Hello Everyone. I am so humbled by the response that i received from each of you. Your reviews and follows truly meant alot to me and I have decided to continue this story. I hope that this chapter resolves some of the ill feelings you all had about Jackson's and April's fight. Let me know what you think and as always Enjoy!

"UNO," April called out as she put down her next to last card. She felt a sense of gratitude that she was only one play away from winning and the cards were in her favor. Playing with Jackson had proven to be more challenging then she'd expected; she hadn't been able to get a single win against him all evening. She watched as Jackson studied his cards intensely before deciding to play a yellow card 4. April had a hard time holding back a smile; she didn't want to ruin a perfect opportunity to gloat in Jackson's face.

"What," he asked noticing how quickly her mood had changed from annoyed to being excited in just seconds. It was obvious to him that she had the winning card but everyone knew in the game of UNO there was always a chance to stop your opponent. The question was did he really want too?

"Nothing," she replied rubbing the edge of her single card. She felt his eyes on her as she struggled for the right moment to lie down her card; she would hate for him to call UNO before she did causing her to draw from the deck. The radio was blasting from Karev's room upstairs and she couldn't help but notice the song that was playing as it traveled down the stairwell and into the den were she and Jackson were seated.

"This has gotta be the good life. This could really be the good life, good, good life," she began singing along hoping to distract Jackson although she really did like this song. It had a nice ring to it.

"April cut it out and play your card already." Jackson raised his arms in frustration almost ready to call it a quits. Winning wasn't everything and besides he didn't want to be up all night especially since Lexie's shift would be ending soon.

"Oh, you're no fun." She decided taking that moment to play her red card 4. "UNO," she screamed jumping up from the table to do her celebratory dance.

"Is that what you call dancing in Moline?"

April stopped moving a little out of breath from her victory rave and pulled her loose hair into a pony tail. "Very funny Jackson, haven't you ever seen anyone do the Cabbage Patch before?"

Jackson furrowed his eyebrow. "Never heard of it, I'm from Boston, remember, little miss country bumpkin."

April grinned at him widely- her little brain turning as she grabbed Jackson's hand and led him over to the center of the living room.

"What are you doing April?" he asked a little afraid of what she had planned.

"I'm going to teach you a little thing or two about the Cabbage Patch," she confessed nudging him in the shoulder.

Jackson frowned. "No way am I doing that. I'll look silly."

"Of course you'll look silly, but at least we'll look silly together. Besides no one's watching," she offered with a genuine smile.

"Oh what the hell, let's do this." Jackson put both arms forward balling his hands into a solid fist and began moving them awkwardly in front of him as he looked to April for direction. He laughed as he watched her sashay around him doing the infamous Cabbage Patch while making faces at him.

"Very funny," he said grabbing her and carrying her to the couch were he could tickle her. She let out a gleeful squeal almost sounding like a caged monkey at feeding time as he continued to tickle her belly.

"Stop, Stop. Please." April pleaded with him as she rolled over onto the carpet.

"Fine by me," an out of breath Jackson announced while joining her on the floor. His hand grazed her fingertips unintentionally and he felt a sudden chill shoot through his body. He looked at her intently as she did him taken aback by how much fun they had been having.

"You know this has been a lot of fun," April confessed looking for confirmation that he too felt the same way.

"Yea I know. It's been such a long time since I've enjoyed myself this much. Thanks for hanging with me tonight." He leaned his head back against the sofa and closed his eyes. He caught a whiff of the most intoxicating scent; it had to have belonged to April.

"What are you wearing?" he asked in a husky voice.

April's cheeks had begun to turn a bright red. "Why Jackson Avery," she scolded playfully slapping his arm not expecting to feel his hardened bicep. There was no denying he was in shape; Lexie was a lucky woman.

"I meant your perfume," he said turning over on his side to face her. "It smells really nice."

"Oh, it's um. I'm not wearing any perfume. It must be my bath soap, but thanks for the compliment."

"You welcome." He smiled at her taking note of her flushed cheekbones. He couldn't help but think it was adorable that he still had the ability to make a girl blush, especially a girl like April Kepner. "You know, you're not so bad Kepner."

"Thank you Jackson. I guess you're not half bad either," she agreed before resting her head on his shoulder and drifting off to sleep.

"Dr. Avery you paged?" Stephanie asked while entering his office. They had managed to talk things through after their fight the other week and she had realized that she had been overreacting. Jackson was only into her and he made it clear that there was no need to feel threatened by his past with April Kepner. In fact Jackson hadn't even spoken to April since he left her standing in the hallway after their argument two weeks ago. He could hardly believe it had been that long but avoiding Dr. Kepner had proven to be easy since she had been doing exactly the same thing.

