I'm Always Thinking (About You)

Chapter 2

AN: This part is an excerpt from Chapter 51 of I'm Always Running (Into You). As you may know, this story is a part of the Always series. I've tried to streamline it from the main storyline, however I'm aware that there's a bit of missing context. Unfortunately, it's the other 50-odd chapters of RIY that has that context, I'm afraid. In any case, I hope you can enjoy Cristina and Teddy's conclusion from that story. 

***

"So shall we meet tomorrow morning, assess her vitals, maybe grab a couple more scans and see if those bleeders have been nipped in the bud?" Teddy asked, checking her watch.

"Yeah – say around seven?" Addison replied.

When Teddy stopped in her tracks Addison laughed and shook her head. "Okay, seven thirty then. Give you a chance to rest those miracle hands of yours." She joked, but her smile froze in place when Teddy didn't react. "Altman?"

"Cristina." Teddy breathed. It was then that Addison turned around to see the very woman behind her, a sheepish look in her eye. Alex was not far behind her. But no Meredith.

"Alex?" Addison hated how her voice wavered. "Where's Mer?"

"I'm sorry." His head hung low, as he shuffled his feet.

"We-" Cristina's voice cracked.

"Where's Meredith?" Addison repeated louder this time. They said nothing. "Answer me!" Addison yelled. But the two shared a sheepish look between them. "Answer me." Addison repeated once more, her voice cracking as her chin began to wobble.

Alex could do nothing but sigh, his own eyes shining.

***

"I'm sorry – I didn't mean to –"

"What? Scare me half to death?" Addison shouted at him, jabbing her finger into his chest. "You stupid, moron, ass-wipe!" She enunciated each insult with a jab.

"Come on." Alex whined. "It's not exactly the easiest to tell someone their girlfriend is in prison-"

"Jail." Addison severed his sentence. "Prison is where you go after you're convicted. She's just being held for questioning, right?" She glared at him, but his mouth just kept flapping open with no reasonable response. "Right?" She hissed at him.

"Right." Cristina butted in, finally pulling herself away from Teddy to create space between Addison and Alex. Things between the two were getting far too heated for her liking, and while she really wanted to smack Addison for forcing Teddy to come to Seattle, she refrained.

"Look – Callie and Arizona have the kids back at your house. Meredith said she was going to get a lawyer friend to help her out with this whole thing, but it'll probably take some time."

"I have to go back – I have to get her out of this – what the hell even happened that they want to take her in anyway?"

Cristina and Alex locked eyes. "What happened while I was gone?"

***

"Are we ever going to get to talk about this?" Teddy hissed after Addison stormed off and Alex wandered away, too.

"No." Cristina pouted, walking as quickly as she could in whatever direction would get her out of there the quickest. "Because I don't want to talk about it. I already did all the talking. A whole lot of it. And you just stood there and didn't say anything, and it was embarrassing enough so No. I don't want to talk to you about this ever again."

"That's just the thing, Cristina!" Teddy hissed, "You did all the talking – a whole lot of it – and then you gave me – what, five seconds? – to think before you stormed all the way back to a different fucking country halfway across the world?"

"People are staring." Yang mumbled.

"What do you care?" Teddy hissed. "What happened to no more hiding?" She grunted as Cristina yanked her into a random supply closet – the nearest exit she could find where nurses with prying eyes couldn't see them.

"What happened was that you couldn't even say it back, Teddy! It's so easy. Just three little words. But you couldn't. You don't – you don't feel the same. I thought you did. But I was wrong. And I'm – I'm not used to that, okay? I don't do those dumb, big romantic gestures. I don't build candle houses or fly across the world. I love you in the little things. I would always keep one of your scrub caps in my car in case you got called in on an emergency, so you didn't have to wear a paper one. I love you in the way I suture. You taught me how to suture faster and better than any surgeon before. I love you in the way I would make your cold brew overnight every time you stayed over so that you would have your coffee the way you liked every morning – even if ice in coffee is a crime. So, you go back to Germany, and you keep living your perfect life with your tiny heart research and I'll stay here and help Mer fix whatever mess she's gotten herself into and I- I'll be okay. Someday. I'll learn to stop."

"Will you stop and breathe for a second?" Teddy half mocked, taking Cristina's head in her hands so that her wet eyes would finally meet her own. "You say all these – these beautiful things. You say you don't do big romantic speeches but your counts already at two. You didn't let me process, Cristina. You know me. Every part of me. You were right – I do feel the same. I think I always have. I love you, too. In the little things, and the big. Did you really think that the only reason I flew all the way here was for a patient? When Addison and I both know that she could have gone with the cardio surgeon who's here already?"

"Well... yeah?"

"You're an idiot, Cristina Yang." Teddy chuckled.

"Can we go back to the part where you said you love me?" Cristina mumbled.

"You're an idiot, Cristina Yang. But you're my idiot – and I love you." Teddy hummed, capturing Cristina's lips in a soft kiss.

"I lied." Cristina whispered once they parted, their breath mingling as they held each other close.

"How so?" Teddy frowned.

"I could never stop loving you."