A/N: I've been trying to write a Jolex/Japril story for a while, so I had this idea when I saw Jesse tweeting about the World Cup. Don't take it too serious, it's just the two couples watching a match together. Every pair between the four of them has at least one interaction. I tried do keep the balance and use everyone, though one of them may have taken the lead.
Just to reinforce: It's a JOLEX AND JAPRIL story. If you dislike one of them, this is not the place to send your hate. More specifically, if you hate Jolex this definitely is not the place for you. And I may not be the biggest Japril shipper, but hate towards them isn't welcomed either.
This is my first time writing Japril, so please cut me some slack. BUT if you see something that is OOC or that could be done better in another way, feel free to tell me. If I ever decide to write anything about them again, I'll like to fix my mistakes.
Just one more thing: This isn't a story about football. Everything I wrote about the World Cup and the match it's only to serve the purpose of the story. As most of the Brazilians, I am truly passionate about this sport and I can talk about it for hours, just not here. My Tumblr ask is always open, though.
DISCLAIMER: The only thing I own here is my love for Alex (and for football).
"Jackson!" April cried from the kitchen, as she heard the doorbell rang. "Can you answer the door? I'm a little busy right now." While she waited for an answer from her husband, April glanced at the clock; she didn't expect their guests to be earlier, so she hadn't finished the snacks yet. She hoped they wouldn't mind to wait a little, though she suspected that those two could eat anything, anytime. "Jackson?" She called again. She was a little nervous. It was the first time they were receiving friends since they got married. She didn't mind about Alex that much, since they lived together for two years, but she didn't know Jo very well and she wanted to make a good impression.
A few seconds later, Jackson emerged from the bathroom. "I'm coming. That looks great, by the way," he pointed to the table, smirking at his wife, who dismissed the compliment with a gesture of her hand. Jackson walked the few steps until the door and opened it.
On the other side, Jo startled. She had her hands around her boyfriend's neck whose own hands were almost under her shirt. Damn it, Alex! Why do you have to be so hot with this freaking hoodie? Jackson was probably thinking that they were about to make out right there, which was not the case. Seriously, it wasn't. Jo was just too nervous, and Alex was trying to calm her down. She blushed. With Jackson being one of Alex's best friends and having dated Jo's best friend for about a year, out of all of the attendings, he was the one she had the most friendly relationship, and she liked Kepner too, but they were still her bosses and she'd never been at their apartment before.
Seeing her embarrassment, Alex leaned to give her neck a final kiss, while saying between the locks of her hair. "Relax. You were the one who set this thing with him, remember?"
Yes, she remembered. She just couldn't recall what the hell was she thinking when she did that.
"Uh, hi!" Jackson said, trying to suppress a laugh. "Do you guys want to come in or would you rather stop first by the hotel across the street?"
Alex snorted. "You talk like we never walked in on you and Kepner actually doing it."
Rolling his eyes, Jackson shot a glance at Jo, who was already regaining her natural color, and took a step aside to allow the couple to enter his apartment. Alex put his right hand on Jo's back and, with his head, he motioned for her to go first - a nice gesture that didn't go unnoticed by their host. Jo crossed the short corridor and soon found herself in the Kepner-Avery living room, with April greeting them from the adjoining kitchen.
"Hey! Alex, Jo. Sorry I won't handshake you, or hug you, or whatever else," she raised both of her eyebrows and lifted her hands to show that they were unwashed.
"It's fine," Jo replied, with a sincere smile, while Alex nodded from behind her. "Anything we can do to help?" She asked. "I mean, don't expect any of us to cook, so... anything else we can do to help?"
April chuckled. "No, thanks. I'm almost done. You two, make yourselves home. We have beer," she turned to Jackson, who had taken their coats to the coat hanger in the guest bedroom and was arriving at the living room again. "Honey, can you take something for them to drink while I finish here?"
