Hey guys! You are the best. I love you all. New readers and the loyal ones who have been with me from the very beginning. You are the reason I continue to write this story. 3…I know I am keeping the angst up with Mark leaving Lexie at the altar, but we need some drama. Thanks for being patient and here is the next chapter.

Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me…just a dreamer here.

Surreal. That was the only word that could explain exactly how Lexie Grey felt as she woke the next morning. She had spent the entire night trying to make sense of how this could have happened. How could everything she had just fall apart in a matter of seconds? She felt betrayed. She had given everything to Mark. She gave him her heart, her future, she even gave him a child. Lexie couldn't help but feel like somehow she wasn't enough for Mark. Why else would he decide that he wasn't ready to move forward with her? Lexie looked around and took in her surroundings. Everything was exactly the same. Christmas decorations by her bed, the small trinkets she set out when she first moved in, and the picture of her mom sitting on her dresser. The only difference was the crib in the corner that Derek had generously purchased and set up for her before she made it back to Meredith's. She never thought she would be like this; a single mom, living in her big sister's attic. She made her way out of bed and walked over to the crib where Haley was awake and cooing.

"Hey baby girl." Lexie said, picking her up. Haley was almost five months old and Lexie felt like she was growing up so fast. She was holding her head up and trying to crawl and Lexie wanted nothing more than for her to slow down. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it work for you. I tried, I really did." Lexie explained.

Meredith appeared in the doorway to offer Lexie a ride to work, when she overheard her conversation, she stopped and waited patiently.

"I want you to remember something, okay?" Lexie continued. "I want you to know that I love you and your daddy loves you and no matter what happens with us that will not change. Do you understand? Hmm? I love you, okay?" She said beginning to tear up.

"Lexie." Meredith said.

Lexie turned around and used her free hand to wipe her tears quickly.

"Hey." Lexie said.

"I just wanted to see if maybe you wanted a ride to work, this morning. I thought you might want to go in, you know, to get your mind off of everything…but if you don't, it's okay." She told her.

"No. No, you're right. I should work. It might be good for me." Lexie answered. "Um, just let me grab some clothes and Haley's things and we will go."

"Alright, I'll be downstairs." Meredith said with a smile.

"Thanks."

Walking downstairs, Meredith wished that there was something she could do to help her. To take away her pain, or at least minimize it just a little. She was her big sister, so she felt it was her duty to protect Lexie. She shouldn't have to feel this way. No one should. Lexie came downstairs, ten short minutes later, ready to head out. When they arrived at the hospital, Meredith looked at Lexie, trying desperately to come up with the right words to say.

"I can take Haley to the daycare for you." Meredith offered. "That way you can just dive right in. Plus, you wouldn't have to worry about running into you-know-who."

"His name isn't taboo, Meredith." Lexie handed Haley over. "Thank you. I'll see you upstairs."

Lexie walked into the residents' locker room and quickly changed into her scrubs, determined to get on a surgical case that would keep her busy and preoccupied. She wanted to forget everything that happened in the last twenty-four hours. She was starting over, brand new. She had her daughter, her sister, her friends and her career, that's all she needed. Pulling her hair into a messy ponytail, she quickly found Dr. Webber, busily charting at the nurses' station.

"Chief." Lexie said.

"Dr. Grey." Chief Webber replied. "How are you doing? I heard about what happened."

"I'm doing okay." Lexie said. "I was actually wondering whose service you wanted me on."

"You are with Robbins today." Richard told her with a smile. "I don't think Plastics is really your forte."

"Thank you, Chief." She said, smiling back.

"Keep your head up. You're gonna get through this, I promise."

"Yes, sir."

Lexie was picking up charts for her morning rounds when Arizona skated up next to her.

"So you're with me and the tiny humans today? Are you ready to see some true joy?" She said with a giant grin.

"I could use some joy." Lexie answered.

Arizona looked at her with sympathy. "I know. Calliope is enraged with Mark."

"I don't really want to talk about Mark, if that's okay with you."

"Of course, well, let's go save a life." Arizona added with pep.

After an appendectomy and a bowel resection, it was time for lunch and Lexie decided to spend it with the one thing that didn't make her want to crawl in a hole and hide from the world. She grabbed a granola bar and a bottle of water to sustain her energy and rushed downstairs to see her little girl. Only when she arrived, she saw someone had beaten her to it.

"Oh, hi Dr. Grey." Chelsea greeted, causing Mark to turn around.

"I'm being paged." Lexie muttered and turned around, practically running for the elevator.

"Lexie." She heard behind her. In her mind, she cursed the elevators for being so slow. She made a dash for the stairs, hoping desperately that Mark could take a hint. Apparantly, he couldn't.

"Lexie, come on. Just two minutes, please?" Mark begged.

"Why?" She shot back. "Why should I give you two minutes when you couldn't even give me a lousy thirty second phone call to say 'Hey, you might not want to put on that huge white dress you've been saving.' You left me hanging, Mark. Do you get that? You made me feel like an idiot."

"You're not an idiot."

"I am. I am because I believed you would be there." She said, on the verge of tears. "I can't stand here and have this conversation."

"Why the hell not? I think you at least owe it to Haley to hear me out." Mark's voice grew louder.

"Do not drag her into this." She said, angrily. "I can't have this conversation because talking to you hurts, Mark. It really hurts! Standing here right now is killing me! Don't you understand that?"

"Lexie, what about Haley?" Mark pleaded.

"Exactly. Did you think about that at all, before you decided you weren't ready?" She shook her head as Mark reached for her hand.

"Don't." Lexie said, pulling away. "You left me standing alone in a church waiting for you. You don't get to decide to show up now." She told him, walking away.

That evening, Lexie and Meredith had picked Haley up from daycare and made their way home from a particularly hectic day. Lexie took her baby up to the attic with her and lay down beside her on the bed. She smiled at her and stroked her face and wondered to herself how on earth her life could be anything but perfect with this tiny miracle to call her own. Haley laughed and Lexie felt her heart swell again.

"I love you so much." She said as she nuzzled up next to the precious baby, kissing her on the cheek.

Meanwhile, Mark threw his keys on the table as he walked into his empty apartment. Things had been extremely depressing since Lexie and Haley disappeared and Mark knew he had no one to blame but himself. In a moment of fear, he screwed everything up and threw away the best thing to ever happen to him. He sat on the couch with a beer and sighed. There was a knock on the door followed by Callie letting herself in.

"Did you fix it, yet?" Callie asked.

Mark just shook his head.

"What the hell is wrong with you? You realize you are letting the single most amazing thing to ever happen to you just slip away, right?" She said.

"You think I don't know that, Callie?" Mark snapped. "You don't think I would give up everything I have right now just to take that day back and do it over?"

"And what exactly would you do over?" Callie asked. "Huh?"

Mark sat in silence.

"Exactly what I thought."

"Torres…" Mark tried.

"No. You know what? You do not get to 'Torres' me." She told him, sternly. "You screwed up, big time. You need to fix this, Mark, I mean it. I love you, but I care about Lexie too and she does not deserve this."

"I know! Alright? Damn, give it a rest, Callie."

"I'm going to go." She said, walking to the door. "Try again."

Mark sat in silence and took in every word Callie said to him. He hated to admit but she was right. He let the most amazing part of his life walk away in one moment of pure stupidity, but he wasn't giving up that easy. "Try again", was what Callie said, and Mark intended to do just that. He was not giving up and he was going to do everything in his power to make sure that Lexie knew that.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I have been playing off of the Derek/Mark friendship and I thought it would be interesting to explore the Callie/Mark friendship for a change. Please review, because reviews make my day. Peace & Love, guys. xoxo