Author's Notes: Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU all for your sweet comments! I really appreciate the encouragement! I haven't written anything in several years, so I was really nervous about posting this. I hope not to disappoint you guys from here on out. This chapter is kinda short compared to what's to come. I will try to update again later this week.

Again, you guys rock!

Disclaimer: If I owned anything associated with Grey's Anatomy I wouldn't be living off of Ramen noodles in order to afford the water pump my car needs. Just sayin'

*******CHAPTER 2********

For the rest of the night Jo tried to busy herself with different tasks throughout the hospital. Dr. Robbins had long told her to go home, but Jo couldn't find the strength to face any questions that might arise by her refusal to leave. Besides Dr. Robbins looked like she was barely holding herself upright. Jo liked the peds attending and didn't want to give Dr. Robbins any reason to not like her. And Jo was pretty confident that if anyone knew the reason why she needed to stay at the hospital they would think less of her.

Jo leaned against the nurses station trying to look as if she was reading the patient chart in front of her, but her mind was acting as a time machine traveling through her past. Jo ruefully thought about the few people in her life that had been able to look past her scars and rough edges and actually be able to stomach the reality of who she was. Jason had caught a glimpse of where she had come from and what had become of that? She was a tornado destroying everyone that attempted to care.

Her musings quickly focused in on Alex. She couldn't quite figure him out. Sure he had been through hellish circumstances too so he understood her on a level that no one else in her life had even come close to. But she still could not figure out why he made such an effort. He knew she had injured her boyfriend to the point he needed brain surgery and within twenty-four hours she was physically pushing him during a heated argument. And still Alex had supported her, comforted her, and then expressed his love for her.

The whole thing baffled her.

Jo decided to ask the nurses if there was something she could do to distract herself. Surely there was a supply closet somewhere that needed cleaning.

"Jo, I thought you had gone home a couple of hours ago," exclaimed Stephanie as she came up from behind. Jo slowly turned to face her friend and her eyes quickly zoned in on Stephanie's scrub cap that appeared to have fresh sweat.

"I thought you were still in the NICU, you've been in surgery?!" Jo became jealous that she missed out of surgery while killing time volunteering to run labs and completing post op notes.

"Yeah Dr. Karev had a couple of trauma cases from the storm and pulled me in."

"Oh. That's good." Jo was unable to form any other kind of response. Alex knew she was waiting for him and they work well together in surgery. Why in the world would he not page her but page Steph?

"Does it hurt?"

Jo eyes jerked back to Stephanie's with a quizzical look on her face. "Does what hurt?" Jo responded obviously dumbfounded that Stephanie could read her thoughts that easily.

"Ummm what else? The shiner you've been sporting for two days." Jo mindlessly fingered her eye and then her lip. Her mind drifted to the last time she focused attention on her lip. She could feel a smile start to form, but pushed the thoughts aside. The last thing she needed was for her friend to think she was happy about the ways things unfolded with Jason.

"It's really not that bad," Jo assured her friend. Lord knows I've certainly had worse she bitterly thought.

"Was this the first time?" Stephanie's voice had dropped to such a low whisper Jo had to strain to hear her. Concern and horror were written all over her friend's face. Maybe she had underestimated her friend. The night she and Jason had fought her immediate reaction was to turn to Alex. Jo had briefly thought about calling Steph, but felt her friend would be disappointed in her. Steph had made no secret of her giddiness regarding Jo's relationship with Jason and how she felt they were perfect for each other. Jo was also worried that she would scare her friend with the amount of force she could use against someone if needed. She knew Alex would understand that part of her personality.

"It was the first time it got this bad. There were signs I should have picked up on, but I...I wanted to believe I was just blowing things out of proportion or misinterpreting things. He was just so...at least he seemed to be so perfect I...I didn't want to throw that away on a gut feeling that might not be accurate."

Stephanie paused and seemed to be pondering what she had been told. "I guess me going on and on about how perfect y'all were didn't help that did it?"

"Don't you dare blame yourself for any of this!" Jo exploded. "I can take a lot of crap, but I can't take you feeling bad about how you were happy for me when my life was going well!"

"Okay, okay." Steph said while motioning for Jo to lower her voice. Jo looked around to notice several nurses and a respiratory therapist staring at them. Great.

"Wilson, Edwards,try to leave the girl talk in the locker room. Edwards how is 6215's blood count?" Jo stared at Alex trying to read his thoughts. How much had he heard? And why would he not look her way? Great, life gets more and more complicated by the minute. Just great.

Alex spit out some instructions for Steph, who scurried behind the desk to use the phone at the nurse's desk. "Wilson, are you okay? Do you need me to find you a ride?" And still he doesn't look at her directly. Jo studied the gorgeous face that was studying the electronic tablet in front of him. She tried to figure out of she dreamed his declaration of love and that phenomenal kiss or if she was dreaming now. Surely both weren't reality.

"I'm fine," Jo growled through gritted teeth.

Alex then glanced at her and smirked. "Then you can run 6207's labs and check his chest tube?"

"Fine."

Alex tossed a clipped "good" over his shoulder as he walked away. Jo couldn't decide if she wanted to cry or scream. Maybe both. Why not? Most of the hospital probably thought she should be on the psych ward anyway.

"I'm sorry about that, I shouldn't have brought this up at work." Steph seemed really troubled by how everyone had reacted. Jo quickly tried to reassure her that things were okay as they walked down to their patients' rooms.

"Do you need a place to stay? You're welcome to stay as long as you need." Jo was about to explain that she was staying with Alex, but thought it might be better to take Steph up on her offer. It probably wasnt the best idea to start whatever they were doing living under the same roof no matter how briefly that arrangement lasted. Only a few hours had passed since their first kiss and things are already tense between them. What the hell was up with him?

"Can I get back to you on that?" Jo asked as she started to walk backwards heading back in the direction she came from. As soon as Stephanie assured her she could, Jo started to jog down the corridor.

She had to find Alex.