Paul was (indirectly) mention in the Season 12 final and mentioned through out s13 and appeared thrice never was there a mention of a "best friend" just that he was Jo’s abusive husband and that she didn’t had a life outside of him, the first time her best friend appeared was S15, Ep one and it’ recontextualized Jo’s character, finding out she had a best friend she casted out when she got with Paul and the only thing Link has to say about it that he didn’t trust him, again we don’t when Paul started showing his true colors, I'm assuming it was after she married him and as she had long casted Link out (not saying there weren’t signs before)
and alot of these problems could’ve been avoided if they had a fall out for whatever before she got with Paul but they did instead had him have bad feelings about it, Link being in the dark about Paul till they reconciled would’ve so much better and make link not the worst friend since Serena Van der Woodsen(this is a joke I love her)
And you would assume he would be a big topic of their relationship but he just not, like the abortion she had? Never mention. Him feeling guilty about it and blaming himself? Never happen either.
"They always loved either other(romantically)."
Is a retcon(for both characters), there’s no indication, jo never mention loving someone before Paul, they didn’t know about each other whereabouts and not even that she had changed her name, like not even secret contact like Paul was controlling but it’s not impossible and if he really loved her he would’ve done anything for her even get his ends dirty even if it means murdering someone.
Paul probably said the worst thing about Link as that he didn’t view her worth saving and the narrative subconsciously proves him right.
Like so much of this could’ve been avoided if jolink had fall out and they felt later in life or have it like in the show but still have fallout
Jo got with Paul because he gave her something Link’s useless ass couldn’t safety and the feel of being loved(so she thought) Link didn’t fought her and for her, yes the vibes and trust but that’s not much
(I’m not saying Link enabled the relationship but he did play part because of those stupid stupid writers)
that would be even shorter than jo’s marriage to alex (he left a couple episodes after their second wedding they had cuz they forgot to turn in the marriage license)
and her second time being widowed (she never divorced paul)
Doctor Y/n - Residency - 34 - Grey's Anatomy x Fem!Reader
"What's wrong?" Alex asked, walking over to where Jo was being supported by Meredith.
"He came back." Meredith explained, "He's gone now, but I did have to call security."
"That son of a bitch." Alex growled, looking at Jo worriedly.
"He knows where to find me, where to find us."
"You're safe, you hear me? You're not gonnna be alone, okay?" Alex replied before glancing around.
"We can't find Braces... he could have done something... god, I wish he was dead." Jo cried, leaving Alex to freeze.
"Oh crap! What do you mean you can't find her-"
///
"DeLuca, you paged me? Is there a patient?" You could hear Arizona's face outside of the trauma room that DeLuca had you in. The blinds were shut and the curtains obscured you from view as DeLuca brought Arizona into the room.
"Oh my god, Y/n? What the hell happened? Did he do this?"
"Who's he? Jo's husband?" DeLuca asked, watching as Arizona tried to look at your face, but you moved away from her hands, trying to stand up but failing.
"Y/n, you need to lay down, you could have a skull fracture or a brain bleed." Arizona stated as you kept moving.
"Then page Amelia, need to get to Joey." You replied, wincing as DeLuca brought over an ice pack for your face.
"What happened?" Arizona asked after paging Amelia, Jo, Alex and Meredith down to the trauma room.
"How are you still conscious right now?" DeLuca asked, watching carefully in case you were spacing out but a bloody chuckle left your lips as exhaustion rushed through your bones.
"Spite... and, this really fucking hurts." You admitted, taking the ice pack from DeLuca's hand and holding it up to your face.
"What have we got-" Amelia froze as she walked into the trauma room, any confidence she had fading as you removed the icepack from your face so you could look at her.
"She needs a head CT to rule out skull fracture or a brain bleed, I've paged Wilson because she won't let anyone physically examine her until she's here." Arizona stated, waving her hand at you as Amelia walked over to try see how you were.
"Y/n, I need you to follow the light... and follow my finger, can you match my finger?" Amelia stated, watching as you obeyed each command with a grumpy glare.
"What's going... on? Oh my god." Jo's voice had everyone but Amelia freezing on the spot.
"Pupils are equal and reactive, but you still need that head CT, Y/n." Amelia stated, stepping to the side as Jo hurried over.
You were silent as Jo's fingers gently hooked under your chin, turning your head side to side as she took in all your facial injuries. It was only when her hand moved to your shoulder that you flinched.
"What the- add an abdominal CT and chest x-rays to that." Jo stated, her eyes staring into yours after she'd pulled down the shoulder of your scrub top, spotting the large handprint bruise from where you'd been held up to take the beating.
Jo checked your knuckles next, noticing how they were untouched, unbruised and untarnished.
"What the hell were you thinking? Braces, he could have killed you! You didn't even fight back!" Jo's voice was loud enough that Bailey could hear from outside.
"I'm not made of porcelain, Joey!"
"Damn right you're not, you're not replaceable, Braces." Jo snapped but you ignored her, looking at Amelia.
"Can we go up to CT now?"
Amelia murmured a sure, watching as you finally laid down on the patient bed to be taken upstairs.
