly. "Okay. So, Kristina, I went downstairs to tell your father to be quiet, but of course I was crying because I knew there was only one thing he could say that would really get me to marry him. Even though I loved him with all my heart, I'd already told him I couldn't be with him unless he quit his job. And guess what?! He *had* left his job! He told me that, and he said…" Alexis blushed. "Sonny, I don't have to tell her what you said, do I? It's embarrassing!" "No, you have to tell her! It's important that she know," said Sonny, desperate to hear how he'd won Alexis over once and for all. Alexis sighed and looked once again at their daughter. "Your daddy quoted a poem to me. And it went, 'As
I stand here today with the world as my witness, Alexis was crying a bit by the time she finished repeating the poem, and Sonny was weak with relief that he seemed to have done right by her. Alexis finished the story she was telling their little girl: "So, I agreed to marry your father. And even though everyone said we were far too young, we knew it was the right thing, because I was never ever going to love any man half as much as I loved your daddy." "And I knew I would never love any woman a tenth as much as I loved your mother," Sonny added. "And so we got married in a church on the West Side of Manhattan, where we'd met, and I went to college and your father worked very hard for many years, going to his job in the day and to classes at night to get his degree. When we graduated, I went to law school, and your father joined the police academy and became a policeman, and a little while later we came up here to Port Charles so he could work for a man called Robert Scorpio, who was your Uncle Mac's older brother. And we've been here ever since! Except now, of course, we're moving to Washington." "Do you not want to move?" Sonny asked, not caring where they lived or what he did for a living as long as he had his wife and daughter. "I could turn down the RICO offer, if you'd rather stay." "No, you've worked hard for this," Alexis said. "You've always wanted to be the man who breaks the mafia's back in this country, and I know that you can do it." She kissed Sonny tenderly on the lips, communicating all her love and faith in him. Sonny thought, if this is what he'd had all these years, if he'd been able to bask in Alexis's support and strength from the time he was sixteen, then of course he'd come to manhood believing he could do anything on earth. Alexis and Sonny held each other close as Alexis said to Kristina, "So, you see, Kristina, if your daddy and I hadn't met all those years ago, and fallen in love when we were so young, you never would have been born!" Sonny stared lovingly at his small daughter and then gazed back at Alexis. "Oh, I don't know. I believe that even if we'd had totally different lives, even if the worst possible things had happened, and I'd made all the wrong choices, you and I still would have met, and Kristina still would have been born." "Do you think so?" asked Alexis. "Absolutely. Because you would have been my one true love in any lifetime, Alexis Corinthos, and that means Kristina would have come to be no matter what. There's no stopping true love." Then, Sonny kissed Alexis and enfolded her in his embrace, and wished, although he surely had no more wishes left waiting to come true, that he could simply kiss her for the rest of his life. ***continued on adult site*** THE END
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