General Hospital Fan Fiction Message Board

Morgan Benson 3

Morgan and Lisa are both sitting on chaises on the back patio looking out over the canal and watching the boats go by. Its starting to sink in for both of them they are going to be parents.

“I can’t claim paternity until there is a blood test.” Morgan says out of the blue.

“Whatever.” Lisa retorts. “You had to know because it was the right thing to do. The only reason you’d come into play is if I stroke out when the baby is born and the kid needs a parent. And then you’ll probably have to arm wrestle my mother.” She looks at him over her sunglasses. “She’ll be motivated. I think she can take you.”

And then it really sinks in. “My mother was shot the day I was born. It didn’t kill her but she’s never been able to be... my mother. Just a woman I go to see in a long term care facility for people with brain injuries.”

“Oh Gawd. That’s awful. Is she is a coma or something?”

“Memory deficit. She can’t move things to long term memory. She knows me because I’m a framed picture on her wall with my name and title– son.”

“That must have been very... strange growing up.”

“My Aunt Courtney, my father’s sister, did the mom stuff. But she was exposed to some strange bug when she was already weak and in the hospital. She didn’t make it.”

“You’ve had zero luck in the mom department haven’t you?”

“Then I went to live with Uncle Jason and his wife. She’s still alive. They raised my little brother, Robbie.”

“Missing a piece there. Where is your dad?”

“He died when I was 17.” The answer is terse and cut off. The no trespassing signs are posted. “What about you? What’s your family history?”

“Well there is my mother... already told you that I think she could take you. Then there is my older brother Anders. And that’s it.”

“Where is your dad?”

“Isn’t that an excellent question? He was in and out until I was about ten and then he went out for that proverbial pack of smokes. Really sad when the guy would have been worth more dead than alive to my mother. Things were really tight until Anders joined CSMC. Then we moved to a bigger apartment, better school, health insurance. Mom decided to move to Florida when Anders was assigned to Boston since he wasn’t going to be in Port Charles anyway. She’s got a store and a condo up in Tarpon Springs.”

“Tarpon Springs got hit about what... three- four years ago?”

Lisa nods. “Anders flew in from Boston. Told Mom she’d been recalled to Boston to manage the office there while he did damage control in Tarpon Springs. Anders says something and Mom will slap him down, Baby calls and it’s a done deal. They’ve both drank the koolaid.”

“What about you?”

“Baby doesn’t have anything I want or need. As far as I know I’m just a tool to keep my brother in line. That broad is cold. I keep the phone number because it’s the fastest way to get hold of Anders– that’s it. The only one I’d do anything for is Cole Radcliffe. And he isn’t really CSMS– not really. I owe him. I didn’t realize I was missing a dad until he gave me a come to Jesus speech summer before my sophomore year at college. I had no doubt in my mind at all that if I didn’t straighten up right freaking then that he was willing to go to jail to get me back on the straight and narrow. And yeah, I sent him a copy of my diploma.”

“What were you doing?”

“Underage drinking, smoking, stupid sex, you may have noticed the tat? Skipping class– one hearing away from being expelled. I knew it all. Did it all. I didn’t even know that the hurricane had hit Tarpon Springs I was so out of it. I didn’t know my mother was up in Boston. She could have been buried under her condo and I’d have not known. Do you know him? He owns a bar outside of Port Charles... right on the outskirts called Jakes?”

“I’ve heard of Jakes but I’ve never met him. I left Port Charles when I graduated High School and have seldom been back.”

“Yeah, there is nothing up there for me anymore either. I’ll go see Anders in Boston that’s as far NE as I want to get. It’s cold up there!” Lisa glances down at her watch. “I should get going. I’ve got a trip ahead of me.”

“Why were you going to Saudi? What happened to the per diem job up in Gainesville?”

“It’s there. I’ve got a couple of weeks off. Figured it would be my notice. Don’t have to worry about that now.”

“Give your notice anyway. You’ve said it yourself you could have a job here in Miami in a day, in an afternoon.”

“That’s sweet but I don’t think so.”

“If this is my kid, and I’m not saying it’s not, I’m just saying my kid is going to have what I didn’t have... a mom who is there from day one and what you didn’t have... a father who isn’t just dropping in. Stay, Lisa. You were planning on getting a new job anyway. Get one down here. You have flexibility where you can work. I don’t. Not right now.”

