Hello! I know, it has been a very long time and I am very sorry for thought. I've had a tough couple of months - busy at work, holiday stress, a family situation - and it's just sapped all the creativity out of me. But, I've managed to come up with something and while I can't make any promises about how soon you might see anything more, I hope you will enjoy this offering. Thank you for reading and please let me know what you think!


"Does this make you sorry that we didn't have a 'real' wedding ceremony?"

Jackson posed the question to his wife, who was nestled in his arms as closely as her growing belly would allow, as they moved slowly around the dance floor at Ben and Bailey's wedding.

April considered the question for a moment before shaking her head. "Not really, no. It was just the ceremony – we're still having a big party, just at a different time."

Jackson gave her a skeptical look. "Yeah, and my mother's planning the whole thing. That doesn't bother you at all?"

April grinned knowingly. "It really doesn't. I mean, yeah, I had my girlhood fantasies of wildflowers and – and butterflies – but, we'll be at the farm next summer and my parents will have a party, so I'll get to have that then and you know, you grow up. You change. You figure out that in the end it's not about the wedding, it's about the marriage. That's the important thing, right?"

As if to illustrate April's point, the baby chose that moment to make a kick and Jackson laughed.

"I think it agrees," he said lightly and April frowned.

"He or she," she said with severe emphasis on the pronouns, "is kicking you because you keep calling him or her 'it.'"

Jackson rolled his eyes good-naturedly at this familiar argument. "It's not my fault the baby –" here he paused, as if waiting for approval on this term; at April's nod and faint grin, he continued. "has inherited all of their mother's modest genes and won't let us see what kind of parts they have."

He had a point. They'd had two ultrasounds so far and neither one had yielded a reveal of their child's sex. It seemed fitting though, considering the baby itself had been a huge surprise – why not have everything else about it be a surprise. So they'd grudgingly accepted that they wouldn't know whether they were expecting a son or a daughter until the child made its appearance. But it was hard not knowing which pronoun to use – sometimes they went back and forth between he and she, sometimes they or their but always, April at least, trying not to use the word 'it.'

April laughed. "Something tells me you might not be complaining so much about modesty if the baby is a girl. At least not when she's about fourteen"

Jackson grinned. "Maybe not."

April shook her head. "That, of course, depends on if she inherits your charm and charisma. If she takes after me, then trust me, you don't have to worry at all about boys noticing her."

"Hey, cut that out," Jackson said firmly.

April shrugged. "It's true," she said simply. "But it's okay. Things work out the way they're supposed to, I think."

"They worked out pretty well for me," Jackson agreed with a smile, dropping a kiss on the top of her head, marveling again at how things had worked out for him. A year ago, he'd been coming off of a break-up. He'd never in a million years have believed it had someone told him that a year later he'd be married to his best friend and just a couple months away from becoming a father. It was kind of crazy but also kind of perfect.

They stayed on the dance floor for another song or two before heading back to the table where Meredith and Alex were sitting with Callie and Arizona.

"What a weird day," Jackson remarked as he sat down beside April.

The others nodded in agreement. From the delayed ceremony to the motorcycle gang at the hospital, it had been a long weird day. Alex, Callie and Arizona had all started drinking before they got the page from the hospital and so had stayed behind.

"Worst wedding ever," Alex grumbled, half-seriously. "I was hoping to score with a bridesmaid or something. Didn't know they'd all be married and two-thirds of them lesbians," he declared, receiving laughs and eye rolls from the rest of the table.

"Why didn't you bring one of your intern fan club?" Jackson queried.

Alex shrugged. "I've told you. I'm trying to be a grown-up. No more interns."

"Besides," Meredith added, "he's already slept with the ones that'll have him. Wilson hates him – "

"Or is scared of him," Arizona interjected.

"Whatever," Alex muttered.

"And Edwards only has eyes for Jackson," Meredith continued, nodding across the table at him.

"Wait, what?" Jackson asked in confusion. "Edwards has a thing for me? I thought she was interested in plastics!"

Meredith shook her head. "The only pretty face she's interested in is yours, my friend."

Truly surprised by this, Jackson looked to April for confirmation. She nodded.

"It's true. I overheard her the other day trying to figure out if your eyes are green or blue and then decide that it didn't really matter 'cause they were gorgeous either way," April said, holding back a giggle at the look on her husband's face. "So, when I taught their skills lab that afternoon, I made sure to keep my left hand on my stomach through pretty much the whole lecture and throw in as many references as possible to 'my husband, Dr. Avery." She grinned triumphantly as the other three women nodded in approval and Jackson kind of blinked in surprise.

"Wedding rings displayed on a baby belly," Callie summarized. "Nice."

Their attention was drawn away at that moment by the clanging of silverware against glass and demands for a kiss between the bride and groom. Jackson took advantage of the distraction to lean over and quietly say to April, "You're really okay about this?"

April looked over at him and nodded. "I'm fine. It's not your fault she has a crush on you or finds you attractive. Quite frankly, I'd be more surprised if she didn't," she said with a grin.

Jackson rolled his eyes at that comment and April laughed. "Don't be modest," she said teasingly. "I know you know you're hot. But I also know you chose me and you keep choosing me every day so whatever. She can crush all she wants – I know who you're going home with." She leaned over and kissed him and then sat back in her chair, smiling and clapping along with everyone else as Ben pulled Bailey into a kiss of their own.

Jackson shook his head, grinning, as he slid his chair close enough to hers that he could sling his arm around her shoulders. "Have I told you how hot it is when you get all self-confident like that?" he said softly into her ear, his breath making her shiver.

April smiled to herself. "You may have mentioned that once or twice, yes," she replied before glancing over at him with a grin. "But it's always nice to hear again."

"How soon can we leave without looking rude?" he questioned and April laughed.

"The bride was like five hours late, I think we can leave whenever we're ready and it'll be fine," she said, looking over at him again, taking a moment to appreciate the desire in his eyes.

"Then I'm ready," Jackson said. "Let's get out of here."