Author's Note: Chapter 2 is here! Hopefully you all enjoy. Thank you for your kind reviews!
April was roused from her peaceful slumber by the sound of the plane's wheels hitting the runway. Her eyes slowly slid open, the view of the seats in front of her coming into focus. Stretching out her cramped legs, she tried to turn around, but there was a weight stopping her. Smiling, she realized that Jackson had passed out on top of her, his large body leaning into her own. He was snoring lightly, his mouth slack against her arm. "Jackson," she whispered to the snoring man. "Jackman, we're landing, wake up!"
"Just five more minutes," Jackson sleepily grumbled as he nestled into April more. The girl bit back laughter as she poked his arm. Finally, he opened his eyes and glared at her. "Hey, I was having a good dream." He looked out the plane's tiny window, whistling softly in appreciation at the sight. The airport's runway was lined by lush vegetation, hibiscus flowers and palm trees surrounded by springy green ferns. The sky was clear, and the sun was shining bright, casting a glow onto the colorful flowers. "Or maybe this is the good dream?"
April grinned. Finally relieved of the weight on her body, she turned to look at her companions. Arizona and Callie were seated a few rows behind them, marveling at the beauty that lay outside of the cramped plane. Meredith and Derek were nearby, quickly turning on their phones to call Alex and ask about Zola. One pair was missing from the motley crew. "Hey," April asked Jackson. "Where are Cristina and Owen?" Her question was soon answered, however, by the pair emerging from the plane's bathroom. Cristina was attempting to sort out her crazy hair, and Owen was right behind her straightening his shirt. They were giggling profusely, and April caught the words "mile high club" from in between their chuckles. Shaking her head, she turned back to Jackson. The excitement was evident in her eyes.
"I am so ready for this vacation," she sighed happily.
"Me too," Jackson agreed. "Sloan's great and all, and I love Plastics, but…" April knew exactly how he felt. All of them could use a little time off from the hospital.
April smirked. "I'm just looking forward to finally getting a normal sleeping schedule," she admitted. Jackson laughed, nodding his head. While being a surgeon did come with it's perks, the erratic sleeping hours were definitely not one of them. April couldn't remember the last time she had slept for more than 5 hours consecutively. The idea of a nice resort bed was almost making her mouth water.
As soon as the fasten seatbelts sign turned off, Jackson and April almost raced off of the plane. "I'm starving!" Jackson exclaimed, earning a withering look from April.
"When are you not?"
His answer was interrupted by the rest of the group getting off of the plane. Meredith was bouncing along next to Cristina, who was whispering in her ear. Whatever she said was apparently hilarious, judging by the cackle that Meredith let out. Owen and Derek were trailing behind, shaking their heads at their wives.
"Aww, look, the Sleeping Beauties are awake!" Callie crooned at Jackson and April as she bounded out of the tunnel, Arizona at her side.
"Hey! We were tired," Jackson said, putting his arm around April defensively. "We can't all be Attending surgeons with flexible schedules." The attendings in the group- Callie, Arizona, Derek and Owen- grinned simultaneously. Unlike the rest of the surgeons, they didn't have to work as many grueling hours charting and doing scut work. "So, what do we do now?"
Arizona looked down at her notebook. "Okay. We check in at 5, so we can go get some food and then get a car down to SunnySands Resort. We have 4 rooms rented, so I'll share with Callie, Cristina with Owen, Meredith with Derek, and Jackson with April." April tensed slightly. She probably should have realized that sharing a room with Jackson was inevitable, especially on a trip with 3 married couples, but the thought was a little bit daunting. Sure, she and Jackson were already roommates, so they were comfortable living together, but sharing a room at a resort in Hawaii felt a little bit more intimate than their apartment back home. Relax, April, she thought to herself. It's just a room. There will probably be two beds, anyway. What's the big deal?
After picking up their bags and eating a late lunch, all eight surgeons finally made it to the resort. April felt giddy with anticipation and excitement as they checked in. The building was beautiful, but what really captivated April was the beach that stood outside, a stones throw away from the rooms. The white sand glimmered in the late afternoon sunshine, hints of gold shining through the mass of pearly white. The ocean was a clear sapphire blue, the crystalline water lapping at the shore leaving shells and sea glass with each new wave. April sighed happily. It had been way too long since she had last been on vacation.
"God, I'm exhausted," moaned Meredith, Derek patiently massaging her shoulders. "I don't know about you guys, but all I want to do right now is go to sleep!"
Callie nodded, a smirk growing on her face. "Well, there's one other thing I wouldn't mind doing," she said, nudging Arizona playfully. Jackson turned to April and pulled a face. The last thing they wanted to hear about was their friends' sex lives.
Arizona giggled, leaning into her wife as she read out their room numbers. The corners of the blonde's mouth twitched upwards, something April chalked down to as relief to be free of parenting duties for the upcoming five days. Jackson smiled and said goodbye to the other surgeons before grabbing both his duffel bag and her faded purple suitcase and walking down the hallway, April trailing after him.
