Thanks for the reviews! And sorry for the wait, but we've also come to the end of this story. Thank you to those who read/reviewed! I really appreciate it. Here's an extra long chapter for you :)
Enjoy!
"See that right there, Charlotte? That's called an alley oop," Jackson pointed out to his three-month old daughter while they watched the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals in the living room. Holding his baby girl against his lap, he smiled as he recalled his basketball career in high school. "You know, back when I played hoops I could pull that off."
Charlotte was in her own little world, sucking on her pink pacifier and attempting to grasp her father's fingers. Basketball was the least of her interests no matter how many times they sat together on the couch to watch a game.
"Yeah, you don't care," he nonchalantly stated, leaning over to kiss the top of her head. She glanced up at him with her bluish-green eyes and softly gurgled in response. "I have a feeling when you're older you're gonna hate it when I do that, huh? You'll be embarrassed to invite me to your school's father-daughter dance."
A small smile formed on her face. She had the eyes of her father and the dimples of her mother. Parenthood had been fairly easy for Jackson and April because they were blessed with a cooperative baby. They knew when she was tired and hungry. Sometimes she simply wanted to snuggle with one of them. Of course, Charlotte was a daddy's girl. It helped that she spent most of her day with him since he was mainly at home to watch her. April recently returned to work at the hospital a couple weeks before, which opened the opportunity for more father-daughter bonding.
"You're at least looking forward to the big day this weekend, right? Mama and Daddy are getting married," he enthusiastically said. "While we're busy exchanging vows, your grandma Catherine will be smothering you whether you like it or not. It's gonna be great."
Living in Miami made it easy to choose their wedding venue. They decided to celebrate their nuptials outdoors in Miami Beach. It wasn't going to be a large, extravagant wedding that Jackson could brag about to the folks at ESPN. He enjoyed privacy as much as the next famous professional athlete. The wedding would be intimate, consisting mainly of their closest family members and friends.
This was the moment Jackson had been yearning for since his miserable breakup with Lexie – to be happily married and settled down with children. And never in a million years did he expect to find his happiness in the one woman he made a fool of countless times in high school. Football used to be his priority and while it continued to be his passion, April and Charlotte couldn't be replaced by anything at the top of his list.
The front door opened and April walked into the house after returning from work. She smiled as her fiancé blew raspberries against their daughter's belly making her smile. "Hey, my cuties."
Jackson stood up, sitting Charlotte on his forearm as he held her with his other hand. "How was work?" he asked, approaching the redhead and giving her a kiss.
"Not too bad. I assisted Callie in a foot surgery that required some screws and a plate. I got to hold the drill," she chirped before taking their baby girl from him. April showered kisses against her cheeks. "What did you and Daddy do today, cutie patootie?"
"Well, we were watching the Heat game. She was really into it, cheering and stuff," he jokingly replied, drawing a smirk from the surgical resident.
"I bet." She carried Charlotte in one arm on her way to the kitchen. "I got a call from Izzie earlier. She said hers and Alex's flight comes in at 2 PM on Thursday, so if you don't have a training session at that time, can you pick them up?"
"No problem," he answered, following her into the kitchen. Jackson hopped up and took a seat on the countertop. "You feeling anxious about Sunday? No backing out feelings?"
April chuckled as she retrieved a bottle of milk from the refrigerator. "Why would I want to back out?" She raised her eyebrow at him. "Are you beginning to have doubts?"
He shook his head and smiled. "No way. I'm in all the way."
After warming up Charlotte's milk, they both left the kitchen and returned to the living room. April made herself comfortable on the couch while she fed their daughter. "Have you decided what you wanted to do for your bachelor party?"
"Not yet. Alex keeps nagging me about going to a strip club. I mean, technically, it's kind of his decision to make as my best man, but I'm not really in the mood for strippers," the pretty boy admitted, wrapping his arm over his fiancée's shoulders. "Actually, I rarely went to strip clubs when I was single."
"You can just go and pretend to enjoy it."
He shrugged his shoulders. "To be honest, I feel weird about going to see nude women who aren't you."
"As long as you don't bring a stripper home with you or do anything inappropriate, I'm completely okay with you going to a strip club. Besides, while you're out with the guys, I'll be out dancing at some club with the girls."
"A club? With… other men there?" Jackson worriedly asked.
April hummed while she nodded. "Izzie told me she's gonna make me wear a tiara and a sash she made, so everyone knows I'm unavailable," she answered with a laugh. She noticed the uneasy look on his face and playfully rolled her eyes. "You know I won't be doing anything you won't like, sweetie. My sisters will be there to make sure drunk men don't try anything sneaky to me. Oh, and Cristina's presence automatically guarantees me that they'll stay away."
He slightly pouted. "I can't like, meet you there?"
She lightly nudged his side with her elbow. "It's my bachelorette party, babe. That's breaking the rules."