"What on earth happened to you?" Bailey exclaimed as she walked over, leaving you to let out a groan and shut your eyes instead.
///
"Head CT scans show you have a concussion, no signs of a brain bleed or skull fracture. No signs of an orbital fracture either, so you have a black eye, busted lip and a broken nose that you realigned five seconds before the head CT. Abdominal scans show you have bruised ribs and a very nasty shoulder bruise... Y/n, you're lucky you're not pulp right now. You're also lucky that the CCTV cameras came back online when he first grabbed you, because Bailey has the police involved for assault on a doctor." Amelia explained, trying to meet your eyes as you stared at your lap.
"I wasn't going to let him hurt her ever again." You murmured, wincing as you tried to reach for Amelia's hand.
"Y/n..." Amelia whispered, taking your hand when she realised what you were trying to do.
"If stopping Joey from getting hurt meant I got battered, then I don't mind. He hurt Joey worse than what he did to me today. He almost ruptured her kidney for fucks sake! He's a bad guy, he's a bad guy..." You rambled, voice cracking as a sob left your mouth.
"Hey, I know, I know, I've got you." Amelia cooed, climbing onto the patient bed to hold you as you began to cry.
///
It was supposed to be a new day, where everything was fine. But instead, Meredith's face fell from the smile to confusion as she spotted Jo and Alex.
"What's happening?" Meredith asked, walking over to where Jo and Alex were staring into a trauma room.
"Hit and run. ABC's are intact, but he's hypertensive and tachycardic." April announced, revealing the trauma patient to be Paul Stadler.
"What did you do?" Meredith turned to Jo and Alex.
"We didn't do this." Alex stated, his voice calm as he wrapped his arm around Jo.
"My card was in his pocket, so they called me. But we were at home, we were in bed." Jo affirmed, frowning as Meredith began to page someone.
"Who are you paging? Mer?" Alex frowned, watching as Meredith looked at Jo.
"Y/n was kept in overnight observation, Amelia stayed with her, I'm just checking neither of them did anything. Go to the attendings lounge on 3, don't talk to anyone." Meredith ordered them, leaving Jo and Alex to head into the trauma room, warning April to not lose the patient.
///
"I'm not sure you guys should be here, or even in the country." Meredith whispered as she spotted Jo and Alex walking into the ICU.
"It wasn't us." Jo whisper-snapped, leaving Meredith to nod.
"I know, I know. It wasn't Y/n or Amelia either, I walked in on them spooning, do you remember that rumour about those two sleeping together?"
"Oh my god, the pasta salad was a euphemism, Braces just can't sleep without being held or she has really bad nightmares." Jo retorted as Amelia walked out of the patient room.
"There's no acute abnormalities on the CT. It just looks like a severe concussion, worse than the one he gave Y/n..." Amelia replied before heading to exit the ICU.
"Attempted murder, not murder..." Meredith began until Alex spotted the police talking to Jenny, Paul's fiancee.
"Accessory to attempted murder."
///
"What's going on? What's with the face?" You frowned, trying to sit up as Amelia walked in with a wheelchair.
"Um, a hit and run, Mer was checking it wasn't us." Amelia replied, moving the wheelchair closer before throwing the pair of jogging bottoms to you to put on.
///
"Where are we going?" You asked as you got in, Amelia wheeling you out of your room towards the elevator.
"We're going to find Wilson, since she hasn't checked on you since last night." Amelia quietly explained, leaving you to sigh.
"She's always with Karev, I don't know what you expect. She doesn't remember she needs me or that I need her... I'm sorry you had to hold me last night." You admitted, pausing as Amelia stopped the wheelchair's movements.
"It's fine, I actually quite enjoyed being the big spoon... I need to do another check on the patient, can you wait out here, with this?" Amelia asked, revealing a rubix cube from her pocket.
"Why do you have a rubix cube?" You shouted after her, going unheard.
A sigh left your lips as you began to try solve the cube, only glancing up when you saw Jo and Paul's fiancee, Jenny going into his room.
"Jenny, I'm a well known physician, and you're a nobody."
"You're a well known physcian, caught on CCTV beating the crap out of me." You interjected, wheeling yourself into the room.
"Oh, look, the guard dog is here, even when she's kicked and down." Paul began but you smirked, confusing everyone.
"There's a BOLO out for your arrest, doesn't matter if you're a doctor, because I'm one too."
"Let me be very clear Paul, I am never talking to you again, unless it's in front of a witness stand." Jenny stated, her eyes widening as she spotted how bruised you were.
"You stupid bitch. You're not going to the police, you're not walking out on me!" Paul growled, hurriedly getting out of bed.
You were quick to wheel yourself backwards, out of the way as Meredith pulled Jo and Jenny back. The four of you watching as Paul slipped, hitting his head on the patient bedframe, cupboard and floor before he was out like a light.
Meredith was hesitant as she checked for a pulse, aware that if he woke up, he could attack her.
"His pulse is thready and he's not breathing. We should get a crash cart in here." Meredith declared, watching as you gently took Jenny's hand, pulling her into the corridor as Jo went to get the crash cart.
