Little Shepherd

Chapter Thirty-Nine

"I know who it is." Liza smirks
"Okay, let's see then." I shrug
"That one." She guesses, pointing at Alex by the nurse's station.
"Wrong. Why Alex?" I ask
"I heard him talking about you." Liza tells me
"Well no, but he is my best friend so that kind of makes sense." I say

"Why can't you just tell me?" She frowns
"You wanted to guess." I mumble
"I didn't think it be this hard." Liza sighs
"Shepherd! Good news!" Kevin's remarks, walking in.
"What is that?" I inquire

"It has been 48 hours and you are clear to go. Also we need the room, we're at max capacity." He comments
"Finally." I groan
"I will have a nurse help you out momentarily." Kevin nods, before walking out of my room.
"That's great! You finally get to leave!" Liza smiles

"Thank god, I was on the brink of dying from captivity." I huff
"You make it seem like you're a zoo animal." She jokes
"I sure felt like one." I chuckle
"You're so melodramatic." Liza laughs
"Maybe just a little." I shrug

Soon a nurse hands me discharge papers and helps my into a wheelchair. "Fuck." I hiss when she accidently bumps my leg on the side of the bed.
"I- I am so sorry, Dr. Shepherd." She stutters
"It's fine." I mutter, clenching my teeth.

"Oh I forgot to ask Derek if he can drop me off." I groan
"No need, I can drive you." She smiles
"I don't want to bother you, I'm sure I can get Derek to." I tell her
"He probably has surgeries, he's busy. I insist." Liza says
"Thank you." I smile weakly

The nurse wheels me past the nurses station, heading to the lobby. We get in the elevator and wait to arrive at the lobby. The doors soon open and we step out. We are almost out the door until I am stopped. "Mariah! Wait!" I hear someone call out

The nurse stops pushing me and I turn around to see Mark rushing over in my direction. He makes it to me a few seconds later, "You got discharged already?" He asks
"Yeah, finally." I nod
"Mark Sloan, I haven't seen you in years." Liza smiles
"Liza? What a surprise." He says, hugging her.

"Well I needed to come check in on Mariah, so when I heard, I was on the first flight out." She tells him
"That's good to know Mariah has someone that supports her." Mark mumbles
"Where are you heading right now?" He asks
"Liza is driving to Mer's." I reply

"You can't go to Mer's, no one is there to help you." Mark stammers
"I'll be fine, I promise." I sigh
"Maybe you should stay with me. I can take care of you, you are my girlfriend." He insists
I scrunch my face up when I realize he reveals to Liza that we are dating.

Liza gasps lightly, "You're dating Mark?" She questions
"Oh... Sorry." Mark frowns, looking at me.
"Yes, but maybe not for long if he tells anyone else." I say, glaring at Mark.
"Well I would've never guessed." Liza shrugs
"I-I don't know what to say." She stutters
"Liza-"
"You better not hurt her Mark, or I will hunt you down. I know your past with women, Mariah is not going to play your games." Liza scolds

I raise an eyebrow, "Y-yes ma'am." Mark stammers, looking down at me.
"Look, stay at my place. I want to be there for you." He tells me
"Wouldn't my brother mark that as a red flag?" I frown
"He doesn't need to know, just make something up." Mark shrugs
"Think about it, I got to go." He sighs, bending down and kissing my forehead before turning to walk away
"I'm watching you Sloan." Liza taunts

I laugh and Mark nods, walking away. Liza gives me a look, before looking away. "Seriously?" I scoff, smiling.
"I didn't say anything." She smirks
"You don't need to." I say, rolling my eyes.

The nurse pushes me to Liza's car and helps me inside her car. Once I'm inside, the nurse leaves and Liza gets in the drivers seat. She starts the car and pulls out of the parking lot. "So where am I taking you?" Liza asks

"I don't even know." I sigh
"Your brother doesn't know about Mark?" She questions
"No, he won't take it well." I shrug
"He's your brother, Mariah. He should know. Derek will come around, but you need to tell him sooner or later." Liza says

"I know this, Liza. But Derek is protective and he won't like the idea of his best friend being with his little sister. Derek and Mark are almost back to where they were before, well you know. I don't want to ruin that." I tell her
"Okay, you don't need to do it right now. But you can't keep Mark and you and secret forever." She frowns

I nod and sink into the seat, "Just take me to Mark's." I mumble
I give her directions and she drives off

-.-
"He said it was B12, but I don't see it." I say
"Ow." I mutter, leaning on the wall.
"I'll look for it, you stay there before you injure yourself  more." Liza tuts
I frown and stay there, frustrated

"I found it." She announces
Liza comes to help me and takes me to the door, "Where is the key?" Liza questions
"He said it was under the mat, typical." I huff, rolling my eyes.

Liza bends down and grabs the key from under the mat, then proceeds to unlock the door. We step inside and Liza closes the door behind her.

"Where do you want to be?" She asks
"I guess the couch, I think it'll be a little weird if he shows up with me in his bed." I chuckle lightly
Liza helps me onto the couch, then sits across from me.

"Are you going to be okay?" She asks
"I think so." I frown
"I can stay for another week if you really need." Liza suggests
"No, I can't let you do that. You have a life and I don't need you waiting on me hand and foot." I insist

"Are you sure?" She questions
"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead, go back to New York." I tell her
"Thank you for coming, Liza. It means a lot." I nod
"No problem, I'm always going to be there for you." She smiles
"It's  funny, you heard about what happened and were here in an instant. My mother on the other hand is nowhere to be seen." I scoff
"I know sweetie, but you did tell her to not ever contact you." Liza tells me

"She did something unforgivable. Anyways, she's not much of a mother if she doesn't care about the well being of her daughter." I shrug
"Mariah, she loves you." She frowns
"Hah, if that were true things wouldn't be like they were right now." I scoff
"Whatever, I don't want to get into this right now." I sigh

"So what are you going to tell everybody?" Liza asks, changing the subject.
"I'll just tell them I'm moving in with Alex for a little while because I want more peace and quiet or something." I reply
"Oh okay." She shrugs
"I should get going, my flight leaves in an hour." Liza says
"Yeah, you're right." I mutter

"I'm going to miss you. It was good seeing you again." I smile weakly
"Me too. You should visit more often, I'm just a plane ride away." Liza tells me
"A plane ride across the freaking country." I chuckle
"You're right, just text me. " She mutters
"Well, bye Mariah." Liza frowns
"Bye, Liza." I sigh

She begins walking out, "Don't let this ruin you, stay strong." She says
"I'm going to try." I shrug
Liza smiles and closes the door behind her, leaving me alone at Mark's apartment.

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Yeah, it's been a while. I'm SO sorry for the wait, it's been almost 2 months and I NEVER do that. I love all of you and thank you for the support. My updating schedule should remain the same here on out, I hope you're still there. Don't forget to comment and vote!

-A