“You’re serious.” Lisa looks at him like he’s nuts. “Some girl you met once shows up at your doorstep says hey Daddy and you’re ready to move her in?”

“There would have to be blood tests.” Morgan reminds. “Maybe a polygraph.”

“Whoa bub. Anything I have to do... you have to do. You want me to take a polygraph then you’re taking one too. You want them to come at me with one of those amniocentesis needles...” Lisa shows him how long they are. “Then I’ll make sure there is a procedure you have to do which has a needle just as long. And if I were even considering moving down to Miami then I’d be getting my own place– you wouldn’t have to worry about breaking up your party place.”

Morgan nods. “Good to know. Okay lets back up and slow down. Already on the table. I want you to move to Miami. You know how I feel. So in the interest of convincing you... how about a nice week long vacation in beautiful Miami all expenses paid.”

“Would I have to share a room?” Lisa practically purrs.

Morgan reaches over and puts a hand behind her neck bringing her closer to him and plants a lingering kiss on her. The heat is still there. “Oh yeah, I’m afraid so.”
The mood is broken when Morgan’s cell phone rings. He looks at the caller ID and knows it’s business. “I have to take this.”

“I have to hit a mall and get some clothes to change into. I wasn’t planning on spending a week. I got it.” She holds a hand up as he is already staring to make an offer she’s planning on turning down. “I’ll be back in a couple of hours. Get lots of work done. Because dinner is going to be on you.”

It’s weak and petty really. One of the consequences of being broke coming up. She could be frugal when she wanted to be. She’d spent her childhood in clothes by goodwill and Salvation army. It wasn’t like she was Scarlet O’hara and vowing she’d never shop second hand again. But she did like getting nice things that fit rather than what was good enough. So spending an afternoon at the mall is not a hardship. The flip of the not wanting to shop the second hand stores is that she also doesn’t like being in debt... ever for anything. One of the reasons she’d been renting up in Gainesville even though she’s making enough money now to buy a house. A house is debt, and upkeep, and maintenance. If you’ve got a house then you’re planted. More planted than she’s ever wanted to be. The car had been enough to drive her crazy until she could pay it off. Double payments and overtime at work if need be until it was hers. “Good thing I didn’t get a two seater. Not much room for a car seat in Morgan’s porsche.” She mutters to herself.

The closest Mall to Morgan’s house has a Macy’s so that’s the first place she hits, and because it’s for a week on vacation in Miami.... first things first. Bathing suits. And it’s temptation to get the ones that are little more than dental floss and a few scraps of material considering she’s going to be growing a bump anytime soon. Have to enjoy her figure while it lasts and with that thought in mind she goes shopping for a week at the beach. It doesn’t take long to be outfitted for a week at the beach. Then it’s just window shopping and people watching.

It’s hard to focus on work. The last time Lisa had left, she had LEFT. At least this time he knew exactly where she’d be going, what’s she’s driving including license number and the phone number to her cell. With that mental reinforcement, Morgan focuses on this deal and making sure that everything goes just as projected. Because this isn’t just about this deal it’s about all the deals in the future too. He’s laying the building blocks to his reputation, which is going to be everything when he goes out on his own.

“Hey saw your car outside. You finally tell the managing partner to blow ya?” One of his roommates, Barry, announces having just gotten home from work.

“Have you seen the managing partner? Are you trying to traumatize me for life?” Morgan retorts. “Nah, just working from home this afternoon. Had company come in from out of town. She’s going to be staying for a week.”

“She eh? Good looking?”

“Very.”

“She like blondes?” The guy runs a hand thru his sunbleached short hair cut.

“You’d have to ask her and if you do, I’ll kill ya.”

“Really.” He leans against the door way. “Not like you to be territorial. She going to be the mother of your children or something?”

“Maybe. So be nice... but not too nice.”

Holding two hands out front of him in an I surrender motion the roommate backs out of the room and heads down to his own space to change into casual clothes and jump in the pool. When the other two roommates get home, they too gather at that back of the property where they are filled in on the out of town guest.

“Good hunting?”

Lisa laughs as she puts up two large bags from Macy’s on the bed and a bag from a local drug store where she’d gone to get necessary items. “That’s one way of putting it. As I’m standing there in the dressing room I realized that I better enjoy being skinny and seeing my feet while I can. I’ve worked the ob/gyn floor. It’s the happy floor at the hospital for the most part. Doesn’t mean that every gal there wasn’t ready to please fit back in her skinny pants and be able to paint her own toe nails. You get everything done you needed to?”