Jackson asked what they wanted to drink and, as they replied, he took two beers from the fridge and gave one to each. Then, he showed them the balcony and said that they could wait there or inside, on the living room. Meanwhile, he would help April to finish things. They chose to stay outside and as soon as Jackson turned his back, Alex shook his head with a sarcastic smile on his face.
"What? Jo asked, intrigued. She was still appreciating the view of Seattle from one of the tallest residential buildings in that neighborhood.
"You," he sat on chair and pulled her by the hand, for her to sit beside him. "Just yesterday you were all excited about this double date, and now you're so uptight that you don't even seem the same person. Relax! It's fine, we're not at work."
"Well, to be fair, you don't seem the same person either. If I remember well, you didn't like my idea at first," she replied.
"I still don't. I'd rather watch this match at home, sitting on our own couch, not at Avery's fancy apartment," he paused, to take a sip of his beer. Indeed, it was a fancy apartment, although beautiful and classy. It switched Avery well. "Since we're here," Alex resumed his speech, "what can I do but enjoy your nervousness?" He said, making his girlfriend to roll her eyes at him.
In the kitchen, Jackson finished the orange juice April had given him to prepare, while she took from the oven a tray full of the balls that Brazilians called pão de queijo - a tasteful snack made with cheese. Before they even know who was going to play against the US, since the semifinals matches were on different days, she had decided to cook a typical food from the place. The options were Brazil and Italy, and she hoped that the second would win, since pasta is much easier to prepare. "It smells good," he said, coming from her back, and embraced her, with his hands touching the small baby bump that was starting to grow and his nose on her hair.
"Yeah?" April replied, still looking at the tray. "I changed my shampoo a few days ago," she bit her lower lip, playful.
Jackson turned his wife around, to face him. "Not your hair - it always smells good. These," he said, pointing to the balls she'd spent more than an hour on.
"How can I know if it's done right? I've never ate a pão de queijo before?" She made a face, causing him to smile.
"I bet they haven't either. Luckily for you, I have," he said, taking one of the little balls and biting it. He pondered for a while, before giving her a reassuring look. "It is good."
April smiled as Jackson put the last bit on her mouth for her to taste too. Well, she didn't know if that's how the snack should taste, but if Alex and Jo didn't like it, she surely could eat the leftovers herself.
As they set the coffee table with some of the options for their brunch - which also included French toasts, cream cheese, jam, cappuccino, bacon and omelets -, the other couple entered the room. The game was about to start. April didn't understand much about soccer, but Jackson was pretty excited. It was the first time that the US National Team had gone to the finals of a World Cup and the fact that it was in Brazil and against Brazilian National Team made things even better.
Jo was excited too and even Alex - who, besides his grumpy nature, seemed to April much happier since the two of them started to date - was having a good time.
After the first forty-five minutes, the match was still a tie. Not a surprise, several matches on the competition had that very same result. Jo was the most nervous between the four, which her boyfriend happened to find funny and a little sexy. She started sitting ladylike by his side, a plate of snacks on her lap and his arms around her, but this arrangement lasted only until the first time Brazilian team came near the US goal. Now, she was sitting on the carpet, her back against the couch, between Alex's legs. A few feet from her, Jackson was at the same position, except that April had her legs crossed above him.
Alex had to admit, that was better than he thought at first. It had been a while since he and Avery had hanged out, but despite their differences and the fact that now they were both in serious relationships, one of them being married and about to have a kid, they were good friends who still were able to have a good time together.
Jackson was happy too for having set this reunion. The idea came when he was scrubbing out of a surgery and Jo, who had assisted him, ignored that they were in a hospital and yelled when she saw on her phone that the US had made to the final round. Before that, he had no idea that she was a fan too - almost nobody at the hospital was, he only knew about Hunt, Bailey and Ben, but, for different reasons, none of them would be able to make it today. Now, while the match was in its break, the two still had their eyes on the TV, attentively listening to the commenters and watching the replays.
From the kitchen, April chuckled, looking at them. She liked sports too, but she wasn't the type of person that get that invested. With the corner of her eye, April saw Alex coming from the bathroom in her direction.
