Chapter 11

It would have been easy for Jin and Sun, after they had relocated to LA, to live the life of prosperity that he had once aspired to and she had once lived. After all, the settlement had left them financially secure, and they could have focused on being the parents to Ji Yeon that they had never had.

But after everything that they had gone through when they had been married, they knew that they couldn't live the life of a rich, leisurely couple. Jin had seen all too clearly what wealth could do to a man, and even if he didn't have anywhere close to the Paik family fortune, it was not the kind of life he wished to repeat. Sun knew just as well how oppressive wealth had made her mother, and she was determined that her daughter not live the same life..

So, after a few months and many conversations, they had each gone back to work.

Jin had spent his entire life before the plane crash ashamed that he had been the son of a fisherman. Then, after spending three months on an island in the Pacific, it turned out that his greatest shame had been key to their survival. A bigger surprise was how happy it had made him. After some discussion with Hurley, he had opened his own charter fishing boat in the harbor. Had he invested more of his own money, he could have opened a fleet. But even though being a 'businessman' for Paik Automotive had been horrible, the ambition of wanting to start something of his own and grow it to fruition still thrived in him. So he decided to start small with only two boats. Every couple of days he led one of the skiffs out on the water himself. There was a bit of a learning curve, considering that there were different fish here than in Korea, but after all, it was the same ocean.

Sun had her own ambitions. A lifetime ago, she had gotten a degree in art history, but her mother had pretty much suppressed that as an obstacle to getting a husband. Now, even though she was in a town that pretty much had galleries on every other corner, she decided to fly on her own anyway. This had taken a little more of an effort than Jin's aspiration - Hurley freely admitted the only art he really knew about involved dogs playing poker - but she had welcomed the extra effort. It was one of the few things she had ever done for her own benefit, not out of desperation.

After a couple of months, she found a location, and began to make contacts with Asian artists. Even more than a year after their return to civilization, being a survivor of Oceanic 815 still had some pull, and she was willing to use this celebrity to help get things done. She hired some people to help her with the basics of doing the maintenance, but Sun handled most of the work herself. It wasn't easy, and unlike Jin, she wasn't used to working this hard, but she found satisfaction in an honest day work.

One of the benefits to being the boss, of course, was that you could make your own hours. And though Jin and Sun both loved the idea of being independent, the lesson that they had taken from the island was that they should never take their love for granted. So, even though they had people watching Ji Yeon, they both made sure to be done with work at four o'clock every afternoon. The two would then go home, and spend the rest of the day together. They also made sure to take at least one day off every week so that they could be together with their friends.

And slowly but surely, their professional lives began to show fruit as well. Jin might not have been used to motorboats and expensive rods, but he was still a skilled sailor. He didn't flaunt his notoriety as much as his wife did, but word did get out that Jin Kwon was running marlin and yellowtail, and his charter business grew. Sun's gallery also became successful, especially when she began reaching out to women artists in the San Diego area. They were actually beginning to reach the levels of success they might have thought on their own.

"It's odd," Jin told his wife, as they put Ji Yeon down for her nap that day. "I spent all my life being ashamed of being a fisherman. It never even occurred to me to try and make a living at it."

Sun, who had known that her husband had been a fisherman's son before she'd agreed to marry him, wasn't that surprised. "It's different where we came from. Americans view this as something for fun. The ones here mostly don't think of trying to make a living from it."

"And the ones who do are struggling to survive." Jin was thoughtful. "Do you miss your mother?"

Even before they had relocated to Los Angeles, Sun had made more or less a clean break from both her parents. Her father wasn't a big deal - she knew very well how much he hated Jin - but her mother was a harder case. Sun had had a decent relationship with her growing up, but she'd been in a world of denial over what her husband did. Throughout the terrible times of their marriage, she had never even thought of confiding in her or even asking for help. It had been very telling that she had been willing to let her mother think she was dead when she had decided to make her escape.

