A/N: So this idea came to me a while ago and I finally got around to posting it. I would recommend watching episode 8x13 either before or after reading this, and this universe is based on the extended DVD version so Jackson and Cristina are having a fling.
Other things I noted about the episode is that it seems like 8X13 Jackson is a little sweeter, a little softer, at least in my opinion. Also, it seemed as if all of the residents know about April being a virgin and that it's a conscious decision.
Also, is it just me or did Jesse Williams look even better than usual in that episode? Lol.
Disclaimer: I do not own this version of Grey's either.
Jackson rang the doorbell for the third time and impatiently tapped his foot on the front step. The lights were on inside so he knew that she was home. She couldn't ignore him forever and he was willing to wait. It was apparent that she had left the hospital very upset and he wasn't about to leave her alone for the night. Her best friend probably wasn't talking to her so she needed someone.
She didn't really have anyone else.
The front door finally opened and April poked her head out. "Jackson?" She called in confusion. "What are you doing here?"
Her eyes were red and puffy, and she seemed a little… "I thought you might like some company. April, are you drunk?"
"Maybe a little," she admitted sheepishly.
"But you don't drink," he countered with a puzzled tone and a furrowed brow.
She simply shrugged as she opened the door wide enough for him to enter her apartment. It was true that she didn't drink but she usually didn't sneak around with other people's boyfriends either.
She's been all about doing things that she didn't normally do lately, why not add one more?
"What have you been drinking?" He questioned in concern.
"Just beer."
Jackson looked towards her living room and saw that a few empty beer bottles littered her coffee table. At least she hadn't chosen to hit the harder stuff for her first venture into alcohol.
A wave of nausea hit her and she placed a hand on her head as she stumbled a little bit. "I don't feel so good," she muttered. "Wait here," she told Jackson.
He did as he was told as she rushed to her bathroom. He stood in the same spot for a few minutes before he got worried and impatient. "April! Are you okay?"
"Yeah!" She yelled back.
He removed his jacket and hung it on her coat rack before slowly walking towards her bathroom. "Did you get sick?"
"No," she answered. "This just feels nice."
Jackson stood in the doorway and looked down at her small form curled up on the floor. He couldn't help but smile a little; the cool tile must feel refreshing on her slightly heated face.
She glanced up at him and said, "It's okay, the bathroom is very clean."
He laughed softly as he took a seat on the floor next to her, leaning back against the bathtub. She was facing away from him so he reached a hand out and began to rub her back. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asked sensitively after a considerable silence.
They had once been close, back at Mercy West they had been very good friends. They had talked about virtually everything. Then their hospital had been absorbed by Seattle Grace and they had been forced to fight for their jobs. They had spent hours in the pit and the OR, and had worked endless overtime shifts, in an effort to impress attendings and prove that they were the best residents that Mercy West had to offer. They had been forced to prove that they deserved jobs at Seattle Grace, it had been "kill or be killed" and Jackson had hated it. Reed Adamson, one of their friends from Mercy West, hadn't made the cut and had moved across the country. The competitive, new environment hadn't been very conducive to spending a lot of time together and he and April had shown interest in two very different specialities and then she had bonded with Meredith Webber. They were still friends but not like they used to be. They had drifted apart.
After a long moment, April spoke. "My life is ruined. My best friend won't speak to me. Alex won't stop calling me." As if on cue, her cell phone in the pocket of her jeans began to ring. "Dr. Shepherd is apparently talking about quitting so I don't even know if I'll have a mentor anymore. Heck, I don't even know if I'll have a job in the morning. And God definitely hates me," she finished quietly.
Jackson began by addressing the one thing that was probably bothering her the most. April's feelings about religion were not a secret. There was a reason why she made the conscious decision not to have sex and why Yang maliciously referred to her as the Virgin Mary. "You spend every day saving babies, I think that God can forgive you for this," he said as he continued to rub her back.
"I hope so," she murmured. "What about my job? Do you think that Dr. Grey will fire me?"
