Turn and face the strange

Don't blink because things are changing quickly in Port Charles. Sam fell, Nikolas proposed, and Kristina is embroiled in a torrid scandal with another woman that could destroy a marriage. Time may change some, but some can't trace time.

Nikolas is an idiot. He wonders why he's so unlucky in love when he repeatedly falls for untrustworthy women like Rebecca Shaw, Britt Westbourne, and Hayden who are all essentially the same person with a different face. Each is a liar, a schemer, and a manipulator, and each deceived Nikolas to further her own agenda.

The chicanery kicked off with Nikolas declaring that he's in love with Hayden because she stood by her man after said man did a backflip over the restaurant terrace and nearly got himself killed. No sooner did the declaration of love fall from his lips, than Nikolas was down on bended knee proposing marriage to Hayden. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the sheer stupidity of it all.

Did the fall rattle Nikolas' brain? As Laura pointed out, it wasn't that long ago that Nikolas sent a hit man to put a bullet in Hayden's head that by sheer dumb luck put her in a coma for a few months from which she emerged refreshed and ready to pick up where she left off. Hayden didn't miss a beat as she faked amnesia to get the lay of the land and moved back in with Nikolas. Nikolas knows all of this, yet for reasons I can't fathom, he's decided that Hayden can be trusted because she had his back and lied to the police about Jason's involvement in the altercation.

What happened to the Nikolas who closed himself off from love because Britt had ripped his heart out, put it through a shredder, and handed it back to him in a million tiny tattered pieces before slinking out of town in the dead of night with her cuckoo-for-Coca Puffs father?

I want to believe that Nikolas is playing Hayden, but sadly, it appears that is not the case. It's hard to feel sorry for him, knowing as I do that Hayden will ultimately betray him. I do believe that Hayden loves him, just like Britt did, but Tracy's hold over Hayden will be stronger than her love for Nikolas. Hopefully when this is all over, Nikolas will finally stop taking romantic advice from Spencer.

I'm a bit mystified how marrying Hayden will help Nikolas retain control of ELQ. To my knowledge, Hayden is not a Quartermaine, but even if she was, Nikolas doesn't know that. It's also doubtful that the marriage will even be legal, since we now know that Hayden's real name is Rachel. I'm flabbergasted that Tracy was able to Google that information from the mansion's living room, sipping on Champagne, but Hayden has been living under Nikolas' roof for months, and he's none the wiser.

Meanwhile, Kristina is having a little trouble with her professor who showed up on her doorstep at the close of Friday's show. Parker is young, married, and a woman.

What? When did that happen? Last time I checked, Kristina liked boys. We have watched her grow up onscreen and saw her with her first -- and very abusive -- boyfriend Kiefer, then there was her rebellious crush on Johnny, and of course we suffered through her ill-fated romance and marriage to Trey Mitchell.

I don't blame Kristina for trying to expand her horizons after what she's been through, but not once has it ever even been hinted that she might like girls.

I don't mind if the writers pen a story about a young woman exploring her sexuality, but it would make more sense if that woman was Molly -- the virgin who hasn't slept with her boyfriend even though she fought tooth and nail for the right. Her journey could start with a little introspection as to why she's been hesitant to be intimate with T.J.

Kristina's possible sexual relationship with Parker seems way out of left field and intended more for shock value than as a jumpstart into a gripping storyline about self-discovery.

That said, I'm willing to keep an open mind. I'm curious to see what Parker says on Monday's show when she and Kristina talk. Clearly there's more going on than meets the eye because I've questioned Kristina's story since she told it to Sam. I have a son in college and a daughter about to start. I can't imagine any educational institution, let alone an Ivy League college, suspending a student for propositioning a teacher. That's excessive, especially since nothing actually happened. Plus, there have been those cryptic text messages and phone calls from Parker and Kristina's promise not to tell her wife.

If there's nothing to hide, then why would Parker worry about her wife finding out?

Meanwhile, little Jake has been crying out for help, and his parents have finally heard him -- thanks to Franco, who recognized in Jake's drawings the same rage that Franco had carried inside him for most of his life. The question now is whether that rage is about Jason and Elizabeth's breakup or something that Helena did to Jake during his years in her care.

I've had a few friends over the years with children who resented a parent's significant other. Some eventually warmed up to the person, while others did not. It's a tricky situation, to be sure, but in Jake's case, it's further complicated by several traumatic events in his life and a lot of bad blood between Liz and Sam. Jason doesn't help matters by involving Sam in matters that really don't concern her.

Example: Jason expecting Liz to agree to Sam looking around the house and then standing there as Sam accused Liz of being the intruder, while his son was upstairs -- the son who has been caught numerous times eavesdropping on conversations he has no business listening to, and more importantly, the son who hasn't exactly been shy about his dislike of Sam.

I don't blame Sam or Liz for that confrontation because they have a long, dark, sordid history of jealousy and hurting each other, which sometimes hinders rational thought. That's why Sam fully believes that Liz is capable of using Jake to get Jason back -- even though Liz would never hurt her children like that -- and Liz believes Sam stole Jason from her. That, too, isn't true. Sam loves Jason and truly believed it was the right thing to tell him that Liz had known the truth about who he was for months.

