• happy 100 chapters people!!!•
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"Five am," Arizona shook Erin awake, pulling her out of the bed before her eyes were even open.
"Pregnant lady, slow down," Erin groaned, sitting up and following her into Meredith's room.
She and Cristina were already sat up on the bed, as were Jo and Alex. Cristina's phone was on the bed in the middle and Meredith was ready to film her.
"Five oh two," Jo said.
"Move. Pregnant lady," Erin smacked Alex's arm. He rolled his eyes but shuffled over, letting Erin sit down in his previously vacated seat.
"Are you excited for your appointment today?" Cristina said.
"Yeah. More excited to see if you get nominated or not, though," Erin grinned, rubbing her growing stomach.
Cristina's phone rang and they all screamed, Cristina jumping up and down on the bed. Erin groaned as she felt her stomach flip.
"Baby doesn't like that," Erin groaned, standing up and leaning against Arizona. "Fozzy's kicking to fuck," she said.
"Answer it!" Arizona shouted, rubbing Erin's stomach.
"Please!" Meredith cried. Cristina nodded and put the phone to her ear.
"Hello? Yes, this is Cristina Yang," Cristina said.
Erin squeezed Arizona's hands in silent excitement.
"I have to pee," Erin whispered, walking into Cristina's en-suite bathroom before the baby pressed more on her bladder.
"Dr. Bailey," Erin hurried down the hallway towards Dr. Bailey as she came out of her patient's room, the Bubble Boy, with his parents. Erin's arms were laden with files of information.
"Dr. Grey," Bailey smiled at her, motioning to the parents beside her. "David and Teresa, meet Dr. Erin Grey, one of our pediatric surgeons. Erin, these are Braden Morris' parents," Bailey said.
"It's great to meet you guys," Erin smiled, shaking their hands with her free one.
"Likewise," Teresa smiled sadly.
"I asked Erin to come along and consult on Braden's case due to research she's currently carrying out," Erin said.
"Research?" Teresa said. Erin nodded.
"I want to take some labs from Braden, specifically a lymph node biopsy," Erin said.
"Why? You can cure him?" David asked.
"Uh, I don't want to get ahead of myself. I want to take his labs so I can see if I can perform gene therapy on the cells to give him the immune system he's lacking without a stem cell transplant or locking him in there," Erin motioned to the bubble.
"Dr. Grey is actually researching cures for Hodgkins and Non-Hodgkins lymphoma. They are blood cancers and are usually treated with a combination of chemotherapy and radiation. They affect the lymphatic system, which is a part of the immune system, which is what Braden lacks," Dr. Bailey said.
"My goal with the lymphomas is that I'll be able to take biopsy samples and analyse the specific genes that are causing the cancer, so that I'll be able to genetically engineer a treatment that responds to the cancer cells and kills them. It's a process called genetic therapy but it's still not very widely developed, yet," Erin said.
"But what does this have to do with Braden?" Teresa said.
"I'm hoping," Erin said, looking from Teresa, Bailey and David to Braden in the bubble, who was watching them curiously, "that, when I can specifically isolate the genes causing the cancer, I can analyse the non-cancerous ones and compare them to the biopsy I want to collect to Braden. That, theoretically, should give us more of an idea of what specific components of the immune system Braden lacks and we can then look into more targeted methods at providing them without locking him away," Erin said.
"I'm confused," David admitted.
"She'll take samples from the lymphoma patients and isolate the cancer cells to create a specific treatment plan to the two types of cancers. Hopefully, she'll be able to compare the non-cancerous genes to the ones from Braden's biopsy and we'll be able to look at targeted methods to provide them for him. Genetic therapy," Bailey explained.
"Obviously, a stem cell transplant would be more ideal because the cells automatically develop into the ones Braden is lacking without our interference, but with the lack of ethnic donors available, us genetically engineering the cells is our next best option. Of course, it's going to be trial and error at this point due to how new genetic therapy is. I don't know if it'll work, I don't know how he'll respond, but it's worth looing into so we can cover all of our bases," Erin said.
"Take the biopsy," Teresa nodded quickly. "Please, anything that might help him," she said.
