Better Days
By Candie

Chapters 5-6

Chapter 5

- The Next Day
Setting: General Hospital
(It’s early in the morning. Too early in the morning. Patrick Drake already had a surgery scheduled for 7am. He arrives at GH about an hour and a half prior to it to prep. When he walks off the elevator, he immediately spots Elizabeth Spencer. Their eyes immediately meet and both grunt silently. Keeping it as professional as possible, Patrick walks up to the Nurses’ Station.)

Patrick: Do you have the Thomas file?
Liz: I was just preparing it for you.
(Elizabeth hands him the file and he takes it from her hands.)
Patrick: Thank you.
(Patrick opens the file and looks down at it. Elizabeth awkwardly watches him for a moment. There’s an intense silence between them. Elizabeth is about to say something to Patrick when the elevator doors open again revealing Robin. She knew this was about to get even more awkward. Robin stops shortly at the sight of the back of Patrick. He looks up from his file and notices Liz staring toward the elevator. He turns around slowly and sees Robin as well. She looked beautiful, wearing a simple pair of blue jeans and a white sweater. Robin takes a deep breath and walks toward the desk. He looks back down at his file.)
Patrick: Couldn’t stay away, huh?
Robin: I’m here for my follow-up appointment.
(Patrick looks up from his folder as he slams it down on the nurses’ station.)
Patrick: Funny… I didn’t see your name on my schedule.
(Robin sighs inwardly then looks at Patrick.)
Robin: That would be because my appointment is with your father.
Patrick: My father? He took over your case?
(Elizabeth can see a fight is about to break out and attempts to end it before it can even begin.)
Liz: Robin called only an hour ago for an appointment and you were already booked, Patrick.
(Patrick looks toward Robin suddenly concerned. All of the anger vanished from his face.)
Patrick: Is everything okay?
(Robin looks away slightly.)
Robin: I’m sure everything is fine. I just… I woke up and my chest felt heavy.
Patrick: Like you couldn’t breathe?
Robin: It’s probably just congestion.
(Patrick starts to move toward Robin, in doctor mode, ready to examine her right there if she let him. He stops when suddenly Noah appears next to them, fresh from a shower, looking like he just ran out of his apartment.)
Noah: Record timing, huh? I think I ran about three red lights.
(Robin turns toward Noah and smiles.)
Robin: Don’t worry, I have an “in” with the Police Commissioner, but Noah, I could’ve seen you later.
Noah: I don’t think so. Let’s find an empty exam room.
(Noah starts to guide Robin toward the exam rooms as Patrick leaps to follow them.)
Patrick: I think #3 is free.
Liz: Patrick, the Thomas case.
(Patrick stops short. Robin and Noah both turn toward him. They can see the look of frustration on his face. Noah looks at his son.)
Noah: I’ll update you, I promise.
(Patrick looks back toward Robin.)
Robin: It’s probably just congestion. (Simply) Good luck with Steven.
(Patrick nods then watches Robin and his father walk toward an empty exam room. She knew his patient’s first name. He didn’t know his name was Steven. He always referred to him as simply “Mr. Thomas.” Patrick stands there frozen. He suddenly feels Liz next to him.)
Liz: Bobbie called. They’re ready for you to scrub in.
(Patrick just nods.)
Liz: Robin’s fine, you know.
(Patrick snaps his head and looks at Liz.)
Patrick: Why would I care, right? According to you, I’ve been leading her to believe I’m having some torrid affair with Carly to just hurt her.
Liz (sighs): Patrick…
Patrick: That is what you believe, correct?
Liz: Are you that dense? It’s not about what I believe… (She points toward the exam rooms) it’s about what SHE believes.
(Patrick looks away.)
Liz: And for whatever reason you have, you wanted her to believe you were with the one woman that you knew would hurt her.
Patrick: Hurt her? (Shakes his head) You don’t have a clue, Nurse Spencer.
Liz: And I’m starting to think neither do you. (Simply) Your surgery is in O.R. four.
(Elizabeth walks away from Patrick. He watches her leave then starts down toward his operating room. It was going to be a long day.)

Setting: An Examination Room at GH
(Robin is sitting on the exam table as Noah stands next to her listening to her breathing in and out with his stethoscope. He pulls away slowly and looks at her.)

