a/n: i so do not need another fic to write. i don't need this distracting me, i'm having issues writing already. but because i love you all and because i love this fic i'm going to continue against my better judgement.

disclaimer: for my entertainment and yours but in no way mine.

and i know i do the text thing a lot, or at least i think i do, but it's cute in a totally corny/cheesy way.

Addison was waiting for Alex to return with her dinner when her phone buzzed signaling a text message. She looked at her phone and saw that it was a number she didn't recognize.

555-4930: A, chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry? –Alex

She smiled, saved his number, and wondered how he got her number.

Addison: Chocolate, definitely. Allergic to strawberries. Why? What are you up to?

Alex: None of your business. You'll see.

Addison: Why won't you tell me?

Alex: Because it's a surprise.

Addison: Please?

Alex: No

Addison: Pretty please?

Alex: No. I'm not going to text you anymore.

Addison: why won't you tell me??

Addison: Alex?

Addison: Alex??

She was about to send another text when her phone started singing Norah Jones' song, "Sunrise". "Hello?"

"Hey Addi?" Alex's voice came through the speaker.

"Yeah?"

"Stop sending me text messages." He sounded serious but Addison could hear that he was trying not to smile.

"Fine," she huffed. "I'm bored."

"I'll be back soon, watch some TV or something."

"There's nothing on," she whined.

"I'm getting in the car; I'll be back in like ten minutes. Surely you can find something to do for ten minutes. God, I didn't think you were that needy."

He was teasing her but it struck a nerve and she became determined to show him that she was not needy. So she watched Oprah, a show she had never particularly loved, to everyone's amazement. She apparently seemed like an Oprah kind of person, but she wasn't. Too sappy.

True to his word, Alex was back in ten minutes on the dot. "Punctual," she commented as he walked into her room.

"Not usually. For you, I am."

"Cute. Food?" she asked greedily, looking at the plastic bag he held in his hands.

"One burger," he said, pulling the food from the bag with a flourish, "some fries, a diet Coke, and for desert, one chocolate milkshake."

Her eyes lit up as suddenly the cryptic text message made sense. "I haven't a milkshake since I was fifteen!"

He grinned, happy that he was the one to make her light up like that. "Fifteen? Seriously?"

"Seriously. Is that the most depressing thing you've ever heard?"

"No the most depressing thing I've ever heard is that Shepherd would want to divorce you," he replied. A look of discomfort passed across her face and he wanted to make her smile again so he added, "Whatever. His loss is my gain."

She flashed him a quick smile and dug into her burger, determined to avoid any and all awkwardness. Alex sat down on the foot of her bed and ate off of his lap. Five minutes later, when her burger was gone, she looked up. "Tell me something about you. You've heard a lot about me, thanks to this God forsaken hospital, but I don't know anything about you."

"You've got ketchup on your face," Alex told her.

She ran her tongue over her lips, trying to get rid of the ketchup. "Did I get it?"

"No." He leaned over and ran his finger along the outside of her top lip then along her bottom lip. "Got it."

"Thank you. Now back to my question."

"Persistent, aren't you? Are you going to eat all your fries?"

"Yes. You are officially avoiding the question; you have now changed the subject twice."

"Maybe I am."

"Why can't you tell me anything about yourself? Come on, just start with something easy. Where did you go to college?"

"Iowa."

"Iowa? Seriously? Iowa? Why Iowa? Why not Wisconsin? Or Wyoming? Or any other random state?"

"Because Iowa gave me a scholarship for wrestling."

"You wrestle?"

"I do."

"Okay, I can see that. Umm… what's your family like?"

"Not something I love to talk about."

"Okay, note to self, don't ask about Alex's family. Got it. Friends?"

"Meredith, Izzie, although it's still a little weird, I suppose Bambi and Yang, but I don't really like them all that much. You're really giving up that easily on the family thing?"

"So your fellow interns. That makes sense. And I am giving up that easily, you didn't see the look on your face when I asked you about your family, but I did and I'm staying away from the topic for now. You can tell me on our second or third date."

"So you're saying there's going to be a second and third date?"

"If you're on your best behavior you might even get a fourth," she answered.

Alex grinned. "Chief's going to hate us both," he pointed out.

"So? I can take it. Can you?"

"For you? Yes."

"I can see why I told you to stop being so perfect," Addison commented, taking a sip of her milkshake. "Oh my God, this is the best thing I've ever tasted! Where did you get this?"

"It's this ice cream shop, about three miles from here, called Burr's. They have the best ice cream ever. I only get ice cream from there."

"It's heaven in a cup!"

"Like it that much, do you? I'll take you there when you're out of the hospital if you want," Alex offered when Addison nodded.

"Yes please."

They finished their dinners in an un-awkward silence, the kind that only occurs when you're really comfortable with someone. "I should probably go," Alex finally broke the silence.

"Visiting hours are way over," Addison agreed.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Alex said, giving her a peck on the lips.

"One more," Addison begged. So he kissed her again, a slow, but passionate kiss. "Okay, you can go now," Addison dismissed him casually.

"Bye."

GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA

It had been a week. Addison was still in the hospital, but not for long. Her room was filled with flowers and stuffed animals and other various get well soon items from interns wanting to get ahead, hoping the sympathy thing would help them, and nurses, who delivered the gifts themselves, hoping to get some good gossip out of the ex-She-Shepherd.

