Sitting in the middle of her studio, the light of dawn shining through the windows, Elizabeth takes a deep breath before lifting the paint brush up from the tray and dipping it into the first color in her lineup. Her head is still aching from the trauma it had sustained, but the pain killers were helping a little, making it bearable to paint. Something she has missed during the chaos that has become her life.

The police have yet to come up with a single lead on the second attempt on her life, making Elizabeth wonder if they were really doing their jobs at all. How hard could it be to track down a sniper in broad daylight in the busiest part of town. With a sigh, she tries her best to push the shooting out of her mind, wanting to think of better things. Happier things.

"Jason?" she blurts out in surprise when he comes bursting through the studio door, yanking her into his arms, confusing her to her core. "What's wrong?"

"Don't ever do that to me again." he says seriously, pulling away to look her over. "Wake me up before you leave next time."

"I took the guards." she points out, looking at him intently. "You said that I could only leave the penthouse if I had the guards...I had the guards."

"That's not the point." he sighs, taking her hands in his. "I woke up and you were gone...for exactly five minutes I had no idea where you were or what happened to you..."

"I'm so sorry." she cuts him off, realizing how scared he must have felt. "I didn't even consider that...I'm sorry."

"Its okay." he whispers, guiding her over to the couch. "I should have known nothing happened to you. I didn't think, I just reacted."

"I'll wake you up next time." she says wholeheartedly, smiling slightly when he looks at her. "I promise."

"Thank you."

While Jason settles down from his moment of panic, Elizabeth talks to him about the painting that she had been about to start creating, smiling as he began to relax more and more. She had never thought that he'd react this way when she had left the penthouse for her studio. In a way, she was touched by how deeply he had been affected, making her realize that what they had was real. That he was really in it with her.

"Get a grip!" Carly snaps, glaring at the young brunette. "You're in this just as deep as the rest of us!"

"I never signed up for this!" she shouts. "You said that we'd only scare her away from him! Not that we'd actually come close to killing her!"

"Whether you signed up for it or not, you're part of this." Carly states irritably. "Get over yourself and help us plan the third phase!"

"No! I am not a murderer!" she stands up against Carly. "No more, Carly! I'm done! I'm out!"

"You're out when I say you're out." Carly glares daggers at her. "Your uncle's the police commissioner...you know how this'll end for you, Robin. You might as well finish it or...you get the picture."

"I should have known better than to trust you."

"Yeah...you probably should have." Carly agrees with a slight smirk. "I mean, come on, did you really think a little girl like Elizabeth Webber could really pose a threat against Jason? Oh, please! You posed more of a threat to him than that little brat. She actually accepts him."

"I accepted him!" Robin defends. "I loved him for who he was!"

"Yeah...who he was!" Carly scoffs. "Not who he is...major difference."

"I'm not helping either of you anymore." Robin says firmly, not caring anymore. "And if you even think of saying anything to Uncle Mac, I'll just do the same to Jason...then we'll see how much he'll tolerate you after that."

"You better keep your mouth shut!"

"I will if you will." Robin counters, grabbing her things. "As always, Carly, its been a walk through hell dealing with you."

Watching her walk out of the room, Carly swore that she will pay back that little bitch for crossing her, but not until later. Right now she had a bigger bitch to fry and she has yet to find the right threat to send Jason running away from the little bitch or vice versa. She will, though, that much is certain. One way or another, they will come to an end.

"Ready to head home?" Jason asks after many hours of just hanging out in her studio.

"Yeah...I'm ready." Elizabeth smiles slightly, covering her painting. "You know, you didn't have to stay with me while I painted."

"I know." Jason smiles slightly, helping her into her coat. "I wanted to."

"Well, in that case..." she says softly, leaning into him before claiming his lips swiftly. "Thank you."

"Anytime."

Leaving the studio together, Jason and Elizabeth head home to the penthouse, both looking forward to spending the rest of their time alone in the penthouse. The stress from not finding the hit and run driver or the sniper that took the shot have been weighing heavily on Jason and he just wanted a night to relax. A night to remember that there were still good things in his life that were worth living for. Namely Elizabeth.