The Starting Line (Reupload)

25

Dr. Bailey opened the doors of the new Free Clinic, named after Denny, with a proud smile. She turned to the four interns behind her, nodding.

"Welcome to the Denny Duquette Memorial Clinic. Barring any surgical emergencies, you will be working here today."

Eleanora smiled and looked around. Her smile faded slightly when she noticed that it was empty, and Cristina noticed too.

"Working on what?" Cristina asked bluntly, causing Eleanora to poke her on the side with her elbow. Cristina let out a little noise of pain, looking at the small woman.

Eleanora kept the smile on her face, acting as if she had done nothing. Alex huffed, pressing a kiss to the top of her head before he walked away towards the storage area.

Eleanora let her eyes travel with him, her eyes moving to Izzie right after. It had been a few weeks since George's father died, and Alex had been perfectly normal ever since. He was loving and attentive to her, but Eleanora could still feel the worry eating away at her stomach every time Izzie looked at him.

"Right now," Bailey glanced at Cristina with a slight glance before pointing to Olivia, who was preparing a cart of equipment, "Olivia will be familiarizing you with the flu shot protocol."

Cristina let out a little moan but Eleanora squealed, jumping towards Olivia. "Great! I haven't helped with vaccinations since med school! It was so much fun."

Cristina shared a look between Eleanora and Alex, her voice pained. "Oh my God. I have to get out of here. Burke has a bloodless pulmonary valve transplant patient arriving tomorrow from Denver. He should be getting me ready."

Eleanora wrinkled her nose and Alex chuckled, looking at Cristina like she was crazy. "You can't practice for that valve translocation."

"And why not?" Cristina shameless, Eleanora answering for her boyfriend.

"Alex is doing it. Burke chose him yesterday."

Cristina looked as if someone had just told her she had three hours to live, her voice shaking and shocked. "He chose Karev?"

Eleanora gave her a sad smile, patting her on the shoulder soothingly. "Everything will be fine, Cristina."

Olivia begins to instruct them about the vaccine, but their attention diverted when the doors open. Mark and the Chief enter, Izzie visibly deflated.

"Dr. Bailey!" Mark greeted, giving her a charming smile. "Congratulations on the opening of the clinic." His eyes scanned the room and landed on Nora. "Nora, good morning!"

Alex growled, but Eleanora didn't know why. She gave Mark a bright smile and a little wave. "Good morning!"

Eleanora focused back on Olivia, but her attention was soon diverted when Izzie let out a loud, "Damn!"

George and Callie entered the clinic, and Eleanora let out a squeal. She pushed past the few doctors in the clinic and closed them in a tight hug.

"You guys are back!" She pulled away from them, practically vibrating with excitement.

"O'Malley, welcome back. You're late." Bailey deadpanned. Eleanora took a little step back as she noticed the nervousness radiating from the couple, her head tilted.

"Is O'Malley, okay?" The Chief asked, his voice a little whisper.

George squeezed Callie's hand tightly and brought it to his chest. His voice and his entire being were proud, his chest puffed out and a smile on his lips. "We got married in Las Vegas!"