"But you're gonna be dressed up in something hot and I won't be able to enjoy seeing you it in," Jackson complained, giving her the pouty lip. "I hate to sound like one of those douchey, overprotective fiancés, but random men will see you the way I do and that's not fair."
April laughed, shaking her head. "And topless women will be giving you lap dances. You don't think I won't be a little jealous of them?"
"Would it help if I imagined your head on all of their bodies?" he sheepishly questioned.
"It seems to me you're struggling with this whole bachelor-bachelorette night, which is surprising. You're not eager to get away from me for one night? Most men typically look forward to one more night of freedom," she answered with a chuckle. "And if you want my opinion, I find that idea insulting. Makes it sound like us women are tying you men down against your will."
Jackson mischievously grinned. "You can tie me down anytime you want," he quipped. His fiancée laughed and rolled her eyes in response. "What? Maybe it'd be fun. I mean, we've never actually tried that aspect of sex before."
"I'm sorry, but that's way too kinky for me. Also, can we not talk about sex in front of our daughter?"
"She doesn't know what we're talking about."
"Yeah, but it's still weird. I'm sitting here feeding Charlotte and you're bringing up kinky sex. Let's talk about something else," she suggested. "How about your knee? Callie told me your knee is close to 100%. Any discomfort during your workouts?"
He shook his head. "Feeling good. I'm not psyching myself out or anything. I'm ready to get back on the field. I'm also positive this knee can handle long bedroom workouts too."
April shook her head and smiled to herself. Since giving birth to Charlotte, all of their spare time was devoted to their daughter. Despite being cleared for sexual activities, the surgical resident was too busy catching up with her fellow residents at work to make time for intimacy. She normally arrived home exhausted and Jackson also found himself just as tired after spending his days working out with the Dolphins and watching their baby.
Their honeymoon was just days away, so they would soon have the freedom to briefly get away. Although, April already felt apprehensive leaving Charlotte with her parents. She was away from her enough and she constantly felt guilty about not spending enough time with the 3-month old.
"You can wait a few more days, right?" she apologetically replied.
"I can. I just have to continually remind myself how much sex we'll be having on our wedding night alone," he proudly stated. "So about Friday night, what if I spent two hours at the strip club and then meet you at your club?"
"Then I'll send you back to the strip club," April firmly answered.
Jackson slightly slouched on the couch and sighed. "But what if I'm bored over there?"
"Find something better to do," she responded, sticking her tongue out at her fiancé. "Suck it up, Jackson. You're acting like I'll meet a guy on the dance floor and run away with him. Do you have any idea how long it took me to find a man who loves me for all of my quirky characteristics? And to think I could've ended up marrying the wrong guy before you came back into my life."
He placed a gentle kiss against her temple. "I can say the same about you. We were brought back together for a reason."
There were only a few weeks left until graduation, so Jackson didn't think slacking off on one paper would be a big deal. He had an A in his AP English Literature class and bombing a paper would really only drop his grade to an A- if he aced his final exam. Although he normally aimed for perfection, he was eager to graduate and move down to Los Angeles for college. However, his teacher wasn't pleased with his lack of effort.
"I know you're better than this, Mr. Avery," Robert Stark stated disappointedly as he skimmed his student's paper on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. He set the paper on top of Jackson's desk to show him all of the red marks he made on his work. "Just because it's the end of the year it doesn't mean half-assing in my class is acceptable."
The pretty boy sighed. He had spent a total of thirty minutes on his paper the night before. Instead of joining his friends for tuxedo fittings for prom, he was stuck in his grumpy teacher's classroom after school. He would gladly take the F over having to rewrite his paper again. Romeo and Juliet was such a cliché topic that he had zero interest in. Of course, it was his own fault for choosing it in the first place, but it was either that or Paradise Lost.
"Oh, you see… I was busy writing papers for my AP Government class and to be honest, I think our current political issues are much more important than two people killing themselves as an act of love," he insisted with a smirk.
"Being Mr. Popular doesn't earn you points from me, young man. You don't get free rides in my classroom, so either you rewrite your interpretation of Romeo and Juliet or I'm failing you," Stark warned him.
Jackson furrowed his brow at his teacher. "You can't fail me. I wouldn't be able to graduate. That- that would screw up my scholarship at UCLA," he retorted. "There's no way you can do that."
The older man smugly smiled as he slowly paced back and forth in front of Jackson's desk. "Ah, I've already spoken to Principal Bailey about this and she gave me the green light to do so. And I recruited some help for you, so you can finish this paper sooner. I'd like to be home in time for dinner over staying here all night with you."
A minute later, the door opened and April timidly entered the classroom holding her binder against her chest. "Hi, Mr. Stark," she softly greeted him, taking a quick glimpse of Jackson. He didn't look too pleased to see her. "Umm… sorry for running late. I had to ask somebody else to drive my sister home."
