Chapter 4: Across the Water
A/N: Chapter 4! Get ready for tons of sexual tension! I'm trying to draw out this story as much as possible, so I'm keeping things going pretty slow, but don't worry, the big kiss is coming soon ;) The chapter title is from "Lucky" by Jason Mraz and Colbie Calliat, which if you haven't heard, is basically the perfect Japril song. Anyway, thank you all for your reviews and suggestions!
April shivered as she slowly waded out of the water and onto the beach's pearly white shore. Grains of stand stuck to her toes and ankles as she trekked over to where here friends were lying lazily in the sun. She grabbed a fresh towel from the stack next to Callie and quickly wrapped it around herself, trying to fight the chill from her wet skin contacting the light breeze. As soon as she padded near Jackson, he suddenly became very interested in his feet. Shooting him a curious glance, April noticed the new spatters of freckles developing on his nose. She wanted to run her fingers along the constellations on his face, to trace each little brown spot across his cheekbones and jawline. The sparse freckles continued down his shoulders and chest, the trail leading down his muscular torso. The thought made April shiver again, and the chills that ran down her spine had nothing to do with the temperature or the breeze. Swallowing, she sank down onto the sand next to him, the side of her arm lightly brushing his. April felt electricity course through her veins at the light touch. Being near Jackson made her feel like her blood was fizzing through her body. He was intoxicating to the redhead. She felt like she was under the influence of Jackson Avery; addicted to his eyes that matched the ocean in front of her, to his bright smile that lit up the room. Jackson finally broke his fixed gaze on his feet, flickering his eyes up to hers.
"Hey." April blushed a deep pink. The innocuous word came out throatier than she had intended.
"Hi," Jackson replied, voice husky. They sat silently, basking in the feeling of their skin touching.
April wasn't quite sure what had gotten into her. She had been best friends with Jackson for years, and all of a sudden he was consuming her thoughts. Why was it that now she was seeing him so differently? April would be lying if she said that she had never been attracted to Jackson. He was gorgeous and smart, and April had a tendency to grow overly attached to her friends. She had just pushed all of the feelings back into a tiny hole in the back of her stomach. April had learned to ignore the twinge of disappointment whenever Jackson had a girlfriend, and the spark of jealousy that ignited whenever he brought a new woman home. It was like living with a disease- it could be managed, but that didn't stop it from sucking. She had no clue why the little cage in her heart finally broke open, releasing all of her long bottled feelings for her friend. Just don't ruin everything, April, she told herself. It's not worth making him hate you by telling him about your little crush. She could manage being nothing more than a friend if it meant she wouldn't have to lose Jackson.
Arizona stood up, Callie at her side. "We're going to go to the drink shack," the blonde woman said, gesturing towards the bar about a quarter of a mile down the beach. "You guys want anything?" April nodded quickly. Hopefully a drink would stop her from freaking out over Jackson
"Can you get me a Piña Colada?" the redhead asked excitedly. Callie nodded, and she and Arizona trailed off across the beach.
"Any updates?" Arizona asked her wife after inconspicuously glancing back at April and Jackson.
Callie nodded, excitement bubbling over her face. "He totally wants to hit that!" she exclaimed. "He told me he wanted to kiss her." Arizona beamed, high fiving Callie.
"I think April likes him too. She didn't say anything, but I could just feel it," Arizona said happily. Arizona had always loved matchmaking, even if she hadn't always been successful. She grimaced, remembering a very disastrous occasion where she set up one of her close friends with her med school classmate. It turned out that the classmate had a beanie baby collection larger than Texas. Wincing slightly, she turned back to the matter at hand. "All they need is a little push!"
Callie grinned, mischief evident in her face as they reached the counter of the bar and ordered. She knew just the thing to help get Jackson and April together.
April accepted the fruity drink gratefully, taking a long sip through the hot pink straw. The alcohol was exactly what she needed to kill all of her worries and help her relax. April felt pleasantly buzzed after she finished the rum laden drink. Cristina and Owen had returned from their little excursion and were talking animatedly about a heart-lung transplant Cristina was due to assist on later that month, and Meredith and Derek were cuddling on the sand. Suddenly, Callie stood up.
"Let's play chicken fights!" the Latina called out. Meredith raised her eyebrow skeptically. Seeing the less than enthusiastic reaction, Callie glared at the younger woman. "It'll be fun!" Seeing where her wife was going, Arizona agreed loudly.
