Part 5 ~ Living, Loving, Learning

 Bobbie ran a hand through her hair, “It’s complicated.”

 Carly’s eyes grew large, “But you know? You know who my father is?”

 Bobbie looked down, “Yes, Carly, I do, in fact, so do you.”

 “It’s Stefan, isn’t it? That’s why you want me to like him. Mama, this changes everything. Of course I’ll like him-”

 “Your father isn’t Stefan.”

 “Well, come on! This is big news.”

 Bobbie took a few deep breaths, “I don’t know how to tell you this.”

 Carly laughed, “It can’t be that bad!”

 “Luke.”

 Carly froze, mid laugh, “Excuse me? I could swear that you said my uncle was my father. I’m not Nikolas here, Mama.”

 “Luke’s your father. I’m not your mother. I - I never was. Luke was married before he came to Port Charles, but his wife couldn’t carry children. They had already miscarried three children, and Amanda, your mother, couldn’t handle another loss. I volunteered. Amanda was like my sister, and I wanted to help.”

 “Amanda, my mother.” Carly repeated the words, almost like she was trying them out, “My real mother. Just like Luke is my real father. Laura is my stepmother. I have brothers, and a sister, and you weren’t going to tell me? Mama - Bobbie, how could you? After everything I went through with Michael! After telling you I was Caroline, you didn’t say anything! God, what did Luke go through when he found me?”

 Bobbie wrapped her arms around Carly, “Listen to me. We’ll go talk to Luke. He wanted to tell you all along...”

 “That’s why he’s always been distant. He didn’t want to get close.” Carly eyed Bobbie carefully, “You kept me away from my father. My real family. Lucky, Lulu. What about my mother? What about Amanda?”

 “I am your family. You came to Port Charles to find me, not Luke!”

 “I came to Port Charles to find my family! I didn’t know that wasn’t you! I didn’t know Luke was my father. I didn’t know the person I spent so much time trying to get to love me, wasn’t my mother, and the one person who I should have been the nicest to, I acted like he was a burden. All these years... I’m never going to get those years back!”

 “Carly, please calm down. We’ll go see Luke. We’ll talk things out. Everything will be like normal.”

 “Normal?” She shook with anger, “Things will never be normal with us again. We never had a normal relationship to begin with, and we aren’t going to have one now.” Her eyes began to spill over with tears, “My father. My father is in Port Charles. I have a family.”

 “You had a family with me Carly. You can’t just push me away after everything!”

 “A family doesn’t have to be people you’re related to, but it does mean that things have to be real. We aren’t real. We never will be real.” She stood up, “I have to go.”

 “Where are you going?” Bobbie stayed sitting on the couch, crying.

 “Away from this place. Away from this news.” She turned to walk to the door, “Away from you.”

 Bobbie watched as Carly hurriedly left the room, before falling face-first onto the couch, hysterically sobbing.

****

 Carly entered Luke’s at full speed, and went straight to his office.  She pulled open the door, “We have to talk.”

 Luke pulled his cigar out of his mouth, “Spencers don’t take kindly to people who don’t knock.”

 Carly smirked, “Fine, because right now, I don’t care if you take this kindly or not.” She walked over to the bar and poured herself a drink. She carried it back to the desk.

 “What do you want Caroline?”

 She lifted the drink, and tossed it in his face, “Just to do that. You make me sick. You and Bobbie, and your lies!”

 She turned, and fled the bar, getting all the way to the limo before breaking down into tears, “Home Johnny. As fast as you can.”

****

 “Baby, what’s wrong?”

 Carly looked up from the couch, “She knew. After all these years, and all the lies, she knew, and she didn’t tell me.”

 “Who is it?”

 “I have a family. A father, a mother, a brother, a sister, and a stepbrother, and she never told me. She never told me!”

 “Carly, come on! Tell me!”

 She wiped away the last of her tears, “Luke.” She spat out, “Luke Spencer is my father.”

 “Luke and Bobbie? Isn’t that illegal in most states?”

 She threw a pillow at his head, “This isn’t funny.This is my life! Bobbie’s not my mother. All the talks we had about truth, about Michael knowing his father, and I get this. This, from her!”

 He sat down next to her, and gently rubbed her back, “Tell me the story. How did all of this happen?”

 “I don’t know. Something about my mother not being able to carry children, and Bobbie carrying me for my parents. It was making my sick, I had to get away from Wyndermere.”

 “Didn’t Luke tell you anything else?”

