A/N: I was definitely not planning on starting another story now, but this idea would not stop nagging me. Plus there's definitely not enough Jolex stories on here to satisfy me. I may not be updating very regularly for the first couple of weeks, but by late June - once I'm out of school and home all day - I'll probably be posting more frequently. Until then, all I ask is that you'll bear with me here.
Disclaimer: I don't own Grey's.
2018
There was a crackle on the baby monitor, followed by a cry. Alex opened his eyes and was met with the flashing lights of the clock, which read 2:45 am. He rolled over, finding Jo still fast asleep. She looked so peaceful – hair splayed out on the pillow, hands resting comfortably on her torso, chest slowly rising and falling. He smiled to himself and leaned over, kissing her lightly on the forehead. She'd already given him so much. In the past four years, this woman had agreed to marry him, stuck by him through thick and thin, given him two kids – she deserved at least a good night's sleep. So Alex picked up the baby monitor and quietly left the room by himself.
He entered the nursery and slowly flicked the lights on. In the crib, his baby daughter was still crying, but as her little brown eyes met his, she slowly began to quiet. "Were you just lonely, baby girl?" He said softly to her, crossing the room in three big strides and picking her up. The crying stopped abruptly, her thumb going into her pretty pink mouth. "You just wanted Daddy to hold you. That's all…"
As he spoke, the baby calmed down, turning her tiny face into him almost as if she was burrowing her face into his chest. Alex smiled to himself as he looked at his little girl. He'd never known he could love someone as much as he loved his kids. Whenever he looked at his daughter's tiny face, he was just overcome with love. Her pale brown eyes, the beginnings of dark hair atop her head, the delicate, girlishness of her features constantly reminded him of his wife. In his eyes, she was perfect and no matter what, that would never change.
Slowly, the baby drifted off, fast asleep in her father's arms. Alex lifted her up so he could kiss her forehead gently, careful not to stir her awake as he placed her back in the crib. He ran a finger gently down her cheek. "I love you so much, Riley."
2034
When you had kids, the first day of summer vacation was always chaotic. At least that's what the past eighteen years of fatherhood had taught Alex Karev. He knew now from experience that June 10th was a good day to take off work, because when his kids finally woke up, they were going to be around the house all day for the first time in nine months and would surely get into trouble if he left them alone. After all, with him and Jo as parents, his kids weren't prone to being the calm, quiet type.
So, he aroused himself from sleep at eight-thirty sharp, even though it was quite painful to do so since he'd spent the night before in the ER (he'd known it wasn't a good idea, but the kid had been waiting for hours, and as a dad himself he'd really wanted to help). Upon descending the stairs, he found his wife in the kitchen, staring at a pan confusedly, a cookbook open in her one hand. He smirked to himself, leaning up against the counter. "You know, in the almost nineteen years we've been married, I don't think I've ever seen you cook."
Jo's head snapped up at the sound of his voice, and she scowled at him playfully. "Shut up," She said. "Do you want to starve?"
"With you in the kitchen, I already will," Alex responded, not missing a beat. His wife smacked him lightly on the arm, but then she leaned across the counter to kiss him on the lips, further proving she really wasn't mad.
"Ewww, gross! Save it for the bedroom!"
The couple quickly pulled away when they saw their youngest standing at the bottom of the stairs, looking at them in disgust. "Aiden!" Jo chastised, feeling her face flush. "Don't say things like that!" Her son was ten. She'd thought she had at least three years left of her sweet little boy before he turned to the dark side. Alex, on the other hand, was clearly trying to hold back a laugh at Aiden's comment. Jo shot him a dirty look letting him know that that was not appreciated.
"So, buddy," Alex said, clearly trying to change the subject. "You're dressed already, huh? I thought you were going to stay in your pajamas until noon."
"That's what I wanted to do," Aiden answered. "But we have to pick up Ethan from the airport this morning, remember?"
Alex and Jo felt their faces fall and they shared a look. Crap. That was today? Without another word, they both took off running up the stairs, breakfast be damned. "Where are you going?" Aiden called after them, his little arms crossed over his chest.
"We're late!" Jo answered him. "Wake up your sister, please?" She didn't wait for an answer, dashing off into the bedroom and slamming the door behind her instead.
Aiden sighed and walked into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and looked around, before pulling out a box of donuts leftover from yesterday's breakfast. He stuck one in his mouth and then began walking up the stairs again. At least his parents' total disorganization meant he could have whatever he wanted for breakfast.
Riley Karev let out a low groan as she heard the sound of her bedroom door being opened. She rolled over onto her stomach and threw a pillow over her head, trying to block everything out. But then she felt the telltale shift of her bed as someone sat down, and the thwack on the back of her head that meant it could only be Aiden.
She reluctantly removed the pillow and sat up. Her little brother was perched on the end of her bed, eating from a box of donuts. "Morning, sunshine." He said sarcastically through his chewing.
Riley made a face at him. "Gross." She said. "You're getting powdered sugar all over my bed!" She took a donut from the box and began to chew on it.
"So are you!" Aiden said, swallowing. Riley used her free hand to shove him backwards, and Aiden narrowly missed dropping the donuts all over the floor.
"Don't be a jerk," Riley snapped irritably, before getting out of her bed. She grabbed a hair tie and sloppily pulled her brunette hair out of her face.
