Till It Happens To You by Lady Gaga
TW- medical procedures and abuse
Amelia Shepherd
"Oh my God! Thank God! Meredith! Oh my God I missed you!"
I shut up when she opens her eyes.
Her eyes are dark, not just in her pupils, but the surrounding skin too. Hues of red and purple act as blush on her jagged cheek bones, but their less than blended edges prove that they're bruises.
""DON'T TOUCH ME!" She yells as Arizona approaches.
"Meredith? It's just me...." the blonde speaks calmly. She always has that touch that I lack. "Can you come inside? The hallway's chilly."
The little girl tentatively makes a move into the apartment, flinching when I click the door shut. There's some sort of limp to her walk. She's holding herself funny. She seems reluctant to come near either of us, so we give her space on the couch.
"What happened to you face?" I ask. I don't exactly have a filter. Or tact.
"Nothing. I'm fine." Is the reply.
"Well that's bull... you've got two black eyes!"
"I can't tell you."
"Why?"
"He told me not to tell."
"Who? Thatcher?" Arizona butts in.
"No! Leave me alone! You know nothing! You're all wrong!" She leaps from the couch and heads for the door, ready to run again.
Her movements are erratic, animalistic, primal and instinctual.
A zebra running from the lion.
You should always run in a zig zag from an attacker.
Startle the enemy.
Disorientate them.
I spring up to stop her.
"Hey! Hey! Calm down Princess!" I hush. She looks me dead in the eyes at my use of her old nickname. A flash of trust appears in her irises.
"How about Arizona leaves? Will you talk to me? Can I fix up your face?" I look to Arizona who looks slightly offended, but soon realises that Meredith came here to seek out me, not her, and is therefore most likely to open up if no one else is here to listen.
"Yeah, I need to do a food shop actually! Pop my pizza in some Tupperware for me?" The blonde smiles, squeezes my shoulder, and grabs her keys, exiting her own flat.
Meredith and I are alone.
"Can you come back to the sofa?"
She shakes her head.
"Please! You're hurt. I am here to help you Meredith. But I don't know what's wrong...." I plead with the mousy blonde.
"Lock the door." She says abruptly. And I obey. Of course I do. "No one else can know, only you."
"Okay. No one else is here. It's just you and me." I reassure and sit infront of my sister who's perched on the couch.
Tilting her chin upwards reveals the bruises in full light. Holy shit. She screws her eyes shut, not wanting to continue the awkward eye contact. I scan the rest of her body. It's hard to see anymore injuries, but judging by her limp, there seems to be something up with her hip or thigh. It's not the kind of limp you get when you roll your ankle playing in the yard.
"Can you tell me what hurts?" I ask, able to switch my brain to doctor.
"It's just my face. I just need my face to stop hurting. I'm fine."
YOU ARE READING
What She Needs
FanfictionMeredith Grey has never had a real mother. She's never relied on another person and learnt that letting people in only gets you hurt. Will she be able to accept help, or will childhood trauma prevent Meredith from leaning into mother-like comfort? ...
