Chapter 1

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Today is a good day, I am standing with Mark and Lexie joking and laughing when a woman with short red hair and her arm in a sling comes over to us and asks "who's George?" Our laughter cut short and we all turn to face her "what?" Lexie asks

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Today is a good day, I am standing with Mark and Lexie joking and laughing when a woman with short red hair and her arm in a sling comes over to us and asks "who's George?" Our laughter cut short and we all turn to face her "what?" Lexie asks. She looks at us confused as though she thinks we can read her mind "John Doe, the guy who threw me out of the way of the bus, saved my life. Everyone is crying and saying 'John Doe is George' who's George?" My stomach drops. The three of us look at each other before racing off down the hall. Damn it.

We burst into to OR scrub room where Callie and Bailey are standing in silence, their faces telling us not good news. We look through the glass to the nurses and Lexie starts talking "who said that was George? Why do we think that's George?" Callie let's out a shaky breath, her eyes bloodshot and red "Meredith said...." She starts "I don't know" and we lapse back into silence. Lexie shakes her head "that's not George" she says with conviction and we all pay closer attention "look at his feet" she continues "look how tall he is. That's not George" I run a hand through my hair and pull Callie into a hug.

We go to Meredith to question how she knows that's George "he wrote on my hand" she says simply as we all stand outside of his room. Everyone starts talking at once and she clarifies "he grabbed my hand and squeezed it and he wrote with his finger" I frown and fold my arms "he wrote with his finger?" I ask and she gives a frustrated sigh "in my hand" she repeats "he wrote double O seven."

I scoff and Bailey steps forward and grabs Meredith's hand, she starts running her hand over the top of the younger woman's before asking "ok, what'd I write?" And Meredith looks confused, even a bit worried "Joe" she answers and Bailey looses her shit "no! No, I did not write Joe." Meredith rolls her eyes and everyone starts talking again. The chief's voice sounds above the rest silencing everyone "did anyone try to call O'Malley?" He asks "can we get him on the phone" and I think that would have been the sensible thing to do. A room full of doctors and we all jumped to the extreme straight away. Stupid.

Everyone scrambles for their phones and dial George O'Malley's number "I'm tell you, he squeezed my hand" Meredith insists to all of us. Bailey raises a hand and snaps "you don't get to talk anymore, you don't get to talk ever again" my heart is racing in my chest, hoping someone gets an answer. As long as he is alive. Cristina lowers her phone and shakes her head "I got voicemail." Callie who has her hand in my own says "he has a freckle in his right hand, it's shaped like Texas. I used to tease him about it. I'll check" and then she lets go of my hand and heads into John Doe's room.

We all stand in silence and watch as Callie shuts the door behind her and moves over to the bed. She checks is hand and everyone seems to hold a collective breath before she breaks down crying. Oh God, Oh No. A couple of people get paged but no one moves, Richard turns around to us and snaps "you people, answer your pages" but we all still stand there in collective silence.

"George O'Malley jumped in front of a bus today" Richard says placing his hands on his hips authoritatively "he knew what he was doing and he did it anyway, and he did it to save a life. So I'm not going to allow you doctors to stand here. There are lives on the line, there are lives we can save. So if George O'Malley can jump in front of a bus.... We can answer our damn pages."

I take in a shuddering breath and we start to move. Just when I think I have escaped I hear Derek call my name "Andy, wait up." I place my hands in my pockets and keep walking. He jogs to catch up with me "still not talking to me?" He asks and I ignore him, keeping my head raised high "there are only so many times I can apologise." I take another deep breath before stopping "you could apologise everyday for the rest of your life and it wouldn't be enough" I snap harshly "I went into that church for you, you Derek, not Alex and Izzie. You and Meredith. And what? You don't even have the curtesy of telling me that you two were just swapping out? I went into that church even if it was the last thing I wanted to do because you are my best friend and you don't even warn me it was the love of my life's wedding to another woman? You could never apologise enough." I don't give him a chance to speak, I just walk away.


I answer my page to the ER where there is a teenage boy sitting on one of the beds, his mother standing next to him. I grab his chart and scan it quickly before asking "how long ago did the pain start?" He ponders this for a moment before answering "I don't know, a few weeks" I nod, looking down at the chart. "Growing pains" the mother insists, I place the chart down and look over at her "I took him to see our doctor" she explains "he's a bad doctor. He stands there texting while I'm talking to him. He diagnosed Andy with growing pains. You know, I grew up, and growing pains did not cause me to fall down on the soccer field" I raise my brows and the Son rolls his eyes.

"Mum you're being a little dramatic" he says calmly and his mum looks down at him "your pain is dramatic to me, Andy" she replies sounding a little hurt but her son's lack of concern. I place my hands in my pockets and say "your mum's right. It's a good thing that you came" I get him to sit up and swing his legs over the side of the bed "ok. Thanks, because it does hurt" he admits "everything hurts, all the time." I sit down on a stool and frown. I bring the chair forward a little bit "ok. I'm gonna give you a quick exam. Let me know if the pain gets worse." He nods his head and I get started.

I finish examining him and spot Arizona "Robbins" I call, beckoning her over. I turn to the patient and say "this is Doctor Robbins, I will be handing you over to her now ok?" And I stand up. My hands are still shaking and all I want to do is lie down. So that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to have a nap before my surgery in an hour.


After my nap I go down to the coffee cart, Alex is there. I know I said I could never talk to him again but today..... today is different. "Alex" I say and he turns around, I look down at my feet "I'm sorry" I continue "about O'Malley, I know you guys were friends." I am met with silence and then I am enveloped in a hug. Alex is crying, crying and hugging me and I don't know what to do.

"It's so hard" he says and I gently wrap my arms around him "it's so hard with Izzie, she has sticky notes pointing at her with important stuff because she doesn't remember and now George is freaking dead." I hold him and say nothing "and I can't go to the one I need to because you don't talk to me anymore" I rub his back softly, comforting my ex boyfriend as he cries into my shoulder "you can always come to me Alex, about anything."

I let him cry into my shoulder for a little while longer.

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