Author's Note - Starting another Slexie AU because I just can't help it. It begins around season 3/season 4... Btw the next chapter of Choose Love is coming soon as well...

I'm not a native English speaker, so my grammar and spelling may not always be correct, I try my best...

Disclaimer - All characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners.

Mark Sloan slowly opened his eyes at the buzzing sound of an alarm at his phone. He was laying down on his stomach, naked. Reaching towards the pocket of a black leather jacket that was on the floor to turn the alarm off with his right hand, he rubbed his eyes with his left one. After blinking a few times, he checked the time on his phone. It was 6:00 am. The sun was trying to force its way through the closed curtains, making the room half-dimmed.

Sighing loudly, he pulled off the covers, got out of the bed and started looking around for his clothes as quietly and quickly as possible. The first thing he spotted was his black briefs right next to the bed. The rest of his clothes were not far away. Picking it all up in a few quick moves, he took a several steps away from the bed and started putting his clothes on, trying not to make too much noise.

He didn't want to disturb a sleeping form of a woman that was still motionlessly lying down on the bed. Grateful that his alarm wasn't loud enough to wake her, Mark made his way to the bathroom.

Even if she did wake up, it isn't like he wouldn't know what to say to her or anything, in fact, he had multiple different stories for a lot of different situations just like this one. And all of his stories were already proven to be a good enough excuse for him, and clear statement for every woman, that he doesn't want to see her or hear from her ever again. He just more preferred when he didn't have to use one of his stories and just sneak out before they even got a chance to ask him anything. That way is easier for the both of them.

To be honest, he wasn't even sure what was the name of this one. She told him, after he had approached her last night at the bar, but… a few drinks that he had apparently done their work very well. And like he assumed, besides buying her a drink, it didn't take him more than a few small, filthy compliments before she invited him to her place. Mark also preferred when his one-night stands didn't take place at his apartment. Simply because some of them pretended they didn't know it was just a one-time thing and when that was the case, he needed to be rude and in a not so polite way throw them out of his apartment. There is no need for that, when he could just make his way out unnoticed.

Relieved that she still didn't make any signs of waking up, he looked around the room to check if he picked up all of his stuff, quickly putting his hands in the pockets of his jacket. He could feel his phone, keys of his apartment, keys of his car, wallet… yep that would be it.

All dressed up and ready to go, without even bothering to take one last look at the woman who was still sleeping, he exited her apartment. Why would he wanted to look at her for the last time?... He couldn't even remember her name and in a couple of days he will probably forget her appearance as well.

Mark honestly couldn't remember when it was the last time that sleeping with someone actually meant something to him. Like… for real. In the way to make him feel like he wanted to remember her or see her again. In the way to make him feel like he wanted to have her again. Because of her, not because of sex.

But that's how he liked it. No strings attached. It was easier that way. Being totally uncommitted, without any sense of obligation, always having space to avoid possible issues, concerns, and misunderstandings that can arise in a more serious relationship.

It's not like he never tried to be in a serious relationship. Because he did, a couple of times for that matter. But he figured that he wasn't really good at it. Not at the part with real emotions and commitments, at least. And he definitely wasn't the kind of guy who would keep doing something he wasn't good at. The only thing that remained from his failed attempts was a very hard lesson that the more people you let be an important part of your life, the more people can just walk out on you. Or take something from you. Without warning and without reason. Plus on top of all that, he never actually felt like he was loved back. There were women who claimed that, but he never felt it, never saw it, never really believed in it. He simply wasn't the kind of man who someone would want to love...

After Mark had stepped into the teeming traffic of New York he looked around a little bit, figuring that he was in the Midtown Manhattan. The morning air was cold, fresh and relaxing, exactly what he needed to properly wake up, but it was too far from his apartment to take a walk back. Taking one deep breath and letting cold air to completely fill up his lungs, Mark moved a little closer to the main street and lifted his right hand above his head. Just a few seconds later yellow cab stopped right in front of him.

