"Hey."

April looked up from her laptop and offered a meek smile at her housemate and longtime friend, perhaps her only friend at the hospital after the showdown with Cristina over the patient with the tree and Stark…She didn't even want to think about that, or him, right now. "Jackson."

He scowled and sat down beside her on the couch. "You all right, April?"

"Yeah."

"Liar."

April couldn't help but smile at his blunt response coupled with a shine from his pearly blue eyes. "Jackson, really I'm fine. Go and spend some time with Lexie. I'm sure you'd like to talk to her."

"Right now I'd rather talk to you."

"Lexie's still doing rounds isn't she?"

"Maybe," he smiled when she chuckled. "But, seriously, April, I want to talk with you. Not Lexie, not Meredith, no one but you right now. You look like you could use a talk."

Her gaze travelled to him. "Serious?"

"Serious." He patted her knee gently. "What's the matter?"

"It's this whole chief resident thing," she admitted after a moment of silence and contemplation. "I just…It doesn't seem worth it anymore. All the trickery and backstabbing…That's not what the job is about."

"This bothers you, doesn't it?"

"Well, yeah! We should be focusing on the patients, not trying to undermine everyone else just because we want the job!" She sighed heavily and shook her head. "When did it become less and less about the patients and more and more about what we get out of it?"

"I wish I could tell you."

"You know…I don't even care if I don't win it." April looked down at her hands dejectedly. "I probably won't win it, anyway."

"Don't say that."

"It's true. Everyone thinks so."

"Yeah?" His eyebrow raised in a challenge. "And who is everyone? Cristina? Meredith? Alex?"

"Well…Yeah."

"It doesn't matter what they think, April. It matters what Owen thinks. He's the one picking chief resident. You impress him, you show him what a great doctor you are, and no one's opinion matters. Besides, it's all about the patient right?"

She smiled. "Right."

Jackson nodded in agreement at the quick change in her demeanor. "Good. Besides, you've got me. I think you'd make a great chief resident."

"Do you?"

"Yes, I do. And that's all you have to remember going into tomorrow, all right? Win or lose, it's about the patients and what they need from you, regardless of title."

She watched him stand up, slowly taking in his pep talk that actually made her feel better. "Hey, Jackson?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

There it was, right in front of her. For a moment April thought her legs would buckle beneath her. Jackson had been right. Owen's opinion was the only one that mattered, and he had picked her. Her, to be chief resident! The thought made her want to jump for joy like she had when they won the trauma simulation. It didn't matter to her that everyone around didn't support the decision; Meredith had rolled her eyes, Cristina had stormed away, and Alex…She hadn't quite seen his reaction, but she didn't care.

She was chief resident!

And no one around her cared. Not that she could blame them, really. With the amount of casualties on that plane, she surprised herself at her enthusiasm and joy. But it would have been nice to have one person, just one, congratulate her on her success. When none came, she gave up with a sigh and continued with the rest of her responsibilities.

The on-call room was the most irritating room in the entire hospital, April had decided early on in her residency. All it housed were horny doctors, hoping to get it on in privacy, even though the entire hospital knew exactly what was going on behind the locked door. Did they have any self control? April had waited for twenty-eight years—possibly longer—and they couldn't wait for a few hours to get home?

The stereotype of horny doctors was shaken, momentarily, when the light to the on-call room was off, which to her, meant that no one was in there. She could finally have a moment in peace, away from all the cold stares and pain that had engulfed the hospital ever since the shooting. It seemed like a suitable outlet: a cold, dark room, with no one to berate her, or even congratulate her.

April realized quickly, as she opened the door, that she had miscalculated. The room was not vacant, but occupied. He lay peacefully on the cot, his hands behind his head, as he stared up at the ceiling mindlessly. With a scowl, April considered walking away and not even acknowledging his presence, like he had done to her so many times. But she couldn't; after all, if she couldn't keep her eyes off him while she considered the possibilities of "what if," then how could she ignore him now? Besides, the blank look on his face surprised her. The last time he had surprised her was when a small hint of charm emulated from his icy exterior during one of their "dates." It seemed only fair that she follow the trail now.

"Dr. Stark?"

His head tilted toward her before he gazed up at the ceiling again. "Something I can help you with, Dr. Kepner?"

His snarky tone didn't stop her; she closed the door gently and sat on the cot adjacent to him, curling her leg under the other. He still wouldn't look at her, but she knew he could see her. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Dr. Kepner." He rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't you be doing rounds instead of talking to me?"

"I'm on a break."

"Hm, well…You might not want to waste your break talking to me, then. Why don't you run off with one of your younger colleagues?"

