Alison sat on the park bench and twisted her hair as she watched some children in the distance playing. She then heard Rafe come back over.

"I have something for you." Rafe pulled out from behind his back some purple wildflowers.

"Aww! I love them!" Alison took the flowers and smelled them. "I love the way they smell."

"They're not pink roses, but…"

"I love all kinds of flowers! Thank you." Alison gave Rafe a little kiss on his lips.

Rafe's hand found Alison's. "You're so beautiful. I just love the way you smile when I give you flowers."

Alison smiled at Rafe. "Are you for real?"

"What?" Rafe gave her his confused look.

"You, Rafe Kovich, are an incredibly romantic man. You shower me with flowers, you tell me all the time how beautiful I am and how much you love me…come on, a good man is hard to find, and you're almost too good to be true. I almost feel like I'm one of those lucky women in those romantic movies or a soap opera or something!"

Rafe laughed. "I'm very real, Alison." He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.

Alison smiled and tapped her lips with her finger. Rafe took the hint and gave her a kiss.

"AWW! How cute!" Rafe and Alison's kiss was interrupted by Lucy, who stood in front of the bench beaming at them.

"Hi, cousin," Rafe said.

"Hi, Lucy," Alison said.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt, it's just…oh, you two look so darn cute together!"

Rafe and Alison smiled at each other.

"Where are you off to Lucy?" Rafe asked his cousin.

"Oh, just on my way home but I thought I'd cut through the park to get to my car. I just had myself a little shopping spree at Wyndham's. And I made the mistake of bringing Don with me. You know, it's bad enough when it's just me, but whenever I go with Don, I seem to end up with more than I had planned to buy in the first place because he's always throwing his two cents in on what looks great!" Lucy held up her shopping bags.

"You seemed to have bought out the store, Lucy!" Alison laughed.

"You think?" Lucy laughed. "So what are you two lovebirds up to today?"

"Hmm, nothing," Alison smiled. "After our walk in the park, we'll probably go home, hang out for a while, then have a nice dinner, light some candles…."

"I take it you two are enjoying the house?" Lucy smiled.

"We are, Lucy," Rafe said. "And we really appreciate you letting us stay there."

"You know, you two can stay there as long as you like. In fact, you know what? I'm going to give it to you, cuz."

"What?"

"Yeah, I think that's a great idea! I don't live there anymore, and you two are already staying there. So why not?"

"Lucy, are you serious? You're giving us your house?" Alison asked.

"It's already done, it's yours."

"Oh wow, thank you, Lucy!" Alison said with a smile.

"I don't really know what to say," Rafe said, laughing. "Thank you, Lucy."

"You're welcome. Now, I should probably get home and start unloading these!"

"Oh wait, Lucy. I just had an idea," Alison said. "Why don't you and Kevin and Christina come over tonight? I'll make dinner."

Lucy smiled. "Hmm, well I'm up for getting out of cooking tonight. Okay, we'll be there! What time?"

"Six."

"Okay, six it is then! I'll see you later. Ta!"

"Ta!" Alison said cheerfully.

"Bye, Lucy." Rafe laughed as Lucy ran off with her armful of shopping bags. He turned to Alison. "Well, shall we go home?" Alison shook her head yes, then Rafe took her hand and they left.

~*~*~*~

"Mmm, something really smells delicious." Rafe walked into the kitchen.

"It's my pasta sauce. Here, have a little taste." Alison spooned some of the sauce out of the pot and put it to Rafe's mouth. "Good?"

Rafe smiled and mumbled, "Mmm-hmm."

"Hello?" a voice called out from the living room.

"Oh, Lucy's here. Go tell her that dinner will be ready in just a minute!"

Rafe walked out into the living room and said hello to Lucy and Kevin. Then he kneeled down to Christina. "And you, I have a little surprise for you." Rafe picked up a balloon tied to a small teddy bear. He handed the balloon to the child. "See? It's tied to this little bear, so that way, it won't get away from you this time. The bear is holding on to it."

