NIKOLAS AND EMILY
TYLER | NATALIA

The Truth Hurts
ABC Soaps In Depth
July 20, 2004

On The Cover: ~ Lucky, Emily and Nikolas Pic ~ Nikolas Remembers Everything!

After learning his true identity, will an angry Nikolas push Emily into Lucky's willing arms.

GENERAL HOSPITAL is anything but short of emotional drama this week. Nikolas discovers that he's a Cassadine and that, literally, everyone he knows has lied t him; ripe for a rebound, Emily finds out that her best friend, Lucky, is actually in love with her, and Lucky is torn between honoring his brother or pursuing true love. Decision, decisions.

Emily Gets Rejected
Believing Alcazar's claim that Emily was using his amnesia to get a second chance with him, Nikolas unleashes his pent-up anger, with Emily geting the brunt of it. She does everything to get a word of truth in edgewise, but he stops her in mid-thought. Never again, he says, will he trust her.

"Nikolas is blaming Emily for him cheating on his wife," explains Tyler Christopher (Nikolas). "He believes she used him to her advantage to make him do something that he would never have done otherwise. He cheated on his wife, and he can never get that back. Ever.

"It's also basic human tendency to take the ownership off of yourself and throw it onto somebody else so as not to feel so guilty about what you've done. Unconsciously, that's what Connor did."

Nikolas Learns The Truth!
When Nikolas returns to Mary, he finds that she has downed a bottle of sleeping pills! "If that's not karma kicking me in the ass, I don't know what is," says Christopher

Nikolas immediately calls for paramedics, who assure him that his wife is okay. When she awakens, she naturally assumes that Emily spilled the truth to him.. and calls him by his real name! Rattled, Nikolas puts the pieces in place about his identity and lashes out at Mary for manipulating his life with self-serving lies.

"He couldn't imagine the actual truth of the entire story if he wanted to," says Christopher. "It's unfathomable. Who could possibly make up a story like this and then hold it and pull it off.

Lucky Declares His Love
Meanwhile, a crushed Emily again turns to Lucky for moral support, explaining that it's over with Nikolas. Unwilling to let his feelings go untold he confesses that he's falling in love with her. Pulling away from his kiss, she says she won't allow herself to use him to get over Nikolas. The ever-sympathic Lucky says no problem, he'll wait for her.

"Their kiss in Mexico was sobering," admits Natalia Livingston (Emily). "At first, she thought, 'Interesting,' She had to take a step back and look at what was happening. What girl would pass on Lucky? But sheloves Nikolas with all her heart. She doesnt' want to hurt Lucky, so she's got to be cautious.

Will Nikolas Lose His Mind?
After his eye-opening talk with Mary, Nikolas seeks out Emily and flies off the handle for her not telling him the truth. When Lucky shows up and defends Emily, the brothers erupt into a ware of words. "Just leave me alone," Nikolas tells them.

"The Nikolas that we've grown up with was righteous and towed the line," says Christopher. "What we haven't seen is his tendency toward the heredity, which is volatile. Ultimately, he'll learn the lesson. But the journey to get theres is going to be a tumltuous one and will display a side of him that no one has ever seen. This push-pull that's going on would take such a toll on a human being. The way to play this realistically is to play the madness behind it."

Brother, Can You Spare a Dame?
Emily tries everything to get Nikolas to remember their love. Once all options are exhausted, she pelase for Lucky and Elzabeth's help, but Lucky refuses and decides it's time to confront his brother. Once face to face, Lucky asks Nikolas to steph aside so that he can pursue Emily.

"She was in love with Nikolas, and I understand and respect that. But my heart gets in the way," explains Greg Vaughan (Lucky) in character. "I want her, but I can't have her.

This is that tortured kind of love," he continues. "Should I step back or should I follow through with it regardless? Is family more important than love or is love more important than family? There are so many conflicting feelings."

Vaughan adds cryptically, "I'm going to have a big battle on my hands." And when the dust settles, there are sure to be broken hearts.