-1Author's Note: I am using the What Might Have Been prompt again. Jody, you really have me inspired!

Closure

Tiny nails that were painted an embarrassing shade of hot pink tapped on the light colored cement as George shuffled down an unknown side street, a tri-colored Yorkie leading the way. He hadn't planned on letting the curious little dog lead him so far off their normal route. His mind hadn't been on letting Tinkerbell do his business, but rather on the million things that were wrong in his life at the moment.

He supposed most of his problems were in his head, that didn't stop them from causing real issues in his life though. For instance, both his brothers had two kids each, yet his mother hounded him daily to produce a child. She wanted a miniature George or Georgette, and until she got one of the two there would be no shutting her up. He had tried to tell her that his wife and he weren't interested in children, but Lexie had chimed in that she would eventually like to be a mother. His mother had taken the eventually and run with it, enlisting Lexie in her quest by telling her daughter in law what a wonderful mother she would make. Lexie would make a wonderful mother, there was no denying that. He just wasn't sure he was ready to be a father.

The tinkle of small children laughing made him realize that Tinkerbell had led them to a park. It was nice, as far as parks went. Much nicer than the one he and his brothers use to play at, but then the neighborhood was much nicer than the one he had grown up in. The play equipment, built to look like a castle, was laden with children of all sizes and ages. One little girl, who couldn't have been more than three, stood out amongst the many. Her hair wasn't blonde, but nor was it brown either, and looked as though it couldn't make up its mind as to whether it was straight or curly. Large light brown eyes dominated a face that was so achingly familiar it threatened to break his heart. It was Izzie's face.

Izzie. He hadn't seen her in almost ten years, not since Lexie and he had made the decision to transfer to Mercy West. She had been the deciding factor in his choice. Timing hadn't been the issue, not on his end. He had loved her completely; she just hadn't loved him in return. She had spoken a pretty turn of phrase, almost convincing him that her feelings ran deeper than they really did. In the end, he had opened his eyes and made himself move on; cutting off all times to the woman he loved. A few times Lexie had tried to tell him some of the happenings in Izzie's life, via Meredith, but he had shut her out. The little girl staring back at him could have been one of those things.

"Hi," the little girl smiled up at him. Izzie's smile. George forced himself to smile back. He hadn't even realized the little girl had walked over to him. "You have a pwetty dog."

"Thank you," George said weakly. He wondered briefly where the child's parents were. It wasn't safe to let such a pretty little thing wonder around alone. No matter her looks, he knew she wasn't Izzie's child. She couldn't be. It would be too much.

Large brown eyes implored him, one tiny hand out stretched to touch Tinkerbell's silky fur. She wanted to pet the dog; he could see the desire on her little face. He started to say yes when he heard a familiar voice call out the name Jillian. His stomach knotted up. No. It couldn't be. Yet, it was. Walking toward him was Izzie. George tried not to look at her, tried to keep his focus on the little girl standing in front of him. His resolve wasn't that strong, and he found himself staring at the woman who had broken his heart.

Time had been kind to her. Her blonde hair was long once more, worn back in a loose ponytail, just a few wisps escaping around her face. He didn't want to look over her body, but his eyes wouldn't listen. He instantly regretted it, as her stomach was softly rounded in pregnancy. The little girl before him would soon be a big sister. "George?" Izzie asked softly, her dark eyes widening.

"Hello Izzie," he greeted, his voice hoarse. "You…you look well." It wasn't a lie. Pregnancy and motherhood agreed with her.

"So do you," she laughed. She looked down at her daughter, smoothing some of the curl tipped hair back, and gently scolded her. "What have I told you about talking to strangers?"

The question hit him like a ton of bricks. He was a stranger to Izzie's child. It was a fact that didn't sit well with him. He was a stranger. "You know him," Jillian argued. The tone of her voice reminded him of some else from his past, but he dismissed it. Izzie wouldn't have gone back down that road.