"That's completely fine, April. We were just getting started," he answered, gesturing his arm towards an empty desk. "Have a seat. Work, collaborate with Mr. Big Shot over here. Use the classroom's computer to write your paper. I'll be in the teacher's lounge grading papers, but I'll come back to check on your progress."
After Stark left the classroom, April sat down beside Jackson and avoided eye contact with him. "Okay, umm… where do you want to start?" She was taken aback when he tossed his paper onto her desk without saying a word. "I guess I can read what you wrote first."
"Whatever," he muttered, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket. "Just don't take long. I've gotta be somewhere."
She spent a few minutes skimming over the paper, occasionally grimacing at some of his comments. When she reached the end, she cleared her throat and forced a laugh. "Well, your grammar isn't the problem. That's a plus. Perhaps writing, 'Romeo and Juliet were a bunch of dumb fucking teenagers who didn't know any better' wasn't the greatest choice of words for your closing statement."
Jackson shrugged while he played a game on his cell phone. "It's the truth, though. Yeah, they were in love and their parents hated the idea of them together, but suicide shouldn't be the solution to their problems."
"Since you're supposed to be writing your own analysis of Romeo and Juliet, you could include that in your rewrite," she suggested and wrote some notes on the paper. "Also, you should think of a better way to describe Tybalt than calling him a dick."
"Just tell me what to write and I'll do it."
"I'm not going to tell you what to write word for word. That's your job. I'm just here because Stark is forcing me to help you."
"I bet you're so devastated because this is cutting into your time with your rock collection," he sneered.
April rolled her eyes. "I don't have a rock collection."
"Okay, bug collection." Jackson snickered when she scowled at him. "Which one of your bugs are you taking to prom?"
"I don't have a bug collection either and I'm not going to prom," she agitatedly replied, dropping her head as she kept her eyes on the paper.
He raised his eyebrow at her. "Not going? Huh, hardly a surprise. I never see you at the dances anyway."
"Obviously, you don't look hard enough. I went to every single dance in high school because my mother forced me to go, but I'm skipping out on prom," she clarified. "No point in wasting my money on a dance that isn't worth it."
"You're so weird," Jackson scoffed. "Senior prom is supposed to be one of those lifetime moments you can't miss. So what are you gonna do on Prom Night? Sit in front of your computer and chat with other nerds who are actually middle-aged and perverted?"
April clenched her jaw before she responded, "Better than being around people like you for the entire night."
He glanced up from his phone, smirking at her. "People like me? At least I'll be having the time of my life and you'll end up looking back ten years from now regretting not going. And you'll be crying to your forty cats about how lame you were – or still are."
"Being popular doesn't make you a good person," she mumbled. "If constantly insulting me for no reason makes you feel good about yourself, it's probably because you've got your own set of insecurities that you're trying to hide. I never did anything to humiliate you, Jackson."
"I'm not insecure," he dismissively said. "I'm happy with the way my life is."
"So, what's your problem with me? Am I too smart for you?" April sarcastically replied.
Jackson opened his mouth, then he quickly closed it because he didn't have a specific answer for her. She was different, which made her an easy target for teasing, but he couldn't remember why he started picking on her in the first place. He wanted to blame Alex since he most likely started it all, but he had to accept some of the responsibility too.
"Why do you act the way you do?" he asked.
"Why do you?"
"I asked you first."
April slowly shrugged. "I don't know. I just do. I keep to myself because people look at me like I'm from another planet for whatever reason," she explained, biting down on her bottom lip afterwards. "I love science, okay? That doesn't make me a freak."
"It wouldn't hurt to be more vocal with other people," he implied.
"I don't have the same kind of confidence as you and the way you treat me certainly doesn't help."
"Fine, I'll stop. I can't guarantee you that Karev will do the same," Jackson murmured, drumming his fingers against the edge of his desk. "So, uhh… where are you going for college?"
"Stanford."
He nodded his head. "You'll blend in there. Plenty of nerds to go around."
She huffed as she slammed her pencil against the desk. "So much for being done with the teasing. I don't have to take this anymore."
Jackson furrowed his eyebrows when April gathered her belongings and stood up. "Where are you going?"
"Home. You can finish this paper by yourself. Mr. Stark never said I had to stay here with you. He just told me to give you some advice," she irritably answered. "Good luck."
"Oh, c'mon. I was simply stating a fact," he argued. "You're supposed to be nice by helping me with my paper."
April rolled her eyes as she walked towards the door. "Well, I'm rebelling for a change."
She left the classroom and slammed the door behind her. As she strolled down the hallway, she slightly smiled at how victorious she felt at that moment. For once, she defended herself and against the most popular boy at school of all people. And she most likely wouldn't have to encounter him again after they graduate, so she felt proud of herself for growing a backbone and not taking his crap.
It was about time, she thought.
