Thank you for the reviews! The reception to this story has been great :) For my guest review re: Jo - I totally agree with you. I'm probably in the 5% who still likes Jo. I think she hasn't gotten the development she needs on the show, which is pretty frustrating. I think she could be a very interesting character because of her backstory pre-S12 finale, but it's hard for me to stay invested in Jolex on the show because the writers seem like they have no idea what to do with them.

Enjoy!

The last time Jackson felt overjoyed to be reporting to work was his first day of residency. He had been an eager intern who was excited to be thousands of miles away from Boston and his family. Once the daily routine of being a surgical resident became familiar and comfortable, he treated each new work day like it was an ordinary day. But now, he had a different reason – more like two reasons – to be returning to work after, what he thought was, the slowest weekend ever.

Following his birthday, Jackson was forced to entertain Catherine until she returned to Boston. She had even made arrangements for him to have the next few days off, so she could spend quality time with him. Of course, quality time to her meant interrogating him about Alex Karev's presence and everything else she wanted to know about her baby boy since she last saw him. And in usual fashion, Jackson remained mostly tightlipped and spoiled her by taking her out to expensive restaurants instead.

Returning to work at the hospital had never sounded better in his mind. No meddling mother to shadow his every movement and act like a nuisance because she was allowed to be. The more important reason for him to be back at work, though, was a redheaded woman who had surprised him on his birthday.

The kiss had been unexpected, but very pleasant. His plan hadn't worked on his terms, yet he was pleased with how it eventually happened. The fact that April kissed him first was a very good sign. Unfortunately, they hadn't been able to discuss the kiss due to Catherine's visit to Seattle. He couldn't even send a simple text message to George without his mother asking if he had a new woman in his life. It was best to keep his latest crush a secret from her.

Jackson entered the residents' locker room to change into his scrubs. The area didn't appear to be as full as it usually was in the early morning, but he brushed it off as he walked towards his cubby. One detail he did notice was April's street clothes were neatly folded in her cubby, which meant she was already working. He couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. They always greeted each other in the morning and engaged in friendly chatter before heading their separate ways. Today, she was surprisingly earlier than usual.

"You already missed her, if that's what you're wondering," Jo chimed in, approaching her friend while she wore her lab coat. "Don't go sniffing her clothes now because you're longing for her."

"Hey, I'm not going to complain since she kissed me," he boasted, throwing a smirk at her.

"What?" she gasped. "When?"

Jackson removed his t-shirt and set it inside of his cubby. "After I left my party," he answered with a grin. "We had a short talk and… she kissed me. It was nice. It was an awful night, but April made up for it unexpectedly."

Jo happily smiled, folding her arms. "Okay, so what? Are you two officially together or what?"

"That part I'm not sure yet," he murmured, furrowing his brow as he wore his scrub top. "We haven't been able to talk about any of it since it happened. I was stuck with my mother, so my weekend was busy and exhausting."

"So, umm… is it true?" she cautiously asked, changing the subject. "You and Karev are brothers?"

"Stepbrothers, to be exact," Jackson corrected Jo. There was no point in denying it now. He was positive everybody at the party knew his secret thanks to Catherine. Her voice was loud enough to gain the attention of a packed stadium. There was little hope in preventing this unknown fact about him from becoming the latest hospital gossip. "Whatever. In my opinion, we're not anything."

Jo stared at him skeptically. "Alex can't be as bad as you think he is. I understand hurt feelings are involved, but-"

"Can we not talk about this right now?" Jackson irritably replied. "I just want to change into my scrubs and hopefully, run into April on my way down to the pit."

"Oh, you won't find her anytime soon," she nonchalantly stated. "You know that massive pileup on I-5 just outside of downtown? Hunt came in about fifteen minutes ago calling for residents to head over there with him to help triage victims. April went with him."

"You serious?" he groaned. The pileup had blocked all of the lanes heading northbound. A logging truck caused the accident after the logs it was carrying had gotten loose and spilled onto the roads. Drivers had attempted to swerve around them resulting in the enormous pileup. He had heard updates on the radio on the way to work and it sounded like an ugly scene. "Dammit. She could be out there for hours."