"Yeah," David agreed.
"Thank you," Erin smiled.
"I'll bring the consent papers in in a moment," Bailey said. They nodded and Erin and Bailey stepped to the nurses desk.
"I have my appointment in twenty minutes with Arizona, but my biopsies are being flown in tonight. If you could get Braden's for me before seven, I can start isolating things tonight," Erin said.
"Shouldn't you be going home tonight?" Bailey said, eyes falling to Erin's five month bump. Erin looked around her files and shrugged.
"No," she said.
"You're finding out if you're having a boy or a girl. Go home and celebrate with your wife," Bailey smiled.
"Well, first of all, we're finding out the sex. Gender identity is completely different and may change when the kid grows up. We're not bothered what we have," Erin said.
"Of course, you're finding out the sex," Bailey corrected herself. "It's still worth celebrating," she said.
"Bailey, Arizona gets it. She's working on the McNeil kids with Cristina and Owen and they have no idea where the condition has come from. If we make progress with the genetic therapy or even just being able to tell what cells we're missing or what extra ones we have, we could help them figure out what's causing their heart failure," Erin said.
"I know," Bailey sighed.
"And, besides, baby is happy, healthy and safe right in here with me. We don't have to worry about it and we're gonna celebrate with date night in two days. Archie, Arizona and I are going for dinner, then we're going to drop Archie off with Callie so he, Sofia and Zola can have a sleepover, and then we're gonna have an adult celebration. Don't worry about us," Erin pat Bailey's arm. Bailey chuckled.
"Go to your appointment. What do you want, lymph nodes?" Bailey asked.
"Please," Erin smiled, putting the masses of files securely behind the pediatric nurses desk. "I have to go and find my wife. See you later?" she said.
"Good luck!" Bailey grinned. Erin winked and headed down the hallway to find Arizona for their appointment.
"How's everything been going?" the OB asked, moving the gel over Erin's stomach.
"It's started moving. Arizona can't feel it yet but I can. And it likes to sit on my bladder, which is a real inconvenience in surgery. The kid is gonna be wild. I can sense it," Erin said. Arizona laughed, kissing their intertwined hands.
"Erin's just annoying that she has to take more pee breaks than anyone else," Arizona said.
"I'm carrying your child. This is your fault," Erin smirked at her.
"Well, baby is definitely comfortable in there," the OB laughed. They looked back at the screen, seeing the baby was curled up comfortably, right on top of Erin's bladder. "Heartbeat time," she added. She pressed a button and the heartbeat started sounding through the room.
"Good and strong," Arizona smiled, kissing Erin's forehead.
"Very strong," the OB smiled at Erin. "You were right. Wild," she said. "Do we want to know the sex?" she asked.
"Yeah," they said.
"Give me a minute to try and see," the OB said.
They waited while the OB moved the wand around, the two of them staring at the screen intently.
"Does it have eleven fingers?" Erin frowned at the screen. "Or toes?" she asked.
"It has ten fingers, ten toes and a penis," the OB said. "It's a boy," she smiled.
"Another boy," Arizona grinned happily, leaning down to kiss Erin. "Archie's gonna be so happy," she said.
"Oh, tell me about it," Erin laughed. "Good thing we gave all of Archie's baby things to Bailey, right? Mer can pass them right back now he's getting bigger," she said.
"Two photos?" the OB checked.
"Yes, please," they said. The OB took two photos and then left to print them. Arizona wiped her stomach and helped Erin to her feet, pulling her flush to her chest to kiss her.
Erin winced as the baby delivered a very sharp kick to her stomach.
"Holy fuck," Erin gasped.
"I felt that!" Arizona looked down, putting her hand where the kick had been. The baby kicked again and Erin winced.
"Oh my god, I'm so happy you can feel it but it hurts like a bitch," she whispered. Arizona laughed and leaned down to talk to the belly. "Hey, little guy. Do you mind not kicking your mama that hard? She's being really nice and letting you live and grow in her belly, so it's really the least you could do," she whispered.
The kicking settled and Erin raised her eyebrows at Arizona, who had a shit-eating grin.
