Inside
my heart,
There's an empty room.
It's waiting for
lightning,
It's waiting... for you.
Alex Karev sat
hunched on his stool at Joe's Bar, twirling the remainder of his
second Heineken around in slow circles. He began claiming the stool
as his own after the third day of his internship was over and he had
once again found himself magnetically drawn to the bar. Was it the
hot women? Or the comforting environment? Maybe it was the dart
board, or the kind teddy bear of a man behind the counter.
In
reality, it was everything. He loved it here. Nothing beat a nice
cold beer and conversation with the friendliest, most humble person
on earth. Even his name reflected the compassionate simplicity of his
personality. And while he appeared to be your average joe…
literally… Joe was far from average. Though he'd never admit it,
he had always been the one cheering on the interns at their finest
hours. He peed his pants when he finally saw Meredith and Derek kiss
in front of him a couple months ago, giving them both high fives
after the make out session and then realizing it was an awkward thing
to do and returned to work. He was ecstatic when George beamed about
his open heart surgery in an elevator. Joe gave him enough free beers
that night that George, the poor light weight, was under the bar
before the clock hit midnight.
But even more importantly, he was
the one cheering them up, taking their keys, giving them advice and
calling them cabs when they had decided to shut everything but Joe
and a bottle of liquor out. And while he would always reply with
having the same high regards for all five, Joe had developed somewhat
of a soft spot for his most loyal, (disregarding his triple digit
tab) customer. Especially during the last week, when Alex's visits
to the bar became more frequent, which he didn't think was
possible. Being a bartender, he had developed an impressive knack for
reading people. Alex didn't even need to open his mouth for Joe to
decipher the pain that was written all over his face. He hadn't
seen Karev this bummed out since Joe caught news of a new heart
patient guy at Seattle Grace, which also meant he knew exactly what,
or better yet, who was mentally tearing at Alex's heart a little
more each night. He wouldn't push the conversation though. That was
another thing he had learned. Most people are the same and after a
couple drinks, whatever you were curious about knowing earlier
usually spills out, and then some. Joe handed a couple sitting at the
other side of the bar their drinks and started walking toward where
Alex sat.
Before he spoke, he recognized the heavy thoughts that began to gather in Alex's warm eyes. Whatever was going on with Iz this time, it was serious.
"I'm beginning to think you don't have a home Karev." Joe smiled, popping open another beer and sliding it in Alex's direction.
Alex jumped as a voice abruptly pulled him away from the chaotic, impulsive thoughts that seemed to make up the entirety of his brain these days. Thoughts he hated. Thoughts of her. Bringing the mouth of the bottle to his lips, he answered Joe before taking another long swig.
"You kidding?" Alex whipped his mouth with the sleeve of his brown shirt. "This is as good of home as anyone could ask for. And I mean that, Joe." Alex made sure he looked up at his best friend while speaking. "Take it from a guy who basically grew up in one, and who basically lives in this one. Not all bars are the same. And this one… is special." Joe laughed at Alex's heartfelt compliment. Karev, two beers in, giving thoughtful compliments? Man did that girl have a bizzarely strong hold on him, even without knowing it. Joe began wiping the counter with a rag.
"Well I give you free drinks every night Karev," he smiled. "I'd hope you think highly of this place…" Joe's eyes quickly picked up the tall, curvy figure of a blonde standing a ways behind Alex. Even with the sea of people filing by in front of her, Joe could never miss the warm glow that radiated from her presence every time she walked through his doors. He figured he might as well give the two a chance to talk about whatever had been going on between them the last couple weeks. For their own good and frankly, on his own behalf as well. He couldn't take the sexual tension between the pair much longer.
"Hey! Izzie! So… you gunna come grab a drink anytime soon or are just gunna stand their in the middle of the bar the rest of the night?"
The terrified look that rushed across Alex's features made Joe regret his decision a little bit. But it passed. He was bored. And Alex and Izzie both had a reputation for making things happen in his bar. He liked to think he had something to do with it, but the best of him knew the two were simply head over heels in love with each other. Always had been, and from his experience with observing the way millions of couples looked at each other across a crowed room… they always would be. Whether they cared to surrender to it or not, was another story.
