"Alright, everyone, back to work!" Owens tells the surgical staff.
As everyone are about to leave, Bailey stands up.
"People, rehearsal dinner tonight. Anyone who didn't have a dying person right in front of them and is late will not be having dessert." She evil-eyes everyone.
Derek nods seriously. "Seven sharp, got it, Bailey."
Meredith laughs. "Yes, yes, we'll be there. We don't want to miss dessert."
Bailey rolls her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, you'll regret being all sarcastic when the plate is shoved right in front of you, alright."
Everyone is leaving and one of them is April. Bailey catches her so she could stay put.
"Yes?" April asks.
Bailey closes the door once they are alone and turns to her.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Of course, April knows what she is talking about.
"I don't know, would you back off if I say no?" She crosses her arms as she talks.
Bailey looks at her patiently. She now understands why she is acting so different now.
"Does Avery know? Does anyone?"
April sighs. She makes her way to the door but Bailey blocks her.
"I have rounds."
"Kepner."
April groans. "I. Don't. Wanna. Talk."
"I'm just concerned. As far as Nazis go, I'm the one with a heart."
April scoffs. "You're no Nazi anymore, BCB."
"That doesn't mean—"
"Look, why don't you focus on your happiness, hmm? At least one of us gets to experience it, right?"
Bailey gives her a look. "You will be happy. You just have to get past this—"
"I'm done, Dr. Bailey." April holds her hands up. "I only told you because I'm claustrophobic and you were all but outright killing me in that elevator. It spilled before I could even stop them."
She pushes past Bailey and then leaves the room. Bailey calls out a few words.
"You better show up tonight, Kepner!"
When she gets outside, she meets Jackson's stare. He's holding an opened chart by the nurse station right across from where she is standing. He closes the chart and is putting his pen in his breast pocket as he walks over to her.
April, on the other hand, is completely still. She is debating in her head if she should tell him now or not. And when he reaches her, he smiles.
"Hi."
April swallows. "Hey."
She shyly runs her hand through her hair away from her face, which falls back to its place the second she drops her hand. Jackson laughs at that. He knows how soft her hair is.
"So, you're ready to talk?" He asks.
April's eyes widens. "W-what?"
Jackson shrugs. "It feels like you had a lot going on and I want you to know that I'm here, as always. I just assumed you weren't ready before but you may be now…"
April shakes her head. "I'm fine. Really, Jackson."
She awkwardly pats his shoulder before walking away.
•••
April shows up in the lounge looking all frantic. She finds Alex there alone and is fixing his tie.
"What held you up?" He asks.
April takes her bag out from the cabinet and is digging in it as she talks.
"Surgery ran late." She answers. "What about you
"Had to watch over this kid with mets in his lung." Alex is walking towards the door now.
"Wait!" April calls and stares up at him, her make-up bag in her hand.
Alex turns. "What?"
"Wait for me."
April walks toward her dress, which is on the couch.
"What? No. You can get there on you own."
"I can't, my car's in the shop."
Alex groans as he sits down at the table.
"You better be ready in five minutes, tops." He grumbles.
"Make it ten."
April goes inside the bathroom, her voice is muffled by the door between them. "You'll get your dessert, Karev. Don't get your panties in a twist."
Alex shakes his head at her comment. Man, he's gonna have to get used to this snarky, new April.
•••
The rehearsal dinner is being held at a the groom's friend's lakehouse in rural Washington. The long dinner table that holds the couple's family and close friends is by a large glass window that views the lake. People are chatting all around. Meredith is laughing along with Cristina and Derek, with Zola in her arms. Owen and Richard are talking seriously, listening to no one else. Jackson brought Stephanie along with him. She is drawling on about something he couldn't focus on because he's too busy watching the front door, hoping a certain redhead would finally arrive. It's unusual for April to be late at anything, but based on the changes about her, he couldn't know what to expect anymore.
Bailey, too, is getting anxious because she is trying her best to keep a close eye on the pregnant and distressed April, but of course, that is impossible if she's not in the same room as Bailey.
Bailey walks over to Jackson and smacks the back is his neck. Jackson looks more annoyed than confused as he turns around.
"What the—"
"Where are your two idiotic friends?" Bailey demands. "They're late."
"Which ones? I have a lot of idiotic friends."
Bailey glares at his sarcastic comment before moving on. "Kepner and Karev. Where are they?"
"I don't know. April had a surgery. It probably ran late.
Bailey still looks unsettled.
Jackson sighs and stands up. "Okay, I'll call them." He pulls his phone from his jacket pocket and holds it up for her.
"You better."
Jackson rolls his eyes as he turns to his date.
"I'll be right back."
Then he leaves the noisy room and is out in the hall when he dials, April first. When it didn't work, he tries Alex. Still none. He tries at least three more times each. When no one still answered, he sends them both text messages instead. He puts his phone inside his coat pocket and goes back inside.
And to think that he's really hoping to finally get to talk to April, find out what was going on, she's not even here.