"I don't know," she admitted. "She didn't think very much of you either," she reminded Jin.

"She was still your mother," Jin admitted. "And considering that I never even knew who mine was, I can't imagine how hard it is for you."

Even now, Sun had been reluctant to tell her husband about her encounter with the woman who had blackmailed her. It had practically destroyed her marriage before it began, and an argument could have been made that it had been the cause of everything that went wrong, but that wasn't why she hesitated. To know that the only reason his mother had come out of the woodwork was to blackmail her daughter-in-law might not be as bad as knowing what she had done in order to make sure her father had found out, but it was a very near question. As it was, it was in the past now.

"What brings this up?" she asked.

"I'm trying to decide whether or not to ask my father to come to America," Jin told her.

"Haven't you asked him before?" Sun reminded him.

"A couple of times," Jin said. "I'm wondering if keeps saying no because I was ashamed of him."

"Jin, from when we lived with him, he was never ashamed of you. He was willing to risk never seeing you again so that you and I could be happy."

"And maybe he feels guilty for that," Jin said. "After all, in his mind, that's why I was on the plane."

"And that's what saved us," Sun reached out and took her husband's hand. "That's why we have Ji Yeon. That's why we have everything."

Jin smiled - something he was doing more and more often these days. "He loves fishing. For him, it was never just about putting food on the table or a roof over our head. He loved going out on the water. He would always tell me 'the sea is where everything started. ' And as ambitious as I was, there was always part of me that loved it, too."

Sun gave a smile of her own. "I never saw you happier than when you were casting your nets."

"He's getting older. I want to take care of him. See that he can play with Ji Yeon." He paused. "Make up for what I did to him before all this. But he's a proud man."

"Just like his son. And I'm sure, given everything we've been through, he'd be willing to listen." Sun hesitated. "You think we should go back to try and talk him into it?"

Neither of them had been back to South Korea since they had moved. Like the other survivors, Jin and Sun had developed a severe phobia when it came to flying. In this case, however, they knew they'd have to make an exception.

"Probably," Jin said slowly. "Our lives were simple, but I can't ask him to pack it up on a phone call."

"I wouldn't expect us to." Sun admitted. "When would you want to go?"

"There's one big tour next week. Other than that, I can probably get away with leaving the company alone for the next few weeks." Jin hesitated. "When was that exhibit going to be?"

"End of the month," Sun was thinking. "But the really heavy planning isn't until the last few days before that."

"You sure?"

Sun smiled. "It's one of the benefits of being your own boss. We'll call Hurley. See if he can charter a plane like he did last time."

'First things first." Jin said. "I'd better make sure he knows we're coming."

Jin's village was a small one, and while the population hadn't changed much over time, most of the younger people - like him - tended to leave when they got older. As a result, much of the technology of the new century - and quite a bit of the previous one - had yet to touch. Internet service was next to none existent, and it was poor enough so that not all the villagers had telephones, and those who didn't get the same service they would in Seoul. As a result, Jin would going to have to send a letter, and even air mailed, it was going to take a few days to reach there. Jin didn't have a big objection to this, though. They would need the time.

Just then, Sun's cell rang. "Jack?" she said. "It's good to hear your voice."

"You don't have to act like we haven't talked for months." Jack told her good-naturedly.

"I know. It's just, you never call. We just see you every week."

Jack's tone changed. "That's why I'm calling. I tried calling Kate an hour ago, but I must have gotten the hours wrong. She didn't pick up." He heaved a sigh. "I need you to explain why I'm not going to see her this week."

Sun froze. This was serious. Until today, Jack had never missed a single visiting day with Kate. He'd made an arrangement with the hospital so that he could be free. "Don't tell me they're making you work an extra shift on this day."

"I wish it were that simple." Jack said grimly. "There's going to be a major surgery tomorrow. And as much as I need to see Kate, I made a promise that I would see this thing through, and I really think I have to keep it."