///
"Alex, it's not up to her." Meredith stated, leaving Alex to frown whilst you dropped the rubix cube on the ground in realisation.
"Oh, my god. It's me. I'm still legally his wife. Oh, my god!" Jo began to laugh hysterically, leaving you to facepalm as Meredith passed you the rubix cube to stop you from laughing too.
"Oh, my god! I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, crap, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." Jo went from laughter to almost crying whilst you pulled your lip between your teeth, grimacing at the taste of iron, a reminder that it was busted.
///
"It was a drunk driver." Meredith stated as she spotted you and Alex watching Jo and Jenny watch over Paul.
"What?!" Alex exclaimed, not believing what he was hearing whilst you just blinked in shock.
"They found the guy who hit Paul. It was a drunk driver. So nobody has to go to Canada. She's free. You're both free." Meredith smiled at you before heading away.
"How are you feeling?" You glanced up at Alex, noticing how he was smiling.
"I'm fine, more than fine. How are you?" Alex enquired, watching Jo and Jenny leave.
"I feel alone." You admitted, but it went unheard as Alex continued to watch Jo and Jenny walk away.
///
"Braces, come with us..." Jo whispered, slipping behind the wheelchair to push it to the OR gallery.
"What are you- oohh..." You realised as you watched Meredith begin to remove Paul's organs for donation.
"This is a good one, his kidney's going to a little girl in Billings." Jo chuckled as Jenny asked if the two of you thought he was evil.
"I don't believe that anyone is just evil. If people were just one thing, life would be so much simpler. Paul was awful in this life, but now, in death, he gets to do all this good. So there's light and darkness, and they both co-exist. And sometimes, it's really beautiful." Jo monologued, watching as Paul's organs were being removed.
"Every life, every story, it's full of plot twists, there's always bad guys to some, maybe not to others. Everyone just wants their happy ever after, but maybe some are just meant to be alone." You murmured to yourself, feeling Jo and Jenny look at you as you wheeled yourself out of there.
Your eyes widened as you met Leah Murphy's gaze, seeing the concern in her eyes before you wheeled yourself past her.
Summary: Jo wants to marry Alex more than anything, there’s just a few hoops she has to jump through before she can make that a reality. When she finally takes the plunge to free herself from her past, it all comes back to haunt her.
Fandom: Grey’s Anatomy.
Relationship: Alex Karev/Jo Wilson, Jo Wilson/Paul Stadler (Past).
Characters: Alex Karev, Jo Wilson, Stephanie Edwards, and Paul Stadler.
“Let's make a baby,” Jo said as she walked over to him, offering up everything she had to him.
“What?” Alex paused, truly looking over at her for the first time since he came into the loft.
“You said that you wanted a baby, and you would make an amazing dad,” Jo said, she knew that this was what he'd wanted for years now, and if that's what he wanted, she could be ready. “And that's what you're worried about, right, that I'm not all in? But I am. And I love you.”
The second her fingers touched his cheek, he pulled away. It was something he had never done before. All the times they had fought before, he had never pulled away from her touch, and him doing so now truly scared her.
“Are you gonna tell me why you won't marry me?” Alex asked again, staring deep into her eyes as if he could read the answer in her face.
“I told you that I love you,” Jo said, but when she wouldn't answer him, he just turned away and went back to packing his things. “And that I'm not going anywhere. So isn't that enough? Can't that be enough for you?”
“You know, I was with Mer this morning, and I was thinking, the two of us, we've been through hell. You know, all kinds of drama, crazy family stuff, we both almost died, losing people we love.”
“No, you're not losing me,” Jo interrupted him, she wanted him to know that he wasn't going to lose her, and she didn't want to lose him.
“The point is, we grew up. Mer and I are grown up,” Alex said, turning around to look back at her. “We got through it. And hell is behind me. It's in my rearview mirror, and I'm not going back. I'm done.”
“Alex, please,” Jo begged him, the last two words rang in her ear and broke her heart in an instant, but she held back the tears. It wasn’t the end, it couldn’t be.
“I'm not, I'm not, some idiot kid anymore, Jo. I'm a man, and I'm done with games. I'm done with, with crazy. I'm done with losing. I'm done with drama. I don't care about your secrets and your excuses and your drama. You know, I've had that,” Alex said, and he was right. He shouldn't have to put up with her drama and her secrets, and she wished she could spare him from it all and tell the truth, but she just couldn't.
“Alex, if we could just,” Jo pleaded with him one last time.
“I just said I don't want to do this!” Alex screamed, as he raised his voice, she grew quiet. “I, I have never had one second of anything real my entire life. I want truth. I want, I want a wife and a house and a family! Amelia and, uh, Owen's wedding today, I want that!”
“I can give you family and a home,” Jo pleaded, trying to get Alex to say.
“But you won't be my wife?” Alex yelled as he stopped throwing the rest of his clothes in his bag to look at her.
