General Hospital Rewrite Part One

October 27th 2016

7:23 a.m.
     Jo opens her locker and puts some of her books away. Alex walks up to her locker and pokes his head around the door. "You look so pretty." he says. She laughs. "I look the same like I do every day." she says. "Exactly, always so beautiful." her face turns red. "Well, I have to get to class but I will see you later." he kisses her cheek and takes off. She checks her phone and looks back up. "Ugh, what do you want?" she asks the kid from yesterday. "I have to apologize. I still hate-"
     "Make good choices." she shuts her locker and walks away from him.

     Alexis walks into Kelly's and sits across from Diane. "I could use something hot and little one can use something sweet." she tells her. "Well you have a de-cafe coffee on the way for you and a chocolate chip muffin for little DJ." she says. "We're not naming her Diane Junior." Alex tells her. "Not Diane Junior. Diane Jane, or Diane something with a J." she says. Alexis rolls her eyes. "Sarah Claire Jerome. If it's a girl. Andrew Julian Jerome if it's a boy."
     "Oh, he's gonna be named after his daddy. That's adorable." she comments. "Julian was a bit reluctant but I convinced him." she tells her. "He's treating you well?" she asks. Alexis looks up at her. "Of course. He always has. He's the perfect husband." she states. "I'm just making sure he treats you like the queen you are." she says. "He is perfect to me." she grabs her coffee and muffin and goes to leave. "Alexis, I didn't mean to say anything to hurt you. What's wrong?" she asks.
     "Someone's following me." she says. "What? Who?" Diane asks. Alexis sits back down. "I don't know who. I just know that someone is. I see the same car all the time. I turn corners and someone takes off. I mean, thank god they haven't done anything but what if they try to hurt me? My baby?" she worries. "Tell Julian." Diane urges. "I don't know what to say." she says. "Whatever you say, he'll do something to keep you and this baby safe."
     "I'll tell him at lunch." Alexis tells her. "Be safe Alexis. Protect your miracle baby." Diane says. "I'd die before I let anyone hurt my Sarah or Andrew."

