I'd like to thank you guys for the reviews, it's so nice to know there are people enjoying it here... makes me freakin' happy. Thank you all. xoxo

an: I have to tell you this: I am a huge Slexie shipper. Almost as much as I am a MerDer and CAlzona shipper. I'm helpless. But this story here? It's about all the support I'd like to see on the show, because they're all so compassionate and suportive but they also can't seem to reach some of the "strays" with it. There it is, I'm writing this because a) I miss the show like hell and can't wait for SP7 and b) I'd sooo love to see some Derek/Mark and Meredith/Cristina/Lexie interaction. I'd even put Izzie along but she's not there anymore so... enough of me babbling, on with the story!


A month passed by and Meredith kept her word on watching over her sister. She managed to end her shifts the same time as Lexie's almost every day and when she couldn't she would trust Cristina to keep an eye on her. Yang still felt uncomfortable around this newfound sisterhood but as far as she was concerned Three would not see trouble in any color or shape. She stuffed the intern with work until she had no energy left. Then she would use some excuse like having to leave something at Meredith's to drop her home.

Today was different though. Meredith was stuck in surgery for almost 12 hours and Cristina had to scrub in with Teddy to tend to a GSW. Lexie managed to finish the last rounds and updated the respective charts. Now she was at the intern's locker room, looking at her feet and trying to gather some energy to change and drag herself home. Actually she enjoyed being this tired, it usually meant that she would be out as soon as her head hit the pillow.

In her sleep she wouldn't think about how she wasted the one good thing she had away by being stupid. She wouldn't be looking for ways of numbing the searing pain she felt every time she thought back. She was on one huge bad-finger phase, as if anything she'd do would just screw everything up. So, sleep was the best thing to do.

She lifted herself from the bench and changed, folding her uniform carefully and closing her locker. Stretching her neck one last time, she left the dark room to the relatively empty hall. She was almost happy to be going home alone for a change but someone up there wouldn't just leave her be. Her eyes caught a glimpse of Teddy Altman's blonde hair being removed from her back so Mark's large (and as she remembered so well, warm) hands could massage her shoulders and neck. They were at the nurse's station and obviously wouldn't notice her passing by but Cristina did. She walked intently in her direction, purse and coat already on.

"Let's go, Three, I have to pass by Mere's to get my bad ass leather jacket back." - Cristina practically dragged Lexie out, not even looking back.

"Doctor Yang..." - Lexie tried to whisk herself off Cristina's hands, to no avail.

"Come on, it's freezing, let's get in the car already!"

"Doctor Yang... Cristina!" - Lexie stopped on her tracks - "I appreciate the offer but if you don't mind I'd really like to go home by myself today."

Yang eyed her suspiciously for a moment, until she decided that being alone wasn't something her intern was going to get tonight.

"I do mind, get in the car." - Cristina took her arm again.

"Hey... HEY!" - Lexie yelled indignantly - "What do you think you're doing?"

Cristina stared at her annoyed - "I'm taking you home."

"I was going home already, you didn't have to drag me, you know?"

"Actually I do." - Cristina countered - "You're going straight home. No tequila for you. No bars. No sulking. Period."

"What... why? Seriously? I was going home, to sleep!"

"Seriously?" - Yang finally looked at her, exasperated - "I saw Sloan and Teddy back there and I know you saw it too. You must be pathetically hurting about it right now and people like you usually feast on tequila and self-pity about things like this."

"Come on, do you think I really need this? You, telling me how pathetic I am? I already know that! But I also know right from wrong and I was not going to get stoned about anything, dammit! Now can you please leave me to go home alone, by myself, so I can be a normal person just for today?"

Cristina was about to just drag her to the car when she saw Mark approaching them.

"Yang. Grey." - he studied them both, taking on their tension and exasperated faces - "Everything alright here?"

"Yes. We're off. Come on, Grey." - Cristina just wanted this day to be over already.

Mark narrowed his eyes at this. Lexie had this passive-aggressive look on her face - the one he knew so well - and it told him she was being dragged around. He didn't like it a bit.

"Lexie?" - He would at least try to offer her an out.

Cristina rolled her eyes at his attempt.

"Back off, Sloan. Three here? She's grounded. I'm responsible for getting her home in one piece tonight and I'm doing it now."

"Grounded.. as in...?"

"Grounded. You've heard me. Now back off, we're leaving." - Cristina took Lexie's arm and actually took off this time, leaving a very stunned Mark behind.

