B E T T Y | Grey's Anatomy

13

"Sweetheart..." Amelia mumbles, looking at the tapestry of wounds laid out on skinny arms before her. Her eyes dart left right and centre, unable to focus on a mark, before new ones come into view. Everything is blurry on account of Amelia's unshed tears and Betty's refusal to stay still. She fights.

"Betty." Amelia warns. "Hold still."

"No."

"These are deep Betty."

"I know."

"What did you use?"

Surprisingly, Betty names the instrument with little fight and Amelia wonders if finally the child has given into her love.

"Will you...." Amelia hedges her words. "Will you show it to me?"

Betty just shrugs, and Amelia figures there are more pressing issues first of all.

"Do you want me to go?" Betty asks shyly.

"No." Says Amelia, harder than she should, but in desperation to communicate, she says the words harshly.
"No, I want you to stay. I don't... Betty.... Honey...."

Amelia takes a second to collect herself.

"I'm an addict." Amelia says and Betty is confused.

"I know...."

"I understand addiction." Amelia continues. "And would I be right to suggest that you've maybe replaced one addiction: drugs, with another: self harm?"

"I'm not s-self harming." Betty shakes her head in denial.

"You're cutting yourself intentionally." Amelia points out.

"Yea but.... " Betty tapers off but comes back defensively. "Amelia it's not a thing.... Please don't make it into a thing."

"It seems like it been a thing for a while." Amelia turns Betty's arm over, she pulls back, but a stern quirk of the brunettes eyebrow tells the teenager to stay still.

Betty cringes under the gaze of green eyes. She hates how slowly she's moving across the cuts, analysing each for infection.

"It's not bad.. I'm.... It's just something i do....." 

"Okay." Amelia says, continuing her assessment. 

"Okay?" Betty mumbles in surprise.

"I can accept that it's something you do. I can accept that as the language of an addict who is trying to diminish their addiction. I know you Betty. I can unravel you." Answers Amelia.

Betty shakes her head.

"You don't know me." The teen bites out and the stubbornness, showing her immaturity, makes Amelia want to chuckle.

"I do." Amelia breathes out. "I know you've changed. I can see that. There's an anxiety about you that I thought came out of nowhere, but with recent discovery of your fathers behaviour, it makes sense. I know you and that's why you are scared."

"I'm not scared." The little girl pouts.

"You are. You wouldn't be hurting yourself if you weren't scared."

"Don't shrink me." She cries and Amelia just smiles sadly.

"I need to clean this up, can you let me do that?" The neurosurgeon says sincerely.

"Do I have a choice?"

"In this case, yes." Amelia says. "You can clean it yourself, I've assessed the wounds."

"You.... Can you..."

"Do you want me to clean your cuts sweetheart?"

Betty doesn't know how to respond, words failing her, and the tall girl abruptly bursts into tears as she nods.