Gravity Chapter 6: Little too much, a grey's anatomy fanfic

Chapter Six: Little too much

"Sometimes it hits like a car crash and it's too late to reverse. Sometimes you make me a better person, sometimes you bring out the worst. Sometimes we get on like fire, sometimes we're stubborn like rain. Just when I think it's over, you wave a white flag again..."

It has been a couple of days since their last talk and Jackson is getting a little bit worked up; April will be moving out of their apartment tomorrow and he's still trying his best to digest the fact that he won't be living with her anymore. Truth be told, he's never new to the concept of living on his own; he's been doing that for the past years ever since he graduated from Med school and shifted himself to a different state, what really bothers him though-is the fact that his red head best friend will be living alone in her apartment. April is a very independent woman and he knows that she can very much fend for herself but a part of him still worries for her because this will be the first time she'll be on her own after the shooting—after losing their best friends. It may have been a year ago and things has changed but regardless of how screwed up their relationship is right now, he can't help but be a little more protective of her; she's all he has ever left, after all.

"Have you found yourself a new apartment?"

Jackson tore his eyes away from his chart and turned around; "Yeah—I'll be moving in this weekend" he replied.

Alex placed his hands on his hips; "I really don't get why you two have to move out, I mean, it's easier finding a new roommate rather than taking your stuff out" he said.

Jackson sighed; "It's what April wants and I think it's for the best too" he replied.

Alex rolled his eyes; "Yeah right, we both know how excited you are to get rid of her" he said with a hint of sarcasm.

Jackson glared at his friend as a response.

"Are you terrorizing my boy again Karev?"

Alex spun around and saw the other part of the Plastic Posses standing behind him; "I'm not, just giving him something to think about"

"If I wasn't able to put sense into his pretty head I doubt that you can. Now scoot, Robbins is looking for you"

Alex furrowed his brows; "But I just-"

Mark stood straight; "No buts Karev—get your ass to Ped's now!" he barked.

Alex wrinkled his nose in distaste; "Geez! If you want to spend quality time with your boyfriend all you have to do is say so, no need to bark like a mad dog!" he said before scampering away.

Mark narrowed his eyes at the Ped's Fellow; "He's talking about me barking but that's exactly what he's doing just now" he grumbled.

Jackson shook his head before turning his gaze back to his work; "Did you need something?" he asked.

Mark walked towards the nurses' station and leaned on the counter; "So-Bailey's wedding is coming up, you planning on bringing a date?" he asked.

Jackson paused and lifted his gaze to his ever nosey mentor; "Are you really asking me that question?" he deadpanned.

Mark shrugged his shoulders; "It's a good question and it definitely needs to be asked. I mean—most of us will be attending in pairs like me and Lexie, Robbins and Torres, Yang and Hunt—Meredith may have to go solo because Derek will be in recovery so-"

"What's wrong with going solo?"

"It's a wedding, everything will be romantic you know—there will be Christmas lights, love songs will be playing constantly and love will definitely be in the air" Mark said with a wistful smile.

Jackson wrinkled his nose in distaste; "Karev will go stag so I think I'll just go with him" he replied.

Mark scoffed; "So you'd rather spend a romantic evening with Karev?"

Jackson shifted his gaze back to his notes and began writing again; "Yeah" he replied.

Fine, be that way" Mark said. He then straightened his pose and stuffed his hands inside his lab coat pockets; "I have a consult at the pit, do you want to tag along?" he asked.

"Err—you go on ahead, I have to finish this"

Mark rolled his eyes before stomping away.

oOo

"-if you want to go out for coffee, I mean not now but once you're not busy"

April bit her bottom lip to keep herself from laughing; she shifted her gaze back to Stephanie who's smiling widely at her, amusement clearly written on the intern's face. She was about to open her mouth to respond but was cut off when she felt an arm being wrapped around her shoulders.

"So—I have already checked on your patient and the good news is that he won't have to lose any of his fingers, I can have that attached in no time" Mark said with a large grin.

April turned her head to the side and threw the Plastics Attending a weird look; "O—okay, that's good to hear."

Mark turned his gaze to the nervous EMT standing right in front of them; "Is there something else you need?" he asked.

The EMT stared at the two doctors back and forth before clearing his throat; "Err—no, I better head out, so many patients to save, too little time" he said with an awkward laugh. He then spun on his heels before scurrying towards the E.R. doors without a back glance.

"What's wrong with him?" Mark asked, feigning innocence.

"I'm not sure" April replied, her cheeks burning red. She then gently shifted away from Mark and gestured towards her patient's bed; "I'll just go check on him" she said before walking away.

Mark stared at April's flushed form before shifting his gaze towards the intern sitting behind the nurses' station; "Edwards, right?"

Stephanie shot up from her chair; "Y—yes Dr. Sloan, is there anything I can do for you?" she asked nervously.

Mark moved closer to the counter and braised his elbows on top; "You've been sitting there for awhile now right?" he asked.

"Y-yes sir"

Mark clasped his hands together and rested his chin on top of it; "Do you know the name of the EMT that's making googly eyes at Dr. Kepner?" he asked.

Stephanie swallowed hard; "Err-I think its Matthew Taylor sir, he-he introduced himself a couple of minutes ago."

Mark raised his brow; "Really? Do you know why?" he asked.

"He-he told Dr. Kepner that he's been watching her for awhile now and he think that she's awesome with what she does-"

Mark scoffed when he heard the paramedics not to subtle moves; "Continue"

"And—and he ask her out for coffee" Stephanie finished.

Mark narrowed his eyes; "Did she say yes?"

"No-she was about to answer when you walked in sir" Stephanie replied.

Mark pulled away from the counter and thumped it with both hands in triumph; "Excellent, thank you Edwards" he said with a large grin. He spun on his heels and began walking away, whistling somewhat happily.

Stephanie watched Mark's back confusedly; "What did just happen?" she asked herself.

oOo

"So-will you be attending the wedding with Owen or will you be coming with me?" Meredith asked.

"Suction Brooks" Cristina instructed her intern. She then shifted her eyes to Meredith; "I don't know if I'm coming" she replied.

Meredith shifted her eyes away from the patient and met Cristina's eyes; "You are aware that its Bailey's wedding and she'll murder you if you don't go, right?"

Cristina moved her eyes back to her work; "I don't know—I mean, I'll be signing those stupid papers on the same day—I don't think it's appropriate" she replied.

Meredith sighed; "I understand but if you ever change your mind you can always go with me" she said.

"I'll keep you posted" Cristina replied.

Meredith turned towards the nurse; "More mesh please"

oOo

"I heard" Lexie said with a smirk.

April placed her tray on top of the table and sat down; "Heard what?" she asked.

"That someone is making googly eyes at you" Alex said with amusement.

April felt her cheeks heating up with embarrassment; "I don't know what you're talking about" she said, clearly flustered.

Lexie threw Alex a conspiring look; "Who is he? What does he look like?"

"Yeah—tell us" Alex cajoled.

April plucked her fork from the tray and began mixing her spaghetti; "I still don't know what you're talking about" she lied.

Lexie shifted closer to April and bumped her shoulder to hers; "Come on April, Mark already told me so don't go lying to us"

April let her eyes fall on her friends, studying their faces; "You guys are not gonna let this go are you?" she asked with a defeated sigh.

Alex smirked widely; "Start talking"

"It's really nothing—Mark probably exaggerated his story. He's the tall paramedic that often rides with Nicole—the one you often stare at" April paused and threw Alex and stern look.

"Don't look at me like that! I'm just admiring her asset—she has a nice ass" Alex said defensively.

"Really Alex?" Lexie said with disgust.

"Whatever" Alex said. He then shifted his eyes back to April; "The tall dorky guy?" he asked.

"He is not dorky—he's actually kinda cute" April said thoughtfully.

"Oh no-she actually likes the dorky paramedic" Alex teased.

Lexie's eyes widen; "You really like him April? Like really like?"

April averted her gaze, her cheeks flushing a tad redder; "I don't like—like him, I just think he's cute"

"So—what happened next?" Alex asked with interest.

"He—he asked me out for coffee. He told me that he's been watching me for quite some time and he thinks I'm awesome"

"Creeper" Alex grumbled.

"Will you go out with him?" Lexie asked.

April began pushing her food around the plate; "I don't know" she replied sheepishly.

"What do you mean you don't know? He asked you, what did you tell him?" Alex asked before stuffing his mouth with fries.

"I wasn't able to answer because Mark suddenly appeared beside me"

Lexie laughed.

"He's really taking the Plastic Posses seriously" Alex said thoughtfully.

April narrowed her eyes at Alex; "What do you mean by that?"

Alex shrugged his shoulders; "Nothing."

April opened her mouth to question Alex further but Lexie cut her off; "So it's Bailey's wedding this coming weekend, do you have a dress already?" she asked, changing the topic.

April's eyes widen; "Oh God! You're right! I don't know what to wear yet! I don't think I brought dresses with me when I moved back here"

Lexie plucked her juice from the table and took a sip; "Then buy yourself a new one" she suggested.

"But I don't have time! Today is Thursday and I'll be moving out tomorrow, Bailey's wedding is on Saturday!"

Alex rolled his eyes; "Just wear something you already have—no need to shop, it's just for one night"

"Alex is right or if you want I can lend you a dress—" Lexie paused and gave April's body a quick scan. "Err—it will fit you but it will be longer on you"

Alex snickered; "It will look like a long gown on her, she's so tiny" he teased.

April leaned forward and smacked Alex's arm; "I'm here you know! And I'm not that short!" she said with full indignation.

Alex brushed off April's reaction and just plucks himself a fry; "It wouldn't matter what you wear anyway, Avery will still find you attractive—even if you end up wearing a flour sack"

"I'm not—how can you—we're not—"

"Stuttering! A sure sign that she's thinking along the lines you mentioned Alex" Lexie said with a smirk.

April opened her mouth to speak again but she can't seem to form anything intelligible; she shot up from her perch grabbed her tray, leaving without another word.

Alex and Lexie met each other's gaze before bursting into laughter.

oOo

"Ross will be scrubbing in on Dr. Shepherd's surgery, you all can go" Callie announced.

Derek watched as the interns started exiting the room; "I never expected that he'd be the one to actually treat me as a patient—he almost sounded like Kepner there" he observed.

"He's been working with April at the pit, she might have taught him a thing or two" Jackson said proudly.

Callie smirked as she watches the Plastic Fellow brag about his best friend; "Someone is still carrying a burning torch here" she teased.

Jackson threw Callie a dirty look, clearly not impressed with her teasing.

Derek chuckled; "Well torch or not, Kepner did good" he said.

oOo

"Dr. Kepner!"

April halted in her steps and turned around; she did a double take before letting out a small smile. "Matthew, right?"

Matthew stopped right in front of April while scratching the back of his head nervously; "Y-yeah" he replied.

"Is there something you need?" April asked kindly.

"I—I just wanted to ask you know—about the coffee?"

April's eyes widen in surprise; "Oh" she gasped.

Matthew let his hand fall limp to his side as he stares at April expectantly.