Christina took the balloon and bear excitedly.

"What do you say, Christina?" Kevin said gently.

"Thank you!" she said with a big smile.

Rafe laughed. "You're welcome."

"Well this is nice, Christina, now Bananas the bear has a little friend."

Christina took her balloon and her two bears over to the corner to play.

"Alison said dinner will be ready in just a little while."

"Hello!" Alison said cheerfully. "Kevin, Lucy, please, have a seat. Rafe, you want to go finish setting the table?"

"She's already making me do chores," Rafe said with a laugh and Alison gave him a playful push to the kitchen.

"So what's for dinner?" Kevin asked. "Whatever it is, it smells really good."

"I thought I'd make some pasta," Alison looked over and saw Christina. "Christina," Alison said softly and walked over to the child. "I also made some chocolate chip cookies for you. Would you like some of those?"

"Yeah!" she said.

Alison looked over at Lucy, and then added quickly, "After dinner, of course! Then you can have some cookies!"

"Alison! Your timer just went off!" Rafe called from the other room.

"Oh, dinner's ready. I'll be right back!"

"I'm hungry," Christina whined.

"Well then we're just going to have to feed you, then, aren't we?" Lucy said. Lucy went over to Christina and took her hand, then the three of them followed Alison to the kitchen.

Christina was the last to finish eating. Children always seemed to eat really slow. She had sauce all over her mouth, and Alison rushed to give Lucy a washcloth to wipe her with. Then, Christina got up out of her chair and went over to her mother. She whispered something into Lucy's ear.

Lucy smiled. "It's right that way." She pointed down the hallway and Christina ran off. "Potty break," she said with a laugh.

"So, Alison, Livvie was telling me about the bakery. I'm glad to hear things are going well," Kevin said.

"They sure are! You know, I never thought I'd ever run my own business, and I never thought it would be so successful either."

Rafe smiled at her. "Well, you know, you shouldn't be that surprised. You do, after all, have the best bakery in town."

"Oh, you are so biased, Rafe Kovich!"

"No, no, I agree with my cousin. A little bakery like yours is just what Port Charles needed."

"Alison, this was an incredible dinner. Lucy and I will have to come over more often."

"Aww, thank you, Kevin."

"Yes, I agree. And it was nice to not have to cook for a change!" Lucy laughed.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Christina ran to the table.

"What is it, sweet pea?"

"The light broked in the bathroom! I had to pee in the dark!"

Everyone at the table laughed.

"The light bulb must have went out," Rafe said.

"I'll go fix it," Kevin offered.

"Oh, thank you so much, Kevin. The light bulbs are in that hallway closet," Alison said.

Kevin went to go change the light bulb while everyone else stayed at the table to talk. A few minutes later, they heard Kevin scream and a thud.

"Kevin!" Lucy screamed and everyone ran to the bathroom to see what had happened. They found Kevin on the floor.

"Doc! Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just lost my balance when I was changing the bulb."

Lucy noticed Kevin rubbing his ankle. "Are you hurt?"

"Just my ankle, but I think it's fine."

"Let me get some ice for that!" Alison said.

"No, no, it's nothing serious."

Lucy helped Kevin stand up, but when he put pressure on his ankle, it was obvious that his ankle was not fine.

"That looks like it could be a sprain, Kevin," Rafe said.

"I don't think it's a sprain," Kevin insisted.

"No, I'm with Rafe. I think we need to take you to GH for that."

"Lucy, I just think it's sore."

"No, don't argue with me. You're going to the hospital. Whoever said that doctors make lousy patients was right!"

Christina tugged at Kevin's shirt. "Daddy, are you going to be okay?"

"I'm going to be just fine, sweetie. Looks like I just hurt my ankle, but it's nothing too bad."

"Okay, looks like we're going to have to cut this evening short."

"That's no problem. I'm so sorry you fell, Kevin," Alison said.

"I don't want to go to the hospital," Christina said.

"Oh, but sweet pea…" Lucy started.

"She can stay here, Lucy," Alison offered.

