Grey’s Anatomy is a medical drama that has been chugging along for 18 seasons. It takes place in a pretend hospital in Seattle. The show follows surgical residents, doctors and all those other folks in scrubs. It tackles love, loss and all those delightful challenges of being in medicine. Fans love it and it has racked up awards for acting and storytelling.

Meet the secret lovers from Grey’s Anatomy

Alex Karev

Oh man, Alex is this rough-edged warrior with a surprising soft spot — like he will bite your head off about infectious disease protocols and then quietly knit a beanie for a newborn (yes, really). He’s loud, defensive, stubborn as a mule, but also the kind of person who shows up at 3 a.m. and doesn’t make a big deal out of it. There’s a shield of sarcasm and a million tiny contradictions — fiercely protective but terrible at expressing feelings, oddly sentimental but pretends he isn’t. He smells faintly of takeout and hand sanitizer in my head, which is somehow exactly him.

Derek Shepherd

Derek is the classic dreamboat neurosurgeon — calm hands, messy hair, tragic allure; you know he’s good at brains and at breaking hearts. He’s gentle in this offhand way that makes everyone clap silently, and then he’ll make a terrible dad joke, because of course he will. There’s this weird mix of supremely confident competence and underlying melancholic softness, like a soft sweater with a tiny hole that makes you love it more. He probably hums to himself while operating and also insists on driving a ridiculously impractical car.

Owen Hunt

Owen is all trauma-team steel with a quiet core that leaks poetry sometimes — the most broody, buttoned-up guy who will also surprise you by being the one who cries first at a documentary. He’s military-sharp, organized, intense, and then off-duty he’s inexplicably into pottery or macramé (or at least, I like to imagine). He has rules, lots of them, but he’ll throw them out if someone he cares about needs help, which is both very romantic and slightly terrifying. Also, clinical note: he probably keeps a tiny, ridiculous notebook of feelings.

Jackson Avery

Jackson is the gorgeous, polished surgeon with a dynasty vibe and a soft spot for public speaking — equal parts charisma and insecurity, like an expensive suit with a few lint balls. He wants to do everything right and be everyone’s champion, and sometimes that means spectacularly overcompensating (and yes, often with a speech). He’s both warmth and performative flair; he’ll cook you a perfect meal and then obsessively Instagram it, probably captioned with a quote from his grandmother. Honestly, he’s more complicated than his jawline suggests.

George O’Malley

George is the cinnamon-roll earnest one who trips over his feelings and occasionally also a gurney — lovable, awkward, and devastatingly sincere. He’s the guy everyone roots for, with this hero-complex that makes him jump into ridiculous, noble disasters (and somehow survive, or not — depending on memory). He’s clumsy but brave, tender but painfully self-conscious, and probably still has old school notes crumpled in his pockets. Small detail: he definitely likes old superhero comics and will defend terrible ones with surprising passion.

Mark Sloan

Mark is pure chaotic charm — plastic-surgeon swagger, flirty grin, and the kind of lipstick-stained ego that somehow manages to be soft underneath. He’s a walking rom-com montage: tailored suits, bad one-liners, and moments of real regret that sneak up on you. He’s equal parts confident and deeply insecure about the things that matter, which makes him endlessly watchable and occasionally infuriating. Also: he probably owns too many scarves and knows way too many designer brand names for no reason.

Andrew DeLuca

Andrew is the intense, idealistic young doctor who feels everything ten times harder and sometimes makes questionable choices because of it. He’s brilliant and messy and passionate, like he’d dissect a moral dilemma on a coffee napkin at 2 a.m., then apologize awkwardly and mean it. There’s a vulnerability that’s kind of palpable — he falls hard for people and ideas and then overthinks them into oblivion. Tiny quirk: he sings show tunes in the shower and pretends he doesn’t.

Preston Burke

Preston is the surgical prodigy with an old-soul formality — crisp, focused, slightly aloof, but with these rare glances that reveal he’s actually aching. He carries himself like someone in a period drama, but whispers terrible puns sometimes and gets surprisingly embarrassed about them. He’s fiercely competent and seriously self-disciplined, yet there’s a secret romantic who hoards tiny mementos in his locker (probably). Also, he likes whiskey despite insisting he only drinks neat in very controlled environments.

Richard Webber

Richard is the grandfatherly anchor of the hospital — world-weary, wise, and occasionally wrecked by his own mistakes, but always somehow that steady center. He’s the guy who remembers everyone’s birthdays and also has a complicated past that he tries to fix with both stern lectures and lukewarm casseroles. There’s humor and sadness layered together; he’ll give you a life lesson and then tell a hilarious, inappropriate story right after. He probably keeps a stash of embarrassingly cheesy motivational magnets on his desk.