Noah: Do you feel discomfort when you breathe?
Robin: No, just a slight tightness.
Noah: You just moved into a new apartment, right?
Robin: Yeah.
Noah: Been painting and unpacking a lot of stuff?
Robin: Ever since last week.
Noah: I think what you have, Dr. Scorpio, is a case of paint fumes and dust getting to you.
(Robin laughs slightly and shakes her head.)
Robin: Oh, I feel like an idiot.
(Noah shakes his head and pats her leg.)
Noah: No, don’t!
Robin: I’m a doctor, Noah.
Noah: Yes, but you are still a patient. Robin, you know your body… if something said it was off, it probably is.
Robin: Yeah, but paint fumes?
Noah: Your case of encephalitis is completely healed, but you are bound to have some sort of after-effects… which is why you aren’t at work right now. Your lungs are still recovering and probably the fumes were just a little too much for you.
Robin: Makes sense.
Noah: But, doesn’t make you feel better?
(Robin looks away then back at Noah.)
Robin: It sounds stupid, I know. I just… I thought I was stronger, but in the end, I’m just…
Noah (laughing): A girl?
(Robin’s mouth falls and she looks back at Noah.)
Robin: No! I wasn’t going to say that! (She smiles) I was thinking more that I was just like everyone else.
Noah: Robin, you went through something rough… it’s natural to be afraid to go through that again. Look, I rather you be cautious than reckless.
(Robin nods.)
Robin: Thank you.
Noah: No, I should actually thank you.
Robin (confused): For what?
Noah: A filet mignon dinner from Metro Court.
(Robin looks back at Noah and starts to say something then stops.)
Noah: Don’t worry; I know I wasn’t the Dr. Drake it was intended for.
Robin: I… uh… was it good?
Noah: Delicious. I am definitely a red-meat sort of man.
Robin (nods): Good.
(Robin looks down at her hands.)
Robin: So… Patrick, he gave you the dinner?
Noah: Robin, I can’t even begin to understand the relationship between you and my son.
(Robin shakes her head.)
Robin: There’s nothing to understand. We don’t have a relationship.
(Robin looks back at Noah.)
Robin: We’re just colleagues.
Noah: Right, of course.
(Before Robin can respond, the phone in the exam room rings and Noah answers it.)
Noah: Dr. Noah Drake.
(Noah sighs as he looks back toward Robin.)
Noah: She’s fine. No, I’m sure. She’s been painting in her new apartment.
(Robin looks up and toward Noah.)
Noah: Yes, I will suggest that. Thank you. (Pauses) Good luck on the Thomas case.
(Noah hangs up the phone.)
Noah: That was the man you claim to have no relationship with. Before going into surgery, he wanted to check on you. (Smiles) And he also wanted me to relay that perhaps you should stop painting and actually rest, since you are home to recuperate… not redecorate.
(Robin laughs slightly.)
Noah: His words – not mine.
(Robin jumps off of the examination table and smiles.)
Robin: Well, for once… maybe I’ll take Patrick’s advice and rest.
Noah: Good. (Smiles) Now, can I walk you to the elevator?
Robin: Yes, you can! (Looks at him) And thank you for coming in early to check on me.
Noah: Anytime.

Setting: Kelly’s Diner
(Robin walks into the diner with Noah’s words ringing in her mind. She was going to rest. She walks up to the counter.)