Kristina's advice was spot-on when she urged Sam not to get involved in Jake's drama. Unfortunately, it was too late.

I'm relieved that Jake didn't intentionally try to harm Sam. The fall down the stairs was a result of Sam's clumsiness, not Jake acting out. Jake merely ran to the basement to get away from her and hide. He closed the door behind him because he didn't want Sam to follow. The surprised expression on his face as Sam landed at the bottom of the steps like a discarded rag doll mirrored my own.

This was a woman who, months earlier, scaled the castle walls of Wyndemere in platform heels with Jason without any trouble.

In other news, Olivia and Alexis joined forces against the morally corrupt Janice Lomax.

I was stunned to learn this week that breastfeeding in public was still an issue in 2016. Really? I'd rather see a woman nursing her child than some riff-raff's nasty underwear because he can't be bothered to pull his damn pants up when he's out in public. I'm certain if you poll your friends and family, they would agree. Perhaps it's a regional thing -- I'm in the Midwest -- but I never had an issue with this when my children were babies, and I breastfed both of them.

It's been my personal experience that the majority of women choose to breastfeed, at least the first few months of their infant's life, because it's a unique bonding experience and frankly a lot less money, work, and stress for everyone involved. Mothers have no desire for the public to view their breasts, which is why they invest in nursing slings and blankets. I'm eternally grateful that I never had an encounter with a Janice Lomax. If I had, I probably would have reacted the same way Olivia did.

By the way, can I just say how unbelievably beautiful and flawless Shari Belafonte is? I know it's wrong, but a part of me enjoys her fire even though she's a completely despicable person.

I have the opposite reaction whenever I hear Sonny spewing death threats and vowing vengeance each time he sees Julian. It's tiresome and makes Sonny look silly. In short, Sonny comes off as all talk and no action.

And for the life of me, I can't figure out what exactly it is that Sonny does as a mobster. He doesn't smuggle guns or engage in human trafficking, and he also seems to be opposed to gun running. What does that leave? The coffee business was created as a front to hide shipments, which Sonny's enemies periodically target, but what kind of illegal goods are in those shipments?

I loved Duke, and I hate how he died, but I blame Carlos for that murder, not Julian. Well, not much, anyway. The reality is, Duke was fully aware of what the stakes were and the price he might pay when he took the reins from Sonny and went after Julian. Sadly, Duke lost that showdown. I understand Anna's pain, but there was a time when Sonny also targeted Duke. That's why Julian got tired of that life and decided to get off the merry-go-round of mayhem and death.

It's ridiculous to hear the criminal crying about other criminals doing criminal stuff.

I suspect Sonny's desire for revenge is fueled by a need to prove to himself, and everyone around him, that once a person is in the mob, they are in it for life. It's the excuse that he clings to in order to justify staying in the mob. Sonny is all about the power, which is why he sees a person confined to a wheelchair as weak and pitiful. I want to put him on mute every time I hear him talk about his current disability as if it somehow makes him less of a person.

I know disabled people, and they are in no way less because of their disability. Just the opposite. Clearly, Sonny has never heard of people like Helen Keller, Stephen Hawking, and John Forbes Nash Jr.

Finally, if I could slap some sense into someone in Port Charles this week, it would be Lulu. I want her to stop. Just. Stop. Dante is a jerk and deserves to be alone for a while.

Methinks Helena is alive and well -- and playing with the weather machine. I noticed that it was "warm enough to rain" at Metro Court Restaurant, triggering a deep, meaningful memory for Jason, yet a few minutes later, and a couple of blocks over, at the penthouse, the rooftop was covered with snow, and Sam was shivering when she showed Jason where that special memory had taken place.

Jake's sitter should be arrested. Who leaves a child alone to answer the door when the family is being stalked? More importantly, how could she not hear Jake breaking a window and talking to someone, and that person calling out to Jake as he ran to the basement? Plus, she played with silly string in the house.

Someone needs to brush up on their GH history because Franco told Sam that he never hurt Liz. I distinctly remember her crying and being in considerable pain when he abducted Aiden from the hospital hours after Aiden's birth and gave the newborn to the screwball that raised Franco.

Died. Laughing.Dante: "Is this reporter harassing you, Ma? You know, as a female, I thought you'd be more sensitive to this issue."Reporter: "I've got a five-year-old son. He doesn't need to see that."Olivia: [Laughs sarcastically and points to Dante] "That's funny. I breastfed him till he was five years old."

Epiphany talks to Sonny about Milo's reaction to Johnny's arrestEpiphany: "You know, when Milo heard the news about Johnny, he was so happy, he gave himself an extra cup of Muesli for breakfast."

Ava toys with Carly about reconsidering visitation and makes Carly hang on her every word, only to inform Carly she ultimately decided against itCarly: "You couldn't have just told me that? You made me listen to your self-serving drivel?"Ava: "That's your fault, bringing up the absurd idea to begin with."

Take care and happy viewing,Liz Masters

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