"Really, you don't mind?"

"No, we wouldn't mind," Rafe added.

"Would you like to stay here, Christina?" Lucy asked. Christina shook her head yes.

"Okay, I'll be back later to pick her up. Bye, sweet pea." Lucy kissed her daughter.

"Bye, Mommy. I hope your ankle gets better, Daddy."

Kevin smiled. "Thank you, sweetie." Kevin gave his daughter a kiss and then they left, leaving her with Rafe and Alison.

"Will Daddy be okay?"

Alison kneeled down to her level. "He's going to be just fine, Christina. He just has a little owwie on his ankle."

"Then why does he have to go the hospital?"

"Because the doctors there can make his ankle all better, but don't worry, I'm sure he'll be okay," Rafe reassured her.

"Hey, Christina! I've got something for you! I'll be right back!" Alison ran to the back room.

"Come on, let's go sit down." Rafe took the girl's hand and they sat down on the couch.

"Where's she going?"

"I think Alison just went to get something."

"This is my other bear Bananas." Christina picked up her bear and showed it to Rafe.

"Cute bear. Did you name him?"

"Mmm-hmm. He likes to eat bananas so I named him that."

"What are you going to name that one?" Rafe pointed to the bear with the balloon.

"Balloons, because he likes balloons."

Rafe laughed.

"I'm back!" Alison walked into the room carrying a little tiara.

"Where did you get that?" Rafe laughed.

"This is mine. Well, it used to be mine when I was her age. I had it in that box of my old stuff I brought here from the mansion." Alison got down on the floor. "You know what this is, Christina?"

"A crown!"

"Yeah, or a tiara, and it's for princesses to wear. But unfortunately, I can't wear this anymore because it's too small. Rafe, do you see a princess that could wear this?"

"I think I see one right here!" Rafe tickled the girl and Christina laughed.

"Of course!" Alison took the tiara and put it on Christina's head. "Perfect fit. Can you do a little curtsy?" she whispered to the girl.

"What's that?"

Alison demonstrated what a curtsy was, and Christina did one for Rafe.

"Princess Christina!" Rafe said excitedly, "I am very honored to be in your presence. You are a lovely princess." Rafe bowed to Christina and kissed her hand. Christina giggled.

"And what would this princess like to do?" Alison asked.

"Play hide and go seek!"

"Do you play that with Serena?" Rafe asked.

Christina shook her head yes and took Rafe's hand. "Let's hide."

"Oh, okay, I guess I'm counting then!" Alison laughed.

"We'll hide somewhere good, Christina." Rafe looked back at Alison. "Turn around, no cheating!"

Alison laughed, turned around, and started to count. "1…2…3…"

"Here," Rafe whispered to Christina. The two crouched behind the curtain.

"…8…9…10! Ready or not, here I come!"

It was obvious to Alison where Rafe and Christina were hiding, but she decided to play along. "Christina? Rafe? Where are you?" She could hear the young girl giggling.

"Well, they aren't here." Alison looked behind the couch. Then, she headed for the curtain. "Hmm, are they…HERE?!" Alison pushed the curtain aside to reveal Rafe and Christina.

"Aww, she found us!" Rafe said.

Christina took Alison's hand. "You find," she told Rafe.

So then, Rafe counted, and Christina led Alison to the kitchen. She pointed under the table.

"Oh, I don't know if I can fit under there, Christina."

"Come on," she said.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Rafe hollered.

"Oh!" Alison quickly joined Christina under the table.

Rafe looked around the living room for a while, and eventually, he went to the kitchen. "Hmm, they couldn't be under the table could they?" he said aloud.

Christina laughed.

Rafe started to leave the kitchen, and then he suddenly came back and looked under the table, sending Christina into a fit of hysteria. "I found the princess!" he said in victory and scooped Christina up in the air. "And…I found the queen!" Rafe took Alison's hand and kissed it. Alison laughed.

"Horsy ride!"