Jo playfully patted Jackson's shoulder and laughed. "Don't be sad, Avery. You'll get to kiss her again eventually."

He rolled his eyes and softly smiled. "Thank you for your encouragement."

Amelia Shepherd rushed into the locker room, alerting the residents. "We've got multiple incoming traumas from that pileup heading our way. The attendings could use as many hands as we can get," she announced and pointed at Jo. "Wilson, are you ready? No time for chit chat. We've gotta move now."

"Yes, I'm available!" Jo politely answered. She looked back at Jackson on her way out of the locker room. "See you down there, Avery."

Jo and a few other residents joined Amelia in the elevator to go downstairs to the ER. The area was already hectic with doctors and nurses scrambling to prepare empty beds for those who needed extra special attention. George was calmly explaining instructions to his coworkers after Hunt had left him in charge of the pit until he returned. The new arrivals were told to wear trauma gowns before reporting to George.

"O'Malley, where do you want me?" the brunette questioned while she tied the strings of her trauma gown behind her neck.

"Hang around by the beds until the ambulances arrive. Wait for instructions unless an attending requests your service," George instructed.

Jo followed orders and walked towards the hospital beds. She spotted Alex sitting alone on one of them and quickly approached him. "This place will be a madhouse soon," she noted, taking a seat beside him. "The perks of being a Level I Trauma Center."

Alex quickly shrugged. "Mayo was like that." A mischievous grin slowly formed on his face. "Heard you were asking about me last week."

"Umm, what?" she nervously chuckled. "What- what's that supposed to mean?"

"Look, it's alright if you want to ask me out or something," he teasingly replied, stretching his arms in front of his chest and cracking his knuckles. "Just no pizza. Your disgusting eating habits somewhat turned me off from that."

Jo scoffed. "First of all, I don't normally eat that way. I was mocking you," she defensively stated. "And secondly, never in a million years will I ask you out on a date. Your idea of a date is probably cheap tacos from a vendor with Band-Aids all over his fingers."

Alex laughed. "Dude, I resent that. I'm pretty freaking good at finding the best food trucks," he claimed, smirking back at her. "If I'm an expert at something, it's discovering food that won't kill you."

"Uh huh. Well, I've lived in Seattle for over two years now, so I'll be the judge of that," she countered. "Pick a place and I'll decide if your instincts are correct."

"Fine. You're on. Pick a time and I'll choose something."

"I will," she determinedly answered. Jo paused for a moment before she blurted out, "By the way, it's not a date."

"Whatever you say, cat lady," Alex snickered, drawing a scowl from his coworker.

Jo rolled her eyes, then she casually inquired, "Now, this brotherhood between you and Avery…"

"Nice try, but no. We're not talking about that," he muttered.

"Dammit!" she groaned. "You two are impossible. I don't know everything, but the truth will come out eventually. It's best that I hear it directly from you before people start creating bizarre rumors and theories about you guys."

"Why do you need to know the truth so badly?"

"Because Jackson's my friend and you're… getting there," Jo reluctantly explained, sheepishly grinning at Alex. "Are you worried I'm going to sell your story to Dr. Phil or something?"

Alex shook his head. "No. I just think I've gotta clear some stuff up with Avery first," he reasoned. "As far as I know, my current reputation is the dude who stole the pretty boy's daddy – and who is maybe a stalker. Plus, this opening up crap, it's not something I do willingly."

Their conversation ended when Arizona Robbins waved them over towards the ER's loading dock. "Karev, Wilson. Come with me. We're getting a 5-year old who's in bad shape," she ordered.

Jo hopped off of the hospital bed and smiled at Alex. "Well, it looks like we're working together. Means I have more time to badger you about Avery," she lightheartedly said.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. I'm not easy to break," he warned her as he followed her outside.

"Gauze, gauze…" Jackson scrambled through a shelf inside of the supply closet searching for unused packages of gauze pads. He slammed his palm against the metal structure when his search came up empty. "Where the hell is the gauze!"

