Thanks so much for all the reviews so far. Just to note, although it may seem as though this is following the story of the show, remember it's an A/U so things may work out very differently :)

IZZIE

Hearing the front door shut, signalling Owen had left, Izzie slowly walked across the hall and up the stairs. The house was deadly silent, as Meredith, George and Alex had all gone in to college earlier. Izzie had offered to stay behind. She had thought that Cristina might need someone to talk to. But if she was completely honest there were a few things Izzie wanted to say to Cristina herself.

Izzie knocked gently on Cristina's door, before pushing it open to see Cristina sat on the bed, her head in her hands, and she didn't say anything as Izzie slowly made her way in to the room and sat down on the bed next to her.

"How did it go with Owen?" Izzie said softly and slightly awkwardly. She never really knew how to talk to Cristina, she was always so cutting and sarcastic.

Cristina didn't say anything in response, so Izzie opened her mouth to say something else, causing Cristina to sharply cut her off and hold up her hand saying "Izzie."

Izzie ignored her and said "I know you don't like me very much and that's fine. But, I just wanted to say. I know how you feel."

Cristina turned to look at Izzie, her mouth wide open, as she said "How could you possibly know how I feel?"

With her eyes full of emotion, Izzie said "Because it happened to me too. I fell pregnant and had an abortion when I was 16… and the father didn't want to know. So, I know how you feel."

Cristina's face turned to one of shock, as Izzie said. "But, Owen, he's nothing like the guy I was dating back then. He's a good guy and he'll stand by you, if you tell him. I'm sure he'll understand."

Cristina just stared blankly at Izzie as she said "I can't tell him. He wouldn't understand. He'd leave and well…..I don't want him to leave. I've told him I want him to stay."

Izzie was slightly taken aback. This was a whole new side to Cristina. She didn't 'show' emotion, she was a robot. But here she was sat in front of her, vulnerable, pregnant and alone, just like Izzie herself had been not so long ago.

"Well, ok then, that's great….….and I've found out who the best OB/GYN to go to is. It's a Dr Addison Montgomery." Izzie said, as she pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket.

Cristina's jaw dropped open then and for a moment Izzie thought she almost detected a sly smile cross Cristina's lips, as Izzie looked at her in confusion and said "What?"


"I still can't believe I'm here. I can't believe it's her….." Meredith said, as Izzie was sat next to both Meredith and Cristina, in the waiting room of Dr Montgomery's office.

"Ah, I heard she wears salmon pink scrubs…what kind of self-respecting surgeon wears salmon pink scrubs anyway?" Izzie said.

"True," Meredith nodded in agreement.

"Please," Cristina hissed, glaring at Izzie and Meredith.

"Why, am I here again?" Meredith said.

"We're being supportive." Izzie said sternly, over Cristina's head.

"I am all for being supportive," Meredith replied. "But this woman, she wants to eat me alive."

Izzie rolled her eyes, as she said "So, you patch things up with McDreamy then?"

"For now….although, if 'she' sees me in here, I'm not so sure…."

"So, just go…." Cristina suddenly snapped at Meredith.

"Go," Izzie repeated softly to Meredith, as she could sense that her whining was really just stressing Cristina out even more.

"If it was anyone else you were seeing….." Meredith said apologetically, as she quickly turned to stand up and scoot out the room. Just as a sharp female voice suddenly called out "Cristina Yang."

Izzie looked up to see a tall, glamorous red head marching towards them. She had bright red lips and was wearing expensive heels and her fitted designer dress was visibly clinging to her curves under her white doctor's coat. 'Meredith was right to be intimidated, Izzie gulped, as she stood up next to Cristina and they both made their way sheepishly in to Addison Montgomery's office.

.

"Okay, so have you decided yet, whether you're going to hate me or not?" Addison said, as her eyes looked curiously over Cristina and Izzie.

Izzie was lost for words, as Addison said "I mean, you're Meredith's friends and I'm the wicked witch that wants to ruin her life."

Izzie opened her mouth, but before she had the chance to say anything, Cristina simply said. "Let's just get on with it."

Addison then put on a pair of burgundy red Parada reading glasses, as she scanned through Cristina's notes. "Well, the good news is, you're only around 6 weeks pregnant, and with no previous medical conditions, the procedure will be very straight forward. We could even do it for you today?"

Izzie then turned nervously to glance at Cristina, who just quickly said "Yes, that would be great. Thank you."

