CHAPTER 5

Jackson hadn't been expecting that call. He knew she'd get the note when her shift ended. But now it would be his turn to wait and give her some space that she needed to clear her head. H e didn't have a slightest clue to what happen with her today but she sounded emotionally drained over the phone.

He would have to sleep it off and not think about it especially with tomorrow's very important board meeting that must happen. Why did his mother have to make him in charge of the freaking hospital? Couldn't she have pick Bailey or Richard? Probably that's what happens when you don't follow in your family's footsteps to Mass Gen.

He saw them as friends but as board members, meetings like this simply wasn't an easy one. It was still weird for him to direct them even though they had more experience than him and April combine. There's her name again. He was glad that Meredith and Derek stirred the meeting and made it short. Having Cristina, Bailey and Callie in the same room for almost an hour was too much for him today. Relieved that it was over, it was time to switch to doctor.

"Jackson!"

To say that he was surprise to see his mother in the hospital would be true but Catherine Avery could very well "pop in" as she calls it to any one of the hospitals that she has connections to without any fuss.

"Mom! Wha…when did you get here and why didn't you call me?"

Catherine Avery smirked at the look her soon is giving her. He was adamant not to meddle with his life so she didn't call that she was coming and simple surprised him. Which always seems to work! He was the only one in the Avery family who is taking his own path and stepped away from the expected route all of them have taken. She really was proud of him for standing up for himself. His grandfather was not so happy with his decision of passing up Mass Gen but she knew that he didn't belong there. Yes, he would flourish beautifully at Mass Gen without question but she felt that Grey Sloan has become his home.

"I was called to assist with a very complicated surgery today and since I was in Los Angeles a few hours ago for a conference I decided to come. And I didn't call you because you had asked me repeatedly to stop meddling with your life."

"Well what time will that surgery be?"

"It won't be until tomorrow morning but don't worry I will leave as soon as I can. Now, go have lunch with me. I'm sure you can step away for an hour."

"Mom, I really don't think I should go anywhere for that long today. What if they need me here while I'm gone?" Jackson insisted but knew he was helpless. With a full staff, he was aware that the hospital could function without him for an hour. "Yeah you're right I can step away for an hour. But only for an hour mother and that's it. Just let me go and let Shepherd and Hunt know where I'm at."

"Alright, run along since I apparently have an hour with you."

After placing their orders, Catherine took a good look at her son. "Jackson, what's been bothering you? I am not meddling as you put it but I am only concern."

Sighing, he placed his drink back on the table and glanced at this mother. "I know you are and thank you for being one because today will probably be the first that I am telling you what has been bothering me. The only other person who I could talk to is no longer here. So, ummm…..it's April. That's who has been in my head every day."

Surprised. She, Catherine Avery, was surprised of that revelation. The both of them were close since she met April years ago. When she had asked Jackson then, he told her that they were friends. Of that she believed but what happened between then and now she didn't know. She had always wondered about April and took interest in her. The girl was smart and sometimes neurotic but she was the polar opposite compared to the women her son usually hangs out with.

"Since when Jackson?"

"I don't know mom. I used to find her annoying the first time I met her. But when the shooting happened and had two of our friends killed, she was there with me and has been. I didn't think much of it while I was dating other people. I didn't have to find an excuse to see her because we work together in the same hospital and lived in Meredith's house. She didn't hesitate to call me out when she needed to. She told me that she wasn't afraid to do that because Avery's my last name. A last name is a last name she said. I shouldn't let it shape my life but I would have to carve out my own."

"Smart girl!" Her son adored the red head that much she could tell. How she never saw that sparkle before is a good question. If she remembered correctly, April's name would pop up at least once every chat she had with her son. Now that she thought about it, she has never met any of Jackson's girlfriends since college but he introduced her to April!

"She was just always there like a withering force ready to attack when needed. And as a friend you worry for each other but Karev picked up that I worry about her much more than I do towards the others."

"Does she know how you feel?"

"I tried telling her weeks after San Francisco. We were sort of together, per se. We just didn't clearly know at the time what we had wanted. We dove in and that was that." He noticed his mom look confused at the mention of San Francisco. Oh he would have to tell her whether he wanted to or not. She would find out eventually and it was for the better that she hears it from him. She just won't need to know about the pregnancy scare. "She and I slept together right before boards. And no I didn't take that first step. April surprised me when she did but yeah."

"So when I told her a few weeks ago that she needed to get L-A-I-D because she was always tense and looking so tired..."

Jackson nodded in confirmation.

She clasped her son's hands across the table. "I am glad that you finally found someone that mattered. That you cared enough. Both of you will need to face the music together to solve whatever tension that's keeping you apart. She's a precious jewel for you to let go Jackson. So hang on and hang tight."

"I will Mom. I definitely will."