The motto around Seattle Grace Hospital was "whatever Ellis Grey wants" and April had just broken up her daughter's engagement, so he wasn't entirely sure what the Chief of Surgery would do. She had just fired Mandy Bailey for personal reasons. Ellis Grey was brilliant but cold and harsh.
"If she's smart she won't, you're a great doctor," he finally responded.
"Thank you Jackson," she replied gratefully. He was making her feel a little better about herself.
Her phone rang again and Jackson glared at it angrily. From their very first meeting he had detested Alex Karev. He had always felt that the guy's cheerful, brown-nosing demeanour was all an act. The guy was just willing to do whatever he could to get into the Chief's good books, including dating her daughter. "What does he want?"
April sat up and pulled her phone out of her pocket. After some internal debate, she decided to turn her phone off. The desire to pick up and talk to him was very strong but her friendship with Meredith was more important to her and if she wanted to repair that relationship than she couldn't talk to Alex right now, possibly ever again. Also, she didn't want to set herself up for more heartache. No one in their right mind would choose her over Meredith Webber.
Jackson watched the feelings of conflict that were clearly written across the red-head's face. She had feelings for the guy, he almost couldn't believe it. "Did you two…I mean, did you—"
She raised her head and quickly interrupted him. "No, we didn't! We never had sex," she added in a lower voice. They had just made out…fairly passionately.
"Oh." That almost made everything even more complicated in Jackson's mind. What kind of guy cheated on his fiancé but didn't even have sex with the other woman? Maybe Karev had feelings for April too. "How did it happen? For how long? Why?" He fired questions at her rapidly. His curiosity was just too much to handle.
She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Only for a couple of weeks," she revealed. This was obviously the first time that she had talked to someone about her relationship with Alex Karev and she would most likely be a little more candid due to the alcohol in her system. "I'm not even sure how it started. One night we were both working the night shift in the ER. I went to the supply closet to get some stuff and I turned around and he was there and it just happened. I barely even remember it." She and Alex were good friends, it was impossible for them not to be with all of the time that they spent with Meredith, and she supposed that somewhere along the line she had developed a crush on him. She hadn't given it much thought because of Meredith but then they had kissed for the first time and all of her morals had just flown out the window. Her primal desires had completely overwhelmed her. He made her feel like no other man ever had. She met Jackson's eyes and her face flushed in embarrassment. "He made me feel desirable, that doesn't happen to me a lot, and it was nice so I didn't think about anything else. So selfish."
Jackson frowned to himself. It also wasn't a secret that April was scared that she would spend her whole life alone, which he thought was ridiculous. She was insecure but she definitely didn't need to settle for scum like Karev. "April, the guy who gets you is gonna be the luckiest guy in the world."
"Knock it off," she said as tears pricked the back of her eyes. "I'm drunk, not stupid."
"It's true," he replied after a small laugh. "And you definitely don't deserve to be used by Alex Karev."
"We kinda used each other," she protested.
"Whatever." Her tears started to fall and he moved his hand to rub her knee. "Come on, don't cry. Things will get worse before they get better but people turn things around all the time." He had said the same thing today to a patient, hoping to inspire her. It hadn't worked on OD girl but maybe it would help April.
After a moment she murmured, "You don't deserve to be used either." His eyes reflexively widened and she smiled. "I'm much more perceptive then people give me credit for."
Jackson smiled back at her as he considered her words. He had thought that his arrangement, or whatever it was, it certainly wasn't a relationship; with Cristina Yang was a well-kept secret. Apparently he was wrong. He wondered who else knew about them.
"Maybe I should finally go out with Charles," April pondered aloud. "He couldn't even look at me though after…I don't know how I'm supposed to show my face tomorrow." She just knew that she would be the center of the gossip and she couldn't imagine handling that situation well.
Jackson smiled softly. "You got me, remember?"
"Yeah?" She asked with a small smile.
"Yeah," he confirmed. "Me and you…like old times."
Her smile widened and she repeated his words. "Me and you."
Those three little words were more of a comfort to her than anything else she could envision. No matter what happened, at least they had each other.
A/N: What do you think? Should I turn this into a multiple chapter fic? Leave a review! :)