Vincent Moore ties a pair of skates and struggles to stand, clinging to the edge of the rink. He hates ice skating, but for some reason his mother thought it would be a good idea to drag the family out for skating in the middle of the freezing cold.

"This is not fun," Vince says. He attempts to use his sister, Akilah, to keep his balance.

"Just because you suck at something doesn't mean it's not fun," Akilah says. She pushes her brother away. "I'm gonna head out onto the ice."

Akilah hurries off, leaving Vince alone to wobble helplessly while his mother, Leslie, and her husband Michael Hanley kiss nearby. Vince groans loudly. "Can you two not do that when I'm around? The rats in the subway should be the grossest thing I've seen all day."

"Vincent, go and join your sister," Leslie says. "We're here to have fun."

"What part about me hating ice skating do you not understand?" Vince demands.

"Humor your mother," Michael says.

"Fine. But it's going to cost you," Vince says. "That MacBook Air is looking really hot."

Vince's beaming smile produces the exact opposite reaction on Michael's face. "I left myself open for that."

Leslie shrugs. "Figured you'd have learned by now."



Sean Price is not holding his own on the ice. He tightly grips the hand of his wife, Denise Price, and tries to maintain his balance.

"Honey, maybe we should go," Denise suggests.

She tries sending her husband some positive vibes with a wide smile, but all the positivity immediately drains from her face as Sean slips and falls onto his ass. Denise, unable to resist laughing, bends over to help Sean.

"Sean! You're going to hurt yourself," Denise insists.

"You're right," Sean says, extending his hand into the air. Denise takes his hand and helps him to his feet.

"Besides, it's cold out. We can go home...make some nice cocoa..."

Sean nods. He wraps his arms around Denise and kisses her. "I love you."

"I love you too," Denise says. "But you're not about to make me fall too —" Denise pushes Sean away from her, causing him to stumble and fall once more. "Oh!"



The clicking of keys on her daughter's Blackberry start to drive Leslie crazy like a beating heart underneath a floorboard. "Let's get out on that ice," Leslie says, attempting to drag Akilah away from the device. Akilah ignores Leslie, in the midst of a text. "It was not a question, Akilah."

Akilah angrily shoves her Blackberry into her jacket. "Mom! I am in the middle of important things!"

"Yes, like time with your family."

"Save the XOXO for school," Vince quips as he passes by, not wearing any ice skates.

Akilah rolls her eyes. "Can you shut your fu—"

Vince kicks his sister in the leg. She cries out in pain and glares at him before turning her glare on their mother. Do Something. Leslie is apathetic to her children's arguing.

"I have no time for you two," Leslie snaps. "Michael and I are going out on the ice. You two can stay here, but you're not ruining our vacation."

Leslie turns away. She feels content that she has appropriately guilted her children and hopes it works to get them in the rink with her and Michael. As she goes to find her husband, she stops in her tracks when she looks on the ice. Someone familiar is there.

She knows him.

Leslie is unable to speak. Unable to let the name "Sean" escape from her lips. She opens her mouth but all that comes out is a bloodcurdling scream.

"I can't take this," Jessica mutters. She sits up in bed and wipes her sweat-drenched forehead with her arm.

Maybe there's ice cream in the fridge. Ice cream...it sounds like heaven on earth.

Jessica climbs out of bed, slightly dizzy from lying on her back for so long. She clamps the headboard with her right hand and remains steady. Jessica promises herself she will only eat a bit of ice cream — lately she's been indulging as much as she did during her pregnancy. Her hips were not excited.

"Jess! You in here?"

Jessica hears Alec's voice thunder from outside their bedroom. He's back from wherever it is he was he'd been all day. When Jessica arrived home earlier, she'd found her husband's laptop lying on the kitchen counter with enough porn to get a virgin through high school. She needs to confront him on this.

Jessica knows Alec is struggling with something from his past. Something he won't talk to her about. But if he won't talk, he'll definitely be listening. She glances down, struck by a flash of bright pink.

She bends over and picks up a pink bra. Lace. Prada. Jessica can't afford this. It's not hers. She shoves it behind her back as Alec opens the bedroom door. He narrows his eyes. "How long have you been home?"

"Thirty minutes, give or take," Jessica says. "Why?"

"No reason," Alec says, hurrying to kiss her. "Wanna fool around?"

Jessica pulls away. "No. I'm tired."

Alec smirks. "Yeah, right." He rips off his shirt and presses his body against hers. He grinds theirs bodies together. "Come on, ten minutes?"

"No."

"Whatever." Alec pushes her away. "When you gonna stop being a bitch all the time?"

Alec's cell phone beeps. He slides it out of his pocket and checks his text messages as Jessica tosses the bra onto the floor and storms out of the room.

