I realize it has been awhile since I've updated or posted anything new. I was just busy having my heart shattered by TV. Since my other M/L fic Love Me Do is slowly getting wrapped up, I was looking for something new to write and this little story came to mind. I'm just getting back into the swing of things (I totally blocked anything Grey's related from my brain after the finale) so bear with me. Please enjoy! Don't forget to read and review.
Leaving Seattle was the easy part.
After her shift was over she returned home, left Meredith a note, and hopped on the first train out of the city. The scene in the hallway with Mark and Derek's skanky sister was more than enough to make her want to leave. It was time for a fresh start.
Going back was never the plan. More than anything Lexie wanted to leave it all behind, but as she stood in front of Seattle Grace Mercy West hospital sixteen and a half months later with a whimpering baby on her hip she knew she couldn't put it off any longer.
Lexie stood there staring at the doors willing herself to go inside but her feet wouldn't move. Tiny hands reached for her face and curled around her bottom lip. Sharp fingernails dug into her skin.
"Ow ow ow," she pulled his fist away. He just stared up at his mum uneasily, "what am I doing here?" Lexie asked the 8 month old sucking quietly on his soother.
She studied the tiny human's face. He definitely looked like a Grey, but there was something else there. It was his smile. When his face lit up he looked exactly like the man who fathered him. "I know baby, I know. We should just go visit Molly, yeah? We'll tell her first. Okay," she decided and readjusted her son on her hip, "okay."
"Lexie?" someone followed her out into the parking lot. She cringed and turned around to see her brother-in-law.
"Uh, Derek. Hey," she said. The little boy she was carrying could feel her distress and he whimpered more.
"You disappeared," he stated.
"Yes. I did," Lexie fidgeted with her son's shoelace, "but I called Meredith. I didn't uh, totally disappear."
"You didn't even tell her where you went. She was worried sick, we all were," Derek said to her but stared at the child.
The silence that fell between them was awkward and uncomfortable.
"Don't tell anyone yet," she pleaded, "um no one knows. Not Meredith, not-"
He interrupted, "Mark?"
"-anyone," she finished, "please."
"What should I tell them if they ask?" Derek frowned.
Lexie laughed, "You think they'll specifically ask if I came back with a child? I'll be back tomorrow, I just need to come up with a plan."
"Fine. But you better tell her. That's not fair," he rubbed his eyes, "you left her a note, Lexie. A damn note on the kitchen table and then you disappeared. You owe her an explanation."
"I know, believe me I know," her son wiggled restlessly in her arms, "look I have to go, we have a hotel room at the Archfield."
"Does he have a name?" Derek asked.
"Arthur," she kissed him lightly on the top of his head, "I named him Arthur." Lexie went back to search for the rental car in the parking lot and she heard Derek's footsteps fade.
Derek made his way back into the hospital and shook his head. There was always something going on in this place. Some huge secret to be kept, some betrayal meant to stay hidden, or some long lost child showing up. He felt sick to his stomach keeping something like this from Meredith.
"You, me, Joe's tonight after work," Mark approached him as he waited for the elevator, "you in?"
Derek shook his head, "Not tonight."
"Why not? It's been too long since we've had a boy's night," Mark pouted.
"Boy's night? What are you, a 20 year old girl," he chuckled, "uh no, tonight I'm spending time with Zola. Another time."
"Fine, you, me and the girls, my apartment," his friend offered. Derek sighed.
"Not tonight Mark, it's just not a good night," he said. The elevator doors dinged open cheerfully and the men stepped inside.
"Are you and Meredith okay? It's been a rough couple months, especially after that last miscarriage," Mark prodded.
"Meredith and I are fine," Derek assured him, "we're fine. For now," he added.
"For now? Is she, she's not pregnant again already? I mean I thought you two benched the idea," he said, his forehead wrinkled in concern.
"No, she's not pregnant. It's a long story," Derek cringed just thinking about how Mark is going to react, "at least I imagine it's a long story. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to be in surgery."
