Author's Notes: I'm back! Took a bit of a break with this story so I could focus on my holiday Slexie stories, but I'm back with a new chapter. Things are winding down for our faves with this one, but there's still some great moments coming up. Had a lot of fun with Lexie and Sloan's relationship in this chapter - from the start, I wanted to explore what could have been if Mark hadn't been so hellbent on raising Sloan's baby and if his and Lexie's relationship wasn't as serious as it was when Sloan came along. So imagining a different sort of Lexie and Sloan dynamic has been a lot of fun. Hope you enjoy!

Lexie had the day off and had been hanging around the house, waiting for Mark to get back from his surgeries and Sloan to get back from her appointment with the adoption counselor and one of the prospective couples. She heard the front door slam and smiled as Sloan made her way into the family room. "Hey Sloan! How was your meeting with the parents? This was the couple in Portland, right?"

"Yeah, Paige and Jamie. They were great…they have this big backyard at their house and Jamie's a teacher, so he'd be able to stay home during the summers…they were great," Sloan said, sighing as she sat down on the couch. She rubbed her belly thoughtfully. Lexie set down her medical journal, sensing that obviously something was up.

"I'm sensing a 'but,'" she prompted.

Sloan shook her head. "They're great. Stacy and Jim are great. Alex and Kevin are great too. How am I supposed to choose? How am I supposed to choose which great couple will be the perfect parents for my kid? How do I know? What if I mess up? What if I give him to the wrong parents?"

Lexie frowned. "Sloan, I don't think that there's necessarily a wrong decision. These couples have gotten this far in the process because they'd all be great parents. What does your gut tell you?"

The young girl shook her head. "I can't trust my gut, Lexie. My gut is what got me into this trouble in the first place. My gut thought it'd be a great idea to sleep with Brandon and we all know how that ended up."

Lexie smiled and reached out to rub Sloan's shoulder. "I don't exactly think that you were going with your gut on that decision, were you, Sloan?"

Sloan let out a sharp bark of laughter and elbowed Lexie. "Oh, shut up. Like you hooking up with my dad was a gut decision?"

Lexie smirked. "I'm older and wiser, Sloan. Wisdom comes with age." She tilted her head, considering the girl in front of her. "Sloan…this is your baby. You know better than anyone what he needs. You can trust your gut on this, on who should have the honor of raising your son."

Sloan shook her head. "I just don't want to make the wrong decision! It has to be right! They have to be perfect! I can't give him up and set him up for a lifetime of failure with the wrong people! They have to be right, Lexie!" She turned to Lexie, a pleading look in her eyes. "What do you think? Can't you just make the decision for me? You and Mark can meet them all and tell me what you think."

Lexie shook her head. "This isn't our decision to make. It's yours, Sloan. And it's a big one, but…you'll make the right decision. Because you love your baby, and you are doing this so that he has the best shot at a wonderful life…you're doing this because you love him so much. You'll pick parents that will love him just as much as you do, Sloan. I know you will."

Sloan sniffled, wiping at her cheeks as a few tears fell. "I just can't make a wrong decision. This is too important."

Rubbing her shoulder, Lexie smiled softly at Sloan. "You'll make the right choice, Sloan. You're doing the work and taking all the right steps. If you're really that concerned, talk to Catherine about it. I'm sure she has plenty of insight. Way more than me or your dad."

Sloan nodded and sighed, leaning her head against Lexie's shoulder. Lexie was taken aback by the affectionate gesture, but quickly started rubbing the young girl's back comfortingly. Sloan had never been too affectionate, but Lexie knew that this was an emotional decision for her. "Catherine and I were talking about what actually happens…when I have him. How it's up to me…if I want to be able to hold him or if I want him to be taken to the nursery and have his adoptive parents meet him first…"

"I want to be able to say goodbye to him, Lexie," Sloan whispered, looking up at Lexie. "I want to hold him and say goodbye, but I'm afraid of holding him. I don't want to doubt my decision."

Lexie squeezed her again and shook her head. "Sloan, you're doing this for him. You're doing this because you love him. He'll know that. And you know that. I think that it's fine that you want to hold him and to say goodbye. If that's what you need, I think that's fine. Everyone is different."

