A/N I do not own the song in this chapter, it's called Knock Three Times if you wanted to hear what it sounds like.

Izzie slowly walked up to her mom acting with caution because she knew how her mom could get when she had a few drinks in her.

"Mom." Izzie said softly touching her arm shaking her lightly. "Mom are you ok?"

"Cricket?" Diane's head raised "Cricket!" she announced loudly throwing her left arm around Izzie. "Hey Joe!" she called further down the bar "Joe! Do you know my daughter? My daughter Cricket?" Joe just smiled and nodded and he cleared some glasses off the bar. Diane looked back at Izzie and pulled out the stool next to her "Sit down, take a load off."

"No mom I think it's time I get you home." Izzie said pushing the stool back in.

"I don't want to go yet." Diane whined.

"Mom it's getting late and you know how you get in the mornings if you haven't slept well." Izzie said trying to pull her mother up off the stool. She suddenly felt like a mother trying to pick her 5 year old kid up off the ground. She shouldn't have to do this, her mother should be able to take care of herself by now.

"Isobel I said I wasn't ready to go." Diane said standing up trying to tower over Izzie even though she was clearly shorter than her. "If you are in such a hurry why don't you go home by yourself?"

"Mom I'm not leaving you here all alone." Izzie said grabbing her mother's purse off the ground.

"Well than you are just going to have to wait until I'm done." Diane said sitting back down on the stool "Go keep yourself busy with that O' Talley fellow or whatever his name is, I'm sure he would be happy to occupy your time for a few hours. Or if not him than I bet there are tons of other doctors in that hospital that would enjoy your company, I also bet there are a ton that already have!" her mother said almost shouting it.

"Mom can you keep your voice down, please?" Izzie asked quietly getting deeply red in the face.

"Why? You all these people don't know how much of a whore you are?" Diane said taking a big sip of her drink "It's not like it's some big secret."

"Mom-"

"Let me deal with this." George's voice came from behind her. He stepped forward and grabbed Diane arm and wrapped one of his arms around her and swung her over his shoulder. She cursed several times and demanded that he 'put her down this instant', "Mrs. Stevens I think it time for you to head home." he looked over at Izzie "Could you get the door for me?" he asked kindly.

Izzie just nodded and went over to the door and opened it for George. Once they were out side George looked back over at Izzie again. "Car?"

"It's right here." Izzie said opening the back door to her Volvo.

"You drive a Volvo? Really?" George joked as he sat Diane in the back while she still shouted insults at him. "Here let me drive, you look like you can barely hold yourself up." he said extending a hand for the keys.

Izzie looked at his open hand for a moment than handed the keys to him without saying a word.

The car ride was going by slowly, the mixture of intense tension between George and Izzie was not mixing well with the loud and very annoying snores coming from Izzie's passed out mother in the back seat.

George looked over at Izzie for a moment to see if she was having as much trouble as he was with the situation, but Izzie didn't have any expression on her face, she looked very blank. George hated uncomfortable silences, they were so…uncomfortable.

George reached over and turned the radio switch on. An older cheery song was on that George recognized and had to smile at.

"Hey girl whatcha doing down there?" George started to sing and Izzie looked over at him in confusion. "Dancin alone every night while I live right above you. I can hear your music playin' I can feel your body swayin one for the lonely, you don't even know me, I Love you." he sang. Izzie smiled and started moving her head to the beat "Oh My Darling, Knock three times on the ceiling if you want me Twice on the pipes if the answer is no. Oh my sweetness…" Izzie hit the dashboard in front of her three times loudly "means you'll meet me in the hallway." they both started to laugh but continued on enjoying the tension finally being broken.

They pulled up at the front of Izzie's house minutes later, still smiling at their time spent together. But when George turned off the engine it was like everything came flooding back to Izzie and she remembered her drunk sleeping mother in the backseat and the scene she made at Joe's.

"Home sweet home." George said looking up at the house. A few lights were on. "Looks like Meredith is home so at least you won't be alone."

Izzie nodded "Yeah, that's good." she said sadly trying to not start crying.

"Hey are you ok?"

Izzie shook her head "You heard what happened tonight, do you think I'm ok?"

"I admit what she did suck but you'll bounce back from this."

"How can you be so sure?' Izzie asked looking over at him, tears still in her eyes.

George smiled "Because you're Izzie," he reached over and whipped a few stray tears off her face "and if there is anything I have learned in the past week of knowing you, it's that you can bounce back from people acting like idiots toward you. I mean you have bounced back from everything I have ever said to you." Izzie laughed lightly "See you're bouncing back already."

"Has it only been a week?" Izzie said leaning back in the car seat.

"It has."

"It seems like you came a lifetime ago." Izzie said closing her eyes for a moment than opening them back up. "Well I guess I should get inside." she looked back at her mom than at George.

"I'll get her." he said not even having to hear her ask.

"Thank you." George opened the door and was about to get out when he felt Izzie's hand on his arm pulling him back in. She lightly kissed him on the cheek hovering near his face a little longer than was considered normal "I mean it George, thank you."

"You're welcome." he whispered, his voice getting caught in his throat. George looked at Izzie eyes and couldn't help but feel all the things he had felt earlier in the on call room. He slowly leaned in and closed his eyes. He could feel her breath on his lips.

Suddenly there was an extremely loud snore from the backseat that interrupted that moment. George smiled and laughed lightly.

"I should probably get her inside." he said moving away from Izzie.

"Yeah that's probably a good idea."

George nodded and got out of the car without saying another word to Izzie.