𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐇𝐎𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐗 ━━ 𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐤 𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐝

sixty eight | boobs

"Aren't you absolutely thrilled to have me as your boss for the day?"

"Thrilled isn't the word I'd use."

Mark Sloan stalks behind me with a gloomy expression on his face as I lead towards the patient room with a bubbly grin.

"At least I'm not Alex, though."

"You're not wrong."

Upon entrance, Mindy Gruberman — whom I assumed to be the patient — shakes my hand and retrieves the actual patient from the bathroom.

Her 13-year-old son, Seth.

Mark and Arizona discuss the case outside of the patient room as I conduct a brief exam of his. . .breast tissue.

Afterwards, Cristina and I join Meredith in one of the skills labs as she competes with Jackson for a brain shunt insertion surgery.

Beep, beep.

"Shouldn't you answer that?"

"It's fine. Continue."

"Is Teddy saying that they could fire you?"

"Sounded like it."

"Well, is she trying to scare you? Is it working?"

"I don't think so."

In the background, Jackson curses under his breath, tossing yet another destroyed egg into the adjacent trash bin.

My right extends to her with a mini oreo as a peace offering. "The piece of advice I can give is. . .to get through the day."

"But —"

And to make matters worse, my pager rings.

"Meredith, you're on advising duty. I've got a kid with gynecomastia."

"Leven —"

"Coffee on the first floor cart closest to the elevators after our shifts."

Before I can even draw out the incision lines, Mrs. Gruberman jumps in and stops me. After arguing with her son for a few minutes, she steps out of the room to enlist his father's help.

"They call me Booby at school. Man Boobs. Double D. Some kid keeps hanging a bra on my locker."

Seth tugs the ends of his hospital gown to cover his upper body.

"I'm starting high school in a year. It's gonna be all new people. I just wanna start over. I wanna be normal. . .like everyone else."

I flash a smile of understanding and determination.

"Don't worry. I'll talk to your mom."

But before the door can even fully shut behind me, Mark tugs me to the front desk.

"Phoenix." He calls over to him and Arizona. "Seth's mother just came by saying she wants to pull the plug on the kid's procedure. Is that your idea of taking point?"

"What —"

"I spent two hours consulting with this family last month. Ten minutes with you, and they're ready to walk."

"And I'm gonna talk to her."

"Pediatric surgery's eighty percent parent management. I expected you to know that, Leven."

I gently place the patient folder back on the desk before confronting the two.

Beep, beep.

My cell rings again, but I merely silence it.

"I'm handling it, alright?" My brows lift in exasperation. "Go get a coffee or a bagel. Talk about ye of little faith."

". . .did she just quote the Bible?"

"I did. Now, don't you two have some presentations to prepare for?"

As expected, I find Mrs. Gruberman in the pediatrics waiting area with frazzled hair and cellphone clutched in hand. But when I attempt to ease her worries, she refuses to listen to me and insists on talking to Mark and Arizona.

But then, a surge of confidence sends me back to her.

"Thirteen's pretty early for plastic surgery. But seeing as he's already gone through puberty, he's not gonna grow out of it. And you mentioned your husband having the same condition throughout his entire life."

She clicks her tongue against her teeth, but I'm not finished.

"Your kid doesn't have a weight problem, otherwise we'd have suggested diet and exercise earlier on. He's got breasts, and he needs the glandular tissue excised."

Mark and Arizona glance up at me.

"Sure, it could wait. But your son's about to go through the most brutal four years of his life — high school. And I don't think he should have to subdue the psychological damage that comes from years of torment and bullying."

Her gaze shifts to her lap.

"If you want your kid to be a man, let him make his own decisions."

The two attendings silently nod their heads in approval, grins cracking across their mouths.

"Any more questions, Mrs. Gruberman?"

To my surprise, Mark and Arizona stand towards the back in the O.R., eyes cautiously watching my every move. But other than that, I perform the surgery unsupervised.

"Alright, Phoenix, you got this. And if you don't. . .we're right here."

"You're like the parents I wish I never had growing up."

My hands extend on either side of me.

"Sorry for the cheesiness, but I'll be quoting my husband this afternoon: it's a beautiful day to save lives." A smile forms behind the mask. "Ten blade."

The medical device is handed to me, and I make the first cut.

Back in the recovery room, I check on Seth's sutures before jotting down his current vitals.

"They're gone?" He looks up at me tiredly.

"Just about. There's some swelling, which is completely normal. It should go down with some time."

He glances down at his chest and beams lightly. "I don't have boobs. . .I don't have boobs?"

"Congratulations, Seth." I confirm with a nod. "You don't have boobs."

Mrs. Gruberman sobs beside me, unable to stop since Seth exited the O.R..

"Mom?"

Quickly, I step aside and give her more room to be with her son. "She was just a little scared, as any mother would be. But she's just happy you're okay."

"You're the man."

"No, you're the man."

He lifts his fisted hand, and I give him a fist bump. Mrs. Gruberman embraces me ever so tightly in contrast to the cold exterior she'd given hours earlier.

"Ready to go home?"

"Absolutely. I had a lot of fun playing attending, and. . ."

Beep, beep.

"Leven?"

"Sorry, I have to get this. My cell's been blowing up with voicemails."

We exit through the hospital doors when I click through the messages filling up my inbox. I click the most recent one and press it to my ear.

"Ms. Phoenix. Your father's condition worsened through the day. We've tried to get a hold of you all day, but we haven't received a call back —"

The cell drops from my palm, jaw unhinging and tears brimming my eyes.

"Leven? Leven, what happened?"

"He's dying, Derek. And I don't think he's gonna make it out of this one."