❝𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐋'𝐒 𝐆𝐎𝐋𝐃❞ ɢʀᴇʏ·s ᴀɴᴀᴛᴏᴍʏ

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN.

"I don't like this one."

"Why?" Addison asks with a frown. Her gaze is focused on the photograph in an apartment magazine.

"Well, because it doesn't have natural light. Didn't you notice how cold it was when we walked into the house?" Maddox tries to reason, walking down the hallway with her hands pointing at the artificial lights. "Really?" she adds when Addison simply stares at her with a stunned gesture. "Is it only us Latinos who care about natural light? Es que parece que os gusta desaprovechar recursos. Podríamos secar la ropa al sol, de forma natural, en lugar de usar la secadora; pero no, no os preocupáis por eso."

"I didn't understand any of that."

Maddox wrinkles her nose, aware that she's coming out with the same gesture as her mother: speaking Spanish when she gets angry. The speed of the language and the girl's Cuban accent don't help, and Addison, completely unfamiliar with Spanish except for a couple of words, can understand that Maddox doesn't want that apartment, period. "I'm sorry, love. I meant to say that I prefer another one. For example, this one," the brunette points to a photo two pages further back, marked with a big 'X'. "It's not too far from the hospital, it has enough room for both of us, and the owner lets us do whatever renovations we want as long as we don't touch the structure. Plus, it's an option I could bring some money to," Maddox mumbles, sipping some coffee.

"Not bad," Addison says after a silence. "I liked it when we went to see it."

Maddox knows she only has to push her buttons —and her real buttons— a little to convince her, so she doesn't hold back. "Think about it —if we move in by the end of the week, in two weeks we'll be living together. I'll promise to make you breakfast and take it to bed whenever I'm not working in the morning," Maddox promises, and Addison's face grows softer. She hugs her from the back and squeezes her a little in affection. Then, she reaches up to her ear. "I promise I'll be good."

Addison swallows and clears her throat, turning around to make sure no one has heard her. "You're going to do this to me here in the hospital?"

"I'm going to do it to you wherever you want," Maddox murmurs close to her lips, sealing her words with a kiss. She sews her hands around her waist and pulls her to her, forgetting about the cup of coffee she has previously rested on the counter.

"Good morning," says a voice behind their backs slowly. Maddox quickly uncurls her arms from Addison's body, who preens her bangs so as not to look Bailey in the eye. "I hope you can keep your hands somewhere else while you're not operating. Easton, downstairs. The interns are waiting for you. Dr. Montgomery, the Chief wants to see you. Something about your placement at Seattle Grace. I'll see you later," Bailey says goodbye with her typical stare, looking them up and down at length in an attempt to intimidate them.

And she succeeds, as they wave goodbye and don't see each other again until the end of the day.

Things have changed a lot from how they were seventeen days ago. After the breakup of Cristina's engagement, things have changed even if from an outside perspective it is not seen. Maddox has adopted a more serious, more committed point of view, aware that things don't last forever and that at any moment everything can end —especially after taking Callie's advice into consideration. Her recommendations for Cristina's vows may not have paid off, but she certainly planted seeds in Maddox and Addison's relationship, and they have blossomed.

Taking advantage of Meredith and Cristina going to Hawaii to take advantage of the latter's honeymoon, Maddox took her allotted vacation with Addison. They took a short drive to the Californian coast, where Addison made up for some lost time with her friends in Los Angeles. Maddox learned later that day, while brushing off sand in the hotel room shower, that Addison had refused to move to her friend's private beachside clinic in Santa Monica. Maddox would like to have pressed the issue some more, but Addison quickly switched to what she was in the mood for dinner, so the brunette didn't have a chance.