Just Breathe - A Sonny and Alexis Website

ABC Soaps In Depth
January 22, 2002
Cover Story: Which Woman Will Sonny Choose? A Secret Kiss, A New Man, And The Jealousy That Could Tear Port Charles Apart!
MAN IN THE MIDDLE
As he copes with the sister he never knew he had, Sonny also must choose once and for all between Carly and Alexis!
This week on GENERAL HOSPITAL, Sonny Corinthos must single-handedly take on the mob-the mob of women in his life, that is! On the one hand, he finds himself increasingly attracted to his attorney, Alexis Davis. On the other, he can't help but be drawn to his ex-wife, Carly. And at the same time, he is trying to get acquainted with-and look after-his newly discovered half sister, Courtney. Which gal will comfort him at the end of the day? Read on and find out!
Alexis Makes Sonny Jealous!
As the week begins, Alexis finds herself in harms way when she comes face-to-face with Rosco, one of the late Mafioso Sorel's henchmen. Luckily, Sonny arrives on the scene in time to keep her safe. In turn, Alexis questions Sonny's well being-as in, how he is faring without Carly. But it is clear by his reaction to Alexis' date with fellow legal eagle Scotty Baldwin that he'd be doing a heckuva lot better if his feelings for her weren't so conflicted.
"I have always played it like Sonny cares about Alexis a great deal," says Maurice Benard. "He likes to have fun with her, first and foremost. I hate to say it, but it's almost like the sister that he thought he never had.
"He is attracted to her in certain ways," he adds, "but in his mind, he doesn't want this to go down a romantic road. There are women that are educated and kind of uppity, and you want to bring something out of them. That's what I play when I'm with her. He hasn't had many female friends, and because Alexis is the first, he's enjoying it."
Danger Finds Carly!
Since threatening Alexis got him nowhere, Rosco tries instead to intimidate Carly-and, in the process, Zander gets beaten to a pulp. Afterward, Carly tells Sonny about the incident… and how she'd hoped that he would save her. Not impressed in the least by her tale of woe, Alexis tsks-tsks her rival of always running to her former husband to bail her out.
Meanwhile, as Zander still is rattled by his kiss with Carly, he tells Sonny that he no longer can act as her bodyguard. "Sonny is not suspicious at all," says Benard. "He would never think in his wildest dreams that somebody he [hired] to take care and watch over Carly would go after her. My feeling is that, if Sonny found out, it would be dreadful."
Carly Vs. Alexis!
When comparing his character's relationships with Alexis and Carly, Benard believes that the best possible outcome of this triangle for Sonny would be… if he could have both options. "Everybody combined would be the perfect woman for Sonny," he says. "The problem with the Carly relationship is that it's not really fleshed out like Sonny would like it to be. But if [the writers] did that for him, I would have the best of all worlds. I wish they'd even it out, not just the deep love stuff with Carly, but also light stiff would be nice, to see us smiling together, to see us playing. I think there should be an even keel there, because, although he goes off on Carly, he's willing to try to make it work."
Practically speaking, Benard doesn't see how this scenario can have a happy ending. "You have to understand something," he notes. "If Sonny sleeps with Alexis, I think it ruins the relationship.
"If he gets back with Carly, I believe they could make a go at it," he continues. "But will it be rosy? No, absolutely not."
Big Brother Is Watching!
At the same time, Courtney doesn't know what she is in for now that she has Sonny for a big brother. His over protectiveness doesn't sit well with her, and she pointedly tells him that he doesn't run her life. After Kristina takes Courtney under her wing, Alexis assures Sonny that his newfound sibling is in good hands.
Later, Mike reaches out to Courtney, and is shooed away by Sonny, who wants to bond with the girl himself. However, his plan goes awry when her questions about his life get a little too personal.
"He likes Courtney," says Benard. "He thinks she's spunky and tough. But there is a sweet side to her. He doesn't mind the fact that he has a sister, especially since he seems to like her. It's blood, so he's going to take care of her.
"Mike has been lying to him for so long again, and this is just another deception," he continues. "Mike, he'll deal with in time."
The Woman Sonny Has To Get Rid Of!
As if Sonny doesn't have enough on his plate, he is also very concerned about yet another woman-Courtney's mother. "Janine is another thing altogether," allows Benard. "Sonny believes that Janine is trouble, and he's going to try to get Courtney away from her.
"To him, Janine's white trash who's trying not to be," he continues, "She looks down on Sonny. The mother, Sonny hates, which is fun for me to act because I don't think I've ever despised anybody on this show character wise more."
Clearly, Sonny has his hands full. The question is, which gal will hold his hand through this extended period of crisis? Stay tuned, folks!
Does ALEXIS Love SONNY?
Nancy Lee Grahn opens her character's heart!
What the heck is going on here, huh? "Before, Alexis' feelings for Sonny were in her subconscious. Now, they're in her conscious mind," the actress begins. "But it's still not something she is going to entertain."
Why? Why ever not? "Number one, Alexis is a decent woman, and Sonny's not free. He's entangled. She believes that he loves Carly," she explains. "Number two, it can't be. He does things that are not okay with her…things that might be okay when you're friends, but the minute you sleep together, it's not okay anymore. You have moral judgment that's tolerable with your friends, but once it becomes sexual, there are massive amounts of judgment.
"Sonny and Alexis are very different," she continues. "He's this hot, instinctual, primal guy. She is very conservative. They're opposites. People can see, 'If this happens, what's going to happen there?' There are repercussions to this relationship. There would be big problems if they were to indulge. It's kind of clear that she has an unexpected crush. But you don't know what he feels. I've gotten letters saying Alexis is strong and she wouldn't act that goofy. But when you have a crush, you could be 70 years old, and it would still make you goofy.
"There's something kind of nice about that," she concludes. "It's not a defined relationship of friends or romantic partners. There are lines all over the place… and right now, there's crossing of those lines." *