Code Blue | Grey's Anatomy // Book 2 // COMPLETED

66 | Decide

Once we had gotten the lactate again for Webber we entered Meredith's room. Both her and Callie, who was holding baby Bailey, looked up at us. "Lactate's nine." Owen held up the paper.

Meredith looked at Bailey and nodded, "Go."

Without hesitation Owen, Bailey, and I took off, leaving Cristina behind for a few seconds.

Bailey, Owen, and I shared a look as we stood across from one another in the E.R. Owen and me on the right, Bailey on the left. "10 blade." Bailey spoke softly, scared even though she knew this was the right decision. Slowly, she reached down and made the cut.

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"Bowels are completely clean," Bailey announced.

I looked up and adjusted my neck which was starting to ache, "Should we recheck the pelvis?"

"I have. Four times." Bailey told me as she stared down at the cavity.

"What the hell do you think you're doing-" a voice rang out over the intercom. Looking up, it was Jackson's mother. I had forgotten that Webber and her had a special relationship, but I didn't think she'd come all the way down here. "Cutting open a man in cardiogenic shock with nothing on his C.T.?" Catherine yelled down at us as she glared through the large glass window of the gallery.

"There's dead tissue somewhere inside him." Bailey called up to her, "I'd like to find it before it kills him."

Catherine furrowed her brows, "He can't handle this stress until his cardiac status is stabilized! Get him off that table!"

"Lap pad, please." Bailey turned to the scrub nurse, ignoring Catherine because she was acting like a family member.

"Dr. Hunt!" Catherine ordered.

Owen turned his head slightly, "Dr. Avery, I'm gonna have to ask you to keep it down while we're doing our work."

Just then the monitor started to beep erratically. "Huh, there's a surprise for you." I heard Catherine say.

"Pressure's dropping." I gave my arms a quick stretch, ready to get back to work.

"Is his dopamine maxed out?" Owen asked.

The anesthesiologist turned to check what we had injected. "Yeah, it's at twenty."

"Close the patient!" Catherine screamed.

I took a deep breath and tried to stay calm, "I really wish you could turn off the intercom from in here."

"Come on." Bailey stared down at Webber's body, "Where are you?"

"Dr. Hunt!" Shane camr running through the door, "Brooks is crashing."

Owen sighed, "Bailey, he's having runs of v-tach."

"Close...him...up!" Catherine's voice was muffled as she was no longer using the intercom and just screaming through the glass.

Bailey looked up at us, "Closing."

"Can you get by without me?" Owen asked.

"I have Forrest. Just go." Bailey nodded.

I stepped into Owen's place as he took off, "You underestimate my skill, Dr. Hunt!"

Once we got out of surgery, the news was broken to me that Heather had died in surgery. Sometimes you forget that doctors are people, too; and that they can die just as easily as anyone else.

"You can't scream at my doctors when there is an open body on the table." Owen tried to stay calm as we talked to Catherine.

"I can't believe you let her talk you into a boondoggle like that." Catherine retorted.

Owen sighed, "Dr. Avery, if you have any issues with-"

"Does he know why you cut open a man in sever cardiac distress just so you could poke around and see what's going on?" Catherine walked past us as Bailey entered the area we were in.

"We looked at all of the options." I tried to explain.

"Tell him." Catherine glared at Bailey, "You tell him you feel guilty because the last thing Richard Webber heard from you is that he's a drunk who ruined your life. After all he's done for you. We talk on the phone for an hour every night. It came up. You feel bad, go find a priest. But do not try to fix it with a hail Mary that very well may kill the man!"

Bailey just pushed past Catherine and walked off. "I want access to his charts...right now," Catherine demanded.


A doctor puts on his white coat to save lives, defy death, but once he takes it off, he's vulnerable, just like anybody else. Human. We're all gonna die. We don't get much say over how or when. But we do get to decide how we're gonna live. So do it. Decide. Is this the life you want to live? Is this the person you want to love? Is this the best you can be? Can you be stronger? Kinder? More compassionate? Decide. Breathe in. Breathe out. And decide.