As soon as April and Jackson turned the corner, Callie and Arizona collapsed into a fit of laughter. "They're going to hate us!" Callie exclaimed, a delighted look on her face.
Arizona beamed. "A tiny price to pay for the fun we're going to have playing Cupid, Calliope." Pulling the Latina woman into a kiss, she murmured, "Now, what do you say we go find our room?"
April and Jackson stared apprehensively at the room in front of them. "You have got to be kidding me," April said. The floor was sprinkled with rose petals, and the only furniture in sight was a giant bed in the center of the room. She hadn't expected to be sharing a bed with Jackson. The thought made her eyes widen with fear. Sensing how uncomfortable his best friend was, Jackson put a comforting arm around her shoulder. He was fine with the idea of sharing with April. After all, she was his closest friend, and Jackson would be lying if he said that the idea didn't appeal to him slightly. Sharing a bed with a beautiful girl? He couldn't complain.
"It's fine, if you're not okay with it I can just call in for a cot or something," Jackson told the girl next to him.
April stared at him in disbelief. "Jackson, I am not going to ruin your vacation by making you sleep on a cot!" Before Jackson could protest, she put her index finger on his lips to stop him from talking. "We can just share it, it's not a big deal or anything." Jackson smiled down at her, green eyes twinkling. April suddenly squealed in delight, causing Jackson to tear his green eyes away from her hazel ones in attempt to see what had caught her attention. "Mini bar!" the redhead screeched, running off to examine it. Jackson grinned. It was good to be on vacation.
April felt rejuvenated after a long, hot shower in the resort's spacious bathroom. Toweling herself dry, she changed into a soft pink sundress and sandals. She stepped back into the main room, smiling at Jackson who was checking his phone on the bed. "Want to take a walk with me?" she asked, motioning to the window. "I want to check out the beaches before it gets too dark." Jackson nodded, pulling himself off of the white comforter and throwing his phone on the nightstand. He had changed into a pair of shorts and a white shirt, and April couldn't help but admire the way his muscles rippled, clearly visible under the tight shirt. April had always known that Jackson was kind of a god, all seafoam eyes and blinding white teeth. Sometimes it was hard to believe that a guy like Jackson would even want to be friends with a girl like her, much less be willing to sleep in the same bed. April had always secretly thought that she didn't deserve him, something she knew that he would instantly and vehemently deny if she ever said anything about it. Jackson linked his arm with April's, pulling her out into the dusk. The sun was setting over the water, turning the sky into a peachy watercolor. The two walked along the beach, gleefully looking for shells along the way. After half an hour of walking, April plopped down onto the sand, toes in the water, Jackson sitting down next to her. They sat in a comfortable silence for what seemed like hours, watching the sun set over the water. Finally, once the sky was completely dark, Jackson turned to April.
"Have you ever been night swimming?" he asked mischievously, his eyes twinkling playfully. Before she could say anything, he had already grabbed picked her up and tossed her into the mellow surf. She yelped as her skin came into contact with the cool water.
"Jackson!"
"What?" he asked innocently. She responded to her question by splashing his legs with the salty water, giggling as his expression changed from one of feigned innocence to shock. "April Kepner! You're going to regret that!" The two splashed around in the calm ocean, stars twinkling in the sky above. It wasn't long until they were both soaking wet and shivering.
"W-we should probably get back," April said, teeth chattering in the cold. Jackson nodded his head in agreement as he followed her out of the water. Noticing her shivering, he held her close to him as they walked back. She was all too aware of the way the water had turned his previously white tank top sheer, and she was trying her hardest not to gape at his defined muscles. Being in such close proximity to him was making her feel like she was in a trance. April, what are you doing?
April was exhausted by the time they had gotten back to the hotel room. Her pink dress was still dripping, and she quickly toweled off and changed into her nightgown. The salty water had made her hair curl in long red tendrils down her back, and she was too tired to try to brush out all of the wavy tangles. Yawning, she plopped onto the giant bed and pulled back the covers. April still felt nervous about sleeping next to Jackson, a fear that only intensified when Jackson stepped out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a pair of pajama pants. His sculpted chest made April's stomach tie in knots. She tried to avert her eyes as he walked to the light to turn it off, and lay down on the bed next to her. "Night, Apes," he whispered as her eyes closed, and exhaustion overcame her.
Jackson watched the girl as she fell asleep, admiring the way the moonlight danced on her milky skin. The strap of her nightgown had slid slightly, revealing her creamy shoulder. Jackson, you're being a creep. Don't stare at her! She's your best friend, he thought to himself. But as he watched her eyelashes flutter, he couldn't bring himself to stop.
A/N: I don't know if I'm 100% satisfied with this chapter, but I hope you guys liked it! As usual, please review. Taking the two minutes out of your day to review means the world to me! Thank you all so much for reading. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up soon. xoxox