A moment after he had entered a cab, he took his phone out of a jacket pocket and checked if there are maybe some important calls, messages or emails, but not this time. He had tried to call Derek last night before he went to the bar, but gave up after Derek clearly ignored his calls. Not that he was surprised. They were on a really thick ice. Kind of thick ice where Derek didn't hate him, but didn't want them to be close as before either. And that was satisfying enough for now. Mark wasn't really in a position to ask for more than that. If Derek needed time, he will give him time. If Derek didn't want him in Seattle, he will stay in New York. Things would work out eventually. Hopefully.

Putting a phone back into the pocket, he forced his mind to wash away thoughts of their almost ruined lifelong friendship and think about something else. The day ahead of him, for example. He needed to be at the hospital at 8 am, but before that, he had to get back to his place, take a shower, change his clothes, get some coffee, maybe get something to eat. Every surgery for that day was a simple routine procedure, so it wasn't supposed to be a rough day.

Then he remembered… and instantly rolled his eyes in annoyance as his head fell back against the seat. In a few days, four days to be specific, a new bunch of annoying, unbearable, lousy interns will come to the hospital. God, he hated interns so much. And on Monday morning the hell will start all over again.

Thank God he had a big authority in a hospital, so he could minimize working with them as much as possible. He wasn't only an attending, but a head of plastics department and a world-class ENT specialist as well. People respected him and admired him. And he had far more important business at the hospital than babysitting some newbies and taking responsibility for careless mistakes they make. Some of them were even stupid enough to forget what coffee he told them to buy. He assumed, though, sometimes when that happened, they did it on purpose. It wasn't a secret that Mark Sloan isn't the most pleasurable person to work with. To work for actually. And every time when he would feel like some intern didn't respect him in the proper way, the way he should be respected, he knew exactly how to make their lives completely miserable. Without feeling bad. At all. Not in the slightest…

…

She anxiously stood in front of her new apartment for a while, simply not being able to step inside. With one hand, she was firmly holding onto a big navy blue suitcase while in the other one was a smaller travel bag in the same color. Lexie Grey had planned her moving to New York as carefully as she possibly could. She had searched the Internet for the best places she could live with her average budget, in detail analyzed every single one of them, even made an "in favor and against" list for every possible choice… and end up picking this beige building, that was now in front of her. Her new home. And at that particular moment, that didn't sound really truthful in her head. Even if it was the best choice, it still felt cold and unfamiliar. And really, really far from home.

And honestly, the fact that she was supposed to live there completely by herself, scared the shit out of her. In the worst-case scenario, she expected a serial killer to break into her apartment and murder her on the first night, take all of her stuff and throw her body in the nearest container. Best case scenario… well, she couldn't imagine the one that could actually happen.

Last couple of months of her life have been… well… not good. Not good at all. Awful. Let just say that lately, the number of close and trustworthy people that she had in her life was extremely decreasing. Her mom – dead. Unexpectedly, she didn't even get a chance to say goodbye. Her dad – an alcoholic since mom died. He is still her dad, and she still cared about him, maybe more than ever. But it wasn't the same. Her sister – moved away a year ago and even though they still talk about everything, it's not easy being so close with someone who is miles and miles away. Lexie also found out that she has another sister, a half-sister, but she never met her. She only knew her name and that she's living in Seattle. Next, on her list of people that she used to be close to, was her ex-boyfriend Luke. They were together for almost two years, that was her longest relationship, but long story short, he felt "neglected" and "left behind" after her mom died. And the moment she felt like she was back on track he said those famous words "I can't do this anymore." and that was it. And after everything that happened... Lexie just didn't feel like she was allowed to ask him to stay. But it did hurt her that he didn't fight for them either… And in the end, a few close friends she had in med school also moved to different cities to start their own career. So… she was pretty much alone…

And she felt terribly homesick…

Yeah, moving to another city is an adventure, a new beginning, a chance to build the life she has always wanted for herself. Yet, it involved dividing from everything she was familiar with…

After moving into the apartment, she was supposed to pick up her car that she shipped via some professional auto-transporter. Yeah, Lexie had done a lot of crazy and stupid things in her life, but driving alone across the US is never going to be one of them.

