Danni

“Coming!” Paloma yelled out as she sprinted to the door. Once she opened it, a look of shock instantly replaced the smile she had on her face. “Ethan. What are you doing here?” “I’m here to see Theresa and Jane.” “Theresa and Jane? They’re not here. She left town this morning.” Paloma fumbled as she tried to make sure that he didn’t try to take her daughter away from her again. “Paloma, nice try, but I know she’s here. The car’s still parked in front of the house. Don’t worry. I don’t have the cops around here or anything. I would just like to see my daughter.” Ethan smirked before making his way into the house despite Paloma’s objection. “I don’t know if Theresa or Luis would want you here. After all, you and Gwen are the reason why she’s in hiding with her children.” Paloma replied as she closed the door. “I understand that, Paloma, but I’m not going to hurt her or her children. Gwen doesn’t know that I’m here.” Ethan retorted as he made himself comfortable on their couch. “But…” “Paloma, it’s okay.” Theresa said as she stepped into the living room. She still maintained that look of caution as she watched him Ethan stand up from the couch to face her. “Jane’s in the kitchen probably filling herself with cookies. EJ is spending the day with Miguel.” “Ahhh. I see. I can understand Paloma being protective of you, but I guarantee I won’t do anything to hurt you, Jane, or EJ.” Ethan smiled as he slowly walked over to her. He wished he could take away that hurt in her eyes, but he knew that he was responsible for putting it there. “Does Jane know?” “No. She asked me this morning, but I couldn’t tell her. She’s young, so she wouldn’t understand. I just told her that you were an old friend of mine.” Theresa shrugged before looking over at a picture of her with Jane and EJ that they took before they fled Harmony. Before Ethan could open his mouth to berate Theresa, Jane stepped into the living room her eyes suddenly going wide at the man that she saw at the church. She instinctively walked over to her mother and hid behind her while those big blue eyes stared at him. “Mommy, that’s the man at the church yesterday.” “Yes, he is sweetheart. Don’t worry, honey. He wants to say hi, so don’t be shy.” She replied as she bent down to wipe some chocolate from her daughter’s chin. Despite looking exactly like her mother, she had his blue eyes. That was his beautiful little girl standing there, and she didn’t know who he was. When she was a baby, he thought about her first walk, her first talk, watching her dance like a little princess in the ballet. He didn’t have those opportunities like he should have. He lost those moments he wanted to experience with Jane and… “Hi, Jane. My name is Ethan. You’re very pretty. You’re pretty like your mommy.” Almost instantly Jane warmed up to him, completely forgetting the fact that he was the man who did hurt her mother. Theresa smiled at both of them as they bonded and thought about what could’ve been and how as much as she tried to picture the fantasy the reality will always smack her in the face and she had to live with that for the rest of her life. ***** Gwen paced frantically around her bedroom wondering where Ethan could’ve gone. It was so late, and still he wasn’t home. Where is he, Gwen thought to herself as she looked out of the window. Rebecca soon entered her room and made herself comfortable on the bed. “Gwen, honey, relax. All of this frowning about will give you premature wrinkles and I don’t think the salon can squeeze you in for botox.” “Mother, this is no time for games. He said that he was going to be gone for a couple of hours but he’s been gone all day and for most of the night. I’ve been trying to call his cell phone I hope he’s alright.” Gwen anxiously ran her hand through her hair as she continued pacing around the room. “Gwennie, don’t worry. It’s not as if Theresa was back in town and she sunk her little claws in him again. Besides, he knows who he has in his heart and his loins. You. Theresa wouldn’t dare set foot in this town because if she does, we would make sure that she was arrested for kidnapping your daughter.” Rebecca replied as she patted her daughter’s hand. “If she set foot here again, we will make her wish that she had never been born, but don’t you worry about Theresa because she is not here.” “I know, Mother. Sometimes I worry that Ethan may still have feelings for her even when we know that she’s not here. He would sit in Jane’s room in the dark and say nothing. Don’t you think that’s a little strange?” “Well, yes, but that’s because that little tramp kidnapped your daughter and fled the country with her. Honey, don’t worry so much. He loves you, and he always will.” “I hope so, Mother. I really hope so.”

