A/N: Sorry this took so long. Don't hate me. Please R&R.


After a long while, Addison fell asleep in Mark's arms. Although he was still concerned about her, he was glad at least that he had been able to be there for her when she needed him. He had never been one of those people who were particularly intuitive, especially when it came to Addison, so he was glad that he was able to help her in any way possible, and comforting her was one of the things that he had most longed to do ever since he met her. He had never really been able to do that in the past because she wasn't his—she belonged to Derek, and then after Derek left, Mark had felt so much guilt over his actions that he had been unable to be the man that he longed to be. That was why he had cheated on her in New York, among other reasons. He had been afraid to commit, but he also felt as though he had screwed up her life enough by causing her to really lose her husband for good. He didn't want to hurt her any more than he already had. He figured that his best defense would be to push her away by hurting her, which, as he thought back on it now, made no sense, because in trying to protect her from pain, he was merely inflicting a different kind of pain on her. At the time, he had thought that cheating on her would be painful in a much less significant way, and that would thus save her from being completely in love with him and having her heart broken just as it had been with Derek.

Looking down at the sleeping beauty who was safely encased in his arms, his heart melted just a little bit more. She looked so small, so vulnerable—which was clearly something that no one would have expected of the redheaded Amazon woman who stood at 5'10" even without the four-inch stilettos that she insisted on wearing. She was beautiful, and more beautiful, he thought, in this moment than she had ever been before. She looked so much younger as she lay in his arms; her body was completely relaxed for the first time that he could remember in recent history, even in sleep. He liked to think that it was because he was there for her, he was able to make her feel completely protected and at ease, which was something that he never thought he would be able to provide for anyone. He had always thought that inevitably he would end up like his sad excuse for a father, thus being the one to cause others pain, not relieve it. He had gone into medicine in order escape his father's legacy, but the fact that he had gone into plastics and continued to be a man-whore had voided his attempt as Addison herself had said on many occasions. He thought maybe he was growing up after all, maybe she was just the woman that he needed to turn his life around, and that everything would be okay in the end. He only hoped that he could provide her with everything that she possibly needed. It occurred to him that maybe it wouldn't be quite as hard as he thought, just so long as he kept in mind all of Derek's negative examples and was sure never to be indifferent to her. She needed someone who cared and was persistent when it came to her well being, because she was one of those people who tended not to take very good care of herself, despite the fact that professionally she saved lives. It seemed to Mark that she was the one in need of some saving, especially after what he had just revealed to her.

Mark couldn't lie and say that he didn't feel the least bit angry that Addison had aborted their child, but he could honestly say that she didn't deserve the infertility that had been thrust upon her. She should have had more time. He had been telling the truth when he had assured her that her wishes on the matter trumped his desires, hands down. Being selfless was weird for Mark, and completely out of character, but when it came to Addison, he found himself wanting to be that man. He wanted to be better, and she was the only person that he had ever met who had that effect on him. It was incredible, really, that someone could inspire him so completely that he was motivated to be an entirely different person. He actually liked the person that he was when he was around Addison, which was probably why he had flown after her when she fled New York, and why he had followed her to Los Angeles. Without Addison, his life was pointless, and he was a terrible person, and worse still, he had no motivation to be a better person. He wasn't one of those people who could just motivate himself to be a better person because it was the right thing to do, and that was probably one of his major faults. Addison probably deserved much better than he could offer. She deserved a wonderful man who had far less baggage than Mark himself brought to the equation, however on some level he still believed that he could be good for her. At the very least he was willing to try if she would have him. He only hoped that he wouldn't break her again. She couldn't stand to be broken again—if that happened, she might end up being to far gone to be saved. He couldn't allow that to happen.

Eventually, Mark drifted off, pushing his concerns for the future out of his mind. In this moment, all that mattered was that he was with Addison and that she felt safe in his arms. She had felt comfortable enough with him to confide in him about a topic that was clearly painful for her, well, to be truthful, both of them, and he was not about to betray her trust. All he could do was be there for her and give her all of the support that he could. He had almost forgotten exactly how nice it was to lie in bed beside her, how perfectly their bodies fit together. As he fell asleep, he remembered how at first they had been physically awkward, because she was so tall, which in comparison made him seem short, because truth be told, he wasn't really that tall, he just was just built, which made him seem more like a force to be reckoned with. The memories caused a smile to form on his face as he slipped into the most pleasant and restful slumber that he had experienced in a long time.


A/N: Decidedly not the best thing ever, but I hope you liked it! Please show some love-- it will make me write faster! Also, if you have any thoughts on...anything...feel free to let me know!