You Promised | Mark Sloan ✓

04┃xmas and new year

S2 EP12

CHRISTMAS IS A HOLIDAY that Norah used to look forward to, but not anymore, even if it meant extra surgeries available thanks to unusually high rates of accidents that occur around holidays.

The hospital was decorated with small Christmas trees every here and there, some green with ornaments and some created from blue and white surgical gloves.

The six interns were in a patient's room with Bailey and Derek. Tim Epstein, the patient, had his wife and all children in the room with him-there was literally a whole chaos going on inside.

"I was stringing Hannumas lights, and a shingle came loose," Mr Epstein explained; his children climbed on top of him, placing rubber lizards all over his hospital gown.

And that was what Norah disliked the most about Christmas. Kids.

"He fell twelve feet," Mrs Epstein informed.

"The good news is, my head broke my fall."

Derek nodded, and one of Mr Epstein's daughters flicked a rubber lizard towards his direction, which collided with his face. Norah had to bite the insides of her lips to hold back a burst of laughter, which got noticed by the attending. Okay, maybe kids are not too bad.

"Uh, there are no visible deformities, but he's definitely having some focal left arm weakness."

"He'll probably be fine," Mrs Epstein spoke, "He's always been a little hard-headed." Mr Epstein chuckled at his wife's words but quickly winced in pain.

"Does your head hurt when you laugh?" Derek asked, walking to the side of his bed.

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Follow my finger with your eyes, please?"

Mr Epstein's son jumped onto the bed in front of the interns and sat up in front of Bailey. "I know karate," he said proudly with a cheeky grin on his face.

"Dr Bailey has motherly attractions," Norah whispered to George beside her, who laughed softly. The two received a hard glare from the pregnant resident, and their smiles fell instantly. "I'll shut up now."

Bailey frowned at the madness in the patient's room. "You know what? Your husband might need a little quiet," she suggested, walking towards Mrs Epstein, "so there's a cafeteria right down..."

"No, no, let 'em stay," Mr Epstein interrupted. "Pain or no, I don't want to miss out on the holidays with my kids."

"Dr Lawrence," Derek called, "Would you take Mr Epstein down for a CT?"

Norah nodded while she made her way across the room, ducking through the children's toys getting thrown from one end to another. One of the rubber lizards hit her eye. "Ow, f-"

Yeah, no. Kids are not fun at all.

❦ ❦ ❦

NORAH SAT ON THE chair in the CT room, swirling in circles while she waited for the scans to come up. The door opened, and George entered the room. "My patient's... family, is loud, and I mean, loud." He closed the door behind him and leaned against the wall. "I feel like my eardrums are about to burst."

"The Epsteins have three kids, George. Three," Norah sighed. "They have rubber lizards attacking my face."

"Mine are adults, but they're so, too loud... like, baby adults. I should throw them out."

"Children and toys! Those two combinations are violent!"

They stared at each other for a moment before letting out long sighs.