"To the future Mrs. Avery," Izzie toasted, raising her martini glass as she, the rest of the wedding party and friends sat together at a small table in the dance club they brought April to. The veterinarian served as the maid of honor and had organized a fun night for the bride-to-be. "May you and Jackson live a happy and healthy life together 'til the end of time."
April, who was wearing a cheap tiara and a glittered sash Izzie created, giggled as she joined the others in raising their glasses. Already slightly tipsy, it was the first time in a long time she allowed herself to let go and have fun. Charlotte was in good hands with her parents and Jackson was with his groomsmen. She wasn't the biggest clubber, but the company of her sisters and friends made it more enjoyable.
"Cheers, everybody!" the redhead squealed before sipping her drink.
Libby smirked as her sister quickly finished her beverage. "Hey, slow down a bit, Apes. The night is still young. We can't have you passed out before 11 PM." She took the empty glass from her and set it aside. "We slipped in a little present for you, so I think you should open it while you still remember who you are."
Kimmie grinned and held up a thin, rectangular box with a bow on it. "This is from me, Libby and Alice."
"Oh, presents!" April took the gift from her sister and set it on her lap. She hastily untied the bow and lifted the box top. Her smile faded when she discovered what was inside. She picked up the skimpy, red piece of garment with wide eyes. "Crotchless panties?"
Cristina snickered. "Jackson won't have trouble getting into your pants with those."
Despite the dim lighting inside of the club, the group could see April's blushing cheeks as she hurriedly put the panties back into the box. "How about we dance a bit now?" she sheepishly replied, standing up before anybody could respond.
They didn't object and followed her onto the dance floor. After finding a space that wasn't suffocating, the women started dancing as a group. April occasionally received looks from men nearby, though she hadn't noticed. Her black, strapless dress was catching the attention of the opposite sex as well as her drunken dance moves.
She felt a pair of hands rest against her waist causing her to panic. Spinning around to see which pervert was touching her, she gasped delightfully when she saw Jackson standing in front of her. "What are you doing here?"
Jackson grinned as he stared at April's body. "Strip club got really boring." He couldn't keep his eyes off of her curves and cleavage. "I am so glad I opted to cut my bachelor party short."
"Dude, why are you here?" Izzie questioned, placing her hands on her hips. "This is April's bachelorette party. You're supposed to be getting drunk with Alex at the strip club. By the way, he wasn't being inappropriate, right?"
"So I snuck out for a little bit. No big deal," he nonchalantly replied. "And Alex is busy getting O'Malley shitfaced and paying strippers to give the guy lap dances. He probably hasn't noticed I'm gone."
April placed her hands against Jackson's chest. "You shouldn't be here, babe."
"I know, but… I missed you," the pretty boy admitted, leaning in for a kiss.
The blonde rolled her eyes. "You are so whipped," she bluntly said and laughed. "Alex is gonna give you crap about this tomorrow. You really should go back. We're taking good care of April."
April wrapped her arms around her fiancé's neck. "I'll let him stick around for one dance." She chuckled when he pulled her close against his body. "Jackson, it's not a slow song."
"Yeah, but other men are staring at you. You know, with eyes?" he said concerned and she playfully slapped his shoulder in response. "There was one guy who definitely looked a bit sleazy."
"There's no reason to be jealous of those men because I'm not paying attention to any of them," she assured him.
Jackson softly groaned, gently pressing his forehead against hers. "I'm not purposely trying to come off as an overprotective fiancé. I don't know why I'm acting like this. I didn't get jealous easily when I dated Lexie," he truthfully stated. "And I'm not even drunk right now."
She giggled as she tickled his neck with the tip of her nose. "I kind of am."
He smiled, resting his hands against her lower back. "You're a cute drunk. At least tell me you missed me a little bit."
"If I don't, is the wedding off?" she playfully asked.
"It's possible we'll have to postpone it. I mean, I don't want to, but if you're being a bad girl-"
"Oh, stop with the naughty talk, Avery. Some of us can hear you over the loud music," Cristina sneered and waved her hand towards the exit. "Kiss her goodbye and be on your way."
Jackson rolled his eyes before he looked back at his fiancée. "Just one more dance. Please? After that, I'll go back to the strip club and we can pretend I never showed up here," he pleaded, giving April the puppy lip. "I love you."
The redhead threw her head back as she laughed. "Wow, and I thought me being slightly intoxicated would make me act sillier," she teased. She pulled his head down and kissed his lips. "But I love you too."
He grinned when a slower song began to play. Now he really couldn't leave until he shared a slow dance with her. "So, we'll be married in two days. I can't believe our day is almost here. We've had a good year, don't you think? With the exception of my knee, I've got you and Charlotte. I've never been happier."
"That reunion turned out to be a blessing in disguise," she noted, rested her head against his shoulder. "And I used to think I'd never be happy with anybody."
"It's always the person you least suspect who makes you the happiest."