"Okay then. Well, I just need you to fill out a few details first. Who your emergency person is and insurance details and then we can schedule the procedure. You'll be in and out today." Addison said, as she handed Cristina a form.

Izzie saw Cristina breathe a small sigh of relief, and she couldn't help but think how it hadn't been at all like that for her when she'd scheduled her termination. Izzie had agonized for days over whether to keep her baby or not, and having an abortion had been the hardest decision she had ever had to make, but however painful it had been, Izzie was still certain she had made the right one. She knew she would never have made it to med school otherwise.

Izzie then glanced across at Cristina, filling out the form and there in huge capital letters under 'emergency person' she had written 'Meredith Grey." Izzie felt as though it was a sharp slap in the face. She had gone out of her way to be a good friend and supportive to Cristina, especially when Meredith had deserted her earlier, but there in black and white was the evidence that Meredith, was Cristina's 'person' and not Izzie.

"I'll just go and wait outside for you," Izzie said quietly, as she stood up and left the room.


"You're my person." Izzie said to Alex, later that evening as she sat cuddled up to him on the sofa, with her head resting on his chest. Alex turned to look at her, his brown eyes narrowing with confusion and suspicion, as he said "What is this?"

"You're my person." Izzie repeated. "You know, my emergency person. If anything happens to me and someone needs to be contacted and stuff…"

"Oh,….well I guess you're my person too then." Alex said, as he kissed her lightly on the lips, before they both turned back to the movie they had been watching and Izzie snuggled closer to him, smiling to herself. She felt so safe and happy when she was with him.

After another five minutes of staring at the television screen, it was obvious neither of them could concentrate, as Alex turned to Izzie and said "You want to go to bed?"

"Sure," she replied.

…..

The next morning, Izzie opened her eyes sleepily as she felt Alex's strong muscular arms wrapped gently around her.

"Morning." She said dreamily, as she sensed the bright early morning sun gently streaming through the window and warming her skin. She turned over to face Alex, and he kissed her, lightly brushing the side of her cheek with his thumb. As his kiss became more demanding and she felt him getting more aroused Izzie pulled back slightly.

"Iz," Alex protested, as he went to gently draw her back towards him.

Izzie sighed, she wanted nothing more than to spend the morning in bed with Alex. But she had to get up. She needed to get to the library first thing to fit in some early morning revision for their exams coming up. She was going to miss her classes due to having a very important meeting later in the day with 'Bethany Whispers' about a 'huge' modelling job and 'Alex knew that' Izzie thought to herself, as she forced herself to climb quickly out of bed, and away from his suggestive eyes.


"It must be here somewhere." Izzie said sighing, as she hurriedly walked down the long glamorous street, lined with rows of pine trees and expensive looking buildings.

She glanced at her watch and exhaled nervously as she gripped the piece of paper with the directions on tightly in her hands. 'I can't be late' Izzie thought, frowning as her big dark sunglasses slipped down her head and she pushed them back up roughly.

"Give me that," Alex said, as he snatched the paper out of Izzie's hand and scanned it for a second, before saying "Iz, it's right here, we've walked past it already."

Izzie breathed a huge sigh of relief, as she saw that Alex was right. They were in fact, right outside the 'Bethany Whispers' building. She was so relieved, that Alex had insisted on coming with her. Izzie had tried to talk him out of it, as she hadn't seen any point in them both missing class. But, when he wouldn't take no for an answer, she had been more than glad to have him by her side, as she made her way across the city to attend her meeting. Plus, she we would probably have never found it on her own she thought, as she beamed at Alex and he gave her a small half smile in return.

Izzie knew he wasn't comfortable with the prospect of her becoming a 'Bethany Whisper's' model. He had made that very clear, being moody and aloof every time she had mentioned it. But, Izzie wasn't convinced that she would even get the job. So, she had tried to make Alex realize that he was being stupid, that even if she did pose in her underwear, what was underneath her underwear was strictly for his eyes only!

"Well, aren't you going to wish me good luck then?" Izzie said, as she smiled widely at Alex, trying to guess what he was thinking as he just looked at her blankly.

"Alex, I haven't even got the job yet. There will probably be loads of prettier girls going for it and…."

"You'll get it." Alex said, interrupting her quickly, as he leaned in and kissed her on the cheek, and she looked back at him, her eyes glowing. Even though they had been dating for a while now, every time he looked at her a certain way she still felt a huge rush of butterflies. She was crazy about him.

