A/N: Yay, 4 reviews for the first chapter! Thanks, you guys are the best! Here's part 2 and it features a short meeting (yay!) and a lot more phone calls. Let me know what you make of it x

Addison stepped out of the ambulance and into Derek's arms, biting her tongue to stop asking for the person she wanted to see. She trailed behind Derek and Naomi as Archer was pushed into the ER. She stood at the corner of the room she watched Derek work, silent with tears running down her face. They stabilised Archer and Derek steered Naomi out of the room, saying something about coffee, as she continued to stare blankly at her brother. She whirled round as she heard the the door to the room open and choked back a sob as she saw Alex standing there.

"Addie." He breathed and with that she was in his arms, sobbing as he held her upright, stroking her hair and trying to offer soothing words. He guided her to the chair in the corner and sat her down, rocking her gently as she sat on his lap, cradling her until her cries subsided into sleep.

When she woke up, Alex was gone and before she knew it she was thrown into her old med school life, with Derek, Archer, Mark, Naomi and Sam. The 6 of them back together as she struggled through the mess that was Archer's surgery and later the complications with Jen. Sure Alex was there for that, but barring one bizarre conversation about a train and a comment about how Derek wasn't her guy anymore, there was nothing more than a professional relationship between the two. Addison stood waiting for a cab, ready to make her way back to LA, to her life when she heard someone come up behind her.

"Addie." He breathed as he wrapped his arms around her. She turned and buried her face in his neck, ignoring how his arms tightened around her and how he breathed in the scent of her hair. "We'll be okay." He muttered.

"You'll still call me?" She questioned her voice thick with tears.

He chuckled and patted down her hair. "As long as you still call me."

She nodded into his neck as she heard the cab pull up behind her. "Then we'll be okay."

With that she turned and climbed into the cab to the airport, without so much as a glance back.

Addison leant against the wall outside of the birthing suite, accepting the call on her cell with a simple greeting of "Alex."

There was just silence on the other end if the line and Addison listened to his breaths for a few minutes. "Alex, you know I'm always here for you. Always. But I've got a mother in labour so I'm on a limited time scale here and if you don't start talking, I'm going to have to hang up."

"Izzie has cancer." He blurted.

"What?" She felt the air leave her lungs at his words.

"Izzie has stage 4 metastatic melanoma that has spread to her brain, liver and skin. She may only have months to live, and she's resisting treatment." His voice was empty of emotion, he sounded like a doctor delivering a diagnosis and it broke her heart.

"Oh, Alex, honey…"

"That's why she was seeing Denny. I thought she was crazy, I laughed at her, but she had a brain tumour. She has a brain tumour. There's only 5% chance that she'll survive." His voice finally cracked.

"That's still a chance." She said but her words sounded empty even to her.

"Yeah." He breathed. "You should go to your patient."

"Alex, I still have a few minutes if you need them."

"Addie, you should go." She heard him swallow and clear his throat. "Thank you. For being here."

With that he hung up the phone and she took a moment in the hall to compose herself, brushing the tears from her cheeks and taking a deep breath before heading back to the birthing suite.

It had been a few weeks since she heard from Alex and she debated about whether to call him what with Izzie's cancer. She sighed and dialled the number anyway, regretting it when he picked up with a weary 'hello'.

"Alex." She breathed. "I shouldn't have called."

He let out a chuckle, but it seemed deep and less joyful than normal. "You know you can always call me Addie."

"I know but my problem seems so insignificant and petty compared to your 'my girlfriend has cancer' crap."

He let out another chuckle, this one lighter and more genuine. "I've always like you. You say it how it is." He mused.

"I met a guy and now I'm Meredith Grey." She blurted.

"Okay…" He said, confused.

"I met guy in the scrub room and he had nice eyes. So we flirted. We flirted for months and he was nice and he made me feel special and loved." She took a breath. "Then I was doing a check up on a patient, a very pregnant patient, and her husband walked in. And it was Noah. It was the flirty, charming guys with the nice eyes."

"Oh, Addie."

"Don't, Alex." Her voice was strained. "We both know you have more problems than my pathetic love life."

