Alex was sleeping soundly when the phone rang. He stirred. "Jo, will you get it?"

"Okay." Jo also woke from a sound sleep. She didn't get the phone until the fourth try. "Alex, it's for you."

"Who is it?"

"She says she's a nurse and she needs to speak with you."

"Okay," said Alex, thinking it was a nurse at Seattle Grace.

"Is this Alex Karev?
"Yes.."

"I'm Nurse Nancy Oliver at UC San Diego Hospital."

Alex woke up 100%. He didn't know why someone was calling from San Diego, but it was unlikely to be good. "And why are you calling me?"

"You were listed as the emergency contact for Meredith Grey."

Alex's heart started to pound. A medical emergency and Meredith Grey was not a good combination. "How is she?" he asked nervously.

"She is in surgery now."

"Surgery?" Jo looked at him, puzzled at the turn the conversation was taking. It didn't sound like a work call.

"She's having an emergency c-section. It would be great if you could get here as soon as possible. She needs some help with her children."

"A c-section?" Alex was astounded. He had been worried about Meredith since he had read her note, actually since she walked into the hospital and announced that Derek had died and then fainted. But he never dreamed that she could be pregnant.

"Yes."

"I'll take the first flight. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"That's great. We have the children in our 24 hour day care center."

"Okay. Thank you for calling. Can you call back when she's out of surgery?"

"Will do."

Alex looked at Jo.

"What was that about?"

"Meredith. She's in surgery in San Diego. She's having a baby."

"A baby?"

"Yes, I guess Derek knocked her up before he died. So she's having his baby. And being Meredith, she's having a medical emergency, so she's in surgery. So I'm going to take the first flight out."

He went on line and booked a flight. "I'm leaving at 7 a.m. I'll see how things are going. I may stay for a few days. I'll call Hunt in the morning, but it shouldn't be a problem."

"No, she needs you," said Jo.

"I know you've been jealous of her."

"No, not since Dr. Shepherd died. And having his baby without him, that's very sad."

"Her child is going to be loved. I hope she'll come back, and we can all help."

"Maybe you should call Amelia and Maggie."

"Not at 3 a.m. But it's a good idea. I'll call Owen first . Although I think we should keep this pretty quiet. Let's just tell Meredith's closest friends. I'll tell Arizona if she's up before I leave. I'll leave at 5 a.m. You can tell Callie, Bailey, and Richard. I can call from the airport. It would be nice to get the house ready for a new baby. Derek wanted a houseful."

"It's so sad that he'll never see this baby."
"I know. Meredith's leaving makes more sense now. I guess I'm not going to get back to bed. But you should. You have work tomorrow. "

Alex packed his clothes and toiletries and then went downstairs. He wanted Jo to sleep, so he started packing some reading material. He made coffee and had some breakfast, and then he headed out to the airport. He drove carefully, thinking of Derek, who died en route to the airport. He imagined it must have been tough for Meredith to fly to San Diego with her children. After he checked in, he called Hunt.

"Good morning, Owen, Karev here."

"It's awfully early to be calling."

"I need to take leave for up to a week."

"Why?"

"Meredith needs me."

"You heard from her."

"Not exactly. I'm her emergency contact. I think she's going to be fine," Alex assured Owen.

"Think? What's wrong with her?"

"She had a c-section."

"C-section?"

"Apparently, she was pregnant when she left. Anyway, I haven't spoken to her, just the nurse, and I'm leaving now. So I need some time off. I'll have a better sense after I speak with her."

"Go ahead. Take all the time you need. Should I tell Amelia?"

"Sure. That would be great. I don't know Meredith's plans, so we should probably limit it to those close to her. I don't want to be violating her privacy."

"Sure. Let her know that we all want her back here."
"Don't worry about that. My goal is to get her to come home. It's a good sign that she listed me as her emergency contact."