A/N:
It has been such a long while since I updated, and I am so sorry! I had such a rough writer's block with the chapter following this one but I managed to finally write it out and I'm very proud of it! I have such a great story line coming up and I know most of you have already guessed but I'm just terribly exited, okay? Also, I'm going to have a surprise chapter coming up soon.
Also, oh my god, the Grey's two part finale starts today. I may actually die. WHY YOU FALL ON THE STAIRS, MEREDITH?
And, and, Eric Dane's new show! If you haven't checked out the trailer, check it out NOW! It's called 'The Last Ship' and it's a Michael Bay show, and it has been picked up by TNT for the 2014 Summer. I'm just dead, okay? Now we have to wait till Chyler picks up another show because I need her on my TV again.
Anyways, do leave me your reviews! I hope none of you have forgotten about the story - and I hope you enjoy this chapter (Even though I think it could have turned out better, tell me what you think guys)
"Rise and shine."
Lexie felt Mark's breath tickle her ear and she rolled her shoulders a little, curling up some into his chest. Mark smiled at her and leaned down again, "Wake up, Lexie." He purred into her ear and captured her ear lobe between his lips, nibbling gently onto the pliable flesh. Lexie moaned a little in protest and twisted, trying to move out of Mark's arms but he kept his hold around her steady. Lexie groaned and rolled her eyes beneath her lids as Mark trapped her and leaned down to press a kiss to the corner of her lips.
"Mark, stop." She muttered sleepily as she tried to hide her face into his bare chest. Mark shook his head once as he held her close to him tightly, "Come on, you need to get up and eat. Your boards are in two hours." He said and Lexie's eyes snapped wide open. It was as of the mention of the boards sent her brain into a spur of cartwheels and her stomach fluttered. The nausea washed over her quicker than it did before and she shot up straight in bed, wincing at the sudden movement before she clambered out of the bed and towards the bathroom. Mark quickly moved at her side to keep her from falling, already following her lead into the bathroom.
Lexie's body collapsed over the toilet and her hands quickly lifted the lid as she heaved over it. Mark's hand tugged her hair back and he frowned as he stared down at her, "Lexie?" He muttered and she shook her head once, before it all came out. Mark sighed and rubbed her back, shaking his head as well. It has been a pattern for almost two weeks now – the simple mention of the boards or the plane flight and Lexie would be hurling all that had previously been in her stomach. At the beginning, he thought it was fear because of the flight, but now he settled for fear from the boards. But didn't Lexie know already that she could do it?
Once she was done, Mark lifted her up to the sink slowly and let her rinse her mouth and brush her teeth. He helped her limp back to the bed and sat her at the edge of it. "How are you feeling?" He asked as brushed back her hair. Lexie's eyes met his briefly and she pouted, "Terrified." She answered.
"Lexie," Mark sighed and rolled his eyes, "You're practically the only resident in this country who doesn't have to be terrified of exams. You're amazing. You'll do it." Mark smiled at her and Lexie pursed her lips, feeling slightly comforted by his words. "Do you want to eat anything?" He asked and Lexie pursed her lips. He was wondering if she was getting nauseous again, but she surprised him with a long list of breakfast necessities. Except Mark really shouldn't have been surprised much – She was such a stress eater.
Mark shook his head slowly as he pecked her lips before standing up, his eyes roaming around the hotel room they stayed at before finally settling on the phone resting on the nightstand. He picked it up and watched as Lexie got up and limped to the dresser. He made the order and hung up just as Lexie was done braiding her hair up around her head, letting only her bangs fall loose and a few curls around her face. He smiled at her and then picked up both their suits from the wardrobe to lay them out on the bed before he went into the bathroom to freshen up.
When he was out, Lexie was slipping her feet into the navy blue ballerina flats. She stood up slowly and smiled, holding her arms apart to show him how the blazer hugged her curves and closed at the tiny button just beneath her breasts. "You look sexy." He said with a grin as he started towards her, but she immediately placed her hands between their bodies, "Ah-ah, after the boards you can do whatever you want to do." Lexie grinned at him and Mark rolled his eyes as he picked up his dress shirt and started buttoning it on.
