*My apologies, fanfiction is clearly evil, and I'm tired of not being able to get my scene breaks in. So I've bolded the first word of each new scene.* This won't be a long fan fic, just a few chapters. But I would love your feedback!

Elizabeth unlocked her front door, smiling a tad apprehensively at the man beside her. "It can be a little messy, with two wild boys around."

He raised an eyebrow, returning her smile despite the slight stiffness that lingered in his facial muscles. "Hey, I'm just grateful you're letting me stay for a few days! A few toys aren't a problem."

They stepped into her cheerful living room, filled with photos and, of course, some loose legos and video game paraphernalia. As Elizabeth shrugged out of her coat, he walked slowly towards the pictures, interested in the life of the angelic nurse who helped save his life and certainly his sanity- so far. There were pictures of two dark haired boys, of an older lady with Elizabeth and a man who looked like he could be her brother. A beautiful dark haired young woman, laughing with a younger version of Elizabeth. He could feel himself tense slightly at the picture, but continued looking, freezing as he turned to look at three pictures grouped together, of a beautiful little boy with piercing blue eyes, first as a baby, then toddler and then a pre-schooler. His head began to pulse, even as he reached for the picture, wanting, no needing to be closer to it.

"That's my Jake," Elizabeth said quietly, coming up behind him. She touched the glass, the sorrow in her voice evident as she continued, "Everyday I think of how he would look now. He was more and more like his father all the time."

"Jason."

She nodded, "Yes." Taking a deep breath, she continued. "This is Cameron, my oldest. And Aiden, my baby. My grandmother watches them after school when I work. Tonight is a sleepover with friends."

Elizabeth settled "Jake" into her spare room, moving aside the extra toys and books stored in boxes, and putting away the clothes that Jordon had dropped off at the hospital in an effort to help. "Now, take a nap!" She instructed him, pushing him gently towards the bed. "You're still recovering."

He grinned as he sat down on the bed, "You're really bossy, did you know that?"

Her smile faded, her hands stilling on the pillow she'd been plumping. The teasing line echoed in her head, a long forgotten phrase from an injured young man, of blood and friendship, laughter and tears.

"You okay?"

Shaking her head, Elizabeth began moving again, forcing Jason to the back of her mind, something that seemed to be becoming harder and harder the last few days. "Fine. Just a little sleepy myself. Are you sure you'll be fine for a few hours?"

"I promise. Go get some beauty sleep." As she grimaced, he laughed, "Not that you need it, of course."

Jake tossed and turned on the soft bed, his dreams a torment as snippets of phrases, moments flitted through his mind, only to slide further away each time he tried to focus on one. Car lights flashing towards him, gunshots echoing, medical phrases and people in white coats. Elizabeth, young with curly hair, laughing as she spun in a leather coat, older, with tears in her eyes, framed in a shadowy doorway, crouched in an elevator looking at him in panic. There was a dark haired little boy, riding on a toy train and a man's voice, impatient and sharp.

At the sound of a distant car horn, he jerked awake, Elizabeth's voice repeating in his head, "You chose not to be with me. You chose not to be with me."

When? How? Jake pushed himself upright, his head aching much as it had when he had looked at the pictures. When would he have not wanted to be with a bright, funny, beautiful woman like Elizabeth? And were these memories real? How could they be? She didn't know him at all. How could he have seen her at different ages?

Jake slowly leaned back with a quiet groan. Maybe he was going crazy after all. He thought back to when he first woke, the muddled phrases and blurred face that had made him think of Elizabeth. Had made him blurt out her name. Who the hell was he, and why was it that she mattered so much? Should he say something to her?

No, Jake decided. This could all be something he was just dreaming, a trick his mind was playing. There was no reason to rush. Take it slowly, and see what came back to him.

Two days later, Jake sat on an exam table, raising an eyebrow as the doctor checked him, murmuring "hmm.." several times.

"Hmmm..what?"

"Well, Mr…ahh…Doe, it looked like everything is healing nicely. But you do have some interesting previous injuries."

"Such as?"

"Well, the new injuries have crossed and opened some of the scar tissue, so it's difficult. But I see additional scarring in the head area, and what seems to be-" Here the doctor pursed his lips for a moment before slowly continuing. "Some likely old bullet wounds. One in the back, two on the chest and abdomen area, and one in the thigh."