They had fought before, but not like this. He was so angry, but Jo wasn't frightened of him. She was, however, frightened to tell him the truth. She knew he deserved the truth, but she couldn't give it to him. Jo knew what Alex would do to Paul when he found out. She knew because she saw how mad he got when she had shown up on his doorstep after her fight with Myers. She knew that if Paul even looked at her wrong or dared to lay a finger on her, Alex would kill him and she couldn't live with herself if she caused that.
“I, I can't,” Jo whispered, her words coming out in a painful breath.
She wanted to explain or at least give him a part of the truth. A part of her was protecting him from his own anger, but another part of her had held the secret for so long and, every time she tried to say it, it was like the words were trapped in her head.
Alex looked so disappointed as he shook his head before he grabbed his bags and left. It broke her, it broke her to see Alex walk away like that. Jo sat down on the bench, held the pillow to her chest as she cried. After everything she had done to get away from Paul, changing her name, leaving behind all of her friends, including the boy who is like a brother to her, and starting over in Seattle. He was still ruining her life and her relationship with Alex.
She had thought about divorcing Paul for the past few months, ever since Alex proposed. She had contacted the lawyer that Arizona had used for her divorce case. Michelle had shown Jo her options and it all seemed easier than Jo realized. She had also dug up Jo’s medical history from her time with Paul. With the clear evidence of domestic abuse, Michelle said she could help Jo get an emergency protective order. It would go into effect right away, and then a domestic violence restraining order would protect her during the divorce proceedings and for the rest of her life. Michelle said that because of their separate lives, it would be an easy divorce. She had drafted the papers and sent them over to her, all they had to do was sign them.
Jo didn't know if Paul would make this easy and sign the papers, or if he would drag it out for years, but she wanted to try. She tried to tell herself that with the restraining order and a lawyer on her side, she could do it. Jo wanted Alex to be by her side, but now Alex was gone, and he would be gone for good if she didn't divorce Paul.
She went over to the liquor cabinet. Jo grabbed the bottle of the hardest rum they had and took a swig. It burned her throat as she drank it and Jo took as much as she could before she put the bottle down. If she was going to do this, she needed as much liquid courage as she could get.
Jo made up her mind. She was going to divorce Paul.
She pulled out her phone and called Michelle. Michelle set up an appointment to meet with her the following day and said she would get the ball rolling. She would file the emergency restraining order and finalize the divorce papers that had been sitting in her drawer for months. Michelle assured her that she would have a restraining order against Paul at the end of the day and that she would be protected. Jo thanked her and quickly hung up.
Jo had always kept tabs on Paul just in case. Which was good because she knew that he was in Seattle giving a talk at the University of Washington. The past few days, she had felt trapped in the loft because of it, as she feared he would see her when she was out and about or at the hospital, but now she could divorce him before the weekend was over and Alex would never know. Then she could say yes and marry Alex. They would be happy and Alex would never know. Paul would never ruin his life because of her.
Jo took a deep breath as she looked down at her phone. She was drunk enough to think that this was a good idea and before she knew what she was doing, she had dialed Paul's number. But, of course, he didn't pick up, Paul didn't pick up any strange numbers. Hearing his voicemail was enough to send shivers down her spine, but the liquid courage had given her enough strength to speak and leave him a message.
“Paul, it's me, it's Brooke. I want a divorce. I'm leaving you for good. I found another man and he's wonderful. He's better than you ever were and I want to marry him. So I want a divorce. I'm in Seattle. I work at Grey-Sloan Memorial and I live here. I live at 4196 Cale St. I know you're giving some stupid talk at U-Dub, and I’m sending you the divorce papers, and you are going to sign them. Because you ruined my life enough and you don't get to ruin it any more.”
Jo hung up and she smiled. It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders and she felt free, freer than when she was driving away from him all those years ago. Finally, she felt truly free.
Then Jo looked around the empty loft. Alex wasn't there, he had left, and she was all alone. Jo sighed, taking another swig of the bottle. Then she texted Stephanie to meet her at Emerald City Bar. Jo needed her friend and there was no way she could spend the rest of this day sober.
……………………………………………………………………
“Hey, what are we drinking about?” Stephanie asked, appearing at the bar and sitting next to Jo.
“Alex is gone,” Jo said as she leaned against the bar. She was genuinely drunk now and was suddenly second guessing everything that she had done. “I had the love of my life, and I just, pssh, pushed him away, and now he's gone. And I’m doing it, I’m finally doing it, but I already lost Alex, he's gone.”
“Okay, this again,” Stephanie said as she took a swig of the beer the bartender gave her. “Let's not overstate this. He's just living at Meredith's.”
“Steph, you didn't see his face. He’s gone,” Jo said, looking over Stephanie and seeing her face, Jo suddenly realized what she had said. “Oh, God, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. He's not gone-gone. Kyle is gone-gone.”
“Making it worse,” Stephanie said as Jo leaned over to put her arm around Stephanie and lean her hand on her shoulder.
Stephanie shook her off and Jo decided to shut up before more words fell out of her mouth. In her endeavor to divorce Paul, it was like all her walls had finally come down. The truth slipped from her tongue like a bar of soap between her fingers.
“He just kept asking me to marry him again and again,” Jo said as she picked at the peanut shells on the bar and tried to throw them into the bowl. “I just couldn't say nothing anymore, you know, so I just, I just said no.”