Robin: Hi, can I have an order of chicken soup and some bread?
Waitress: No problem. To stay or go?
Robin: To go, please.
(The waitress nods as Robin sits down at the counter to wait for her meal. She looks down when her cell phone suddenly rings.)
Robin: Hello?
Aidan: Okay, it freaks out your cousin a little bit when he goes to visit you and has to hear from a volunteer at GH that you went back to the hospital because you couldn’t breathe?!?!
(Robin closes her eyes. Aidan was looking for and must’ve contacted Maxie.)
Robin: Aidan, I could breathe; I just felt… look, I’m sorry. And I’m fine. I was just about to call your room at the Metro Court.
Aidan: Obviously not to do anything, because you should be resting. Where are you?
Robin: Getting chicken noodle soup. How much more of a model patient could I be?
Aidan: Do you want me to answer that?
Robin: I’m sorry. I really am.
Aidan: I just freaked out, that’s all. You were fine when I left last night. What happened?
Robin: I went to bed and just felt funny when I woke up, but I am fine now.
Aidan: The doctors said so?
Robin: Yes, a very good doctor said so.
Aidan: Dr. Drake?
Robin: Not the one you saw last night… but yes, his father.
Aidan: Okay. So, you’re going home?
Robin: Yes!
Aidan: I’ll meet you at your apartment.
Robin: Aidan, I’m fine.
Aidan: Great! I’d just like to see it for myself.
Robin: Fine, see you back at my place.
(Robin closes her cell phone and sighs. The joys of having a family again. Robin looks up when she suddenly feels a presence next to her. She turns her head and sees Nikolas. He looked like a complete mess. He looked like he just lost… the woman he loved. Robin sighs slightly.)
Robin (softly): Hey…
(Nikolas looks up, almost in shock, at the sound of Robin’s voice. He was completely in his own world; his own drunken, unshaven world.)
Nikolas (hoarsely): Robin.
(Robin knew better than to ask how he was, so she simply touched his hand softly.)
Robin: I’ve been thinking about you.
Nikolas (laughs): Oh, those must’ve been happy thoughts.
Robin: Nikolas…
Nikolas: I’m sorry. (Sighs) Why aren’t you at GH?
Robin: I’ve been ordered some time off.
Nikolas: Right, because of the virus.
(Robin looks down and suddenly she felt extremely guilty. She was alive and Courtney wasn’t. Her child was motherless. Robin couldn’t escape the sudden feeling of guilt. Nikolas must’ve noticed this. She suddenly feels his hand on the side of her face and he looks back at her.)
Nikolas: I’m really glad that you are okay.
(Robin shakes her head.)
Robin (softly): You don’t have to say that.
Nikolas: Robin, it wasn’t a competition. It wasn’t your life or Courtney’s. I cannot imagine losing you on top of everything else. (Simply) I’ve always cared about you, Robin… and I think you know how much. Don’t ever feel guilty for surviving. If anything, I want you to realize how precious your life is. It’s a gift, Robin. (Looks down) Your life is truly a gift.
(Robin stands up slowly then leans over and kisses Nikolas on the cheek. He looks back at her with tears in his eyes.)
Nikolas (simply): Go home and rest. You look beat!
(Robin bursts out laughing and for the first time in weeks, Nikolas laughs himself. In that moment, pot met kettle.)

Chapter 6

- Hours Later
Setting: Robin’s Apartment
(It’s later in the night. Aidan had finally left after hours of doting over his cousin. Robin was not good at being taken care of, especially when she was convinced that there was nothing at all wrong with her. She simply has been overdoing it for the last few days and her body had to take a break. However, she understood that Aidan was trying to overcompensate for her mother’s absence and probably her father’s disappearance. Robin got it… she just didn’t feel comfortable with it. After watching her eat chicken noodle soup and making her about five pots of tea, Aidan finally felt comfortable enough to leave his cousin and return to his room at the Metro Court. Robin sighs tiredly as she nestles into her couch with a blanket covering her. The thing she loved the most about living on her own was being allowed to fall asleep wherever she wanted to. She didn’t need permission to sleep on the couch, fall asleep upside down on her bed… she could do whatever she pleased. And tonight, she was going to nestle into her couch with her blanket and finally watch the Lost DVD that Brenda had ordered for her as a “get well present.” Just as Robin reaches for her remote control, there’s a loud knocking on her door. She sighs inwardly. Aidan had returned. She loved her cousin; she truly did, but this was getting to be a little too much. Robin throws her blanket off her body and walks toward her door wearing a simple fitted tank top and pajama bottoms. Without thinking, she simply opens the door.)

