CODING ━ grey's anatomy

chapter twenty

"What's going on?" Cassie asked later that day. "With you and Izzie. Why does she suddenly think she has the authority to help you make these kinds of decisions?"

Denny avoided her eye when he responded, "She's, uh, she's nice."

"She's nice," Cassie repeated incredulously. "Seriously? That's it?"

Rolling his eyes lightheartedly, Denny shrugged. "I don't really know what's happening between us, bubbles. What I do know, however, is that I like her. A lot."

"I just want you to really think about it before you start anything with her, you know? I mean, she's your doctor, and your sick. Don't let her take advantage of you."

"I won't," he promised, just as Bailey entered the room with the LVAD wires. "Doctor B!"

"Don't you have patients, Harper?" the resident cocked a brow upwards.

"Yeah," Denny agreee playfully. "Get outta here, bubbles."

Bailey looked between them. "Bubbles?"

Cassie let out a small laugh, explaining the origins of her nickname. "When I was four, my mom had to cover a shift at the diner, so Den was babysitting me."

"Eventually, she got bored," Denny continued the story, "and I didn't know what to do, so I just gave her a bottle of that liquid you use to blow bubbles to play with. Of course, she was only four, so she ended up just opening the cap and pouring it all over the carpet."

"I guess the nickname just kind of stuck," Cassie finished with a grin.

Bailey attempted to act indifferent, but let a small smile slip out at the sight of her intern happy. "Back to work, Cassie."

"You got it, boss," she nodded, just as her pager went off. "You think you can manage to stay alive until I get back, Den?"

"I'll do my best," Denny smiled. "Go. Save lives."

"Love you in case you die!" Cassie called out, a few seconds after she'd walked out the door.

"Love you in case I die!"

☆

While Cassie was dealing with a patient, Izzie, Cristina, and Meredith were eating snacks at a nurses station and chatting away.

"How's Denny doing?" Izzie asked suddenly, pretending to be nonchalant. "Bailey's not caving in on the LVAD thing, is she?"

Cristina shrugged. "Just ask Cass. I mean, he's her family, right?"

"Actually, about that," Meredith started. "I thought Alex was kidding when he said you dumped him for a heart patient. Did you really dump him for a heart patient?"

"He's not just a heart patient," Cristina interrupted. "If you date him, you'll basically be becoming Cassie's pseudo-step mommy."

"Ew," Meredith cringed. "She would, wouldn't she?"

Izzie attempted to play it cool. "I didn't dump Alex for Denny."

Meredith looked at her skeptically. "Denny's a patient. We can't fall for our patients."

"You're falling for a vet," Cristina joked.

Meredith scoffed. "I'm considering the possibility of maybe having a date with a vet."