Morgan leans back and nods. “Yeah. Feel for my poor secretary though. She gets stuck dealing with the office and I always seem to get more done at home than in the office.”

“I met the guys downstairs.”

“On their best behavior I hope.”

“I think they were and yet I still wonder how you’ve managed to keep the same cleaning service for the last 6 years.”

“Money. Pure and simple.” Morgan’s voice is wry. “You pick up everything you need for a night of dinner and dancing?”

“I did.” Lisa nods. “And since it’s your town, I put myself in your hands.”

“And unfortunately because I do have to work in the morning we’ll have to make an early night of it but I happen to know a place that combines good food, good music and there dance floor is slightly bigger than a postage stamp.”

“I’ve been working a lot of 3-11s. I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep.”

“I’ll figure out something to tire you out.”

“Sounds like a challenge.”

“I’m up to it.” Morgan comes over and wraps a hand around her waist his fingers splaying over her stomach. “Are you?”

“Ask me again in a few months.” Lisa’s tone is wry.

Morgan had been up early in the morning, getting ready for work. There is nothing he’d like better than to crawl back into bed next to Lisa but he is always very careful to be there on time or early after working from home the day before. He glances over at Lisa. Their relationship is an impossible mix of knowing too much and not knowing anything. There are a lot of barriers broken down between the long road trip that had started everything and then the last 24 hours. He is rarely one to trust his gut... or rather he’d trust his gut and then verify, verify, verify. And it wasn’t that he didn’t trust women. The women in his life hadn’t had any choice about leaving him. It wasn’t like his mother had a choice about the bullet in her brain, or Aunt Courtney about the bug she’d caught in the hospital that had killed her. And then there is Aunt Robin. Sure she’s doing great, better than great but she’s got HIV. Her body starts developing a tolerance to her meds and she’d be screwed. And then there is her working at General Hospital as chief of staff. She could come across something anytime that knocked her into the afterlife.

Course Uncle Jason has no say in that... not the way he lived his life. He couldn’t start dictating to Aunt Robin unless he was willing to make some changes. And he’s not. Lisa had never been specific about her work just– per diem nurse. It had been a casual question all those months ago. He doesn’t know why he’d researched it further. But the per diem nurses are nurses who don’t have a set assignment. They go where they are needed; it could end up almost being permanent in some places where there are chronic shortages but the money is better. It’s like a temp agency for nurses. She may be working anywhere, doing anything depending on her skills. From his conversations with her, it doesn’t seem as if Lisa loves her work even if she is good at it. While he’s thinking he automatically ties his tie. He could understand that and did... every morning when he tied his tie. Gathering his work into his briefcase he goes over to Lisa and gives her a kiss on the forehead.

“Hey.” Lisa says tiredly.

“I’ll be back by six. You going to be okay?”

“I’m a big girl.” Lisa turns over and sits up. Another thing to enjoy while she could... sleeping on her stomach. She knows that Morgan is waiting for her to jump ship again. “I’ll kick by the pool until it gets boring and then I’ll be out and about but I’ll have my cell.”

“You’ll have the place to yourself by 8am.” Morgan tells her. “The roommates will have cleared out by then.”

“Kay. Have a good day.”

“You too.” Taking a last look over his shoulder, Morgan heads out to his car.

About ten minutes later, Lisa is in the bathroom retching. Wouldn’t you know it. Within 24 hours of finding out she’s pregnant the morning sickness kicks in. Rinsing her mouth and then brushing her teeth she jumps into the shower and hopes that it will be it for the day. She’d seen women come in to the ER who’d been puking steady from their 9th week and already know she’s not one of those, just hoping that it’s not late onset. She is definitely going to have to make some decisions. If she is going to be here in Miami then she needed to find a doctor and if she’s not-- well she’s going to need to get a referral to a doctor up in Gainesville. Her mother is going to freak and probably want her to move to Tarpon Springs.