Chapter 7 The next morning, Theresa kept herself in her old room watching Jane draw in her coloring book. EJ preferred to spend a day with Miguel since he hadn’t seen his uncle in so long, so they went out to the arcade. “Mommy, look what I drew.” Jane exclaimed as she ran up to her. Theresa smiled as she saw her daughter’s rendition of their family. She fought back tears at the sight of something so beautiful. “Honey, it’s absolutely beautiful. I love you so much.” Theresa replied as she pulled Jane up to sit on her lap. She gave her daughter a tight hug and kissed her temple as she kept her close to her. No one was going to take Jane away from her. Her pride and joy. “Mommy, who was that man we saw at the church?” “Oh, Janie. He was an old friend of mommy’s.” She didn’t have the heart to tell her that Ethan was her father. She was just a baby when everything happened. She wouldn’t understand. “Did he make you upset, Mommy?” “He did, but I try not to think about it anymore. He can’t upset me anymore. He won’t upset me. If you see him, I want you to be nice to him, okay?” Theresa said to her little girl, tucking Jane’s long dark hair behind her ear. She gave her baby girl a tight hug when she heard the door knock. “Come in.” Theresa smiled as she saw Luis’s head poke in. She didn’t have a lot of friends, but at least she had her older brother supporting her, even when she made mistakes. She looked up at him so much. She remembered how he gave up his entire life to help the family once Martin disappeared. “How are my baby sister and niece?” He replied as he stepped into her room and gave his sister and his niece a kiss on the temple. “We’re fine, Luis. Look at what Jane drew from me.” Theresa smiled as she showed the drawing to her brother. “It’s absolutely gorgeous. Janie, you’re going to be a fantastic artist like your mommy.” Luis replied as he ruffled his niece’s hair. “Squirt, Tía Paloma just finished making some chocolate chip cookies. If you ask nicely, she might give you a cookie or two.” He winked before Jane jumped off Theresa’s lap and ran out of the room. Luis took a seat on the foot of the bed and watched his little sister look out the window with that hidden sadness in her eyes. “You okay?” “Yeah. I’m okay. Just thinking about when we’re going to go back home. There are too many bad memories, and I can’t relive them.” “Theresa, I wish you would stay. You have family here. Friends…” “What friends, Luis?” Theresa snapped as she turned her head to look at him with a slight irritation in her eyes. “When I was lost my daughter, everyone blamed me despite the fact that Gwen stabbed me and kidnapped her. Everyone said that it was my fault when Alistair raped me. Pardon me if I don’t find that rather friendly.” “Theresa, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I know I was one of those people. I promised I would protect you, and I failed.” “It’s okay. It’s all in the past anyway.” Theresa gave him a brief smile before looking back out at the window. “I saw Ethan last night. Twice actually.” “What did he want?” Luis asked as he struggled to contain his anger. Every time he saw Ethan, he just wanted to rip him apart for hurting his sister. He knew that Ethan was truly in love with Theresa, but all he did was hurt her. When Theresa left Harmony, he just wanted to tear him limb from limb. “He wanted us to put the past behind us and be friends.” Theresa scoffed. “It was just so stupid how he asked that, like I can just forget about the things he said to me, the things he did.” “Theresa, I want to ask you an honest question.” Luis replied as he walked over to the window she looked out of. “Do you still love him?” “As much as I hate to admit it, I do still love him. A part of me will always love him, but that’s not enough. Maybe in some perverse way he loves me, but the things he did just were so cruel that I can’t forgive that. I know there’s that saying ‘You hurt the ones you love’, but he destroyed me.” Theresa frowned as she fought back tears that threatened to fall. “You’ve become a stronger person from this. You’re a great mom with two beautiful children. You’re a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit. You will find someone who will love you and adore the way you should be.” Luis replied as he went over to Theresa to give her a hug. Suddenly both their heads rose as they heard the sound of the doorbell. “I wonder who that could be. Only two other people know I’m here.” Theresa tensed at the possibility that someone may come for her. She didn’t want to lose her freedom or her children.

What's funny is that I have most of it already written. I just don't want to go digging my computer for it.