"I like your pathetic love life. It helps me forget my problems." She laughed at that. "Addie, you will find someone who deserves you. Someone who's not married. Who is not screwed up." She snorted. "Okay, who is just screwed up enough to deal with you. You deserve the best Addie, and it may feel like the world is collapsing in at the moment, but you'll get over that, you always do."

She sighed. "Is Izzie that for you?"

It was his turn to sigh. "Yes. No. She has to be. She has cancer, so I have to step up." He paused. "Shepherd got her brain tumour. It's all gone."

"That's really good Alex, I'm really pleased."

"I don't know if you know but Meredith and Shepherd got engaged. They're getting married in a few weeks." Addison felt her heart clench at Alex's words, thankful but at the same time resentful of his inability to beat around the bush.

"Congratulations are in order, I guess then." She muttered.

"You'll be okay, Addie."

"I know." She replied with more conviction than she felt as she hung up the phone.

"Meredith is giving her wedding to me and Izzie. We don't think Izzie is going to make it." Alex blurted as soon as she chose to accept the call in the middle of their morning meeting.

"What?!" She half yelled at him, causing everyone to look at her, Naomi mouthing 'are you okay?' as she simply shook her head and walked out of the room into her office.

"I'm getting married and I'm freaking out because the bride is one of my best friends and could die tomorrow so tell me something about your life. Preferable something crappy to distract me."

She remained silent as she thought about her life, trying to ignore the anguish in his voice. "I had this patient today, Katie." She started slowly. "She was also a patient of Violet's. I had to tell her that her baby had died. She needed surgery to remove the foetus and me and Violet had to try and convince her to do it, while she was dying of sepsis. She thought her baby was still alive. How the Hell do you deal with that?"

"You know that's really crazy and sucky and all but it makes me feel better about my life."

She let out a big laugh at that. "Good luck on your wedding, Alex. I'm sorry I can't be there." That was a lie and they both knew it.

"Good luck with your patient Addie." She wasn't sure which of them hung up first but she came to the conclusion it didn't really matter.

Addison sat in a corridor in the hospital, after working all day on Violet and Lucas. Her bones ached and yet at the same time her whole body felt numb. She pulled the cell phone out of her pocket and dialled the number that became almost like habit.

She heard the click which indicated the call and been answered and blurted out what she had to say before she lost her nerve.

"I almost slept with a married man. I almost slept with Noah then my pager went off and his wife was in freaking labour and I didn't sleep with him. And it felt like the biggest thing in the world." She exhaled shakily. "Then the hospital called and Violet… oh my God, Violet. That patient I told you about, Katie, she tried to steal Violet's baby. She cut Lucas out of Violet's body and I had to try to save both of them and it worked, I did it. I saved them. So why do I feel so God damn empty?" She ended her rant with tears running down her face, tipping her head back against the wall. It was then she realised that his breaths were just as ragged.

"Izzie died in my arms." He ignored her shaky intake of breath. "I ignore the DNR and resuscitated her anyway. She came back. She's alive and going to be okay. But George…" His voice cracked. "There was this John Doe. He was hit by a bus, while pushing a stranger to safety. He was mangled and all messed up. And then, um, then John Doe bus guy was George. He spoke to Meredith and he was George and Izzie was dying in my arms and he was dying in surgery. Izzie came back from the dead but Bambi didn't. George is dead."

"O'Malley is dead. George is dead." Addison repeated.

"Yeah." Alex exhaled on the other end of the line.

A sob made its way out of her throat. "God, life sucks."

"It really sucks." He echoed.

"We're still breathing." She whispered as she let the sobs take over her body and she hung up the phone.

Addison sat on her deck, and watched the ocean as the sun set. She was trying to push her worries about Violet and Lucas to the back of her head when her cell rang. "Alex."

"Seattle Grace is merging with Mercy West."

She sighed. "I know, Callie told me." She paused. "Is there going to be staffing cuts?"

"I assume so. Everyone's gone crazy trying to not be cut." She hummed in sympathy. "Izzie came back to work and did a 5 hour surgery."

"That's very soon." She stated carefully. "Was she ready?"

"No." He snapped, sighing when he heard her soft intake of breath. "No. She was scared. We're all scared."