So besides that, she had the next three days completely free. Three days before the circus starts. Three days that needed to be spent smartly, and that meant not sitting in the room nervously waiting for the big day to come because that would be too depressing, but maybe… exploring New York, maybe finding some nice places to eat, to have fun (let's just pretend she will have time for fun), to shop… She just needed to find a way to make New York seem not so cold, distant and unknown.

She needed to find a way to feel happy here. To feel like she belongs. It wasn't much. But it was a plan. Kind of. And she always felt better with a plan. Also the coping with moving supposed to be easier when things really go according to plan. She read something like that… when she googled how to deal with moving alone across the country…

Why the hell I'm still just standing here?... she mumbled to herself, shook her head and finally step inside the building. As she knocked on the door of her new home, apartment number 17, on the sixth floor, her anxiety and homesickness kicked in. A woman from the moving agency supposed to wait for her, welcome her inside and give her the keys of the apartment. Her apartment. In freaking New York City. Her new home…

Moving by herself in the unfamiliar city on the other side of the US and living all by herself will definitely make a top of her long "dumbest ideas ever" list… And the idea of turning around and leaving, came up in her mind more than once. A lot more than once. But the worst thing of all and at the same time the main reason why she hasn't actually left, was the fact that she didn't know where else to go.

The door finally opened and a woman with long, curly blonde hair and hazel eyes smiled politely at her. "Hi, you're Alexandra, right?" Blonde woman smiled even wider as she held her hand forward.

"Lexie." she corrected, shook the woman's hand and step inside pulling her suitcase after her.

"Come in. It's not much, but it's really cozy and warm. And full of light. I think it's perfect for an ambitious, young woman like you. You moved here because of a work, if I'm not mistaken?"

"Yes, I'm starting a surgical internship in a few days." Lexie answered in a shaky voice, as her eyes wandered over the living room she just entered. The apartment was, indeed, really nice, it looked even better than those pictures she scanned online... Maybe her whole moving for a fresh start thing wasn't so bad.

"Well, I wish you all the best luck."

"Thanks..." I'll need it, Lexie thought to herself.

…

Eating by themselves in a small diner is probably not how other twenty-four-year-old people spend a Saturday night. All thought, Lexie pretty much liked it. It wasn't too noisy or crowded. She could definitely see herself coming here very often. Plus, they served her some really awesome cheeseburger and even better French fries. She was pretty scared of what the future could bring, but she was less scared with a cheeseburger in her hands.

20 minutes ago, before she even entered that place, she briefly had wondered if she could really face sitting there alone. She never in her life felt that kind of alone. Like… in every possible way. So sitting alone, even in a random diner, would probably make her feel even worse. But she realized she wasn't the only one who would sit solo in a diner, so that relaxed her a little bit. It actually took her by surprise how careless people seemed, how confident...

Two days passed since she moved to NY, two bland, motionless days, and yet, she still didn't fully unpack. She didn't even start. Complete unpacking would just mean one thing she still wasn't ready to accept. Complete unpacking would make her moving to NY official. And Lexie wasn't ready for that. Not yet.

Her open suitcase was waiting for her on a floor next to the closet. Just a few things she did take from it were a change of clothes, short sleeve pajamas, toothbrush, towel and her "just in case" sleeping pills.

After her mom died, she couldn't sleep for days. There were just a lot of things going on and since her dad was no near state to take care of them, she had to. And even when she tried to take some rest, her mind simply wouldn't have let her. But she was studying to be a doctor after all, and that made her be enough respectful to herself... to go and talk to the psychiatrist about her problem. Thankfully, it didn't last long, and after a few weeks, her sleep schedule was normal again. But still, from time to time, she finds herself not able to fall asleep. Even if she was super tired. Even if she had tried relaxing, deep breathing, refusing to open her eyes, everything she learned during the sessions... And apparently, she had been told that was normal as well, if the day before was too overwhelming or too stressful, and that's what the pills were for.

Sleepless nights haven't happened in a while. But with everything that was going on, with her decision to exchange her comfort zone for the unknown, she couldn't say that she didn't expect them…

Hearing the ring of her phone, she quickly wiped off her hand with a napkin and reached into the pocket of her coat, pulling out the phone. Reading her sister's name on the screen, she briefly wondered if she wanted to answer her. Molly probably wanted to ask her about every single moment that happened in the last two days, and there wasn't really anything that Lexie had to say. But still, she craved to hear something familiar.