April felt her cheeks flushing with the intensity of Matthew's gaze; she shifted in her feet and stuffed her hands inside her pockets. "I'm quite busy as of the moment—I'm midway through my shift"

"It—it doesn't have to be right now, I mean—we can do it some other time—the coffee, I mean" Matthew said, his cheeks pinking in embarrassment.

April eyed Matthew for a couple of seconds; he's kinda cute and I think he likes me—should I have coffee with him? It doesn't have to mean anything" she thought. She then let out a deep breath before smiling; "Sure—I'll let you know once I'm available" she said.

Matthew's eyes widen in shock; "R—really?"

"Why will you ask me if you thought I'd say no?" April teased.

Matthew chuckled, albeit embarrassedly; he took his phone from his pocket and began fiddling with it with his shaking hands. "Can—can I get your number?"

"Sure" April replied. She walked closer to the paramedic and proffered her hand; "May I?"

Matthew let out a sheepish smile while handing his phone.

April accepted the phone saved her number; she handed the phone back to Matthew and stuffed her hands inside her lab coat pockets again. "Send me text so I'll know it's you"

Matthew hastily pocketed his phone; "I will" he replied.

"Is there anything else? My lunch is over—I need to get back to the pit"

Matthew shook his head; "No—I'm sorry if I took much of your time"

"It's alright, I guess I'll just see you around then, bye Matthew!" April said before walking away.

"Bye Dr. Kepner" Matthew said.

April paused and turned her head towards Matthew; "We're having coffee—call me April" she said with a smile.

Matthew grinned widely; "Okay, bye April!" he said.

April laughed before continuing her way back to the pit.

oOo

"Are you actually teaching or are you just reading that smutty novel the whole day?"

Lexie tore her eyes away from her book; "I sent my interns to help asses like yours, I'm a free agent that's why I'm reading" she retorted.

Jackson stepped inside the skills lab carrying a bag of chips and soda in his hands; he walked to an empty work table and placed it on top.

"Is that your lunch?" Lexie asked while eyeing the food.

Jackson pulled a chair and sat down; "Yeah" replied.

"Err—why are you eating here again?"

Jackson grabbed his chips and opened it; "It's boring eating alone" he said before popping a couple of pieces in his mouth.

Lexie dog-eared her novel and closed it; "Well you didn't have to eat alone if you only showed up during lunch time. We were waiting for you, Alex and I—even April showed up"

"April was there?"

"Yeah but she ran away after sitting with us after a couple of minutes"

Jackson swallowed his food; "What did you guys do?" he asked.

Lexie placed her novel on top of her desk before leaning back on her swivel chair; "I'll tell you something because it won't stay under the wraps for long—knowing my fiancé, he's probably haunting you down now with this latest gossip, new news makes him giddy like a school little girl."

Jackson chuckled; "A giddy school girl?"

Lexie giggled; "Don't tell him I said that"

Jackson grinned; "I won't. So—tell me, what made Mark giddy like a school girl?"

Lexie cleared her throat; "Err—you know Nicole right? The paramedic with-"

"—A good set of ass, yes I know her"

Lexie scoffed; "You and Alex are the same! I can't believe you had time to stare at her ass!"

Jackson rolled his eyes; "Let's not get side tracked, what's with her?"

"Do you remember the tall paramedic that she always rides with?"

"Err-should I?" Jackson asked before taking a sip of his soda.

"You should because he just asked April out for coffee"

Jackson coughed violently when he felt his drink go down the wrong pipe; "W-what?" he sputtered.

Lexie grimaced; "Sorry—I should have waited for you to swallow your soda before I—"

"What? Why? When?" Jackson fired out his questions as he wipes his nose with his hand.

"Just this morning, Mark told me he caught the EMT making googly eyes at April and Edwards did confirm that he did ask April out"

Jackson scowled; "He's the dorky and lanky guy! I remember him!"

"Wow—you're harsher than Alex" Lexie observed.

Jackson shot up from his chair and began pacing, his lunch completely forgotten; "I can't believe it! He's an asshole! I don't—wait, what did April say? Is she going out with him?"

Lexie rolled his eyes upon remembering her fiancé's antics; "You have to thank Mark for that, he purposely interrupted them even before April was able to answer."

Jackson paused and smirked; "I owe that man a drink."

Lexie shook his head; "He's taking this Plastics Posses thing to heart, I'm sure he did that for you."

Jackson snatched his soda from the table and began walking towards the door; "See you later Lex!" he said as he pulls the door open.

"You left your chips!"

Jackson stepped out; "You can have it, I need to find someone!" he replied.

"You're only finding Mark! Come back here!"

Jackson ignored his friend's protest and closed the door behind him soundly.

Lexie let out a small smile as she leans back on her chair.

oOo

"There's too much bleeding, I have to get in there to find the source" April said as she works frantically around her patient. "Page General and Plastics, we're moving this patient to O.R. 2"

"Right away Dr. Kepner" The nurse replied.

April yanked up the side railing and shifted her gaze to her intern; "I trust you know how to suction?"

"Yes" Shane replied.

"Good, you're scrubbing in this surgery" April said.

Shane's eyes widen in shock.

"Don't just there! Help me move the patient so we can save her life!" April barked.

Shane quickly yanked the other side railing and began pushing the gurney.

oOo

"Hey man, I've been looking for you"

Mark stuffed the phone inside his pocket; "Err—why?"

Jackson stood right in front of Mark and threw the older surgeon a sheepish look; "Lexie told me..."

Mark grinned; "I'm an AWESOME friend, admit it"

Jackson smiled; "You are" he affirmed.

"Excuse me Dr. Sloan?"

Mark turned around to face the nurse; "Yes Carmen?"

"E.R just called—they said that Dr. Kepner needs a Plastic consult for her patient, they already paged you 15 minutes ago but you never came so they opted to call."

Mark turned his gaze to his student and wiggled his brows suggestively; "Want to do the consult?"

Jackson wanted to smile widely but he knows that his mentor won't let him live it down, so he settled for furrowing his brows and trying his best to look nonchalant. "You sure? I can see that you're not busy so you can definitely take care of this and-"

"Cut the crap! We both know you're dying to have a reason to talk to her, now you have one so just thank me and get your ass down there"

Jackson sniffed; "If you insist then I'll better go"

Mark rolled his eyes; "God knows you need all the help you can get" he muttered to himself.

"I heard that" Jackson said as he walks away.

"It was meant to be heard" Mark retorted.

"Err—Dr. Sloan, if Dr. Avery will be handling it then he should head straight to O.R. 2, patient has been moved already" Carmen said.

"Avery!"

Jackson paused and turned his head back to Mark; "What?"

"O.R. 2"

"Got it."

Mark placed his hands on his hips; "Make sure to find me after the consult!"

"Okay!"

oOo

"What happened to this woman?" Meredith asked as she works in a frantic pace.

"Ross suction" April instructed her intern. She then shifted her eyes to Meredith; "Motorcycle VS Truck" she explained.

"A woman in motorcycle accident? That's a first" Meredith replied.

"I know! Those things should be illegal, they're death traps!" April said.

The O.R. doors opened, admitting Jackson; "Somebody paged for a Plastic Consult?" he asked behind a mask.

April felt butterflies inside her tummy when she heard his familiar voice; she shifted her eyes away from the open cavity and turned her head sideways. "Y—yeah, 3rd degree burns"

Jackson shifted in his feet when he felt his heart thumping wildly inside his chest; he cleared his throat nervously as he walks towards the Operating table. He tried his best to look nonchalant as he leans forward to examine the patient's injuries; he grimaces upon seeing the extent of the burns and shifted his eyes to April. "What happened here?"

"Motorcycle VS Truck" April replied.

"A woman?" Jackson asked, perturbed.

Meredith chuckled; "That's what I thought as well" she said.

"She's lucky she's even alive—she'll definitely need a skin graft" Jackson said.

"Suction, Ross" April said. She then shifted her eyes to her best friend; "Yeah—the EMT's had to pull her out under the truck, she skidded right underneath"

"Good thing paramedics arrived in time-Nicole brought her in?" Jackson asked, obviously fishing out information.

Meredith raised her brow but didn't say anything.

April paused and threw Jackson a suspicious look; "She did, why?"

Jackson clasped his hand behind his back as he gritted his teeth; "Nothing"

April narrowed her eyes at Jackson, sensing the shift in his demeanor; "We'll page you as soon as she's ready—thank you for coming" she said dismissively.

Jackson took a step back and nodded; "Just page me" he said before walking towards the door without a back glance.

Meredith waited for Jackson to fully step out before shifting her gaze to the red head right in front of her; "Thank you for coming? Really April—is this your birthday party?" she teased.

April felt her cheeks flush; "Shut up Mer!"

Meredith laughed; "You can't blame me—I can pretty much cut the tension between the two of you with my scalpel"

April cleared her throat, uncomfortable with the direction of the topic; "There is no tension, you're imagining things" she said.

Meredith huffed; "Imagine my ass, it's pretty thick" she said.

"Damn it! Where is all this blood coming from?" April asked.

Meredith rolled her eyes; "Fine. Be that way" she grumbled.

"Ross, I need suction here, I can't pretty much see anything!" Meredith barked.

oOo

Jackson ripped out his mask seething; the stupid paramedic was here again—twice within one day, is he the only paramedic on duty? This was definitely not the patient that Mark did a consult on this morning—meaning the dorky EMT saw April again and possibly had the chance to ask her out, uninterrupted. He clutched the mask tightly in his hand as he stomped away from the O.R, he's definitely sporting a foul mood now.

oOo

"I think you should take over on April's patient."

Mark leaned back on his chair, studying his prot's face; "Is it too hard for you to handle?" he asked.

Jackson sulkily walked towards the chair and plopped down; "I don't think I can work with her right now"

"Why?"

Jackson rubbed his face in irritation; "Did you know that he brought April's patient in—he's been here like two times already, is he the only paramedic on duty?"

Mark furrowed his brows in confusion; "That's his job Avery, I don't understand why you're so pissed about it"

Jackson pulled his hand away from his face and collapsed back on his seat; he let out sigh and met Mark's gaze. "I don't know—I'm being stupid"

Mark cocked his head to the side and studied Jackson's face closely; after a moment a grin formed on his lips. "You are jealous"

Jackson scowled; "I'm not jealous! I don't know what you're saying!" he huffed.

Mark grinned widely; "Yes you are, you are feeling threatened because another guy is interested with Kepner"

"I'm not!"

"You are and it's driving you nuts because Taylor has been here twice and you don't have the slightest idea if he asked April again without anyone interrupting."

Jackson scoffed and just narrowed his eyes in response.

"Aha! Damn right I am!" Mark said triumphantly.

Jackson shot up from his chair; "Just find someone who can do the skin graft" he said before walking towards the door.

"Let's be clear, I'm only giving you a free pass today because I've been a jealous ass myself and I know that it won't do the patient any good!" Mark called out.

"I'm not jealous! And you're much worse!" Jackson replied.

"I'm not!"

"You threw Karev out of your O.R!"

"Go away before I change my mind!" Mark snapped.

oOo

"Patient is stabilized-all seems to be in order" Meredith said. She then shifted her gaze to the intern; "Did you already page Avery like I told you?"