"Hey," she said. "Do you need something?" Since none of them was eating anymore, she'd brought everything back, so they could be more comfortable.
He thought. "Do you have soda?" Alex replied, explaining his choice after receiving a weird look from April. "I'm on call. No more alcohol today."
April gave him a can of Coke and turned back to store some of the things they'd used and she'd just washed. Instead of going back to the couch, for the game that would start again in five minutes, he sat on the stool and pulled the bowl of popcorn closer to him.
"So," he started, between sips. "I heard about the baby. Congratulations, I guess."
April smiled, and her hand automatically went to her belly. "Thanks!" She exclaimed, in a high-pitched tone that made Alex snort.
"I hope it doesn't get your voice, though," he mocked. Their relationship had been like this for a long time. For him, unlike Meredith and Cristina, that were like his sisters, April was more like a younger cousin, who can be annoying at times, and that everybody makes fun of, but she's still family.
"Own, you're always so nice!" She exclaimed, with her voice even higher than before. "Thank you."
Both laughed. "Anytime."
As he said that, they heard a fuss coming from behind the couch. Alex, who had his back to the television, looked over his shoulder and April tried to understand what had happened to make the other two stand on their feet, looking mad. Apparently, there was a fight, less than a minute after the match had restarted.
"Aren't you going to watch?" April asked when things seemed to be back to normal on the living room.
Alex shrugged. "I usually do, but everybody knows that we don't stand a chance."
"Really?" April didn't understand. She knew that Brazil was a traditional team, that won five times, but both teams were fighting to score. "Why? It's even, anything can happen."
He sighed. "Brazilian team lost the finals on that same stadium sixty-four years ago. Their people are eager for a redemption. There's no way they're gonna lose it again." He explained.
"Wow... I heard that they are really passionate." She said, and Alex nodded. "So, do you think it's sold or something like this?" She tried to understand his point.
He pondered. "Not exactly. It may be if they feel that we can win, but I'm talking more about the fans. When you're out there, the support means a lot, it can change the results in a matter of seconds. So, I rather not to hold on hope. It's not that year that we'll come home as winners."
Without warning, a pillow came from Jackson's side on the couch directly to Alex's back. One instant later, came Jo's voice. "Shut up, you bummer. If we lose, no game for you tonight."
Alex got up and threw the soda can in the trash. Then he took the pillow from the floor and sent it back to his girlfriend. "If you don't stop drinking, you'll pass out until tomorrow and no game for me anyway."
April giggled at their peculiar dynamic. "I didn't know Jo was such a soccer fan," April whispered, as they walked to join their partners. Actually, she didn't know much about the resident, she only knew that Jo was like a female version of Alex, which meant, among other things, that she wasn't the kind of person that makes friends easily or talks a lot about herself.
Alex widened his eyes and shook his head. "Neither did I."
They joined the other two to watch the rest of the game, Jackson and Jo going back to the couch when their necks started to ache from looking up all the time. When the next forty-eight minutes had passed without any goals, both sighed in frustration. That sport was not a thing for weak hearts. By that point, April had lost her interest in watching, and Alex had received a call from the hospital and was talking at the phone with a resident and a nurse.
"Can I get another beer?" Jo asked, standing up and stretching her body.
Jackson stood too, heading to his bedroom to see what his wife was up to and bring her back. "Yeah, suit yourself," he said, and then stopped. "Can you take one for me too, please?"
"Hey, ant April, what are you doing here, while your grasshopper husband is out there having fun?" He asked.
April smiled. After cleaning the kitchen, she was just changing her shirt. "Are you sure that that is fun? I'm afraid that Alex and I are gonna have to perform CPR in one of you anytime"
Jackson laughed. "That's the fun," he said, coming closer to her and pulling her for a kiss. He would never stop thinking how adorable his wife was.