Chapter 6 Theresa let out a sigh as she walked around the town. It had changed, but remained the same at the same time. The sights, the smells, the look. She missed all of it, but not enough to actually want to stay there. She mostly didn’t want to be there because of Ethan. Why did he do that to her? Why did he want to bring up so many painful memories again? Did he want to punish her for leaving? She walked aimlessly until she stopped in front of the book café. Boy, was she in the mood for a nice cup of hot chocolate. She stepped inside and walked to the barista, looking back to the times she spent here. “I’ll have a hot chocolate with whipped cream on top. Thanks.” Theresa smiled as she walked over to a chair to set her coat down on the chair. As she paid for her hot chocolate, a familiar voice came through the door. It was Whitney. Her best friend, or former best friend, rather. “Theresa, I warned you of what would happen if you associated yourself with Alistair. Everyone did.” “Thank you so much, Whitney, for making me feel even worse than I already do.” Theresa sighed as she eyed her bowl of chocolate chunk ice cream. It hurt to know that not only was she being violated that people practically said that it was her fault that she was raped. “Honey, you have to understand. Ethan is married to Gwen. He is not going to leave her.” “What about Jane, Whitney? Am I just supposed to stand by and watch them raise my daughter from the sidelines?” “How do you think you got into the situation in the first place? You filed the charges against Gwen. If you hadn’t done it, and if you had given up on your sick fantasy to get Ethan, you would have Jane.” Theresa slammed the spoon down into the bowl before getting up from her chair. “You know what, Whitney? I am sick of this! I am sick of you chastising me for everything! Can’t you for once support me?” “Theresa, I am supporting you.” “No, Whitney. You’re criticizing me! You always throw my misdeeds in my face like it’s nothing. Who are you to judge me? At least I didn’t try to starve my brother’s child, pass him off as someone else’s, and give him up for adoption.” Theresa retorted as she saw the look of shame on her face. She couldn’t help but get a little satisfaction from that look. Finally, the Ice Queen has been put in her place. “Theresa, that situation was different.” “How, Whitney? How? You starved your child throughout your pregnancy. You manipulated Fox and let him believe that your child of incest was his. You lied to his face, and you felt no remorse over it. If anything, you’re worse than me. At least I never pretended to be some saint who judges other people for having flaws. The worst part is that when you told me all of this, I never judged you for a second. I was a shoulder to cry on. I never said that you were a bad person. I understood your pain and I respected your wishes. You’ve never done the same for me.” Whitney looked down at the ground as she thought about the fact that Theresa was telling the truth. When she needed Theresa, she was always there for her, especially. On the other hand, all she did was criticize her. “I should go.” “Yes, you should, and don’t come back.” Theresa said sternly as she opened the door to her house, watching as Whitney walked out with her head hanging in shame. Theresa looked over and glanced at her talking to Simone when Whitney suddenly returned her gaze. Not really knowing how to react, Theresa silently went back to her chair to sip her hot chocolate. “Theresa.” She raised her head at the sound of her voice to see that it was Whitney there standing in front of her. “Whitney.” She replied emotionlessly, watching her with cool guarded eyes. “I’m sorry about Pilar. She was a fantastic woman.” “Thank you.” Theresa replied before taking a sip of her hot chocolate maintaining her cool. “How have you been? It’s been five years.” Whitney smiled as she nervously rung her hands together. “Good. I’ve been away from here. Anything is better than that.” “Oh.” Whitney murmured as she looked down at the floor before meeting Theresa’s gaze. “Theresa, I just wanted to say that I’m sorry for everything that happened, and I know it’s five years late, but your words really did stick with me for a long time. I wasn’t a good friend to you. I thought that I was just trying to protect you.” “You’re lucky you’re not Ethan, Whit.” Theresa said as she chuckled softly. “He actually tried to apologize to me, and long story short, he got laughed at.” “Theresa, I know I don’t expect us to be best friends again, but I would like us to be friends. Start new. Can we give it a try?” “I guess. It’s been too long to keep this going.” Theresa sighed as the cold exterior she kept started to melt away slightly. “I should get going, but it was really good seeing you, Whit.” She replied as she stood up and slipped her coat on. She gave her old friend a hug before walking out of the café.