He took notice of his girlfriend's attire; she was just coming in so she was wearing a pair of seven jeans and a red t shirt that insinuated her curves. He found it difficult to keep his hands off of her grabbing her immediately and pulling her in for a welcoming kiss.

"Somebody's horny," she said with a smile.

"Why wouldn't I be? I have the sexiest girlfriend on the planet." He squeezed her behind feeling a bit like an un-caged Neanderthal whose only course of action was to sleep with his girlfriend.

"Good morning to you too babe," she said playfully while wrapping her arms around his neck and planting another kiss on his delectable lips.

"So whose service are you on today?" he asked curious if he could talk them into letting her go for the day. He needed a day with his girlfriend even if it meant all work and no play. He was finding that Stephanie was actually a great girl and not only was she as beautiful as ever she had proven to be a great listener. They had spent the last couple of nights just talking, something that was very new to their relationship, and the sex of course had been phenomenal. He told her about his mom and how she always felt the need to control everything about his life. He told her about his father, a subject that had always been a dark hole in his heart. Jackson had not a single kind word to say about Harper Jr., other than he was glad his father had chosen to abandon his family then to stay and shame them with his drug and alcohol addictions. He told her many things about his life in Boston, but April was still a chapter he found himself avoiding time and time again.

"I'm working with Dr. Karev in Peds today. I heard he's performing an appendectomy on an eight year old kid today and he's choosing an intern to assist him." Jackson recognized the enthusiasm in her voice; it was the same enthusiasm he had whenever he talked about Full Facial Reconstructions.

"I was going to ask for your views on working in Plastics today. I'd love to see more of you," he said putting on the charm. He felt a little selfish asking her to ditch an opportunity to possibly perform a solo surgery, but the need to be with her quickly put off any guilt he felt. She released her arms from around his neck to place one hand on her hip.

"Jackson Avery. Don't you dare look at me like that," she sassed biting her bottom lip as she admired how gorgeous his eyes were. They had taken on a new shade of blue that resembled the ocean's tide with just a hint of green.

"I love the idea of working with you hun, but I'd love it more if I could perform my very own solo surgery," she said honestly hoping to spare his feelings. "I hope you can understand." She caressed his face with her hand before giving him a quick peck on the lips.

Jackson sighed a little disappointed that he had not been able to convince her to work with him; she would have been the perfect distraction in helping him move on from April.

"I need to go change, can I see you later?" she asked walking over to the door.

Jackson nodded and then gave her an award winning smile. "Of course, I'll see you," he confirmed while watching her exit his office.

"How's your lunch?" Matthew stared at April while she took a bite out of her crunchy taco. He had surprised her with lunch at an hour when a break with her fiancé seemed like the perfect solution to her conflict with Jackson.

It had been two weeks since he established that they were no longer friends, and she had spent every day since avoiding him. As much as it hurt to accept the idea of moving on with her life without him, she knew it was for the best. He wanted something greater than friendship and although there was a part of her that would always remember the undeniable chemistry they shared together, she was engaged and being with Jackson was not an option.

"It's very tasty," she replied nodding her head as she finished off her taco. She smiled at him taking notice of the tender expression he held on his face; god she loved him. He was the most caring man she had ever known and she was absolutely smitten with the fact that he also shared her same views of religion and pre-marital sex. She hated that she hadn't had the courage to resist Jackson's advances and remain untouched. As her husband Matthew deserved to have the best possible version of herself, and now he'd only be getting Jackson's leftovers.

"I'm glad you liked it Sweetie." They were sitting in the front seat of his ambulance- a place that had quickly become their normal meeting spot. He turned towards her casually placing his hand on top of hers. April accepted this gesture squeezing his hand as she sat quietly in her seat.

"Move in with me."

April fluttered her eyelashes astounded by the commitment in his voice. They were newly engaged and she loved the direction their relationship was taking but moving in together was not an idea she had expected to hear from her fiancé this soon.

"Matt, I. I., she stuttered. Are you serious?"

"April I know that living together before we're married isn't exactly ideal for two people like us but I don't want to wake up another day without you lying beside me." He watched her closely as she moved uncomfortably in her seat. She didn't seem as thrilled as he was about his proposal that they move in together.

"April say something," he begged hoping he hadn't upset her. She closed her eyes shut reflecting on what she should say or do to ease his mind.

"Matt I don't know that I'm ready to move in with you. I'm struggling with my sexual urges as it is and living with you would only amplify them. I just want to do the right thing for us."