•••
The car broke down in the middle of their long drive. The two are now on the side of the highway. Alex is bent over the opened hood of the car as he examines the damage.
April, on the other hand, is standing a few feet behind him, her arms crossed to keep herself warm and face spelled pissed off.
"You have a crap excuse for a car, Karev." She complains.
"Shut up, Kepner." Alex snaps at her, without even looking up.
April scoffs and continues to pry. "We've been here over an hour."
Alex ignores her.
"First, we were late. Then we got lost. And when we were finally on the right track, your car breaks down. Could this night get any worse?"
Still no response.
"Do you even know what you're doing?"
Alex sighs heavily and looks up at her. "I'm trying to but I'm failing with all the talk you're doing!"
April groans as she takes out her phone from her coat pocket. She's about to try calling again but there's still no signal.
"Still no signal."
She holds it up as she walked around.
"You don't say." Alex comments sarcastically.
April gives up looking for signal, just as Alex does the same when he slams his hood close.
"This is hopeless." She holds her hands up. "And this is your fault."
Alex turns to her. "I didn't make you come."
"You didn't say your car is nothing but a big piece of scrap metal." She counters.
"You know, I'm changing my mind about you. I hate this new you, you're acting like a total bitch. You're worse than before."
April scoffs as she crosses her arms again. "Like I give a crap about what you think about me."
"Fine. You can walk your ass to that dinner." He turns away from her.
April laughs. "As if you can drive yourself there." She mutters.
She turns around and tries to look for signal again as Alex does the same. She sighs.
"Anything?" She asks.
"No." Alex grunts.
April walks farther and is nearing the trees on the side of the dark highway. It's where she finally got a bar of signal.
"I got it!" She exclaims.
Alex runs to her, but as she dialed AAA, her phone began ringing. Her sister, Libby, is calling.
April groans. "Not now."
She hits 'ignore' and she's about to dial again, but Libby calls again. April groans again and answers the phone before turning to Alex beside her.
"You should call triple-A." She tells him.
"What do you think I'm doing?" He asks.
April could hear Libby's voice, though it sounds so distant and different, she could tell that she's feeling frantic. "April? Are you there?"
April furrows her eyebrows. "Libby? Why are you calling?"
"April! Oh, God, I've been calling you for the past hour—"
April tries to explain. "It was hard to get a signal—Libs, what's wrong?"
"Oh, God. Oh, God—"
Growing impatient, she shouts through the phone, "Libby! Pull yourself together! What is wrong?"
Alex looks at April confusedly as he waits for his call to be picked up and she just shakes her head.
"It's Dad." Libbys says.
April's eyes widened. "W-what? Is he—"
"No! But he's in critical condition, he had a heart attack, he's in critical condition, he hasn't even woke up."
April us speechless.
Libby goes on. "He—the doctor said—April, he's on life support. April, are you listening to me?! April—"
After that, her voice through the phone is fuzzy now. April couldn't understand a word she's saying, not that she's listening. This isn't the first time her father had a heart attack but this is different, third time around. He could die.
April didn't even notice that the call is cut. She looks down on her phone, which read no signal.
Alex beside her doesn't notice her distress, as he is busy on the phone, rattling off directions to where they are, but not for long when his own call is cut off, too.
"Hello? Hello?" He looks down on his phone. "Damn it."
He tries to look again for signal, turning briefly to April.
"I could use the help here."
But April ignores him. She is still speechless. Her eyes are getting watery now.
Alex scowls. "What the hell? You're not gonna die, so don't get all weepy and try calling!"
Still no reply.
Alex groans. "Kepner, what the hell's wrong with you? God."
April snaps out of it. She runs her hand through her hair. "I have to get out of here. I-I have to go!"
"You're that hungry? Kepner—"
"You don't understand! I have to go!My dad, he's gonna die—"
Alex looks confused. "What—"
"I have to go!"
"Relax. We'll get you home, just calm down, no one's dying—"
"You don't know that!" April shouts at him. "He had a heart attack—"
Alex sighs. "Old people get heart attacks, it's inevitable. So long as he's in the hospital—"
"He might die! He's-he's not cut out for this. He's not strong—"
"April!" He highers his voice over hers. "You have to calm down."
April starts walking, letting out her cry.
"Wha—where are you going?" Alex catches up with her.
April runs back to the car and starts kicking it and slamming. With all the stress she's been going through for weeks and all the bottled up feelings, she's finally losing it.
"Kepner!"
Alex pulls her and holds onto her shoulders. "Pull yourself together!"
"I-I—" She meets Alex's stare through the blur of her tears.
Alex looks at assuringly. "I'll call a cab or-or whatever. We don't have to go to that dinner and I'll get you to the airport, just calm down."
She shakes her head. "I can't! Everything has gone to shit! My whole future, my whole life! This is my punishment! I lost my faith, I ignored Jesus and now, I'm being punished—"
"April—"
But April just pulls away and turns around. And that's when Alex notices the blood dripping down her legs. His eyes widens. He notices just as April did.
The night certainly got worse, alright.