He felt a light tap on his shoulder and George stood behind him. "It's right above your head," he pointed out, reaching up for two different types of gauze. "You looking for the roll or non-adherent pad?"

Jackson sighed as he grabbed a stack of packaged non-adherent pads. "Thanks, man. I don't know what's wrong with me today." Actually, he knew exactly what was wrong, but he was embarrassed to tell his roommate the truth. "I was hoping Monday would start off a little less hectic."

"No, I get it. You miss April," George concluded, causing Jackson to be taken aback. "What? You want to talk about the kiss, but she's not here and it's killing you inside. I mean, the last person you had to kiss was your mother."

"When you put it that way, now I'm really annoyed at this pileup," he muttered, rolling his eyes. Jackson had told George about the kiss and his roommate was happy for him. He also forgot how well his friend could read him easily. "I spent three days with my mother. That's too many days in a row. I finally have the chance to see the woman I'm interested in at work and she's not here. Is it just me or is there some divine entity trying to tell me I'm not supposed to date April?"

"I'd call it paranoia," George quipped. "I think you're overthinking all of this again. Just relax, Avery. And if you're not busy, there's a patient at bed four who could use some stitches."

Jackson smirked on his way out of the supply closet. "That's actually my patient, but I was taking too long to find this damn gauze." He returned to his patient, a man with a large laceration on his forehead. "Alright, Mr. Thompson. Let's close up that cut."

First, he numbed the patient with a local anesthetic. Once the anesthesia kicked in, Jackson prepared a thread and needle. He was barely touching the patient when he heard a smug voice behind him groan. "Oh, no. You're already screwing up," Mark Sloan commented. He stood directly behind the third year resident with a grimace on his face. "You're coming in at the wrong angle. The end result will be hideous."

"I'm capable of completing simple stitches," he said through gritted teeth, forcing himself to smile at his patient. "I've done this before."

"Sir, how would you like to have minimal to zero scarring after your stitches are removed?" the plastic surgeon inquired. "I mean, your forehead – you've got a gorgeous forehead. It stands out easily. I'm sure when women look at your face you want them to stare into your eyes, not some ugly scar on your forehead."

The man briefly exchanged glances between Jackson and Mark, then he cleared his throat. "I would like to avoid having a scar, please."

Mark slyly grinned at Jackson, opening his glove covered hand for his needle and thread. The younger man pursed his lips, reluctantly handing him the tools before he stood up to allow the attending to take a seat. "Watch and learn, Avery. Maybe you'll learn to love Plastics after you see me work my magic," he arrogantly stated.

Jackson quietly watched his superior stitch his patient with an agitated expression on his face. He wondered if Sloan purposely gave him a hard time because he was an Avery. They were both East coast natives with the plastic surgeon hailing from New York. One would assume there would be some loyalty between them, but Mark seemed to act more strict with Jackson than with anybody else. Perhaps his friends were right. Mark Sloan was intimidated by his pretty looks, he thought.

After Mark finished stitching the patient, he waited for him to leave before giving Jackson a hard pat on the shoulder. "And that, my friend, is how you perform a clean stitch. I guarantee you he'll barely have a scar when I cut those babies off in a week."

"And if he does have a scar?"

"He won't," the older man confidently replied. "Anyway, I'm done here. Clean up the area for the next patient."

Jackson scowled at Mark as he walked away to tend to another patient – more like leech onto another resident and use his arrogance against them. He quickly cleaned and sanitized the hospital bed before dumping his trash into a biohazard bin. There were patients with minor injuries coming in and out of the pit by then. Some patients with major injuries were taken to trauma rooms or immediately upstairs to the next available OR. Ambulances would arrive to drop them off before returning to the accident scene to retrieve more pileup victims.

He sat by the beds for a few minutes, waiting for the next patient that required his service. Another ambulance arrived at the loading dock and Teddy Altman escorted a gurney into the ER. The sight was very peculiar because a resident was straddling the patient, apparently applying pressure onto his chest to prevent him from bleeding out.

