It's been a week since their night at the Archfield.

And it's been a week since Lexie again started feeling like her life was more than just restless sleeping, working, worrying and crying in vain. She was smiling and laughing a lot more. She was getting up really for the new day more enthusiastically, usually by Mark's lips gently brushing all over her face and not so gently biting and sucking all over her neck, and she was falling asleep in the warmth and safety of his arms. There was no terrible ache in her chest, or unbearable sickness in the pit of her stomach, or an invisible chain around her neck that were making her days almost impossible to get through. There was no more awkwardness, or jealousy, or intimidation ruining her life on a daily basis. She was even trying harder to improve herself as a doctor, cause surgeries with Derek somehow became easier as well. And at least she had someone to talk to about all of it.

Derek noticed right away, it wasn't really that hard... immediately noticing that sudden change on her, that wonderful glow-up, all over her face and body, and within her actions, and within her voice. He was the one spending the most time with her at work, after all. It didn't take him more than one guess in presuming what happened. Or who happened. Soon afterwards, Mark told him himself. He even ended his announcement with a mocking grin... "Glad this time I didn't get a punch in the face."

Callie and Arizona weren't too surprised or shocked either. Which was kind of surprise itself. But for surely a good, delightful one. Although they had to check on Julia just to make sure everything's okay, they both commented that for Mark and Lexie... it was about the damn time...

"You really think that?" Mark cautiously, but completely filled with hope, asked Callie after one dinner, during which he explained all the events that had happened in the few days prior. "Like... for real? I mean, in the last couple of months every time I even just nonchalantly mentioned Lexie you didn't exactly have that kind of reaction..."

"Are you serious now? Mark I... I just tried to be a good friend." she answered softly, slightly shaking her head in disbelief. "What did you want me to do? Every time someone mentions her to just rub in your nose how you two always missed your chances... to even increase that feeling of yours how something's missing and how Julia never was the one?"

"Not exactly..."

"Cause I was always aware of that. Arizona was too. And you know, the universe doesn't have a body to follow you around and hit you in the head with a hammer every time you miss your chance. Instead, it sends you... crazy gunmen and cancers and busses and trucks that appear out of nowhere… so you could realize that you need to take a damn chance. So if this is... really another chance for you and Lexie... to make things work once for all... you have to take it. And of course that Arizona and I will completely be happy about that. And we are."

…

During another long day at the hospital, Mark managed to catch Lexie to himself for a few minutes before her next surgery with Derek. Of course that unexplainable part of him was jealous because of her huge interest towards neuro and not towards plastics, which was not that big of an issue for him before they got back together. But nonetheless, she still had his full support no matter what she wanted to choose.

As long as she was just his during those couple of quiet but heated minutes before every seem-to-be-endless neuro surgery.

Before this one, Lexie was settled down on his office desk with Mark standing between her legs as he kissed her hard with his hands resting on her spread thighs...

Although he had tones and tones of boring paperwork to read and sign, the moment her head suggestively peered through the door of his office, Mark didn't have anything else on his mind except to greet her by immediately closing the distance between them and taking her into his arms, firmly pressing his lips against hers. He clumsily picked up all the papers over his desk in one messy bunch, and sat her down on the now free space, as Lexie instinctively spread her knees to make a room for him.

Once settled between her legs, Mark pulled back for a second, his hand gently pushing fallen strands of her hair behind her ear, before he leaned forward and passionately took her lips again, his tongue teasing hers and his thumbs rubbing over the material of her scrub pants, as her arms were firmly encircled around his neck. The longing and desperation to make the best out of those few minutes they had left was crystal clear, as they both struggled to keep their quick encounter hesitating and light enough to not turn it into something they wouldn't be able to stop.

"So I was thinking..." he muttered hoarsely against her lips, pulling back just far enough to catch a breath and let out those few words, before capturing her lips again. Lexie hummed into his mouth, not wanting to break the kiss, and her arms tugged him closer, tongue swiping along his lower lip, but he pulled away once again and breathlessly gasped, "...about asking you..."

But before he could continue, Lexie drifted her hands to his cheeks and pulled him down towards her again. Not being able to resist, he groaned as the words he was about to say were again blocked by the amazing, hot sensation of her lips against his. God, how could he possibly resist her?

As she sat there, right in front of him, all hot and demanding, with her palms stroking his face and brushing over his beard, and with her lips exciting all of his senses, and with her thighs squeezing his legs, there was no way in hell he could do that. Lexie just had that power over him.

He knew he would think about her when she leaves for surgery. He knew he would like always, spend the rest of his shift daydreaming about everything he would do to her the first chance he gets. She knew it too.

One of Mark's hands fall behind onto the desk surface, so he could support himself above her, their kiss becoming more and more rough, eager and desperate.

As much as Mark wanted to completely let himself get overwhelmed by what her body was doing to him, there was something he wanted to say to her. Something he wanted to ask. Part of him was telling him it was too early. But after everything they have been through, after all the time they had spent apart, he figured that the last thing he cared about was timing. Timing has been never perfect. So he was done trying to make it perfect.

He had something big to say to the woman he loves so much, to the woman he loves like no one before, and everything is perfect about that…

Taking quite a bit of effort to wrench his mouth out of her reach, he managed to whisper an unwanted call, "Okay, okay, quick time-out."

Lexie let out a deep sound of disapproval when he pulled away, her eyes lustful and her head titling towards him nonetheless, but he only giggled at her eagerness as he put the whole length of his thumb over her wet and swollen lips in an attempt to stop her from leaning in again. "No, stay there... this is important."

She thinned her lips into the straight line and gave him a purposely unpleased look as signs of a pretend disappointment. It was actually just a half-pretend, cause as badly as she wanted his mouth all over her again, she wanted to listen to what he was about to say. Swallowing to calm herself from the high, Lexie breathed out over his thumb, "You were thinking...?"