 She looked down at her lap, “Um, that’s the funny part. I didn’t actually talk to Luke about it. I just - just threw a drink in his face, and ran out of the bar.”

 “Carly! Why?”

 She shrugged, “I’m Carly. I do things without thinking. I needed to act, and that was how I did it.” Her face paled, “Oh God, I just threw a drink into my father’s face.”

 Johnny opened the door, “Luke Spencer’s here.”

 Sonny nodded, “Let him in.” He stood and kissed Carly’s cheek, “I’m going to start dinner.”

 She shook her head wildly, “You can’t leave me. Not with him. Please.”

 “I’m sorry. You have to do this on your own.”

 Carly nodded, and Sonny left. She stood up, and turned around. “Yes?”

 Luke crossed his arms, “If I didn’t know everything that I do right now, you’d be awful sorry about throwing a drink in my face.”

 “Why should I be sorry? After what I just found out, I’m entitled to do something drastic.”

 He nodded, “She told you.”

 “Bobbie?” Her eyes flashed, “You mean my aunt, not my mother, Bobbie? Oh yeah, she told me.”

 “You finally asked about your father.”

 “How do you know?”

 “We decided that once you were ready enough to ask, that you were ready enough to know.”

 “What if I never asked? What if I was happy not knowing?”

 “I could tell. You were getting closer and closer to asking everyday before you left, and I figured that when you left, that you didn’t want to know. But you’re back.”

 “Why didn’t you just tell me. All that garbage when I first came to town about telling the truth, and you were lying through your teeth. Bobbie was too. And I lost all that time with my family. With my sister, and my brother, my stepmother, and God Luke, my father! You lost all those years with Michael. Important years that you’ll never get again. Years to see him grow up, and walk, and talk. Important years with me too. Why couldn’t you tell me? Why?” She wiped tears roughly away, “Why don’t you love me? You were the only who searched for me. Not Bobbie. You came to right after I was found, and you lied to me! Why don’t you love me? I’m your daughter. I was the only child you thought you were ever going to have, and you threw me away. WHY?"

 Luke rushed forward to capture Carly in a hug, “Carly, you can’t make accusations like that. I did love you. I do love you. You don’t know the story. You couldn’t begin to guess, or understand.”

 She pushed him away, “Then tell me. Make me understand.”

 Luke motioned to the couch, and after she sat, and went over to the mini bar and poured himself a drink. “I met Amanda-”

 “My mother.”

 He nodded, “Your mother.” He corrected, “I met her when I was fifteen. She was twelve, and lived across the street from Ruby, and I fell in love. We were married right after she graduated from high school. And a year later, we found out she was pregnant.”

 “With one of the babies that she lost.”

 Luke nodded, “Twins.”

 “Oh God. I’m so sorry.”

 “Everyone was. And then six months later, we ended up pregnant again. She lost the baby. God Carly, Amanda was so lost. I - I moved out, and went to Florida with Bobbie. She was turning tricks then, and I hated it, but I helped her, because it was making us money.”

 “And mom?”

 Luke turned to face Carly, “She called me. Said she wanted to work things out. Barbara came with me, and Amanda told us about a condition she had. She could carry babies. But we wanted one. We wanted one so badly. Bobbie offered to carry for us, and we jumped at the chance. Nine months later we had you. You were our angel Carly. Your mom named you after my mother, and her mother.”

 “Your mother’s name was Caroline?”

 Luke nodded, “You were the prettiest little girl, and it hurt like hell giving you up.”

 Carly stood, and looked her father in the eye, “Then, why did you? What made you give up the only child you thought you could have?”

 “Amanda had heath problems. Many. She would shut down for weeks at a time, and then come back to us, not knowing anything had happened. Once, I went to work and left you with your mother. When I came home, she was gone, and you were in your crib crying. I took you, and we went back to Florida, this time, to Virginia’s house.”

 “My mom’s? How did you know her?” Carly placed her head in her hands, and massaged her forehead.

 “Virginia was Amanda’s best friend. I gave up parental rights, and she adopted you for me. And when I got home, I checked Amanda into a hospital, and filed for divorce.”

 “While she was sick? How did you do that?”

 “I didn’t want to. She was dangerous. To you, to me, to herself. I ended everything the best way I could. You were safe, and I could keep in touch.”

 “But my mom...?”

 “She past on thirteen years ago. I flew down for the funeral. Laura never knew.”

 “Does she know? About me? About being your - your daughter?”

 Luke’s face broke into a smile, “Say it. You’re my daughter Caroline.”

 “She knows?”