April snickered as she stood on her tip toes to move closer to Jackson's ear. "My sisters bought me crotchless panties for our honeymoon," she whispered. He responded by softly growling, making her laugh. "I knew you'd appreciate that."
Mr. and Mrs. Avery had a nice ring to it. The wedding ceremony was everything April imagined it would be. Happy tears were shed on the bride's side and some from the groom's. The smile on Jackson's face when he saw his beautiful bride for the first time was the perfect Kodak moment. He was so hypnotized by her flowing, strapless white gown that he had almost forgotten his personal vows for her. Kissing her for the first time as April Avery was one of the greatest moments of his life.
The reception took place in a hotel by the beach. Cristina involuntarily caught April's bouquet, but her sour face slightly dwindled after Owen was the winner of the garter toss. The two of them had gotten along at the wedding rehearsal, which surprised their peers considering the Asian woman rarely made nice with people who were already her friends.
As much as they enjoyed the company of their families and friends who flew from all over the country to attend their wedding, they had both been eager to be alone since their first dance as husband and wife. At the conclusion of the reception, they were given a quick sendoff from their loved ones. They waited until they were out of sight to rush towards the closest elevator.
April let out a sigh of relief as the elevator doors closed. "Oh, gosh. I knew I should've changed shoes after the ceremony. My feet are killing me," she complained.
Jackson responded by cornering her in the elevator and passionately kissing her. "We're finally alone and you want to complain about your sore feet?" he amusingly asked, moving his lips down to her neck. "I've been wanting to rip off that dress since I saw you in it."
"Don't literally rip it. I love this dress," she playfully scolded him.
When the elevator arrived on their floor Jackson led her out and down the hallway to their hotel suite. He hurriedly unlocked their door, barely walking inside before he pressed his lips against hers. Kicking the door closed with his foot, he unfastened the buttons of his jacket and swiftly removed it.
April stepped out of her heels as she blindly walked backwards into their bedroom. She giggled at how impatient her husband was with the buttons of his vest and he nearly ripped them open. "Calm down, babe. I'm not going anywhere."
"I know it's just… it's been so long since we made love," he huskily said, leaning forward to devour the side of her neck after he removed his tie. Jackson's hands reached for the zipper of her dress and carefully pulled it down. He slowly slid the dress down her body, revealing a white, strapless bra and matching colored panties.
She quickly unbuttoned his dress shirt as they shared another kiss. Her hands peeled away his shirt and she purposely traced a line with her finger from his chest down to his chiseled abdomen causing him to slightly twitch. Based on the smallest touch, she could sense how aroused he already was. It had been almost six months since they last had sex, so she couldn't blame him too much.
April pushed Jackson onto the bed back first and he grinned widely when she straddled his lap. She slowly swayed her hips drawing a muffled groan from him as she rubbed up against him. "Is this torturing you?" she mischievously asked. He quickly nodded, then she reached down to unbuckle his belt.
He covered his face with his hands when she decided to remove his belt at a snail pace. "Woman, you're killing me right now."
She laughed out loud. "Well, then do something about it."
Jackson smirked as he flipped them over in one move. He hungrily kissed his wife, sliding his tongue into her mouth and gently squeezing her breast to make her moan. His lips traveled down to her cleavage, leaving trails of kisses on his way down to her abdomen before stopping at her panties. "I think I'm going to skip the foreplay and get right to the point," he declared, gripping the waistband of her lacy underwear and pulling it down her legs.
April couldn't stop laughing when he sloppily squirmed out of his pants and boxers, kicking his legs to drop them down to his ankles. She didn't even have time to remove the bobby pins in her hair before he moved into her. A soft gasp escaped her mouth, trying to get used to the sensation after having missed it for months.
He rested his forehead against hers, smiling as he breathed heavily against her lips. "I missed this."
"I hardly noticed," she sarcastically said, a mixture of a laugh and a moan coming out of her mouth as Jackson began to find a smooth rhythm with his hips. Her fingernails grazed his upper back, her hands holding on to him tightly as he made love to her.
It didn't take long for either of them to reach their climax. Jackson used his elbows to hold himself up, brushing away loose strands of April's hair from her face. "I'm sorry," he dejectedly stated.
"For what?" she asked, panting heavily.
"That wasn't long enough," he muttered. "I got too excited."
She cupped his cheeks and smiled. "Don't be sorry. It was still great," she assured him, kissing his lips afterwards. "And… we still have the whole night. Our honeymoon started the minute we rode that elevator."
He kissed each cheek, then he kissed her on the lips. "You're already an amazing wife."
"Yeah, yeah. Stop talking, Jackson," she politely ordered, pulling him back down and kissing him deeply.
9 years later
"Alright, buddy. Go ahead and pick one," Jackson instructed, his 5-year old son sitting on his lap as they stared at the various bowties neatly organized in a boxed case. "Which one do you want to wear tonight?"