"We're doing it," Arizona announced. Derek groaned loudly as he stood up, brushing the sand off of his swim trunks. "So, I'll be with Calliope, Derek and Mer, Cristina with Owen, and Jackson with April!" April turned to face Jackson. If there was one thing she loved more than vacation, it was winning, and the buzz from her drink earlier was only fueling her competitive streak.
"Jackson, we need to win this," she commanded. Jackson shot the shorter woman an amused smile. He knew that when April got riled up, she would stop at nothing to win. It was completely adorable, in a totally terrifying way. April's extreme competitiveness was one of his favorite things about her.
"Relax, Apes. We've got this in the bag." Jackson chuckled at April's determined expression as she sized up the other surgeons, no doubt looking for weaknesses that she could use to her advantage. All eight surgeons walked into the turquoise waves, giggling when Owen dunked his wife into the salty ocean. Cristina spluttered and narrowed her eyes at the redheaded man.
"You are definitely going to pay for that, Owen Hunt," the Asian woman threatened.
"Ok!" Callie exclaimed quickly, trying to avoid any major bloodshed. "So, the first round can be Meredith versus Cristina!" The two girls grinned at each other.
"Are you sure we should allow Mer in the water in the first place? We all know she has a little trouble keeping afloat," Cristina taunted her best friend playfully. Both girls erupted into a fit of giggles. After climbing onto their husband's shoulders, the two surgeons grappled for a couple of minutes before Cristina finally pushed Meredith off with a high-pitched grunt.
Kissing her husband in victory, Cristina grinned. "Who's next?"
Arizona climbed her way onto Callie's shoulders, a wide smile on her face. She swayed a little bit before shoving Cristina as hard as she could, the Cardio surgeon toppling into the water.
"Hell yeah, that's my girl!" Callie cheered. "That leaves Jackson and April to fight us for the victory!" April cracked her knuckles before smiling determinedly at Jackson as she hoisted herself onto his broad, muscular shoulders. Jackson's breath caught when she steadied herself, the feel of her soft skin was driving him crazy. He held onto April's ankles to keep her balanced on top of him, resisting the urge to creep his hand up any farther. Seeing the look on his face, Callie smirked at him.
"Life is short," she whispered to the green eyed man, repeating the advice she told him earlier. Jackson just rolled his eyes, holding April steady. Arizona winked at April before grabbing onto her hands, trying to push the redhead into the waves. April's mouth set in determination as she pushed at the other woman, concentrating hard as she gave one final shove. Arizona yelped as she fell sideways, splashing into the Pacific.
"Yes!" April screamed, a huge grin on her lips. Jackson beamed as he let his friend off of his back, pulling her into a giant hug. April grabbed onto him tightly as she whooped in excitement, burying her face into his neck. Finally letting go, she smiled delightedly. "We are the dream team, Jackman!" she exclaimed, bumping her tiny fist against his large one. Jackson laughed at her use of his nickname, putting his arm around her shoulder.
"We really are," Jackson smiled. Taking another drawn out look at the grinning girl, he nodded slowly. We really are.
By ten p.m., all of the surgeons were thoroughly worn out. Between the chicken fights and all of the drinks she had, April was ready to fall sleep in the shower. Pouring some of her lilac conditioner into her hand, she beamed at the ground. It had been a wonderful day. After rinsing off and toweling herself dry, April slipped into a blue silky nightshirt and brushed her teeth. She hummed softly as she ran a comb through her long red mane, slowly taking out all of the tangles until it cascaded in silky crimson waves down her back. She stepped out into the bedroom, closing the bathroom door behind her, seeing that Jackson had already gotten in bed. He shot her a smile, watching April smile back at him she walked across the room in her short sky blue nightie. She looked absolutely beautiful, and all Jackson wanted to do was capture her soft pink lips in his, to taste the minty toothpaste on her tongue. April crawled under the covers, turning off the lamp on her bedside table.
"Goodnight, Jackson," she whispered.
"Goodnight, April," he murmured back, his fingers absentmindedly interlacing between hers as he drifted off to sleep.
A/N: I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, but I hope you guys all liked it! As always please (!) leave reviews. Not only do they make my day, but they help me learn what you guys want to see later on in the story! Love you all. xoxoxo