𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄 ━ derek shepherd

010. ━ chance blown

season three // episodes eleven and twelve
[ chance blown ]

𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐘 𝐇𝐔𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐃 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐋, several sheets of paper threatening to spill out of her hands when she felt herself collide with another human being.

"Oh, I have got to look where I'm going," she mumbled as the papers fell to the floor. She looked up. "Oh... sorry, Derek."

He chuckled softly. "It's okay," he replied, bending down to help her pick up the papers. "I was practically begging for somebody to run into me. Everything alright? You look stressed."

"It's nothing new," she said with a shrug. "And you need a question to ask me. 'Everything alright?' is getting old." Derek held out an envelope to her and she shook her head. "Actually, that's for you." He raised his eyebrows. "Ana wanted to say thank you for the burgers, so she made you a card. And made me promise that it would go into your hands and yours only."

Derek smiled. "Well, you'll have to thank her for me."

Abby nodded. "She's taken a liking to you, Derek," she told him. "Which is a step in the right direction. Especially after..." She shook her head. "Forget I said that." She glanced down at the files in her hand. "I have a patient. Or... a consult. Burke. I have Burke... I gotta go."

"Um—" Abby quickly walked away and Derek scratched the back of his neck in confusion. "—okay?"

What just happened?

He looked down at the card he was holding and smiled softly before continuing on his rounds.

Abby, meanwhile, was putting on her coat about to walk into Burke's room only for Cristina to close the door before she could enter. "Uh, hello?"

Cristina cleared her throat. "Uh, Dr. Thompson, has Dr. Burke... his hand, has he had any tremors?"

"That's confidential, Yang," Abby replied, going to open the door.

"Uh, but I'm—I'm one of his doctors," she said, stopping the neurosurgeon once more.

The attending sighed. "You're also his girlfriend," she contradicted, shaking her head. "And if Burke hasn't told you anything... it's not my place to. So, I'm sorry, but if you want to know, you have to ask him yourself." She brushed past the intern and opened the door with a smile. "Good morning, everybody. Who's presenting today?"

"Preston Burke, post-op day one from I and D of a compressive hematoma to the brachial plexus," Alex recited while Abby crossed her arms. "He is afebrile and vital signs were stable overnight. Incisions are clean with no signs of infection. Last morphine was given at two o'clock this morning."

Abby nodded. "Excellent, Karev."

"Ask about the hand," Cristina said to Meredith, trying to be discreet but everybody looked over at her while the blonde intern shook her head.