"I don't understand," Sun asked.

"Isabel Stevens has a Stage 3 carcinoma on her brain," Jack replied. "Derek operates tomorrow. And even if he does everything perfectly, there's a very good chance she'll die."

Hurley had only been in Callie's apartment once. Christina was her roommate right now, and from the few times that he'd seen her, he could tell that she was a woman who needed her space. The few times they'd spoken she'd been blunt and acerbic. Strangely enough, it mostly bounced off him. Hurley had always had thick skin. Besides, she reminded him of Sawyer.

So when Callie invited him into her apartment that night, Hurley had been a little nervous. He had an idea as to what was coming, and it unsettled him a bit - for reasons that he wasn't sure someone at this hospital was capable of understanding.

Which is why he was stunned about what Callie told him. And even more stunned about what she wanted to do.

"You want to dance it out. " He still wasn't sure he heard correctly.

"It's what Christina says she and Meredith always did when things got bad," she told him slowly. "Yang's not the kind of person capable of enjoying anything but work. I don't think she'd take a day off unless she was forced to. But she and Meredith have been through a lot over the last couple of years. I guess even type A's need to take a break every now and then. So, um, will you?"

Hurley was always an expert at people have fun. And he wanted to help Callie relax. So, for the next ten minutes, that was what they did. They leapt and swayed and boogied. He may have been way overweight, but, as had proved the case on the island over and over, he was spry.

After a few minutes, though, it was clear that this wasn't working for her. "I don't get it," Callie finally said. "I have hated Stevens' guts for the better part of a year. I may have even wished her dead a couple of time. But I never wanted it to happen."

Hurley couldn't help but agree, even though he kind of hated Izzie by proxy for the last couple of months. Jack hadn't seemed that fond of her, either, though it was for professional reasons he refused to go into.

"When I was in the hospital last year, when, uh, Claire's mom was having her surgery, Jack spent all his time assuring us that Derek was the best. I kind of got the feeling that this is the kind of thing he does."

"I know that you're not as foolish as you pretend to be, but there's a real difference between an aneurysm and the kind of tumor Stevens has," Callie told him. "You clip an aneurysm, the chances of their being a repercussion are there, but the recovery time can be quick. The kind of cancer Izzie has... even the best neurosurgeon in the world," she hesitated, "which Derek is one of, will need to be superb to get it all. And even if he is perfect, there's a very good chance of re-growth or some kind of recurrence. I'm in this business. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy, and Stevens is pretty close to it right now."

Jack had been troubled with something the last couple of weeks, and now he understood why he'd completed the unheard of sin of missing a day with Kate. "I'm guessing she knows how bad it is," he said slowly.

"She initially refused treatment," Callie said. "And even though we're sworn to believe in medicine no matter what, I can almost understand why. She's done her stint in the oncology ward. She knows what coming better than ninety percent of the people in the world."

She swallowed. Callie was remarkably stoic, and every time they'd talked about Izzie Stevens, she'd come close to shouting a couple of times. Now, it seemed, the woman who'd broken up her marriage was now bringing her to the verge of tears. "I had sex with Karev," she said suddenly.

It took a moment for Hurley to process this. He knew enough from the gossip that Jack had been sharing that Alex Karev had been what was politely referred to as a man-whore. It was clear that he and Izzie had a serious thing going, but while they were in a relationship, he'd had sex with a nurse, who at one point (God, keeping track of these hook-ups did require a chart) had been sleeping with George. "While he was with Stevens?" he asked.

Callie shook her head. "I'd only been in the hospital a week. I hadn't even met George yet. I did an orthopedics consult for him, we worked together on the case, yada yada yada, we've barely even spoken since." She looked at him. "Hell, I don't even know if he bothered to keep track."

Now was not the time to tell her the answer was probably 'no'. "And you're feeling guilty about that?'