Jackson shot up to his feet when he realized the resident was April. He couldn't help but smile a bit. She looked pretty badass as the gurney was pushed towards the elevator. He followed the group hoping to join the case. "Need any more hands?" he eagerly asked.

Teddy glanced back at him as she entered the elevator. "We're good, Avery, but thanks. Actually, if you're not too busy, could you cover my post-ops for the day?" she requested.

"Sure. No problem," he dejectedly replied as the elevator doors closed. Gripping the stethoscope around his neck tightly with both hands, Jackson bit the inside of his cheek. So far, that was the closest contact he had with April since his party and she didn't even notice him, which was understandable to him, yet also frustrating.

"Okay, the bleeding is under control. He's stable for now," Teddy announced, her hands inside of the patient's chest. She eyed April, who stood across from her on the opposite side of the OR table as her assistant. "Nice work, Kepner. You prevented him from bleeding out."

"Thank you, Dr. Altman." April smiled from behind her surgical mask. Working outside of the hospital in a disaster zone had been exhilarating for her. Not because of the amount of injuries and casualties that occurred due to the pileup but she never felt such a rush of adrenaline before. She was required to make crucial decisions within seconds, and she hadn't been told who she could and couldn't help. And after her hands protected a man's open chest, she was still on a surgical high. "Glad I could be of use on your service."

Owen entered the OR holding a surgical mask in front of his face. He stood a few feet away from the operating table. "The accident site is still a mess, but we were able to transfer all of the injured back here," he informed them. "The few who are deceased, their families will be informed when they arrive."

"Thanks, Hunt," Teddy replied, her eyes focused on her patient. "I was just telling Kepner about the fine job she did with this one."

"Actually, I came in here to say the same thing. Kepner, you were amazing out there in the field. You kept your composure, you made smart decisions and your leadership was impressive," he complimented. "I'd like to see you working in the pit more often with O'Malley. I think you two would make a great team."

April couldn't help but grin, despite not making eye contact with the trauma surgeon. "Thank you, Dr. Hunt," she chirped.

"Anyway, carry on," Owen stated before leaving the OR.

Teddy eyed the redhead, smirking back at her behind her surgical mask. "You should definitely take what Hunt said to heart. He doesn't allow just anybody to control the emergency room on his watch. Sounds like you made quite the impression on him," she insisted. "Have you considered trauma surgery at all?"

Neurosurgery had always intrigued April for a variety of reasons. She enjoyed the idea of figuring out what was happening inside of a person's brain. Some neurosurgeons were treated like gods. Derek Shepherd came to mind. She was certain he had his own official fan club. But trauma surgery, she had never genuinely thought about the specialty until now. It wasn't as clean and precise as neurosurgery. In fact, it was messy and involved quick thinking to get the job done. She considered herself to be the opposite, the type who never colored outside of the lines in a coloring book and never stepped out of her comfort zone.

However, trauma surgery tested her comfort zone, yet she enjoyed that it pushed her to become better. Plus, running the ER required excellent organizational skills, which was one of her greatest strengths. The more she thought about it, the more the specialty seemed more fitting for her.

"I haven't, to be honest," she admitted. "But I may have to reconsider my options now."

Following a successful surgery with Robbins, Alex and Jo were in the scrub room cleaning up. Their patient suffered a fractured tibia as well as some internal injuries that needed tending to, but they were hopeful she would make a full recovery. Arizona had left the two residents behind to speak with the child's parents, giving Jo the opportunity to question her coworker again now that they had some downtime.

"Okay, so you're really not willing to tell me anything about you and Avery?" Jo playfully complained as she rinsed her forearms and hands. "Not even one detail?"

Alex scoffed. "It's not that interesting of a story. I only ran into him a couple of times prior to coming here."

"How old were you when his dad became yours?" she probed. "Did you know about Jackson growing up?"