“You could've said yes,” Stephanie said, taking a sip of her drink and shaking her head as if it was as easy as that.
“I should go home. I need to go home,” Jo said, reaching for the bag next to her and getting out.
“What? No, you cannot drive home,” Stephanie said, getting up and chasing after her. She tried to grab the bag as Jo turned away from her.
“No, stupid, I'm gonna call. I'm looking for my phone to call a goober,” Jo said, looking through the bag and trying to find her phone. “I can't marry him. I want to, but I can't marry anyone.”
“Why's that?” Stephanie asked in her rude and sarcastic voice what made Jo realize what she had said.
“Just 'cause, none of your business,” Jo yelled, looking back at her.
“Okay,” Stephanie said, holding up her hands and leaning back.
“God, where is my. Oh, my God!” Jo paused, and she looked down at the strange purse in her hands. “This isn't even my purse.”
Stephanie rolled her eyes and took the purse from Jo's hands, replacing it with Jo's own bag. “Here, just wait, and I'll call us a cab and you can tell me all about why you can't marry Karev.”
“I can't marry him because I'm already married,” Jo said, the words slipping off her tongue. She guessed she was done hiding the truth.
……………………………………………………………………
“Okay, you can't just drop a bomb on me like that and then not say anything else,” Stephanie said as they walked into the loft, and Jo stumbled over to the couch before she caught Jo around her waist and led her over to the bed. “Okay, come on, time for bed.”
Stephanie left her on the bed and went to grab a cup of water. This was the last thing she wanted it to be doing, but Jo was her best friend, and they were both going through it right now. Cleary Jo had some deep dark secrets and Stephanie would be lying if she said she wasn’t immensely curious about it.
“I was living in my car. Did you know that I lived in my car?” Jo said, stumbling over, reaching out to put her hand on the table. It seemed Stephanie couldn't leave her for a second and she reached out to grab Jo again.
“Yes, I know all about your street kid days,” Stephanie said, trying to grab ahold of her, but Jo pushed her away, and she was surprisingly strong for a drunk girl.
“And then I met him, and I wasn't living in my car anymore. Everybody loved him, I did,” Jo said, undoing the button to her jeans and pulling them down her legs.
“What are you doing?” Stephanie said, putting her hands on her waist and glaring at Jo. Everybody always joked about how drunk people acted like toddlers and Jo was certainly acting like a toddler right now.
“I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go to bed,” Jo said as she stumbled over to the bed before apparently changing her mind and leaning against the post. “He never wanted anyone to stop loving him.”
Stephanie paused and sat down on the bench at the end of the bed, watching Jo for a moment. Jo had never mentioned anything about past boyfriends, much less a husband. She watched as the tears collected in Jo's eyes as she started to sob and she could sense why Jo had never mentioned him before.
“So if I, I bought the wrong something he would, he would hit me in my face or my stomach. Nobody knew that but me. So, so I ran. I had to make sure he would never find me.”
“And if you try to divorce him,” Stephanie trailed off, still trying to take in the news of Jo's abusive husband.
“I'm trying to divorce him, but he’ll never sign the papers, I'll never be free of him,” Jo said, putting both of her hands on Stephanie's shoulders and staring into her eyes.
“Can’t you get a restraining order or something?” Stephanie asked, watching Jo pull away from her. “Does Alex know about any of this?”
“No, no, Alex would try and protect me, but he can't. I have to do this on my own. He doesn't even know my real name,” Jo said as she stumbled over to the bed.
“You should tell him, he'll understand. Alex is a really good guy. Okay, so we're going to get naked now,” Stephanie sighed as Jo unbuttoned her shirt and let it fall to the floor. “Just keep your panties on, okay.”
Jo didn't say anything else as Stephanie grabbed onto her waist and pulled her over to the bed. They both ended up stumbling and falling on the bed together and Jo laughed as if it was the funniest thing in the world. Stephanie rolled her eyes and got up to grab the covers. As she looked up, Alex was standing in front of her in a rain soaked suit.
“What's so funny? Alex asked as he smiled and came around to sit next to Jo on the bed.
“We fell,” Jo laughed, closing her eyes and pulling the covers over her head, still giggling from underneath them.
Alex looked up at her with a raised eyebrow and Stephanie just shrugged. “She's drunk off her ass.”
Alex nodded and put his hand over Jo's back, rubbing up and down as her giggles ended and she seemed to settle in. Stephanie got up and grabbed Jo's shirt from the floor before grabbing her jeans, tossing them both in the hamper.
“You came back,” Stephanie said, looking back at Alex.
“Yeah, well, Jo’s earned the benefit of the doubt, and whatever reason she has for not marrying me, I love her too much to let her go.”
Stephanie nodded, she didn't want to spill Jo’s secret, especially now that Alex was back, but she didn't want him to leave Jo again. She saw how messed up Jo was all night and Alex wasn't even dead. Stephanie loved her friend enough not to want to put her through that again.
“She has a good reason for not marrying you. I won't tell you what it is, that's her job, but it's a good reason, and she’s trying to make it right,” Stephanie said as she folded her hands together.
