General Hospital Update Wednesday 1/22/03
By Suzanne
Pictures by Juanita
Jason and Brenda argue about getting on the plane. She doesn't want to go without him because she wants to be loyal. He says to get on without him, that Sonny will fix it. She keeps trying to convince him that this is his best option, but he won't budge. Finally, he picks her up, throws her over his shoulder, and they hide because cops are looking for them. Eventually the cops give up. After she realizes that he wants to stay because of his girlfriend, she says goodbye and gets on the plane.
Jason goes to Courtney's apartment and the land lady Mrs. Willis tells him that Courtney is moving out. She thinks Courtney is leaving him because he's married and she's finally had it. He gives the woman rent for the next six months. He sees Courtney's bags sitting there but she's not there, so he leaves. Later, Jason goes home and Brenda also arrives, saying she won't leave him alone. They continue to bicker. Taggert and some other cops arrive; Taggert gives her a hard time for leaving the hospital without being formally released. She is very sarcastic. He tells her that she is under 24-hour surveillance. When they talk about leaving, Brenda says it's not because of Sonny that she doesn't want to leave. He asks what it is about.
At her place, Summer thanks Scott again for saving her from the senator. She wonders if he expects something in return, but he insists he doesn't. Scott tries to be charming to Summer, but she sees right through him. He doesn't want to be put in the same boat as the senator, but she knows that he likes to throw around his power. He says that nobody should be afraid of someone else the way she was of the senator. He asks if they can have some martinis but settles for coffee. She doesn't know what to think of him. She says sometimes he's all right and other times, he's a snake. He leaves his card in case she changes her mind about having dinner or drinks with him. He says that a lot of people don't like him but some people think he's okay, including his "daughter" (um, hello? He has at least two daughters! Three if you count Christina!).
Bobbie is going over the books at Kelly's and not happy about it. Lucky comes in and offers to help but she declines. That chat about Luke and Laura. Bobbie tries to be optimistic. He abruptly asks Bobbie about how hard it was to give up being a hooker. She is a bit surprised so he covers by saying that he feels with everything that's happened with his parents, that he has to start over. She reminds him that he has many people who love him. She tells him how terrifying it was because she felt like a hooker pretending to be a nurse and she thought she would be found out. Her secret past did come out but one day she realized that she had transformed herself and her life was her own. And she says she had her "secret weapon", Luke.
Later, Scott comes in to Kelly's & chats with Lucky, who is going over Bobbie's books for her. He tells Scott that if he's looking for a thank you, he won't be getting one, because it was Scott's attitude that allowed the senator to think he could get away with anything he wanted in the first place. He calls Scott a "snake", too. Scott jokes around with Lucky, who is not being friendly at all. Summer looks at Scott's business card, but then she phones Lucky, much to Scott's annoyance, to say she wants to go out with him again.
Zander and Cameron argue some more. Cameron says that the bond between a father and son can never be broken, but mainly he's talking about the dead son Peter, not Zander. He does say that Zander will always be his son. Zander says what happened in the woods will always be there with them. Cameron won't forget his son Peter. Zander says however much Cameron hates him, he hates himself more. Cameron points at his restraints and says he think Zander is taking the easy way out (drugging himself up so he won't feel the pain or deal with the anger). Zander yells at him to get out as Cameron says self-destructing is the only thing Zander's ever been good at.
Nikolas and Gia continue to argue about Zander. He whines that she's putting her job and everyone else before him. She says he's "incredibly spoiled". He wants to know if she's trying to push him away. She says her priorities have just changed. She wonders what happened to the sweet guy she knew. They argue and say some pretty nasty things to each other. Cameron comes up just as Nikolas is calling Zander a loser and asks him who the hell he thinks he is. Cameron first insults the Cassadines and Nikolas tries to imply that he can have him fired, but Cameron just laughs at him. They don't like each other, clearly. Cameron asks if Nikolas has never acted out of anger or been desperate. Nikolas tells Cameron why he doesn't like Zander: all the things he's done to Emily. Cameron asks him to imagine how much Zander hates himself, but Nikolas doesn't care. Cameron says he lacks empathy and compassion. He asks in disgust what Gia is doing with "this guy" and walks away. Nikolas wants to have him fired still but Gia suggests that would be wrong. Nikolas has had it with arguing with both of them and leaves.
Zander keeps remembering the accident as he tries to get out of his restraints. Gia goes back to visit Zander, but he just wants to be left alone. He tells her about his brother and how he wasted his life trying to live up to their father's standards. Gia leaves when he asks her to. Outside, Cameron consults with a social worker; he asks her to assign Zander intensive therapy instead of the court-ordered rehab. She asks if he's volunteering to do it.