"Horsy ride?" Rafe asked. "Alright, I think I can handle that." He put Christina on the floor and told her to climb on his back. Then, Rafe ran around the living room with Christina laughing the whole time. This game went on for about twenty minutes.

Rafe, exhausted, sat down on the couch and caught his breath.

"Christina." Alison motioned for the girl to come over to her. Alison whispered something in her ear. Then suddenly, Rafe saw both girls running towards him. Before he could ask what was going on, Alison and Christina were tickling Rafe, mercilessly.

"Okay, okay, okay, stop!! Please!" Rafe laughed.

"You know we're just having fun with you," Alison laughed.

"My hair bow came out." The girl held her ponytail holder up. Alison took it and offered to fix the child's hair.

"You have such pretty hair, Christina. Look at all of those curls!"

"I got my curls from my other Mommy."

"I wish my hair had curls like that! Well, who wants milk and cookies?"

"Me! Me! Me!" Christina cheered.

"Me, me! Me too," Rafe said and then laughed.

"Well come on, princess!" Alison held out her hand and she took it. "We'll bring some back for you," she told Rafe, and they went to the kitchen. Rafe smiled at them.

After a while, Alison decided to get out some more things from her box of memorabilia. There were some old toys of hers in there and Alison let Christina go through it and play with them. Alison sat on the couch and watched her. "Isn't she just darling?" Alison said to Rafe with a smile.

Rafe looked at Alison. "Yes, she is."

Christina walked over to Rafe. "Read this one."

Rafe picked up Christina and sat her on his lap. "Oh, this looks like a good book."

"Oh, I remember that!" Alison said. "That's my book of childhood stories! There's a ton of good ones in there. All the classics."

"Which story do you want me to read, Christina?"

The girl took the book and flipped through it. She turned to "The Three Little Pigs". "Do the voices."

"The voices?"

"I think she means to talk like the characters," Alison said.

"Oh, okay," Rafe laughed.

"Hey, I'm going to go clean up the kitchen, I left it a mess. I'll let you two read."

Alison went to the kitchen and started to clean up. She couldn't help but laugh when she heard Rafe bellow, "Let me in, let me in, little pig, or I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in!" But it was especially funny when she heard Rafe squeak, "Not by the hair of my chinny chin, chin!" Christina laughed every time.

After Alison had finished cleaning up, she went to the living room. She had wondered why it had suddenly gotten so quiet, and then she saw why. Rafe was asleep, the book was laying open on the couch, and Christina was snuggled up against him. Alison could not help but smile. She lit some candles and turned the lights off so it wasn't so bright in the room. The she sat on the chair and just watched them.

Not long afterwards, there was a soft knock on the door. It was Lucy, and Alison rushed over to let her in. "Hi, Lucy," she whispered. "How's Kevin?"

"He's fine, but he does in fact have a sprained ankle, so he'll have to stay off of that for while."

"Well I'm glad it's nothing too serious. Come here, look at this."

Alison led Lucy over to the couch and pointed to Rafe and Christina.

"Aww, that's the cutest thing I've ever seen! Ooo, that would make a good picture."

"I already thought of that," Alison whispered and showed her the Polaroid. Alison walked over to Rafe and ran her fingers along his face. "Rafe."

"Hmm?" he woke up.

"Lucy's here."

"Oh."

"You fell asleep."

"I don't even remember closing my eyes," he said.

"Thank you for watching her," Lucy whispered as she gathered up Christina's things and picked the sleeping child up into her arms. "Ta."

"Goodnight," Rafe and Alison whispered back.

"Oh, I'm tired."

"Well you were exhausted."

"How's Kevin?"

"Fine, but his ankle is sprained."

"How long was I sleeping?"

"Oh, only like a half hour or so."

"Hmm."

"Wanna see how adorable you were?"

"What?"

Alison got up from the couch and grabbed the picture. "I took a picture of the two of you."

Rafe laughed. "She's a sweet little girl."

"And you're really good with children, you know that?"

"So are you."

Alison smiled, then she leaned closer to Rafe and they kissed.