"I don't know," Callie said. "Like I told you, I have this ability to keep making the wrong choices. It happened with George, it happened with Sloan, God knows I made so many mistakes with Erica." She stared at Hurley. "This is the first time in a long time I feel like I've made the right choice."

She walked up to him, and kissed him. They'd kissed a couple of times before, but this was the first time where it seemed a lot deeper than any of their previous makeout sessions. In one sense, this was something that Hurley had wanted for a very long time. In another, there was something kind of terrifying about it. Pleasantly terrifying, but frightening all the same.

Halfway through, he momentarily pulled back. "There's something that I kind of think you should know before we, you know, go any further."

Callie seemed disappointed, which Hurley thought might be a good sign. Maybe. God he was confused. "Are you not into me?"

"Oh, hell no. I am, like, sooo into you," Hurley assured her. "It's just," he paused. "How do I say this? You're this woman who has, like, all this experience." He swallowed, determined to get this all out. "And I, like, have absolutely none."

Callie took this in for a moment. "Oh." She said slowly. Then, as if all of this was dawning on her for the first time. "Oh."

"Yeah." He looked into those beautiful brown eyes. "I hope you're not disappointed."

"Just a little surprised. I kind of figured, you know, after hitting the lottery that women would kind of have been throwing themselves at you."

"A few did." This was not something that Hurley had like dwelling on. There had, in fact, been for then a few girls who had tried to hook up with him after he'd hit the Megabucks, but he'd been afraid, after everything that started to go wrong immediately afterwards, that bad things would start happening to them, too. There had, in fact, been one obsessed girl who'd written letter after letter to meet him, and then the day she'd met him, she rushed across the street, and right into oncoming traffic. After the motorcycle hit her, she sued the driver, the city, and Hurley, and the judged had dismissed the suit him against him. Not that long afterwards, Starla had run off with Johnny. He'd stayed away from women until the crash

"And I mean, you were on a deserted island for three months. That's kind of like the scenario where you'd be sure to get laid." The moment she said that, Callie clapped her mouth shut. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

"It's fine." Hurley had mentioned Libby to Callie a week ago, saying that she'd been pretty close to being the one for him. "Actually, now that I think about it, there's wasn't, like, a lot of sex on the island. I mean, Jin and Sun had to have some, but they were married already. But there weren't a lot of hookups." He paused. "Except for Sawyer. I guess chicks really did dig that bad boy act."

"I guess when you're worried about killing your own food, getting some isn't exactly as high on the priority list." Callie paused. "Actually, I can understand where you're coming from on that part. I didn't get laid until my junior year in college."

This did come as a surprise. "Really?" Hurley said. "I mean, I didn't have the grades to get into even a community college, but I'm pretty sure everybody got laid their first semester at the latest."

"I was about thirty pounds heavier then," Callie told him "The curves were there, but they were pretty much hidden. And I was so focused on my end goal, which even then was becoming a doctor, that I didn't exactly go to a lot of keggers. I think it was maybe the second or third party went to while I was in college. Even then, I think it was the equivalent of a mercy-screw. Guy from one of my pre-med classes, really geeky, he was a virgin, too. So we basically did it, you know, to get it out of the way, so we could concentrate on more important things."

"How bad was it?" Hurley asked.

"Was fair. I think his expectations may have been higher than mine. But he was nice to me until college was over." Callie admitted. "During senior year, I was studying so hard I actually ended up eating a lot less. Which was a good thing, because I got my first glimpse of what a heart looks like after years of neglect. Let me tell you, that will send you on a crash diet."

"I might consider it some day," Hurley told her. "Hell, I couldn't lose weight on an island with no regular supply of food. I think I'm willing to try anything at this point."

Callie took his hand. "You know one thing I've noticed about you, Hugo," she said demurely. "You talk a lot when you're nervous."

"Believe me, if there's anyone I'd like to lose my virginity too, it's you," he told her enthusiastically. "It's just I'm kind of afraid I'm going to be, you know, lacking in comparison."

