Grey + Sloan + The Shepherds

Chapter Two: The Unexpected Intern: Part Two

     Shuffling her feet nervously, Dr. Allison Shepherd, being the first one to enter the meeting/party/gathering room, waits for everyone else to enter the room. Looking around at her surroundings, Allison wonders why the chief chose to have this meeting early right before work instead of waiting till the evening. She always hates the nervousness of first days. First days of school, first days of work, the first time meeting someone. It's just that gut feeling Allison gets that makes her want to throw up. However, she knows that once settled in, she'll do just fine. She always does.
     Allison has known that her biological Mother, Dr. Amelia Shepherd, neurosurgeon, has worked her for a while now and has been following her work through the medias. She one day hopes to become as brilliant a surgeon as her and her biological uncle Dr. Derek Shepherd. She not only chose to do her residency through this top notch surgical program because of its greatness, but because of the amount of brilliantly created surgeons this hospital has produced through the program itself. For this reason, and because she always has wanted to meet the amazingly talented Dr. Catherine Fox. Even though Dr. Fox is into urology and Allison wants to become a neurosurgeon, Allison loves Catherine's assertiveness and confidence and admires those things about her. She admires the fact that after Harper Avery's disappointment, Dr. Fox took the lead and became head of the family creating the Catherine Fox Foundation and basically apologizing and having to clean up Harper Avery's dirty work that he did. She in fact owns Grey + Sloan Memorial Hospital along with a few other colleagues. She has worked her ass off to gain the name and title she has today and that is what Allison admires about her. Allison, being a former foster kid and aging out of the system and all, knows how the real world works and knows that you have to work hard to earn what you deserve in life and that is exactly what Allison and Dr. Fox both have done so far in their life.

     Dr. Allison Shepherd's nervousness turns to pure shock whenever she sees her idol, Dr. Catherine Fox, enter the room,"Excuse me," she says to Allison as she passes by her to stand in the middle of the meeting area to give a speech before the gathering/party begins. "Excuse me everyone!" Dr. Fox loudly states in order to get everyone's attention with people still entering the room. Everyone gathers around Catherine as Allison turns toward her slowly with her mouth gaping wide open at the shock of seeing Dr. Fox for the first time. Catherine notices Allison's appearance and stare and says assertively but calmly,"Girl close your mouth. I am Dr. Fox not Dr. Avery." Catherine laughs along with everyone in the room who has heard causing Allison to feel a bit of embarrassment at the situation. Allison quickly shuts her mouth and takes a step back saying,"oh I'm sorry. And I know you aren't Dr. Avery, Ms. Fox but I just admire you so much, but I am so sorry, I do apologize for the stare and for the mouth. Thing. Sorry. I mean Dr. Fox," Allison says becoming mousy towards the end of her little speech and backs away into the crowd shyly with some other surgical interns snickering under their breath. Looking back at the crowd Allison notices some attendings and residents smiling at each other trying so hard not to snicker.
     Great. The first time I get to meet my idol, I embarrass myself, not only in front of her, but in front of everyone I will be working with, she thinks to herself, but you know that's how it goes whenever you are nervous. You get clumsy. You embarrass yourself.
     "Now, everyone if I may have your attention please," Dr. Fox rips away my thoughts as she glances at me in the front row for a moment,"I would like to share some information about this surgical residency program. First off, all of the new first year interns will receive a handout on the rules of the hospital, as well as codes conducted here, and your assigned resident that is to aid in training you along with the attendings. We have established a one month rotation system here this year. You will be on one attendings' service each month unless you have a valid reason you cannot be on their service. Anyhow, all of the information you need is going to be located inside the handout so thoroughly go over and read and memorize every last detail people. We need no mistakes. Little as possible when there are lives at stake in your hands people. Nurse Anya and nurse Tina raise your hands." Allison, along with every other intern in the room look around to see two short, old nurses standing in a corner of the room with their hands raised. One of them waving furiously at an attempt to get everyone's attention. Barely being able to see their faces, Catherine points and turns her attention toward them as she says,"Nurse Anya and Tina will be handing out the handouts. Please get those ASAP. I don't think I have any more information so let the party begin! Rounds are at 6:00a.m." She says that second to last sentence a little more enthusiastically.
     Allison then looks around debating whether or not to grab her packet first or try a reattempt at talking to Dr. Fox. A lot of the interns head towards the nurses to grab their handouts, but some hurry to meet with their favorite attendings first before anyone gets to them before they do. After a long while of looking around, she decides on grabbing her handout first. The meeting lasts for an hour and a half so that's pleanty of time to talk to Catherine and meet with the other attendings. After all, Allison would like to look and see which resident and service she was assigned to beforehand so that she would know who to meet and talk with first.
      Walking towards the nurses to retrieve her packet, Allison sees someone familiar. Allison notices that she has dark brunette hair. She stops in her tracks for a moment starting at the woman wearing dark blue scrubs. She is an attending. She is talking with two other ladies. One has kind of fair skin and reddish blondish hair who must go by the name of Dr. Meredith Grey and the other has dark curly hair that doesn't even go past her shoulders, Dr. Maggie Pierce.
     I know who that is, Allison thinks to herself as she continues to stare. That's Dr. Amelia Shepherd. That's my biological Mother. My Mother who sent me into the foster care system so she could better her career and herself. She looks pretty, happy, as I watch her talk and laugh with her colleagues acting as if she doesn't have a care in the world. I bet she had no idea who I am. I bet if I were to walk right up to her this moment and say hi, she would not even notice me. Her own daughter.
     Feeling that sense of nervousness all over again, Amelia glances at Allison for only a second and then goes back to her conversation with her friends not even noticing who she really is. Allison makes a beeline for the nurses and hurries to get her packet to see who's service she will be on this month. "My name is Allison Shepherd," she tells the nurses as they both begin searching through the emptying stack of papers. "Here you are," Tina says in an enthusiastic tone of voice. "Thank you," Allison says in a monotone voice as she runs her eyes all over the paper. Ahha! Allison thinks to herself as she finds her own name on the paper. Right above her name lists the name 'Dr. Jo Wilson' and above that lists the name 'Dr. Maggie Pierce'.
     Not knowing whether to be happy that she doesn't have to be on Dr. Shepherd's service, at least for this month anyways, or to feel conflicted at how to approach Amelia, Allison glance over at her, hiding her face behind the stapled together papers she holds up in her hands. Amelia is now turned the other way with her facing towards Allison. She noticed Amelia glancing up every few seconds to get a look at Allison. She is standing and talking with a girl who has strawberry blonde kind of hair and super fair skin. She must be in my intern class, Allison thinks to herself.
     I guess Dr. Shepherd knows who I am by the way she glances up every few seconds at me, Allison thinks to herself as she looks down and begins to think about who she should meet and talk with first however unable to concentrate on anything except for the fact of why. Why? After all of these years, why has she not even tried to reach out to me and talk? I mean, I get that she is busy with her amazing career and everything, but she has had time to laugh and party with friends, and hasn't had time to reach out to her own daughter? Maybe she just didn't want me and put me in the foster system to abandon me. But why? Was I a mistake that she'll l forever regret? Conflicted about what to think about her abandonment, Allison thinks about the last time she saw her biological Mother:
     I was five years old and me and my Mother were at home. It was a stormy evening so we decided to play some board games. We were playing 'Candy Land' when we heard a knock at the front door. Amelia then gets up from off the floor saying,"I'll be right back. You can go for me it's my turn." "Okay Momma," I say as I pick a card for my Mother and she goes to check and see who is at the door. I was always the red character and my Mother was always the blue character in this game.

