A Future to Live For

CHAPTER 11
************

Courtney walked back into the penthouse four hours later carrying seven bags.

"Wow. Did Carly make you buy all that stuff?" Jason asked, coming out from the kitchen.

"Well, most of it. But I did get to pick some things out that I saw," Courtney chuckled, remembering Carly going crazy in all the little baby boutiques. "I never knew there were so many baby stores!" Jason nodded.

"I, uh - have some business to take care of. I'll be back later, OK?" He grabbed his leather jacket.

"Oh...OK. I'll see you soon - I love you," Courtney tried to hide her disappointment. She was planning on going through the bags with him.

"Love you." He walked out the door and she sighed.

**********

Jason drove up to the cliff on his bike, cut the engine, and looked out on the water. He couldn't take his mind off of Courtney being pregnant. My business is dangerous, if I die, I'll leave a child behind. I can't do that. But he couldn't leave Courtney, he loved her too much.

"Jase?" He turned around and saw Emily behind him. "I saw you drive by, and I figured you'd be up here."

"Oh - yea, I -- I just needed to clear my mind."

"Is something bothering you?" she asked.

"No, no..." his voice trailed off and he turned to face her. He knew she could tell he was lying. "Yea, it's just that...C-Courtney's pregnant, and--"

"Jason, that's great! You're going to be a father!" Emily cut him off.

"Yea, but I just don't want to die in my business, and leave a child behind."

"Jason, I can only imagine what's going through your mind right now. I know it must be really scary. But Courtney needs you, and so does this baby. You need to focus on being there for her. Sonny has Carly, Michael, and the unborn baby, and so many enemies. He's not dead."

"Yea, Em, but I do all the front work. I could easily get shot, and leave Courtney and the baby behind."

"Jason, I know. But you are so careful about your job, and - maybe you shouldn't work for Sonny anymore."

"I can't do that. He's - he's done so much for me, and I couldn't just quit."

"Well, how about you only do something he really needs you to do? Look, I don't know much about your business, but I do know that Courtney needs you to be strong with her through this. I'm sure she was as surprised as you were. Now just go back to her, and stay with her. It'll make you both feel better."

"Thanks, Em," Jason got up and hugged his little sister. "I'm so sorry, I'm so focused about me over here I -- How are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm doing a little better. The regular chemo wasn't working for me, so they put me on a different kind and it hasn't affected me much yet. At least I won't lose my hair!" she smiled weakly.

"I'm glad to hear you're OK. If you need me for anything -- anything, call me, alright?"

"OK," she nodded as Jason rode off.

**********

"Max, I need to go for a walk." Courtney walked out of the penthouse as Max followed her. They stopped by Kelly's. "Could you please run in and get me an orange juice?"

"Ms. Ma--" Max was cut off by Courtney.

"Max, I'll stay right out here. I just need some fresh air." she rolled her eyes.

"OK, but don't go anywhere." Max turned and went into Kelly's.

Courtney sighed as he thought about the little person growing inside of her. Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt herself being grabbed, and something going over her face. She tried to scream, but suddenly she got tired and everything went black.

************

"Well -- well what happened to her?" Sonny was on the phone with Max as Jason walked in. "Well find her, we'll be right there." He hung up the phone and looked at Jason with concerned eyes. "Courtney was abducted outside of Kelly's while Max was getting her a drink. He thinks it was Alcazar's men."

Jason felt panic growing inside of him. "Let's go." The two men rushed out of the penthouse.

***********

Courtney woke up to darkness, her feet and arms tied to a chair. She realized she was gagged. The blindfold on her eyes was loose enough for her to shake down and see where she was. It looked like a hotel suite, but it was dimly lit so it was hard to see. She couldn't see or hear anyone around her until Alcazar walked in.

************

A Future to Live For

CHAPTER 12
***********

Courtney woke up to darkness, her feet and arms tied to a chair. She realized she was gagged. The blindfold on her eyes was loose enough for her to shake down and see where she was. It looked like a hotel suite, but it was dimly lit so it was hard to see. She couldn't see or hear anyone around her until Alcazar walked in.

************

"Well, well, well. Hello, Ms. Matthews. Oh, I've almost forgotten. You're soon to me Mrs. Morgan." Just the sound of Alcazar's voice made Courtney shiver. He pulled the gag off her. Then she remembered the child inside of her.

"Where am I and what do you want with me?" she asked.

"Well, ever since I let Carly go, I realized that it's fun to see Sonny squirm, so I decided to take you. Also because he actually didn't kill Ric. I had to," he replied. "You're in South America, and I don't think you'll be leaving very soon." He gagged her again and walked out of the door.

