❝𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐋'𝐒 𝐆𝐎𝐋𝐃❞ ɢʀᴇʏ·s ᴀɴᴀᴛᴏᴍʏ

CHAPTER TWENTY.

"Stop!" Addison shouts with a chuckle, looking in the mirror as she tries to apply her makeup. However, Maddox's mission that morning seems to be to avoid anything that would make Addison leave the room, because her lips won't leave her neck and face. "I mean it!" Addison laughs again. "We're gonna be late."

Maddox clicks her tongue against the bare skin of Addison's shoulder. "Nobody's gonna yell at you for being late, and I wouldn't mind being yelled at by Bailey if it meant I had this view for a few more minutes."

Addison smiles a dazzling smile, wrapping her arms around the younger woman's neck, who lifts her chin, knowing she's won with her compliments. "So you would risk it? You're cute."

"I can be more than cute," Maddox smirks. Her hands go to Addison's waist to lift her up and sit her on the counter, earning a gasp from the redhead's lips, to which Maddox smirks back. "This 'taking things slow' thing not killing you yet?" Maddox murmurs against her neck.

"It's a way we can prove we're fully committed to each other, you know, enjoy the little things without the need to— God," Addison sighs, tangling her fingers in Maddox's hair, who gently bites into her skin. "Really, we need to stop. You need to stop."

"Okay, okay," Maddox finally surrenders, who sighs to herself but smiles all the same. The fact that Addison doesn't want to go any further with her managed to worry her at first, but now that she knows she's capable of inciting sighs and gasps from her lips she's convinced that the redhead's reasons stick to the explanations she gives her. "Wait, I'll tie your laces."

Maddox crouches down to be level with Addison's sneakers, and Addison has to avoid looking at the scene so as not to lose her cool. As much as the confession to Callie that she hadn't yet slept with Maddox had left the resident with her mouth hanging open, Addison thought she was confident in her decision —that is, always at times when she didn't have Maddox crouched before her as her only sight. The brunette jumps to her feet, mumbling a 'done!' and smiling childishly at Addison. "Thanks," is all she's able to say.

"You're strangely bubbly today," Cristina comments when she sees her coming. Maddox lifts her head from the counter, smiling a little.

"I think I'm the bubbliest person in this group. You're all bitter."

"Well, welcome to the group. George's dad was admitted earlier and it turns out he has cancer."

Maddox's facial expression drops quickly and she hesitates as she speaks. "Why are you telling me like this? Forget it, what happened to him? Why was he admitted?"

"He passed out, fell and broke his collarbone. We had to do tests to operate on his collarbone, and they showed abnormal results. Esophageal cancer that had spread to his stomach, and that's not the worst of it. They needed to check his heart to make sure it would be strong enough to operate, but it turns out he needs a valve replacement," Cristina sums up, and Maddox holds her hands to her head. "Do you still feel bubbly?"

"Sometimes you're scary."

"You had to know, and it's better I tell you instead of George. He wasn't able to tell his family, I was the one who had to break the news to them."

"Where is George? He must feel terrible."

"It's just a valve replacement, Maddox. Burke will operate and George's dad will be fine," Cristina purses her lips in an attempt at a smile, but it's not reassuring enough for the other brunette.

As if he had detected that they were talking about him, George appears in an accelerated manner by the elevator, and when he detects Cristina and Maddox with his eyes, he rushes towards them. However, Maddox doesn't have time to ask any questions because George rushes ahead. "What's wrong with Burke?"