ANOTHER
Chapter 2
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So this is a fun chapter, getting us reacquainted with the "family." We'll meet the newest members, find out how everyone is doing and learn about the changes that have taken place since the end of "Again." So I hope you like it. Please review and let me know what you think.
"Food smells good. My compliments to the chef."
Alex looked behind him at Meredith, holding baby Joanna in her arms. A teasing smile lit up her face as she watched him man the grill. "Iz prepared it, I just put it on the grill. You know my cooking skills aren't great. I mean, I'm better at it than you are, but that's not setting the bar too high." He winked in her direction as she scoffed.
"Shut up!" She turned to watch stare out into the yard. He followed his friend's line of sight and his eyes landed on what looked like a very serious game of tag. Izzie and Derek and Arizona were running around with about 15 kids, making sure no one got hurt, and apparently having a blast themselves if their smiles were any indication.
At the same moment, his wife glanced up and met his gaze. Even from across the backyard the look they shared spoke of hope and happiness. He knew that she was stressed from the waiting and wondering. He was too. The thought of having another person that was a part of them both always seemed to be at the forefront of his mind. And he was worried ...
"You okay?" Meredith broke through his thoughts.
He looked back down at the burgers and hot dogs that were cooking. "Uh, yeah. Fine."
"She looks happy." his friend bounced her daughter in her arms and moved to grab a toy out of her nearby diaper bag. "Has she had any symptoms?"
He shook his head. "No, but she didn't really with Caleb, so that doesn't really mean anything."
"True." She hesitated. "Alex, she told me that this was the last chance."
"Yeah," he sighed.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm alright with it. I'm open to other options. I'm just worried about her if she isn't pregnant. How she's going to deal with it. Or not deal with it." He began transferring burgers to the platter sitting next to the barbecue. "She wants this so bad."
"I know she does. But she's tough, Alex. She's survived worse. You both have."
"Yeah." He sighed as he added more food to the grill. His thoughts were soon interrupted with voices coming from the driveway.
"You know, I made it through the surgery just fine. I don't know what his problem is. I'm not an invalid. I'm pregnant..." Alex and Meredith tried to hold back their laughter as Cristina and Callie walked into the backyard holding gift bags. Well Callie walked. Cristina waddled as she ranted on and on. "... Which is his fault."
"I'm ten feet behind you, Cristina. I can hear every word you're saying." Owen's voice was heard before he turned the corner, a huge wrapped box in his arms. "You are doing way too much. You should be relaxing, not spending seven hours straight in the OR. You need your rest." His eyes moved over to Alex. "Karev, where does this thing go?"
He pointed to the table that was already filled with brightly colored packages. Owen moved that direction and Cristina followed after him, complaining the whole way. Callie looked at Alex and Meredith. "That was their conversation the whole way here from the hospital. If you lived much further away I might have jumped out the window of their moving car."
"Cristina doesn't like the restrictions that come with being pregnant," Meredith said with a giggle. "Rest, take it easy ..."
"... No liquor," Alex added.
Callie laughed at the truth of that statement. "You should have seen Hunt's face when he saw her name on the board for that surgery. He flipped out. I had to block the door of the OR to keep him from barging in."
"See, he should know by now that Cristina's going to want to be in the OR as much as possible until the baby comes." Meredith said, still bouncing Joanna in her arms. "She told me that I wasn't even to talk to her about the maternity leave she's, and I quote, 'being forced into.'"
Alex snorted. "She'll probably offer to do her own C-section, just to get one more chance to cut."
As soon as he said it, Meredith's hand came in contact with his shoulder. "Don't give her any ideas, Alex!"
"I"m just saying that Hunt's going to have to use one of those house arrest ankle bracelets to keep her out of the hospital for six weeks."
"She'll change her mind," Callie said with a grin. "About the maternity leave. Once he gets here, she's going to understand. Arizona and I weren't planning to use all of our leave, but once we met Gracie, neither of us wanted to be away from her for too long. Even someone like Cristina will understand." Being parents, they all nodded in agreement.
"She is excited about the baby." Meredith sat down on a nearby bench. "She may not show it all the time, but she really can't wait. It is a good thing they're having a boy, though. Can you imagine Cristina having to deal with all the pink and lace and girly stuff."
"Caleb's glad that they're having a boy, too. He says 'no more girls.'" Everyone laughed, as they could totally imagine the child saying that.
"He seems fine with Gracie," Callie responded with a smirk.
"Yeah, do me a favor and don't mention that to Iz. The idea of her baby having a crush on anyone freaks her out a little bit. He's growing up too fast for her taste."
"Alex!" He turned to look at his wife when he heard her call his name across the yard. "The food ready yet? Our stomachs are growling over here."
"Yep, just finished. Come and get it." A wave of kids headed toward the deck where the food was set up. Soon the grown ups had them all seated around the tables and helped themselves to the food that was left.
Alex walked up next to Izzie, who was talking to Derek. "Here you go." He handed her a paper cup full of punch.
"Thanks." She pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "So how is Liza doing full time?"
Derek rolled his eyes. "You trained her well, I'll say that. She does the job, but I swear, the woman never stops talking. She's twenty seven years old, but has the vocabulary of, like, a fourteen year old." Izzie and Alex laughed at his impression, knowing it was the truth. "I know it's important for you to stay home, Izzie, but the second you decide you want to come back to work, call me."
"Oh, that won't be for a while." A huge smile covered her face. "I love being at home with Caleb. I've only got two more years before he starts kindergarten and I want to spend as much time with him as possible before that. And we'll have another one that needs watching in about nine months."
"Iz ... " Alex said as he placed his hand on her back. He wanted to say more, but she clearly knew that his words would be a warning not to get her hopes up. They'd been like this the entire two weeks since the procedure. The tension in their house had been enough to drive both of them a little bit insane. He knew she didn't want to hear it. This time she didn't let him say anymore.
"Alex, I know you don't want me to get my hopes up this time. But it worked. I can feel it. We've got the appointment with Dr. Campbell on Monday and she'll confirm it." She kissed his cheek again and walked over to where Caleb, donning his engineer's hat, was sitting between Gracie and Georgia eating.
Derek watched silently, clearly a little bit uncomfortable about witnessing such a private conversation. Alex saw the sympathy in the older man's eyes and looked away. He felt Derek's hand on his shoulder. "Maybe she's right. Maybe it worked."
"I hope so. If not, I just ... I'm not sure how to help her."
"You'll figure it out. There's no one on this planet who knows Izzie better than you do. You spend time with her, let her know that you're there and you'll both get through it together."
He nodded, knowing that what the older man was saying was the truth. "Yeah."
Next Chapter: Pregnant? Not Pregnant? Find out in Chapter 3...
So that's Chapter 2 … Please REVIEW and let me know what you think!
