Here's the Mercy West fic some of you guys have been waiting for! I did take a few excerpts from my B&H chapter because I didn't feel like rewriting some stuff lol, but there are some things in this first chapter that are different. Since it'll be multichapter the pacing will obviously be slower with more time for build up.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Grey's or its characters ;)

Take a deep breath. Everything will be alright.

April Kepner had been telling herself that phrase since she woke up in her bed. Her first day as a surgical intern was finally here. She was a small town girl. Grew up on a farm, used her brains to earn herself a free ride through college and medical school. Becoming a doctor felt almost surreal. She had never been one to stand out in the crowd. Her three sisters didn't have trouble becoming popular. They always stood out to people easily, but that wasn't the case for her. After she graduated from medical school, the miniscule town of Moline noticed. Her father bragged to every person he knew that his second daughter was a doctor. It was like she was a celebrity… for a month.

Despite being an overachiever, she always felt invisible. And she felt even more invisible after moving to Seattle. No friends or family in the area. She didn't know a single soul. It was her first time living outside of Ohio. She had attended the University of Akron, which was only two hours away from Moline. The choice to move across the country was difficult, but she wanted to branch out and make a name for herself in a new environment.

But making friends wasn't one of her strongest assets. Her social skills with her professors were fine. In fact, she could talk for hours with them about medicine. When it came to speaking to her peers she lost her voice. She constantly worried about people judging her or not accepting her that it made her socially awkward. And she didn't have much of a filter, often saying things without thinking about them first. It also typically took a while for people to warm up to her perkiness.

She stood alone in the fourth floor lobby of the surgical wing. Her resident for the year asked her group to meet with her at exactly 9 AM. April arrived ten minutes early. The day before, she mapped out the entire surgical wing in her red notebook, which she always carried around with her. She didn't want to get lost on her first day. Bad first impression. Getting on her resident's good side was a must.

And the overachiever in her did research on her resident ahead of time. Her name was Valerie Swanson, a third year resident, but treated like a fifth year. Already published six articles, including one during her intern year. Graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. She was a driven surgeon, planning to specialize in cardiothoracic surgery. Driven, but a good teacher, according to reviews she managed to find on the Internet. Cardio wasn't April's interest. She wanted to become a neurosurgeon, but she was looking forward to learning from Swanson anyway.

Checking her watch again, it was nine o'clock, but nobody in her group had arrived and neither did Dr. Swanson. Was she at the wrong meeting place? She frantically opened her red notebook, double checking her notes to ensure she was waiting in the correct lobby.

"Ah, one guppy is here, but where are the other four?" the voice of Swanson greeted her, hands on her hips. She had her blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. About the same height as April. "Where are my other guppies?"

"I-I… I don't know. I haven't met them yet, I think," April nervously responded. She cleared her throat, put on her brightest smile and held out her hand. "Dr. April Kepner. I'm very excited to meet you, Dr. Swanson. I've heard so much about your work."

Swanson firmly shook April's hand and smiled. "Nice meeting you, Dr. Kepner. Thank you for arriving on time. Shows you're a dedicated worker," she complimented. "Where did you graduate from?"

"University of Akron. Well, for the program I was accepted in, I completed my bachelor's on the Akron campus in two years, then I received my medical degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University in four. It's a very exclusive program and I consider myself to be extremely lucky to have gotten in," she proudly stated with a grin on her face.

"Yes, I've heard of NEOMED. I graduated from an Ivy League school-"

"Columbia University," April chirped. She sheepishly smiled, biting down on her lower lip. "I'm sorry. I… I wanted to get to know you better and did some research about your background."

Swanson waved her hand and laughed. "No, it's alright. I like interns who care about who they're working with. Trust me, I've had my share of duds since I started working here. Anyway, as I was saying, I find NEOMED just as impressive as an Ivy League. Only 35 admitted into that accelerated program a year, right?"

"Yes. I'm from a very small farm town. An academic scholarship is what helped me attend Akron and NEOMED in the first place," she continued. "I wanted to go to Harvard, but I couldn't afford it."

"Harvard Schmarvard," the resident scoffed, smirking at April. "They may be at the top of the list of medical schools, but I always believed in choosing my own destiny. Everyone wants to go to Harvard. So, I chose Columbia and I must say, I had a very enjoyable learning experience there. I bet you can say the same for Akron. Besides, the school you attend isn't what makes you a good surgeon. You become a good surgeon with hard work and learning on the job."