"What?" Aiden asked, taking another donut. "You are!" Riley glared at him again before walking to her closet and examining the contents. "And aren't you normally up at the crack of dawn? It's almost nine."
"So?" Riley asked. "I was tired. And what are you still doing in my room? I'm about to get changed!"
"Gees," Aiden said, getting off the bed and heading towards the door. "Why are you harassing me?"
"You're harassing me!" Riley snapped at him. "Now get out of my room!" She tossed a dirty bra at Aiden's head, causing him to scream in mock terror before running out of the room. Riley rolled her eyes and then grabbed the nearest pair of sweatpants - at least he was gone.
"I hate airports," Riley declared as the four Karev's stood in the Sea-Tac airport twenty minutes later. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, growing impatient. "They're loud, they're crowded, and I feel like everyone's staring at me."
"No one's staring at you, Ri." Jo assured her.
"Are we sure?" Aiden piped up. "I mean, she is dressed like a slob today -" At this, Riley reached across her parents to give Aiden a good shove.
"Hey," Alex said, separating them. "No one is staring at Riley. And if they are, it's because she looks so exceptionally pretty today. Right guys?" Aiden grumbled a response while Riley stuck her tongue out at him before hugging her father.
They were interrupted by the reappearance of the Avery's, who had gone to the food court to get some coffee a few minutes before. "Is their flight here yet?" April asked anxiously, while Jackson handed Alex and Jo the coffee they had promised them.
"Not yet," Jo responded, taking a long sip of her coffee.
Riley looked up at the arrivals board again. It was saying that the flight from Cambridge was on time, but they had yet to see a familiar face. "Maybe the board is lying," She blurted out. "Maybe something happened, or..."
Her father shot her a confused look. "I'm sure nothing happened," He assured her. "Are you feeling okay?"
Riley opened her mouth to respond, but someone answered for her. "Riley is fine." answered Luke from his spot by April's side. And it was clear that he did not mean fine emotionally - the youngest Avery had always harbored a not so-secret crush on her, even though he was six years younger than she. Riley rolled her eyes and turned away, while Alex watched her for a second longer, before turning back forwards.
Finally, a few minutes later, April let out a loud squeal and took off towards the escalator leading from the terminals. Mercy Avery was the first to step off, and was met with her mother throwing her arms around her neck and pulling her in for a tight hug - which was hard, considering Mercy was an inch or two taller than April. Physically, she was all Jackson, and that included the height.
Riley watched anxiously for another moment before finally breathing a sigh of relief. Ethan was the next to step off the escalator, and the first person he walked to was her. "Hey, Ri." He said. "Long time no see." Riley grinned and pulled her big brother in for a hug, squeezing him tightly and grabbing onto his hoodie for support. Ever since Ethan had left for Harvard at the end of last summer, she'd been so lonely without him. Hopefully, now that he was back home until September, she'd be able to be her old self again.
After a few moments, Ethan let Riley go, and Mercy and April rejoined the group. Now Jo - being the overprotective mama bear she was - began bombarding Ethan with questions, while Mercy went to hug her dad, only after stopping to ruffle Luke's red hair.
But, it then became evident that they were not done receiving visitors when a face they hadn't expected to see appeared. He hadn't seemed to have changed much since leaving for college - in fact, if anything, he'd gotten even more handsome. His blonde hair was perfectly arranged, his blue eyes sparkling, and as he descended the escalator, suitcase in hand, she swore he smiled right at her.
"Guys," Ethan said, as his best friend joined him. "You remember Timmy."
Oh, Riley remembered Timmy. Timothy Torres-Robbins had been Ethan's best friend since childhood - Mercy was a year and a half older than them, in the grade above, and a girl to boot, so they hadn't really spent much time together until they all went to Harvard. Ethan and Timmy, on the other hand, had always been extremely close. They'd ended up being born less than three months apart, because when Timmy's two moms decided to have him it turned out that Callie couldn't get pregnant again and Arizona had to be the one to carry, derailing their plans to have a baby for a while.
Growing up, Riley was two years younger than Ethan and Timmy, and none of her parents's friends had a kid her age, so she practically worshipped the two boys. And Timmy...well, to put it lightly, Timmy had always been attractive.
"We weren't expecting you," Jackson said, wrapping his arm around Mercy's shoulder. His daughter rested her head on his shoulder, a daddy's girl even at nineteen.
"My moms are in New Haven for Sofia's college graduation," Timmy explained. "So it's just me until they get back." Then, Riley swore she saw him wink.
She was still distracted as they started off to baggage claim, only brought back down to Earth when Ethan threw his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his side. "Did you miss me, sis?" He asked teasingly, ruffling her dark hair.
Riley didn't answer for a second. She looked from her older brother to Timmy, who was walking a few steps ahead, and then her gaze met her father's, whose own eyes were watching her curiously. She shook her head and looked away - if Alex had any problems about her crush on Timmy, he'd just have to get over it. She was a big girl. Riley turned back to Ethan now and forced herself to smile. "Of course I missed you."
I'm not crazy about this first chapter, but I'm always particularly hard on myself, so I decided to just post it. Review if you'd like - takes a second, means a lot. And tell me if you'd be interest in me continuing.