Jake looked down past his short gown at the old scar on his thigh. "Bullet wound, huh?"

"Yes, one of several." He looked at his chart, then back at his patient. "Is it possible you were a soldier? "

He considered the question, then shrugged. "No idea. Not something that sounds interesting to me now, but-" He threw his hands up in a questioning gesture.

Bullet wounds? What the hell was he doing with bullet wounds? Was he some mercenary? A criminal? A really bad ammunitions teacher? Another question to put in his ever-growing list of who is he.

Elizabeth frowned over at Sabrina. "What are you saying?"

"I'm just saying you really don't know this guy. Letting him stay at your house seems pretty iffy. And," Sabrina leaned over here, "Dr. Carter found bullet wounds all over him this morning. His nurse said the guy didn't even flinch, just looked at the one on his thigh like it was some interesting museum exhibit."

Setting down the chart carefully, Elizabeth tried to ignore the sudden slight tremor in her hand. "On his thigh? Which one?"

"Which what?"

"Which thigh?"

"Oh, I don't remember. But I know there were two on his chest too."

Elizabeth could feel herself stiffen. Despite living in Port Charles, a patient with numerous gun scars just wasn't that common. And scars in those locations? It couldn't be. But they'd dragged the lake, and never found Jason. Except he looked nothing, nothing at all, like Jason. Except the haircolor. And the eye color. And the build.

But Jason would know her. And Jason wasn't a man that made flirting comments, that could grin and banter with ease. He would never have leaned over the railing and shouted, "I'm King of the World" with a huge grin.

There was no way. She would know. Wouldn't she?

She drove home with Jake less than an hour later, discussing his visit with the doctor. He made no mention of the bullet scars that Sabrina had told her about, and she didn't want to overstep the privacy boundaries. Finally though, she just had to ask something, somehow.

"Do you remember me at all?" She looked over to see him frowning slightly. "From before, I mean."

Jake stared out the front window, debating what, if anything, he should say. I think I remember you? That you haunt my dreams every night? Finally he shook his head, giving her a faint smile. "I wish I did. You're sure you don't remember me, right?"

"I wish I did." She smiled back towards him, then turned towards the garage, reminding herself that fanciful tales never came true. Maybe they weren't meant to.

Jake enjoyed spending time with Elizabeth's sons. Cameron was a comic book fan, and could sit for hours telling Jake about Ironman and his battles. Aiden was a sweet little boy, obviously eager for some interaction with an adult male. It didn't take long before he was bombarded with requests to build castles, fight battles with evil guys and prove his driving skills on video games. His bones were healing, swollen face improving. And still his memory refused to return, taunting him with snippets of voices, flashes of places or people. An older man, proud and dark haired, standing before him in a white doctor's coat, smiling with pride. A clearly drunk blond boy, raging in frustration. A brother?

"It just takes time," Elizabeth assured him, understanding his frustration as she curled up on the sofa, the boys asleep for the night.

"I'm not sure I even want to know."

"Why wouldn't you?"

He sighed, brushing a hand through his dark blond hair. "I don't even know what kind of person I was. What if I was some criminal? Does it really even matter? After all, no one's looking for me."

"You don't know that. Maybe you were traveling. They might not even know you're missing." She reached out for him, putting her hand on his, her grip warm and reassuring.

Jake let his thumb stroke slowly over her fingers, pleased when she didn't pull away. He looked up, his blue eyes steady on hers. "I don't care. I can't keep waiting. It's time for me to start building a life, as I am now."

Elizabeth slowly nodded, a smile on her face. "Okay. Where do you want to start?"

He laughed, "With a last name. Preferably something that isn't Doe." At the mischievous look on her face, he added, "Or Smith."

Alexis Davis was a tremendous help, and Jake had to admit he liked the no nonsense lawyer. She cut through the red tape, and soon he was officially Jake Stuart, Man of Mystery. To himself and everyone else, apparently. He strolled around the downtown of Port Charles, familiarizing himself with his new hometown. One of the most impressive buildings was the Metrocourt Hotel. As he entered the front doors, he walked almost right into a loud argument between the infamous Franco and a dark haired older man.