"Yes Dr. Grey"

Meredith turned towards April; "He should be able to work on the burns now, you done?"

"Yep" April replied.

The door to the O.R. opened again so both surgeons turn to look; "I was told that you need Plastics to work on the patient's burns?" The other surgeon asked perkily.

Meredith threw Ross a chastising look; "I think there had been a misunderstanding, Dr. Avery handles this case" she said.

"That's the thing, Dr. Sloan asked me to take this case from Dr. Avery. I'm Dr. Rogers"

April threw Meredith a confused look before turning towards the other surgeon; "Does Dr. Avery know?" she asked.

"Yes, he actually gave me a run down on this patient's case, skin graft for her 3rd degree burns" Dr. Rogers said.

"Okay—well she's all yours" Meredith said before walking towards the scrub room.

April stepped away from the O.R. table and took off her gloves; "Just give me an update once the patient has been moved to her room"

"Will do"

April followed Meredith, baffled with what just happened.

Meredith took off her gloves and threw it on the trash can; she walked towards the sink and began washing her hands under the water. "Is it me or did Jackson just bailed on us?"

April stood beside Meredith and started to wash her hands too; "Maybe Mark needed him for something?"

Meredith shook the excess water of her hands and yanked a towel; "Maybe but it's not like Mark to pull someone off of a case" she said.

April grabbed herself a towel and began drying her hands; "I don't know, Jackson is not the type to flake out on a surgery willingly as well."

"I know" Meredith replied.

"We follow thing we fall back in, we're always back where we begin..."

Jackson was able to avoid April for the rest of the day; he's still in a foul mood and he needs need time to cool down before he talks to her again. What he did was cowardly and very unprofessional; Meredith didn't even think twice in letting him know. Now, it's finally time to face the music again, he's going home and there's no way in hell that he'll be able to avoid her. He stopped right in front of their door and squared his shoulders; "You can do this—you are a reasonable man, don't bark at the wrong tree" he said to himself. He took a deep calming breath and unlocked the door; he pushed it open and stepped inside the threshold.

"You're home"

Jackson closed the door behind him and nodded at April in greeting; "Yeah"

April crossed her arms on top of her chest as she leans on the kitchen doorframe; "I've been looking for you the whole day but I can't seem to find you, you been busy?"

Jackson walked towards the couch and sat down; "Yeah—I've been running Sloan's service the whole day" he replied.

"So busy that Mark had to assign my patient's skin graft to Rogers?" April asked.

"Yeah" Jackson replied.

April narrowed her eyes at her best friend before pulling away from her perch; she walked towards the living room and stood right across Jackson. "Something doesn't really add up, you know. You just don't flake out on a surgery just because Mark asked you to run his service"

Jackson averted his gaze as he leans on the couch; "You're thinking too much Apes, there's nothing more to it than it is"

April bit her bottom lip as she walks towards the couch; "Move over" she instructed.

Jackson scooted to his left.

April sat down, angling herself so that she's facing the man sitting beside her; "I know that you've been avoiding me today—hence you bailing out on the surgery. Be honest with me Jackman, Mark told you about Matthew that's why you asked if Nicole brought my patient in, am I right?"

Jackson refused to meet April's eyes but did not say anything.

April sat straight and leaned back on the couch with exasperation; "Argh! How can we fix things if you're not being honest with me, you won't even talk! You're so frustrating!" she complained.

Jackson's head snapped towards April and narrowed his eyes; "I'm not frustrating! You are!"

April felt her shackles rise; "You're the one who's acting petulantly and you're calling me frustrating? That's-like-like the pot calling the kettle black!"

"Here we go again with your famous metaphors!" Jackson said acerbically.

"It's an idiomatic expression not a freaking metaphor!"

"Whatever! Just say what you really mean and stop using objects to symbolize everything!" Jackson spat.

"Oh don't go there! You wouldn't want to hear what I really mean!" April retorted.

Jackson narrowed his eyes; "Fine. You want honesty then I'll give it to you! Will you go out with that dorky paramedic? Because if you are I'm not fine with it" he blurted out.

April glared at Jackson; "Wow Jackson, just WOW!" she said sarcastically before standing up in a huff.

"Well are you?" Jackson demanded.

April turned her gaze towards Jackson; "If I am you shouldn't give a damn about it! Whatever it is between us is through, you ended it! I don't understand why you're telling me you're not fine with it, REALITY CHECK Jackson Avery-you're not my boyfriend nor my father" she said before storming out of the room.

Jackson felt like he's been bitch slapped so he shot up from the couch, fuming; "You're walking out on me? You insisted we talk about it and then you walk out? Really April that's so mature!" he yelled.

"I have nothing to say to you anymore! I'm done talking with you!" April yelled back.

Jackson closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath; he placed his hands around his waist and bowed his head, trying his best to calm himself down.

"I don't want to fight-let's just stop this, I'm moving out tomorrow and I don't want our last night to be like this..."

Jackson lifted his head up and met April's gaze; he stared into her eyes intently and noticed how weary she looks. He walked towards April and stood right in front of her; "I'm sorry..."

April bit her bottom lip; "Are you really?"

Jackson let out a tired, albeit placating smile; "I am."

April smiled back; "Good, I hate fighting with you" she admitted.

"Me too" Jackson replied. He then gestured towards the couch; "Wanna sit down and talk?" he asked.

"Yeah"

Jackson waited for April to settle down before sitting beside her.

"We're really not good in talking things out, are we? We go from hot to cold in a matter of seconds" April said with a chuckle.

Jackson angled himself to face April, leaning back on the arm rest; "I don't know what happened—we used to be able to talk about anything"

"I know" April agreed.

Jackson eyed April for a moment before smirking; "Do you know that you're the only one who can calm me down in an instant?"

April cocked her head to the side; "Really?"

"Yeah—you've always had that calming effect on me however you can also rile me up just as fast"

April chuckled; "That I can relate to"

Jackson shook his head but a wistful smile is visible on his lips.

April shifted closer to the armrest and copied Jackson's stance; "We've been through hell and back you know and it'll be such a waste if we throw everything away..." she said seriously.

Jackson nodded; "Yeah..."

April braised herself for what she's about to suggest; "I want us to start over again and go back to what we were before. Best friends again—without all the complications" she said cautiously.

Jackson felt a pang inside his chest but he can't help but agree with what she said; that's what he'd always wanted right? Go back to what they were before so he won't lose her, now, she's offering a leeway and he'll be stupid not take it. "I would like that."

April smiled, ignoring the pinch inside her chest; "Best friends?" she asked.

Jackson smiled back; "Best friends" he confirmed.

April cringes upon remembering the havoc that relationship talks caused just a couple of minutes ago; "Best friends who don't talk about-err-personal relationship with other people-just for now you know, things are still a fresh" she added.

"Yeah-that's probably a good idea" Jackson agreed. "You're moving out tomorrow, are you all set?" he asked, changing the topic.

April nodded; "Yeah-how about you? When will you be moving out?"

"Sunday-right after Bailey's wedding" Jackson replied.

April grimaced.

"What?" Jackson asked upon seeing the look on the red head's face.

"I don't think I have a dress to wear, do you think Bailey will mind if I wear slacks?"

"Slacks?"

"Yeah."

Jackson smirked; "April you're attending a wedding and not a job interview"

April pouted; "I didn't brought dresses when I came back from Ohio-I only have one dressy dress."

"Then wear that one dressy dress you have"

April bit her bottom lip somewhat nervously; "It's strapless and tight."

Jackson raised his brow; "Aren't all dressy dresses supposed to be strapless and tight?" he asked confusedly.

April felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment but she had to make him understand her point; "You don't understand Jackson—it's the green one, the one that's really tight"

Jackson stared at April's face for a couple of seconds before it dawned on him; "Oh."

"Do you get me now?"

Jackson tilted his head upwards and groaned; "Of all the dresses to bring you had to bring that one"

April can't help but giggle at Jackson's reaction.

Jackson lowered his head and stared at April; "You know you're killing me right? How can I act best friend-y if you'll be wearing that dress? You know how much I find you-"

"You're not allowed to finish that sentence Jackman, you'll be crossing the friend zone boundary" April warned.

Jackson pursed his lips; "Fine."

April smiled; "Good boy" she said. "Lexie offered to lend some of her cocktail dresses but I don't know..."

Jackson snorted; "Lexie is taller than you and it will look like-"

"-a long gown on me?" April finished Jackson's sentence with narrowed eyes.

"That's not what I'm about to say!"

April crossed her arms on top her chest; "Yeah right! Alex already told me that!"

"He did?" Jackson asked with a teasing smile.

"Yes he did and I smacked him for it! You're acting like Alex-you're-you're being mean!" April accused.

Jackson rolled his eyes; "I'm acting within the friend zone boundary, it's not mean" he retorted.

April gaped at Jackson for a couple of seconds before giggling.

Jackson smiled widely; see, he can do this-he can revert back to being his best friend again.

oOo

April's morning started with Miranda Bailey firing instructions at her; the antsy General Surgeon is getting married tomorrow and instead of worrying about wedding preparations like any normal bride, she's more concern about her patients' welfare when she goes to her honeymoon.

"Kepner are you listening to me?"

April stood straight; "Of course, I'll keep an eye on Mr. Linzer-I will make sure he eats and I won't let him bleed to death and I will also personally check on Mrs. Gellman to make sure that the tube will taken off by Monday."

Miranda stared at April with amusement; "Would you look at that, you were really listening" she said.

April let out a tight lipped smile.

Miranda turned on her heels and resumed walking; "Please don't let Petunia or any other interns touch my patients', the notion of having an intern tend to my patients-"

"Petunia? We don't have an intern named Petunia" April asked confusedly.

Miranda halted her steps again and turned her face towards the red head; "I don't care about their names-just don't let them touch my patients, is that clear?" she snapped.

April swallowed hard; "Y—yes, Dr. Bailey" she replied.

"Good" Miranda said before resuming her walk again.

April let out a sigh of relief and continued trailing behind the General Surgeon.

oOo

"I heard that you're letting Wilson remove the adhesions on your kid -you digging her now?" Jackson asked with a hint of teasing.

Alex turned towards his friend and scowled; "I'm not digging her—she's here to learn so I'm teaching, end of story" he replied.

Jackson plopped down beside the Ped's Fellow; "Whatever helps you sleep at night man"

Alex rolled his eyes and continued perusing his surgical plan; "Bailey's wedding is tomorrow, you planning on bringing a date?" he asked.

Jackson shook his head; "Nope" he replied. He then smirked, blatantly teasing; "Why? You bringing Wilson?"

"Will you stop mentioning freaking Wilson? You're annoying the hell out of me" Alex snapped.

Jackson rolled his eyes; "Fine"

Alex snapped his chart close; "You're not asking Kepner to go with you?"

Jackson sat straighter at the mention of April; "No—should I? I mean we're trying to be friends again and friends doesn't need to ask each other if they'll go together to a wedding, it's already given that we'll get to hang out there" he explained.

Alex snickered; "Really? Friends? Good luck with that—one look at her in a dress and you'll be finding yourselves inside a coat room doing the horizontal tango"

Jackson scowled before standing up from his perch; "We're not doing that-again" he said sternly before walking out.

