The Seattle skyline was painted with the soft hues of twilight as Jo Wilson sat in her car, hands gripping the steering wheel, staring out at the familiar sight of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. It had been a long day—longer than most—and the emotional weight of everything that had transpired felt like a lead blanket draped over her shoulders. As a surgeon, she was used to long hours, exhaustion, and making impossible decisions, but lately, something else had been gnawing at her—something much more personal. And that something had a name: Alex Karev.

She exhaled slowly, trying to clear her head. "King of my heart, body and soul…" Taylor Swift's lyrics from "King of My Heart" whispered through her mind, and Jo couldn't help but smirk at the irony. For the longest time, she had told herself that her feelings for Alex were manageable, that she could keep them in check and focus on her career. But lately, it was becoming harder and harder to deny what was happening between them.

The man she once thought was too broken, too difficult to love, had somehow carved out a place in her heart that was impossible to ignore. She had been hurt before—more times than she cared to admit—but with Alex, it was different. He was her person, the one she trusted, the one who saw her for who she truly was.

Her phone buzzed on the passenger seat, pulling her out of her thoughts. It was a text from Alex:

Alex: "You coming in, or are you gonna sit out there and think about how great I am all night?"

Jo smiled, rolling her eyes as she texted back:

Jo: "I was actually thinking about how annoying you are. Be right there."

She grabbed her bag and stepped out of the car, the cool Seattle air hitting her as she made her way inside the hospital. It wasn't just another shift—it was another night spent with the person who had, without her even realizing it, become the most important part of her life.


Inside the hospital, Alex was standing at the nurse's station, his back to her as he reviewed a patient's chart. Jo's heart did a little flip as she watched him for a moment, the familiar sight of him in his scrubs making her feel both comforted and anxious. She hadn't told him how she truly felt—at least not in the way she wanted to. There was always something in the way: work, life, fear.

"Stop staring at me," Alex said without looking up, his lips curling into a smirk.

Jo laughed, walking over to stand next to him. "I wasn't staring. I was just… observing."

Alex raised an eyebrow, still not looking up from his chart. "Right. Observing how amazing I am, I'm sure."

Jo leaned against the counter, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Don't flatter yourself, Karev. I see you're as humble as ever."

He finally looked up, meeting her gaze, and his smirk softened into something more genuine. "You know, you don't have to hide it. I'm pretty great, and you're lucky to have me around."

Jo rolled her eyes, but her smile remained. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever helps you sleep at night."

Alex closed the chart and leaned against the counter next to her, their arms brushing against each other. There was a familiar, easy banter between them—one that had developed over the years, but underneath it was something deeper, something they both knew was there but rarely acknowledged.

"So," Alex said, glancing over at her, "you coming over tonight?"

Jo felt her pulse quicken at the casualness of his question. It wasn't the first time he'd asked her, but each time it felt like it meant something more. She hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I'll come over."


Later that night, Jo sat on Alex's couch, her feet tucked underneath her as she watched him move around the kitchen, preparing a late-night snack. The sound of the city hummed faintly outside the window, but inside, it was warm and comfortable. This—this quiet, simple moment—was what she loved most about being with Alex. He didn't need grand gestures or elaborate plans. He was just… him. And that was enough.

"You know," Jo said, her voice breaking the comfortable silence, "I think you've gotten a little too good at this whole domestic thing. You're starting to remind me of an old married man."

Alex snorted, setting a plate of food on the coffee table in front of her. "Yeah, well, being married once will do that to you."

Jo's smile faltered slightly at the mention of his past marriage. It wasn't something they talked about much, but it was always there—lingering in the background. She didn't push, though. She knew how complicated things were for Alex, just like they were for her.

Alex sat down next to her, close enough that their legs were touching, but not so close that it felt forced. He picked up the remote and flipped through the channels absentmindedly before settling on an old movie. For a few minutes, they watched in comfortable silence, the tension from the day slowly melting away.

But Jo couldn't ignore the weight in her chest any longer. She needed to say something—something real.

"Alex," she said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper.

He turned to her, his eyes soft but questioning. "Yeah?"

Jo bit her lip, suddenly feeling nervous. She hadn't expected this to be so hard. "I just… I've been thinking a lot lately. About us."

Alex's brow furrowed slightly, and he set the remote down, giving her his full attention. "Okay. What about us?"

Jo took a deep breath, her heart racing. "I know we joke around a lot, and we keep things light, but… you mean more to me than I think I've let on. And I'm scared, because I don't know what this is. But I know that I don't want to lose it."

Alex blinked, his expression softening as he processed her words. For a moment, he didn't say anything, and Jo's heart sank, fearing that she had made a mistake by saying too much.

But then he reached out, gently taking her hand in his. "Jo," he said softly, his voice steady, "I'm not good at this—talking about feelings and all that crap. But you… you're everything to me. I don't say it enough, and I don't show it like I should, but you've changed me. And I don't want to lose you, either."

Jo felt her throat tighten, a wave of emotion washing over her. She had always been afraid to fully open up to Alex, to let him see the parts of her that were broken and scarred. But hearing him say those words—knowing that he felt the same way—made her realize just how much she had been holding back.

"Alex," she whispered, her voice shaky, "you've been through so much, and I get why you're guarded. But I'm not going anywhere. Not now. Not ever."

Alex looked into her eyes, the vulnerability in his gaze matching her own. "You mean that?"

Jo nodded, a small smile tugging at her lips. "I mean it. I'm all in."

Alex exhaled, the tension in his shoulders easing as he leaned in, pressing his forehead against hers. "Good. Because I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."

Jo's heart swelled, and in that moment, everything else seemed to fade away. The hospital, the stress, the uncertainty of their lives—it all disappeared, leaving just the two of them in this quiet, perfect moment.


A few hours later, they were lying together on the couch, wrapped up in each other. Jo's head rested on Alex's chest, his arm draped around her protectively. The movie they had been watching played softly in the background, but neither of them was paying much attention to it.

As Jo traced lazy circles on Alex's chest, she couldn't help but think of the lyrics that had been running through her mind earlier: "And all at once, you are the one I have been waiting for..." It felt like that—like she had been waiting for this kind of love her whole life, and now that she had found it, she wasn't about to let it go.

Alex's voice broke through her thoughts. "You know, I've been thinking too."

Jo tilted her head to look up at him, a playful smirk on her lips. "About how great I am?"

Alex chuckled, shaking his head. "Yeah, something like that. But seriously, I've been thinking about the future. About us. I want this—whatever this is—to be real. I want us to be real."

Jo's heart skipped a beat, her smile widening. "We are real, Alex. As real as it gets."

He nodded, his eyes filled with a softness that made her stomach flutter. "Good. Because I'm in this with you, Jo. All the way."

Jo leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. "Me too," she whispered against him, her heart full.

As they lay there together, the world outside their little bubble seemed far away, and for the first time in a long time, Jo felt truly content. She wasn't sure what the future held, but for now, she had Alex. And that was enough.

He was the king of her heart.