************

What seemed like hours later, she heard something coming from the window. She looked up to see Jason opening it and walking over to her. She thought she was dreaming, but when Jason put his hand over hers and took the gag off, she relalized she wasn't.

"Jason, you have no idea how happy I am to see you! I was just standing outside of Kelly's, and--" Jason cut her off.

"We need to go now. Alcazar's men are already on their way up here. Can you climb out of the window with me?" he asked, untying her from the chair.

"My arms are a little sore from the ropes, but I think I can," she said. They heard footsteps outside and they made a run for the window.

When they got to the bottom, Sonny was standing there with a gun, and all three of them backed into the awaiting car. As it took off down the street, Courtney rubbed her sore arms and patted her stomache.

"How's the baby?" Jason asked.

"OK, I can't remember if we got jostled around, they apparently chlorofoamed me, then I just woke up in there with a really bad headache," she leaned against Jason and started to cry.

"It's OK, Courtney - we've got a plane waiting, we're going to go back home," Sonny told her reassuringly.

"How did you know where I was?" she asked.

"We were really lucky. One of Alcazar's men was willing to tell us if we paid him off," Jason replied, just as they were arriving to the airfield. They ran from the car into the plane. As they were rushing up the steps they heard gunfire. Courtney felt a slight pain as she ran into the plane and immediately sat down.

"Take off, NOW!" Sonny yelled to the pilot as he and Jason also sat down.

"Oh...my...God." Courtney looked down at her shoulder, which was bleeding freely. Jason ran over to her and ripped off his shirt sleeve, tying it around her upper arm to stop the bleeding.

"Oh, God - are you OK? Do you feel dizzy?" he asked. Sonny ran to her.

"We're gonna be home real soon, we'll go straight to the hospital," he told her.

"I don't feel that dizzy," Courtney replied to Jason. "But, it just feels -- weird..." she passed out right into Jason's arms.

************

"We need a doctor right away!" Sonny ran into the hospital in front of Jason, who was holding Courtney.

"Sonny!" Carly and Michael had been waiting for the elevator when the three of them had walked off. They were visiting Bobbie. "Wh--" her eyes wandered over to Courtney. "Oh, my God! What happened?" she tried to block Courtney from Michael's view, but it was too late.

"Aunt Courtney! Are you OK?" Michael tried to run over to his aunt but his mother's grasp on his hand was too tight. He just stood in shock.

"Courtney was shot when we were getting into the plane," he explained to Carly so Michael wouldn't hear.

Tony Jones rushed over to Jason and Courtney pushing a stretcher. Jason laid Courtney on top of it and followed her into the operating room.

"I'm sorry, Jason, you can't come in during surgery. I'll let you know when you can see her," Tony told Jason.

************

"Sonny, she'll be OK. She's strong." Carly was sitting down in the waiting room with Sonny, trying to comfort him. Michael had gone home with Bobbie.

"I - It's all because of me, because I didn't kill Ric..."

"No, no, Sonny - Look, don't worry, she will survive-" Carly stopped short, remembering the baby Courtney was carrying.

*************

"Jason, you can see her now, but be patient. She might not wake up for a while. The surgery went well, and we removed the bullet. The wound wasn't too deep, thank God. We're just waiting for the test results to see about the baby." Tony told Jason.

"Thanks," Jason walked into the hospital room to see Courtney's body laying on the bed, her blonde hair all around her pillow. She was hooked up to all these monitors. He walked over to her side and took her hand in his.

"Courtney, y-you both need to get through this. I love you so much, and I can't lose you, not ever. Please- please hear me. Please stay with me." A single tear fell down his cheek. He felt her hand move in his.

"J-Jason," her eyes slowly opened and she looked around her. "Where am I? What happened? Is the baby OK?" she panicked.

"You're at the hospital. You were shot by one of Alcazar's men. We have to wait to see about the baby. Thank you for coming back to me. I love you, Courtney."

"I-I remember now. Oh, God, Jason! I'm so scared...the baby..." she started to cry. "Jason, I love you so much!" she took his face in her hands and pulled him down to her. He reached down and kissed her gently.

Monica walked into the room with a folder in her hands, and a weak smile on her face. "Courtney, you gave us all a scare there. But you - and your child - are healthy, and can leave whenever you want to."

Jason looked at Courtney and smiled. She squeezed his hand as her blue eyes lit up and sparkled. She put her hand on her stomache. "Hear that, baby? We're gonna be OK. It's gonna be OK."