Left my bra. Bring it 2 me? Alec grins at the text message from Farrah and scans the bedroom. He sees the bra and picks it up, shoving it into his back pocket.

"I'm gonna go," Alec announces. He bounds into the kitchen, slaps Jessica on the ass and heads for the door. "Take some pills or something and chill out."

Jessica blows up Alec's head by concentrating on it.

At least, she wishes she could do so. Instead, she fumes as he opens the front door and leaves. Normally, she'd watch her husband leave, glancing wistfully at his rear and thinking about how attractive he is. Now, however, the only focus Alec's ass brings are due to the jeans hugging it.

In their back pocket lies a glimpse of hot pink.


BALE HOME

Melissa glances at the nearby crib where her own son, Hunter, rest peacefully. Thank God. Phillip's wailing has not awakened him. Yet, at least.

Like a Godsend, the doorbell rings and takes Melissa out of her desperation. She prays Jessica has arrived already and exits her son's bedroom. She goes down the stairs and stops when she sees her unexpected visitor through the glass door.

"Go away!" Melissa shouts.

"Melissa, this is important!" Aaron Maddock, her cousin, shouts back.

"I haven't yet forgiven you for lying to me for years about my missing son!"

"He wasn't even your — Melissa, this is ridiculous. I'm yelling in the middle of the suburbs."

"Good, I hope you get arrested!"

"Melissa!"

Melisa groans loudly and opens the door. She does not bother to conceal the disgust on her face. Aaron winces at the sight. He cautiously enters the house and closes the door. He runs his fingers through his hair, a nervous habit.

At least she was holding Phillip. She wouldn't throw him at her. He hoped.

"What could you possibly have to say to me?"

"Nothing," Aaron admits. "There's something I need you to hear."

Melissa is slightly confused until Aaron removes a tape recorder from his jacket. She immediately recognizes the recorder as the one he uses in his therapy sessions. The same tape recorder that had revealed her cousin's deception.

"Come to show me the lies you've been telling your other patients? Or maybe you're forgetting that I still haven't decided whether or not to report you to the medical board and have you thrown out of the hospital."

"Melissa, please, just shut up for a moment," Aaron says. "Trust me, you want to hear this. I was testifying in court earlier and went back to my office to check my tapes, and well...you'll see."

Aaron presses play on the tape recorder. After a few seconds of dead silence, Melissa realizes exactly what Aaron wants her to hear. "Just what I need. That bitch to remember everything about her miscarriage..." Melissa recognizes the voice. She can never forget the voice of someone she hates as much as Valerie Hanley.

"What is this?" Melissa's voice chokes up as she speaks. Her mind is spinning. She thinks she knows what it all means, but she can't be sure. She needs confirmation.

"Valerie was there," Aaron says. "She's the one who caused your miscarriage, not Felicia."

Almost in a trance, Melissa hands Phillip to Aaron. "Jessica will be here to pick him up soon. Hunter is asleep upstairs." Melissa grabs her coat from the closet in the foyer and snatches up the keys near the door.

"Melissa, where are you going?"

Melissa is out the door before he can finish the question, but the answer is clear to Aaron as soon as the question even escapes his lips. He knows where Melissa is going.

To pay that bitch a visit.


BALE & MADDOCK LAW OFFICES

Darren Reynolds nods. "I did. It was close, but I did."

"Then why aren't you celebrating?" Blake Thomas asks, setting a box on Darren's desk. He stands in Darren's office after accompanying him following the trial. Blake hitched a ride with Darren because he had a meeting with Robert Bale, but Robert wasn't in the office, nor was he answering his cell phone.

"I will be," Darren insists. "Jack says he has something planned for later."

"That's good," Blake says softly. He knows it shouldn't be awkward discussing Jack, but it still is. If Jack had never come into town, he and Darren might still be together. But as it was, when Darren was afraid that he had contracted HIV from Jack, he broke things off with Blake. Even when he turned out to be negative, Darren still thought he was too old to be in a relationship with Blake.

But Blake didn't care. He still doesn't. If Darren could only see how old Blake's current boyfriend is.

"So, how have you been?" Darren asks.

"I've been good," Blake says. "Starting the whole college thing is rough. But Vince is surprisingly a really good roommate, so everything's turned out pretty well."

"Are you seeing anyone?"

Darren mentally kicks himself for asking that question. Way to make things even more uncomfortable with your ex.

"No," Blake says quickly. He knows he can't tell Darren about Aaron. Besides, even if Aaron were out of the closet, Blake doesn't know if he'd tell Darren anyway. He wants Darren to think he's still single. Available. "How about you?"

Darren is silent for a moment, unsure how to respond. Blake breaks the silence with a laugh.

"I'm kidding."

