They Saved Me (Grey's Anatomy Fanfiction)

13: Promises and Confidantes

Guys I reached 4k reads! Thank you so much! Also, the book will now continue in the setting of the end of Season 7. Meredith has just brought Zola home for the first time and MerDer are annoyed at each other. Sofia came home recently.

'Listen to me,' Dr Robbins whispered to me as I sat in my hospital bed, still crying with the curtains drawn, 'You are worth everything, okay? They were in the wrong. You have done nothing wrong, Lola, you hear me? It's okay. You've done nothing wrong, at all.'
I nodded shakily.
'Sorry.'
'For what?' She cocked her head to the left and stared at me.
'Crying. You're not going to hit me are you, Dr Robbins?'
'No, of course not. And it's Arizona, sweetie. Okay?'
I sniffed and nodded. 'I'm just so scared. But... I think I feel safer here.'
She smiled. 'Come on. I'll give you your meds myself, I know you don't like your nurse.'
'He scares me.'
'Gideon's lovely. Now come on, let's get to your last CT. You'll be fine, Lola, I promise.'
'People never keep promises.' I said.
'What?' She turned, and I flinched.
'Promises. People never keep promises.'
She gave me that sad smile and pushed me down the corridor in my chair.

Back in the ward after my scan, Dr Grey-Shepherd was giving Ivanna, a sixteen year old Ukranian cancer patient, her meds, but as soon as she'd finished and checked her vitals, she came over to me. She seemed to have decided to take me under her wing, and I was kind of glad. It was nice to start to trust some of the doctors, although obviously I wasn't going to get too comfortable yet. But Dr Grey-Shepherd ('Call me Meredith, you'll be here a while') was nice, and she understood what it was like to feel alone much better than any of the other doctors.
'Hey, Lola,' she said, perching on the end of the bed, 'I'm taking you up for your blood test in ten, and I've got gossip. Basically, I married the hottest idiot ever and he doesn't know there's a baby in our house. See you in a minute.'
I smiled and she whizzed off to poke some old guys butt or squeeze a baby's heart or whatever she did all day.

I sat back in my bed. Hope had left the previous morning, and I missed her so much. She was going to come in every day to see Jackson, her gorgeous and unfortunately blind brother, and she'd promised to have a chat with me whilst her family (she must have the biggest extended family ever, there's always at least three new people I've never seen before around Jackson's bed) sighed and cried over her brother.

I asked a nice nurse, who's name was Olivia, to wheel me over so I could speak to him. Visiting hours were from 9-11 and then 12-3 at Seattle Grace Mercy West, and outside of those hours we were alone, so I'd been to speak to him for a minute a couple of times a day for the past week or so, whenever Hope wasn't there. He hadn't said more than a 'yes' or 'it hurts' to a soul since his accident, and he was clearly a little brain damaged outside of his sight loss as he was always very confused and his words often slurred slightly. I'd hurt the doctors talk about him becoming less mobile and becoming slowly paralysed, but I was pretty sure they hadn't told him or his family yet, and I certainly wouldn't discuss it with Hope, who was upset enough already.

'Hi, Jackson,' I said, sitting next to his head in my chair, 'It's Lola. Just wanted to say hi.'
'H-h-hey.'
'You alright?'
He nodded very slowly.
'Good. Is there anything you want me to tell the nurses? I know you don't want to talk to them, but I can tell them if you want.'
He shook his head. 'Th-f-f-th-thank-s-s.'
'That's cool. If you ever need me to, just say, and I'll tell them.'
He did a tiny smile and I immediately felt pleased. I knew it would help, just this few minutes of me talking and reassuring him each day. His family just moaned at each other and acted as if he couldn't hear them most of the time, so in my head it helped him feel like he had someone who just wanted a chat and a smile (even though he couldn't see it).
'I had my final CT today,' I said, 'My head's totally fine now, they're just looking for excuses to keep me here free so I don't go back to Karin and Derek. The chief wants me to stay here until I have a home. And apparently he's a cheapskate, real tight with money on stuff he thinks is unnecessary, so he must feel pretty strongly about it. Don't know why. And Dr Grey-Shepherd says she has gossip for me, which is probably the most exciting thing I'll have today. Isn't this hospital so boring?'
He smiled very slightly again and I was once again filled with pride. 'Anyway, here she is,' I said as Dr Grey-Shepherd came in to take me to my blood test, 'So I'll see if I can talk to you later, if not, tomorrow. See you!'
He nodded. 'B-bye, Lo-looooooola,' he slurred quietly, and I swelled with pride that he said my name. I wanted him to get better, mainly because Hope was devastated over his illness and scared to death he wouldn't get better or start talking again. I didn't tell her he spoke to me more, as that would have made her feel inadequate in a way I think, and she already felt bad enough.
Dr Grey-Shepherd said a quick 'Hi, it's Dr Grey, I'm taking Lola for her blood test now. Come on, Lola,' and pushed me down the hall and into an elevator.
'Whoa, Lola,' she said, exhaustedly, 'I have so much stuff to tell you, my little confidante. Dr Yang's got too much on her mind, and I have a secret baby at home and a pissed off husband.'
I grinned as the lift doors closed. 'Start talking.'