Elizabeth and Ric go down to where Carly's new club is going to be and discuss it. She compliments him on his music and says he should play at an open mic night. As she admires the club, Liz jokes that maybe he can bump her to the head of the line if she's nice to him. He says that he's not in Sonny's good graces right now. He doesn't blame Sonny for being upset with him. She says she wants to invite him to a private opening right there. She puts on music (Me Loving You--Sarah and Nikolas' song from a few years back!) and they slow-dance very romantically. The news comes on the radio that Alexis has quit the case, so Ric phones Sonny and leaves a message for him with some ideas about strategy. She wonders why he's trying to help. He says Sonny needs his help; he just doesn't know it yet. Elizabeth asks Ric why he's trying to get Sonny to trust him. Instead of answering, he kisses her, and they kiss for a while. He invites her out for dinner and she asks him to walk her home.
By Danielle
Liz and Rick discussed open mike night, Liz recognizing Rick’s talent. He took her to the basement of Kelly’s revealing the old Speak Easy. Elizabeth loved it and told him he must invite her once the club opened. He told her not to count on it since he wasn’t high on Sonny’s guest list at the present. She asked what was wrong, but Rick admitted Sonny’s reasons were valid. She told him not to worry, she would have her own party and she would invite him. “And you don’t have to worry about Sonny and Carly, ‘cause they’re not invited,” she teased. She then turned on the radio and asked him to dance. The song “Me Loving You, Loving Me,” played. They stopped dancing when an announcement about Alexis resigning came on, followed by an announcement that there would be no postponement for the trial. Rick immediately got on his cell and left a message on Sonny’s voicemail not to put Brenda on the stand. He offered his help if it was needed. Elizabeth asked why he wanted to help Sonny if he didn’t want it. Rick explained that he may not know it now, but Sonny needed his help. She pointed out he didn’t suffer from a lack of confidence. He explained that Sonny didn’t trust him, and he needed to earn that trust, she asked if her trust was important to earn. She wondered if she asked him a question if he would answer truthfully. As if reading a quote from Sonny’s own “How to be a Mobster” handbook, he told her, “It depends on the question.” She asked why he was so determined to impress Sonny. “Maybe Sonny isn’t the only one I’m trying to impress,” he told her, kissing her. After letting him kiss a while she pulled away and pointed out that he had avoided the question. He asked if she hadn’t ever avoided a question (yet still avoiding the question). Then he asked her to be truthful with him, and wondered if there was anyone else in her life. “Yes,” she answered. “My grandmother,” she told him, laughing. Then he asked her out to dinner. She agreed, with one condition – he walk her home.
Laura thanked Scott for helping her out. He pointed out that someone that powerful could be a hell of an enemy or a hell of a friend. She was curious as just how friendly the powerful DA wanted to get, especially since she now “owed” him. “Just don’t go throwing me on Senator Jordan’s boat,” he told her, assuring her he wasn’t looking for a roll in the hay. She wasn’t convinced, wondering what kind of payoff he was expecting. He admitted he was good at using his juice to get what he wanted, but someone who did to anyone what Jordan had done to her deserved horsewhipped. He told her that no one should live in fear. She played the defensive, trying to figure him out. He admitted he was interested in something - a couple martinis perhaps. She gave him coffee instead and let him stay and talk. When she pointed out his power and disdain for the truth, he told her, “Call me Scott. I’m open for questions.” She called him a snake instead, pointing out that he had his good qualities, when they were getting him what he wanted. “Everyone in town thinks I’m despicable, except for a few who think I’m okay,” he told her, pointing out his own daughter and ex-wife (Lucy). She pointed out how fascinating men think they are. “But I can back it up. I’ve got references,” he told her. He got out while the getting was good, handing her his card in case she changed her mind about the martinis.
Lucky went to Kelly’s after his outing with Scott and Laura. She was balancing the accounts and he offered to help. At first she didn’t think it was a good idea –recalling Luke’s attempts at accounting, which included trying to write off his blowing up the kitchen as a medical experiment. They joked a moment before the conversation turned toward his mother. He admitted he was worried that Luke would push her to her breaking point, but Bobbie offered him optimism. He turned the conversation on a dime, asking her if it took a lot of strength to get out of prostitution. He admitted he felt as if he were freefalling – his parents both being AWOL. She reminded him there were plenty of people who cared about him and asked why all the curiosity about her. He told her he wanted to appreciate how difficult turning her life around had been. She told him it had been terrifying – worrying that people would see her as a hooker “pretending” to be a nurse; then one day, looking into the mirror and realizing she was a nurse, and she had earned it. He asked her how she had done it. She admitted she had had a secret weapon – something she knew she knew she could count on – Luke. Scott came in, noticing Lucky at the table and addressed him. Lucky informed the DA that he wasn’t interested in anything he had to say. “Well, it’s good to see you’re earning your keep,” Scott told him. Bobbie joined them, completely ignoring her ex and thanking Lucky for his help. She tried to leave without speaking to Scotty, but he forced her to say something. “Scott, what are you doing here without your entourage? You know, the flunky’s, the groupies… the press.” “They’ll be along,” he assured her. When she left, he turned back to Lucky, expecting a thank you. Lucky refused. Scotty tried to make Lucky jealous by “mentioning” that he stayed at Laura’s long enough for coffee. “If you’re expecting me to be all grateful because you helped her or trying to make me jealous by playing one up, go fly a kite,” Lucky told him. Scotty made a little threat about not being a good person to have as an enemy, but tried to redeem himself by telling the young Spencer that his anger was one sided. “I see a lot of your mother in you. And if you were clutching a bottle of booze, I’d see a lot of your father in you,” he told him. Just then Lucky’s cell rang and Laura was on the other end. Lucky made a show of pointing out to Scott that she had called. Laura told him she’d like to see him again.