"Hurley, the first time is never as thrilling as they make it to be in the movies," Callie reminded him. "I'm just looking forward to the second time. And trust me, I'm fairly convinced there will be a second time."

"You really mean that?" Hurley asked.

"I didn't win the lotto or survive a plane crash," Callie told him. "But I know what it feels like to think you're cursed. I'm pretty sure that's how we met. But maybe, sometimes, everything happens for a reason."

This wasn't quite what Hurley wanted to hear from his girlfriend. "Actually, I'm inclined to believe, we make our own luck," he told her. "And you know something? I think in this case, I have."

"Well, then." Callie took his hand. "Let's find out."

"How long before they operate?"

"About an hour."

"You're not going to be in the room."

"I'll be in the observation wing." There was a pause. "Sayid?"

"I'm just a little shocked you're not going to be staring over the doctor's shoulder."

"Derek's already been under enough pressure coming back in. I didn't exactly help in our last conversation. The last thing he needs is me back-seat driving." Jack sighed. "Technically, he's already carrying the whole hospital on his shoulders."

"Realistically, what are Stevens' chances?"

"Not great. And she knows it." Jack was thinking of something his father had told him once. Maybe it fit the mood.

"I understand that things are not looking good, but I'm not entirely certain why you called."

"Two reasons. Even after everything that happened, Sayid, you're still the closest thing I have to a best friend. And that's what friends do. They talk to each other when things are at their darkest." Jack admitted. "And I haven't felt this helpless since Kate went on trial."

"You never mentioned Isabel Stevens that much before. I didn't think you even liked her that much."

"I didn't. Which somehow, makes this even worse." He took a deep breath. "The other reason I called. Aside from Claire, I don't know anyone else who prays regularly."

"I'd think your prayers would mean more than mine," Sayid pointed out.

"It's just", Jack was finding himself choked up, "even after everything that happened to us, I'm still not sure I believe in a higher power. But even while everything was, you still did."

Jack knew both of them were thinking about Locke for the first time in awhile. The man had been deluded, but he'd also had a faith that Jack had never been able to shake - despite his best efforts.

"She'll be in my prayers," Sayid said. "And so will you."

Jack saw that Derek was getting ready to wash up. " I'll call you and the others when I know something." He said his goodbyes.

Derek looked a little tense, which given everything that had happened the last few days, was understandable.

"If you're here to offer me a word of warning, save it," Derek's usually cheerful manner was more clipped. "Karev just reminded me to leave her temporal lobe where it was."

It was taking all of Jack's restraint to not start chewing out Alex. Yes, the woman he loved was suffering from cancer, and she was about to go under the knife. But Stevens had told Alex weeks ago that she was going through problems, and he'd told no one. He was a doctor. What had been wrong with him?

"The spinal surgery I performed that got me this job. I didn't think I could do it." He paused. "I told the patient that I was going to perform a radical surgery on her, but I suspected that there was next to no chance she'd ever walk again. My father heard me telling her, and said: 'Even there's a ninety-nine percent chance that their totally, utterly screwed. the patient is more likely to hang on to the one percent possibility they'll be okay.' I told him that's false hope. He said: 'Yes, but it's still hope.'"

Derek was listening. Even more than he had when Jack had chewed him out three days earlier. "I performed the surgery. But I was more inclined to believe that nothing had change. So I ran a Tour De Stade to clear my head. I twisted my ankle, and this other guy, who'd basically been running the same route, but I'd ignored him. He got a medkit and helped me tape it up, and we had one of those conversations you have with strangers when you can't talk to anyone else. He told me he was prepping for a race around the world, and he asked me why I was running like the devil was after me. And I told him that it would take a miracle to help this patient. He told me: 'What if it did?' I said it was impossible, he said 'Even if it was, let's say its not.'. I humored him, and he said he'd see me in another life. Which is exactly when he did.'