"I met Dalton when I was four. I found out about Jackson in high school. I guess Dalton wanted to wait until I was old enough to tell me about his other life because it was complicated or whatever," he answered, shrugging his shoulders. "I mean, he and my mom got a good thing going. He said he doesn't regret ditching the Avery life – whatever that is. Probably rich people parties and all of that snobby crap."

Jo softly laughed. "Well, he and Jackson are definitely related. You know he's not into that stuff either, right?"

"So that makes him less of a douche?" Alex chuckled.

"All I'm saying is he's not the snob you might think he is. I enjoy giving him a hard time once in a while, but mainly because he makes it so easy," she explained. "And now that he has this thing with April, he'll be around a lot more. Both of you are just gonna have to deal with being in the same room from now on."

Alex finished washing up and dried his hands. "Hey, I've tried to reach out to him multiple times. I deserve some credit for that. It's up to him now," he insisted, then he left the scrub room.

He decided to see if there were any other interesting surgeries happening, so he could sit down and relax in the observation gallery. The OR board listed Altman's name, along with April's, so he walked to OR 2. He removed his baby blue scrub cap as he entered the gallery. Only a few residents were watching the surgery, one of them being Jackson. The pretty boy watched intently, occasionally checking the tablet sitting on his lap. He had finished his round of post-ops for Altman and was now using his spare time to watch her procedure.

Alex took a seat, giving him and Jackson space in between them. The latter side eyed him before reverting his eyes back to the operating table. "What do you want, Karev?" he mumbled.

"Checking on April," the other man murmured. "How's it going down there?"

"Patient's stable. April kept him from bleeding out. She arrived in the ER straddling the patient on the gurney," Jackson answered with a soft smile.

"Badass," Alex chuckled. "So… you two are official?"

"No. We haven't talked since my disaster of a birthday," Jackson bitterly stated, pursing his lips. As much as he wished he could ask Alex to leave, he remembered the last conversation he had with April and he didn't want to continue being that guy who irrationally stayed angry at the wrong person. "I'm sorry about my mother. I didn't know she would be there."

Alex glanced back at Jackson. "Nah, it's cool. Whatever, it wasn't that awful. At least people kind of know the truth, right?" He reached out his hand across the empty chair between them. "Look, we don't have to be best friends or anything, but can we drop the animosity?"

Jackson stared at Alex's open hand before he timidly grasped it. They shook hands and he hoped he wouldn't regret giving his coworker a chance. "Okay."

"April likes you. She hasn't had the best luck with dating, so if it doesn't work out, just… be nice about it," Alex advised, drawing a curious look from Jackson. "And if you hurt her, you're giving me permission to kick your ass."

"Umm, okay," Jackson muttered. "I do like her a lot. I just need to find the time to finally talk to her since I missed her this morning. She was already gone when I arrived."

Alex rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "Yeah, she woke me up so damn early this morning," he groaned. "She was about to dump cold water on me if I didn't get out of bed. She wanted to come in early today."

"Really? Was it because of that accident on I-5?"

"No. That happened after we arrived. She only ever comes in earlier than she has to if she's avoiding someone. She's done it to me a bunch of times when we were at Mayo because I looked at her funny or something," he quipped. Jackson gazed back at him with raised eyebrows causing him to laugh. "Did something happen between you two?"

"Well, she kissed me," Jackson awkwardly replied.

"Oh." Alex stood up, stretching his arms over his head. He decided to leave to sneak in a quick nap before someone pages him. As he walked towards the exit, he stopped in the doorway and smirked at Jackson. "Dude, she's avoiding you."

Jackson slightly furrowed his brow as he returned his attention back to Teddy and April operating. He wasn't sure whether or not to believe Alex, but he did know April better than anybody else in that hospital. It didn't make sense to him because she kissed him first, and she certainly hadn't acted like she regretted it. Now, he was feeling very confused.

Jackson stepped out of an elevator after it arrived on the fifth floor. Despite the chaos that had occurred in the pit, he hadn't been inside of an OR all day. He grew bitter as the day passed because nobody needed him except for post-ops. He hoped the next day would help him feel like he was more than an intern.