Cameron went into Zander’s hospital room, thinking his son was sleeping. Zander woke up before his old man could touch his head. Zander pointed out things were easier for his father when he was invisible, Cameron agreed. “Make up your mind. Are we father and son or nothing?” Zander asked. Cameron tried to explain to Zander that there was always a bond between father and child, whether they spent their days together or apart. “Nothing can sever the tie between a parent and child. Not anger, not distance, not death,” he explained. Zander noticed that the conversation had once again returned to that one event that had changed their lives forever, that they always ended up in the same place. “We’re never going to be in a room together, huh? Just you and me. Pete’s always going to be here,” Zander pointed out. Cameron admitted he was right, asking his son if he felt he should set Peter’s memory aside to make his youngest feel better. Zander pointed out that his father just couldn’t let it go. Cameron pointed out that he had just told him the bond between father and son could never be severed. Zander mistakenly had thought he was talking about their bond as father and son, not his father’s bond with his dead brother. “My son is dead, and you killed him,” Cameron told Zander, trying to justify his anger. “If it makes you feel any better, as much as you hate me, I hate myself more.” Cameron assured him, it didn’t make him feel any better and accused his son of systematically destroying his own life, telling him it was what he was best at. He left. Zander remained in the room, thinking about that day that changed his life, repeating to himself over and over his father’s words, “You killed him. You killed your own brother.”
Gia and Nikolas continued their argument, Gia pointing out that Nikolas was a spoiled rich kid who just wanted to get his own way. Nikolas told her if her plan was to push him away, it was working. Gia warned him not to give her an ultimatum and pointed out that her priorities had changed. She asked him what had happened to the man she had fallen in love with, that he would have welcomed that change; that he had often gotten drug into fighting a battle that was not his to fight. He reminded her of Emily and Dead Ted, pointing out that he had given Zander every benefit of the doubt, but he had never proven himself. Gia then admitted that Zander wasn’t the problem, telling him that she needed space. “W share a 53 room mansion on Spoon Island and I still never see you. How much space do you need?” he asked. He pointed out that he supported her with her career when she had been trying to escape the lifestyle her family had forced on her, but she told him she had grown up. “How dare you act like a martyr after the hell you’ve put me through,” she told him. She pointed out that she had remained on miserable Spoon Island instead of following her modeling career; she also reminded Nikolas what was “supposed to happen” hadn’t. “We were going to get married, go traveling and where did I end up? On Spoon Island with Mrs. Lansbury,” she told him. He tried to bring up family, but that led him down a dead end road. “Your family?” she asked. “Stefan treated me like the hired help, you father came on to me, your grandmother tried to kill me, and how did you deal with all of it? You shut me out. You broke my heart.” He asked her why she felt compelled to help Zander of all people, emphasizing the fact that he was a loser and would never amount to anything. Cameron happened to be walking by at that point and though he couldn’t talk to his son, he did a decent enough job defending him. “Who the hell do you think you are?” he asked Nikolas, noticing that he was the “Prince Nikolas Cassadine, heir to the vast fortune.” He recalled the files. “Strange family. Inbreeding. Insanity…” Nikolas warned him to watch his words, threatening to take the doctor out of the hospital. Recognizing the threat for what it was, Cameron rhetorically asked the prince if he had ever acted out of anger, and Nikolas answered that he had. Cameron asked, why then couldn’t he empathize with Zander's situation, wondering why Nikolas had never questioned Zander’s reasons behind doing things. He pointed out that Zander hated himself, and that Nikolas should be sympathetic to that. But Nikolas disagreed, informing the doctor that Zander had kidnapped one of his best friends, nearly getting her killed twice, all the while convincing her she was in love with him. “He almost shot her because she couldn’t get my car out of neutral fast enough,” Nikolas related. “To me, Zander has been nothing but trouble to the people who have ever tried to help him; and now she’s getting involved and drawn in, and I will not stand for it. I don’t really care what Zander feels about himself or anyone else. He is not Hamlet. He’s a small down punk.” Nikolas told him. Cameron turned to Gia and asked why she was wasting her life with Nikolas. Once he was gone, Nikolas made it clear he wanted Cameron off the GH staff, but Gia tried to persuade him otherwise. He asked why she continued to make excuses for people and left upset.