*************
Whaddya think? Feedback GREATLY GREATLY appreciated . . . and don't worry, it's not over! :o)

A Future to Live For

CHAPTER 13
************

"So, the same plans, right?" Carly asked Courtney. They were sitting in the Corinthos penthouse, talking about the wedding that was going to take place that Saturday. Michael ran downstairs and into his aunt's lap.

"Aunt Courtney, I'm glad you and the baby are OK!" he said.

"Yea, me too," Courtney replied, putting her hand on her stomache. Jason and Sonny walked in.

"Alcazar is all taken care of. Now we can all go ahead and take care of the wedding," Sonny said.

***********

Courtney stepped back to look at herself in the mirror. She took a deap breath and smiled.

"You look beautiful," said Carly. Courtney's dress was white with spaghetti straps and had lace in the front down to her upper abdomen, where it flowed out and had a long train, hiding her just-growing stomache. Her hair was half up - half down and was curled at the ends. Carly had flawlessly applied her makeup. "I am so happy for you. Now, here - wear my bracelet that Sonny gave me - it's borrowed and it's blue." She took off her eternity bracelet and placed it on Courtney's wrist.

"Thank you so much, " Courtney said, pulling Carly into a long, warm hug. She stepped back just as Sonny entered the room.

"I'll let you two talk. But don't take too long," Carly said, exiting the room.

"Sonny, thank you for everything - giving me the wedding of my dreams, and just for being a great big brother. I love you so much."

"I love you too, Court. And I couldn't be happier to have you for a little sister." he picked up the veil and placed it on her head. It fell to her mid-back and the tiara it was attatched to at the top glittered. Sonny pulled her into a hug. "Now let's go. We're about to start."

************
Sorry so short! Next chapter: THE WEDDING!

A Future to Live For

CHAPTER 14
************

Courtney stood behind the doors of the church along with Mike, Carly, and Michael. The priest walked up behind them.

"Alright. Michael, as soon as you hear the music start, open the doors, and walk down the aisle. Be careful with the rings. Carly, when he's halfway down, you start going down. Courtney, like you already know, go when you hear the march begin. Let's go!" he walked through the doors and closed them behind him.

The music began and they all did as they were told. When Courtney heard the wedding march begin, her and Mike started to walk down the aisle. She looked at Jason and got lost in his blue eyes. She couldn't hear or see anything around her but him. She was surprised she could even walk on her own. Finally, they made it to the front and she gave her father a kiss on the cheek. She walked up to Jason and stood next to him as the Father Coates began.

"Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of Jason Morgan and Courtney Matthews in holy matrimony..."

***********

The mass seemed to pass so quickly. Finally, it was time for the vows.

"Jason, would you like to go first?" Father Coates asked.

Jason nodded and began. "Courtney, I promise to be your husband, to love and cherish you, to honor and protect you, to love you for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as we both shall live." he slipped the ring on her left ring finger and she smiled up at him as her eyes sparkled.

"Jason, I promise to be your wife, to love you, respect and honor you, to stay with you for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as we both shall live." she put his ring on his finger and they smiled at each other, neither breaking the gaze.

"By the power invested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife," he turned to Jason. "You may now kiss your bride."

Jason kept smiling as he put his arms around Courtney and met her lips for a passionate kiss. She put her arms around her neck and kissed him back until they broke apart. She giggled with happiness as they turned to face the whole church, slowly making their way to the back.

***********

They burst into the penthouse, Jason holding Courtney in his arms. "Jason, we really need to hurry up and get to The Cellar! Carly will be so angry!"

"Do we have to?" he asked. "Can't we just go straight to the Caymans?"

"Ha, ha. As much as I would love to, we owe it to Carly and to our families. But as soon as it's over we can take off, Mr. Morgan."

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Morgan."

"I love you so much."

"I love you, too."

*************

They walked down the steps to The Cellar to a roomfull of applause as Carly ran over. "I made them do that!" she whispered to them. Then she ran over to the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. and Mrs. Jason Morgan!"

"Oh, God. I knew she'd do something like this." Jason said.

"Now, their first dance as husband and wife." Carly continued. The lights lowered as she walked over to Sonny and started dancing with him.

Courtney put her arms around Jason's neck and he put his arms around her waste. They couldn't stop staring at each other.

In a little while,
surely you'll be by.

In a little while I'll be there.

In a little while,
this hurt will hurt no more.
I'll be home, love.

When the night takes a deep breath,
and the daylight,
has no end.

If I crawl,
If I come crawling home
Will you
be there?

Slow down my beating heart
Slowly, slowly love

Man dreams one day to fly
A man takes a rocketship into the sky
and lives on a star that's dying in the night

And follows in its trails,
its scatter of light

Turn it on,
turn it on,
turn me on.
Mmm yea

Slow down my beating heart,
slowly,
slowly, love.