Robin: I told you I was fine to be alone!
(Robin’s mouth falls slightly when she sees Patrick Drake looking back at her. He’s resting his arm on the frame of her door as he looks back at her.)
Robin (awkwardly): Oh.
Patrick: Can I come in?
(Robin turns around and looks at her messy couch then back at Patrick.)
Robin (awkwardly): I was actually in the middle of something.
Patrick: I won’t stay long.
(Robin sighs then steps aside.)
Robin: Fine.
(Patrick Drake slowly walks into Robin Scorpio’s apartment. She had a nice home. Patrick’s eyes scan the entire room. Only Robin could move into an apartment a week ago and make it look like a home. Robin watches him awkwardly and sighs.)
Robin: So, what brought you here?
(Patrick turns around and looks at Robin. She had no idea how beautiful she looked at that moment. Patrick couldn’t tear his eyes away from the small area of skin that was revealed between her low-slung pajama pants and tank top… and Robin felt his eyes burning through her. She tugs her tank top lower and looks back at him waiting for an answer.)
Patrick: How are you feeling?
Robin: I’m fine.
(Patrick nods then looks toward Robin’s coffee table. He notices the Lost DVD she was about to watch then picks it up.)
Patrick: Another exciting evening planned, huh?
(Robin snatches the DVD from Patrick’s hands.)
Robin: I’m supposed to be resting, remember?
Patrick: What else did my father say?
Robin: Just that I should rest.
Patrick: And your breathing?
(Robin plops down on one side of her couch.)
Robin: I shouldn’t have painted and unpacked as much as I did.
(Patrick sits down on other side of the couch leaving a decent amount of space between them.)
Patrick: Don’t you have all these family members and friends in this town? Why didn’t you ask them to help you? (Nods) Oh, that’s right! You would never ask for help.
(Robin snaps her head and looks at Patrick.)
Robin: Why exactly did you come all the way here again? I’ve told you everything that your father already told you himself. I mean, you MUST have something better to do than come here and berate me.
(Patrick looks down at his hands and shakes his head.)
Patrick: Does it mean anything at all to you that I came here to see how you were feeling?
Robin: Should it?
(Patrick turns his head and looks at Robin.)
Patrick: Why do you dislike me so much? From the very first day we met, you’ve shown such disdain for me. (Simply) What did I ever do to you?
(Robin shakes her head and pulls her blanket closer to her, almost like it was a shield that could protect her.)
Robin: I don’t dislike you, Patrick.
Patrick: You obviously don’t like me.
Robin: Because I wouldn’t go out with you?
Patrick: You act like that is a fate worse than death. (Simply) Robin, I am not that terrible to be around.
(Robin closes her eyes and struggles a bit with the next words.)
Robin: I never… (Looks at him) I never said that you were… (Takes a deep breath) Look Patrick, we are just different people. I ask someone out to dinner and I just want dinner and maybe good conversation; you ask someone out to dinner and you want to get in their pants.
(Patrick just shakes his head.)
Patrick: Now, that is a generalization if I ever heard one.
Robin: Am I wrong?
(Patrick stares down at his hands.)
Patrick: I don’t get this.
Robin (quietly): What?
(Patrick finally looks back at her.)
Patrick: At the hospital… before you were released, you started to treat me differently. (She looks down) Robin, you looked at me differently. What happened between then and now?
(Robin looks back at Patrick.)
Robin: Why do you have to press this?
Patrick: Because I have a right to know!
Robin: I forgot…
Patrick (annoyed): Forgot what?
Robin: Who you are. (Shakes her head) I admit; you were right. I did ask you out for dinner at the hospital, but then I remembered that you would go out with me, have an amazing conversation with me, I’d laugh, forget that you could be a jerk and then the next day, I’d see you and you would throw in my face another date you were about to go on… or better yet, you would throw in my face your latest conquest. (Simply) I don’t have time for mind games… and I don’t have time to be used.
Patrick: How can you be so certain that I’d be using you?
Robin: Because you already did.
(Robin starts to stand up, but Patrick gently grabs her wrist forcing her to sit back down. He looks at her.)
Patrick: When?
Robin: Patrick, when you practically bribed me for a date, I gave you one and I thought we actually had a decent time. I saw a side of you that really I liked, but then… the very next day you threw Carly in my face. (Pauses) Look, if you want to have sex with Carly, be used by Carly, whatever – that’s fine, but I’m not going along for the ride and I’m not going to let anyone use her to hurt me again. I’ve been there, done that and I have to believe that I’ve learned something from that experience. (Sighs) I’m sorry, but a dinner date with you, Patrick, is not worth losing my pride or getting my teeth kicked in on a daily basis.