"Do you really think I'm interested in anything you have to say, Corinthos? You wouldn't be worth mopping the floor with."

"Everyone knows what you really are, Franco."

"Yeah? And now Michael knows what you are."

The Corinthos guy lunged at Franco, and Jake could see Carly screaming nearby as a tall African-american guy tried to stop him. Franco charged back, and without thinking, Jake jumped into the fray, grabbing ahold of Franco to stop the fight, his arm going around his neck to hold him back.

"Enough!" Carly stormed between the angry men. "Both of you. Sean, take Sonny to go cool off." As Sonny left, still looking furiously angry, Carly turned to Franco. "You need to leave. Now."

Jake let the man go, stepping back to see if any more help was needed. After a few spitting words at each other, Franco stormed out, and Carly turned to Jake, looking impressed, and a little startled. "It's been- well, it's been a while since I've seen someone move that quickly."

"I was happy to help." He raised an eyebrow, "I take it that means you didn't get married?"

She laughed, remembering her conversation with him in the art room. "Well, it's definitely a very long, very messy story. But most things are with me."

He laughed, surprisingly amused by her. "I would believe that."

"I'm glad to see you up and around. How have you been?"

"Good. I officially have a full name now. Jake Stuart, at your service."

"You got your memory back?"

His smile faded, "No. But I've decided it's time to start fresh. I figure you can spend your life looking back, or you can make the best of what you have now."

Carly nodded thoughtfully. "Jason would have said something like that." As he turned to leave, she stopped him, a hand on his arm. "Wait- are you looking for a job."

"Maybe. Do you know of one, happy to accept without references? I'm a little short on those."

"I do. Here. You were great, and I need a security guy, just to keep the peace around here. Interested?"

He looked around the beautiful building. "Sure. When do I start?"

"A job?" Elizabeth turned, handing him the last plate to pop in the dishwasher. "With Carly?"

"Yeah," Jake looked a little surprised himself. "But, it's definitely a step forward, and I can't keep living off you."

"Jake-"

"Elizabeth-" He responded teasingly.

"You know I'm happy to have you here as long as you need."

"I know." Jake said seriously. "But you're my friend, and you already have two great kids you're caring for. You don't need more responsibility on your shoulders."

"I really-"

He took the cloth out of her hands, tossing it on the counter and turning her towards him. "Does anyone ever take care of you?"

"I don't know what you mean?"

"It sounds like you took care of Jason. You took care of Lucky. You take care of your kids, and tons of patients every day. Who takes care of you? Who makes sure that you have time to have fun?"

"I have plenty of time for fun." Elizabeth looked indignant, even as she knew what Jake said was true. How long had she patched Jason up, hugged him, fixed him, loved him, supported him while watching him leave over and over- his work, Sonny, danger- always more important than her, or their Jake. Lucky, the boy she loved that never really fully returned to her, desperate for drugs, determined to prove he was better, stronger. It had taken her a long time to accept that she was bad for Lucky, but that he was equally at fault. The man who had left her alone with memories of a lost son and two children that had needed him desperately.

"You know what I mean." His gaze was intent on hers, and she nodded slowly. "Yeah. But that's just how it is."

"It doesn't have to be. But you don't need to fix me anymore." He smiled coaxingly at her, "I do, however, still need a bed. So maybe we could work out some kind of rental agreement. "

She laughed, the serious atmosphere clearing as he had meant it to. "Fair enough. And you clean the bathroom on alternate days."

He groaned, "With three of us guys in the house? That's harsh, Elizabeth. You run a tough bargain."

Jake enjoyed working at the Metrocourt, and it was certainly an entertaining way to get to know the people of Port Charles. It seemed that everyone from the dreadful "Dr. O" to the mob boss Sonny Corinthos were frequent visitors, and he heard some interesting gossip about them all. Sonny, it seemed, had some sort of instability, and he frequently flared up at people during lunches or brief visits. Jake became intrigued to learn the long-lost Jason had not only worked for Corinthos, but had been his best friend. "That Jason must have had the patience of a saint," he murmured at one point as Sonny stormed out of the hotel after another confrontation with Franco.

