The Starting Line (Reupload)

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   Opening her eyes, Eleanora made a small, annoyed noise at the bright lights in the room. She finally adjusted to the light and felt someone holding her hand. She turned her head to the side and saw Mark putting his hand to her face, his eyes watering red.

"Hello." She whispered, her voice raspy with disuse. Mark let out a small sob, leaning forward to take her cheek with one hand. Eleanora smiled softly, closed her eyes, and leaned against him.

"You had me worried, doll." He whispered. Eleanora opened her eyes and closed them with his. She squeezed his hand slowly and weakly.

"But I'm alive." She told him. "We are both alive. That's all that matters."

Mark rubs his thumb in circles on his cheek before leaning forward and pressing his lips together. It was a soft kiss, but Eleanora could still feel every emotion that was behind him. As they walked away, Mark rested his forehead on hers. He took his hand from her cheek and took her bag that someone had brought her earlier. Grabbing a small box, Mark opened it and placed it next to him on the bed.

Eleanora heard the 'click' of the box opening and opened her eyes, confused. Mark stepped back a little and she looked down, a small gasp escaping her when she saw a little black velvet box with her grandmother's engagement ring inside.

"Mark..." she chokes, staring at him for a moment before refocusing on the ring.

"Marry me." He squeezed her hand and pushed the ring box forward a little. "Marry me, Eleanora Amedeo. There's no one else I want to spend the rest of my life with, I don't want anyone else by my side. You almost died today, doll. You almost died, and--and I went crazy. I can't lose you, Nora. So, marry me?"

Eleanora felt tears gathering in her eyes, but for the first time in the past twenty-four hours, they were of happiness. She nodded, a small happy laugh escaping her.

"Yes. Yes, yes, yes!" Mark smiled and laughed himself, taking his hand off hers so he could lift the ring box. He carefully pulled out the ring and took her other hand, sliding it over her ring finger.

Eleanora smiled, tears of happiness streaming down her cheeks as she watched her boyfriend — no, her fiancé — put her grandmother's engagement ring on her finger. After it was positioned, Eleanora moved and cupped his cheeks, pulling him towards her so they could share another kiss. Mark placed one hand on the back of her head and the other on her cheek, the two of them smiling at the kiss.

Mark rubbed their noses together and whispered to her. "I love you, Eleanora Amedeo. Forever and ever."

"I love you too, Mark Sloan. Forever and ever."

The moment of two was interrupted by the bedroom door being opened, Altman and the Assistant Surgeon General, Dr. Cain, entered. Mark looked over his shoulder, got up from his chair, and moved his hand to intertwine it with his fiancée's.

"It's about time you showed up." He spat, his voice angry. "You didn't give me any updates on what happened in the surgery, Altman."

Eleanora squeezed his hand and shook her head. "Mark, stop." She began to sit up, but let out a hiss of pain. Mark hurriedly helped her to a seat, gently helping her to get comfortable.

"The surgery went well. We had some complications, but we were able to find the bullet and repair any damage it left behind. You'll be sore for a week or so, but as long as your labs are back well and you don't develop any complications or infections, you should be able to leave in the next few days and go back to work a little after that." Dr. Cain told him. He looked at Altman, who had a sad look on his face.

"Teddy?" Eleanora asked softly, noticing the look in her eyes. "What is it?"

Mark turned his attention back to Teddy by the words that came out of Eleanora's mouth, straightening up when he noticed the look on her face. His voice is harsh when he speaks, but Eleanora knows him well enough and knows he's scared.

"Is there a problem with her heart or lungs, Altman?"

"No, no!" Teddy told them, shaking his head. They both relax a bit with that and Teddy steps forward. She clears her throat, crossing her arms. "During ... during your surgery, Dr. Cain noticed a fair amount of bleeding in your lower extremities, and I noticed that your blood pressure was strangely high. We... We call the OB-GYN, and they will look for you and talk to you later after we are done here. But, they did tests and noticed that your hCG levels were high and confirmed through another test that you were..."

"No." Eleanora choked, and Mark stiffened beside her. Tears welled up in his eyes and he raised his voice, breaking as he realized what Teddy was trying to tell them. "No, you... you are not..."

"I'm sorry, Eleanora. But you were around 3 weeks pregnant, and the shot along with the stress on your body caused a miscarriage. I'm so sorry." Teddy told her, his voice a little emotional.

Mark let out a wounded noise, rubbing his jaw as the words sank. Eleanora let out a sad, broken sound, her hand flying into her mouth. Tears began to fall and she closed her eyes, turning her head to bury her in her boyfriend's stomach. Soft, silent sobs escaped her, and Mark moved to hug her tightly.

He looked at Teddy and Dr. Cain, his voice steady. "You can leave now."

Dr. Cain nodded and walked out, Teddy staying behind for a moment. She looked sadly at the couple, her voice trembling as she spoke. "The OB will be here shortly to discuss the next steps with you. Once again, I'm so sorry."

Teddy comes out with it, closing the door behind her. Once they were gone, Mark let the tears fall and some muffled noises escaped him. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed and Eleanora wrapped her arms around his shoulders, sinking into his chest as the two wept and wailed together.

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    A few hours after the OB arrived and discussed what had happened and how they had to handle it, Eleanora sat on her bed while Mark passed out in the chair next to her. Her head rested on the back of the hospital bed, looking at him with a soft, sad smile on her lips and a hand resting on her stomach.

The door opened and she turned to look, seeing her little brother standing in the doorway. Eleanora's smile widened a little, and she nodded her head for him to come in. Max closed the door gently behind him, walking towards the bed. He waited a moment before getting into bed with her carefully, Eleanora moved her arm so she could rest under him. With her moving her arm, Max felt the ring on her finger. He raised his eyebrows and looked at her with a questioning smile on his face.

"He asked me when I woke up." She said quietly so as not to wake the exhausted man in the chair next to them. "Obviously I said yes."

"Obviously." Max replied, laughing a little. He looked at the ring for a moment, recognition lit up on his face. "It's grandma's ring, right?"

"Yes," Eleanora told him, showing him it. The two of them sat there quietly, Max finally looking at her.

"Are you okay?"

"No," Eleanora told him, taking a deep breath. "No, I'm not. B-but I will be, in time." She gave him a sad smile, her eyes tearing as she kissed him on the forehead. Max rested his head on his chest and the two brothers sat there, hugging each other tightly.

"I was so scared. So damn scared, during all of that. I couldn't stop thinking about what if, you know? You didn't answer your phone and I couldn't, I couldn't figure out where Lexie was and I was damn scared that everyone I knew was dead." He admitted in a harsh voice. "Promise me you won't leave me, Ella. Promise me."

"I promise." She told him, closing her eyes. After a few moments, she spoke with a broken voice. "I watched Luke Jefferson die in front of my very eyes. And I had to lie next to his body for... I don't know how long, staring into his dead eyes. And all the time I was so... so sad that he was dead, that he was not..."

Eleanora took a deep, trembling breath, tears streaming down her cheeks. "One day he was going to be a great surgeon, and he was already a great man. He deserved to live."

Max squeezed her a little, careful not to disturb her stitches. "I know." He whispered. "Everyone did."

Yes, Eleanora thought. His other hand returned to his stomach, without his brother noticing. Everyone did it

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