She picked up her glass of wine and drank it all down in one. "Violet gave her baby to Pete. She gave Lucas up. We're all scared."

"What if I get fired?" He sounded vulnerable and it caused a dull ache to spread through her. She chased the feeling with another glass of wine, choosing instead to focus on the warmth the alcohol caused.

"You won't. You're really damn good." Addison stated.

He chuckled softly. "It's good to know you have faith in me, Addie."

"I'll always have faith in you, Alex, honey." She paused for a second. "If you get fired, I'll hire you. I could do with an assistant. Someone to get me coffee and stuff."

He let out a snort and she smiled. "You always know the right thing to say." He was silent for a moment. "Izzie's still living with cancer. But she's living and going to stay that way."

"Violet is living with PTSD. But she's alive."

"We'll be okay too." His voice lacked conviction.

"We'll be okay too." She echoed, her own voice devoid of emotion as she hung up the phone. She dug her feet into the sand, enjoying the feeling of the damp sand against her as she ignored the tears running down her face. She was really beginning to wonder about them being okay.

"Izzie got fired. She left me." The words came through the phone as soon as she answered the call.

"I know." She whispered softly. "Miranda's here. She told me."

"Oh right, the kidney patient."

"Yeah." She breathed. "Alex, honey, are you okay?"

"No." He spat out. "No, I am not okay."

She nodded slowly as a silence fell between them. "Miranda says she struggles to find the joy anymore. That she's glass half empty now."

He let out a snort at that. "I get the same feeling sometimes."

"I wonder that myself." She agreed.

"Anything screwed up happening to you?"

"The patient whose husband I almost had the affair with turned up in my office in front of Miranda and asked if I screwed her husband." She said with a sigh. He started laughing. "Alex, it's not funny." She snapped at him.

"Sorry." He chuckled. "What did Bailey say to that?"

She sighed. "I told her I didn't do anything. That I stopped it before I did anything. That I did the right thing." Her voice cracked slightly and a few tears escaped her.

He hummed and softened his tone as he heard the tears in her voice. "Addie, baby, what did Bailey say?"

"That I did the wrong thing as soon as we had emotional relationship not involving his wife. That I did the wrong thing as I fell in love with him."

"Love is crappy like that. It blurs all the lines. It makes things messy."

She let out a wry chuckle. "Speaking from experience?"

"My wife's left me." He sounds resigned.

"I had an affair with a married man." Her tone of voice was the same.

They were silent for a few minutes, listen to each other breath over the phone.

"I miss you, Addie." He admitted.

"I miss you too." She breathed.

They stayed on the phone, listening to each other for a few minutes more before she hung up. She pushed herself off the kitchen counter and headed back outside to where Bailey was waiting for her, with a raised eyebrow and a questioning gaze at the tears on her face. She didn't say anything, just held her glass out to her for a refill.

She took a sip of her drink as she watched the ocean, then turned to look at Bailey. "I'm glass half empty too." She admitted and Bailey gave her a small nod, raising her glass to hers.

"Alex?" Addison's voice was sleep filled as she answered her cell phone, wrapping the covers tighter around herself.

"I'm saving a baby's life right now." He whispered.

She frowned. "You better not be calling me from the OR."

He chuckled quietly. "No, there was this preemie, and it didn't look like she was going to make it. There was nothing more we could do and I thought she deserved to be held at least, so I picked her up. And her stats improved."

"Kangaroo hold." She muttered, sounding slightly more alert.

"Kangaroo hold." He confirmed.

"Wow, Alex, honey, that's amazing." She smiled.

"I know." He paused slightly. "This is the first time that I've thought everything may end up okay."

She laughed softly. "You saved a baby."

"I saved a baby, Addie." He laughed breathlessly along with her, following into a comfortable silence. "How is your crap anyway?"

She was silent for a moment. "I got a cat."

He laughed in shock. "Okay?"

"I had a terminal cancer patient and she left me her cat to look after. So I've given up men and decided to become a crazy cat lady instead."

"I'm proud of you Addie." He paused. "Bailey made me take my shirt off in front of everyone."

She laughed. "I wish I was there to see that."

"I bet you do. Who wouldn't want to see that?"

