Before We Turn to Stone

Season 16, Episode 10: You Come Through

"We are waiting

For the summer

The sun will bring back

Treasures for us.

Come on, my friend,

Drink to good times

Golden wishes

To your health and mine."

***

He makes breakfast the next morning – takes a special trip to the pop-up French market down the street from the loft because, well, they're officially out of everything. He gets hickory-smoked bacon and some weird, green-and-blue speckled chicken's eggs that somehow cost more than the bacon. He tops it off with two fresh croissants and a tiny little spray of blue flowers he pulls off a tree. It's probably overkill, but Alex isn't taking any chances.

Ultimately, it's not a big deal that Izzie's there. He's got his hands full at Pac North, and she's at Grey Sloan to work, and there's almost no chance they'll run into each other – Seattle's a big city. And really, he doesn't think it'll be a big deal to Jo either. She might not exactly be excited that he called Izzie, but hey, she encouraged him to do so way before he had a legitimate reason to do it.

Still. He's gotta tell her in just the right way. So he ignores the fact that he's kind of an idiot in the kitchen and queues up a YouTube video on the best way to scramble eggs.

Jo wakes up just as he's finishing the bacon and grins at him sleepily. "What's this?" she asks as she pads over to the table.

He slides a plate in front of her. "Eggs are kinda burnt... sorry... but the rest should be good."

"No, it looks great." She takes a big bite of the eggs and a funny look crosses over her face. "Okay, yeah, a little burnt." But she happily grabs a piece of bacon.

They eat in companionable silence. Alex tries half a dozen times to say something, but every time the words get stuck in his throat.

Hey, Jo, so my ex-wife's in town.

Hey, Jo, so you might notice a bouncy blond chick in the halls this week... well, guess what?

Hey, Jo, so I called Izzie... Just for Mer! Not because I wanted to talk to her, or see how she was doing... even though maybe I kind of did... And when we talked it felt like when you're eight and you get to see your best friend after they've been away at summer camp....

Every version sounds so stupid he can't even make himself open his mouth. To say nothing of the things he can't say, the things he can barely articulate to himself... Like how nice it was to hear her voice again. Like how he filled with a sun-after-storm feeling when he heard her say his name. And how it felt to make her laugh? Forget it. 

There are plenty of things he can't say; this, he's got to say. It's not fair to keep this kind of thing from Jo.

They're done with breakfast, and she's thanking him for cooking, and she's heading for the shower and he's gotta say it now or it's gonna be a whole thing...

"Izzie's here," he finally blurts out.

Jo turns away from the bathroom and tilts her head at him, confused. "Wait. What did you... what?"

"Izzie." He blows out a hard breath and forces himself to relax. "I, uh... So when I was trying to get those letters for Mer I gave her a call, to see if she'd send one too."

She takes a second to register this. He walks towards her, but she holds up a hand, so he stops a few feet away. "You called Izzie," she repeats. "And now she's... here?"