April took a quick break from writing notes in her red notebook, pointing her pen at Swanson. "I wholeheartedly agree."

"Where the hell are my other interns?" she impatiently asked herself as she checked her watch. "Tardiness is one of my pet peeves. Keep this in mind, Kepner. I'm willing to teach you guys in a polite and stress free matter, but when you're late or slacking off I won't hesitate to unleash the hard ass side of me."

"Polite, but a hard ass. Got it," the brunette intern noted, also keeping that in mind in her red notebook.

Swanson amusingly watched April jot down notes at a fast pace. "You know, you don't need to write down everything I say. The medical information is more important."

"Oh, but I just want to have little reminders about certain things. I feel more comfortable doing this because it allows me to track back if I forget something. I mean, I also keep mental notes in my head, but my notebook can definitely hold information better than I can-"

"You're rambling," she interrupted her before she turned around on her heel and gestured her hand to follow her. "Alright, now that I've met you, Dr. Kepner, let's go find my other guppies."

"We're in the wrong lobby, Charlie! I told you it was the fourth floor!" Reed Adamson scolded her fellow intern, slapping his shoulder hard. "This is why you need to listen to me more."

Standing nearby was Jackson Avery. As the grandson of a very well-known cardiothoracic surgeon, he absolutely hated the fact that he was late on his first day – and on a 48-hour shift. He thought maybe he should have listened to his mother and stayed home in Boston because his newborn career as a surgeon was already beginning on a bad note.

The Avery's were a household name in the surgical world. His grandfather, Harper Avery, had an award named after him. All of his immediate family members followed his path into surgery. His parents met at Harvard Medical School. His two older sisters, as well as himself, attended Harvard for their undergraduate studies and medical school. Samantha and Joslyn Avery were currently residents at Massachusetts General Hospital – Mass Gen for short. Catherine Avery was an attending urologist at The Brigham. Harper Avery Jr. was… no longer a surgeon. Burned out. Gave up his career and left Boston when Jackson was in high school. He wasn't sure what happened to him.

And he was supposed to follow his family's footsteps and join the Mass Gen tradition. His grandfather had been reserving a place for him since he started medical school. Nobody in his family actually pushed him to become a doctor like his sisters. He was the pretty boy. They didn't believe he had what it took to become great like them.

So he pushed himself. He aced his MCATs and never told his family about sitting down for them until after the fact. Once they realized he was serious about becoming a surgeon, that was when the pressure started to pile on. He thought the pressure wouldn't be as suffocating if he chose a different route. He wanted to build his own legacy without his grandfather and his mother doing it for him. Mercy West was far, very far from Mass Gen and Boston. It was perfect.

But he wanted to be a leader and so far, he was a lousy follower. He and the other three interns with him were late to meet Swanson. And as soon as she knew who he was, he was going to get a ton of crap for it. The Avery name was already slowly spreading around the hospital. Yes, an Avery at Mercy West was a big deal because Mass Gen was their royal castle.

"All of the lobbies look the same!" Charles Percy argued. "I bet she got lost too."

"You are an idiot," Reed bluntly said, shaking her head disappointedly. "After four years of knowing you, you're still pretty dense. I don't understand how you made it through medical school."

From the vague information Jackson learned from his peers, Charles and Reed attended medical school together at the University of Washington. He was slightly taller than him with thick black hair. She appeared petite beside him, her long brown hair swaying around every time she yelled at him. Sort of had an attitude. Charles hailed from Houston and Reed was from San Diego. That was all he knew about them.

Then there was another male intern with them who quietly observed the two friends' banter. His name was Trevor Stanley. He had short, spiky brown hair and a smile that could give Jackson some competition with the ladies. Originally from Salt Lake City. He received his medical degree from UCLA. Seemed like a nice person, although he appeared to be checking out Jackson every once in a while. Obviously feeling threatened by the presence of an Avery, he thought.

Arguing over which lobby they were supposed to meet their resident in, Jackson waved his arms to shut up Charles and Reed. "Whoa, whoa! Okay, let's stop and calm down. We're already late, so how about we just go upstairs to the fourth floor and see if Dr. Swanson's there?" he suggested.

Charles pointed at Jackson and grinned at Reed. "You see? Leave it to an Avery to make sense."

"And that's probably the 45th time since I met you an hour ago that you've made a reference to my family name," he irritably said, adding an eye roll. "Seriously, just stop with the Avery crap. I want to lay low for at least a day."

