Chapter 9

Jo was going to run. She packed up a few clothes, got in her car and started to drive. Where to? No family. One friend in LA who had two kids and was getting a divorce. No, no one to run to. Not one single damn person.

She made a u-turn and headed back to her place. Tears, real ones, were streaming down her face. Her hands shaking uncontrollably on the steering wheel. What the hell am I going to do? She sat in her car for ten minutes just sobbing, desperate for it all to go away. Her phone was vibrating in her pocket.

Meredith Grey.

Jo wiped her face and nose with the back of her shirt. Took a deep breath and vowed those would be the last tears she shed about this. Period. Another deep breath.

"Hello?" Why would Meredith be calling her? Crap. Alex. He was in the hospital again? Please let him be okay, she thought.

"Hey, princess. Sorry I haven't called, but Zo broke her freakin' arm at the recital. A huge kid, I think in high school, real linebacker, tackled her..." He went on and on, explaining the lost phone, the gifted performance by Zo, how tough she was...

"Alex, can I come over? I think I might be arrested."

Alex explained to Meredith that he needed some time alone with Jo. He silently cursed himself for not being there for her last night, for losing his phone. He'd said so much and followed through on none of it.

"The police might even arrest her? You believe that? Dr. Douche gets physical and she might get arrested!"

"She did give him a brain bleed," piped in Cristina from outside the door.

"And almost kill him," added Meredith.

"You know what I mean! If you're a dude, you just don't touch a woman, ever!" Alex tried to explain Jo's side hoping to garner a little support.

"You don't touch women?" asked Cristina with an utterly confused look on her face.

"Do you touch men?" asked Meredith innocently.

"Yeah, how does that work, Karev? Without touching." Yang looked at her friend and both erupted into hysterics.

"Grow up!" yelled Alex only making the duo laugh even harder.

"Frat boy told us to grow...to grow...UP!" Cristina was kneeling over, shaking with laughter.

Meredith was trying to catch her breath and speak. It was a losing battle.

Finally she gained a little composure. "Don't sweat it Alex. We're taking Zo for ice cream. She's going stir crazy and has to get out of here. The place is yours for a few hours."

"Just remember your no touching rule because I don't want you screwing up all my hard work. Take it easy," demanded Cristina.

"Did you just say 'screw up' your work?" asked Meredith beginning a whole new fit of laughter. She went over to Alex and kissed the scowl off his forehead rubbing his arm, all the while trying to hold in the giggles.

"I'm serious. You're keeping your ass in this bed. You're drinking plenty of water," Cristina said pointing to a pitcher by his bed. "You are going to try to eat some of this," she continued pointing to the array of pudding and jello on the nightstand.

"We'll be back in two hours."

Jo arrived five minutes after they left. She let herself in.

"Come here," said Alex reaching out his arm. She went to his side joining him on the bed. She didn't say anything, looking at his face.

He didn't need this right now. The dark circles under his eyes showed how truly worn out he was. His first full day out of the hospital was spent at a manic dance recital then at the emergency room worried about a three-year-old.

His cheeks were sunken in so deep, his weight loss most noticeable in his face. Everything else covered up. Jo imagined his ribs were showing also.

She clung to his arm and lay right next to him, pressing her body as close as she could without hurting him. She had the feeling that if they just stayed like that, they were untouchable. If they didn't move or speak, the stars would align, the universe would be in their favor, and for once things would go their way.

"So what happened?" Alex broke the spell.

"The police took me to the station and questioned me. They asked over and over for my sequence of events. They were trying to trip me up, get me to change my story. I finally get back to my place and Jason had tried to call three times."

"What'd that asshole want?" Alex's scowl was back.

"I called him and he said if we could just meet maybe we could work something out."

"Text him and tell him you'll meet him now."

"What? No way. I don't want to see him. Ever!"

"Not you, Wilson. Me. I'll meet him and kick his ass to high heaven."

"Oh, no. You're not going anywhere. You are in no shape to do any ass kicking. We're laying here all day. I'm tending to your every need." said Jo kissing his cheek still holding his arm.

"All my needs?" he asked innocently, suddenly taken with the idea, crooked grin back on his face.