Meanwhile, Jo headed to the kitchen and grabbed the beers. Then she left them at the coffee table and opened the glass door to the balcony. Alex was still there, talking impatiently at his cellphone. When he saw her, he reached for her hand and squeezed it, making her laugh silently as he rolled his eyes at something the person said on the other side of the line.
"Okay, put an intern to stay with him all the time, monitoring his vitals each fifteen minutes. If anything, anything changes, you call me or Dr Robbins immediately, am I clear?" He waited for an answer. "Good."
Alex hang up the phone and turned to Jo. "Is it over?" He asked, motioning towards the living room, to show that he was talking about the match.
Jo made a face and shook her head. "Overtime," she replied. "Do you need to go to the hospital? I can stay and take a bus later."
"No, not yet. I just need to call Robbins, I think I'm gonna need her help with this one." He pulled her closer and she put her hands around his middle at the exact time a voice came from inside.
"Jo," Jackson called, crossing the door. "Oh, sorry. Again. The match is about to restart." He said, and turned back. Jo pecked Alex's lips and, despite his big eyes pleading for her not to leave him, she followed their friend into the living room.
Overtime. The first few minutes were torture. Everybody was tired and, apparently, trying to save some energy, just in case of the other team scored. Back from her bedroom, April watched sympathetically how the other two reacted passionately at each movement of the ball.
"I can't believe I thought this could be an easy win," Jo said.
"Well, they don't have one of their most important players, it should be a little easier, but their defense is really good." Jackson replied, smiling at her frustrated face. "I never would have thought that you were such a football fan."
She chuckled, leaning her head against the couch and closing her eyes, deciding whether she should tell him why she liked the sport so much. Usually, she only talked about these things with Alex and, sometimes, Stephanie, but this story was still only hers - not because she didn't want to tell them, but because the topic never came up. At the same time that she wanted to talk, now that she had the opportunity, she felt like she was cheating on Alex if she said something, when he was the one that best understood her.
While thinking about all of those memories, Jo didn't notice her boyfriend entering the room and standing behind the couch. "Your wife said the same thing earlier," Alex said. "Nobody knew this Jo Wilson until now." He sat by her side, before adding. "I like chicks that like sports. It's hot."
Jackson and April exchanged a look, both laughing at their flirting. Then the four had their attention called back to the game. One of the US attackers was lying on the field, with other massaging his leg, while the referee drew a line with his spray. Both of the players got up, and the attacker stand on the position for the free kick. Everybody was silent, not only in the Avery's rom, but also at the stadium. A goal now would change everything.
A bomb exploded on the right foot of that man, not stopping at the wall but only at the quick Brazilian goalie. As he sent the ball back to one of his fellow players, number 4 ran the most that he could, giving the ball to number 9 score for Brazil. A party started at the stands. Alex and April exchanged a glance, she trying to form a nice comment and he trying not to look obnoxious like someone who had called this outcome two hours before.
For a few minutes, the US players seemed completely lost on that stadium. The yellow crowd was singing even louder than they had been for the whole match. It was beautiful; Jo had to admit. When the second half of the overtime ended, she sighed, accepting that, even though they had lost, it was a good match. And, for their history on World Cups, being the second wasn't that bad, specially having lost for the only five-time winner on the world and host of the competition. Their people deserved that joy - a joy that she had seem on first hand twenty years ago and still brought her a smile when she thought about it.
As the four of them kept watching the party, she opened her mouth and let the words find their way out. "I lived in a Brazilian neighborhood in Boston, back in 94. It was the best time of my live," she paused, "except for now, that... Well, I am a grown up with my life on the right place," she searched the three faces watching her attentively. Alex had the same look he always had when they were talking about their difficult pasts, a mix of understanding, gratitude and pain. On the other two, she saw sympathy. Jo decided that she could keep talking. "I wasn't friends with the other kids in the foster home; I had a crush on one of the boys next door, Gabriel. I used to play soccer - football, as they call it - with him, his brother and his sister every day after school. When the World Cup came, their mother asked if I wanted to watch some matches with them. I didn't even care if we were winning or losing, I just liked to be there with them," she made another pause, but the other three seemed to notice that there was something more. Alex had his hand over hers, showing her that he knew how these things were hard to talk about. She said the last past in a low voice. "A few days after the final match, they sent me to another foster home, on the opposite side of the city. I kicked a ball too strong and it broke Gabriel's brother's nose. I messed things up and lost my friends, as I always do."