"Not gonna happen, Avery," Charles replied and chuckled. He and the others followed Jackson to the closest elevator. "It's not often an Avery passes up Mass Gen for another hospital. Actually, has it ever happened?"

"Not to my knowledge, no," he muttered. He had a feeling this Percy dude would drive him nuts all year. "Just… keep your mouth shut about my last name for the rest of the day. I'd like to blend in with everyone for a change."

"You four are late," Swanson sternly greeted the four tardy interns in the hallway, tightening her blonde ponytail. "Unacceptable. Where were you four when Dr. Kepner met me in the lobby?"

"Well, you see… we thought you meant the main lobby on the ground floor," Charles insisted, flashing a grin at Swanson, who stared back at him unamused. "Did I forget to mention I attended your lectures at U-Dub?"

The resident rolled her eyes and pushed her way past the foursome. "Follow me, guppies. By the way, you four will be on scut during your first 48-hour shift. Because Dr. Kepner was on time, she has the special privilege of scrubbing in with me when I assist Dr. Martin on his heart valve replacement procedure."

April raised both of her eyebrows as she smiled again. "Wow. Thank you, Dr. Swanson. I promise you won't regret your decision," she excitedly said before she jotted down notes in her notebook.

Reed rolled her eyes and smirked at Charles. "We got a pet. Fabulous."

Jackson overheard her comment and glanced over at April. Maybe she was a pet, maybe she wasn't. How could anyone come to that conclusion after a 30-second encounter? She appeared average, not exactly a bombshell. After closing her red notebook, she made eye contact with him. He slightly smiled, informally greeting her. She shyly smiled back before she followed Swanson down the hallway. It signaled the rest of them to do the same thing.

"Welcome to your first day as surgical interns at Mercy West. Here at Mercy West, we take pride in educating and transforming you all into successful surgeons. Right now, you are infants. When you complete your residency you will either stay at or leave this hospital as board certified adults," Swanson explained. "While we have our occasional share of flunkies just like any other teaching hospital, as educators, we want to help you reach your full potential and more. Nobody gets left behind unless you choose to drop out of our program, but trust me. This is one of the best teaching hospitals in the state and perhaps, the entire country. Disregard what they say about Seattle Grace. Mercy West is the place to be."

April raised her hand. "Umm, excuse me, but I heard one intern will be chosen to scrub in for their first ever solo. When will that happen?"

"When the first angry appendix arrives at our hospital," she quipped. "Unfortunately, I don't make that selection. One of the attendings will, so be alert and prepared. If you're chosen, make sure you don't botch the surgery. You'll never live it down if you do."

"So, uhh… when will we have time to sleep in these next 48 hours?" Charles asked curiously.

Swanson stopped in her tracks, spinning around as the five interns collided into each other. "You've been on my service for less than a minute and you're already asking me when you'll get to sleep?" she asked appalled. "You five are interns. Sleep is what I get to do while I'm babysitting your little guppy asses. Get all of your work done early, then you can sleep, but trust me – that won't be happening. Anybody else have irrelevant questions to ask me?"

The fivesome remained silent. Pissing off their resident on their first day wasn't the best way to go.

"Okay, let's continue on then."

Reed slapped Charles' chest with the back of her hand and with a scowl on her face. "Thanks to you, we probably just got crapped on with even more scut," she harshly whispered.

April looked over her shoulder as they walked a foot away from Swanson. "She's really nice when you're not slacking," she pointed out.

"Oh, joy! Good to know," Reed sarcastically replied with a fake smile. "And you are?"

"April Kepner, nice to meet you," she introduced herself, extending her hand out to Reed. Her fellow intern simply gazed down at her hand. She nervously laughed and lowered her hand. "I get it. First day jitters, but isn't it exhilarating? We're going to be surgeons. Like, somebody pinch me. Oww!"

Charles chuckled after he reached out and pinched April's ass. "Want me to do it again?"

"Knock it off. You already made us look incompetent in front of Swanson," Jackson scolded him.

"The slower you five walk, the more time I'm wasting as an educator," Swanson sneered. She waved her hand at them as she stood in front of the entrance of an OR. "Faster, guppies!"

And on cue, the five interns hustled towards their resident, stopping a foot away from her. Before heading off to their assigned patients, they were going to get a quick tour of the various OR's, so they could acquaint themselves with the unfamiliar facilities.