"You know what your problem is? You get all the fun stuff of being a mom. You don't have to push the watermelon out, or pee every five minutes, or get kicked so hard that someone else can feel it. I really don't like you right now," Erin said. Arizona laughed, wrapping her arms around Erin's neck and kissing her.
"I love you, and I love our little boys," Arizona whispered.
"Our little boys," Erin smiled, burying her face in Arizona's neck as the first wave of tears came. "Oh, Archie's gonna be so happy," she said.
"I know, baby," Arizona smiled, rubbing her back and kissing her temple. "C'mon, we'll go and tell him before we tell everyone else," she said.
"Okay," Erin said, the two of them leaving and taking their scan photos from the OB with a thank you.
"Another boy! Bailey's gonna have a friend to play with," Meredith squealed, hugging Erin tightly as Erin told her and Alex the good news. Cristina was currently preparing for her surgery, so Erin supposed she'd find out eventually because everyone would know soon enough.
"He already has Archie," Erin laughed.
"No, I know, but it's kind of like Archie, Zola and Sofia are their own little group. And there's gonna be a year between Bailey and this baby, but they're still gonna be close," Meredith said.
"Is he my godson, too?" Alex grinned, hugging Erin.
"You've got one, don't be greedy!" Meredith slapped his arm. Erin laughed and shrugged.
"Well, Arizona was gonna be Archie's godmother, but then she adopted him, so we made Callie his godmother, instead. We haven't really talked about them for this baby," Erin said.
"Names?" Alex said.
"Not yet," Erin said. "We found out literally thirty minutes ago and I've been living in a lab for weeks," Erin laughed. "We haven't had time to make a list. It'll be easier now, though, 'cause we only need boys names," Erin said.
"Yeah, good point," Meredith said.
"The middle name is gonna be Timothy, though, for Zona's brother. We already agreed on that a while back," Erin said.
"That's sweet," Meredith smiled. Erin's phone beeped and she looked down, seeing Amelia was calling her.
"Got another sister to inform," Erin waved her phone.
"Have fun in your lab," they called, waving as she walked away.
"Hey, Mi," Erin said, putting the phone to her ear.
"Well?" Amelia gasped. Erin laughed, grabbing the stack of her files off the nurses desk.
"Another boy," Erin smiled.
"Oh, that's so cool! I told Addie it was gonna be a boy. She owes me twenty bucks," Amelia said.
"You're buying me a milkshake with that the next time I see you. The baby loves milkshakes," Erin sighed, rubbing her stomach as she dumped the files on her lab desk. "Mi, I'm gonna have to go and get back to work because I'm working with a SCID kid and lymphoma biopsies and I have to isolate genes and look into therapies and I have a long night ahead if I want to be free for date night in two days," Erin said.
"Good point. I will arrange a visit soon, I promise," Amelia said.
"I'll keep sending you pictures of my belly. We love you," Erin said.
"Love you, more," Amelia smiled, ending the call.
Erin put her phone away and stared at the stack of files with a sigh.
"Okay. Let's get to work," she said to herself.
"Has anyone seen Dr. Bailey?" Erin called as she hurried across the OR floor, a file in her hands.
"She should be finishing her surgery anytime now," a nurse said. "The HIV positive kidney transplant," she said.
"Thank you!" Erin said, running down the corridor. Bailey was running towards her and Erin waved quickly. "Bailey! I got it! HIV!" she said.
"I thought that!" Bailey said, stopping when she reached Erin, "It replicates the cells. If we can deactivate the HIV," she said.
"It'll act as stem cells and Braden can get his transplant without it having to come from a specific donor! Oh my god, Bailey, we're geniuses," Erin laughed, grabbing her hands.
"We need stem cells, we need gene therapy and virus vectors, we need-"
"I got it all already. Come on," Erin said, pulling her away so they could go to Bailey's lab.
"How did you realise?" Bailey said.
"I was thinking of stem cells and how we basically give them a home to live in and they replicate the cells closest to them. And then I thought, we need a virus vector that we can inject stem cells and the gene into to replicate whatever he's missing," Erin said.