After I go through her turn and my turn, my Mother walks back into the living room with another lady. I've never seen this lady in my entire life. She is an older lady who has reddish looking hair with blonde streaks in it only going down to her shoulders. She is dressed like she is headed to a business meeting. "Momma who's this?" I ask. I was never a shy kid whatsoever. "This is Mrs. Patty," Amelia says with a sad kind of look on her face. "She is going to take you out for a while while I go to the hospital for a meeting." "But I thought you didn't have to work today Momma. You say you would spend the entire day with me just the two of us," I say in a sort of pouty voice with a whine. "I know Lissy, but I will see you as soon as I can I promise baby," she says with tears coming into her eyes. She walks over to lean down and hug me. As we were hugging I looked over my Mother's shoulder and knew something was wrong by the way Mrs. Patty was looking at us. I noticed she had two fully packed backpacks in her hands that were meant to be mine. "How long are you going to be gone?" I ask my Mother as I pull away from her hug. "I don't know baby but I'll see you as soon as I can I promise," she says with sad eyes as she hugs me even tighter this time picking me up off the ground. She holds me for a little while and then sets me back down on the ground. "It's time to go Lissy," she says. "I'll see you as soon as I can and I am going to miss you so much." The tears are now starting to flow down her face like a stream but she quickly wiped them away trying to stop crying at the thought of scaring me. "I'm going to miss you too Momma. This was supposed to be our day though," I say whining. "I know but you know my work," she says trying to sounds more cheerful but it doesn't work. Not on me anyways. I know her too well. "I know," I say looking at the floor sad.

We stare at each other for a long moment and finally my Mother hugs me once more quickly before Mrs. Patty takes my hand. "I love you and I'll miss you so much Lissy," my Mother says with sad eyes trying so hard not to cry. "Momma," I say pausing for a moment to look at her, "your just going to work right?" She looks at me thinking about what to say and finally she says,"Yes. I'm just going to work Lissy. You'll see me soon." She gives me a sad looking smile. I smile back at her trying not to be so worried,"I love you too Momma." Mrs. Patty grabs my hand and leads me toward the door. "Lissy don't forget your rain coat. It's pouring out there," my Mother says. I look back at my Mother as she sadly smiles at me,"Bye Lissy." "Bye Momma see you later," I say smiling back. And that was the last time I saw her. I remember it like it was yesterday.
     Suddenly feeling not so nervous at the thought of approaching her, a little confident and a little bit angry at her biological Mother's leaving and her lies, Allison starts walking towards Amelia.