(Patrick just stares back at Robin, a bit taken back. She notices his surprise and for some reason gets angered by it.)
Robin (annoyed): What? You think I live to hear about your sexual escapades, especially the ones with Carly? (Moves closer to him) They turn my stomach. No, let me be clearer – the fact that you could even be with her turns my stomach.
Patrick: Robin…
(Robin stands up and points toward the door.)
Robin: I think you should go.
(Patrick just stares up toward Robin without moving from the couch.)
Patrick: I don’t even get the chance to state my side?
Robin (laughs): What can you possibly say that will change how I feel?
Patrick (simply): How about that I never slept with her?
(Robin’s eyes lower and she slowly reverts them toward him.)
Patrick: That I used her to get a reaction out of you.
(Robin just stares back at Patrick.)
Patrick: I knew that you couldn’t stand Carly and that the feeling was mutual. And if you didn’t want to go out with me, I decided to throw the one person I knew would get to you in your face.
(Robin clenches her fists slightly to stop herself from losing every ounce of control and completely losing her temper.)
Patrick: You can say something.
Robin (emotionally): You’re an even bigger jerk than I thought! (Angrily) Get out, Patrick!
Patrick: Robin…
Robin (angrily): So when, Patrick? When did you discover that she would be the perfect person to use to hurt me? When she threw my HIV in my face? Or when she accused me of coming back to Port Charles only to get Jason back and then purposely giving him medication that wouldn’t work? Or was it when she told you that Jason slept with her for MONTHS behind my back?
(Patrick just looks down as Robin stares back at him.)
Robin: And how she would LAUGH at me because she gave him something that she thought I couldn’t? (Emotionally) Because if there is anyone that could make a bigger fool of Robin it’s Carly, right Patrick?
(Robin takes a deep breath trying to keep her emotions in check. She would not give him the pleasure of seeing any tears coming down her face.)
Robin: Was it like a little joke between you two? Let’s see how much we can make poor, pathetic, HIV+ Robin squirm?
(Patrick looks back at Robin with widened eyes and leaps to his feet.)
Patrick: It wasn’t like that.
Robin: Then how was it, Patrick? It was a game, right?
(Patrick just looks back at her, not knowing what to say. His silence infuriates her even more.)
Robin (yells): What?!?
(Robin’s loud voice stings Patrick’s ears.)
Robin: Let me get this straight… so, you pretend you’re having some sort of hot, torrid affair with her and then you throw it in my face.
Patrick (softly): Robin…
Robin (hurt): So, tell me, did Carly give you any clues so you would know when you really struck a chord with me? Did she tell you how I looked when she threw in my face how I could never have children? How I could never physically please a man the way she could because of a virus in MY blood?
Patrick (softly): Robin…
Robin: Or my favorite! Did she tell you how I looked when I found out that my perfect boyfriend, who was so patient with me was only patient with me because he was sleeping with her?
Patrick (screams): IT WASN’T LIKE THAT!
(Robin finally raises her hands and shoves Patrick’s chest hard, making him stumble back slightly.)
Robin (screams): LIKE HELL IT WASN’T!
(Patrick looks back at Robin.)
Patrick: You didn’t want me, Robin. You made it abundantly clear more than once how much you didn’t want me.
Robin: So what? You thought if you hooked up with the one person that I couldn’t stand, it would magically make me want you?
Patrick: You DIDN’T want me, Robin.
(Robin shakes her head and looks away.)
Patrick: How was I to know the history you and Carly shared? How was I to know that she hurt you in the past or that Jason cheated on you with her? I’m sorry; I didn’t get the Robin Scorpio history book when I moved to Port Charles. (She looks back at him annoyed) All I knew was that for MONTHS I tried to get a reaction out of you, a reaction more than annoyance or disdain, and I finally found something that seemed to get a pulse out of you. (She shakes her head) I watched you show such passion to save Jason’s life; I watched you show compassion for my father. You even laughed at his jokes more than once. (Annoyed) Damn it, Robin – I watched you show empathy for Manny Ruiz! And what did I get? The casual grimace? And if I was lucky, just lucky, I would get a look of annoyance.
(Robin shoots him a glare and points to her eyes.)
Robin: Like this?
Patrick: I did NOTHING to you, Robin! Nothing to deserve that.
Robin: Nothing? You think you did nothing? Please Patrick!
Patrick: Tell me then?
Robin: You see me as a challenge, Patrick. And once I am no longer a challenge for you, you will move on
