AU: Jackson confides in Charles about San Francisco.
He needs to talk to someone.
He's feeling so many emotions right now - some he's not even sure about, or sure if he should be feeling, but he knows that he needs to get off his chest - especially after his awkward ramblings to Mark and their patient didn't go anywhere. He'd hoped his mentor would at least be able to offer some advice, but then again, he still hadn't told Lexie how he felt, so maybe he wasn't the best person to turn to.
The only other person he could think to talk to was Charles, who wasn't exactly smooth with women himself (despite the fact he was currently rambling about how passing his boards meant he'd finally get a girlfriend), but he knew both him and April. Maybe that was good enough here.
Taking a large gulp of his beer, Jackson tries to soften his angry face, before blurting out, "I slept with April. Or...she slept with me, I don't know. Either way, it happened, and it's messing with my head."
Charles doesn't immediately response, causing Jackson to look at him for a moment.
"Oh man, so you've somehow slept with Kepner, someone you wasn't even interested in, and yet here I am, still trying to make progress with Reed? How the hell is that fair?"
Seriously? This wasn't exactly the kind of guidance he was looking for.
"Can we not make this about you and Reed? I've been telling you for ages to just man up and tell her how you feel. If she rejects you, she rejects you, and you move on. You'll still be friends," Jackson sighs, "Look, I don't know what to do here. I...think I like her, but I feel like she regrets it."
"Easy for you to say. You have women practically falling at your feet without any effort," He scoffs, "Anyway, maybe you should take your own advice here. Tell her how you feel, if she rejects you, you'll still be friends."
There's a comfortable silence for a moment as Jackson contemplates it. Would it really be that easy? April seemed so conflicted about what had happened with breaking her promise to Jesus, and the last thing he wanted was to make her feel more uncomfortable or potentially resent him for it, but at the same time, he wasn't sure that he could just go back to seeing her as a friend. It wasn't the same as Charles and his seemingly one-sided (and never-ending) crush on Reed. They'd actually been intimate, and he didn't want to forget or stop doing that now that he'd experienced it.
Its Charles who suddenly breaks the silence, causing Jackson to jump a bit, "Oh! You could ask Reed, ya know, see if April's said anything about it. Chicks always talk to each other about that sort of stuff. Hey, while you do, maybe you could even put in a good word for me, huh?"
Jackson closes his eyes for a moment, letting out a long exhale through his nose. It was going to be a long night.