flatline [m.s]

lx.

- - -
people are really romantic about the beginnings of things. fresh start. clean slate. a world of possibility. but no matter what adventure you're embarking on, you're still you.
- - -

lia wakes up to the sensation of kisses being planted across her shoulders, and on her neck. she softly moans before rolling over to come face to face with jackson who then begins kissing her lips.

he then rolls them over, so that he is hovering above her, but she moves her head to the side to dodge his kisses. after multiple attempts to kiss her unsuccessfully, he pulls back to give her a puzzled look.

"i... don't understand," he furrows his brow at her.

"two words: no sex," she tells him, whilst chewing on her bottom lip.

"i'm sure there should be more words," he smirks, before attempting to kiss her again, but she continues to dodge him.

"i'm helping owen choose chief resident today. i can't have my decisions clouded by this," lia explains, using her hand to gesture to his bare chest.

"come on," jackson groans, rolling off her, and flopping down onto the bed. "this? now? remind me again why you're re choosing chief resident?"

"my dad already has his hands full with my mom, so he asked hunt to do it, and i offered to help. and sex with you, however hot and and excellent, could cloud my judgement," she smiles, as she gets out of bed, stopping at the door. "so, i'm going to get in the shower, then i'm going head to the hospital, check on my mom, and do the final interviews."

"i'll come with you," jackson smirks, rolling on his side and propping himself up on his elbow so that he can admire her beauty.

"no, no. no clouding," she shakes her head. "jackson, this hurts me more than it hurts you."

"no it doesn't," he pouts.

"i know," she smirks, before leaving jackson's bedroom. when she shuts the door, jackson groans, throwing himself back on the bed.

■ ■ ■

"hey, how is she?" lia asks softly, as she enters her mother's patient room where richard, derek, and meredith are all stood around her bed.

"alivia," adele beams when she sees her daughter. "i was wondering when you'd get here."

"you recognise me?" lia asks, shocked and the three doctors smile at her.

"recognise you? of course i recognise you. you're my daughter. and where's mark? that man's never more than five feet away from you," adele says, and lia's face falls.

"so it didn't work?" she turns to derek and sighs.

"not necessarily," derek attempts to reassure her. "if she got the active agent, it may not have taken full affect yet. there was even the chance that it wouldn't have an affect on her at all. yesterday she didn't know who you were, today she just thinks your still with the man you broke up with a few months ago. i'd call that a small win."

■ ■ ■

"so..." lia breathes, leaning back on her chair as she fiddles with her pen. "who's our next chief resident?"

"every single one of these residents has earned the right to be chief resident," owen tells lia as he stands by the board in the conference room, across from her. "unfortunately for us, we are the ones who have to make the decision."

"they've all got such strong cases," lia sighs. "yang is my resident; i've shaped her into another me, and i was chief resident at seattle pres-"

"it won't be cristina," owen cuts her off. "i can't make my girlfriend chief resident."

"i guess that means jackson's out too," lia frowns. "which leaves us with grey, kepner and karev. and i know who my dad would pick."

"grey," they both nod in unison.

■ ■ ■

"well..?" alex asks lia when she meets him and jackson to go to joe's, following her meeting with owen.

"well, what?" she smiles innocently as jackson wraps an arm around her shoulders.

"you know what," alex urges. "who's the next chief resident?"

"i don't know," lia answers honestly, before elaborating. "the final decision is hunt's. i was just there to help with the interviews, and give some input."

"it's me isn't it? you just don't want to upset your pretty boy," alex teases, and jackson frowns.

"i honestly don't know, alex," she chuckles. "let's just head to joe's to meet cristina because i need some tequila."

alex heads out of the hospital, with the other two following, but jackson pulls lia so that they linger back slightly.

"who's gonna be chief resident?" he asks her in a hushed tone.

"it's really hunt's decision," she tells him. "i have an idea of who's in the running. but i don't know for sure."

- - -
you bring you into every new beginning in your life, so how different can it possibly be. it's all anybody wants, right? clean slate. a new beginning. like that's gonna be any easier.
- - -

"may the best man win," alex grins, clinking his glass with jackson as he and cristina sit across from him and lia in a booth at joe's.

"you know it's gonna be mer, right?" cristina asks, turning to alex. "it doesn't mean that you're a bad surgeon or a bad doctor. some people just... don't fit the bill. they're better at other things... like you and those kids. i mean, you're good at that. but between you and mer... she's organised, people like her, people trust her. she's natural. people trust her."

"i'm organised, people like me," jackson frowns, and cristina lets out a dry laugh. he then pouts, and turns to lia. "right?"

"of course they do, baby," she says, kissing him before resting her head on his shoulder.

"i'm gonna get another drink," alex scowls, standing up from the booth and making his way to the bar where he leans against it, next to owen. "scotch. make it a double."

"you all right, karev?" owen asks, turning his head to look at the seemingly troubled surgeon.

"meredith messed with the alzheimer's trial," he says, grabbing the glass off joe, and throwing it down his throat before storming out of the bar.

- - -
ask the guy pushing the boulder up the hill. nothing's easy about starting over. nothing at all.
- - -