Mark pulled on his pants and grabbed the tie, slinging it over his neck as he lifted the collar to start tying it. "Let me do that!" Lexie exclaimed quickly as she got up, setting down her lipstick so she could limp over to Mark and grab the loose ends of the tie. "You're limping." Mark stated, frowning a little, concern etched onto his face. Lexie shrugged once, "It's okay. I'll get over that." Lexie answered with a small smile as she adjusted the tie and laid it over his chest, running a hand over it as she smoothed down the collar and grinned up at Mark.
Mark sighed once and leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead, reminding himself to take her to Jared as soon as they got back to Seattle. There was a knock on the door as they pulled away, and Mark laughed when Lexie exclaimed, "Food!"
He opened the door and let the room service push in the trolley with the food on it, before he slipped the tip subtly into his hand and nodded him off, closing the door. Since they had a pretty costly room, they had a patio with a nice view of New York where they could have their breakfast peacefully. The examiners were only required to go after an hour, which meant a longer wait for Lexie. Mark tilted his head towards the patio and Lexie smiled as she followed his lead, and sat down as he started moving the plates to the table.
"No wonder you love New York so much." Lexie whispered in awe as the wind tickled her face. She smiled and sipped at her orange juice, leaning back into the seat. Mark stared at her for a minute and smiled, "I do." He answered simply as he stared at the view ahead again. It was true – New York had always been his home, but right now his home was, is wherever Lexie will be.
"I'm going to give you a proper tour of The City That Never Sleeps." Mark announces as he glances back at her, watching the grin spread onto her face quickly. "And you're going to fall in love with New York too." He said with a smile and Lexie pursed her lips as she rolled her eyes. "Mark, you've been going on and on about this tour for a whole month now. You're more excited about showing me New York than about the fact that you are an examiner." She teased and Mark shrugged once, an innocuous grin stretching on his face.
Mark watched silently as she ate – still very amused at how much food such a petite person could get into her mouth all at once. But then again, he also found it adorable and endearing. Lexie wasn't one of those anorexic women who watched her weight constantly. Mark could enjoy caramel apple and cotton candy with her and never listen to her complain about her body. It was definitely an advantage, that she had such high metabolism. Her body was perfect to him – and perfection was a big deal to Mark. After all, he was a plastic surgeon. He was a perfectionist.
Sooner than later, their plates had been wiped clean and both of them were getting ready for their quests. Mark held the door for her, "After you, Doctor Grey." He said with a wink and bowed his head slightly. "Why, thank you, Doctor Sloan." Lexie grinned as she hobbled with her crutches out into the corridors. They got into the elevator and Mark pressed the button to the floor that the FDA had reserved.
"Good luck." She'd said with a shaky smile and Mark glanced down at her, before he pushed her up against the elevator's wall and pressed his lips to hers, not really bothering with the moan of complaint that slowly turned into one of pleasure. Eventually he pulled away, a smirk on his face, "You too." He answered ever so innocently and stepped away as the doors swept open. Lexie glanced back at herself in the shiny interior walls of the elevator, wiping at her lips before she narrowed her eyes at Mark and stalked past him with a grin on her face. She found April seated on the seats they'd set up for residents to wait in, and Mark disappeared into one of the rooms.
"Are you nervous?" April started – her voice shrill and shaky. "I'm not. I mean, they'll recognize me. I'm the girl who sweated like a pig and started talking about Jesus in front of them and subsequently failed, but I'm not nervous." She laughed, and Lexie frowned, glancing sideways at her irritably. "You know, for someone who has failed, I'm not nervous at all!" She exclaimed loudly. All the residents sitting around them turned their heads towards April, and she sank into her seat diffidently.
"Jackson's not here. Stop thinking about him." Lexie flat out said to her and lifted both brows when April's eyes widened, daring her to disagree. The ginger eventually sighed and sulked, "It's just…" Lexie stared at her pointedly, "You're right, you're right. This is my moment. This is my future. The last thing I need is letting Jackson ruin my opportunity at this again."