The gifts were all pretty extravagant, trying to appeal to the sophisticated, New York girl in her, no doubt, but her favorite by far was a tattered teddy bear. She smiled, remembering exactly who gave it to her and why they had.

--------

She was sitting in bed the day after her and Alex's first date. She hadn't seen anyone except nurses this morning since rounds and she was bored. She was giving up hope that anyone remembered she was even admitted when Alex walked in carrying a beaten up teddy bear. "What's that?" she had asked.

"He used to be my favorite stuffed animal when I was little," Alex explained, "I used to think he had magic powers that would make me feel better. This was when I was five, mind you. Anyways, I thought you could use it more than me."

"He's so cute!" Addison squealed taking and inspecting the teddy bear. "He's missing an eye."

"Yeah, I think he lost that during one of our many games of Space Ranger," Alex laughed sheepishly.

"That is so cute. You played with stuffed animals?"

"I was five! Just take the damn bear and say thanks."

"Thanks," she replied. She hugged the bear again, "See, this is why I keep you around."

"I thought you kept me around because you like me."

"Well, that too, I suppose."

--------

"This was at the nurse's station for you," Olivia snapped her out of her daydream, holding a tub of chocolate ice cream. The carton said 'Burr's'. "No card or anything. The lid just says to give it to you before it melts."

"Can I have that please? Is there a spoon?" Olivia handed her the carton and a spoon. "Thank you," Addison replied before digging in to the ice cream and discovering that not only was it chocolate, it had bits of brownie in it. "Oh my God," she told the teddy bear when Olivia left, "Best ice cream ever."

"I had a feeling you'd like it," Alex said from the doorway.

"Like I said, best ice cream ever." She continued to eat as he made his way into the room and sat down in the chair beside her bed. "You keep spoiling me like this and I'm going to be very fat by the time I get out the hospital."

"Don't worry; throwing up the garbage the hospital feeds you will keep you thin enough. Really, I'm doing you a favor, giving you some digestible food. How's your day been?" he asked.

"Boring. You're the first person to come see me except for nurses. You?"

"It's been okay."

"Well, isn't this cozy? Mind if I join?" Mark smirked holding a plastic container of chocolate covered strawberries. Addison grimaced at the sight of them.

"I suppose," she sighed.

"For you." He handed her the container, which she quickly set on the table next to her bed. "What don't like them?"

"Dude, she's allergic to strawberries," Alex said as if everyone should know that.

"Wait, I told you that?" Addison asked.

"Yeah, when I texted you about the milkshake. I asked if you wanted chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry and you said chocolate and that you were allergic to strawberries."

"You remembered that?" Addison looked shocked but pleased. "I didn't remember that!"

"Well, as cute as you two are, Mr. and Mrs. Brady, you disgust me. I will see you later, and Karev, don't forget to pick up my dry cleaning. It'll be ready at four," he spat, angry that his gift had been rejected and that he was being rejected for a cocky intern. Mark Sloane got what he wanted. Period. End of sentence. And he wanted Addison. The fact that he would take her from that… that intern, well, that was just an added bonus. He stormed off, a plan already forming in his head.

"He was pissed," Alex remarked when he was gone.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Addison teased him. "He's just mad because you made him look stupid. And you can have the strawberries."

"Chocolate covered strawberries from Sloane?" Alex shuddered, "I think I'll give them to Izzie or Meredith or something."

Addison laughed. "He's never been a great gift giver."

"My mom's horrible at giving gifts. I get a sweater for Christmas each year. A horrible eye sore of a sweater with reindeer and Santas. Once she gave me one with a giant Rudolph with a light up nose," he confided. This was how he was telling her about his family; he'd reveal a small detail about his mom or his sister. He never talked about his father Addison noticed, but she was fine with that. She figured he'd tell her when he was ready.

"But you didn't inherit that trait, you give great gifts," she pointed out, hugging his old teddy bear. "I never asked, does the bear have a name? I've been calling him 'Bear', but if that's not his name I don't want to call him that."

"He actually goes by Teddy. Teddy Roosevelt is his full name."

"You named your bear after a dead president? At five?" Addison looked at him skeptically.

"My mom told me that the teddy bear was named after Teddy Roosevelt and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. So I decided to name the bear after the president. In my five year old mind, it made sense. Kind of sent the whole thing full circle or something. Anyways, the name stuck."

"Teddy it is," Addison agreed. "Do I get to keep Teddy or is Teddy on loan?"

"You can keep Teddy; I certainly don't need him anymore."

"But he's yours."

"Uh-uh. Keep him, he's yours now."

"I feel bad about taking him." She thought for a moment. "How about joint custody?"

"What? You have him for a week and then I get him for a week? Addison, it's a teddy bear."

"I know that. How about I keep him and you can come to my place and see him whenever you want?"

"That works. Look, I gotta go, after today Sloane will nail my ass if I don't get him his cappuccino and dry cleaning."

"Fine, go. Don't get your ass nailed, I kind of like it."

"I'll try, babe," he said, leaning down to kiss her on the forehead. "I'll come back after my shift."

"I'm holding you to that."

"I'll be here," he promised. "I have to go now."

Addison said goodbye and made Teddy wave, making Alex laugh. It was then that she realized that for the first time in years she was really, truly happy.

fyi, burr's is an ice cream parlor here in california that really does have the best ice cream ever. i just relocated it to seattle.

reviews?

-Lauren