"Whatever let's you sleep at night Avery" Alex repeated his friend's earlier words.

oOo

"Thank you so much for doing this in a short notice Lizzie" Meredith said somewhat awkwardly.

Lizzie Shepherd smile at her new sister in law; "He's my brother regardless of how stubborn he can get, I'm happy to do this for him" she replied.

Meredith grimaced; "I'm sorry for his outburst earlier-he kinda gets that way when he's caught off guard" she explained.

Lizzie waived her hand dismissively; "Don't apologize—I've known him for more than 30 years, I already expected his temper tantrums"

Meredith smiled; "He can be an-ass if he wants to be"

"Come on Meredith don't go soft on me—we both know he can be more than that" Lizzie said teasingly.

Meredith laughed.

"So-when can I meet Zola?"

"She's in DayCare but I can ask Derek to bring her along so you can meet her before the surgery"

"That will be awesome, I've been dying to meet her"

"Meet her you shall" Meredith said.

oOo

"I already agreed to let you cut off one of my sister's leg and now you're telling me that you need to cut two? Are you kidding me?" Derek spat angrily.

Jackson threw Callie an exasperated look before leaning back on his chair; "Her leg is a little bit shorter than what we anticipated, we need a longer nerve for us to be able to restore your hand's function at a 100%" he explained calmly.

"I don't want to this surgery anymore, cancel it!" Derek yelled.

Callie placed her hands around her waist and narrowed her eyes at the pacing Neuro Surgeon; "We already talked about this Derek and need I remind you that you're the one who asked me to fix you?"

Derek paused and met Callie's eyes; "But you're cutting off two legs! I only agreed with one leg"

"Do you want to operate again?" Callie asked simply.

"Of course I want to!"

"Then suck it up and just be thankful that you have a sister who's willing to help you!"

Derek opened his mouth to respond but closed it again after a moment; he placed his hand on his hips and closed his eyes as he took a deep calming breath.

Jackson shifted his eyes to Callie and threw her an impressed look.

Callie winked at the Plastic Fellow before arranging her features to look stern again; "It's your call Shepherd, I won't force you to do something that you obviously don't want to. I'll just go ahead and cancel-"

"Do it" Derek said, cutting Callie off mid sentence.

"Okay then" Callie replied.

"Everybody hurts just a little too much, everybody hurts but it's never enough. It's wonderful to fall, its worth of risking all, I'd rather love just a little too much..."

"I already spoke with the lawyer-the papers will be here tomorrow" Owen said.

Cristina turned around and saw her soon to be ex husband standing by the door; she let out a sad smile before shifting her gaze back on pipes. "Good"

Owen closed the door behind him and walked towards Cristina; he stopped behind her and placed his hands on top of her shoulder.

Cristina closed her eyes; "You know I love you right?"

"I know and I love you too..."

"Signing a piece of paper won't change how I feel about you"

Owen shifted closer and rested his chin on top of Cristina's head, moving his arms around the Cardio Surgeons waist, hugging her from the back; "I know that" he said.

Cristina opened her eyes but didn't say anything; she stared ahead and waited for the familiar surge of air coming from the vents, praying that it will somehow ease away the hurt that she's feeling.

oOo

"Do you already have a dress?" Lexie asked.

April forked a carrot from her salad and brought it to her mouth; "I decided to wear the only dressy dress I have, so yes, I have one" she replied before popping the vegetable in her mouth.

"Good-so, are you bringing Mr. Paramedic tomorrow as your date?"

April choked on her carrot.

Lexie hastily grabbed the bottle of water from the red head's tray and handed it to April; "Drink"

April snatched the bottle from her friend's hand and took a swig; she drank a couple of mouthfuls before placing it back on the table."Why would I bring Matthew to Bailey's wedding?"

Lexie shrugged her shoulders; "He already asked you out, it only makes sense that if you're bringing a date it might as well be him" she explained.

"He just asked me for coffee Lex that doesn't mean we're dating and besides, this wedding is strictly for Bailey's close friends why would I bring someone she doesn't know"

"You have a point" Lexie conceded."Why not go with Jackson instead? He can be your date—he's also invited to the wedding and I'm sure he already has a tux prepared" Lexie suggested coyly.

April drizzled the dressing on her salad trying to act nonchalant even though her heart is thumping wildly inside her chest; "I can't bring Jackson as a date-we're trying to revert back to being best friend's again and best friends don't date-they hang out"

Lexie smirked; "I didn't imply that you should date—date, what I said is to bring him along as a default date, best friend's do that"

"Oh."

"Think about it, it's kinda sad going into a wedding alone"

April's shoulders sagged; "You're making me feel like a loser who can't get herself a date" she pouted.

Lexie rolled her eyes; "That's not what I'm trying to make you feel, all I'm saying is that you should at least have someone who will dance with you when the mushy music starts, stuff like that and I'm quite sure Jackson won't mind—as your best friend, of course"

April pursed her lips; "When you say it like that, it does make sense" she said.

"What makes sense?"

April turned around and saw Jackson standing behind her; "How long have you been standing there?"

"Not long, why?" Jackson asked as he pulls a chair beside April.

April shifted her gaze back to Lexie, narrowing her eyes as a warning.

Lexie ignored April's reaction and smiled at Jackson; "So—tomorrow is Bailey's wedding, your tux ready?"

"Don't remind me, I hate wearing those silly things"

"Really? You always seem to look comfortable wearing them" April said.

Jackson winked at April; "I'm an Avery, I'm programmed to act like I mean it" he said.

April rolled her eyes at his response.

Lexie braised her elbows on top of the table, resting her chin on her clasped hands; "You bringing a date tomorrow?"

Jackson grabbed his fork and began segregating the carrots from his salad; "No date, me and Karev are planning on going stag" he replied.

"Won't you feel out of place once they started playing mushy music and people started dancing?" Lexie asked.

"Why would I? I never dance anyway" Jackson replied as he pulls April's plate towards him.

"Get the nuts" April said while pointing towards the nuts she pushed to the side of her plate.

Lexie can't help but be fascinated as she watches the couple sitting across from her act in perfect sync; "So you're telling me that you never dance in any of those Harper Avery Galas? You've been a wall flower all along?" she teased.

"Not working Lex" Jackson replied before stuffing his mouth with lettuce.

Lexie huffed before pushing away from the table; "Don't come crying to me when you end up sitting there like fools" she said before walking away, peeved.

April chuckled.

"What's up with her?" Jackson asked.

"Lexie has issues when it comes to attending weddings without a date, she's been harassing me for the past couple of minutes—she even thought I'd be bring Matthew along"

Jackson swallowed hard; "Are you?"

April wrinkled her nose; "No, why would you even ask me that? No relationship talks, remember?"

Jackson suddenly felt elated; "I forgot, you're right" he replied. He then let out a happy smile; "So—I've been thinking—since you're going to Bailey's wedding solo and I am too, do you want to go there together? You know just to save gas and all" he rambled.

April smirked; "Jackson Avery, is that your way of asking me to be your date to the wedding?"

Jackson felt his cheeks heating up so he averted his gaze and began poking on his food; "I just thought that it would be nice to go there not alone you know-maybe Lexie has a point after all...but if you don't want to then-"

"Oh hush! Of course I'll go with you no need to explain. Best friend's can be each other's default date to weddings', we've already done that before"

"Really?"

April reached for Jackson's face and pinched his cheek; "You're so cute when you look so unsure" she teased.

Jackson winced; "Ouch."

April laughed as she tugs her hand away.

Jackson tried to mash down the warm feelings that erupted from his chest; he cleared his throat and tried his best to look cool. "It's settled then, we'll go there together"

"It's a date" April replied with a smile.

oOo

"So-I just came from the cafeteria, I ate lunch with April and Jackson" Lexie said as she walks towards her fiancé.

Mark smiled; "Really? How did that go?"

Lexie smirked as she stops right in front of Mark; "I think they'll end up going to the wedding together"

Mark gently placed his hands on Lexie's waist; "How do you know?" he asked curiously.

"Gut feeling" Lexie replied.

Mark pulled Lexie closer and fully wrapped his arms around her waist; he planted a chaste kiss on her nose before smiling affectionately; "You're playing cupid, I think it's really sexy" he said huskily.

Lexie began drawing circles on Mark's chest; "So-I still have 30 minutes left from my lunch" she trailed off suggestively.

Mark smirked; "I love how you think" he said before hastily pulling away from his fiancé and dragging her, albeit gently to the nearest on call room.

oOo

April grabbed her tray and stood up from the table; "I better head back to the pit, can't let the interns by themselves for long" she said.

Jackson took a swig of his soda before standing up as well; "I need to go too, still need to harvest baby Shepherd's nerves" he said.

April paused; "You're doing Derek's surgery today?"

"Yep, he finally agreed" Jackson replied.

April smiled widely; "My intern will be scrubbing in then" she said.

Jackson chuckled; "Your star student won the slot-landslide. He channelled his inner Kepner and Derek liked that" he teased.

April laughs as she began walking; "I'm quite sure he did well on his own"

Jackson followed April; "He's the only intern who treated Derek like a patient and not a prized porcelain doll, that's speaks volumes."

"Well-good for him" April said as she discarded the tray. She then turned towards Jackson and smiled; "Good luck on your surgery-not that you need any. I'm sure you'll definitely restore Derek's hand."

"You're confidence in me never fails to amaze me" Jackson said with a grateful smile. "Thank you."

"You're a good doctor Jackman, its high time you recognize that" April said sincerely.

Jackson pulled April into a tight hug, hoping she'll understand the words behind it.

April understood the unvoiced words behind his gesture so she hugged him back.

oOo

"Torres?"

Callie turned his gaze towards Derek who's lying on the O.R. table; "Yep?"

Derek smiled with appease; "Whatever happens after the surgery, it will be okay-I will be okay"

Callie chuckled; "We haven't sedated you yet and you're already high" she joked.

Derek chuckled.

Callie squeezed Derek's hand comfortingly; "This will work, Jackson and I, we'll fix it" she re-assured.

"I know you would"

Callie smiled and gestured towards the anaesthesiologist.

Derek took a deep calming breath before closing his eyes.

oOo

"I'm watching you Jackson-don't screw this up!" Meredith's voice resounded inside the O.R.

Jackson moved his gaze to the gallery; "I won't screw this up Grey, now why don't you be a good wife and let the surgeon work in peace, huh?" he said with a hint of sarcasm.

Meredith crossed her arms on top of her chest defiantly; "I'm not leaving if that's what you're implying!"

Jackson shook his head and turned his gaze towards his intern; "Take her out of there—tackle her if you need to"

Stephanie threw Jackson a frightened look; "But-but it's Dr. Grey, she's an Attending, I can't do that!"

Jackson narrowed his eyes; "I'm your Attending now Dr. Edwards and you'll do exactly as what I say. Move Meredith Grey out of my gallery or you won't be able to touch anything inside my O.R. again, do you understand me?"

Stephanie took a step back and hastily made her way towards the door.

"Why is Edwards leaving Jackson? You need someone to assist you in getting that nerve!"

Jackson gritted his teeth and ignored Meredith's rants; "15 blade, please."

oOo

"Here are your freshly harvested nerves" Jackson announced as he enters Callie's O.R.