"Pig." She muttered into her pillow.

"I'm sorry for waking you."

"I'm not." She admitted. "I needed this."

He was quiet for a moment and she wondered whether to hang up, when he spoke again. "Addie…baby…I hope you know that I still believe you will find someone who deserves you. Just don't give up hope because you are an extraordinary woman."

"You're a great guy, Alex." She whispered. "The best guy I know, you'll find someone too."

With that he hung up the phone and she rolled over, drifting off to sleep with a small smile on her face.

Addison knew Alex would be at work and so debated whether to call him. She sat hugging her knees against her kitchen counter, tears streaming down her face as she clutched her cell in her hand. It usually didn't bother her, phoning him at work, but she needed to talk to him so desperately she wasn't sure what she would do if he didn't pick up. She pressed the call button, taking a deep breath and holding it while she listened to the phone ring.

She let out the breath she had been holding when she heard the line connect. "I don't want to be unsupportive but I'm swamped at the moment. I've got a couple minutes why I'm waiting for the CT. So shoot, quickly though."

She didn't say anything just started sobbing harder. She tried to catch her breath and calm down but she choked on her tears. "I…um…I…Alex."

"Baby?" She heard the panic in his voice and tried to respond, unable to stop the sobs that wracked her body. She heard someone else in the background but couldn't work out what they were saying. "Baby you need to calm down, deep breaths for me. In and out. You hear me? You're okay, I'm here. Just in and out."

"Alex, is it Izzie? Are you okay? Is she okay?" She realised the voice belonged to Meredith but she couldn't bring herself to care.

"It's not Izzie. Look, Mer, can you handle this patient? I need to take this call. I need a minute."

"Sure, Alex. Whatever you need." She heard the confusion in Meredith's voice.

"Okay, Addie. You need to breathe. Come on baby. Talk to me, talk to me. I have all the time in the world for you. So just breathe."

She felt his words start to calm her and she managed to choke out a sentence. "Kara died. She had her baby and she died."

"Addie, baby, who's Kara?" She heard him sigh softly. "I want to help you but I don't know what's going on. You need to explain."

"I was on a hike with Sam when we found this couple, they were, they had been in, um, in a car crash. There was no cell service." She stopped abruptly when another round of sobs worked through her body. "She was pregnant and trapped in the car, he had a severe leg laceration. We put a pressure dressing on it. Sam was going to go for help but then Jake's lung collapsed. We put in a chest tube but he had to keep opening it every half hour so I was going to have to go between the two of them. I climbed into the car to check on Kara but it started moving and I was so scared, Alex, I thought I was going to die."

"Oh Addie. You're okay though, baby. You're alive."

"We hit a tree so the car stopped but I was stuck in there as well and then she went into labor and the baby was breech and Sam went to get help. I had to turn the baby internally and she was screaming in pain and it was dark and Jake was talking to us, but his tube could clog any second and I was so scared, I was so so scared."

"Keep breathing, Addie. You're doing great." He soothed.

"She gave birth to the baby, and then Jake stopped talking but then help arrived and he was alive, they were airlifting him out." She took a shaky breath. "Kara was so grateful. She said she was going to name her daughter Addison. They, um, they started to cut Kara out but the door had tamponaded an arm wound and she was bleeding out and I tried to stop it I did. I tried to save her, I tried so hard. There was just so much blood." She dissolved into tears again as Alex hushed her.

"You did your best, Addie. And your best is amazing. If anyone else had found that couple they'd both be dead, the baby too. You know that. You pulled off a miracle, Addie. You know that."

"I know." She cried. "I know."

He stayed on the line, hushing her gently until her sobs subsided into steady tears. "Addie?" She hummed in acknowledgement. "You need to promise me something. Promise me you won't get into anymore cars that could crash. Promise me you'll stay safe and stay alive, because I don't think I can cope without you. I don't think I'll survive without you."

"Okay." She whispered. "You're not allowed to die on me either, Alex. I need you, honey. So stay alive."

He sighed. "We're both still breathing."

"We are." She agreed, softly.

"I need to go back to work, try and get some sleep Addie." He paused. "If you need me again, call me. Even if I'm in surgery, I'll do my best to be there."