I have four notes on this chaper:
1. It's another chapter from Mark's point of view. I find it very interesting to write from his perspective. Review and tell me how you think I did.
2. After last chapter, some people seem to be a little concerned that Addison will end up with Mark. That is called creating suspense. In order to maintail that suspense I am not going to tell you if Addison ends up with Mark or Alex or neither. If you absolutely need to know, say so in your review and I will send you and email.
3. Please review. I will love you if you do. Although I will love you anyway as long as you read my story. Still my love will increase exponentially in proportion to the amount of reviewing you do.
4. Since there has been a lack of Addisex in here for a while I have written a oneshot with them and some other characters. See my profile.
Chapter Eight: Heartless
"O.k. Addie. It's o.k. Shhh." He could do this. He could be her friend. Her face was still buried in the now damp fabric of his shirt but she had finally stopped crying and her breathing was returning to normal. "Are you ready to go yet?" She nodded.
They'd been driving ten minutes before she even asked him where they were headed.
"I'm taking you to my place. I can cook you something and you can get cleaned up-"
"Mark, you don't have to do that." She always had to be strong.
"It's o.k. I want to do it. You probably shouldn't be alone tonight anyway. You've had a rough day."
"Yeah, well I have a lot of rough days and I get through them alright on my own."
"You shouldn't have to. Everyone needs friends Addison."
"So you really think we can be just friends?" She almost laughed and he chose to take it as a good sign.
"Yeah, I really do."
He hoped he was telling the truth.
As they entered his apartment and he leaned towards her to take her coat he noticed the smell. Addison's clothes, her hair, her skin. It all smelled like sex. He told her to go ahead and use his shower and said he would take care of the laundry. As she handed him her clothing from behind the shower curtain he glimpsed subtle, pink marks, sprinkled across her shoulder and remembered how soft her skin was there. He tried not to think about it, or the other marks Karev had left on her. He knew there would be marks. Addison had always bruised easily.
Most of the clothes needed to be washed by hand. He did it right away in the bathroom sink and told himself that is was because they needed to be dry by tomorrow, not because he wanted the smell off them as soon as possible. He told himself his motives were pure.
He changed his sheets and hung a pair of pajamas and some fresh towels on the bathroom door. Then he phoned Derek. Partly to distract himself from the fact that Addison was currently naked in his shower. Partly because if he could talk to Derek while Addison was in his apartment then it seemed more like he was just being a good friend. He was concerned and nothing more. Still he found himself skirting the issue.
"What do you do when you have a friend, who's a girl, and she's upset?" he began.
"You mean like a girlfriend?" Derek sounded skeptical.
Just tell him. "Like an Addison."
"Mark, you actually want me to give you advice on Addison? You actually thought I'd be o.k. with that?"
"Come on Derek. I'm not asking for me. This is about her o.k. I actually do care about her you know."
"If you cared about her you'd probably leave her alone. She doesn't need you hurting her again, Mark."
"Well she needs someone to look after her right now Derek and since it's obviously not going to be you I guess once again, I'll have to be your stand in." He probably shouldn't have said that. There were sensitive issues attached to a phrase like that. Derek was silent for a minute, trying not to get angry? Then he sighed.
"Make banana, chocolate chip pancakes. You have to sit her down and make her eat because she'll say she's not hungry."
"Thanks, Derek." He meant it. He probably could have figured the pancakes out on his own but he needed to have Derek's approval. If he had Derek's approval it seemed o.k. to lend Addison his pajamas and let her sleep in his bed and to kiss her just once on the top of the head, after she fell asleep and before he crashed on the couch.
In the middle of the night Addison shook him awake.
"What am I going to do tomorrow?" She sounded scared again.
"Don't worry, I'll ask Bailey to stick him with me for a while," he offered, struggling not to fall asleep.
"It's not his job to run errands or get you coffee."
"O.k," he yawned.
Addison sat silently at the foot of the couch for a long time. He had almost drifted back to sleep when she spoke again.
"Do you think he hates me?" she whispered.
"I don't know. Maybe," was really all he could manage to say.
"I guess that's probably for the best."
"Probably."
"Mark, how did I become this person?"
"What person?"
She didn't seem to hear him.
"I think it's the job. When you have a scalpel in your hand it's like your not even human. I never used to be this heartless."
His best response to the pain in her voice was to wrap her in his arms again. He had always expressed himself most easily through physical actions.
"You're not heartless," he mumbled into her hair.
"Do you know what I said to Meredith Grey? The first thing I said to her?"
"What?"
"You must be the woman who's been fucking my husband."
So, Addison pretty much hates herself at the moment. Mark is finding it difficult to "draw the line" between friendship and love (hahaha I am so clever), and we still haven't seen too much of Alex's reaction to what happened between him and Addie. Well, that is about to change. The next chapter is a conversation between Alex... and George... and Izzie... and Christina... and Meredith! So many characters! I am very excited. It should be up in a couple days. By the way, if you chose to review let me know what you think of this "Next Time on Draw the Line" thing I've been doing.