"Exactly!" Bailey said.
"Then, Braden's gene results came back to say he was lacking the ADA enzyme. I figured, you know, if we can give the vector that enzyme, along with injecting stem cells, they'll replicate ADA until it's done naturally, then it goes into Braden. It's literally fake it until you make it, genetics edition," Erin said.
"Fake it until you make it," Bailey grinned. "What about your lymphoma?" she asked, holding the door for Erin as they stepped into the lab.
"Well, that's gonna be more complicated than this could be. I mean, we have to figure out how to deactivate the HIV, but the lymphoma is gonna be completely different in terms of genetic therapy. With the lymphoma, we're gonna basically have to treat the cells with a shit ton of chemo and then record what works best, then figure out a way to get the treatment time down from up to eight years. It's gonna be like a clinical trial, but I'm gonna need to test it in the lab first, then animals, then kids. So, it's about finding the right combination for the stages and types I've been sent, and then others can branch out from anything I get done to build on the stages that I didn't get samples for," Erin said.
"That's a lot of work to do alone," Bailey said.
"I know. I'm gonna need oncologists, specialists in lymphoma and the treatment for it, I'm gonna need a lot of people to record the findings and then it's gonna be even harder when we find the right combination and move it to animals and then kids," Erin sighed, rubbing her face as she sat down. "And I'm five months pregnant, so I'm gonna be taking a three month break from this very soon, which is really not what I need," Erin said.
"Well, this isn't surgery. This is mostly lab work. You lived in the hospital when Archie was first born. And, until you know the specifics, you should be able to do most of the research from home or have the new baby here. What is it, by the way?" Bailey smiled.
"Boy," Erin smiled. "You're right. I'm gonna talk to Arizona and get some of her pediatric oncologist contacts and then look for lymphoma specialists. I'm hoping to get some insights, look at previous treatment plans and then build from that," Erin said.
"It's gonna be a lot of work," Bailey said, "But it could be groundbreaking," Bailey said.
"I know," Erin shrugged. "But, right now, we have to focus on Braden. He's here waiting for a cure. We don't have as much urgency on the lymphoma kids," Erin said.
"Good point. You look into how to deactivate the virus while I catch up on your vectors and therapy notes," Bailey said. Erin pushed the right stack of notes towards her and grabbed her ipad, logging into the hospital research library to look for anything on deactivating HIV.
"Here we go," Arizona said, sitting at the kitchen table with Archie asleep in her arms. She handed Erin the list of doctors she'd asked for. "I've called and all of them are gonna send over their successful casefiles for lymphoma patients. They said they'll get in touch with the oncologists they used and will pass along your number so, when you need to talk more about the combination of drugs they used and why, they can help," Arizona said.
"I need you on this with me," Erin sighed, looking up at Arizona. "It all looks so terrifying and daunting right now. It's a pile of pieces. I need to make it into the big picture and I need you to help me do that. I think I need Alex, too. We're a pediatric dream team and I need my dream team so we can save lives," Erin said.
"I'll happily help," Arizona smiled. "I'll put little man to bed and I'll be back. I'm gonna need a few hours to catch up on all of your research so far, 'cause not all of us have an eidetic memory," Arizona laughed. Erin smiled and leaned over, kissing her lips and then Archie's cheek.
"Go. I'm gonna start calling these surgeons, gather all of our information now that Bailey's managed to deactivate the HIV," she said.
"When's she giving it to Braden?" Arizona asked.
"Within the next week, I imagine. Depends when the vector is at it's maximum replication point and when he'll be ready," Erin said.
"Good. I'll be back, baby," Arizona smiled, standing up to take Archie to bed.
"I need to talk to you," Alex grabbed Erin the next day, pulling her into an empty patient room.
"And I need to talk to you. But can we do this in the bathroom? I have to pee, again," Erin rolled her eyes.
"I'll wait," Alex said.
"You've seen me naked in a shower and you're scared of a bit of pee," Erin snorted, but headed to the toilet herself.
She came back and sat on the couch beside Alex.
"You go first. What's up?" she said.