Now Derek was shocked. "What? When?'

"That's a story for another day." Jack told him. "Anyway, I went back to the hospital room, apologized to her that the surgery was unsuccessful. And then, she started wiggling her toes. Even then, I had trouble believing it, because I didn't believe in miracles. But I know now that we can make the impossible, possible. We just have to believe. In ourselves."

Derek looked at him. "Do you believe it's possible?"

"I know how remote the odds are. I also know that sometimes we have to go beyond what medicine can tell us." Jack put his hand on Derek's shoulder. "Izzie believes in you. I believe in you. And so does Meredith."

A bit of Derek's old charm was back. "You didn't seem to have much faith in me a couple of days ago."

"In my defense, I was pretty pissed at you." Jack reminded him. "Forget what everybody in the hospital is thinking. Remember your training. Just focus on the patient."

Derek seemed to get it. "Who was the guy?" he asked.

"His name is Desmond Hume, and once you've fixed Stevens, I'll tell you when I saw him next." Jack actually smiled. "Believe me, it's a hell of a story."

He knew he'd used the word that had caused him so much personal grief. Jack also knew that , in this case, he had needed to say it. And now that he had, he thought of one more thing that he had to do.

They were about ten minutes from having to put Stevens under. All of the residents from her group were outside her room, except for Alex. Miranda was there too, and from the look of things, she seemed to be doing her damnedest to blink back tears. That was even scarier than what Stevens was about to undergo.

"I guess the rumors were true," Jack said. "The Blue Fairy's been here."

He'd used this joke before. Miranda actually smiled this time. "I've been trying to tell her things will be okay. That she's going to get through this. That she's going to be studying again in no time. But I'm not sure she believes it."

"I figured as much," Jack admitted. "Look, I've been through a lot with her the last few months. Maybe I can say something that'll give her a reason to live."

"Go ahead," Miranda was drawn back to herself. "But make it quick. They'll be down here any minute."

Jack really didn't want to interfere with the personal time between Izzie and Alex. He knew, just as well everyone else, they might not get another chance. But he'd already given a pep talk to her surgeon. He would be remiss if he didn't do the same to his patient.

When he walked in, and saw Stevens with her shaved head, looking a lot paler than she ever had, he almost felt the better of it. Then he decided, he wanted to do this.

Alex looked up for this, and his appearance instantly made Jack decide not to chew him out. He clearly had been crying, and Karev had never done that in all the time he'd known him. "How much longer?" he asked.

"A few more minutes," he told them. "There's something I wanted to say to your girlfriend, and well, you might as well hear it, too."

Stevens was trying to put on a brave face.

"I've been lying to the world."

That clearly hadn't been what either of them had expected to hear. "Excuse me."

"All of us. Claire, Hurley, Kate, all of the Oceanics. None of us have told the truth about what happened after the plane crash."

For the first time in Jack didn't know how long, he saw something other than doom cross Stevens face. "What are you talking about, Jack?"

"There were things that happened to us that were so bizarre, so utterly unscientific, that we as a group decided that the rest of the world couldn't know, because then they'd say we were all crazy, and throw us in the psych ward." Jack swallowed. "Even now, I still can't begin to explain half of what I saw. I've managed to compartmentalize over the past couple of years, and I've told a few details here and there to some of the people at this hospital."

"Like what happened with what you told me?" Stevens asked.

"That was the literal tip of the iceberg." Jack knew he shouldn't be saying this, but at the same time, it was such a relief. "When you come out of this surgery, I will be waiting. And I will tell you and Alex everything that happened to me, from the moment I woke up to the day we flew back into Hawaii."

Karev looked a little suspicious. "You're just making stuff up. Trying to give some false story."

"No. What we've been saying. That's the lie. You'll probably doubt my sanity when I'm finished, but considering what's been happening the last few months to you guys," Jack shrugged, "it'll probably be a refreshing change."