"Atta girl." Lexie smiled at her broadly and looked ahead again, staring at the patterns of the luxurious wallpaper. She closed her eyes and remained perfectly still; tuning out all the noises around her and recalling everything she'd leaned over her years as a medical student and as a doctor. Her mind was slowly flooded with memories of everything again – and Lexie remained in her trance-like state for a very, very long time.
"Lexie Grey!" They'd called her name, and her eyes snapped open just as she put the perfect closure on Paulina's case, a smile stretching on her face. She looked up at the woman who stood at the door, waiting for her. She pulled herself up onto her feet, grabbing her crutches, and hobbling into the room. She greeted the three examiners with a professional smile and sat down on the seat that was situated in the middle of the room, setting her crutches against the wall.
"Good evening, Doctor Grey."
Lexie stepped out of the room with a grin on her face – she did so great! Or at least, she thought she did. She had no doubts that she didn't. She answered everything eloquently, debated plausibly, and eventually got her way. She saw the looks of approval in the eyes of her examiners – and that alone had her do a small victory dance inside her mind.
Lexie quietly made her way into the elevator and back to her and Mark's room. She was aware that since Mark was an examiner – their little tour would start precisely three days from today. Well, she could go shopping or stay on face time with Meredith – really, she could do anything. She was very sure New York wouldn't bore her. Mark still had four more hours of examining residents ahead of him, so she decided to make the best of that time.
She changed into comfortable clothes, a pair of jeans and a shirt, slinging her bag over her shoulder as she left a note on the night stand and left the hotel. Since she wasn't allowed to drive, a cab was called for her – or more like a personal driver really. After all, she was in the Hilton New York. Lexie pushed the sunglasses up her nose and climbed into the BMW, "Where to, Miss?" The chauffer asked.
Lexie pursed her lips for a moment and remained silent as she thought.
"You're not from here." The chauffer concluded with a gentle smile as he glanced up at her through the rearview mirror. She could see the wrinkles around the gentle, old brown eyes and she smiled, nodding once. "No, I'm not." She said with a smile.
"Do you want to do anything in particular, Miss?" He asked again.
"Well, I want to go to Central Park." Lexie laughed a little and shrugged. The chauffer laughed, "Central Park it is."
Lexie settled into the comfortable seat, making sure the crutches were secured beside her as she stared outside the window at the people and buildings rushing by before her eyes. Lexie was pretty sure she'd seen only one percent of New York so far and yet she was still very sure that she'd seen what is more than the population of Seattle. She smiled as she relaxed into the seat and waited to reach her destination.
"Here we are, Miss." The chauffer announced as he parked the car. He rushed out of the car to open the door for her and offer a hand to help her up. Judging from his face, she could tell that he was probably as old as her father – he even had that wisp of paternal gentleness in his eyes. Lexie couldn't help but relax around the old man. He pulled the crutches out and held them out for her, "Thank you." Lexie said earnestly as she propped the sun glasses on top of her head.
"Why don't you walk with me…um…" Lexie started hesitantly and narrowed her eyes – she didn't exactly catch his name, before she looked down at the golden name pin attached to his uniform's pocket, "Albert? Why don't you walk with me? I'll probably get lost anyways." Lexie offered with a smile and tilted her head.
Albert looked astounded for a minute before he nodded once and smiled, "After you, Miss."
"Lexie." She said as she started towards the entrance of the park, "Call me Lexie."
"Lexie." Albert said hesitantly and then smiled at her - a toothy smile, so adorable because it was so excited, just like a child's.
The two walked silently for a long time, Lexie's eyes drifting around her all the while. Children were playing in a corner – guys were throwing Frisbees to their dogs – joggers and cyclers filled the walk. It was so lively that it brought a smile to Lexie's face. Her eyes spied the hotdog cart and she grinned like an idiot. She'd always watched in movies how New Yorkers bought their hot dogs and squirted mustard all over the place – she wanted to try that.
"Albert, do you want a hot dog?" She asked as she turned towards the man who glanced sideways at her, shrugging a little, trying to remain modest. "Oh come on, it will be fun." She said quickly as she started towards the cart and ordered two. She handed one to Albert, and took one for herself – hobbling away on one foot so she could sit down on the bench nearby and eat the hot dog.