**********

** Song lyrics by U2 : "In a Little While" **

***********
Hope everyone's looking forward to the next chapter: HONEYMOON! :o)

A Future to Live For

CHAPTER 15
************

"Mr. and Mrs. Morgan, we'll be arriving at the Caymans in 10 minutes."

"Thanks, Jake," replied Jason.

"So, have you been thinking of any names for this little one?" Courtney asked him, patting her stomache.

"Well, we don't know if it'll be a boy or a girl." he patted her stomache and smiled up at her.

"Yea, let's wait till he. . . or she. . . is born, then we'll think." She leaned over and kissed him until they started to land. "Ahh, oh God. I hate landing." She gripped the edge of her seat and breathed deeply. "I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die."

"No, you're not."

She looked at him with anxious eyes as he continued.

"Unless we go through the windshield." he smiled. "Just kidding, Court." She gripped his hand and with the other hit him playfully on the chest as she continued to stare straight ahead and breath heavy. "So, Mrs. Morgan - what do you want to do when we first get there? I could read to you, we could just sit on the beach all day, or we could. . .do something else?"

She smiled and relaxed a bit. "Is that all you want from me, Mr. Morgan? How about you read to me first, then we can...you know."

"Test my bedroom skills?" he asked playfully.

Courtney couldn't help laughing at that one. Suddenly she felt a jerk. She looked around. "Wha - we - we landed already?"

Jason nodded, not taking his eyes off of her, not surprised. "Yep. I knew talking about something else would keep you happy." They exited the plane into the warm Cayman breeze hand in hand.

*********

Later that day, they laid together on the white sanded beaches in the hammock while Jason read to her. When he finished the page, he felt her breathing heavy against his chest and looked down to see her fast asleep. Her pushed one of her golden strands of hair behind her ear and her bright blue eyes jerked open.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up."

"No, it's OK. Sleeping like that - all of a sudden - is normal when you're pregnant. Speaking of, I think this baby's a little lonely." She put her hand on her stomache.

"Well, then let's talk to it," Jason rubbed Courtney's stomache with one hand and held the other. "Hey, baby. I'm gonna be your Daddy. And did I ever tell you that your Momma is the most beautiful person I've ever seen? And she still wants me to read to her, even though I want to do something else?"

She smiled at him. "Baby, don't listen to Daddy. He's being silly. The truth is, we are getting bored waiting for you to come out. You have 8 more months in there, kiddo, just hang on!"

"Yep, I have to hang on, too. Until your Momma takes me inside." he kissed her stomache and stared into her eyes.

"OK, you've waited long enough." she said, and Jason picked her up and carried her into the house.

**********

Later that night, Courtney lay awake against Jason's chest, feeling him breathing. She felt so safe.

"What are you thinking about?" she hadn't noticed he was awake.

"I'm thinking about how safe I feel with you, and how much I love you. And how I want to stay married to you forever."

"Well, we will be married forever. And I love you more."

"Don't get me started on that. I just want to lye here forever with you."

"OK."

They laid together through most of the next day, until they decided to get up and go swimming and enjoy themselves until they had to go home 5 days later.

***********
More to come! Feedback please please please! I haven't gotten one email yet. JewlP@aol.com

A Future to Live For

CHAPTER 16
************
3 Months Later...

"No, no, you're not gonna need that. Carly, hon, they're breathing classes. You don't need a credit card. Oh, shit. Never wear slip-ons with a big stomache. I can't put it back on."

"Well, you think I can? I'm way fatter than you are. I'm due in 4 weeks!" Carly smiled as she thought of her baby being born.

"Fine, fine . . . OK, got it."

Suddenly, the door opened and Jason and Sonny walked in. "Where are you ladies going?" Sonny asked.

"Breathing classes," Carly replied bluntly, still searching for her credit cards.

"Well, aren't the fathers supposed to come, or something?" Jason asked.

"You really want to scare the whole room full of expecting women by having the big bad Sonny Corinthos and Jason Morgan in the room at the same time? I think not," Carly said, holding her credit card up and smiling after she finally found it.

"Yea, it's bad enough their wives will be there, that's all they can handle, or some will go into premature birth," Courtney chimed in, smiling.

"OK, but you need to fill us in later, because I, at least, don't know how to. . . uh. . . handle?...a birth," Sonny said. "Do you?" he asked Jason.

"Nope. They wouldn't let me near Carly when Michael was born," he replied, shaking his head.

"Don't worry, we'll give you the run-down later. We've gotta go, or we'll be late!" said Carly, as the two women rushed out the door. Well, as rushed as two large-stomached woman can.

