"Oh, George..." she whispered quietly, sliding her hands down his back.

"Izzie," he whispered.

"I want us to stay like this forever," she said in such a faint whisper that he was lucky to have heard her.

"I want this to last forever, too," was his quiet reply.

George opened his eyes to the golden, mid-morning sunlight that seaped through the cream-colored curtains. His back and neck ached from his old, double bed that he had brought to Meredith's house from his parents' place.

He rolled onto his side and stared at the empty place next to him. He sighed, wishing Izzie was laying next to him.

"I should have taken you in here and made love to you," he grumbled. "Why didn't I?"

"Why didn't you what?" came a voice from the door.

George looked over his shoulder and saw Derek leaning against the door frame. George cursed himself under his breath, wondering why he didn't remember to shut his door.

"Oh, nothing," George said quietly, sitting up in bed.

Derek tilted his head slightly, studying George closely.

"Why don't we talk, O'Malley?"

Derek closed the door behind himself as he approached George's bed. He moved moved with such confidence - confidence that George never had. After Derek took a seat at the end of George's bed, he looked at the younger man.

"What's buggin' you, O'Malley? You aren't usually this down. And you don't normally talk in your sleep that much."

George raised an eyebrow.

"I was talking in my sleep?"

"Yeah. Izzie was worried and sent me in here. She was afraid she'd wake you up." Derek ran his hand through his dark, wavy locks that George envied him for.

"Oh, you know how dreams can be," George said, still confused.

Why is Shepherd in here? He never talks to me... We haven't had much of a conversation since that plague incident, and that was months ago!

"O'Malley, I know we aren't exactly friends, but you're decent. I've been noticing the way you've been acting around the hospital lately. You seem depressed - troubled by something. What's going on?"

Something in the tone of Derek's voice set George at ease. He sounded supportive and understanding. Like he'd know how George felt and would know what to do.

George hesitated for a few moments before his eyes met with Derek's sapphire blue irises. He swallowed the knot in his throat, then let out a sigh, trying to get the weight off of his chest.

"Last night Izzie and I went to Seward Park and we kissed. We stayed out late and just laid in the park and held each other. I think I'm falling in love with my best friend," he admitted, still unsure about why he would tell Derek of all people.

Derek slowly nodded, seeming to grasp every word that George spoke.

"Well, does Stevens feel the same about you?"

"I don't know. When we were sitting at the park she said that she wanted to stay like that for forever. Maybe she does? Maybe she doesn't? Maybe she's just confused and trying to get over Alex...I'm just so confused. I don't even know what to do," he said in a defeated tone.

"Take it one day at a time, O'Malley. Get her alone and tell her how you really feel about her. Just put yourself out there and see what happens."

"What if she doesn't like me back?"

George and Derek's eyes met again.

"Then you deal with the pain and try to move on." Derek stood up and clapped George on the shoulder. "Just do what I said. Good luck, O'Malley. You're a good guy."

He watched Derek exit his room. George still felt uneasy and confused about what had just happened and his feelings.

Standing outside on the back deck, he was holding Izzie's hand, waiting for her to response to his proposal. Soft music was playing in the background, but he couldn't make out what it was. All he could do was focus on Izzie's beautiful face and her response.

"I do," she whispered, giving him a loving smile. "I love you, George."

He grinned a wide, happy grin. He slipped the band onto her finger and stood to his full height, then pulled her against him and gave her the most loving kiss he had ever given someone in his life.

"I love you, Izzie Stevens," he whispered in her ear once their kiss had broke. He left a gentle kiss on her ear.

George finally got out of bed and showered by twelve-thirty. By that time, everyone else had already been up and used the shower before going about their daily business. Meredith's shift started at ten, so she had left hours ago and Derek wasn't due to go to the hospital until four. Izzie and George both had the night off, and George's plans were to try to work up the courage to let her know how he felt.

He entered the kitchen in search of food to find Izzie and Derek standing around, talking and drinking coffee. George caught Derek's eye and he immediately felt uncomfortable as he passed by him. When he walked past Izzie, he felt butterflies in his stomach. His nostrils filled with her sweet scent as he passed her; he tried to take in her scent as long as possible before the auroma of freshly brewed coffee stung his sinuses.

"Morning, George," Izzie said in a cheery voice, giving George a peppy smile.

George looked at her, giving her an adoring look.

"Morning," he said, voice slightly hoarse from his lack of speech.

"Derek and I are going to down to Pike's Place in a few minutes. Do you want to ride along?" she asked, stepping closer to George.

He felt her warm body only inches away from his. The desire to pull her against him was outweighing his steady thoughts.

"No, I'll stay here. I've got some stuff I wanted to take care of," he said, voice getting stronger.

"Alright. Want us to bring you back anything? Hey, maybe I'll pick up some fish and we could have salmon tonight. Should I?" Izzie placed her hand on his upper back, continuing to give him a happy smile.

George blushed, feeling his knees go weak.

"S-Sure," he said, giving her a bashful smile. "Do whatever you want. Just make sure I cook it, because you'd probably burn it," he teased.

Izzie's jaw dropped; she gave him a light tap on the shoulder.

"I'm a baker! You know I'm not the greatest cook."

"I'm teasing. You're wonderful." His cheeks turned a faint pink once he finished his sentence.

He noticed Izzie's face looking a little on the pink side as well.

"Thank you. Well, we'll be back in a while then," she said.

George quickly looked over and saw Derek putting on his jacket. He looked back at Izzie, watching her movements.

"O-Okay. See you later."

Both hesitated for a moment before Izzie leaned forward and quickly kissed George's lips. She blushed, then quickly walked past him and out the door. George collapsed against the counter, taken aback by her bold move. He looked over at Derek and saw him smirking.

"Nice one, O'Malley. See ya." He winked before leaving the room.

George stared at the doorway while his mouth remained partially open.