Twenty minutes later, the girls were at the balcony, eating ice cream without much to talk, while the guys cleaned the room. Jo wanted to help, but April insisted that Jackson could do everything. Alex ended up staying with his friend, and now it was just them waiting. Being a good host, April broke the silence.
"You know, what you said before, about messing up things and losing your friends?" Jo nodded, surprised. After her confession, none of them had much to talk. Jackson said something about Boston having a lot of Brazilians, but she didn't pay much attention. April continued. "Well, you seem to be doing pretty well this time." The redhead smiled, earning a smile from Jo too.
"Thanks. And I'm sorry, I shouldn't've said that. I usually don't, Alex is the only one who knows these kind of things about me. I just felt that I should explain why I was so passionate about a stupid game. And maybe I drank too much," she chuckled, making fun of herself to avoid being in an awkward position.
April laughed. "It's good to open up a little sometimes. But I know that it's difficult, believe me, I have a few things that I want to keep in the past too."
The resident looked at her with an eyebrow raised in curiosity. What kind of secrets April Kepner could hold? "Seriously?"
"What about we wait one year, then we set a meeting for some random baseball match, when I can get drunk and maybe I'll tell you."
Back inside, Jackson watched the two women bonding and smiled to himself. Besides the match, they all had had a good time. Noticing his friend standing in the middle of the room, Alex looked there too. Jackson turned to him. "Do you remember where we were in the last World Cup's final?" Jackson asked and Alex furrowed at him, trying to locate that time in his mind. Jackson didn't wait for his response and kept talking. "Forth year. It was about two months after... the shooting... We had that one day off in like three weeks... April, Mer and Cristina were working, and you convinced me to go to a Spanish bar and we tried to hook up with some random women. I was still out of my game after losing my best friend and you were a man whore hitting at everyone, but you barely had money for one drink," he took a deep contemplative breath. "Now, we are attendings, we're on the board, we have houses... I have a wife who is carrying my baby and you are with the same girl for, what, one year already?"
Alex let out a sad snort and nodded, finally understanding what his friend was talking about. "That isn't a time that I like to remember often," he said.
"Yeah," Jackson agreed. "I miss Sloan and Lexie, of course, but I definitely don't miss those times."
Both stayed quiet for a while, mourning that loss that they would never forget, until Jackson spoke again. "Remember the day of the plane crash, when we - you, me and April - were complaining about the dinner with Webber, and Callie scolded us? I'll never forget her words. She said 'One minute you're miserable, and then the next; you've met the most amazing woman in the world'. And, look at us now, she was right. The stadium is not the only place where things change on a dime."
As if on cue, the two women got up and came to meet them.
"Hey, mister," April said, leaving the rest of her ice cream on the coffee table and embracing her husband with her two arms. "You two look so... thoughtful. What are you talking about?"
Jo, who hadn't notice anything, because she had leaned to take her purse on the floor behind the couch, froze as he saw Alex's intense gaze over her. "I'm not sure I wanna know," she said. "But you keep looking at me like this, and you may get your game tonight, after all."
The four laughed and started their goodbyes, for it was already time for the visitors to go. As Alex shook Jackson's hand at the door, both heard the giggle of their women a few feet down the hall. April had her hands on her mouth and Jo threw her head back, her hair dancing in the air. "Yeah, Torres was right. We scored the golden goal."
I hope you guys liked it. Reviews make me happy. I could use some happiness after remembering that this isn't real, I won't see my team winning our sixth Cup this year and we still have two months until season 11.