Lucas Avery pressed his fingers against his lips as he eyed the different colored and patterned mini bowties set out in front of him. After a minute of silent deliberation with himself, he pointed at a red bowtie with yellow polka dots. "Dat one, Daddy!"
The pretty boy chuckled at his son's selection. "You sure? I think you wore that on Tuesday."
"Uh huh! I want to wear dat for your big award," he excitedly replied. "It's one of my favorites."
"Okay, red with polka dots it is." Jackson picked up the little bowtie and wrapped it underneath Lucas' collar. It was just a clip-on, but still stylish for a kid nonetheless. "There you go, Luke. I wish I had a bowtie as cool as yours."
Lucas was a huge fan of bowties. While children his age collected toys such as cars or dinosaurs, he collected bowties. He was three years old when he became intrigued by them. It helped that his father was also a fan of them when he was required to wear formal attire, but the youngest Avery child wore a different bowtie every day. He even wore one to sleep in his pajamas. At first, April and Jackson thought it was odd. Their friends sort of teased them about their son's peculiar obsession, but they eventually accepted the fact that he was adorably weird.
"Daddy, when can I wear bowties like yours?"
"After you learn how to tie your own shoes," he answered while sticking Lucas' tiny foot into his black Vans slip-ons. "Once you know how to do that, I'll teach you how to tie a bowtie."
"But these shoes don't even have laces," the 5-year old noted. "How am I 'sposed to tie them?"
Jackson snickered. His kid could sometimes be a bit of a smart ass, but in the nicest way possible. "Well, your mom said no sneakers with laces to this award ceremony and I know how much you hate the shiny shoes, so this is the alternative."
April appeared at the doorway, smiling at the twosome as she wore her pearl earrings. "All ready, sweetie? We should head out in five minutes. The girls are waiting downstairs."
After Jackson's four-year contract with the Miami Dolphins was up, he opted not to renew it and signed with the Seattle Seahawks. While they enjoyed their time in South Florida, he and April had decided it was time to return home where they could settle down closer to their families and friends. They wanted their children to grow up near their grandparents – and make it easier to find babysitters.
The orthopedic surgeon now worked for the University of Washington as the Chief of Orthopedic Surgery. Being in charge of her department gave her more flexibility with her schedules, so she could reserve enough time for her husband and kids.
Jackson played football for another three years before officially retiring from the NFL after fifteen seasons in the league. He decided to attend graduate school at UW while working as a graduate assistant for the football team. Now, he was the team's wide receivers coach. His next goal was to become an offensive coordinator for the Huskies.
His success at Seattle Grace Academy was rewarded with an induction into the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association Hall of Fame. It came as a surprise to him, but he was grateful for the honor. The awards ceremony was taking place at KeyArena to celebrate his and eight other inductees' achievements. April took the day off from work, so she could attend.
"Yeah, we're ready. I'm just putting on Luke's shoes," he answered his wife.
"Look at my bowtie, Mama," Lucas chirped and proudly pointed at his favorite accessory.
April softly squealed as she approached the two Avery boys. "Aww, you look so handsome," she complimented before kissing her son's forehead. She took his hand and he slid off of Jackson's lap. "C'mon, let's buckle you up into your car seat, while Daddy gets his coat."
She brought Lucas downstairs and stood by the entrance of the living room to rally up the rest of the troops. "Charlotte, Jessica. We're leaving now. Turn off the TV."
The Avery girls, ages ten and seven, stood up from the couch after hearing their mother's voice. Charlotte turned off the TV, then she followed April out the front door. "Mom, is Uncle Alex gonna be there?"
"Yes, sweetie. Why?"
"He's not bringing Mikey, is he?" she asked, scrunching her nose.
"I'm pretty sure the whole Karev clan will be attending the dinner. Uncle Alex is your daddy's best friend after all," April casually replied as she picked up Lucas and helped him climb into their SUV. She raised her eyebrow curiously at her eldest daughter. "Why do you ask?"
"Because Charlotte has a crush on Mikey!" Jessica blurted out from the backseat, covering her mouth with her hands as she giggled loudly.
"No, I don't! You liar!" Charlotte retorted. She pouted after she sat down behind the driver's seat. "Mikey is gross. He smells bad and he's old."
April softly laughed. "He's twelve. That's only two years older than you." She finished strapping Lucas into his car seat, then she sat down in the front passenger seat. The redhead turned around in her seat to watch her children. Lucas and Jessica were in the back having a thumb war, while Charlotte quietly sat still with her arms folded. "Something wrong, baby?"
The eldest Avery child groaned. "I don't have a crush on Mikey Karev. He's mean."
"Mean, how? If he's been picking on you, why didn't you tell anybody?"
"He's always flicking my ear and poking me even though I tell him to stop," she whined.
April chuckled. "Oh, dear. Maybe that's his way of telling you he likes you," she suggested. "Your Uncle Alex wasn't the most mature boy when we were in high school. Plus, a lot of boys act obnoxious because they don't know how to act normally around girls."