"This is actually good!" She exclaimed with a laugh and glanced sideways at Albert who too busied himself with his own sandwich. She wiped the extra mustard from her fingers once she was done and leaned back a little, her eyes wandering over the scenery before her – the lake, and the boats floating within it. It was a sight that made her smile gently, tilting her head. She'd barely gone out when she was in Seattle. Well, at least not after graduating that is, graduating high school.
After some more moments of silence, Lexie glanced sideways at Albert and smiled when she'd seen him smile, "You don't actually do this a lot, do you?" She asked and tilted her head.
"Not really. I am a chauffeur – my job requires me to stay within the vicinity of the car I drive." He said with a simple shrug and Lexie narrowed her eyes a little.
"Well, I'll stay at the hotel for three more days. Give me your number." She said quickly as she brought out her phone. Albert hesitated before he dictated the number to her and smiled at her as she put her phone away. She could see the question lingering in his eyes. "Your job is amusing – you need to be able to use it every once in a while." Lexie explained with a grin.
"I don't stumble upon people as kind as you on daily basis." He says with a shrug, a slightly mischievous look in his eyes – the same childish excitement there. It was like talking about patients behind their backs – immoral but fun. Lexie shook her head and laughed a little, "I could tell. I mean, after all, I could guess the type of people who stay at the Hilton." She shrugged once as she leaned back into the bench.
They got up after wards and went on walking, until she started limping and felt her side ache. They detoured and walked back. "Albert, do you know where I can find a pharmacy? I need to refill some of my prescriptions." Lexie said, gesturing sheepishly to her crutches. Albert nodded once and showed her to the pharmacy just across the street, "I'll get the car so you don't have to cross the road again." He said quickly as he rushed back.
Lexie walked up to the pharmacist and smiled as she extracted her pill bottles and held them out, "Could you refill these please?" She asked kindly and waited patiently. Her eyes drifted around, before she trudged a little into the hygiene care section. Her eyes settled on the tampons and she pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes in thought as she tried to remember when last period was. If they were staying for five more days then she ought to make sure she had something on her.
Lexie picked up the pack – before her eyes zeroed on a different kind of box. Lexie lingered a little as she stepped away from the shelf to the other one decorated with pink boxes – same product, just many, many names and many, many designs. Lexie glanced sideways nervously, "Nah." She muttered as she stepped away, before she glanced over her shoulder once. Lexie locked her jaw, resolute.
That didn't stop her hand from snatching a box from the shelf.
She hobbled back to the shelf and paid for everything, before she shoved the pink box into her bag, deep down beneath all her things so that it wouldn't be easily found, before she put her pill bottles back and picked up the other opaque plastic bag. When she stepped out, the car was waiting for her – so she smiled hesitantly and stepped into its warm comfort. She relaxed back into the seat silently, until Albert had started playing some music. She laughed a little, unable of containing herself of dancing in her seat to Grease music.
She got out of the car and watched Albert drive off, a small smile etched on her face as she made her way back to the room. She clicked the key card in and walked in to find the jacket lying on the back of the chair, and she grinned.
"Lexie?" Mark called as he peeked around, and a relieved sigh left his lips when he saw her. He appeared from behind the wall and stepped towards her, wrapping his arms around her, "Don't you leave like that." He scowled down at her and lifted a brow.
"I'm not a child, Mark. And New York doesn't intimidate me." She said with a grin as she set her bag and crutches aside. Mark wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, leaning down to press a kiss to her lips. "What do you got there?" He asked and lifted a brow.
"Tampons." Lexie answered with a grin.
"Oh no, no sex for a week." Mark grumbled as pressed his lips to hers again, letting his lips drift along her jaw and down to her shoulder, "I better make the best of the time that I have." He muttered and leaned down to gently lift her up into his chest bridal style. Lexie laughed a little as he lay her down, her eyes drifting up to meet his – for the night, distracted from the pink box that lay deep within her bag.