Chapter 5 Once the children had been put to bed, Theresa found herself restless and anxious. She didn’t want to be here anymore, but her family insisted that she stay for at least a few days. Realizing that she couldn’t just stay in bed and stare up at the ceiling, she got out of bed and got dressed so that she could take a walk. Soon, she found herself by the wharf. She remembered that this was the place where she and Ethan first kissed. So many painful memories she didn’t want to relive. She looked out to the dark waters that had seemed so call out to her. There was a time when she would’ve jumped. She actually attempted once before, but she would never do that again because she had too much to live for now. She had her children to take care of. She had gotten her life back together, and she was not going to let anyone take that away from her. “If things had been different…Well, I can’t think about the ‘what ifs’. I have Jane, EJ, and my career now. Ethan has no place in my life now or in my heart. I’ll be with someone who will be everything that Ethan couldn’t be.” With a soft sigh, she turned to leave to go home only to be stopped dead in her tracks with the sight of Ethan in front of him. She rolled her eyes and tugged the free strands of hair behind her ear before looking down at the ground. “Ethan…” He couldn’t help but watch her as she looked into the water. He looked back to the time where they shared their first kiss. It was at that moment where he felt more than just friendship towards her. Now she was standing there looking the same as she did all those years ago, but she wasn’t the same. Neither was he. Why did the feelings he kept locked away come back? “Theresa.” “What is this Ethan? Are you following me around or something?” “No, I wasn’t following you around. I just want to talk.” “Talk. Last time I checked there was nothing for us to talk about.” “That’s where you’re wrong, Theresa. There is a lot for us to talk about. Five years can’t change that.” “Fine. Fine. Say what you’re just dying to say.” “Theresa, I know that things have been tense between us, and no matter what happens we will always have feelings for each other. I think that there are things that I should know. I mean, after all you’ve been gone for five years without a word and you took my daughter with you.” “What do you want to know, Ethan?” “Why, Theresa. I want to know why you left.” “This is a waste of time, Ethan. You should be able to answer that question yourself.” “Theresa. Tell me why you left.” “Because I was alone! I was alone and I was fed up with it. I hated being looked at with disdain and contempt. No matter what I did, I was still the woman who tried to destroy a happy marriage. Gwen looked like some innocent victim when we all know that wasn’t the case. She tried to kill me and kidnapped my child and everyone took her side. She has assaulted me and threatened my life, and everyone says that I deserve it! The worst, my god, the worst was Alistair raping me and people think that I was lying. You, Ethan! You believed him over me. Not only did you believe him, you accused me of lying just so you’d feel bad and get closer to me! That was the last straw. I couldn’t handle that. I wanted to die at that moment. Not because I felt that I had lost you, but because you believed Alistair. You had might as well had pinned me down as he forced himself on me.” She tried to force back the tears as the pain of that night replayed in her head along with Ethan’s words. Five years couldn’t make the feeling of his hands on her body go away. “No! Get off of me! No!” Theresa cried out as she struggled to free herself from Alistair’s clutches. “It’s time you fulfill your end of the bargain, Theresa! If you don’t pay up willingly, I’ll take it from you!” “Noooo...!” “You’re damaged goods now, Theresa. Ethan will never want you again. Never.” Alistair chuckled as he felt Theresa give up fighting. Theresa shut her eyes and pressed her fingers to her temple as she tried to will back those memories. She turned so that her back faced him as she whimpered softly. She counted in her head as her doctors instructed whenever those memories came back to haunt her. “Theresa, I feel bad about…” “You should feel more than bad, Ethan. You should feel disgusted by what you said to me. I could survive the rape, but it was your words that caused more pain.” Theresa started her slow, deliberate swaying as she did when she felt herself start to slip away again. “You know, after five years, you’d think that I would have let it go. After all, I shouldn’t have expected anything more from you. You’re always so quick to throw me to the wolves for you to