Swanson gestured her hand towards the OR's entrance. "This is OR 1," she said, pushing open the door with her foot. "Have a look inside, familiarize yourselves with where everything is and we'll do the same with the other rooms because they're not all the same."

Jackson was the last person to walk inside. Growing up in a family of surgeons, he had seen many OR's via free tours or by watching his parents operate from the gallery. One day, he was going to be digging his hands inside of a patient in that particular OR. He wasn't going to be just a bystander anymore. In seven years he would be Jackson Avery, cardio god.

He watched April write in her red notebook as she scanned the OR. She must have been mapping it out on paper based on her curious facial expressions and the fact that she was silently talking to herself. They made eye contact yet again, but she was quick to turn away and focus on memorizing where everything was in the OR.

"You know, we're not getting tested for this," he joked as he approached her. "Besides, we won't be the one getting the supplies ready."

"I know. I just… like being prepared and organized," she reluctantly answered.

Her back was facing Jackson and she was afraid to turn around and face him. From the moment she saw him, butterflies exploded in her stomach. He was a very handsome man and his smile made her legs grow weak. And guys like him hardly noticed girls like her. He was simply being polite, she thought. It was the first day on the job after all.

He walked around her, holding out his hand. "I'm Jackson Avery," he introduced himself.

Avery. She had heard of that name before. It was a famous name. "Like Catherine Avery?"

Jackson softly chuckled. "Yeah. She's my mother. Normally, people automatically associate my name with my grandfather. You know, the Harper Avery Award and stuff," he replied, rolling his eyes. "I'm not trying to brag. I hate it when people do that, to be honest. But you're the first person that I've met who mentioned my mother first."

"Oh, I used some of her articles for research in medical school. That's how I know her name," she responded as she wrote notes again. She struggled making eye contact with him, fearing she would eventually say something embarrassing instead. "I, umm… I heard they breed Avery's at Mass Gen. Why aren't you there?"

"I didn't want to deal with the pressure. It's not easy being an Avery," he said, scratching the back of his shaved head. "My sisters think I'm crazy for passing up Mass Gen, but they've been kissing my grandfather's ass since they were kids, so that place is like heaven for them."

"Being an outsider has its perks, I guess," April murmured. "Not that I think you're an outsider in general. I'm sure you have ten times the number of friends I have. I… I'm not good at making friends."

Jackson smirked at her. "Well, the first step at making friends is to make eye contact with them," he quipped. "Don't worry, I won't turn you into stone. I'm relatively harmless."

Slowly raising her head, April's eyes directly stared into his. He had beautiful eyes. A hint of blue mixed with green. She had never seen such gorgeous eyes before. He smiled at her, which only made her even more nervous around him. As cheesy as it sounded in her head, he appeared to be the perfect man she envisioned meeting one day.

But she quickly brought herself back down to Earth and already came to the conclusion that it was impossible for her, Plain Jane, to be with a guy like him, Hotty Toddy. He would soon learn why she had difficulty making and sustaining friends. She wasn't awful, but her social skills lacked flair and her perkiness often turned people off.

Swanson disrupted their conversation when she ordered them out of the OR, so they could continue their tour.

Closing her red notebook and tightly holding it against her chest, April bashfully smiled at Jackson. "It-it's nice to meet you, Jackson. Hopefully, we'll survive the year. I heard a lot of people don't," she informed him before she swiftly walked away from him.

He quietly laughed to himself when she left the OR. She definitely was socially awkward, but he thought she could be a decent friend. Charles and Reed seemed to already pride themselves for being in the same intern group as an Avery, while Trevor barely said a word to him and mostly gave him uncomfortable stares. April wasn't the type of girl he usually hung out with in Boston, but she was kind. Awkward, but kind. He wanted friends who didn't turn his name into a drinking game or asked him millions of questions about his grandfather.

She could very well be that friend.

As he headed for the exit, Swanson pressed her hand against Jackson's chest and stopped him. "Dr. Avery," she said, raising her eyebrow with a smirk on her face. "I'll be keeping a close eye on you."

Jackson took a deep breath after the blonde third year left him alone. "Great," he muttered to himself. Of course he would be receiving special treatment even if he didn't want it.

He was an Avery. It was impossible to walk around a hospital unnoticed, especially with his name stitched on his lab coat. Whatever. He had gone through medical school hearing everybody kiss his ass or give him a hard time because of his family name. All he could do was roll with it.

I don't have a set schedule for this story because I'm working on two fics at the same time, but I'll try to update every week. Anyway, leave a review and let me know what you think please :)