Code Blue | Grey's Anatomy // Book 2 // COMPLETED

18 | Braving the Cafeteria

"Chisel, please." Callie said as Meredith, Cristina, and I sat in the gallery watching Holly's second surgery, "Man, look at all this callus formation. He would've had to break this arm three or four times to get this amount of scar tissue. And the humerus is pretty strong, even in a young kid. Kinda makes you sick just thinking about the amount of...force it took to break it-"

"Can we talk about something else?" Bailey asked, obviously uncomfortable, "I mean, you know, who knows what they hear subconsciously? So it...maybe it wouldn't hurt to come up with a conversation about something other than every parent's worst nightmare."

"Avery scored an interview at U.C.L.A." Mark said.

Jackson looked up at him, "That is not what she meant."

"No, that-that's good." Bailey nodded, "Let's hear about that."

"Well, it's a top-ten program, which is impressive." Mark explained, "Of course, it's just as much a reflection on me as a teacher as it is his surgical skill."

"Okay." Jackson sighed.

Just then, the gallery door opened and Alex walked in, still wearing his suit from the interview. "Hey. How was Canada?" Meredith asked.

"Ugh." Alex sat down, "Canada would've been better than that dump."

"You want me to call the Chief at Duke?" Cristina asked, "He wants me so bad, he'll do anything I tell him, even accept you."

Alex huffed, "What's Hunt gonna do anyway if you leave? Oh, that's right. You say 'Duke,' and he's on the next plane. Guy's so whipped."

"She's not going to Duke," Meredith spoke up, "and neither are you. This is a great program, and we'd be crazy to leave."

I nodded in agreement, "My thoughts exactly. That's why I'm just waiting for Hunt to hurry up and offer me a position here."

"That's because you want to play shrink to your patient for the rest of your life." Cristina talked about Holly.

"She imprinted on me. What am I supposed to do?" Meredith countered.

"How is she doing anyway?" Alex asked.

Meredith looked back down into the O.R., "Great. I mean, better. I found two granola bars under her bed this morning. But at least she didn't lie about where they came from. Fincher says she's talking more in therapy, although she's not talking to Frank and Kathleen. She was being kept five miles away from their house, and they didn't find her. You don't just get over something like that."

"Maybe she could move in with you when we all leave," Cristina suggested.

Meredith shot her a look and we were pretty much silent as they finished up the procedures below.

"There's an old fracture in your pelvis that Dr. Torres is concerned about," Meredith told Holly after the surgery.

"It's called an avulsion fracture." Callie explained, "At first I thought it might have happened when you ran away, but this injury is a lot older than that. Do you remember when the pain first started or anything that might've happened right before that, a...a fall, maybe?"

Holly thought for a moment, "No, I-I-I don't. Oh...maybe it happened after I had the baby." everyone's eye's widened, "It was a few years ago. I-I think it died. I couldn't walk for a long time after. I-I...it must have happened then, right?"

Callie was silent as Holly's mother started to cry. "Uh..." Callie mumbled, "That's...yes, that's..."

Holly turned to her mother, "I'm sorry. I didn't...should-should I not have said anything?"

"Excuse me." Holly's mother left the room.

Meredith turned to Holly, "It's okay."

════(A few days later)════

"You're name brand." Alex told Jackson, "You're like the freakin' Ritz Carlton of surgery. Who cares if that's why they want you?"

Jackson was currently complaining about the fact that U.C.L.A. only wanted him because he was an Avery. "Because he knows deep down he's more of a roadside motel." Cristina joked.

"Oh, oh, oh, she's going for the soup," April announced as we watched Holly brave the cafeteria for the first time.

"Bold move." Cristina commented, "She's gonna have to talk to the soup guy."

Jackson looked over, "She's looking good. Looking confident."

"And she bails." Alex said as Holly walked away, "No soup for Holly."

"Hey, screw soup anyway." I chuckled as I grabbed a piece of fruit from Jackson's plate.

"She looks terrified." Lexie joined in, "Why are you so mean? Would you just go buy her some soup?"

"No, it's not mean." Meredith explained, "She's going home soon, and Dr. Fincher says, she has to learn to do things for herself."

Cristina nodded, "Mm. And you're gonna finally have to go to Boston for your interview."

Since Meredith was stuck with Holly, she had been forced to reschedule her interview about three times now. The Brigham must have really wanted her if they let her cancel three times.

"I am not avoiding the interview." Meredith denied for what seemed like the millionth time.

"Really?" Cristina pressured.

April sighed, "Well, wherever you go, just beware, they may judge you more on your personality than what really matters, like your resume."

Alex shook his head, "Meredith's not like you. Her personality doesn't suck."

"Oh, pizza station," Jackson announced and we all looked over at Holly by the pizza, but she quickly walked away from that too.

"Oh, whatever!" April complained some more, "You know what? Those programs can suck it. I'm tired of trying so hard not to be me. You know what? I like me."

"That makes one of us." Alex took a bite of his carrots as April shot him a dirty look, "You make it so easy."

"Look, you don't have to not be you." Jackson told her, "Just be a little less you. That's all."

"Get up." Mark stormed over and grabbed Jackson's ear.

Jackson looked up at him, "What are you doing?"

"Claire Hiatt just called to tell me you walked out on your interview." Mark said, "Call her back. Apologize."

"Look, I respectfully withdrew my application," Jackson explained.

"You want me to drag you out by your ear?" Mark threatened.

Sighing in defeat, Jackson grabbed his tray, stood up, and walked out with Mark. "Freakin' Robbins." Alex huffed out of nowhere as he too left the table.

Just then, Holly joined us, "Uh, so I didn't actually, uh, speak to anyone. But...I...uh, did go to the self-serve station. And it actually wasn't that hard."

Looking down at Holly's plate, it was just cookies and cake. But, who cares? I would eat cookies and cake for lunch if I could, but sadly, good health is kind of a must for a surgeon. "What?" Holly asked us.

"Nothing." Meredith smirked, "Looks good."