"You're just right on time, hand that to me" Callie instructed.

Jackson walked towards the other surgeon and handed her the kidney bean basin; "There you go" he said.

Callie examined the nerves; "These are good" she remarked. She placed the basin on the side and began her work; "This O.R is too quiet, nobody seems to want to make small talk since its Dr. Shepherd on the table."

Jackson chuckled as he makes his way towards the operating table; "It beats having your patient's wife nagging you every step of the way" he said.

Callie laughed; "Meredith is watching you from the gallery?"

Jackson threw his intern a dirty look; "I asked Edwards to remove her but she was not able to do so" he said sternly.

Stephanie cleared her throat and averted her gaze.

Jackson slipped on his gloves and sat beside Callie; "It was hell-I don't understand why she's hovering over me when you're the one operating on her husband"

Callie winked; "Simple, I banned her from my O.R."

"Why didn't I think about that?" Jackson muttered.

Callie laughed; "Does any of you have anything else to share? This is intricate work-small talk will keep us all awake and I'm not a fan of complete silence."

Shane cleared his throat; "Well-I helped Dr. Kepner save a life at the pit yesterday" he said shyly.

Jackson shifted in his seat, feigning disinterest.

Callie threw the Plastic Fellow beside her a subtle look before shifting her gaze back on her work; "That's interesting-tell us about it" she encouraged.

"There's this patient who came in who was a mass on her-err-buttocks. I helped her extract it from the patient's gluteal area and it turns out that it's malignant, so we ended up saving the patient's life."

Callie paused and stared at the intern across from her.

Shane cleared his throat; "It-it was an impressively sized mass..."

Callie shifted her gaze to Jackson, trying her best not burst out laughing; "Who's gonna tell Dr. Shepherd that he'll never operate again because Ross' idea of small talk is he saw April Kepner take a lump off an ass?"

Jackson's eyes crinkled at the sides, indicating that he's smiling behind his mass; "They saved a life, that's something worth talking about."

"Coming from a man who's carrying a burning torch for a woman who took off an impressively sized mass from a patient's butt" Callie whispered in a teasing voice.

"Shut it!" Jackson hissed.

Callie shook her head as she continued with her work.

oOo

April entered the Attendings' Lounge in dismal mood; her head is aching terribly and she still has to move out of their apartment tonight.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who's pissed"

"Why are you pissed?" April asked as she walks towards the couch.

Alex huffed; "My stupid intern tattled on me, she told Robbins that I told her that she'll get fired if she screws up the gastric implant I asked her to do and she's not even doing it, she's just taking off the adhesion!"

April collapsed beside the Ped's Fellow and furrowed her brows; "Did you tell her she'll get fired?"

"Of course not!" Alex replied indignantly. "Taking off the adhesions is risky, no matter who did it—you know that!"

"Well yeah-I've been a doctor for years and Wilson is what-an intern?"

"Not helping Kepner" Alex said. He then crossed his arms on top of his chest; "It not as if I left her there to fend for herself, I was standing right beside her! The second it got hairy, I took over."

April stared at Alex's disgruntled look before patting him comfortingly on the knee; "I know you mean well Alex and I'm sure Arizona knows that too, she just had to reprimand you because you scared the hell out of Wilson" she pacified.

Alex scoffed; "Well it won't be the last time. If she wants to learn then she'll have to suck it up and learn not to burn bridges with the Attendings whose willing to teach her moronic ass!"

April shook her head, there's no reasoning with him when his head is this hot.

"Enough about my stupid intern-what about you? Why do you look pissed?"

April rested her head on the back of the couch and closed her eyes; "I'm not pissed I'm just exhausted and I still have to move out tonight" she groaned.

Alex copied April's stance but kept his eyes open; "Need help? I can lend a hand. I don't want to go to Joe's because for sure freaking Wilson will be there bawling her eyes out with the rest of the morons."

April's eyes snapped open, she turned her head sideways and smiled; "Really?"

"Yeah, I assume Avery will be helping as well?" Alex asked.

"I'd like to think so" April replied.

"Good, we can grab a couple of beers after we help you move, God knows I need a drink"

"Tell you what, I'll buy the booze as a thank you, is that okay?"

Alex smiled; "You're on" he said.

"Sometimes we're trapped in the circle, till we're digging holes in the ground. We're trying, but nothing is working but still I want you around. 'Cause if I'm lost in the desert, I know somehow you'll find me. And if I drown in the oceans you'll be the first to rescue me..."

The next day: Miranda Bailey's Wedding

"On the morning of your wedding? Really?" Richard asked when he saw his former prot walking along the hallway with patient's charts in her arms.

"My house is filled with my family talking about make-up and hair, it's nauseating" Miranda said as she stops right in front of the nurses' station, placing her charts on the counter.

Richard stopped right in front of Miranda; "Just check into a hotel if they're annoying you, you shouldn't be working today—get a manicure or go to spa, whatever you girls do before the wedding" he suggested.

Miranda glared; "Are you talking about make-up and manicure too?" she asked sternly.

"Dr. Bailey what are you doing here?" April asked as she sidled up next to the General Surgeon.

Miranda wrinkled her nose; "Checking up on my patients, making sure you haven't bungled anything."

Richard threw April a look; "Don't mention any hair or make-up" he advised.

April turned towards Miranda and began fussing with the other surgeon's hair; "Why? Did something happen with your hair?" she asked with concern.

Miranda scowled at April before storming out.

April cringed and turned to follow Miranda.

oOo

Cristina entered the Trauma Room with Owen in tow; she walked towards the patient and began examining him. "What do we have" she asked.

"GSW to the chest, we put up 2 and half liters of blood when we put in the chest tube" Heather said.

Cristina leaned forward and began listening to the patient's heart beat; "We should move him upstairs."

Owen plucked the chart from the foot of the bed and began perusing it; "Looks like there's also a bullet lodge in the abdomen, I can do it or we can call somebody else.'

Cristina turned towards Owen; "You can do it, no need to bother some else."

"Okay" Owen replied.

Cristina pulled the side railing; "Let's move, you're scrubbing in Brooks"

oOo

"Hey! I've been looking for you in like forever!"

April tore her eyes away from her patient's chart; "Err-why?" she asked.

Lexie placed her hands around her waist; "In case you have forgotten, we have a wedding to attend, it's almost time so we need to get ready"

April furrowed her brows; "It's already time?" she asked. She then took a peek on her watch and her eyes widen in surprise; "Wow, time passed by fast."

"Let's go" Lexie said.

April placed her patient's chart back on the nurses' station; she leaned forward and placed her elbows on the counter. "Make sure that Mr. Linzer eats his food and page me if anything comes up, okay?"

"Yes, Dr. Kepner"

April smiled; "Thanks Alice!"

Lexie looped her arm around the Trauma Surgeon's arm; "Come on, I was able to convince Mark to lend us his office so we don't have to elbow our way in the ladies room" she said with an excited smile.

April groaned; "Here we go"

oOo

Meredith entered her husband's room and walked towards his bed; she leaned forward and planted a tender kiss on his forehead.

Derek opened his eyes and smiled; "I think I'm having a dream that a really hot doctor came to take care of me"

Meredith smiled back; "This really hot doctor is leaving you to go to a party" she replied. She then shifted her eyes to Derek's hand; "Callie said it could not have gone better, how are you feeling?"

"I'm a little bit groggy but I'm fine" Derek replied before yawning.

"Good"

"How's my sister? Is she alright?" Derek asked.

"She's doing well, I'll be checking on her before I leave" Meredith replied.

"That will be nice"

"I think I should tell her that we're pregnant...I mean, she was really excited about Zola and she's your family-she deserves to know, my sister knows" Meredith said.

Derek smiled widely; "You sure about that?"

Meredith nodded; "Yes. Well—I better leave, I'll be riding with Alex and you know him, you can't keep him waiting"

"Enjoy the party" Derek said.

Meredith waved goodbye before exiting the room.

oOo

"Why are you here again?" Jackson asked as he puts on his bow tie.

Mark rolled his eyes as he shrugged on his coat; "Lexie kicked me out of my own office, she told me that's she and Kepner will be using it to get ready."

"And you just let her?"

"I can't say no to my fiancé!"

Jackson sniggered; "You're so whipped" he teased.

"Look who's talking" Mark retorted.

Jackson grabbed his coat and cocked his head to side, examining it.

Mark buttoned his and turned towards his prot; "What are you doing?"

Jackson put his coat on; "I hate wearing this stuff"

"Really? You look good wearing it"

Jackson wrinkled his nose; "Stop talking like that, you're creeping me out"

Mark chuckled; "You stop being homophobic, I'm just stating a fact. I'm a Plastic Surgeon, I know how to appreciate beautiful stuff."

"I'm not homophobic, you're just being creepy"

Mark just laughed.

oOo

"Wow-you were not kidding when you told me that your dress was tight. Jackson will have hard time staying inside your imaginary friend zone boundary" Lexie said while eyeing April's form.

April winced; "This is the only dressy dress I have, I don't have a choice"

Lexie walked towards April and stood beside her, both of them facing the mirror; "You look hot Apes, that's what I'm really trying to say" she said with a smile.

April smiled back; "You look hot too, Mark's gonna have a field day" she said.

Lexie giggled; "Wedding sex is always awesome" she said with a wink.

April felt her cheeks flush; "Lexie!" she chastised.

Lexie rolled her eyes; "You already did the hippity dippity with Jackson, I don't understand why you still blush every time I mention the word sex"

April grimaced; "Stop being crass!"

Lexie shook her head as she walks towards the couch; "Put your shoes on so we can leave" she instructed.

oOo

Jackson and Mark were walking along side by side towards the lobby when they ran into Alex and Meredith. The latter halted her steps and stared at the men standing before her; "Will you look at that, you guys are living up to your name as the poster men for Plastics"

Alex stopped beside Meredith and snickered; "All prettied up"

"You don't look bad yourself Karev, you can ride along our coat tails if you want to" Mark jested.

"And be labelled as pretty? No thanks" Alex retorted.

"How's Derek?" Jackson asked while looking at Meredith.

Meredith smiled; "He's a little drugged up but he's doing good" she replied.

Mark smirked as he patted Jackson's back proudly; "My boy did good"

"You're bromance is nauseating" Alex said. He then turned towards Meredith; "We should get going, Bailey's gonna kill you if she doesn't see you standing at the front."

"You're right! Well I'll see guys at the wedding and drive safely" Meredith said as she continues her way.

'Will do, you too!" Mark replied.

"See you later posses!" Alex said with a wave.

oOo

"I really don't feel like going to this wedding" Cristina said as she paces inside Owens' office.

Owen shrugged on his coat before turning his gaze towards his wife; "It's Miranda's wedding, we should be there."

Cristina sighed; "It just doesn't feel right..."

Owen buttoned his coat before walking towards Cristina; he stood right in front of her and placed his hands on her hips. "I know it's hard because I'm feeling the same way as what you're feeling but just for one night, before we sign those damn papers-let's be happy and pretend that everything is fine. Can you do that?"

