What if

Late april (part 5)

(Derek POV)

"She what?" I asked shakily. "She coded. We got her back, but Derek she's still slightly unstable. We need your verbal permission to start her on a string of antibiotics that will hopefully reverse damage done to her heart." She explained. "You have my consent to do anything. Should I come in now?" I asked. Amelia looked at me with worry visable in her eyes. "No. She's stabilizing now. But tomorrow we may need to discuss putting her into a medically induced coma to help the healing. I know she hasn't woken up for a while, but doing that may help her even more." Bailey said. "Okay. She's okay thought right?" I asked. "She's okay." Bailey confirmed as she hung up the phone.

"What happened?" Amelia asked. I looked down and made sure all the kids were sleeping, which they were. "She coded." I whispered. "Is she okay?" Ameli asked as her voice wavered. "She's stableish for now." I replied. "Okay. Okay." She whispered. "You need to get those kiddos in bed and get yourself some sleep." Amelia said.

After I put all the kids to sleep, I walked into our room and I laid down into the empty. I grabbed Merediths pillow, which still smelt like her lavander comditioner and hugged it tightly, hoping it would make me feel less alone. As the tears began to fall, my eyes became heavier and heavier, and I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

"Derek. Derek." Bailey said as she tried to get my attention. "I'm so sorry Derek. We did everything we could. Her body just wasn't strong enough. Meredith died at 5:42 this evening." Bailey said. I started sobbing uncontrollably.

"Derek! Derek!" Amelia said. I jolted up in bed, panting heavily. "Mer...where's Mer?" I asked. "She's still at the hospital. She's okay derek." Amelia said softly. "What happened?" She asked. "Nightmare. Oh god." I said as I buried my head into my hands and sobbed. Amelia wrapped her arm around me and rubbed my back, letting me cry. I leaned into her and put my head on her shoulder.

(Amelia POV)

After Derek calmed down a bit, he went off with the kids, and I had one thing to do. Call my mom and let her know what was happening. My mom and I are actually on good terms at the moment.

I dialed her number and she picked up almost immediately. "Amy! How are you? How is scout? Carolyn asked. "I'm okay mom. Scout and link are both good." I said. "That's great! I wish I could come down and visit." She said. "I know mom but it's not safe. Anyways I wanted to talk to you about something." I started. "Your not using again are you?" Carolyn asked. I inhaled sharply. "No, mom. I'm not. It's about Meredith." I said, my voice already cracking. "What's wrong?" Carolyn asked concerned. "She has covid. She's not doing well at all. She's on a vent, and they're talking about putting her into a medically induced coma." I said, tears streaming down my face. "Oh god." Carolyn said quietly. "How's Derek and the kids?" She asked. "The kids are good, link and I both watch them of dereks not home. And as for Derek, he's a wreck. He woke up this morning crying after having a nightmare." I explained.

"Oh my. I should come out, help with the kids." She said. "No. Mom it's not safe. Call Derek later. That will make him feel better. But do not get on a plane, you hear me?" I said sternly. "Okay amy. How are you doing? I know you and Meredith got quite close." She asked. "I...don't know. I'm really happy with link and scout, but I want my son to know my sister. Meredith is more of a sister to me than anyone else. I want scout to know his aunt. And it kills me that I can't do anything about it. And seeing Derek like this hurts, because he's always been there for me and helped me but I can't do the same." I said crying. "I'm so sorry Amy. Meredith is a strong woman, from what Derek told me. She won't go down without a fight. You just have to have faith." Carolyn said. There was a pause. "You know what your father always said?" She asked. "What?" I asked. "He always said that everyone has a chance, no matter how bad it is. And your father would want you believe that." Carolyn said. "Okay." I whispered. "I gotta go, scout is up but please call Derek later. He needs you." I said. "I will. I love you. Be safe." She said. "Love you too." I said as I hung up the phone.

(Bailey POV)

Richard, deluca, Teddy and I all watched Meredith from outside the window. "I hate seeing her like this. On the vent. It reminds me of bad times. She can't die. I've lost too many of my babies, and she's my favorite." I said. "Okay, enough. Meredith grey is not going to die. She is a force of nature. She's overcome too much to die from a disease. She's survived a bomb, a drowning, a shooting, a plane crash, a splenic rupture, a placental abruption, and she'll survive covid." Richard said. "Meredith has 3 kids and a husband, and if I know Meredith, she won't go down without a fight. Look, most patients with covid would have already died. But Meredith didn't, and she won't." Richard said sternly. I nodded.

"Meredith has really been through all that?" Deluca asked in shock. "And the death of her Ellis, Lexie, Mark, George, and her father." I added. "Wow." Deluca said. "She's incredible." Derek said as she came up to us.

(Derek POV)

I got myself ready and said goodbye to the kids. I left the house and went to the hospital, eager to see Mer.

I approached a group of merediths doctors and overheard them talking about what she's been through. "She's incredible." I said as I got to them. "She is." Richard agreed. "How are the kids?" Bailey asked. "They're good. They want their mama though, and I don't know what to say when they ask. I told them she was sick, but neither of them don't understand except Zo." I explained. "She'll be okay." Teddy said.

"Derek? We need to talk about her medical plans." Richard said. I nodded. "So, all of us agree that we should put her into a medically induced coma. Studies have shown that it helped patients fight off the disease and helped their immune systems and lungs." Teddy explained. "What are the risks?" I asked. "Well, if this disease does get worse, she may not wake up again, but that's the same as it is even if she's not in a coma. It's straining her heart, and when she wakes up every so often, it makes it worse." Teddy said. 

I nodded and thought of the pros and cons. The pros in this case outweighed the cons, so I made a choice. "Do it." I whispered. They all were about to head into the room when I stopped them. "Can I just have a minute?" I asked. They nodded and I entered the room.

I stood next to her bed and held her hand. "Hey Mer. I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm gonna talk anyways. If you have any fight left in you, You have to fight. For the kids, for me, for your friends. We need you Mer. I can't lose you. Your the best thing that's ever happened to me. You gave me my kids, and you gave me the most happiness I've ever had. You are the strongest woman I know, and you will beat this. Because you Meredith Grey, are extraordinary. I love you so much. I'll see you soon." I whispered.

I looked over outside and nodded for them to come in. They all entered the room and Richard stood by her IV. "Ready?" He asked. "Wait." Bailey said.

She leant down to Meredith. "Grey, you better not pull anything funny. Your the last of my interns. Everyone else died or left. I need you, we all need you, so you better not pull anything funny." She said sternly. I smiled and she nodded towards Richard. He pushed the medication into her IV and before we knew it, she was in a coma.