…..

As Izzie approached the main reception, she suddenly felt a flood of nerves hit her. It was a huge multi storey building, with curved glass and white marble in the glamorous reception. Behind the reception desk was an immaculate looking young woman dressed in a crisp charcoal grey suit. She looked up as she saw Izzie and eyed her coldly.

"Izzie Stevens. I'm here to see Denny Duqette for a model casting." Izzie said boldly. As the woman just arched an eyebrow at her, and Izzie felt like yelling that she had absolutely no interest in a modelling career, she was here purely and simply for the money. She really couldn't be doing with the attitude of some 'dumb, stuck up bitch'.

"Excuse me one moment, Miss Stevens." The woman said sharply, as Izzie remained stood self-consciously in front of her, and she glanced around at all the pictures of the stunning half naked woman, draped in 'Bethany Whispers' lingerie, plastered all over the walls .

The woman then turned back to Izzie, saying "Miss Stevens, please sign in here. Mr Duqette will see you now, he is on the tenth floor, you can take the elevator on the left."

…..

Clutching her modelling portfolio and taking a deep breath, Izzie walked through the door to the spacious glass walled meeting room. Where she was instantly met with the sight of a rugged, dark-haired handsome man in his early thirties, sat casually behind a large desk.

"Miss Stevens. Hi, I'm Denny. I'm one of the founding directors of 'Bethany Whispers," he said, as he looked up at Izzie and grinned, before standing up to shake her hand and Izzie instantly felt herself relax slightly. He wasn't at all what she had expected. She had fully expected a smooth, more intimidating and slightly more pretentious man, in a sleek designer suit. Instead, Denny was dressed in a casual shirt and jeans and he seemed friendly, warm and open as he gestured for Izzie to take a seat opposite him. He grinned at her again, as Izzie sat tensely in front of him, with her back perfectly straight and her hands neatly placed on her crossed legs.

"So, Miss Stevens," Denny said, looking her firmly in the eye.

"Oh, please call me Izzie," Izzie said quickly.

Denny shot her an amused look, as he said "So, Izzie, I have been reading your rather impressive resume. You're at med school, right?"

"Yes, that's right. I'm in my first year. I'm hoping to become a surgeon," Izzie replied.

"Wow, brains and beauty. That's quite a dangerous combination," Denny said playfully, as Izzie blushed and she couldn't help but melt slightly at his charming smile, as he added. "Any speciality?"

"Oh, I'm still deciding. But I've always been interested in cardiothoracic surgery."

Denny grinned again appraisingly at her, as he said "Well, I have to say that would be a pretty impressive way to go. My father had open heart surgery recently up in Seattle. The surgeon there was a wonderful woman and a fantastic surgeon, she saved his life. A 'Dr Erica Hahn. You should look her up sometime."

Izzie twisted her hands together, as she said "I'll be sure to do that." Thinking, how this meeting wasn't at all what she had anticipated. She had thought she would have to put on a false smile and pretend to be interested in modelling. But, instead she almost felt a connection to the laid back guy in front of her, and he seemed almost impressed by her too.

"Right, well let's get down to business then," Denny said, as he opened Izzie's modelling portfolio. "These are some quite impressive shots, 'Izzie Stevens." Denny said, as he flipped through the photo's. Izzie felt herself let out small relieved sigh of relief. She wasn't completely happy with her portfolio. But the shots had been the best she could afford.

"Oh, I think most of them are airbrushed," Izzie then said nervously, as Denny was silent for a few seconds, as he studied the glossy shots of Izzie in her bikini.

"Normally, I would agree. But, you, 'Izzie Stevens' are just as hot in the flesh," Denny replied, as he looked back at her grinning, and Izzie felt her cheeks flush again.

Denny looked deep in to Izzie's eyes then, as he said "Meeting you, was just a formality really. I'd already decided I wanted you for the job the minute I saw your picture. You're perfect. Just the look we want. We had to drop the original girl we had lined up, so we'll need you to fly out to New York straight away. This is our biggest, most expensive campaign to date. It's being launched internationally….you're going to be famous, Izzie."

Izzie gulped again, as he added. "At the moment the shoot will just be in New York, but there is potential that we will need to do more in London and Paris too."

Izzie then felt her stomach somersault, as his words sank in. She was going to be the new face of 'Bethany Whispers.'