Lexie just buckled her seatbelt and kept to herself. If she was lucky they would make it quickly and she would be asleep on her bed soon enough. She stole a glance at Cristina, still mortified about being told by her in front of Mark. A very annoyed Cristina turned to her.

"Stop sulking, Three. You'll get rid of me in no time." - She rolled her eyes in annoyance - "Jeez!"

"You didn't have to humiliate me like that you know?"

"I didn't. You're seriously grounded by your sister, who happens to be my person. And if my person says I'm to keep you from being stupid and pathetic then that's what I'm doing."

Lexie sighed. It was useless anyway.

Derek and Meredith were just leaving the hospital when they spotted Mark standing in the middle of the parking lot. It seemed off because he should be gone for a while now, his last surgery being finished long before theirs. He turned as they walked to him.

"Hey Mark. Thought you'd be off long ago..." - Derek watched as his friend took both hands on his pockets.

"I was..." - Mark looked at the couple in front of him, Meredith's watchful eyes never leaving his - "I know it's none of my business, not anymore, but... what's with Little Grey being 'grounded'? Is it a code for something wicked or... is she stitching herself again?"

Meredith felt trapped. She didn't want to discuss her sister with Mark at all. She was getting along fine with the big sister role but not as far as talking to her sister's ex about it. Derek felt her tension and immediately stepped in.

"Why don't you go ahead..." - He whispered at her - "... and we meet home? I've got this."

Derek gave her a peck on the lips and they parted. Then he turned to Mark, who still had this concerned look in his face.

"You up for a drink?" - Derek offered - "I can tell you things and I'm sure you're dying to know but I need to do it over scotch."

Mark nodded. Derek was right as always. He was indeed dying to know about Lexie, how she was really coping and everything. Every time they talked it was brief, mostly on professional ground. They almost had a shot of personal conversation once when he caught her sitting with his daughter after her last appointment. They were talking friendly, Sloane's eyes shining as she seemed to tell something really exciting while Lexie smiled warmly at her. When she left the exam room they met and talked briefly. She said Sloane was so happy about the possibility of college and he had to ruin the good conversation starter by asking her how she could now be friends with his daughter when she couldn't stand the girl before. Way to go, Mark, thumbs up.

Mark was still battering himself mentally when they entered Joe's. Derek walked by him without a word. They took a seat and Joe poured them 'the usual' almost immediately.

"Is it good or bad?" - Mark asked absently.

"What?"

"When you're served your usual drink without even having to ask?"

Derek shook his head, smiling.

"It depends. Maybe we've been drinking too much. Maybe Joe just knows us too well."

Mark shrugged. He wanted to know everything Derek had to tell about Lexie but he felt wrong about it. He had no right.

"Mark?" - Derek looked at his friend - "You're making that face."

"What face?"

"The one you make when you're beating yourself up over something you're not supposed to." - Derek watched as Mark lifted his eyes from the glass - "What's on your mind?"

"I'm... what's happening to Lexie?"

Derek let out a small laugh. Those two were a number, really.

"Well you know already. She's grounded."

"What is it that you all decided to treat her like a damn child? Yang has just dragged her home, for God's sake..." - Mark's jaws set when Derek chuckled - "It's not funny, not at all!"

"Well..." - Derek tried to stifle a laugh - "it kinda is. You see, Meredith's finally being a sister. I know she's being a little too much but I also think Lexie needs it right now."

"She needs what? Meredith and Cristina dragging her home or whatever else?"

"They care, Mark. They're not good at this caring thing but they do, and that's how they're taking care of her." - Derek could see Mark wasn't buying it and decided to be more specific - "She's been drinking. A lot. And doing some pretty stupid things too."

"Drinking a lot. Well, we both drink a lot, I don't really see a problem here."

"Mark. There was a lot of drinking. Like self destructive enormous amount of drinking." - Derek stated, now very serious - "Every night. I've had to pick her here, completely wasted, more times than I can count. And so has Meredith. She was miserable and I can't even imagine how she managed to function properly at work."

"I thought she was doing fine... I mean, at work." - Mark turned to Derek, concern all over his face - "But what about now? Is she doing better?"

"No more drinking, that much I can guarantee. But she's not over you if that's what you wanna know." - Derek took a sip of his glass - "Neither are you."

"I have too much going on right now, besides, I'll be just fine. It's not the first time I'm turned down." - Mark gave a half-hearted smile. Joe poured him another shot.

