General Hospital Rewrite Part One

July 15th 2016 Part 3

11:39 a.m.
"What was the thing that finally pushed you to come talk to me?" Andre asks. "Well, this morning my daughter Jodie woke up, she does most nights, and she wanted to go out of a run. It was like four in the morning and we live in the woods so that wasn't happening. I sat her down and we had a long talk. She goes and walks or runs in the woods when she's upset or angry and it just kills me to know she's doing that to herself." he looks up from his hands.
"When she was younger, something bad happened to her in some woods and I think she only goes back as a way to hurt herself. That's actually when I realised I'm doing the same thing. Since I got shot I've been back to the place it happened a few times. I'm getting off track. After she went back upstairs I went back to bed. That's when my wife rolled over and told me she didn't feel good but she fell back asleep before I could talk to her. We were getting ready this morning and she told me she thinks she might be expecting. I realised that it's time to swallow my pride and talk to someone. If I've got a new baby on the way I want to be the best me possible for him or her." he says.
"That's a good reason. From what I know from Jodie, you've put a lot of pressure on yourself to make sure she's taken care of." He says. "She's my daughter. I have to protect her." He states. "I can see why you feel that way. I can also see you can probably talk about your kids all day. Today isn't about your kids. It's about you. Without even thinking of your children, what's your biggest fear?"
"Lossing Alexis." he says. "Aside from your family, what's your biggest fear?" he follows up. "Dying slowly." He states. "Was this always the case?" he asks. "It wasn't always. I always feared dying, but now I know what it's like the bleed out and hope for death. I watched my best friend slowly lose his fight against AIDs. I don't wanna die like that. I don't wanna be in pain like that ever again." he says.
"Talk about getting shot." He tells him. "What about it?" Julian asks. "Take me through it. Describe everything, put me in your shoes." He says. "That sounds like a bad idea." He says. "You've got walls up and I wanna knock them down." He tells him. "Oh that doesn't sound wrong at all." He jokes. "Be serious. You went through something traumatic. I don't be embarrassed."
"I'm not, I'm not embarrassed." He lies. "Than you won't have a problem sharing." He retorts. "I went to the pier and got shot." He says. "Come on. Close your eyes and imagine you're back before you got shot. The day of. What are you doing?" he asks. Julian closes his eyes. "I went to the Metro-Court for lunch with my wife. We fought, it was my fault. I called Anna Devane to meet me at peir fifty four." He starts.
"I needed her to know that I'm not responsible for Duke Lavery's death. I wanted a fresh start and that meant making amends. When I got to the peir she wasn't there so I waited. I wasn't paying attention and this man came around the corner. When I saw him he already had a gun out. He made me give him is wallet and I did what he said. He still shot me." He trails off. "What did you feel?" he asks. "Pain. So much pain. It was blinding. I didn't fall because of pain though. I fell from the shock. I lost track of time. Just lying there. It was only a few minutes but it felt like hours. When things cleared up, it was just pain. That's when I saw someone standing over me." He says.
"Wait, someone saw you? But, you were only found after your car went off the road." He says. "She didn't call for help. She just watched me. Then left." he says. "Do you know who it was?" He asks. "I know it was Anna Devane, she was meeting me and she hates me. The cops didn't believe me. She looked me in the eyes and watched the life fade away. Just after she left, that's when I found the strength to get up and get to my car. I don't remember actually starting the car and driving but I remember sitting in the car after. I remember the pain, I remember trying to open the door but not being able to move my arm. I remember the panic of thinking I would die. All I wanted to hold my baby again, tell my wife I love her, tell my son and daughter how much I love them and how proud I am. I wanted my family to know just how happy they made me. I didn't want to die without saying goodbye to them."
Andre sits and looks at him. He clearly didn't know what to say. "You know what this was a mistake." Julian says, standing. "Wait. Mr. Jerome, we were getting somewhere." Andre tells him. "I'm better off sitting by my friend's grave and talking to him." He snaps. "Why are you so worried about Jodie, cause she reminds you of yourself?" he asks, trying to get him to stay. Julian's already out the door and down the hall. Andre doesn't chase after him. If he was gonna talk it would have to be on his terms.