"I was thinking about asking you to move back in with me. But I'm not going to do that." Mark quickly exclaimed, watching how she narrowed her eyebrows in a slight confusion. He trailed his thumb from her lips down towards her jaw, cupping it. "I've been thinking about this for a quite some time, even before..." he continued, his eyes fixed on hers. "I just never really felt an actual reason to do it, but this... this feels like a reason."

"Reason for what?"

"You don't have to say yes. You can take your time if you want to. I don't want to pressure you or anything."

Trying not to sound too annoyed because of his hesitation, Lexie lifted her palm up to softly cup his cheek, as her words eagerly fall out of her mouth, "Mark, can you just spit it out?"

"I don't want to ask you to move back into my apartment..." he slowly but firmly exclaimed in the low tone, licking his lips. Lexie widened her eyes towards him, impatiently expecting for him to continue.

Clearing his throat, Mark leaned his head forward, and pressing their foreheads together, he whispered the big announcement, his breath ghosting over her face. "Cause I want to buy a house. For us."

It took her a long moment to register what he just said. And it took her even a bit more to respond to it.

"A what?"

"A house." Mark repeated in the way bolder, more determined than before, and then his voice turned into a slight mock. "You know, like a residential building... where people live. Like a family."

"Ohhh really? Well, thank you for an explanation of a term. I was completely clueless." Lexie shook her head laughing, half because of his joke and half in disbelief, as his announcement really took her completely by surprise... A house... For them. That indeed was a big deal.

She kind of expected him to mention living together again, especially cause there wasn't a night of the last week that they had spent apart. No matter if they were in his apartment or Meredith's house or at the hospital… But she absolutely did not expect this... Buying a house. She felt her pulse race, her cheeks flaming at the thought of it.

"My apartment is already pretty cramped with Sofia, and I want to this right." he started explaining, as he tilted his head at her, his fingers falling back and tangling within her hair. "I want a big baby-room for her, and I want a big master bedroom for us..." he paused for a moment, his lips curving into a grin before he huskily added, "...with a big master bed. And I want a chimney in a living room. And I want a backyard. Where we could have a barbecue. And I know that I could have all of that before, whenever I wanted, but... I just never wanted to have all of that with anyone else besides you."

Mark punctuated his words with a reassuring kiss, his hands now tightly gripping her waist. Even though he knew she was aware how seriously he meant it.

If anyone understood how badly Mark wanted all of that, it was Lexie. It was her, who listened all of his childhood stories in the middle of the night, wrapped in his tight embrace. It was her, and only her, who knew how much he hated and how much he was afraid every time the power goes out. Which was odd, especially for a man like him, but the awareness of not being able to turn the lights on, simply intimidated something inside him.

It was always her.

"It's gonna take some time... to find the right house, but you feel good about this, right?" Mark quietly wondered, breaking the kiss, just to give her enough room to say something.

Lexie stayed quiet for a moment, letting the intense silence to take over, during which he couldn't blink, but instead he kept his eyes trained on her, trying to see through her layers and figure what she was thinking.

It was a big deal. It was like a promise. And if she wasn't ready for that yet, it was okay. But he needed her to say something. Anything. Just to know where all of her thoughts wandered.

Smiling, but still without giving him an answer, she began pressing a couple of chaste kisses along his jaw in a slow pace. She gently placed one of her hands over his shoulder to pull him even closer, at what Mark chuckled, "Yeah I'm totally enjoying this, but I need a verbal answer as well."

Leaving one light final kiss on the skin of his cheek, Lexie took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

"I want a swing in a backyard." she exclaimed, waiting a long second before she continued, "And I want a big bathtub. And I want a balcony. And I don't want those creepy stairs to the basement, you know? Like... my house has those creepy stairs, and even when you're just passing by the door, you see them, and they're like… did you hear that creepy sound, come downstairs and let some scary thing from some horror movie kills you. So yeah, I don't want creepy stairs... in our house."

Mark narrowed his eyes at her, laughing a little bit, "These are your requests?"

"If it's going to be our house, our home… we're both making decisions." she declared proudly. "It's something that we should've learned to do a long time ago... But, it's okay. We're here now."

"Okay then. This is what we're gonna do." he spoke, his tone more serious than before, but the smirk on his face hasn't disappeared. "Think about more of your requests. And I'll think about mine... although I totally agree with the bathtub thing. And tonight we're putting it all on the table. And I promise you, we'll find the perfect house for the two of us. Okay?"

"Okay..." Lexie nodded, smiling widely.

As much as she wanted to stay right where she was at the moment, she was suddenly aware of the ringing bell in her head, reminding her to be in the OR 1 in less than five minutes. "I should probably go now..." she huffed the sad news, giving him an apologetic smile and sliding down off the desk.

But Mark was faster than she was. "Nope." he replied quickly and lifted her up again. "I want a minute more."

Her hands rose up to grip his cheek and shoulder, as he bent down to claim her lips rightfully as his. He wrapped his hands around her body, holding her tight and close to him and letting her embrace overpower his whole body. For one more minute. One more minute… but only for now. The truth was… they had each other for all the eternity.

Author's Note - Soo I'm thinking about wrapping this up... BUT everything I have prepared for this universe... which is a lot... like actually buying a house, their wedding, honeymoon, their life afterwards etc... I'll be posting all of that as one-shots that would be marked as sequels to this. So it's not the end of this universe! This was just the story of them getting back together... but everything even better is yet to come.

Always happy to hear your thoughts... And thanks for reading...

Also... "februaryflowerx" on tumblr... I'm posting moodboards and updates for everything I write so feel free to check it out…