"Heyyy." she greeted her sister, trying to sound as calm and normal as she possibly could.

"Hey Lexie, I'm so sorry I didn't call earlier. Last couple days had been just ughh… Don't even get me started. I had a million things to take care of and… I'm so sorry. How are you? Did you move in? Is everything fine?"

Lexie smiled as she heard her sister's voice. Both of them had that rambling habit. The next moment she wanted to cry. God, she missed her old life so badly…

"Yeah, everything's fine. The apartment is nice. It's not too big, but really cozy, I like it. And I also picked up a car yesterday..." She paused for a second not knowing what to say next because… nothing really happened since she got there. "...And my first shift is in two days, so now I'm just... waiting. It's kind of depressing. Ohhh and my greatest achievement in New York for now, is finding this great diner where I am now. It's only like a 5 minutes ride from the apartment." she added with a half-grin.

"Wow that's definitely something."

"And my second best achievement… ordering this amazing burger and even more amazing French fries I just ate. So yeah, that's pretty much it." Lexie pointed out sarcastically.

"Have you heard from dad?" Molly asked with a suddenly concerned voice.

"Yes, I have. He called me the night after I moved in. And it was kind of great actually. He sounded good… and we talked. Like… really talked. I think… I think he's doing better now." she stated hopefully. She didn't like to talk about how her dad was dealing with her mom dying. Drowning his sorrows away. It was wrong in every possible way, especially for her and for Molly, but after she deeply had thought about it... She couldn't even imagine how losing "that person" felt like.

"I hope so... He's gonna be fine Lexie. And you're gonna be fine. And your job is gonna be great. I know it. Just… give it some time. Don't worry about it… What you could worry about is maybe meeting someone… " Molly added suggestively.

"Molly…" Lexie stopped her right there, rolling her eyes.

"What? I said maybe. And it's freaking New York. Full of New York men. Hot, handsome, gorgeous New York men." she said in a deep seductive voice. "You worked really hard to get there. Now you can let yourself enjoy a little as well. You deserve that. And I'm telling you, it's only a matter of time before someone catches your eye."

"I worked really hard? The real thing hasn't even started yet, I'm already freaking out, I have no idea what to expect and…" Lexie gulped hard and stopped rambling. It wasn't the time or place for her to weep over her own decisions. She chose to be there, to do that for herself. She wanted that fresh start. There was no room for doubt or regret. "You know what? It's getting late, and I have to go back to the apartment. I still need to… unpack. I'll call you soon, okay?"

Taking in a deep breath, she tried to get the idea of actually meeting someone out of her head. She did feel a little lonely... okay, really, really lonely, but she made up her mind that she didn't need any kind of romance for now. Nothing serious at least. She giggled at her own thought. Like she knew how to be with someone in a non-serious way. She never did, she never will. She was simply kind of a lover that too easily gets attached to somebody. And that was the part of her that she hated, but was proud of, as well.

"Okay… But I'm telling you again. It's going to be fine. Just promise you'll let me know me when that happens." Molly chuckled.

"When what happens?" Lexie asked confused, after Molly's words bring her back down to Earth.

"When someone catches your eye." her sister laughed.

"Oh God, this call's ending now… bye."

It was enough talking and thinking about New York men for one night.

When Lexie got out of the diner her body shivered in the cold, evening air. It really was pretty late. Thankfully, she parked her car in the previous street, so she didn't have to walk longer than a minute. After stepping in, she put the seatbelt on, turned on the heat and the radio as well. She started the car, but stayed in the place for almost a minute as she tried to find the radio station that she likes, but wasn't really successful at it. The song was either boring, either depressing, either bringing distant memories… At the end, Lexie just gave up, letting out an annoyed groan and finally started moving forward, before her eyes even hit the road in front of her.