"Butthole's practice is interested in me, and I'm thinking of taking a job there. I've been doing overnight shifts for two weeks, getting to know his partner and I like it there. I really do. It's a shit ton of money and, with our fellowships ending this year, I think I need it," Alex said.
Erin stared at him with wide eyes, feeling tears stinging already.
"I don't mean to upset you," Alex said quickly.
"You're not," Erin said, waving her eyes. "It's these stupid hormones. I mean, we've gone through everything together and it's gonna be really weird not having you right where I need you, but it's a really good option for you," Erin said, her voice cracking.
"Erin," Alex sighed, pulling her into a hug.
"I'm sorry for making this emotional," Erin groaned, leaning her head against his shoulder. "If you want to do this, Alex, I support you fully. And I will be there when you tell Arizona, so she doesn't go off her rocket again," Erin said.
"Thank you," Alex said, kissing her forehead. "What did you need to talk to me about?" he asked.
"Actually, you joining a private practice might make this easier," Erin said, pulling back to look at him. "Your schedule would be more spread out, right?" she said.
"Yeah, why?" Alex said.
"Because I need your help on a clinical trial I want to start," Erin said.
"Is this why you've been holed up in the lab for weeks?" Alex raised his eyebrows.
"Yeah. Non-Hodgkins and Hodgkins lymphoma. I want to cure it," Erin said.
"You do realise that you can't cure cancer? Not fully," Alex frowned.
"No, I know," Erin rolled her eyes. "I'm not looking to cure it fully. Well, that's the end goal. Anyway, treatment for these cancers can last up to eight years in kids. I mean, eight years of chemo and radiation and tests and just being here for most of your childhood is terrifying and sad. I want to get the time down by creating a more targeted approach to curing it," Erin said.
"You need to elaborate," Alex said.
"Think about it. I've had lymph node biopsies and bloods sent over from previous lymphoma cases. I've got them all in Bailey's gene lab and I'm looking at what particular cells and genes are causing the cancer. If we can isolate those cells and genes, I can experiment with different treatment options without actually putting people in harm's way. I can find a chemotherapy or radiation or some other way to kill the cells in a way that's less invasive, less stressful and traumatic on a young body and in a way that doesn't take up to eight years. I find a way, I get an FDA approval and I start with animals. When I can prove that the animals are able to emulate the developments, I can move it into actual patients. We could totally revolutionise the treatment of branches of the cancer and, hopefully, save a ton of kid's lives in the process," Erin said.
"That's gonna take years," Alex said slowly. "But it could work. It could really work. You're onto something," he said.
"I know!" Erin slapped his arm excitedly. "I already have Arizona on board. She's got me numbers of pediatric oncologists and they're all sending over full treatment plans for patients with the same cancers as the ones we have biopsies on. I'm gonna need a team of oncologists, I'm gonna need people who can help me see what I'm not seeing and I'm gonna need a hell of a lot of moral support to get through years of developing this while raising kids, maintaining a happy marriage and working as a full time surgeon, too," Erin said.
"You've got me on board, too. Send me all of the research you've got and we can look over it with Robbins. I'll have time to help you with more research now my schedule will be less chaotic and, with you going onto maternity leave soon, you could take your last few months as research months and we could literally hole up in the lab and get something solid under our feet before you go off," he said.
"Exactly!" Erin said.
"Holy shit, Grey," Alex laughed, running his hand through his own hair. "First you pioneered a surgical method in first year while surviving an abusive relationship, and now you're developing cures for cancer while you're a mother. Is there anything you can't do?" Alex said.
"I never learnt how to tell the time," Erin said. "That's something I can't do," she said. He laughed and pulled her to her feet.
"You're insane," he said.
"You love me," Erin stuck her tongue out.
"I do," Alex laughed.
"What are you gonna say to Arizona?" Erin asked, leading him down the hallway.
"Yeah, no idea," Alex shook his head. "I'm hoping me agreeing to do this at the same time will calm her down a bit," he said.
"Hopefully," Erin held up two crossed fingers. "I'm praying for you, Karev," she sang, walking off to get some coffee.
"I need it," Alex called after her.