"That must be such a pain in the ass to have a huge stomache," Jason said as Sonny laughed.

"Yea, it's like inflated. Jesus, that's some huge bloating," Sonny joked.

The door swung open as the two women looked angrily inside. "We heard that," said Carly.

"Yea, and don't mess with pregnant women. We can get pretty nasty," retorted Courtney. They turned away to a frazzled Johnny who shut the door silently behind them.

Sonny and Jason just laughed silently.

**********
3 Weeks Later...

"Wow, slower! Take it easy on those steps! Don't worry, it's better to be late than lose the baby," said Jason, as Courtney trotted down the steps.

"I know, I know, but it's just nerve-wracking. I hate doctor's appointments, hospitals - all that medical stuff." she replied.

"Me too. Don't worry, I'll be there with you," he embraced her in a long hug.

"OK, well let's go see this little baby moving around!" Courtney said, referring to their ultrasound appointment they were rushing off to.

**********

"That's so cool to see the baby just, moving around in there," said Jason, staring at the screen where is son or daughter was moving around in his wife.

"Oh, how cute," said Courtney, her eyes never leaving the screen.

"Are you excited?" asked Doctor Meadows.

"Very!" replied Courtney as Jason smiled.

"Well, would you look at that. . ." said Dr. Meadows.

"Wh-what is it?" asked Jason, getting nervous.

"Well, it seems like your baby has two heads," she replied.

Courtney's mouth fell open. "TWINS?"

"Looks that way."

"No wonder my stomache was so huge this early! Oh my God, twins. Good Lord."

Jason held his wife's hand and smiled at her. "Wow," was all he could say.

*********

"Carly! Carly, where are you?" Courtney and Jason burst into the Corinthos penthouse, Courtney couldn't contain her excitement about the baby. But it seemed too quiet in the penthouse, and there hadn't been a guard at the door. "God, Jason, what if something happened to them?" Then Leticia came down the stairs.

"Oh, hi, you guys. I've been trying to call your cell phone, Courtney. Carly went into labor and her, Sonny, and Michael went down to the hospital. They had asked me to call you," she said.

Jason and Courtney rushed out of the door and down to the car to get to the hospital.

*********

"Oh, God, I'd forgotten how much this. . . ah, ohh. . . HURTS!" Carly screamed, squeezing practically all the blood out of Sonny's hand.

"It's OK, we're just about ready to push. . .next contraction, go..." said the doctor.

**********

Courtney and Jason rushed into the hospital. "Um, yea, hi, do you know where they took Carly Corinthos? She was going into labor. . . " Courtney said.

"In Delivery Room #3," replied the nurse as the two rushed down the hallway. "But you. . .can't go in there." she said, mainly to herself.

They skidded to as top in front of the room. Courtney's long blonde ponytail whipped Jason in the face. "Ow! God, your hair hurts!"

"Sorry...dammit, it's locked." There was no window and it was obviously soundproof, so she didn't even know if Carly would be in there. "Guess we're waiting here," she said, referring to the benches outside of the room. They sat down and Courtney leaned against Jason, her eyes closing until she was fast asleep.

**********

Sonny walked out of the delivery room, exhausted, and he hadn't even given birth to the baby. Carly was fast asleep with her new daughter in her arms. He rubbed his eyes, then looked up to see Courtney and Jason asleep on the bench across from the room. He walked over and tapped Jason's shoulder to wake him up.

"Hey, you two. Carly gave birth to a little girl." Courtney and Jason smiled.

"She was so sure it was going to be a boy!" Courtney laughed.

Tony Jones then walked out of the room. "You all can go in now. Carly would like to see you guys."

All three of them walked in to a glowing Carly holding a beautiful little girl in her arms. "I'd like you all to meet Morgan Courtney Corinthos."

Courtney and Jason smiled at they both gave Carly a hug and Courtney gave Sonny a kiss on the cheek. "Congratulations, you two," she said.

"Why don't you hold her? You're going to be a mother in only 5 months!" Carly said, handing Morgan to Courtney just as Michael burst into the room with Bobbie.

"Oh, wow! Look at the baby, Grandma!" he said, as Courtney sat down so Michael could get a better look at his new little sister.

"Yea, buddy. It's a girl. And her name is Morgan Courtney Corinthos."

"Oh wow!" he jumped up and gave his Mommy a hug.

"We almost forgot to tell you!" Courtney said, as she smiled and nodded at Jason.

"We're having twins," he finished for her, a huge smile on his face. Carly and Sonny's jaws both dropped.

"That is great," said Carly.

"Congratulations," said Sonny, hugging his sister and taking his daughter back into his arms.
***********