Dressed in a bikini but wearing a cover up she goes over to Morgan’s computer off the bedroom. Using somebody else’s computer is like looking in their purse. Which thinking about it... Morgan has already done. Taking a seat at the computer, she sees straight off that the house is set up as a wireless network, a hot spot. Which makes sense with as many people living here and that have been living here since college. Still it makes her leery. Anders isn’t a fan of wireless hook ups. He considered them a possible security breech, course working for CSMC has made Anders paranoid. He thinks everyone is out to get them. She checks her email and going into the saved information finds her resume. Recalling it, she updates the information with her cell phone number and email address as contact points and prints it off. Then she does a quick search.... Miami nursing agency. She prints off the name and addresses there. One of the things she’d picked up at the mall had been a book of street maps for Miami. She plots them out and considers her plan of attack. Is she doing this for information or because she wants to move to Miami? Maybe a few hours down by the pool will give her a clue.

One nice thing about nursing, it’s a growth industry and there are more places that want her than she’d actually want to work. But there is the baby on the way which means that she’s going to have to stick to per diem. It’s either that or work in an office which would drive her freaking insane. The traveling nurses program seemed to be the best bet. The recruiter she’d talked to realized that she was down here in Miami on vacation and let her know what Miami facilities were hiring. She’d left the names off of course to stop her from applying directly.
There was one within 10 miles of Morgan’s place that was not only hiring but would give a 5G bonus at the end of the job. Full medical and dental started after 80 hours worked. And they’d pay for housing because it’s considered a Traveling Nurse. If she didn’t want to use their housing then they’d pay her for that too. The rapid response nursing program looked like bull****. Seems oxymoronic to call it rapid response when it’s 5-10 business days. Hell of a lot of things could happen within two weeks. She’d let them know straight up front that she didn’t cross picket lines. They need someone to supplement or to fill a need that’s fine but if she’s expected to scab... well thanks but no thanks. There had been a wince but then the recruiter had nodded. “That’s going to take you out of some of the high bonus pools.”

With a shrug. “And maybe if they used those high bonuses to pay their nurses they wouldn’t be out on strike.”

“We can work with that.” The recruiter nods. “The only real caveat we have is that if you take an assignment you have to complete it. We’d be your employer and you’re representing us.”

Lisa nods. “I appreciate your time and look forward to hearing from you after you’ve had a chance to call my references. I’ll only be in Miami for about 5 more days then I’m heading back up to Gainesville which is why the cell and email will be the best way to get hold of me.”

“You’ll be hearing from us.” The recruiter gets to her feet and reaching across the desk offers her hand.

Lisa shakes her hand with a smile goes out the way she came into the sunshine of southern Florida. Making her way to the cruiser, she opens the door and lets it air for a minute before getting in and dropping the top. Reaching for a notebook, she sees what is left to do today. She checks the time on her cell phone. Lunch and a doctor’s appointment to verify everything is going as nature intended.

Lunch at his desk is unfortunately not an odd occurrence. Unless he had a meeting with a client, even if he had a client, the lunch hour is just another billable hour or if not billable then the time when he’s catching up on the most recent decisions. As soon as his lunch is delivered he makes a quick call. “Having lunch I hope.”

“Yep, and getting the stink eye from neighboring tables because of the phone ringing. Yo buddy did I give you a ration for chewing with your mouth open? Mind your own business!”

Morgan laughs at that. “If you get arrested please let me be your one phone call.”

“It won’t come to that.” Lisa retorts. Her voice is raised again. “He’d be too embarrassed by a pregnant woman kicking his ass to call the cops.”

“Lisa. Please. How are things going?”

“Checked in with a few agencies. I could be working tomorrow... if I want. The best one so far was a company that handles temp assignments including bonuses and housing allowances. I used your computer this morning to print out my resume.”

“No problem. Any client information is kept on my laptop which is always with me. I just use the desktop for research and the house.”

“Well that’s a relief. I was going to talk to you about that. My brother is nut for computer security. Which makes total sense because you figure anything that is on his computer is an open book for Mouse. If the guy can access a perv’s rap sheet from the cops you know he can get into joe citizen’s computer. And any of the roommates can see what you’re working on because you’re on a network. It’s a good thing you know them all. Thanks. This looks wonderful.”

“What are you having?”

“Caesar salad. I think I’m craving the salt and I want to give in while I can. I do later in the pregnancy and I’ll rivaling jumbo the elephant in ankle size. What about you?”

“Tuna on wheat and a bag of chips.” Morgan sighs. “Better than a burger I guess.”

“Barely.” Lisa counters. “I’ll see you at the house. I have some more appointments scheduled for the afternoon.”

Yeah, he is all that and a bag of chips. Let me know what you think and reply, reply, reply!

Deb