"Oh," Darren says. "Of course. Well, Jack and I are doing —"

Ignoring everything in his mind screaming at him to stop, Blake steps forward and grabs Darren's head, pulling it forward to his own. He pulls Darren into a kiss. An explosive, familiar kiss. It feels so natural, so comfortable. As if he was never meant to kiss anyone else.

Darren quickly pulls away. "Blake. You shouldn't have done that."

"I'm sorry," Blake says, humiliated. "I didn't mean to —"

"No, you shouldn't have done that because now, I want to do it again."

This time, it's Darren who pulls Blake into a kiss. And neither of them plans on pulling away any time soon.


ALEC BALE & DARREN REYNOLDS' APARTMENT

"Jess, what's wrong?"

Jessica sits up and wipes away her tears, embarrassed. "Nothing. I just...just a rough day at work."

"I didn't know you were the kind of girl to cry over a hard day at the office," Jack says. "I'm gay and even I don't do that."

"Yeah, well I do," Jessica snaps, rising to her feet. She walks toward the bedroom door and tries walking out, but Jack blocks her exit. "Jack, just let me leave."

"Not until you tell me what's wrong," Jack says. He speaks sternly, confused as hell about what's going on, but determined to finally get some answers. "Is this about Alec?"

"No," Jessica insists.

"Has he hit you, Jessica?"

Jessica ignores his question.

"Jessica. Has Alec hit you? Is that why you're crying?"

"I'm not crying because he hit me," Jessica says. "I'm crying because he's having an affair. There. Are you happy?"

Jack isn't surprised. "I know."

"What do you mean, you know?" Jessica demands.

"He's been hanging out with some girl named Farrah," Jack said. "She's called here a couple times. Darren told me they fooled around back in high school."

Jessica is pissed off. "And neither of you bothered to tell me?"

"I wanted to wait until I knew for sure," Jack says. "And I didn't want to tell you without knowing if he'd..."

"What? Smack me around for confronting him about it?"

Jessica pushes her way past Jack and heads for the door, picking up her jacket as she does.

"Jessica, this has to stop!" Jack cries. "I'm going to talk to Darren about it."

"You mind your own business, Darren." Jessica turns and stares at him angrily. She doesn't need his help. She doesn't need anyone's. "Mind your own fucking business."

And with that, Jessica storms out of the apartment. Regardless of what Jessica may want, this needs to end. Jack knows he can't live with himself if he stands by and lets Jessica continue to get her. Instinctively, he removes his cell phone and quickly dials Darren's number.


MARQUETTE COVE COUNTY PRISON

What the hell is this, a fucking night club? Is Lindsay Lohan inside? Britney Spears?

Melissa drove all the way to the county prison with the intent to confront Valerie about all the lies she'd been spinning for the past few years about Melissa's miscarriage. But now, once she'd arrived, Melissa found out she couldn't even see Valerie.

"What do you mean I'm not on the list?" Melissa demands.

"There's a list of specific people who are allowed to see Ms. Holden," the guard at the prison says. He can't be more than thirty, with dirty blonde hair and sharp cheekbones that have probably given him delusions of becoming a model on some reality television or something. Melissa resists the urge to smack him in the head.

"This is ridiculous," Melissa snaps. "I am a lawyer. I am Valerie's lawyer!"

"It seems that her lawyer is listed here as a Mr. Robert Bale."

"Robert — what? That can't be right," Melissa insists. "Give me that sheet."

The guard presses the clipboard to his chest, out of Melissa's reach.

"Look, my husband is not Valerie's counsel," Melissa says. "And if you would just allow me to look at that clipboard, I could tell you how wrong you are."

"What, so you can look at another name and pretend to be Ms. Holden's sister?" The guard demands, a snotty tone appearing in his voice.

"Are you stupid? I've already told you my name!" Melissa cries. "I don't understand why you're being so difficult! She's a prisoner! She loves guests!"

"I'm going to have to ask you to —" Before the guard can finish speaking, Melissa doubles over in pain, clutching her stomach. "Miss, are you okay?"

Melissa's face goes white. She is suddenly back in her former home, her father's mansion. Valerie is standing before her, along with Felicia. Valerie is discussing Melissa's past — she knows everything.

"I want to see you suffer," Valerie says. "I want to see you lose everything like I did, like you made my family, and like you made my sister!"

"I didn't do anything to you!" Melissa cries. "Can't you see that?"

"Oh, shut your damn mouth," Valerie says, slapping Melissa across the face. "I've had quite enough of your incessant whining. Get a backbone, bitch."

"I'm a bitch? You're the one who's destroying my life for no good reason! What are you going to do? Post the pictures all over town? E-mail them to all of my clients? Hand them out at the courthouse before my trials?" Melissa asks, ripping the photograph she was holding.