12:04 p.m.
     Alexis walks into the Metro-Court and turns to make sure no one's following her. She sits at the table and pulls out her phone to check and see if Julian's messaged her. She feels a hand on her shoulder and nearly jumps out of her skin. "Easy there." she turns to face Curtis. "Oh thank god. You scared me." she says. "Yeah I noticed you look a little jumpy. That's why I'm here actually. How 'bout I sit with you till whoever you're waiting for gets here?" he suggests.
     "That would actually be a huge comfort to me. Thank you." she says. He sits across from her. "What's got you so nervous?" he asks. He waits a second. "If it's okay for me to ask." he adds. "I think someone might be following me." she says. "Oh." he looks around. "Why do you think that?" he asks. "I just, always feel like I'm being watched. It seems like the same car follows me to work everyday. Sometimes when I turn corners I see a flash."
     "A flash?" he asks. "You think I'm crazy." she looks down. "No, no. I think you're reading too much into this. The car, probably just has the same route to work. The flashes are probably just your mind making things up. You got a lot of things to stress about. Namely a little thing." he points with one hand at her stomach. "My friend said the same thing. I know there is someone always in the same place as me but I'm not sure if he's the one following me."
     "Really?" he asks, finally taking this conversation seriously. She nods. "What's this guy look like?" he asks. "He's kinda tall, you know, a dark look to him." she starts. Curtis tilts his head. "Not like that. I mean, dark clothes, dark hair, light skin. He looks kinda like this guy on a show my step-daughter watches." she says. "What guy on what show?" he asks. "I don't know. I just know that there's something I can't shake about him. It's almost like he deliberately goes to places I do. His name is some odd name that starts with a V."
     "Do you want me to look into it?" he asks. "I don't know. It might not be worth it." she tells him. He looks just behind her. "Is that the guy you keep seeing?" he asks her. She turns around. Her eyes widen in fear. She turns back around quickly. "Yes." nodding quickly. "I think he's just here to get lunch. He hasn't even looked in this direction." he tells her. Julian walks up behind Alexis. "What are you doing here?" Julian asks Curtis. "Well I didn't want your wife waiting alone."
     "Thank you but I'm here now." he says. Curtis stands up and gets Julian away from the table. "There's a guy at the bar, he's the guy following Alexis." he tells him. "You sure?" he asks. "I wouldn't be telling you if I wasn't. Alexis knows it too. She's freaking out man. You take care of her." he warns. "I will. Thanks for everything you're doing for us Curtis." he says. "I wanna help your family, and you pay well." he laughs, hitting his arm. "I'll see you around. You take care of that creep, and hug your wife."
     Julian walks back to the table and sits across from Alexis so he can see her and Valentin. He reaches across the table and holds her hands. "I'm scared Julian." she says. He gives her hands a quick squeeze. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you." he promises. "Is he looking at me?" she asks. "He's having a drink. So, no." he says. She sighs. "Maybe he is just on the same schedule as me." she says.
     Julian stands. "He's walking over here." he says. She turns around. "I figured all that talk was about me. So I came to introduce myself." he extends a hand to Alexis. She shakes her head in disgust. "Back off." Julian threatens, putting himself in between them. "Please, I mean Alexis no harm." he says. "How do you know my name?" she asks. "I know a lot about you. Its part of my introduction. My name is Valentin Cassadine. I'm your brother."
     "Oh my god." she shakes her head. "I know this is a shock but believe me my intentions are pure. I came here with the hopes that my daughter, Charlotte, and I will be able to become a real part of our family." he explains. Alexis holds her stomach and takes a few deep breaths. "Uh, um." she stutters. "How do we know you're telling the truth?" Julian asks. "Do a DNA test, run a background check, hook me up to a lie detector. Anything you need to do to prove I'm family. Charlotte and I plan on making Port Charles our permanent home. She doesn't know that we have family here so it won't make a difference to her. Please take your time in gaining trust, we're staying here at the Metro-Court."
     "I have a brother." Alexis tells herself. "I'm sure Charlotte would love to meet her Aunt Alexis and Uncle Julian. Along with her cousins and the rest of the ever growing family." he motions to her stomach. "Congratulations big sis. I hope we'll be seeing each other around." he hands her a card with his number on it. He says a polite goodbye and walks off. Alexis looks at Julian and smiles. "That's a relief, and horrifying."
     "We'll figure this out. First things first, give me the card, I'll take care of everything." he tells her. "You've got moving your mother up here to deal with." she argues. "You've got a growing baby inside of you. I can do this." he says. "Julian, you already have so much on your plate. With taking care of me and the kids, and moving your mother, and Nina blackmailing you, and running a house, you're overworking yourself." she worries. "I'm fine. I don't want you stressing."
     "I'm stressing over my husband who's gonna pass out from exhaustion." she says. "I'm fine. I wanna focus on you and the kids. If Valentin is telling the truth, you've got a brother and a niece added to the family tree. You've got a lot on your plate too." he says. "Fine." she gives in. "You win. You can take care of everything, but when, and I do mean when, you collapse, you let me start taking care of things." she says. "Deal." he shakes her hand, pulling her in for a kiss.

6:37 p.m.
     "Jodie we have to tell you the big news." Alexis says. "You caved and found out the gender of the baby?" Jodie asks. "No." Julian says. "I have a brother." Alexis tells her. "And he has a little girl of his own. Her name is Charlotte." she says. "What's his name?" Jo asks. "Valentin." Alexis says. Jodie stops what she's doing. "What?" she asks. "Valentin." Alexis repeats. "I didn't know he was your brother." Jodie says. Julian narrows his eyes. "What are you talking about?"
     "Valentin, I meet him yesterday. I didn't know he was your brother. I figured there must've been some relation but you knew about him. If I'd known, I would've said something." she says. Her eyes fill with tears. "I'm so sorry." she cries. Alexis hugs her. "Its okay honey. You didn't know. Its okay." she rubs her arms. "All I ever do is mess things up." Jodie says. "I shouldn't have ever come to Port Charles. All I've done is hurt the people I love. I should've stayed dead." she pushes away from Alexis and grabs her coat before running past Julian and out the door. They call after her.
     Julian runs after her. He struggles but catches up to her. "Hey, hey, would you stop." he grabs her arm. "Where are you going?" he asks. "Away. I don't know. To live with Tommy. That way I can't anyone I actually care about." she says. "Oh come on that's crap." he says. "All I've ever done is hurt the people I get close to. It's like I'm cursed. No one can love me without paying for it." she cries. "Shut up. Shut up because for fifteen years I woke up every morning and said to myself 'My daughter is dead, why am I still alive?'"
     "I don't know what happened to you today, but you can't run away from us. You can't run away from your family." he tells her. "He's out." she says. "Who's out?" he asks. "Benson Jameson." she tells him. "The man who raped you." he says. "He was released today. He's free. He's in Port Charles." she looks up at him.