Lover // g. o'malley

My Favorite Mistake

Surgeons always have a plan, where to cut, where to clamp, where to stitch. But even with the best plans, complications can arise, things can arise and suddenly you're caught with your pants down.

Surprisingly, George never came back home that night. I know I told him to leave but knowing George, he would usually come back and apologize almost right away. I didn't see him until the next day in the locker room at work. "George. Hey," I say, walking over to him.

"Hey. You look, uh, nice," he stutters.

"I look ridiculous today. I'm wearing pearls. Listen..."

"Listen, about last night, uh..."

"Yeah. Well we're good enough for now because as of right now you and I, we're the perfect couple. Okay, we are the perfect happily married couple who are perfect and never ever fight because my grandfather is in town right now," I tell him, panicking.

"What?"

"Yeah, my grandfather is in town today and, uh, he wants to meet my perfect husband."

Izzie walks into the room and begins to walk past us. "Oh, hey. Hey there O'Malleys. Carry on, do your stuff, your married stuff. Yay!"

"You told her about our fight," I mumble once Izzie fully walks past us.

"Just when exactly is he coming here?" George asks, ignoring me.

"Today, lunch, cafeteria. You know what, I think I might change it to Joe's so he might not be able to tell that you're the one who smells," I suggest.

"No, it's okay. It's okay, really. Uh, I'm pretty good with parents. Parents usually love me," he says.

"Funny. Funny man who stinks. Just please get in the shower, get in the shower, okay?" I suggest to him.

"I know it'll be okay. You'll see, he's going to totally love me," George says before walking over to the showers.

When Izzie starts to walk out of the locker room, I follow her to the nurses station since we are on the same case again today. "Wait, wait, wait, I need to talk to you about something," I say, rushing up to her.

"Why?" she asks, stopping so I can catch up to her.

"To prepare you for what you're about to see here," I warn her. Izzie has a nervous look on her face. "Our patient has a disease that you'll probably never get to see again. FOP," I tell her.

"Oh, Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva," she says, sighing.

"Uh, yeah. It's a skeletal disease. It turns muscle into bone, it basically turns you into a human statue. So just try to learn and not stare at her. Okay?" I ask her.

I take Izzie into the patient's room and the daughter stops us at the door. "If you people are interns, you need to step back," she warns us.

"Nina, please don't be rude to the doctors," her mother says.

"My mother still has movement in her face and hands.  Barely, but it's still there. I'd like to keep it that way, so, please be careful with her. You press too hard during an exam or bump into her accidentally. It causes a bone to grow where a bone shouldn't grow. So there can be no accidents at all," the daughter tells us.

"Okay, we'll remember that when dealing with her today," I assure the two of them.

"It's just a stomach virus or the flu. I'm sure it's nothing. Nina insisted that I come in..." Cathy tells us.

"She was vomiting blood.And going through her pain meds like they were Halloween candy. And she has new growths, on her back. No doubt caused by clumsy interns on her last hospital stay," Nina says.