"Homecoming"<P>
Chapter One<P>
The rolling grasslands of New York State sped by the windows of the bus,
bringing the woman miles closer to her destiny. Her worn face was pressed
against the glass as the bus passed a road sign. 30 miles to go.
Why was she doing this? It certainly wasn't because she wanted to. At least,
her head didn't want to. Her head told her she was crazy to come back. She
had established a new life, with a new name, and new friends. The
midwestern town she had called her home for five years was friendly
enough, but her heart ached to be back home where she belonged.
She had never really wanted to leave. The break-up had been ugly; the
pain never truly left her. While she tried to let go of the old love,
it continuously followed her as close as her own shadow. His leaving
was her fault, though, and she knew it. The whole town had turned its
back on her.<P>So she, in rebellion, turned her back on the town. She had left everything
behind her, although it never truly left her.Now she was coming back. Her time had run
out with a new life. Eventually,people start asking questions. And coming up with
answers. And sometimes,the truth hurts more than the lies.She knew that now.
Waynesville, Michigan, had become her home. She couldn't stay there any more, hiding
behind a phony past. But could she truly come home again? The demons followed her,
and she didn't know if she could shake them. Things would never be the same. She only
hoped she could pick up some of the pieces and rebuild what was once her life.
She reached into her bag and pulled out a pair of sunglasses. It was a
bright day- too bright, considering how grey she felt. Her shoulder length
hair, now dark red thanks to a professional dye job, was pulled back into
a conservative pony tail below her black beret. She was, at least, dressed
for the mood. A black tank top and stone wash jeans were not what she usually
wore in either of her lives, but she wanted to blend in.
She had never been an observant person, but she was going to become one.
She had to see how life had gone on without her, to see if she could slip
back in to where she once fit. The past was all she had left.
Her suitcase carried everything she owned... everything she dared to take
with her. She had regretfully parted with most of her wardrobe, but that
could be replaced. Her credit cards and a large sum of cash were carefully
tucked away in her purse. She was financially okay. Emotionally, though,
she felt like crying.<P>She glanced out the window just as the bus approached the next
town- her final destination. She sucked in her breath as they passed the city limits
sign that plainly read, "Welcome to Port Charles".<P>***<P>
She kept her head ducked as she walked through the bus station, praying no
one would recognize her. She didn't want to be discovered, not just yet.
She needed to see for herself what Port Charles was like now... and decide
whether or not she was going to come back, or make another new life and
start again from scratch.<P>She didn't know exactly where she was going to go. The idea
of a hotel sounded painful after spending so many countless nights in a motel when
she first moved. It was her only choice, though, excluding sleeping on
the street.<P>As the fates would have it, there was a hotel on the same street as the
bus station with vacancy. Such luck, she knew, would probably not strike
twice.<P>It was just after two o'clock in the afternoon when she entered the plush
lobby of the Port Charles Inn. An elderly woman was working the desk, and
smiled as the potential customer came in.<P>"Hello," the woman's nametag read 'Meg'.
"Can I help you?"<P>"Yes," the woman pulled her credit card and driver's license out of
her purse and laid them on the desk. "I need a room for..." she made a quick decision.
"5 nights, please."<P>The clerk pulled out a form and quickly filled it out, using the
information from the credit card and driver's license. "Just sign here."
The woman took the pen and signed her name with flourish across the form...
Lucy Coe.<P>      
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