"All right, well, I'm packed." Jackson said, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Me too." April replied in her normal bubbly voice.
Jackson sighed. "April!" She spun around to look at him. "Are we ever going to talk about what's going on? You've ignored me for the past few weeks." He stopped and walked around her room in the Grey's family house. "Look, I get it. I get what you've said and why you're upset. But we can't end things like this."
April opened and closed her mouth and then sat on the bed. She stared at the floor without saying anything for several minutes. Jackson finally went to her and sat on the bed next to her. He took her hand in his and put his other arm around her shoulders.
"I'm sorry."
"No," she cut him off abruptly. "Don't be sorry. You didn't do anything wrong, I did. But I'm going to make up for my mistakes, Jackson." She stood up, pulling away from him.
"I'm going to retake my boards next year, and Chief Hunt has agreed to give me my job back."
"What? That's great, April!"
"Yeah, I'm not sure what changed hi mind, but I'll be kept on for another year. And I've come to terms with what we did." She said the last part very quietly. Clearing her throat, she kept talking. "And I'm ready to right my wrongs."
"So, what does that mean? For us?"
"Jackson," April said softly "I'm not sure there can be an us. You're leaving for Tulane tomorrow, and I'll be here. Here trying to make up for an entire year lost."
"April, I care about you. I don't want to leave. I want you." Jackson said, standing up and grabbing her arms. "Let me stay here with you."
April and Jackson exchanged a long and heated looking at each other, before she pulled away. "No."
Meredith, Derek, Mark, Lexie, Zola, and Sophia all sat at a new dinning room table, in a newly furnished dinning room, in a new build house, that was newly bought by Mark, and built by Derek. Mark wanted one last 'family dinner' together, though Derek had reminded him this wasn't something that they normally did.
"So, what's the occasion?" Meredith whispered to Lexie while Mark and Derek were admiring the kitchen.
"I have no idea." Lexie said, bouncing Zola on her knee. "Mark seemed pretty excited to have dinner together though."
The doorbell rang, and Mark walked into the other room to answer it. After a minute, Callie and Arizona walked into the dinning room holding something in a serving dish.
"Ah, so it really is a family dinner." Derek said with a chuckle.
Mark made himself busy with gathering wine glasses, making sure Sophia had a bottle, and Zola her juice. He poured wine and started a roaring fire despite the warm weather. Meredith looked around the room, Callie and Derek laughing at something, Lexie sitting on a chair, with Mark perched on the arm, and Arizona looking a little out-of-place as she sat next to Callie.
"So, Mark, why the big 'family dinner'?" Meredith asked.
"Right." Mark said, not answering Meredith's question. "Meredith, you're the first person at the hospital to actually be nice to me. Do you remember that?"
Meredith laughed. "I do. The dirty mistresses had to unite." She gave Derek a bright smile to make sure he wasn't upset by her comment. To her relief, he was laughing too.
"And Derek, you're my oldest friend. Hell, we're practically brothers."
"Good thing it's only 'practically'." Derek laughed.
"Callie, you're my best friend and you and Arizona are the mothers of our child. Arizona, well you keep me in line." Mark gave her a sly smile, which she returned.
"And Lexie," Mark turned to look at her. "I know what battles we've gone through. I know what I've put you through, but this time I'm not letting you run away." Mark bent down on one knee and pulled out a ring. "Will you marry me?"
Arizona and Callie gasped and squealed with excitement, while Meredith laughed. This was never something she would go for, and she could tell that Lexie wasn't in love with this proposal either. Derek raised his eyebrows while sitting on the arm of Meredith's chair. "That big of a rock and a new house. He's just showing off now." Derek whispered in Meredith's ear.
However, Meredith didn't really hear him, her gaze was set on Lexie's. Their eyes met and in that second, Meredith nodded slightly to Lexie. They had talked about this possibility a few days ago and Meredith told her sister to follow her gut and heart, not her head.
"Y-y-yes." Lexie managed to whisper, almost looking terrified at the prospect of being married. But she caught her sister's gaze again. Meredith was beaming at Lexie, which in turn made Lexie let out a sigh of relief and smile.
Meredith turned to Derek. "I can't believe McSteamy is going to settle down." She laughed and stood up to hug Lexie.
"So you had to make it a big deal?" Lexie asked as she slipped into bed with Mark. Everyone stayed late talking and eating. Callie and Arizona begged to take Sophia home to give the 'happy couple time to enjoy it'.
"Of course I did. You always run away when things get serious. I thought that if you had your family around you, you'd be more comfortable." Mark replied.
"Well, you caught me a little off guard." Lexie said, slightly annoyed.
"Lex, your sister is moving in three days and taking your niece and brother-in-law with her. You're friends are all leaving. Is it such a bad thing to want to hold onto the people you love?"
"No, Mark, but that was a little ridiculous. When we talked about marriage I thought I had at least a year. You know, time to practice medicine and pass my boards."
"You still have time. Meredith and Derek got married when she was not even a third year yet. I'm not saying get married tomorrow and let's start making babies." Lexie's eyes grew wide and her expression was angry and panicked. "Okay, maybe not the best thing to say when you're freaking out a little. But, you get my point. It will be okay, Lexie."
"Can the wedding be small?" She asked, looking at Mark.
"Yeah," he shrugged "as small or big as you like." He pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
"So, you leave in two days?" Richard asked as he sat in his hospital bed.
"We do." Meredith smiled. "You know, you don't have to retire. No one wants to see you go."
"That may be, but it's time I do. I need to look after Adele and take care of myself."
"You're doing much better. You're BP is up, which is good."
"Meredith, I trained you." Webber gave her a playful, but serious look. One she had seen many times in her time as a resident. "I've been through enough surgeries to know that a good and stable BP can make a huge difference. But, I suppose you will become a great general surgeon and maybe even surpass me some day, if you're lucky." Richard gave Meredith a smile.
"Well, I can hope." She replied, smiling at Richard. "I'll come back to visit. As often as time will allow."
After a moment of sitting quietly in the SGMW hospital room, Meredith looked up at Webber. "Did you hear that Dr. Bailey is going to be Chief of Surgery? And I also heard that Catherine Avery may become the new head of Urology."
Webber laughed at his own private joke. "Yes I heard all that too, or don't you remember what it's like to live in this hospital? Bailey will do a great job as Chief, she was made for that job."
"Well, I should go. Still have a lot to get ready." Meredith hugged Richard and made her way to the door.
"Uh, Meredith?" Richard said as she reached the door. She turned and looked at him. "You're mother, in her own way, would be proud of you."
Meredith smiled. "I'll be back tomorrow."