"I'll have my PA contact your agent to make the necessary arrangements, and negotiate your fee. But, I was thinking somewhere in the region of…" and he casually wrote a figure down on a piece of scrap paper and handed it to Izzie. Causing her to nearly faint, as she looked at it. It was several more 0's than she had expected. 'It would pay for her entire education'.

As she searched for something to say, Denny ran his hand through his dark hair and said. "Just one last thing, Izzie. How does your boyfriend feel about you doing this?"

Izzie flinched nervously, as she realized this was his subtle way of asking her if she had a boyfriend. She pondered what to say for a second, whether to tell the truth, as she eventually said "Oh, he's totally cool with it. He thinks it's a good opportunity for me." She glanced down at the floor then, as she thought the truth being really, that Alex was anything but cool with it.

Denny caught her eye again and said "That's great to hear, because most of our model's boyfriend's tend to struggle a bit. What with having their girlfriend's so on display. Makes them feel a bit threatened. If you know what I mean...Anyway, I'll see you out."

Standing up he handed Izzie a card, as he added "Here's my personal number, call me at any time if you need anything at all….. and welcome on board. You're going to be a superstar, Izzie Stevens," flashing her a final dazzling smile.

...

As Izzie stepped out in to the bright sunshine, a huge smile spread across her face and the first thing she did was pull her phone out of her pocket to call Alex. She was so excited and he was the first person she wanted to speak to.

He answered straight away "Iz… how did it go?"

"I got it, Alex. He offered it to me there and then. He said I was perfect for their new campaign, and the money…. Alex, it's enough to see me through the whole of med school and for us to take that trip to Europe this summer."

Alex was silent for a moment and Izzie's heat sank, as he just said quietly "That's great, Iz. I'm really pleased for you"

"Fancy a quick drink to celebrate?" Izzie said, still on a high despite Alex's lack of enthusiasm.


The night before Izzie was due to fly out to New York, she was sat with Alex opposite Cristina in a booth in Jack's bar.

"Oh, get a room," Cristina scowled from across the table, as Alex leaned in to draw Izzie in to him, to kiss her.

"Where's Meredith?" Izzie said to Cristina, as she subtlety positioned herself away from Alex.

"Oh, probably off with McDreamy," Cristina said, rolling her eyes and sipping her drink, as she stared at the bar door, before she abruptly slid off her chair, leaving Alex alone with Izzie.

"What's her problem?" Alex said to Izzie

"Oh, she's trying to work things out with Owen." Izzie said dreamily, as her mind wandered to the encounter she'd had with Denny earlier in the week. She couldn't shake off the feeling that she had met him somewhere before. He just seemed so familiar, and she had felt so at ease with him.

Alex shifted uncomfortably and cleared his throat, as he said "Listen, Iz…I was thinking, I could come to New York with you. When you go for your shoot …"

Izzie looked at him and bit her lip, as she said "I'm not sure that's such a good idea, Alex. I mean, Denny said that the days are going to be really full on, so I wouldn't get to see you at all and besides you need to stay here and study for our exams, and you wanted to look for some bar work over the summer….." Izzie said cautiously, as she paused to take in his reaction. The dark look on his face said it all though, as she quickly grabbed his hand and said "It shouldn't take too long. Denny said maybe only a week."

Alex pulled his hand back gruffly, as Izzie said "What's wrong?"

"I don't know, guess I'm just a bit tired of having to hear about how great freaking 'Denny' is all evening." Alex said, as he stood up without looking at her.

"Where are you going?" Izzie said, with a hurt look on her face, as Alex grabbed his bag and without even so much as a kiss on the cheek, he said "Got a job interview at some beach bar," walking out moodily.

…..

Lying in bed that night, Izzie felt sick and no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't sleep. It wasn't due to her nerves at flying out to New York the next day. It was because she'd had her first big fight with Alex and it was the first night since they'd got together, that they'd spent apart. He wasn't answering his phone and he hadn't come home. She had no idea where he was and she couldn't believe he was being such an ass about her modelling job.

She pressed her head further in to her pillow, closing her eyes tightly and willing herself to sleep. Thinking how she couldn't have bags under her eyes for the shoot and she tried not to stare at her phone on the bedside table beside her. Although, unable to stop herself, she glanced at it again quickly to see there were still no messages or missed calls.

