Twelve Months
Twelve one shots that follow the trials and tribulations of the first year of marriage.
Each month will almost be a one shot but each will make reference to others, if that makes sense. You may also recognise some of the story line from the early relationship we have seen develop between the two in the show. It is also going to have my version of events in too, which will make it fluffy and very sickly sweet ;) To add, I have chosen to follow on from the day Catherine turned up at the hospital, and other characters will also pop up.
I do not own Grey's Anatomy (:
First Month
"A pre-nupt? Really? I could have given her ideas for a more original wedding present if she'd asked."
They were home now. Their shifts had coincided and ended at 10pm. It was a hefty relief when the front door had been closed and the events of the day were firmly behind them. Catherine had, of course, chosen not to have dinner with them like she had planned after Richard's party had ended. Instead, she had gone him with him in order to express her annoyance with the younger couple. Not that that seemed at all fair. It was clear that she was the only one with the problem. Jackson and April were too happy together to truly take note of the mood she would soon shed, when she became used to the idea of their marriage.
Rolling his eyes, Jackson offered his wife a playful look, which she returned with a wide smile before collapsing in giggles beside him. Without question, she eased her head up to his chest and nestled in the crook of his arm, created without her even needing to ask. Something that amazed each of them about the other, was how they simply seemed to know what the other was thinking or feeling, without even needing to ask.
"I'm sorry about today." Jackson sighed, as April's giggles began to subside and they settled into a comfortable moment. He had been feeling guilty for most of the day. He knew he should have prepared both his wife and his mother for the first meeting, since the change in their circumstances. To Catherine, he had explained the wedding and how it had all came about, but had been very cagey about the exact details of the relationship he had, unbeknown to his mom, with April. And to his wife… well he hadn't exactly informed her that Catherine had already planned her first trip to Seattle before he had even had the chance to explain anything.
"Jackson, honestly, it doesn't matter." April reassured him, the words vibrating against his chest. Her words were extremely sincere considering the trauma she had endured throughout their day. Turning her head upwards a little, she caught his eyes and offered a warm smile. "It's just a stupid piece of paper. I'm not surprise she is being so dubious about my intentions towards her son."
Jackson returned his wife's smile with one so equally filled with warmth and appreciation. He could not have been more in love with April if he had tried. She took everything in her stride, even when it was himself putting obstacles in their way. It was one of the many things that had caused him to fall so deeply, head over heels for the one woman who he had only ever seen before that night, as his best friend. Tipping his own head, he awkwardly brought his lips to softly press against April's and gave her the sweetest of kisses. It was one small way he was able to express to her, just how he felt toward her.
"Be warned though, my dad will be asking you the exact same thing when we visit next month." April teased, breaking from the kiss a few moments later.
"Exact same thing?"
"Yeah, you know, about your intentions… towards his daughter?"
"Naughty intentions?" He replied in a flirtatious manner.
The soft giggle of his wife penetrated the air once more. "Other than those… I'm his little girl remember? And you did kind of crash my other wedding, so he's not going to be best pleased with you."
"Like I need reminding."
"Well, he will remind you… a lot. He paid good money for the barn, and my dress, and my hair, oh and the doves and…"
"April," He cut across, the lighter tone suddenly absent from his words. Her giggling instantly ceased. "I don't need a reminder of the wedding I crashed. I was there."
Shifting uncomfortably in his embrace, she swallowed hard. Her body became tense in his arms. "Sorry, I was just joking around with you. I didn't know it was making you uncomfortable."
"I'm sorry. I just… it's hard, to listen you talk about the wedding and about what could have happened if I hadn't been impulsive and listened to Mark bloody Sloan." He apologised, their gaze still transfixed on one and other. He could see the sudden traces of uncertainty in his wife's eyes and instantly felt like a tool. "It shouldn't have even gotten to that point before I finally made up my mind."
April allowed her body to relax a little as his apology soaked in the space that surrounded them. "And I'm sorry too. I know that we both regret a lot that has happened in the past. It was silly of me to bring up the wedding."
In the weeks that had followed their surprise marriage, the wedding that April had originally been in the midst off, became topic of conversation less and less. It was minutes in her life that both of them wanted to forget; April, because she almost became married to a man who was only ever second best to Jackson, and Jackson, because he had almost let the one woman he had only ever truly loved, slip away toward another man. They both knew the only important part now, was making their marriage work and loving one and other unconditionally. It just didn't seem to want to work in this way when obstacles, such as his demanding mother, kept blocking their path.
"April, that wedding was the only reason I stood up and was finally honest about how I felt about you… that's why I don't want to discuss it. It made me realise I had been a coward for far too long." Jackson admitted. It was hard to hear but it was the truth.
With tender intentions, April reached her hand upwards and rested it against her husband's left cheek. His own hand soon came to rest above it. "Jackson, let's not regret that day ok?"
"But I-"
"No regrets. Promise me?"
Nodding, he eased a soft smile into the curve of his lips once more. "No regrets."
"Ok… now that we've settled that, what shall I make us for dinner?" She asked, suddenly springing up from her position and bustling off towards the kitchenette.
Jackson paused for a moment to watch her rustling in the cupboards for pots and cooking utensils. He could not help but marvel at the resilience that she showed, even when something occurred with the potential to break a piece of her spirit. It suddenly occurred to him that he needed to do everything in his power to protect the wonder he had found in her.
"April?"
Turning to catch sight across the room, she grinned widely. "Yes husband?"
"Do you know what I'm going to tell your dad when he asks what my intentions are towards his daughter, now I'm your my wife?"
"What are you going to tell him?" She asked, pausing her movements for a moment to hear.
"That no matter what, even when life seems impossible, that I will protect you and ensure that nothing and nobody breaks that wonderful spirit that made me fall in love with you."
Feeling her heart flood with a rush of sudden intense love towards her husband, April nodded before returning to her search in the kitchen cupboards.
