Title: Underneath It All
Characters/Pairings: Mark/Lexie
Rating: T
Word Count: 1,480
Disclaimer: All television shows, movies, books, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work, and the characters, settings, and events thereof, are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for-profit, it constitutes fair use. Reference to real persons, places, or events are made in a fictional context, and are not intended to be libelous, defamatory, or in any way factual.
Summary: Mark and Lexie take the next step in their relationship. Takes place during Derek and Meredith's wedding.
Author's Notes: I was listening to No Doubt's song Underneath It All and thought it was a perfect song to describe Lexie's feelings for Mark.

'you see the colors in me like no one else'

Lexie Grey sighed happily, causing the warm arms wrapped around her to tighten in response. There was no place in the world she'd rather be than where she was right now. A year ago, Lexie never imagined that she would be here. When her mother died from a simple case of the hiccups, Lexie thought she would never be happy again. Susan Grey had been the oen person in the world that Lexie trusted one hundred percent. Sure, she had loved and trusted her father and her little sister, but her bond with her mother always felt more special. Her mother was always the one to encourage and support her when she felt the world was caving in on her. Lexie knew that if it weren't for her mother, she wouldn't even be a surgeon today. Susan was able to bring her father around to the idea of becoming a doctor, which her father had been dead set against because of his past with Ellis Grey. Everything had been going just as she planned after that. Lexie went to medical school and was about to start her internship at Mass Gen but then a simple case of hiccups ruined her life.

When Lexie had arrived at Seattle Grace, she thought she would make the most of a bad situation and try to create a relationship with the sister she never knew. Lexie would find out that Meredith Grey was anything but welcoming and that she wanted nothing to do with her. That was the first time that Lexie began to feel small and insignificant in Seattle. As time passed by, she had been ignored and brushed off by so many people in this city that she began to feel no bigger than a baseball. But then he came along.

If given the choice, Lexie knew that she would have gone through every single horrible moment after her mother's death again if it brought her to this. If it brought her to the man she was crazy about. Mark Sloan had turned out to be more than just a handsome and arrogant surgeon the nurses had warned her about. He turned out to be her own blessing in disguise and was something that she had least expected.

For months, Lexie had been so sure that what she felt for George was true love. George was exactly the type of guy she had envisioned spending the rest of her life with. Kind, quiet and caring; sort of like her. Then Mark Sloan came along and showed her that those weren't the things she really wanted in a man. Mark was smart and funny and incredibly sexy. What she felt for Mark went beyond anything she had ever felt for anyone before. He made her feel so safe and so adored and she knew without a doubt that he was the one. This was the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life. The man she wanted to have children with and grow old with.

Lexie rested her cheek against Mark's chest and sighed once more as they swayed to the music.

"Comfortable?"

Lexie laughed softly and looked up into the smiling face of the man she loved, "Very" she said.

Mark brought one hand from it's place on her waist to cup the right side of her face. Lexie felt a shiver run down her spine as he brushed her cheek with his thumb.

"Happy?"

Lexie could tell from the look in his eyes that he even with all of his accomplisments and all of his good looks, he was still as insecure as the rest of them. Even after countless times of telling him that she had never felt happier than in his embrace, he still believed that something bad was going to happen. Lexie knew that she would never let anything get inbetween them; he meant way to much to her.

Lexie leaned forward and stood on her toes to capture his lips in hers. She pushed her tongue into his mouth and heard him moan very quietly as she gently massaged his tongue with hers. Kissing him was like a drug and she knew she would never tire of it. Lexie felt his smirk before she saw it.

Mark gently pushed her back and smirked down at her, "Should I take that as a yes?"

"You should take that as a hell yes."

Lexie watched as he raised his eyebrows in mock surprise, "Did Lexie Grey just swear?" She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I guess you've been a very bad influence Dr. Sloan," she said, causing him to laugh.

"Then I guess I'm gonna have to punish you Dr. Grey," Mark whispered into her ear. Lexie blushed before changing the subject because she was this close to jumping him right there in the middle of the dance floor.

"The wedding was beautiful, don't you think? It was small but beautiful. It was definitely a 'Derek and Meredith' wedding."

Mark had to agree with Lexie. Derek and Meredith's big wedding had originally been scheduled a week earlier but because of certain circumstances, a tumor appearing in Izzie's brain, Derek and Meredith gladly stepped back and let Alex and Izzie have their wedding. Meredith claimed that it was really Izzie's wedding anyway since she had planned practically every single detail. Derek and Meredith exchanged vows in Seattle Grace's chapel a mere two hours earlier, wearing only their scrubs. Since it was a last minute ceremony, the chapel was filled with only their close friends and family. Mark and Lexie were currently dancing at their reception at Joe's; the place where Meredith and Derek's story began.

"You know, I always imagined a huge wedding when I was a little girl. There would be hundreds of people and I would have the poofiest dress with the longest train. Then after that, I wanted a big reception on a gigantic yacht." Mark watched as Lexie looked over to where Derek and Meredith were sitting at the bar and smiled.

"But it isn't about the wedding. It's about the part that comes after; the part where two people share their lives together."

Mark realized in that moment that he never felt more in love with her than in that moment. He realized that his entire life had been leading him to this. To her.
Who would have thought that Lexie, sister to dark and twisty Meredith Grey, would be the woman to finally capture his elusive heart. He knew that without a doubt, she was his final destination. Mark Sloan knew he wanted to marry Little Lexie Grey.

"Marry me," he blurted out.

Lexie's brown eyes widened, "What?"

"I said, marry me" Mark repeated, his voice strong and steady.

"Is it because of what I just said. I didn't say that stuff about marriage so you would propose."

"I know, that's not why I'm asking."

Lexie watched his face for a minute before speaking, "You're serious."

"I wouldn't have asked it I wasn't serious."

"You sure it's not because of Derek and Meredith's wedding?"

Mark rolled his eyes. "I'm not a girl Lexie. I don't want to get married just because everyone else is," he said before bringing them to a standstill in the middle of the dance floor.

"The only thing all of these weddings have taught me is that I want to marry you. Life is too short Lexie. Too short to waste anymore time not being your husband and you not being my wife."

"Even though we've only been together for a few months? Isn't this moving too fast?"

"We have always been fast Lexie. This relationship began in only one night. The night you came to my hotel room and asked me to teach you. What I didn't expect was that you would end up teaching me Lexie." Mark searched her eyes, "I love you Little Grey."

Lexie eyes began to water. "I love you too," she said before roughly pressed her lips against his for a moment before pulling away.

Mark smiled, "So does that mean you're saying yes?"

Lexie smiled through her tears as she placed a hand on his chest, "That means I'm saying hell yes."

They both began laughing as Mark scooped Lexie up in his arms and kissed her with all the love he felt in his heart.

'You want to love me
Underneath it all
I'm really lucky
Underneath it all
You're really lovely'

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