A/N: Hey guys! I just wanted to say thanks for the reviews. They're always welcome!!! (hinthint) Because you know, they always help with the whole motivation thing. And I'd love to hear any suggestions as to what you'd like to see happen in the story. Thanks!!!

Chapter 10: Don't Confess

Hours had passed since Izzie and Mark's "conversation", if you could even call it that. She was still channel surfing and he was still passed out on the bed. She heard a soft knock on the door and looked over to find Meredith standing there, holding a brown paper bag. Like Alex the day before, she too, was wearing a contamination suit, and looked very more ridiculous than he had, the giant suit consuming her tiny frame.

Izzie smothered a laugh. She tiptoed over to the door, careful not to wake Mark, and opened just enough for her friend to slip the bag through the door.

"Hey, Iz. How are you holding up?" Meredith asked her sympathetically.

"I'm all right for now," Izzie said softly, glancing at Mark's sleeping form behind her. "But I don't know how I'll be able to survive three weeks in here," she told her honestly.

Meredith smiled. "Well, that's what the bag is for," she told Izzie, gesturing to it.

She looked down at the bag and then back up at Meredith, eyes growing wide in excitement. "What's in here?" she asked, like a kid at Christmastime.

"It's not much," she replied. "I just thought you'd might want a few essentials from home. I threw your toothbrush in there, a few snacks, some of your clothes..." she said as Izzie began pulling the items out of the bag and placing them on a table.

"And of course," Meredith continued, "I brought your Bible," she said with a grin as Izzie pulled out the latest issue of Cosmopolitian.

Izzie beamed at her friend. "You are a goddess!" she said excitedly, and maybe a little to loud, because she heard a groan come from the hospital bed. Turning around, she saw Mark shift so that he was now on his side with his back toward the two interns. Izzie held her breath for a moment, but it didn't seem like she actually woke him, so she turned her attention back to Meredith, who was looking at her with an amused expression on her face.

"What was that all about?" Meredith asked, eyeing Izzie curiously from under the plastic face shield.

"I really don't know what you're talking about," she answered, feeling a blush beginning to rise in her cheeks.

Meredith gave her a look. "Oh, come on. That glance at McSteamy,"

"I just wanted to make sure I didn't wake him up." Izzie said, feigning innocence.

Meredith folded her arms across her chest, a difficult task considering the puffiness of her suit. "Okay, two days ago you couldn't stand him. What going on with you guys?" she asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," Izzi insisted, looking straight into Meredith's eyes.

She tilted her head to the side, and looked at the blonde through narrowed eyes. "Izzie, we live together. I know when you're lying."

Meredith's persistence was starting to crack Izzie's cool demeanor. Her face grew even redder, and she had to avert her eyes from her friend's.

Those tell-tale signs of lying did not go unnoticed. "Izzie Stevens!" Meredith gasped. "Something happened between you two! You tell me right now!"she exclaimed eagerly.

Izzie quickly tried to stifle her friend. "Shh! What if he hears you?" she whispered anxiously.

She gave her a "look". "Look at him," she said, gesturing behind behind Izzie. "The guy's passed out. He can't hear me."

She turned her head to glance at Mark. It didn't appear that he had moved at all. "Well, can you at least be a little quieter?"

She complied with her friend's request. "Stop avoiding the question," Meredith whispered loudly.

"What question?" she asked, genuinely confused.

She received yet another look. "Izzie!" Meredith uttered impatiently.

"What?" she asked, a little frustrated. She was honestly lost in the conversation.

Meredith sighed, realizing she was going to have to spell it out for her friend. "What's going on between you and McSteamy?" she clarified slowly, like she was speaking to a child.

Izzie once again avoided Meredith's gaze. "Nothing. I can't stand that guy," she said, looking the bag Meredith brought that she had placed on the floor.

Meredith uncrossed her hands and they flew to her hips. "You're lying," she said blatantly.

"How do you know?" she asked the bag.

"You can't look me in the eyes," she said, amused.

Izzie's head shot up and her eyes locked into Meredith's, trying to defy her.

Meredith rolled her eyes. She was used to Izzie's stubbornness. "Fine. Whatever. But you're fidgeting," she said patiently, knowing her friend wold crack eventually.

"What?" she asked, knowing full well where Meredith was going with this, but trying to deny it with all she had.

"You're fidgeting. That means you're dying to tell me something," she explained.

Izzie exhaled loudly, a sign of surrender. "Okay, fine. You win. I'll tell you. But you have to promise not to react in anyway," she said, concluding that there was no way her friend was going to give up and it just might be easier to tell her.

Meredith smiled, remembering, not long ago, she had made Cristina promise the very same thing. "I promise."

Izzie took a deep breath and paused for a moment, both for dramatic effect and because she was worried about her friend's reaction. "Well, we kinda kissed," she told her through gritted teeth.

Forgetting her promise to Izzie, Meredith's eyes grew wide. "Kinda? How do you kinda kiss?" she asked, in absolute shock.

She decided there was no point in holding back any more. "All right, we made out. Are you happy now?" she asked Meredith.

"Izzie-" she began softly, before she was cut off.

"But it's not like it meant anything," Izzie said trying to justify her actions more for herself than for Meredith.

"A kiss always means something," Meredith insisted gently.

Izzie shook her head fervently. "This one didn't," she denied.

"Fine," she said, knowing she wasn't going to get anywhere in this argument. "But then why did you do it?" she asked carefully.

Izze sighed dramatically and leaned her head against the glass window of the door. "Oh, Meredith, I have no idea what came over me. He was opening up with me. He was telling me about Addison, and how he really, honestly loved her. He was so sincere. I mean, the asshole was showing actual human emotions. And he just looked so hurt. And I...I just kissed him. It was really quick. But then he kissed me back. And then like literally three seconds later he was back to his old, jerky self. And he just... ugh! He's just aggravating the hell out of me!" she ranted, allowing all of her emotions to flow out from inside of her.

Meredith looked at her friend compassionately. "Don't let it bother you so much," she said quietly. "You know what guys like him are like."

Izzie let out a short laugh. "I know, I know. But I just can't seem to stop thinking about it." she said, annoyed.

She sighed, knowing what she had to tell Izzie. "You know what that means don't you?" she asked cautiously.

She stared off into space for a moment. "That no one will blame me if I stab him with a scalpel?" she asked, distracted.

Meredith smiled. "It means that you actually have feelings for McSteamy," she informed her friend.

Izzie's eyes grew wide, Meredith's comment obviously flustering her. "What? That's crazy," she said with a forced laugh.

Izzie's reaction was the only proof Meredith needed. "Admit it. You can't figure him out and it's killing you because you like him," she persisted.

"I hate you, you know that?" she said stubbornly, but deep down, knowing her friend was right.

She shrugged. "You may hate me, but you definitely love McSteamy," she told her frankly.

"Meredith!" she exclaimed, surprised by her brutal honestly.

She crossed her puffy arms across her chest once again. "Don't even try and tell me it isn't true," she said sternly.

Izzie rolled her head, sighing."Well, there is something about him..." Meredith didn't respond, but patiently waited for her to continue. "Okay, fine. The man's a hottie," she finally admitted quickly. Meredith squealed with excitement. "But you can't tell anything to anyone!" she told her, her eyes showing just how serious she was.

Meredith mimed zipping her lips and throwing away the key, causing giggles to escape from Izzie. Meredith smiled and joined the laughter. As both girls giggled, they were completely unaware that Mark had been awake the entire time, and was listening to their every word.