Looking at you side ways

4

DePalma had just started scrubbing in when they walked in. All the other interns were in the scrub room also.

"Grey, scrub in and the rest of you get your ass to the galley and observe. There will be questions later." That left Meredith alone with DePalma.[i] She had already decided the less she spoke to him the better.[/i] He glanced over at her and was surprised she wasn't shaking. [i]Usually the girls did. She would be by the time he finished with her.[/i]

They walked into the OR and Meredith glanced up at the galley. [i]Shit! All the surgical residents were there, including the ones she hadn't met yet.[/i] Burke was staring at the instrument tray and Cristina nodded slightly at her with encouragement. Mark gave her a look like he was thinking okay; show me what you got Princess. Addison stared at her with open hostility and envy, and then she saw Derek. He cocked his head at her and gave her a big smile and thumbs up gesture.[i] Jeez,[/i] Meredith thought. [i]That was a dreamy look.[/i]

DePalma barked loudly at her. "Grey there is no daydreaming in the OR!"

Meredith clenched her jaw a little at his tone and tried to channel her mother. She thought about what she had read and what she had seen.[i] She could do it. She had watched her mother operate in person and also watched her surgical tapes. She had gradated from medical school, where she had seen lots of appy's.[/i] She thought to herself,[i] open, identify, ligate, remove, irrigate, close.[/i]

She waited for instructions from DePalma. Her mother's voice came on in her head.[i] Oh Meredith. This is so simple. You should be able to do it blindfolded. [/i]

In the galley, they were all hunched forward to get the best view. Some of the interns who didn't know Meredith were making comments.

"She's gonna faint. She's a fainter."

"Nah code yellow. Right in her pants. She's a pisser."

"She's all about the flop sweat. She's gonna sweat herself unsterile."

"Ten bucks says she messes up the McBurney."

"Twenty bucks says she cries."

Addison piped up. "I'll put fifty on a total meltdown."

Derek, Mark, Cristina and Burke all turned around and gave Addison a disgusted look.

Derek said, "A hundred says she pulls the whole thing off. That's one of us down there. The first one of us. Where's your loyalty?"

It gets quiet in the galley and everybody concentrates on Meredith.

Addison says nastily, "One hundred twenty five bucks says she can't even id the appendix."

Another intern says, "I'll take that action."

DePalma says loudly for the audience, "Okay, Grey. Let's see what you can do."

Derek says softy to Mark, "Here it comes."

Meredith says, "Scalpel."

The scrub nurse slaps the scalpel into Meredith's hand and she is totally focused. The interns cheer and DePalma glares at them and gives them a gesture to shut up.

Meredith puts the tip of the scalpel on the patients flesh. Her hands are steady.

"More pressure. The human flesh is a tough shell. Dig in!" He practically yelled this in her ear. The OR nurses looked at each other.[i] DePalma was being a bigger asshole than normal. He wanted to rattle his intern. It happened all the time.[/i]

She made a deep precise incision.

"Pickups."

"Pickups."