"Is that how Daddy acted?"
"Well… we were very different people growing up. Different group of friends and different interests, but we figured out how to get along." She smiled as she thought about her husband, who was now a minute late in her personal schedule. "Your daddy is the greatest."
The ceremony lasted for about two hours. Each inductee was given time for their speeches and a plaque for becoming the newest members of WIAA Hall of Fame. Jackson and April's parents were on hand to witness his shining moment as were the Karevs. His wife made sure to take a ton of pictures while he stood behind a podium reciting his speech. If he had noticed the video camera recording him from the back of the room, he most likely would've stammered too much and looked like a fool. It was a good thing he only spotted it after his speech ended.
"Daddy, this award is too heavy," Jessica whined as she struggled to carry the plaque with her spaghetti string arms. She had been enamored by how shiny it was until she realized it was too heavy for her to hang on to.
Jackson took the plaque from his daughter and smiled. "I told you it was. Maybe you'll be able to carry it over your head next year," he jokingly said. "You know, when you're a big girl."
"I'm already a big girl!" she answered with a pout. "'Member I ate those two chili dogs all by myself last week?"
"Uh huh, and then you had a tummy ache afterwards," he recalled, making her pout anymore. Jackson leaned over and kissed the 7-year old's forehead. "Okay, okay. You're a big girl, Jess. You look exactly like your mommy when you're mad."
"Can I hold dat, Daddy?" Lucas eagerly asked, jumping up and down trying to reach for his father's award.
"Not unless you want to fall down on your little bum," Jackson said and patted his son's head. "It's a little too heavy for you, buddy."
Alex approached his best friend and firmly slapped his rear end. "Mr. Hall of Famer! How does it feel?"
Jackson shrugged. "I don't know. I somewhat felt like an outsider because everyone else inducted was at least twenty years older than me, but it's cool. And thanks for coming, man. I'm glad you came."
"No problem. I needed a break from some of the paperwork I have to finish at the police station." Alex had recently been promoted to Captain after spending years of moving his way up the ladder. Izzie and their friends threw him a surprise party following his promotion. "Next week's our reunion. You stoked?"
"Yeah, it has a significant meaning for April and I. We'll be celebrating ten years as a couple at our reunion," the pretty boy answered and smiled as he took a glimpse of April, who was nearby chatting with Izzie. "Everything could be so different right now if I hadn't attended our 10-year reunion."
"You'd probably be lonely and jerking off to old pictures of Lexie," Alex quipped and earned himself a punch in the arm. He laughed as he rubbed the pain away. "Speaking of Lexie, you think she'll show up to this year's reunion?"
"I have no idea, but whether or not she does it doesn't matter to me," he insisted. "I'm married with kids. Everything about Lexie is in the past and we've both moved on. She seems happy. I know I'm happy with how my life turned out."
Lucas tugged on Alex's hand. "Uncle Alex, did you shoot any bad guys today?"
"Nope. Not today, Little Bowtie," his godfather answered. Since Lucas started collecting bowties, Alex had given him a nickname dedicated to his quirky interest and the 5-year old enjoyed being called that. "My squad does a good job keeping the bad guys away."
"I want to be police off'cer too!"
Jackson rubbed the top of Lucas' shaved head. "I thought you wanted to be a football player like me."
"I can do both. I also wanna be a doctor like Mommy," he added. "I'm gonna be all three at the same time."
Both fathers turned their attention towards the sobs coming out of their children's mouths. Mikey Karev approached Alex covering his right eye, while Charlotte rushed towards Jackson and buried her face against his jacket.
"What's wrong, dude?" Alex asked his son.
Mikey pointed at Charlotte with a scowl on his face. "She punched me!"
"He kissed me!" the oldest Avery daughter retorted.
Neither men knew what they were supposed to do. Instead of dealing with the problems themselves, both Jackson and Alex called for their wives like they were boys who lost their mothers at the supermarket.
Izzie softly groaned. "Oh, geez. Here they go again. I'm telling you, they wouldn't survive a day without us, which is why we can never have a moms' night out. Either Alex or Jackson ends up calling us after being gone for an hour."
"And Alex is a freaking cop. You'd think he'd know how to handle pre-teen drama since he deals with worse people on a daily basis," April added. "Unfortunately, Jackson doesn't have much of an excuse."
Lucas ran towards April and grabbed a hold of her hand. "Mommy, I think Daddy needs you."
"I'll be there in a minute, sweetie." She suddenly smiled at Izzie. "You know what? I think Daddy should handle this problem on his own. Tell him that Aunt Izzie and I are going to take a detour to the ladies' room."
The blonde nodded in agreement. "That sounds like a good idea. I need to check on my makeup."
Alex furrowed his brow as the women left to go to the women's restroom. "Hey, where are they going?"
"They're ditching us, so we can deal with this ourselves," Jackson murmured, shaking his head. "We have clever wives."