"He did," said a chuckling voice behind him. Jake turned to see a tall, slender man behind him. "Patrick Drake, " he offered. "And you must be Jake Stuart. I saw you when you were still unconscious."

At Jake's frown, he clarified, "I'm a neuro-surgeon. Actually one of the best. Currently taking a break from GH. But Elizabeth asked me to review your chart."

Jake nodded his head, understanding now. "Well, nice to meet you, Doc."

"And you." He nodded after Sonny. "Jason was the only one who could calm Sonny down. I didn't respect what he did, or the danger he constantly dragged everyone in to. But aside from that, he could be a good guy."

"I think you're the first person who hasn't put a halo on the guy's head."

Patrick laughed deeply, "Well, we definitely had some differing opinions. He pulled my ex-wife into his problems more times than I like to count." He looked at Jake for a moment, measuring his words before he spoke. "And I didn't like that it always seemed Elizabeth was there for him, but when it counted, he didn't seem able to be there for her."

So Jason wasn't perfect after all, Jake thought. "So you're close to Elizabeth?"

"She's like a sister. And our kids are friends. I hear you're staying with her."

Jake nodded, appreciating the silent words of warning from Patrick. So someone, at least, tried to keep an eye out for her. "Yeah, I'm renting the spare room out from her. She's a wonderful woman."

"She is. And she deserves a good friend."

Jake held out his hand, smiling as Patrick shook it. "Two is even better."

Elizabeth felt completely frazzled. She had run late at work, missed a call from her grandmother, and forgotten to grab dinner for the boys on the way home. They'd just have to raid the freezer. Was there even anything in the freezer? She had no idea.

She rushed into the house, "Gran? Gran, I'm so sorry I'm late."

Jake strolled out of the kitchen, smiling at her. "Audrey left two hours ago. She wasn't feeling well. Dinner's on the table."

"Dinner?" She looked at him, feeling as though her brain was frozen. He had on a "Don't kiss the chef" apron, a wide, relaxed smile that lit up those glorious blue eyes, and the most adorable splatter of.. ketchup? on his chin. "Where are the kids?"

Aiden rushed past him. "Mom, it's Man night!"

"Man night?"

"Yep!" He hung on her leg. "We made spaghetti , and it got everywhere, but Jake says that's okay on Man night."

"Oh, I see." She bent down to gave Aiden a big hug, noticing the sauce on his shirt. "Are you having fun on Man night?"

"Yep!"

Cameron stood in the doorway to the kitchen, "Hey Mom. We made a plate for you. It was insane!"

"Oh, thank you so much!" She looked over at Jake, a dazzling smile on her face. Who cared if there was sauce on the ceiling or anywhere else? Her kids were happy, dinner was done and there was a hot guy who clearly had accomplished these miracles. Good enough.

She followed the boys towards the kitchen, letting them go ahead as she stopped in front of Jake. "I don't know how to thank you. You're a lifesaver tonight."

"It was nothing. We had fun." He grinned down at her, raising an eyebrow as she reached up to gently touch his face, meeting his gaze with dancing eyes as she dabbed the sauce of his chin.

"I see that." The silence in the air was thick, and it was with a sense of inevitability that they leaned forward at the same time, lips touching gently in a first, stingingly sweet kiss.

Later, after the kids' excited yells broke them apart, they had a great night, finishing spaghetti, playing with water cannons in the backyard. Two exhausted boys tumbled into bed, with Elizabeth close behind. Jake stayed up, cleaning up the kitchen, turning on the news. He fell asleep on the couch, the low light of the tv fading away to reels of memories in his head. An elderly lady, genteel with silver hair, smiling at him. A familiar young girl with dark hair, grinning at him as she rolled her eyes. And Elizabeth. Always Elizabeth. Standing next to him, in a dim room, her voice echoing in his mind. "You listened without judging, and ever since that night, I've felt a special connection with you." His heart raced, feelings desperate to break through as she continued, "I don't think you ever knew just how much I fell in love with you. And then you left."

A crash of lightning echoed around the house, and as Elizabeth quietly snuck into the kitchen, she paused, hearing Jake talking in his sleep. "But I came back," he murmured, tossing restlessly in the light of the tv. "But I came back, Elizabeth."