Let Me Carry You (Carry You Home)

17: Sick Day

Even days after their first evaluation, neither Maya or Carina could believe what had happened. They still felt stunned that things had gone down the way it did; from Benjamin, the social worker in charge of Sarah's case remarking that Maya and Carina weren't suited to be parents, to Sarah snapping and defending them.

Parenting was never an easy task, but to hear positivity about the way they were raising Sarah from Sarah herself, someone who was painfully shy, and avoided talking to new people like the plague... Despite all of that, she'd stood up for Maya and Carina.

"I said, are we in the same house, because the house that I'm in has two supporting moms who devote their lives to me, to make sure that I'm happy, loved, healthy and safe! You can make whatever snide comments about me, but you have crossed a line in disrespecting Maya and Carina. Sure, they may work long hours and are sometimes called into work unexpectedly, but their first priority is making sure that someone will be here with me. Do you hear that? I am their first priority! They have a whole freaking village of people around them! They have given me a family, they have helped me heal and make me want to live. They are the best part of my life, and I love being their kid. The people that you're describing are nothing like the family that I have. So if you're judging them, make sure to get that on your damned evaluation!"

It was rewarding to know just how valued Maya and Carina were in Sarah's eyes. Having her come to their defence like she had was all that Maya needed and more.

When Maya arrived at the station the next day, she couldn't stop talking about the evaluation with giddy excitement. She and Carina had been nothing less than flabbergasted by Sarah's outburst, and tickled by her kind words.

"You should have been there. She got angry at the social worker who kept trying to low blow Carina and I. She stood up for us and said all these amazing things about how she loved us..." Maya trailed off, but then she snapped back energetically.

"The social worker totally turned things around after that. He's recommending that we take official custody of Sarah!" She concluded with a goofy grin on her face.

The team was equal parts and excited and proud. Oh, how Maya 'monogamy is for the weak' Bishop had grown. She had a girlfriend and was well on the way to having a kid. Every member of the team treated Sarah like one of their own, and in their minds, Sarah was already a part of their family.

———

Meanwhile, Carina had a couple days off, which was rare. She still woke up early to see Maya and Sarah off to both work and school, and had her day off planned to a tee. Sarah had seemed oddly quiet this morning, but Carina had shaken that thought off. It was probably nothing aside from exhaustion, and if Carina worried about it any longer, she would give herself grey hairs. Sarah had assured her she was fine, and that was all Carina could ask for.

Carina spent her morning cooking some of her favourite Italian dishes for them and some for the doctors on Sarah's team at Grey-Sloan. They did such a good job helping make Sarah feel at home while she was in the hospital, and Carina wanted to thank them for their hard work.

Everything was going smoothly when suddenly, Carina's phone rang, interrupting her putting the dishes in the oven. She frowned when she recognized the caller; it was Sarah's school.

"Hello?" Carina answered, her eyebrows furrowed.

"Hi, this is Angela from Interlake High School calling. I'm calling because Sarah came down to the office, not feeling well. She looks awfully pale and is complaining of a bad headache as well as feeling sick," The caller relayed, and Carina's stomach sank.

"Oh, no. I'll leave right now to come collect her. I should be ten minutes or so," Carina replied, and after Angela reminded Carina of the address, she hung up.