Forever or a Day

Can Luke's love protect Laura?



With secrets galore swirling about her, GENERAL HOSPITAL'S Laura prepares this week to relive the most romantic moment of her life by walking down the aisle with Luke on their wedding anniversary. But will the dark truth about the bride's past prevent her from sharing a happy future with the man she loves and their extended family?

It's A Date!

Feeling the need of a mother's love and support, Lucky wants nothing more than to tell Laura the truth about his recent woes. Fortunately, pretty much everyone in town convinces him that the last thing his mom needs is to hear that he's a drug addict with a pregnant wife and mistress! "They're afraid," explains Genie Francis (Laura). "Nobody wants to say the wrong thing and send her off the deep end!"

Meanwhile, Luke has a private chat with Tracy and convinces her to remain mum about the fact that he's his current Mrs. "It's very complicated," says Luke's portrayer, Anthony Geary, "because he does care about Tracy. They've forge a unique relationship and one that serves them both very well." And while it may seem uncharacteristically generous of Tracy to keep quiet, she does warn Luke that he should brace himself for the grim reality which could come crashing down around him at any moment should Laura's tenuous grasp on stability be shattered. Instead, however, he plows forward, convincing Laura that they should wed on what woudl have been their anniversary: Thursday, November 16.

Hello, I Must Be Going

Unfortunately, overhearing a conversation between her daughter and Luke clues in Laura to the fact that something's going on. Worse, a photo of Rick brings back a flood of unpleasant memories about how her beloved stepdaddy died. Worried about his true love, Luke track Laura to the very attic where she killed Rick. "When he finds her in the attic, he's terrified," previews Geary. "But she says, 'I can't go on without knowing.'" Finally, he tells her the entire story of Rick's death. What he doesn't reveal is that her current lucidity is but a temporary state, as the drug which brought it about will eventually wear off and she'll return to her former catatonic state.

"He did something to bring her back becauuse he really, firmly believes that Laura would want to take this risk and take this chance and be with her children," Geary explains, "even if she knew it was only for a short time."
With his mother seemingly able to deal with some of life's harsher realities, Lucky is finally able to tell her about the mess in which he's currently mired. As he'd hoped, Laura is loving and supportive. "She sees that her son is stumbling in life, as we all stumble," says Francis. "And he's made choices to try and pull himself up and stop stumbling. Her response is to be proud of him, and I think it's the right response." Tracy, however, isn't feeling quite as filled with the milk of human kindness when she realizes that Luke intends to marry Laura in the garden of the Quartermaine mansion!

One Fine Day

Aware of Luke's undying love for Laura, Tracy tries convincing him to fill in Nikolas, Lucky, and Lulu on the fact that their mother's health will soon decline again. But Luke wants nothing more than to provide Laura with one perfect day. And everything seems to be coming up roses as Lucky comes out of rehab and gets his job back and Nikolas ships Helena to Arkansas until after the wedding.

When the all-important morning arrives, Laura shares a special moment with each of her children before walking down the aisle and offering everyone words of encouragement. And despite the arrival of an uninvited guest or two and someone's drunken tirade, Luke and Laura's wedding day goes off without a hitch... except, of course, the one joining them together! But dark clouds are forming on the horizon as it quickly becomes obvious that Luke hasn't told his children everything, and Laura realizes just how little time she has left!