"Noooo. You seriously need to rest. You look like crap. I didn't mean to dump all this on you right now. Let's pretend that we don't have a care in the world." She snuggled closer not really believing that their whole relationship had changed in the matter of a week and a half. They went from good friends to much more. Jo smiled back at Alex knowing that this was one truly good thing in her life right now.

"Whatever you want, Jo." Alex wrapped his arm a little tighter around his, what? Girlfriend? Yes, he settled on that, turning the grin into a full fledged smile.

He didn't have to wait for long for Jo to drift off into a deep sleep. She hadn't slept at all, so worried about the charges, Jason wanting to meet. She felt sure it was only a matter of time before she was arrested. Now, she was in a beautiful state of escape from all that, nestled in the arms of a peds surgeon who wanted to protect her, take care of her, fix her.

Alex quietly got out of the bed and found Jo's phone. A text from Peckwell. Alex sent a reply saying he, err, Jo, would meet him at Discovery Park, NOW. He threw the phone to the side of the bed, slipped on a pair of jeans and T-shirt, and headed out.

He'd instructed Jason to meet him, uh Jo, about a fourth of the way into Wolf Tree Trail. Alex had gone there a few times when Izzie was so sick. Not really a nature kinda guy, but it helped him a little, if only to get away from the hospital and sickness for a while.

He walked a ways down the trail and waited. He decided to sit for a few minutes, drained, feeling sick, weak as hell. Shoulda got a protein drink or something on the way. Alex took solace in the fact that Dr. Douche was probably in worse shape than him, brain bleed, brain surgery. Yes, this should be easy work, he thought with a smile. Who got a damn wrestling scholarship to U of Iowa? Certainly not Chest Peckwell.

He was mustering up a little enthusiasm when he saw someone lightly jogging down the trail. No way, now freaking way. Jason Myers was practically running down the trail toward Jo, or so he thought. Alex got up quickly brushing himself off.

Jason's face was one of disbelief when he saw Karev standing along the trail with venom in his eyes. You're kidding me, he thought.

"Where the hell is Jo?" he yelled at Alex from where he'd stopped.

"You already had your shot at her. I think it's time you pick on someone your own size," Alex yelled back.

Both men eyeballed each other for a good minute before making their way toward each other slowly.

Meredith, Cristina, and Zola returned with extra ice creams, melting quickly, and an overload of enthusiasm from a certain three-year-old hyped up on a double chocolate thunder with extra sprinkles. Zola headed straight to Alex's room.

"Unkie Ax! Unkie Ax?" Zola stopped in front of the bed looking at the sleeping Jo. She ran over and smacked Jo on the arm. "Where's my Unkie?!"

"Mommy, Unkie gone," Zola turned to Meredith who was now staring at Jo also.

"Ow," said Jo waking up, rubbing her arm. Zola and her exchanging ugly looks.

"Where's Alex?" Jo asked groggily looking around.

"We were going to ask you the same thing." Meredith had a hand on her hip and didn't even consider reprimanding Zola. She thought about socking the intern herself.

"Oh, crap. Shit," said Jo scrambling off her bed digging through her purse for her phone. "It's here. It was here."

"Are you looking for this?" asked Cristina pointing to the one on the bed. "Unbelievable."

Jo grabbed the phone and read through her texts.

"No, no, no! Dammit, Alex!" she said realizing what he'd done, where he was, who he was with.

"Spill it, Wilson," commanded Cristina getting that sense of Seattle Grace doom in her gut.

"Alex went to meet Jason Myers at Discovery Park." Jo hung her head not wanting to think of what was happening right now. What she had inadvertently created by involving Karev.

"Well, what are we doing here? I'm calling Bailey. We'll drop off Zo and get to the park." Meredith noticed Zola's scared look for the first time. "Zola, everything is fine. We just need to pick up Uncle Alex."

Meredith narrowed her eyes looking straight at Jo. She whispered low enough so Zola couldn't hear. "You better hope Alex is okay. You better pray he is alright.

Well, what do you think? The big reveal on who Alex's person is will come in the next two chapters. Then the story will focus on their lives together.