“Thank you,” Alex said, nodding at her before he looked back at Jo and leaned down to kiss a little bit of her head that was still peeking out from under the covers.
Stephanie wobbled as she took another step towards the door, realizing how drunk she was now that she didn't have Jo’s drunkenness to compare her sobriety to.
“Do you want to crash here?” Alex offered, taking off his wet jacket and tie. “I'm going to hop in the shower, but I'll take the couch if you want to take the bed.”
“Sure,” Stephanie said, dropping her purse and kicking off her shoes.
She had slept over at the loft enough times with Jo that this was normal. They would have a girl's night and fall asleep on the bed, and Alex would come in and sleep on the couch. In the morning, he’d make them a hangover cure and waffles and Stephanie loved those waffles. Alex hung up his wet suit and went to take a shower and Stephanie crawled into bed. Jo would still giggle occasionally, but eventually, they both fell asleep.
……………………………………………………………………
Jo woke up to the sound of someone banging on the door to the loft. She rolled over to lay on her back and saw Stephanie sleeping soundly beside her. Her best friend had always slept like a log and she would sleep through her alarm if she was tired enough. Jo got up before she went to the hamper and pulled on her shirt.
“Alright, Alex I’m coming,” Jo said as the banging continued, despite how late it was she figured Alex had forgotten something. She unlocked the door and pulled it open, but Alex wasn't standing on the other side.
Waiting for that abusive ex plotline for Morgan Reznick... She's clearly uncomfortable with relationships?? This bitch has been through something more than just neglect as a child- how much you wanna bet she ran away from her psychotic ex-husband???
i actually hate this, so ew. but i’ve forgotten that i write, so i’ll try to type some stuff up tomorrow! regardless, i hope everyone enjoys! click here to read on ao3.
TW// domestic abuse
~*~
"small town boy in a big arcade. i got addicted to a losing game."
~*~
alexandra: you do realize how crazy that sounds right?
joseph: it's not crazy at all if you ask me.
alexandra: jo, asking for lollipops for your christmas present sounds very crazy to me.
and christmas isn't for like, a while.
joseph: dude, christmas is in two weeks and one day
and plus, i'm settling on lollipops. what i really want is a pony, a shiny, pretty one with rainbow hair, you know those? that's my dream right there
alexandra: oh crap really?
yeah yeah, ha ha. laughing so much right now.
joseph: hate to break it to you, but it's the 10th alex.
and i know, what a shame i wont be able to have my pony. it was at the top of my list this year
next to an ice cream sundae the size of manhattan, obviously.
alexandra: very funny. can't you tell how much i'm laughing.
crap, got to go, robbins is letting me in on an esophageal atresia on a newborn. i'm her favorite you know.
joseph: ugh, lucky.
make sure to kick ass and not kill anyone. that would suck.
actually... your big head could use some ego deflating. make sure robbins has to save you halfway through. maybe then you'll earn some humility.
alexandra: wow, you're such great help. so nice too.
joseph: you know it ;)
she turns off her phone, a small smile on her face as she looks out the window, passing by houses that all looked exactly alike; white exteriors with a bright green lawn. the only thing that could help someone tell them apart was the door colors. her and paul had just come back from a dinner with some of his coworkers, but he wasn't talking to her so she decided to text alex. the silence in the car was tense, though she was unable to grasp the reason why.
they'd been texting non-stop since the conference three weeks ago, talking about each other's days, complaining about annoying coworkers and classmates. they really enjoyed having a friend they could just talk to because they felt like it. it was refreshing. they'd never had anyone like that before. in the past they had friends that they felt comfortable around, but it was different when you had someone who understood you so well. not to mention, being able to make self deprecating jokes about their crappy childhoods and receive a laugh in response was so much nicer than the pity stares they were both so used to getting,
she snaps back to reality at the sound of the engine turning off, cutting the music as the expensive car door opens. she sees paul angrily walk out of the car, slamming the door behind him, not stopping by her side of the car to open the door for her like he normally did. (she was actually thankful for that. she was a grown women, she could open a damn door herself)
weird, she thinks, but decides not to question it. her husband had been a bit more moody and temperamental lately, so she supposed it was just that. but the dinner seemed to go really good in her opinion. she got along with his colleagues and paul certainly enjoyed himself, getting to be around all his coworkers and interact freely. she liked to think that his colleagues liked her as well. they complimented her all evening and included her in all of their conversations. though, she did wish that they would've referred to her by her name more, rather than 'mrs. stalder' or 'paul's wife.'
she gets out of the passenger side and shuts the door behind her, walking up to the steps after she hears that paul had locked the car. she places the small clutch she had on the entry table and walks to the kitchen, seeing paul sitting at the kitchen island, nothing in front of him except tea that he had heated up in the minute or so he'e been in there. she kisses his cheek and starts talking, knowing that it would probably help calm whatever he was feeling.
she gives him a smile, rubbing his shoulder affectionately. "it seemed like the dinner went really well, all of your coworkers are super nice and-"
"you talked to steven too much." he cuts her off, sending an icy glare her way, and look she had never seen on him before shining darkly in his eyes.