"What makes you think that'll be enough?" Izzie asked.

Jack almost laughed. "Because it's a long goddamn story."

The next several hours were nerve-wracking for everybody in the hospital. It seemed like half the surgical staff and all the interns were watching Derek, Meredith and the rest of the team operate on Isabel Stevens.

Jack felt helpless, and for someone like him, the loss of control was almost as terrifying as the very real possibility that Izzie was going to die. He tried counting to five, but for the first time in a long time, it didn't seem to be enough. Maybe it was because he couldn't take control.

Five excruciating hours later, Derek closed her up. He'd gotten the tumor, but they all knew that this was just the start of the battle. A lot of this was going to depend on her waking up. From then on, it was going to be a long battle.

Even though they'd all been up for hours, nobody went home. Derek disappeared, which was odd. And then Hurley showed up, which wasn't. He wasn't alone, either.

"Okay, um, just set the stuff down here," he told the Mr. Cluck's deliverymen. There were five of them, each carrying four large buckets. "Look, I know you guys are all worried, and probably none of you feel like eating, but I know she wouldn't want you to starve."

Addison was the first to react. "You got any of the honey mustard?"

"Got them to bring all the dipping sauces they had." Hurley assured her.

Addison picked out a drumstick. Slowly, most of the interns and residents followed. Sloane actually slapped him on the shoulder. "Knew I liked you, Reyes."

Jack prepared a plate of his own. "Thanks for doing this, Hurley."

"No problem, dude." Hurley looked at him. "How are you doing?"

"Been a long couple weeks," he admitted. "And the next few are probably going to be even longer."

Jack hesitated. "How'd your parents react when you told them about what happened?" He didn't have to mention what.

"They believed me. Ma said she didn't understand me, but she believed me." Hurley shook his head. "That's kinda what I wanted to talk to you about."

"You're going to tell Callie?" Jack knew that there relationship had been getting more and more serious the last couple of months.

"Told her bits and pieces." Hurley admitted. "Figured I'd tell her the whole thing once we knew one way or another about what happened with Izzie." He looked at her. "Who are you going to tell?"

"Derek. Maybe someone else." Jack told them. "Depends how the next few hours come out." He turned to Hurley. "I've known these people for the last year and a half. It hasn't been as nearly as intense as what all of us went through, but I think they deserve to know."

Hurley considered this, no doubt realizing that this was the guy who'd said they shouldn't tell the world in the first place. "We should probably tell the rest of them."

Jack nodded. "Next time we get together for dinner, I'll bring it up."

Several major events happened in the next three hours, all connected and only some of them public knowledge to the rest of Seattle Grace.

Izzie Stevens woke up from her surgery. Derek had gotten all of the tumor. He commemorated it by filling one of the elevator in the hospital with medical charts of every successful procedure that he and Meredith had worked on the last three years. And at the end of it, he proposed to her.

Slightly less known was the fact that Christina, who had spent the last several months dating Owen formerly broke up with him. Hurley could've attested to that himself. Less than an hour after he and Callie had consummated their relationship, they had been roused from their slumber to find that Owen had been strangling Christina in his sleep, and didn't seem to know he'd been doing it. It was that which forced him to finally acknowledge he was suffering from PTSD, and went to the MRI that very night.

And a few hours after Stevens had woken up, and finally most of the hospital was back to its normal work, that Jack went into Stevens room, and pulled up a chair.

"It's okay if you don't believe me," he told her and Alex. "Like I said, I lived through it, and I still don't believe most of it happened. And there are large chunks of the story that I wasn't party too, which makes some of it unreliable. All I can tell you is what I saw."

"Shouldn't this start with: 'Once upon a time?" Karev said.

"Well, there are segments that make you feel like you've gone down the rabbit hole." Jack said.

"Just start talking," Stevens said. "We'll see if it's worth the build-up."

Jack nodded. "The first thing I remember is waking up in a forest of bamboo..."