Cristina gazed into Owens' eyes for a moment before nodding; "Yeah I can do that"

Owen smiled before planting a chaste kiss on Cristina's lips; "We have to go" he said.

Cristina forced herself to smile back; "Yeah—we should."

oOo

"It took you guys long enough" Lexie said.

Mark grinned widely at her fiancé; "You're a vision Mrs. Sloan."

"It's Ms. Grey, we're not yet married. You don't look too bad" Lexie said with a smile.

Mark laughed; he then began looking around; "Where's Kepner?"

Jackson sidled up next to his mentor; "Yeah-where's April?"

"Present!"

Both Jackson and Mark turned around and saw April standing behind them; Mark whistled approvingly. "You clean up well Kepner, you look hot" he said.

April felt her cheeks flush; "Err—thank you Dr. Sloan" she replied.

Lexie shifted closer to Jackson and elbowed him playfully on the side; "Close your mouth, you look stupid" she whispered.

Jackson snapped his mouth close and glared at the brunette standing beside him; "Shut it!" he hissed.

Lexie ignored Jackson and smiled brightly at her friend; "Is April gorgeous or what?"

"Lexie!" April hissed.

Jackson moved his gaze back to April, smiling at his best friend appreciatively; "You look stunning Apes—green looks good on you"

April cleared the lump in her throat; "Thank you...you look good too" she replied.

"Awww...They're acting like teenagers on their first Prom" Mark teased. He then pushed his student towards the red head and settled himself beside his fiancé; "Makes me feel like a proud parent."

Lexie giggled; "You're acting like one" she teased.

Mark grinned; "That's my boy, what do you expect?"

Jackson rolled his eyes at his mentor's antics; he turned towards April and offered his hand. "Why don't we leave this two and head to the wedding? We don't want to miss it after all" he suggested.

April placed her hand into his; "Err-yeah, sure."

Jackson smiled and began leading her towards the exit; "Start moving or you'll be late!" he reminded the other two surgeons.

Mark wrapped his arm around Lexie's shoulder; "They look cute together"

"True" Lexie replied with a smile.

oOo

"Who invited the stupid interns?" Alex asked irritably as he sat down beside his friends.

"Err-Bailey?" April replied.

Alex grabbed his wine glass and emptied it.

"Whoa slow down on the booze man" Jackson said.

Alex placed his wine glass on top of the table; "It's just wine" he huffed.

"Do you know the hold up? I mean it's been an hour" April asked.

Alex shook his head; "I don't have the slightest idea, why don't you ask the love birds there, they look like they're having a good time" he said while pointing at the couple sitting across from them.

Jackson shifted his gaze to his mentor; "Hey Mark, do you know why Bailey isn't here yet?"

Mark tore his eyes away from his fiancé and turned towards his student; "Ben told me that Bailey got pulled into an emergency surgery so they had to postpone the ceremony for a couple of hours."

April threw Mark an incredulous look; "But she's getting married today!"

"I'm quite sure she knows that Apes" Lexie said.

Jackson was about to open his mouth to respond but was cut off when all they're pagers went off simultaneously.

April plucked hers and read the message; "I'm needed at the hospital, multiple motorbike Traumas just arrived" she said before tucking it back inside her purse.

Alex stood up; "Well we better head back."

Mark stood up; "Sit down Karev, you're not going anywhere" he said.

Alex scowled; "What do you mean I'm not going? I just got paged"

Mark pointed towards his empty wine glass; "You've been drinking wine like water, you can't answer to the page."

"But-"

"Not arguing, sit down" Mark said sternly.

Alex grumbled to himself sulkily before sitting down again.

April grabbed her purse from the table; "Well I better go" she said.

Jackson also stood up and stared at Mark; "Why don't you stay here with Lex-I'll go with April" he offered.

Mark eyed Jackson for a moment; "Are you sure? It's a biking accident I'm quite sure that there will be a lot of burn victims"

"I can handle it" Jackson replied.

"If you insist" Mark conceded.

Jackson threw Mark a thankful look before turning towards April; "You ready to go?"

April nodded; "Yeah" she replied.

oOo

"I can't believe Bailey was pulled into an emergency surgery, it's her wedding day" Callie said.

Arizona patted her wife's hand comfortingly; "You know how passionate Bailey is with her patients" she replied.

Meredith stood up from her perch; I should go back to the hospital and check on her, I'm a General Surgeon, maybe I can tag her out of the surgery" she said.

"You sure? I can go too" Callie offered.

Meredith shook her head and handed Callie her bouquet; "Yeah I'm sure, just put this in water till I get back" she said.

Callie accepted the flowers; "Don't forget to call us if you need extra hands, okay?"

"Sure" Meredith said before walking towards the lobby.

oOo

"Do you need a ride back to the hospital?" Jackson asked as he watches Meredith walk towards them.

"You're also going back?" Meredith asked.

"Yep, we just got paged. Multiple Trauma's came into the E.R and they need extra hands" April replied.

"Err-excuse me Dr. Kepner?"

April turned around and saw his favourite intern standing behind her; "Yes?"

Shane scratched the back of his head shyly; "We've been paged as well-Stephanie and I are wondering if we can catch a ride with you guys? We left our cars in the hospital and took a ride with Jo but we can't seem to find her"

April turned her head towards his best friend; "Jackson?" she asked.

"Yeah sure, no problem" Jackson replied.

April turned towards Shane again and smiled; "Sure, let's go" she said.

Cristina followed Owen as he steps out of the E.R; "I can stay and help you with this, I don't feel like going to a wedding when I'll be signing our divorce papers later" she said.

Owen paused and turned towards his wide; "We promised that we'll pretend for just one night that-"

"That promise only stands if you'll be there with me but you're not" Cristina said, cutting Owen off.

Owen opened his mouth to respond but his attention was caught by the loud sound of sirens and motorbikes heading their way.

Cristina stared at the scene right in front of her, stunned.

Owen turned towards his wife and grimaced; "Maybe you should stick around" he said.

Cristina didn't respond, she just spun on her heels and began walking back inside the E.R.

oOo

April entered the pit with Jackson and the interns trailing behind her; she searched for Owen and made a bee line towards him. "Chief, where do you need us?" she asked.

"Just a second Kepner" Owen replied as he bandaged his patient's leg.

"Guess Dr. Bailey beat us to the fun" Shane said.

Owen frowned, clearly confused; "Dr. Bailey is still here?" he asked.

"She and Dr. Grey are working on Adele Webber in O.R. 1" The nurse beside Owen replied.

April's eyes widen in shock; "Dr. Webber's wife? Should we-"

"You have a degloving injury in Trauma Room 1, take care of your patient and let Bailey and Grey take care of theirs." Owen said.

"Okay" April replied. She then spun on her heels and began walking towards the Trauma Room Owen indicated.

"Where do you want me Chief?" Jackson asked.

"Go with Kepner and see if you can assist her" Owen said. He then turned towards the interns; "You two are with them too" he said.

Jackson didn't need to be told twice, he followed April without further questions.

"Jackson-I think you should take a look at this" April said with a grimace.

Jackson walked towards April and stood beside her; he leaned forward and examined the patient's hand.

"Where's Gasoline? And the Hammer?" The patient asked frantically.

"These are people?" Shane asked.

"You get to pick your road names and you get to pick Stuart?" April asked as she peruses the patient's chart.

"I'm not officially in the club yet-the crash was my fault, I have no business being on that bike, I just ruined my chances" Stuart replied with a wince.

"I think your arm would agree" April replied.

"I don't think so, I think motorcycles are hot-they're cool and it's definitely your business if you want to ride it" Stephanie said.

Jackson turned his head towards the female intern and grinned; "Motorcycles are cool, I can agree with that" he said.

April caught the interest in Jackson's eyes when he stared at Stephanie; she felt niggling feeling inside her chest, making her imaginary manacles rise. She took a step back and crossed her arms on top of her chest; watching the two intently.

Jackson turned his gaze back to patient; "All right Stuart, your injuries are extensive but I do think it's possible we can salvage your hand. We're just gonna get you up to the O.R. and debride your arm" he explained. He then turned his gaze back towards his intern; "Edwards, you're with me since you seem to be fascinated with guys in motorcycles" he said teasingly.

"All right since that's settled I don't think we're needed here" April suddenly said.

Jackson turned towards April and saw the look on her face; "I-I can take Dr. Ross if you'd prefer Edwards"

April handed the chart to Jackson; "Are you kidding? No-Shane's my guy, he's staying with me" she said with a fake smile. She then turned towards her intern; "Let's go Ross, let's go find ourselves a patient" she said without a backward glance.

Jackson watched as April leaves the room; what the hell just happened? he asked himself, clearly baffled.

oOo

"Murphy get your hands in here" Miranda instructed her intern.

"Dr. Bailey?" Meredith said as she stares at the open cavity.

"-I need you to put pressure on the aorta, there under the diaphragm" Miranda said.

Meredith lifted her gaze and stared at the other Attending standing across from her.

Miranda met Meredith's eyes; "It's just a stop gap until we can mobilize the duodenum off the aneurysm" she explained. She then shifted her gaze to the gallery and saw Richard sitting agitatedly.

"Grey?"

Meredith followed Miranda's gaze and understood what Miranda was saying; she moved her eyes towards the intern. "Murphy go up in the gallery and sit with him."

Leah threw Richard a look; "Okay" she said before hastily stepping back from the operating table.

oOo

Alex was sitting glumly at the bar when he heard throat clearing; he turned around and saw Jo Wilson standing behind him awkwardly. "What?" he snapped.

Jo cleared her throat; "I-I'm sorry" she sputtered.

Alex frowned; "Are you sorry because you tattled on me or are you sorry because you acted like an idiot?"

Jo closed her eyes tightly, willing herself to calm down; she then opened her eyes and stared at the Ped's Fellow directly. "I'm sorry because I acted like an idiot"

Alex studied the intern's face for a moment before his face relaxes; "You owe me a freaking drink after all the bitching I received from Robbins" he said.

Jo bit her bottom lip to keep herself from grinning; "Fine" she said before hopping on the stool right next to Alex.

Alex shook her head before signalling for the bartender.

oOo

"Ow! Damn it!"

April tore her eyes away from her chart and walked towards the patient's bed; "What's going on?" she asked.

Shane opened his mouth to respond but the patient cut him off; "This kid is a menace, that's what"

April rounded the bed and shifted towards the patient, letting out an appeasing smile; "Sir, just calm down. This is a teaching hospital, all right?"

The patient just grunted.

April grabbed a pair of gloves and shifted towards Shane; "Allow me to assist Dr. Ross with this technique, okay?"

"Yeah"

April shifted her gaze to the patient's leg; "All right for a corner stitch like this it's usually best to use a half buried horizontal mattress stitch" she said. She then grasped Shane's hand and began guiding him; "So you go on like that" she said.

Shane nodded; "Okay-I think I got it" he said with a smile. He then repeated what April taught him; "Like this right?"

April smiled widely and patted Shane's back in approval; "Yes. Great work, you're such a quick study. Keep it up" she replied. She then shifted her gaze back to the patient; "How does that feel Sir?" she asked.

"Fine" The patient grunted.

oOo

Jackson was taking off the burnt skin when he noticed Stephanie staring at him intently; "What?" he asked.