"All great suggestions," Valerie says. "And I hope you're not stupid enough to think that was my only copy you with the prominent Asian business man."

Melissa cries out and clutches her stomach, stepping away from Valerie and attempting to keep her balance by leaning against a chair. "My baby…"

"Oh God," Melissa gasps, attempting to calm her breathing. "You have to let me see her. Please."

"I'm sorry," the guard says. "But you're going to have to leave."

"Dammit!" Melissa shouts. "She can't keep winning! Now that I finally remember everything, I am not going to let her keep winning!"

Melissa's cries are futile. She knows this, and yet she can't remove herself from the hysterics. It's all she can do to keep herself from completely falling apart.


BRYANT PARK ICE RINK
NEW YORK CITY

"Mom!" Vince hurries to his mother's side, sure he's knocked over several people in his attempt to get to her as quickly as possible. He takes Leslie's hand to calm her. "Mom! What's wrong?"

"Sean," Leslie gasps. "He's...he's here."

"He's what?" Michael demands, instantly going into panic mode. He scans the area but sees no immediate sign of Sean. "What did you just say?"

"It's fine," Vince insists. "My mom has seen our dad before...we saw a doctor about it." Vince wraps his arms around his mother. He's afraid for her. Though the screaming as stopped, she still looks horrified. "Mom, you should have a seat."

"I...I saw him," Leslie says. "He's out there. He's here, Vince."

Vince fights to hold back his tears. He can't break down in public like this. Not when his mother needs him. "I know, mom."

"Vince, is she —" Akilah begins to speak, but stops once Vince raises his hand to signal for her to keep quiet. "I can, um, I'll take her back to the hotel."

"No, it's fine," Vince says. "I can do it."

"I'll do it, Vince," Akilah insists. "You were going to see Cat On A Hot Tin Roof anyway. So you should just go with Michael."

"Now, I don't want to leave Leslie alone," Michael says. "I think it would be best if we all returned to the hotel."

Akilah shakes her head. "No, I'm used to it. It happened before, and I was there to deal with it, so I'll just take her back to the hotel."

"Are you sure?" Vince asks.

Akilah nods and leads Leslie out of the park. Vince takes a deep breath and leans against the rink. Michael apprehensively rests his right hand on Vince's shoulder. Hopefully, all of this is now over.



"What was up with that woman screaming her head off?" Denise asks, removing her skates and handing them to Sean.

"I have no idea," Sean lies, pretending as if the woman he saw staring at him was a total stranger. Unfortunately, he does in face recognize her. It's Leslie Moore. Or Hanley now, if she had indeed married Michael Hanley. The last time he'd seen her, she was accepting his marriage proposal.

Sean can't let Leslie see him again. When he made the decision to leave behind a life he barely remembered for a life he'd built for the past few years, he told himself he did it to keep pain and heartache out of these women's lives.

But if Leslie sees him again...if she thinks he is more than an apparition, then everything gets shot to hell.

"So this was a bust," Denise says. "No more ice skating, I promise."

"And that is why I love you, honey," Sean says, helping Denise to her feet and kissing her. "Let's get the hell out of here."



"I couldn't agree with you more," Michael says, nodding. "Let's go and head to Times Square, the show will be starting soon."

Amidst people wandering back and forth, taking in the light cover of snow on the ground and sharing cups of cocoa, Vince's focus remains on his mother. "This is all my fault."

"Vincent, you can't honestly blame yourself."

"But I do. Do you know that when my father died, it was because of me? I asked him to drive me to the goddamn movies," Vince said. "He wasn't going to drive to his meeting. I asked him to drive me to a fucking movie and he died!"

"That car was going to blow up either way," Michael snaps. "Alright? Just stop it right now. If not your father, possibly your mother could have been killed. Or maybe it would have simply prolonged the inevitable. If you want to blame someone, blame Derek."

"Trust me, I do," Vince says. "I wish I'd have known what he was planning. But I thought he cared about us. No one had any idea."

"That's just because you weren't the ones he was constantly whining about killing your father to," Michael mutters, suddenly remembering how irritating Derek had been six years ago.

Vince's racing mind comes to a complete halt. All he can hear is Michael's last words echoing repeatedly. "What did you just say?"

It takes Michael a few seconds to catch up and realize his slip of the tongue. But once he does, those words begin to echo for him as well. He makes eye contact with Vince, who is now staring directly at him. Michael is unable to speak — it's as if any sudden move will cost him his life.

"What did you just say, Michael?" Vince repeats.

The blood returns to his eyes. All Vince can see is red, but this time it isn't out of a desire to protect his mother. It's something else entirely — rage.

It's an emotion he hasn't felt in years, and yet...Vince welcomes it.