She had hurt him, badly. His cold and bitter tone was proof of that, but she thought they had crossed this bridge earlier. His desire to revisit it troubled her slightly. "You're not a bad person to talk to, Dr. Stark."

He didn't respond, but she saw his arm twitch slightly as he grew uncomfortable. "Can I lie here in peace?"

"Sure."

Her quick response stunned him slightly, so much that he looked at her completely. He instantly regretted it. She had changed since he saw her last, and she was even more beautiful now. The way her hair fell on her shoulder entranced him. Stark forced himself to look away, angry at how simply she could affect him. Soon, silence took hold and he continued to stare at the ceiling. It wasn't long, however, before he looked at her again. "Something the matter, Kepner."

"No."

"Really? You keep staring at me." He hadn't meant for that to come out so angrily or so maliciously; when it happened, he sighed heavily and sat up, putting his weight on his hands. "Kepner?"

"Dr. Stark?"

"Stop staring at me."

Her face twisted into a soft smirk and she shook her head gently. "What else am I going to stare at? The floor?"

"Yes."

"Can I ask you something, Dr. Stark?"

"It seems you already have," he answered bitterly, angry that his few moments of solitude and peace were taken away from him by a woman who "just wanted to be friends." He had made it clear to her that he had wanted more, and here she sat, trying to make an attempt at friendship. Did she not realize how much he cared for her, how much he wanted her on so much more than a platonic level?

April accepted his snarky tone; she had grown used to actually. Before it had pissed her off, but now—after today—she was took flustered to even care. "What did you do before you were the Chief of Pediatrics?"

Her question stunned him. "I…I was a surgeon."

"Well, I know that, but…Were you anything else? Like Chief of Surgery or something like that?"

"No. I was just a surgeon. I've spent decades in pediatrics, Dr. Kepner. Eventually that begins to mean something. Why?"

She shrugged and looked at her hands. "No reason."

The answer didn't work on him, just like it hadn't worked on Jackson. Stark swung his legs around the cot and continued to stare at her, trying to figure her out through the silence. "Dr. Kepner, why do you want to know?"

"It feels weird."

He would give her that. This close proximity between them…He didn't like it. He could faintly smell her perfume, and it was enough to drive him insane. "What does?"

"Being chief resident."

"You got the chief resident position?"

"You know, some might find that much surprise as offensive, Dr. Stark," April told him with a dark scowl.

He shook his head. "No, no. I…I knew you'd get the job."

"Did you?"

"Yeah," he answered, smiling. "I just…I don't know. I guess I was surprised that I was right."

"That doesn't sound to me like something you experience every day."

"No. Normally I know when I'm right." He smiled and chuckled softly before he made the decision to move beside her. It was easier that way, anyway, to shake her hand. At least, that was the justification he gave himself when the scent of her perfume grew stronger. Stark extended his hand to her; her hand was warm in his, her touch foreign yet exquisite. For a moment, he thought he couldn't muster any words. "Congratulations, Dr. Kepner."

"Thank you." April continued to shake his hand, even as her gratitude ended. Their eyes locked for a moment, and panic set in before she realized he wasn't going to kiss her. He wasn't going to make her uncomfortable in any way. That had been clear during their "dates," which she realized now, was probably why he hadn't made a move for a month. He didn't want to rush her, like he didn't want to force her now.

"Dr. Stark?"

"Yeah?"

"I kind of need my hand my back." She smiled when he immediately released her hand and an uncomfortable look spread across his face. He refused to look at her now, in humiliation and awkwardness, and she couldn't help but smile. When he wasn't hiding behind his snarky behavior, he truly was a charming man, one she had grown to like. Underneath all the cold exterior was a man, simply, who had emotions just like hers…who was alone in this hospital, just like she was.

"Well…" He stood up. "Congratulations again, Dr. Kepner. You deserve it, and…The hospital is lucky to have you as chief resident."

His sincerity reminded her so much of the time when they were hanging out; there were no tricks with him, no games, and certainly no backstabbing. He was straight with her, always had been. For a moment she wondered why she had broken things off with him in the first place when she remembered that he wanted more, something she was not yet ready to give. But April found herself smiling at him despite the icy stare that melted whenever he looked at her.

"Thank you, Dr. Stark."

He nodded and left her in the on-call room—without making a single move like all the other doctors, like Alex—and she found herself once again alone, although content. April couldn't help but grin. He had made her feel...She couldn't find the words to describe something she had never experienced before. Although, it faintly registered to her as happiness, subtle and faint as it was.