First of all I'd like to explain the confusing situation about who is this story about. The thing is, that first I labelled it Cristina/Jackson/Owen to give it some mystery about who will Cristina be with, but after some people started to ask for more Owen, I decided to label it only Cristina/Jackson. However, something happened and the story started to show up as Cristina/Owen and I haven't noticed it for a couple of days. So just to be clear, this is a Cristina/Jackson story, but for those of you who want more Owen, he will definitely show up again.
Also to the hateful anons sending me reviews, please don't forget this is an AU story. What means that the history of the characters is different and it affects their personalities. If you don't like it, don't read it.
To other people who sent me nice reviews, I'm really happy you like this story :)
"So? How was it? I wanna hear details." Meredith started to bombard her friend with questions the moment she entered the building of Seattle's Metropolitan Magazine.
"Mer, can I at least get my morning cup of coffee before you start to ask me so many questions? I've not totally woken up yet."
"Sorry." Meredith looked at her apologetically. "But what did you expect when you told me you made out with him and then hung up on me a couple of seconds later? I need to hear everything." She stressed the last word, letting Cristina know that she was impatiently waiting for all the juicy details about her date.
"Okay, okay. I'll tell you." Cristina raised her hands, telling Meredith that she was giving up and was willing to tell her everything. "Just give me a minute to wake up. Okay?" They walked to the kitchenette, both grabbing a cup of coffee and sitting on chairs opposite each other. "So what do you wanna know?" Cristina sighed after a few minutes when she couldn't bear Meredith's curious staring any longer.
"What happened? Did you get into his apartment and he immediately pushed you against the door, kissing until you were both breathless and sweaty? Or was he a gentleman and offered you something to drink before you started making out?" she finally let out all the questions that have been bothering her since the previous evening.
Cristina burst into laugh as she listened to Meredith's theory. "Mer, I guess you watch TV too much. It was nothing like that," she started to explain and a big happy smile appeared on her lips, as she remembered the previous evening. "I came to his apartment and yes, he did offer me a drink, but we just talked. He told me something about his past, I told him something about mine and then he began to show me his paintings." Her eyes lit up when she mentioned his paintings. "You really should see his work. It's... amazing. Those portraits and even the abstract paintings. You know I'm not the biggest fan of..."
"Okay, I believe you. He's a great painter. Awesome. But when did you start making out?" Meredith interrupted her impatiently. Since Cristina couldn't babysit for her the previous night, Meredith and Derek got stuck at home, watching some old boring movies and falling asleep really early. So now Meredith wanted to know that at least Cristina had an interesting evening and that it was worth the trade.
"Don't be so impatient. I'm getting to it." Cristina rolled her eyes, but laughed and then continued. "So he showed me his paintings and then we were just staring at each other when suddenly he asked me if he could kiss me. And honestly, I couldn't resist. So that's it." She shrugged and sipped from her coffee, waiting for Meredith to ask her another question.
"That's it? Where are the details?" Meredith asked, throwing her arms in the air impatiently. She felt like a teenager who waited for her friend to share every little detail about her date. "Was it good or is he that kind of guy whose saliva you get all over your face? Because that's gross." She scrunched her nose up in disgust and Cristina laughed.
"No, nothing like that." She shook her head. "It was almost perfect. I mean... We bumped our noses at first, but then it was awesome." She sighed with a stupid grin on her face. Cristina wasn't used to talking about her dates like this. Especially because most of the time they ended up in a fisaco. But since the time she left Jackson's apartment she felt surprisingly happy. And she had no problem sharing all the details with Meredith. "At least until my phone started to ring and ruined the atmosphere," she added sarcastically, glaring at Meredith.
"Sorry," Meredith whispered, feeling a little guilty. "But I was worried about you. He could've kidnapped you, raped you or killed you."
"Yeah, but he didn't." Cristina shrugged her shoulders, not knowing why Meredith was suddenly so overprotective.