"Uh—sorry, it's just your technique-it's kind of beautiful" Stephanie stuttered.

Jackson shifted his gaze back to his work; "It's Dr. Sloan's technique, actually but I am pretty good at it" he replied. He then paused; "Do you want to try?" he asked.

Stephanie reluctantly accepted the large tweezers and shifted her gaze back to the arm.

Jackson placed his hands on Stephanie's, guiding her through the process; "You have to make sure that you only pull lightly because you don't want to damage the tissues further" he said.

He grasped the intern's hand gently and motioned her hand with his; he was about to explain further but the door was yanked open abruptly, admitting April in.

April stepped inside the O.R, her eyes immediately zeroing out on the surgeon's hands; she felt another pang inside her chest, making her take a step back.

Jackson seems to forget that he's holding his intern's hands; "You done?" he asked casually.

April swallowed the bitter taste in her mouth, trying her damnest to mash down the irrational jealousy that's almost blinding her. Yes, she was able to label the niggling inside her chest and it's gnawing at her now, badly.

"April?" Jackson asked.

April shifted her gaze back to Jackson; she cleared her throat and let out the tiniest smile she can muster. "Yeah-Mrs. Webber has been moved to recovery so Bailey is on her way to her wedding."

Jackson shifted his gaze back on the patient's arm and noticed that he's still holding Stephanie's; he quickly pulled his hand away and cleared his throat. He turned his gaze back to April, clearly understanding what she's looking at a couple of minutes ago. "Err-this will still take some time" he explained.

April shifted in her feet; "Oh I see-well Meredith needs a ride now because she's part of the entourage. I'll just drive with her and bring Ross with us" she paused. "You can bring Steph with you, no need to waste gas when you're both going to the same place."

"April-"

April smiled awkwardly; "I'll go on ahead, just see you there" she said before hastily leaving the room.

Jackson stared at the swinging O.R doors before letting out dejected sigh; he turned towards his intern and stared at her for a moment. "I think I'll take it from here so we can finish as soon as possible" he suggested.

Stephanie handed the instruments back to Jackson; "Okay-definitely."

oOo

"Where's your date?" Lexie asked as she watches April take her seat.

"Busy teaching his intern how to debride a wound" April replied, somewhat stoically.

Mark leaned forward and stared at April; "He decided to teach now?" he asked confusedly.

April averted her gaze and started smoothing out the imaginary creases on her dress; "Yeah"

Lexie raised her brow; "Who is he teaching?"

"Edwards" April replied.

Mark's eyes widen in surprise; "That's new, the last time he let Edwards scrub in was during Derek's surgery, I remember him saying that he won't let Edwards step foot inside his O.R. if she wasn't able to take Mer out of the gallery."

"Maybe she was able to take Mer out of the gallery that's why he's so willing to be a teacher today" April replied.

"She wasn't able to take my sister out of the gallery, she told me everything that happened" Lexie interjected.

April scoffed before turning her gaze to the aisle; "Maybe their common interest in motorcycles help them bond, their kinda cosy inside his O.R"

Lexie turned her gaze towards her fiancé and threw him a knowing look.

"Maybe Jackson wanted to teach, don't get your panties in a twist because of that. I'm sure my boy is still carrying a burning torch for you" Mark said.

April turned her face towards the Plastics Attending and glared; "He is not carrying a torch for me and we're just friends-he can do whatever or whoever he wants" she said before facing the aisle again.

Lexie shifted closer to Mark; "Definitely jealous" she whispered.

Mark grinned widely; "Green eyed monster at its finest" he replied.

Lexie chuckled.

oOo

Jackson just pulled over at the parking lot of the hotel when he heard his phone beep; he took it off his coat pocket and checked it. After a moment, he pursed his lips and shifted his phone towards Stephanie, showing a picture; "We just missed the ceremony" he said.

Stephanie stared at the photo of Ben and Miranda at the altar; "I've wanted to watch that, it's been a long time since I last attended a wedding" she said ruefully.

Jackson pulled his phone away and smiled at the intern; "We might've missed the ceremony but the program is not finished yet, we still have time" he said.

"Oh, so the bouquet hasn't been thrown yet?" Stephanie asked excitedly.

Jackson stuffed his phone inside his pocket as he chuckles; "You're into that?" he asked.

Stephanie felt her cheeks flush; "Err—Yeah" she replied shyly.

Jackson unbuckled his seat belt; "Well we better hurry if you want to have the chance to catch the infamous bouquet" he said.

Stephanie pulled her purse from the dash board and began unbuckling her own seat belt; she tugged on it a couple of times but for some unfathomable reason it won't budge. "Argh!"

Jackson turned towards Stephanie and saw her predicament; he rolled his eyes as he leans forward. "Your dress got caught in the clip, stay still" he said.

Stephanie felt her breath hitch inside her throat when Jackson shifted closer; she swallowed hard as she watches him work intently on the buckle.

Jackson gave a last tug and the clip gave away, freeing Stephanie; "There you go" he announced triumphantly as he lifted his gaze.

Stephanie bit her bottom lip as she stares at Jackson's eyes.

Jackson noticed how Stephanie was looking at him and felt smug; he definitely hasn't lost his effect in women. He was about to crack a joke but was startled when heard a loud tapping on his window; he immediately pulled away and turned towards it.

"What the hell Avery?" Mark asked, clearly not pleased with what he just witnessed.

Jackson hastily pushed the door open and climbed out of his car; "I got held up with one patient-I had to do a debridement" he explained.

Mark narrowed his eyes at his prot; he then shifted his gaze towards the intern who's awkwardly standing at the other side. "Why don't you head in Edwards, I just need a word with Dr. Avery"

"O-okay, thank you for the ride Dr. Avery" Stephanie said nervously before scurrying away.

Mark placed his hands on his hips as he waited for the intern to be out of earshot; once he's sure that he can't be heard, he turned towards Jackson. "Do you plan on sleeping with her?" he asked seriously.

Jackson scrunched his face; "NO! Why would you even ask me that?" he asked as he slammed his car door shut.

Mark narrowed his eyes before gesturing towards the car; "You were about to kiss her" he pointed out.

"I was not about to kiss her! I was helping her with the seat belt-her dress got caught in the buckle and I had to help her pull it off!"

"You don't have to lie to me Avery, you know I won't judge you and-"

"I WAS NOT PLANNING TO KISS HER OR SLEEP WITH HER!" Jackson yelled.

Mark studied Jackson's face before relenting; "Okay-I believe you."

Jackson closed his eyes and let out a deep calming breath.

"But just to warn you Kepner is pissed"

Jackson's eyes snapped open; "Why?"

Mark smirked as he crosses his arms on top of his chest; "She's jealous-she thinks you prefer to teach Edwards and hold her hand rather than attending this wedding with her."

"I didn't hold Edwards hands because I want to—I had to! Why would she think that?" Jackson asked perplexedly.

"Jealousy is never rational, you should know that. You were stupid jealous when the EMT asked her out-what would you feel if you saw her holding Taylor's hand?"

Jackson gritted his teeth; "Not helping."

Mark shrugged his shoulders; "I just want you to understand things" he said. He then leaned forward and patted Jackson's shoulder; "Why don't we head inside to make sure that my fiancé and Kepner is not over indulging with alcohol"

oOo

"Who is Kepner dancing with?" Alex asked with a grimace.

Lexie took a sip of her cocktail before turning towards Alex; "Err-I really don't know-I think it's one of Ben's friends from California though" she replied.

Alex plopped beside Lexie; "Avery will be pissed, the guy is looking at Kepner like he wants to have his evil way with her. Where the hell is he?"

Lexie shrugged her shoulder; "April told me that he's still at hospital—teaching one of the interns how to do a skin debridement."

Alex scrunched his face; "Avery teaching? He hates those fools as much as I do and of all the days to teach he chooses now? Really?"

"I know right? That's why April is so pissed"

Alex stared at April's dancing form, a smirk slowly making its way on his lips; "She's drunk" he observed.

"How can you tell?" Lexie asked with interest.

Alex took a sip of his whiskey before replying; "She doesn't normally dance when she's sober"

Lexie giggled.

"Oh Avery will be pissed-big time"

"Why will I be pissed?"

"And here he is!" Alex said somewhat giddily.

Jackson pulled a chair beside the Ped's Fellow; "Why will I be pissed?"

"Don't mind Alex, he's had too much to drink" Lexie interjected.

Mark took his seat beside her fiancé and began looking around the table; "Where's everybody? Where's Kepner?" he asked.

Alex smirked widely at Lexie.

"Meredith answered a call from Derek and Callie and Arizona went to their room" Lexie explained.

"Where's April?" Jackson asked.

Lexie took a sip of her cocktail, deliberately postponing an answer.

Alex rolled his eyes at Lexie before gesturing towards the dance floor with his glass; "She's dancing" he said.

Jackson followed the direction that Alex is pointing out and saw his best friend dancing closely with some guy; he felt his blood boil and before he knows it, he's already on his feet.

"Jackson!" Lexie called out.

Mark shot up from his feet and followed the seething surgeon; he yanked his arm and pulled him back. "Calm down, don't do anything that will embarrass you or April, they're just dancing"

Jackson clenched his fists as he tries to stifle the raging emotion inside his chest; he took a step back and gnashed his teeth together.

Alex also stood up from his perch when he realized that his friend is blowing out of proportion; he grabbed his whiskey from the table and offered it Jackson. "Here drink this, calm down man. It's just one freaking dance" he said.

Jackson accepted the drink wordlessly and downed it in one gulp.

"Can you guys sit down, you're attracting attention" Lexie said.

Mark and Alex both reached for Jackson's arm and guided him back to the table; Alex being the closest to Jackson's chair pulled him down.

Mark walked towards his chair and plopped down.

Jackson placed the empty glass on top of the table before taking a deep calming breath; "I'm good" he announced.

"We follow thing we fall back in, we're always back where we begin..."

Carlton planted a kiss on April's hand before stepping away; "It has been fun dancing with you Dr. Kepner" he said politely.

April smiled widely; "You are good dancer, I had fun too, thank you Dr. Mitchell" she said.

Carlton smiled back; "Do you want me to escort you back to your table?"

April shook her head; "That won't be necessary, I have to go to the ladies anyway. See you around Carlton-thank you again!" she said before spinning on her heels and walking towards the other direction.

"Hey-I know that guy!" Mark said when he had the chance to stare at April's dance partner closely.

Jackson took a swig of his drink; "I don't care who he is" he grumbled.

Mark rolled his eyes; "He's Dr. Carlton Mitchell, he's a sought after Neuro Attending in UCLA if I'm not mistaken. He used to be Derek's prot when we're still in New York, he's Derek's poster child."

"So he's a Neuro prodigy, big deal" Alex huffed. He then placed his arm around Jackson's shoulder, "We have Harper Avery's grandson here and he's an AWESOME Plastics Fellow and need I remind you that he's your poster child—we should root for him!" he said in support.

"He's my boy of course I'll root for him!" Mark said indignantly.

Jackson stared at Alex for a couple of seconds before bursting out laughing; 'You have a weird way of trying to make me feel better Karev but it works" he said.

