The world was bearing down on Maxie Jones.

She walked through the dark streets of Port Charles, not caring about the danger, and certainly not caring about the cold rain that was pouring down. Her thoughts wouldn't leave her alone, and she had thought out here in the midst of the rain smacking against the pavement, she could drown them out. It was proving useless. She thought about legs, dead legs, legs bent on concrete steps and legs dangling from ceilings. She thought about wrists without pulses, skin without colour. Eyes without life.

Maxie didn't jump at the shadows as she was too wrapped up in her own thoughts. Georgie, her beautiful sister, the only person who had been there for her every time she needed someone. She hadn't treated Georgie the way she wished she had, but how was she to know her life would end so suddenly, so tragically? She would give anything to have one more moment with her sister, to apologize to her, to tell her that she would take her place in a second if she could.

When the thoughts of Georgie weren't floating through her mind, thoughts of Cooper were. He was the only guy she had loved that she hadn't had to trick into staying, trick into caring. He was the only one who had simply loved her. A shiver passed through her small frame and a sob built up in her throat. The two people she had loved, the two people she had needed were gone. Gone.

Her chest began to restrict and breathing grew hard. She bent at her waist and set her hands on her knees as she struggled for air. There was no where left to go. No one left to turn to. If she went to her family, it would only cause them to worry more about her. She looked up at the sky and the rain began to mix with her tears. Suddenly a memory came of Georgie talking about her bestfriend. The one she could turn to no matter what. The boy she had been working with to prove Coop was innocent. Spinelli.

Maxie began running in her heels, quite dangerously, to the pent house and didn't stop until she was at the door. She began knocking, but there was no answer. Maxie continue to knock desperately.

"Spinelli! I need to talk to you! Answer the damn door!" Nothing. What time was it? Eleven? One a.m? Two? She had lost all concept of time. "Fuck. Spinelli. Please, please, please."

She sunk down the wall and began sobbing into her knees. All she could hear was her own erratic breathing and the thoughts that would forever haunt her. She brought her fist up to bang on the door uselessly and was surprised when she heard someone inside. She knocked again. Maxie heard the door unlock, but she didn't bother to get up.

"Hello?" Spinelli's sleepy voice filled the air around her. It was confused and then she realized he hadn't looked down and even seen her yet. "Who woke The Jackal from his peaceful slumber?" He murmured.

Maxie slowly got up and ran her fingers awkwardly through her hair. Each second she stood looking at him, she realized more and more what a bad idea this was.

"It's just me, Spinelli," she wiped a stray tear from her cheek. "I'm sorry. This was a mistake. I'm just going to... you know, show myself out."

Maxie began to turn and walk away when she felt a warm hand grasp her wrist lightly. Part of her was shocked her would try to stop her, the other part of her knew he would which is why she came.

"Wait, Precipitation Penetrated Blonde One. What brought you here at this silent hour?" Spinelli's hand let go of her wrist and placed it uncomfortably on the back of his neck.

"I had no where else... there wasn't anyone... I'm alone," Maxie began sobbing. She was embarrassed to lose control like this, even if it was Spinelli.

Spinelli took her by the shoulders and wordlessly guided her inside and shut the door them. Maxie continued to cry and not knowing what else to do, Spinelli gathered her cautiously into his arms. When he felt no resistance he began to run his hand up and down her wet back, not caring that she was getting him wet.

"I can't do this," she whispered against his shoulder. "I can't do this anymore. I can't. I can't."

Spinelli pulled away and looked down at her questioningly with his dark brown eyes.

"Sorry, The Jackal didn't quite catch your utterances." He looked into her blue eyes and was a little frightened at what he saw. This was not Maxie. Her eyes were afraid, hopeless and tired. Her eyes almost looked dead.

"It was nothing," she took a step towards the door. "Thank you for being so nice to me, Georgie was right about you. I'm going home now."

Maxie's hand was on the knob and she began to open the door, but almost jumped when Spinelli's hand slammed it shut. This was not like Spinelli. She just wanted for it to be over, for her life to be over. It should've been her. Not Georgie, not Cooper. It always should have been her. She was The Bad Blonde One. She spun around to look at him and his face hovered inches above her.

"I would not feel right about letting you leave. I don't believe The Sad Blonde One is in a very good mind frame right now."

"I wish..." Maxie trailed off as she slumped against the door. Spinelli took a step backwards once he was sure she wouldn't try to run, and she sunk down the door onto the floor.

"What is it you wish for?" Spinelli questioned as he sat down indian style infront of her. He rested his head on his hands and regarded her steadily.

"I wish I was dead," Maxie breathed with her eyes closed.

"I wish I was dead," Spinelli thought he heard her say. That couldn't be right, not The Bad Blonde One. He shook his head and tried to reboot his brain but came up with the same sentence.

"P-pardon?" He couldn't stop his voice from cracking dangerously.

"I wish I was dead. I mean, let's face it, it should've been me. Not Georgie. Hey, you know, I bet if I had died you and Georgie would've even gotten together and been happy eventaully."

"Don't say that," Spinelli was too shocked to process what he was saying anymore.

"And even if it won't change anything... I still wish I was dead because this hurting won't stop. It won't stop."

"I miss Georgie very much too. You aren't going to..." Spinelli couldn't even bear to finish his sentence. Maxie was not his favorite person, but the more he began to learn about her the more he began understand her. And the more he understood her, the more he... liked her.

Maxie shook her head no and then buried her face into her knees again. She was there, all curled up and fragile on his floor. He didn't know what to do in situations like this. They were not the best of friends, so he did not know what was preferable to say. He slid his body up against the door next to her and cautiously, as he always was with touching Maxie, stroked her wet hair. He was surprised to feel the girl he once nicknamed The Hostile One scurry into his side.

"What can I do to provide you some solace?" He whispered close to her ear.

"It helps to feel you here. Your warmth. You're alive. It makes me feel safe."

"Speaking of safety, and I'm sorry if I sound like my grams here, but it wasn't the most wise thing for you to be wandering here this late. Or early. If the Clean Cut Cadet is as innocent as you believe him to be, then the real killer is still skulking around."

"I couldn't breathe in the house."

"Take a taxi next time. Even if you have no money, The Jackal will pay."

"This won't happen again. I promise."

"I hope it does," Spinelli said thoughtlessly. He realized how stupid that sounded when her face spun towards him. "Not that I hope you feel so hopelessly hopeless again. Just that I hope you know to come here if you ever feel alone. You're not alone, you know? The Jackal is here."

"No, Spinelli. You're here, not The Jackal. I'm grateful too, but you're not my friend. I just... I remembered Georgie saying how she could always go to you if she needed to. And I just... "

"We're... not friends?" That stung a little bit. He thought, perhaps in the realm which he resided solely in, that they had begun to develop a relationship of sorts.

"You don't need friends like me."

"You're not the only one who feels alone," Spinelli said as he looked away from her.

"What about Fair Lulu?" Maxie questioned with sarcasm.

"She's wonderful, in theory. Which is basically all she seems to be as of late, a concept. When I lost Georgie I thought I could count on Lulu to help me through. She's been a little absent as of late though."

"I'm not a good friend Spinelli."

"You're here," he said. "Sometimes, even if you can't find the words, simply being with another person is enough."

"Sometimes it's everything."

"Indeed," he breathed.

Spinelli placed an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. Maxie rested her head against him and together they simply were.