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"I'm very drunk." she confided, whispering in his ear as though this was a state secret.

"I know."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Alex wasn't supposed to be here. But then, neither was she. He should have been at work, cursing his luck at having to pull a double shift and counting down the hours until he could leave, and she should have been at home, asleep.

But she was here, and so was he.

He had begun his night shift after spending the few hours he meant to spend sleeping mulling over what Meredith had said to him. In the beginning, he'd been just plain pissed off. She was his friend, she of all people should understand that anything being said about him and Jo was just a rumour.

And then he had realised that maybe it wasn't her fault. They were spending a freakin lot of time together, and people started to notice. It was unusual for interns and attending to even talk to one another outside of work, let alone drink and hang out.

He'd intended to tell her that from now on they should probably just stick to seeing each other at work. He couldn't afford to get sued, and people alluding that she was a surgery whore made his stomach turn and his fists clench. When she was around, a part of him was always on edge. Somehow, around her, things he'd been careful to keep hidden for so long slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself.

Long story short, Alex Karev was acting like a little bitch and removing himself from the situation before nothing became something and another crazy chick bulldozed through the facade he'd spent a long time putting together.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Needless to say, he'd been... distracted at work.

He tried to justify it. The constant rumours were pissing him off, the idea that he featured in yet another betting pool was just freakin irritating, she was better off without claims of favouritism.

Robbins had sent him home after he failed to find a decent vein after poking some poor kid with a needle for what must have been the seventh time.

She'd said she was going home, so he thought going to the bar would be...the only word that came to mind was safe, as if she was a ticking time bomb and he was ducking for cover. And then he came in and the first thing he saw was her dancing on a table, clearly well past tipsy and surrounded by guys, unsurprisingly all offering to buy her another drink.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

It took him all of two seconds to decide what to do. Alex Karev was no gentleman, but he wasn't going to leave his...intern drunk out of her mind and surrounded by creeps.

"Clear off," he ordered. "This is my...girlfriend. My girlfriend, yeah."

The word sounded strange coming from him, but not entirely unpleasant.

Most of them scattered, and he managed to get rid of the rest with a look that in guy code meant I'm about to punch your face in if you don't move now.

He glanced up at her, still standing on the table, an amused expression covering her face.

"Get down from there, idiot. You're going to get yourself killed."

"No." She laughed, the entire world one big joke to her in her current state. But then, even sober Jo enjoyed pissing him off. "Make me, boyfriend."

She was stubborn. It was a quality he simultaneously found engaging and hated with a passion. Unfortunately, it meant there was no way she was getting down from the table unless he did as she requested.

So, with a sigh (there was no way he was enjoying this), he wrapped his arms around her legs and hoisted her off the table. She looked at him disapprovingly. "You're supposed to be at work."

"And you're supposed to be at home, princess." he shot back. "Why are you here, anyway? None of your kiss-ass intern friends are."

"Touché." She smirked. "Buy me another drink, and maybe I'll tell you."

He was just now noticing that, even with alcohol on her breath and smeared make up, she was kind of hot.

And by kind of, he meant insanely.

"I think you've had enough."

"Party pooper."

He scowled, and got up. "If you're going to insult me, I'm leaving." He wasn't serious, but he was willing to place a bet that she wouldn't be able to tell in her inebriated state.

He was right. Her face fell suddenly, and only for a moment, but he recognised that look. It was a Karev special, the kind where he was internally screaming for help and externally the life of the party.

"Don't go." she whispered.

"Your wish is my command, princess."

Almost instantly, she brightened.

"Tell me about your real girlfriend." She was slurring slightly, but Alex was almost proud of her enunciation, considering the amount of shot glasses he could see lined up on the counter in front of the stool where her coat lay.

He'd have told her anything she wanted to hear to keep her from drinking her pain away, even if he'd never admit it to himself.

"Tell you what, Hairball, I'l-"

She groaned loudly. "Not you too."

He glared at her. "As I was saying before you so rudely interrupted me, I'll tell you what happened with the scrub nurse if you tell me why you're not in bed right now."

She considered the trade seriously.

"Deal." To seal the pact, she stuck out her hand for him to shake. It was warm, and surprisingly, she had quite the grip.

He had to hand it to her. The girl knew how to hold her liquor.

"She was boring."

"So you won't be calling her?"

"I won't be calling her." He confirmed.

"You're screwed. No other nurse will work with you. But..." she paused. "At least you'll have time to spend with me."

"You really are drunk, aren't you?"

"Yes."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Somehow she persuaded him into having a drink of his own, and then another, but he was still far from the state she'd worked herself into, and nowhere near close to forgetting about her side of the deal.

"Spill."

She feigned confusion, hoping to buy herself some time.

"You know what I mean."

He was hit with puppy dog eyes next.

"Nice try."

The grand finale began as fat tears fell from her eyes.

"You showed me you could make yourself cry last week."

"Shit."

A/N: My longest chapter yet, oh my god I need to study. Anyways, shit is going to get real in the next chapter. I suggest not reading this on a handheld device as I'm too poor to pay for repairs. If you have any suggestions put it in the reviews, or message me on tumblr. I use the same username as I have on here, j0karev.

Major love to Aoife, Burcu, Chanel, and Annie.