"Mark, you're not ok. She's not ok either. Why won't you just talk to her already? I'm pretty sure she'd hear you out and maybe you could put it all behind and start over?" - Derek tried once again to put some sense into his friend's head.

"She's the one who left me, how many times do I have to repeat myself? Derek?" - Mark let out an exasperated sigh - "I don't really expect you to understand this but it hurt so fucking much when she left me exactly when I finally found it in me to be a father, a grandfather, and I needed her so fucking much, I wanted to do it with her! It hurts me to no end Derek, and I can't even blame her for leaving me, she's just too damn young to bear this thing!"

Derek just stared at his friend surprised at his outburst. He had this conversation with him before but that was the first time Mark admitted how hurt he was that Lexie stepped out of their relationship just when he needed her the most. Hell that was the first time he admitted he needed her altogether.

"Besides, she slept with Karev." – Mark collected himself quickly as he downed almost all of his drink at once.

"Now that's something…" – Derek shook his head in annoyance – "…you know, you guys cancelled each other. You slept with Addison in LA. More than once and you know how I know that."

"She also slept with Karev more than once. They're a freaking couple as far as I know." – Mark retorted.

"You're sleeping with doctor Altman for a while too." – Derek watched as Joe poured Mark another one and shoot him a tired look – "She thinks you've moved on so she feels like she has to do the same."

Mark narrowed his eyes at Derek.

"Have you talked to Lexie, I mean, really talked to her? Because if you did…" – Mark made an awkward face at his friend – "This is totally weird. You're not supposed to have heart talks with Little Grey. You already have your Grey. Big Grey, that's yours."

"And the little one is yours, blah blah, I know. " – Derek laughed – "I didn't have a heart talk with Lexie. She's not much of a talker when it comes to me."

"She talked to me. About everything." - Mark looked through his now empty glass – "We shared a lot of things. She's a talker… but she's a really good listener, you know? She's good at hearing people out and making them feel ok to go and get through things…"

Another new development to Derek: Mark never talked about how things really were with Lexie. It was as if since Derek and Meredith didn't want him anywhere near Lexie at first, he would never share anything about their relationship with him. So, they made up later but Derek never heard anything about them from Mark. That night was a first. Plus, Mark was becoming clearly drunk at his fourth shot. Kind of early for his standards, by the way.

"She's a sweet and very caring person." – Derek mused – "And you should suck it up and just talk to her. You clearly want her back, so does she."

"It's not that simple."

"Care to tell me why? Your daughter has decided to give her baby for adoption. She's going to college as soon as she's ok again. To me it means no grandkid to scare Little Grey's pants off. The only thing left would be if she didn't get along with Sloane, which I know it's not…"

"They've never got along… there was always a fight." – Mark retorted – "There was always something Sloane did or didn't, their relationship sucked."

"She was always telling on your daughter because she cared. She wouldn't give a damn if Sloane burnt the apartment or never ever thought about studying or being something else than a pretty face out there if she didn't care." – Derek felt like he had to explain every single thing but no one listened.

"They get along now. How ironic it is?" – Mark snorted – "Now that she has nothing to do with anything she decided to be friends with my kid. And I'm so stupid I couldn't even appreciate this."

"How's that?" – Derek curiosity took over.

"They were talking the other day." – Mark gulped the last of his drink and signaled for Joe to pour him another one – "Sloane had her first third trimester US. I was going in to the exam room when I saw them there, talking. They were happy, comfortable with each other. And when Lexie left the room we talked a bit outside. That was the first time we talked about something that hadn't procedures and medical topics involved. And I screwed up by questioning why she was now friends with my daughter."

"Well that's harsh."

"Tell me about it. Now how do you think I'll ever be able to have this woman back in my life, if all I do is push her away?"

Derek looked at him puzzled. Normally he wouldn't dare to meddle with Mark's relationships, they used to keep their stuff away from each other but maybe this time he would make an exception.

"I don't have all the answers, but I can tell you, it's gonna be okay." – Derek stood and left some dollars for the drinks, taking his friend by the arm – "And we're out, it's enough for today. Come on."

"What are you doing, are you grounding me or something?"

"No, stupid, I'm just giving you a ride. It's either me or a cab."


So I've decided to make it a little longer. I'd like to thank you guys for reading this and encouraging me to keep going with the story. I don't really know where this might end up (what can I do, the story goes after its title...) but that's how I usually write things, I just like to let it flow and hope for the best. I'm happy to see that there's people enjoying this and I'll try and keep up. Thank you again!