First there was Thatcher, then Hannah, and now Lexie. So who's next? How about Alex's Dad and Izzie's Mom. In the sprit of 'anything' is possible in Shondaland, and rule of "If it is mentioned it, it will come" I give you Alex and Izzie senior.
Alex and Izzie stood at the nurses station comparing notes on a patient when the ward clerk walked up to them with the phone.
"Dr. Stevens you have a phone call." She said handing the phone to Izzie.
"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow, twelve o'clock at the Emerald City Bar." Izzie said hanging up the phone, her conversation had lasted barely a minute.
"Who was that?" Alex asked. Having listened to Izzie's entire end of the conversation.
"That," Izzie replied with a hint of distain on her voice, "was my mother, she wants to have lunch with me tomorrow."
"Really?" Alex asked slightly surprised. "I thought you didn't talk to your mother?"
"I don't." Izzie shrugged and looked down at her notes. Alex went to walk away when the clerk approached him with the phone.
"Dr. Karev, you have a phone call."
Izzie listened as Alex spoke to someone.
"Okay, I'll see you then." Alex said hanging up the phone.
"Who was that?" Izzie asked returning the question Alex had just asked her.
"That," Alex said smiling "was my father. He wants to have lunch tomorrow at twelve o'clock at the Emerald City."
"Really?" Izzie said raising her eyebrows. "I thought you didn't speak to your father?"
"I don't."
The two of them stood there musing over what had just happened. Neither one of them had spoken to their parent in years and now here they were having lunch with them at the same time at the same place.
"Maybe we could have lunch together." Izzie suggested. "At least that way we won't have to put up with them the whole time."
"It's an idea." Alex smiled. "We'll see what happens. Who knows maybe they've changed."
"Yeah maybe." But neither one of them seriously thought their parents would be anything but what they remembered.
/\/\/\
Alex and Izzie walked into the Emerald City just after noon.
"Do you see your mother?" Alex asked as he scanned the room for his father.
"Yeah." Izzie said spotting her mother. "She's in the corner booth. Do you see your father?"
"No, he's not here yet."
"Good." Izzie grabbed hold of his arm and started dragging him toward the booth. "Come sit with us until he gets here."
"Iz!" Alex tried to protest but they were already at the booth.
"Hi mom." Izzie said standing next to the table. Izzie's mother stood up and gave her daughter a big hug.
"Oh cricket, you've grown." Her mother said letting go and looking at her.
"Yeah." Izzie brushed the comment off, she felt embarrassed by her childhood nickname. She turned her attention to Alex. "This is my friend Alex" she said. "Is it okay if he sits with us? He's meeting his dad but his dad isn't here yet."
"Of course." Izzie slipped into the booth and expected Alex to follow her but just then his father walked in the door.
"My dads here." He said walking away. "I'll talk to you later Iz."
Izzie watched Alex walk away and meet his father by the door. Her safety net, her distraction, the one thing that could have delayed her talking to her mother was gone.
"So…" Izzie said feeling uncomfortable. "Why did you want to have lunch?"
"I just wanted to catch up. It's been a very long time."
"Yeah I know." There was just a slight hint of hostility in her voice. "But why now? Why after all this time did we have to have lunch today."
"Well.." her mother began. "I have some news."
/\/\/\
Alex met his father at the door and led him over to the bar. He ordered them both lemonades and sat down. His father had been an alcoholic when he was young, he didn't know if he was still drinking but if he was he didn't want to be a part of it.
"So Dad." Alex began feeling just a little uncomfortable. "How have you been?"
"I've been good. You?"
"Good."
"Good." There was a pause in the conversation. It had been so long since the men had seen each other they didn't know what to say. "I've been sober ten years." His father offered.
"That fantastic." Alex smiled, knowing his dad was clean was a good thing. "Is that why you wanted to have lunch today? You wanted to tell me that?"
"No exactly. I'm getting married next weekend. I wanted to ask you to be my best man." Alex had been surprised when his dad had phoned but this was totally unexpected, he almost spat his lemonade across the bar.
"You're getting married? To who?"
His dad turned around and pointed to the corner of the bar right where Izzie was sitting with her mother. "That woman right there." He stood up and started walking toward them. "Come over. I'll introduce you."
/\/\/\
"You're getting married?" Izzie could not believe what her mother had just told her. When she'd left home ten years earlier her mother had been a depressive, reclusive, mess, who spent all her him on the phone with psychics and hardly left the house. How on earth had she met someone?
"Yes. Next weekend. I'd like you to be my maid of honor."
"Yeah…umm…sure." Izzie agreed, still trying to process the first thing her mother had told her. "Who are you marrying?" For some reason Izzie assumed it would be someone from back home, someone she knew of.
"His name's Hank. He's a musician. He umm….why don't I introduce you to him." Her mother turned toward the bar and to Izzie shock Alex and his father started walking toward them.
/\/\/\
"Son, I'd like you to meet Mary." Alex's dad said gesturing to Izzie's mom. "And this is her daughter…"
"Yeah me and Izzie know each other." Alex said cutting his dad off.
"You do? Fantastic." His dad slipped into the booth next to Izzie's mom and he slipped in next to Izzie. They both exchanged eyes with each other in a "This isn't seriously happening" kind of way.
"So umm…." Alex began. "How long have you two known each other?"
"About a year." They answered together.
"And arr...How did you meet?"
Their parents both looked at each other and smiled; it was like they were a couple of teenagers. "Through you two actually."
"Really?" Alex looked over at Izzie for some sign that she had a clue what they were talking about but she looked just as confused as he did. "Neither one of us has spoken to you in years."
"True, but the internet is a marvelous thing. I might not have spoken to you but I knew what you were doing. And Mary here was doing the same thing so I guess when your lives met so did ours."
"I still don't understand." Izzie wasn't quite following what Alex's dad was talking about.
"Let me help." Her mother started. "You probably don't know this but there is an online community for parents of Seattle Grace Interns."
"Seriously?" Izzie almost laughed. "An online community for parents?"
"Yeah." Her mother laughed a little. "I think it's more designed for helicopter parents who like to hover and know everything that their children are doing. But there was a message board there and Hank and I started talking and well one thing lead to another and here we are."
/\/\/\
An hour later Alex and Izzie walked out of the bar together. Their parents wanted to stay a little longer but they had to get back to work and the situation was getting just a little too weird for them both.
"Can you believe it?" Izzie asked half laughing. "Our parents, together."
"I know!" Alex said laughing too. "It's crazy."
They continued walking a bit, laughing to themselves. "You know." Alex said talking again. "If they're married, that makes you my step-sister."
"Oh god no!" They both started laughing again. "I never want you to say that again! It's bad enough thinking our parents are…but to think…to say…"
"Yeah I know." Alex said still laughing. "We could just say we're keeping it in the family."
The front doors to the hospital opened for them as Izzie took a swipe at the back of Alex's head. "Alex Karev shut up!"
They made a point of walking in opposite directions but as Alex walked away he called back to Izzie "Talk to you later sis!"