EYES FORWARD-Maya Bishop

last day on earth

"For you." Meredith announced, setting a rather large bouquet of flowers in front of her sister, the latter who obnoxiously rolled her eyes. Without even glancing at the card sent with the flowers, she knew who had sent the 'gift.'

"All right, who wants them?" Emma stood up to rinse her coffee mug.

Zola raised her hand. "I want them!"

"All yours, kiddo." Emma nicked the card from the bouquet. "Let me just get rid of this first." Just to entertain the idea, Emma opened the card her girlfriend had sent her.

Emma,

I'm truly, genuinely sorry. Please don't shut me out, babe. Call me, or text me, or let me see you. I am begging you. I just need to hear from you.

-Maya

Without giving it a second thought, Emma ripped the card and placed its remains in the trash bin.

"Aunt Emma?"

"What's up, Zola?"

"Are these from your girlfriend? Is she trying to make you less mad at her?"

Emma was taken aback by her niece's knowledge of the situation, not that she'd let it show. "Well, how do you know all that, Miss Zola."

"I heard you telling Uncle Alex the other night." She admitted. It's not like she came up with that out of nowhere. She and Alex had spent a lot of time drinking and talking louder than they should have a few nights prior. "Thanks for the flowers." Zola eagerly grasped at the stems, taking the bouquet elsewhere.

"Okay, so, what's up with the hot firefighter girlfriend?" Meredith questioned, now more eager to figure out what was happening since her eldest daughter was no longer present.

"Maybe not girlfriend." Emma finally admitted, rejoining her three sisters at the table.

"So, what happened?" Amelia questioned. Emma had been avoiding the topic altogether, knowing an interrogation from her sisters would follow the news. But, she'd been running for too long, trying her best to keep her blinders up, her eyes forward. And she was damn right sick of it. So, one by one, Emma recalled the events of the week prior, all leading up to where they were now.

"She did not!" Maggie exclaimed angrily after hearing the story. In many ways, Emma considered Maggie to be the most reasonable sister, meaning she also used her as a moral compass of sorts. So, most importantly, Emma knew that if Maggie was upset, she wasn't overreacting.

"Can I kick her ass?" Amelia eagerly questioned, fed up with the firefighter's behavior.

"No, you may not." Emma declined the proposal. "This is why I didn't tell you guys. I love you all, but you can be a bit overbearing sometimes." She admitted, slinging her purse over her shoulder.

"Where are you going?" Meredith instinctively questioned.

"Case in point." Emma remarked. "I am going to the hospital."

XXX

Emma wasn't proud of what she'd done. No matter how overbearing her sisters could be, she never felt right lying to them. Or, in better wording, diverting the truth. Emma was going to the hospital, yes, but she had to make a pitstop along the way. For as loud as it normally was, Maya and Andy's apartment was unusually quiet. That was because both women were meant to be on shift. Or so Emma thought. The surgeon made her way to the dining room table, picking up previously disregarded patient files that had been left there no more than a few days prior.

"Emma?" A raspy, groggy voice said from the doorway of the kitchen.

"You're supposed to be on shift." Emma pointed out, continuing to neatly place the folders in her bag.