"April, we're engaged. I don't think moving in together would be that big of a deal. I can control my urges and so can you. I don't want to wait a year from now to finally have you in my arms." He raised her hands to his chest, then to his lips and kissed them affectionately. She felt her heart warm as she recognized the love and the compassion he had for her. He was committed to her in every way possible and she hated that she was reluctant to accept his proposal.

"You know I love you but I need some time to think on this. Can you give me a little more time," she asked before kissing him tenderly on the lips.

"Take all the time you need."

April rushed into the ER – her hands securely on the side of her patient's gurney as she pushed him into Exam Room 2.

"What do we got," Callie Torrez asked as she accessed the patient's injuries. From what she could see he had numerous lacerations on his face, both his left and right arms, and his right femur was missing a huge chunk out of it.

"Magician Trick gone bad, he was mauled by one of his tigers' right in the middle of a performance," April explained while cutting open his pants so that she could further examine his legs.

"Good here." She worked her way up to his abdomen alarmed by the massive amount of blood that was seeping through his shirt. She didn't waste time there- quickly cutting open his dress shirt so that she could get a better look at his injuries.

"Oh my gosh, we're going to have to get him into an OR Stat." The tiger had managed to tear open his abdomen exposing his intestines. Callie observed the patient in awe of the damage he had sustained; it was amazing that he was still alive.

"You're right, Callie agreed turning to Dr. Ross for clarity. Although he was only an intern it was important to Dr. Torrez that each of her interns had every opportunity to express their opinions. They were already doctors but it was her responsibility to teach them how to be successful surgeons.

Ross seemed a little shaken up by the massive amount of blood and exposed carnage in the room, but he held his composure before answering her.

"We should page Chief Hunt; we're going to need as many hands as we can spare to save this man's life."

April smiled at him in light of his maturity; he was beginning to grow on her after working so closely with him in the pit.

"Yes go now and hurry back, we can't waste any more time."

Ross returned with the chief moments later both men entering the exam room with various medical instruments.

"What's all this," April asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Both OR's are booked solid and from the extent of this patient's injuries we're going to need to operate on him now," explained the Chief aware that this wasn't exactly proper protocol for the hospital.

"Chief don't you think that's a little risky, we don't have near the resources we'd have in an OR," April argued content with her decision to get her patient into an operating room.

"Dr. Kepner what other choice do we have; we don't have the operating space. Would you rather us wait and your patient dies?"

April searched the room- her eyes landing on the beeping monitors. Her patient's bp had dropped 20pts; she knew she had to act fast.

"There has to be something else we can do, operating here without the necessary equipment could prove to be dire. It's unethical, Torrez you agree with me right."

Callie placed her hand firmly on April's shoulder. "I believe the Chief's plan could work. We might need a few extra hands but if we don't act now I'm afraid your patient won't survive." April didn't want to hear those words but they were right. Her patient needed surgery now and given there wasn't any surgical rooms available, this was there only option.

"Ok let's do this. Ross see if you can get Dr. Grey down here a.s.a.p. and page Ben- he's going to need to start a round of anesthesia before we get started.

"Ben's already been paged and Dr. Grey's"

"Unavailable," Jackson interrupted as he entered the exam room. "I can help out in any way that I can."

"I don't think that's necessary Dr. Avery, we have it covered here." April stared at him for a moment trying to keep her composure. It seemed like ages since she'd laid eyes on him and having to work in close proximity with a man who no longer wanted anything to do with her would be unbearably torturous.

"Is that so, or would you prefer Dr. Grey's assistance over mine." Jackson fired back a little annoyed by her inability to put whatever animosity they had for each other aside so that they could work together. Callie exchanged glances with Chief Hunt almost positive that something more was going on here between Kepner and Avery.

"I'm sure that's not the case Avery, it's just that you're a busy man and Dr. Kepner here is just trying to show a little respect." Callie offered trying to diffuse the obvious time bomb waiting to go off.

"Respect, April wouldn't know the first thing about respect, if I'm being honest"

"Well Dr. Avery if we're being honest, then tell me why you're really here in my ER? Face it this isn't even your expertise. You're use to breast augmentations and nose jobs, am I right," April shrieked looking to Callie for confirmation. She was pleased to see the sly grin on Callie's face that she tried so hard to hide.

"You know April I really don't have to sit here and be insulted by you. The Chief asked for my assistance on this case, but I know when I am not wanted. I'll page Bailey to take my place," he said while pulling off his scrub cap and exiting the exam room.

"Jackson," she called out to him but was met only with the loud stud of the door slamming in her face.

"Chief why didn't you say anything," she asked her eyes becoming a little moist. Owen shrugged his shoulders in dismay.

"I didn't have a chance to. You two were too caught up in your high school melodrama for me to even get a word in."

