A/N~ Just a reminder that reviews make my day guys! If you like it, let me know *blows kisses* ~Belle
Part Twelve
"Mark and I are going out tonight," Lexie tells April, at home later.
"Ooh, you're going on a date?" April grins. "Where's your makeup bag?"
"It's the green and blue one in the first drawer under the sink in the bathroom?" Lexie questions. "What do you need?"
"No," April contends, grabbing it and then plopping down on Lexie's bed. "It's what do you need, and the answer is blush."
Lexie laughs and lets April powder blush on her cheeks. "The ghostly look isn't in?" she asks.
"You've looked better," April admits, tapping Lexie's nose with the brush. "Now close your eyes."
"I can put my own eyeliner on," Lexie argues, still letting her though. "I don't really wear eyeliner often."
"It makes your eyes pop," April notes. "There you go, gorgeous," she grins. "Mark won't know what hit him tonight."
"We're not going on a date," Lexie tells her. "We're just going bowling and then out for ice cream, it's not…"
"Whatever you say," April shrugs. "Whatever you want to call it… wear nice panties."
"Stop it," Lexie laughs. "Mark isn't going to see my panties."
"Well, obviously," April notes, "But you always feel prettier when you wear nice panties."
Mark's casually late as usual, Meredith opens the door for him. "Have fun," she grins broadly. "Just not too much fun."
"Oh, c'mon," Mark laughs. "Your husband would punch me again if I tried to get in Lexie's pants tonight."
Footsteps pound quietly down the stairs behind them. "She wore nice panties for you," April adds quietly.
"I wore them for me!" Lexie argues, throwing one of her shoes down the stairs at April.
"Does it matter?" Derek questions, poking his head in from the kitchen. "No one's going to see them."
"Yeah but you always feel prettier when you wear nice panties," all three girls echo at the same time.
Mark and Derek look at each other and shrug. "Have fun guys," Derek shrugs, going back to his work.
"I need to move out of this house," Lexie mumbles as they leave. "Seriously."
...
"Size eights, here you go," Mark grins, plopping a pair of bowling shoes down on the table.
Mark ties his shoes on in thirty seconds, and looks to see Lexie struggling. "My ankles are swollen," she exclaims. "Like, really swollen, like pregnancy level swollen…"
Mark laughs, "It's okay."
"You know," Lexie decides. "Screw these. Nobody will notice if I don't wear these, will they?"
"Doubt it," Mark shrugs. "Just… put them under the table."
Lexie laughs and shoves the shoes underneath her chair. "Let's play ball," she jokes.
"I'm gonna warn you, I'm a shitty bowler," Mark laughs.
"You weren't lying, you really are a shitty bowler," Lexie laughs, after the game's over and she's won, by far, and without shoes.
"Oh cmon, I wasn't that bad," Mark argues feebly. "Ice cream?" He confirms.
Lexie nods, distracted. "Look," she says, pointing out something towards the exit of the bowling alley. "It's a photo booth."
"C'mon, those are cheesy," Mark argues weakly. In reality, he'd love to. Him and Lexie didn't take nearly enough photos together, they never had.
Lexie shakes her head as she stops for a second to catch her breath. Mark smirks and scoops her up bridal style, and she squeals. "Mark, put me down," she laughs. "If you fall we're both gonna die."
"No one's dying," he answers, as he puts her down in the booth and slides two dollars into the machine.
The first picture, they smile, and the second, they make silly faces. In the third picture, Mark leans in and kisses her, smack on the lips. And he pulls away quick enough that in the fourth and final picture, you can see Lexie's expression of utter surprise, and his of mischief and accomplishment.
"Mark!" Lexie exclaims as they're waiting for their photo strips to develop, "What was that?!"
Mark laughs. "It was a kiss," he tells her. "That's all, nothing more. Don't read too much into it."
"How can I not read too much into it?" Lexie asks in return. "I mean…"
"Lexie," Mark says, stopping her from babbling on. "I really care about you, that's no secret. Now c'mon, I gotta get you back to Mer's or everyone's gonna think I slept with you. So ice cream and vamos."
She'd need the ice cream to stop her face from overheating. Blushing could do that to you, couldn't it?
...
"Happy surgery day," Derek announces, walking into Lexie's room at half past six in the morning and opening the windows.
She groans, "Close the windows and let me sleep a little longer."
"You can sleep when you're under anesthesia," he contends. "Which, will be soon."
"That's not sleeping," Lexie whines. "Close the windows."
"See you later," Derek grins, pulling up her blanket and leaving the room.
"Derek," Meredith hisses, face to face with him in the hall. "Leave her alone, why don't you?"
Derek smiles and shakes his head. He's just trying to have a little fun before all the tension of what was going on later.
Later was Lexie's first surgery. Maybe, if the stars aligned and everything worked out just right, it could be her last. Derek was hopeful, honestly. He had a plan, the way he always did, he wouldn't be doing this if he wasn't sure it would improve her condition more than it'd hurt it. It wasn't a cure, of course it wasn't quite yet, but it was the start, and he felt good about it.
Mark says the same thing later, coming in to visit while Lexie was in pre-op. "Happy surgery day."
"Don't," Lexie argues, looking away.
Mark claps his hands together. "You got half an hour till the team scrubs in. Shepherd's got Kepner scrubbing in with him, he wanted Meredith, but that breaches policy or whatever. He's got a whole big plan, it's gonna take 8 hours if everything goes as planned, in, out…"
She frowns and turns her back to him. He puts a hand on her back. "Hey, okay. What's wrong? You feeling okay?"
She nods wordlessly. "Lex, c'mon, talk to me," Mark says. "I'm your person, remember, you can talk to me."
"Then just be my person!" Lexie bursts, turning around a little too quickly and rendering herself lightheaded. "You can't be my doctor and my person, you can't be both! You're supposed to be taking my mind off the surgery, not giving me the details, I don't want details!"
Mark understands what's going on. "You're scared," he nods. He feels like a total idiot for not realizing that right away.
"Of course I'm scared," Lexie whimpers.
Mark wipes the tears spilling onto her cheeks. "I am too," he admits. "But it's gonna be okay."
"You're not sure of that," Lexie argues.
"I'm not sure of anything," Mark admits. "But I'm an optimist."
"I don't want to die," Lexie answers, her voice quiet and rough. "But if I do, I just want you to know…"
Mark puts his thumb over her lips. "You're not dying, Lex, okay? Not even thinking about it. Happy thoughts. I'll see you in post-op, you're not gonna die."
Lexie nods. "Okay."
A nurse peeks her head into the room. "Dr Sloan it's time to get Dr. Grey into the OR."
Mark nods. "I'll come as far as I can."
Lexie quickly grabs onto his hand. "Can you hold my hand?"
Mark nods, saddened that she's so scared, and he holds her hand until the nurse tells him he's gotta leave. "I…" He hesitates. He wants to say I love you. "I'll see you in post-op."
