a/n: i TOLD you progress was being made... not great progress but progress all the same. sorry this took so long... i really am trying to work on that...
disclaimer: i have insider info that santa is bringing me the show for christmas, but not for another 24 hours, so it's still not mine.
The next morning, Mrs. Karev ("Please, call me Martha," she keeps strenuously repeating to Addison) makes a big breakfast for everyone. They sit eating, and Addison is doing her best to act like Lauren's words from the previous night haven't affected her, and she's still not acknowledging the fact that there may be any sort of truth in them.
Alex and Addison entertain the two women with stories of Seattle, the hospital, the trip, and LA (leaving out the whole almost kiss part). Addison describes Sam and Naomi, and their med school days. Finally Addison leans over and whispers in Alex's ear, "Okay, perfect time."
He looks at her as if to ask her if she's truly ready to deal with the repercussions. She nods subtly. He mumbles back to her, "Fine, but you start." Lauren looks at the two suspiciously.
Addison sighs exasperatedly. It's his family, he should be the one to tell them, but she knows that he never will, if she leaves it to him. "Okay, so the thing is… Alex and I… that is… we weren't, um, exactly honest… um…"
"Addison and I are dating," Alex finishes for her. Neither mother nor daughter looks surprised.
"I knew it!" Lauren exclaims. That doesn't surprise either Addison or Alex.
Martha looks at her youngest daughter. "It was rather obvious," she says.
"It was? Addison asks, surprised. She thought that they had done an at least semi-decent job of hiding it.
"Addison, you've been ma'am-ing and Mrs. Karev-ing me the entire time you've been here, no matter how many times I ask you to call me Martha. You stutter, and look uncomfortable whenever you are around Lauren and I at the same time. Plus, Alex brought you here, which means that-"
"Okay, Mom, she gets it," Alex interrupts her before she can say anything potentially dangerous (or truthful).
"Well, you did. Not to mention that this is the first time we've seen in you in practically a decade."
"I'm sorry, Mom. Can we drop it now?"
"No!" Lauren exclaims. "I want to know when I can be expecting nieces and nephews."
"Enough, Lauren," Alex snaps as Addison blushes.
"Okay, okay. Geez."
They sit in silence for awhile, until Lauren breaks it. "I'm really happy for you guys, by the way."
Addison smiles. "Thanks," she says.
"Yeah, no problem."
0ooo0
Later that day, Addison is standing outside of the living room, where she had left Alex and Lauren to get a sweater from the room. She's not eavesdropping, per say… It's more like she just happened to stumble across a conversation that she's not meant to overhear.
"You need to marry her," Lauren says.
"What?" Alex laughs.
"I'm serious, Alex. You need to marry that woman."
"Why?" he asks, sounding no more serious than when he was laughing.
"Because of the way you look at each other."
"What?"
"I'm serious! Have you ever just looked at someone and known that they were meant for something? You know, like you can tell that a man is supposed to be a firefighter, or a woman is supposed to be a mother or something like that. It's like that. I can tell you two are meant to be together forever. I'm not kidding, Alex Karev, quit laughing!"
"I'm sorry," Alex chuckles. "But you should hear yourself right now."
"I can hear myself, thank you very much. I am well aware of what I'm saying. I'm also well aware that if you don't marry her, some other guy's going to come along and he will." Alex becomes silent at that thought. "And then," Lauren continues. "You're going to come home and want to bitch and moan to me about the fact that the woman you love is married to someone else and I'm just going to laugh and say I told you so, because you'll deserve it for not marrying her in the first place!"
"Lauren…" Alex says. Addison can tell from the slowness of his words that he's thinking about what he's saying very carefully. "I like Addison. A lot. More than a lot. But I don't… I mean… I don't love her." Addison winces. Almost as if he knows she's listening, he hastens to correct himself. "I mean… I might. Maybe. I don't know. I'm not going to marry her if I don't know. She's been through too much already. I'm not putting her through any more."
"See, now, it's things like that that convince me that I'm right and that you should marry her."
"I'll marry her when I'm sure, is that okay with you?"
Lauren sighs. "Fine. But don't come crying to me when she's left you because you didn't want to get married and she runs off with some French guy named Pierre who is more than willing to marry her."
"What?" Alex laughs. Addison wants to laugh too, but she wants to hear the end of this conversation too badly to give up her location.
"I'm just saying…"
"Pierre?"
"I made it up on the spot, okay? Give me a couple of points for improvisation."
Alex laughs. "Okay."
"But I'm serious, Alex."
"I'll think about it. Will that get you off my back?"
"For now."
Sensing that the conversation is over, Addison waits a couple of seconds before entering the room. "What I miss?" she asks.
"Nothing," Alex and Lauren answer in unison.
0ooo0
"Uh, Alex?" Addison says a couple of hours later. "Can I talk to you?"
"Sure." He leads her to his old room. She spends a couple of minutes looking around at the room he grew up in. "So what?" he finally asks.
"Okay, um, so… This is awkward, but I need you to know. I mean, I just I think it's important that… Okay, so the thing is that this morning I overheard you talking to Lauren." His expression is one of shock and fear when he hears that. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but it just ended up that way and anyways… I just want you to know that you don't need to feel obligated to marry me or anything. I mean… That is… I want you to marry me, if you do end up marrying me, which I'm not saying is going to happen anyways, I mean I wouldn't be opposed obviously, but I don't need it to happen, and anyways, I want to get married because you want to get married, not because you're afraid that some French guy is going to sweep me off to his chateau in the Alps. I'm not going anywhere, or at least not in the foreseeable future, and I mean, I know that we haven't said that we… Er, I know that we're not at that stage yet anyways, but I just want you to know that you're not under any obligation to marry me or anything. I don't expect it from you at all. I mean, that's not to say that I would mind it, but… Why aren't you saying anything?! Why are you just letting me flounder like this?! You can say something any time now and put me out of my misery!"
He steps right into her personal space and looks her in the eyes. She can feel her breathing become much shallower. "I don't know if I want to get married," he admits. "It's scares the crap out of me. But I've never felt anything like this, Adds, so I definitely wouldn't be opposed to the possibility."
A slow grin grows on her face as he leans down to kiss her, so that the time they actually meet, she's grinning like a fool.
blech. it ends a little sappy for my taste, but this is what they wanted...
p.s. merry holidays! i wrote you an update now how about i get nice present in the form of a review?
-Juli-