save face.” “Theresa, that’s not fair…” Theresa sharply turned to face him with a look of rage and hurt in her eyes. “Isn’t it, Ethan? I think it’s quite fair. You’ve said that you loved me, but you were ashamed of it.” “Theresa, I was never ashamed of my love for you.” “Oh please, Ethan. You were. Every time you said that the reason why we couldn’t be together was because I lied too much, you were ashamed of it. After all, how could you love and want to be with a psychopathic liar and be proud of it? That’s why time and time again when I needed you, you weren’t there for me. In fact, you were so quick to berate me and assume that I was the bad person. It was more than your guilt. It was your shame. Alistair was right about one thing. You would’ve never wanted to be with someone as damaged as me. I’m too flawed for you.” “Theresa…” He whispered as he took a step towards her. “Don’t touch me.” She retorted as she stepped back from him, ignoring the frown that came to his face. “Theresa, we both have made mistakes. We’ve lost our way, and maybe if the situations were different, we’d be together and we’d be happy. I truly am sorry for not believing you. The fact of the matter is that we’re different people now. You’re different from the Theresa I knew.” “You destroyed her, Ethan. Alistair may have violated her body; you destroyed her soul.” “Fair enough. I think that we’re at the stage of our lives where we can be at peace with each other. I think it would be best for us if we put the past behind us and be friends.” “Friends…” Theresa couldn’t help but let out a chuckle at his proposition. He couldn’t be serious, could he? “Ethan, you’re a fool if you expect me to just accept that. I’ve lost my pride, my dignity, and my honor because of you. You can be at peace with your denial of your involvement, but I have to live with it for the rest of my life, so pardon me if I can’t just put the past behind me.” “Fine. Fine. But remember Theresa, we have a child together. A child I haven’t seen in five years. I do have a right to spend time with her and watch her grow up.” “Yeah? I’d say you lost that right when you took her from me. I’ve been her mother and father, and she’s just fine without you or Gwen corrupting her.” “I love Jane! I only want what’s best for her.” “Is that why you decided to take her away from me after Gwen tried to kill me and kidnapped her? It was a good thing I took her with me. I would’ve rather died trying to get her back than sit by and watch as Gwen corrupted my child. So don’t tell me that you only wanted what’s best for her, Ethan.” “I want to see her. I want to know how she’s doing. I want to know how Little Ethan is doing.” “EJ. He prefers to be called EJ. If you want to see them, fine. I can’t guarantee that they’ll be accepting of you, EJ less so. I’ll be here a couple of days, and then it’ll be like you never saw me. We can just go back to our normal lives. You can live happily ever after with Gwen. Good night, Ethan.” She replied before walking away from him. “Theresa.” Ethan sighed as he walked over to the railing where she stood. “We can’t go back to our normal lives. Not now. Not ever. I’ve lost you once. I don’t know how I will manage without you again.”

Chapter 4 It took all of her strength to not scream in the car, but she kept it all inside for the children’s sake. She didn’t want to scare them. Lord knows they had been through so much with Gwen’s obsessive desire to take her children away from her to punish her. That was all the more reason as to why the meeting between her and her family should be brief so that she wouldn’t have to worry about what Gwen and Rebecca may do to them. “Here we are guys. Now, we want to make this a big surprise for your aunt and uncles, okay?” Theresa said as she parked the car in front of the house. She was absolutely desperate to see family, even if they may not have been supportive of her. “Mom, must we really stay here? I would rather go home. I’m hungry too.” EJ whined in the backseat of the car. “Yes, we must stay here. Your grandma just passed away, and I think we should see our family, at least for tonight. You can have food once you’re inside.” “But Mom…” “Ethan Lopez-Fitzgerald! We’re going to be staying here for a little while.” Theresa snapped at her son, sighing as she saw both of her children flinch. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Mommy’s just a little sad.” “I’m sorry, Mom. I know that it’s been hard being away from home for so long, and seeing Ethan.” “Come on, let’s say hi to your relatives.” She smiled before opening the door to her car, and going to the back so that she could take Jane out of her car seat. EJ stepped out of the car and ran up to the door waiting for his mother and her little sister. Theresa looked at that the house she called home for most of her life. Now it was something foreign to her. It wasn’t home anymore, not since she left. Theresa winced as she felt the cold air practically slap her face before she opened the door to let her kids inside the house. “Hello? Is anyone home?” Theresa called out timidly as she walked into the living room with her children at the side. “Un momento! I’m coming, I’m coming.” Paloma called out as she walked out of the kitchen and to the living room. She came to a dead stop and her eyes widened as she saw her older sister standing there with her two children. Her hair was much longer than before, there were slight shadows under her eyes, but she definitely noticed that fragility in her eyes. She remembered how they were so full of life, now that light that she had seen in her sister burned out. All because of Alistair. Alistair and Ethan. “Theresa! You’re home!” Paloma exclaimed before running over to hug her sister. Her eyes furrowed together when she felt Theresa wince at her hug, but she didn’t say anything. “Yeah, Paloma. I’m home.” “And my favorite nephew and niece! Give Tía Paloma a hug!” She replied before both EJ and Jane gave her a big hug. “I’m sure you must be hungry. Why don’t you surprise Abuelo and get something to eat okay? Your mommy and I have some things to talk about.” “Okay!” EJ and Jane replied simultaneously before heading to the kitchen. With a sigh, Theresa sat down on the couch and placed her hands on her face before bursting into tears. Paloma sat down beside her and pulled her in a tight hug. “Theresa, I know. I know. What matters is that you’re home now. Mama would want that.” ***** Ethan and Gwen walked solemnly into the Crane Mansion as they had just come from the church. While Gwen thought that he was making his final goodbye, Ethan saw Theresa and her beautiful children. He couldn’t forget that look of fragility and hurt in her eyes as she saw him. He certainly couldn’t forget the look of anger in EJ’s eyes and that quiet curiosity in Jane’s eyes. He couldn’t forget his daughter’s face. Suddenly all of those feelings that he thought disappeared came rushing back to him, and he wasn’t so sure that he’d be able to will them back again. “Ethan, I can’t imagine how you must feel. I know Pilar was like a second mother to you.” Gwen replied as she wrapped her arms around her husband. “Thanks, Gwen. She was an amazing woman to grow up with.” “I’m sure Pilar is visiting the Taco Bell in the sky.” Rebecca casually retorted as she poured herself a glass of brandy. “I must admit, Miguel was looking so delectable in that suit. I can only imagine what he looks like underneath.” “Mother.” “Well, it’s true! To be honest, I’m shocked that there wasn’t a Mariachi band or a piñata over her coffin.” “Mother, be quiet. Please.” “Ugh, fine. I’ll just enjoy my brandy upstairs. Maybe Pookie may actually want to play.” Rebecca harrumphed before walking upstairs to her bedroom. “I imagine that Luis, Paloma, Miguel and Martin are taking it especially hard right now. I’m rather shocked that Theresa didn’t show her face at the funeral. Then again, if I had seen her, I’d have her arrested in an instant second.” “Gwen…” “It’s true, Ethan. She took our child away from us and disappeared. Five years hasn’t taken away the fact that she took a child from me, yet again.” “Gwen, Jane is Theresa’s daughter, and the court only granted us temporary custody.” Ethan replied as he sat down on the couch and rubbed his eyes. He really hoped that Gwen didn’t find out that Theresa was here with both of her children. If she did, she would make sure that Theresa suffer, and he didn’t want to put the children through the whole ordeal. “That doesn’t matter, Ethan. That psycho took my chances of having a child with you, and she took your beautiful daughter without any word. For all we know, she could be harming her.” “Gwen, I don’t want to talk about Theresa tonight. It’s disrespectful to Pilar to trash her daughter, so please just give it a rest.” Gwen let out a soft sigh before sitting down beside her husband. “I’m sorry, honey. I’m sorry. Should I make you some tea or anything?” “No, Gwen. I think I’m just going to go out for a walk. Don’t wait up for me, okay? I love you.” Ethan said before giving Gwen a kiss on her cheek. How was he going to manage to maintain himself with Theresa back in town? Could he manage to keep the feelings he had for her locked away as he did for the past five years? Could he forget the love they had for each other? Could he forget the past?