Alex smirked before pulling his arm away.

"Now if I may have everyone's attention please?"

"I think they're throwing the bouquet and garter, goody!" Lexie gushed excitedly.

"You're not participating in that, you're no longer single, your mine now" Mark whispered.

Lexie rolled her eyes.

"It has always been a tradition that before the couple dance they're last dance for the evening, the beautiful bride needs to pass on her lovely bouquet to a lucky single lady who will be next in line. Now, I'm calling all of the single ladies out there to please proceed upfront so we can get this show on the road"

Lexie hopped up to her feel but wasn't able to move an inch because Mark is holding on to her arm with a vice grip. "What are you doing?"

"You're not going there, you can't wrestle those damn girls for a bouquet, your legs are still healing" Mark said sternly.

Lexie pursed her lips petulantly; "But I want too!"

"Flowers or not you're getting married anyway, no need to tackle someone for it" Alex said.

"You people are no fun!" Lexie complained before sitting down again.

Mark moved closer and planted a kiss on Lexie's temple; "You already have my heart and ring, if you want flowers then I'll just buy you some"

Jackson wrinkled his nose; "Don't act so sappy right in front of us, it's disgusting"

Lexie threw Jackson a raspberry; "You're just jealous!"

Jackson rolled his eyes.

"Where are my interns? Get your asses up here! I know you're all single, don't make me call your names one by one!" Miranda Bailey's voice echoed inside the room.

Alex snickered; "And the Nazi's back with vengeance!" he chortled.

Jackson smirked as he watches Wilson and Edwards saunters towards the front, both sporting an embarrassed look.

"She has 50 guests and only two are single? What the hell is wrong with this wedding?" Alex complained as he stares at the 2 ladies standing in the front.

Jackson sniggered before leaning towards his friend; "We both know that you have the hots for Wilson" he whispered.

Alex turned towards Jackson and frowned; "Shut your trap Pretty Boy, you're not funny!" he hissed.

"Just saying" Jackson said.

Mark watches in amusement as Miranda narrowed her eyes at the two ladies; she tugged the mic out of the host's hand; "April Kepner get your ass up here, you are single and I know you are hiding!"

Jackson sat straighter and began looking around the ballroom.

Alex noticed his friend shift in his chair upon the mention of the red head's name; "I forgot Kepner's single, if she ends up catching the flowers then she'll have to kiss whoever catches the garter"

Jackson's head snapped towards his friend; "What?"

"It's tradition," Alex replied with a smirk.

"I didn't know that!"

Lexie turned towards Jackson; "If she catches the bouquet you better catch the damn garter Avery" she said.

Mark nodded in agreement; "Tackle anyone if you have to" he said.

Alex snickered; "Even though you annoy the hell out of me, I'll help you on this one, I used to be a wrestler when I was in Iowa, I'll fend them off of you" he offered.

"You people are insane!" Jackson said.

"Look there is April" Lexie said while pointing towards the hallway.

Jackson shifted his gaze towards the direction Lexie is pointing at; he watches as April walked towards the front and stood beside the interns awkwardly, her cheeks flaming red.

"Her face is as red as her hair" Mark said with a smirk.

"Looks like we only have 3 single ladies, well—good luck to you girls! Now Miranda, please take your place."

"I hope April catches it!" Meredith said as she pulls a chair beside Alex.

Alex turned towards Meredith; "Hopefully it doesn't hit her on the face, she looks frightened" he said.

Meredith chuckled; "You know April, she's never a fan of such a large-Oh my god she actually caught it!"

Alex turned towards the front and saw April holding Bailey's bouquet in her hands; "Would you look at that!" he said with amusement. He then turned towards Jackson; "You're turn man!" he said giddily.

Jackson swallowed hard, still not believing April's luck; "She actually caught it" he said in disbelief.

Lexie giggled; "She did, she didn't even have to wrestle anyone for it" she said.

"And would you look that! The lovely Dr. April Kepner caught it after all, let's give her a round of applause everyone."

Alex sat straighter as he clapped his hands; "You ready man?" he asked his friend.

Jackson furrowed his brows; "Ready for what?"

"To catch the garter you fool!" Lexie hissed.

"Oh."

"Now it's time for the infamous garter to be thrown, who will be lucky enough to catch it and get the chance to share the spot light with the beautiful lady? I'm calling all the eligible bachelors out there-wow, it looks like a there's a lot of single men out here who wants a chance to get to know the lovely Dr. Kepner."

Alex stared at the number of men walking towards the front in disbelief; "There are only two single ladies but tons of single men? Really?" he complained. He then shot up from his perch and squared his shoulders; "Come on Avery, that garter has your name on it" he said.

Jackson scowled as he watches the men line up; "Where did they all come from?" he asked while still sitting.

"Get your ass up from that chair Avery or I'll haul you myself" Mark warned.

Jackson shifted his gaze to April and saw the apprehensive look on her face; he thought for a couple of seconds before standing up from his perch.

Alex clapped Jackson at the back; "Come on man, time to show those California guys the proper way to tackle" he said jovially.

Meredith laughed at Alex's antics; "Play nice Alex, we don't want anyone getting rush to the hospital, stow your wrestler instincts" she reminded her friend.

Alex threw Meredith a smirk; "I'm not the one you should be reminding Mer-it should be the jock football player who looks murderous" he said while gesturing towards Jackson who stormed towards the front.

"Make sure he doesn't tackle anyone too hard Karev, I need those hands!" Mark said with a grin.

Alex laughed as he follows his friend.

"We've garnered an impressive number here-9 dashing men! Dr. Kepner, aren't you the lucky one? Now boys, play nice, just catch the garter that Ben here is throwing, okay?"

April shifted her gaze towards the men that's standing right in front of her; she can't help but let out a sigh of relief upon seeing the familiar faces of her friends. She threw Alex a thankful smile before moving her gaze towards Jackson; she's still annoyed with him but seeing him standing up front, willing to wrestle these men to save her from further embarrassment-she can pretty much kiss him right now—garter or whatnot. She let out a small reconciliatory smile and made sure to squeeze in a little pleading look that says; "You have to catch that bloody garter even if you have to tackle them to the ground!"

Jackson felt April's eyes on him so he turned his gaze towards her; he understood the look she's throwing him so he sent her a comforting smile before moving his attention back on Ben.

April bit her lips nervously as she began fiddling with her bouquet; Oh god! Please let it be Jackson-or even Alex, this is super embarrassing, I didn't even notice that there are so many single men here! Damn it! I should've stayed inside the ladies room!" she thought to herself.

"Ben, please step in place, now you will throw the garter at a count of three, okay?"

Ben studied the men one by one before it landed on Jackson, he threw the Plastic Fellow a meaningful look; "Good luck gentlemen" he said with a large grin. He then turned around and squared his shoulders; "I'm ready" he said.

"One-Two-Three!"

Jackson was the first to leap into action; moving in lightning speed-even before the other men had the chance to budge from their perch. He caught the garter in one swift motion, lifting it with his hand in triumph, a large smile painted on his lips.

Alex's laughed loudly as he watches his friend.

Ben turned around and grinned widely; "Nice catch Jackson"

Jackson felt his cheeks flush when he realized that all eyes were on him; he slowly lowered his hand and cleared his throat.

"A dashing man and a beautiful woman-you two make a lovely pair. Dr. Kepner please join Dr. Jackson Avery here"

April bit her bottom lip to keep herself from grinning widely; she slowly made her way towards Jackson and stood beside him.

"We all know what will happen next, now—will the bride and groom please join us here"

Miranda and Ben walked towards the couple; she leaned forward and smirked widely at the couple. "Who would've thought that you two will end standing here with us? The host is right, you make a lovely pair" she teased.

April felt her cheeks flush; "Err-"

Jackson chuckled; "April and I are very competitive, we take things like this seriously, we had to win, Mercy Westers forever" he joked.

Ben smiled widely; "Mercy Westers forever!" he said before lifting his hand for a high five.

Jackson clapped the other man's hand.

Miranda rolled her eyes; "I forgot, you guys are the invaders"

"An invader you just married" Ben said before planting a kiss on Miranda's temple, making Miranda smile.

"They're too cute!" April gushed lowly.

Jackson turned towards April and smiled; "They're so in love"

"According to tradition, the pair who caught the bouquet and the garter will have to share a kiss and a dance like the newly wed. Now it will be up to the newly wed to decide what type of kiss and where it will be, so-please face each other, the stage is yours, show us some loving"

April felt her hear racing as she turned to face Jackson, grasping the bouquet tightly in her hands.

Jackson took a deep breath to calm his nerves; he knew that this will be the ramification of his action and it will definitely cross the friend zone boundary that April set but having another man kiss her? That's not an option either. He squared his shoulder and smiled at the red head standing right in front of her; "We can do this, it's just a kiss—we've done this before, I promise not to take advantage of you" he whispered.

April can't help but smile at Jackson's words; "I'm not afraid of kissing you Jackson and I know you'd never take advantage of me" she replied.

"Then why do you look so nervous?" Jackson asked lowly.

"I'm nervous because they're all looking at us" April whispered back.

"Oh."

"You love birds done talking?" Miranda snarked, making Ben laugh.

Jackson turned towards the General Surgeon; "Yeah-go on, let's get this show on the road" he said.

Miranda grinned widely; "Okay now," she said before turning towards her husband.

Ben winked at Jackson before wrapping his arm around Miranda's back securely; he then sweeps her off her feet and lowered her close to the ground before planting a sound kiss on her plump lips.

The whole room erupted with loud claps and cat calls, making April laugh nervously.

Ben pulled his lips away and helped Miranda stand to her feet.

"If that ain't a kiss then I don't know what it is! Now—let's give it up for our lovely pair, don't be shy! Kiss Kiss Kiss!"

"Go on Avery! Kiss Kepner like you mean it!" Alex yelled from their table.

Jackson shook his head at Alex's enthusiasm; "He's way drunk" he muttered.

"Make me proud boy!" Mark's voice echoed next.

"He's talking like a proud father, you got yourself a new father Jackman" April teased.

Jackson chuckled; he then took a step closer towards April and wrapped his arm around her waist. "You ready to show them what a real kiss looks like?" he asked playfully.

April smiled widely at Jackson before wrapping both of her arms around his neck; "Mercy Westers never disappoints, let's show them what we've got" she whispered.

Jackson smiled widely before sweeping her off her feet and lowering her to the ground, just like what Ben did. He then met April's eyes for a moment before closing his eyes and kissing April like his life depended on it.

A/N: I stand corrected, this is the longest chapter I ever wrote for this story, whew! Did I apply what you guys told me? I mean, I did need to use some of the scenes from the original episode just to follow the same time line. I stretched Bailey's wedding and due to popular demand, Stackson will never happen in this JAPRIL fic, HOWEVER I can't promise that there won't be other people involved (*wink wink*) It's Grey's Anatomy, nobody gets their ever after easily. LOL! So, tell me guys, did I do right this time? Let me know, I'm dying to hear from you! I haven't written the next chappy yet because I'm still contemplating on what song to use, any suggestions? And oh, I'm waiting for reviews as well—so hit on the review button and tell me what you think! Cheers!