She sighed, just as she heard her bedroom door slowly open and soft footsteps creep across her room, and she then smelt a familiar aftershave as she sensed Alex climbing in to the bed next to her and she felt his body press up against hers, as he buried his face in to the back of her neck. Izzie wanted to shake him off, she knew she ought to yell at him, but instead she pulled him tighter to her, just relieved that he'd come back, as she said sleepily "How did the interview go?"

"I start tomorrow," Alex replied quietly, as Izzie felt her body slowly relax and finally drift off to sleep.

….

Izzie hugged Alex tightly to her as she whispered. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"You're only going be gone a week, Iz." Alex said, as her flight was called and they pulled apart and he brushed her hair away from her face, as he gazed at her and said. "Call me as soon as you land, ok, …and if that Denny guy tries anything, I'll kick his ass."

"Alex!" Izzie replied, rolling her eyes, as he picked up her case and walked with her to the departure gate. As she walked through alone, clutching her tickets, Izzie glanced back at his anxious eyes following her and she blew him a kiss, before turning to board her plan in nervous excitement, as she suddenly contemplated the adventure ahead of her.


"Okay, that's a wrap." The photographer said, as Izzie breathed a huge sigh of relief, she was exhausted. She had been on set for the past twelve hours and she felt as though she was about to collapse, as she threw her dressing gown around her and went to get changed and phone Alex. She hadn't had the chance to speak to him all day and she had promised she would call him when she got up first thing that morning, but a car had turned up at the crack of dawn to whisk her away. She knew Alex would probably be pissed with her, and she wanted to speak to him.

"Dr Model," Izzie suddenly heard a husky male voice say and she turned around to see Denny walking towards her, smiling warmly, as he winked at her and said "You did great today, Izzie Stevens."

"Thanks," Izzie said, as she smiled back nervously and ran her fingers through her hair. She had forgotten that Denny had flown in to oversee the shoot.

"How about you let me take you to dinner tonight to say thank you?" Denny said confidently.

Izzie shifted uncomfortably, she saw that familiar look in his eye. He was offering dinner, but in exchange for what? She couldn't do that to Alex, she knew he wouldn't be comfortable with her having dinner with Denny, and she wasn't particularly sure she was comfortable with it either.

Izzie opened her mouth to say something, as she pulled her robe tighter around her. "I, err don't think…."

"Izzie, it's just dinner I promise, you're alone tonight, I'm alone tonight, why not?" Denny said with a friendly smile and Izzie knew she couldn't refuse then, as she said meekly "Okay, sure, that would be great then."

Back at her hotel, Izzie picked up her phone to see ten missed calls from Alex and a text message asking where she was. She scrolled down with trembling fingers to hit his number quickly, her heart thumping as it rang. "Iz," Alex eventually said breathlessly, as he picked up.

"Hey," Izzie said apologetically.

"Where have you been?" Alex said accusingly.

"Working," Izzie replied defensively

"What, so you couldn't let me know you were ok?" Alex snapped.

Izzie swallowed then, as she said "I'm sorry, ok. I lost track of time, but you knew where I was…. Anyway, how was your day?"

"Ok…I guess. Would have been better if you were here…... Yang, had some big fight with Burke earlier and O'Malley has two chicks in his room."

"Really?" Izzie said curiously, before she glanced at her watch and said nervously "I'm really sorry, but I've got to go, Alex."

"What, where? I thought you'd finished working?" Alex said, slightly suspiciously.

Izzie fiddled with her hair, she knew she couldn't lie to Alex, so she said "I'm going to dinner with Denny….it's just to discuss the shoot, nothing else" she added quickly. Although, she knew full well, that Alex wouldn't see it like that.

"I knew it. Didn't take you both long then," Alex said angrily.

"Alex, It's not like that," Izzie pleaded.

"Of course it's like that, Izzie and you know it, and after you gave me such a hard time about not wanting you to go….." He yelled down the phone.

"Alex, you're being ridiculous…it's a work dinner. You have to trust me." Izzie yelled back. Before taking a deep breath and saying in a calmer tone. "I'll call you as soon as I get back, okay?"

"Don't bother," Alex said coldly, as he hung up.

Izzie felt tears prick in her eyes with frustration, as she threw her phone across the room. How could Alex not trust her? She would never cheat on him. She didn't even want to go for dinner with Denny. But she wasn't about to let Alex tell her what to do either.