"You didn't know that though," Izzie pointed out. Jillian's lower lip trembled, and her light brown eye started to glisten. "That doesn't work with me Jillian Elizabeth Karev, and you know it." She had gone back down that road. It left him with a sour taste in his mouth. "Stop pouting, or we'll go home."

"No," the little girl whined, bouncing up and down. George glanced at Izzie, anxious to see how she would respond. He would never know. Alex chose that moment to join them, his fist wrapped around the leash of a sleek, black Labrador. At the site of her father, the little girl stopped. "I sorry," she whispered, looking at the ground.

"O'Malley, long time no see," Alex said, caution in his voice. His free arm wrapped Izzie's shoulders, as though to stake his claim. George felt a glimmer of hope, which he didn't quite understand. The hope, thankfully, was diminished when Izzie looked at her husband with love and adoration. It was the same look Lexie gave him.

Lexie. Something inside him warmed thinking about her. She had picked him up after the break up of his marriage and the destruction of his love affair and friendship with Izzie. Lexie, his sweet, sweet Lexie. He hadn't meant to hold back part of his heart from her, reserving it for Izzie, just in case. What a fool he had been. "It's good to see Alex," he said, meaning it. "It's been a while."

"It has. Heard you married Lexie Grey." Alex scowled as the Labrador tugged on the leash. Tinkerbell sniffed at the larger dog, and then, nose in the air, turned his back. It was all George could do too keep from laughing. "Stop pulling," Alex complained, yanking back on the leash. The dog took it as an invitation to run, dragging his master off with him. Jillian let out a shriek of glee and followed suit.

"I told him that dog was too big," Izzie chuckled. "We adopted her from the same shelter Meredith found Doc. Do you remember Doc? God I hated that dog."

"I remember," George chuckled. The dog had been Meredith's pseudo replacement for Derek. Unfortunately, Doc hadn't been as house broken as Dr. Shepherd, and lacked the neurosurgeon's manners. "I wanted a big dog," he admitted, looking down at Tinkerbell with his painted toe nails. "Lexie got this one instead."

"She's adorable, the perfect size" Izzie assured him, crouching to rub the Yorkie just behind the large pink and white polka dotted bow that was glued to his head. George corrected her on the sex, enjoying the odd look on her face. "Oh. I just assumed….the nails and bow…"

"Yeah. It was suppose to be a girl. Lexie even named him Tinkerbell. Turned out it was a boy, though." He smiled down, loving every inch of the walking fur ball. Tinkerbell might not have been a large dog, but by golly he was his. And he loved him, pink bows and all. "When's your baby due?"

"Five weeks, four days, and however many hours," she sighed, rubbing her stomach. There was a small smile on her face. "If he's like Jilly he'll be early though."

He chatted with her a while longer, catching up on the last ten years. As they parted, they exchanged numbers and promised to not fall out of touch again. On the walk home, George came to realize three things about himself. The first was he had been holding onto something that hadn't really been there. Secondly, in doing so he had almost messed up his marriage; almost because eventually it would have come between Lexie and he. And thirdly, he realized he wanted to be a father. He wanted to take Tinkerbell to the park and watch as the little dog chased after a toddler that looked like Lexie.

"I'm home," he called as he walked into the small house that was almost a mile away, an exhausted Tinkerbell tucked in his arm. He frowned when he didn't hear Lexie greet him. Hurrying through the house, he found her in the bathroom that was just off their bedroom. She sat on the edge of the bathtub, her face pale. "Are you alright?"

"I don't know," she whispered, her fist clenching. For the first time since finding her, he noticed the plastic stick in her hand. He instantly recognized it for what it was. "I know you aren't sure, but we can do this. I know we can."

"You're pregnant? We're having a baby?" She nodded, tears running down her cheeks. He grinned, pulling her into his arms. His mind was no longer wrapped around what might have been, but what would be.