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Chapter 2: "Suspicious Minds"

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"I think you're ready." Meredith closed her notebook, throwing it onto the floor and stretching.

Alex looked at the clock. "It's late." That was an understatement. It had been a long day; they'd begun their shift at five that morning and it was now nearly two in the morning.

Meredith nodded. "What time are your boards?"

"They're at nine." He knew she was leaving soon, but he for some reason, he didn't want her to go. "You shouldn't drive home tonight. It's too late," he spit out. "You might crash, and then I'd have to feel bad."

"Okay," she agreed. She was very nonchalant about it, which Alex liked. Chicks like Izzie are way too intense.

"I've only got one bed, so you can share with me or you can sleep on the couch."

Meredith shrugged. "Do you hog the bed?" she asked. "Because I do!" she squealed and then ran into his bedroom before he could think better of it.

A moment later, Alex had stripped down to his boxers and joined Meredith in his bed, which was something he never thought would happen.

"So you and Shepherd?" he asked.

"Done. He chose Satan, which, I mean, was probably a no-brainer." Meredith stared up at the ceiling. "She looks like Isabella freaking Rosalini. Who wouldn't choose her?"

"I wouldn't. She's like the control freak from hell." He turned toward her. "And you're way hotter. Shepherd doesn't know what he's missing."

Meredith smiled. "Thanks for saying that, Alex."

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There was an alarm and tiny ineffectual fists attempting to wake him up. "Turn it off," a voice accompanied the previous two. "Then get up, and go kick ass," he heard. Meredith. Waking up to Meredith, even with her tiny ineffectual fists, was nice. There was no other word for it.

When he returned, she was still in bed, curled around herself. "Don't drool on my pillow," he told her.

She nodded and smiled. "You're going to pass it, no problem." Her eyes remained closed and his gaze lingered upon her for a moment.

"There's a key on the counter, you can let yourself out."

"Are you on-call tonight?" she asked, her eyes still closed.

"Yeah."

"I'll see you tonight, then."

"Want to meet in an on-call room?" he asked, a smile hinting at his lips.

"Alex!" Meredith let out a scream that was followed by a giggle.

"This is bad for my reputation, having a girl who sleeps with inappropriate men in my bed all night and all she does is steal my blankets and hit me in the morning."

"You? What about a boy who hits on anything with a heartbeat doesn't so much as even try to feel me up!?" Meredith laughed and threw a pillow his way. "Go, go, you're going to be late."

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"I knew it better than the back of my hand," Alex whispered into her ear.

"Alex!" she squealed, turning around and hugging him with such an intensity that it drew the attention of everyone in the room.

"Why is she touching Evil Spawn?" he heard Cristina ask.

All at once, Meredith realized where they were and quickly let go. "Thanks for letting me take your surgery, that's so nice of you," she told him with a wink. She'd gotten him, and she'd gotten him good.

"Yeah, just don't kill anyone, Grey," he told her.

He walked away, entering the locker room to change. "Whatever you're doing with Meredith, don't," he heard Izzie from behind him. "She's fragile and … and McDreamy just did a number on her, so … just don't."

"Mind your own business," he told her, not turning around. "Just because you think we had-"

"This isn't about me, Alex." He heard her sigh. "She didn't come home last night. Do you know anything about that?"

"I'm not her keeper, Stevens."

"I didn't ask if you were her keeper, I asked if you knew anything about that, Alex," Izzie raised her voice and put a little force behind it.

Alex turned abruptly. "She's a big girl, Izzie. Maybe she went to go visit a friend. She seems fine today, doesn't she? Maybe you need to lay off."

"God, why do you have to be such an ass? I stood up for you!" Izzie left the locker room, leaving Alex in her wake.

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He made his way over to where she sat looking over charts. He didn't even know why; he really had nothing new to tell her. He just … he just. That's it. "How was that surgery that you conned me out of?" he asked.

Meredith looked at him with twinkling eyes. "Bloody," she said, with the slightest hint of excitement in her response.

"I can't believe I let you take it." Alex shook his head at himself, still amazed. "But, thanks. You really helped me last night."

Meredith smiled. "I'm glad. It was fun." She looked around. "I talked to the Chief. I've got the floor covered if you want to go home," she whispered. "We've only got six hours left."

Alex nodded. "I can do six hours. Thanks, Grey."

She shrugged. "Thought I'd offer."

"Dr. Karev, Dr. Grey tells me that you succeeded on your little project." The Chief made his way over to Alex and Meredith. Alex grew uncomfortable in his presence, while Meredith didn't even so much as flinch. "Congratulations." He leaned into Meredith and whispered something into her ear. She nodded in response and smiled as he walked off.

"What was that about?" Alex asked.

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it." Then, "I think Izzie thinks I slept with you last night," she giggled.

Alex debated whether or not to tell Meredith of his own encounter with Izzie earlier, but thought better of it. "We could make it true," he teased, gesturing toward the on-call room.

Meredith laughed. "I'll settle for a dual nap."

"Sleeps with me once and now she can't get enough of it."

"Alex!" Meredith squealed.

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"Seriously! You lied to me! I asked you straight out and-" Izzie surveyed the scene in front of her. Having heard the nurses gossip about how Dr. Karev and Dr. Grey had run into the on-call room giggling, Izzie decided to follow behind.

"What the hell, Barbie?" Alex sat up on the bottom bunk, his eyes blinded by the light.

"Make it stop!" Meredith groaned into her pillow on the top bunk.

"Oh." Izzie stood, still shell-shocked, with an audience behind her.

"Stevens, you'd better have a good reason for waking your fellow interns, my interns. They are on-call, which means they get to sleep in the on-call room if they're not needed. Now I didn't page them. The nurses didn't page them. What the hell are you doing?" Bailey asked, standing behind her with her hand on her hip.

"I thought …"

"You thought. You thought. Stop thinking and get back to work!" Bailey turned out the light and turned on her heel. "You'd think this was a damn soap opera, people running around screaming. This is a hospital! How many times do I have to say it before people believe it?"

"I believe you, Bailey," Alex grumbled.

"You shut up and get back to sleep before I invent something for you to do."