Chapter 3 Once the funeral ended, she, Jane, and Little Ethan hid in the sacristy, waiting for the other guests to leave the church before going to the cemetery. It was just so hard to not go to her family and just pull them into a hug, but she wanted to have her quiet time with her mother so that she could say her final goodbye. When she saw that there was no one in the church, she opened the door to the sacristy. “EJ, please keep an eye on Jane for a minute. I’d like to say goodbye to Grandma before you can.” She said as she bent down to kiss both of her beautiful children on their foreheads. “Okay, Mom. Come on, Jane. I’ll get you some juice.” Theresa stepped out to the chapel and knelt beside Pilar’s closed coffin. “Mama, I’m here now. I’m here now.” She whispered as she rested her head on that cold wood. “Mama, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry that I didn’t listen to you when I should have. I know I’ve failed you, but I promise that I’ve been working very hard to make things right. I’ve been trying to get my life back together, and the kids…oh, they’ve gotten so big so fast. Although the last time you’ve seen them was three months ago, they’ve grown so much.” Theresa wiped the tears from her cheeks before looking over to the sacristy. “Jane, EJ!” She watched as her children walked out of the sacristy to stand by Theresa. Each day, Jane looked more and more like her mother with the big doe eyes and the long brown hair. EJ was just getting more handsome as he got older. Theresa’s often thought about how he looked more like Ethan than Julian, but kept that to herself. “Here’s Jane and EJ. EJ is doing so well at school, getting straight A’s. Jane is just a princess at ballet. You should see her when she dances. She’d just take your breath away. I know you would’ve loved to watch them grow up, but I know you’ll be watching over them in spirit. We love you so much, Mama.” With that, Theresa stood up and took her children’s hands so that they could leave the church together, only to be stopped by a figure in front of them. Nothing could mask the fear in her eyes, as she was uncertain of what he’d do to her. Ethan had watched Theresa mourn her mother by her coffin with her children by her side. Jane. There was his beautiful Jane with the long hair and those big eyes like her mother. And there was Little Ethan, though he was not so little anymore. He had grown so much; he was practically as tall as his mother. And finally, his Theresa. Well, he couldn’t claim her anymore, not after the way he hurt her over the years. He had to admit, when she left Harmony, he felt a piece of his soul die, and now that she was standing there, all of the emotions came flooding back to him. “Theresa…I thought I saw you here.” From the shadows came Ethan. The man she had loved for so long, but had betrayed her when she needed him the most. Theresa instinctively kept both children behind her as she knew Ethan and Gwen’s history of taking her children from her. “What do you want, Ethan?” “To see you. After all, you did leave town without a word, taking my daughter and godson with you.” Five years didn’t change how beautiful she was. She still had those same beautiful eyes that he fell in love with, although they did lose its shimmer of his doing, of course. She still had that stubborn face when she looked up at him with defiance or anger. He could never forget all the hurt he caused her, just as he could never forget the love and passion he had for her even after all of the time they spent apart. His eyes glanced down to the children behind her. His daughter, Jane, looked so much like Theresa did. He could see that mix of confusion, anxiety, and curiosity in her eyes as she looked up at her father. EJ, on the other hand, showed nothing but anger in his eyes. He knew very well how his godfather hurt his mother, and he hated him for it. If he had anything to do with it, Ethan would stay away from his mother and let her be happy for a change. “I think I had a right to. You had no right taking my children from me, and you had no right to accuse me of something that I didn’t do. In any case, I won’t be here long. Once I see my family, the children and I are going back home. You can pretend like you never even saw me. You were always good at that. If you’ll excuse me.” She said curtly before walking away from him and leaving the chapel. “Theresa, you know I can’t do that. I can’t let you leave. Not until I set things right between us.”