"Well, luckily for you."
"Mer, I know you want to protect me, but I don't need that anymore. Jackson is a good guy. He won't hurt me."
"You thought that about Burke too," Meredith said with a concerned face as she remembered Cristina's previous boyfriend. Even though she never met him, she knew their relationship ended up in a fiasco and made Cristina not trust people so easily. That was also the reason why she was so surprised about how quickly Cristina started to trust Jackson.
"I was stupid. Now I can tell if someone tries to screw me over. And Jackson doesn't seem to be that kind of guy," she announced with confidence in her voice. But in fact, she wasn't confident about it at all. She really wanted to believe that Jackson was a good guy. That he wouldn't hurt her. But at the same time she felt enormous fear of another man breaking her heart. Because she didn't know if she could take it again.
"I hope you're right." Meredith tried to smile, even though she saw a little bit of insecurity in Cristina's eyes. "And if he hurts you, I'll kick his ass."
"I bet you will."
"I haven't seen you all week. So, how was the family reunion with Lexie this weekend?" Jackson asked casually, during one of his regular workouts with his best friend, Mark. He and Mark used to meet twice a week in a gym, gossiping a little, while working on their already flawless bodies. Mark's girlfriend Lexie always laughed, it was just a man's version of sitting in a hair salon. None of them dared to contradict, because they knew she was right.
"It was... Good. Surprisingly good," Mark admitted with a slight smile, while lifting some weights. "Lexie was really nervous at first, because I only met her sisters and father before, but the rest of her family seemed to accept me quite well."
"You used the Sloan charm, huh?" Jackson laughed.
"I think I should teach you how to do it. That way you might actually get a date." Mark grinned at his friend, lifting some weights as they talked.
"I know it might surprise you, but I had a date yesterday," he announced proudly. Mark always teased him, because he couldn't get a girlfriend. But the fact was that Jackson was just really picky. With his bright eyes and shiny smile, he could get tons of pretty girls. He wouldn't even have to try that hard. However, beauty wasn't all that Jackson required. Actually, it wasn't even in the first placeon his 'list'. An ideal girlfriend for Jackson had to be smart, funny and confident. But most importantly, he had to see some sort of sparkle between them. And that was definitely something, he saw with Cristina.
"Oh, really?" Mark looked at him surprised. He knew how picky Jackson could be, when it came to choosing a girlfriend. But he completely understood him. A few years back, Mark didn't need much from women to interest him. Sexy body, pretty face or just a need to have some fun with him was all he required. After he met Lexie, his demands on women raised unexpectedly. She was all he ever dreamed about and he knew it would be hard to find someone like that. But since they were incredibly happy together, he didn't have to care about that. "So who is this girl? Does she accomplish all your needs?" He asked with chuckle.
"Actually, yes." Jackson nodded and put the dumbbells he was holding down, before remembering his date with Cristina. "Her name is Cristina Yang and she is... Amazing," he said and a wide smile appeared on his lips. "She's pretty. And funny. But not in a silly kind of way. She seems to be very smart too. And she has the best curly hair I've ever seen." He laughed a little after the last sentence, but it was true.
"Cristina Yang?" Mark asked, thinking why that name felt so familiar to him. He was a lawyer so he knew a lot of people and heard a lot of names, but this was different. "Why does that name feel so familiar?"
"Well, she is a popular photographer here in Seattle. She had her first exhibition this Saturday. That's where I met her," Jackson explained.
"Oh, wait. Cristina Yang? A photographer? Are you talking about a petite Asian girl with a head full of ebony curls?"
"Yeah, that's how I would describe her. Do you know her? Oh, God, I hope you didn't sleep with her." Jackson looked at him horrified, hoping he wasn't right.
"What? No!" Mark exclaimed, shaking his head. "I just realized I know her. She works for the same magazine like Lexie, doesn't she?"