Welcome Back, Class of 2003
A similar banner from ten years ago hung above the entrance of Seattle Grace Academy's gym as Jackson and April arrived for their 20-year reunion. Walking into the gym hand in hand, neither of them could believe it had been twenty years since they graduated high school. At times, it still felt like their 10-year reunion happened yesterday. The biggest difference from their first and second reunions was who was in charge of the school. Principal Bailey had retired two years prior and their new principal was a very familiar face.
"Happy 20th, you two!" George greeted the couple. These days, he was known as Principal O'Malley. "Make yourselves comfortable. Who's watching the kids for you?"
"My parents are and the kids are sleeping over at their place since we don't know what time we'll be home," April answered, smiling as she skimmed the decorations inside of the gym. "This is bringing back memories – both good and awful."
Jackson stood behind his wife, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Always keep in mind that very good things happened at our last reunion," he reminded her and kissed her cheek. "Maybe we'll have another unforgettable memory tonight."
"Anyway, the bar's already open and we've got about an hour until we officially start," George stated before leaving the couple alone to greet other alumni.
"When you mean unforgettable, are you referring to a certain room where we… got a bit steamy?" April insinuated, winking at her husband. "Because I'm sure we'll have to find a way to celebrate our anniversary before the night is over."
The pretty boy smugly grinned as he buried his face against April's neck. "That locker room is a huge part of why we're together and still together after all these years." He placed gentle kisses against her soft skin. "You think we can get away with sneaking off for fifteen minutes?"
She turned around in his arms and smirked. "Let's wait after dinner. We just got here."
"I knew you were going to say that," he sighed and gave her a quick peck on the lips. "You know what? At least I don't have to switch name cards this time around."
"My, oh my, look who we have here," a voice greeted Jackson from behind. He turned around to find Lexie standing in front of him with her husband, Mark Sloan. She smiled after they greeted her. "How are you guys?"
"We're great. Everyone's healthy and happy," April cheerfully said, then she looked at her ex-fiancé. "Hello, Mark."
The plastic surgeon had been married to Lexie for seven years. Following the outcome of the paternity results, he finally decided to move on with his life and stop chasing after April. The brunette had called him a day after the 10-year reunion, but he thought nothing of it and blew her off. After the Avery wedding, he resigned from his position at the University of Miami Hospital and moved back home to New York, working for Columbia.
He and Lexie bumped into each other by chance when she blew out her vocal cord in the middle of rehearsal. Because Mark was also an ENT doctor, he performed the surgery to repair Lexie's damaged vocal cord and he helped save her Broadway career. He had been bitter about April choosing Jackson and constantly ranted to her about it. His bitterness was due to his own flaws, which helped him realize he needed to change his attitude after she called him out.
Lexie had her own set of bitterness after Jackson rejected her at their first reunion. She and Mark helped each other move on and eventually fell in love in the process. They had three children – a girl and two boys.
It was the first time Mark and April had seen each other in person since her residency years in Miami. Neither held any ill feelings towards each other anymore since they were both happily married and satisfied with their lives. It still felt awkward attending the same reunion with different people, though.
"How's it goin', Avery?" he asked the ex-NFL star, extending out his hand. "Heard you got into a high school Hall of Fame last week. Congratulations."
Jackson smiled and shook the plastic surgeon's hand. "Thank you."
"Doesn't it feel weird? Twenty years since we graduated high school," Lexie pointedly said. "God, I feel old."
"You feel old? I dyed my hair two weeks ago for this day," Mark admitted and laughed. "There was no way I was showing up looking like somebody's grandpa."
Lexie rolled her eyes and nodded towards her husband. "He barely has any gray hairs. He was just really paranoid," she noted. "Have you found your seats yet?"
"Not yet. We just arrived a few minutes ago," April politely answered.
"Well, we're gonna go find our table, so we can catch up later."
The redhead looked at Jackson, slipping her hand into his. "We should find our table too."
He waited for Mark and Lexie to be a decent distance away before he said, "Or… we could have a little fun of our own before even more guests arrive," he suggested with a mischievous smile on his face. "C'mon, why wait when we can do it now?"
She softly smiled and sighed. "You were always a horny boy, Jackson Avery."
"You pretend you're innocent, but you are far from that," he teased. "Don't you want to feel like a teenager again?"
April playfully nudged her husband's shoulder. "I never had sex when I was eighteen. You know that." She lightly tugged on his navy blue tie. "But you can make me feel like I'm eighteen."
Jackson grinned from ear to ear, leading his wife towards the infamous boys' locker room. He casually scanned their surroundings hoping nobody would notice them. Pushing the swinging door open, he allowed April to go inside first before he followed suit. He was already certain it was going to be another memorable high school reunion.
Let me know what you thought of this chapter or the story as a whole please :) I have two more AUs coming up soon, one that's inspired by The Hunger Games lol.