GH PREVIEW: KIM AND FRANCO KISS

When “Drew” (better known as Franco) and Kim take a walk down memory lane, emotions run high, leading them to share a passionate kiss.

Their discussion begins with Franco pointing out to Kim that for him, what she views as their long-ago romance is still very fresh. “It certainly hits Kim, but she is well aware of the TWILIGHT ZONE sort of state that Franco, and the Drewiness of him, are in,” says Co-Head Writer Chris Van Etten. “She is also in love with Julian, she has a relationship with Julian, and she is trying to center and focus on that, to use him as an anchor so that she herself does not go a little bit crazy in the midst of this situation.”

That is proving to be easier said than done. Points out Van Etten, “Everything about this man screams Drew — and every memory he has of their romance prior to him taking off to go on his tour of duty is a memory that she shares. And there’s no ignoring that.” Also impossible to ignore is that Franco has a wife. “She doesn’t want to hurt her. Elizabeth is her friend; she has no desire to get in the way of Elizabeth’s marriage. But Franco’s state of mind is an X factor, and Kim feels pulled in several different directions.”

Their kiss takes place when they come face to face at Oscar’s Meadow. Sets up Van Etten, “They have encountered each other at a place that has a lot of power over them both, much more so over Kim, but it is developing a lot of meaning to the person who is Franco at this point, a place dedicated to their dead son. As Drew, Franco has heard that Kim intends to leave town and absent herself from this situation. He makes a pitch for her to stay that isn’t very strong, initially, because he hasn’t really gotten a foothold in her heart. As a backup, he just tries to get her talking, and slowly, over the course of a long conversation about their son and about the life that Kim had with Oscar in the years that Drew was gone, he chips away at her resolve. She begins to see more and more of the person underneath the face, the person that she knew. And there is only so long that two people who were once in love and had lingering feelings can ignore those lingering feelings!”

When they do come together in a kiss, it is witnessed by Franco’s stepson Cameron. “Cameron, like many other characters who have been dragged into this situation, is fraying,” Van Etten sighs. “He would like to run right over there and pull the two of them apart and give Franco what-for, and he might even do the same to Kim. But he has backup in someone who has a different perspective and is able to stop him from doing something that will exacerbate the situation.”