"She mentioned something about working for a magazine, but I don't think she told me which one," Jackson said, trying to remember if Cristina mentioned any name. "Wait!" he shouted out when he remembered something. "Lexie's last name is Grey, right?" he asked and Mark nodded. "Is her sister's name Meredith? Meredith Grey?"
"Yeah, she is..."
"Cristina's best friend," they both said at the same time.
"Wow, world is small, isn't it?" Jackson noted after a while.
"Yeah, it is." Mark laughed. "And I still haven't met Kate Moss."
"Kate Moss? She's not even that pretty."
"Well maybe not for you. She's not Asian." Mark grinned at his friend, mocking him a little. "But beware of this Cristina girl. Lexie said she can be pretty harsh sometimes. Maybe even cruel. And I think she made a few models cry. You don't wanna mess with that girl."
Jackson just rolled his eyes and shook his head. He had to admit he didn't know Cristina that much, but she seemed nothing like Mark just described her. "She's not like that. And I'll prove it to you."
"Okay. Do whatever you want. But don't come crying on my shoulder when she breaks your pretty face." Mark winked at him and got back to lifting weights. "How about baseball? Did you watch it on Sunday?" he asked, changing the topic.
"Yeah, but I kinda regret watching it. I've never seen such an awful game." Jackson laughed as they continued talking about sport, but he still couldn't take his mind off Cristina.
Cristina was sitting in her office, trying to edit the photos she shot the previous week, but she couldn't focus at all. She kept hypnotizing her cell phone with her eyes, hoping Jackson would call her and ask her to go on a date with him. She knew that she was living in the 21st century and that she could easily ask him out herself, but she didn't want to seem so desperate and pushy. After all, it had been less than twenty-four hours since they last saw each other. She shook her head, trying to push the thoughts about Jackson aside and get back to her work when her phone suddenly started to ring, making her jump from her chair. She quickly grabbed it in her hand, smiling when she saw the name on the display. "You can't pick up right away. You'll look desperate," she whispered to herself and took a deep breath before pushing the green button and picking up the phone. "Hello?"
"Hi, Cristina. It's me, Jackson." His soft voice slid from the phone, making Cristina shiver a little.
"Hey, Jackson. How are you?" she asked nonchalantly, trying to keep her voice steady.
"Good, actually," he answered. Much better now when I hear your voice again. He thought and smiled to himself. "Listen, I was thinking if you would be interested in going out with me on Saturday. I know this fancy restaurant that I would like to show you. If you want," he added the last sentence just to let her know he wasn't pressuring her into anything. He wanted her to go out with him, because she liked spending time with him and not because she wanted to be polite.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" was all she wanted to say, but assuming she would look too crazy, she decided to keep it to herself. "Saturday you say?" she asked, making a dramatic pause. "Yeah, I think Saturday would do."
Jackson let out a breath of relief. He wasn't sure how Cristina felt about their date the previous day, but he knew that he wanted to see her again. "Great. So I'll pick you up at six."
"Six o'clock is good. I'm looking forward it." A big silly grin appeared on Cristina face as she told Jackson her address, reassuring him that he would find the way to her apartment.
"Okay, I get it. Can't wait to see you again," Jackson said and smiled for himself. He really couldn't wait. He hadn't stopped thinking about Cristina since the moment she left his apartment and luckily for him she felt the same.
"Me neither. So if that's all, I need to get back to work." Cristina sighed. She didn't like saying that, but the truth was that if she didn't get back to her work back to her work soon, she'd have to stay at work overtime. And she didn't like that idea at all.
"Oh, yes. Sorry for interrupting you at work. See you on Saturday. Bye," Jackson quickly said goodbye to her, not wanting to slow her down in her work. They still had the whole of Saturday evening ahead of them and he couldn't be more excited about it.
"Bye," she basically whispered, biting her lip to prevent herself from squealing with excitement.
Saturday could not come soon enough.
If you have any questions or thoughts, leave me a review :)