Ethan looked at Pilar’s coffin with such sadness in his eyes. He remembered how Pilar had been a second mother to him when he was a child. He remembered the love she had for him as if he were her own son. He remembered…Theresa. Suddenly all of the memories that he had shared with Theresa came flooding back to him. He also remembered the last thing he said to her before she left Harmony for good. “You lie, Theresa! You lie over and over and over, and I’ve defended you. But this Theresa, this really takes the cake. You lied about being raped so that you can get sympathy from me. That is low, even for you. Then again, you don’t care who you hurt as long as you get me, is that it? The fact that you would do such a horrible thing disgusts me! The sight of you makes me sick. To think I ever loved you. I don’t ever want to see you again.” He couldn’t forget the fragility in her eyes as he yelled at her. He couldn’t forget the way she ran out of the church in the storm. That was the last time he had seen her or her children. Somehow, she managed to slip into the mansion and take Jane and Little Ethan with her without being noticed by the guards or Rebecca and Gwen and left Harmony. He couldn’t help but wonder what she was doing now, if she even knew of Pilar’s death. Even as he sat by his wife’s side, he thought about her. When Theresa disappeared, Gwen was so adamant about having a state-wide search for her and Jane since they had temporary custody, but Ethan stopped her when he reminded her of how she kidnapped Jane when she was sick, and put her in so much danger. From then on, they dropped the issue and tried to focus on their marriage. Once one of the staff members of the mansion stepped down from the podium to go back to her seat, Ethan stood up and walked to the podium to speak. He let out a deep breath before looking at the all of the attendants. He had practically froze when he though he saw Little Ethan in the back of the church. I must be seeing things, he thought to himself before he gathered himself to say a few words. “Pilar was one of the best women I have ever know. Her spirit was like no one else’s. She treated everyone with such kindness, and always put everyone else before herself. She did that especially so for her children. She did all she could to make sure that they had a better like, all the while not giving up hope that her husband would come back to her. She has faced hardships, losing a son to death, losing a daughter…” Ethan trailed off, as he could’ve sworn he saw Theresa’s face at the back of the church. “Pilar, you are one of the most remarkable women that I’ve had the pleasure of growing up with. I have learned so much from you, and it won’t be the same not having you in my life. There is a special place for you in God’s kingdom.” As Ethan talked about her mother with such kindness and love, Theresa’s eyes began to fill with tears. She remembered all those times when Pilar tried to warn her to not do the things that she did, but of course, being a love-struck dreamer, she didn’t listen until it was too late. “M’ija, don’t do this. Running away will not solve your problems.” “What am I supposed to do, Mama? Stay here and have everyone think that I lied about being raped? Become Harmony’s whipping post? You think I don’t know what people say about me? ‘There goes that Theresa. What a home wrecker she is. Even lies about rape to invoke sympathy.’ No, Mama, I’d rather not. That’s why I’m taking Little Ethan and Jane tonight, and going as far away from here as possible.” “Theresa, Ethan and Gwen have temporary custody of Jane. If you take her, you will be in so much more trouble than you are already in.” “Mama, it’s all taken care of. I’m getting help to get into the mansion and take her. I’m not going without her, and I will have her with me when we go.” “Who is helping you?” “I’m not saying who is helping me. Look, Mama. This is the last time you will be seeing me, so I hope that you’d respect my wishes. I have to do this. I can’t stay here anymore.” “Alright. Alright. I love you, M’ija. Stay safe. Just know that no matter what, I will be looking over you. I will be with you in your heart.” “I know, Mama. I know. I love you, and I will miss you.”

This is my ET fan fic. Super excited about this fic. It's one that I'm proud of so far. Just some notes: LE is now EJ, and Luis and Migs are back in Harmony Chapter 1 It had been five years since she had last seen Harmony, and she would prefer if she had never come back here. Unfortunately, she had to. Three nights ago, she had received word that her mother had passed away. The illness she had suffered from relapsed suddenly, and taken her life before there was any chance of recovery. The last time she and her children had seen her mother was when she was at her home, off to start anew without looking back. Now, she had to bury her mother, just as she did with one of her older brothers. Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald let out a breath that she had been holding for a couple of seconds as she stood in front of the church. She remembered the last time she had set foot in there like it was yesterday. Ethan had been furious with her. He thought that she had been lying about Alistair raping her so that Ethan could feel sympathy towards her. At that moment, she realized that the man she thought she loved was nothing but a lie. He turned his back on her when she needed him the most. From that point on, she knew she had to get away from here, from him. She needed to be with someone who would never hurt her the way he hurt her. But now she was back. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to face everyone again, she so very much wanted to just turn around with her children and drive out of Harmony again, but she couldn’t do that, not with her mother lying in a coffin in the church. “Come on, guys. We have to say goodbye to Grandma. She’s gone to a better place now.” She said to Jane and Little Ethan before walking into the church. Those familiar walls were like strangers to her. Never had she felt so uncomfortable being there with all the people who had shunned her. She wasn’t sure if she should be there, but her family expected her there. With her children by her side, Theresa made her way to the back pew quietly as to not appear obvious to everyone else who was there. All she wanted to do was say her final goodbye to her mother before disappearing from Harmony, vowing never to return.