Izzie tentatively sipped her wine, as Denny's eyes fixated on her over the flickering candle placed perfectly in the centre of their table. She would have felt slightly more at ease, if he hadn't reserved a private dining room in one of the most expensive hotels in New York.

"So, tell me more about you, Izzie Stevens," Denny said, as he gazed at her intently.

"There's not much to tell really," Izzie said, as she gulped and pushed her fork nervously around her plate.

"You know, I've never met a girl like you before." Denny said, as he stared at her. "You fascinate me and I'd like to get to know you better. What do you like to do to relax?"

Izzie shifted, as she said "I don't have a lot of free time. Any time I'm not studying, I guess I just spend with my boyfriend Alex." Saying his name, Izzie felt a pang in her chest, as she remembered painfully, Alex's parting words to her on the phone earlier.

As if reading her mind, Denny said "Well, Alex is one lucky guy. But, he's not here now…." As he suggestively brushed the back of her hand with his fingers, causing Izzie to flinch and pull back.

"Why do you play so hard to get? I wish I could tell what was going on in your head." Denny said, in a low voice, as he rubbed his leg up against Izzie's. Izzie pulled back violently, knocking her wine glass off the table.

"I'm not playing hard to get. I have a boyfriend." Izzie said, as her eyes flashed angrily at him. "I'm sorry if you misread the signals, but I'm not that kind of girl."

"Izzie, you became that kind of girl, the moment you accepted dinner." Denny said, as his eyes flashed angrily back at her.

Izzie stood up and rushed out of the room, as she felt the tears rolling down her cheeks.

…..

'Come on Alex, pick up, pick up' Izzie willed, as she heard his phone ring through to voice mail again. She tried one more time with no luck, so she settled for a simple text "Call me x" She just so desperately wanted to hear Alex's voice.


As Izzie made her way on to the set the next morning, she felt sick with nerves at the prospect that she would have to face Denny again. She half expected him to fire her on the spot, after how she had rejected him the night before. But, despite that all she could really think about was, Alex.

She hadn't slept at all the night before, they had never gone this long without speaking to each other and she was worried. What if he broke up with her? What if he'd slept with some other girl? But, deep down she knew he wouldn't want to do that. She knew how he felt about her, the way he looked at her, the way he made love to her. What they had was special; so surely it wouldn't end over this, would it?

"Where's Denny?" Izzie said, as she looked around the studio, her face full of apprehension. "Oh, he had to fly back to California this morning, he sends his apologies," the photographer said, before he turned back to excitedly handing out orders to the runners on the set.

….

As Izzie finally walked in to her hotel room, at the end of the day she was so tired she felt like crying. She opened the mini bar, pulling out a can of readymade gin and tonic and poured it straight in to a glass, taking a sip as she kicked off her shoes. She picked up her phone, there were still no messages from Alex and her heart sank as she threw it down miserably on to the bed next to her, as she sank back on to the large pillows. She was about to switch the television on to distract herself with some mindless trashy TV, when her phone suddenly lit up and she heard the familiar buzz of her cheerful ringtone. She instantly grabbed it as her stomach was hit with a rush of adrenaline, seeing Alex's name flash up on the screen.

She pressed it to her ear, as she said quietly "Hello."

"Iz," Alex said, quietly back.

Izzie instantly felt better at finally hearing his voice again, as she said "I tried to call you last night. You didn't pick up."

"I was working." Alex replied humbly. "I'm sorry I didn't call you back, I was angry."

"Oh, Alex, I'm sorry too, you were right," Izzie suddenly blurted out. "You were right about Denny. He was only interested in one thing."

Alex was silent for a moment then, before he said "I knew it. I'll kill him."

"No, Alex, please, can't we just put it behind us. I told him that that I was with you and nothing would ever happen, and he's gone back to LA."

Alex was silent. "Alex, please you have to believe me." Izzie said, as she tried to hold back the tears.

There was another pause then, before Alex finally said softly "I do believe you, Iz."

"Alex, I wish you were here, I miss you," Izzie said, and at that exact point she realized just how much Alex really did mean to her.

"I miss you too, Iz…..so much," Alex replied, as he paused and said clumsily. "Because all this had made me realize a few things, Iz. When I'm with you I feel better and I really think you're my best shot at being something, at being good...and because ...I love you, I frickin love you, Iz."

Izzie felt a warm glow spread inside her, saying that was a huge deal for Alex, as she replied. "I love you too, Alex."

TO BE CONTINUED…..