she cocks her head to the side, "huh?"
he stands up from his place abruptly, making her jump back slightly. "i said," he spits out, eyes narrowing as he stares her down "you talked to steven too much."
she lets out a loud laugh, thinking that he was just joking around and messing with her. at any second he was going to join her giggling, ignoring the way his eyes had only seemed to darken the second the sounds had escaped her mouth."oh, that's funny." she says in between laughs, eyes shining with childish glee. "jesus you really scared m-"
pain.
her words get cut off by a fist coming directly into contact with her face. she feels the stinging sensation burn from her eye to her cheek, her brown eyes watering with tears as she realizes what had just happened. she lifts a palm up to touch it protectively, almost making it seem like it was more real if she touched it.
oh god, it hurt. it hurt like hell. his gold wedding band adding to the impact was sure to leave a scar by the corner of her eye. she'd been punched before, multiple times actually by foster parents and girls while she was in high school, but this hurt so much more. it was so much harder than she'd ever been hit before.
her husband just hit her.
"oh brooke, baby." paul says, taking her into his arms and brushing her hair back immediately, trying to get her to relax into his embrace. "i just got so mad. you just made me so mad brooke. you can't make me mad like that" he tells her, eyes dripping with some kind of emotion she can't place as he places light kisses on top of her sea of brown curls, ignoring the way the way she stood stiffly in his arms, a few lone tears making it's way down her cheeks.
"i love you. you know that brooke" he whispers, wiping the tears from her face, his hands feeling usually rough against her skin, his touch not easing over the bruise that hard already begun to form.
she nods. it was okay. he loved her. he didn't mean it. he just got angry. it was okay. it was fine. he loved her, it was okay.
she thought she probably deserved it. after all she'd cheated on her husband just three weeks before, and had continued to keep in contact with the man she had cheated with. it was only karma.
"i'm sorry paul." she apologizes sincerely as he cups her face in his hands, giving her a sweet smile. it wasn't his fault. it was hers.
"it just better not happen again." he states, eyes burning into hers intently, his grip on her face tightening without her even realizing it. all she really felt was numb, as if all of her senses had seemingly shut down to avoid dealing with the pain that was spreading throughout the side of her face.
she nods her head up and down as she pulls her back into him. "i'm sorry" she whispers into his chest.
he smiled.
and that's when he knew he had her.
____
alex finished scrubbing out of a surgery, shaking off the excess water on his hands, grinning internally. it was always so much better when he was able to help save a kid. the success was just that much more fulfilling. he's about to push the door open when it swings in itself, making him come face to face with cristina, the expression she was wearing was more worried looking than he'd seen in a long time. he'd known yang for a while know, and he knew whatever was about to come out of her mouth would be bad. cristina yang was never worried.
"what do you want yang?" he asks, noting how she had her hands crossed over her chest and was avoiding his gaze.
"there's a merger happening." she says, looking up to meet his eyes to let him know that she was serious.
his narrows his eyes, scrunching up his nose. "what?" he questions. a merger? as in, combing two hospitals into one?
"you just missed the announcement. apparently we're merging with mercy west." the raven head repeats, a slight trace of fear in her voice, a very unusual thing for cristina yang.
he lets out a deep breath, tugging his scrub cap off and running a hand through his hair as he leans over the scrub sink, gripping it so tightly his knuckles begin to turn white. "i can't loose this job yang." he says to her softly, making her nod in agreement.
"you and me both." with that she walks out of the room, alex not far behind her, both of the surgeons heading up to the resident's lounge to change, which was filled to the brim with chatter, all of the doctors talking about the newest topic, the merger.
meredith sits down next to him, slipping a long sleeved purple shirt over her head when she casts a glance to alex, who was sitting still looking down at his phone's empty screen, seemingly deep in thought, almost as if he was waiting for something to magically appear on it.
the blonde nudges him, snapping him out of his trance. alex sighs, resting his elbows on his knees as he buries his head in his hands. "what am i gonna do about iz?" he asks her, judging by her face that she was drawing a blank, much like him.
jesus, this was great. these past few weeks he had hardy been able to look his wife in the eye, because every time he saw her he was reminded that he slept with someone else. not to mention, he was just texting that certain someone just a few hours ago. he was really screwed. izzie had currently been home on bedrest, not being allowed to return to work until two weeks from now, which apparently would also be when the mercy westers would turn up. fucking great. he felt as if the universe was rallying against him at this point, no matter how much he knew that wasn't possible. he dug his own grave, it was just a matter of time before he would need to lay in it.
"she'll be okay." meredith reassures him, but he can tell by the look on her face that she was unsure as well. who knew would end up getting cut? they would need to pull their heads out of their asses and prove that they deserved to stay. none of them could lose their spot. not only because of their job, but also because of the people there. they were a family. they couldn't lose any more of their family. they'd just lost george, and they couldn't lose another.