Mark watched his best friend step out of the elevator and towards the OR. Something was off with him today, he could feel it. He was going to find out what was going on.
When Derek came out of his surgery, Mark was waiting for him by the nurses' station, "Here, I got you a pick me up," he said and placed a Styrofoam cup in front of the other surgeon.
"Uh, thanks," Derek said and took a sip.
"So what's going on with you today," he dove right in, "you're acting weird."
"What do you mean? I'm fine," he smiled his charming McDreamy smile, but Mark wasn't buying it.
"Seriously, if something was going on you'd tell me, right?"
Derek took another sip of his coffee, "yeah. Yeah I would," he lied through his teeth.
"Good," Mark looked down at his own cup, "uh, do you know if Meredith has heard from her lately?" he added quietly.
His breath caught in his throat, "No. Meredith, uh, Meredith has not heard from Lexie recently."
"Yeah, I figured," Mark said looking crestfallen. A nurse passed Derek a patient's chart and he skimmed it over quickly. His friend took that as a cue to get back to work and walked back down the hallway. Derek would kick himself for what he was about to do.
"She's at the Archfield," he called to his friend.
Mark turned and shot him a confused look, "what?"
"Lexie," Derek sighed, immediately regretting his decision, "she's at the Archfield. I think she'll want to see you."
The skin between Mark's eyebrows wrinkled in anger and he took off. Derek proceeded to slam the chart shut as he realized that Arthur may not even be Sloan's child.
Mark ignored the "Do Not Disturb" sign hanging on the door of room 2243 and banged his fist on the door.
There was no answer. Mark banged harder; he had waited too long for this. She'd better open the damn door.
Finally the door swung open violently, "Don't you know how to read?" she hissed. Her eyes widened when she realized who was at the door, "Mark," her hand flew up to her mouth.
Mark was still taken aback at her aggressive greeting, "what the hell has gotten into you?" he said a little too loudly. From inside the hotel room a baby began to wail.
Lexie covered her face with both her hands and took a deep breath, "Damnit."
"Lex, what is going on?" he said. She ignored him and went back into the room. He closed the door behind him as he followed her to the origin of the crying.
"He was almost asleep, what is wrong with you," she accused him and picked up a small child from the hotel crib. Lexie cradled her son in her arms in an attempt to comfort him, "get his soother from the crib, please."
Dumbfounded, Mark obliged. He fished out a tiny blue soother out of the crib and brought it slowly over to his ex. He gently offered it to the baby, and to all of their relief he took it and began sucking quietly. "You have a baby," Mark stated, careful to monitor the volume of his voice.
Lexie avoided eye contact."Yes," she mumbled.
"Oh," Mark was afraid to ask the next question, but she seemed to sense what he was about to ask.
"It is," she clarified, "yours I mean. He's yours." Lexie swayed back and forth watching her son's eyelids flutter closed, "I didn't know I was pregnant when I left. Then I was too scared to come back."
"May I?" he held out his hands and Lexie placed their child into his arms. He was heavier than Mark expected, "He's a big boy," he grinned.
"Oh I know. 8lbs, 9oz when he was born," she smiled for the first time since Mark got there, "he's almost eight and a half months old now."
"What's his name?" Mark whispered, completely in awe of the sleepy child in his arms, "What's my son's name?"
"Arthur, Arthur Timothy Grey," Lexie said, "I named him after my grandpa on my dad's side."
Mark waited until Arthur fell asleep before he spoke next. "Don't mistake my desire to be involved in my son's life as being okay with what you did. You should have told me. Keeping him from me was selfish and hurtful and I don't know if I can ever forgive you," his voice was level and calm but Lexie could still hear the anger in it.
"I know," she said.
Leaving Seattle was one of the easiest decisions she had ever made. But coming back? Coming back was the hard part.
Oh no it seems that I have started to make things angsty again...whoops! Hehehe.