Every worry, every doubt, every thought that was on her mind got erased for a second, for a second of complete shock, that came up like a bolt from the blue... her right leg as hard and quickly as possible hit the brake to stop the car from moving forward, so she could prevent hitting the man who just step out onto the road right in front of her. The car stopped, tires making a loud, unpleasant, creaking sound. Her whole body jolted at the sudden break, her eyes fell closed in shock, and she could swear that her heart had stopped beating for a couple of seconds. Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God... Where the hell did he come from?

Lexie didn't dare to open her eyes or to move at all. Her hands were firmly holding onto a wheel like she expected a car to start moving again without her permission. Even if it was only a couple of seconds, she felt like she was sitting there, like that, for days.

As her breaths started to normalize she slowly opened her eyes, not ready to deal with the consequences. The man was still there, right in front of her, standing… that was important… that means I didn't actually hit him, right?

For a second, she thought about getting out of the car to apologize or say something, anything, but her body refused to move. Like every part of her body went on pause while her mind tried to catch up. She just stared at him through the windshield in horrified disbelief and tried to read the look on his face. He was clearly shocked as much as she was, but did he really expect from her to get out and apologize... because he was obviously staring back at her. Of course he's staring back Lexie, you almost ran him over… He's probably guessing which loony bin you escaped from…

What if I somehow did hit him? What if he needs to see a doctor? Maybe he's hurt... I should get out and check... But before her hand could reach the door handle, he looked her right in the eyes, quickly nodded in understanding, fixed the sleeves of his leather jacket, gave her a slight but very charming smile and just walked away. Just like that.

Lexie was bluntly watching after him as long as she could before he finally disappeared around the corner. Her body fell back in the seat as she deeply inhaled, still in shock, whispering to herself, "You're in a city for 48 hours, and you managed to almost kill someone. Well done, Lexie. Well done."

Well… that would be her new greatest achievement in New York. She turned her head again in the direction that he left just making sure he was really gone. Her body relaxed a little bit.

After this, moving to New York suddenly felt more real. But surprisingly, not completely in a bad way. Ignoring the fact that just a few inches were separating her from ending up in the police station.

It felt kind of exciting. In the strange way... The way that made her believe that she should really expect a lot from this city. That she should expect a lot of unexpected things, if that made any sense.

Because that's the thing she was afraid the most when it came to moving to NY… losing the sense for the security and predictability, and everything familiar.

She slightly smiled to herself, her hands finding her face and rubbing it for a few seconds as an attempt to return her to reality.

Lexie shook her head, in a desperate attempt to clear her mind. Starting the car again, she took a very good look at the road in front of her this time, and headed back to the apartment. She had a lot of unpacking to do. It was time to finally make it official. In every way. There she was, in New York City, about to start a really exciting, new chapter of her life. There was no point in hiding or running away from that. It was happening.

The last couple of mouths… sucked. And she needed to deal with the fact that nothing is going to be like before.

Thoughts of that man popped back into her head. At the end, he seemed like he didn't mind it. I mean it's not like I tried to run him over on purpose, and he obviously didn't look left and right to check if someone is coming before he stepped onto the road, so it was partly his fault as well. Wow Lexie, now you're blaming the man you almost hit with your car...

Still, she felt guilty and ashamed because she didn't find the courage at the moment to approach him and apologize properly. She should have done that. And just like that, she sensed a night of tearing herself up because of her guilty conscience coming. Because of the man she didn't even know, who probably already forgot that their little encounter ever happened.

Well, he maybe already forgot, but there is no way that she could forget about this any time soon. She could literally play the whole scene in her head again. Including every small detail. His blue eyes or black leather jacket or short beard or the intense way he looked at her... She could play it again and again and again, how many times she wanted. Or actually, how many times her mind would force her to.

Perks (not really in this situation) of having a photographic memory. So forgetting wasn't even an option for her. She always had to find some other way to deal with a situations or things she wanted to forget. To direct her thoughts to something else, to never think about it again, to pretend like every black leather jacket from now on won't remind her how she almost hit a man with her car on her second day in New York… Never had luck with that kind of methods either. Everything usually stays burned in her brain forever. That only meant that the best thing she could do, for herself and her clear conscience, was praying that she'll never see him again.

So... what do you think? It's pretty fluffy for now, but things are about to heat up.