Just then Ben entered the exam room with a portable anesthesia drip and a few other medical supplies. He had hoped to maybe get his hands dirty and explore his surgical desires. He looked at Chief Hunt, Callie, and then April noticing that they all seemed a little swept up in something else.

"What did I miss," he asked finding his way to the patient and starting an IV. Once the drip was securely in place and the patient was now under the doctors all banned together and prepared to operate.

April looked to Hunt and then Callie as she picked up a thin scalpel from the medical tray.

"Let's do this, Shall we?"

April's shift had finally ended after a long tiresome evening in surgery, she was exhausted. She had wanted to find Jackson to apologize for the way she'd behaved earlier, but she hadn't had the courage to. She had managed to save her patient who was now stabilized and in intensive care. He had sustained numerous injuries and his road to recovery was going to be hard and long, but at least he'd live. She walked over to the elevators, pressed the down arrow key, and waited patiently for it to arrive. She heard a quiet ding before the doors of the elevators opened and she was staring Jackson straight in the face. She hesitated, debating on whether she should ride the elevator down with him or if she should wait for the next one. Jackson frowned as he watched her stand still until the doors began to close. He placed his hands on the door holding it open so that she could get on.

"Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to get on," he asked tapping his foot on the floor of the elevator.

"I'll catch the next one," she said avoiding all eye contact with him.

He let out a sigh disappointed that their relationship had come to this-avoiding each other like the plague.

"April that's not necessary, I promise I won't bite." He smiled at her warmly before taking a step back so that she could enter the elevator.

"Thank you Jackson," she said as the doors of the elevators closed in front of them leaving them alone in silence.

"I'm sorry you know, for earlier. It was very unprofessional of me to talk to you that way in front of our colleagues." She took a few steps back so that she was standing beside him. She wanted him to see the sincerity in her eyes as she apologized.

"It's ok, I'm sorry for a lot of things too. The things I said to you were cruel and out of line." He stared at her impressed with how humble she was being with him. He missed her terribly and after seeing how ugly things could get between them, he needed to make amends. "I only said those things out of anger; I never meant to hurt you."

"He asked me to move in with him today," she blurted out relieved that she and Jackson were now on speaking terms. She hoped she wasn't overstepping any boundaries; she just needed to talk to someone.

Jackson was a little stunned by her confession. Although he was apologizing he didn't know if he was ready to have tea parties and discuss their love lives with each other.

"I didn't say yes. I couldn't. I asked him to give me some time to think it over."

"April, why would you do that? Isn't that the obvious next step for two people who are engaged and in love?" Jackson felt a tiny pinch in his chest as he said that last word ashamed that even now he still envied her relationship with Matt. She lowered her eyes embarrassed to answer his question. She didn't want to move in with Matthew because she didn't want to break her vow to recommit herself to Jesus. She was no longer a virgin but she could still remain abstinent until her wedding night.

"Because of you Jackson, because we had sex and I liked how amazing it felt, because I made a promise to recommit myself to Jesus Christ and save myself for marriage, So Jackson it would be a mistake for Matt and I to live together, the temptation would be too great." Jackson tried to find the words to respond but was caught off guard by her sudden admission of her true feelings about sex with him.

"So I was amazing in bed," he asked cornering her in the elevator. She looked into his gorgeous eyes finding it hard to resist the unexpected urge she felt to kiss him. He brought his hands to her face and rubbed his thumbs across her cheekbones. He could feel her slow breaths on the tail of his wrists as he held her face in place.

"Jackson," she breathed unable to say anything else. Just then they heard the familiar ding of the elevator as it stopped at their destination- pulling them out of the trance they had been in. The two quickly pulled apart and waited for the doors to open. April walked out of the elevator first, Jackson following shortly afterwards meeting her in the lobby. He felt a buzz in his pocket and pulled out his cellphone. Stephanie was calling. He quickly placed it back in his pocket so that he could give April a proper goodbye.

"I should probably head home, I've had a long day," she said sticking her hands awkwardly in her jean pocket.

"Ok," Jackson said as he watched her walk away from him. They had a moment in the elevator earlier and he couldn't help but think that there was obviously something between them, even if it was just mere attraction for one another. He had to find out what that something was.

"April Wait," he said grabbing her shoulder as she turned around to face him. "You want to go somewhere and talk?" She took a moment to reflect on what he was asking her; she didn't want to do anything reckless that could potentially destroy her pending nuptials. But this was Jackson, how could she refuse an opportunity to spend time with her best friend.

She bit her bottom lip something she found herself doing time and time again. "Ok," she said finally. "Let's get out of here."