 “No. I was going to tell her when you came to town, but Nikolas..”

 “You couldn’t handle her child, and you didn’t think she could handle yours.”

 Luke took Carly’s chin in his hand, “I love you. I always have.” He broke off as he stared into her eyes, “You have Amanda’s eyes. That brown that opens like windows.”

 She blushed, “Sonny says he drowns in my eyes. Sonny. Michael, oh God.” She looked up into her father’s eyes, “I have so much to tell them. To tell everyone. How do you tell someone this? I want to tell Laura, Luke. I want her to be proud of me; I want her to love me. I want Lulu to think of me as her sister; I want to be a family.”

 “You are my family.”

 She nodded, and wiped her eyes, “I better go tell Sonny...”

 Luke leaned down and cautiously kissed her forehead, “Bring Corinthos and Michael to Luke’s tonight for dinner. I’ll have Laura and the kids there; we’ll tell them together.”

 She nodded, “Okay Luke.”

 He walked over to the door, and turned, “When you get there, come straight to the office. I have a surprise for you.”

 “I’ll do that.”

 “Luke’s at six.”

****

 Carly slid out of the limo, and held out her hand to Michael, “Come on Mr. Man. Mommy has a surprise for you.”

 Sonny wrapped an arm around her waist, “Come on, let’s not keep the old man waiting.”

 Carly looked into Sonny’s eyes, and felt her nerves calm, “Thank you for loving me.”

 He laughed, “No, thank you for letting me in.” He tried to walk ahead, but couldn’t because Carly didn’t budge, “Carly, it’s time to go in.”

 She shook her head, “My life’s going to change when I step in that door. Everything I know will be a lie. That me relish in this for a moment.”

 He turned her to face him, “I’ll still love you. I’ll still be there whenever you need me. I’ll be your strength when you need me. You have to go in there. Your father Carly, he’s here, and he wants you in his life.”

 She nodded, “I guess we better go in.” She walked forward and turned the handle, “It’s locked. Maybe he changed his mind, he doesn’t want me...”

 Sonny laughed, “Luke closed the place tonight, just for you.” He stepped forward, and moved Carly out of the way with his hip, “I have my key, it’s okay.” He unlocked the door, and led her and Michael inside.

 Carly walked in first, and saw Laura and Lulu sitting at a table, and Emily and Lucky dancing by the jukebox. Nikolas was at the bar talking to Claude. “It’s now, or never, huh?”

 Sonny nodded, “You go find Luke, I’ll talk Michael over to Lulu.”

 She nodded and kissed him, “Thank you.”

 He walked away, and she turned and took the back entrance into his office, “Luke?”

 He was sitting at the desk, “I was just trying to figure out if you were coming or not. This has to be hard.”

 “I thought about not coming.” She admitted, “But for as long as I can remember, I wanted a real family. A mother, a father, siblings. And if I gave that up now, would I even get a chance to have it again?”

 He shrugged, “I don’t know.”

 She took a seat opposite him, and crossed her legs, “I see that you brought Nikolas.”

 Luke laughed, “I hoped that having Laura secret child here would help mine go over better.”

 Carly looked worried, “You don’t think she’ll take this well?”

 “I don’t know. But she’ll love you.”

 “And Emily?”

 “Miss Quatermaine is family. Has been since she ran away with my son, and will be till the day she dies. She’ll sooth things over with Lucky; he hates lies.”

 “I know the feeling.”

 Luke stood up and pulled Carly to her feet, “Listen to me child, you’re my daughter, and you belong with my family.” He hugged her, “Just don’t forget that.”

 She wrapped her arms around her father, and breathed in his scent. It was a cross between Old Spice, and liquor. “I won’t...”

 “Now, for the surprises...” Luke let go of Carly, and walked to his desk. He took a key and unlocked the bottom drawer, pulling out two pictures,  and a set of keys, and shutting the door. He handed Carly the pictures, and she took them. One was of Carly, Sonny, and Michael at the park, and the other was Carly, standing by a brick wall, staring into space. He took the pictures back, and sat them on the desk, “With the other Spencers, right where you belong.”

 Carly moved around the desk, and hugged him close, “Thank you so much. I always wanted a father.”

 He traced her spine with his thumb, “You’ve always been my daughter. I’m just glad I can tell everyone.” He released her again, and handed her the keys, “To my home, and to Luke’s. You’re always welcome.”

 “Thanks... Daddy.” She said, trying the word out. Luke face spread into a grin, and Carly knew she was finally home.