Sloan sniffled again and nodded. "That's what Catherine said too. Said that I'd just have to make the right decision for me." She blew out a breath and laughed softly. "I have always been terrible at making decision and here I am, making all these big ones. It's the worst."

Still rubbing Sloan's back, Lexie smiled softly at the girl. "It really is. Growing up is awful, Sloan. But there are also great things. The best is yet to come."

Sloan sighed and nodded. "Speaking of what's coming next…do you think that Mark would be mad if I moved back with my mom? We've been talking and she said that she misses me. And she wants me to come home. But I don't…I don't want Mark to feel like I was just using him all this time."

Lexie shook her head. "He wouldn't think that, Sloan."

"I just didn't have anywhere else to go. I didn't know what to do. And you two…you've been more than I ever could have imagined. I thought that maybe if I was lucky, he'd let me crash for a few weeks and then maybe give me some money before he kicked me out. But then…he created this home. Both of you…you made me feel safe. I can't ever thank you enough."

Lexie grinned, squeezing her shoulder tightly in a side hug. "I'm glad that we ran into each other in the elevator."

Sloan laughed and nodded, wiping at the tears that were still leaking out of her eyes. "Seriously."

Sloan and Lexie had spent the evening together, with Lexie acting as a sounding board as Sloan made her final decision on adoptive parents. Mark had texted Lexie as the two of them were eating dinner to tell her that he was going up to the trailer to try and talk to Derek. He'd melted down after losing his patient and no one had seemed to be able to reach him.

Mark had told her to feel free to stay the night at the house and that he'd see her when he got home. She'd just gone to sleep an hour or two ago when Lexie felt the bed dip as Mark climbed in beside her and she smiled softly, turning to face him. She snuggled against him immediately and he chuckled. "How's Derek?"

Mark sighed. "I think he's coming around. He called Meredith before I left."

Lexie hummed, rubbing her face against his shoulder. "Is she going to tell him about Izzie?"

Mark's brow furrowed and he glanced down at her. Lexie seemed like she was still half asleep and he couldn't be sure that the mention of Izzie wasn't some sort of sleep-induced rambling. "What about Izzie?"

Lexie's eyes fully opened and she looked up at Mark sadly. "She's Patient X. Mets on the skin, liver, and brain. 5% chance of survival."

"Oh shit," Mark murmured, his arms instinctively wrapping tightly around Lexie. Lexie nodded and sighed.

"Mer's hoping Derek will operate. He's one of the only surgeons in the world that could." She looked up at him, her eyes wide. "Do you think he can do it?"

"He's the best." Mark's reply was a non-answer and Lexie knew what it meant. Mark knew exactly how amazing Derek was, but he still couldn't say whether or not he'd be successful.

Lexie nodded and sighed, closing her eyes again and settling in against him. "It sucks. The world sucks."

"Not everything sucks," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her hair. She chuckled and shook her head.

"You're a charmer. You're right though. Not everything sucks." Her hand brushed against his hip, trailing along the edge of his boxers. After their night in the hotel, he'd relaxed his no-sex-in-the-house rule, but she wasn't really making a move. She just liked being able to touch him.

They both froze as they heard Sloan out in the hall, both of them holding their breath. She was a month away from her due date and both Mark and Lexie felt like she could go into labor at any minute. They both relaxed as they heard her go into the bathroom instead of continuing down the hall to the room. Lexie chuckled against Mark's skin, smoothing her hand over his heart that had started pounding. "It's not like Sloan will be quiet when she goes into labor," she mused.

He chuckled and nodded. "True."

She looked up at him, smiling softly. "We had a little heart to heart tonight. About the adoption and her plans afterwards."

"Oh yeah? What'd she decide?"

Lexie shook her head. "I think I should let her tell you. But I'm proud of her, Mark. She's had to really grow up in the time that we've known her. She's a good kid."

Mark leaned forward, brushing his lips against hers. "I know that I've told you this before, but I couldn't have done this without you, Lex. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Mark."

Author's Notes: You might've caught the mention of a night at a hotel...there might be a standalone story in the works. :) I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter and if you'd like to read about Mark and Lexie's night at the hotel. :P