"evil spawn, put on a shirt!" cristina yells, balling up a shirt from his locker and throwing it at him, hitting him square in the chest as he glares at her. he pulls on the shirt silently and heads out, not bothering to say goodbye to anybody as he leaves the lounge and heads straight to joe's across the street.
he slides onto a barstool, ordering a beer and thanking the bartender with a slight nod of his head. how was he supposed to tell izzie about the merger? he knew that if his wife knew, she would want to return to work immediately, but he knew she couldn't do that. she was still getting her strength back, and standing around on her feet all day surely would delay the healing process. he couldn't risk her getting hurt because he wasn't able to stop her.
he'd done enough recently, even if izzie didn't know about most of it. the last thing he needed was to cause his wife more harm than he already had.
he was going to tell her, he knew that, just not right now. right now he was going to sit on this uncomfortable wooden bar stool and drink his beer and forget he had any problems. he was going to forget about the merger, he was going to forget about him and izzie going at it twenty-four seven, and he was definitely going to forget about the brunette with a fake name who seemed to be on his mind all the time.
he was just going to forget everything, his only focus being his beer and the football game on the small television above the bar. yeah, that sounded like a good idea. a really good idea.
____
okay, so he forgot about two out of those three things.
he was actually doing pretty good for a while, almost a full hour with nearly a beer and a half finished. all he had been focused on was the seahawks playing against the steelers, with the steelers crushing the seattle team thirty-four to seven. not much of a surprise though, he couldn't remember the last time he'd witnessed the seahawks win. it wasn't that they were a completely crap team, it was simply the fact that one; the steelers were much better this year, and two; he hardly ever got enough time to sit down and watch a game. being a resident drained the life out of him, especially since he had finally knew that he wanted to specialize in peds. when he wasn't at the hospital he was reading up new medical procedures in magazines, or occasionally sneaking over to meredith's to watch old ellis grey tapes.
he was doing really... until he got a text message from jo.
joseph: how was your surgery?
alexandra: wow, you must be bored.
joseph: ...
what makes you say that?
alexandra: really?
joseph: i'm in med school, thank you very much. i have a severe interest in your surgeries.
alexandra: mhm, sure.
joseph: fine, i'm bored. entertain me. please.
alexandra: that sounds vaguely dirty.
joseph: oh great. how drunk are you?
alexandra: what makes you say that?
haha, two can play that game.
joseph: i'm guessing two beers in?
alexandra: shut up, only one and a half.
joseph: mhm, wasn't too far off
but seriously. i'm bored and am in need of anything remotely interesting. you just scrubbed in on a super cool surgery, i want details
alexandra: fine, baby maria duboir, two weeks old, robbins let me lead the procedure about half way through, coded once, we then shocked her at 150, and now she is stable and in the NICU.
happy?
joseph: yes. very much so
although i do think your OR stories need work
you sound like you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about
alexandra
wow. you're a real delight you know that?
joseph: oh, believe me, i know. don't even get me started on how many times people have complimented how freaking amazing i am
it's quite a common occurrence.
if i had a dollar for every time someone said that to me, i'd be living on my own private island
alexandra: i bet you would.
seriously though, tell me something. i've got nothing better to do than watch the seahawks get crushed.
joseph: i'm guessing that's sports talk, so i'm just gonna ignore that, since it hate any sport where men look like giant block of cheese, run around a court, or just run in general.
but today's been boring. went to a dinner tonight. fancy stuck-up rich people who laugh with posh accents and sip their champagne way too slowly
fucking turtles.
alexandra: sounds fun.
joseph: you suck. i can literally hear the sarcasm through the phone asshole
alexandra: that's the point. i'll take a sick kid over fancy dinner any day.
crap, that sounded really horrible didn't it?
joseph: it really did
"i'll take a sick kid over a fancy dinner any day" real charming if you ask me. night in shining amour.
alexandra
yeah yeah you know what i mean.
____
they're not sure how long they end up talking for, alex siting at joe's bar and jo lounging on the couch in her living room while her husband was in his study going over and grading tests for one of his classes. before either one of them even know it, it gets to be twelve thirty boston time and nine thirty in seattle. alex's texts had gotten much harder to read, which made sense, considering he was now on his third beer.
jo teased him about it though, finding it more enjoyable than she would've guessed to text a drunk alex than a sober one. he seemed to get increasingly flirtier the tipsier he got. not to mention, all the spelling mistakes he made was definitely one for the books. she had a feeling that it was getting a but harder for him to see which letters where which, considering a few b's were located where there should be d's, and 'm' where they should be an 'n'
alex knows for a fact he's earning many stares from fellow people at the bar because of how much he's laughing (loudly too), but he doesn't really care. if he's gonna laugh, he's gonna laugh. all he could really focus on was the fluorescent lights hanging from the bar's wood ceiling and the frankly hilarious texts coming through his phone. (okay, so they weren't that funny, but everything is always a lot more funny when you're drunk)
jo was thoroughly enjoying herself, laughing more and more as she sank into the couch, completely forgetting about the bruise on her left cheek as she typed away, grinning from ear to ear when the man on the other side responded, words misspelt and random numbers and semicolons popping up from time to time.
they knew that what they had done was wrong. they knew that what they were doing was wrong. but they couldn't stop.
