No Time | Grey's Anatomy // Book 1 // COMPLETED |

45 | Almost a Year

 "Dr. Hunt, I updated Mrs. Paiz and checked your calls." a nurse announced as she entered the O.R., "Uh, Dr. Marshal form N.Y.U. called about speaking at their conference, and the lab called with results for your kidney patient."

Owen looked up at the nurse, "That it? N-nothing from my wife?"

The nurse shook her head, "No, that's it."

"You ready?" Owen asked and turned to Meredith, "Lifting the liver."

As Meredith stitched up Jason, Owen and I watched her. Him, observing, and me, learning. "Good work." Owen praised her.

"I think I can get another stitch in." Meredith looked up for a second.

"We can't risk it." Owen told her, "There's too much pull on the liver. I'm lowering it."

"I want to try." Meredith insisted, "There's not as much blood in the field as before. He can handle another stitch."

Owen shook his head, "No. Remove your hand, Dr. Grey."

"Just another second." Meredith insisted. Just as Owen was about to protest again, her head shot up, "Done. I got it. I...lower the liver."

Owen stared at Meredith. Quiet for a while, before he spoke. "Get out of my O.R." he demanded.

"What?" Meredith asked, "I did it. Look. See? He's fine."

"I'm not gonna say it again," Owen warned.

Finally submitting, Meredith set down her instruments before exiting the OR. I could tell she was mad by the way her eyes pierced daggers into Owen as she slammed the door opener with her elbow and left.

Once we had finished the surgery, the nurses took Jason to the ICU. Meanwhile, Owen and I stayed behind to fill out some charts. Just then, Meredith entered the OR. "Could I talk to you for a second?" she asked, her question directed to Owen.

Owen turned to her, then to the people mopping away the blood, "Uh, guys, give us the room."

"Yes, doctor." they nodded before picking up their stuff and leaving.

"Should I go too?" I asked, but Meredith shook her head.

"You can hear this." she sighed.

"I knew what I was doing." Meredith told Owen, "I knew I could do that second stitch and you knew I could do that second stitch and if it were anyone else you would've let them do it. But because I question how you handle Cristina you chose to slap me down and let everybody know who's boss."

"You know what I think?" Owen stared her down, "I think you're reckless. I think you're reckless with your own life, and today, you were reckless with a patient's life. And I don't care who you are, I don't want that in my O.R., and I do not want that around my wife, who is struggling just to hold on."

"Your wife is struggling just to hold on because you married her and let it be okay for her to completely fall apart." Meredith retorted, "What is Cristina gonna do when she gets back from her fishing trip tonight, tomorrow, next week, next month, next year? Because we'll all be here working, and Cristina will be...where?

"I don't know." Owen admitted, "I don't know, but she has the right to figure that out."

Meredith scoffed, "You don't know. Well, I know, because I know Cristina Yang. And she needs to work because surgery is who we are."

"You told a guy with a gun to shoot you." Owen said, "That is who you are."

Meredith looked taken aback, "What the hell does that have to do wi-"

"You-you are fearless," Owen cut her off, "and I don't mean that in a good way. Most people don't tell the guy with the gun to shoot them. Most people are like Cristina. Most people are afraid. So what she needs isn't what you need. She isn't you...Meredith."

With that, Owen stormed out of the room. I, with my eyes wide and mouth hung slightly open, turned to Meredith. "Wanna go check on Trina?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

With a nod from Meredith, we took off. About an hour or so later we decided to take Trina to visit Jason. "Oh, my god." Trina gasped as we entered the ICU room. Meredith rolled Trina's wheelchair right up to the side of Jason's bed. "Jason, honey," Trina spoke softly.

"We were able to repair the damage, but the next twenty-four hours are crucial," Owen told Trina.

"But he can recover, right?" she asked, "If-if everything goes okay, he'll fully recover?"

I turned to Trina, "We're just focusing on getting Jason through the night. I know it's hard, but try not to think too far into the future."

"I'm afraid to touch him." Trina almost whimpered.

"I know right now all you can see are the machines and the damage, but he's still there," Meredith assured her.

Slowly, Trina reached out and grabbed onto Jason's hand. And even though things seemed bad now, I knew that it would all work out eventually.

That night, as I sat in Joe's bar, alone at a table while everyone else talked and laughed, I just watched them. As the holiday music played, I remembered that it was almost Christmas, and I also remembered that I didn't have Sam to spend it with. And strangely enough, it didn't freak me out that much because all these people around me, surgeons, doctors, and nurses, they were all my family now. And as I reflected back to almost a year ago when I got that call early one morning, I smiled, because back then I had no idea how much that one phone call would change my entire life.