Patrick: And I told you that? (She looks away) Fill me in, Robin… maybe I was having an outer-body experience… what were my exact words? Did I tell you that I would love to have a one-night stand with you and then see how fast I could kick you out of my bed? (She looks at him somewhat disgusted) Did I say that I wanted to count how many hours I could keep you in my bed until I was bored with you?
Robin (taken back): Wow! You are a pig!
Patrick: I would be, if I said those things… but, I didn’t! Robin, I never said those things to you! I never did anything to you that would lead you to believe that I would treat you in that way.
Robin: Actions, Patrick, speak louder than words! I’ve watched you flirt with each and every single nurse, resident, doctor and patient that has walked through General Hospital!
Patrick: Fine! I’ve flirted with them, but for how long? How many times? Once? Maybe twice? Have I went to any of those other women’s houses after working for thirteen hours straight and should be getting a good four hours sleep in? (She just looks back at him) Have I sat by any of their hospital beds begging them to live? (She looks away) Have I spoken to any of them about my family? Do you they know ANYTHING else about me other than I have some great pickup lines and know a few good restaurants in town? (Yells) Tell me, Robin?!?! Have I done any of those things?!?!
(Robin finally turns her head and looks back at him.)
Patrick: Tell me that I chased any of those women the way I’ve chased you!
Robin (quietly): I don’t know.
Patrick: Liar. (Simply) You do know… and that’s why you’re angry with me. You want to know how I could show glimpses of being somewhat human to you then having meaningless sex with other women? You want to know how I could go out to dinner with you and actually connect with you, then continue to see other women?
(Robin shrugs her shoulders.)
Robin: Well… how could you?
Patrick: Because I can chase you, Robin, until I can’t walk; I can ask you on a million dates and you can shoot me down each and every time… but I can’t force you to see me any differently than you do. (Looks at her) You want to believe that I’m a jerk. You wanted to believe that I was sleeping with Carly. Robin, you want to believe that I would destroy you, if you gave me the chance. (Simply) What can I possibly say that could you convince you otherwise, if you want to believe all those things? You don’t want to even think for a moment that I could genuinely like you or that I could genuinely want to get to know you.
(Robin quickly wipes some tears from her eyes as she looks back at Patrick. He knew it was time for this conversation to end; he said what he needed to.)
Patrick: Look, if it makes any difference at all… I don’t want to be with Carly.
(Patrick reaches for his coat.)
Patrick: I’m sorry that I came over unannounced. I really intended to just see how you were feeling and make sure you were resting. I obviously failed at both tasks. I apologize. Good night, Robin.
(Patrick starts to walk toward the door, but stops when he hears Robin’s voice.)
Robin: I do.
(Patrick turns around and looks back at Robin.)
Robin: I do want to believe that you’re a jerk. And as much as I hated it, I wanted to believe that you were sleeping with Carly… because that meant I would never want to be with you in that way, not after her.
(Patrick releases a held breath.)
Robin: And I did want to believe that you would destroy me, if I gave you the chance… because then I would never have to.
(Patrick walks toward Robin and drops his coat back on her couch as he looks at her.)
Patrick: Robin, I just want the chance for you to get to know me… and I would like to get to know the real you. And if after we go out once or twice, you still can’t stand me… then we could go back to hating each other.
(Robin looks down and shakes her head.)
Robin: I don’t know.
Patrick: What are you afraid of? Do you honestly think I’m that evil?
(Robin looks up at Patrick and actually smirks.)
Robin (smiles): No.
Patrick: Then, what is it? Is it the opposite? Are you afraid that I’m just that irresistible?
(Robin bursts out laughing and shakes her head.)
Robin: You know what, Patrick? I have to admit, if you ever devoted all your time and focus onto one woman… you could probably be very charming.
Patrick: So, is that a yes? (Smiles) Are you going to give me the chance to show you just how charming I can be?
(Robin throws her hands up.)
Robin: Fine!
Patrick: For real?
Robin (sighs): For real. I’ll go out with you, Patrick.
(Patrick smiles widely then grabs his coat.)
Patrick: You won’t regret it!
Robin: We’ll see.
Patrick: You won’t!
(Patrick runs out of Robin’s apartment and she watches him smiling then shakes her head. She hoped that she wouldn’t regret this.)

to be continued...

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