On his way to the locker room, Lexie was on her way out after changing into her street clothes. The brunette's eyes immediately gazed down at the floor when they briefly made eye contact. "Uh, hey, Lex," he uncomfortably greeted her. Neither of them had spoken to each other since her drunken attempt to seduce him at his party. "I haven't seen you all day. Where have you been?"

"With Shepherd, operating on a patient with an open skull. It's been weeks since I've been on his service, so I jumped at the opportunity to join him," she quickly answered, slowly looking up at her ex-boyfriend. "It was touch and go, but he pulled through."

"That's good," Jackson politely replied, slipping his hands into his lab coat pockets. "Umm… thanks for that party. I don't think I actually told you that last week. It was fun… for the most part."

Lexie grimaced. "I'm not sure which I should be more embarrassed about – the fact that I came on to you drunk or that I thought it was wise to secretly invite your mother," she muttered. "Either way, I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking."

"It's alright," he insisted, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck. "It wasn't a complete disaster of a birthday."

"Okay, good. I'm relieved," she nervously laughed and pointed towards the elevator. "Anyway, I'm gonna go. I'll see you tomorrow, Jackson."

"Sure," Jackson murmured.

He watched Lexie leave feeling the awkwardness between them increase even more. She hadn't acted this way even after they had broken up. There was definitely more to her behavior than she was letting on, and he somewhat had an idea what it was. He simply didn't want her to feel even more uncomfortable about the fact that he wasn't interested in her romantically anymore.

Of course the woman he did have romantic feelings for was acting strange too. Fortunately, he found her inside of the locker room getting ready to leave as well.

April was already dressed out of her scrubs when she spotted Jackson entering the locker room. She grabbed her purse and attempted to make a quick exit, but he blocked the doorway to prevent her from leaving. "You're avoiding me," he bluntly stated. "I know what you're doing and I have no idea why you are. Just tell me, was it the kiss? Because if it was awful, I can kiss a lot better than that."

"I should be asking you that," the redhead softly laughed. "It's not you, Jackson."

"Please don't use the 'It's not you, it's me' cliché. We haven't even been on a date yet," he amusingly replied. Jackson approached April, forcing her to back up towards the center of the locker room. "What's the problem?"

"I… shouldn't have kissed you," she reluctantly answered, gently biting down on her bottom lip. He clearly didn't understand based on the puzzled expression on his face. "Well, I mean, you were upset about what happened between Alex and your mother and I made it about me. I-I kissed you because you brought up Lexie, and I walked in on you two-"

"Nothing happened, April," Jackson clarified. "She was drunk."

April quickly nodded. "Yes, I know, but even then I actually felt a little jealous," she admitted. "You two had a long relationship, and I thought maybe turning you down for dinner gave you the impression that I wasn't interested in dating you… and that you would give up on trying to ask me out. But your birthday shouldn't make you feel like crap and I thought the kiss would help…"

Jackson smirked as he listened to April ramble. Her insecurities were spilling out all at once. And he couldn't help but stare at her lips as her mouth moved to each word she spoke. He just wanted to kiss them again. Without giving it a second thought, he cupped her cheeks and kissed her. She eventually relaxed, her hands lightly grasping the lapels of his lab coat.

Now, she was feeling like an idiot for avoiding him all day.

Jackson pulled away with a smile on his face. He slid his hands down April's shoulders and arms, then he grabbed a hold of her hands. "I'm about ready to beg on my knees if you don't have dinner with me soon," he playfully stated, and she laughed in response. "I think we can still make it to sushi. Are you up for it?"

"Will you be going in your scrubs?" she teasingly asked.

Jackson glanced down at his baby blue attire and chuckled. "Right. Just give me a few minutes and we can go." He released April's hands and walked towards his cubby. He turned around and mischievously grinned back at her. "Don't pull a fast one and run out of here now."

April laughed as she sat down on the bench in front of their cubbies. "I'll be right here. I promise," she assured him. "No more running and hiding."

Let me know what you think, please :)