Gia went to Zander’s room, asking him if he needed anything. He was his usual sarcastic self, telling her he didn’t need a lullaby, a pep talk or a friend. He told her his brother wasted his life trying to achieve, “and no matter what he did, my dad always wanted more.” “Aim higher,” he said to himself. He laughed at the irony, realizing if he had done just that he would have shot Peter in the head. He told Gia to go away and leave him alone.
Cameron stood outside the hospital room after Gia had left, talking with the social worker. She informed him he would be attending rehab – court ordered. He asked her to keep him in the hospital and provide him with intensive therapy. She asked him if he was volunteering for the job.
Jason and Brenda argued on the docks just before departure, Jason telling his wife that he wasn’t going to Lisbon. She pointed out if he didn’t go, he would be going to prison, but he refused. “Have you even thought of what’s going to happen to you in prison? You’re prettier than I am,” Brenda told him. Jason assured her Sonny would take care of it, but she refused to believe that, telling him this was their last chance. He told her he had changed his plans. “You’re such and idiot. I’m not going without you,” she told him. Brenda told him she was loyal to her friends. “Why do you care? You don’t even like me,” he pointed out. “Of course not, you’re my husband,” she told him. He ordered her to get on the plane, but she refused. She reminded him of what she had given up to stand trial with him, and when he asked her why she had given it up, she explained: “Because you protected me. I’ve never had a man protect me before and not ask for anything in return.” They continued to argue, Jason telling her to leave without him. “Look, I’m not discussing this anymore. I know you have the brain thing, but we have been over this a hundred times,” she told him. She pointed out that he would be arrested if he remained behind. He pointed out that she owed him, and she agreed. He told her his payback was to get on the plane – alone. She told him they would go together. He told her if she didn’t go, he would put her on the plane. “Oh, you’re going to pick me up and drag me somewhere? I’d like to see that,” she said, just as they heard the police nearby. He reached for the briefcase of money and scooped her up, tossing her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and ran for a hiding spot. The police searched the area for them, but found nothing. Jason and Brenda rehashed their argument once the cops had disbursed. Brenda agreed to get on the plane if Jason would tell her why he was staying behind, settling for a “deal.” “She’s blonde, isn’t she?” Brenda nosed. “You’re going to risk the death penalty so you can stay close to Blondie.” Jason had his own ultimatum. “You have fifteen seconds to make up your mind. Do you want to win an argument or do you want to have a life?” Jason asked. She agreed to go, telling him “See ya.” He picked up the briefcase and went the opposite direction.
Jason went to the apartment he shared with Courtney, looking for her, but the landlord informed him she was moving out and letting him go. He told her she might have admitted to moving out, but that was all she had said. The landlord pointed out that he was a married man who was being charged with murder, that he should just let her go. She pushed the issue telling him he probably denied knowing her in public, even though he met with her there in secret. He handed her a clip of money, telling her his lease wasn’t up. “Here’s six months in advance, three if you want to charge me double because you don’t like how I live,” he offered. “If you really love that girl you’d leave her be,” the landlord told him, taking the money and leaving. He thought about her comment for a moment, but then left.
Jason went to his penthouse, heading for the kitchen, but heard footsteps. He pulled out his gun and turned around to find Brenda, who screamed once the barrel was pointed in her face. He admitted he wasn’t surprised that she had remained behind since she never listened anyway. She asked where “Blondie” was, pointing out that after all the crap he went through for her, she should be there cooking for him. A few minutes later there was a knock on the door. Brenda ran to open it and found Taggart, who was surprised to see the couple at home. He explained Brenda had been reported missing. “Wow. You found me. I’m here, hiding at home,” she told him, asking if it was a crime to leave the hospital without being release. He assured her it could be, so she offered to go downtown with him to be booked. He told her it wasn’t necessary, that he was just there to warn her that she was under 24 hour surveillance. “By you?” she asked coyly. “The one and only,” he replied, asking if she understood. “Ok, I think I understand,” she said. “I’m going to have to sue you if you don’t step out of my house right now.” Taggart smugly called her threat “big words,” but Jason had his own theory. “That’s the smartest things I’ve heard her say,” he admitted. Once Taggart left, Jason told Brenda she and Jax had had a good plan, but now she would have to watch her every move. She admitted that she didn’t care, that she hadn’t wanted to leave Port Charles anyway. “Sonny got by just fine without you before,” Jason pointed out. “This isn’t about Sonny,” she told him. “What is it about?” he asked.