You, Love

Chapter 7: Holding Out For A Hero

"Dr. Glenn."

Fallyn flinched so hard she nearly dropped the patient files she was holding.

Logically, she knew there was no way for her to avoid Addison after spilling her guts to her yesterday. She was one of maybe three coworkers that Fallyn talked to on a daily basis— and the most important one, at that.

But that hadn't stopped her from hoping.

Yesterday, after work, she'd gone home and laid in the bath for an hour and a half. Staring listlessly at the cracked ceiling paint, nursing a stress headache, and wishing she was back home in New York where she never said stupid things.

Alex had cut her bath short, thinking she'd drowned or something. Then he'd brought Izzie over and had loud, bad sex well into the night. Possibly in retaliation for Fallyn hogging the bathroom. She wasn't sure. There was no rest for the wicked.

Tired, thrumming with anxiety and the chemtrails of a headache, Fallyn turned to face her mentor. She smiled in what was probably a fear response. "Good morning, Dr. Montgomery–Shepherd. I got you a coffee."

An I'm–Sorry–For–Telling–You–I–Hate–Your–Legal–Husband Coffee, just how Addison liked it. Fallyn grabbed it from where she'd left it by the charts and handed it to Addison.

Addison held her coffee without drinking it which was... fine. It was her coffee. "Glenn, I thought a lot about our conversation yesterday."

"Please don't do that!" Fallyn blurted. She clapped a hand over her mouth in surprise, not entirely intending to vocalize that thought. Her hand came away from her mouth slowly as she picked up her thoughts from the ground. "I mean, please just forget that I said anything. I didn't even really mean it."

Addison raised an eyebrow. "I think you meant everything you said, Glenn. For a change." She laughed, not without mirth. "But don't worry. I'm not mad."

Relief rushed through Fallyn with an almost shocking intensity. Her voice was shaky as she said, "You're not?"

"No." Addison made a face that suggested that she'd been mad for a little while— Fallyn didn't like to think about it— but she meant what she said now. "You're right, actually. I could've treated you more professionally these past weeks, as my protegee. I officially signed with Seattle Grace this morning. I thought you'd like to know that."

"That's great." Fallyn managed a genuine smile. "Thank you."

She noticed, though, that Addison didn't bring up Derek. Which either meant that there was no change in their situation, or Addison had made a change that Fallyn wouldn't approve of. Underneath her relief, she wondered if Addison had been motivated to stay by more than just their talk yesterday.

Addison looked proud of herself. "And I have a surprise for you."

"Oh. You really didn't have to do that." What kind of surprise? Fallyn hated surprises.

Addison snorted. "Okay, fine. If you don't want the quints case that came in last night, I can give it to someone else." She strolled over to the shelf of patient files and picked one out, thumbing through it nonchalantly. "I can give it to Bailey, or maybe one of her interns."

"Quints. Like quintuplets?" Her voice came out pitchy with excitement. Fallyn couldn't help it— five babies! She was excited and anxious in equal measures, and horrified that Addison might give it to someone else. She tried to keep her feelings out of her voice as she said, "I would like to be on that case. A lot. Please."

"Study while we walk. We're headed there now." Addison handed the file to Fallyn, who held it with gentle hands. It was like gold!

Dorie Russell was thirty–two weeks pregnant with quintuplets— all girls. She already had triplet boys.